Eternal Life by Dual Cultivation-Chapter 194 - 155: Dragon Soul Valley 2

They were all Second Rank High Grade Daoist Soldier Puppets, their combat power equivalent to that of Late Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators. In terms of pure Defense, they were even superior.

Ling Changqing’s powerful Divine Thought, far exceeding that of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, spread out in all directions. It silently swept over the nearby soil, the bushes on the shore, the seemingly calm lake surface, and reached deep underwater...

Thanks to his Primary Cultivation Technique, the "Supreme Profound Oceanic Soft Water Technique," Ling Changqing had already mastered many practical Water Element Divine Techniques and possessed a natural affinity for all aquatic environments.

Within a four-hundred-zhang radius, every rustle of wind and stir of grass appeared clearly in his mind.

Normally, this was a Divine Sense range only a Golden Core Cultivator could achieve. However, Ling Changqing’s Divine Soul was exceptionally powerful, far surpassing that of ordinary Late Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators, so he was able to wield such strength so early.

As expected, Dragon Soul Valley was teeming with life. Countless microscopic creatures inhabited both the soil and the lake water.

Small black beetles and birds flew swiftly through the air, insects and strange mushrooms lay dormant deep in the soil, the water teemed with multicolored fish, shrimp, and shellfish, and crimson-purple waterweeds released bubbles...

Just as Ling Changqing was about to probe further, a faint, searing pain in his Divine Soul, along with a dangerous aura that was slowly emerging, forced him to hastily withdraw his Divine Thought.

In the span of just a few dozen breaths, Ling Changqing had consumed about five percent of his Divine Soul Power.

’Some of the creatures here are proving to be as troublesome as I thought...’

Ling Changqing muttered to himself. The information Bai Qingyi had sent over had explained it in detail: some of the valley’s unique creatures possessed the bizarre ability to devour a Cultivator’s Divine Thought.

Some ferocious and terrifying creatures would even treat the brains and Divine Souls of outside Cultivators as food, using them as nourishment to break through their own evolutionary shackles.

Acting with an abundance of caution, Ling Changqing decisively withdrew his Divine Thought. He then took a Jade Scroll from his Storage Pouch and began to examine it closely.

The Jade Scroll recorded a wealth of information about Dragon Soul Valley, including the locations of important opportunities, the habitats of various dangerous creatures, details on the terrain, and more.

Due to the effects of certain ancient, natural Array Restrictions, the interior of Dragon Soul Valley was extremely large, roughly equivalent to the area of ten Changqing Continents.

It contained every imaginable type of terrain, from mountains and rivers to lakes and oceans, from plains and hills to primeval forests.

From its first appearance until now, Dragon Soul Valley had opened no less than a hundred times, but there were still many opportunities to be found inside.

Due to the vast number of unknown, dangerous creatures and all sorts of deadly traps and Restrictions, the entire Pocket World remained unexplored. This was despite generations of Foundation Establishment Cultivators throwing themselves into the breach, paying with their lives in the attempt.

Ling Changqing didn’t know how much information the Nine Great Families had gathered. However, the map data held by the Dragon Race’s leadership alone marked over a hundred major resource-gathering zones, with even more locations of secondary importance.

Furthermore, a few locations where the most precious opportunities appeared were spots that neither the Dragon Race nor the Nine Great Families were willing to relinquish, leading to them showing up to fight over them every single time.

Since none of the factions were willing to back down, bloody conflict was inevitable. Over the years, the number of Cultivators who had perished in these places had grown into the thousands, even tens of thousands.

’Hmm, this place should be... Jingyue Lake. It seems the lakebed produces a beautiful purple stone that can be sold for the price of a Third Grade Material?’

Ling Changqing mused, ’For an ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivator, this would be a considerable prize.’

Wealth, companions, technique, and location—the four cornerstones of Cultivation. And wealth, without a doubt, came first.

Wealth meant Cultivation Resources. The main reason low-level Loose Cultivators had such a miserable existence was an extreme lack of these resources, with no way to obtain them.

Even among the Cultivators from the Nine Great Families, most disciples still had to find ways to acquire resources to support their daily Cultivation. The only exceptions were the handful of the most talented, favored, and high-potential Immortal Seeds.

The fabulously wealthy Dragon Race was better off in this regard, but even they couldn’t provide for all their descendants. Ultimately, everyone still had to rely on themselves.

Even Ling Changqing, who was now a Prince Consort of the Dragon Race, was not so well-off that he could simply ignore a Third Grade Material.

’Maybe... I’ll try my luck here first?’

Ling Changqing considered it. He wanted to test just how tenacious the local creatures truly were.

’If they’re particularly hard to deal with, I’ll have to adjust my strategy going forward.’

He brought out the Glazed Yellow Umbrella, an item he hadn’t used in a long time. A tough, pale-gold curtain of light rippled outward, enveloping his entire body.

Then, Ling Changqing directed the two Daoist Soldier Puppets to walk, step by step, toward the lakeshore.

SWOOSH!

A sound of tearing air erupted. From beneath a rock at the water’s edge, a streak of black light shot out without warning, heading straight for one of the Daoist Soldier Puppets.

Unsurprisingly, it smashed headfirst into the heavy Giant Shield with a muffled THUD.

The burly Heavy Armor Puppet staggered, actually taking a step back—a testament to the ferocious power of the impact.

Before the creature could react, the flat of the axe slammed down, crushing it flat.

SPLAT!

As its body burst apart, emerald-green blood trickled down the shield’s surface. Its mangled head and twisted, insectoid body dropped limply to the ground.

It was some kind of "hornet" about a foot long, with a membranous covering on its back. Its jet-black body was marked with several dark-gold stripes, making it look ugly and ferocious.

This creature’s life force was exceptionally potent. A Demon Cultivator who practiced a Devouring Secret Technique could have completely stripped away its residual life force and consumed it, using it as fuel for their own growth.