Chapter 202: Taking on a New Identity

Chapter 202: Taking on a New Identity

"Fire Spirit Poison, a specially crafted pill that targets fire-based cultivation techniques. This was made specifically for you!" Sha Dan's voice was filled with sarcasm and pride.

"You thought holding your breath would be enough, but my poison only needs the tiniest contact with your spiritual energy to take effect. You were already poisoned when you used your technique."

Chu Ning, however, remained calm and composed. Looking at the silver-masked figure, he said, "If I tell you again that I am not who you think I am, and that I'm merely here to purchase pills and gather some information, will you antidote me?"

"Regardless of whether I believe you or not, what difference does it make?" A cold glint flashed in Sha Dan's eyes, visible beneath his mask. "Even if you're just a passerby, it serves you right for cultivating fire-attributed techniques, making you the perfect target for my Fire Spirit Poison. Moreover, I sense the aura of pills and spiritual herbs on you, and I suspect you also refine pills."

As he spoke, a hint of madness shone in his eyes. "I, Sha Dan, am the foremost pill refiners of Jiuhua Mountain, and I have no need for extra competition."

Chu Ning now understood why the middle-aged man and the other cultivators hadn't dared to mention this person's temperament. This Sha Dan truly had an eccentric and extreme personality.

"Looks like I've come to the wrong place," Chu Ning said with a slight shake of his head.

"But since I'm already here, I shouldn't disappoint you."

Hearing Chu Ning's words, a hint of confusion appeared in Sha Dan's eyes, visible beneath his mask.

The next moment, his eyes widened in shock as he saw Chu Ning flying towards him, completely unaffected by the poison.

Chu Ning's speed far surpassed that of an ordinary cultivator.

At the same time, the weapon in Chu Ning's hand transformed.

The long spear and the Double Fire Rings had been retracted, and in their place was a bow and arrow.

The bowstring was pulled taut, and in the next instant, an arrow, glowing with a green light, shot forth.

"How is this possible? You're not poisoned!" Sha Dan exclaimed in surprise, but he quickly seemed to realize something.

"Wood-attributed technique! You possess wood-attributed spiritual power!"

Hearing Sha Dan's words, a smile appeared on Chu Ning's face.

The Blazing Divine Wood Technique was a fire-wood dual-attributed technique, and the reason he had primarily used fire-based techniques in recent years was mainly due to the power boost provided by his Fire Spirit Body.

However, he had initially made a name for himself with his wood-attributed techniques!

Sha Dan's earlier display of his Fire Spirit Poison had actually served as a reminder to Chu Ning, prompting him to separate the wood-attributed spiritual power from the Blazing Divine Wood Technique.

Indeed, by doing so, he was able to manipulate his spiritual power without any hindrance.

The technique condensed in the Divine Wood Longbow was no longer the Primordial Wood Sword Technique that Chu Ning had cultivated initially.

Instead, it was a true talisman technique, a mid-grade intermediate wood-attributed technique, far more powerful than the Primordial Wood Sword Technique.

While it might not be as powerful as the Double Fire Rings or even the Blazing Flame Tiger Art, when combined with the enhancement of the Divine Wood Longbow, it was definitely stronger than the average mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator's technique.

Moreover, Chu Ning had more than just this one trick up his sleeve.

Seeing the arrow shot from Chu Ning's Divine Wood Longbow, Sha Dan subconsciously tried to dodge.

But at the same time, Chu Ning, who had closed in on him, waved his hand.

Wind Leading Technique!

Sha Dan, who had been about to move, was suddenly immobilized by Chu Ning.

The arrow from the Divine Wood Longbow struck a wall of fiery clouds that Sha Dan had conjured.

The fiery clouds shattered and dissipated instantly.

Sha Dan's expression changed, and he was about to cast another technique when Chu Ning flashed beside him and threw a punch!

Sha Dan reacted swiftly, immediately activating a defensive artifact.

However, this defense had little effect against Chu Ning.

With the momentum of the Thunderous Step, Chu Ning's punch, infused with the Heavenly Canopy Fist, the Condensing Yuan Slash, and the Soul Shattering Strike, landed on Sha Dan!

The next moment, Sha Dan let out a muffled hum, and his eyes glazed over.

The spiritual power shield around him instantly dissipated.

Chu Ning then bent his fingers and shot several green lights into Sha Dan's body.

Controlled by Chu Ning's spiritual power, Sha Dan collapsed to the ground.

Although Sha Dan's expression was hidden behind his mask, his eyes widened in shock.

Even his voice trembled with disbelief as he spoke.

"You're clearly also just a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator. How can you possess such means?

That punch you threw earlier... You're a body cultivator!

No, how can a body cultivator attack the soul?"

Chu Ning smiled faintly and, instead of answering his questions, asked, "Now, it's my turn to ask, and you'd better answer truthfully, or I'll have to use soul-searching techniques."

Sha Dan remained silent, so Chu Ning continued, "Who do you think I am? Why did you try to kill me as soon as you saw me?"

"I thought you were a disciple of one of my master's enemies, here for revenge," Sha Dan replied promptly.

Clearly, he had realized by now that Chu Ning was not the person he had assumed him to be.

"Was that person after an ancient pill-refining technique of yours?" Chu Ning asked, a playful tone in his voice.

Sha Dan's eyes shifted uneasily. "What pill-refining technique?"

"Looks like you can't be honest, can you?" Chu Ning said coldly.

Sha Dan replied with a cold huff, "Be honest? Do you really take me for a three-year-old child? After what I did to you, even if I tell the truth, do you think you'll spare me?"

Chu Ning nodded. "Fine, I won't say another word."

He fixed his gaze on Sha Dan, and the next moment, Sha Dan let out a painful cry.

Though his limbs were immobilized, his head shook violently.

The middle-stage Zhuki cultivator's eyes immediately took on a bewildered look.

Chu Ning approached him and placed his hand on top of his head, employing the Soul Refining Technique from the Refining God Manual to perform the Soul Searching Technique.

A flood of memories and emotions rushed into Chu Ning's mind, causing his eyebrows to furrow slightly.

After a long while, Chu Ning withdrew his hand, his eyes flashing with a cold light. With a wave of his hand, he released a green beam of light that instantly ended the life of the danist, Sha Dan.

If it had just been a minor misunderstanding, Chu Ning wouldn't have felt the need to take his opponent's life. However, after soul-searching and uncovering the extent of Sha Dan's actions, he had made his decision without hesitation.

Having dealt with Sha Dan, Chu Ning calmly approached the body and retrieved the storage bag. He emptied its contents and picked out a few jade bottles, carefully examining and testing the pills within before consuming them.

Although Chu Ning was confident that he could use the Blazing Divine Wood Art to dispel the Fire Spirit Poison given enough time, he was relieved to have found a ready-made antidote. After all, it wouldn't do to have such a poison lingering in his system.

With the poison dealt with, Chu Ning proceeded to sift through the information he had acquired from Sha Dan's memories.

As the middle-aged cultivator had mentioned earlier, this place was within the influence of the Jiuhua Sect, which was part of the Yunxiao Alliance.

The Yunxiao Alliance referred to the Yunxiao Mountains and the surrounding regions, encompassing several dozen sects. It was smaller in scale compared to the Double Cloud Alliance.

According to the information, three thousand years ago, some sects from the Yunmeng Mountains withdrew from the Yunxiao Alliance and joined the Tianji Alliance, which was ranked first on the Western Continent.

This had led to a large-scale conflict between the two alliances, with the Yunxiao Alliance ultimately suffering a loss.

Despite this setback, the Yunxiao Mountains were abundant in spiritual energy and cultivation resources, allowing the Yunxiao Alliance to maintain its position as the fourth-ranked alliance among the top ten on the Western Continent.

Within the Yunxiao Alliance, the Jiuhua Sect held a relatively high position.

There was a Nascent Soul stage cultivator in the sect, with less than two hundred years of lifespan remaining. This elder had been in seclusion for a long time, striving to break through to the mid-Nascent Soul stage to extend his lifespan.

Typically, a cultivator's lifespan could reach around two hundred years upon reaching the late Qi Refining stage. Advancing to the early Foundation Establishment stage granted a lifespan of three hundred years, while the late Foundation Establishment stage extended it to four hundred years.

Golden Core stage cultivators could expect a lifespan of six hundred to eight hundred years, and Nascent Soul stage cultivators could surpass a millennium.

The actual lifespan varied depending on the individual's cultivation technique.

There were also cases where cultivators extended their lifespans by practicing secret techniques or obtaining heavenly treasures.

The Nascent Soul cultivator in the Jiuhua Sect only had a little over a hundred years of lifespan remaining, and the sect had no prospects of producing another Nascent Soul cultivator within the next one or two hundred years. As such, the elder focused solely on his breakthrough, paying little attention to the affairs of the Yunxiao Alliance.

Consequently, the Jiuhua Sect's standing within the alliance wasn't exceptionally high, despite possessing a Nascent Soul stage cultivator.

It was worth noting that the Yunxiao Alliance boasted the presence of late Nascent Soul stage cultivators.

However, the Jiuhua Sect's position was considered relatively high only in comparison to other sects.

Out of the nearly sixty sects in the Yunxiao Alliance, only about twenty possessed Nascent Soul stage cultivators.

This ensured that the Jiuhua Sect maintained a respectable position within the alliance.

After absorbing this information, Chu Ning couldn't help but sigh. "The Yunxiao Mountains are far stronger than the Qingxia Mountains.

In the Qingxia Mountains, not a single Nascent Soul stage cultivator could be found among the seven sects. The Yin Demon Ancestor's attached body clone was enough to suppress the Qingxi Sect, leaving them no room for resistance.

Here, there are twenty sects with Nascent Soul stage cultivators, and some even have several!"

After his moment of reflection, Chu Ning's attention returned to Sha Dan.

Indeed, as he had suspected, Sha Dan was a wandering cultivator. According to the information Chu Ning gleaned from Sha Dan's memories, he had trained under a wandering danist since childhood before eventually settling in this location.

Sha Dan's talent in pill refining surpassed that of his master, and he had even exceeded his teacher's expectations.

A hundred years ago, Sha Dan's master had obtained an ancient pill manual during his travels with a friend. However, the two had fallen out and become enemies. Sha Dan's master had taken the manual, and his friend had vowed to return a hundred years later to reclaim it.

The timing of Chu Ning's arrival had coincided with this deadline, leading Sha Dan to assume that he was the one seeking revenge.

Sha Dan himself was no saint. He had frequently abused his position as a danist and a Foundation Establishment cultivator to bully ordinary Qi Refining cultivators.

In his pursuit of refining the pills described in the ancient manual, he had even resorted to extracting the heart's blood of mortal infants, committing heinous acts.

Through Sha Dan's memories, Chu Ning also gained insight into the pill refining techniques described in the ancient manual. However, he found them underwhelming.

Undeniably, the manual contained some valuable pill formulas. Yet, many of the refining techniques were unorthodox and unconventional.

For instance, although Sha Dan's strength had increased significantly from consuming the pills, his body had also undergone bizarre changes, leaving him in a state between life and death.

For Chu Ning, who possessed the Spirit Pill Compendium, these pill refining techniques held little appeal.

At this point, Chu Ning removed the mask from Sha Dan's face, revealing an ugly countenance.

Much of the flesh had deteriorated, exposing the stark white bones beneath.

Seating himself in a meditative posture, he cultivated the Refining God Technique to dispel the negative emotions that had invaded his mind during the soul-searching.

Afterward, he continued to digest the information he had obtained from Sha Dan, his eyes eventually landing on the mask that lay beside him.

Suddenly, an idea popped into his mind.

"Perhaps I don't need to find another place after all. This place will do just fine."

Sha Dan was a reclusive and eccentric individual who, despite his bi-monthly sales, had never formed close relationships with any cultivators and had no friends to speak of.

His consumption of unorthodox pills had altered his appearance, leading him to always wear a mask when meeting others.

Even the cultivators who frequently purchased pills from him had never seen his true face.

"As for pill refining, I can do that too," Chu Ning thought to himself.

"With this mask, if I pretend to be Sha Dan, no one should be able to notice anything amiss."

Moreover, the spiritual energy density of this place was comparable to that of Yan Peak.

If he added Chen Zikin's array apparatus and used its spirit-gathering effect, the spiritual energy here might even surpass that of his previous cave abode on Yan Peak.

What truly enticed Chu Ning was a piece of information he had gleaned from Sha Dan's memories.

Apparently, the Jiuhua Sect had invited Sha Dan to join them in the past.

The reason for this was that the sect lacked experts in pill refining, and after losing a Foundation Establishment pill refiner to the end of his lifespan, they had hoped to recruit Sha Dan, the renowned pill refiner of Jiuhua Mountain.

However, due to Sha Dan's reclusive nature, he had refused without hesitation.

According to Chu Ning's recollection of Sha Dan's memories, the Jiuhua Sect seemed persistent and was likely to make another attempt in the near future.

While Sha Dan had no interest in joining the sect, Chu Ning felt intrigued by the prospect.

During his years in the Thousand Lakes and Islands, he had indeed enjoyed his freedom.

However, having experienced the benefits of being under the protection of a sect like Qingxi, he recognized the advantages of having the resources of a large sect at his disposal.

When he had first joined the Qingxi Sect, Chu Ning had been concerned about his Yin Wood Spirit Body talent and his secret external cheat being discovered.

Later, he had worried that Xin Wuyao would exploit him for his Spirit Yin Qi.

That was why he had wanted to leave.

But now, things were different. He had reached the mid-Foundation Establishment stage.

If he could join a major sect like Jiuhua and become a relatively high-ranking pill refiner, it might be a good choice.

With all these considerations in mind, Chu Ning felt increasingly convinced that assuming Sha Dan's identity was indeed a good idea.

If the Jiuhua Sect came looking for Sha Dan again, he might consider accepting their offer.

Even if they didn't, he could continue staying here for the short term without any issues.

Having made up his mind, Chu Ning's gaze returned to the mask.

With a casual wave of his hand, he cleaned the mask and gently placed it over his face.

Immediately, the silver mask adhered perfectly to his skin.

"Whine!"

At that moment, Ling Xiaobai, whom Chu Ning had released from the spirit beast bag, let out a whine.

"Master, I can't sense your aura accurately anymore."

Hearing Ling Xiaobai's words, Chu Ning couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

After all, he wasn't using the concealment ability of his Yin Wood Spirit Body, yet even Ling Xiaobai couldn't sense his aura with the mask on.

It seemed that this mask truly had some unique properties.

This realization only served to increase Chu Ning's confidence in his plan.

Next, Chu Ning took a brand-new white robe from Sha Dan's storage bag and put it on.

The two of them had similar builds, so the robe fit him well.

Chu Ning didn't quite understand Sha Dan's preference for wearing white, but since he was going to impersonate him, he might as well commit to the role.

"Little guy, starting today, I'm Sha Dan," Chu Ning said with a light laugh as he began to explore the pavilions atop the cliff with Ling Xiaobai by his side.

The few pavilions were likely where Sha Dan resided, while his daily cultivation and pill refining took place in two separate stone chambers within the mountain.

After taking a tour, Chu Ning nodded in satisfaction.

In terms of size, this cave abode was not as spacious as his previous one on Yan Peak.

The platform atop the cliff wasn't particularly large, but the different style gave Chu Ning a refreshing feeling.

For the time being, Chu Ning didn't rush to modify the array formations outside the cave abode or the pill refining chamber.

He decided to maintain the status quo temporarily and adapt to his new surroundings first, avoiding any potential detection of abnormalities by others.

Next, Chu Ning turned his attention to the pills that Sha Dan regularly refined.

Although Sha Dan's storage bag contained many pills, Chu Ning needed to familiarize himself with the formulas and refining processes to respond appropriately if anyone came to purchase pills.

Fortunately, this was a simple task for Chu Ning, who possessed the Yuan Dan Spirit Body.

The pills that Sha Dan usually refined were slightly different from those Chu Ning had crafted on the Eastern Divine Continent.

However, they mainly served the same purpose—to aid cultivators in the Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment stages to enhance their spiritual power.

The highest-grade pill Sha Dan regularly refined was the Mid-Tier Intermediate grade Spirit Gathering Pill, which was extremely beneficial for cultivators in the Foundation Establishment stage.

In just five days, Chu Ning had completely mastered the formulas for the commonly used pills and had even started refining them himself.

On the sixth day, as Chu Ning was cultivating, a voice suddenly called out from below the cliff.

"Is Sha Dan present? I, your junior, have brought the spirit herbs for trade."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end