Translator: AnubisTL
Great Wilderness Domain, Jing Prefecture.
With the Ancient Hua Immortal Dynasty's imperial banner slashed down, this prefecture officially fell under the control of the righteous and demonic paths of the Great Wilderness Domain.
The entire prefecture had lost its former prosperity. Every city where people had gathered was reduced to scorched earth, barren and lifeless.
As Jing Prefecture fell into the hands of the righteous and demonic paths, the Fall of the Ancient Hua Immortal Dynasty became inevitable.
The once mighty Immortal Cultivation Dynasty, which had dominated nearly half of the Great Wilderness Domain, was now reduced to clinging to its last prefecture—the location of the Ancient Hua Immortal Dynasty's Imperial City.
"Storm-tossed and precarious" hardly described the dynasty's current state. Only the phrase "at its wit's end" truly captured its dire straits.
"Now only Xuan Prefecture remains," an old man in white Daoist robes said as he rode an ox. "Once we take Xuan Prefecture, the Ancient Hua Immortal Dynasty will fade into the mists of history."
"After years of war, we finally see a glimmer of hope for peace."
A clear, ethereal energy radiated from the old man's body. Wherever the ox's hooves trod, tender shoots sprouted from the scorched earth, instantly transforming the barren landscape into a vibrant scene of renewed life.
"That old ghost Wang Chengdao won't be easy to deal with," the old man continued. "Entrenched in the Imperial City and drawing power from the dragon vein's terrain, even if you and I join forces, we might not gain much of an advantage."
As the calm voice echoed through the heavens, the sky instantly darkened, as if shrouded in a layer of dark clouds.
Yet the speaker remained unseen, their voice the only sign of their presence, adding to the air of mystery.
The white-robed old man riding the ox showed no surprise. His gaze drifted toward the distant horizon, where the Imperial City of the Ancient Hua Immortal Dynasty stood—the dynasty's last remaining territory.
"He has few years left. If necessary, we can simply wait him out."
"Even if Wang Chengdao consumes all the Life-Prolonging Spirit Herbs accumulated by the Ancient Hua Immortal Dynasty over centuries, his great limit will still arrive within the next five to ten years."
"For the sake of absolute certainty, I can afford to wait."
The white-robed old man spoke leisurely, his tone calm and indifferent, showing no regard for the aging ruler of the Ancient Hua Immortal Dynasty.
After all, a cultivator nearing their great limit, no matter how heaven-defying their methods, could never withstand the relentless march of time.
The news of the righteous and demonic paths' capture of Jing Prefecture spread like wildfire across the Great Wilderness Domain.
"Jing Prefecture has fallen! The Ancient Hua Immortal Dynasty now controls only its final territory!"
Located within the Ghost Sword Sect's territory, Nanyang Market naturally received news of the event swiftly.
At the Hundred Refinements Pavilion, Li Qing set down the artifact refinement manual he had been reading, drawn by the clamor outside. He listened intently to the commotion.
"I heard Jing Prefecture has been reduced to scorched earth! Several Spirit Vein Lands have collapsed, and who knows how many people have died!"
"Their fate is sealed. Even if they summoned the world's best dragon-seeking feng shui master, they couldn't revive the Ancient Hua Immortal Dynasty's fortunes now."
"Who could have imagined that such a once-mighty Immortal Dynasty would fall to this state?"
"..."
The Ancient Hua Immortal Dynasty was doomed to perish!
Having arrived in the Great Wilderness Domain only recently, Li Qing had only heard rumors of the Ancient Hua Immortal Dynasty's former glory. He had never truly experienced its power firsthand.
Therefore, upon learning of the dynasty's impending destruction, Li Qing felt little genuine emotion.
"Such Immortal Dao powers, built on hereditary bloodlines, can never endure in the long run."
"If no descendants with exceptional innate talent emerge within the direct bloodline, they must expend vast cultivation resources to artificially elevate an emperor."
"One or two times wouldn't matter much, but repeated occurrences would inevitably weaken even the most powerful Immortal Dynasty to its core."
This reflects the fairness of the Heavenly Dao: until one attains true immortality, even the most formidable cultivator's lifespan will eventually reach its end.
Moreover, these cultivators cannot guarantee that their descendants will inherit their exceptional cultivation aptitude. Some might even lack a Spiritual Root entirely!
Furthermore, imperial princes who fail to inherit the throne must still receive substantial cultivation resources from the Ancient Hua Immortal Dynasty, becoming royal marquises.
Over generations, this cycle would inevitably drain even the mightiest Immortal Dynasty dry.
In Li Qing's view, the decline of such Immortal Dao Dynasties was almost inevitable.
"None of this concerns me. Why dwell on it? I should start considering my own core formation matters," Li Qing murmured to himself, his eyes suddenly growing wistful.
Having reached the mid-foundation establishment stage some time ago, with ample lifespan remaining and the aid of heavenly spirit fire in his cultivation, he barely needed to worry about advancing to the late foundation establishment realm.
Li Qing even believed that, given enough time, he could steadily progress through the pseudo core formation stage as well.
But now, as he considered the next step—how to achieve core formation—he felt utterly lost.
Though I've learned Senior Wu Yuan's soul core method, it still carries considerable risks. Even with this technique, there's no guarantee of 100% success in core formation.
If only I could find a core formation spiritual material or some other method to increase my chances of success...
Li Qing thought to himself, his brow furrowing involuntarily.
Planning for core formation sounded simple enough, but the reality was far more daunting.
This hurdle was undoubtedly far more challenging than foundation establishment. After all, the cultivation world had foundation establishment pills, but he had never heard of any elixirs that could improve the success rate of core formation.
Purple Mansion Spirit Liquid and Yin-Yang Spirit Condensation Liquid are universally recognized as the best core formation spiritual materials, but they're rarer than heavenly spirit fire—perhaps even more so.
Sigh, I'll just have to take things one step at a time. The situation here changes in an instant. As long as I live long enough, I'll eventually encounter my own core formation opportunity.
With these thoughts, Li Qing picked up his artifact refinement manual again and began studying, suppressing his earlier thoughts of core formation deep within his heart.
To be honest, if others knew that Li Qing, with his four spirit root aptitude, was plotting core formation, most would laugh their teeth out.
Normally, for an ordinary rogue cultivator to successfully achieve foundation establishment with a four spirit root aptitude would be considered an extraordinary stroke of luck.
Yet Li Qing, insatiably greedy, was trying to swallow an elephant whole by scheming for core formation. Wasn't this sheer fantasy?
Time flowed by day after day. In the blink of an eye, Li Qing had been in the Great Wilderness Domain for over half a year.
During this time, thanks to the Black Mantis Mother-Child Blades, the Hundred Refinements Pavilion's reputation had finally begun to rise slightly in Nanyang Market. Each day, a few cultivators would come to patronize the shop.
Not all of them necessarily sought Li Qing to refine magic artifacts. Some came with the intention of befriending an artifact refiner, hoping to forge connections with him.
Li Qing naturally welcomed all comers, delighted to make the acquaintance of fellow rogue cultivators.
This situation reached its peak last month when Li Qing personally refined a top-grade magical artifact for a foundation establishment realm cultivator!
Once word spread, the entire region surrounding Sunward City learned that Nanyang Market housed an artifact refiner capable of crafting top-grade magical artifacts.
Most crucially, this individual was merely a rogue cultivator!
In an instant, many cultivation clans in Giant Deer Prefecture extended olive branches to Li Qing.
Among these cultivation clans, the Zhao Family stood out as the most illustrious. Their founding ancestor had once been a True Lord in the core formation realm!
This was a genuine core formation clan!
Although no Zhao Family member had reached the core formation realm since, each successive Clan Head had consistently cultivated to the late foundation establishment realm, a testament to their enduring strength.
Even such a prestigious clan had extended an olive branch to Li Qing, underscoring just how coveted he had become as an artifact refiner.
"With my current mid-foundation establishment stage cultivation and the ability to refine top-grade magical artifacts, I'm hardly standing out like a tall tree in the forest," Li Qing mused.
"After all, cultivators at the core formation realm and above wouldn't be interested in top-grade magical artifacts. And fellow foundation establishment cultivators wouldn't easily harbor hostile intentions toward me; they'd likely try to win me over and forge alliances."
Li Qing had a clear understanding of his current position. Appropriately showcasing his value wouldn't put him in danger. On the contrary, it would help him cultivate connections and expand his channels for gathering information.
When the Zhao Family extended their invitation, Li Qing merely chuckled and shook his head, declining without outright rejecting them.
"Now that I've reached the mid-foundation establishment stage, my cultivation progress should face few obstacles. My sole ambition is to achieve core formation."
"Joining a cultivation clan as a guest elder for no apparent reason would only invite trouble."
Li Qing doubted that joining the Zhao Family would offer any assistance in his core formation. After all, if the Zhao Family truly possessed core formation spiritual materials, they would have prioritized their own members long ago, not an outsider like him.
Over the years, only the first-generation Zhao Family Clan Head had reached the core formation realm. Subsequent Clan Heads had only reached the late foundation establishment realm or the pseudo core formation stage, with no other core formation true lords emerging.
This alone demonstrated that the Zhao Family's current resources were utterly insufficient to support the birth of another core formation realm cultivator within their ranks.
With this in mind, Li Qing penned a letter, his words carefully chosen to be polite and respectful, conveying his admiration for the Zhao Family while ultimately declining their invitation.
"Therefore, this Li Qing remains unwilling to abandon his current life of wandering freedom, preferring to continue enjoying these tranquil days of unburdened cultivation. I trust you will understand and respect my decision."
"Should your esteemed clan require artifact refinement services in the future, please do not hesitate to contact me. I will remain at Nanyang Market for the foreseeable future."
Li Qing finished writing the spirit letter, sealed it carefully, and sent it off via spirit bird.
"Phew! Now that the Zhao Family and the Ghost Sword Sect are so close, I can't afford to be careless."
Of course, he couldn't come across as too humble or fawning. As a foundation establishment realm artifact refiner, Li Qing had his own dignity to maintain.
The letter he'd just sent struck the perfect balance between respect and self-respect—a textbook example of proper etiquette!
With that task completed, Li Qing prepared to focus on his cultivation when a commotion suddenly arose outside his door.
His first thought was that it was a customer, but when he looked up, he saw Shen Ningbing standing there.
Since moving to Nanyang Market half a year ago, Shen Ningbing had been diligently cultivating in seclusion, completely detached from worldly affairs.
Yet in just six months, her aura had become remarkably refined, hinting that she was on the verge of breaking through to the late foundation establishment realm.
Noticing this, Li Qing's lips twitched involuntarily. Even with your Ice Attribute variant spirit root, this cultivation speed is downright heaven-defying!
"Junior Sister Shen, it seems your seclusion these past six months has yielded remarkable results. With such rapid progress, you'll likely reach the late foundation establishment realm in no time, right?"
"Your cultivation progress is so rapid, it makes me feel quite ashamed!" Li Qing said with a wry smile.
Shen Ningbing gently shook her head. "I've been at the mid-foundation establishment stage for quite some time. Plus, I've used up all the Purple Yang Pills my master gave me. Such progress isn't surprising."
Her words eased Li Qing's lingering sense of inferiority.
"But you, Senior Brother Li, have managed to establish a thriving business in this unfamiliar place all by yourself. Just now, on my way from Nanyang Market, I heard many people talking about you," Shen Ningbing said with a faint smile, as beautiful as the melting snow of early spring.
Li Qing sighed helplessly. "I'm just trying to make a living. My spirit stone reserves aren't substantial, so if I want to stay here long-term, I naturally need to find ways to earn more."
"Otherwise, all my artifact refinement skills would go to waste!"
"Enough about me. What brings you here, Junior Sister?"
At this, Shen Ningbing's smile faded, and she asked solemnly:
"Senior Brother Li, as you said, I'm now a rogue cultivator. Although I still have a decent amount of spirit stones, living off my savings isn't sustainable in the long run."
"Now I also need to earn spirit stones to sustain my future cultivation. I came here today to ask for your advice!"
With that, Shen Ningbing produced several Wanted Bounty Notices from her sleeve—all issued by the Ghost Sword Sect!
As she handed the notices to Li Qing, she said earnestly, "I plan to take on some bounty missions to earn rewards from the Ghost Sword Sect. Senior Brother Li, with your experience, can you help me determine which of these bounties are worth pursuing?"
Without realizing it, Shen Ningbing had already begun to rely on Li Qing's extensive experience as a rogue cultivator, even entrusting him with the decision of which bounties to accept.
After receiving the notices, Li Qing frowned slightly as he examined each one meticulously.
Most of the bounties targeted foundation establishment cultivators, with only a few targeting qi refining realm or core formation realm cultivators.
Li Qing was slightly surprised to see Pill Master Yan among the wanted targets.
All the Wanted Bounty Notices shared a common trait: the rewards were exceptionally generous. Whether for claiming a target's head or capturing them alive, the bounties were incredibly enticing.
Besides figures like Pill Master Yan, there were also remnants of the Ancient Hua Immortal Dynasty—hidden members of the fallen dynasty who had yet to be completely eradicated.
One target was even the heir apparent of a royal marquis, a person of extreme nobility.
Though this individual was only at the qi refining realm, his bounty surpassed even those offered for some foundation establishment cultivators.
After reviewing the notices in silence for a moment, Li Qing finally spoke:
"Junior Sister Shen, to be frank, I advise against accepting any of these bounty missions."
(End of the Chapter)
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