Mortal: Fifteenth Realm Sword Cultivator

Chapter 235: Let's wait and see.

The art of talismans is indeed profound and extensive.

Even Lu Jianghe, when drawing those commonly used low-level talismans such as fireball talismans, ice arrow talismans, lightness talismans, and vajra talismans, was not without losses.

Each stroke requires focused concentration, drawing upon spiritual energy to flow forth.

He gently put down the talisman brush that was soaked in cinnabar ink.

On the simple table in front of him, several stacks of talismans, resembling small mountains, had been piled up, an astonishing number.

Most of them are basic talismans needed for the sect's daily tasks; this is just the result of his work over the past two or three days.

With just these talismans, it would be enough to easily make a living for seven or eight years.

Lu Jianghe stood up and stretched slightly.

Then, with a flick of his wrist, he collected all the talismans piled up on the table into his storage bag.

He was wearing a blue robe, the usual attire of a Foundation Establishment disciple of the Luoyun Sect.

Looking around, the dwelling was indeed very simple, just a thatched hut built against the mountain, backed by lush green mountains and facing a babbling stream, located in a secluded corner at the foot of Tianquan Peak.

Just then, a faint whooshing sound of a magical artifact cutting through the air came from the sky, followed by the sound of someone landing.

"Junior Brother Lu!"

A familiar voice rang out from outside, carrying a hint of familiarity.

Before he could finish speaking, the rather flimsy wooden door of the thatched hut creaked open from the outside, and the person who came in was none other than Zhou Yan, who had led him to Tianquan Peak.

Zhou Yan strode in, his gaze quickly sweeping over the simple furnishings in the room before finally settling on Lu Jianghe.

"Junior brother certainly knows how to pick a place. It's quiet here, but it's been quite a while for me to find it."

Lu Jianghe gestured for Zhou Yan to sit down, then casually waved his hand, causing the teapot to tilt slightly and pour tea into the teacup, which then floated down to the other man's hand.

"Junior Brother Lu, have you heard?"

Zhou Yan settled himself on the bamboo chair, leaning slightly forward, his face showing undisguised excitement and a hint of mystery.

"Seven islands containing pure spiritual veins have been discovered beyond the boundless sea! They are said to possess unprecedented abundance of minerals and spiritual energy!"

He picked up his teacup, not in a hurry to drink, and quickened his pace: "The seven spirit islands are currently stirring up the entire Tiannan region. From what I've heard from the Core Formation stage elders, the four major powers of Tiannan—the Righteous Path Alliance, the Six Demonic Sects, the Nine Kingdoms Alliance, and our Heavenly Path Alliance—have already agreed on their ownership. In a few months, it seems that a tournament between Nascent Soul cultivators will be held to determine the final ownership of these spirit islands."

Lu Jianghe said, "Oh? Isn't that a good thing? Determining the outcome through a duel is better than a full-blown fight. But what does this have to do with us mere Foundation Establishment disciples?"

Zhou Yan put down his teacup, looked around seriously, and lowered his voice, saying, "It's not that simple. I heard that Foundation Establishment disciples have the opportunity to accompany Core Formation elders to attend the ceremony. This is an excellent opportunity to broaden their horizons and increase their knowledge. I heard that each peak can send ten people. That's roughly the rumor."

Lu Jianghe nodded: "It is indeed a rare opportunity. For us, it is always good to be able to witness the battles of the Nascent Soul stage and broaden our horizons. Even if we don't learn any earth-shattering techniques, we will have more to talk about with others in the future."

"That's exactly what I meant!"

Zhou Yan slapped his thigh, his tone tinged with excitement.

"This is a rare opportunity. I'm thinking that to ensure fairness, we'll probably need to hold a small competition within the peak first. That's why I came to let you know. Junior brother, are you interested in giving it a try?"

Lu Jianghe shook his head slightly, "I don't like fighting with others by nature, so I won't get involved in this kind of thing."

"6

Zhou Yan remained silent for a moment.

He had heard that although this Junior Brother Lu appeared young, he was actually probably the oldest Foundation Establishment cultivator under the jurisdiction of Tianquan Peak.

The youthful appearance before him was only due to a chance encounter with a youth-preserving pill.

He was originally a rogue cultivator from the Yuanwu Kingdom. After experiencing the turmoil of the war between the righteous and the demonic, he finally arrived in the territory of the Heavenly Dao Alliance.

If he were truly the kind of person who is competitive, bloodthirsty, and reckless, he probably wouldn't be alive today; he would have turned into bones in countless battles long ago.

Thinking about this, I can understand the other person's indifferent nature.

"Alright then, it would be a real shame to miss this opportunity. From your residence, one can also see your state of mind, Junior Brother. You do indeed possess the transcendent qualities of a cultivator, ethereal and detached from worldly matters."

After saying that, he stood up and dusted off his sleeves.

"Foundation Establishment cultivators have a lifespan of just over two hundred years. Although this is longer than that of ordinary people, on this long path of cultivation, they are ultimately like mayflies gazing at the blue sky, knowing its height but unable to reach its edge."

Upon hearing this, a smile appeared on Lu Jianghe's face.

It wasn't just superficial politeness, but came from the heart.

It turns out that Zhou Yan, while being enthusiastic and talkative, actually felt that he was also a Foundation Establishment cultivator who was nearly a hundred years old, and that his lifespan was running out.

The Youth-Preserving Elixir can preserve youthful appearance, but it cannot extend lifespan by even a fraction.

This would allow Lu Jianghe to witness the grand spectacle of Nascent Soul cultivators battling, adding a unique touch to the scene.

He really didn't want to go at first, but Zhou Yan's words stirred something in his heart.

The contest between Nascent Soul cultivators from the four major powers in Tiannan is not something to behold, but it's good to watch the excitement.

"Alright then. If I have any definite news, I can give it a try. It's truly rare to witness such a grand spectacle as Nascent Soul cultivators battling each other."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yan's face immediately lit up with a smile. He stepped forward and familiarly put his arm around Lu Jianghe's shoulder, displaying a friendly buddy-buddy-like demeanor.

"That's right, Junior Brother, don't worry. I've been around Tianquan Peak for so many years, and I've accumulated some wealth. I happen to have one or two magic artifacts, both of decent quality and power. I can lend them to you. We're not aiming for the top three, but we should be able to easily make it into the top ten, maybe even ninth or tenth place!"

"Hey, Junior Brother Lu, is the spiritual energy here so abundant?"

Only then did Zhou Yan truly realize that the spiritual energy gathered around this humble thatched hut was almost as pure and concentrated as the area of ​​the main hall covered by the spirit-gathering array at the top of Tianquan Peak.

Hearing Zhou Yan's question, Lu Jianghe felt a sense of helplessness.

Because he refined the true demonic energy beneath the boundless sea's ten-thousand-foot abyss, he was as if he had received divine favor.

No matter where he is, spiritual energy from all directions will involuntarily converge on him.

If he stays in one place for decades or even centuries without moving, the concentration of spiritual energy gathered there will probably be comparable to that of top-tier cave dwellings built on top-quality spiritual veins.

This phenomenon of spiritual energy gathering spontaneously was not something he did intentionally, nor could it be blocked or altered by any formation or restriction. Rather, it was a subtle "feedback" from the rules of heaven and earth to him.

At his current level of cultivation, he is not yet able to actively control or isolate this "divine favor".

Unless one day he can truly enter the Jade Purity Realm and completely embark on the Great Dao, or be able to communicate more deeply with this world, perhaps then he can get rid of this passive "gathering of spiritual energy", or at least be able to "sever" it.

Lu Jianghe smiled and said, "Tianquan Peak has good feng shui."

Zhou Yan scratched his head, still somewhat skeptical.

"Alright, then junior brother, just wait for my news."

After saying this, he left as hastily as he had come.

After ascending into the air on his sword, he belatedly realized that it wasn't just the small house, but the spiritual energy concentration of the entire Tianquan Peak area beneath his feet seemed to be much richer and more condensed than it had been in the past few days.

What's going on?

Zhou Yan muttered to himself.

Could it be that the Earth Vein Spiritual Pivot has undergone some recent changes?

Or has the sect set up a new spirit-gathering formation nearby?

He subconsciously glanced back at Lu Jianghe's simple thatched hut nestled among the trees at the foot of the mountain, then shook his head.

The spiritual energy of heaven and earth naturally ebbs and flows, or perhaps the effects of adjustments made by other peak formations have reached this place.

It's not enough to just have one small, unusual feature.

Zhou Yan didn't take it too seriously, and transformed into a streak of light, disappearing into the mountain mists.

In front of the thatched hut, Lu Jianghe stood with his hands behind his back. The deep and boundless true demonic energy within his body was being worn down and refined inch by inch by the natal flying sword suspended above his spiritual platform. Every inch of demonic energy that was worn away and stripped away transformed into strands of incomparably pure primordial energy of heaven and earth, merging into the small world around him.

As the demonic energy was continuously refined, the barrier of the thirty-seventh acupoint had loosened, and the thirty-eighth acupoint also showed a faint glimmer of light.

At this rate, once all the true demonic energy within the body has been refined, these thirty-six foundational acupoints may be able to expand to seventy-two.

Not long after Zhou Yan left, a familiar streak of azure light descended from the horizon and gracefully stopped in front of Lu Jianghe.

It was the girl in blue whom I had met when I first started climbing the mountain.

She gracefully leaped down from the cyan-colored flying artifact, casually making a hand seal, and the artifact transformed into a stream of light and was returned to her storage bag.

"I never expected that we would be so lucky to have ended up on the same peak."

Lu Jianghe said, "Now that you've joined the sect, you should call me senior brother."

2

The girl scoffed and raised her delicate eyebrows slightly. "Let's get to know each other again. My name is Mu Peiling."

Lu Jianghe didn't care. Instead, he asked, "Instead of focusing on your secluded cultivation and breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage as soon as possible, why do you have the leisure to come here? There is no such thing as a bottleneck in the Qi Refining stage. It's all about perseverance. With your talent, you should be able to break through in two or three years."

Mu Peiling chuckled, lightly wiping the tip of her nose with a hint of youthful smugness: "Of course! I just came to say hello in advance, didn't I? Next time we meet, we'll be equals! Maybe I'll catch up to you soon. I don't take a Foundation Establishment cultivator like you, who's over a hundred years old, seriously."

Lu Jianghe smiled and said, "No wonder you didn't even call me 'Senior Brother,' so that's what you were planning."

Mu Peiling put her hands on her hips, looking quite pleased with herself.

"Then you see, maybe in another ten years or so you'll be calling me Uncle Mu."

3

Lu Jianghe chuckled softly, "We'll see."

(P.S.: To be honest, I really like the character model of Nangong Que.)

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