Wanfa Daojun, starting from the Little Cloud and Rain Technique

Chapter 463 The Rise of the Spiritual Tide

Yuan Hong's expression was solemn. "I originally wanted to invite you to hunt down a big guy and share some materials, but we'll have to find another opportunity to cooperate in the future."

He reached out and patted the stacked talismans, saying in a deep voice:

"Fellow Daoist, have you ever thought about opening your own talisman shop? Fellow Daoist Zhang and I know some demon-hunting cultivators who can provide you with raw materials such as animal hides and essence blood."

This way we can reap more profits, and we can also collect more spirit stones.

Ji An shook his head slightly, "Opening a shop takes too much energy, and operating costs are a big problem, so I haven't considered it."

Shop rental and hiring staff are costs. In addition, relying solely on one talisman maker will not allow the business to grow significantly. It is necessary to cooperate with other talisman makers to increase the variety of talismans available in the shop.

For him, it was not worth spending too much time and energy earning spirit stones.

"It's a pity that neither Fellow Daoist Zhang nor I are good at business, otherwise we would be willing to open a shop."

Yuan Hong put away the talisman, stood up and said:

"I won't take up any more of your time, fellow Daoist. I'll take my leave now."

After seeing the guests off from the cave, Ji An returned to his quiet room and sat down, his eyes slightly narrowed.

He then noticed something amiss. If Yuan Hong and his companion wanted to hunt powerful demonic beasts, they should have sought out familiar demon-hunting cultivators first. Why did they invite him, a talisman maker?

Does he think he can control the distribution and get a smaller share of the spoils?

Furthermore, the other party said they wanted to open a shop, but they were both cultivators who had traveled here to comprehend the divine meaning of metal generating water. Running a shop requires building a reputation, and they were destined to leave eventually.

Ji An scratched his head, sat cross-legged on the futon, and focused his mind to clear his mind of distractions.

Regardless of Yuan Hong's intentions, he spent most of his time in the Immortal City, and when he occasionally went out, it was only to the vicinity of the Immortal City, so he was not worried that the two of them would harm him.

He began to circulate the Five Elements Wheel Sutra. The spiritual food he ate at lunch was the first to be refined, and spiritual energy surged towards him like a tide. After being inhaled through his mouth and nose, the spiritual energy flowed like water from a pipe.

The Water God's Palace was a deep, dark ink color, with ripples of clouds and mist spreading out like shimmering water under the moonlight.

Within his dantian, the primordial fire flickered, and the once distinct boundary between the crimson and yellow flames had vanished.

A layer of flames gradually appears between the two. If the cultivator comprehends the full divine meaning of the mutual generation of the five elements, all the flame layers will merge, and finally the five elements will return to one.

Within the acupoints, various Daoist elements intermingled and shone, with wisps of mysterious energy spreading and merging into the spiritual energy within the immortal veins.

The dantian is the primary "container" for storing magical power, but the acupoints in the human body are also extremely small containers, only with very small storage capacity.

The combined magical power in all the acupoints might only amount to one percent of that in the dantian.

Five hours later, Ji An finished circulating his cultivation technique. When he opened his eyes, five-colored light swirled, leaving colorful streaks on the rock wall.

The phenomenon lasted only a moment and then disappeared immediately.

Cultivation cannot continue indefinitely, because circulating the cultivation technique will continuously consume the power of the soul. This is why various spiritual items that enhance and restore the soul are so precious.

During his Foundation Establishment stage, he could cultivate for a maximum of three and a half hours at a time. Now, he can cultivate effectively for up to five hours, after which he must rest, otherwise his cultivation will be twice as difficult and half as effective.

There was no light in the cave. Zhang Le, Pei Xiu, Liu Ruyan, and the others sat around a round table, quietly staying in the darkness. They liked this environment.

The stone door was pushed open, and Yuan Hong stood at the doorway to adjust to the light inside before walking over to the table and sitting down.

"You guys are back pretty early. Did you find anything?"

Zhang Le hummed in agreement and said:
"The brothers Liu Rui and Liu Tao agreed to hunt the Moon Gazing Rhinoceros. Both of them are fourth-level cultivators of the Chaoyuan realm and have mastered combined attack techniques, which is their reliance."

I made an agreement with them to set off in three days. Hehe, that means I can provide my master with two more portions of blood food.

The combined attack of the two brothers was barely enough to contend with them, let alone pose any threat to their master.

Liu Ruyan chuckled, "Today we sold three puppets that contained hidden treasure maps. We hope the buyers will discover the secrets soon."

The bait has been cast; now it's just a matter of when the fish will bite.

Yuan Hong sighed and said disappointedly:

"I invited Ji An, but he declined."

He paused, his tone becoming serious:

"During the conversation, I learned from the other party that the law enforcement team of Immortal City has become suspicious of the cultivator's disappearance and is launching an investigation."

This means they can no longer openly lure cultivators out of the city, otherwise they will be targeted by the law enforcement team.

Do you think the information is reliable?

Liu Ruyan said in a cool tone that she and Ji An didn't have much contact.

Yuan Hong was silent for a moment, then said:
“I know that Ji An has a very close partnership with the two shops. His alchemy and talisman-making skills are quite good, so information obtained from the shops should be reliable enough.”

Zhang Le interjected, "We've been operating this for three years, so it's normal that the law enforcement team in Xiancheng has become aware of it."

After dealing with Liu Rui and his brothers, we'll lay low for a while.

As they continued to draw upon the spiritual energy within the ruins, the protective runes surrounding the main hall grew increasingly dim, and the day of its collapse was not far off.

Yuan Hong said in a gloomy tone:
"In my opinion, we should do a few big ones. The master is still in a weak period. If we attract the attention of cultivators at the Golden Core level, there is a risk that he will be sealed again."

Now that we've attracted the attention of the Immortal City's law enforcement team, it's better to fight back than to be restrained. As long as our master escapes the magic-sealing array, it will be like a dragon returning to the sea, and his strength will quickly recover.

His eyes were filled with malice, and as time went on, his emotions became increasingly violent, gradually becoming uncontrollable.

Pei Xiu shook her head and retorted:

“There are Nascent Soul cultivators behind Red Rock Immortal City. If we make a big mistake, it might attract their attention.”

"At most, our master will be resealed, but we will be reduced to ashes."

The master's demonic body can withstand the suppression of the magic restrictions. To eradicate it, one must use the power of the Nascent Soul level and spend a thousand years to wear it down. No Nascent Soul cultivator is willing to sacrifice himself for others like that.

They were just cultivators whose demonic souls had been implanted; even a Golden Core level power could kill them.

Yuan Hong grinned, "If no flesh and blood or soul are sent to the ruins, the master will punish us severely. Do you want to experience that feeling of being worse than dead again?"

The others remained silent, their faces showing fear; the feeling of being devoured by thousands of ants was truly terrifying.

Pei Xiu coughed and said:
"Perhaps the magic barrier will soon lose its effect, at which point the master will be able to escape."

Yuan Hong gave the other person a few cold glances. Although the room was pitch black, it did not affect his vision.

"Don't rely on assumptions. I think we should prepare contingency plans. If sending the Liu brothers to the ruins will ensure their safety for two months, what should we do after that?"

For him, passively waiting is always the worst option.

Zhang Le pondered for a moment and then spoke:

"Two months later, we began to capture the cultivators who had ventured into the deep mountains and wilderness to hunt demons."

If necessary, the law enforcement team can be lured into the ruins. If the master accumulates enough power as a result, he can force his way through the magic-blocking array.

The cultivators of the Enforcement Hall are all elites; their flesh, blood, and soul are a great tonic for their master.

Yuan Hong lowered his eyes. "This is the only way."

On Selangor Street, at Sun's Rice Shop, a waiter greeted them warmly and said gently:
"Senior, how can I help you?"

Ji An glanced at the counter and said:

"I want to purchase a batch of second-grade low-level spirit soil."

The spiritual soil for cultivating the spiritual fields of the gourd world was about to run out, so he decided not to continue buying from Zhou's spiritual rice shop and went somewhere else.

The shopkeeper, who was organizing the account books, stood up, his face beaming with smiles:
"What type of spiritual soil are you planning to buy, and how much?"

The profits from second-tier spirit soil are astonishing; judging from the other party's demeanor, it's likely a big deal.

"All five types of spiritual soil are needed."

The shopkeeper raised an eyebrow. "Please come upstairs to talk, senior."

He led the guest to the VIP room on the second floor. "Senior, please take a seat."

He then turned to the maid and instructed, "Xiao Zhang, bring the best tea!"

After Ji An sat down, he directly stated his purpose: "I want to purchase one thousand catties each of second-grade low-level Crimson Flame Sand and Earth Yellow Crystal, and two thousand catties each of low-grade Black Swamp Soil, White Concrete Soil and Azure Flower Soil."

Because he had to buy spirit stones from Yuan Hong and others every year, he didn't have enough mid-grade spirit stones to buy more spirit soil.

In addition, many fire corals in the gourd world have been cultivated to the second-tier low-grade, and second-tier spirit insects have also appeared in the spirit-devouring insect swarm.

The spiritual soil used to cultivate fire and earth elemental spiritual fields will soon be self-sufficient.

"No problem. May I ask which family you belong to, senior?"
Families with long-term cooperative relationships with the Sun family can enjoy more preferential treatment when trading spirit soil.

"Our family has no cooperative relationship with the Sun family, so please don't ask."

Ji An maintained a cold demeanor; he didn't want to have much contact with the shops selling spirit soil.

"Oh, then let's settle the score."

Crimson Flame Sand costs eight spirit stones per pound, so one thousand pound costs eight thousand spirit stones, totaling fifty-six thousand spirit stones.

The price was the same as that of Zhou's shop. Ji An nodded slightly and began to bargain, but the shopkeeper wouldn't budge and he only got a discount of two thousand spirit stones.

A maid brought over the spirit tea, and the innkeeper proudly introduced it:
"Please try this, senior. It is a treasured second-grade mid-level white mist tea."

The climate of the far north is not suitable for the growth of spirit tea trees. There are no such spirit trees in the wild, so spirit tea is a luxury item, especially high-grade spirit tea.

Ji An picked up his teacup, took a small sip, and said insincerely:

"Good tea."

For him, mid-grade second-tier spiritual tea was almost useless.

After a few words of casual conversation, the shopkeeper stood up:

"Please wait a moment, senior, I'll go fetch the spirit soil."

A moment later, the shopkeeper returned and placed the storage bag containing the territory on the table.

"Senior, please check."

Ji An inspected the quality of the goods, took out enough mid-grade spirit stones to complete the transaction, and then got up and left.

The shopkeeper courteously escorted him to the shop door, saying, "Senior, please feel free to come if you need anything. Our shop is fully stocked, and we also welcome the sale of spiritual medicines."

Ji An slightly pursed his lips. The store didn't offer much of a discount today, so he probably wouldn't come back. He also decided that when he left Red Rock Immortal City, he would sell the pearl blood rice to other stores.

There is now a bag in the Calabash World that stores spirit rice, and it has already stored two thousand catties of spirit rice.

A month passed.

The crimson clouds, like clear rosy light, blocked the invasion of wind and snow. Ji An stood with his hands behind his back, smiling broadly. He was in a very good mood at this moment.

Yesterday, Gu Mingyuan sent someone to inform him that a large spiritual tide was brewing in a mine, which was a good opportunity to comprehend the principle of metal generating water.

After flying for more than half an hour, he arrived at Xuanwu Snow Mountain and slowly landed at Yingke Peak.

A steward approached and said, "Is this Senior Ji? Uncle Gu has important business to attend to today and couldn't come, so he specifically asked me to accompany you."

The steward was a graceful and elegant late-stage Foundation Establishment female cultivator, dressed in a bright yellow silk skirt and wearing a gold and jade hairpin, with a soft and gentle voice.

In fact, Gu Mingyuan deliberately hid. The first time a cultivator experiences the impact of a large-scale metal elemental spiritual tide, the scene will be quite unpleasant, and seeing someone else's embarrassment at this time is not a good thing.

Ji An waved his hand with high spirits, "Thank you, fellow Daoist, please lead the way."

The female cultivator lowered her eyes and said, "Please come with me. The family elders predict that this spiritual tide will be very large. Please take precautions, senior."

She had seen many cultivators injured during large-scale spiritual tides, and the destructive power of metal elemental energy was the strongest among the five elements.

Sensing the hint in the other person's words, Ji An replied kindly:

"I have a defensive magical artifact that will protect me if I encounter danger."

"If the body is injured, the damage to one's appearance is a minor issue; the recovery process will take a considerable amount of time."

Having witnessed the terrifying power of the metal element in the mysterious space of the stone tortoise, he was not careless in the slightest.

“Senior understands, but the speed of the metal elemental tide is extremely fast when it erupts. If you sense that it will be difficult to resist, you cannot hesitate for the slightest.”

The female cultivator tried to be tactful, explaining that every few years, cultivators would be injured during spiritual tides, and some would even suffer damage to their dantian, requiring them to spend a huge amount of money to buy healing elixirs.

She rode a magical artifact and flew ahead, with Ji An following closely behind on a cloud.

After flying for about half an hour, the two entered a huge cave at the foot of the north side of a mountain.

The passage here slopes upwards, and Ji An could feel the strong metal element energy right at the entrance.

The female cultivator coughed to clear her throat and said:

“Senior, I won’t accompany you down. There’s only one main path spiraling downwards here, and the forks in the path are marked.”

You can simply continue downwards. The deeper you go, the stronger the spiritual tide will be. Please proceed according to your abilities, senior. The Gu family will not be responsible for any injuries you may sustain.

She had told them everything she could; whether the other party would listen or not was beyond her control.

At this moment, she understood why Gu Mingyuan hadn't come to greet her. His words seemed to belittle her, and besides, if the other party got hurt, it would be awkward for both of them to be outside with Uncle Gu by his side.

Ji An smiled, "Thank you. When did you predict the exact time of the violent outbreak of the spiritual tide?"

"About a day later."

"Okay, goodbye."

A pale golden cloud rose from beneath Ji An's feet, and he flew into the cave, crouching low.

　A friend asked about the missed update. I will keep my promise to update two chapters of 4,000 words next week and resume three updates a week. This is my pledge.

　　I've definitely been slacking off this week. In the past, when I was writing three chapters a day, I would write until midnight every time. But now that I'm only writing two chapters a day, I'm feeling relaxed and my writing has slowed down.

　　I'll get back into shape soon. Thank you all for your support.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)