Family Cultivation: Rise of the Wilderness

Chapter 274 Suspicion
Shao Zhen nodded solemnly and said, "Senior Brother He also knows about this matter. He doesn't understand it either, but it was instructed by Master himself, so he came to me hoping that I could help."

“I had no choice but to do this because I couldn’t disobey my master’s orders. However, considering that Junior Brother Li is, after all, a disciple of our Green Cloud Cave, I sought out Long Yang of the Good Cloud Sect to ask for his help in order to avoid rumors of infighting within the cave.”

"If you don't believe me, you can confront Master and Senior Brother He."

"Master."

Zhang Min muttered to herself.

Just as Junior Brother Li had predicted, it was Fairy Green Cloud who ordered the pursuit and killing of him.

But is this Green Cloud Fairy real or fake?
Zhang Min looked at Shao Zhen with a complicated expression.

The man she once trusted unconditionally, standing right in front of her, seemed to create an insurmountable chasm between them.

Before returning, she was filled with anticipation, thinking that as long as she saw Shao Zhen, all her doubts would be resolved.

But at this moment, she felt a bitter taste in her mouth and couldn't say anything.

After a long silence, Zhang Min slowly asked, "Where did Uncle Shanyun go?"

Shao Zhen's eyelids twitched, and he replied, "Perhaps she is in seclusion, or perhaps she is traveling. After all, my master is a Foundation Establishment cultivator and does not participate in the miscellaneous affairs in the cave. We have no way of knowing her whereabouts."

Zhang Min then asked, "What about Zhao Yue?"

Shao Zhen forced a smile and said, "Junior Sister Zhao went to the Qingfeng Dharma Assembly held by Hengyue Sect."

There are quite a few Dharma assemblies in the cultivation world.

And they're not very particular about it.

When three or five people gather together to discuss the Dharma, it is also called a Dharma assembly.

If people nearby hear the news, they can get permission to participate.

This is a common Dharma assembly for expounding the Dharma.

In addition, Dharma assemblies can be held for breaking through realms, establishing sects, selecting disciples, offering sacrifices and praying for blessings, and even for weddings and birthdays.

Although the themes are different, the content of the Dharma assemblies is largely the same.

It's nothing more than cultivators exchanging cultivation insights, sparring, making friends, and trading elixirs and magical treasures.

These are all activities that cultivators are eager to participate in.

Therefore, whenever the Dharma assembly is held, it attracts monks from the surrounding area.

For example, the Li family's Changyang Valley Dharma Assembly, which focuses on praying for blessings.

The Qingfeng Dharma Assembly is the same.

Every five years, Hengyue Gate holds a Qingfeng Dharma Assembly, during which sacrifices and prayers are offered to ensure favorable weather and abundant harvests for the territory under its jurisdiction, and peace and prosperity for the people.

But gradually, the focus of the Qingfeng Dharma Assembly shifted, becoming a grand contest of magic in Hao County and even the entire Zhangning Prefecture.

The reason is that there is a grand competition of magical arts, and those who perform well can be listed on the "Qingfeng List".

The "Qingfeng Ranking" is a brand created by Hengyue Sect, which is the largest cultivation leader in Zhangning Prefecture.

The prestige of this list is self-evident.

Without exception, those who made the list quickly became famous throughout the surrounding prefectures and counties, making it a shortcut to early fame.

Of course, besides fame, occupying a position on the "Integrity Ranking" also brings generous rewards.

At each Qingfeng Dharma Assembly, countless young cultivators fight fiercely for this ranking.

As a disciple of Fairy Shanyun who excels in both cultivation and combat, it is perfectly reasonable for Zhao Yue to be sent to participate in this Dharma assembly.

However, none of this dispelled Zhang Min's doubts.

At the time when Green Cloud Cave and Good Cloud Sect were merging, neither Good Cloud Fairy nor Zhao Yue were present.

Aren't they afraid that the two factions will develop a rift because of what happened before?

If the merger of the two sects fails, Shanyun Sect will have to pack up and leave.

So what if Zhao Yue is on the "Qingfeng List"?

Can Hengyue Sect also provide spiritual vein dojos for Shanyun Sect?
She would never have thought of these things before.

After receiving Li Xiangming's reminder, Zhang Min's suspicions were amplified tenfold.

But she didn't refute him. Instead, she looked at Shao Zhen and nodded, "I understand. I want to see Master, is that alright?"

"of course can."

Shao Zhen smiled slightly, "Let's go together."

"it is good."

The two walked hand in hand, leaving the underground riverbed and strolling into the garden where the Green Cloud Fairy lived.

Suddenly, a look of surprise flashed across Shao Zhen's face. He took out a communication talisman and said, "It's a letter from my senior brother. He has something to discuss with me."

Zhang Min didn't ask any questions, but instead smiled and replied, "Then you go ahead and do your work. I'll go see my master by myself."

"it is good."

Shao Zhen nodded and watched Zhang Min step into the garden. As soon as she disappeared from sight, a look of pain immediately appeared on Shao Zhen's face.

"Min'er, don't force me!"
-
"Well, have you seen what I'm capable of?"

Outside Green Cloud Cave, Ding Xia clapped her hands, then put her hands on her hips and questioned Ouyang Zhen with a hint of pride in her voice.

Ouyang Zhen looked around and saw that outside the cave entrance, in a semi-circular shape, every ten feet or so, there was a flagpole made of tree branches, with characters drawn on black linen on it that were not clearly visible.

Because the branches were cut down temporarily, these flagpoles are not straight.

In addition, Ding Xia did not put much effort into the arrangement, resulting in the flagpole being tilted to one side and leaning to the other, which left Ouyang Zhen stunned.

But there's no doubt that the flagpoles follow a pattern; Ding Xia really understands formations.

Furthermore, Ouyang Zhen also saw Ding Xia bury array materials in various corners on multiple occasions, including many valuable items.

After finishing the final touches, Ding Xia moved closer to Ouyang Zhen. However, due to her small stature, she could only reach Ouyang Zhen's chest. She poked his chest and said, "I've really gone all out to help you this time. It's a thousand spirit stones as promised, no backing out."

Ouyang Zhen's lips twitched slightly.

If he had 1000 spirit stones, why would he need to cooperate with Duan Heng?

As the pride of the Ouyang family, he certainly didn't lack spirit stones.

However, he intentionally or unintentionally transformed most of these spirit stones into magical artifacts and elixirs and spiritual materials for cultivation.

He really couldn't bring himself to produce a thousand jingling spirit stones.

We can't just sell the ritual implements, can we?

Even if they wanted to sell, it would take a lot of time to find someone willing to take over.

In the cultivation world, there are no "safe" intermediaries other than auction houses.

Even in the marketplace, cultivators prefer to conduct transactions face-to-face in private.

And it was mostly done through barter.

Although spirit stones are a recognized form of currency, they are not a valid form of currency.

Its reach is wide, but the amount of its circulation is far too small compared to the bloated world of cultivation.

This has led to the persistently high purchasing power of spirit stones.

The majority of independent cultivators prefer to regard it as the most cost-effective cultivation resource.

However, for a rogue cultivator to save up a thousand spirit stones is nothing short of a pipe dream.

Even for someone like Ouyang Zhen, a scion of a prominent family, it would be almost impossible to accumulate this many without deliberate effort.

Therefore, Ding Xia's cost of one thousand spirit stones to break the formation was astronomical.

Very few Qi Refining cultivators could afford it.

However, Ouyang Zhen did not try to negotiate with Ding Xia.

He doesn't have the habit or need to store spirit stones, but his family does.

If Ding Xia can break the Lesser Mysterious Yin Spirit Array, it proves that she is a second-tier array master.

Then the Ouyang family will definitely not sit still and will try to win over Ding Xia.

At this point, Ouyang Zhen could simply say he had no money and ask the Ouyang family to advance the spirit stones.

Given the size of the Ouyang family, a thousand spirit stones is a small sum.

It's highly unlikely that the higher-ups would be willing to give up Ding Xia, a second-tier array master, for such a small amount of spirit stones.

Ouyang Zhen, on the other hand, broke through the formation and seized the Enlightenment Spring without lifting a finger.

As for the money owed to the family?
Doing a few tasks as a token gesture is enough.

Would his family really let him sell everything he owns?
Thinking of this, Ouyang Zhen smiled broadly and said, "Miss Ding, don't worry. How could I ruin the thousand-year reputation of my Ouyang family? This thousand spirit stones will only be more, not less."

Upon hearing this, Ding Xia jumped up excitedly, as if he had been injected with chicken blood, and said, "Don't worry, I've broken the little Xuan Yin Spirit Array more than once. I'll definitely open your eyes to a whole new world."

After saying that, Ding Xia was about to take action.

Suddenly, she saw a huge rock flying from a distance, heading straight towards her.

"How dare you, you scoundrel, be so presumptuous?"

Ouyang Zhen was furious. He drew his sword from his waist and swung it fiercely, instantly splitting the boulder in two.

However, while the remaining rubble did not injure anyone, it did destroy many flagpoles nearby.

Seeing Ouyang Zhen make a move, Xu Chuan and the others beside him flew into the air to search for the enemy.

But no matter how hard they searched, they could not find him.

Ouyang Zhen's face was grim as he looked at Ding Xia: "Miss Ding, are you alright?"

Ding Xia smiled sweetly: "It's okay, but now, I have to charge you at least 1200 spirit stones."

(End of this chapter)