Chapter 420 : Changes in the Situation
Chapter 420: Changes in the Situation
The female cultivator’s black hair cascaded like a waterfall, and she wore a cyan, waist-cinching magical robe that outlined her slender and upright figure.
A palm-sized storage pouch hung from the jade-green belt around her waist, with faint traces showing that it had been carefully repaired many times.
Beneath the gray-blue veil, rough and dull cheekbones were faintly visible, along with several inconspicuous sunspots on her forehead. A long sword with weak spiritual light hung behind her, barely qualifying as a First-Rank High-Grade Magical Artifact.
With this kind of attire and appearance, anyone who saw her would think she was an impoverished late-stage Qi Refinement cultivator.
But a disguise of this level could not conceal anything from Chen Beiwu’s divine sense.
Whether it was the Second-Rank Mid-Grade aura-concealing Spiritual Artifact or the rough skin and callused hands deliberately created with spells, all were practically nonexistent beneath the divine sense of a Nascent Soul True Monarch.
Without deliberately prying, Chen Beiwu saw the female cultivator’s face and smiled slightly, a trace of nostalgia appearing in his eyes.
Beneath the veil was an indescribably delicate and beautiful face. Her straight, elegant nose, pale-pink cherry lips, and nervous eyes perfectly overlapped with the features in Chen Beiwu’s memories of the young girl who had climbed cliffs barefoot to gather medicine for her father. Only the childishness in her eyes had diminished, replaced by an additional trace of hardness and hesitation.
Time flowed onward, and everyone encountered different fortunes.
The herb-gathering girl who had possessed fairly good fate back then was now already an early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator carrying Auspicious Fortune.
Possessing this level of fate, the young woman might have hopes of forming a Core in the future, or even attaining the Dao as a True Monarch.
Of course, the prerequisite was that she could obtain a True Monarch inheritance and sufficient cultivation resources, survive safely, and avoid dying after being swept into this war among the Three Realms.
After all, the Southern Wilderness had no shortage of immortal cultivation geniuses who died midway!
At this thought, Chen Beiwu shook his head and had no intention of greeting her. He quietly stood among the crowd and gradually moved forward with the queue.
The word affinity was truly unpredictable.
Back then, if not for that Stone-Born Herb, he would never have been able to exchange for Golden Egg from the mutated spirit turtle.
Encountering Ink Vaidurya again now might also be a kind of affinity, allowing him to settle the cause and effect from back then!
After presenting the inner disciple jade slip prepared by the sect, Chen Beiwu smoothly passed the identity inspection and entered the market.
Inside the market, cultivators came and went without end. Most were solemn-looking Foundation Establishment cultivators traveling in groups, while there were also some lone Foundation Establishment rogue cultivators hurrying along with vigilant eyes.
These cultivators dressed differently and came from various subordinate immortal cultivation families. Most wore the Mirror Moon Sect insignia around their waists or cuffs, clearly all reinforcement troops about to head toward the crucial frontline stronghold, Mirror Sky City.
“Whoosh!”
“Whoosh!”
Occasionally, one or two streaks of escaping light swept across the sky above Cloud Ridge Market, causing the cultivators below to discuss quietly, envy and yearning appearing in their eyes.
Within Cloud Ridge Market, which had entered a state of war readiness, only Golden Core True Persons of the Mirror Moon Sect could ignore the market’s flight prohibition.
“This humble one is Two Stones, making a living here in Cloud Ridge Market. Senior, do you need a broker? Just one low-grade spirit stone per day.”
A thin figure nimbly wove out from the crowd and stopped three steps in front of Chen Beiwu, speaking respectfully.
“Fine.” Chen Beiwu slightly nodded.
With his divine sense, he did not need a broker to hear most of the cultivators’ conversations within the market and gather the intelligence he wanted.
But spending one spirit stone to find a broker who would answer any question and was familiar with Cloud Ridge Market could save him some effort.
Li Two Stones looked delighted and cautiously asked: “May I ask, Senior, did you come to Cloud Ridge Market for a task under the Upper Sect’s conscription order, or for an opportunity on the Upper Sect’s bounty ranking?”
Cultivators entering and leaving Cloud Ridge Market basically came for these two purposes. Asking directly like this could save a great deal of unnecessary trouble.
“What’s the difference between the two?” Chen Beiwu casually asked while pretending not to know.
“If it’s the former.” Li Two Stones lowered his voice:
“This humble one knows a little about the task quotas under the conscription order, reporting locations, even which missions offer the most benefits with the least risk, and which steward lords have easygoing temperaments. Perhaps I can guide Senior and smooth things over, eliminating a few insignificant troubles.”
“If it’s the latter, this humble one knows some detailed information not clearly written on the bounty ranking. I can connect Senior with the right people and guarantee the information is timely and genuine.”
As he spoke, the corner of Li Two Stones’ eyes rapidly swept over Chen Beiwu’s clothing, ornaments, complexion, and bearing.
‘This is a big fish. I have to hold onto him properly!’ Li Two Stones thought inwardly.
“First find somewhere to eat.” Chen Beiwu said concisely.
“Certainly, Senior, this way please.”
Li Two Stones swiftly turned sideways and made a “please” gesture, then naturally stepped forward and began introducing places while guiding Chen Beiwu.
“If Senior enjoys liveliness, this humble one recommends ‘Rinsing Jade Pavilion’.
The environment there is excellent, and they serve Mirror Prefecture’s famous dishes ‘Ice Jade Rice’ and ‘Cloud Stream Vinegar Fish’. Most of the patrons are Foundation Establishment cultivators. It’s just that the price is, well, a little particular.”
At this point, Li Two Stones changed the subject and lowered his voice: “If Senior prefers peace and elegance, beautiful women and fine wine, this humble one recommends ‘Drunken Immortal Residence’.
The private rooms there are convenient for confidential discussions, and the service is attentive. It’s just that the spirit stone charges are somewhat high.”
Chen Beiwu glanced at Li Two Stones: “Rinsing Jade Pavilion.”
Snakes had their paths, rats had their roads.
For this broker to be so confident, the force behind him must have at least some connection with the middle ranks of Cloud Ridge Market, or perhaps he was simply a covert agent for certain Mirror Moon Sect stewards.
But compared with these things, Chen Beiwu cared more about the barely perceptible Demon Seed aura and pitch-black calamity cloud on Li Two Stones.
Yes, exactly. An ordinary Golden Core True Person might have found it difficult to notice a Demon Seed concealed to the extreme, but under Chen Beiwu’s True Monarch divine sense, all traces of demonic arts had nowhere to hide.
‘They won’t even spare a broker at the third level of Qi Refinement. Are the demonic cultivators hidden in the shadows of the Western Evolution Realm so fearless that they’re using low-level cultivators as test subjects, or do they have some other scheme?’
Chen Beiwu became interested.
In the Southern Wilderness immortal cultivation world, the broker profession was undoubtedly among the very lowest of the low, and its cultivators were also the easiest for markets to exploit, with almost all the spirit stones they earned being handed upward.
There was no other reason. Once a broker lost the backer behind them, no one would care even if they died.
Thus, this kind of broker basically had no access to high-level demonic arts, much less the ability to independently comprehend and enter the threshold of one.
……
Third floor of Rinsing Jade Pavilion, superior private room.
The atmosphere inside the room was solemn, with a faint bloody smell permeating the air.
“This is the second time!”
Wang Hao’s voice was hoarse and dry, breaking the silence.
As a first-generation disciple of the Beast-Taming Lineage, Wang Hao was now at peak Foundation Establishment cultivation and was also a true inheritance disciple of the Mirror Moon Sect, highly valued by Deputy Lineage Master Shu You.
But his left arm had now been severed at the shoulder. Although the wound had already been sealed with excellent medicinal ointment, the empty sleeve remained glaringly conspicuous.
White Angelica sitting opposite him was in slightly better condition, but only compared with Wang Hao.
A hideous burn scar could faintly be seen at the corner of her right eye. If its position had deviated even slightly, her right eye would have been blinded.
“What did Deputy Lineage Master Shu say?” White Angelica asked with icy eyes.
The logistical supplies handled by the Beast-Taming Lineage appeared safe, but in reality mishaps occurred repeatedly, with demonic cultivators from the Western Evolution Realm constantly launching surprise attacks.
In her view, Steward Zhou, who was responsible for assigning missions, was either colluding with the Demon Sect or borrowing another’s blade to kill, deliberately eliminating competitors within the sect.
Compared with the former, White Angelica felt the latter was more likely.
After all, Steward Zhou came from the Mirror Moon Main Lineage and belonged to the faction of Second Elder True Person Nine Origins. He clearly knew just how miserable the consequences of betraying the sect would be.
“Deputy Lineage Master Shu told us to stand by for now.”
Wang Hao’s face was sallow, his right hand tightly gripping a wine cup.
“Why?”
White Angelica’s pupils contracted, her expression turning ugly: “If we don’t accept missions and earn battle merits, what will we use to compete for the Golden Palace Pill?”
Before the war among the Three Realms began, true inheritance disciples ranked among the top five on the Mirror Moon Ranking only needed to wait until the right time to have an opportunity to exchange contribution points for a Golden Palace Pill.
But now, sect contribution points had already been replaced by battle merits, and ranking among the top five on the Mirror Moon Ranking was meaningless.
Whichever true inheritance disciple killed the most enemies and accumulated the greatest battle merits would gain priority qualification to exchange for the Golden Palace Pill.
“What else can we do?”
Wang Hao gave a bitter smile and rubbed between his brows with his remaining right hand: “If we hadn’t been lucky enough to receive a reward from Immortal Yun Wan, obtaining premium pills capable of stimulating our Mutual Participation Beasts’ bloodlines and allowing them to erupt with strength comparable to False Core True Persons, we would have died long ago at the hands of the Blood Fate Sect’s demonic cultivators.”
“Damn it.” White Angelica slapped the table: “Zhou Tianyu is nothing more than a Foundation Establishment steward. He relies on Deputy Market Master Lin, yet dares to humiliate us so brazenly! Isn’t he afraid that the Lineage Master……”
“Afraid of what? If we fail to handle logistics properly, ultimately it only proves that you and I lack ability. Even if we bring up the Lineage Master, what can that change?” Wang Hao interrupted White Angelica.
Without evidence, it had always been sect higher-ups making disciples shoulder blame. When had there ever been disciples forcing the powerful figures behind them to personally step forward?
Did leaders not need to preserve face?
Ultimately, they could not produce evidence that Zhou Tianyu and the others were colluding with the Demon Sect. Reporting the matter without evidence would only make the sect’s higher-ups believe they were shifting blame and shirking responsibility.
“Knock!”
“Knock!”
“Knock!”
At that moment, knocking sounded outside the door.
“Senior Brother Wang、Senior Sister Bai, the War Hall has sent a new urgent mission specifically assigning the two of you……”
Hearing this, Wang Hao and White Angelica exchanged glances, their expressions changing slightly.
Again!
Wang Hao took a deep breath, suppressed the anger in his heart, and calmly said: “Bring it in.”
They could refuse ordinary missions, but refusing this kind of urgent sect assignment specifically designated to them was equivalent to objecting to a mission issued by the sect’s higher-ups.
The private room door opened, and a Mirror Moon cultivator hurried inside, presenting a jade slip stamped with the sect’s seal in both hands before quickly leaving.
Wang Hao swept it with his divine sense, put down the jade slip, and his expression turned ugly.
“What mission?”
Seeing this, an ominous premonition arose in White Angelica’s heart.
“Still a logistics mission. Transporting Blood-Cleansing Pills and other medicinal supplies, and delivering them to Blackstone Gorge within forty-eight hours.” Wang Hao said.
“Wait, Blackstone Gorge near Severed Dragon Cliff?”
White Angelica’s voice abruptly rose: “As early as three years ago, Severed Dragon Cliff was breached and massacred by the Blood Fate Sect’s demonic cultivator 【Blood Marrow True Monarch】, becoming a dead land. Are there still sect cultivators stationed at Blackstone Gorge now?”
“Yes. If I’m not mistaken, the sect is probably preparing to establish a major stronghold near Blackstone Gorge.” Wang Hao said with a complicated expression.
On the surface, there was nothing wrong whatsoever with this logistics mission.
But Mirror Moon cultivators familiar with the war situation all knew that Blackstone Gorge was far from Mirror Sky City and Cloud Ridge Market, lying close to the crucial stronghold 【Severed Dragon Cliff】 at the border junction between the Earth Evolution Realm and Western Evolution Realm.
That place was overrun with demons. True Monarch demonic cultivators occasionally appeared, demonic disasters and blood sacrifices emerged endlessly, and it had even once been conquered by the Blood Fate Sect.
Otherwise, the sect would not have chosen to rebuild a major border stronghold at Blackstone Gorge in order to suppress the demonic disasters.
Simply put, if the probability of them dying while carrying out missions in Cloud Ridge Market was ten percent, then the probability of dying while carrying out missions in Blackstone Gorge could skyrocket to forty or fifty percent.
“Can we refuse? Blackstone Gorge is far too dangerous!” White Angelica frowned.
“Do you and I have any choice?” Wang Hao sighed.
“If we had known this would happen, we shouldn’t have entered the Beast-Taming Lineage back then!” White Angelica sighed: “If we had joined the Mirror Moon Main Lineage back then, with the Great Elder backing us, perhaps we would have obtained Golden Palace Pills long ago, formed our Cores, and become high-ranking Golden Core elders.”
“Senior Sister, watch your words!”
Wang Hao’s heart jumped, and he hurriedly warned her.
“What are you afraid of? This place has sound-isolating restrictions. There are only the two of us here, and no outsider can hear!”
White Angelica glanced at Wang Hao and said pointedly: “Deputy Lineage Master Shu is a newly advanced Golden Core True Person and cannot support the Beast-Taming Lineage. Lineage Master Chen is also in seclusion forming his Nascent Soul and does not handle the Beast-Taming Lineage’s affairs.
If you and I continue staying in the Beast-Taming Lineage, without a perfected Golden Core elder backing us and unable to obtain Golden Palace Pills, sooner or later there will only be death. We might as well switch allegiances early.”
“Do I really need to say how Junior Brother’s arm was severed? It’s simply because competition for the Golden Palace Pill is too fierce this year, and True Person Nine Origins’ disciples developed thoughts of crushing the two of us to death.”
Hearing this, Wang Hao immediately stood up and rebuked: “Lineage Master has shown me kindness as weighty as a mountain. Senior Sister, if you mention this again, don’t blame me for disregarding the fellowship between us.”
After speaking, Wang Hao stormed out and pushed open the private room door.
“Blockhead, I don’t want to die with you!” White Angelica’s eyes narrowed, ruthlessness arising in her heart.
In the neighboring private room, Chen Beiwu lightly tapped the jade table with his fingertips, his expression unchanged as he casually tossed two low-grade spirit stones to Li Two Stones.
“Alright, you can leave.”
“Many thanks, Senior.” Li Two Stones’ eyes lit up, and he hurriedly stuffed the spirit stones into his robe before taking his leave.
Chen Beiwu smiled and looked toward the sky outside the window.
The reason he had not accepted Shu You, Gu Chun, Wang Hao, and White Angelica as formal disciples back then, only as nominal disciples, was precisely because fate was easy to measure while the human heart was easy to change.
However, Chen Beiwu could also understand White Angelica’s choice. If they could live, which Southern Wilderness cultivator would willingly choose death?
But understanding was one thing. He still favored cultivators who remained utterly loyal to the Beast-Taming Lineage.
……
At the same time, Ink Vaidurya smoothly passed the identity inspection and entered Cloud Ridge Market.
Her brows were tightly furrowed, and the emotions in her heart were indescribably complicated.
According to the Upper Sect’s conscription order, the Azure Gold Sect needed to dispatch two Foundation Establishment cultivators and sixteen late-stage Qi Refinement disciples to report at Cloud Ridge Market and participate in the war among the Three Realms.
But now, all the Foundation Establishment cultivators dispatched by the sect had died, leaving only her to arrive at Cloud Ridge Market.
Flee?
Evade the Mirror Moon Sect’s conscription order, hide away in the mountains and forests, and preserve her life?
The moment this thought arose, Ink Vaidurya completely rejected it.
The Mirror Moon Sect was the overlord of the Earth Evolution Realm, and its wartime decrees were like an inescapable heavenly net.
Even though demonic cultivators from the Western Evolution Realm occasionally caused trouble within the Earth Evolution Realm, they could never build momentum and would swiftly be exterminated by Mirror Moon Sect cultivators.
As a rootless and unsupported Foundation Establishment cultivator, once she fled, the Mirror Moon Sect would designate her a “draft deserter”, and cultivators from the Mirror Moon Sect’s Judicial Hall would hunt her down. The entire Azure Gold Sect would also be implicated.
At that time, death might even be the easiest outcome!
But if she did not flee, she would be alone and empty-handed when facing a Mirror Moon Sect steward, telling them that the Azure Gold Sect’s conscripted cultivators had died in a demonic disaster and only she remained.
At best, she would face strict investigation and be assigned dangerous missions; at worst, the Azure Gold Sect cultivators might directly be branded as having “fled before battle”, forcing her to complete a mission with nine deaths and one survival and turning her into expendable material for the front lines.
In short, with wolves ahead and tigers behind, once she entered Cloud Ridge Market as a lone Foundation Establishment female cultivator, without fellow disciples to band together with for protection and without enough spirit stones for bribes, she would most likely end up at the mercy of others.
‘But I can’t die!’
Ink Vaidurya tightly gripped the conscription order, her fingertips slightly whitening.
If death was certain, she might as well risk her life.
No matter how difficult or dangerous the frontline missions were, there was ultimately still a chance to carve out a path to survival.
Before she met the Lord Immortal Master again, she absolutely could not die!