Chapter 737 - 427: Pairing the Five Elements with the Five Poison Creatures

’Even if I don’t kill Gongyang Wuji, I’m completely confident I can pass the Celestial Tribulation,’ Zou Feng thought. ’But setting aside the Celestial Tribulation, killing Gongyang Wuji would offer enough other benefits to make it a massive windfall.’

’In any case, the Celestial Dao Cauldron thinks that what I need most right now is to get rid of Gongyang Wuji, and it isn’t wrong about that.’

"I understand, but... what if I’m no match for Gongyang Wuji...?"

Zou Feng was probing Undying Master’s reaction. He didn’t quite understand why the Elder seemed so certain he could defeat Gongyang Wuji.

’As one of the Dubhe Divine Domain’s aces, isn’t it just as likely that Gongyang Wuji could turn the tables and kill me, winning this battle of destiny?’

At these words, a corner of Undying Master’s mouth tilted up in a classic, smug grin. "Do you even need to ask?" he said. "The Celestial Dao Cauldron gave you this information as a blessing. That means in its calculations, you have at least a sixty percent chance of winning!"

"I see... Thank you for clarifying, Elder Undying!"

Undying Master waved a dismissive hand. "Go on. There’s no need to rush. Take some time to rest and recuperate. This northern expedition will last for at least another ten years. And in about seven or eight years, there will be a major upheaval. Just be ready for it."

’Huh? The northern expedition is going to last that long?’

’Looks like the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect is dead set on destroying the Ninefold Celestial Court and the Yama Underworld this time.’

’But the Ninefold Celestial Court and the Yama Underworld have been running rampant for so long. How could they be wiped out so easily?’

’The key must be that major upheaval Undying Master mentioned... the one in seven or eight years...’

Zou Feng couldn’t contain his curiosity. He wanted to ask Undying Master for the specifics of this "major upheaval" in seven to eight years.

However, when he saw that Undying Master was already preparing to leave and clearly didn’t wish to discuss it further, he abandoned the idea to avoid the inevitable rebuff.

After bowing to Undying Master once more, Zou Feng turned and departed.

Tian Yun and the other four women immediately followed, along with familiar cultivators like Su Qingyu and Leng Jing.

Among them, of course, were his old acquaintances from the Great Yan Dynasty, like Jing Huaisong and Bai Chen.

It was worth noting that when they first arrived at the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect, the simp, Bai Chen, used to be incredibly frustrated by how close Su Qingyu was to Zou Feng.

But now, he had clearly accepted the fact that Zou Feng was his "master" and no longer harbored any other delusions like before.

In short, all these old acquaintances now wanted to cling to Zou Feng’s coattails and ride their way up with him.

Zou Feng had no objection to this. It might have been different before, but now that he was a True Disciple, he was expected to have an entourage befitting his status.

He wouldn’t be living at the Hongxing Inn for much longer. All True Disciples were granted their own "mountain peak."

Jiang Wanzhao’s domain, for example, was the Rakshasa Palace.

An elder had already announced this during the promotion ceremony earlier.

However, the mountain peak still needed to be prepared, and how the buildings would be arranged and what the peak would be named all required Zou Feng’s approval.

"Sister Yun, arrange for thank-you gifts to be sent to Outer Sect Elder He Wenxuan and Inner Sect Dining Hall Elder Xue Cang, respectively."

Now that Zou Feng had shot up in the ranks, he naturally wouldn’t forget the patrons who had helped him in the Outer and Inner Sects.

The fact that he was able to open a fried rice restaurant within the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect—and that its booming business had been sustained to this day—would have been impossible without the patronage of the Spirit Chefs.

Now that he was a True Inheritor, the meager income from the fried rice stall was no longer important. Still, opening some high-end restaurants in the future could be a decent source of extra income.

In fact, it wasn’t until he returned to the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect that Zou Feng truly felt the immense resources required for Cultivation at the Golden Core Realm.

He hadn’t noticed it before because he had been constantly hunting Tribulation Cultivators, eating his fill of their External Pills.

After his return, however, without the "gifts" from the Tribulation Cultivators, Zou Feng felt out of sorts almost every day, constantly feeling like he "hadn’t eaten enough."

Fortunately, he still hadn’t fully processed some of his previous gains, which kept this feeling of being "unsatisfied" from getting worse.

"Alright!"

Tian Yun acknowledged the order and immediately turned to handle the matter.

Soon, the group arrived back at the Hongxing Inn.

At that moment, four women were kneeling on one knee before the main entrance of the Hongxing Inn.

A single glance revealed they were all from the Demon Race.

The woman in the lead was none other than the Snake Demon, Shangguan Rongrong.

She hadn’t been in the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect for the past few days; instead, as per Zou Feng’s instructions, she had gone to gather all the Poison Demons he had previously subdued.

Aside from the Spider Demon who had been killed for her betrayal, the other four of the "Five Poison Creatures" in the area had been brought under Zou Feng’s command, each branded with a Mark of Righteousness.

Zou Feng hadn’t subdued them on a whim; he had his reasons.

"Master, the sisters are all here!" Shangguan Rongrong said, bowing respectfully as Zou Feng approached.

The toad, Han Ying; the centipede, Shu Yao; and the Scorpion Demoness, Tao Yaoyao, all followed suit and bowed to Zou Feng.

Zou Feng had summoned them for two reasons. First, so the Poison Demons could access better cultivation resources at the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect. This would help them break through to the Golden Core Realm sooner, which in turn would provide him with higher-quality "Five Poison Creatures" for his own use.

The second reason was for Tian Yun and the other four women.

Tian Yun and the other four women each cultivated a different Five Elements Skill, which they could use to enhance the effects of the Dragon and Tiger Kan and Li Skill.

If the Five Elements were paired with the Five Poison Creatures, the cultivation effects would be more than just doubled, wouldn’t they?

This was an idea inspired by the "Five Elements pleasure room" that Tian Yun and the others had concocted.

When they "did the deed" in the Five Elements Room, adding the corresponding Poison Creature to the mix would not only increase Zou Feng’s own gains, but also amplify the positive feedback for the five women.

The five women wouldn’t need to cultivate Poison Techniques themselves. After all, they had no way to transfer the side effects, and none of them possessed a Calamity Poison Body like Su Qingyu.

They just needed to make the cultivation environment poisonous. Zou Feng could simply neutralize the poison as soon as they were finished.

Teng County was an exception, of course. She had started her Cultivation journey with Poison Skills.

However, to complete this vision, he was still missing one of the Five Poison Creatures, which was a problem.

Spider Demons that had cultivated to the Dao Foundation Realm were rare.

But the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect had conquered countless Outer Realms. If he posted a bounty, he would likely get some results.

’Or maybe I should check if there’s a suitable one in the Demon Suppression Tower?’

"From now on, you will all focus on your Cultivation here at the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect. The first one to break through to the Golden Core Realm will be handsomely rewarded!"

Shangguan Rongrong had no particular reaction to his words, but Tao Yaoyao and the other women couldn’t help but look perplexed.

After all, what kind of master would want his newly acquired Maids to hurry up and break through to the same Realm as himself?

But from the look of him, Zou Feng didn’t seem to be saying it casually. He had even instructed Shangguan Rongrong to list out all the cultivation resources they would need.

It truly left them a bit dumbfounded.

Of course, having the Poison Demons cultivate at the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect didn’t mean making them disciples. That would clearly be against the rules.

But Zou Feng was now a True Disciple, so there was nothing wrong with him having a few members of the Demon Race serve as Maids in his retinue.

Back at the Hongxing Inn, Zou Feng decided to cook a meal himself to welcome the old acquaintances who had chosen to follow him.

He also used the occasion to host the endless stream of other well-wishers who came to congratulate him.

Zou Feng accepted gifts from all who came, refusing none.

A promotion to True Inheritor was like hosting a banquet for a major life event in the Mortal Realm; it was often a chance to make a huge profit from all the gifts received.

Zou Feng wasn’t in a hurry to go looking for Gongyang Wuji. The matter required careful, long-term planning, lest he stumble over an unexpected detail.

He knew that even if he wanted a "fair" duel with Gongyang Wuji, that didn’t mean his opponent shared the sentiment.

Therefore, avoiding his schemes was the absolute top priority.

In the following days, Zou Feng was busy hosting a continuous banquet.

In truth, while he was hosting his guests, it was also an experiment for Zou Feng.

He was eager to see just how much his Hand of Poisoning had improved since he reached the Golden Core Realm.

If the effects were good enough, not only could he upgrade his "Frenzy-Fry" fried rice stall and keep it going, but the high-end restaurant he had envisioned could also be put on the schedule.