After My Rebirth, I Ended Up Happily Ever After with the Saintess - Chapter 84

The news that Lin Feng and Xia Zhihe were about to break through to the Spirit Palace Realm was like a spring breeze, dispersing some of the gloom that had accumulated in Ye Li’s heart due to the recent series of events. The fledgling Dark Pavilion, after enduring storms, had not only survived but was about to welcome the first qualitative change in its core strength. This further strengthened her resolve to focus on cultivating core members and building a truly reliable inner circle.

Among the original five, Lin Feng was steady and capable, and Xia Zhihe possessed outstanding talent in the Dao of Alchemy—both were promising individuals. Zhang Yuan and Li Yun, who joined later, had also passed the tests and demonstrated their value and loyalty. However, the future of the Dark Pavilion could not rely solely on her, nor just on the few people like Lin Feng. She needed more key members who could stand on their own, needing to distribute the strength to form a more stable structure.

In her closed-door meditation chamber, five jade slips, emitting a faint chilling aura, floated before Ye Li. These were cultivation methods and secret arts that she had painstakingly selected or modified over several days, tailored to the different characteristics, spiritual root attributes, and existing cultivation techniques of Lin Feng, Xia Zhihe, Sun Xiaohou, Zhao Xiaoyi, and Zhang Yuan. Since Li Yun mainly focused on spiritual plants and pharmacology, her cultivation method was relatively specialized and closely tied to the legacy of Danxia Peak. Ye Li did not rashly alter it but instead prepared a batch of precious spiritual plant seeds and notes on alchemy formulas for her.

For Lin Feng, Ye Li valued his calmness in overseeing the overall situation and his meticulousness in intelligence analysis. She modified a mystic-tier high-grade auxiliary technique called the “Ice Heart Art” (Bing Xin Jue), removing the excessively yin parts and enhancing its efficacy in calming the mind, improving perception, and speeding up thought processes. Although this art did not directly increase combat power, it would greatly enhance Lin Feng’s ability to handle complex information and respond to emergencies, which was crucial for his future management of the growing Dark Pavilion. She also included a set of “Essentials of Covert Contact and Information Encryption” that she had summarized, containing many secret methods the Revered Li used to manage her massive organization in her previous life.

For Xia Zhihe, her core strengths were her wood and water dual spiritual roots and her talent in alchemy. Ye Li merged the essence of an ancient incomplete alchemy scripture, the “Azure Wood Nourishing Spirit Scroll” (Qing Mu Yun Ling Pian), which she had obtained from the Scripture Pavilion, with her own notes on refining elixirs, compiling them into a book. This scroll was not a specific elixir formula but expounded on the deep principles of harmonizing the properties of spiritual herbs, nourishing the pill furnace with wood-type spiritual power, and improving the quality of the finished elixirs. This was enough to elevate Xia Zhihe’s alchemy mastery to the next level. Furthermore, she included an improved formula for a second-tier ultimate-grade elixir, the “Spirit Nurturing Pill” (Yun Shen Dan). This pill was miraculously effective for nourishing the soul, precisely the valuable resource needed when attempting to break through to the Spirit Palace Realm.

Sun Xiaohou’s advantage lay in his quick wit, agility, and information gathering skills. What Ye Li imparted to him was not an offensive technique, but a specialized movement and breath-concealment art called the “Phantom Shadow Concealment Art” (Huan Ying Ni Xi Shu). This art was derived from the superficial aspects of the Boundless Traceless Steps (Huan Yu Wu Zong Bu). Though far less profound than the genuine version, it was easy to learn and did not require high spiritual power, making it extremely suitable for personnel like Sun Xiaohou who frequently needed to sneak and gather information. Cultivated to minor achievement, one could move stealthily like a ghost, making it difficult for cultivators of the same rank to detect.

Zhao Xiaoyi was loyal and reliable, but his talent was slightly inferior. Ye Li did not teach him overly advanced techniques but optimized a solid “Thick Earth Art” (Hou Tu Jue), making the Earth-type spiritual power he cultivated more robust and resilient, focusing on defense and endurance. At the same time, she began systematically teaching Zhao Xiaoyi foundational knowledge about resource management, accounting, and basic small-scale formation arrangements, intending to cultivate him into the Dark Pavilion’s reliable “Chief Steward,” responsible for the internal, trivial, yet crucial logistical support work.

For Zhang Yuan, his background in the Artifact Hall and his talent for identifying materials were his highlights. Ye Li organized fragmented knowledge about the purification of several rare metals and the basic strengthening of runes from the legacy of the Revered Xuanhuan, combining it with her own experience in refining the Profound Ice Sword and the Star Array Disk, compiling them into the initial volume of the “Hundred Forging Essentials” (Bai Duan Jing Yao) to teach him. Though this essential guide did not involve advanced artifact refining techniques, the material handling concepts and rune application skills it contained were enough for Zhang Yuan to break through his current bottleneck and potentially become the Dark Pavilion’s own artifact refiner in the future.

As for Li Yun, Ye Li guided her remotely via the sub-mirror, detailing the cultivation methods and characteristics of several unique ice-type spiritual herbs she had discovered in the northern region, and offering several ideas for refining new elixirs using these herbs, encouraging her to experiment boldly and forge a new path outside the Danxia Peak legacy.

Having prepared all this, Ye Li did not immediately impart them via the sub-mirror. She deeply understood that the transmission of cultivation methods was no trivial matter and must be done in person to ensure nothing went wrong and to offer guidance based on each individual’s actual situation.

She first contacted Zhang Yuan and Li Yun, who were relatively close and currently executing a sect mission. Through encrypted instructions, she had the two meet at a small loose cultivator gathering place called “Luofeng Town” a thousand miles away from the Xuanyun Sect after completing their mission.

A few days later, inside an inconspicuous inn’s quiet room in Luofeng Town.

Zhang Yuan and Li Yun arrived covered in dust. Seeing Ye Li, who had been waiting there, they were both excited and exceedingly respectful.

“Pavilion Master!”

Ye Li nodded slightly, motioning for them to sit. She carefully checked their cultivation progress and physical condition, nodding with satisfaction. Zhang Yuan was already at the peak of the middle stage of the Coagulated Vein Realm, and Li Yun had stabilized her early stage Coagulated Vein Realm cultivation.

“You two have done well recently,” Ye Li first affirmed their achievements in the northern region. “The development of the Dark Pavilion requires talent from all sides. I summoned you here today because I see that your temperaments are steady and you are worthy of cultivation.”

With that, she handed the two prepared jade slips to them.

Zhang Yuan took the jade slip containing the Hundred Forging Essentials. With a quick scan of his divine sense, his face immediately showed a look of ecstasy and disbelief! The knowledge within far surpassed what he had learned in the Artifact Hall, and many material processing problems that had troubled him for a long time had surprisingly found their solutions here!

“This… thank you for the generous gift, Pavilion Master! Zhang Yuan will certainly study hard and live up to the Pavilion Master’s expectations!” His voice trembled with excitement.

Li Yun, seeing the jade slip about the cultivation of ice-type spiritual herbs and notes on elixir formulas, also had her beautiful eyes shining brightly, as if she had acquired an invaluable treasure. “This disciple will devote all efforts to cultivate the spiritual herbs and study the Dao of Alchemy!”

Ye Li said sternly, “Cultivation methods and techniques are the foundation for survival. Imparting them to you both today is an act of trust, but also a responsibility. You must practice diligently, not slacken, and absolutely not divulge them. The Dark Pavilion’s future weapons, armor, and specialized elixirs may well depend on the two of you.”

“Yes! We will keep that in mind!” The two responded in unison, feeling that the burden on their shoulders had grown heavier, but their direction forward had also become clearer.

Ye Li then patiently answered some of the questions the two had encountered in their cultivation and left behind some auxiliary elixirs before letting them depart.

Next, she followed the same procedure, meeting separately with Lin Feng and Xia Zhihe, who had quietly returned to the sect after their breakthrough, as well as Sun Xiaohou, who had been lurking outside, and Zhao Xiaoyi, who was holding down the fort. She passed on the custom-prepared cultivation methods and secret arts to them.

Lin Feng, with the Ice Heart Art and the management essentials, gained sharper clarity of thought, feeling like he had wings added to a tiger, and now held a grander blueprint for the Dark Pavilion’s structure and development.

Xia Zhihe, having acquired the Azure Wood Nourishing Spirit Scroll and the Spirit Nurturing Pill formula, gained deeper insights into alchemy, confident in her ability to raise her elixir refining standard to the second-tier peak within a short time.

Sun Xiaohou, having learned the Phantom Shadow Concealment Art, was like a fish in water, eager to test his skills.

Zhao Xiaoyi, receiving the Thick Earth Art and management knowledge, knew his progress would be slower due to his talent limitations, but he was grounded and managed the logistics work in a meticulous and orderly fashion.

With each transmission, Ye Li did not merely give; she engaged in deep communication and guidance, ensuring they correctly understood and began their practice. In this process, she was not just cultivating subordinates, but more like sculpting precious works of art, slowly imbuing her concepts and expectations into the hearts of these core members.

Having been personally mentored by the Pavilion Master and receiving such precious legacies, Lin Feng and the others were all immensely grateful, their loyalty reaching its peak. They deeply understood that this was not just an improvement in their cultivation methods but a clear signal that the Pavilion Master regarded them as future pillars of strength. The cohesion of the entire Dark Pavilion soared to an unprecedented height.

Having completed all this, Ye Li finally breathed a slight sigh of relief. Cultivating the backbone was not a task for a single day, but the seeds had been sown. Given enough sunlight and rain (resources and support), they would surely grow into towering trees over time.

She felt that the Dark Pavilion, which had been a somewhat rootless sapling, was now deeply embedding its roots into the soil, becoming more resilient. And she herself, through this systematic transmission and guidance, had conducted a thorough review and elevation of her own knowledge, gaining a more profound understanding of power.

“Next, it’s my turn…” Ye Li’s gaze fell upon the artifact refining room in the small courtyard, the one that had tapped into the earth-fire vein. Before heading to the Ice Soul Profound Palace, she still had one most important task to complete—beginning the initial consecration of the “Void Divine Crystal” (Xu Kong Shen Jing), obtained from the Revered Xuanhuan’s legacy, taking the most crucial first step towards refining her future Natal Artifact.

The backbone of the Dark Pavilion was growing, and she, the sharpest sword, was also about to be tempered anew.