Chapter 165: The Demonic Shadow Reappears
Chapter 165: Chapter 165: The Demonic Shadow Reappears
A Tier Three Puppet possessed the combat strength to rival a Core Formation Cultivator.
Li Ping gazed at the small doll in his hand, his mind racing with possibilities.
’If I could create dozens of Tier Three Puppets in the future, couldn’t I do whatever I pleased in the Western Wilderness?’
’During a Magical Combat, if dozens of Tier Three Puppets swarmed an opponent, I’m afraid even Alliance Leader Xiao, the so-called number one cultivator in the Western Wilderness, would have to beat a temporary retreat.’
At this thought, Li Ping’s gaze fell once more upon the line of small characters on the Tier Three Puppet.
Among the "nutrients" required for the inheritance, Spirit Stones were easy to handle.
Of the remaining two nutrients, Ironwood was a type of Spirit Wood that wasn’t exceptionally precious. However, a thousand-year-old piece of Ironwood could already be used to forge a Magical Treasure. When one appeared, it would typically fall into the hands of a Core Formation Cultivator; Foundation Establishment Cultivators rarely had the chance to even come across it.
He needed a ten-foot-long section, which would not be easy to acquire.
But compared to a Tier Three essence soul, the thousand-year-old Ironwood seemed like nothing.
To obtain a Tier Three essence soul, he would have to either kill a Tier Three Demon Beast or a Core Formation Cultivator and perform Soul Extraction and Essence Refining on them!
And the difficulty of either task was far beyond what a mere Foundation Establishment Cultivator like Li Ping could accomplish.
Before reaching Core Formation, he wouldn’t even consider attempting something as difficult as challenging someone of a higher cultivation stage.
Besides, according to Yu Menghan,
the materials used to craft a Tier Three Puppet were all exceptionally precious; most could be used to forge Magical Treasures.
Even if he really did manage to gather the required thousand-year-old Ironwood and Tier Three essence soul, and even if, by relying on his peerless talent, he obtained the Tier Three Puppetry Technique inheritance researched by generations of Celestial Skill Sect cultivators,
and could guarantee a one-hundred percent success rate in crafting it...
...with his current financial resources, it would still be utterly impossible to actually build a Tier Three Puppet.
Therefore, the idea of building a Tier Three Puppet army was, to say the least, a long and arduous road.
’No need to rush. The matter of the puppets can wait. The most important thing right now is my Cultivation.’ Li Ping shook his head and returned to his training room to resume his arduous cultivation.
After breaking through to the Foundation Establishment realm and decades of arduous cultivation, he could clearly sense that the day he would break through to the Mid-stage Foundation Establishment was not far off.
...
After the New Year, Ji Shu Xuan came to Immortal Peach Mountain to visit Li Ping, bringing a message from Yan Hengchuan.
In the message, Yan Hengchuan mentioned that he planned to return to the Immortal City soon and would come to pay his respects to his Grand-master.
Li Ping swept his Divine Sense over Ji Shu Xuan and found that his Cultivation had already reached the Qi Refining Eighth Level.
Clearly, in the years since Daoist Ji had passed away, he had not slacked off. He had been very diligent in his practice, which was how he’d achieved his current level of Cultivation.
As for Yan Hengchuan’s situation, he was also quite clear on it.
Although Yan Hengchuan only had Five Spiritual Roots, making his aptitude inferior to Ji Shu Xuan’s, he practiced a fast-progressing Demon Dao Cultivation Technique.
As a result, Yan Hengchuan’s current Cultivation was quite a bit higher than Ji Shu Xuan’s; he had already reached the peak of the Qi Refining Eighth Level.
Perhaps by the time he came to the city to pay his respects, the one standing before Li Ping would be a Qi Refining Ninth Level cultivator.
Around the middle of the year, after Ji Shu Xuan had delivered his message, Yan Hengchuan did indeed arrive in the Immortal City to visit Li Ping.
He was originally a cultivator from the Immortal City and had an identity token. After cultivating for several decades, he could freely control the demonic aura of his Blood Spirit Hundred Transformations Scripture, making it easy for him to conceal his presence and enter and exit the Immortal City.
Li Ping quickly swept his Divine Sense over him and discovered that his Cultivation had indeed reached the Qi Refining Ninth Level.
An ordinary cultivator at his level would be able to reach the peak of the Qi Refining Ninth Level in about three to four years, then attempt to break through to Foundation Establishment with the help of a Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object.
However, Yan Hengchuan cultivated the ’Foundation-Stealing Method’. His Magical Power aura was already bound to Yan Liming’s, so under these circumstances, he couldn’t use traditional methods to achieve Foundation Establishment.
He had only one path to Foundation Establishment: wait for Yan Liming to reach Foundation Establishment, then strike, capture him, and seize his Dao Foundation!
But over a decade ago, Yan Liming’s aura had suddenly vanished from his senses, and at the time, he had been very worried that something had happened to him.
Because of this, he had been dispirited for a time, losing even the motivation to cultivate.
However, under Li Ping’s reassurance, he had continued to cultivate steadily, finally reaching his current level.
The moment he saw Li Ping, Yan Hengchuan exclaimed excitedly, "Grand-master! I can sense that fiend Yan Liming’s aura again."
"Oh?" Li Ping was a little surprised, but he quickly nodded. "Let’s talk inside."
The two went into the training room, and Yan Hengchuan began to explain in detail.
Li Ping nodded as he listened.
From Yan Hengchuan’s account, he learned that about half a year ago, while Yan Hengchuan was cultivating, he had suddenly sensed Yan Liming’s aura.
Just as Yan Liming’s aura had abruptly vanished nearly a decade ago, this time it had appeared just as abruptly.
Moreover, based on the senses from the ’Foundation-Stealing Method’, Yan Hengchuan judged that Yan Liming had successfully reached Foundation Establishment and was now a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.
This couldn’t help but make Yan Hengchuan incredibly excited.
After all, whether Yan Liming could successfully reach Foundation Establishment was directly related to his own path of cultivation.
To be honest, he was even more eager for Yan Liming to succeed at Foundation Establishment than Yan Liming himself was.
However, to execute the ’Foundation-Stealing Method’, one’s own Cultivation also had to reach the peak of the Qi Refining Ninth Level.
Thus, he hadn’t rushed to the Immortal City to inform Li Ping at the time. Instead, he waited until after he had broken through to the Qi Refining Ninth Level before coming to the Immortal City to explain the situation in detail.
"This is good news." Li Ping raised an eyebrow and nodded after hearing Yan Hengchuan’s story.
After a moment’s thought, he asked, "Is Yan Liming still deep within the Cloud Mist Mountain Range?"
Yan Hengchuan shook his head. "Not anymore. I sensed that as soon as his aura appeared, he left the Cloud Mist Mountain Range and headed toward the Western Wilderness. He’s probably returned to the Blood Shadow Sect’s territory."
’He returned to the Blood Shadow Sect as soon as he reached Foundation Establishment.’ Hearing this, Li Ping was also a bit taken aback.
’If Yan Liming is also a Gou Cultivator and just turtles up in the Blood Shadow Sect after returning, that would be troublesome.’
After a moment of contemplation, he instructed Yan Hengchuan, "For now, focus on your cultivation. We’ll talk again once you reach the peak of the Qi Refining Ninth Level."
He himself was not far from breaking through to the Mid-stage Foundation Establishment. Once he did, his combat power would take a leap, and he would be more confident in dealing with Yan Liming.
"Yes, Grand-master!" Yan Hengchuan replied respectfully.
He obeyed his Grand-master’s instructions without question.
...
After Yan Hengchuan left, Bai Lin came to tidy up.
Only then did Li Ping notice that Bai Lin’s Cultivation had impressively reached the peak of Late-stage Qi Refining. She could now attempt to break through to Foundation Establishment.
In fact, Li Ping had long since made arrangements for her Foundation Establishment breakthrough. For several years, he had been continuously nourishing her with his Nourishing Life Skill Power, restoring her Origin to its peak state.
At this thought, he nodded to himself. ’It’s time to give her that Foundation Establishment Pill.’
When Bai Lin finished tidying up, Li Ping called her over with a smile. After checking her Cultivation, a satisfied look appeared on his face. "Excellent. Lin’Er, you can attempt Foundation Establishment now."
With that, he took a Jade Bottle from his Storage Bag and pressed it into Bai Lin’s hands.
As Bai Lin stared in astonishment, Li Ping said with a smile, "This Jade Bottle contains a Foundation Establishment Pill. Starting today, put everything else aside and focus on entering seclusion to adjust your state. When you feel you’re ready, you can consume this Foundation Establishment Pill and break through to Foundation Establishment."
"A Foundation Establishment Pill!" Bai Lin was utterly astonished, but at the same time, a hint of struggle appeared in her eyes.
Li Ping, however, didn’t notice the change in Bai Lin’s expression. After giving her the Foundation Establishment Pill, he waved his hand, signaling that she didn’t need to thank him, and returned to his training room to cultivate.
In his view, his own cave-dwelling was protected by a two-layer Array, and besides himself and Bai Lin, only cultivators from the Meng family were authorized to enter.
However, the Meng family had an excellent reputation. As long as he paid his rent on time, they would not disturb him.
Therefore, in this Tier Two Upper Grade Spiritual Land, Bai Lin could attempt her breakthrough to Foundation Establishment directly, without even needing Li Ping to stand guard for her.
After arranging for Bai Lin’s Foundation Establishment, Li Ping immersed himself in arduous cultivation. A month passed without him noticing, and it was once again time for the monthly treatment of the Seven-Color Illusory Light Butterfly.
Li Ping emerged from seclusion and immediately saw a Sound Transmission Talisman flying about within the Array.
He reached out, grabbed the Sound Transmission Talisman, and tore it open. Yu Menghan’s voice emerged from within, stating that she was waiting outside his cave-dwelling.
Normally, this was not something Li Ping needed to concern himself with, as Bai Lin would handle it. But since Bai Lin was currently in seclusion attempting her breakthrough to Foundation Establishment, Li Ping had to personally go and let Yu Menghan into the cave-dwelling.
’I wonder how Lin’Er is doing.’ Li Ping thought as he walked toward the entrance of the Array, sweeping his Divine Sense over Bai Lin’s quarters.
But to his surprise, Bai Lin’s room was completely empty. There wasn’t even a shadow of a person to be seen.
’She went out?’ Li Ping wondered, his steps faltering for a moment.
He soon resumed walking, continuing toward the entrance of the Array.
He then opened the Array and led Yu Menghan inside.
Yu Menghan was clearly a little surprised that Li Ping, not Bai Lin, had come to greet her.
But Li Ping didn’t offer any explanation. He simply led her into the house and completed the day’s treatment for the Seven-Color Illusory Light Butterfly.
Before she left, Li Ping thought again of the "nutrients" required for his Tier Three Puppet inheritance. He said with a smile, "Fairy Yu, I have a presumptuous request. I hope you might grant it."
After Yu Menghan inspected it, she found that the Seven-Color Illusory Light Butterfly’s condition had improved again.
She was in high spirits and waved her hand dismissively. "Fellow Daoist Li, please speak freely. If it is within my power, I will certainly not disappoint you."
"It’s like this," Li Ping said unhurriedly. "I would like to change the payment for the next two treatments."
Hearing this, however, Yu Menghan’s expression turned strange and a bit unnatural. It seemed she thought Li Ping was about to raise his price at the last minute.
She said impassively, "Oh? Fellow Daoist Li, why don’t you tell me what you have in mind."
"I need a ten-foot-long section of thousand-year-old Ironwood! If Fairy Yu is willing to provide this item, I can give up the next two opportunities to choose a Treasure." Li Ping said with a smile, "I imagine this shouldn’t be too difficult for you, Fairy. Of course, if there’s a large difference in value, I am willing to make up the difference."