Chapter 368 Yin Jingxing’s Ambition

When Ji Ya saw Yin Jingxing’s gaze freeze in place, he subconsciously turned around to look, thinking his alchemy furnace was about to explode.

Yet he saw no problem.

He looked back toward Yin Jingxing, only to discover that Yin Jingxing was already walking toward his room.

“Did this kid suffer a blow?”

Ji Ya looked at Yin Jingxing’s back while worrying inwardly.

The current Yin Jingxing always reminded him of the Yuan Li from years ago.

In truth, the environment Yin Jingxing lived in was far better than Yuan Li’s had been. At the very least, Ji Ya had never heard anyone speaking ill of Yin Jingxing.

Everyone believed Yin Jingxing would sooner or later rise to prominence. He was merely waiting for an opportunity.

Moreover, Yin Jingxing was still very young, so nobody expected him to stand out already.

Ji Ya shook his head, feeling there was no need to worry about Yin Jingxing. The boy merely could not overcome the hurdle in his own heart.

Before obtaining supreme talent, being able to temper one’s temperament first was also a good thing.

Compared to Yin Jingxing, Ji Ya cared more about his own cultivation. Ever since the war against the Myriad Yin Sect ended, he had continuously been researching his physique. He felt his Vital Energy had not yet reached its limit, and he wanted to try enhancing his body strength with medicinal pills, thereby strengthening his Vital Energy further.

Ji Ya did not want to remain suppressed beneath Xu Ning, Yuan Li, and Zhao Zhen forever.

Moreover, Hu Yan’s momentum was also fierce. His Vast Righteous Qi had grown increasingly stronger and had already reached a level that made Ji Ya alarmed.

Ji Ya’s mentality was also the mentality shared by many Clear Sky Sect disciples.

Even without elders urging them, they still wished to strive to become stronger and become glorious figures.

……

Midsummer arrived, and time reached mid-July.

The Sword Demon and Shen Yue returned with Lin Lingzhou.

The return of the three was anything but low-profile. They walked upward from the foot of Clear Sky Mountain, allowing more and more people to learn that the two had rescued the Sect Master’s junior brother from Ziyang Island.

Along the way, they received endless admiration.

The disciples lining the path all looked at them excitedly and fervently.

The Sword Demon remained expressionless as always, cold and aloof. However, his handsome appearance and white hair caused many female disciples to focus their gazes upon him.

Meanwhile, Shen Yue maintained the bearing of a grandmaster, smiling calmly and occasionally nodding toward familiar disciples.

Lin Lingzhou walked at the very back, utterly unable to remain composed. He only felt embarrassed, wishing he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

Yet whenever he recalled the appearances of the Sword Demon and Shen Yue upon Ziyang Island, he could not help but feel shocked.

Those two were simply too powerful!

They had actually suppressed the entirety of Ziyang Island. Even after Ziyang Island revived that ancestor, the man still could not withstand the Sword Demon.

Destroying everything in their path, unstoppable!

That was Lin Lingzhou’s impression of that battle.

It had practically been a one-sided massacre!

None of the things he worried about had happened, and all the intelligence he gathered had proven meaningless.

Even after returning to the Clear Sky Sect, he still felt somewhat dazed.

Just how powerful was the Clear Sky Sect?

Walking ahead, Shen Yue’s emotions were actually equally complicated.

This journey had allowed him to witness the Sword Demon’s power firsthand.

Back then, when he personally faced the Sword Demon, he had possessed no ability to resist. Yet watching the Sword Demon fight from the perspective of an observer allowed him to feel even more clearly how terrifying the Sword Demon truly was.

Even that ancestor of Ziyang Island could not withstand a single sword strike from him.

Shen Yue felt the entire situation was absurd.

How had such a powerful existence been subdued by the Sect Master?

His intuition told him that the process of the Sword Demon joining the Clear Sky Sect was probably similar to his own, and this made despair rise within Shen Yue’s heart.

How could he ever catch up to Li Qingqiu?

Although he was now wholeheartedly loyal to Li Qingqiu and the Clear Sky Sect, he had always maintained the goal of challenging Li Qingqiu in his heart.

Before the three even reached Lingxiao Courtyard, news of their return had already spread.

Yin Jingxing exited the academy alongside a group of youths, and he also heard the other disciples discussing the matter regarding Shen Yue and the others.

A smile appeared on his face.

Lin Lingzhou’s capture had worried him for a long time. Fortunately, nothing happened.

“Senior Shen is truly amazing. He can do anything.”

Yin Jingxing sighed inwardly.

He had always felt Shen Yue was incredible, after all, it was Shen Yue who rescued him from the Myriad Yin Sect’s demonic cave.

However, after hearing that Shen Yue and a mysterious senior had joined forces to sweep through Ziyang Island and force it into begging for mercy, he could not help but feel shocked.

During the past two months, all kinds of information regarding Ziyang Island had spread throughout the sect. The common understanding was that Ziyang Island’s strength was not inferior to the Myriad Yin Sect.

Yet Shen Yue and that mysterious senior had suppressed Ziyang Island with merely the strength of two people.

How powerful was that?

Yin Jingxing felt incomparably envious.

Ever since learning of the existence of immortal cultivation, Yin Jingxing’s ambition had continuously grown.

Especially after arriving at the Clear Sky Sect, where countless disciples praised him, saying he would definitely become the champion of the Dao Combat Tournament in the future and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Senior Brother Yuan Li—

His ambition had grown even faster.

Regardless of whether others were sincere or not, he simply wanted to become stronger.

Stronger than everyone else.

As he listened to the surrounding disciples excitedly discussing Shen Yue’s achievements, the fire within Yin Jingxing’s heart burned increasingly fiercely.

Master told him not to rush.

The fellow disciples all said he would certainly become a genius after growing up.

Growing up?

How many years would that take?

Ten years? Or twenty?

Yin Jingxing, who would soon turn seven this year, could no longer wait.

There were all kinds of geniuses within the sect. He had already heard countless stories.

He did not want to wait.

He did not want to walk someone else’s path.

Yin Jingxing clenched his fists within his sleeves. Without saying a word, he quietly left the crowd and hurried toward another direction.

One incense stick’s time later—

Yin Jingxing arrived before the gates of the Cultivation Hall.

He took a deep breath before stepping inside.

He had already visited many times before, so the disciples guarding the gate recognized him and warmly greeted him one after another.

He had never acted arrogantly by relying upon his identity as the Sect Master’s disciple. He chatted with the two gatekeeping disciples for a few moments before entering the courtyard.

The Cultivation Hall controlled the sect’s medicinal pills, so countless disciples came and went constantly in an endless stream.

“Why did you come here?”

Xu Ning suddenly blocked Yin Jingxing’s path and frowned while asking.

Yin Jingxing looked up and discovered it was Eldest Senior Sister, immediately becoming somewhat nervous.

Toward this Eldest Senior Sister who always wore a cold face, he had always felt fear in his heart.

He hurriedly replied, “I came to play with a senior brother.”

Xu Ning stared at him, making him not dare meet her eyes.

Several breaths of time passed before she finally brushed past him, leaving behind only a single sentence.

“Playing is fine, but don’t end up like your Martial Uncle Lin and get kidnapped.”

Yin Jingxing could not help turning around to look. Seeing Xu Ning’s figure disappear into the crowd, a thought suddenly emerged within his heart.

Perhaps Eldest Senior Sister was cold on the outside but warm on the inside?

Was what she said just now actually concern for him?

Still very young, Yin Jingxing could not be certain. He turned around and continued forward, his footsteps growing increasingly faster.

Passing through one crowded courtyard after another and winding corridors one after another, he arrived within a quiet courtyard.

He quickly entered the main hall of a pavilion, where a wave of heat immediately rushed toward him.

A massive great cauldron stood within the hall, enormous in size, making Chen Huilan standing beside it appear small by comparison.

Dressed in green robes, Chen Huilan had already shed her youthful immaturity. Although her appearance still remained that of a woman in her early twenties, she now carried a composed and dignified aura.

As the deputy hall master of the Cultivation Hall, she controlled the sect’s medicinal pill management authority. Even the various great clans dared not offend her.

Chen Huilan turned her head upon noticing him and smiled.

“Little Jingxing, why have you come again? I already told you that you’re still too young to learn the art of alchemy. You can first memorize the pill manuals I gave you. They’ll be useful in the future.”

Yin Jingxing walked beside the great cauldron and looked at the blazing flames beneath it with curiosity.

“Senior Chen, can this flame truly not be extinguished with water?”

Chen Huilan smiled and replied, “Naturally. This is not ordinary fire. It is the Five Elements Profound Heart Flame personally passed down to me by the Sect Master. It possesses the attributes of the Five Elements and requires special methods to disperse.”

Yin Jingxing let out a sound of amazement before raising his head toward the cauldron itself.

“Does the pill furnace also contain fire? Why is it so hot? Even without touching it, my face already feels burning.”

“Of course. This cauldron is a magical artifact. The internal space is vast and contains an entire sea of fire, all made of the Five Elements Profound Heart Flame. If a living person fell inside, they would turn to ashes within an extremely short amount of time. So stay farther away and don’t hurt yourself.”

Chen Huilan answered before adding a warning.

She believed Yin Jingxing would not do something foolish. She merely wanted to scare him a little so he would stop running over here all the time.

In truth, Yin Jingxing liking the Cultivation Hall was a good thing for the Cultivation Hall.

Especially since Yin Jingxing was the Sect Master’s disciple personally brought back after Shen Yue and Jiang Zhaoxia endured years of hardship. His future status would definitely be extremely high.

If he became close to the Cultivation Hall, he would certainly help them in the future.

This was also the reason Chen Huilan tacitly allowed Yin Jingxing to visit whenever he wished.

“So terrifying… then I really should be careful. Senior Chen, don’t worry, I’m only looking around. I’m just too curious about immortal cultivation, especially the art of alchemy.”

Yin Jingxing nodded obediently.

Chen Huilan began encouraging him. She had also heard that Yin Jingxing’s cultivation progress was poor, but like everyone else, she still chose to trust Li Qingqiu’s judgment.

The two chatted for quite a while, yet Yin Jingxing still refused to leave. He said he wanted to wait until the cauldron lid opened because he wished to witness the moment medicinal pills emerged from the furnace.

Even when Chen Huilan told him it would take an entire day and night, he still insisted on waiting.

She could only indulge him.

Half an hour later, Chen Huilan suddenly said, “I have something else to handle. Don’t touch anything inside the hall. I’ll have other disciples come watch over this place shortly.”

“Understood, Senior Chen.”

Yin Jingxing nodded obediently.

That obedient and sensible appearance made Chen Huilan unable to resist rubbing his head.

Immediately afterward, she turned and departed.

Yin Jingxing watched her leave the courtyard.

Then he instantly leapt upward and kicked the cauldron lid away.

He had followed Li Qingqiu in cultivating the Heavenly Gang Golden Body Technique for an entire year already. He still possessed this much strength.

Just after leaving the courtyard, Chen Huilan heard the commotion and subconsciously stopped walking.

She frowned.

After hesitating for a moment, she quickly rushed back toward her alchemy hall.

Her speed was extremely fast.

Yet by the time she arrived before the main hall, Yin Jingxing’s figure had already disappeared from sight.

She saw the cauldron lid lying upon the ground, while thick smoke continuously billowed out from the cauldron opening.

Suddenly, she saw a torn piece of cloth drift outward.

Her pupils abruptly contracted.

She hurriedly arrived before the great cauldron, flew upward, and hovered in the air as she looked inside.

There, she saw Yin Jingxing amidst the endless sea of fire within the cauldron.

At this moment, more than half of Yin Jingxing’s body had already been burned black. His hair and clothes had already turned to ashes.

Yet he raised his head and looked toward her—

And smiled.

At this moment, his smile appeared incomparably horrifying, making Chen Huilan feel as though the heavens had collapsed, while everything before her eyes began shaking violently.

Only one thought remained in her mind.

It’s over!

She killed the Sect Master’s little disciple!