Chapter 326: I Plan to Hunt an Eighth-Rank Demon Beast

Chapter 326: I Plan to Hunt an Eighth-Rank Demon Beast

Upon arriving at the Iceland Immortal City, Chu Ning decided to head towards the Frost Moon Pavilion.

The pavilion usually had a higher number of Golden Core cultivators, and with luck, he might even run into one or two acquaintances.

Even if he didn't recognize anyone, it shouldn't be difficult to inquire about some news from the Frost Moon Pavilion.

If all else failed, he could always ask Chang LingShan.

As he entered the pavilion, he was greeted by a unfamiliar female cultivator at the early stage of Foundation Establishment, whom he had never seen before.

It was unclear if she was a newly advanced cultivator.

Seeing that Chu Ning was a Golden Core cultivator and looked rather unfamiliar, she wore a slightly surprised expression but still greeted him.

"Greetings, esteemed senior. This is our first meeting, is there anything I can help you with?"

Without looking at her, Chu Ning asked directly, "Are there any Golden Core friends in the pavilion at the moment?"

"Wu Lingwei and Tang JinChuan, both Golden Core seniors, are currently here." The female cultivator replied, glancing at Chu Ning's youthful face.

"May I ask which senior you would like to meet? I will inform them of your visit."

Chu Ning hesitated for barely a moment before replying, "Please inform Wu friend that I'm here."

After dealing with the Frost Moon Pavilion for so long, Chu Ning was well aware that Wu Lingwei was the one in charge.

The female cultivator only knew that Chu Ning was a Golden Core cultivator, and with her cultivation, she couldn't discern his specific level.

Hearing that Chu Ning wanted to see Wu Lingwei directly, she hesitated inwardly, but her face remained expressionless.

"May I ask for your esteemed name, senior? I will inform the seniors in the pavilion."

"No need to inform her, I'll take Chu senior up myself."

Just as Chu Ning was about to speak, a slightly familiar voice interrupted.

Soon, he recognized Bai Ruo, who had been in charge of receiving him previously.

As the female cultivator called out, "Senior Bai," Bai Ruo quickly walked up to Chu Ning and bowed.

"Bai Ruo greets senior Chu. It has been a long time since senior Chu last visited the pavilion, so Junior Qiu doesn't recognize you. Please forgive her, senior Chu."

Seeing a familiar face, Chu Ning's face softened into a smile.

"Miss Bai, there's no need to be so polite. It's been over ten years since I last visited, so it's normal that she doesn't know me."

Hearing Chu Ning's words, Bai Ruo smiled and gestured upstairs with an inviting hand.

"Please, senior."

Chu Ning then proceeded directly to the third floor of the pavilion.

The female cultivator named Qiu, who was at the first floor, couldn't help but reveal a surprised expression.

"I wonder who this senior Chu is, for Senior Bai to be so courteous to him."

She was unaware that during those consecutive twenty-plus years of doing business with Chu Ning, Bai Ruo had earned a significant amount of commission from him.

Thus, Bai Ruo valued Chu Ning more than the average Golden Core cultivator.

In the past ten years, without Chu Ning's talismans and various rare materials, Bai Ruo's business had taken a significant hit.

Initially, for the first year or two, Bai Ruo often mentioned Chu Ning, but eventually, upon realizing that he truly hadn't reappeared, she gradually let go of that hope.

So at this moment, Bai Ruo couldn't help but ask in a joking manner, "Senior Chu, you've been absent for over ten years, and the cultivators who come to the pavilion for high-level talismans have not treated us lightly.

Now that you're back in the Immortal City, can you stay for a while and sell some more talismans to us?

We've collected quite a few good items over the years."

Chu Ning smiled faintly at her words, "Miss Bai, you jest. The Frost Moon Pavilion is such a large business, how could it possibly care about the few items I have to offer?

On the contrary, if the pavilion has collected any good items over the years, I'd be interested in taking a look to see if there's anything that catches my fancy."

Hearing Chu Ning's response, Bai Ruo naturally didn't press the issue further.

She led Chu Ning directly to a transaction room on the third floor.

Coincidentally, at that moment, Wu Lingwei had just finished receiving a Golden Core cultivator, and the two of them were exiting the room.

Upon seeing Chu Ning, they both exclaimed in surprise.

"Chu friend, long time no see!"

"Wu friend!" "Xiao friend!"

Chu Ning cupped his hands in greeting towards the two, and of course, Wu Lingwei was still dressed in her usual dignified and elegant palace attire.

Decades had passed, but her appearance hadn't changed much since Chu Ning first met her.

She still exuded the charm and beauty of a mature woman.

As for the other cultivator, a middle-aged man surnamed Xiao, he was one of the people who had left Snow Mist Valley with them back then.

So Chu Ning recognized him as well.

However, this person hadn't been living in Iceland Immortal City previously.

The two of them also cupped their hands in greeting towards Chu Ning, and in the next moment, their faces simultaneously revealed a trace of surprise once again.

Wu Lingwei smiled and returned the greeting, "Congratulations on advancing to the late Golden Core stage, friend Chu. Your cultivation progress is truly astounding."

Wu Lingwei wasn't just being polite; she was genuinely surprised from the bottom of her heart.

The first time she met Chu Ning, he was still at the early Golden Core stage, but now, in just a short span of forty years, he had already reached the late Golden Core stage.

Such a rapid cultivation speed was something she had never encountered before.

Chu Ning's gaze shifted to Wu Lingwei as he cupped his hands, "Thank you, friend Wu. Your cultivation has also progressed significantly, and I believe you're not far from forming your Nascent Soul."

With Chu Ning's discerning eyes, he could tell that Wu Lingwei had reached the pinnacle of the late Golden Core stage and could only progress further with the right opportunity to form her Nascent Soul.

In other words, her cultivation had peaked, and she only needed the right opportunity to form her Nascent Soul.

Hearing Chu Ning's words, Wu Lingwei smiled and shook her head.

"Nascent Soul? It's not that easy. That's a chance encounter that one can only hope for."

As the two chatted, Chu Ning's gaze turned to the middle-aged cultivator surnamed Sun.

"Senior Sun, are you now settled in the Immortal City?"

Chu Ning vaguely recalled that this person was a wandering cultivator who cultivated overseas.

The middle-aged cultivator, Sun, nodded and smiled, "I settled in the Immortal City fifteen years ago. I wanted to be your neighbor, but I didn't expect that you had already left.

Wu Lingwei then led Chu Ning into the transaction room.

Bai Ruo stayed outside to wait.

Seeing this, Chu Ning spoke up, "Miss Bai, why don't you come in too? I plan to purchase some things this time. I also have some matters I want to ask Wu about, and you can help me retrieve the items while I chat with her."

Hearing Chu Ning's words, Wu Lingwei invited Bai Ruo into the transaction room.

Chu Ning casually took out a jade slip from his storage bag and handed it to Wu Lingwei.

A surprised expression flashed across Wu Lingwei's face as she looked at the contents of the jade slip.

"You're looking for quite a lot of things this time, fellow Daoist," she remarked.

It was no wonder Wu Lingwei was surprised. Indeed, the list of items Chu Ning had requested was quite extensive.

While the number of different types of items wasn't exceptionally high, the quantity of each was over a hundred.

For instance, he had requested a hundred seventh-rank demon beast pills.

Even with the Frost Moon Pavilion's vast resources, providing a hundred seventh-rank demon beast pills at once would be challenging.

After all, only late-stage Golden Core cultivators and above had the capability to hunt seventh-rank demon beasts.

And those at this level might not always choose to trade their spoils.

Hearing Wu Lingwei's words, Chu Ning replied, "Just prepare whatever the pavilion can manage. If it's not enough, I'll make up the difference elsewhere."

These materials were meant for pill refining.

After cultivating for fifteen years, his supply of pills had long been exhausted.

Although he still had the Snow Crystal Rejuvenating Liquid and a Golden Spirit Plant in his dantian, he wanted to be prepared.

It wouldn't be easy to collect materials and refine pills now that he was living in his island cave abode.

Wu Lingwei nodded and passed the jade slip to Bai Ruo.

"Go and tell Tang Shi that he should try to fulfill Fellow Daoist Chu's requests as much as possible."

"Yes!" Bai Ruo took the slip and left to carry out the task.

Chu Ning then turned to Wu Lingwei and asked, "Fellow Daoist Wu, does your esteemed pavilion have any stored spirit essences of eighth-rank water-attribute demon beasts, or do you know of any channels to obtain them?"

"Eighth-rank demon beast spirit essences?"

Hearing Chu Ning's question, Wu Lingwei's tone carried even more surprise than when she had seen the contents of the jade slip.

She then smiled bitterly, "Fellow Daoist, you sure have high expectations of our pavilion. Eighth-rank demon beasts are comparable to Nascent Soul cultivators. Such treasures would undoubtedly be in the hands of Nascent Soul elders."

Chu Ning's eyebrows lifted slightly at her response.

"I wonder if the Long Kong Temple has any," he inquired.

It wasn't a secret that the Frost Moon Pavilion was backed by the Long Kong Temple.

Wu Lingwei hesitated for a moment, considering his question, before answering, "I'm afraid not. The protective elders of the temple haven't ventured out in many years, and recently, they seem to have all entered seclusion."

A hint of disappointment flashed across Chu Ning's face, though his expression remained neutral as he smiled and said, "Then forget it. I was just asking casually."

Changing the subject, he asked, "By the way, Fellow Daoist Wu, I heard that quite a few eighth-rank demon beasts have appeared in the Central Sea region lately. Does your pavilion happen to have any information about them? If I ever need to travel to the Central Sea in the future, it would be good to know in advance so I can avoid these powerful beasts."

A smile reappeared on Wu Lingwei's face as she replied, "You've asked just at the right time. Our pavilion has recently compiled and organized some information."

She took out a jade slip and handed it to Chu Ning. "This slip contains information not only about the eighth-rank demon beasts in the Central Sea region but also about some seventh-rank ones. However, since it only covers a period of six months, the information may not be entirely comprehensive."

Chu Ning took the jade slip curiously and scanned its contents, a surprised expression appearing on his face. "So many?"

Indeed, according to the information provided by Wu Lingwei, there were six eighth-rank demon beasts and nearly a hundred seventh-rank demon beasts in the Central Sea region alone.

Although the Boundless Sea was vast, and these demon beasts were spread across various seas, the distances between them were still considerable.

However, with so many seventh and eighth-rank demon beasts in the Central Sea region, Golden Core cultivators might think twice before venturing out to sea.

Wu Lingwei nodded gravely. "The Boundless Sea is too vast, and it connects to the Endless Sea. We used to believe that there might not be any demon beasts in the Endless Sea, but now it seems that may not be the case. Perhaps there are still demon beasts lurking in the depths of some seas. As such, we have no idea how many powerful beasts are in the North Cold Region."

She sighed softly and continued, "Thirty years ago, we thought the Demon Race had suffered significant losses during the battle at Snow Mist Valley. But now it seems that there are still many demon beasts in the seas. And this doesn't even include the beasts in the straits and the depths of the three landmasses."

As Chu Ning listened, he browsed through the demon beast information on the jade slip before quietly storing it away in his storage bag.

Bai Ruo hadn't returned with the materials yet, so Chu Ning took the opportunity to ask Wu Lingwei, "Fellow Daoist, why did Snow Mist Valley suddenly close off, if you don't mind me asking?"

Wu Lingwei's eyes flickered over Chu Ning's face, and after a moment's hesitation, she answered, "This is somewhat of a secret in the North Cold Region, but among Nascent Soul cultivators, it's not exactly a well-kept one.

Upon hearing this, Chu Ning fell into deep thought. "So, it seems that the many Nascent Soul cultivators of the North Cold Region have been in seclusion recently, and even with the appearance of eighth-rank demon beasts in the Central Sea Region, they haven't shown themselves. This is also related to this matter?"

A smile appeared on Wu Lingwei's face, but she didn't respond.

Chu Ning understood. The Frost Moon Pavilion had backing from the Long Kong Temple, so it was natural for Wu Lingwei to be cautious about discussing this topic further.

Just then, Bai Ruo returned with a storage bag and handed it to Wu Lingwei.

The two women stopped their conversation.

Wu Lingwei took the storage bag and scanned its contents with her spiritual sense before handing it to Chu Ning. "Fellow Daoist Chu, most of the spirit herbs you requested are here, but we only have thirty seventh-rank demon beast pills. They are all here."

Chu Ning took the bag, inspected its contents briefly, and nodded. After inquiring about the amount of spirit stones needed, he handed over the required amount along with some high-level talismans.

Over the past decade of cultivating on his island, Chu Ning had saved a significant amount of spirit stones by not having to pay rent for his cave abode in Iceland Immortal City. However, the items he wanted were costly, so he still needed a substantial number of spirit stones. He didn't want to deplete his entire stash, so he offered some high-level talismans to make up the difference.

Wu Lingwei was delighted to accept the talismans, as spirit stones were not in short supply for the Frost Moon Pavilion. On the other hand, high-level talismans crafted by a late Golden Core cultivator like Chu Ning were not something that just anyone could provide.

After leaving the Frost Moon Pavilion, Chu Ning paid a visit to Chang LingShan.

Chang was naturally surprised to see that Chu Ning had not only reappeared after more than ten years but had also advanced to the late Golden Core stage. He eagerly invited Chu Ning to his cave abode for a chat and shared some recent news.

Compared to the few Foundation Establishment cultivators, Chang LingShan was much better informed, especially since he had connections with the Golden Core cultivators of Iceland Immortal City. For example, he mentioned that the Nascent Soul cultivator from the Illusion Spirit Sect had indeed come to the city, supposedly in search of the Nascent Soul cultivator who had hidden his cultivation and attacked their young master. The Illusion Spirit Sect cultivator had even offered rewards to many Golden Core cultivators for information, but in the end, the search yielded nothing, and the matter was dropped.

Hearing this news, Chu Ning felt more at ease. It seemed that his actions in Han Yan City had inadvertently shifted the Illusion Spirit Sect's focus onto Nascent Soul cultivators.

As for the so-called Nascent Soul cultivator who had appeared in recent years and attacked members of minor sects, Chu Ning had his suspicions. It was very likely that these were Illusion Spirit Sect cultivators in disguise, deliberately trying to lure him out.

Fortunately, they had made a miscalculation, as he was not a Nascent Soul cultivator, and with his focus on seclusion cultivation, he didn't pay attention to such matters.

After bidding farewell to Chang LingShan, Chu Ning didn't return to his island abode directly. Instead, he made his way to the city's alchemy chamber.

The Iceland Immortal City had specially built alchemy and forging chambers to facilitate the needs of solitary cultivators. Cultivators only needed to pay a certain amount of spirit stones to use these facilities for their cultivation needs.

Since there was no earth fire on the island where Chu Ning's cave abode was located, it was more convenient for him to refine pills here.

It wasn't until he had refined a third of the materials he had purchased from the Frost Moon Pavilion into pills that Chu Ning finally left to return to his island.

He didn't refine all the materials because he had run out of seventh-rank demon beast pills.

Upon returning to his island, Chu Ning found everything to be in order. He casually handed a few spirit fruits to Bai Ling before entering his cultivation room and taking out a jade slip to read.

A determined expression appeared on his face.

"Master, what are you doing?" Bai Ling asked curiously, seeing the look on Chu Ning's face.

Chu Ning put down the jade slip and replied, "I plan to hunt an eighth-rank demon beast."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end