blueteamnovel Chapter 148: Chapter 149: Attending the Banquet at the Dragon Palace
Chapter 148: Chapter 149: Attending the Banquet at the Dragon Palace
meanwhile,
from cloud piercing peak and moyun city came roaring and overwhelming congratulations.
"congratulations to the great saint on successfully transcending the tribulation!"
"may the golden god's longevity equal the heavens!"
"congratulations to the golden true lord!"
"..."
in the city, humans and demons lived together; mortal cultivators and monsters each had their different ways of addressing others, but all the congratulations came from the heart.
"i've seen taoist friend qing song."
zhou yi instructed the clouds at his feet to rise into the sky and, with a clasped-hand salute, said, "i've been in seclusion in recent years and have not been able to visit to apologize; i hope the demon king will be forgiving."
"there's no harm, no harm at all."
the green pine demon king, who was no different in appearance from a human except for having jade-green skin, said, "i, being of a lazy nature, have never managed thorn ridge, letting it descend into chaos and turmoil. but since you arrived and built the city and established its rules, things have become much cleaner."
"please come to my residence for a chat."
zhou yi did not probe whether what qing song said was genuine or pretense and smiled, "it just so happens that the spiritual wine i brewed has aged three hundred years. let us taste and appreciate it together."
"excellent!"
as the green pine demon king descended from the clouds, he said, "to tell you the truth and not to make you laugh, i've often disguised myself to enjoy a good drink in moyun city, and i only return after getting utterly drunk."
zhou yi's thoughts shifted slightly, understanding that the green pine demon king was making an overture of friendship, he asked smoothly.
"when i and the ox demon were not yet transformed, we were saved and raised by the human race, which is why i built this city. what do you think of that, taoist friend?"
"before today, greenwave pond had some objections and often sent me to supervise."
the green pine demon king frankly admitted, "after today, however, it will probably let things take their course, even perhaps support in secret, to avoid provoking the nascent soul ancestors."
on the nine continents, the path of humans flourished, while demonkind dwelled in the corner of the four seas, always at a disadvantage in the wars between the two races.
on normal days, while humans were busy fighting between the righteous and the demonic, they were evenly matched with the demons. but once a victor emerged from a sword fight, either the righteous or the demonic would lead the humans.
the victor would find an excuse, joining with the eight schools to start a war between the two races, facing a sky-covering wave of cultivators, which was a disaster for the demon race.
"i will report this matter to the dragon lord,"
zhou yi's eyes flickered; the sword fight was a chance for moyun city, which, after hundreds of years of discreet development, had become deeply involved with both demons and humans, making both sides hesitant to attack.
such a course of action was not because zhou yi wanted to create a power and contend for dominance over the world.
this did not match zhou yi's interests or temperament. dealing with a power's karma was too profound; in the future, it was bound to rebound on him. for example, being influenced by subordinates could cloud his judgment, missing the chance to escape when necessary, potentially leading to his power's complete demise.
many nascent soul ancestors did not die a natural death, but were trapped in power struggles, something that must be a lesson!
the fish demon emissary was the type to spill the beans once paid. he blurted out everything he knew, "ninety percent of it is rare but useless spiritual objects; the king must prepare in advance. i heard the general of the vault boasting that inside there are the seventh dragon lord's reverse scale, the twelfth dragon lord's shed horn..."
"thank you for the tip, emissary!"
hearing all this, zhou yi understood that the so-called treasure vault was more like an antique collection room, filled with rare but mostly useless spiritual objects.
among them, the dragon lord's reverse scales and shed horns were true treasures, materials suitable for crafting magic artifacts.
the dragon lord ao cang's intention to ingratiate was obvious, which is why he didn't gift armor or weapons as usual but allowed zhou yi to pick his own treasures. if zhou yi chose a superior spiritual object, he would naturally grow closer to greenwave pond. if he chose a useless trinket by bad luck, ao cang would have a reason to give a bonus gift.
after sending off the dragon palace emissary, zhou yi began to retreat to organize his mana.
"even as a golden elixir true monarch, one cannot rest easy and must always remain vigilant!"
he recited the heart sutra a hundred times, the elation of forming the golden core gradually faded, and his mind returned to tranquility.
"the priority now is to find a cultivation technique suited for post-golden core, which cannot be asked from the dragon lord as demon clans have their bloodline inheritance. the next would be a magic artifact. the spirit-calming mirror has fully restored its power, but there are still three types to refine: for escaping, self-defense, and combat."
"the mountain and river cauldron must not be neglected in refinement, either. a life-bound magic treasure is more powerful when summoned at will!"
the method of refining magic artifacts is a hundred times more valuable than ordinary magic devices, especially iconic treasures like the divine fire fan from the spirit sword sect and the light dividing sword. they possess might greater than ordinary treasures.
the spiritual objects required for their forging, the methods of refinement, and the inscription of the prohibitions are closely guarded secrets of major sects.
"i'm in no rush for techniques. continue to improve the lightning method to reach divine skills level, and for close combat, rely on the true dragon's nine transformations."
"the five elements escape technique is somewhat outdated. life-and-death techniques must be addressed soon, in search of a higher-level escape skill!"
zhou yi quickly set post-golden core goals: to search for cultivation techniques, magic artifacts, and escape techniques suitable for the golden core stage, then began to stabilize the mana within his dantian. with two months until the double ninth festival, the dragon lord clearly had this in mind.
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...
time flew by in an instant.
early in the morning.
zhou yi had completely stabilized his realm. on the day of the double ninth festival, he took out his divination sticks to prophesy.
his life span had been rapidly depleting; his hair momentarily turned bluish-grey but then returned to normal.
"the heritage of ancient great teachings is indeed profound and mysterious. investing five hundred years of lifespan into the minor heaven technique, i still managed without strain or reaching completion."
the divination stick fell to the ground.
an average draw.
plain and unremarkable, all affairs remain tranquil.
zhou yi nodded in satisfaction, increasingly aware of how precious peace is with age.
"so be it, it's good. if indeed there are any hidden treasures in the vault, it would resolve some karmic debts to take them; it's distressing to miss out if i don't!"