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Two months later.
Wuqi Mountain, Little Turtle Peak.
Inside the cave mansion, a powerful aura of demonic energy erupted, almost breaking through the restrictions.
Guan Qiaozhi and Mu Bingyun were both startled, their bodies instinctively reacting with fear, causing them to tremble slightly.
In the secret room, a sleek, orange-purple demon rat, comparable in size to a tiger or leopard, was surrounded by a dark yellow demonic wind strong enough to shred metal.
The emanating demonic energy reached the mid-second rank.
“Not bad, the Black Blood Lotus Seed seems to have some effect,” Lan Chang'an remarked with a smile.
In truth, the Earth Burrowing Rat had been stuck at the early second rank for many years, needing only a trigger to break through.
Years ago, the Earth Burrowing Rat's bloodline had slightly mutated, moving from the upper middle grade to the superior grade.
At the second-rank spiritual vein of Little Turtle Peak, the Earth Burrowing Rat enjoyed daily meals of spirit rice and occasional treats of spirit herb supplements. As the primary worker, there was no lack of exercise.
Given its bloodline qualifications, its advancement was only a matter of time.
The Black Blood Lotus Seed was akin to adding flowers to brocade; it stabilized the superior-grade bloodline, lifting the Earth Burrowing Rat out of the bottom-tier doldrums.
Ten days later, Lan Chang'an conducted a simple test of the Earth Burrowing Rat's abilities.
Its abilities hadn't changed much; its foundation as an earth-type demon rat combined with its mutated agility made it even stronger in close combat. freeweɓnøvel.com
Without using talismans or other trump cards, Lan Chang'an could only fight the rat to a draw in his regular state.
After emerging from seclusion, the Earth Burrowing Rat glanced at the Profound Water Turtle by the pool, baring its teeth slightly.
Splash! Plop!
The Profound Water Turtle was so frightened that it flipped its shell and hid in the lotus pond, not daring to show its head.
“Don’t scare the little precious turtle,” Guan Qiaozhi scolded, standing by the pool and glaring at the Earth Burrowing Rat while soothing the aggrieved Profound Water Turtle, which poked its head out reluctantly.
The Earth Burrowing Rat disdainfully burrowed into a nearby cave.
“A superior-grade bloodline,” Lan Chang'an couldn’t help but shake his head at the sight.
No wonder the Profound Water Turtle wasn’t popular; he had bought the weak turtle egg for a low price years ago.
The turtle was still far from reaching the second rank, even with Lan Chang'an significantly accelerating its growth. Luckily, the Profound Water Turtle had a long lifespan and could keep Lan Chang'an company through those lengthy years ahead.
As far as battle pets went, the Earth Burrowing Rat was sufficient.
...
In the blink of an eye, nearly a year had passed.
Lan Chang'an, now ninety-four years old, was nearing the age of a hundred.
Within the secret room, Lan Chang'an completed his daily cultivation routine and released Evergreen mana from both palms to nurture twenty-two treasure talismans on the spirit wood table before him. The earliest of these talismans had been nurtured for over twenty years, while the most recent ones were within the past year.
A year ago, he had bought two pieces of spirit bamboo of good quality from Chen Fuhai, which yielded nine treasure talismans.
Right at that moment... a cloud-like light carried a white-robed female cultivator with an elegant and cold demeanor to Wuqi Mountain.
Soon, the open and flat terrain of Little Turtle Peak came into view. Zhao Siyao's expressive eyes scanned the landscape below her.
“What a tranquil and serene cultivation site.”
From the mountainside to the peak of Little Turtle Peak, golden spirit valleys rolled like waves in the autumn wind. At the peak, lush spiritual woods, exotic flowers, and plants created a colorful and vibrant scene. In front of the cave mansion, a ten mu lotus pond with blooming lotuses looked like pure and beautiful fairies bathing in the lake.
Splash!
A four-foot-wide dark green spiritual turtle emerged from the water, carrying a lotus seedpod in its mouth, which it delivered to the hands of a graceful woman dressed in a sleeveless robe standing by the pond. The woman felt a wave of spiritual energy from above the Little Turtle Peak.
The white-robed female cultivator descended slowly.
“Fairy Zhao!” Guan Qiaozhi quickly stood up to greet her.
Zhao Siyao landed and, under Guan Qiaozhi's guidance, took a seat in the pavilion by the lotus pond.
Another young girl in a green dress served spiritual tea and pastries.
“You are?” Zhao Siyao found the girl somewhat familiar.
“Junior Mu Bingyun,” the girl replied.
Guan Qiaozhi softly introduced Mu Bingyun’s background to Zhao Siyao.
Zhao Siyao pursed her lips thoughtfully.
“Fellow Daoist Zhao,” Lan Chang'an emerged from the cave mansion.
Zhao Siyao stood up, and they exchanged greetings before entering the cave mansion. Soon, Guan Qiaozhi and Mu Bingyun served an array of exquisite spiritual dishes, their aroma filling the air.
“Fellow Daoist Lan, you are truly blessed,” Zhao Siyao praised, feeling a bit envious of the leisurely life.
Lan Chang'an, once a sect reject, had reached the Foundation Establishment Realm and become a second-rank talisman master. Now, he enjoyed a second-rank spiritual vein, raising turtles and planting herbs, eating spiritual rice he grew himself.
Few cultivators within or outside the sect could lead such a life, let alone wandering cultivators, who often dreamed of attaining it.
“There is no need for Fellow Daoist Zhao to envy me; appearances can be deceiving. I spend my days cultivating, drawing talismans, refining puppets, and managing this vast mountain. It’s rather monotonous,” Lan Chang'an said humbly.
...
After the feast, Zhao Siyao mentioned the purpose of her visit.
“The Green Underworld Mysterious Realm will open in two years, and I was fortunate enough to secure a spot. I came here to buy some mid-second-rank talismans from you,” Zhao Siyao said, her eyes filled with hope.
Over a decade ago, she had inquired about this with Lan Chang'an. At that time, Lan Chang'an had said he couldn't make superior-grade talismans but might be able to in ten years, and asked her to visit Wuqi Mountain then. Given her understanding of Lan Chang'an, there was a good chance he had made progress.
“Knowing you would come, I’ve prepared a set of talismans,” Lan Chang'an said with a smile, taking out a talisman box.
Zhao Siyao opened the box and found twelve talismans inside.
Eight mid-second-rank talismans, all of excellent quality, and four superior-second-rank talismans. These talismans included various types, such as attack, defense, escape, and restriction-breaking, providing a comprehensive set.
“This set of talismans of Fellow Daoist Lan exceeds my expectations,” Zhao Siyao said joyfully.
To prepare for the Green Underworld Mysterious Realm, she had been gathering resources, hunting demon beasts, and completing sect missions. With this set of talismans, her overall strength and survival ability in the secret realm would increase by at least thirty percent.
Lan Chang'an gave her a discount on the price; he charged ninety percent of the market rate. This was no problem, since if he was to sell them wholesale to large shops, he wouldn't be able to reach such prices either.
“Thank you for your care, Fellow Daoist Lan,” Zhao Siyao said, taking out a bag of spirit stones to buy the talismans.
Superior-second-rank talismans were not very cost-effective; five or six of them would equal one supreme-grade magical weapon, and they were difficult to acquire. Due to the material and success rate limitations, Lan Chang'an's stock wasn't particularly large. Of course, superior-second-rank talismans no longer counted as part of his trump cards.
Lan Chang'an only showed his skill as a mid-second-rank talisman master, claiming he couldn’t make superior-grade talismans. But given his near-century age, having a few superior-second-rank talismans wasn’t out of place.
Zhao Siyao was his most trusted Foundation Establishment cultivator, with a friendship spanning over seventy years. Years ago, when they cooperated in alchemy, Zhao Siyao didn’t covet the Foundation Establishment Pills and even guarded him, an aged cultivator with slim chances of advancing, for a month.
“Fellow Daoist Zhao, can you bring spirit pets or puppets into the Green Underworld Mysterious Realm?” Lan Chang'an asked.
“Spirit pets above the second rank require a quota, but there are no such restrictions for puppets,” Zhao Siyao replied.
The Green Underworld Mysterious Realm was a shared resource of Liang Kingdom’s cultivation world, and each spot was precious. As a sect cultivator, securing one was slightly easier. Besides competing for the spot, Zhao Siyao had to hand over at least sixty percent of her gains to the sect.
“Fellow Daoist Zhao, would you be interested in buying a few puppets?” Lan Chang'an inquired.
“First-rank puppets aren’t very useful to me,” Zhao Siyao noted, having seen the first-rank puppets Lan Chang'an made on Little Turtle Peak, they were at most of superior first-rank.
Lan Chang'an had been studying puppetry for twenty years already, having sold them for many years at Wuqi Mountain. His puppets were paired with second-rank talismans, making a small profit after covering costs.
Practicing multiple skills simultaneously was common in the cultivation world, though most could only specialize in one, with others lagging behind. Lan Chang'an appeared to be a mid-second-rank talisman master and a superior-grade first-rank puppeteer.
...
“Fellow Daoist Zhao, please follow me,” Lan Chang'an led Zhao Siyao to the secret room and took out three low-grade second-rank puppets from his storage pouch.
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“Second-rank puppets?” Zhao Siyao's eyes brightened with surprise, glancing at Lan Chang'an but didn't ask further questions.
“Second-rank puppets are very useful in the secret realm. It's just that, with the consumption of purchases in the previous few years, plus buying this set of talismans from fellow Daoist Lan, I can't take out many more spirit stones.” Zhao Siyao said regretfully.
“The puppets can be sold at half price. Fellow Daoist Zhao only needs to gather information on key resources in the secret realm for me. If you can obtain any of the items listed in this jade slip, I’ll buy them at a high price...” Lan Chang'an handed Zhao Siyao a jade slip.
Outside of sects, some secret realm spots were sold at high prices, but Lan Chang'an had no plans to enter the secret realm himself. He preferred to invest in his Foundation Establishment friends entering the realm.
The jade slip listed needed resources such as:
- Third-rank spirit bamboo
- Main ingredients for Life Extension Pill
- Auxiliary ingredients for core formation pill
- Materials or embryos for magic treasures
- High-quality talisman materials
If Zhao Siyao could obtain one or two of these items, that would be great. If not, she could gather information for him to contact the resource holders outside the secret realm.
“This matter requires a little effort, the risk is not too great, I agree to cooperate with fellow Daoist Lan,” Zhao Siyao nodded after reviewing the jade slip.
She chose two low second-rank puppets, paying most of the spirit stones upfront, the rest was covered by two bottles of Foundation Establishment cultivation pills.
Lan Chang'an estimated that the transaction had drained Zhao Siyao’s entire spirit stone reserves. The two low second-rank puppets were worth nearly four superior-grade magical weapons. Thanks to Lan Chang'an's discount, Zhao Siyao could afford them after gritting her teeth and squeezing out the money she needed.
Of the two, one was the turtle puppet with strong defense. Lan Chang'an didn't mind; it was an early work of his, and he was already preparing to refine a mid-grade second-rank puppet. Ordinary low second-rank puppets were not even as strong as his physical body.
After the transaction, the two old friends chatted from afternoon until evening. In the end, Zhao Siyao departed without staying the night.
...
A few days later at dawn, two beams of Foundation Establishment cultivation light pierced through Wuqi Mountain's hazy mist.
“Rest assured, Fellow Daoist Zheng. Fairy Shi is Chen’s ex-wife and will do her best to create an excellent clan-protecting formation for your noble family,” a weary middle-aged man with a crown led the way with a hint of flattery.
No one of the cultivators of Wuqi Mountain could not recognize this person's identity, Chen Sheng, Shi Manrong's ex-husband. Next to him stood another older man with dark skin and a sturdy build. His complexion was marked by deep scars and pitted blemishes.
(End of chapter)