Shengui Changsheng: Start from Zhenwuwei and add some points to cultivate immortality

The cliffs on both sides are as if carved by a knife and axe, towering into the clouds. The river narrows abruptly here, the current becomes incredibly violent, the roar is deafening, and it stirs up a cloud of water mist. Even more chilling is that thick thunderclouds shroud the canyon year-round, and occasionally huge bolts of lightning strike the river, exploding into towering columns of water!

This place is not only a natural barrier, but also the habitat of the Thunder Dragon! A powerful second-tier social monster that can control lightning and enjoys stirring up storms on the river during thunderstorms to attack passing ships.

"Attention everyone! We are about to enter the Dragon Gate Gorge! Seal all portholes, do not use any magic without authorization, and do not make any loud noises! Violators will be severely punished!" The captain's order was broadcast throughout the ship through the megaphone, his tone extremely serious.

The atmosphere inside the cabin was extremely tense. Even the most restless passengers held their breath, afraid of attracting Lei Jiao's attention.

Fu Shaoping could clearly feel that the ship's defensive array had been activated to its maximum, and a thick layer of spiritual light enveloped the entire ship. At the same time, the ancient "guardian contract" aura deep within the ship's hull also became active, faintly resonating with some kind of statue at the bow (possibly a river god or ship spirit).

The merchant ship, like a cautious intruder, struggled to navigate between the raging river and the low-hanging thunderclouds. The hull rocked violently, the planks groaning under the weight. Outside, deafening thunder, roaring water, and howling winds filled the air.

Fu Shaoping focused his mind and activated his "Contract Identification Technique" at full power. He could "see" countless violent "Water Flow Impact Contracts" and "Lightning Strike Contracts" crashing against the ship's protective shield like raging waves. He could also "see" the "Resistance Contracts" of the ship's protective shield stubbornly resisting, while the ancient "Guardian Contract" emitted a peculiar "soothing" and "dispelling" power, causing the surrounding violent natural contracts to deviate slightly, as if the ship was protected by an invisible "lightning rod" and "water-dividing talisman".

"This ship does indeed have some extraordinary background," Fu Shaoping thought to himself.

However, just as the merchant ship reached the narrowest and most turbulent part of the canyon, a sudden change occurred!
"hold head high--!"

A deafening roar, piercing through metal and shattering stone, filled with a violent aura, suddenly echoed from the underwater front! Immediately afterward, three massive, dark blue-green figures crackling with blinding lightning tore through the river's surface, blocking the merchant ship's path! These were three second-tier Thunder Flood Dragons, each as large as the ship, with a single horn on each head and covered in dark blue-green scales! Their cold, vertical pupils were fixed on the merchant ship, their bodies crackling with electricity, causing the thunderclouds above to churn. Several bolts of silver lightning, as thick as buckets, were drawn down and coiled around their bodies, their power terrifying!
"Thunder Dragon King! Three heads!" the captain's alarmed and furious voice rang out. "Full defense! Activate the 'Water-Dividing Thunder-Dispelling Formation'!"

Chaos erupted on the ship! The guards turned pale, and the passengers were even more ashen-faced. Three second-tier thunder dragons, one of which possessed an aura reaching the mid-stage of the second tier (equivalent to the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment), combined with the opportune moment and favorable location, were enough to inflict devastating damage on this merchant ship!
Fu Shaoping's heart was in his throat. Faced with such divine might and ferocious beasts, his Qi Refining stage cultivation seemed so insignificant. He gripped the Xuan Turtle Shield tightly, ready to deal with any possible ship breakage or monster intrusion.

However, at this critical moment——

The statue at the bow of the ship, which had been silent and carved with some kind of auspicious beast (neither dragon nor tortoise), suddenly burst forth with a dazzling earthy yellow light! At the same time, the ancient aura of the "Guardian Contract" deep within the ship's hull surged completely, transforming into a hazy phantom wearing a flat-topped crown and ancient robes, appearing above the bow of the ship!
The phantom's face was obscured, yet it exuded a profound, benevolent, and protective aura towards all living beings in the rivers! Holding a phantom jade tablet, it gently waved it towards the three ferocious and terrifying thunder dragons in front of it.

There was no earth-shattering explosion, no dazzling magical light.

But through the "art of identification," Fu Shaoping "saw" a scene that shocked him!
A vast, gentle, yet irresistible torrent of golden contract power surged from the jade tablet in the phantom's hand, instantly enveloping the three-headed thunder dragon! It was not an attack, but rather more like a form of communication, appeasement, or even... the establishment of a contract!
The three-headed thunder dragon's ferocious aura faltered, the fierce light in its eyes quickly faded, replaced by confusion, and then... awe and submission? The lightning around them gradually subsided, and they let out a low, no longer hostile roar as they looked up at the sky. Their massive bodies slowly sank into the water, clearing the way.

The phantom image at the bow of the ship slowly dissipated, and the light from the statue dimmed.

In just a dozen breaths, a crisis that could have resulted in the destruction of the ship and loss of life was resolved in such an unbelievable way!

The entire ship was deathly silent; you could hear a pin drop. Everyone was stunned by this miraculous scene.

Fu Shaoping's heart was filled with shock and disbelief. "That's... the power of incense offerings? Or some kind of higher-level 'divine contract'? The guardian spirit of this ship can actually 'communicate' with a second-tier thunder dragon and make it retreat?"

For the first time, he directly experienced the terrifying effects that "contracts" and "rules" could achieve beyond the level of pure power. This subtly echoed certain profound realms described in the "True Explanation of the Mysterious Contract."

The merchant ships dared not linger, and taking advantage of the retreating thunder dragon, they sped through the most dangerous area of ​​the Dragon Gate Gorge.

It wasn't until they sailed out of the canyon and saw the open river and bright (relatively speaking) sunshine again that the people on the boat seemed to wake from a dream, bursting into cheers and discussions of surviving a disaster.

Fu Shaoping fell into a long silence. His experience at Longmen Gorge was like a key, opening a door to a grander understanding for him. The forms of power were by no means limited to true qi, magic, and the physical body. The path pointed to in the *Mysterious Treatise on True Understanding* was perhaps far more profound and unbelievable than he had imagined.

The voyage continues.

After this ordeal, the atmosphere on the ship eased considerably, and a subtle bond formed among the passengers after sharing hardships. Fu Shaoping remained low-key, but his expectations for Tianque City and his reflections on his own path became clearer and more resolute.

A month and a half later, the Broken Wave merchant ship finally slowly sailed into a much wider, calmer, and more spiritually rich giant river—the Tongtian River. Large areas of spiritual fields, well-organized villages and towns began to appear on both banks, along with the occasional streak of cultivators passing by.

On the distant horizon, the outline of a giant city appears and disappears in the misty atmosphere and morning light.

We've arrived at Tianque City.

The long voyage was coming to an end, and a new world lay before them. Fu Shaoping stood at the edge of the crowded cabin, looking through the narrow porthole at the city that resembled a crouching behemoth. His eyes were calm, but a flame was quietly burning deep within them.

Tens of thousands of miles of wandering and peril have tempered his cultivation and state of mind. And this colossal city ahead, a place brimming with countless opportunities and challenges, will be a new stage for him to test his knowledge and pursue the Great Dao. The ship slowly docks.

The Broken Wave merchant ship slowly docked at the grand Tongtian River wharf outside Tianque City. The wharf was built of huge blue stone blocks and stretched as far as the eye could see. It was filled with ships of all sizes and shapes, with masts standing tall, flags waving, and a bustling atmosphere filled with the sounds of people and the flickering lights. The noise and prosperity were overwhelming.

Fu Shaoping followed the crowd down the gangway and onto the solid dock floor. What rushed towards him was not only the hustle and bustle, but also the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, which was more than ten times richer than that of Yunwu Market, as well as a complex aura mixed with various forces, powerful people, wealth, ambition and rules, which made him feel insignificant.

The walls of Tianque City stood majestically in the distance, hundreds of feet high, constructed entirely of massive black stones with a metallic sheen. Their surfaces were covered with complex and mysterious runes, emanating a faint, chilling pressure. The walls stretched to the horizon, resembling a slumbering ancient beast.

Entering the city required passing through a massive city gate, undergoing inspection, registration, and paying an "entry tax." Fu Shaoping waited in line, observing the cultivators coming and going. The vast majority were Qi Refining stage cultivators, but Foundation Establishment stage cultivators were also frequently seen, and occasionally he could even sense one or two suffocatingly powerful auras, seemingly those of the Golden Core stage, flying past the city gate.

When it was his turn, the guards at the gate (all of whom were at the mid-stage of Qi Refining) checked his ticket and identity (he still identified himself as "Mo Chen," a rogue cultivator). After paying the city entry tax of ten low-grade spirit stones (valid for seven days) and receiving a temporary "temporary residence jade talisman," he successfully entered this renowned cultivation metropolis.

Stepping into the city, the scene is even more breathtaking.

The streets were wide enough for ten carriages to travel abreast, paved with smooth, spotless white marble slabs. Towering buildings lined both sides, their eaves and brackets adorned with carved beams and painted rafters, ranging from three or four stories to dozens, piercing the clouds. Shop signs gleamed, banners fluttered, and they sold everything from basic elixirs and talismans to advanced cultivation techniques and magical artifacts, as well as rare birds and beasts, exotic flowers and herbs, and even slaves and servants—a truly diverse array of goods.

In the air, cultivators frequently rode various flying magical artifacts and spirit birds, or simply flew through the air (at least at the Foundation Establishment stage), shuttling back and forth along specific "air routes" in an orderly fashion. On the ground, crowds thronged, shoulder to shoulder, including not only cultivators but also a large number of mortal servants, merchants, and artisans who were dependent on them, creating a bizarre yet vibrant panorama of life.

The spiritual energy was so dense it was almost impenetrable, and it seemed as if a large spirit-gathering array was buried beneath the street. Various noises—hawking, bargaining, the hum of magical artifacts, and the cries of spirit beasts—intertwined to create a dizzying sound wave.

Fu Shaoping stood on the street, momentarily dazed. From the remote and isolated Wangshan Village, to the perilous Yunwu Mountains, then to the desolate and lifeless White Bone Wasteland, and finally arriving at this prosperous and powerful Tianque City... a few short years felt like a lifetime ago.

But he quickly regained his composure, his eyes clearing again. Behind the glamour lay even fiercer competition and a deeper vortex. He had to find a foothold as soon as possible.

The primary issue is accommodation. Living in Tianque City is extremely difficult. Even the cheapest inn, a basic room without any protective formations and barely enough to fit one in, costs five low-grade spirit stones per day. A quiet room with a simple spirit-gathering formation costs dozens of spirit stones per day. Long-term rental of a dedicated cave dwelling or courtyard is astronomical.

Fu Shaoping only had about twenty spirit stones left, not even enough to stay in an inn for a few days.

He didn't panic. He spent half a day taking a quick tour of the outer city near the dock to familiarize himself with the area and gather information. The outer city was relatively chaotic, with lower-end shops that mostly catered to low-level independent cultivators and traveling merchants.

He learned that for a rogue cultivator like himself, newly arrived and penniless, there were usually several paths to survive in Tianque City:

1. Join a faction: such as a merchant guild, guard team, or peripheral organization of a sect, to gain stable income and protection, but lose some freedom and face fierce competition.

2. Having a special skill: alchemy, weapon crafting, talisman making, array formation, etc. As long as you have real skills, you won't have to worry about finding a way to make a living, and you may even be recruited by a powerful force.

3. Accepting quests: There is a "Ten Thousand Alliance Hall" in the city that publishes various quests (established by multiple forces, relatively fair). It covers everything from gathering, guarding, and exploration to assassination and revenge. The risk and reward are proportional.

4. Engaging in low-level labor: such as miners, herbalists, spiritual plant growers, or even serving as temporary servants for certain shops or monks, with meager incomes that barely cover their basic needs.

After a moment's thought, Fu Shaoping decided to take a two-pronged approach. On the one hand, he needed to obtain a stable income as soon as possible to cover basic expenses; on the other hand, he also needed to plan for the long term.

He first went to a reasonably sized branch of "Bai Cao Tang" in the outer city, where he displayed his self-made "Qi Nourishing Pill," "Powerful Miasma-Clearing Pill," and "Bone-Corroding Detoxifying Powder." After examining them, the shop's appraiser affirmed the quality of the Qi Nourishing Pill and expressed interest in the latter two, which were formulated for specific environments. Ultimately, Fu Shaoping sold five Qi Nourishing Pills and some Detoxifying Powder at slightly below market price, earning eighty low-grade spirit stones. He also made an agreement with the shopkeeper that if he had any consistently high-quality pills in the future, he would give priority to supplying this shop.

With the spirit stones, he breathed a slight sigh of relief. Instead of choosing an inn, he found a "pigeon coop" area on the edge of the outer city that was specifically rented to low-level rogue cultivators.

This is a cluster of low, densely packed stone houses, each only a few feet square. Besides a stone bed and a futon, there's nothing else; no windows, just a thin wooden door. But the rent is cheap, only thirty low-grade spirit stones a month, and it provides a basic, weak spirit-gathering effect covering the entire area (better than nothing). More importantly, the area is a melting pot of all sorts of people, with high turnover, making it difficult to attract attention.

Fu Shaoping rented a relatively quiet "pigeon coop" room at the very back. He set up a warning barrier that he carried with him and used "Illusion Contract Technique" to simulate a chaotic atmosphere at the doorway that matched the surrounding environment.

After settling in, he immediately headed to the "Ten Thousand Alliance Hall" in the outer city.

The Hall of Ten Thousand Alliances was a magnificent seven-story stone building, bustling with cultivators coming and going. In the center of the main hall on the first floor were several enormous, real-time scrolling jade walls displaying a vast number of tasks, categorized by region, difficulty, and reward. Surrounding these were rows of counters for cultivators to accept and submit tasks, or to seek advice. (End of Chapter)