He Transmigrated Into The Body Of A Useless Little Disciple, Whose Innermost Thoughts Were Overheard By Demonic Master! - Chapter 17

Xuan Yue watched Xie Rong successfully refine the Yuan Spirit Pill and felt a faint smile touch his lips. He froze for a moment, his eyes filled with a confusion he could not quite understand himself. When had Xie Rong gained the power to influence his emotions? Was it five years ago, or perhaps ten?

The energy from a single Yuan Spirit Pill was not enough to support a full breakthrough. Xie Rong quickly consumed the second, then the third. By the time he finished the seventh, the spiritual liquid in his dantian was spinning violently, finally condensing into a golden core the size of a grain of rice. Xie Rong clearly sensed the change; he finally understood what it meant for a massive quantity of energy to undergo a qualitative transformation.

Once the breakthrough was complete, Xuan Yue retreated to his own room and activated the peak’s defensive array. He wanted to shield Xie Rong from outside scrutiny, as the boy’s constitution was simply too strange. As the tribulation clouds began to gather, cultivators from neighboring peaks turned their eyes toward Snow Cloud Peak.

Xie Rong, sensing the lightning tribulation, panicked and sprinted out of his room, completely unprepared. He had never imagined he could truly reach the Golden Core stage, and he had made no preparations for the ordeal.

It is over. I am just a mortal. The Golden Core tribulation consists of nine strikes. If I am struck by nine bolts of heavenly lightning, I will surely be charred to a crisp. I have eaten so many of Master’s pills; if I am struck dead, I wonder if Master will be angry? Master should not be angry. All these years, I have never seen him laugh or get angry. Is he truly not practicing the Path of Ruthlessness?

Xuan Yue, seeing Xie Rong distracted even in the face of tribulation, flicked his sleeve and pushed the boy directly under the gathering clouds. “Why are you daydreaming? Prepare for the tribulation.”

Xuan Yue wondered if, since Xie Rong’s body could devour the spiritual energy of pills, it might also be able to consume the violent energy of the lightning tribulation. Xie Rong had no experience with such trials, but his theoretical knowledge was sufficient; he knew that a tribulation was a battle between himself and the lightning, which generally had only two outcomes. Either the violent energy would destroy his meridians, body, and soul, or he would succeed in refining it.

Xie Rong took a deep breath, forcing himself to be calm. Since the tribulation could not be avoided, he had to give it his all.

The first bolt struck, and Xie Rong gasped in agony. The violent energy felt like barbed snakes, thrashing wildly through his body. Seeing that Xie Rong was mentally unstable, Xuan Yue sent a telepathic message: Focus on your cultivation technique; ignore the outside world. The Golden Core tribulation will not kill you.

Xuan Yue had been shocked by the resilience of Xie Rong’s body. Given that he could handle Yuan Spirit Pills at the Foundation Establishment stage, the probability of him dying from this was infinitesimal. The anxious boy steadied himself immediately upon hearing his Master’s voice.

Master is watching over me. I have eaten so many of his pills; if I cannot even survive this, will he be disappointed?

Xie Rong gritted his teeth, suppressing the agony as he refined the energy. For that moment, he purged all other thoughts, driven solely by the desire not to fail Xuan Yue.

Witnessing Xie Rong’s determination, Xuan Yue felt a rare stirring of emotion. He had intentionally withheld defensive artifacts and arrays, wanting to test his theory. Xie Rong, however, felt no resentment; he only worried about disappointing him. Xie Rong should have been wary of his lack of protection, yet his only concern was his Master.

Xuan Yue watched as Xie Rong’s injuries grew more severe, his brows knitting tightly. By the time the nine bolts of lightning had faded, Xie Rong was a blood-soaked mess on the ground, lacking even the strength to crawl. Xuan Yue stood before him, and Xie Rong reached out to grab the hem of Xuan Yue’s robe, only to pull his hand back in panic upon seeing the bloodstains on his fingers.

I have dirtied Master’s clothes.

Xuan Yue sighed, bent down, and scooped the boy up. Xie Rong, weak and dazed, whispered, “Master, I am dirty.”

Xuan Yue looked at the bloodied face and found himself captivated by the boy’s clear eyes. For the first time, he spoke his true thoughts: “You are not dirty. You are the cleanest soul in this world.”

Xie Rong gave a bitter smile internally: Master really cannot compliment people. Calling me the cleanest soul in the world? I am probably the most useless person in the world.

As Xuan Yue held him, the Demonic Bone within him went silent. He had avoided touching Xie Rong for years, fearing he would become addicted to the peace the boy brought, but he decided that occasionally rewarding himself would not hurt. He brought Xie Rong to the depths of Ice Moon Lake, fed him healing pills, and taught him to refine the residual energy.

Xie Rong realized the lightning energy filled his Golden Core with immense speed, and he sighed in relief: As expected of Master! He did not give me protection because he calculated I could use the lightning energy. If I had to rely on pills alone, I would have eaten him into poverty. How much industry does he even own? I feel so sorry for him for having such a useless disciple!

Xuan Yue chuckled inwardly, realizing Xie Rong was not nearly as badly hurt as he appeared. His body was miraculous; not only could it devour pill energy, but it could also feast upon the most violent energy in the heavens. While a normal cultivator’s meridians would have been shattered by such a tribulation, Xie Rong was essentially unscathed.

Xuan Yue gradually stopped hearing Xie Rong’s inner voice, realizing the boy had entered a meditative state. He stood there, sighing and shaking his head. Xie Rong truly had no defenses against others; had he never been harmed in his youth? Why did he trust others so easily?

Three months later, Xie Rong was fully healed. Their bond had deepened; Xie Rong became dependent, often grabbing Xuan Yue’s sleeves. Xuan Yue knew this trust was foolish, yet he could not deny the deep satisfaction and warmth it brought him.

Once Xie Rong’s injuries had stabilized, Xuan Yue noticed that his body devoured spiritual energy even faster. The Yuan Spirit Pills were no longer sufficient. A Golden Core cultivator needed to understand the opportunity to transform their core into an infant to reach the Nascent Soul stage; without this realization, even the most immense spiritual energy was useless and carried the risk of the cultivator bursting from the inside out.

Xuan Yue provided Xie Rong with God Essence Pills, feeling a sense of urgency. Xie Rong was dumbstruck, recognizing them as items worth ten thousand high-grade spirit stones each.

“Master, these are for the Nascent Soul stage. Isn’t this a waste on me?”

My body is like a black hole. If these do not work, will he give me divine pills? How much wealth does he have to hand over a hundred thousand spirit stones like this?

“You are my disciple,” Xuan Yue said coldly. “Do you think I cannot afford to raise you? Do not act so small-minded; go back and cultivate.”

Xie Rong bit his lip, his thrifty nature clashing with his gratitude. He returned to his room and decided to try just one. To his joy, one percent of the energy integrated into his dantian, giving him his first real glimmer of hope for a future breakthrough.