Chapter 405 - 372: A Lion’s Big Mouth

Chapter 405: Chapter 372: A Lion’s Big Mouth

"Manor Master Mu Ruo is right. Mu Yun is our honored guest. It would be inappropriate for him to participate in such a dangerous competition!"

"The death trial in the Lingxi Celestial Palace is fraught with Restrictions. If something were to happen to Mu Yun inside, it would be difficult to explain to his master!"

"Manor Master Mu Ruo is being considerate, and this is for your own good, Mu Yun..."

The other four Manor Masters were all shrewd individuals and immediately understood Mu Ruo’s intentions. They all chimed in with smiles, their words dripping with goodwill, but what they were truly thinking was anyone’s guess.

"Not let me participate? But my master sent me here this time specifically for the Holy Spirit Disciple Competition. He wants me to win the championship and bring back some Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water, which he says is useful. If I just leave... how can I possibly explain it to him?"

Nie Yun put on a troubled expression. "My master told me that if I can’t bring back the Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water, he will personally come to the Ancient City to ask for it. I really can’t bear the thought of him having to make the trip himself..."

"He’s coming himself?"

Hearing the young man’s words, everyone’s expression stiffened.

’You can’t bear the thought? We can bear it even less!’

’We can still fool you, but if that old monster really comes over, he’ll probably uproot our entire foundation!’

They had just sensed the imprint within Mu Yun’s body. The powerhouse who left it was at least at the Secret Realm Fourth Layer. If such a powerhouse truly condescended to come here, how could he possibly be satisfied with just a little?

Understanding this, the Five Great Manor Masters and the City Lord looked so miserable they were on the verge of tears.

In truth, you couldn’t blame the Five Great Manor Masters and the City Lord for being foolish. Their ancestors had all lived in the Ancient City, and compared to people like Huangg Ling, their minds were much simpler. Moreover, they had never even heard of an Ordinary Venerable being able to emit the aura of a Secret Realm Fourth Layer powerhouse. Deep down, they were already convinced that Nie Yun’s master was a peerless expert.

"Yes, my master is extremely interested in the Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water. He said he needs it for some research and requires at least several thousand drops. He ordered me to win the championship this time and obtain enough of it. Otherwise, he’ll come here himself!"

Nie Yun sighed. "To be honest, I don’t want to do this either. As a peripheral descendant of the Ancient City, it pains me to take so much of the city’s most precious treasure. I feel terrible, like I’m betraying my people... But... there’s nothing I can do. My master has shown me immeasurable kindness. Since he gave me an order, I have to obey. If you don’t let me compete, it... it puts me in a very difficult position. Where am I supposed to find so much Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water to report back to my master? If I really can’t get it and my master gets angry, implicating all of you, then my sin would be truly great..."

As Nie Yun spoke, he put on a look of utter anguish, as if everything was his fault.

"Several thousand drops? Your master wants several thousand drops..."

When the Five Great Manor Masters and the City Lord heard this and saw the young man’s expression, they nearly fainted on the spot.

’The Spirit Rhinoceros Spring only produces one drop a year! After so many years of use by the Five Great Manors and the City Lord’s Mansion, there isn’t much left to begin with, and you want several thousand drops? Do you think Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water is tap water, that you can have as much as you want...’

’Why don’t you just go die!’

Although the Manor Masters were grinding their teeth in hatred, tears streaming down their faces, they were helpless.

’If we let this Mu Yun win the championship and gain the recognition of the Spirit Rhinoceros Spring, he’ll surely obtain even more spring water in the future. But if we don’t let him enter, then based on his tone, we’ll have to give him several thousand drops. Otherwise, his master will come...’

"Alright, don’t have your master come all this way. It’s too much trouble for an elder to travel so far. We, the Five Great Manors and the City Lord’s Mansion, will pool together three hundred drops of spring water for you. This is the absolute limit of what we can offer. That way, you’ll have something to show for your efforts, and you won’t have to participate in the death trial!"

After a moment of consideration, the Five Great Manor Masters and the City Lord seemed to have reached an agreement, and the City Lord spoke.

"Three hundred drops? But... my master asked for several thousand. Three hundred seems a bit too little, doesn’t it?" Nie Yun continued to bluff, a troubled look on his face.

’Anyway, I’ll start with a sky-high price and let them haggle it down. I have to squeeze every last drop of benefit out of them.’

"Several thousand drops... To be honest with you, the Spirit Rhinoceros Spring only produces one drop per year, and the many descendants of our Ancient City need to use it as well. We simply don’t have much in stock. Three hundred drops is already our limit. Even if your master came and turned our Ancient City upside down, we couldn’t produce any more!"

The City Lord’s heart was bleeding as he spoke.

"How about this? Since this stuff is so precious, I won’t ask for several thousand drops. Just give me one thousand. That way, I’ll have something to report back to my master. Otherwise, I really won’t be able to explain myself!" Fearing he might push them too far, Nie Yun eased up a bit.

"One thousand drops... is still far too many. We can only give you five hundred. We really can’t spare any more!"

The Manor Masters and the City Lord conferred again for a long while before gritting their teeth and stating their bottom line.

In truth, five hundred drops really was their limit. With only one drop produced per year, and with their own needs to consider, that many drops represented an accumulation of who knows how many years!

"Alright, since all you Manor Masters and the City Lord are being so generous, I’ll withdraw from the Holy Spirit Disciple Competition. As soon as I receive the Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water, my sister Mu Xia and I will leave the Ancient City immediately and won’t trouble you any further!"

Seeing from their expressions that they had indeed reached their limit, Nie Yun stopped pushing and nodded in agreement, feigning reluctance.

"Then we thank you, my dear nephew!"

Hearing the young man agree to withdraw from the competition and leave after getting the water, everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief.

"Alright, enough of that. We’ll have the Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water sent to you after the banquet. For now, let’s drink! Drink!"

Seeing the young man concede, the City Lord, fearing he might go back on his word, quickly urged him to drink.

"Yes, look, the food is getting cold! Hurry up and eat. This Armored Dragon Liver is from a true descendant of the Dragon Race. It’s incredibly nourishing. Don’t be shy, Nephew Mu Yun!"

"This wine is excellent, too. It must be several hundred years old, right? Delicious!"

With the negotiations settled, the oppressive atmosphere vanished, and the entire room instantly became lively.

"By the way, I was wondering, what exactly are the effects of the Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water? And why is there so little of it that you have to count it by the drop?"

After several rounds of drinks and dishes, Nie Yun finally asked.

"You don’t know?" Hearing the young man’s question, everyone was taken aback.

"I’m a peripheral descendant. I know a little, but only that it enhances physical vitality. I don’t know anything else!"

Nie Yun shook his head.

"Heh heh, it’s nothing special, really. The Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water’s effects are pretty much just that!" The City Lord chuckled. "You must have noticed since arriving in the Ancient City that many of our youths become Ultimate Venerables before they even turn twenty. That’s quite rare in other places! It’s not that the Ancient City is filled with geniuses; it’s the effect of the Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water!"

"Oh? Do tell."

Although Nie Yun had already guessed as much, he didn’t know the details and wanted to hear the full story.

"The Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water is essentially a stimulant. It allows one to overdraft their potential. Take a look at us. Do you know how old we are?" The City Lord didn’t answer directly, instead changing the subject with a question.

"You all? That’s hard to say." Nie Yun shook his head.

’Once a Cultivator reaches the Secret Realm, their appearance barely changes. These men look to be in their fifties, sixties, or seventies, but their actual ages are probably at least several hundred, perhaps even over a thousand!’

’Not to mention, figures like Huangg Chen and the Qianqing Sect Master were both at least over three hundred years old!’

’These people are even stronger than them, so they must be quite old. In Nie Yun’s mind, even if the Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water could increase one’s Cultivation speed, reaching their level of strength should still take at least two hundred years.’

"Hard to say... Heh, I know what you’re thinking!" The City Lord shook his head, a lonely look on his face. "Actually, our appearances aren’t that different from our ages. I am fifty-one years old this year. The oldest among us is no more than fifty-five! In fact, in our entire Ancient City, there isn’t a single person over the age of one hundred!"

The City Lord sighed and shook his head again.

"What? Fifty-one? Fifty-five? Not a single person in the entire city is over one hundred? H-How is that possible?"

This time, it was Nie Yun’s turn to be shocked.

When a Cultivator reaches the Heaven-Seizing Creation Secret Realm, their bodily functions change, and their lifespan is greatly extended. Living for several hundred years is easy. The Ancient City has at least fifty or sixty people who have reached the Secret Realm, if not a hundred. With so many powerhouses, how could it be that not a single one is over a hundred years old?

Where did all the Secret Realm Powerhouses over the age of one hundred go?

"Are you wondering where all our Secret Realm Powerhouses over a hundred years old have gone?" One of the Manor Masters seemed to see through Nie Yun’s thoughts and sighed. "In truth, this is the tragedy of our Ancient City. The Secret Realm Powerhouses over one hundred didn’t leave... they all died!"

"They all died? Don’t Secret Realm Powerhouses have lifespans of over 500 years? How could they die?"

Nie Yun couldn’t believe it.

"It’s simple. We use the Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water to overdraft our body’s power, and that includes our lifespan! So, even if we reach the Secret Realm, our lifespans don’t increase by much," the City Lord explained. "After consuming the Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water, one’s metabolic rate becomes five times faster than normal. Look at us—we reached the Ultimate Venerable Realm in our teens, but if you calculate our metabolic age, we’re all in our seventies or eighties! Reaching the Ultimate Venerable Realm at seventy, eighty, or even a hundred years old... that’s hardly what you’d call a genius!"

’It can be used like that...’

Nie Yun finally understood.

No wonder the Ancient City had so many geniuses. It turned out they were all trading their lifespans for it!

Trading lifespan for strength... My brother!

Thinking of his brother, a sharp pain lanced through Nie Yun’s heart again. ℯℯ𝑙.

"It’s nothing, really," the Manor Master continued. "If we didn’t consume the Spirit Rhinoceros Spring Water, our lifespans might be a bit longer, but without strength, we’d have no status and would be exiled just the same! Exiled to the outside world, with our level of talent, it would be impossible to reach the peak of Cultivation. We might even die sooner!"

It was like someone being injected with stimulants from birth. After countless generations, if they stopped using the stimulants, they would lose their athletic ability. Trying to reach the Qi Sect or Ultimate Venerable Realm then would take until who knows when. They might as well just keep using the spring water!

This was dependence!

When you use something for a long time, you become dependent on it!

PS: One Chapter updated in the early morning. The second update will be at noon, the third at 7 PM, and the fourth at 9 PM.

The current updates are all 3,000 characters per Chapter, so four updates is 12,000 characters. I’m begging for all kinds of tickets and subscriptions. We can’t have subscriptions getting worse the more I release in a burst. Lao Ya is working hard, so to all my brothers and sisters, please lend me your support! Thank you very much!!

If I get a lot of monthly tickets today and the 24-hour subscriptions get back over one thousand, Lao Ya will release a fifth and even a sixth update!

Don’t worry, Lao Ya has always been sincere. The more support you give, the more I’ll shine. As long as you dare to vote, I dare to go wild! Onward, onward!!! (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)