blueteamnovel Chapter 87: 87: Return to the Marketplace
Chapter 87: 87: Return to the Marketplace
the decline of spiritual energy was even faster than zhou yi had anticipated.
"for thousands of years, the alchemy sect has ruled over cloud continent, and with each generation of array masters' exploration, the confinement of spiritual energy has reached its peak."
for nearly thirty years, zhou yi had been diligently studying the spirit gathering array, hoping to strengthen the gathering and reduce the dissipation.
those seeking everlasting immortality must always consider the long-term, in case the ancestral line is damaged, or even collapses someday, the spirit veins that depend on it will also dry up, and every bit of spiritual energy will become precious when the era of decline arrives.
"the alchemy sect is known for its alchemy technique, which perfectly complements the jade dew art, and there is also the inheritance of this formation...
zhou yi only wanted to be a loose cultivator. not to mention the numerous rules of the sect, entry required testing one's qualifications, recording one's mana into the roster, and official disciples had to leave behind a soul jade slip.
"let's take one step at a time; it would be nice to obtain the inheritance of a loose cultivator."
over thousands of years, a loose cultivator could also reach a master level in all four arts of cultivation, but the incident at little dan mountain gave zhou yi a slight sense of urgency.
i wonder how many of my cheerful colleagues from yesterday are still alive.
liu heng, the nephew of brother liu, whom he had great hopes for, was humble and mild-mannered, eager to learn; zhou yi saw great promise in his path of cultivation.
zhou yi sighed. now that brother liu's life had come to an end, he must have found it hard to close his eyes in death.
"life is unpredictable, and death is impermanent, hence the dao protection art must not be neglected."
"i do not commit evil deeds, but i must have the strength to resist those who do!"
half a month later.
the environment inside xuzhou returned to its original concentration.
ordinary people did not feel much, only that the air quality had worsened, and they heard of fewer exterminations in the last few days.
zhou yi placed the spirit ginseng into his storage bag, mounted his ox, and headed straight for cloud mountain.
...
deep within cloud mountain.
the dense white mist rose again around little dan mountain, and occasionally there were streaks of light coming and going.
with the dissipation of spiritual energy in xuzhou, loose cultivators had no choice but to obediently go to little dan mountain or stay in the mortal world, helplessly watching their cultivation levels drop.
moreover, the alchemy sect had established rules, forbidding loose cultivators from disrupting the mortal world.
some loose cultivators protested, why should they farm on the mountain and be exploited by you? the da qian sacred emperor and the sage empress were also cultivators, enjoying all the glory and wealth while i refuse to submit!
all explanation rights belong to the alchemy sect!
li hong and his wife were stationed in da qian, which was a sacrifice of their path to cultivation to protect ordinary people, belonging to a fearless and great sacrifice.
other loose cultivators mingling in the mortal world were defying the rules of the alchemy sect, belonging to heretics that everyone wanted to eliminate.
customers came and went, inquiring about the prices of cultivation techniques and haggling with the owner, jing xu, keeping the business quite lively.
"jing xu, my fellow daoist who has returned from his travels, i was just about to return the notes of a true monarch... no, that's not right!"
zhou yi knitted his brows. when he had borrowed books from jing xu years ago, the latter had mentioned he was already over a hundred years old.
fifty years had passed since then. if he hadn't achieved the foundation establishment, he should have perished long ago, yet the jing xu nearby still had jet-black hair without a trace of aging.
"qing jing, jing xu, notes of a true monarch, true monarch stationed!"
zhou yi vaguely guessed that jing xu might be the incognito pure true monarch.
"even with a one in a hundred chance, i can't take the risk. ordinary qi refinement cultivators befriending a true monarch is an enormous opportunity, but for me, it could be a deadly calamity!"
"in this world, there's always a balance between gains and losses. having the advantage of everlasting immortality also means certain losses are inevitable, such as love or friendship..."
upon these thoughts, zhou yi turned away from the trading area, changing his appearance once again.
...
little dan pavilion.
the shopkeeper was introducing spirit pills to a cultivator when a portly man entered. he apologized to the customer and quickly went to greet the newcomer.
"elder, may i help you with something?"
"do you buy spiritual medicine here?"
zhou yi revealed his late-stage qi refinement cultivation, taking out two strands of spirit ginseng roughly seventy to eighty years old.
spirit ginseng, being a versatile spiritual medicine, prompted the shopkeeper to willingly raise the price a bit, and the transaction was completed quickly.
there were two types of cultivators in the marketplace most difficult to provoke: those whose lifespans were nearing their end came first, followed by late-stage qi refinement cultivators.
zhou yi purchased several kinds of wood attribute spiritual medicine seeds. compared to spirit ginseng, they weren't nearly as cost-effective, being either too expensive or having limited medicinal age, but they could be used for seasoning.
he then visited several other shops, selling spirit ginseng and buying spells.
not planning to return to little dan mountain anytime soon, zhou yi was a bit bolder; by the time he returned, the grandchildren of these people would have died.
zhou yi inquired in several shops if they sold cultivation skills, but the shopkeepers all shook their heads and refused.
late-stage qi refinement cultivation was enough to earn their respect but not enough to truly frighten them.
"the business philosophy of these shops has not changed since before the catastrophe; they all tightly control the outflow of the four arts of cultivation."
"the covert operators haven't changed either; they're still those cultivation clans. having survived for hundreds of years, they've long understood the principle of spreading risk, perhaps having legacies in the mundane world or branches in other marketplaces."
"the inheritances scattered from the calamity on little dan mountain are hoarded by these cultivation families, never for sale, further solidifying their family foundations."
"as for single, independent loose cultivators, aside from those with extraordinary talents, how can they compete with families that have accumulated over many generations!"