CHAPTER 370: CHAPTER 370: DELIBERATELY SPREADING PARTY FEATHERS_1

Upon receiving her set of spiritual items, Qian Xiaofeng stored them all in her Universe Bag. She planned to sell everything else—such as the identity jade pendant, basic cultivation method, and Riverside Sect outer disciple’s attire—even though they wouldn’t fetch many Spirit Stones.

As her senior, even though Qian Xiaofeng lacked for nothing, Shen Mo had still prepared an entry gift for her: a range of Grade I and Grade II Elixirs and Talismans.

The Elixirs included varieties for restoring Mana, boosting cultivation, treating injuries, and clearing the mind to resist demons, each with various potent effects.

The Talismans were no less impressive, featuring types for offense, defense, escape, demon suppression, imprisonment, and banishing restrictive spells—a dazzling array.

Although Shopkeeper Qian was not short of Spirit Stones, he was, after all, from a merchant background, unlike Shen Mo, who had fought his way to his current position. The Elixirs and Talismans Shopkeeper Qian might provide for Qian Xiaofeng, while of good quality, would be a haphazard collection, lacking a systematic approach.

The items Shen Mo prepared, however, were carefully selected based on his own experiences, considering Qian Xiaofeng’s current strength and the various situations she would likely encounter.

Qian Xiaofeng was overjoyed to receive such an entry gift, and her calls of "Senior" became noticeably sweeter.

After arranging her accommodations in the outer disciple area, Shen Mo personally introduced her to the Outer Deacon responsible for the daily affairs of new disciples.

"Rest assured, Shen Candidate, I will take good care of this girl."

Due to the large number of outer disciples in the Riverside Sect, there were quite a few Outer Deacons. Most of them were former Inner Door disciples at the Qi Gathering Realm who, due to limited talent and their inability to cultivate to the Spirit Sea Realm, had transferred to these positions.

The Outer Deacon in charge of this month’s new disciples was a middle-aged female cultivator who had only just left the Inner Door a few months prior.

She naturally recognized Shen Mo and, in her excitement, fervently assured him.

In truth, the Riverside Sect generally didn’t interfere much with the outer disciples, merely assigning personnel to handle some of their daily and cultivation-related affairs.

"In that case, I’ll be troubling you, Deacon Qin!" Shen Mo replied with a laugh, then handed her two bottles of Grade II Soul Nurturing Pills, each containing five pills.

Deacon Qin, at first stunned, was then overjoyed!

A few months prior, on the demon-slaying battlefield, she had encountered a Class II Demon-corrupted cultivator. During the battle to slay it, a moment of carelessness led to her soul being injured by its soul spell. Despite a long period of recuperation, her cultivation had not advanced in the slightest, which was why she had transferred to become an Outer Deacon.

Shen Mo’s gift of Soul Nurturing Pills was exactly what she desperately needed.

Beyond the joy on her face, a touch of gratitude filled her eyes. "Thank you for your generous gift, Shen Candidate..."

"Don’t mention it," Shen Mo replied with a slight smile.

Before departing, he gave Qian Xiaofeng the imprint for his Sound Transmission Talisman, so she could contact him immediately if she encountered danger while out on experiential training or sect tasks.

As for why he treated her so well, the reason was simple.

Firstly, Qian Xiaofeng’s father, Shopkeeper Qian, diligently managed four shops for him. This made Shopkeeper Qian his most stable source of income. Showing kindness to Qian Xiaofeng would further ensure Shopkeeper Qian’s unwavering loyalty. Moreover, should Shen Mo acquire more properties in the future, he could also entrust their management to him.

Secondly, the girl herself possessed extraordinary talent. Her innate aptitude was second only to those with a Spiritual Body; she was definitely a promising talent worth nurturing.

Shen Mo was already a formidable cultivator in the Spirit Sea Realm. When unleashing his full combat power, his strength neared that of an ordinary late-stage Spirit Sea Realm cultivator.

Considering his future, it was natural for him to want to build a faction within the Riverside Sect and recruit loyal subordinates.

Otherwise, even if he successfully vied for the position of Hall Master or Peak Master in the future, he would be a solitary figure. While handling common matters might be straightforward, he would lack trusted aides capable of managing difficult situations on his behalf.

Qian Xiaofeng was one of Shen Mo’s targets.

Once she cultivated to the Qi Gathering Realm and advanced to the Inner Door, if she performed commendably in the competition for new talents, Shen Mo intended to accept her as his disciple.

Aside from her, Shen Mo had several other candidates in mind.

The first, naturally, was Cao Ren, who had guarded the main gate with him.

Shen Mo and Cao Ren had become acquainted during humbler times. They understood each other’s temperaments well and shared mutual trust.

The only drawback was Cao Ren’s rather poor talent; his strength was not significant.

It was highly probable that cultivating to the Spirit Sea Realm would be extremely difficult for him.

If, in the future, he could only manage a mediocre existence in the Inner Door or eventually transfer to a Deacon position, the scope of tasks Shen Mo could entrust to him would be very limited.

However, some time ago, Cao Ren seemed to have chanced upon some opportunity, and he had secretly shared the details with Shen Mo through a Sound Transmission Talisman.

Currently, Cao Ren had once again gone down the mountain to earn merit from slaying demons.

When Cao Ren returned, Shen Mo planned to have a thorough discussion with him to find out what he was truly up to.

The second person was, of course, Chen Mengze, Senior Sister Chen, Shen Mo’s childhood friend.

Shen Mo had high hopes for Chen Mengze. Once he had the means, the support and assistance he provided her were considerable.

Magic Artifacts, Elixirs, Talismans, Spirit Stones, rewards—within the scope of his abilities, Shen Mo was doing his utmost to help her gather cultivation resources.

Even the immensely valuable secret treasure, the Yin-Yang Jade Disk, Shen Mo had not kept for himself, returning it to her without a moment’s hesitation.

Fortunately, when he saw her this time, Shen Mo discovered she had successfully advanced to the eighth layer of the Qi Gathering Realm, with the Peak Realm nearly within her grasp.

Before long, Chen Mengze would be able to attempt to break through and open her Spirit Sea.

By then, she might also have a shot at competing for the position of core disciple!

This was despite the fact that it had been nearly one hundred and seventy or eighty years since the Riverside Sect had seen a core disciple emerge from the ranks of ordinary Inner Door disciples.

However, upon becoming a core candidate, one didn’t need to immediately challenge for the ninth seat.

There was still a six-year grace period to continue improving one’s strength.

With six years... Shen Mo was confident he could reach the first seat among the core disciples. After that, he could devote his full efforts to helping her secure the ninth core disciple seat.

Other potential candidates included individuals like Lu Ming, Guo Zhao, Li Zhong, Yao Ting, and a group of old acquaintances from Stars Peak.

The only issue was that they were all proud and ambitious individuals. Except for Guo Zhao and Lu Ming, whom he had known for longer, the others were acquaintances Shen Mo had made after joining Stars Peak.

Lu Ming, for instance, possessed the Thunder Body and was considered exceptionally talented; he was also a Direct Disciple of Peak Master Zhou Shili.

He was likely also aiming for a core disciple position and would probably be unwilling to be subordinate to Shen Mo.

Similarly, Guo Zhao, Li Zhong, and the others were also striving to open their Spirit Seas and compete for core disciple positions.

Although Shen Mo was no younger than them, he had been promoted to the Inner Door and had joined Stars Peak relatively late.

Unless he could consistently outperform the other core disciples, secure a top position, and maintain such dominance for an extended period, it would be difficult to bring them into his fold as loyal followers.

Of course, achieving the same level of mutual confidence and open communication with them as he shared with Chen Mengze would not be easy.

Additionally, Ming Yu the Clam Girl, who held the status of an Alien Minister despite not being a Riverside Sect disciple, was an unexpected boon.

However, the standing and influence of Alien Ministers varied greatly.

Take Wu Gong, Zhao Lingyin’s Master, for example. Even though he was only at the early-stage of the Spirit Sea Realm, Peak Master Zhou Shili himself treated him with considerable congeniality.

The reason was simple: Wu Gong was, ostensibly, the only Grade IV Alchemist in the Riverside Sect.

Once Ming Yu advanced to the late-stage of Class III, or made significant progress in the Forging Path, her special status meant she could be of great use in the future, whether within the Riverside Sect or in the Immortal Burial Sea.

There’s no hurry for now. First, I need to advance to Layer II of the Realm. Then, I’ll crush Tian Zhiyu under my foot!