Cultivating Immortality: Starting from Ferrying Passengers

Chapter 197 Encountering Enemies on Mission
Upon learning of Fang Jingxuan's arrival at Xiao Yan's residence, Xiao Yan specially hosted a banquet in his honor and invited Ghost Face to accompany him.

After many years, Fang Jingxuan and Guimian's relationship has become somewhat estranged due to the long period of no contact.

However, Xiao Yan quickly dispelled this awkwardness. In addition, due to Fang Jingxuan's improved cultivation, Guimian naturally wanted to reconcile with his old friend. So after a few rounds of spirit wine, the two returned to their old relationship.

“Brother Xuanming, you have been focused on your cultivation in seclusion these past few years and are unaware of the situation outside. Ever since we lost to the Thousand Sun Sect, things have gotten worse year by year. If it weren’t for Madam Ye, that killing goddess, keeping us in check, we would probably have been attacked long ago.”

Ghost Face embraced a beautiful Qi Refining maidservant beside him, groping her all over while explaining the situation of the Holy Sect to Fang Jingxuan over the past few years.

Fang Jingxuan had heard about these situations, but he didn't know much about them. Now, after Ghost Face explained them to him little by little, he learned about the true situation of the Holy Infant Sect.

Xiao Yan, sitting at the head of the table, also drank silently without saying a word. With the Holy Infant Sect's strength damaged, his status as an elder was naturally diminishing. If the Holy Infant Sect were to fall into ruin, which Foundation Establishment cultivator would care about his words?

"Isn't it said that the sect leader is about to achieve the Golden Core stage? If he successfully forms the Golden Core, then all the current problems will no longer be problems."

Fang Jingxuan ignored the maid beside him and focused on asking the question. To be honest, he didn't have much loyalty to the Holy Infant Sect. He only stayed because the Holy Infant Sect was powerful and offered good benefits. He could obtain a lot of resources here, which was much more convenient than being a rogue cultivator.

If a powerful enemy were to come knocking, Fang Jingxuan would first assess the situation. If he sensed something was amiss, he would definitely make a hasty retreat.

Fang Jingxuan wasn't the only one with this idea; most of the Foundation Establishment cultivators in the sect probably thought the same way. Compared to the Thousand Suns Sect, the Holy Infant Sect was a disorganized mess, a fact determined by the fundamental differences between the two.

Mentioning the sect leader, Ghost Face's expression became more solemn. To be honest, Fang Jingxuan still hadn't seen what the sect leader looked like.

"If only the formation of the core were this smooth. Since ancient times, among Foundation Establishment cultivators, only one or two out of ten are lucky enough to succeed in forming the core. Although our sect leader is exceptionally talented and brilliant, he is still trying to break through to the Golden Core realm. There is no guarantee that he will succeed. Now, seven years have passed and there is still no news of success. Therefore, people's hearts are unsettled, and the surrounding forces are also eyeing us covetously."

Hearing what Ghost Face said, Fang Jingxuan, who was already worried about the sect leader's success in forming the core, now felt that everyone was quietly looking for a way out.

Fang Jingxuan glanced at Xiao Yan and noticed that the other man was also scrutinizing him, which immediately made him feel uneasy.

Only then did he realize that Xiao Yan hadn't stopped him from discussing the sect leader's core formation with Ghost Face. As one of the four elders of the Holy Sect, Xiao Yan's attitude was already an open secret.

"I just enjoy cultivation and have never cared much about these things. Elder Xiao will make all the decisions. No matter what happens in the future, we will just follow Elder Xiao's orders."

Fang Jingxuan timely expressed his loyalty, and Xiao Yan's face relaxed upon hearing this, showing his satisfaction.

Ghost Face echoed his agreement, then changed the subject to some amusing anecdotes.

The atmosphere returned to a relaxed and harmonious state, and the three of them did not conclude the banquet until evening.

Back at his residence, Fang Jingxuan went to his quiet room to reflect on the news he had received that day.

It seems that the Holy Infant Sect is at risk of capsizing. The sect leader went out to find a place to form his core, and now, eight years later, there has been no trace of him. It is highly likely that he failed in his attempt and died on the spot.

However, it cannot be ruled out that the sect leader has already successfully formed his core and is currently nurturing his cultivation, and is not in a hurry to return.

Between the two probabilities, 70% versus 30%, the chance of failure is higher.

Among the Holy Infant Sect, the sect leader has the highest cultivation level and the strongest combat power, followed by Madam Ye. Xiao Yan is not known for his combat power. Although he is in the late stage of Foundation Establishment, his strength is the weakest among the four elders.

Fang Jingxuan recalled the banquet today, in which Xiao Yan hinted that he wanted him to stand together with him through thick and thin.

It seems that the impact of the battle with the Thousand Sun Sect back then is still bringing benefits to him to this day.

Fang Jingxuan also thought highly of Xiao Yan. He felt that Xiao Yan was quick-witted, knew when to advance and retreat, and was generous to his subordinates. He was a good boss. If Xiao Yan really needed his help, Fang Jingxuan would not hesitate to lend a hand, but only when he felt safe.

At today's banquet, Fang Jingxuan mentioned the sect mission he was to undertake. Upon learning this, Xiao Yan readily assigned Fang Jingxuan a task: to lead a group of men to escort a large ship to Lianshui Gate.

This is a relatively important business for the Holy Infant Sect: selling spirit ore to the Lian Shui Sect in exchange for corresponding cultivation resources.

The Holy Infant Sect controls many islands, which in turn have abundant mineral resources. However, they lack cultivators and corresponding weapon refiners. Although they possess spiritual mineral resources, they have no way to develop them and can only export raw ore to the Lian Shui Sect in exchange for processed spiritual materials.

The situation in Lianshuimen is the opposite. With a huge population and depleted resources, it desperately needs these overseas mineral resources.

The two sides have a complementary and mutually beneficial model. However, in recent years, as the prestige of the Holy Infant Sect has declined, there have been several incidents of large mining ships being hijacked, which has caused great losses to the Holy Infant Sect.

This kind of job is time-consuming and risky. Originally, Xiao Yan would not have assigned it to Fang Jingxuan, but the job was very lucrative and would allow him to stay at Lianshui Gate for a long time. In addition, Xiao Yan had his own ulterior motives, so he handed the job over to Fang Jingxuan.

Recalling Xiao Yan's final instructions, Fang Jingxuan's eyes deepened, and his mind became resolute: it was better to abandon the Holy Infant Sect.

Two days later, Fang Jingxuan went to the alchemy room and dragged Lin Xiaoqian out.

"Xiaoqian, you've been with me for four or five years now. You can't keep working in isolation. Pack your things and come with me."

Upon seeing Fang Jingxuan, Lin Xiaoqian was as docile as a mouse before a cat. She could sense that Fang Jingxuan had no desire for her whatsoever and was simply using her as a tool.

Therefore, Lin Xiaoqian dared not take advantage of her status to speak recklessly to Fang Jingxuan, or act coquettishly and pester him, otherwise the consequences would be severe punishment.

Lin Xiaoqian felt that the kind of thing that Qi Refining concubines would do to Foundation Establishment cultivators would never happen to the man in front of her in this lifetime.

"Okay, I'll go get ready right away."

Lin Xiaoqian responded weakly, not daring to ask further. She could only quickly return to her alchemy room and pack up all her commonly used magical artifacts to take with her.

Then, Fang Jingxuan said calmly, "Come with me."

After the two left the cave, Fang Jingxuan casually waved his hand, wrapped Lin Xiaoqian up, and flew towards the dock ahead.

After a short while, when they arrived at their destination, Fang Jingxuan brought him to the ground.

Then, Fang Jingxuan stared at a massive ship a hundred feet long in front of him and fell into deep thought.

Lin Xiaoqian didn't dare to disturb Fang Jingxuan's silence, and could only stand silently beside him, like a mistress who had been bullied.

After a long while, Fang Jingxuan, having quietly sensed the large wooden ship with his divine sense, finally took a step forward.

Lin Xiaoqian immediately followed closely behind, not daring to stray even a step away.

Arriving at the ship, Fang Jingxuan flew directly onto it and coldly said:

"Summon your captain to me."

A dozen or so breaths later, an older cultivator strode up from behind, surrounded by a group of Qi Refining cultivators. When they saw Fang Jingxuan, they all bowed in greeting.

"All cultivators of the Changrong ship greet you, senior. May we ask what brings you here?"

Fang Jingxuan threw out a token, which floated in mid-air in front of everyone, and then explained:
"From now on, this ship will be under my protection. Arrange two cabins for me. Report back to me when the ship is fully loaded with cargo. Do not disturb it at other times."

Looking at the token of the Holy Infant Sect, everyone knew that Fang Jingxuan was the Foundation Establishment cultivator they were escorting this time.

Within the Holy Infant Sect, there are only about twenty Foundation Establishment cultivators. These people need to deal with Foundation Establishment cultivators for a long time, so naturally they need to remember the appearance of each Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Although Fang Jingxuan had been silent for five years and kept a low profile, he had clear achievements to show for it, so his reputation was not low in the eyes of these sailors.

"So it's Senior Xuanming, that's great! I understand. I'll go make the arrangements right away. I hope Senior Xuanming will take good care of me in the future."

Fang Jingxuan nodded slightly, bypassed the crowd, and led Lin Xiaoqian into the depths of the large ship.

Based on the abilities of cultivators, a wooden ship a hundred feet long is not considered a particularly magnificent creation, but it is still such a behemoth that its cost is considerable.

This large ship was fully loaded with mineral raw materials, weighing tens of millions of kilograms, and worth about a thousand high-grade spirit stones.

Such a huge sum of money is worth the effort of Foundation Establishment cultivators to rob, and it can also hinder the development of the Holy Infant Sect. It kills two birds with one stone, which makes it hard for surrounding forces not to be tempted.

Therefore, in response to this situation, the number of guards on this large ship has been increased from one Foundation Establishment cultivator to two.

Two days later, Fang Jingxuan met another Foundation Establishment cultivator. "Fellow Daoist Xuanming, we meet again."

Fang Jingxuan's face lit up with joy. The person who came was actually Bai Zhu. This person was very strong and had become famous in recent years. He didn't expect that he would also be doing this kind of guard mission. It was obviously a waste of his talents.

However, now that Bai Zhu has joined the trip, things are pretty much settled. Ordinary cultivators wouldn't be foolish enough to come and provoke them.

"So it's Brother Baizhu. It's been five years since we last met. I never expected that we would be doing a mission together today. I hope you will take good care of me in the coming months."

Bai Zhu appeared to be a young cultivator in his early twenties, in the prime of his life, wearing a dark green robe and possessing an exceptionally handsome appearance.

"No problem, no problem. I wouldn't dare to offer to help you out; let's just help each other out."

Bai Zhu and Fang Jingxuan exchanged a few polite words, but then stopped talking. The two were indeed not familiar with each other and had no relationship whatsoever.

Fortunately, the captain's arrival broke the awkward atmosphere.

"Reporting to Senior Baizhu and Senior Xuanming, the Changrong has been loaded with cargo and is ready to depart at any time."

Fang Jingxuan silently took a step back, indicating that he would leave this decision to Baizhu.

Bai Zhu didn't back down and directly gave the order:
"Then let's set off and try to reach Lianshuimen as soon as possible."

The captain accepted the order and left. Although he was a Qi Refining cultivator and the captain, he still had to obey the orders of Foundation Establishment cultivators.

“Fellow Daoist Xuanming, once we leave the Holy Gate’s territory, let each of us take turns guarding for three days. From here to the Water Gate, at the current ship’s speed, it will be a bumpy ride of a month and a half. With such heavy cargo, we can’t go fast even if we want to.”

Fang Jingxuan nodded upon hearing this. What Bai Zhu said was true. Although there was a magic array engraved on this ship, it could utilize the wind power and, at crucial moments, consume spirit stones to accelerate.

However, they can only rely on ocean currents for help, which saves both time and effort, and it takes about a month and a half to reach Lianshuimen Port.

"It is up to you, Brother Dao. I have no objection."

Fang Jingxuan handed over the power of speech to Baizhu, which pleased Baizhu. Otherwise, if Fang Jingxuan really disagreed with him, he would have been helpless.

"good."

Over the next ten days or so, as the cargo ship sailed out of the Holy Infant Sect's territory, Fang Jingxuan gradually became more vigilant.

In order to gain an early advantage, Fang Jingxuan released Tuoyuan, allowing it to roam back and forth within a range of several hundred nautical miles around the large ship to scout the surrounding area.

With the help of ocean currents, the cargo ship's speed was not very fast, but Tuoyuan had already established his foundation and his bloodline had mutated, resulting in extraordinary endurance. Even if he swam for more than a month, he would not be very tired.

At the same time, as a sea overlord with a trace of Xuanwu bloodline, Tuoyuan can also forcibly drive some low-intelligence sea fish to gather information for him.

Fang Jingxuan guessed that Bai Zhu should know about Tuo Yuan's appearance, after all, Tuo Yuan had already shown great talent when he fought against Qianyang Sect.

In the early stages of the voyage, everything went smoothly, and Fang Jingxuan also got closer to Baizhu. From their conversations, he learned that Baizhu was actually from a vassal family of the Spirit Wood Alliance. Because he was dissatisfied with the Spirit Wood Alliance's scheming against his vassal family, he came to the outer sea to develop.

Fang Jingxuan didn't know much about this matter. In his view, the Spirit Wood Alliance was undoubtedly a behemoth, and compared to it, the Holy Infant Sect was just a stray dog ​​on the roadside.

Therefore, even with Bai Zhu's exceptional talent, making him unparalleled in the Holy Infant Sect, he would probably only be considered excellent within the Spirit Wood Alliance.

On this day, it was Fang Jingxuan's turn to be on duty. He sat cross-legged in the watchtower at the top of the cargo ship, looking around and taking in the entire sea area that stretched for dozens of miles.

The sea remains the same unchanging blue-black color, which becomes rather monotonous after a while.

Fang Jingxuan thought today would be another ordinary day, but unexpectedly, Tuoyuan, who was silently lurking beneath the ocean, discovered something unusual.

Half an hour later, Tuoyuan leaped up from the sea and finally climbed to Fang Jingxuan's side.

After a brief exchange of spiritual energy, Fang Jingxuan understood Tuoyuan's meaning.

Three hundred miles behind, the traces of unidentified cultivators were discovered. Sensing from a distance, they appeared to be Foundation Establishment cultivators, numbering about five. They were hanging behind, their purpose unknown.

Knowing this, Fang Jingxuan frowned, feeling annoyed. On his first mission, he was met with such a reception; they really thought highly of him.

If the five Foundation Establishment cultivators were truly targeting him, then he had nothing to say but to abandon them and flee with Tuoyuan.

Although Fang Jingxuan was confident in his combat strength, he was not confident that he could face five cultivators of the same level at once.

Hmm, no, this is probably aimed at Bai Zhu. He keeps a low profile, so why is he being treated like this?

A few breaths later, Fang Jingxuan realized what was going on. He had thought that having Bai Zhu on this trip was a good thing, but he never expected that the other side would send even more cultivators.

But since things have come to this, there's no other way but to give it a shot. Otherwise, leaving without a word is not in Fang Jingxuan's nature.

Of course, this battle depends mainly on Bai Zhu. If he can't hold on, then there's nothing more to say, and this cargo ship will have to be abandoned.

Thinking of this, Fang Jingxuan stood up, flashed onto the deck, and sent a warning signal to the room where Bai Zhu was.

In the distance, on a spirit shuttle aboard a distant sea, five Foundation Establishment cultivators were discussing matters.

Judging from their positions, it seems that they are three forces that have temporarily gathered together.

The two main figures, though their faces were concealed, possessed an undeniable aura of powerful fire spirit energy.

The other two were dressed in ordinary clothes and used common martial arts techniques, except that there was a strange rune embroidered on their cuffs.

The last person stood alone in the corner. He should have kept a low profile, but his fierce aura was undeniable and made him stand out.

"Bai Zhu must die. This is a rare opportunity for him to leave the Holy Infant Sect's territory. If we miss this chance, the Holy Infant Sect will be even more difficult to deal with once he grows up."

"Hehe, besides Baizhu, there's also Xuanming this time, which makes it all together. Old man Huo, you're being too obvious. You must have spent a lot of spirit stones bribing the elders of the Holy Infant Sect. And didn't you say at the time that you would have no regrets about life or death and that you wouldn't seek compensation afterward?"

Hearing the mockery, the old man remained unperturbed, while another young man beside him couldn't contain himself and said:

“Bai Zhu brutally murdered my senior brother. How can we forget this blood feud? The Holy Infant Sect has been running rampant for decades, and its disciples have committed all sorts of evil deeds. Their recruitment of evil and heretical cultivators is commonplace. It’s time for them to pay the price for their past actions.”

"Tsk tsk, isn't it just that you're coveting their territory again? Why make so many excuses for yourself? Why didn't you take revenge earlier? You had to wait until you confirmed the news of the Holy Infant Sect Master before you made your move. You're really good at holding back."

"Alright, Longshan, you should say less. Now the three of us are allies. Let's put aside our past grudges and fight together. Baizhu is not easy to deal with. His reputation is earned through fighting, not just by talking."

If you continue to act with this kind of mentality, then I must apologize, but I must withdraw from this operation.

Seeing that the emotions between the two sides were getting more and more intense, the last person interrupted them directly and made threatening remarks.

This tactic worked very well; the four Foundation Establishment cultivators from the Thousand Sun Sect and the Four Seas Society no longer secretly competed over their previous grudges.

Upon seeing this, the last person, Li Guanxiang, nodded in satisfaction.

"This time, the three of us are cooperating, each with our own purpose. Your Thousand Suns Sect wants revenge, the Four Seas Society wants to gradually weaken your forces, and I am only interested in the cargo on the ship."

Now let's divide the tasks, mainly how to assign people to deal with Bai Zhu. I think the two from the Thousand Sun Sect should be the obvious choice.

"No need to discuss it anymore. The four of us will deal with Bai Zhu together. Hmph, two mid-Foundation Establishment cultivators and two early-Foundation Establishment cultivators combined, even if Madam Ye herself came, she wouldn't fare well."

As for Xuanming, I'll leave him to you. Kill him if you can, and if you can't, at least hold him off. He's good at defense but not offense. Back when we were fighting the battle techniques, that Xuan Turtle left a deep impression on me. After we deal with Baizhu, the five of us should work together to break through his defenses. That's the safest approach.”

In a short while, the five of them discussed their tasks, then adjusted their state, activated the spirit shuttle, and quietly made their way towards the large ship in the distance.

(End of this chapter)