Chapter 222 - 197: Plotting for the True Sea Water Manual of Ten Thousand Spirits
Chapter 222: Chapter 197: Plotting for the True Sea Water Manual of Ten Thousand Spirits
Lu Zhao led Lin Qingshan, Wang Hui, and Mu Wan’Er into Bixia Marketplace.
He navigated the familiar streets to find an inn with a decent reputation and directly rented two independent courtyards, each with a Tier One Middle-Grade Spirit Vein. He then handed an Array Token to Lin Qingshan and another to Wang Hui.
"Settle in here for now. Focus on your Cultivation and familiarize yourselves with the Marketplace," Lu Zhao said, his tone flat as his gaze swept over the two. "The Marketplace is full of all sorts of people. Be careful what you say and do. Don’t casually reveal your wealth, and don’t get into pointless conflicts."
Lin Qingshan and Wang Hui quickly bowed. "Yes."
Lu Zhao gave a slight nod, then looked at Lin Qingshan and Wang Hui. "There is one more thing I have yet to mention. My identity... I am an Inner Sect Steward of the Bixia Sect’s General Affairs Hall."
"An Inner Sect Steward!"
"The Bixia Sect!"
Lin Qingshan and Wang Hui cried out in shock almost simultaneously, their pupils contracting as utter astonishment and disbelief filled their faces.
Although they knew Lu Zhao’s Cultivation was profound and unfathomable, they had never imagined he would be an Inner Sect Steward of a behemoth like the Bixia Sect! This meant he wasn’t just a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, but a Major Sect Cultivator! The shock of this status was far more jarring to their Heart Spirits than his Foundation Establishment Cultivation alone.
Seeing the two of them standing frozen on the spot, as if struck by an Immobilization Technique, Lu Zhao was unsurprised by their reaction and offered no further explanation.
He said no more. With a flicker, his body transformed into a streak of pale blue light, instantly piercing the invisible Restriction light curtain above the Marketplace and disappearing into the southeastern sky.
Half an hour later, Lu Zhao returned to the outside of his Bixia Sect cave abode. However, he didn’t reveal himself directly. Instead, he silently circled to a hidden corner behind the cave abode, and only after confirming no one was watching did he merge like a phantom into the Protective Array surrounding it—an Array that was practically non-existent to him, its master.
The heavy stone door slid open. Lu Zhao strode inside and sealed the door behind him. He didn’t immediately attend to other matters. Instead, he first walked to the meditation cushion in the center of the Quiet Chamber and sat cross-legged. He began to circulate his Cultivation Technique, slowly releasing his aura to simulate the slightly unstable Spiritual Power fluctuations of someone who had just ended a long period of seclusion.
A moment later, he retracted his aura, and the calm composure of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator returned.
"Zhao Xiaoshu." Lu Zhao’s voice passed through an Array within the cave abode, clearly reaching the adjacent stone room.
Soon, Zhao Xiaoshu appeared at the entrance of the Quiet Chamber and bowed respectfully. "Elder, you’ve come out of seclusion!"
"Mm," Lu Zhao grunted, his gaze falling on Zhao Xiaoshu. "Has anyone come to visit during the year I was in seclusion?"
Zhao Xiaoshu quickly retrieved five Jade Scrolls of various shapes, all shimmering with Spirit Light, from his Storage Bag and presented them with both hands. "Reporting to Elder, several groups of people did indeed come to visit."
"They were mainly Stewards or servants from the residences of a few Foundation Establishment Elders, delivering these Jade Scrolls. This junior took the liberty of discreetly inquiring about their contents. It seems none of them were urgent matters—mostly just invitations for Elder to attend banquets or discuss the Dao over tea."
Lu Zhao took the Jade Scrolls and swept his Divine Sense over them one by one. As Zhao Xiaoshu had said, the contents were all largely the same. There were invitations from colleagues in the General Affairs Hall, a Steward from the Precepts Hall, and even a Foundation Establishment Pill Master from the Pill Hall.
The wording was sometimes enthusiastic, sometimes reserved, but the core message was always a desire to "get acquainted" or "exchange insights" with him, a newly advanced Foundation Establishment Cultivator who also held a position in the General Affairs Hall.
’Hmph.’ Lu Zhao understood perfectly. ’This is most likely because I revealed my wealth at the exchange meet last time, especially after trading for those few priceless items. That’s what drew their attention. On the surface, these are invitations to build connections, but in reality, they’re full of probing and attempts to recruit me.’
’But right now, my mind is entirely focused on improving my Cultivation. I don’t have the spare time to manage these connections. In the Bixia Sect, and indeed the entire Cultivation Realm, strength is fundamental. As long as my Cultivation is profound enough and my Divine Abilities are powerful enough, these connections and resources will naturally come to me. Conversely, if my strength is lacking, no amount of socializing will amount to anything more than a fleeting illusion.’
"I see. Is there anything else?" Lu Zhao asked flatly, casually placing the Jade Scrolls on a nearby stone table.
Zhao Xiaoshu thought for a moment before replying, "There is one other thing. About half a year ago, that fellow Daoist Wenn Quan came by. When he learned Elder was still in seclusion, he seemed quite disappointed. He left a message—’When Elder comes out of seclusion, please be so kind as to inform me’—and then departed."
"Wenn Quan?" Lu Zhao was slightly taken aback. He then recalled the underling he had taken in not long ago. After reaching Foundation Establishment, he had been swamped with various matters and had been away for a long time. He’d actually forgotten about him.
Thinking about his arrangements for Lin Qingshan and Wang Hui, as well as a plan of his own, an idea sparked in Lu Zhao’s mind.
"Go to Wenn Quan’s residence. If he’s there, tell him to come to my cave abode in three days," Lu Zhao instructed.
"Yes, Elder! This junior will see to it at once!" Zhao Xiaoshu accepted the order, bowed, and exited the Quiet Chamber.
After Zhao Xiaoshu left, Lu Zhao waved his hand to set up a Sound Insulation Restriction. Only then did he carefully retrieve the ancient "Thousand Waters Token" from Le Zhongshan’s Storage Bag.
The Token was warm and smooth to the touch, neither gold nor jade, its material strange. On its face were the two ancient characters for "Thousand Waters," their calligraphy fluid and powerful, imbued with a profound water-like rhythm.
Lu Zhao held it in his palm. His powerful Foundation Establishment Stage Divine Sense, like the most precise Carving Knife, probed into the Token’s interior, strand by strand, examining it carefully.
An hour passed. Lu Zhao slowly opened his eyes, his brow slightly furrowed. The result was no different from the information he had obtained from Le Mingcheng’s memories.
The Token’s internal structure was a seamless whole. His Divine Sense vanished into it like a clay ox into the sea, eliciting no reaction. He couldn’t feel any Restriction fluctuations or inherited information.
It lay quietly in his palm, no different from a common stone aside from its unusual material.
’Countless generations of the Le Family failed to uncover its secrets. It really isn’t that simple,’ Lu Zhao muttered to himself, his fingertips unconsciously stroking the Token’s surface.
But he wasn’t discouraged. The Le Family’s ancestor’s speculation resurfaced in his mind: perhaps this Token truly required the "True Sea Water Manual of Ten Thousand Spirits" to be activated.
"’True Sea Water Manual of Ten thousand Spirits’..." Lu Zhao murmured the name, a sharp glint in his eyes. Although it was only a fragment, this Cultivation Technique was still one of the most powerful ones the Bixia Sect possessed. Its grade was extremely high, and it could not be passed on lightly to anyone but a True Disciple or someone who had performed a Great Merit. He was currently just an Inner Sect Steward; obtaining access to such a core inheritance would be incredibly difficult.
But Lu Zhao’s ambition went far beyond that. As he stared at the Token, a deeper thought surged in his heart. ’The core inheritance of the Thousand Waters Sect... could it contain the key to Core Formation?’
The moment the thought arose, Lu Zhao’s heart couldn’t help but beat faster, his breathing quickening slightly.
The Thousand Waters Sect had once been a major sect that dominated an entire country. Its core inheritance would surely point directly to the Golden Core Dao! It might even hide Secret Techniques or information on key resources to assist with Core Formation.
After all, an inheritance like this would have been left behind for the Sect’s reconstruction. And without a Golden Core Master presiding, rebuilding a sect was nothing but a fool’s dream.
At this thought, despite Lu Zhao’s tenacious will, a fervent glint couldn’t help but flash in his eyes. A Golden Core Master had a Lifespan of eight hundred years and possessed vast Divine Abilities, enough to establish a sect and look down upon an entire region! If this Token truly pointed the way...
A moment later, Lu Zhao forcibly suppressed the turmoil in his heart. He took a deep breath and carefully returned the Thousand Waters Token to the deepest corner of his Storage Bag. This matter could not be rushed; he could only plan slowly and wait for the right opportunity.
Next, Lu Zhao began to sort through the spoils from his trip to the Le Family’s estate—a mountain of resources.
He first took out the Cultivation Technique Jade Scrolls and the books recording the Cultivation Hundred Arts that he had obtained from the Le Family and placed them in a separate, specialized Storage Bag.
This was the accumulation of several hundred years for the Le Family. Although the highest-grade items were only Tier Two High-Grade, the variety was immense, covering everything from Alchemy, Artifact Refining, and Talisman Making to Arrays and Spirit Plants. Among them were a number of unique techniques and obscure inheritances.
Lu Zhao didn’t lack Spirit Stones at the moment, so he planned to keep this wealth of knowledge as part of his foundation, something he could study and reference in the future. He had no intention of selling it for now.
Then, he turned his attention to the more practical resources. Lu Zhao sorted and put away the Tier Two Spiritual Materials and Tier Two Pills he got from the Le Family. These were the greatest gains from his trip and would be of immense use to his Foundation Establishment Stage cultivation.
After stowing the Spiritual Materials, Lu Zhao took the one hundred fifty Middle-Grade Spirit Stones and nearly thirty thousand Lower Grade Spirit Stones from the Le Family and placed them directly into his personal Storage Bag. These would be used for his cultivation and for trade.
What remained was a huge quantity of "miscellaneous items": a large amount of Tier One Spiritual Materials, several thousand Tier One Talismans, several hundred bottles of Pills suitable for the Qi Cultivation Stage, and several hundred assorted Spiritual Artifacts, ranging from Tier One Lower-Grade to Tier One High-Grade.
Lu Zhao’s gaze swept over this pile of "miscellaneous goods" worth roughly eighty thousand Spirit Stones, his expression calm.
Lu Zhao already had a plan for how to deal with this batch of goods. He didn’t intend to sell them all at once. That would make him too big of a target and attract unwanted attention, especially since Xuan Yang Immortal City might still be investigating the annihilation of the Le Family.
He had good reason to believe Xuan Yang Immortal City wouldn’t go to great lengths for a single Le Family. After all, the Le Family’s own hands weren’t clean, and Xuan Yang Immortal City was unlikely to dig too deep, lest they unearth more trouble than it was worth.
Of course, more importantly, Xuan Yang Immortal City’s strength was far inferior to the Bixia Sect’s. That Golden Core Ancestor from Xuan Yang Immortal City was nothing in the face of the Bixia Sect.
Xuan Yang Immortal City’s reach didn’t extend into Chen Country, and it was even more impossible that they could get the Bixia Sect to cooperate with their investigation. This was the confidence that came from having a powerful backer.
’Three years... or maybe longer,’ Lu Zhao decided on his plan. ’I’ll sell them off slowly, in batches, through different channels. I’ll start with the most inconspicuous, high-volume items: Tier One Talismans and common Spiritual Materials.’ He would pick out some of the better-quality Tier One Pills, Talismans, and a few fine Spiritual Artifacts that might be useful to him, and sell all the rest.
Once everything was properly arranged, tranquility returned to the cave abode. Lu Zhao sat on the meditation cushion, his Heart Spirit sinking into his Sea of Consciousness. He felt the nineteen drops of deep blue Liquid Magical Power slowly rotating, exuding a dense aura, as he began to circulate his Cultivation Technique and quietly await the meeting in three days.