Cultivation: Fortune by Lots

Chu Yu waved her hand and the papers on the table vanished.

She left the pavilion and headed toward the main hall.

In the main hall, the Chu Clan youth who had once accompanied her to Dragon Tiger Mountain for the Transmission Ceremony immediately stood at attention, hands clasped, "Auntie."

Chu Yu said, "Fifteen, how are the preparations coming along?"

The Chu Clan youth answered respectfully, "Everything is basically ready, we can set out for Dragon Tiger Mountain at any time."

Chu Yu nodded, "Almost done, then let's depart."

The Chu Clan youth asked quietly, "Have Grandfather and the elders made their decision?"

"It's no tough choice, Dragon Tiger Mountain is far superior to the Yellow Sky Sect," Chu Yu replied casually, "With Celestial Master Mansion and Xin Zhou's Li Family blocking the Witchcraft Sect's advance northward, that's a good thing too."

The Chu Clan youth nodded silently, then asked again in a soft voice, "What about Jiangzhou Lin Clan?"

"Mm, that side's more complicated," Chu Yu smiled, "But since big brother and the others went there, we don't have to worry."

The Chu Clan youth followed her out of the courtyard, "Auntie, are you really planning to hand over the leads related to the Celestial Master Seal to Dragon Tiger Mountain?"

Chu Yu acted unconcerned, "Dragon Tiger Mountain lost the Celestial Master Seal because of their own internal chaos, so only others get the chance for luck. If it's not our fate, helping fulfill theirs is no big deal."

......

Lei Jun had observed several more times, but he didn't see the True One Altar Cave Heaven undergo any further similar changes.

*He made a mental note of this, staying alert, yet he didn't let himself fall into endless anxiety or become obsessed with gains and losses.*

He continued to follow his own rhythm and plan.

Aside from dedicated cultivation, he obeyed the sect's orders and joined his fellow disciples in descending the mountain to sweep away their enemies.

In his spare time, he further adjusted and refined the Five Thunder Talisman.

At last, through his efforts, the speed at which the Five Thunder Talisman's Spiritual Power converted into lightning increased from ten percent to nearly twenty percent.

Where a slight difference could decide victory or defeat, this improvement was massive.

After several field exercises, Lei Jun finally confirmed that he had arrived at a new plateau for now.

For further progress, he would need to advance his own cultivation realm, or else polish his methods from other perspectives.

Lei Jun made steady progress here, while the overall situation on Dragon Tiger Mountain slipped back into a deadlock.

The Yellow Sky Sect cultivators, under Yu Qingling and Taoist Taiping, their successive sect leaders, stubbornly tangled with Celestial Master Mansion, refusing to retreat.

The Blood River Sect, on the other hand, grew increasingly audacious.

More and more middle and high realm Blood River Sect experts began to appear around Dragon Tiger Mountain.

Relatively speaking, the good news was that Celestial Master Mansion wasn't entirely isolated.

Among the powerful groups close to Celestial Master Mansion, besides the Suzhou Chu Clan, another from the Five Clans and Seven Families, the Jingxiang Fang Clan, sent representatives to aid Dragon Tiger Mountain.

Though not many came, their presence made their stance clear.

And this wasn't perfunctory support, nor just a show of moral backing.

Fang Jian, himself both a direct disciple of the Celestial Master and a member of the Fang Clan, played the coordinator, so the Fang Family's people jumped right in and fought alongside the Celestial Master Mansion's heirs.

Lei Jun welcomed the reinforcements just like the other disciples of Celestial Master Mansion.

Yet, among the Fang Clan's disciples, he spotted a familiar face—Fang Mingyuan.

Mr. Fang seemed rather normal now, humble and courteous, quietly standing with the crowd.

"The elders of the clan have considered everything concerning Dragon Tiger Mountain,"

As both a true heir of Celestial Master Mansion and a member of the Fang Family, Fang Jian addressed his clan members, "Having you all come here this time is a vital step."

Fang Mingyuan and the others all nodded.

Fang Jian spoke a bit more then dismissed the group.

"Mingyuan," Fang Jian called to Fang Mingyuan, "You've reached twenty, it's time you took on more responsibilities within the clan."

Ever since the incident in the Medicinal Garden, Jingxiang Fang Clan and the Celestial Master Mansion had some awkwardness, but luckily, word hadn't spread, so their overall relationship remained unaffected.

This time, with the Fang Clan aiding Celestial Master Mansion, Fang Mingyuan was one of those involved.

There was no need to revisit the matchmaking between him and Li Ying from years ago, but this trip served as a chance to clear things up and smooth out past wrinkles.

"Don't worry, tenth brother, I will certainly keep the teachings of all the elders and you in mind," Fang Mingyuan said meekly, head bowed.

A woman at his side smiled and said, "Don't worry, tenth brother, I'll help remind Mingyuan when needed."

She was Fang Lu, Fang Mingyuan's full-blooded elder sister, whom he always respected.

"I trust Mingyuan as well," Fang Jian nodded, "Sixteenth sister, you all should also pay extra attention to safety on this trip."

Fang Mingyuan appeared well-behaved enough; Lei Jun glanced at him once and looked away.

Strictly speaking, Lei Jun himself had no direct personal grudges with Fang Mingyuan.

But he was the kind of person who made Lei Jun wary.

*Back at Qingxiao Lake, if Fang Yue hadn't been present, it was hard to say what Fang Mingyuan might have done...*

The Fang Clan's cultivators joined the fight hands-on, their numbers few but their influence significant.

The Yellow Sky Sect's arrogance dipped slightly.

But for the more bloodthirsty and violent Blood River Sect, the effect was limited.

The Blood River Sect's chaos sprang up everywhere, not just in one or two spots—it was like an outbreak in all directions.

In more than one area, Blood River Sect was found setting up Blood River Arrays to harvest Blood Qi and Foul Qi.

The elders of Celestial Master Mansion struck out to drive away the sect's experts, while Lei Jun and his fellow disciples fanned out to hunt and destroy one Blood River Array after another.

Though the work was tiring, to Lei Jun it was another kind of training.

What's more, he was adept at squeezing in practice whenever he could, so it didn't hurt his cultivation.

On the second-layer illusory Octagonal Altar, the shape of the three-layered round platform grew clearer and more complete each day.

During that period, he even found time and energy to study the inkstone Chu Andong had gifted him.

At first glance, the difference between the Confucian Inkstone and Taoist Inkstone was pretty obvious.

Grinding Talisman Ink on the Taoist Inkstone to make Spirit Talismans made it far easier to gather Global Spiritual Qi.

But using the Confucian Inkstone to grind Talisman Ink and craft Spirit Talismans made it easier to stabilize and shape the Spiritual Energy already gathered.

Of course, a pure Confucian Inkstone was more likely to cause talisman crafting to fail.

Fortunately, Chu Andong's inkstone had been warmed and nurtured by Celestial Master Mansion's elders, so that wasn't a worry for now.

Lei Jun was enjoying his research when, one day, he and several martial brothers received a message from Fang Jian, the Celestial Master's Fourth Disciple,

South of Dragon Tiger Mountain, about a hundred miles out, a newly excavated underground palace had been found. The place reeked of blood, suggesting a Blood River Array was hidden inside.

A group of Celestial Master Mansion disciples immediately set off heading south.

Having already destroyed several Blood River Arrays in recent days, this was practically routine for them.

But...

[Blood River gathers, all streams flow to the sea, utmost purity and utmost filth, fortune and disaster go hand in hand.]

The glowing sphere in Lei Jun's mind suddenly flashed and the above writing appeared.

On his face, Lei Jun remained impassive, carefully reading the four lots that the sphere then displayed,

[Best lot, follow Blood River downstream, enter the Blood Sea, do not act rashly, wait for the right opportunity, a great surprise with no danger, obtain a Fourth Rank Opportunity, with room to expand, no worries for the future, extremely auspicious!]

[Neutral lot, swim upstream against the current, enter the Eight Desolates Blood River Array, gain a Seventh Rank Opportunity, yet face deadly peril and disaster, flat outcome.]

[Moderately unlucky lot, follow Blood River downstream, enter the Blood Sea, seize the initiative, but only to set things up for someone else, you yourself fall into great danger and catastrophe, very risky, inauspicious.]

[The worst lot, swim upstream against the current, enter the Eight Desolates Blood Cavity beside the Eight Desolates Blood River Array, utmost danger and disaster, trapped in a hopeless dead end, great misfortune!]