Chapter Thirty-Eight: The Empress Breaks the Family Curse

Liao Chen helped Li Yuanyuan to her feet and said happily, "Since you are now my disciple, I naturally must bestow upon you a gift for your apprenticeship. Here, I have a quasi-emperor grade Demon-Slaying Sword, a bottle each of seventh-grade Foundation-Nurturing Pills and Marrow-Cleansing Pills—one hundred pills per bottle—as well as a seventh-grade Fire Spirit Pill and a copy of the god-level cultivation technique, 'The Heavenly Dao Marvelous Method.' You possess the Extreme Yin Glazed Saint Body; the great disasters I mentioned earlier were naturally caused by your unique constitution. Once you consume the Fire Spirit Pill, your constitutional issues will be completely resolved, transforming you into a true Glazed Saint Body. Combined with the god-level technique I have imparted to you, your future will be smooth sailing from here on out."

Li Yuanyuan stared in shock at the gifts Liao Chen had bestowed. She did possess a quasi-emperor grade weapon, but that was a national treasure, a divine instrument that was rarely ever brought out for use. Yet, upon taking a master today, she had received a quasi-emperor grade weapon so effortlessly, which felt almost unbelievable.

However, the aura of the Demon-Slaying Sword was unmistakably that of a quasi-emperor grade weapon, as she had felt such an aura before. This vast, profound presence could never be mimicked by ordinary spiritual artifacts.

She then opened the jade bottles and discovered that the pills Liao Chen had given her were authentic. These were seventh-grade pills—things she had only ever seen from afar in the sacred sect. Now, such rare elixirs were in her hands; her heart raced and her hands trembled, and she found herself at a loss for words.

As for the seventh-grade Fire Spirit Pill, she had never seen one before, nor did she know its purpose. She was even unaware that her own constitution was the rare Extreme Yin Glazed Saint Body. Looking at Liao Chen with a dazed expression, she asked, "Master, are you certain that your disciple's constitution is the Extreme Yin Glazed Saint Body? And can this Fire Spirit Pill truly resolve my underlying ailment?"

Seeing his foolish disciple still doubting his prowess, Liao Chen replied, "Why don't you try it and see? By the way, this place is not suitable for testing medicine. Let us find a secluded spot—the Myriad Demon Mountain Range will do."

Chunxiang, seeing that the Empress was tempted, warned loudly, "My Lady, you must not! What if this person intends to harm you?"

"Chunxiang, be quiet!" Li Yuanyuan began to feel dissatisfied with her maid. After all, her hidden illness had plagued her for so many years; if it could be cured today, she had to try. If the man truly wanted to deceive her, there would be no need to offer a quasi-emperor grade weapon as an apprenticeship gift—such treasures were not something an ordinary person could produce. And then there were the Foundation-Nurturing and Marrow-Cleansing pills, which were genuine seventh-grade elixirs that even the royal family of the Great Yong Dynasty did not possess. Thus, she chose to trust this master she had met only today.

The group arrived at the outskirts of the Myriad Demon Mountain Range. Indeed, no one disturbed them here, and even common demon beasts were a rarity. Of course, this was because Liao Chen had sent transmissions to Jiuling and others to clear the area in advance.

"Master, I shall begin testing the medicine now. Please guard me!" Li Yuanyuan reminded him. After all, this was the Myriad Demon Mountain Range; even with her Saint-realm combat power, she dared not act recklessly, lest she attract powerful demons from within to investigate.

Liao Chen nodded and casually set up a barrier—a redundant move, but one intended to put his disciple at ease. Li Yuanyuan took out the pill and sat cross-legged. As the medicinal power dissolved, a wave of heat flowed from her head to her lower Dantian. The Extreme Yin energy within her began to clash with this heat, only to fuse with it moments later. Li Yuanyuan soon resembled a cooked shrimp; her body turned red and hot, and sweat beads the size of soybeans poured down like rain.

The four maids, Chunxiang, Xiaxiang, Qiuxiang, and Dongxiang, watched this scene with great anxiety. They dared not intervene rashly for fear of causing an accident. They stared at Liao Chen from time to time like four hungry wolves, ready to launch an attack the moment their mistress showed signs of trouble.

Fortunately, things did not develop as they feared. An hour later, Li Yuanyuan's complexion returned to normal, and a hint of color even returned to her face. Before, she had been deathly pale, like someone ready for the coffin. As the medicinal power of the Fire Spirit Pill was fully absorbed, Li Yuanyuan was overjoyed to find that the Extreme Yin baleful energy in her body had completely dissipated. She felt lighter than ever before.

Before Li Yuanyuan could speak, Liao Chen kindly reminded her, "Yuanyuan, continue by taking the Foundation-Nurturing Pills I gave you. I will assist you in breaking through your current realm!"

"Yes, Master!" Li Yuanyuan no longer hid her cultivation. As she swallowed the Foundation-Nurturing Pills, her spiritual power surged instantly, like a massive boulder dropped into a calm lake, causing waves to crash across the surface.

Powerful spiritual energy surged through her meridians, washing them again and again. As her meridians expanded and her power skyrocketed, her spirit body turned jade-like, and a phantom of a Saint realm figure manifested. She stepped into the first heaven of the Saint realm with ease, but this was far from the end. As she continued to consume the pills, her cultivation surged further.

System: "Ding! Congratulations to the host's disciple, Li Yuanyuan, for breaking through to the first heaven of the Saint realm. Reward: 1 billion cultivation experience points, 100 top-grade emperor-grade Demon-Slaying Swords, 1 million top-grade eighth-grade Foundation-Nurturing Pills, 1 million top-grade eighth-grade Marrow-Cleansing Pills, and 100,000 Divine Spirit Pills. Rewards have been issued; please check them."

System: "Ding! Congratulations to the host's disciple, Li Yuanyuan, for breaking through to the second heaven of the Saint realm. Reward: 1 billion cultivation experience points, 100 top-grade emperor-grade Demon-Slaying Swords, 1 million top-grade eighth-grade Foundation-Nurturing Pills, 1 million top-grade eighth-grade Marrow-Cleansing Pills, and 100,000 Divine Spirit Pills. Rewards have been issued; please check them."

System: "Ding! Congratulations to the host's disciple, Li Yuanyuan, for breaking through to the third heaven of the Saint realm. Reward: 1 billion cultivation experience points, 100 top-grade emperor-grade Demon-Slaying Swords, 1 million top-grade eighth-grade Foundation-Nurturing Pills, 1 million top-grade eighth-grade Marrow-Cleansing Pills, and 100,000 Divine Spirit Pills. Rewards have been issued; please check them."

System: "Ding! Congratulations to the host's disciple, Li Yuanyuan, for breaking through to the fourth heaven of the Saint realm. Reward: 1 billion cultivation experience points, 100 top-grade emperor-grade Demon-Slaying Swords, 1 million top-grade eighth-grade Foundation-Nurturing Pills, 1 million top-grade eighth-grade Marrow-Cleansing Pills, and 100,000 Divine Spirit Pills. Rewards have been issued; please check them."

System: "Ding! Congratulations to the host's disciple, Li Yuanyuan, for breaking through to the fifth heaven of the Saint realm. Reward: 1 billion cultivation experience points, 100 top-grade emperor-grade Demon-Slaying Swords, 1 million top-grade eighth-grade Foundation-Nurturing Pills, 1 million top-grade eighth-grade Marrow-Cleansing Pills, and 100,000 Divine Spirit Pills. Rewards have been issued; please check them."

As Li Yuanyuan reached the Saint realm, the curse upon her was lifted, leaving her overwhelmed with joy. She had only hoped to remove the curse, never expecting that the master she had picked up on the street would not only resolve a millennium-old family curse but also propel her cultivation to the peak of the Saint realm. Her admiration and respect for Liao Chen reached an all-time high.

Liao Chen was secretly pleased as well. He had not expected that his disciple's breakthrough to the Saint realm would grant him a billion experience points. He could have broken through to the Emperor realm immediately, but he chose not to. Although he was only in the Saint realm, his combat power was already at the Emperor level. If he broke through further, things would stop being fun; every small world had a cultivation ceiling, and this world's ceiling was the fifth heaven of the Emperor realm. If one's strength exceeded this, the world's spirit would expel them.

Liao Chen did not want to be kicked out just yet; he still had much to accomplish, and the damn system would not let him leave easily, so he had no choice but to keep playing the role of a pig to eat the tiger.