Chapter 171 Heading to the Star Moon Palace

Zhong Cai continued, "With the changes we've made, the butterfly effect is to be expected. Old Wu, look how many good things we've sold at this auction. There must be quite a few cultivators whose fates have been changed as a result. Just look at Brother Ji Ming. If it weren't for us, he would most likely have died in the secret realm, and none of this would have happened, let alone the Blazing Sun Physique."

"So it's understandable that if the Ice Fairy's physique changes as a result, she would plan to find a husband early on."

Zhong Cai stroked her chin and said with a smile, "If the original book had waited a few more years before recruiting husbands, the little one could have participated, but in the end, he definitely wouldn't have been able to find a husband. I reckon that a powerful figure like the Ice Spirit Fairy would only have a fleeting encounter with the little one, and wouldn't become a member of his harem."

At this point, Zhong Cai's speculation became increasingly logical.

"No, no, no, that's not necessarily true. It depends on how things develop."

"And! I think there might be other plot points involved!"

"For example, after going through many hardships, the Ice Fairy and her son fall in love. In the end, she might become obsessed with love, or she might become inseparable from her son due to her physical constitution and have to become a member of the harem..."

"For example, the boy was saved by the Ice Fairy after provoking a powerful enemy, but the Ice Fairy was seriously injured and her physique overexerted itself, so she had to fall into a deep sleep... Then, after the boy became stronger, he searched everywhere for a way to save the Ice Fairy. Since he is the protagonist, he was sure to find a way and saved the Ice Fairy. As a result, the rules of the Han family became more relaxed."

"Of course, there's also a high possibility that... Even if nothing happens, the Ice Spirit Fairy and the child can only 'look at each other from afar' and can't be together. After the protagonist child becomes a Tongtian Realm expert, even the Star Moon Palace will have to give way. It's perfectly fine for the Ice Spirit Fairy to become one of the Tongtian Realm experts' harems again!"

"And there's more..."

·

On a whim, Zhong Cai rattled off a whole bunch of routines, talking non-stop.

Wu Shaogan listened with a suppressed laugh, playing with Zhong Cai's hand without interrupting him.

After Zhong Cai finished speaking, Wu Shaogan smiled and said, "A Cai's speculations are all very reasonable. In the original book, it might really be like that. But now it seems that Brother Fan is a better match."

Zhong Cai agreed, saying, "The kid is still so young, he can't be in a relationship so early!"

Wu Shaogan chuckled and looked at Zhong Cai again and again.

Zhong Cai snorted and said, "How can we be the same as the kid? We're childhood sweethearts, it was a natural progression! Besides, even if we were to have a relationship early, it wouldn't stop us from preventing the kid from having one."

Wu Shaogan didn't refute it at all: "A Cai is right."

Zhong Cai immediately became happy.

However, at this point, the two of them went a bit off-topic.

Zhong Cai said, "Brother Jiming means that we should go and build up his 'connections'."

Wu Shaogan nodded.

Zhong Cai laughed and said, "Brother Ji Ming is worrying too much. I think it's difficult unless someone surpasses him in every aspect. Otherwise, the Ice Spirit Fairy in the original book wouldn't have had to wait until the child..." At this point, he suddenly waved his hand, "No, no, the idea that the Ice Spirit Fairy is the child's confidante is just my guess, and I can't be sure at all!"

If the Ice Fairy is not a character related to the original storyline, then perhaps she was originally looking for a husband now and has already found a suitable partner.

Therefore, Fan Jiming must be extremely careful if he wants to compete with that person.

·

According to Fan Jiming, the standards for marriage among disciples of the Star Moon Palace are certainly not low.

While he may have the right personal qualities, he will lose out due to his background.

The Fan family is only a level six power, which is far inferior to the level eight power, Star Moon Palace.

For example, the highest price for a level 6 resource is only 500,000 low-grade Xuan Stones, while a level 8 resource is 500,000 high-grade Xuan Stones.

The difference is a staggering ten thousand times!

In other words, the gap between the Fan family and the Xingyue Palace is also that large.

There must be many people with special physical constitutions in the world, especially in larger organizations that recruit geniuses, among whom there must be quite a few with suitable physical constitutions.

If Fairy Ice Spirit herself wasn't valued by the Star Moon Palace, that would be fine; geniuses from powerful forces might not be willing to marry into the family. But she is very likely to be a Nirvana Realm expert in the future, and may very well take control of the Moon Palace. Naturally, her husband's status would be extraordinary, and he would also be able to obtain a lot of resources.

Moreover, even without anything else, being able to cultivate with such a proud and talented woman would be extremely beneficial to one's cultivation!

The physique chosen by the Ice Fairy is naturally complementary to the fairy's. The Cold Moon physique can gain great benefits, and the same applies to the other physique.

Just like Fan Jiming himself, he must have thought about it—if the Blazing Sun Body and the Cold Moon Body could complement each other, his own deficiencies could also be harmonized. Even if they were still a little lacking, the number of pills he would need would be much less.

Moreover, the Ice Fairy is extremely wealthy.

It's definitely far better than that penniless wretch Fan Jiming...

Therefore, those who will participate in the husband-recruitment conference this time will not only have a suitable physique like Fan Jiming, but they may also be at the Fusion stage—making them even more suitable. Moreover, they will probably all have considerable power behind them.

Perhaps the geniuses in the seventh-level forces are also the geniuses in the eighth-level forces who are not so highly regarded.

Such geniuses, even disregarding their own qualifications, possess powerful networks of connections.

Their strength extends far beyond themselves.

·

Fan Jiming's most powerful connections are currently with Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan.

These two not only come from an eighth-level power, but they are also exceptionally talented. Zhong Cai's talent in alchemy is unparalleled, and he is the top of the fourth-level alchemy ranking at a young age; Wu Shaogan's talent in martial arts is unparalleled, and he is the top of the Azure Dragon ranking at a young age.

Besides, Zhong Cai has an eighth-level alchemist behind him, and Wu Shaogan has a Nirvana Realm cultivator, a Quasi-Nirvana Realm cultivator, and a string of Spirit Transformation Realm cultivators behind him!

With such high quality, these two are even better than twenty... no, even better than two hundred!

Although Zhong Cai, Wu Shaogan, and Fan Jiming weren't exactly sworn brothers, if the two of them were willing to accompany Fan Jiming to participate in the husband-recruiting activity, then Fan Jiming's shallow background could be made up for.

This is enough to put Fan Jiming on the same starting line as other geniuses.

·

Zhong Cai was in high spirits. He shook the letter and said with a smile, "Brother Ji Ming, this is a good idea. Old Wu, are you interested?"

Wu Shaogan's eyes softened: "Interested."

Actually, it wasn't that Wu Shaogan was interested in this, but rather that he could tell that Zhong Cai was interested.

Wu Shaogan was willing to be interested in anything that Zhong Cai was interested in.

Zhong Cai knew this too, and was overjoyed. She pounced on Wu Shaogan.

"Old Wu is the best!"

Wu Shaogan deliberately put on a smug look and laughed, "Of course."

·

Having already agreed, Zhong Cai had the puppet deliver a letter to Fan Jiming.

Not long after, Fan Jiming replied.

The letter naturally stated where and when the two parties would meet.

Zhong Cai read it and thought it was fine, so he replied again.

After going back and forth like this, the decision was made.

During this time, Zhong Cai was not idle either. She excitedly dragged Wu Shaogan to look for things in different resource halls.

It wasn't anything else, but he felt that if Fan Jiming successfully married into the family, they would definitely have to hold a wedding immediately. At that time, he and Lao Wu would definitely have important guests, so they would have to send some congratulatory gifts, right?

Fan Jiming's wife was no ordinary female cultivator; she was backed by the eighth-level Star Moon Palace. The disciples of the eighth-level Azure Dragon Academy presented their congratulatory gifts, taking into account their respective identities and positions within their respective factions…

In addition, Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan are "good friends" who support Fan Jiming, so they absolutely cannot be stingy.

The two discussed it:

"We're a married couple, so it'll definitely be delivered in both of our names, two portions at once..."

"Let's get a Xuanzhu for 880,000, along with a pair of level-five Xuan artifacts and a few bottles of level-five pills... The quality shouldn't be too low, after all, one of them is fused and the other is close to fusion, and the Ice Spirit Fairy is so highly regarded. If the quality is poor, what's the difference between them and trash to her? We can't lose face like that!"

"Oh, and a pair of level six mystic weapons too! And good ones at that!"

Wu Shaogan raised an eyebrow: "Ah Cai, you're not feeling the pinch this time?"

Zhong Cai pouted: "At a time like this, saving face is more important than feeling the pinch."

Wu Shaogan suppressed a laugh: "A-Cai is right."

·

The two agreed to help Fan Jiming not only because Zhong Cai herself liked to join in the fun, but also because of the Star Moon Palace itself.

The Ice Fairy's lineage is also quite extraordinary; it would be good to establish a positive connection with them.

and……

Cultivators with ice-cold attributes can venture into many special and dangerous places.

Zhong Cai can grow many medicinal herbs, but there are also many herbs that must be grown in a specific environment—his herb garden has not yet developed such a simulation function.

Therefore, some medicinal materials that are in demand can be purchased from Xingyue Palace.

Even if the herb garden could one day have such a function, I believe the Star Moon Palace would have more reserves... If you want to plant them, you can trade with the Star Moon Palace for a more complete selection.

·

Two days later, Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan went out.

They met Fan Jiming in a private room of a large restaurant in Canglong City.

After entering, Zhong Cai raised her eyebrows.

That's interesting. There's more than just Fan Jiming involved here.

There are two other acquaintances, one is Fan Zhongyang, and the other is Fan Liukong.

And something relatively unfamiliar—

Fan Jiming quickly introduced the stranger as Fan Zirui, who was also at the Xuanzhao Realm and was Fan Jiming's cousin.

This time, several members of the Fan family followed Fan Jiming to encourage him and also to broaden their horizons.

That's the Star and Moon Palace!

The rules of the Star and Moon Palace are very strict.

Many powerful forces operate in the same way. If cultivators other than disciples want to enter, even if they are the disciples' own relatives or friends, they must go through a series of procedures—in most cases, they will not be allowed to.

The Star and Moon Palace is one where one is absolutely not allowed to enter unless they marry into the family or move in with their spouse—there are only a very few exceptions.

It's unclear whether this open recruitment of husbands will take place inside the Star and Moon Palace.

Perhaps... they might be able to see what's happening inside the Star Moon Palace.

·

When Fan Jiming learned of this news and realized that she wanted to find a husband, she must have informed the Fan family beforehand.

If Fan Jiming could thus gain access to the Cold Moon lineage of the Moon Palace, it would be an incredible stroke of luck, and the Fan family would naturally not object.

When some of the young geniuses in the Fan family found out, a few of them who were on good terms with Fan Jiming contacted him and offered to keep him company.

Fan Jiming himself, after much deliberation, thought of two close friends.

However, Fan Jiming himself was unsure whether his two friends would be willing to accompany him.

The other members of the Fan family were even more uncertain—and they felt that Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan were more likely to disagree.

Even Fan Liukong, who had already spent time with the two of them, knew that they were both... and knew that Zhong Cai was more easygoing, but he was still hesitant.

As a result, not long after the letter entered the Azure Dragon Academy, a reply came, and they immediately agreed!

That's incredibly loyal!

Several members of the Fan family envied Fan Jiming.

I knew Fan Jiming had befriended two prodigies from the Azure Dragon Clan, but their interactions seemed far from ordinary...

·

Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan took their seats.

Fan Jiming had already prepared food and wine, and first toasted his two friends, saying sincerely, "Thank you both for your help."

Zhong Cai took a sip of wine, toyed with the glass, and laughed, "It's nothing, it's quite interesting."

Fan Jiming smiled and said, "I should thank you too."

Zhong Cai immediately mocked Fan Jiming for being "too eager to get married".

Fan Jiming didn't mind and accepted it all.

Then, everyone started eating and chatting.

·

The food and drinks were of very high quality, which showed that Fan Jiming had spent a lot of money and was a sincere expression of gratitude.

After finishing his meal, Zhong Cai asked, "When are we leaving?" He then inquired curiously, "How do you plan to get there?"

Fan Jiming replied, "I borrowed the treasure ship from the Ancestor."

Zhong Cai asked, "Level 7?"

Fan Jiming hesitated for a moment, but still said, "Level 6."

Zhong Cai immediately shook her head: "Level 6 won't work. It's too slow. If it takes too long to get there by this, and if the time for finding a husband is brought forward, then you'll be out of luck."

Fan Jiming said with a wry smile, "That's why I plan to leave immediately, and I'm troubling you all..."

Zhong Cai waved his hand, stopping him from saying anything more, and said directly, "Let's ride in my and Lao Wu's flying boat instead."

Fan Jiming was taken aback.

Zhong Cai said, "It's a level seven flying boat. Once we get there, it can blend in with other level seven flying artifacts and get by."

Fan Jiming knew perfectly well that this was another favor from his two friends.

He said solemnly and earnestly, "Thank you."

Zhong Cai chuckled and said, "Now that you know how much Lao Wu and I care, just work hard and get married smoothly, so as not to let us down."

Fan Jiming remained serious: "Definitely."

Then, the other members of the Fan family started to jeer.

·

After a satisfying meal, we left the restaurant.

The group arrived outside Canglong City.

Zhong took out a mid-grade level seven flying boat.

This was the gift that Sang Yunchu gave to Zhong Cai after she became his disciple.

The airship looked very light, but it was more than enough to carry the current number of people; the airship was also very fast, and if used for travel, it would be able to reach the location of the Star Moon Palace in a few days.

When they saw the flying boat, Fan Jiming and the others held their breath.

It's nothing more than the powerful pressure emanating from the flying boat itself—after all, it's also at the seventh level.

So much so that when the Fan family members first saw it, they were not used to it and felt a little suffocated.

However, such flying magical artifacts are different from ordinary magical artifacts.

Ordinary Xuan artifacts require cultivators to infuse them with Xuan power before use, so those with lower cultivation levels often cannot fully utilize their abilities when using those with higher cultivation levels.

Flying artifacts are controlled by the soul and driven by mystic pearls or mystic stones—very special, the cultivator's own mystic power is only temporarily used to manage in conjunction with the soul—so it can fully utilize its speed.

At the same time, the pressure it naturally exudes is not very strong.

Otherwise, cultivators with lower cultivation levels would have no chance of boarding such a flying artifact.

·

Wu Shaogan grabbed Zhong Cai's hand and they both leaped into the air.

In the blink of an eye, the two were already standing on the deck of the flying boat, waving to the Fan family disciples below.

The members of the Fan family exchanged glances.

Fan Jiming was the first to stand up, and the other three quickly followed.

·

Once everyone had arrived, Zhong Cai focused his spiritual energy into the core of the flying boat.

The formation there was activated, and the installed mystic stones immediately emitted abundant energy.

The next moment, the airship "whooshed" away.

Before the Fan family members could even get a close look at the flying boat, they discovered that it was already thousands of miles away.

The surrounding scenery is completely different now.

·

Inside the flying boat.

Zhong Cai lazily played chess with Wu Shaogan.

Fan Jiming was clearly still a little nervous, seemingly constantly thinking about how to perform at the husband-recruiting competition.

This is considered taking precautions, but in reality, it doesn't really prevent anything.

More specific requirements will only be given when you actually participate...

Several other members of the Fan family also quietly offered advice to Fan Jiming, making some guesses and such.

They were still quite lively talking.

·

Zhong Cai appeared to be engrossed in chess and didn't seem to notice what was happening at the Fan family's place, but in reality, she would occasionally glance at it.

Unbeknownst to them, two golden-armored soldiers at the peak of the Spirit Transformation realm were also on board the flying boat with them.

Now, the golden-armored soldiers are also hiding, keeping a close eye on Fan Zhongyang.

The fact that Jin Jiabing has not made any reports in the past six months indicates that Fan Zhongyang has not caused any trouble during this period.

But...

During this time, as Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan played with the mirror, they could see that the guy's malice towards them had increased by a few points.

Even though Fan Zhongyang was so malicious, he could still act almost like Fan Liukong in front of them, seemingly admiring them and happy to befriend them. It was really hypocritical.

Now, Fan Zhongyang insists on coming out with Fan Jiming. What is his purpose?

Surely it's not like he's trying to steal that Ice Fairy away?

His qualifications in all aspects are not suitable.

Zhong Cai raised her eyes and looked at Wu Shaogan opposite her.

[Old Wu, what do you think Fan Zhongyang is trying to do?]

[Perhaps it's not the time for him to do anything yet; he's just trying to befriend the people from the Star Moon Palace?]

Zhong Cai thought about it for a moment and felt it was quite possible.

Never mind.

He didn't need to know what Fan Zhongyang was thinking or doing.

The Golden Armored Soldiers have already been deployed. No matter what Fan Zhongyang wants to do next, the Golden Armored Soldiers can handle it promptly.

They can also find out immediately.

·

A few days later.

The airship arrived at Star Moon City.

The Star Moon Palace is located on the icy plains near the Star Moon Mountains outside the city, occupying a very large area.

There are also many glaciers on the ice plains, and Star Moon Palace has included a large part of them. Although this is not as good as Azure Dragon Academy, which directly controls the entire mountain range, glaciers are extremely dangerous and contain many terrifying and strange environments. Star Moon Palace has already become a very powerful level eight force by doing this.

Moreover, the Star Moon Palace also has a considerable degree of control over the powerful beasts on the vast ice plains.

·

The area where Star Moon Palace is located is extremely cold, but Star Moon City was carved out outside the ice plains, and there are many normal mountain ranges nearby. The overall environment is completely different from that on the ice plains and inside Star Moon Palace.

It is indeed colder than cities further away, and there is more freezing weather throughout the year, but it also has a considerable amount of normal weather.

·

After arriving in Starmoon City, the airship changed direction and headed directly to the ice plains.

Standing on the deck, Zhong Cai could see the snow-covered landscape outside.

There are endless glaciers, mighty flowing glaciers, and boundless snow and ice... the whole place looks like it's been carved from snow and jade.

A chilling atmosphere permeated the air, and even a single breath felt like it would freeze one's internal organs.

Fortunately, the airship's defenses were always active.

These icy auras could not penetrate the airship, nor would they cause any harm to the people inside.

·

Zhong Cai thought for a moment, then went back to the cabin with Wu Shaogan.

When they came out again, both of them were not only wearing defensive armbands, but also gold and silver treasure robes.

Meanwhile, their level-eight puppets were on standby, hidden in Zhong Cai's sleeves; the ancient city was taken into the Dao Palace by Wu Shaogan—he reacted faster than Zhong Cai, and even if Zhong Cai did not foresee the crisis, he could pull Zhong Cai back at any time and escape into the ancient city.

In this way, their lives are absolutely safe.

·

Once on the ice field, to avoid making a fool of themselves by flying too fast, the airship slowed down its flight.

This allowed Zhong Cai to leisurely enjoy the scenery of the ice field.

Now, Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan walked out and came face to face with Fan Jiming.

Fan Jiming's face was very tense; he was truly very nervous.

Zhong Cai couldn't help but tease, "Brother Ji Ming, if you go back like this, you probably won't even be able to say a few words."

Fan Jiming chuckled twice.

Zhong Cai sighed softly, "I'm afraid that you, Brother Jiming, clearly have the ability, but you'll be eliminated in the first step because you can't speak."

Fan Jiming was shocked and quickly adjusted his mindset.

Yeah! Being too nervous won't do! You'll get disliked!

Let's not let him be eliminated before he even has a chance to show his skills...

Zhong Cai glanced at him and saw that Brother Fan had instantly become as fiery as fire!

All the anxiety and unease I felt just now were completely burned away by this "raging fire".

·

After a while, a magnificent palace appeared in front of them.

It seems to be made of ice and snow, standing tall and soaring into the clouds.

Upon closer inspection, one can see that there are actually large sections of ice walls in front of the palace, stretching into the distance and enveloping the ice palace and countless other buildings that were almost overlooked earlier.

It's actually like an ice and snow city.

Those massive building complexes are also like they were made of ice and snow, but they are not all pure white, nor are they all crystal clear. There are many other colors that match the ice and snow.

But without a doubt, they are all very beautiful.

In front of this icy city, many magnificent treasure ships are suspended.

Various pavilions were built on it, and many ships even had several powerful attendants on their decks.

It displayed an air of grandeur.

A little observation reveals that... all of these treasure ships are level seven.