Chapter 58: The Might of the Elixir Formation
Chapter 58: The Might of the Elixir Formation
"Secret realm? What is a secret realm?"
Fang Xing's interest was piqued, knowing that this was the result of his previous curiosity and fearlessness.
"Secret realm? Fellow Daoist doesn't know what a secret realm is?" Ding Hongxiu curiously sized up Fang Xing.
"Uh...This fellow Daoist is obviously single-minded in martial arts and doesn't bother with worldly affairs. How would he know about secret realms? For low-level cultivators like us, secret realms are just legends, so it's normal for Fellow Daoist to be unaware,"
Ding Bushan put away his wine gourd and watched as Fang Xing examined the corpses, his face serious as he spoke.
"Please enlighten me, Fellow Daoist."
Fang Xing stood up and asked sincerely.
"A secret realm is a small world created by high-level cultivators... Usually hidden in the void, one might walk past it countless times without discovering it. Only under specific conditions, with a special token or esoteric technique, will it reveal itself..."
Ding Bushan sighed, "I've heard that some secret realms are as small as a few rooms, while others are vast and boundless, possibly even inhabited by demons and beasts... For low-level cultivators like us, a secret realm presents a tremendous opportunity. If one can obtain the powerful techniques, treasures, or even pills left by predecessors, their cultivation can progress by leaps and bounds."
"I see. Then how did this secret realm come to be discovered?" Fang Xing asked curiously.
"About two months ago, rumors started spreading in the market that a mid-stage Qi Refining old cultivator and the Black Tiger Gang had a conflict over a secret realm in the Five Scorpions Valley... It was said that this secret realm held a great opportunity, and because of it, the old cultivator even broke through his bottleneck and advanced to the peak of Qi Refining."
Ding Bushan's alcohol-blemished nose seemed to redden with envy as he spoke.
'Peak of Qi Refining? That's obviously an exaggeration... Well, it's normal for rumors to get embellished as they spread.'
Fang Xing rolled his eyes inwardly, "And then?"
"Such rumors circulate in the market every month, and we usually don't pay them any mind. But this time, the Qingxu Zong's Foundation Establishment elder immediately dispatched a flying boat, and that's when I knew that this one might be true... The market fell into chaos, with countless cultivators rushing to the Five Scorpions Valley. It's said that many fierce battles broke out, and numerous experts perished."
Ding Bushan shook his head, "In the end, the Qingxu Zong naturally seized control of the Five Scorpions Valley and drove out all the loose cultivators, intending to monopolize the secret realm... But not long after, when they tried to open the entrance to the secret realm, something went wrong, resulting in heavy casualties for the Qingxu Zong, even losing two flying boats in the process..."
"How tragic," Fang Xing continued the act.
"Yes..." A hint of schadenfreude appeared on Ding Bushan's face. "The reason for this setback, it's said, is that the Black Tiger Gang withheld some crucial knowledge about opening the secret realm... How could the Qingxu Zong swallow such a loss? When that Foundation Establishment elder returned, he sought out the Black Tiger Gang, intending to eradicate them root and branch... But who would've thought that the leader of the Black Tiger Gang would suddenly reveal himself? Turns out he had been hiding in the shadows, and had silently achieved Foundation Establishment, adding another Foundation Establishment cultivator to our Qinglin Market, creating a three-way stalemate..."
"Even so, the Qingxu Zong is still a Golden Core sect, suppressing the Black Tiger Gang and the Zheng family... They even notified their sect, bringing numerous core disciples to explore the secret realm, and it's said they reaped abundant rewards, including Foundation Establishment opportunities, powerful techniques, and incomplete magical treasures."
Ding Bushan continued, "Just recently, the upper echelons of the sect announced that the secret realm would be opened to loose cultivators like us, so many cultivators are preparing to take a chance... This old man's heart was stirred, and I wanted to bring my granddaughter to try our luck, but then we encountered the Black Desperate Trio..."
"Open to loose cultivators?"
Fang Xing stroked his chin, "If there are benefits to be had, why open it to us? They're obviously looking for cannon fodder and scapegoats! It seems that secret realm is truly dangerous!"
"Yes..."
Ding Bushan had actually thought of this himself. But on the one hand, the prospect of profit was enticing, and on the other hand, wasn't it in the nature of loose cultivators to seize any opportunity that presented itself?
So, in a way, he had brought this danger upon himself.
Fang Xing began to inventory the spoils of battle. Whether it was the second tiger's copper hammer artifact or the third tiger's fan, they all ended up in his possession.
"The third tiger's 'Clear Wind Fan' is a low-grade artifact, not worth much in spirit stones. But the second tiger's pair of copper hammers are a matching set of medium-grade artifacts, and they're among the finest of their kind..."
Ding Hongxiu spoke softly, appraising the items for Fang Xing, "The most valuable item is still the first tiger's pair of fist gauntlets. They're definitely high-grade artifacts, but they're only suitable for body cultivators... As for that white bone banner, it's a demonic artifact. Though its power is immense, it's best not to brandish it openly..."
"It's a pity that we don't have the first tiger's body-refining technique..."
Fang Xing sighed.
Storage bags were rare, and cultivators often had limited possessions when traveling.
Fortunately, these three were rogue cultivators who had no fixed abode, so their money pouches were relatively plump.
In addition to the artifacts, they had also contributed several hundred low-grade spirit stones all at once.
As for cultivation techniques?
It was natural that they wouldn't carry them on their persons.
"Even for body cultivation techniques, without the appropriate spirit root, one wouldn't be able to cultivate them..."
Ding Hongxiu spoke weakly.
"Hongxiu!" Ding Bushan glared at his granddaughter, his wrinkled face breaking into a smile, "Hongxiu is still young and ignorant, please don't mind her, Fellow Daoist!"
"It's fine."
Fang Xing waved his hand, looking as if he wanted to say something more.
Indeed! He wasn't a cultivator, and without spiritual power or spiritual sense, there were many things he couldn't do.
But in front of this pair of grandparents and grandchildren, Ah! Fang Xing could completely hand over his most valuable spoils of war—his storage bag—and let them take out the treasures within!
However, there were many difficulties with this plan, the first being the concealment of private possessions. To prevent cheating, he could let several low-level cultivators inspect the bag.
More crucially, though, storage bags were too precious. Their value was enough to become a reason for murder!
Fang Xing felt that even if he was honest, Ding Bushan wouldn't believe a word of it. Instead, he would scheme relentlessly to save his own life!
Furthermore, without spiritual sense, Fang Xing couldn't see what was inside the storage bag.
If Chen Yi's storage bag contained high-level talismans or powerful treasures, and Ding Bushan took them out to use against him, that would be a disaster!
And it wasn't an impossible scenario!
After all, Chen Yi was one of the first few discoverers of the secret realm and might have obtained significant benefits, so he would surely have some life-saving measures in place!
Thinking of this, Fang Xing felt a pang of regret.
'Forget it, even if there are treasures in the storage bag, they're most likely only useful to cultivators, not me...'
Fang Xing waved his hand. "In that case, we shall part ways here, and meet again in the future..."
Before his words had even landed, his figure had already disappeared like a drifting cloud.
"Sigh, now that's a true master."
Seeing this, Ding Bushan couldn't help but sigh.
"Grandpa, you were just talking about him..."
Before Ding Hongxiu could finish her sentence, her mouth was covered by Ding Bushan, and the two hurried back to the Qinglin Market without another word.
It wasn't until they entered the shantytown that Ding Bushan finally breathed a sigh of relief. "We don't know if he's really gone yet, and you're already blabbering. Do you want to get your grandpa killed?"
"You were the one who looked down on him and kept comparing him to others!" Ding Hongxiu huffed.
She had long wanted to say something to her somewhat opportunistic grandfather.
"Cough cough... That's all in the past now. Your grandpa didn't know he was so powerful." Ding Bushan sighed. "Nowadays, compared to that handsome young master who often comes to buy spirit rice, a strong man like him is actually more suitable for you..."
Ding Hongxiu rolled her eyes at that.
The bickering pair made their way into the market, which was still as bustling as ever, perhaps even more so. Far from looking desolate due to the opening of the secret realm, there were even more new faces in the crowd.
Many loose cultivators had perished in the secret realm, but even more outsiders had come, bringing their own supplies and paying hefty fees for passage, all for a chance at luck!
Occasionally, among the loose cultivators, one would even spot a young man or woman in turquoise robes, their faces solemn and their cultivation profound. They were disciples of the Qingxu Sect, and their presence added a touch of tension to the air.
'This place is still unbearable...'
Watching all of this, Ding Bushan felt a headache coming on.
Just then, the array in the sky suddenly activated, and a stream of light shot into the market at an astonishing speed.
Accompanying the light was an overwhelming aura of terror!
In the market, Qi Refining cultivators' legs turned soft, and they nearly collapsed to the ground.
"What... What's happening?"
Ding Hongxiu gripped her grandfather's arm, on the verge of tears.
If they had known the market would be so dangerous, they wouldn't have returned.
"It's a Golden Core... a Golden Core elder!"
Ding Bushan's voice was bitter as he stared at a white-haired elder in the sky.
The elder was a woman from the Qingxu Sect, her silver hair contrasting with her youthful, peach-like face. Her spiritual power was profound, like a vast ocean.
"Greetings, Elder!"
Numerous Qingxu Sect disciples bowed in respect. From the peak of Qinglin Mountain and the direction of the Zheng family's ancestral home, several streams of light shot out, transforming into proud-looking Foundation Establishment cultivators who bowed in mid-air.
"The Black Tiger Gang has committed a taboo. Their leader has been executed..."
The peach-faced elder's voice was hoarse as she took out a corpse from her storage bag and hung it on the market's entrance plaque. It was none other than the Black Tiger Gang's leader, his eyes wide with resentment in death.
"Is that really the leader of the Black Tiger Gang?"
"Ah... He's a Foundation Establishment cultivator!"
"So what if he's Foundation Establishment? A Golden Core cultivator can kill millions and spill blood for thousands of miles!"
"Sigh... What a pity for Jiang Heihu. He had just reached Foundation Establishment and was so full of life, only to meet such an end..."
"The power of a Golden Core cultivator is truly heaven-defying. I heard that the Black Tiger Gang leader had run away, but they still caught him..."
The Qi Refining cultivators present were filled with awe and fear. The Qingxu Sect's Elder had personally taken action to annihilate the Black Tiger Gang, sending a clear warning to everyone present.
This wasn't killing a chicken to scare the monkeys; it was killing the monkey to scare the chickens!
After the Golden Core elder left, the atmosphere in the market became strangely fervent.
"We're in trouble!"
Ding Bushan's face turned pale. "What kind of opportunity does that secret realm hold? Even a Golden Core cultivator has lowered themselves to come here... This is beyond our control..."
Thinking back to how he had considered signing up to explore the secret realm, Ding Bushan wanted to slap himself.
(End of Chapter)
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