Starting with a daily divination to build an immortal clan

Chapter 315 The Secret Treasure of the Source
On the nameless island, the golden-haired monkey and Li Qing looked at Shen Chongxu with solemn expressions.

Shen Chongxu, on the other hand, hung his head, not daring to look at the two demons' faces.

He knew very well how serious it would be for a cultivator to have their golden essence stolen in the eyes of the two demons who were unaware of the "Golden Nature Conspiracy".

In their view, the absence of the metal element means that a cultivator's path of cultivation will be cut off, and even if they spend their entire life there, they will only reach the pseudo-core realm, with no possibility of advancing further.

In fact, Shen Chongxu's current situation is not as optimistic as imagined.

His current situation is different from that of his third uncle Shen Wen'an and his elder brother Shen Chongming.

Shen Wen'an and Shen Chongming forcibly separated their immortal golden nature from their bodies when they achieved the Purple Mansion realm. Their dantian still had the Purple Mansion Dao Palace supporting them, so they didn't need to worry about their cultivation level.

Currently, he only has one inner core in his dantian. Without a completely new Golden Core method, the pseudo-inner core cannot achieve the Purple Mansion stage.

In this situation, he can only wait for Shen Yuan to comprehend the true Golden Core cultivation method, or for him to find a breakthrough path on his own.

"Master, your disciple..."

Sensing the deep worry in the golden monkey's eyes, Shen Chongxu felt a surge of impulse and wanted to tell it about Jin Xing's conspiracy.

"It's alright, let's go back and consolidate our current level first."

"Your teacher is here to help with other matters, so there's no need to worry about them."

The golden-haired monkey had lost its usual carefree attitude, and its words carried a hint of worry.

Shen Chongxu pondered for a moment, then bowed slightly and said, "Yes, Master."

Inside the thatched pavilion, after watching Shen Chongxu and Wu Qianrou leave, Qiu Mingshui turned to the golden-haired monkey and cupped his hands, saying, "Master, he's crippled..."

Upon hearing this, the golden-haired monkey glanced at her with a slightly cold look in its eyes.

"Who told you that?"

Qiu Mingshui's expression tightened, and he dared not look the golden-haired monkey in the eye, nor did he dare to speak again.

The golden-haired monkey looked at her and said in a deep and firm voice:

"So what if my old ape's disciple loses that immortal golden nature?"

"Your senior brother knelt and kowtowed three times and nine times to acknowledge me, the old ape, as his master..."

“No matter how big the matter is, I, Old Ape, will take responsibility for it.”

Upon hearing this, Qiu Mingshui's expression became somewhat complicated, and she even felt a pang of jealousy and confusion.

Having grown up in the Fengshui region since childhood, and after joining the Patrol Dao, everything she has seen and heard in the past half of her life has been telling her one thing.

Regardless of the relationship—whether it's teacher and student, father and son, or sisters—what sustains all relationships is always one's own value.

If I hadn't betrayed the Patrol Path yet, and my cultivation had just run into problems, would I have no hope of reaching the Nascent Soul True Lord realm in this lifetime?

Then, in the eyes of the higher-ups of the Hunting Path and her former master, her value will plummet, and all the resources and benefits she originally enjoyed will be stripped away instantly.

Now, Shen Chongxu's immortal golden nature has been stolen, and he is clearly a cripple, yet the golden-haired monkey still refuses to give up on him.

Qiu Mingshui felt that this was a kind of favoritism.

"the same as you."

"In this life, I, Old Ape, only have Chongxu and you as my two disciples. As long as you don't betray your master, I will do everything in my power to protect you from the wind and rain, and pave the way for you..."

"Go, and cultivate diligently."

The golden-haired monkey softened his tone slightly, said something, and then waved Qiu Mingshui away.

At this moment, Qiu Mingshui's feelings became even more complicated.

She initially thought that her master's refusal to give up on Shen Chongxu was a form of favoritism, but the subsequent words "you too" shocked her deeply!
Is there still such a pure and selfless master-disciple relationship in this world?

After Qiu Mingshui left, only the golden-haired monkey and Li Qing remained in the thatched pavilion.

The two demons watched Qiu Mingshui disappear at the end of the winding path. Li Qing asked slowly, "Brother Jin, what are your plans?"

The golden-haired monkey, abandoning its previous "kind and dignified" demeanor, angrily exclaimed, "You little brat! You're always causing trouble for this old ape!"

"Now that this immortal golden essence has been stolen, the path of cultivation is severed..."

"That's it!"

After uttering a few angry curses, it sighed heavily and said, "I'll leave the island's affairs to Brother Li for now. I, Old Ape, am going out for a bit."

Upon hearing this, Li Qing said with great concern:
"Brother Jin, are you going to the Youdu Domain?"

"Those guys won't let this go so easily, will they?"

"Brother Jin, isn't this trip a bit too risky?"

The golden-haired monkey smiled calmly and waved its hand: "No need to worry."

"No matter what, they're all old acquaintances. No matter how wicked that old bastard the Lord of the Underworld is, would he really lay a hand on me, Old Ape?"

"Brother Li, please wait patiently. It will take at most a month or so, or at least ten days. I, Old Ape, will definitely return."

"With Mingshui and that kid from the Shen family in charge, there shouldn't be any problems with things on the island."

As soon as he finished speaking, the golden-haired monkey turned around and disappeared into the thatched hut as a golden ray of light.

……

On the island, in the small courtyard where Shen Chongming lived, Shen Chongxu and Wu Qianrou came to the courtyard and saw their elder brother Shen Chongming meditating cross-legged.

In the past, Shen Chongming rarely cultivated actively because the Thunder Pool within his dantian would automatically draw upon the power of heaven and earth from the surrounding void and transform it into thunder-attribute spiritual power.

However, now that Luo Tianxing's nascent soul needs to be nurtured, the power of heaven and earth absorbed by the Thunder Pool is clearly insufficient.

Therefore, whenever he has time, Shen Chongming will take the initiative to cultivate, ensuring that while nurturing Luo Tianxing's nascent soul does not dissipate, his own cultivation will not be delayed too much.

After circulating the "Secret Record of the Five Thunder True Method of the Divine Firmament Jade Palace" through his body for one cycle, Shen Chongming finished his cultivation and opened his eyes to look at Shen Chongxu and Wu Shi Qianrou in front of him.

When did Brother Xu arrive?

Shen Chongxu cupped his hands slightly and smiled, "I came for a while and saw that Brother Ming was cultivating, so I didn't want to disturb him."

Shen Chongming nodded and gestured for the two to sit opposite him.

"I have come to tell you, my elder brother, some good news."

After sitting down cross-legged, Shen Chongxu began to speak directly.

"Oh?"

Shen Chongming paused slightly as he was pouring tea, then said, "What is the good news? Tell me about it."

"My brother has broken through."

His words startled Shen Chongming, who was opposite him, and a glint of electricity flashed in his eyes as he looked over.

Seeing that Shen Chongxu did not possess the aura of immortal gold, Shen Chongming finally felt relieved.

"The inner core is perfectly unified. How did you deal with that thing, Brother Xu?"

When one breaks through the Golden Elixir stage through embryonic breathing, the inner elixir cannot achieve complete unity but can remain stable; this is known as the "half-step Golden Elixir" realm.

Once the inner elixir reaches a state of perfect unity, it signifies a successful breakthrough, which will attract the heavens to bestow upon one immortal golden nature, thus achieving the Great Dao of the Golden Elixir.

With his cultivation level, he could tell at a glance that Shen Chongxu was not at the half-step Golden Core stage, but a true master of the Inner Core, only lacking the metal element within his body.

Shen Chongxu smiled faintly and briefly explained the circumstances of his breakthrough.

"I was lucky, too. I thought dealing with that thing would be quite troublesome, but who would have thought that two underworld messengers would happen to pass by..."

Shen Chongming's expression turned strange after hearing this.

He never expected that the infamous underworld would actually be able to help them.

Suppressing his joy, Shen Chongming sighed slightly and said, "Although the hidden danger has been eliminated, your current situation is still not optimistic."

Shen Chongxu nodded: "I understand. In the end, we still need to open up another path to the Purple Mansion, otherwise my cultivation will probably stop here."

"and……"

After a pause, he still recounted the golden monkey's reaction when it learned that its golden nature had been stolen.

“Ming-ge, Master values ​​me highly, and I’m worried that this action will cause him great anxiety…”

“If this secret didn’t concern the life and death of everyone in my Shen family, I would have told the old man right now.”

Shen Chongming simply sighed and remained silent after hearing this.

During the two years he spent temporarily living on the nameless island, he could see that the golden-haired monkey genuinely regarded Shen Chongxu as his personal disciple and took meticulous care of him.

It's really not good to keep this from people like this.

"Let's wait a bit longer. After some time, I'll find a way to investigate Senior Jin's background."

"If there are no problems, you can reveal a little bit to it, so that it won't worry too much about you losing your metal element."

As Shen Chongming spoke, he was also thinking of a suitable explanation.

"Before the Dao collapsed, my elder brother wrote to me, saying that Grandpa had been comprehending the true method of the Golden Elixir."

"I wonder if he has realized this yet. If we can find the Five Elements Secret Realm and get his guidance, I might be able to avoid some detours."

Changing the subject, Shen Chongxu then mentioned the Five Elements Secret Realm and his family.

A hint of longing flashed in Shen Chongming's eyes, then he smiled and comforted him, "Don't worry, we'll definitely find it..."

"You've come at the right time; it just so happens that I should be heading out soon."

In order to get rid of the being behind him who could manipulate cause and effect and scheme against him, the golden-haired monkey once said that he should take the imperial chariot to travel to a sea area far away from here every month or so, so that the other party would not be able to pinpoint his exact location for the time being.

It has been more than a month since my last trip.

He had mentioned this matter to Shen Chongxu before.

"Ming-ge, you need to be extra careful on this trip."

Upon hearing this, a hint of worry flashed across Shen Chongxu's face.

Being watched by such a strange being, he could feel the pressure emanating from his elder brother.

"It's alright. I've had enough troubles already, I'm used to it."

"You should consolidate your cultivation on the island, and it would be best if you could find a path to the Purple Mansion on your own."

"gone."

He stood up, patted him on the shoulder, and immediately summoned the imperial chariot, leaping into the air.

The instant the imperial chariot vanished in a streak of light, a figure soared into the sky from the sea not far from the nameless island, chasing after the streak of light that the imperial chariot had transformed into.

This figure was none other than the old beggar Dao Nu.

Ever since the old beggar brought back Luo Tianxing's nascent soul, he seems to have completely disappeared.

For over a month, no one saw him on the island.

Unexpectedly, he had been hiding in the sea near the island all this time, and no one knows what he was doing.

……

The Nine Provinces World.

The demonic disturbance in the Qingzhou sea area caused quite a stir.

Although Shen Xiuzhuo had invited several sword immortals from Qingluo Sword Pavilion and Jiang Xiuqi from Luoxia Mountain to join him in action as requested by Shen Xiuyan, Jiang Xiuqi's mastery of array formations clearly made it impossible for him to set up an array within the sea eye passage that could block the monsters from the outer seas without hindering the Nine Provinces World from absorbing external power.

If they couldn't stop it, they had no choice but to strike first and kill.

When the news reached Yansheng Mountain, Shen Xiuyan was worried, but he also suddenly felt that this might not be a bad thing for the Kyushu world.

Nearly fourteen years have passed since the Shen family moved to the world of Kyushu.

For fourteen years, apart from the frequent natural disasters caused by the unstable seasons, the lives of many cultivators in the entire Kyushu world were quite peaceful.

This absolute comfort of having no enemies is not a good thing for cultivators.

The demonic scourge that has now erupted in the Qingzhou sea area has given many cultivators under the Shen family's rule an opportunity to test their own cultivation.

Especially in recent years, literary cultivators have risen to prominence alongside Shen Chongxuan's breakthrough in the four apertures of literary mind.

Each one needs more experience to prove their cultivation.

A large number of cultivators were conscripted to Qingzhou by the "Demon Hunting Order".

Above the vast sea off the coast of Qingzhou, groups of cultivators can be seen flying together, searching for and hunting various demonic beasts in the sea.

Some inexperienced cultivators were so frightened by the ferocious demonic beasts that they froze on the spot and perished in their jaws; while some unknown juniors rose to prominence in these constant battles, displaying extraordinary talent.

This demonic calamity truly brought a rare baptism and trial to the cultivators of the Nine Provinces world.

At the foot of Mount Yansheng, inside the family's main hall, Shen Xiuyan was carefully reviewing the battle report sent from the Qingzhou Sea by the clan's chief academy, copying the names of the specially marked cultivators onto a piece of silk.

These cultivators were all prodigies discovered by the disciples of the Clan's main academy in the Qingzhou Sea area.

Some of them may not possess the most outstanding talent for cultivation, and their cultivation level is not particularly remarkable compared to their peers.

However, these people excelled in both combat and strategic thinking.

Such figures will undoubtedly be the blades in the Shen family's future struggle for dominance in the Cangmin Sea, which Shen Xiuyan is particularly concerned about.

"Xiuyan, come here. I have something to discuss with you."

While copying the list, Shen Xiuyan suddenly heard Shen Yuan's voice in his ear. He immediately put down his pen, and in a flash, he arrived at Yansheng Peak.

He bowed slightly in front of the three-story pavilion.

"Grandpa."

The door to the attic in front of us slowly opened.

"come in."

Shen Xiuyan slowly walked into the pavilion.

On the top floor of the attic, the grandfather and grandson sat facing each other. Shen Yuan had a rare smile on his face, which made Shen Xiuyan, who was opposite him, very suspicious.

"Does Great-Grandpa have some good news to tell Xiuyan?"

The Shen family has been in the Nine Provinces World for more than ten years, and since Shen Yuan woke up, he has never seen the old man in front of him smile.

Shen Yuan handed over a cup of spiritual tea, nodded with a smile, and said, "It is indeed a fortunate thing."

"After I hit a bottleneck in comprehending the Golden Elixir Method, I devoted some of my energy to comprehending the Mysterious Escape Technique."

"When the east is dark, the west is bright. Although I haven't gained much from the Golden Elixir Method, this Mysterious Escape Technique has given me some pleasant surprises."

Upon hearing this, Shen Xiuyan was overjoyed!

Compared to the Golden Elixir Method, he valued the Mysterious Escape Technique, which sealed the Nine Provinces World, even more.

After all, from his perspective, the Golden Elixir Method wasn't entirely without a way out.

Although the memories in the bloodline inheritance indicate that Jin Xing is part of a conspiracy, judging from the current situation in the entire Cangmin Sea, there are no obvious problems with Jin Xing, Cheng Zifu, and even later, from the Nascent Soul True Monarch to the pseudo-God Transformation.

He felt that if there was no real Golden Core method, then as a last resort, it was possible to make certain sacrifices to allow the cultivators under his rule, or even the direct descendants of his family, to continue on the path of the Golden Nature.

At least taking this path can improve our strength and allow the Nine Provinces world to gain a foothold in the Cangming Sea.

But the Mysterious Art of Deception is different.

This is an urgent matter at hand.

The Nine Provinces world is too weak; the strongest being to date is only the sleeping Black Dragon, a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

Besides these, there's Zhai Yuqing, the Purple Mansion Sword Immortal of Qingluo Sword Pavilion, and the remaining Golden Core Sword Immortals.

Judging from the madness of those Nascent Soul True Monarchs for the blood of Baxia before the collapse of the Dao, once the Nine Provinces World is exposed, Black Dragon and Zhai Yuqing and the others will not be able to withstand the siege of those major sects.

Shen Yuan seemed to understand Shen Xiuyan's thoughts, knowing that he had a longer-term vision and valued the big picture more than personal gains and short-term benefits.

In fact, in order for the Shen family to go further, he would be willing to sacrifice the interests of some of his clansmen at crucial moments.

This can be seen from the fact that he was able to harden his heart and issue the clan rule of "severing ties between immortals and mortals".

"These are my insights into the art of divination and strategy."

"Take this to your aunt and ask her to use a divination technique to inform Xiu Bai of these things."

"The current Xuanji Dunjia will dissipate in a year. By comprehending it, Xiu Bai should be able to integrate the new Xuanji Dunjia into the world barrier of my Kyushu world."

"I reckon that the world barrier, which incorporates the new Xuanji Dunjia, should be able to conceal some of the secrets of heaven and divine sense."

"In the vast Cangmin Sea, unless a Nascent Soul True Monarch approaches the location of the Nine Provinces World, ordinary cultivators will not easily discover its location."

Taking the jade slip from Shen Yuan's hand and listening to his story, Shen Xiuyan's face showed undisguised excitement.

enough!

That's enough!
The vast and boundless Cangming Sea is a place where Nascent Soul True Monarchs from various forces usually choose to sit in seclusion and cultivate when they have nothing to do, and rarely come out to wander around.

Those cultivators who are above the Nascent Soul stage and below the Infant Transformation stage are the ones who are most likely to expose the Nine Provinces world to the world.

These cultivators roam freely throughout the Cangmin Sea in search of opportunities or to carry out missions for their sects.

After the sealing effect of the Mysterious Armor disappeared, such a large secret world suddenly appeared in a certain sea area, and it was impossible for passing cultivators not to see it.

The world barrier does not have the effect of concealing heavenly secrets or blocking divine consciousness.

If this improved Xuanji Dunjia can be integrated into the world barrier, the risk of the Nine Provinces world being exposed will be greatly reduced, and it will not be unable to draw power from outside the boundary as it is now.

"Grandpa, do you have any other instructions? If not, Xiuyan will take her leave now."

Suppressing his inner excitement, Shen Xiuyan stood up, ready to leave.

"Don't be in such a hurry, child."

Shen Yuan smiled and looked at him, gesturing for him to sit down first.

Shen Xiuyan sat back down somewhat awkwardly. Shen Yuan picked up the teacup in front of him, took a sip of tea, and said in a deep voice, "I have had some feelings these past few days, so I deduced the situation of your Uncle Chongming and Uncle Chongxu."

"Because of the concealment of the Xuanji Dunjia, the resulting divination is also very vague."

"Your uncle is fine, but your Uncle Chongming's divination is rather obscure, as if he has encountered some serious trouble."

“Your third grandfather hasn’t had anything else to do lately, so let him go out through the Sea Eye Channel.”

"Firstly, we can inquire about your uncle and aunt, and also check on the situation of Xiu Chan and the others."

"If Xiu Chan needs help, let him stay in the outer sea area. If not, he can still bring some news."

After a pause, Shen Yuan sighed and looked out the window at the sky.

"After Xiu Bai merged with this world, his humanity has become weaker and weaker."

"His only wish was to see his father one more time."

"Your aunt's cultivation hasn't improved much over the years, has it?"

Upon hearing this, Shen Xiuyan nodded with a somewhat solemn expression: "My aunt's cultivation has always been at the Qi Refining stage, and she doesn't have much lifespan left."

"It's also because Xiu Bai felt something was amiss, and he's been taking good care of Nianbai Peak where Auntie lives all these years..." "With the blessings of abundant heaven and earth, Auntie's health is still relatively good, but there's nothing that can be done about her lifespan nearing its end..."

Shen Yuan sighed heavily.

Liu Yiran's current situation is similar to that of Zhao Xuan from the second son's family back then.

Worry has become an illness, and the knot in my heart cannot be untied.

However, compared to Zhao Xuan's mortal body, Liu Yiran at least has some cultivation foundation, and with Shen Xiubai's care in the dark, her body is not about to completely collapse.

"Go ahead and see if your third grandfather can find your uncles and the others."

"Let's let the father and son meet before Xiu Bai's humanity completely disappears."

As his body merges with this world, Shen Xiubai's soul is gradually evolving into the original will of the Nine Provinces world.

Original humanity was gradually replaced by divine justice.

No one can stop this.

Shen Yuan now only hopes that Shen Wen'an can find Shen Chongxu and that the father and son can meet again before Shen Xiubai's humanity completely disappears.

This was the last thing he could do for this poor child.

"Xiuyan will go find Third Grandfather now."

Sensing the sorrow emanating from Shen Yuan, Shen Xiuyan quickly stood up and clasped his hands in greeting.

"Well, let's go."

After waving Shen Xiuyan away, Shen Yuan pondered for a moment, then got up, put his hands behind his back, and went to the window, gazing at the distant sea of ​​clouds, lost in thought.

His ideas differed from Shen Xiuyan's.

Shen Xiuyan values ​​the development of his family and is willing to sacrifice some family members, or even himself.

Although he values ​​the development of the family, he also values ​​his children and grandchildren equally.

He wouldn't stop Shen Xiuyan from doing what he wanted to do; right now, he just wanted to protect his children and grandchildren as much as possible.

Having solved the immediate crisis in the Nine Provinces world, he will continue to focus all his energy on deducing the true Golden Elixir Method.

Fortunately, there is still one year left before the opening of the Jiuyuan Zhexian Temple.

With the help of the Taoist bell from the Jiuyuan Zhexian Temple, it is believed that the bell will be able to guide them through their current predicament.

……

Tai Xuan Peak is the mountain where Shen Wen'an lives.

The mountain's name comes from the "Tai Xuan Sword Scripture" that Shen Wen'an practiced.

Since meeting the sword immortal Huang Lingshan in Qishan Market because of the "Tai Xuan Sword Scripture", his path of sword cultivation can be considered to have been successfully started.

The Tai Xuan Sword Scripture is merely a "righteous" sword scripture, containing only cultivation methods from Qi Refining to the Golden Core stage.

Now that Shen Wen'an has reached the Purple Mansion stage, this sword manual has become somewhat useless to him.

Normally, he would only use the methods of the Sword Scripture to absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and transform it into sword essence. As for the subsequent cultivation methods, Shen Wen'an had to figure them out little by little on his own.

Furthermore, the cultivation path he is currently following has deviated from the metal element system, and the traditional cultivation methods existing in the Cangmin Sea are of little use to him.

Because the origin of the Nine Provinces World is still fragile, Shen Wen'an, as a Purple Mansion cultivator, does not dare to excessively absorb the surrounding spiritual energy.

For more than a decade, he has spent most of his time on understanding the artistic conception and carving the eight pieces of Daoist jade in the possession of the Shen family.

The "Twenty-Four Solar Terms Cycle of True Seals" recorded on the Daoist jade inscription is said to be a supreme immortal technique.

Back then, in order to find a way for Shen Chongzhen to escape his calamity, he once gave two pieces of Daoist jade carvings to Zhou Xuan of the Ice God Palace.

I also learned from Zhou Xuan that the "Twenty-Four Solar Terms Cycle of True Seals" contains twenty-four cultivation methods that can rival the power of "Samadhi True Fire".

In the elegant pavilion in the small courtyard atop Tai Xuan Peak, Shen Wen'an held a piece of jade carving in Daoist script entitled "Cold Dew" in his hand, carefully studying it.

Wei Qiuling led Shen Xiuyan slowly over.

"My lord, the head of the family has arrived."

Upon hearing this, Shen Wen'an snapped out of his daze and put down the Daoist jade carving in his hand.

Shen Xiuyan quickly cupped his hands in greeting: "Third Grandfather."

Shen Wen'an nodded slightly: "Please sit down."

Unlike the younger generation with the character "Xiu" in their names, Shen Wen'an did not show any deliberate respect to him, the head of the family.

Shen Xiuyan cupped his hands in greeting and sat down cross-legged on the futon opposite him.

Wei Qiuling wanted to make tea for the two of them, but Shen Xiuyan quickly cupped his hands and said, "Third Grandmother, please don't bother. I'm just bringing back a message from Great-Grandfather. I have important business to attend to later, so I can't delay."

Hearing this, Wei Qiuling didn't insist.

"What instructions did your great-grandfather give?" Shen Wen'an asked.

Shen Xiuyan bowed and repeated Shen Yuan's words.

"This time, I'll have to trouble Third Grandfather."

After a moment's thought, Shen Wen'an waved his hand and said, "It's alright, Third Grandfather also wanted to go out for a walk."

After more than ten years of studying the "True Seal of the Twenty-Four Solar Terms Cycle of Heavenly Circulation," he has gained many insights and wants to go out and verify his conjectures.

"In that case, Xiu Yan will take his leave now."

Shen Xiuyan stood up and clasped his hands in greeting.

He was preoccupied with the mysteries of the divination method and didn't say much to Shen Wen'an.

The couple stood in the pavilion, watching Shen Xiuyan's figure disappear at the courtyard gate. Wei Qiuling sighed, "This child is even more capable than Chongming was back then. He has devoted all his energy to managing the family."

"It does seem a bit cold-hearted."

Cold-hearted?

Upon hearing this, Shen Wen'an suddenly smiled.

Wei Qiuling looked at him with some suspicion.

Meeting his wife's gaze, Shen Wen'an smiled and shook his head: "It just occurred to me that this word was once used to describe me too..."

His mother, Hu Yufen, worried about him a lot behind his back.

It seems that he is single-mindedly devoted to spiritual practice and has little communication with his brothers and family.

"That's fine too..."

After sighing, Shen Wen'an said in a deep voice, "My Shen family's current situation does indeed require a rational and ruthless leader."

“Indecisiveness will not lead the family out of its predicament.”

Wei Qiuling nodded, then changed the subject, asking, "When do you plan to leave?"

Shen Wen'an pondered for a moment and said, "Tomorrow."

"Father was able to personally give this order because he still felt indebted to Xiu Bai."

"If we can find Chongxu soon and let the father and son meet, it will fulfill Xiu Bai's wish."

Wei Qiuling sighed heavily after hearing this.

"My second brother's lineage has suffered too much..."

"My husband, will you be going to the Ice God Palace this time?"

After a moment of reflection, Wei Qiuling suddenly spoke up.

Ice Palace?
Shen Wen'an was taken aback, realizing what his wife meant.

When the Dao collapsed, Shen Chongzhen followed Zhou Xuan to the Ice God Palace. More than ten years have passed since then. How could parents not worry about their children?
"We'll see when the time comes. If there's an opportunity, I'll go there myself."

He also wanted to know how Shen Chongzhen had fared all these years, whether the two Daoist jade carvings had made him and Zhou Xuan Daoist partners, or whether he had been taken in as a disciple by the Grand Elder of the Ice God Palace.

Upon hearing this, Wei Qiuling was overjoyed, but a look of worry quickly appeared on her face.

"There are quite a few forces outside the borders eyeing our Shen family, so my husband must be extremely careful this time."

A single drop of Baxia's blood thrust the entire Nine Provinces world into the eye of the storm.

Although more than ten years have passed, compared to the lifespans of those Nascent Soul Realm old monsters who often live for thousands of years, more than ten years is simply not enough time for them to forget the wonders of the Baxia blood.

When the Dao collapsed and various forces were vying for the blood of Baxia above Yunshui City, Shen Wen'an was in the city the whole time.

His aura and appearance will surely be remembered by those who are interested, and now that he has gone out, he may be the subject of someone's attention.

"It's alright, I'm already prepared."

As Shen Wen'an spoke with a smile, he had already made up his mind.

……

The imperial chariot, radiating multicolored light, pierced the sky, leaving a magnificent rainbow in the void.

Shen Chongming, who was inside the imperial carriage, did not go into seclusion this time. He was well aware that the old beggar Dao Nu had caught up with the imperial carriage as soon as it left the nameless island and continued to play the role of the carriage driver, sitting outside.

Shen Chongming gently lifted the carriage curtain and looked at the sky outside with a puzzled expression.

He still doesn't quite understand why, with the imperial carriage's flamboyant appearance, it didn't attract the attention of any cultivators along the way.

Previously, it was said that because the nameless island was located in a very remote place and there were no other cultivators around, no one discovered the imperial chariot.

But just now, he had personally witnessed the imperial chariot passing over a huge island, and on the island below, he could vaguely see many pavilions, terraces, and well-ordered roads.

It was obvious that there were cultivators on the island, and they hadn't noticed such a dazzling carriage flying overhead.

Aroused by curiosity, Shen Chongming immediately covered the entire imperial chariot with his divine sense, carefully exploring its structure.

A moment later, a look of shock flashed across his face!
He actually sensed the presence of a spiritual being inside this imperial carriage!
More importantly, there is more than one spirit within this imperial chariot!
At the core of the imperial chariot, five spiritual entities were slowly rotating, enveloping a hazy and illusory energy!

From that hazy and illusory energy, Shen Chongming clearly sensed a supreme and magnificent aura, as if he were seeing an entire world!
In that instant, Shen Chongming went from surprise to confusion, and finally, a flash of enlightenment appeared in his eyes.

"The source of the Dao..."

"Could this imperial chariot be a Dao Source Treasure?"

He had a vague intuition that the energy surrounded by the five spiritual entities inside the imperial chariot should be the legendary source of the Dao, the core of the origin of a world.

If the speculation is true, then the fact that this Dao Source Treasure fell into the hands of the Golden-haired Monkey means that the Golden-haired Monkey may have once been the ruler of a realm.
How did a dignified ruler of a realm become an ordinary beast, and only with the guidance of Li Qing, who was still in the embryonic breathing stage, did he slowly embark on cultivation and achieve his current level of cultivation?
As Shen Chongming pondered deeply, the imperial carriage continued its journey. When the streak of light that the imperial carriage had transformed into once again swept across the sky above a medium-sized island, a strange feeling suddenly arose in Shen Chongming's heart as he sat in the carriage.

Before he could figure out what this feeling was, the imperial carriage had already driven away.

"go back!"

"Turn around!"

Shen Chongming immediately shouted.

However, the old beggar outside the carriage was not a real coachman and would not pay any attention to him.

Helpless, Shen Chongming had no choice but to step out of the sedan chair and use magic to stop the imperial carriage.

The old beggar sitting to the side remained unmoved, like a statue.

Standing in the void, Shen Chongming looked down at a small dot in the vast sea below. After a moment's thought, he put the imperial chariot into his storage bag and transformed into a stream of light, flying towards the medium-sized island.

The old beggar showed no signs of spiritual energy fluctuations, yet strangely kept up with his speed.

When the two figures appeared in the sky above the island, that faint, elusive feeling returned.

"This is... the aura of bloodline..."

"There are members of my Shen family on the island below!?"

After careful contemplation, Shen Chongming was pleasantly surprised to discover that the strange feeling actually came from the bloodline within his body!
The fact that it can resonate with one's bloodline means that there must be someone from the Shen family on the island below, or even his offspring!

"Thunder Spirit".

Suppressing his excitement, he immediately focused his mind and shouted in his dantian.

The spirit of the Thunder Pool instantly understood his thoughts, and a mysterious power emerged, causing his facial muscles to twitch instantly.

A moment later, Shen Chongming transformed into a thin-faced cultivator with a wood-elemental root at the early stage of the Purple Mansion realm.

After changing his appearance and aura, he immediately flew towards the island below.

As soon as he arrived above the island, he discovered that there was an extremely strong protective array around the island.

A middle-aged cultivator dressed in a cyan robe and wearing a felt hat flew from the island below to the front of the array's light barrier, carrying a bronze cauldron in his hand. He warily sized up Shen Chongming and the old beggar.

"May I ask what brings you two seniors to my Ge family's Dongyue Island?"

The Ge family of Dongyue Island...

After secretly noting down this information, Shen Chongming smiled and said, "My name is Ge Chi. My old friend and I have been traveling here and found an island in the vast sea where cultivators gather. It is not easy to do so, so we wanted to pay a visit and see if we could exchange some cultivation resources with you."

This has always been the case for independent cultivators in the outer seas.

Wandering in the vast ocean, if one gets a chance that one can't use, one will sell it to some markets or small forces.

However, most independent cultivators tend to choose markets rather than trading with certain powerful forces.

Because the forces in the market town are relatively united, it is easy for people to be tempted by wealth and commit murder to steal treasures.

Unless there is an unavoidable need for something, and there are no markets or shops nearby; or unless one has a certain degree of confidence in one's own abilities.

Shen Chongming is currently disguised as a cultivator in the early stage of the Purple Mansion realm.

Under normal circumstances, cultivators of the Purple Mansion realm do not need to be overly cautious when traveling in the Cangmin Sea.

After all, there aren't as many Nascent Soul True Monarch level experts as one might imagine.

Are you here to exchange resources?
The middle-aged cultivator wearing a felt hat looked at Shen Chongming suspiciously, and after a moment he cupped his hands and said, "Please forgive me, seniors, my ancestor has taken a concubine these past two days and it is inconvenient for him to receive guests."

"If you two seniors are willing, you can wait outside the island for a few days. Afterwards, my ancestor will personally receive you."

Taking a concubine?

Shen Chongming frowned inwardly upon hearing this.

At such close range, he could clearly confirm that the one who resonated with his bloodline on Dongyue Island was either the three Shen brothers or his daughter Shen You.

The Shen family has no connection with the so-called Ge family of Dongyue Island.

How come there are members of the Shen family on the island if the patriarch of Dongyue Island is taking a concubine?
"So it's a joyous occasion for nobles. Congratulations!"

After some thought, Shen Chongming continued, "To be honest, I enjoy lively gatherings. Today happens to be the auspicious occasion of your ancestor's wedding. I wonder if I could be allowed to enter the island and exchange a few gifts for a couple of cups of celebratory wine?"

He had a bad feeling about him and now he had to find a way to sneak in and see what was going on.

The monk in the felt hat inside the array's protective barrier frowned as he looked at him, somewhat hesitant.

Just then, an old figure flew in from the island below.

The old man was dressed in a gray robe, with three gleaming triangular flags stuck on his back. His narrow, half-open eyes were hidden beneath his thick eyebrows, like a cunning venomous snake ready to devour its prey. He glanced at Shen Chongming and the old beggar.

"Changjie, what happened?"

The old man turned to the monk in the felt hat and asked in a slightly hoarse voice.

The monk in the felt hat immediately cupped his hands and said, "Reporting to Third Grand Uncle, these two are rogue cultivators who have come to my Dongyue Island to exchange for some cultivation resources."

"Changjie told the two that since the ancestor had taken a concubine, it was inconvenient to receive outsiders."

"That monk also said he likes lively atmospheres and wants to come to the island to drink a couple of cups of wedding wine..."

Upon hearing this, the old man glanced at Shen Chongming and the old beggar again, his lips moved slightly as if he were communicating with someone telepathically. After a moment, he suddenly chuckled and cupped his hands, saying, "Since you have spoken, it would seem petty of my Ge family not to agree."

"If you two don't mind, there will be plenty of wedding wine."

"Changjie, activate the formation and invite our two fellow Daoists in."

Upon hearing this, the felt-hat-wearing cultivator immediately cupped his hands and gestured to the protective cultivators below to open a portal in the formation.

Without the obstruction of the formation, Shen Chongming instantly sensed the gray-robed old man's cultivation level and several hidden auras on the island below.

"The Ge family is quite powerful."

"One late-stage Purple Mansion cultivator, three mid-stage Purple Mansion cultivators, and two early-stage Purple Mansion cultivators..."

"No wonder they dared to let me in so easily."

With his lightning-attribute spiritual root, Shen Chongming instantly sensed the presence of the several Purple Mansion Realm cultivators on the island below, even though they didn't deliberately reveal their auras after the array's protective barrier was opened.

Similarly, that feeling of blood resonance became even stronger.

However, out of politeness, he did not immediately begin to scan the area with his divine sense.

With a flash of light in his hand, Shen Chongming took out two fourth-grade Golden Radiance Stones and said, "Since it is the auspicious day of your ancestor, I cannot drink this celebratory wine for nothing."

"This is just a small gift; I hope you won't find it offensive, fellow Daoist."

The old man in the gray robe glanced at the Golden Stone in his hand with some surprise.

Although these fourth-grade Qi refining materials are not considered valuable, each piece can still sell for at least two or three hundred spirit crystals.

He initially thought the two were there to cause trouble, and had already secretly communicated with the other Purple Mansion cultivators on the island.

Unexpectedly, Shen Chongming immediately brought out a wedding gift, seemingly only wanting to ask for a drink at the wedding.

"Hehe... Fellow Daoist, you're too kind."

The old man in the gray robe chuckled and cupped his hands, saying, "Changjie, why don't you hurry up and take these two seniors to my residence for tea?"

The monk in the felt hat came forward, took the two golden stones, and then respectfully extended his hand: "Please follow me, seniors."

Shen Chongming nodded and cupped his hands in greeting to the gray-robed old man before following the Golden Core cultivator named Ge Changjie toward the island below.

After they took him away, two more elderly Purple Mansion cultivators came to the gray-robed old man.

"Third brother, who is that person?"

The old man in the gray robe looked at Shen Chongming and the old beggar, then shook his head with a somber expression: "I don't know..."

"They don't seem to be here to cause trouble."

"They immediately presented two Grade 4 Golden Radiance Stones as a congratulatory gift..."

As soon as he finished speaking, the elegant old man with white hair and a youthful face beside him frowned and said, "Don't let your guard down."

"The female cultivator that my brother captured is a sword cultivator at the Purple Mansion Realm."

"There might be some powerful force behind this."

"Send someone to keep a close eye on those two. If they really are just here to attend a wedding, then it's fine."

"If they have other intentions, we must kill them quickly to avoid causing trouble for Dongyue Island."

A glint of light flashed in the gray-robed old man's eyes, and he nodded with a strange laugh.

(End of this chapter)