Chapter 79

Chapter 79 - A Dead Person, But the Body Remains If Xia Changge had done this from the beginning, there would have been a real chance for Yang Zhe to break through to the Foundation Establishment realm. But could Xia Changge do it? No, he couldn't! His relationship with Yang Zhe hadn't reached that level yet. After all, this matter was too significant. If Yang Zhe leaked even the slightest bit of information, it would be a devastating blow to Xia Changge. Of course, if the target were someone else. For example, his sister-in-law, his sister, or his children. Xia Changge would undoubtedly step in to help without hesitation. But when facing someone he only had a marginal acquaintance with, he could only apologize. Increasing his techniques was already his limit. "I'm not a heartless person for doing this. Yang Zhe has passed away peacefully, and instead of burying him and turning to dust, it's better for him to continue shining in this world. After all... I can genuinely help him reach the Foundation Establishment realm! And I don't expect him to be grateful. I only ask for his assistance for twenty years. Once I reach the Foundation Establishment realm, I will definitely give him a grand burial!" Xia Changge comforted himself in his heart. What he was doing was indeed somewhat unethical, not allowing his senior to rest in peace. But there was no other way. The current Xia Changge yearned for more cards up his sleeve, cards with actual power, so that he wouldn't be powerless when facing unexpected situations. Furthermore, Yang Zhe had already said that, after he died, everything would belong to Xia Changge, including his body. So it was only natural for Xia Changge to do this. After two hours, the injuries caused by Yang Zhe's failed breakthrough were almost fully healed with Xia Changge's help. In fact, he seemed to have a bit more vitality than before. Xia Changge instructed Yang Zhe to make a second attempt to break into the Foundation Establishment realm. Nearly two days passed, but the second attempt also ended in failure. However, Xia Changge now had some experience. The process of compressing spiritual energy within the body was incredibly difficult due to Yang Zhe's weak physique. His organs had already aged and deteriorated to an unreasonable extent. It was truly challenging to complete this step. This was why, if Qi Refinement cultivators couldn't break through to the Foundation Establishment realm before the age of seventy, it was almost impossible to do so afterward. Even when your body is at its peak, achieving this is difficult, let alone when your body has already started to decline. After thinking it through, Xia Changge decided to repair Yang Zhe whenever his meridians showed signs of being unable to bear the pressure during self-compression and purification of spiritual energy. He repaired his meridians while allowing Yang Zhe to continue his breakthrough without interruption. This was the best choice. With a clear train of thought, it took Xia Changge over three full days to deplete all the longevity Qi in his body. Finally, Yang Zhe transformed all the spiritual energy in his dantian into spiritual yuan. At this moment, Yang Zhe was officially a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Perhaps this was the difference between Qi Refinement and Foundation Establishment. The sea of Qi, which had already been filled by the ninth layer of Qi Refinement, was now nothing more than a trace of vitality for a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Currently, Yang Zhe's dantian was empty, with only a small amount of spiritual yuan. It would take about a year to fill his dantian with spiritual yuan, given the thinness of the spiritual energy around Hua Ying Immortal Town. Unless he used spirit stones along the way. However, it was evident that Xia Changge couldn't afford to spend spirit stones on that. Just the consumption of spirit stones to help Yang Zhe breakthrough had already cost Xia Changge close to a thousand, and Yang Zhe had consumed about seventeen to eighteen hundred. Filling Yang Zhe's dantian... Xia Changge didn't have such a big hand. The remaining few spirit stones had a more critical role for Xia Changge. After assisting Yang Zhe successfully breakthrough, Xia Changge didn't take it easy. He casually took out several decades-old herbs from his storage bag and chewed on them. These herbs alone were enough to replenish most of his depleted longevity Qi. Xia Changge couldn't relax yet. Because he wasn't absolutely sure about his control over Yang Zhe's spiritual world. There was a possibility it could be tampered with again. So... Xia Changge ultimately had to invest some effort to eliminate that possibility. Even though the subsequent puppet making process for Foundation Establishment-level puppets wasn't perfect, having half a Foundation Establishment-level combat power was already sufficient for Xia Changge. This time, Xia Changge did not rename his puppet. After chewing on a few more herbs, Xia Changge returned to his compound with Yang Zhe. He didn't place Yang Zhe in a conspicuous position but settled him in a room where no one lived. After completing these arrangements, Xia Changge went to the Xiao Family to discuss this matter with Xiao Wan. "Um... Yang Zhe has passed away," Xia Changge said. Yang Zhe was indeed dead, but his body was still alive. When Xia Changge said this, Xiao Wan probably understood what had happened and smiled, "You gave him the follow-up contents of the Extreme Flame Art, didn't you?" Xia Changge nodded. Xiao Wan didn't ask much further. "In that case, he can be considered to have died without regrets." Xiao Wan, to some extent, didn't mind Xia Changge's somewhat saintly demeanor. "Now that you've reached the eighth layer of Qi Refinement, with your cultivation level being sufficient, we'll hand over the small spiritual fields of our family to you," Xiao Wan suggested after giving it some thought and disposing of the surplus assets. Xia Changge had previously learned that the Xiao Family's assets could be described as meager. In comparison to other Foundation Establishment-level clans like the Tai Family, their development had been far too slow. The Tai Family had been established for too long—even the small-scale spiritual fields could be described as thousands or even tens of thousands of acres. They had an overwhelmingly large number of family members, numbering in the tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands, and had an abundance of labor force. The Xiao Family's hundreds of acres were like child's play in comparison. "Uh... how much land did the Tai Family divide among you, Xiao Family?" Xia Changge guessed why. It seemed like they had had a good feast at Tai Family, enjoying several years of luxury without needing to work. Not only did Tai Family develop their spiritual fields with spirit stones, but they also seemed to have been divided among Xiaoyun and the other three Foundation Establishment cultivators. Even if it was not a secretive matter, Xiao Wan answered directly, "We only received two thousand acres, but they were all sold by Mother. Our Xiao Family no longer cultivates those things." "I see," Xia Changge replied. With a fully sufficient workforce at his disposal, Xia Changge could easily handle the Xiao Family's small cultivation industry.