Chapter 26: Soaring Cultivation Points (Please Vote for Me)

Under overwhelming superiority, the encirclement did not last long; within five minutes, the enemy forces were decimated. Soon, only Li Yingshen, who had been suppressed by Chu Xinyue, remained unattended. But with all his subordinates dead, the countdown to his own demise had begun.

Over a thousand people surrounded him. Su Yu stood guard in front of his companions, watching as Li Yingshen pointed at Chu Xinyue with an arrogant laugh: "You won this time, but you cannot win forever. Just you wait; one day you will fall into my hands, and you will pay back today's losses a hundredfold."

As he finished speaking, his body ignited with spontaneous flames—he was committing suicide.

However, a flash of irritation appeared on Chu Xinyue’s exquisite face. With a cold glint in her eyes, she reached out and grasped at the sky. The world suddenly shifted; an indescribable power descended, freezing everything in place, preventing even the blinking of an eye. The flames consuming Li Yingshen rapidly dissipated. He froze, filled with shock and fury: "How is this possible? What grade of magical treasure is this?"

"I originally had no intention of being so ruthless, but since you seek your own death, you have only yourself to blame."

As she spoke, Su Yu looked up in astonishment, watching as the flowing light runes covering the sky rapidly contracted. The space around them shrank, and Li Yingshen began to shrink along with it. At a certain moment, Su Yu felt a sudden sense of liberation, as if he had stepped out of that pocket dimension.

Within ten seconds, the space had shrunk to a point, transforming into an ancient golden scroll covered in flowing runes, which drifted toward Chu Xinyue. In the center of the scroll was a painting of a man in green robes, clutching a small bell with a terrified expression.

"Hiss!"

"The space we were in was actually inside a painting! Another high-grade magical treasure."

The aftermath involved clearing the battlefield before returning to Chensha Town. After this round, the Frostfire Guild would certainly have to lay low for a while. As for Li Yingshen, even if he survived, he would be stripped of a layer of skin; Chu Xinyue would surely torment him and make him pay dearly. If Su Yu were in charge, he would have taken the opportunity to break his spine and shatter his hopes of overcoming the heavenly tribulation.

Although Li Yingshen was not as strong as Chu Xinyue, he did have a chance of success. Once he successfully passed his first Great Heavenly Tribulation and ascended to become a Loose Immortal, he would certainly be a major threat. If it were Su Yu, he would have used the most extreme, top-tier method to kill him—the kind that costs fifty years of lifespan per death. Such a high-level death penalty does more than just drain lifespan; it has a high probability of permanently reducing innate attributes and inflicting severe negative status effects. For an elite like Li Yingshen, who aspired to become a Loose Immortal, this would be an unbearable agony.

Just one such experience would ruin him. He would then have only one path left: to venture into the tribulation. Success might grant him a reprieve, but failure would likely result in total annihilation under the heavenly lightning, with no chance of resurrection. Even at peak condition, the success rate of the tribulation was low; under such severe penalties, the chances would be pitifully slim.

Of course, these were just Su Yu's thoughts. How to handle the situation was up to Chu Xinyue; he was in no position to offer suggestions.

Back in Chensha Town, the team dispersed. He found a corner and took out the spoils left behind by the four people he had killed during the baiting mission. Generally, when a player falls, they randomly drop one to three items, including equipped gear, flying swords, magical treasures, or items from their storage. If lucky, they only drop miscellaneous items and pills; if unlucky, they lose their weapons.

The loot from these individuals exceeded his expectations. Among them was a magical treasure of decent quality.

[Steady-Light Mirror (Tier 4 Magical Treasure): Fine quality. Emits a white beam that freezes the target in place.]
[Attributes: Freezes target for 1–5 seconds depending on their strength. Mana cost: 200. Cooldown: 15 seconds.]
[Requirement: Basic Qi Refining Technique Level 32.]

It was the very mirror the enemy had used to freeze Su Yu. To think it had actually dropped.

After equipping the treasure, Su Yu pondered for a moment before heading to the guild headquarters to collect his activity rewards. The place was packed with people waiting to settle their rewards. The process was simple: you presented your guild ID card, which recorded your performance—kills, assists, and even the damage dealt during the siege were clearly logged. The efficiency was high, with one person processed every minute, but with nearly a thousand participants, it was a long wait.

Su Yu shook his head and turned to leave. "I'll wait until tomorrow."

Just as he left the headquarters, he received a message from Chu Xiaoyu: "Are you in Chensha Town?"

"Uh, yes."

"Come to the guild headquarters; the Young Mistress wants to see you."

"I'm at the entrance."

Chu Xiaoyu didn't respond, but as soon as he closed the communication, he heard someone calling his name. Turning back, he saw Chu Xiaoyu standing at the entrance, waving at him: "Follow me."

He followed her to a small building inside the compound, where he saw Chu Xinyue and several powerful-looking men and women in the hall.

"Commander!"

There were five people in the hall: two middle-aged men—one with grey hair—and three young people slightly older than Su Yu (two men and one woman). As he entered, Su Yu felt five gazes land on him. The two middle-aged men looked at him calmly, without hostility. The young woman looked at him with curiosity, while the two young men eyed him with a hint of hostility. He was confused at first, but quickly realized these were likely elite recruits handpicked by Chu Xinyue from the Second and Fifth Battalions—his competitors.

Chu Xiaoyu introduced them: "This is Mu Chen, eighth place in the last-last newcomer examination." The thin young man nodded expressionlessly. "This is Xiao Yunya, sixth in the last examination." The other man nodded faintly, his distant attitude clear. "This is Gu Yao, fifteenth in the last examination."

"Hello!"
"Hello, I'm Su Yu."

She then introduced the two middle-aged men: the grey-haired one was Captain Hu Zhilin of the Fifth Battalion, and the other was Deputy Captain Li Xuan of the Second Battalion. They were clearly Chu Xinyue’s loyalists.

Chu Xinyue’s voice rang out: "Everyone is here." She looked at the four newcomers: "I have an opportunity here. It carries high risk, but the rewards are substantial. I wonder if you four have the courage to take it."

Xiao Yunya immediately said, "I am willing!"
"Damn, suck-up," Su Yu thought.

Mu Chen followed suit: "I am willing as well." Gu Yao followed, and finally, everyone looked at Su Yu. He ignored their gazes and asked, "I would like to know what the opportunity is first."

Chu Xinyue said calmly: "I intend to refine Li Yingshen using a magical treasure. I will control the furnace, and you four will assist. Once successful, each of you will receive 200 guild contribution points."

"Understood." This wouldn't take much time or effort.

Chu Xinyue was decisive. Once he agreed, she threw out a scroll, which expanded to cover the hall. Everyone stood upon the scroll, with starry clouds beneath their feet and a golden furnace standing in the center. Su Yu approached the furnace vent and saw Li Yingshen trapped inside. Chains made of flowing light runes pierced through him, locking him firmly in place.

Li Yingshen saw the giant face appearing in the sky above the furnace and shouted, "Spare me! I will never come to Chensha Town again. I’ll stay three hundred paces away from you whenever I see you."

"Heh, I still prefer you the way you were before—arrogant and unyielding."

Su Yu shook his head and stepped back. Chu Xinyue waved her sleeve, and the runes on the furnace glowed intensely. She commanded in a deep voice: "Inject your mana into the furnace!"

The four of them each took a side, pressing their hands to the furnace. As they poured their mana in, the furnace glowed brilliantly, and surging flames erupted, engulfing Li Yingshen.

"Huh?" As the refining began, Su Yu noticed something unusual. He opened his attribute panel and saw the notifications...

[Notification: You are refining a target, gaining 36,581 cultivation points!]
[Notification: Due to unknown factors, you gain 73,162 cultivation points.]
[Notification: You are refining a target, gaining 41,550 cultivation points and 1 point of Dao cultivation!]
[Notification: Due to unknown factors, you gain 8,310 cultivation points and 2 points of Dao cultivation.]

"This kind of benefit exists?" Su Yu was stunned. No wonder the commander said the rewards were high; they were indeed massive. Furthermore, Chu Xinyue was even more ruthless than he imagined. Su Yu had thought of killing him once, but Chu Xinyue was not only killing him in the most extreme way but also refining his entire cultivation base away.

Losing 50 years of lifespan and having your cultivation destroyed—that was total ruin. Li Yingshen’s Qi Refining Technique should have been at least level 95. Even a tiny fraction of that shared among them would be tens of millions of points.

"The boss is too kind." Su Yu’s favorability toward Commander Chu reached its maximum. She really did cultivate her subordinates and shared the benefits.

Inside the furnace, the flames boiled. Li Yingshen was consumed by fear, losing all the composure he had displayed earlier. As time passed, his cultivation steadily declined. The refined essence was converted into pure cultivation points and Dao cultivation, shared among all seven people—including Chu Xiaoyu.

Chu Xinyue took the lion's share, followed by the two captains and Chu Xiaoyu, with the four newcomers receiving the smallest portion. But even the smallest portion was massive. In just one hour, Su Yu’s experience pool had accumulated over 30 million cultivation points and 85 points of Dao cultivation.

The refinement lasted for three full hours, turning Li Yingshen from a top-tier expert close to the tribulation into a cripple. When the furnace opened, a brass bell flew out. Since Li Yingshen no longer had the cultivation to equip this Tier 7 treasure, it had dropped.

Chu Xinyue caught the bell, retracted the scroll into her palm, and turned to them: "This matter is settled. The Frostfire Guild will certainly not let this go; there will likely be fierce fighting in Chensha Town. You lack the cultivation to participate, so return to the guild headquarters for the next few months."

Mu Chen shouted, "I am willing to face it with you, Commander!"
"I am also willing to stay and fight by your side."

Xiao Yunya was annoyed that he had been a step too slow. Gu Yao rolled her eyes, and Su Yu simply nodded—the others had already said everything. Chu Xinyue didn't respond; she just nodded to the two captains and flew out the window as a streak of light.

The two captains smiled at them: "Listen to the commander. You don't need to fight now. Your task is to cultivate hard and strive to ease the burden on the commander soon."

After they left, Chu Xiaoyu said, "Haven't you settled your guild contributions yet? I'll do it for you."

Mu Chen was delighted: "Thank you, Sister Xiaoyu."
"It's my job. Base 100 points, 100 points for the baiting mission, 80 points for independent kills, 25 points for assisted kills, and 200 points for the siege of the Fourth Main Group Leader—total 505 points. With the 100% bonus for newcomers, that's 1,010 guild contribution points. Any problems?"

"No problem!"

A series of chimes sounded. Su Yu checked his guild token: 1,221 points. Even better, from refining Li Yingshen, he had gained 112.1 million cultivation points and 262 points of Dao cultivation. Including his previous balance, his pool now held 118.74 million cultivation points and 616 points of Dao cultivation. At his current rate of accumulation, this was worth months of hard work.

"This is amazing!" He rubbed his hands in excitement and waved at Chu Xiaoyu: "Sister Xiaoyu, I'm heading out."

After leaving, he went to the River God Temple to turn in his mission and hand over some of the weapons, earning 224 points of Chensha River God reputation. With that done, he took off in his flying shuttle and disappeared into the sky.

A gentleman does not stay in a place of danger. Once Li Yingshen revived, the Frostfire Guild would surely retaliate, turning the area into a vortex of conflict. It was too risky for a newcomer like him to stay.

A short distance from Chensha Town, Su Yu messaged Chu Xinyue: "Commander, is refining others' cultivation to this extent common?"

After half a minute, Chu Xinyue replied: "Extremely rare. It requires a top-tier magical treasure with that specific function. Even the Immortal Sects might not have one. I just happened to get lucky and find one."

"Oh!" He felt relieved. If even the Immortal Sects might not have one, he didn't need to worry too much.

A few hours later, Su Yu returned to Qianyu City. He immediately contacted He Shoucheng: "Are you back?"
"Yes."
"Good, as long as you're safe."

Closing the communication, Su Yu returned to his room and opened his attribute panel, a wide grin spreading across his face.

"This time, I'm really going to take off."