Chapter 64 (1/2)

Rachel exhaled and leaned back in her seat. She had no idea how long she had been chipping away at the elders’ and ancestors’ authorities; it felt like a hundred years had passed. With the removal of Elder Blossom due to a history of receiving bribes, however, Rachel was finally done!

[It’s been a tough journey, but it’s only because it was tough that it was worth doing. I’m proud of what you’ve done in the name of justice, young social justice warrior.]

[Mission: A Clean Sect Completed]

[Reward: Extinct plants required for the perfected Moon Lotus Cultivation Technique]

Rachel played around with her pointed piece of chalk. It was finally time to find out if the illusionary attacker was actually a god of sorts as it claimed to be. She climbed out of her seat and crouched down, placing the flat end of the pointed chalk on the ground. In one motion, she drew a large circle, and a flash of light appeared. When the light vanished, the chalk dust was gone, and all that was left behind were ten jade cases. They varied in size, and using her spiritual energy, she checked on their contents without opening them. One plant occupied each jade case; as for whether or not they could do what the perfected Moon Lotus Cultivation Technique claimed they could, that was still up for debate.

With a wave of her hand, Rachel stored the jade cases into her interspacial ring. Increasing her strength was quite important; however, it would take a while, close to several years, for her to advance in seclusion. There were only a few more days before Kid Vremya’s jail sentence was over, and she wanted to be there when it happened. She took a seat and thought about her advancement. The more she thought about it, the more she wanted it to happen. With that in mind, she climbed to her feet. No one would mind if she released Kid Vremya a few days early because of his good behavior. The child never complained, not even once. He sat inside his cave on the cliff, didn’t ask for any spirit stones, and he didn’t even eat any food—which, admittedly, was a bit concerning at first.

Rachel pressed on a formation drawn on her wall. It was a way to notify the elders with ease. “I’m going to release Vremya now.” After speaking into the formation, she took her hand away, not caring to see if any elder would reply. Icy wings grew out of her robe, and she leapt out the window, flying towards Icy Wind Cliff. When she arrived in front of Kid Vremya’s cave, there was already someone there: Azalea. Of course, Rachel didn’t know Azalea’s name. There were too many people in the sect, and even cultivators had limited memories. It was better to not remember everyone in case important information needed to be stored later on.

“Sect Leader,” Azalea said, her eyes widening. She cupped her hands in front of her chest. “Are you here to see Junior Vremya?”

Rachel’s gaze traveled up and down Azalea’s body. Even if Rachel weren’t an expert at the soul-seed stage, she could easily tell what Azalea’s cultivation was at thanks to the token hanging from the woman’s waist. Azalea was an inner disciple, and most inner disciples were at the foundation-establishment stage. Disciples who formed their golden cores usually took an exam to become a core disciple. Only those who thought like Kid Vremya would wait and hang around in a lower bracket. Just thinking about the conversation she had had with Kid Vremya nearly a century ago made Rachel’s expression darken. “Yes, I’m letting him out a little early.”

“No need for that,” a gruff voice said from within the cave.

Rachel turned her head, glancing at the entrance to the prison. Although it was a prison, there weren’t any metal bars keeping the prisoners inside. Instead, the prisoner’s arms and legs were bound by formations which severely limited their movement. Inside of the cave, there was an elderly man who looked to be on the verge of death. His bones were practically sticking through his skin, and his hair was wispy, long, and white. Rachel frowned. “You didn’t break through?”

“I have three more days of vitality left in me,” Kid Vremya, who could no longer be referred to as a kid, said. “I’ll break through during the last five minutes of my life.”

“Just break through now!” Azalea said, stomping her foot. She glared at Grandpa Vremya before turning towards Rachel. “Can you convince him to not play games with his life? What if an accident happens during his promotion, and he dies because of a miscalculation?”

“If he dies, he dies,” Rachel said. “I never expected him to truly follow through with his words, and I think it’s very commendable that he has. Even if he dies, he lived the life he wanted, and you should celebrate that during his funeral. Since it seems like you’re so attached to him, we can cut off some of his hair, maybe even get a mold of his face, and gift you a lifelike bust after he passes away.”