The World of Ancient Shu.
“Sure enough… it’s just a cesspit of Heavenly Secrets.”
Fang Qing, having traversed over once more, frowned and inspected his magical artifacts one by one. Most crucial of all was that second-tier ‘Heavenly Frost Ice Blade Talisman’!
With his current True Power, supplented by Divine Sense, the might it could unleash would absolutely far surpass what a cultivator of the Hua Family could produce. He could even control its direction to so extent, avoiding accidental injury to himself.
‘With a talisman equivalent to a Foundation Establishnt cultivator’s full-force strike… what level of power would that count as here? A Dao Foundation cultivator’s full-force attack? Or rely a casual strike? Or perhaps slightly inferior?’
He had co here naturally because he had received the signal from that old fox of Falling Phoenix Mountain, An Zhuzi, confirming that a trade could proceed.
For the sake of the Great Sun Purple Qi cultivation thod, he had no choice but to make the trip.
Unfortunately, on this side in the World of Ancient Shu, the Heavenly Secrets were muddled. Even with the Dao-Birth Pearl, Fang Qing could barely divine his own fortune and misfortune.
As for this operation, according to Plum Blossom Divination, it was “fortune hidden within misfortune, misfortune hidden within fortune”!
After interpreting it for a long while, Fang Qing felt that both the beginning and the end leaned toward good fortune. It should amount to nothing more than a false alarm, so the trade would proceed.
He rely needed to be more thoroughly equipped.
‘That old fox’s cultivation is only at the Qi Ingestion Realm… a single second-tier talisman is enough to kill it.’
‘It shouldn’t be hiding its cultivation level while fish-bombing. Otherwise, the hexagram would certainly have shown “great misfortune”!’
‘Forget it. I’ll adapt to circumstances.’
‘At worst, after finishing this job, I’ll discard the Fang Shui identity and create another one.’
…
Deep night.
The moon had set; crows cried beneath a withered tree.
Fang Qing gazed at the entwining old vines and pondered in silence.
In the darkness, several points of jade-green foxfire erged, then revealed a pale skull, like a demon ghost roaming at night.
Looking closer, one realized it was an old fox wearing a skull atop its head.
“An Zhuzi, you’ve finally arrived.”
Fang Qing lowered his voice.
“Forgive , Daoist friend. Ba Commandery has grown sowhat turbulent again of late, so I arrived a bit late.”
An Zhuzi clasped its little paws together in salute, appearing rather naive and adorable. “This old one thought I might see Daoist friend again at that exchange gathering…”
‘Knowing full well that ragged Daoist had problems, why would I go near him again? Seeking death?’
Fang Qing complained inwardly, then asked instead, “What has happened in Ba Commandery now?”
“It seems Daoist friend has been in seclusion. There’s no need to speak of mortal affairs in Ba Commandery. In the cultivation world, chaos has flared up again recently.”
An Zhuzi sighed.
“Oh? Why the turmoil?”
Seeing the old fox rambling left and right, and with neither Plum Blossom Divination nor the Dao-Birth Pearl giving warning, Fang Qing casually continued asking.
“Because… soone has co down from the Cliff,” An Zhuzi said faintly.
“What cliff?”
Fang Qing looked puzzled.
“In Ba Commandery, in this land of Ancient Shu… there are many cultivators. Only those at the Dao Foundation count as regional powerhouses; those in the Purple Palace Realm dominate a region and may be called feudal lords… But Mountain-Covering Cloud Cliff is the heaven of Ancient Shu! No matter how fiercely the Pu Family of Yulin and the Black Moth Sect fight, if a single word descends from the Cliff, the Purple Palace cultivators of both sides must kneel obediently and heed the decree.”
The old fox spoke leisurely.
“A force above the Purple Palace Realm?” Fang Qing was astonished, then probed, “Could it be… similar to the orthodoxy of Falling Phoenix Mountain where Daoist friend resides?”
“Heh heh, indeed similar… except theirs is an orthodoxy passed down from the one above Earth of the Di Mansion.”
When An Zhuzi said this, Fang Qing suddenly sensed wondrous fluctuations in the void, as though linking to an omnipresent yet ethereal fruition. Shadows of plagues and insects flickered faintly.
‘rely ntioning it produces such a reaction…’
His heart trembled, yet he deliberately asked, “So Mountain-Covering Cloud Cliff is an orthodoxy left behind by a great being like the Warden of the Year?”
“No, no, no! Ascending to the Golden Rank makes one a Golden Core True Monarch, but not every Golden Core True Monarch is a Warden of the Year…”
An Zhuzi hurriedly shook its head. “The Warden of the Year governs the imagery of months. In theory, they are stronger than other Golden Core True Monarchs. But in reality… among those twelve positions, who knows how many tis they’ve rotated, and how many still remain seated?”
‘Is this sothing we lower cultivators can even discuss?’
Fang Qing’s scalp tingled, half-expecting lightning to strike the next mont.
‘So above Purple Palace lies the Golden Core? This is clearly different from so-called Core Formation Ancestors… It might even surpass the Nascent Soul of the Qi Refining path by far…’
“Enough. Back to the main topic. With soone descending from the Cliff, the Pu Family and the Black Moth Sect probably won’t be able to fight after all. But before peace is imposed, things may grow even more chaotic.”
The old fox covered its mouth, as if recalling sothing.
‘Li Rulong… is about to be harvested?’
For so reason, Fang Qing had long since watched familiar figures fall upon the road of seeking immortality—
Zha Zhu, Huo Tianhuo, Li Yusu, Hua Lian…
Yet thinking that Li Rulong might soon reach a dead end still filled him with emotion.
“Enough… let’s talk business. Where is the Great Sun cultivation thod?”
Ever since learning that the ragged Daoist was likely in the Purple Palace Realm, Fang Qing had sowhat regretted asking about cultivation thods at the exchange gathering.
But ti could not be reversed. Later, the ragged Daoist’s attention had shifted elsewhere, and that was that.
“The cultivation thods! After receiving the task last ti, this old fox rushed back overnight to Falling Phoenix Mountain and searched through the Langhuan Book Pavilion. I found three for Daoist friend! Three Great Sun orthodox cultivation thods!”
ntioning this, the old fox grew excited, its whiskers twitching upward.
It spread open its paws, three booklets unfolding one after another like a fan.
The oddly familiar scene made Fang Qing’s lips twitch.
When he saw the titles, he nearly lost control of his expression.
“Great Sun Empowernt Secret Art? You’re trying to fool with a Secret Treasury Domain cultivation thod? Is this sothing a person can cultivate?”
Fang Qing was indignant, nearly grabbing the fox by the neck fur.
“Now, now… let’s speak calmly. This Great Sun Empowernt Secret Art is indeed from the Secret Treasury Domain…” the old fox spoke eloquently.
“So to cultivate it, must I first find a guru to perform empowernt?” Fang Qing sneered.
“No, no! The Secret Treasury Domain follows the Great Snow Mountain orthodoxy, which actually divides into two branches. In one, disciples need not ingest Qi. They rely entirely on a guru for cultivation, entrusting their lives completely. It is called ‘transmission outside the teachings.’ Their future prospects depend wholly on how far the guru can go—and whether the guru is willing to elevate them…”
“The other branch selects only the best as true inheritors. Over there, they are called ‘personally transmitted secret vehicle disciples.’ Like us, they must ingest Qi to enter the Dao… This Great Sun Empowernt Secret Art can be entered either through empowernt by a guru who cultivates the sa thod, or by ingesting Great Sun Purple Qi.”
“So the Secret Treasury Domain orthodoxy has such distinctions?” Fang Qing was half-convinced.
“This Great Sun Empowernt Secret Art is incomplete, ending at Dao Foundation. Our demon cultivators slew a red-robed monk from the Secret Treasury Domain and seized it casually… The Qi-gathering formula for Great Sun Purple Qi has long been useless. This old fox rely offers it as reference, as reference…”
The fox pointed to the second booklet. “This one is different. Even in the present era, it can still be cultivated!”
Fang Qing looked suspicious. “Sun and Moon Yin-Yang Joyful Union Grand Ode? This thod… why does it sound improper?”
“Heh heh, this thod is famous in the demonic path. It is the entry-level art of the Joyful Union Sect… As is known, the Great Sun transforms into three yangs: Greater Yang, Original Yang, and Lesser Yang… Great Sun Purple Qi has long been severed, so this demonic sect found another path, cultivating through a man’s ‘Original Yang Qi.’ If Daoist friend cultivates this thod, you can condense True Qi of seventh-tier quality or higher. Purple Palace would be within reach… You could even directly go to the Joyful Union Sect’s mountain gate to take a master after entering!”
“What hidden dangers does it have?” Fang Qing asked warily, recalling the ragged Daoist’s prior hints and suspecting most of the fox’s wares were problematic.
“Heh heh… nothing major. Sun and Moon Yin-Yang Joyful Union Grand Ode involves the secret of Yin-Yang transformation. It cultivates Fang Day. Its Dao Foundation ‘walks along the earth.’ After entry, cultivators easily undergo Yin-Yang transformation.”
The old fox looked embarrassed.
“Yin-Yang transformation? aning… n beco won, won beco n? What sort of wicked art is this?”
Fang Qing’s mouth fell open.
He had thought Secret Treasury Domain thods were already eerie and sinister.
He hadn’t expected today’s Joyful Union Sect thod to broaden his horizons even further.
“And the last one?”
Fang Qing looked at the final dark-red booklet in the fox’s paw: Great Sun True Explanation!
“This was found during the final cleanup, hidden in a corner. A genuine ancient thod… Compared to Sun and Moon Yin-Yang Joyful Union Grand Ode, which only requires determination to gather Qi, or Great Sun Empowernt Secret Art, which can still be cultivated via empowernt at Great Snow Mountain, this ancient thod is not only obscure and difficult, but also demands extrely strict Qi-gathering conditions. Essentially no one can enter it… unless Daoist friend is a natural-born cultivation prodigy and happens to find ancient Great Sun Purple Qi in so relic.”
The fox grinned, clearly expectant. “Daoist friend… which one will you choose?”
“I will naturally…”
Fang Qing no longer hesitated. With a stretch of his hand, he took all three secret manuals. “Take them all!”
“All… all of them? Then the spiritual resources promised last ti… must be doubled!” An Zhuzi was visibly shocked.
“What difficulty is that?”
Fang Qing directly took out a string of gourds and tossed them over. “I have several gourds of spiritual water that enhance the True Power of late-stage Qi Ingestion. They’re yours as well. Is it enough?”
“Enough, certainly enough.”
The old fox was overjoyed, quickly collecting the gourds, sniffing one and tasting another, like a little fox drunk on wine.
‘Spiritual resources in this world… are truly scarce.’
Fang Qing said no more and left with the manuals in hand.
Caw! Caw!
At so point, a pitch-black crow had perched atop the old tree. Its beak glead like fine steel. “An Zhuzi, why didn’t you strike? Didn’t we agree you’d give the signal and we’d slaughter the fat sheep together?”
“Heh… did this old one not wish to rob him? Though the chance was vanishingly small, who knows—perhaps there might be a strand of Great Sun Purple Qi.”
An Zhuzi shook its head, its fox face solemn as it stared in the direction Fang Qing had departed. “But when I approached just now, I sensed that person was extrely dangerous. The last ti I felt that way was at the exchange gathering… Either he is disguising his cultivation, or he possesses Dao Foundation—perhaps even Purple Palace—thods. One must be cautious!”
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