Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

Lin Zhao composed himself and put away the three magical treasures one by one.

The Crimson Feather Golden Phoenix Robe flashed with a magical light, and the entire robe concealed all its radiance, transforming into an ordinary blue robe.

The Fire Spirit Shield transformed into a dark red light spot and flew into his body.

The Heavenly Treasure Jade Talisman hovered in his palm for a moment, then began to transform.

Runes surged forth and intertwined, and in a short while, a white jade-colored spirit boat appeared before him.

The spirit boat is streamlined and shuttle-shaped, about 100 feet in size, and is entirely white jade in color. The surface of the boat is covered with densely packed runes.

Eighteen rune cannons were arranged on each side of the spirit boat, their muzzles glowing faintly with spiritual light, ready to be activated at any time.

The prototype of this spirit boat is Gu Hongling's Tier 3 Top-Grade Crimson Talisman Spirit Boat, which was also a product of rune forging.

Lin Zhao had traveled on it more than once when he was in the Black Sea, and he was quite familiar with its structure and layout. Now he had replicated it using the Heavenly Treasure Jade Talisman.

Now we should say,

Tianbao Lingzhou.

Lin Zhao smiled gently.

He didn't know if his supernatural powers and magical treasures would be copied in the future; there would never be a shortage of extraordinary people in the cultivation world.

But so what?

Before being copied by others, he first used the Heavenly Treasure Jade Talisman to copy other people's magical treasures and use them first.

He boarded the Heavenly Treasure Spirit Boat, and the runes on the hull lit up one by one. The entire spirit boat transformed into a white jade-colored stream of light and soared into the sky towards Yunzhou.

-----

Lin Zhao temporarily returned to the sect and took back the fourth-tier spiritual artifact, Qingwu Wood.

Besides the task given by True Lord Qingyuan, there is also the Qinglan Wood from Qinglan Immortal City.

The mission has a ten-year deadline; as long as the item is brought back within the time limit, it is considered complete.

He planned to keep the Qingwu Wood in his possession for a while to study it. As a fourth-tier wood-attribute spiritual object, it would greatly benefit his understanding of the Five Elements rules.

Once he obtains another piece of Azure Mist Wood, he will hand over both fourth-tier spiritual items to True Lord Qingyuan.

-----

Leaving the Azure Wood behind his main body, the Five Mountains clones left the sect once again.

This time, he used the teleportation array in Ziyang Immortal City to teleport directly to Qinglan Immortal City.

Qinglan Immortal City and Qingwu Prefecture are completely two different worlds.

Qinglan Immortal City is a giant city covering hundreds of miles. The moment Lin Zhao stepped out of the teleportation array, the concentration of spiritual energy that hit him made his eyes jump slightly.

The main body of the city was built on a three-thousand-foot-tall ancient tree. The streets, palaces, markets, and caves of the immortal city were all built along the trunk and main branches, layer upon layer, at varying heights, and connected by countless suspended wooden bridges and vine ladders.

Beyond the immortal city lies a vast, ancient forest of green mist stretching for thousands of miles. Ancient trees reach for the sky, some hundreds of feet high, and mist swirls through the forest, where spirit birds rise and fall.

The entire immortal city is like a giant beast lurking in an ancient forest, breathing in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth within a radius of thousands of miles.

Lin Zhao straightened his robes and headed straight for the City Lord's Mansion of Qinglan Immortal City, intending to pay his respects to True Monarch Qinglan directly.

But the rules of Qinglan Immortal City were far more numerous than he had anticipated.

The stewards of the city lord's mansion were quite polite; a Core Formation cultivator from the Cloud Sea Cangming Sect would never be treated poorly anywhere.

The tea was top-quality Qinglan Spirit Tea. The steward in charge of receiving us was surnamed Wei, a mid-stage Core Formation cultivator who had reportedly worked at the City Lord's Mansion for almost a hundred years.

Deacon Wei smiled and spoke respectfully.

But the underlying message was the same: to see True Lord Qinglan, one must follow the rules.

First, we need to send out the visiting card, then schedule the appointment. Qinglan Zhenjun has been very busy with official duties lately, so it's hard to say when the appointment will be completed.

Lin Zhao asked how long it would take, and Steward Wei's smile remained unchanged. He said it could take anywhere from a few months to a year and a half.

Lin Zhao did not react.

Qinglan Immortal City ranks among the top of the twenty-three immortal cities in Yunzhou, boasting millions of cultivators.

With four Nascent Soul True Monarchs in charge, the current Qinglan True Monarch is not only in the mid-Nascent Soul stage, but also a master alchemist.

Immortal City is famous throughout Yunzhou for its spiritual plants and alchemy, and cultivators from other places travel thousands of miles to come here every year.

The city is also rich in longevity-extending spiritual items, with even fourth-tier longevity-extending spiritual items occasionally leaking out—such things are coveted even by many Nascent Soul True Monarchs, and countless high-level cultivators come here seeking them out.

In such a place, it's common for a Core Formation cultivator to queue up if they want to see the city lord.

If he had revealed Qingyuan Zhenjun's mark directly, just like last time in Qingwu Prefecture, the letter probably wouldn't have even reached Qinglan Zhenjun's desk yet.

He was simply thrown away by someone in the process, who thought he was ignorant and arrogant.

After thinking for a moment, he decided to first go to the Shen family, where Yan Chiheng's Daoist partner was located.

The Shen family has been rooted in Qinglan Immortal City for over a thousand years. They are a native Core Formation family and know the rules and ways of the Immortal City much better than he does.

The Shen family's residence is located on the southeast side of Xiancheng. Although the area is not large, the layout is exquisite.

But just like in the Immortal City, there were many rules. When the Shen family heard that he was a cultivator from outside the city, they first asked for a visiting card, and then said that the head of the family was not receiving guests today. They went through a series of procedures without any flaws.

Lin Zhao was too lazy to go through the formalities with them any longer. He slightly released his Core Formation Realm spiritual pressure, and the surrounding air suddenly became heavy.

Core Formation cultivator,

The man's face turned pale on the spot, and he scrambled inside to report.

After a short while, the patriarch of the Shen family personally came out to greet them. He was a slightly plump old man with a kind face and a smooth manner of speaking.

Upon hearing that Lin Zhao was Yan Chiheng's good friend in the sect, his smile immediately became more sincere.

Yan Chiheng, who has already advanced to the Core Formation stage, holds a high position in the Shen family. As a Core Formation cultivator in the Yunhai Cangming Sect, he is a powerful backer for the Shen family.

After a busy half-day of greetings, tea, and reminiscing, the conversation finally turned to business.

Lin Zhao said he wanted to pay his respects to True Lord Qinglan, and if that wasn't possible, he would at least send a letter to True Lord Qinglan in person.

Qinglan Immortal City is rich in spiritual plants and alchemists. Cultivators from other places flock here year-round seeking medical treatment and medicine. Because of its nurturing environment, many cultivators stay once they arrive.

As the lord of a city, Qinglan Zhenjun holds a prestigious position, and even ordinary Nascent Soul cultivators might not be able to meet him.

The Shen family has some influence among the Core Formation factions, but they have no say in front of Nascent Soul cultivators.

"Fellow Daoist Lin,"

The Shen family patriarch tentatively asked, "What exactly is the purpose of your seeking out True Monarch Qinglan?"

Lin Zhao glanced at him and remained silent for a moment.

He didn't want to get too involved with the Shen family, but since he needed to do things through the Shen family's connections, it wouldn't make sense to keep everything under wraps.

Lin Zhao finally mumbled, "It's not a good thing."

If he were to take away a fourth-tier spiritual item from Qinglan Immortal City...

It's hard to say whether the higher-ups will take their anger out on the people involved in the process.

Lin Zhao could have simply walked away, but the Shen family was the family of Yan Chiheng's Daoist partner, and he didn't want to cause trouble for them because of his own affairs, so he made things clear beforehand.

The patriarch of the Shen family was also a shrewd man; with a quick glance, he understood the implied meaning.

He didn't press further, but after a moment's thought, he said that there was a newly advanced Core Formation family, the Wen family, who wielded considerable power in the City Lord's Mansion and were responsible for some specific affairs of the City Lord's Mansion. Messages could be sent through them.