Chapter 58: Three Thousand Fire Decrees

With Ling Xi and the other putting away the Cauldron of All Beings, the lightning in the sky subsided, and bursts of laughter mingled with the yellow sand.

The barren desert before their eyes quickly vanished, and everyone found themselves once again in the stone-slab basement.

Song Mingyi sat upright behind the desk, a benevolent smile in his eyes as his gaze swept across the disciples.

"Having been through such an experience, what have you gained?"

Ling Xi hurriedly checked her ring, and only after seeing that the flower-like thing was still there did she let out a sigh of relief.

It was fortunate that the items inside the small world were real.

Prompted by Song Mingyi's question, the disciples below began talking all at once, most of their answers boiling down to the importance of unity.

Song Mingyi nodded with a smile, finally shifting his gaze to Ling Xi. "Little girl, what do you think?"

"Unity is strength," Ling Xi replied perfunctorily.

"Is that your true thought?!"

"If I speak my mind, Senior, will you let me go?"

"Let's hear it."

"Having a goal gives you the drive to fight and strive."

Song Mingyi nodded. "Nothing wrong with that; your ideological awareness is very high. At such a young age, you already possess grand ambitions and a heart dedicated to the common people."

Ling Xi did not respond further, leaving him to imagine the rest on his own.

In truth, her goal was to obtain the legacy of the man with the little mustache.

Through this battle, she understood the importance of strength all the more.

The wound on her palm throbbed faintly; had she not been strong enough, she wouldn't have needed to use her blood as a catalyst to draw the runes.

To put it bluntly.

She was still a novice.

Song Mingyi spoke eloquently, taking the opportunity to praise the disciples once more.

Ling Xi always grew sleepy whenever a lecture started, so she once again retreated into exploring the orchard.

She walked along the whitened concrete path, seeing not a single fruit except for the "Calabash Brothers" at the very end.

Beneath the towering fruit tree, a small wooden house built in the style of stilted buildings stood with a large cluster of blood-red equinox flowers planted in front of it.

Jiang Ziwen sat on the balcony drinking tea. Seeing Ling Xi arrive, a clear light flashed visibly in his eyes, yet he did not invite her up, turning his head away instead.

Ling Xi didn't mind much. She climbed the stairs, plopped down into the chair opposite Jiang Ziwen, and poured herself a cup of tea unceremoniously.

Seeing her come up, the young general merely stole glances at her from the corner of his eye, pretending to care not at all.

"The tea is good, and the house is quite pretty," Ling Xi praised without hesitation.

Jiang Ziwen let out a "hmpf." "You only came this time just to say that."

Ling Xi sensed he was a bit displeased, though she couldn't figure out why—she had already showered him with flattery.

Jiang Ziwen glanced at her. "I knew it. You didn't come specifically to see me."

Ling Xi: "..."

No, she could monitor the situation inside the orchard at any time; she'd have to be crazy to make a special trip just to see him.

Who would have thought that the renowned King of Hell was a tsundere and a petty-minded person prone to holding grudges?

Eyeing the progress bar of 55 above Jiang Ziwen's head, Ling Xi ultimately said, "I really did come specifically to see you, and by the way, ask a few questions."

Jiang Ziwen's expression improved noticeably, and his gaze signaled for Ling Xi to ask.

|"Can you gods see something different with your eyes? Look at my Master..."

Ling Xi paused appropriately, looking at Jiang Ziwen with bright, sparkling eyes in an attempt to get an answer from him.

Regrettably, Jiang Ziwen shook his head. "I can't see through him. Anyway, he is no simple person. You'd better watch out yourself; if you end up being cheated of every last copper coin, don't expect me to care."

A flash of disappointment crossed the depths of Ling Xi's eyes. It seemed the issue of hearing inner voices could not be resolved.

Ling Xi asked about that cauldron again, and the other party only told her it was a fine tool for alchemy and warned her not to touch the fire inside casually.

Hearing his evasiveness, Ling Xi stopped asking further and simply drank tea to pass the time; she had no desire to go outside and swallow toxic motivational speeches.

"Jiang Ziwen, come out and fight me! What are you cowering in the house for? You couldn't possibly be hiding a beauty in your golden house, could you?"

The boisterous shouting from outside instantly captured Ling Xi's attention.

Ling Xi put down her teacup, walked to the railing, and looked down.

The youth wore a golden crown binding his red hair, a crimson-sunset-colored robe, a long string of white jade hanging from his waist, and a golden sword cradled in the crook of his arm.

Seeing Ling Xi, his gaze paused slightly before he immediately reacted. "You mustn't favor him just because he came first!

I refuse to believe he's stronger than me. For thousands of years we never got the chance to fight a match, and now I've finally found the opportunity.

Even you can't stop me!"

Ling Xi looked at the label above his head and fell into silence.

[Name: Haokong Weichun]
[Age: Unknown]
[Identity: One of the Nine Luminaries, the Fire Virtue Star Sovereign, primarily in charge of fire, birds, and sparrows.]
[Recovery Level: 5%]

Recalling the bushy bright red beard in Journey to the West, Ling Xi fell into deep contemplation.

[Extraction conditions met. Would you like to extract a divine technique?]

Of course she would extract it; was she going to save it for the New Year?!

A slight thought moved in Ling Xi's mind, and a fiery red roulette wheel flew into her hand. The silver needle spun rapidly and finally stopped on [Three Thousand Fire Commands].

[Three Thousand Fire Commands: Summon flames, temper the physique]

Looking at the unpretentious name of the spell, Ling Xi glanced at Haokong Weichun again, feeling that he and her third senior brother would definitely have plenty in common to talk about.

She wondered how on earth he had cultivated enough to ascend.

Having completed the extraction, Ling Xi flattered Haokong Weichun a couple of times. While that fellow was floating on air, she deftly slipped out of the orchard, leaving the two of them to beat each other up.

What a joke—two great deities were not people she could afford to provoke, but she could at least afford to stay out of their way.

"Ling Xi! Come and demonstrate the first form of the Dingkun Sword Technique for everyone."

Song Mingyi walked around to Ling Xi's front and motioned for her to stand up.

Ling Xi didn't move for a long time.

He called out a few more times, the smile on his face growing even more radiant.

When Ling Xi finally opened her eyes, she only saw a face thrust right in front of hers, wearing a smile that didn't reach his eyes, filled with expectation in the depths of his gaze.

"Hurry up and stand up. He is an ancestor of our sect, surnamed Song. He wants you to demonstrate the first form of the Dingkun Sword Technique."

Sui An, who rarely paid attention during lectures, concisely explained the situation to Ling Xi in private.

Ling Xi cast a grateful look at him, sprang up in one fluid motion, picked up the wooden sword from the rack nearby, and began to practice.

Recalling the appearance of Chu Xinghe executing his sword strikes in her mind, she gripped the wooden sword and began to imitate.

To make sure this ancestor could see clearly, she even deliberately slowed down her movements.

Unexpectedly, Song Mingyi's brows knitted tightly together, almost twisting into a hemp rope.

He had seen her movements when she broke through the barrier earlier; they were passable at best, but now they looked like nothing more than flashy empty forms.

He even began to wonder if his own old eyes were failing him.

Noticing the change in Song Mingyi's expression, Ling Xi stopped immediately and asked him for guidance with utmost sincerity, "Old Ancestor, is there something wrong with my form?"

Song Mingyi plucked a strand of his beard and asked with a heartbroken expression, "Is this how people in the sect teach you—just practicing forms by rote one-on-one?"

"Otherwise?" Ling Xi blurted out.

She certainly couldn't be expected to innovate and create new techniques.

Song Mingyi sighed. "Forget it. Do as I say, and spar with me after you've practiced.

If you can last three moves under my hands, I'll let you leave. If you can't even last that long, don't even think about going out, lest you bring disgrace upon our Dingkun Sect."