The drizzle continued to fall, a gentle but persistent rain. The two heavily injured cultivators squatted on the ground, staring at Xu Ning in disbelief, their faces pale.
"Both are at the twelfth level of Qi Refining, how is this possible!" one of the cultivators exclaid incredulously, his voice trembling. "We used everything we had!"
Using all their trump cards, they had only managed to block one attack. This was a battle on completely different levels. They were outmatched.
Xu Ning's voice was cold. "I told you to leave long ago, but you wouldn't listen. Now it's too late."
Without another word, Xu Ning raised his long axe and cleaved the two into pieces with a single, powerful swing. It was over quickly.
Then, Xu Ning made a hand seal, and a surge of powerful blood energy erupted from his body, enveloping the two n. Soul Refining Technique, activated!
Simultaneously, the Myriad Soul Banner appeared behind Xu Ning, floating silently in the air, its energy pulsing.
As the Soul Refining Technique continued to unfold, two souls were extracted from the fragnts of their bodies. They struggled briefly before being absorbed into the Myriad Soul Banner.
Putting away the Myriad Soul Banner, Xu Ning took out a lantern and released its flas, completely incinerating the corpses until nothing remained.
After observing his surroundings and finding no further movent, Xu Ning quickly rushed towards the Yingying Monster, who had been watching.
The Yingying Monster was in no better shape than Tie Dan had been. Its body was covered in cracks from the tribulation, and many of its feathers were singed and blackened.
It was unusually large, squatting there like a small mountain, its eyes filled with pain and exhaustion.
Xu Ning arrived and quickly fed it the upgraded spirit beast at, helping it recover.
Once the monster had regained its strength, Xu Ning waved his hand. The array flags for the concealnt formation flew into his hand, which he then tossed into the hut for storage.
Xu Ning then leaped onto the monster's back. "Yingying Monster, this place is dangerous. Let's go. We need to leave imdiately."
The monster understood and imdiately spread its massive wings, disappearing into the night sky with a powerful flap.
It flew until dawn before Xu Ning let the monster land in a safe area.
Releasing Tie Dan, Xu Ning mounted the ox and headed towards the Qingdong Mountains, his destination.
The place where he had undergone tribulation was not a place he could linger in. Such a prolonged tribulation would surely attract the attention of other cultivators, which would cause a lot of trouble. He had to leave quickly.
Therefore, Xu Ning didn't leave any inheritance behind and fled rapidly.
After two months of travel, Xu Ning finally entered the Qingdong Mountains and breathed a sigh of relief. He was safe.
The spiritual energy in his thatched hut was exhausted, and his cultivation was about to collapse from the lack of energy. Xu Ning was reluctant to use spirit stones to recover.
Fortunately, he arrived at the Qingdong Mountains before his cultivation collapsed. His timing was perfect.
After thinking for a while, Xu Ning decided to find a sect to hide in. Being a rogue cultivator wasn't easy. There were too many troubles and no protection.
So what was there to think about? He followed the old path, pretended to be a child, and participated in a sect's disciple recruitnt assessnt.
Subsequently, Xu Ning pretended to be a child and joined a sect called the Thousand Thunder Sect. Yes, he was a nial disciple again, starting from the bottom.
Twenty years passed in the sect.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
Xu Ning's cultivation successfully broke through to the thirteenth level of Qi Refining and the twelfth level of Blood Refining. He was making steady progress.
Further advancent in cultivation was too slow, so Xu Ning left again and went to the mortal world to wait. He needed a change of pace.
Compared to before, the spiritual energy accumulated in the thatched hut over twenty years was enormous. It would allow Xu Ning to stay in the mortal world for an extended period without worry.
Returning to the mortal world, he found a secluded mountain retreat far from any villages. He settled the hut and set up various formations for protection.
This ti, Xu Ning prepared many top-grade Qi Gathering Pills, intending to upgrade them all to the Legendary Spirit level for cultivation. He was ready for a major push.
Currently, top-grade Qi Gathering Pills were still too slow for Xu Ning's massive foundation. He needed sothing stronger.
After using several thousand Qi Gathering Pills in one go to upgrade them, Xu Ning moved again. He upgraded his armor, long axe, attack formations, and spirit-trapping formation to the Divine Spirit level and completed their tribulations.
Without any delay, the mont he finished his tribulation, Xu Ning imdiately fled to another location to avoid being tracked.
This ti, Xu Ning found a true secluded paradise, a valley hidden from the world. He settled the hut, set up formations, and temporarily resided there, beginning to cultivate using Legendary Spirit-level Qi Gathering Pills.
It had to be said that the Legendary Spirit-level Qi Gathering Pills were far more effective than the top-grade ones, containing more than three tis the spiritual energy. The difference was imnse.
Originally, it would have taken Xu Ning thirty years to cultivate to the fourteenth level of Qi Refining, but now it only took ten. He was accelerating.
It must be said, the scenery of Xu Ning's current residence was truly beautiful. Behind him were three sheer cliffs, a natural barrier. In front flowed a clear, babbling river. On the opposite bank of the river was another sheer cliff, completing the seclusion.
The open area below was now filled with flowers of various colors, planted by Xu Ning himself.
Xu Ning occasionally walked barefoot among the flowers, pondering many questions as he enjoyed the peace.
First was the issue of spirit stones. After learning about the spirit spring, Xu Ning was extrely eager to obtain enough spirit stones to create one.
When he was in the Azure Winter Mountains, he originally planned to upgrade the formations of the various Heavenly Mystery Pavilions and then start selling large quantities of legendary spirit-grade herbs to raise funds.
However, after much thought, Xu Ning still felt it wouldn't work. It was too risky.
Firstly, how should the price of legendary spirit-grade herbs be set? If it was too high, would anyone be willing to buy it? After all, no matter how high the grade, it was still just a spirit-grade herb. The market might not support it.
Originally, Xu Ning had considered using a gimmick—a legendary alchemist—to increase the price and create demand.
But then he thought again and realized that wouldn't work. If he did that, all alchemists would go crazy. At that point, any alchemist, from Nascent Soul cultivators to Deity Transformation cultivators, would be tempted to investigate.
With the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion in its current state, how could it possibly survive such scrutiny? It would be completely ransacked and destroyed.
After much deliberation, Xu Ning temporarily abandoned the idea. He would find another way.
As for spirit stones and spirit springs, those could only be acquired slowly over ti. Patience was key.
In the past twenty years, the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion had accumulated another ten million spirit stones through its various operations, and it was still expanding.
Interestingly, on Gu Mu's side in the Ancient Chen Mountains, the Demon Realm was rich in precious refining materials, which the demons didn't need. They were abundant.
What they lacked were large quantities of spiritual herbs that contained or increased qi and blood. Those were in high demand.
Therefore, Gu Mu's branch of the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion beca a shop that traded these items, generating substantial profits for the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion. It was a thriving business.
Everything was on track, and Xu Ning began to focus on his cultivation, settling into a routine.
That night, a torrential downpour began, accompanied by deafening thunder that shook the valley.
Xu Ning cultivated all night, and when he opened the door in the morning, he saw a child lying there, barely alive and unconscious.
Various thoughts flashed through Xu Ning's mind: had he survived falling off a cliff and encountered him—a stroke of luck! Or was it a setup?
Whether it was true or not, he would have to observe later. He wouldn't jump to conclusions.
He carried the child into the hut, and after treating his injuries, the child slowly regained consciousness.
"You're awake?" Xu Ning asked, putting away his silver needles.
"Did you save ?" the child asked weakly, his eyes unfocused.
Xu Ning shook his head. "No, I didn't."
The child was stunned. "Then who saved ?"
Xu Ning said flatly, "A ghost."
The child looked completely bewildered and didn't know what to say for a mont, his mouth hanging open.
Xu Ning was too lazy to bother with him and went to cook. He didn't want to talk to this idiot. He clearly saw him put away his silver needles, yet he still asked such a stupid question!
"Thank you for saving my life, senior!" the child said quickly, finally realizing what had happened, his face reddening.
Xu Ning waved without turning his head. "Go back quickly after you've recovered. Don't stay here."
After finishing his al, the child was already bouncing around with energy. He walked out of the thatched hut to look around.
Xu Ning was lying on the grass among the flowers, a blade of grass dangling from his mouth as he gazed at the sky. Tie Dan was bouncing around among the flowers, playing. The Yingying Monster was preening its feathers on the roof of the thatched hut.
Looking at this peaceful scene, the child felt a longing in his heart for this simple life.
But he couldn't enjoy this life. He still had many things to do.
Reviews
All reviews (0)