The vault was even larger than the vast dining hall they had just been in. Despite this, one couldn’t see the walls or the floor; everything was covered in treasures, materials, herbs, demonic beast parts, clothes, and jewelry.
If the Frozen Peak Palace was not the richest sect on the continent, they were afraid to imagine what the vaults of richer sects looked like.
And the constant glitter of gold affronted their eyes with its dazzling light. It wasn’t just gold — though there were plenty of valuable, but mundane materials too — but it was the constant glow of protective formations, in plain view, that would likely result in terrible consequences if they tried to touch the treasures.
“Will this do?” Mu Yanyu asked again, not at all amused or perturbed by the shocked expressions of those she let into the vault.
Zhu Xuelian nodded nervously. “This… this might be enough.”
Mu Yanyu nodded, and the defensive golden light of the heavenly treasure’s protection dimmed, then faded.
“If you need spirit stones, the sect has none left to distribute. They are all used in the defensive barrier,” Mu Yanyu said, and gestured to the only spot in the vault that was barren.
“No… no need,” Zhu Xuelian said, brushing a stray lock of hair from her face.
“This formation of yours,” Mu Yanyu began, looking over the hoard of treasure. “What do you need all these things for?”
Everyone looked at Zhu Xuelian now.
“I…” Zhu Xuelian whispered, a bout of insecurity in her demeanor. “I will melt them… and then submerge myself in them… to form my Nascent Soul.”
It was as if a thunderbolt struck right in their midsts. Their ears were ringing, but this was caused by Zhu Xuelian’s quiet words — there was no thunderbolt. Yet this admission, according to their fantasy, was the most daring thing they’ve ever heard. They thought Zhu Xuelian’s ancestors must be rolling in their graves.
From an outsider’s perspective, not only did it look like Zhu Xuelian was going to scam the sect master out of all this treasure, but she was literally going to bathe in it?
Ren Jinhai coughed out a mouthful of blood. He wasn’t sure if it was because of Zhu Xuelian’s brazenness or because the thought of this much treasure being abused like this just knocked a year off his lifespan.
“I see,” Mu Yanyu casually said, and then twisted her wrist. A small mountain of random treasures hovered over to Zhu Xuelian and landed at her feet. These treasures were mostly of the Earth grade, but some of them were of Sky grade.
Zhu Xuelian swallowed. Even she knew that the things she was saying was likely to get her killed if she kept going, but somehow, she trusted Mu Yanyu. Maybe it was because they were both sword cultivators, and their hearts could not lie to each other.
“S… Sect Master… I need… I need more,” Zhu Xuelian said.
Lei Yangming closed his eyes, as if wincing. Ren Weisheng clenched and unclenched his fists. Mu Jingyu was just star-struck the entire time. Most of them didn’t know if they were dreaming or not.
Another small mountain of treasures landed in front of Zhu Xuelian. This time, it was mostly Sky treasures with a few Heaven grade pieces. This batch mostly contained resources of high grade, stone and bars of metal.
“More?” Mu Yanyu asked.
Zhu Xuelian nodded. “More.”
“Very well,” Mu Yanyu said and flicked her wrist again.
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At this point, the mound of treasure had grown so large that most of the disciples couldn’t even see Zhu Xuelian behind it. These treasures were demonic beast materials of the Supreme grade — extracted from Nascent Soul monsters. Who knows how many cultivators died to bring these back.
“More, Sect Master,” Zhu Xuelian quietly said.
This time, a large section of the vault simply slid over to Zhu Xuelian’s side, ranging from Earth grade to Supreme grade treasures and materials. Zhu Xuelian was practically the richest person in the world, standing next to a deluge of treasures like this.
“This…” Zhu Xuelian began, and all the disciples howled internally. “This should be enough.”
The disciples sighed in relief. At least, now, when they died, their sin wouldn’t be as offensive as it could’ve been.
“All of this for one Nascent Soul,” Mu Yanyu said, thoughtfully. “What martial art do you cultivate?”
To this, Zhu Xuelian did not hold back at all. “Salvation Ashes.”
“Never heard of it,” Mu Yanyu said and turned to what remained of her vault. “You need this as well?”
Zhu Xuelian nodded stiffly.
“What for?” Mu Yanyu asked.
“When I form my Nascent Soul… I will melt all those treasures and absorb them,” Zhu Xuelian said.
Ren Jinhai coughed out another mouthful of vital blood. His glare was more than telling of what he was thinking: Why do you want to bathe in all this treasure? Were you a beggar in your past life?!
“And then you can build the formation?” Mu Yanyu asked.
Zhu Xuelian hesitated for a bit. “Then I should have enough to activate the formation… if all goes well.”
These words surprised everyone but Mu Yanyu, and for an obvious reason. They didn’t really believe that Zhu Xuelian was trying to scam the Sect Master — she was a righteous and virtuous, albeit bloodthirsty, sword cultivator. But when they thought about it — making use of treasures that a sect would lose to the Heavenly Mountain Pavilion anyway — it made some sense that Zhu Xuelian would rather she have them than her mortal enemy.
However, this was the first time that they heard that treasures could contribute energy.
“My treasures… you can have those too!” Lei Yangming exclaimed.
Xiang Liling blinked. “Mine as well.”
Everyone chirped in, offering their treasures.
“My sword is only Supreme grade, but you can have it,” Tian Li said.
“My spear is only Supreme grade too, but it is yours,” Ren Jinhai said.
Mu Yanyu looked at them with a confused expression. They were “only” Supreme grade?
“This…” Zhu Xuelian began and then clenched her fists. “Is this really all right, Sect Master? I don’t know if I will ever be able to repay you.”
Mu Yanyu scoffed. “Can the value of these things compare to my sect? I thought you were a more reasonable person than this.”
Another thunderbolt. Zhu Xuelian was a reasonable person?
“This is surely just a dream,” Ren Weisheng muttered under his breath. “I must be dreaming.” He laughed nervously.
“My apologies, Sect Master. My guilt got the better of me,” Zhu Xuelian said.
“It is good that you feel guilty; I can see why you and Yuyu get along so well,” Mu Yanyu said and gestured to the treasures. “This is the legacy of the Frozen Peak Palace. Some of these treasures have been in our vaults for as long as the sect has existed. Do you know what for?”
Zhu Xuelian balled her hands into fists. “To be used when the Sect is in danger.”
Mu Yanyu smiled at Zhu Xuelian’s reply. This was the first time Zhu Xuelian saw this figure smile.
She did not say anything as she turned around and left the vault, leaving the group in a small bubble of dazed enlightenment. They all felt that Mu Yanyu was a decisive and pragmatic person, but they never thought that this meant that she could so effortlessly cut off her left arm to save the body, as it were.
Today, they had truly seen an act of selfless valor, and it deeply humbled them.
Sword cultivators are all crazy; they all came to a similar conclusion.
Lei Yangming cupped his fist and bowed to Zhu Xuelian. “This Lei Yangming must apologize for thinking that Sister Zhu might have had ulterior motives.”
Zhu Xuelian blinked in surprise.
Ren Jinhai wiped the corners of his bloody lips and shook his head. “Sorry…” he whispered.
Mu Jingyu stared at Zhu Xuelian, still star-struck.
“You…” Zhu Xuelian whispered, her cheeks now turning red. “You all thought I was… I was…”
Ren Weisheng sat down and kowtowed to Zhu Xuelian. “I am really sorry,” he said.
Wu Yulan giggled, and Yun Fei seemed just as amused. Of everyone here, these two and Mu Jingyu were the only ones who didn’t have a shred of worry or doubt in their hearts.
“Big Sister Xuelian is just a simple sword cultivator,” Wu Yulan said, quoting words from almost a year ago. “What does she know about underhanded schemes? It really is fortunate that she can now rely on you lot, because she is just as helpless when being scammed by crafty villains!”
Ren Jinhai coughed out another mouthful of blood, as Wu Yulan eloquently exposed them for being capable of scheming enough to keep Zhu Xuelian out of trouble. Wu Yulan didn’t even need sword force to peel them like potatoes, and the words stung quite a bit.
“Hmph,” Zhu Xuelian scoffed and turned around, stomping out of the vault. Despite this, the glimmer of amusement and embarrassment didn’t escape their notice, and they felt a bit relieved that they didn’t offend Zhu Xuelian too much.
