Chapter 119: Chapter 117: Netherworld Grand Assembly, Celestial Lake Spirit Pill

The five of them waited in the wilderness for half a day.

Monk Po Jie went out alone to meet the Zhao Family’s Grand Elder, exchanging Elder Qi’s head for their commission.

The group split the Three Thousand Spirit Stones evenly, then went their separate ways, returning one after another to Netherworld Valley.

As for Fang Cheng taking the storage pouches from the two Zheng Family members, Wang Daqian and the others didn’t say a word, treating it as a matter of course.

Likewise, Fang Cheng didn’t inquire about the storage pouch they got from slaying Elder Qi.

However, everyone split the Spiritual Medicines that Fang Cheng had picked, each taking a twenty percent share.

This venture could be considered a success. By a close count, each of the five had gained at least one thousand Spirit Stones!

But none of them had expected that Elder Qi still had lingering feelings for Young Master Zheng, much less that he had brought along a family guest elder with a Late-stage Sensing Cultivation.

It was said that Monk Po Jie tried to use this as leverage with the Zhao Family’s Grand Elder to demand more money, but the Grand Elder firmly refused.

The reason given was that there were no living witnesses, and if they were to tear off all pretense of cordiality, it would be bad for everyone.

Monk Po Jie could only swallow his anger.

The third step of any Tribulation Cultivator operation was to hide one’s tracks, avoid the heat, and wait for the situation to die down.

After returning to Brocade Cloud Stream, Fang Cheng discovered that Ye Yan and Die’Er, being idle, had built a magnificent, large bathing pool inside the Cave Mansion. They had even prepared a pool full of fragrant Spiritual Liquid, waiting for him to return and bathe with them.

He realized that after killing his enemies, the Evil Qi on his body was indeed very distinct, and his heart was extremely agitated. He wished he could just keep on killing to his heart’s content.

Fortunately, he had his beautiful wife and concubine for gentle companionship. They used their fragrant, erotic affairs to dissolve his murderous intent.

From the bath to the main hall, and from the main hall to the bedroom... Fang Cheng gradually relaxed, focusing on enjoying the wonderful aspects of his cultivation life.

When they were finished, he walked into his secret chamber, took out the two Zheng Family members’ storage pouches, and used his Li Hen Demon Light to erase the restrictions on them before inspecting the contents.

First was Young Master Zheng’s storage pouch. It contained a surprising amount of Spirit Stones—over ten thousand Lower-Grade Spirit Stones!

In addition, there were a few bottles of Spirit Pills and three First-rank, top-grade magical artifacts, all of which could be sold for a good price.

The most numerous items in the storage pouch, however, were a pile of exquisite and beautiful clothes for a Female Cultivator, including both inner and outer wear.

The inner wear made up the majority.

The clothes were made of a soft, exquisite material, with intricate and alluring patterns that sparked the imagination.

A few pairs of snow-white silk stockings held a hidden secret. They were embroidered on the inside with gold thread runes that seemed to have the effect of arousing lust.

’If a beautiful Female Cultivator wore these stockings and wrapped her legs around a man’s waist and back, how could he possibly break free?’

Fang Cheng clicked his tongue in wonder, thinking to himself, ’These Xuanmen Orthodox Sect disciples are surprisingly kinky.’

Besides these, the last things remaining in Young Master Zheng’s storage pouch were piles upon piles of "Secret Arts of the Spring Night" paintings!

Their sheer quantity and the intricacy of the positions were a real eye-opener for Fang Cheng.

He had lived two lives, after all. Even having seen much of the world in his previous life, he couldn’t help but sigh in admiration.

After a long while, he finally put the storage pouch away and began to inspect the other one.

This storage pouch was much simpler. It contained only a little over five hundred Spirit Stones and three bottles of pills, all of which were Essence Supplement Pills.

There were also a few jade slips recording the old man’s Cultivation Method and Secret Techniques. Fang Cheng glanced at them, found them all to be quite ordinary, and set them aside.

This was the difference between the scion of a great family and an Independent Practitioner Guest Elder.

Independent Practitioner Guest Elders often carried their cultivation heritage and other valuables with them.

The scions of great families, however, were different. There were very few cases of anyone obtaining a family’s hereditary Cultivation Technique by robbing and killing one of its members.

With this operation, Fang Cheng had officially entered the trade.

There were still two or three years until the ruined tower of the Myriad Phenomena Immortal Sect was set to appear.

And of the three-year period before he was eligible to participate in the Yinluo Sect’s Inner Sect Disciple trial, less than two years remained!

With his current strength, passing the Inner Sect trial was already a certainty.

In other words, in two years at most, he would be able to cultivate the Yinluo Sect’s Nine Great Sect-Guarding Ultimate Arts, use them to condense his Life Talisman, and become a True Disciple of the sect!

At that time, the cultivation resources and opportunities available to him would be completely different from what he had now.

Even an Elder with real power from a top-tier great family like Madam Ye would have to be polite to him.

Then, he would have the confidence to support Madam Ye in taking control of the Ye Family, and he could also begin to leverage the Ye Family’s resources to accelerate his progress on the path of the Life Talisman Stage.

All in all, these next two years of lying low would not be too lonely.

...

「Half a year passed in the blink of an eye.」

The days were calm and uneventful.

With his beautiful wife and concubine by his side, Fang Cheng’s life outside of cultivation was full of flavor, with all sorts of ways to relax and unwind.

He periodically entered the depths of the mountain cave, into the Myriad Phenomena Immortal Sect’s Secret Realm, to check on the ruined tower. He discovered that the restriction on the tower was slowly fading from the bottom up!

This meant that the first thing to open would be the ruined tower’s stone gate!

The ruined tower would probably only truly appear in the world once the restriction on the entire structure had vanished.

This time lag between the two events was undoubtedly precious to Fang Cheng.

On normal days, he would also go with Wang Daqian to the Cao Family every now and then to do some work and maintain his cover identity.

During this time, he gradually got to know the other Loose Cultivators in Netherworld Valley. Everyone learned that a Loose Cultivator from the Southern Wilds had come to Brocade Cloud Stream, one who seemed to have a decent Sword Technique and was well-suited for picking Spirit Fruits for the Cao Family.

That Steward Cao from the Cao Family hinted several times that he wanted to recruit Fang Cheng as an Honored Guest Elder for the Cao Family, but Fang Cheng politely refused each time.

Afterwards, this steward began to make things difficult for Fang Cheng in every way, even demanding a ten percent higher bribe in Spirit Stones than from the other Loose Cultivators.

Losing his patience, Fang Cheng took the opportunity when the steward was heading to the marketplace to enjoy himself and assassinated him on the road with a Poison Gu.

Unfortunately, just as Wang Daqian had said, the man’s storage pouch contained less than three hundred Spirit Stones and not much else of value...

Steward Cao’s silent disappearance led the Cao Family to investigate for over a month, but they were unable to solve the case and ultimately had to drop it.

The new steward was much more polite to Fang Cheng and was a relatively upright person, but Fang Cheng estimated that it wouldn’t be long before he too was "corrupted" by the many Loose Cultivators.

...

Netherworld Valley, Brocade Cloud Stream.

Purple flowers beaded with dew, a fine rain brought a chill, withered branches and dead trees stood bare, and red leaves filled the stream.

Though the last traces of autumn had not yet vanished, a piercing cold wind had arrived.

Outside Purple Cliff Cave, beside a clear stream.

Fang Cheng, Ye Yan, and Die’Er sat around a bonfire, roasting beast meat. As they ate, they talked about Netherworld Valley’s annual grand assembly.

Every year, on the third day of the ninth month, Netherworld Valley would hold a grand assembly. The valley’s hundred-some Loose Cultivators were the main participants, setting up stalls in a wide, open area of the valley.

Although Loose Cultivators didn’t have many rare treasures, their goods were a dazzling array of all kinds of items. If one looked carefully, it wasn’t impossible to find a real treasure.

This was the Cultivation Realm’s version of "going to the fair."

The three great Life Talisman Families near Netherworld Valley, as well as Loose Cultivators from the Jiujiang Alliance, Divine Pillar Mountain, and the Abyssal Marsh, were all drawn over. It was said to be extremely bustling and lively.

Ye Yan and Die’Er had lived in Netherworld Valley for half a year, and they usually only visited Ning Suyun. When they heard there was a grand assembly, their interest was immediately piqued, and they wanted to set up a stall at the market to sell some Spirit Wine.

Fang Cheng readily agreed. Over the past six months, the Wine Gu had brewed a great deal of Spirit Wine for him, and this was a good opportunity to sell some of it.

He didn’t lack Lower-Grade Spirit Stones at the moment.

But after experiencing the wonders of Upper-Grade Spirit Stones, there was no going back.

The tens of thousands of Lower-Grade Spirit Stones he had on hand couldn’t be exchanged for more than a few Upper-Grade Spirit Stones.

So when it came to Spirit Stones, the more, the better.

...

「In the blink of an eye, the third day of the ninth month arrived.」

On Netherworld Valley’s Changfeng Beach, Loose Cultivators had arrived early to set up their stalls, displaying all sorts of items: jade slips, pills, Spirit Grass, Magical Artifacts, Spiritual Objects, Talismans, damaged treasures, Stone Steles, puppets, Magical Robes, Array Discs, insects and beasts, strange items...

Cultivators from the Ten Thousand Poison Gang, dressed in uniform black clothing with Tokens hanging from their waists, patrolled back and forth.

Gradually, streaks of Escape Light of various colors flew in and landed outside the grand assembly. People entered the market in groups of three or five, looking around and occasionally stopping at stalls to haggle.

A clamor slowly began to build within the valley.

Fang Cheng, Ye Yan, and Die’Er entered the grand assembly, chose an empty spot, set up two large tables, and took out several dozen jars of Spirit Wine, stacking them neatly.

The two women watched the stall while Fang Cheng leisurely strolled into the market, wandering around to see what the Loose Cultivators were selling.

Overall, almost all the items for sale at the Netherworld Grand Assembly were Spiritual Objects aimed at Sensing Realm cultivators. Treasures like Tier Two Talismans or magical artifacts were few and far between.

As he walked, Fang Cheng ran into an acquaintance.

The Cave Master of Heart Inquiry Cave, He Yujing.

The scholar was also running a stall, and he was only selling three things: several bottles of pills, a box of Talismans, and a bowl of game pieces.

Fang Cheng was curious. He had known He Yujing for over half a year and only knew that his Cultivation was the highest in Wang Daqian’s circle of Tribulation Cultivators. He was normally scholarly and low-key, yet he engaged in the work of a Tribulation Cultivator.

"Fellow Daoist He, you’re here too," Fang Cheng said with a smile.

He Yujing nodded and asked, "Has Younger Brother Chen found anything that catches his eye?"

Fang Cheng shook his head. "Not yet."

As they chatted idly, Fang Cheng learned that He Yujing excelled at both Alchemy and talisman crafting!

He could refine First-rank, top-grade Spirit Pills and First-rank, top-grade talismans.

Not only that, but his bowl of black and white game pieces was actually a rare type of single-use offensive magical artifact. The power of each piece was comparable to a full-power strike from a Mid-stage Sensing Cultivator.

He Yujing said, "I have dabbled in too many things in my life, but in terms of craftsmanship, Alchemy is my best, followed by talisman refining, and then Artifact Refining."

Fang Cheng’s Divine Sense was now far superior to his peers. Observing with focused attention, he discovered that He Yujing was extremely close to successfully condensing his Life Talisman.

He said in a low voice, "When will you take that step, Fellow Daoist?"

A glint flashed in He Yujing’s eyes. "Fellow Daoist, you are truly not simple to be able to see my true Cultivation... To be honest with you, if I can obtain two more Spiritual Medicines, I can refine the Celestial Pool Pill. With that pill, I can complete the final step of condensing my Life Talisman."

A sense of admiration for He Yujing arose in Fang Cheng’s heart.

To have come this far as a Loose Cultivator, this He Yujing was truly extraordinary!

"Then I congratulate you in advance, Fellow Daoist He, on your great success on the Dao," he said sincerely.

However, he had also heard of the Celestial Pool Pill. It was extremely complex and difficult to refine, and the required Spiritual Medicines were exceptionally rare.

It was already no easy feat for He Yujing to have gathered most of them; the remaining ones would likely be even harder to find.

Just then, someone came to He Yujing’s stall to ask about the price of his Talismans, so Fang Cheng took his leave.

He wandered for a while longer but couldn’t find any Dao Pattern Spirit Jade or Beast Bones containing bone patterns in the market, so he decided to head back to his own stall.

On the way, he happened to run into Sun Guardian of the Ten Thousand Poison Gang.

This Sun Guardian, who was usually arrogant, domineering, and stern, was now obsequiously accompanying a tall, sturdy man, his face wreathed in smiles, like a dog raised by that man.