https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-611-The-So-Called-Soul-Essence-Duan-Li-s-Promise/12942419/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-613-The-Demon-Sealing-Array-of-the-North-Pole-the-Dark-Blue-Mystic-Armor-Appears/12942429/
Chapter 612: Lushan Jun, Dragon Severing Technique
Chapter 612: Lushan Jun, Dragon Severing Technique
Upon first meeting Lushan Jun, Luo Chen was a little surprised.
He had assumed that the owner of this Daoist title would be a male cultivator, but to his surprise, it was a graceful-looking female cultivator.
Xiao Bohuan hadn't mentioned the other party's gender, and Luo Chen hadn't thought about it either.
This was because among the loose cultivators, male cultivators dominated with seven to eight out of ten, while female cultivators were few and far between.
The reason for this situation wasn't complicated.
Although there was no significant difference between men and women after mastering the power of the Dao, most female cultivators yearned for stability. The cultivation world was filled with unpredictable dangers, so many low-level female cultivators would choose to become subordinates of powerful male cultivators.
Additionally, female cultivators were known for their keen and delicate minds, often excelling in production-related cultivation arts. As a result, many large and small sects were willing to accept female cultivators without any backing.
At the very least, they could help with passing on the family lineage!
Cultivators with spiritual roots who formed Daoist pairs and gave birth to offspring had a much higher probability of their children inheriting spiritual roots.
Luo Chen never discriminated against female cultivators, and he had even met numerous powerful female cultivators with great abilities on his journey. Some of them were so formidable that even he had to be cautious when dealing with them.
Therefore, he held even more respect for a female cultivator who had a Daoist title among the loose cultivators.
"Qingyangzi?" Inside a grand palace on Qu Yang Island, the graceful female cultivator examined Luo Chen with a puzzled look.
"It is indeed me. Greetings, Lushan Jun."
Luo Chen smiled slightly and bowed in greeting.
After confirming his identity, Lushan Jun's face also relaxed into a warm smile.
"I thought it would take some time for Fellow Daoist to arrive, but I didn't expect you to come so quickly. It's beyond my expectations."
"Fellow Daoist"?
A flash of surprise appeared in Luo Chen's eyes as he noticed her hair bun, which was undoubtedly a traditional female crown hairstyle.
Simple and elegant, it exuded confidence, and seeing it was like a breath of fresh spring air.
Although cultivators often addressed each other as 'Fellow Daoist' in the cultivation world, in reality, this term referred to those who shared the same great path. Few people would call themselves 'Fellow Daoist'.
Those who did were mostly genuine followers of the Daoist path.
In the world of cultivation, there were also the three teachings of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism, with the secular world being the most prominent. In the cultivation world, these distinctions were not as strictly defined.
Luo Chen was surprised to find that Lushan Jun was also a female Daoist.
Although he was astonished, Luo Chen maintained his composure and began a conversation with her.
Among the Daoist followers, there were usually no major taboos, so Luo Chen didn't need to be overly cautious in his conversation.
As a result, their communication flowed smoothly.
With Lushan Jun's introduction, Luo Chen gained a deeper understanding of the loose cultivator forces stationed on Qu Yang Island.
The forces Xiao Bohuan mentioned were just general terms, and in reality, they were further divided.
For example, the Array Team was subdivided into the Defensive Array Team, which managed the main defensive array on the frontlines, the Central Array Team, which was responsible for the island's central array, and another team dedicated to maintaining the teleportation array.
Similarly, the Logistics Team, as its name suggested, was in charge of the logistics needs of the cultivators stationed on the frontlines.
In reality, the logistics forces had the most complex composition! They had to manage the island's living supplies and cultivation resources, coordinate between the first defense line and Dragon Abyss Immortal City, and also keep track of the demon hunting earnings of some cultivators.
According to Lushan Jun, there were also specialists in a workshop at the foot of the mountain who were responsible for appraising, dissecting, and performing initial processing on various demon beast corpses.
After a detailed introduction, Lushan Jun seemed a bit tired.
Seeing Luo Chen's furrowed brows, she comforted him, "Qingyangzi, you don't need to worry about these matters. A general understanding is sufficient, and you don't need to concern yourself with the specifics. You're here on a short-term defense mission, and besides occasionally patrolling with the Patrol Team, you'll have most of your time free to arrange as you please."
"Qu Yang Island also has a Tier Three Spirit Vein. You can consider it a change of place for your cultivation."
Luo Chen's brows relaxed, "In that case, it's quite relaxing. Thank you, Lushan Jun, for your guidance."
Lushan Jun lightly tapped the table with her fingers.
Soon, a Foundation Establishment True Cultivator walked in from outside.
In front of Luo Chen, she introduced, "This is Captain Wu of the Logistics Team, who is in charge of managing the cultivators' cave mansions. From now on, he will take you to your assigned cave mansion. If Qingyangzi has any other needs, you can also directly inform Captain Wu. As long as Qu Yang Island can meet the requirements, we will serve you."
The Foundation Establishment cultivator, Wu Ruofu, bowed to Luo Chen. "Junior Wu Ruofu, greetings to Senior Qingyangzi."
Luo Chen nodded slightly.
Then, Lushan Jun took out a talisman from her storage bag and sent it to Luo Chen using her spiritual power.
"This is my personal communication talisman. Infuse your spiritual sense into it, and when you burn it, I will hear your message instantly within a ten-thousand-mile range."
Luo Chen was surprised as he received the white communication talisman.
Such a long distance?
So fast!
The efficiency of communication talismans was usually slow and often criticized in the cultivation world, mainly used for short-distance communication or polite visits.
As a result, countless clever cultivators had devised various communication methods.
For example, there were flying sword communication, the paper crane communication method of Tianfan City, and the teleportation array communication method used by top-tier sects.
Additionally, the commonly used Communication Jade Discs among cultivators have a range of roughly a thousand li, which is already an excellent method of communication using magical artifacts after improvements.
However, Lushan Jun had made further enhancements to the Long Distance Communication Talismans themselves, which was unexpected.
He couldn't help but ask, "Did you personally craft this talisman, fellow cultivator?"
Lushan Jun nodded with a smile.
"Can it only be used by those related to you?" Luo Chen asked again.
Lushan Jun shook his head and said with a laugh, "As long as they are in pairs, and their cultivation has reached the Foundation Establishment level, they can use this talisman with either Spirit Sense or Divine Sense."
At this point, the graceful woman blinked her eyes.
"Fellow cultivator, are you interested in purchasing a few for future needs?"
A journey of ten thousand li is not considered far for Golden Core Cultivators, and it only takes the time to finish a cup of tea with their normal flying speed.
Even for Foundation Establishment True Cultivators, it would only take an hour or so at full speed.
At this distance, one round trip is enough to convey the message clearly, and there's no need for a Ten Thousand Mile Communication Talisman.
But in reality, it's not that short!
If there's an urgent matter or a life-threatening situation, even an hour or the time it takes to burn incense is precious.
Luo Chen was somewhat tempted.
Seeing this, the female cultivator said with a hint of enthusiasm, "Although this talisman is of the third rank, it's not that expensive. If you want it, a pair can be purchased for ten thousand low-grade Spirit Stones."
Hearing the price, Luo Chen didn't hesitate.
"Give me five pairs!"
Ten white talismans, each representing a pair, were obtained, and Luo Chen took out fifty thousand Spirit Stones.
After acquiring the Ten Thousand Mile Communication Talismans, Luo Chen couldn't help but ask another question.
"Do you have any Communication Talismans for even longer distances?"
Lushan Jun gave Luo Chen a surprised look and then said, "There are, but they are custom-made and can't be used for casual communication. A specific message must be engraved beforehand, and once activated by one party, the other party will receive a reminder. It's more of a token than a communication talisman. As for the price, we'll have to discuss the specifics."
Lushan Jun is a formidable talisman master!
Luo Chen came to this conclusion.
Of course, he didn't order a custom-made Communication Talisman for extremely long distances, as he didn't have that need for now.
Having a few Ten Thousand Mile Communication Talismans was sufficient for future needs.
For even longer distances, even if he encountered an emergency, he wouldn't be able to make it in time to provide assistance.
Next, under Wu Ruofu's guidance, Luo Chen arrived at his temporary cave mansion.
Along the way, they flew over a low hill with several rock caves and a large area of wooden and stone houses.
According to Wu Ruofu, these were the cultivation grounds for Foundation Establishment and Qi Condensation cultivators.
...
Inside a spacious cave in the mountain, Luo Chen nodded in satisfaction.
The environment was serene, and the spiritual energy was abundant—truly the quality of a lower-grade Tier Three Spirit Vein.
It was evident that someone had lived here before.
Luo Chen didn't mind, as it was only a temporary residence.
Facing the empty space in the cave, Luo Chen first took out large slabs of jade from his storage ring and laid them on the ground. Then, he opened his mouth and spat out the Primordial Cauldron, which landed on the jade slabs.
Circling the area, Luo Chen planted several homemade small array flags.
With his current array skills and artifact-forging prowess, he could now make array flags himself without needing to purchase them externally.
Thus, a simple pill and artifact chamber was created.
It could be used for both pill refining and artifact forging! If Feiming from Ailao Mountain were here, he would likely be astonished.
This seemingly simple pill and artifact chamber, while appearing simple, already surpassed the understanding of arrays and materials of many Spirit Artisans.
Subsequently, Luo Chen took out a large quantity of precious Tier Three wood from his storage ring, all of which had been pre-split.
He neatly stacked them under the Primordial Cauldron.
Luo Chen pointed a finger, and a stream of Withering Flourishing True Fire gushed out.
In an instant, the flames blazed, slowly roasting the Primordial Cauldron.
"The Dark Blue Mystic Armor I forged earlier has only undergone preliminary smelting, and it still needs constant adjustments. With so many materials invested, I can't let it go to waste."
A faint smile appeared on Luo Chen's face, and a stir came from within the Primordial Cauldron.
It was the Black King.
Nowadays, his size was growing larger, and even when shrunk within the space of the Primordial Cauldron, he felt increasingly cramped.
"Come out!"
A flash of light emanated from the cauldron, and a black light flew out.
It transformed into a small snake, swimming beneath Luo Chen's feet.
"Master, why don't you put me in the sea?" The Black King sounded aggrieved. "It's uncomfortable here."
"We'll go in a couple of days!" Luo Chen said indifferently.
The Black King didn't understand.
Luo Chen specifically explained to him, "The other Golden Core Cultivator who is stationed here hasn't arrived yet. If I put you in the sea now, you might be mistaken for a wild demon beast and killed by others, which would be troublesome."
The Black King hummed, "Do they have the ability to kill me?"
After spending over a decade digesting the cliff snake's corpse, the Black King's cultivation had skyrocketed, reaching the peak of the middle stage of Tier Three, just one step away from the late stage.
He had awakened a Bloodline Devouring Technique, and its power was immense.
Additionally, with the two middle-grade magical artifacts granted by Luo Chen, he constantly refined them with his demonic energy day and night.
It could be said that the Black King's current combat strength was no less than that of any mid-stage Golden Core Cultivator.
Leaning on his thick skin and tough body, he even dared to challenge a late-stage Golden Core cultivator.
During the previous battle in Penghu, he suddenly took action, suppressing the Night Elder of Huangfu Song's group, who had almost no power to fight back, which showed his current ferocity.
Seeing his wild behavior, Luo Chen looked at him with a smile that wasn't quite a smile.
"You're quite arrogant, aren't you?"
Black King was taken aback, then he chuckled, "I didn't mean it that way. I'm just saying, even when beating a dog, you should consider the owner."
"Hmph."
Luo Chen gave a light humph and waved his hand dismissively.
"Go, go, go. Find somewhere else to hide, don't disturb me."
After Black King left, Luo Chen sat cross-legged on the stone bed, his thoughts gradually clearing in his mind.
He didn't plan to waste this year's time.
His cultivation continued day and night without pause. Even with a third-stage inferior spirit land, combined with the True Flame Pill and Black Emperor Elixir, his progress was still astonishing.
Besides cultivation, he couldn't neglect his tool forging work.
Luo Chen had calculated that even if he couldn't refine an inferior magic treasure, as long as he could use the Six Trigram Array to refine a single magic tool, he was confident he could use it to refine the Demon Sovereign Remains.
After all, the Penglai Sect's method of refining defensive magic treasures valued materials more than techniques.
Initially, his plan was only to cultivate and forge tools.
However, at this moment, he had another idea.
He waved his hand, and a small black flag fell into his palm.
"Soul Essence!"
According to rumors, Soul Essence was the essence of countless souls, refined from a vast number of souls using a secret technique. When consumed with the secret technique, it could significantly enhance a cultivator's divine soul foundation.
The reason for this effect was that these soul essences no longer carried the consciousness of their original owners, making them the purest soul products.
This was a concept borrowed from the idea of 'using form to supplement form', and now it was being applied to 'using soul to supplement soul'.
It was the most straightforward and domineering method of the demonic path! But obviously, Luo Chen couldn't do this now.
Firstly, he didn't possess the secret technique of the demonic path.
Secondly, the soul essences in this small black flag were no longer pure.
They were tainted with a large amount of Yan Zhixian's will!
One could even say that after five years of attachment, there was also a faint trace of Duanli's divine soul essence.
Luo Chen dared not consume it.
But the fact that he couldn't consume it didn't mean there weren't other uses for it.
"The Dragon Severing Technique has reached Great Perfection, gaining the power to slay divine beings, but I've never tested it before."
"I originally planned to emulate the method I used to cultivate the Soul Capture Technique, capturing the souls of some low-level demonic beasts and injecting them into my Sea of Consciousness, then using the Dragon Severing Technique to slay them. But I also feared something might go wrong, irreversibly affecting my divine soul."
The divine soul was the very core of a cultivator, and any mishap could be disastrous.
Even someone as powerful as Duanli, after his divine soul was damaged, had no choice but to seek help from Luo Chen, with whom he didn't have a deep relationship.
That was a truly desperate situation! But these soul essences were different.
Yan Zhixian was already dead, and his lingering will was almost gone. Duanli's divine soul essence was even scarcer.
If he used these soul essences to test the Dragon Severing Technique, even if it failed, the impact wouldn't be significant.
But if it succeeded...
Luo Chen's eyes flashed with a sharp light.
"That means, even if someone forcefully breaks through the defense of Wuzhi Black Go's divine soul and invades my Sea of Consciousness, I will have some power to protect myself."
Luo Chen rarely did anything useless, especially when it came to spell cultivation.
He already had his unique style.
In his assessment, this method was feasible.
Therefore, after settling down, he was now eager to try it.
He instructed Black King to keep an eye on the changes in the Primordial Cauldron, adding some third-stage wood if the flames were insufficient. Then, Luo Chen's divine sense entered the black flag.
A soul essence, as if sensing food, invaded his divine sense.
Without hesitation, Luo Chen retracted his divine sense, simultaneously drawing in a strand of soul essence, which entered his Sea of Consciousness.
The moment it entered...
The golden Sea of Consciousness suddenly stirred.
Deep within the Sea of Consciousness, a faint shadow of a soul struggled to use its divine soul to wield the Dragon Severing Technique, attempting to sever the will that didn't belong to this body.
...
Five days later.
Wu Ruofu stood respectfully outside Luo Chen's cave mansion.
Soon, he saw the Red Robed Daoist walking out.
Instinctively, he looked up, and as his eyes met Luo Chen's, his heart trembled.
How sharp those eyes were!
They were like a knife, making one feel their sharpness at a glance.
"Is there something you need?"
A gentle voice reached his ears, and Wu Ruofu instantly snapped out of his daze.
For a moment, it was as if nothing had happened, and the Red Robed Daoist's eyes remained as calm as water.
Wu Ruofu swallowed, "Senior Qingyangzi, Sang Lao has arrived. Lord Lushan Jun invites you to meet him."
Sang Lao? He should be the third Golden Core cultivator guarding Qu Yang Island.
Luo Chen nodded, summoned the Law Cloud, and flew towards the main hall of Qu Yang Island.
Soon, the Law Cloud stopped at the mountain's waist.
Before entering the hall, Luo Chen frowned at the group of unfamiliar Foundation Establishment cultivators outside, wondering, "These people, they don't seem to be loose cultivators from the Ten Thousand Immortals Assembly?"
(End of Chapter)
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