Chapter Sixty-Two: Innate Talent

Jiang Yan decided to retreat for a while in the secluded chamber reserved for the sect leader. He had just absorbed the second-grade Green Wood Formula, and countless incantations swirled relentlessly through his mind, leaving his head aching and nearly driving him to the verge of smashing it against the wall.

As he set foot on the steps of the sect's main hall, a call rang out behind him—Nanmen Luo’s voice.

“Sect Master Senior Brother, Sect Master Senior Brother!” Nanmen Luo approached, his brows dancing with excitement, his face radiant with joy. His gaze toward Jiang Yan was full of flattery.

“Sect Master Senior Brother, I’ve already broken through to the fifth level of Qi Refining! Sect Master Senior Brother, about that spiritual weapon you mentioned before, could it be bestowed upon your junior now?” Nanmen Luo’s homely face was filled with cautious hope, nervously watching Jiang Yan, afraid that the spiritual weapon might not be granted after all.

Jiang Yan frowned; he had just lost three hundred spirit stones, and now Nanmen Luo was asking for a spiritual weapon. Thinking of the few weapons remaining in his Sect Master’s ring, Jiang Yan reluctantly took out a Golden Flame Sword, his tone heavy with reluctance. “Nan Junior Brother, how is your cultivation of the Golden Flame Formula progressing?”

Nanmen Luo’s ugly face lit up with excitement. “To be honest, Sect Master Senior Brother, I’ve already trained up to the fifth meridian. I believe it won’t be long before I can open the sixth meridian and ascend to the sixth level of Qi Refining.”

Jiang Yan’s brow creased further. Nan Junior Brother’s cultivation speed was astonishing—first to reach the fourth level of Qi Refining with the Green Wood Formula, and now, after only a few days, he had trained the Golden Flame Formula to the fifth level. Such rapid progress—could it leave hidden flaws within his body?

He fixed his gaze on Nanmen Luo and summoned the transparent information interface to examine Nanmen Luo’s details.

Name: Nanmen Luo
Sect: Mount Hua
Position: First-generation disciple of Mount Hua
Cultivation: Qi Refining, Fifth Level
Weapon: Golden Flame Sword
Formulas: Green Wood Formula, first-grade mid-tier; Golden Flame Formula, first-grade high-tier

Merit Points:
Root Bone: 105

“105!” Jiang Yan’s eyes widened instantly.

He recalled his experience with games, where cultivators’ Root Bone was divided into four tiers:

First tier: Root Bone between one and five. Such people had no aptitude for cultivation and would live their lives as mortals.

Second tier: Root Bone between six and ten. These individuals could hope to practice martial arts, strengthen their bodies, and, if exceptionally talented, possibly enter the ranks of cultivators, though great achievements would be rare.

Third tier: Root Bone between eleven and one hundred. With such a wide range, accomplishments varied greatly; the lowest could become Foundation Establishment experts if they had the right methods, while those with higher Root Bone could reach the Core Formation and even higher, perhaps attaining legendary realms.

Fourth tier: Root Bone between one hundred and one hundred twenty. Cultivators of this tier possessed extraordinary aptitude; barring interference from fate itself, even the least among them could form a Nascent Soul, and some might even break through to the rarely-seen Divine Transformation stage.

Nanmen Luo had taken the Bone-Easy Pill, raising his Root Bone to one hundred and five. It was certainly the Bone-Easy Pill, but its effects depended on the user’s original aptitude. If one’s Root Bone was too low, the pill’s improvement would be limited—much like different spiritual stones powering talisman soldiers; a sixth-grade talisman soldier could use low-grade spirit beasts and mid-to-high-grade stones, but a first-grade talisman soldier couldn’t withstand the surge of energy from a mid-grade stone, which would instantly dissolve it into talisman water.

Thus, Nanmen Luo’s original Root Bone must have been quite high even before taking the pill. More importantly, Nanmen Luo’s future was boundless; if he had the proper methods, he could steadily break through to the Divine Transformation stage.

As for formulas of the Divine Transformation stage, Jiang Yan had no worries. He possessed the Sect Master System, which awarded basic formulas with every main quest completion, so he had no need to fret about methods.

Regarding fate, that was even less concerning; Jiang Yan had a tool to quantify fate—Merit Points. When the time came, he could simply supervise Nanmen Luo as he rewarded good and punished evil, accumulating enough Merit Points for the Divine Transformation stage to become attainable.

“Sect Master Senior Brother, if you don’t wish to bestow the spiritual weapon, your junior won’t complain. But please, say something, Senior Brother?”

Nanmen Luo held the Golden Flame Sword’s blade with both hands, his face anxious, exceedingly reluctant as he spoke to Jiang Yan. Though he claimed he’d have no complaints if the spiritual weapon wasn’t given, his demeanor suggested that, were it not for Jiang Yan gripping the hilt, Nanmen Luo would snatch the Golden Flame Sword without hesitation.

“Uh… uh…” Jiang Yan awkwardly released the Golden Flame Sword. It wasn’t that he was reluctant to let go, but he was so surprised by Nanmen Luo’s Root Bone that he had forgotten to loosen his grip.

Nanmen Luo took the Golden Flame Sword from Jiang Yan, unable to part with it, turning it over and over in his hands. Watching his expression, one might think he wished to absorb the sword into his very eyes.

A low hum sounded as Nanmen Luo slowly infused his spiritual energy into the Golden Flame Sword. The blade immediately glowed with a bright golden light, and as more energy streamed into it, the sword’s golden brilliance surged, filling the space between the two.

“What a fine sword!” An envious voice carried from the far side of the plaza.

The portly Mu Yun strolled over with hands clasped behind his back, strutting proudly. Behind Nanmen Luo, Sun Yang followed, head bowed, somewhat resigned.

Mu Yun and Sun Yang stopped at the foot of the steps. Mu Yun bowed to Jiang Yan. “Greetings, Sect Master Senior Brother.” Sun Yang, obediently following Mu Yun, bowed to Jiang Yan and Nanmen Luo. “Greetings, Sect Master Uncle. Greetings, Uncle Nan.”

Seeing the golden spiritual sword in Nanmen Luo’s hand, Mu Yun’s face revealed undisguised envy. Approaching Nanmen Luo, Mu Yun reached out to gently touch the golden blade, his face plastered with a fawning smile. “Junior Brother, that's a fine sword! Where did you get it, Junior Brother?”

Nanmen Luo quickly sheathed the Golden Flame Sword with a swish, avoiding Mu Yun’s fingers with great care and protectiveness. “It was bestowed by Sect Master Senior Brother. If you want one, go ask him yourself, Senior Brother Mu.”

Mu Yun’s envy instantly turned to delight. He turned to Jiang Yan atop the steps and bowed, speaking cheerfully. “Sect Master Senior Brother, you’ve given a spiritual sword to Junior Brother Nan. For the sake of fairness, you ought to grant one to your junior as well.”

With a flick of his wrist, Jiang Yan produced a large earth-yellow axe in his palm. After completing the sect construction quest, he had received ten first-grade spiritual weapons; keeping one for himself, he had given one to Nanmen Luo, leaving eight—two for each of the five elements. Bestowing one upon Mu Yun was hardly a matter.

Casting a glance at Mu Yun, whose eyes shone with envy, Jiang Yan’s lips curled in a faint smile. “Mu Junior Brother, if you have broken through to the fifth level of Qi Refining, this Earth Element Axe shall be bestowed upon you.”