Returning two months earlier, Aotian's ten avatars, under the effects of pills, quickly reached the Golden Core stage and, in little ti, stabilized their foundations before leaving the inn and heading to the city's port.
The port, in fact, wasn't over water—after all, the city didn't even have a river running through it. It was an aerial port, where so cultivators offered transportation on their flying ships in exchange for spirit stones.
Thus, the ten sought information and soon discovered news about the best ship passing through there, piloted by a cultivator at Golden Core Perfection—trustworthy and with many successful trips under his belt.
Aotian found it strange for a cultivator of that level to subject himself to such work, but upon seeing the price of five thousand mid-grade stones per passenger, he understood.
After paying fifty thousand mid-grade stones, they waited three days for the ship's departure. The destination? A city situated atop a fourth-level spiritual vein.
On the scheduled day, they were there along with many others, proving why such a powerful cultivator would beco a "driver": the paynt was extrely high.
At the speed of a Golden Core at perfection, it took them a month to reach their destination.
From there, they paid ten thousand high-grade stones for a Nascent Soul-level transport, which was even more crowded. The destination of the ten was the sa as all the other passengers aboard.
'Shadowfallen Burial Mountain,' Aotian reflected, recalling the na inscribed on the Jade Slip he had acquired through the Dark Hand.
For information about herbs capable of improving talents, one hundred high-quality stones was a very low price. Unfortunately, the Dark Hand didn't have the exact location of such herbs—only guesses about places where there was a tiny chance they might appear. That chance was far from high, which explained the reduced price.
The first place on the list was the Shadowfallen Burial Mountain, considered the most likely to harbor such an herb. Moreover, the location only opened once every ten years and was about to reopen.
'Heh… for soone who says I don't have protagonist's luck. I have exactly ten years to arrive at any mont, but I show up right before the place opens.'
Aotian joked to himself, though in truth, he was trying to mask a slight discomfort caused by the coincidence and by an absurd thought that crossed his mind.
'Haah… I hope it's just luck, like with most protagonists I've read about, and not soone toying with , like in so other books.'
He pondered, scratching the neck of his main body, but soon pushed the thought aside and refocused.
The journey of nearly another month aboard the flying ship only ended when the massive black energy do ca into view.
Upon landing, there were people as far as the eye could see, looking like ants in their vast numbers.
Foundation Establishnt and Golden Core cultivators appeared in droves, making for an impressive sight. There must have been nearly a million people there—a simply terrifying number.
But Aotian had already expected sothing like this. He had gathered information about the place and knew that the mountain attracted the attention of the entire continent. If entry weren't limited to once per cultivation realm, the number would be even higher.
All that attention represented the imnse number of opportunities within, but in turn, the opportunities were matched by the dangers of that treasure land. For this reason, he had hesitated greatly before sending his avatars.
Unfortunately, the problems he had prepared for began before they could even enter the dangerous mountain.
After a few days of calm waiting, when the gate was only a few hours from opening and everyone was ready to rush inside, a white-clad young man, emanating fluctuations of the first level of Nascent Soul, appeared before them all, blocking the massive red entrance gate and driving everyone back.
Although he appeared young—and truly was—that was relative for cultivators. He couldn't have been much more than a hundred years old, which spoke of incredible talent.
All eyes turned to the young man before the gate, dressed in white, calmly waving a fan of the sa color, his face proud, one hand relaxed behind his back.
Doubt appeared in the crowd's eyes as to his intentions, but it was quickly replaced by anger upon hearing his next words.
"My dear little dogs, I, Fang Shaotian, have co to give you a once-in-a-lifeti opportunity… the chance to serve . Accept the slave seal, bring a Silent Cadaver Orchid, and then I'll let you go after you hand over ninety percent of the items you obtain inside."
He spoke as if he weren't standing before a million cultivators, and as if they were truly little dogs without fangs in his eyes.
A terrible killing intent erupted from the gathered crowd and fell upon the young man, but he only smiled coldly, as if it only added to his dark enjoynt, and continued to provoke hatred.
"If you don't bring back sothing worth ten tis more than your life, we will activate the slave seal and detonate your dantian. If no one brings a Silent Cadaver Orchid by the end, we'll detonate all your dantians at once," he spoke with calm and elegance, as if he weren't talking about the lives of nearly a million people he intended to enslave by force, as if they were nothing more than dust.
Then, he waited with a cold, amused smile for the crowd's response, savoring the red eyes of hatred ready to devour him, while many were already preparing to attack. It was at that mont that, surrounding the crowd, extrely heavy and terrifying auras appeared.
They were cultivators at the Soul Formation Realm.
Their auras fell upon the crowd, silencing it under a crushing oppression.
In the midst of the mass, Aotian's avatars—calm until then—imdiately grew serious at the appearance of these cultivators.
'There's sothing very wrong happening. Very wrong…'
Aotian went on high alert.
'Hai'er said that Soul Formation cultivators are the cream of the crop of the mid-continents, the ancestors of the oldest powers, usually no more than twenty per continent and rarely taking action. But if that's the case…'
'Why are there more than ten different Soul Formation auras here?!'
The brows of his main body furrowed before relaxing again as he hugged Rihai, resting his head on her shoulder, not wanting to worry her.
Under the dark and fearful gaze of the crowd, the young man arrogantly closed his fan and pointed it to the ground with a cold smile, giving his ultimatum to everyone.
"Stray dogs, why are you hesitating before the great opportunity this young master offers you? You don't think you can simply run away if you refuse… do you?" he spoke in a tone of sadistic mockery.
Aotian wondered if he wasn't ashad to show his ugly and cruel face in front of everyone, including his likely ancestor up in the sky, pressing his aura against the crowd.
But upon thinking that his ancestor was clearly participating, he understood that the saying "the apple doesn't fall far from the tree" was not wrong at all.
And why he thought there was only one ancestor of the young man in the sky was simple — it was impossible for all those powers to be from the sa force, unless the young man ca from the central continent.
While he was reflecting, a soft laugh echoed in that tense mont.
"Hehe… Fang Shaotian, you weren't calling this girl a stray dog, were you? You haven't forgotten the lesson I humbly gave you twenty years ago, have you?" A young woman descended from the sky with an amused smile on her face.
Her red dress swayed along with her equally red hair, like a fairy descending from the heavens, but the indifference and malice in her gaze toward the crowd made it clear she was no good girl.
Displeasure appeared on Fang Shaotian's face as he saw the beautiful girl approach. The crowd, in turn, couldn't help but feel a spark of hope seeing soone intervene. Perhaps the big dogs would fight and they, the little fleas, could escape.
Unfortunately, they thought too much.
"Feng Tianfei, can't you act like a normal person just once? Our ancestors told us not to fight and to carry out our mission, and the first thing you do is co provoke !" he spoke angrily, grinding his teeth.
The girl, now recognized as Feng Tianfei, simply gave a provocative smile and stood beside him, gazing at the crowd with indifference.
Aotian rolled his eyes in his main body upon hearing that.
'You have to stop calling everyone dogs before you have the right to tell soone to act like a normal person.'
He mocked inwardly, but kept his avatar serious and without any ulterior expressions. He didn't want his ten avatars to draw too much attention and cause trouble.
Already used to pretending, it wouldn't be now, at such an important life-and-death mont for his avatars, that he would act foolishly.
And as he predicted, this was so kind of alliance between the greatest powers of the Beiyan continent, as soon more young masters and young ladies from various powers appeared. The Soul Formation cultivators in the sky were likely their ancestors, united for so purpose.
Aotian didn't understand why such an alliance, which according to his information had never appeared before, would show up right now.
Among them were young masters, princesses, princes, and holy sons and daughters.
They all gathered beside the first young master to appear, Fang Shaotian.
'Shaotian (Young Lord of the Heavens), Feng Tianfei (Celestial Phoenix Princess), and several other nas, each more arrogant than the last. I think in a young masters' tea party, my na wouldn't be out of place,' Aotian thought, amused.
But the amusent was only to mask his helplessness in the face of the situation.
He could only wait to see how things would play out and look for an opportunity. Otherwise, he might have to let the avatars receive the slave mark, which was the sa as placing a bomb in his own heart and handing the trigger to soone else. Bao Wuji would still take a while to arrive.
His ancestral avatar needed at least six hours to reach the place where the avatars were, while the gate would open in four hours. Ti was not on his side.
Aotian really had a headache this ti.
'Ugh… I figured I would definitely have trouble inside and attract a lot of chaos, like xianxia protagonists. But my plan of sending Bao Wuji to fetch the avatars before they ca out and avoid problems went down the drain before it even started. Why am I having trouble of this level before even going in?!'
He thought bitterly, his lips twitching.
'Man… I'm still not cautious enough.'
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