ALL NOVEL Chapter 12 – Exchange of martial arts techniques
The competition ended, and the Grand Elder arrived on his sword.
He glanced at the disciples, noticing that more than half were missing compared to the start. Most of the absent disciples had been robbed of their resources and were too injured to continue, while some, like Li Qiushui, had withdrawn midway.
"I declare the Demon Beast Hunting Competition over!"
The Grand Elder's voice boomed like a bell as he continued, "Each team, send a representative to hand over your storage bags."
In the crowd, Lin Hao scanned his surroundings and spotted two familiar faces, Chen Yueming and Cui Qing'er.
He hadn't expected these two women to team up. Both were at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining, and although they were few, they handed over a large number of demon cores.
"Chen Yueming, Cui Qing'er, three late-stage first-tier demon cores, and eight hundred and twenty mid-stage ones."
A gasp echoed through the crowd.
"I worked myself to death and didn't even get a hundred demon cores, yet these two fairies are almost at a thousand!"
"Could it be they've been plundering all along?"
"Of course, it's plundering! How else do you think they got them? Just watch, all the demon cores are in the hands of the strong teams!"
"Jiang Mingfei, ten late-stage first-tier demon cores, and a thousand mid-stage ones!"
The crowd was no longer gasping; they were chewing on ice, their teeth chattering from the cold.
"A thousand... a thousand, and ten late-stage first-tier demon cores!"
"That's it, the champion is definitely Jiang Mingfei's. Are we all just competing for second place?"
The cultivators looked despondent.
Jiang Mingfei was quite pleased, thinking like everyone else that he would be the champion!
He was even ready for when the Grand Elder announced the rankings.
But just then, a chubby little boy slapped a storage bag on the table and said with thick lips.
"Count them."
"Fang Yuan, thirty late-stage first-tier demon cores!"
Gasp, hiss!
Everyone was dumbfounded!
How many? Thirty late-stage demon cores!
You must know, according to the rules of this competition, one late-stage demon core is worth a hundred mid-stage ones!
Jiang Mingfei, who was basking in the admiration of his fans, twitched at the corner of his mouth upon hearing the Grand Elder's announcement, casting a resentful glance at the chubby boy.
Who is this guy?
After joining the sect, Lin Hao had been so focused on pursuing immortality that he often secluded himself for intense cultivation, not even recognizing all the fellow disciples on his own peak, let alone those from other peaks.
He truly didn't know this boastful chubby boy, so he pulled someone nearby to ask.
"Brother, you don't know the Generous Boy?"
Generous Boy? Lin Hao was even more puzzled. Is there such a person in the sect?
The person was a chatterbox, spilling the beans like a bamboo tube: "Fang Yuan is a prince from a secular dynasty, with outstanding aptitude for cultivation. Upon entering the sect, he was accepted under the tutelage of the outer sect's Grand Elder and has already secured a spot as a direct disciple.
For him, this competition was just a formality."
"Could it be that the Grand Elder is helping him cheat?"
"Cheat?" The person snorted disdainfully, "This chubby prince is highly valued in our sect, and his father, the emperor, is very fond of him, providing him with cultivation resources from the entire dynasty.
Think about it, with a dynasty backing him, would his cultivation speed be slow?
In just one year, he transformed from a mortal to a ninth-level Qi Refining cultivator."
Lin Hao was secretly shocked. Reaching the ninth level of Qi Refining in a year is incredibly fast. Before he found shortcuts in cultivation, it took him three years to reach the sixth level.
Truly, comparisons can be infuriating!
"So how did he get the name Generous Boy?"
"The name comes from him gifting his magical artifacts to his opponents after losing a spell duel."
Uh... Lin Hao was speechless, thinking to himself that he truly is a Generous Boy.
As the two conversed, the Grand Elder announced the rankings of the Demon Beast Hunting Competition.
As expected, Fang Yuan took first place, Jiang Mingfei took second, followed by Chen Yueming and Cui Qing'er.
Lin Hao secured eighth place, which he was quite dissatisfied with. However, being alone and cautious, breaking into the top five was truly difficult, though others were quite surprised.
"Who is this Lin Hao? Where did he come from?"
"Never heard of him, probably a master who likes to seclude himself."
While receiving her reward, Cui Qing'er involuntarily twitched at the mention of Lin Hao's name, her legs going weak for no reason.
Beside her, Chen Yueming asked with concern, "Qing'er, what's wrong?"
"Nothing... nothing."
"Your face is very red, were you injured during the hunt?"
"No..."
"Oh, that's good."
The two women harbored their own thoughts, but their eyes were searching for the same person.
Compared to the top five, the reward for eighth place was quite meager, just a high-grade magical artifact. If it were a sword, Lin Hao would have kept it for himself, but it turned out to be a spear.
After receiving it, unless he exchanged it with someone else, it was of no use to him.
Fortunately, the sect offered an option to exchange it for contribution points if one didn't want the reward.
A high-grade magical artifact could be exchanged for five hundred contribution points, which was a bit of a loss since buying one with contribution points would cost six hundred!
But Lin Hao didn't plan to exchange it for a magical artifact, as they were only useful during the Qi Refining stage. Once reaching Foundation Establishment, most would use magical treasures, unless it was a supreme magical artifact, which was otherwise useless!
After exchanging for contribution points, Lin Hao didn't linger for a moment, quickly heading to the sect's Scripture Repository.
He already had a target in mind for exchange. Due to his unique physique, he decided to exchange for a dual cultivation technique!
He was curious to see if mastering a dual cultivation technique would enhance his ability to absorb spiritual energy.
The Xuan Yin Sect had three Scripture Repositories. The one in the outer mountain was for outer and inner disciples.
The one on the main peak was only accessible to direct disciples and elders, and there was a highly mysterious armory that only those who had made significant contributions to the sect were allowed to enter.
Lin Hao arrived at the outer mountain's Scripture Repository, where an elder sat with eyes closed, his aura faint, as if half-dead.
But anyone who truly thought the elder was dead and attempted anything untoward would meet a tragic end!
Because not far away, on a thousand-year-old locust tree, hung dozens of human skins, some from the Qi Refining stage, others from the Foundation Establishment stage.
When the wind blew, they rustled, sending chills down one's spine.
"Identity token."
The elder didn't open his mouth, but his voice was exceptionally loud.
It was Lin Hao's first time here, but he was very disciplined, offering his token with both hands.
"The first floor is for outer sect techniques, the second floor for inner sect techniques. You are an outer sect disciple, so you can only go to the first floor. Overstepping will result in death."
Lin Hao's face turned serious as he took back his identity token and entered the Scripture Repository.
Having already decided what to exchange for before coming in, he headed straight for the area with dual cultivation techniques.
The Xuan Yin Sect was a reputable sect, and there weren't many dual cultivation techniques in their collection, mostly spoils obtained from vanquishing rival sects.
"Phoenix Nourishing Technique, Joyful Bliss Technique, Dragon Phoenix Harmonious Meditation..."