Chapter 299: Ancient Seal, Spirit Butterfly's Advancement

Chapter 299: Ancient Seal, Spirit Butterfly's Advancement

The disturbance in the earth's veins of the entire sea area triggered a tsunami and stirred up spiritual energy.

Such an unexpected event naturally couldn't escape the notice of those cultivators and sea demons with keen perception.

As time passed, even ordinary cultivators and demonic beasts in the inland and outer sea areas of the Sea Cloud Basin began to sense the changes.

Everyone immediately fled into the distance.

At this moment, the sea area near the Sea Cloud Basin was in chaos.

After a long flight, Chu Ning arrived at the City of Sea Smoke.

Although he had sustained some injuries, he had taken a Tian Yuan Dan during the journey.

Coupled with his robust physical body, his movements were unaffected.

As soon as he entered the City of Sea Smoke, Chu Ning headed straight for the teleportation formation.

After paying a substantial amount of spirit stones, he teleported away, heading for Han Yan Zhou.

As for what happened afterward, how a human Nascent Soul cultivator and a sea demon worked together to suppress the disturbance in the earth's veins, and how the demonic beasts in the sea later clashed with human cultivators due to their cultivation grounds being affected—Chu Ning knew nothing of these events.

Exiting the teleportation formation, Chu Ning found an uninhabited place and immediately changed his appearance.

Only then did he venture back onto the streets, looking around.

At this moment, he was on the smallest of the three continents in the Northern Cold Region.

This place was also the only one among the three continents that didn't directly connect to the boundless sea.

Instead, it was separated from the Snow Peak Mountains and the Sea Cloud Basin by a strait.

In this place called Han Yan Zhou, there were five major sects.

One of them was the Divine Sound Valley.

However, unlike the Illusion Spirit Sect, which held absolute dominance in the Sea Cloud Basin, the remaining four sects in Han Yan Zhou, while weaker than Divine Sound Valley, were not vastly inferior in strength.

Thus, Han Yan Zhou was jointly controlled by the five major sects, who formed an alliance with each other.

In addition, there were also some small and medium-sized sects and clans, most of which were affiliated with the major sects.

The Han Yan City, where Chu Ning was currently located, was built jointly by the five major sects and was the most prosperous city in Han Yan Zhou.

Upon entering the city, Chu Ning immediately went to the market and purchased some storage bags and spirit beast bags, replacing the ones he had been using.

Even though this place wasn't within the Illusion Spirit Sect's sphere of influence, Chu Ning still took precautions to prevent them from tracing him.

Regardless of anything else, the fact that he had taken the ancient treasure, the small seal, was enough to make this major sect search high and low for him if they found out.

Although Chu Ning believed that in the previous chaotic situation, it was unlikely that Dan Tai Song would discover that the small seal had fallen into his hands, he couldn't be too careful.

Two months later, after wandering around the three continents of the Northern Cold Region, Chu Ning finally returned to his cave abode in the Ice Fairy City.

He heaved a sigh of relief.

"Just to deliver a message, I had to stay in Han Yan City for two whole months."

Chu Ning muttered softly, but he felt relieved.

Regardless, the first thing he had promised Di Yan was now done, and the favor of the Xing Rui Sha was repaid.

Two months ago, when he had arrived in Han Yan City, Chu Ning hadn't immediately gone to the Divine Sound Valley.

If it hadn't been for the conflict with the young sect master of the Illusion Spirit Sect and the disturbance in the earth's veins, he would have gone there directly.

But with these unexpected events, Chu Ning's situation had become more complicated.

After all, he was there to deliver a message on behalf of Di Yan, and with the commotion caused by Cloud Hidden Island, it would be challenging for people not to connect the dots.

Chu Ning found a place to stay in Han Yan City and spent over half a month healing his injuries, ensuring his full recovery.

He then stayed in the city for another full month before finally making his way to the Divine Sound Valley to find Zhou Jing Yu, the person Di Yan had mentioned.

As expected, this person was indeed a Nascent Soul cultivator.

Chu Ning made up a reason, claiming to be a wandering cultivator who had received Di Yan's kindness in the past.

He said that a few years ago, Di Yan had entrusted him with a task—if anything happened to Cloud Hidden Island, he was to come to this place and inform Zhou Jing Yu that Di Yan had passed away.

He had recently heard about the changes on Cloud Hidden Island, so he had come to deliver the news.

This story completely dissociated him from any recent encounters with Di Yan, naturally preventing any connections from being drawn to him.

Recalling Zhou Jing Yu's expression upon hearing his words—a mix of shock, sadness, and relief—Chu Ning could guess that the relationship between the two must be complex.

Otherwise, a Nascent Soul cultivator like Zhou Jing Yu wouldn't have revealed such complex emotions in front of an outsider like him.

Of course, the intricacies of their relationship weren't something Chu Ning intended to probe.

He had completed the first thing he had promised Di Yan, and as for the matter of going to the Myriad Phenomena Sect, Chu Ning temporarily set it aside.

After all, whether it was breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage or going to the Sky Canopy Continent, both were still too far away for his current cultivation level.

Entering his cave abode, Chu Ning released Jin Lei Diao and Ling Xiao Bai from their spirit beast bags. As he looked at the spirit beast bag in his hand, his brow furrowed slightly.

The spirit beast bag he currently had was the one he had replaced in Han Yan City.

However, even so, when he thought of how Dan Tai Song had vaguely sensed Ling Xiao Bai's presence through the spirit beast bag, Chu Ning still felt a sense of unease.

After all, he wasn't sure if there were others like Dan Tai Song.

Even if there weren't many, just Dan Tai Song alone was enough to give Chu Ning a headache.

It meant that if the two of them ever crossed paths again, Dan Tai Song might recognize him solely based on the aura of his spirit beast.

"It seems I need to refine a few special spirit beast bags myself to better conceal the aura of my spirit beasts," Chu Ning thought to himself.

He then walked back to his cultivation room and set up a habitual barrier restriction.

Only then did he take out two objects from his storage bag.

One was the jade box containing the Xing Rui Sha, which he had obtained from Di Yan.

The other was the ancient and simple-looking small seal he had acquired from Dan Tai Song.

Opening the box to look at the Xing Rui Sha, a smile appeared on Chu Ning's face.

Then, he picked up the ancient-looking small seal.

"Ancient treasure!"

As he gazed at the simple seal, Chu Ning's eyes flickered with anticipation.

Although he had not witnessed the true power of the seal due to the sudden eruption of the earth vein's energy, the aura it had emitted was enough to make Chu Ning sense an immense threat.

He was certain that if the seal had launched an attack, it would have been the most formidable assault he had faced since entering the cultivation world.

With this thought, Chu Ning carefully probed it with his senses.

He did not detect any signs of refinement within the seal.

Without hesitation, he channeled his spiritual power into the ancient seal.

"No reaction?"

Chu Ning could clearly feel his spiritual power entering the seal, yet it showed no response whatsoever.

He furrowed his brows slightly and began to increase the amount of spiritual power he was infusing.

However, to his dismay, the seal seemed like a bottomless pit, absorbing all his spiritual power without any indication of activation.

It wasn't until he had poured in a substantial eighty percent of his spiritual power that he finally stopped.

"It seems that my current level of spiritual power is still insufficient to activate this seal."

Chu Ning muttered to himself, recalling the profound incantation that Dan Tai Song had used to activate the seal.

He surmised that in order to wield such an ancient treasure at the Golden Core stage, one would need a specialized incantation.

Moreover, even with the incantation, using the seal might not be a simple task.

Otherwise, Dan Tai Song wouldn't have waited until he was desperate to bring out this ancient seal.

With these thoughts in mind, Chu Ning reluctantly put the seal back into his storage bag, feeling a tinge of regret.

He had hoped that having such a valuable artifact would provide him with additional means of protection.

Now, it seemed that hope was dashed for the time being.

"The pressing matter at hand is to see if I can obtain the Jiu Yi Gold within the remaining six months. Otherwise, I might have to enter the Snow Mist Valley when it opens to search for it."

Chu Ning mused to himself as he took out a pile of items from his storage bag.

They were the array manuals and array formation materials he had obtained from Di Yan.

Di Yan's collection and organization of these array manuals were indeed impressive, and Chu Ning had been studying them for the past two months.

It was undeniable that Di Yan, a late-stage Golden Core cultivator, had a unique understanding of arrays after hundreds of years of collection and research.

While Chu Ning had previously come across some of the Nine Glory Sect's inherited array formations, Di Yan's collection, perhaps due to his access to the Tian Mu continent's sect inheritances, contained array formations that were equally profound and not inferior to those of the ancient Nine Glory Sect.

However, limited by his own strength and resources as a solitary cultivator, Di Yan's research focused more on small-scale arrays, with relatively less emphasis on large-scale sect-level arrays.

This, however, suited Chu Ning's needs perfectly.

What he required at the moment were precisely these small-scale arrays.

The array formation he was currently examining was called the Cloud Thunder Array, which harnessed the power of thunder and lightning for the user's benefit.

As long as enough thunder and lightning power was absorbed, the user could freely adjust the intensity according to their needs.

Additionally, with the purchase of Thunder Stones, the array could be directly driven.

The reason why Di Yan's array formation in the Cloud Hidden Island was so powerful was due to the presence of numerous Thunder Stones in the thunder zone.

Chu Ning had specifically searched for Thunder Stones among the array formation materials given by Di Yan over the past two days, but unfortunately, he couldn't find any.

The reason he wanted to set up this array formation was, of course, because he had benefited greatly from tempering his body with thunder and lightning power.

Chu Ning's thoughts turned to the cultivation proficiency he had achieved.

【Five Elements Chaos Technique (Heavenly Mid-Grade): Second Layer (4048/100000)】

【Nine Transforming Body Refining Technique, Second Volume, Second Layer (25345/90000)】

【Refine God Technique, Fourth Layer (57525/64000)】

By tempering his body with thunder and lightning power in Cloud Hidden Island and then refining the accumulated thunder and lightning power within his body over the following two months, Chu Ning's Nine Transforming Body Refining Technique had increased by a substantial 1,200 points.

This rapid rate of improvement caused his previously slowed cultivation progress to accelerate once again.

"It seems that in the next six months, I'll have to frequent the markets, Frost Moon Pavilion, and other trading venues more often."

Chu Ning contemplated as he put everything away and then took out the Snow Crystal Herb to plant it in the spiritual herb garden outside.

If there was one inconvenience in traveling outside, it was the need to take care of this Snow Crystal Herb.

Being away for two months meant that the herb couldn't condense spiritual liquid while stored in the jade box, which was a significant loss for Chu Ning.

"Hmm?"

At this moment, Chu Ning's gaze fell on the Golden Winged Spirit Butterfly flying in the herb garden.

He waved his hand, summoning the butterfly into his palm.

"Second rank!"

Sensing the butterfly's aura, a hint of delight flashed in Chu Ning's eyes.

During his recent travels, he had left the spirit butterfly in the herb garden, where it had access to an abundance of metallic spiritual herbs and their nectar.

This Golden Winged Spirit Butterfly had already been at the peak of the first rank.

With Chu Ning's cultivation, the combination of secret techniques and nectar feeding had allowed the butterfly to advance to the second rank.

Recalling the introduction of this Golden Winged Spirit Butterfly, Chu Ning took out several pieces of refinement materials from his storage bag.

The butterfly flew straight toward one of the pieces of metal material.

"It really can sense metal-attributed materials, and this one isn't even very high-grade; it doesn't even have the aura of Pure Metal."

Seeing this, Chu Ning was very satisfied.

Regarding the matter of finding the Jiu Yi Gold in the next six months, he didn't hold much hope.

In that case, he would most likely have to make a trip to the Snow Mist Valley.

Although he had the map given by Wu Rongfeng, it was uncertain if there would still be Jiu Yi Gold there.

With this Golden Winged Spirit Butterfly, perhaps it could be of great help.

For the next ten days or so, Chu Ning stayed in his cave abode, properly recuperating and restoring his condition.

Only then did he leave his dwelling once more.

Walking in the streets of the lower city, Chu Ning noticed that they were noticeably livelier than usual, and he couldn't help but feel a little surprised.

He had been in this Ice Fairy City for almost twenty years, and he had never seen it so bustling.

Even ten years ago, when the Snow Mist Valley was open, there weren't as many people.

After all, today wasn't one of the Frost Moon Pavilion's major trading days.

Chu Ning had merely felt like going to the city's marketplace on a whim, wanting to try his luck and see if he could purchase some of the materials needed for his Cloud Thunder Array.

"One hundred spirit stones? This Luminous Jade isn't exactly a precious item.

But one hundred spirit stones is too little. If you can offer one hundred and fifty spirit stones, then I'll sell it to you, fellow daoist."

As Chu Ning was walking down the street, he vaguely heard a familiar voice.

He turned around and saw a somewhat familiar face—it was the young female cultivator named Xia Er whom he had met a few months ago at the Snow Peak Mountains.

Chu Ning had obtained the Golden Winged Spirit Butterfly from her and her parents, but he didn't know why they weren't with her at the moment.

Moreover, compared to a few months ago, this Xia Er gave off a completely different impression.

Previously, she may have been spoiled by her parents, and although she was well-behaved, Chu Ning felt that she had a lively personality.

Back then, if not for her parents' restraint, she probably would have argued with him, a Golden Core cultivator.

But now, the liveliness in her had disappeared, and she exuded a cold and charming aura.

"One hundred and fifty spirit stones? I can buy it anywhere for that price. Why should I buy it from you?"

Just as Chu Ning was observing her, another voice piped up, belonging to a middle-aged male cultivator with a slippery appearance.

Before Xia Er could respond, the slippery middle-aged man spoke again.

"Xi Menxia, you probably don't have many spirit stones left, do you?

If you don't sell this Glowing Jade to me, how will you stay in Ice Fairy City for the next two months?"

Hearing this, it seemed that the two of them knew each other.

Upon hearing the man's words, Xi Menxia lowered her head and tightly clutched the Luminous Jade, appearing to be in a difficult position.

The Bioluminescent Jade was indeed one of the materials Chu Ning needed for his Cloud Thunder Array.

Chu Ning's gaze swept over the two of them, and after a moment's thought, he walked over.

"I'll take this Glowing Jade for one hundred and fifty spirit stones."

Chu Ning's indifferent voice suddenly sounded out.

Hearing Chu Ning's words, Xi Menxia, who had been lowering her head, quickly raised it and, upon seeing Chu Ning, a hint of delight flashed across her face.

As for the slippery middle-aged man, he turned his head abruptly.

"Who's being so unreasonable and deliberately causing trouble? I..."

Before he could finish his sentence, the middle-aged man suddenly sensed the aura of a Golden Core cultivator emanating from Chu Ning, and he immediately stopped talking.

"Oh, it's a Golden Core senior. I didn't realize it was you, senior. Please forgive my offense."

The middle-aged man immediately put on a smiling face.

"Scram!"

Chu Ning waved his hand and said indifferently.

As a Foundation Establishment cultivator, he didn't need to be courteous to this man.

Hearing Chu Ning's unfriendly words, the middle-aged man didn't dare to say another word, and he slinked away with a dejected look on his face.

At this moment, the young female cultivator, Xi Menxia, bowed to Chu Ning with a look of excitement on her face.

"Greetings, senior."

Seeing her expression, Chu Ning knew that she had recognized him.

He nodded gently and reached out to pick up the glowing Fluorite Jade before her.

Then, he took out one hundred and fifty lower-grade spirit stones from his storage bag and handed them to her.

Xi Menxia bit her red lips and said, "Senior has shown kindness to me. This Glowing Jade should be given to you, but I really need spirit stones right now.

Senior, one hundred spirit stones will be enough."

Hearing this, Chu Ning glanced at her and asked indifferently, "Don't you need spirit stones to pay for your residence here?"

Hearing Chu Ning's words, Xi Menxia's cheeks reddened slightly.

Chu Ning sighed inwardly. Even if she didn't say anything, he could guess that she must have gone through some changes in her situation.

Otherwise, as a family of three Foundation Establishment cultivators, the Xi family shouldn't have been in a position where they couldn't even afford the spirit stones for the lower city.

Wanting to find out more about the noticeable changes in Ice Fairy City over the past few months, Chu Ning placed the one hundred and fifty spirit stones in front of her.

Then, he asked, "Do you have any other items for sale?"

Xi Menxia shook her head. "Today, I mainly wanted to sell this Glowing Jade. The other items are just side offerings, and no one has shown any interest in them."

"Then, come with me. I have some other questions for you."

Hearing Chu Ning's words, Xi Menxia immediately put away the spirit stones and the items she had laid out into her storage bag.

Then, she followed behind Chu Ning.

The slippery middle-aged man, who had been watching from a distance, muttered to himself and then left with a disgruntled look on his face.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end