Chapter 572: Returning to the Sect

"Everything should be fine now; you should be able to return to your sect without any problems!" Having returned to the capital of the Iron Sky Kingdom where Xuan Hao was patiently waiting for her, Yi Min said this with a happy expression on her face.

Even just looking at her from afar, Xuan Hao could see how happy she was over the fact that she had managed to chase away the group from the Sky Empire without encountering any problems.

"Thank you... I don't know what I would do without your help! All I have to repay you at the moment is the location of the Frost Devil Sect that you asked me to look around for. Not that it's enough to repay you for your help..."

Thanking Yi Min for the help she had provided during his time of need, Xuan Hao did not forget to take out the map of the Frozen Wastelands that she had given him during their short meeting just after the end of the alchemy competition.

"No need to worry at all, I even managed to get rid of the Frost Devil Sect's sect master so easily because of you and that is more than enough! Hehe, without their sect master and with the location of their sect, the Frost Devil Sect will be easy to deal with~"

"..."

Seeing Yi Min devolving into a not so friendly expression as a very clear killing intent appeared in both her eyes towards the end of her sentence, Xuan Hao decided to pretend that he didn't hear her as he prepared to leave the Iron Sky Kingdom and return to the Flying Sword Sect.

No matter what, it had already been a few weeks since he had left the sect to save Zhu Lian, find the Frost Devil Sect and finally get his hands on the Transcendent Grade Spiritual Herb needed to set up the Qi Gathering Formation required for the Flying Sword Sect to officially begin moving into the Shattered Star Peaks and use it as their main sect.

At this point in time, Xuan Hao really wanted to get back to the Flying Sword Sect. Not only to check up on Qing Yi and Bai Ning who had not left for an adventure like Chu Yang, but also so he could inform Elder Song about the location of the undiscovered spirit stone mine that he had received from saving Zhu Lian.

"I will be taking my leave..."

Noticing that Yi Min was not saying anything after having talked about how she was planning to pay a visit to the Frost Devil Sect that now lacked a sect master, Xuan Hao quietly took his leave after a quick goodbye.

"Sure~ See you again in the future!"

Of course, only after Yi Min lowered her formation so he could leave. After all, with his current strength, he would have no way to leave her formation without her help...

Swish~

Leaving the Iron Sky Kingdom after Yi Min opened up a passage for him to pass through, Xuan Hao began his journey back towards the Flying Sword Sect.

Making sure to go a bit slower and not reveal himself along the way and at the same time keeping an eye out for the group of experts sent by the Sky Empire in case he happened to encounter them while making his way back to the Flying Sword Sect.

...

"Looks like the experts sent by the Sky Empire went in another direction when they chased after the demonic cultivator that managed to escape..." Muttering this to himself as he arrived back at the Flying Sword Sect, Xuan Hao could not help breathing a sigh of relief as he landed in front of his pavilion.

Luckily, his journey back to the Flying Sword Sect went on without any problems appearing along the way.

Not to mention problems showing up. During his journey, he did not even get in trouble with any of the Domain Lords whose territory he ended up passing through... Although, thinking about it, the reason for this, was most likely the fact that he actually hid himself this time around.

Of course... That was not mentioning the fact that quite a few Domain Lords had ended up dying to the demonic cultivator called Black Hand back then.

Thinking about it like that, most of the Domain Lords that had been present on the path between the Iron Sky Kingdom and the Flying Sword Sect had either died or been scared into hiding...

"Hm? Bai Ning?"

Spotting Bai Ning who just happened to leave the pavilion the moment he landed in front of it, Xuan Hao could not help showing a slightly surprised expression. Not expecting to see Bai Ning suddenly appear in front of him.

Even if he had already sensed him with his divine sense beforehand, he did not pay too much attention to who it was. Instead, being focused on his own thoughts about the group of experts sent by the Sky Empire and the demonic cultivator, they were chasing...

"Master? Your back!"

Hearing his master's voice, Bai Ning showed a similarly surprised expression as he soon became excited upon realizing that his master was back.

During the past few weeks, he had remained focused on increasing his cultivation and even managed to gain enlightenment while in the process of forging an artifact that allowed him to successfully break through and reach the Ninth Stage of the Qi Condensation Realm.

At that time, Bai Ning had not only realized that he could continue cultivating even while he was focused on forging an artifact, but he also realized that his cultivation speed was way faster this way!

It was at that moment Bai Ning wholeheartedly began cultivating the Unformed Mantra with all his heart, because of this. Not only had his cultivation base strengthened, but his presence had also changed and become firmer.

"You reached the Ninth Stage of the Qi Condensation Realm already!?"

At the same time Bai Ning was remembering what he had gone through over the past few weeks, Xuan Hao finally discovered that Bai Ning had actually broken through to the Ninth Stage of the Qi Condensation Realm... To say it was surprising would be an understatement, as Xuan Hao felt quite baffled over how Bai Ning had not only managed to break through to the Ninth Stage of the Qi Condensation Realm but had even manged to reach the Peak of the Ninth Stage!

Looking over Bai Ning's cultivation base once more, Xuan Hao felt that it would not be wrong to say that Bai Ning was already close to reaching the Foundation Establishment Realm!

"Yes! I managed to understand how to properly use the mantra given by master and-"

Filled with both pride and happiness upon seeing his master mention his cultivation realm, Bai Ning did not hide anything as he quickly went over how he had broken through and his discoveries regarding the Unformed Mantra and how it could be cultivated at the same time that he was forging artifacts.

Not only that could he cultivate the Unformed Mantra while practicing blacksmithing, but it actually increased his cultivation speed if he practiced it while he was forging!

No wonder the Unformed Mantra is considered a Heaven Rank cultivation mantra... It is indeed something specifically made for a blacksmith!

Feeling amazed after finding out about the hidden aspect to the Unformed Mantra that Bai Ning had discovered, Xuan Hao could not help wondering if the mantra that his other two disciples were practicing had a similar hidden aspect to them as well...

"Master, I also practiced the palm technique that you taught me before, but I don't seem to be able to further improve at all..."

"Ah..."

Lost in thought as he thought about whether or not the Heaven Rank cultivation mantras that he had given Qing Yi and Chu Yang had a similar hidden feature in them, Xuan Hao could not help letting out a slightly surprised voice after hearing Bai Ning's question.

You already managed to break through a small realm during the little time I was gone... How come you are still not satisfied...?

"Don't worry about it, its normal to spend more time learning a technique you are not as familiar with!" Even if he thought something different, Xuan Hao still showed an understanding expression as he said this with a wise look on his face.

"I see... I will have to spend some more time practicing the palm technique in the future..."

"Hm... Now that I'm back, how about I teach you?" Seeing the slightly sad expression on Bai Ning's face after hearing his response, Xuan Hao decided to ask this. After returning to the sect, he was more than happy to spend some time teaching Bai Ning.

In the first place, informing Elder Song about the spirit stone mine and beginning the construction of the Qi Gathering Formation could wait a few hours...

"Really!?"

"Yes, let's go to the training ground for now."

Whoosh~

Like this, Xuan Hao spent the next few hours in the training ground together with Bai Ning. Helping him not only improve his mastery over the palm technique, but also teaching him a few easier qi techniques to help him increase his control over his qi.