Chapter 122 The Mingfeng Mountain Plan
Ji An smiled and nodded, replying:
"Thanks to my senior brother, I just managed to break through last night."
He has grasped the true meaning of the magic of Jia Wood and Yi Wood, and through mutual verification, his understanding of the Green Wood Transformation Technique far surpasses that of ordinary early Foundation Establishment cultivators.
With an abundance of elixirs and dedicated practice, he was able to advance two realms in succession within ten years.
He's making good progress, but there's still a considerable gap between him and the truly formidable players.
For example, his senior brother Liu Yu broke through to the third level of Foundation Establishment five years ago.
Because of the upcoming competition, the opponent now rarely takes any pills and even intentionally slows down his cultivation pace, focusing more on honing his spells.
If one cultivates too quickly and breaks through to the mid-Foundation Establishment stage before the Three Sects Competition, one will have to fight against a group of cultivators at the fifth and sixth levels of Foundation Establishment.
That would be too disadvantageous, as the opponent could gain a lot of advantage simply by overwhelming the opponent with magical power.
When Liu Yu said those words, Du Huaiyuan, who was present at the time, was filled with envy for a long time.
Everyone else complains that their cultivation level isn't improving fast enough, but some people are actually worried that their cultivation level is improving too fast.
Ye Changqing hurriedly waved his hand and laughed:
"Junior brother is too modest. I originally thought that this land of golden winds and raging fires would slow down your cultivation progress, but I was wrong."
The quality of the spirit charcoal produced by Crimson Flame Peak in recent years can give a rough idea of your understanding of the cultivation technique.
The sect's records show that this junior brother's aptitude was only average, so his achievements demonstrate his excellent comprehension, which greatly compensates for his lack of talent.
As cultivation levels gradually improve, the gap in aptitude between cultivators will further narrow, and the other person's future will be very bright.
In his view, if things continue to develop in this way, the other party may have the potential to break through to the Chaoyuan stage and become a member of the sect's decision-making body.
After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Ye Changqing pointed to the fruit tree and said:
"These apricots are of excellent quality. Remember to save some for me when they ripen. I will pay with spirit stones to buy them."
He also liked to plant spirit fruit trees in his cave, but he had never cultivated a spirit apricot tree that could bear such large fruit.
"What's the point? I'll just give some to my senior brother this year."
Ji An laughed and said, "A mid-grade first-level spirit apricot isn't worth many spirit stones. Why not send some to familiar cultivators as a favor?"
It will take a few more years to cultivate the fruit trees to the first-class superior grade before they can be considered good products. At that time, the fruit trees will enter their peak fruiting period and can produce stable income.
However, he still prefers to satisfy his own needs before selling, rather than being a miser.
Ji An led the guests to the stone house by the cold pool, as the spiritual energy in the cave was not suitable for entertaining guests during the day.
Liang Qiu, with keen insight, took out spirit charcoal to start a fire and brew tea, then stepped outside to wait.
"Senior brother, I heard that the sect is facing increasing resistance in expanding its new strongholds, and has already clashed with a group of demonic beasts at the Chaoyuan stage. What is the specific situation?"
Ye Changqing raised an eyebrow slightly and said:
"Junior brother seems to stay on Crimson Flame Peak all day and never goes out, but he's very well-informed!"
Most people were unaware of the encounter with the Chaoyuan-stage demon beast clan; he only learned of it because of his location.
"Senior brother may not have noticed, but my fellow disciple Liu Yu is now on duty in the Enforcement Hall."
He told me this news a few days ago after returning to the sect from completing a demon-hunting mission.
Ye Changqing stroked his goatee and nodded slightly:
"It's quite an anomaly, that the Ningcui Cliff lineage actually produced a cultivator like Junior Brother Liu who possesses exceptional talent in combat."
Liu Yu made many contributions to the Enforcement Hall and received a lot of rewards from the sect. He often went to the Diligent Work Hall to hand over tasks, and we became acquainted with him over time.
He learned from other cultivators in the Law Enforcement Hall that Liu Yu appeared gentle and refined, but when fighting, he was as aggressive as fire and could often do things that others could not.
The Ningcui Cliff lineage excels in alchemy, and now with the addition of a highly skilled cultivator, their influence within the sect will further expand.
Ye Changqing coughed lightly and continued:
"I came here today with the intention of informing my junior brother of some things."
The sect's advance in the Ten Thousand Mountains came to a halt at the Wolf Valley and Mingfeng Mountain, where several large packs of wolf-like demon beasts resided.
Beyond Mingfeng Mountain lies the hunting grounds of the Golden Feather Eagle clan.
Wolf-type monsters have always been the main force of demonic disasters. If we can eliminate the wolf monsters here, we will face far fewer demonic disasters in the future.
However, when we attacked the wolf demons, the Golden-feathered Eagle clan, who had a strained relationship with them, also joined the attack, causing our advance to stall.
There is a naked law of the jungle among the monsters. The Golden-feathered Eagle clan often preys on wolf demons, but the more powerful wolf demons also hunt the Golden-feathered Eagles. The hatred between the two clans runs deep.
Now they're even showing signs of helping each other out; it seems that alliances are beginning to form among the monsters.
As he spoke, he dipped his finger in water and drew a simple map:
“Mingfeng Mountain is a second-tier high-grade spiritual vein. If we can seize it and set up a mountain-protecting array, the strongholds we have occupied over the years will have a powerful support point.”
Not only us, but also Luofeng Valley and Yuanhe Mountain have gradually advanced here. Junior brother, do you understand what I mean?
Ji An lowered his gaze and pondered for a moment:
"The patriarchs of several sects must have planned to seize this spiritual vein, which would mean that the first scene of the demonic calamity would be in the territory of the demonic beasts."
His eyes lit up, and he said solemnly:
"If I'm not mistaken, the three sects want to build a huge market similar to Qingyun Immortal City in Mingfeng Mountain, and lure a large number of rogue cultivators there by promising them benefits."
Ji An felt that the situation was becoming clearer. The cultivators of the Central Continent were using the Western Continent as a strategic buffer, while the sects of the Western Continent wanted to use the many independent cultivators as a strategic buffer to keep the enemy outside their sphere of influence and minimize the impact on their sects.
Various cultivation families will likely contribute to this, and most independent cultivators will follow the sects' lead for personal gain.
Ye Changqing's long, gray eyebrows twitched a few times as he exclaimed in admiration:
"My guess is the same, but it won't be easy to attack Mingfeng Mountain. There are several demon kings in the late stage of the Chaoyuan realm among the wolf demon clan."
Once you pass Mingfeng Mountain, you'll enter the core area of the Ten Thousand Mountains.
If the sect's patriarch were to intervene, it would likely provoke an attack from Golden Core stage demon kings, and the demonic calamity might even erupt prematurely.
"The battle cannot drag on for too long; it must be resolved quickly, otherwise it will attract the attention of the demon king deep in the mountains."
The patriarchs of each sect could only hold the line. The battle was centered around cultivators in the Chaoyuan stage, with a large number of Foundation Establishment stage cultivators being mobilized to participate. At the same time, they urged various cultivation families to send their own people to join the battle.
Although my junior brother is a spirit farmer, he has already reached the third level of Foundation Establishment, so there's a high probability he'll be recruited. He'd better make plans as soon as possible.
Battles inevitably involve sacrifices. We cannot recruit a large number of rogue cultivators for siege warfare. Otherwise, if the harsh situation is exposed in advance, fewer rogue cultivators will be willing to go to the New Immortal City, which will be very detrimental to future plans.
The sect's idea is to tackle the tough challenges themselves and give up more benefits to independent cultivators.
If this war goes smoothly, we will surely reap a huge amount of demon beast cores. At that time, it will be time for various sects to use demon cores to replace the main ingredient of Foundation Establishment Pills and refine pills on a large scale.
Using Foundation Establishment Pills as bait will inevitably drive rogue cultivators crazy and attract a large number of them to the New Immortal City.
Once they take the bait, they won't be able to back out later.
Ji An's eyes shone with divine light. He was no longer afraid of fighting, and all he needed to do was prepare a few more handy magical artifacts.
At this moment, he had quite a few second-tier spiritual items, which would allow him to find someone to refine spiritual weapons in one go.
The sound of "bubbling" could be heard, indicating that the spring water had boiled.
Ji An brewed tea, poured two cups, and sent one out to the customer. He said in a deep voice:
"Senior brother, when do you think the sect will take action?"
Ye Changqing took the teacup, inhaled the rising aroma, and a satisfied smile appeared on his lips:
"It will take at least two or three years of preparation. Junior brother still has time to hone his combat skills."
My advice is to purchase several defensive magical artifacts; in battle, focus on avoiding mistakes rather than achieving great feats.
The sect will distribute numerous rewards based on combat performance, as it is a major event that motivates disciples to fight desperately.
He didn't think Ji An would have any outstanding performance in the battle, as the opponent's spiritual cultivation level was profound and his cultivation could be described as advanced.
If someone also possesses exceptional combat skills, how are the others supposed to survive?
Ji An chuckled and said:
"Senior brother's method suits my taste quite well."
With the Golden Armor Technique and the Rock-Solid Technique stacked on top of him, his defense is astonishing. If he were to commission a defensive magical artifact, he should be able to withstand attacks from late-stage Foundation Establishment demonic beasts.
This is his defensive capability without revealing his Golden Light Technique. If he uses all his methods, he expects to be able to withstand the siege of several late-stage Foundation Establishment demonic beasts for a short time.
Ye Changqing was very satisfied that the other party was willing to listen to him, and smiled as he took out a storage bag:
"Here are 2,250 pieces of animal hide, along with a sufficient amount of talisman ink and talisman brushes. I will come back in three months to collect 900 Blazing Flame Talismans."
"Junior brother, you can acquire more talisman-making materials in the future, and use talismans to compensate for the lack of offensive methods in battle."
"That's what I think too."
Ji An handed over the storage bag hanging at his waist, and then took out his identity jade token, saying:
"Inside are 750 high-grade Explosive Flame Talismans used to complete the last mission. Senior Brother, please take a look."
After verifying the quantity, Ye Changqing took out his spirit disc, added the corresponding contribution points to the jade tablet, and left a task record.
He returned the jade pendant and said with a smile:
“My junior brother has accumulated quite a few contribution points over the years, currently totaling 380,000.”
Ji An grinned. For the past ten years, he had almost only taken in money and never spent it. His only expense was buying pills, which he traded with Li Lingyu using spirit stones.
"It seems like a lot, but it's also used up quickly. When cultivating in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, you need to refine various spiritual objects to cultivate your techniques, which is a long-term and huge expense."
Because of the sect's mandatory missions, the prices of all kinds of spiritual items are more than double what they were a dozen years ago.
Exchanging contribution points for spiritual items from the sect's treasury is extremely expensive.
Ye Changqing chuckled twice, then said with a mysterious expression:
"Once my junior brother breaks through to the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, perhaps we won't have this problem anymore."
Thank you all for your comments. After reviewing them again, it does seem unusual that the situation wasn't reported to the sect, since there was originally a plan to plug the loopholes.
Also, I'd like to recommend some exciting and thrilling fantasy novels with great magical combat scenes. Combat is an unavoidable element, and I definitely need to catch up on that. I'm already looking for books that I enjoyed before to learn from.
(End of this chapter)
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