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    ## Chapter 321: Return from Feng Guo

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    “By the way, a few years ago, I examined ancient books and found relevant records about the ‘Listening to the Sea Pavilion’.”

    Shi Xianzi added at the end.

    “Listening to the Sea Pavilion?”

    Lu Chang’an had neglected exploring information about this ancient sect over the years.

    After all, it wasn’t a force in the Da Qing realm. Its existence was questionable, not worthy of much attention.

    Shi Xianzi handed a jade slip to Lu Chang’an, containing not only a detailed map of the interior of the ancient relic but also ancient records related to the “Listening to the Sea Pavilion.”

    After reviewing it, Lu Chang’an was lost in thought.

    The Listening to the Sea Pavilion, located on the east coast of the Tian Heng Continent, was an ancient sect with a history of at least twenty thousand years.

    During its peak, it produced a Nascent Soul Heavenly Sovereign, making it the strongest dominant force in the nearby sea, even intimidating those from the outer seas.

    Even in normal times, the Listening to the Sea Pavilion always had Nascent Soul cultivators, their strength exceeding any top sect in Da Qing.

    The information in the ancient books was centuries old, at least several thousand years. Its accuracy was uncertain.

    The current situation of the Listening to the Sea Pavilion remains unknown.

    The cultivation realm where the Listening to the Sea Pavilion was located was called Da Yuan, with a far more prosperous cultivation civilization than Da Qing and Da Kun.

    “Da Yuan?”

    Lu Chang’an’s general map of the Tian Heng Continent came from his fourth life’s memories. It lacked Da Kun from his previous life, but it had Da Yuan.

    This suggests that the cultivation civilization of Da Yuan was stronger than Qingzhou and Kunzhou, exceeding by more than one level. It belonged to the major realms of the Tian Heng Continent.

    Judging from the map’s distance and location, Da Qing was at least across five or six realms from Da Yuan, incredibly far.

    Lu Chang’an was puzzled. How difficult would it be for the ancient Listening to the Sea Pavilion to establish a secret shelter in Da Qing from such a distance?

    If it were just individual Nascent Soul cultivators, it would be possible. But judging from the scale of the ancient relic, it wasn’t just one or two Nascent Souls who came here. There were other cultivators.

    “Could there be a teleportation channel or a spatial rift between these two realms?”

    Lu Chang’an had obtained some memories from the Hundred-Night Soul Gu.

    The main Soul Gu came from the central state of the Tian Heng Continent. By chance, it crossed a spatial rift and escaped to this realm.

    The vast Tian Heng Continent was the origin of the human world’s cultivation civilization. Since ancient times, various areas have had spatial rifts.

    Some of these spatial rifts were naturally formed, while others were left behind from ancient battles between powerful figures. They were usually accompanied by extreme dangers and considered forbidden areas.

    For example, the “Star Moon Absolute” that Lu Chang’an obtained was acquired by the ancestors of the Star Moon Trading Company. They were chased by a powerful enemy and inadvertently arrived at the Tian Heng Continent through an overseas forbidden area.

    That day, Lu Chang’an didn’t stay overnight at Shi Xianzi’s subworld.

    Before leaving, he took out a peculiar treasure as a gift for Shi Xianzi’s adopted son, “Shi Xiao Chuan.”

    At the top of the Wuyè Town mountain, Jiang Yèchen, the host, took the initiative to see Lu Chang’an off.

    Jiang Yèchen mentioned something to Lu Chang’an regarding Shen Bixīn’s descendants.

    After Shen Bixīn and her husband passed away, their descendants did not fare well. Coupled with the invasion of the demonic war, the original Teng Xing Trading Company was fragmented.

    After the demonic war ceased, Shen Bixīn’s descendant, Song Xi, found Wuyè Town and sought Jiang Yèchen’s protection.

    Jiang Yèchen and Shen Bixīn had been estranged for over a hundred years, their feelings had long turned cold and their relationship exhausted. He gave a small favor and dismissed them.

    However, Lu Chang’an still owed Shen Bixīn a promise, a commitment he hadn’t fulfilled.

    Her descendants had originally wanted to find Chang Qing Zhen Ren, and Jiang Yèchen was only an incidental contact.

    Unfortunately, Chang Qing Zhen Ren had been missing for so many years, his whereabouts untraceable.

    Lu Chang’an recalled the last time he saw Shen Bixīn at the Core Formation celebration in Qing Sha Wan of Jing Guo.

    At that time, Shen Bixīn came with her son Song Xi to offer their congratulations and wanted Lu Chang’an to take them in as disciples.

    Lu Chang’an wasn’t keen on taking disciples but didn’t want to forcefully refuse.

    He gave Shen Bixīn and her son two options.

    First, he could promise to be a nominal teacher, but he wouldn’t have much time to teach them.

    Second, when Shen Bixīn’s son reaches Core Formation or Core Condensation, he could come back and Lu Chang’an would give them an opportunity to advance.

    After careful consideration, Shen Bixīn and her son chose the latter.

    It had been ninety-six years since that incident.

    It wasn’t that Lu Chang’an was breaking his promise. He had spent the past sixty years hiding in the wilderness, his own safety precarious, with no chance to fulfill it.

    When Shen Bixīn’s descendants wanted to fulfill the promise, he wasn’t in the Dao Protection Alliance and had almost forgotten about it.

    “Please contact Daoist Shen’s descendants, Daoist Jiang. A year later, at Wuyè Town, Lu Chang’an will fulfill the promise from that time.”

    Lu Chang’an entrusted Jiang Yèchen to contact them. As the number one loose cultivator in Liang Guo, this wouldn’t be difficult.

    He didn’t want to go to the Jing Guo cultivation world for now.

    Who knows if that son of destiny from the central region of Da Qing is still in Jing Guo?

    If he encounters that person and they discover his secrets, it would be disastrous.

    Fortunately, the cultivator from the central region who also cultivates the “Chang Qing Technique” is not the Nascent Soul middle-stage Ling Yu Zhen Jun.

    If it were him, given the distance, Lu Chang’an would feel at least a vague aura of the Golden Core.

    In addition, Tian Luo Zong, which had a feud with Lu Chang’an, is now stationed in Jing Guo. Years ago, they issued a wanted poster and a bounty for Lu Chang’an.

    Lu Chang’an hasn’t forgotten the past enmity. He’ll settle the score when the Tian Luo ancestor reaches the end of their lifespan.

    Two days later.

    Lu Chang’an, leaving Wuyè Town, parted ways with Ni Yue Xianzi.

    Lu Chang’an had private matters to attend to.

    Ni Yue Xianzi went to revisit her old stomping grounds, searching for missing Xuan Yin Pavilion cultivators, especially the True Core-stage Liu Qing Yan.

    Half a month later.

    Above the swamp where the ancient relic was located in the Black Mist Mountain Range, a formation palace was built.

    Whoosh!

    A Core Formation youth in the Jin Yang Zong uniform passed the identity verification at the entrance of the relic palace, paid spirit stones, and entered the relic.

    “There’s only one aged True Core cultivator guarding it. Seems like the Jin Yang Zong faction doesn’t really care about this place. They didn’t find any significant opportunities or secrets.”

    Lu Chang’an, disguised as a Core Formation youth, pondered.

    The cultivation world had passed down for countless years. Every now and then, ancient caves, relics, and miniature secret realms would be discovered.

    These things were nothing extraordinary to Nascent Soul sects.

    In the eyes of the outside world, Chang Qing Zhen Ren supposedly obtained his Core Condensation opportunity here. Shi Xianzi obtained the formation inheritance, a third-stage opportunity.

    Later, the sect’s exploration obtained a highest opportunity, which was also at the third-stage level.

    Lu Chang’an revisited his old grounds. The outer area of the relic was flat and the formation restrictions had been broken.

    For seven full days, Lu Chang’an searched every corner of the relic, with little gain.

    The current relic was more like a site for archaeological exploration. One could study the remaining ancient formations and occasionally find old objects from the recent ancient era.

    There were also some harmless restrictions and low-level insect beasts. It was estimated that the sect intentionally left them behind for disciples and apprentices to practice and gain experience.

    “That miniature secret realm space is indeed gone.”

    Lu Chang’an arrived at the center of the secret realm. The former six-sided palace tower treasury had turned into ruins.

    The small space hidden within it had already collapsed, causing a chain reaction that destroyed the surrounding structures.

    After confirming the specific location.

    With the Nascent Soul’s sensory perception, he could barely detect the faint traces of spatial collapse in that void.

    Lu Chang’an activated his divination techniques, secretly calculating the traces of the Listening to the Sea Pavilion and the related karma.

    There was no resistance from heaven, but the divination was blurry and the distance was too far, leaving little clues.

    Lu Chang’an judged that due to the Xuan Teng’s incident, the current Listening to the Sea Pavilion, if it still exists, must be weakened.

    “The Liang Guo sect can at most uncover some ancient history of the ancient sect. They don’t know the true secrets, at least not about the Xuan Teng.”

    “If there are any repercussions, unless the descendants of the Listening to the Sea Pavilion come looking…”

    After repeated investigations, Lu Chang’an confirmed that he hadn’t left behind any obvious traces.

    The collapse point of that small secret realm space, although with faint traces, the Nascent Soul cultivators from the Jin Yang Zong didn’t know the exact location. The probability of them finding it was small.

    Even if they noticed something, they wouldn’t be able to connect it to the Xuan Teng.

    Lu Chang’an felt relieved and left the Black Mist Mountain Range where the ancient relic was located.

    Half a day later.

    Hundreds of miles away from the mountain range where the ancient relic was located.

    A broken and damaged stone pillar buried in the mountain range emitted faint spirit patterns, lasting only half a breath before fading away.

    The spirit patterns on the damaged stone pillar would subtly appear once every ten days, transmitting a certain kind of invisible, hidden fluctuations.

    In the blink of an eye, almost a year had passed.

    Lu Chang’an, using different identities, appeared in various high-level immortal cities in Liang Guo and Feng Guo, including the transcendent and neutral Moon Watching Immortal City, to procure resources.

    Third-stage high-grade puppet materials and third-stage late-stage body refinement treasures were scarce and hard to find, even in the vast and abundant Feng Guo, or the transcendent and neutral Moon Watching Immortal City.

    To improve efficiency, Lu Chang’an, in addition to attending auctions, also sent his puppet clone to trade in the black market.

    The black market had a lot of stolen goods, and transactions were inevitably risky.

    During this time, he encountered unscrupulous merchants and bandit cultivators.

    He even encountered a case of entrapment. The stolen goods he just obtained were tracked down by the original sect cultivators, a strange coincidence.

    However, before absolute strength, those schemes were nothing but a cloud.

    His puppet clone and the Earth Rock Rat were enough to handle any minor troubles. Lu Chang’an didn’t need to intervene.

    Over the past year, Lu Chang’an successfully gathered the remaining materials for the third-stage high-grade puppet, even exceeding the requirements.

    For the creation of high-grade puppets, one set of materials may not be enough, more is always better.

    Fortunately, even if the creation of a high-grade puppet fails, it wouldn’t be completely scrapped. Some parts could be reused.

    Lu Chang’an was also a third-stage high-grade artifact refiner. He could refine the materials, which would help strengthen and improve the puppet’s level.

    This day, Lu Chang’an arrived at the last stop of his planned itinerary.

    Feng Guo, Xue Yue City.

    The Aoyue Palace’s domain, the large auction held once every ten years, was underway.

    This auction was bustling with the presence of Immortal Golden Cores and Core Condensation cultivators.

    “Five-Directional Tribulation Stone! An excellent treasure to resist the Nascent Soul tribulation. It can reduce injuries during the Heavenly Thunder tribulation for those about to condense the Nascent Soul, saving them mana…”

    “Seventy-five thousand… seventy-seven thousand…”

    “Eighty thousand spirit stones!!”

    “Any higher bids? This Tribulation treasure, although a one-time consumption item, is a rare top-grade item. It’s comparable to a strategic item for those seeking to condense the Nascent Soul.”

    The auctioneer’s excited voice reverberated throughout the hall.

    In one of the VIP rooms, Lu Chang’an watched quietly, not bidding.

    He cultivated body refinement techniques, his physical body was strong, and he had Golden Core mana. He didn’t need to pursue particularly good tribulation items.

    As a one-time consumption item, it was quite expensive.

    Some Core Condensation cultivators with insufficient foundations might be severely injured by the Heavenly Thunder tribulation. They would desperately need this.

    For Lu Chang’an, Nascent Soul Condensation Pills and Nascent Soul Condensation Spirit Treasures were prioritized.

    Nascent Soul Condensation Spirit Treasures can be categorized into several types, including those that enhance mana quality, spiritual awareness intensity, calming and concentrating the mind…

    Among them, spirit treasures that help break through barriers and resist the Heart Demon tribulation are the rarest and most precious.

    Lu Chang’an not bidding was also to avoid attracting attention.

    Bidding for a Tribulation Stone means someone is about to condense the Nascent Soul, which is highly conspicuous.

    Before that, he had bid for a third-stage longevity pill and some top-grade, near-fourth-stage, materials. He knew when to stop.

    Since there were Core Condensation and Golden Core cultivators present, Lu Chang’an didn’t let his puppet clone show off.

    The auction ended, and the cultivators dispersed.

    “Wen Yue Junior Sister, how was your harvest at this auction?”

    Several female cultivators, with cold temperaments like the moon, flew out from one of the VIP rooms.

    They were high-level female cultivators from the Aoyue Palace, with noble statuses, enjoying special privileges in Xue Yue City.

    “That’s Xuan Bing Xianzi!”

    “Aoyue Palace’s innate Heavenly Body, a Nascent Soul seed!”

    One of the female cultivators in a moon-white palace dress attracted a lot of attention.

    This woman was about twenty years old, her eyes like a deep autumn pond, her temperament like pure snow. Her figure was slender and graceful, her hair reaching her waist, and her eyebrows carried a faint air of sadness, like an aloof fairy from an ice palace.

    She gave off a sense of distant coldness, as if detached from the world.

    “I haven’t seen her in over a hundred years. How has her temperament changed so much…”

    Lu Chang’an glanced at her from afar, without lingering, and flew away from Xue Yue City.

    He speculated that Xia Wen Yue’s change in temperament was influenced by the cultivation technique she practiced and the Aoyue Palace’s growth environment of Yin (feminine energy) exceeding Yang (masculine energy).

    Lu Chang’an wasn’t unfamiliar with the icy beauty cultivators in the cultivation world.

    The former Han Yu Zhen Ren was a representative. But Han Yu Zhen Ren’s coldness was partially a disguised mask to elevate her status and refuse some pursuers.

    Xia Wen Yue’s current aloof and cold temperament was truly from the soul to the body, a coldness that penetrated her bones.

    Seeing her again after a hundred years, Lu Chang’an even felt a sense of estrangement.

    “However, her cultivation progress is slightly faster than expected…”

    Lu Chang’an was satisfied with this.

    Xia Wen Yue had reached Core Condensation about forty to fifty years ago.

    Now, she was at the peak of the initial Core Condensation stage, close to the middle stage.

    This speed of cultivation catch-up was considered normal for top talents.

    Because the later the realm, the longer it takes to cultivate.

    For example, it took Lu Chang’an a century to cultivate from the initial Core Condensation stage to the middle stage.

    Xia Wen Yue, however, took a century to cultivate from Core Formation to Core Condensation, on the same cultivation level as Lu Chang’an.

    Lu Chang’an’s first Core Condensation was a few years later than Xia Wen Yue’s Core Formation. He also lost a few years during his three subsequent Core Condensation transformations.

    Based on Xia Wen Yue’s current cultivation progress, Lu Chang’an estimated that when he reached the Golden Core late-stage, Xia Wen Yue would have been at the Core Condensation middle-stage for many years.

    Several days later, Lu Chang’an left the Feng Guo cultivation world, returning with a rich collection of materials, including the third-stage longevity pill.

    Seeing Xia Wen Yue at the auction was just a coincidence.

    In the Aoyue Palace’s domain, he learned about an important event.

    Xia Wen Yue’s teacher, the former Immortal Golden Core, had now reached the Nascent Soul stage and become the Palace Master.

    The old Palace Master was nearing the end of his lifespan, severely injured from the demonic battlefield, and his mana had greatly diminished. He had retreated to the sidelines.

    This situation in the Aoyue Palace was considered a smooth generational change for Nascent Soul cultivators, without any disruption.

    A month later, Lu Chang’an returned to Wuyè Town on the eastern border of Liang Guo.

    In the guest room at the top of the mountain in Wuyè Town, Shen Bixīn’s descendants had been waiting for days.

    (End of Chapter)

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