Fang Cheng accepted the three Upper-Grade Spirit Stones and the Dong Family’s invitation, then imdiately left, summoning an Escape Light and flying toward the peak of Cangwu Mountain.
At Star-picking Platform.
Ping Lake was as smooth as a mirror, its banks covered in lush grass. Rare, exotic flowers blood in fantastical shapes.
A golden, resplendent palace sat on the lakeshore.
Fang Cheng dispelled his Escape Light before the palace gates and stepped inside.
The Restriction Spiritual Light at the palace entrance flickered but did not hinder him in the slightest.
Inside the hall, a plainly dressed Madam Ye was playing chess with Ye Yan. This powerful figure of the Ye Family, normally so stately, majestic, noble, and poised, now seed a bit more approachable.
"Husband." Ye Yan turned to Fang Cheng with a smile and rose to welco him.
Fang Cheng nodded, walked over to Madam Ye, and bowed. "Mother."
The mont Madam Ye saw Fang Cheng, the approachability in her expression vanished.
She said flatly, "Handle the matter with that Female Loose Cultivator yourself. If you two bully Yan’Er, watch out. I will be rciless."
Her words were utterly calm, yet they carried a biting killing intent.
Fang Cheng knew she was affected by the incident with Ye Tang and had started to worry about her own daughter again. He replied, "I couldn’t possibly dote on Yan’Er enough. How could I ever bully her?"
Madam Ye nodded and said to Ye Yan, "Yan’Er, tell him what happened to Ye Tang."
Ye Yan agreed. A flash of indignation crossed her face as she recounted Ye Tang’s ordeal to Fang Cheng.
Her account was far more detailed than Die’Er’s, and it was enough to displease even an outsider like Fang Cheng.
After she finished, she added, "I told Mother about our experiences in the Southern Mang Mountains."
Fang Cheng’s mind raced. He instantly guessed why Madam Ye had summoned him.
’Just as I thought.’
Madam Ye said, "Regarding Ye Tang, it’s not appropriate for to intervene at the mont. Everyone else is afraid of Ye Huang and won’t dare to help. How about you make a trip to Mist Island for and bring back that Magical Artifact?"
’So that Ye Family Elder with the Late-stage Life Talisman Cultivation is nad Ye Huang...’
Fang Cheng nodded and agreed in a low voice.
’It seems I’m the only person Madam Ye can use right now.’
’The others either can’t handle the Xie Family’s Son and his father, or they’re too afraid of Ye Huang to make a move.’
’But as her son-in-law, I’m naturally on her side. I won’t hesitate just because I’m afraid of getting on Ye Huang’s bad side.’
’My involvent also creates a buffer between Madam Ye and Ye Huang, preventing an imdiate fallout.’
’If Ye Huang questions her later, Madam Ye can feign ignorance and bla it on her daughter and , promising to discipline us.’
「A short while later.」
He and Ye Yan left Madam Ye’s palace together and returned to the Jade Tower on Cyan Demon Cliff.
He took an exquisite wooden box from his storage bag and handed it to Ye Yan. "Yan’Er, this is a gift for you."
A look of delighted surprise on her face, Ye Yan happily took the box. She opened it, and her lovely eyes lit up as she gasped, "A Stone ditation Hut!"
Inside the wooden box lay what looked like an ordinary piece of bluestone.
"I redeed it from the Outer Sect rit Pavilion," Fang Cheng explained. "Now when we travel, we’ll have a place to rest."
Ye Yan nodded. She picked up the stone, examining it over and over before channeling her Magical Power into it. The stone expanded to about ten feet wide, and she stepped inside to look around.
This Stone ditation Hut was significantly larger than Chen Yu Yan’s, much to Ye Yan’s delight.
As he looked around with Ye Yan, Fang Cheng said, "I won’t be able to make it to the Dong Family’s alchemy banquet tomorrow. Could you write a letter to them for ?"
Ye Yan agreed.
He then said to Ye Yan, "The matter with Ye Tang needs to be resolved quickly. I’ll set out for Mist Island now. First, tell , what exactly is this Second-Order Magical Artifact?"
"The artifact is a Dragon and Phoenix Jade Bed," Ye Yan explained. "It has no offensive power, but cultivating on it can suppress one’s Heart Demon and other demonic thoughts. It calms the mind and steadies the soul, making it an auxiliary treasure for those who practice Demon Skills."
She then described the artifact’s general appearance.
A peculiar expression crossed Fang Cheng’s face. "That na sounds a bit... suggestive. It sounds like a Dual Cultivation Magical Artifact."
Ye Yan giggled, swatting him playfully. "Stop being silly," she chided.
After a mont, she added with concern, "You must be careful when you get there. If things prove impossible, just co back. If you run into danger, use Mother’s Vertical Earth Golden Light Talisman."
Fang Cheng nodded. "Don’t worry. I’ll be back before you know it."
With that, he bid farewell to his beautiful wife, calmly summoned his Escape Light, and flew away from Cyan Demon Cliff.
...
Mist Island was located near the eastern shore of the Abyssal Marsh.
The island possessed a Tier One Spirit Vein, and its Spiritual Qi density was diocre—nothing special, but better than nothing.
Over three hundred years ago, a Cultivation Family had taken control of the island. They made modifications, including transplanting a Tier Two Spirit Wood to its center.
Thanks to the Spirit Wood, the island’s Spiritual Qi gradually grew richer until the central region was comparable to an area with a Tier Two Spirit Vein.
Unfortunately, their prosperity was short-lived. The family failed to produce a Life Talisman Cultivator, their power waned, and they eventually faded into obscurity.
A Life Talisman Loose Cultivator seized the opportunity to occupy the island. He then paid a hefty price to secure the Ye Family as his backer, gradually establishing himself and becoming the Island Lord.
Over ti, the island beca a settlent for Loose Cultivators. The Island Lord collected rent, which he offered as tribute to the Ye Family Elders’ eting in exchange for their protection.
The current Island Lord, Xie Ming, was originally a modestly talented Loose Cultivator on the island. Then, by a stroke of fortune, his younger sister caught the eye of Ye Family Elder Ye Huang and was taken as a concubine. In turn, Xie Ming leaped to the position of Master of Mist Island.
There was another rumor, however: that the person the Ye Family Elder took was not Xie Ming’s sister, but his cultivation partner!
「The next day.」
A beam of Escape Light flew in from the west, landing right at the edge of Mist Island.
The light receded, revealing Fang Cheng.
He surveyed the island with great interest, clicking his tongue in amazent.
The island wasn’t particularly elevated, but it was lush with grass and trees, resembling a tropical rainforest.
The forest was shrouded in a thick fog that lingered all year round. The vibrant, life-filled greenery, combined with the white mist, created a strange and beautiful vista.
The island was covered in towering ancient trees, so with trunks tens of feet thick. Many Loose Cultivators had built their Cave Mansions in the canopies, while others had hollowed out dwellings within the trunks, complete with doors and windows.
Overall, the Spiritual Qi here was several orders of magnitude weaker than on the Ye Family’s Xiaocang Island, giving Fang Cheng a sense of profound scarcity.
It was said that over a hundred Loose Cultivators currently lived on Mist Island, most of them at the Early or Mid-Sensing Stage of cultivation.
On a typical day, these Loose Cultivators hunted Demon Beasts, caught Spirit Fish, tended Spirit Fields and Spiritual dicine for the great families, or crafted their own Talismans, pills, and Magical Artifacts. They did all this to trade for the Cultivation Resources they needed, like Spirit Stones and Spirit Rice.
Fang Cheng walked into the forest, picked a treehouse at random, flew up to it, and knocked on the door.
The Restriction Spiritual Light on the door rippled like water.
A mont later, an impatient voice yelled out, "The dicine’s sold out for today! If you want to buy so, co back earlier tomorrow!"
Fang Cheng paused, then frowned and knocked again.
"Hey! Are you ever going to stop?!"
The person inside seed to have a foul temper, their voice rising to a roar.
"I’m not here to buy dicine," Fang Cheng said in a low voice.
"Then what..." The voice from inside started, but was cut off by a soft, alluring female voice. "Go see who it is. What if it’s soone from the Island Lord?"
The man grumbled for a bit before dispelling the restriction.
The door opened to reveal a disheveled, haggard-looking man wrapped in a long robe. He shot a displeased, listless glance at Fang Cheng.
Behind him, on a bed inside the wooden house, a rather attractive young woman was curled up under the blankets. With only her head showing, she too was curiously peering at the door.
’Looks like these two were in the middle of a "discussion" in broad daylight.’
For a mont, Fang Cheng felt a bit apologetic. He smiled and said, "Fellow Daoist, my apologies for the rude interruption. I hope you’ll forgive . Could you please tell where I can find the Island Lord’s Cave Mansion?"
The man’s lips curled. His gaze fell on the Outer Disciple Magical Robe Fang Cheng was wearing, and a strange glint appeared in his eyes. He then shook his head. "Hmm, I really don’t know. I’m new to the island myself."
He said lazily, "I only sell Jinyang Pills here. If you’re interested, I have a few bottles inside. I can give you a discount."
The Jinyang Pill was a peculiar dicine in the Cultivation Realm.
Fang Cheng knew about this peculiar dicine’s effects from the original owner of his body’s mories. It was advertised with slogans like, "The secret weapon of the Abyssal Marsh’s male cultivators!", "The pill that makes female cultivators scream!", and "Jinyang Pill: Feel revitalized every ti! An exquisite experience every ti! Skip the agony of Body Refining!"
It offered no benefits for one’s cultivation but was extrely popular with both male and female cultivators, often in short supply.
’I can’t believe this guy actually knows how to make it.’
Fang Cheng let out an amused chuckle. "I’ll leave the pills for those who have a need for them."
He paused, his eyes fixed on the man. "I’ll ask you one more ti. Do you know where your Island Lord’s Cave Mansion is?"
His gaze was perfectly calm, yet it sent a chill down the male cultivator’s spine, filling him with an indescribable sense of pressure.
But the man shook his head without a mont’s hesitation. "I really don’t know."
Fang Cheng nodded. "Fine."
The word had barely left his lips.
The man’s expression relaxed. He was about to close the door when a layer of blackish-green energy suddenly surfaced on his face. He collapsed to the ground without a sound, clutching his throat and struggling in agony.
He only had a Fourth-Layer Sensing Cultivation. Fang Cheng didn’t want to kill him, so he had the Poison Gu hold back so of its venom.
Even so, the man trembled like a sifting screen, his eyes bulging as if they would burst from their sockets. He could only make gurgling sounds, unable to speak, his eyes filled with a desperate plea for rcy.
Fang Cheng glanced at the young woman inside. "It seems he really doesn’t know," he said in a gentle voice. "Do you?"
The young woman was terrified. The color drained from her face. "I know! We can talk, exalted one, please don’t kill !"
Fang Cheng smiled. "Get dressed and take there."
The young woman nodded frantically, scrambled out from under the covers, and deftly picked up her dress from the floor to put it on.
Fang Cheng turned his head slightly, averting his gaze.
A mont later, the woman crept past the man still writhing in agony at the door. She stepped out of the treehouse and said fearfully, "Exalted one, Fellow Daoist Du didn’t an to deceive you. Please, I beg you to be rciful and spare his life."
This woman’s cultivation was even weaker—only the Third Layer of Sensing—but she had an excellent figure. A long red dress clung to her curvaceous fra, giving her an air of bone-deep, soft charm.
"The poison will wear off on its own in about an hour," Fang Cheng said flatly. "You needn’t worry, Fellow Daoist."
The young woman looked skeptical. She cast a pitying glance at the man inside, then composed herself and said respectfully, "The Island Lord lives at Cold Moon Pond, in the northwest of Mist Island. Please, exalted one, follow ."
With that, she leaped down from the treehouse and began to lead the way.
Fang Cheng followed at a leisurely pace.
The forest was thick with fog. The woman’s graceful figure in her red dress moved ahead of him like a dancing fla.
As Fang Cheng walked through the forest, he felt waves of Divine Sense sweep over his body.
He just smiled, paying them no mind.
The Divine Senses all belonged to the Loose Cultivators in the forest, who were now observing him in secret.
But when they saw the Yinluo Sect Outer Disciple Magical Robe he was wearing, they retracted their gazes and Divine Senses as if they had been shocked, filled with apprehension.
...
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