Chapter 42: Are Spiritual Roots Unimportant?

Lingyun Peak.

The disciples of the White Sword Sect were cultivating day and night.

This was not merely due to the threat posed by the Yangsheng Sect, but because cultivation had simply become far too rewarding.

As long as one reached the Foundation Establishment stage, they would not only receive medicinal pills to aid their cultivation, but even Meridian-Protecting Pills as well.

It was rumored that other magical implements might be distributed as well, which caused even more disciples to shift their focus toward the Pistol Guidance Technique.

Such a prospect was something they would not have dared to imagine in the past. One could say they were operating in shifts twenty-four hours a day.

In any case, cultivation could replace sleep, and if they missed this opportunity, it would never come again.

Moreover, they had actually received their stipends a couple of days prior. If the White Sword Sect were to truly perish, even if they survived, it was certain they would no longer have access to such abundant resources to support their cultivation.

Clang...

At that moment, the sect's bell rang.

Aside from those disciples away on assigned tasks, all the other disciples rapidly gathered in front of the grand hall.

At this time, Liang Chuan stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his gaze sharp and piercing as he swept it back and forth across them.

Noticing that the disciples had all improved to varying degrees, the stern look on his face dissipated slightly.

"Everyone has been doing quite well during this period. However, I've noticed that you've all been paying more attention to conventional cultivation and haven't spent enough time learning the Pistol Guidance Technique."

After all, the guidance technique was basically practiced on the martial arts arena, yet each person only spent a little over two hours a day practicing it.

This fell far short of his original expectations.

One of the disciples hesitated and said, "Master, although the magical implement you gave us called a pistol is very powerful, I still feel that personal cultivation realm is more important."

Such a mindset had long since taken deep root in their minds.

After all, the higher one's cultivation realm, the stronger their reaction speed would be. When the time came to use a pistol, even if the guidance technique wasn't particularly formidable, that enhanced reaction speed could easily make up for it.

Hearing these words, Liang Chuan did not scold him, knowing that people in this era simply had no concept of the power of technology.

"I know you are all thinking that greater strength can make up for the gap. But you haven't considered that while increasing your personal cultivation is slow, the benefits brought by the Pistol Guidance Technique are far greater and yield results much faster!"

"Our time is limited right now. Although I would also like for you to cultivate day in and day out, the spirit chambers are too few. Even if I were willing to provide the resources, it would still be difficult for you to make full use of them in a short period!"

As he spoke, Liang Chuan flipped his right hand, retrieved a pistol from his storage ring, and aimed it at a distant tree. "I am currently only at the late Foundation Establishment stage, yet a pistol poses a massive threat to me. Only by mastering the guidance technique can one keep up with an enemy's reactions."

With that, Liang Chuan pulled the trigger without a second thought, firing directly at the distant tree.

After seven shots were fired, the disciples looked toward the tree, which stood a full hundred meters away from Liang Chuan.

To their astonishment, a large hole had been blown right through the dead center of the tree, and every single shot had precisely struck the exact same spot.

Everyone was frozen in shock.

They had seen other senior brothers who possessed pistols engage in target practice, but their hit rates were simply not in the same league as Liang Chuan's.

According to the senior brothers, factors such as wind speed had to be taken into consideration, but the Pistol Guidance Technique could drastically reduce such problems and even allow for pinpoint accuracy against targets.

More importantly, judging by the tree trunk that had been pierced completely through, this destructive power was practically indistinguishable from that of the Foundation Establishment stage.

Everyone could not help but let out gasps of amazement.

The looks they directed toward Liang Chuan became even more respectful.

Liang Chuan put the pistol back into his storage ring and let out an internal sigh.

In truth, his marksmanship could not be considered exceptionally precise, but because he had practiced the Pistol Guidance Technique continuously in his previous life, his hit rate was naturally much higher than anyone else's.

In the modern era, some formidable cultivators could accurately strike even more distant targets without even needing the Pistol Guidance Technique.

Liang Chuan pressed his hands down slightly to signal for the disciples to quiet down before speaking in a stern and reprimanding tone: "The Pistol Guidance Technique is something you must learn, and you must learn it with dedication. I won't hide it from you—in the future, we will have magical implements far more powerful than the pistol, and they share common principles with the Pistol Guidance Technique. Therefore, I hope everyone will cultivate it diligently!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the eyes of everyone present widened in disbelief.

"There are other magical implements even more powerful than this?! Heavens, wouldn't that mean we could slay those in the Core Formation stage?!"

"I thought this pistol was the only magical implement! If I had known earlier, I would have dedicated myself entirely to practicing the Pistol Guidance Technique!"

"Master is right. If one can master the Pistol Guidance Technique, dealing with cultivators of the same realm is basically absolute domination!"

They now belatedly realized that while it was true the Core Formation stage would not fear a pistol at present, for the Foundation Establishment stage, the threat was immense. Furthermore, if there were enough people, even those in the Core Formation stage would have to give them a wide berth.

The reason they had previously focused entirely on cultivating themselves was simply the desire to reach the late Foundation Establishment stage as quickly as possible, believing that once they stepped into Core Formation, the pistol would become useless.

However, the news Liang Chuan had just shared caused their hearts to stir once again with endless possibilities.

"Did you all hear that?!" Liang Chuan demanded with a sudden roar.

"We heard it!" the disciples puffed out their chests and shouted in unison.

Seeing the renewed high spirits of the disciples, he nodded slightly.

Only when the disciples practiced the Pistol Guidance Technique to a state of minor accomplishment would they have any possibility of hitting someone in the Core Formation stage. Otherwise, hitting them would be practically impossible.

He himself hadn't spent much time cultivating lately, as the sect's expanding expenditures had brought with them an ever-growing mountain of administrative tasks.

Depending solely on Liu Ruyan was simply not enough to properly manage the sect.

He finally understood why historical records showed that sect masters almost always struggled to advance their personal cultivation realms. With a mountain of trivial chores every day, managing to squeeze out even a tiny sliver of time for cultivation was already a minor miracle.

After the disciples dispersed, Liu Ruyan hurried over holding a small ledger.

"Senior Brother, the second recruitment round for rogue cultivator disciples has concluded. This time, the turnout is even larger than the last: fourteen disciples at the second layer of Qi Condensation, and four at the third layer."

These rogue cultivators had all heard of the White Sword Sect's rapid development, which was why they had specifically made their way here.

"Not bad," Liang Chuan secretly nodded. "However, we still need to go out and search for true Immortal Seeds!"

Liu Ruyan sighed. "I have searched everywhere I possibly could, but such things are a matter of luck and cannot be forced."

Talented disciples who could truly grow into powerhouses were usually discovered out in the world before anyone else could snatch them away. The ones they managed to find now basically possessed only mortal-grade spiritual roots, with just a tiny fraction having lower-grade roots.

Take Huang He, for example. His spiritual root was considered quite good among their group, yet it was still merely a lower-grade spiritual root.

Liang Chuan placed his hand on Liu Ruyan's head and gently ruffled her hair. "Don't rush. While spiritual roots are important, Immortal Seeds are not absolute."

With her head being petted, Liu Ruyan's face flushed a rosy red, yet hearing Liang Chuan's words, she wore an expression of utter bewilderment.

Are spiritual roots not important?!