By the time Yao Xi had left, Ye Chen was already preparing to make a trip to Green Cloud City to procure a batch of items he would need for Foundation Establishment.

After all, once a cultivator reached Foundation Establishment, they had to replace everything—from medicinal pills to magic treasures, and even cultivation techniques.

Yao Xi had gone off to break through, and with the top-grade Foundation Establishment Pills and her natural talent, success would be almost guaranteed.

Ye Chen had prepared everything in advance and was ready to present her with a gift once she succeeded. It would also give him a chance to search for a suitable gift for his master. It was a perfect plan.

However, just as Ye Chen was about to leave, Elder Chen arrived once again.

"Fellow Daoist Ye, what are your plans moving forward?" Elder Chen asked.

"After you breakthrough to Foundation Establishment, you can either choose to become an elder or continue as a disciple. The benefits of becoming an elder are obvious—you would manage sect affairs and receive remuneration.

"But if you choose to remain a disciple, you can focus entirely on your cultivation. The sect will provide three high-grade spiritual stones per year, which is equivalent to the remuneration of an elder, and you will also receive the necessary medicinal resources for cultivation.

"However, you would be obligated to serve the sect. If the sect goes to war or has extermination missions, disciples will be the first ones sent out. Refusal is not an option."

After Ye Chen's breakthrough to Foundation Establishment, Elder Chen had switched to addressing him with a more respectful title.

Ye Chen considered the offer for a moment. Becoming an elder seemed like the best choice. After all, being in charge of sect affairs came with a salary and a high degree of power. In Green Cloud Sect's territory, it was a massive entity.

Regardless of the responsibilities one took on, having power would certainly bring with it both perks and privileges. In terms of accumulating resources, becoming an elder was indeed the most advantageous option.

However, the downside was the need to divide attention. But Ye Chen had the System, so he would never be short on resources. There was simply no need to become an elder. Remaining a disciple would allow him more freedom. Though he would be sent on missions, that was entirely normal. The sect wasn't a charity, after all.

"I choose to remain a disciple and cultivate on Sword Peak!" Ye Chen decisively made his decision.

Elder Chen was somewhat surprised by Ye Chen's choice, but did not try to persuade him further. He continued speaking, shifting to the main topic: "Next, we need to discuss Foundation Establishment cultivation methods. The sect has three mid-tier Black-grade Foundation Establishment methods available. Fellow Daoist Ye may go to the Scripture Pavilion anytime to review them and select the one that best suits your needs. As for the resources, the Internal Affairs Hall will deliver them tomorrow."

Cultivation methods in the cultivation world were classified into four major grades: Heaven, Earth, Black, and Yellow. Each major grade was further divided into three sub-grades: upper, middle, and lower tier. Every realm had its corresponding cultivation method.

The only exception was the Qi Refining stage's method. Because, regardless of whether one cultivated the orthodox or demonic path, the method used was the Dao Scripture Qi Refining chapter.

This was the highest-level Qi Refining method in the entire cultivation world. It was said that, during the ancient times, humanity was weak and constantly oppressed. Seeing this, a great being could not bear to watch and spread the Dao Scripture Qi Refining chapter throughout the entire cultivation world, making it widely accessible. Thus, anyone could cultivate Qi Refining. It was this that gradually ushered humanity into the era of cultivation.

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Ye Chen certainly needed a Foundation Establishment method. But mid-tier Black-grade? He felt it was beneath him. The more powerful a cultivation method, the greater the power and benefits it provided. And they often possessed various mystical traits.

With his system, Ye Chen had to aim for the best. Moreover, the methods provided by the sect were accessible to Yao Xi as well. He wouldn't be able to get any rewards from them.

"Elder Chen, are there only mid-tier Black-grade methods available in the sect? Is there nothing better?" Ye Chen asked.

Upon hearing this, Elder Chen immediately shook his head. "Fellow Daoist Ye, the mid-tier Black-grade method is already quite powerful! Most Foundation Establishment cultivators from wandering cultivators outside the sect only have yellow-tier middle or upper-grade methods."

Cultivation methods in the cultivation world were divided into two categories. One was freely circulated, available to all. The other was encrypted and could only be used by one individual. These methods could not be passed on to others.

Green Cloud Sect could afford better methods, but the problem was that such a method could not be shared with disciples. It could only be used by one person. Once it was used, it was gone.

For the sect, a one-time-use method was virtually useless. Moreover, the mid-tier Black-grade method was already a dream cultivation method for most wandering cultivators.

Green Cloud Sect was not poorly treated, but to Ye Chen, the mid-tier Black-grade method was far from sufficient. A cultivation method determined the upper limit of a cultivator's potential.

If one could cultivate the best methods at every stage, their combat power would undoubtedly surpass all expectations. There would also be countless other benefits, with endless rewards to reap.

So Ye Chen asked directly, "Elder Chen, where can I acquire a better cultivation method?"

Elder Chen sighed deeply. "Green Cloud City definitely won't have anything of that caliber. However, there may be a chance in Divine Will City."

"But those methods are extremely expensive. An upper-tier Black-grade method would cost at least a hundred high-grade spiritual stones. Do you understand what that means?

"Even as an elder of Green Cloud Sect, my annual remuneration is only three high-grade spiritual stones. Including other random sources of income, I'm lucky if I have five in total.

"Acquiring a upper-tier Black-grade method would require twenty years of living without eating or drinking. But even then, twenty years wouldn't be enough to afford it.

"After all, you can't spend twenty years without cultivating, without buying medicinal pills, or without purchasing magic tools. While a Foundation Establishment cultivator earns more, they also spend much more."

With this, Elder Chen seemed to want to dissuade Ye Chen, warning him that it wasn't worth the effort. The mid-tier Black-grade method was not unusable after all.

Upon hearing Elder Chen's words, Ye Chen's eyes lit up. Green Cloud City was a bit too low-level and would be difficult to fulfill his needs. But Divine Will City was definitely reliable.

Divine Will Sect was the leading sect above Green Cloud Sect, Misty Sect, and the other five major sects. Every year, each of these sects had to send resources to Divine Will Sect.

The reason for this was simple: Divine Will Sect possessed a Nascent Soul Ancestor and over ten Golden Core cultivators.

As for Foundation Establishment cultivators? There were even more of them! In Divine Will Sect, a Foundation Establishment cultivator wouldn't even qualify to become an elder; they could only be a deacon at most. The power of Divine Will Sect was evident from this. It was only natural that Divine Will City was far more prosperous and capable of providing an abundant supply of items required for Foundation Establishment.

As for the issue of spiritual stones? There was nothing to worry about there.

For Ye Chen, as long as it could be solved with spiritual stones, it wasn't really a problem at all. At present, he had five hundred high-grade spiritual stones in his possession. He was wealthier than he could have imagined. And this was without actively seeking to accumulate spiritual stones.

After all, with the system's explosive rates and occasional critical hits, even a reckless spender would find themselves soaring in wealth. Even if his spiritual stones ran low, he could always sell one or two top-tier Foundation Establishment Pills.

Though these pills were rare, they weren't nonexistent. They were just hard to come by. With a little preparation, he could easily sell a couple without raising any trouble.

But the Five Elements Pills were a different story. They were genuine, one-of-a-kind pills, and their value was unimaginable. If anyone discovered that Ye Chen could refine Five Elements Pills, he could forget about returning home. He'd be locked in a pill refining chamber and ruthlessly exploited by powerful figures.

In any case, Ye Chen quickly made up his mind. During Yao Xi's seclusion, he would head to Divine Will City to procure the necessary cultivation methods and magic treasures.

Once he returned, he'd give the items to Yao Xi to enhance their strength. And along the way, he could see the sights and maybe meet some stunning beauties in Divine Will City! Perhaps he could find a bit of excitement to elevate his own… multiplier effect.

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