I tamed beasts and achieved immortality in the world of cultivation.

Meanwhile, in the three northern provinces of the Wu Kingdom, various spiritual lands and markets were located.

Countless gazes turned to the sky, towards the direction where the golden sun had vanished, each with a different reaction.

In a secluded valley in Linyuan County.

Several cultivators from the Qian Kingdom, dressed in black robes, sat around a campfire, sharing a roasted, golden-brown spirit rabbit. The leader, a middle-aged man with a sinister face and a cultivation level of the seventh level of Qi Refining, tore off a piece of rabbit meat and stuffed it into his mouth.

Suddenly, that oppressive force swept over us.

The rabbit meat in the middle-aged man's hand fell to the ground with a "thud," his face turned ashen, and his pupils were filled with horror.

"Golden Core... Late Stage Golden Core?!"

He abruptly stood up, looked up at the west, his voice trembling: "Why did the Lingyun Sect send a late-stage Golden Core cultivator?!"

The others also paled, dropping the food they were holding, their eyes filled with fear.

"This pressure... is many times stronger than that of our Holy Soul Valley's early-stage Golden Core elder! It's definitely late-stage Golden Core!"

"Senior brother, what should we do?"

"Retreat!" The middle-aged man gritted his teeth and made a decisive decision. "Retreat back to Qian Kingdom immediately! With a late-stage Golden Core cultivator in charge, staying any longer is tantamount to suicide!"

Without saying a word, the group packed their things and fled overnight.

Similar scenes were playing out simultaneously in various corners of the three northern states of the Wu Kingdom.

The low-level cultivators sent by the Qian Kingdom, who originally relied on the Blood Spirit Abyss and the Blood Soul Sect to back them up, ran rampant in the three northern states of the Wu Kingdom. Now that they heard that the Lingyun Sect had sent a True Monarch who was at least in the middle or late stage of the Golden Core realm, or even possibly the late stage, to oversee the matter, they were terrified and packed their valuables and fled overnight.

Meanwhile, the martial arts families and Lingyun Sect disciples who had been suffering greatly from the harassment by the cultivators of the Qian Kingdom were greatly encouraged and had much more confidence.

Some of the bolder disciples even took advantage of the retreat of the Qian Kingdom cultivators to kill several groups of lone survivors, seizing a lot of spoils of war, and they were all beaming with joy.

Of course, none of this has anything to do with Chen Qing.

Or rather, the only thing related to him was that Qi Xuan, who had already entered Lin Yuan County, went back into the secret passage after seeing that great sun and returned to Qian Kingdom.

Chen Qing was unaware of this. His current thoughts were simple: stay peacefully at Half Moon Lake for half a year, wait for the carp to be ready for market, wait for Meng Yuanbai to finish his business, then pack up and leave, returning to his territory to quietly raise fish and chickens and cultivate immortality.

As for fighting and killing, it's best to avoid it.

……

Time flies, and twelve days have passed since Qian Youfu left Half Moon Lake.

For the next twelve days, Chen Qing lived a life no different from usual—cultivating the "Canglan Technique" in the morning, practicing the "Nunhun Technique" in the afternoon, circulating the "Cangling Technique" at night, occasionally checking on the growth of the blue carp, teasing Qingtian, watching Danyu fail in alchemy, and urging Yinyue to run a few laps around the lake.

It was early morning on this day.

Chen Qing stood on a large blue stone by Half Moon Lake, his hands behind his back, gazing at the southern horizon.

He got up earlier than usual today. Even Qingtian was still fast asleep in his den. Danyu also didn't get up early to refine pills, which was rare. Only Yinyue, with her pointed ears, was curled up at his feet, her furry body rising and falling slightly, sleeping soundly.

"According to Senior Brother Qian, it should arrive today."

Chen Qing muttered to himself, his gaze fixed on the south.

After the Golden Core True Monarch took charge of Yunzhou, the cultivators from the Qian Kingdom ran away faster than rabbits, and even the number of Tribulation Cultivators in the vicinity decreased significantly. In the past few days, he hadn't encountered a single fool, which made things much quieter for him.

But the peace and quiet won't last long.

In a little over five months, he will leave this place and head to Qinghe Lake in Qingzhou.

There was a lake, a bamboo forest, and a first-grade mid-level three-aperture jade lotus. Just thinking about it made Chen Qing feel comfortable.

Just then, a black dot rapidly approached from the southern horizon outside the Azure Water Ring Spirit Array.

The black dot grew larger and larger, revealing itself to be a golden flying boat, about two zhang long, its entire body shimmering with spiritual light, and its bow adorned with a spirit bird spreading its wings as if about to take flight, a rather exquisite piece.

The flying boat, carrying two people, was speeding towards Half Moon Lake.

Chen Qing looked closely and saw a portly man with a round figure, none other than Qian Youfu. The other man was a middle-aged man in a blue robe, with an upright posture. Although his face was not clearly visible, his calm and composed demeanor indicated that he was no ordinary person.

"They're here."

Chen Qing smiled slightly, patted Yin Yue's head to wake her up, then put Qing Tian and Dan Yu into his spirit beast bag, and then walked out of the Azure Water Ring Spirit Array.

……

A moment later, the golden flying boat landed steadily on the shore of Half Moon Lake.

Qian Youfu jumped off the flying boat first, waving with a smile at Chen Qing: "Junior Brother Chen, I've kept you waiting!"

The blue-robed man behind him slowly stepped off the flying boat, and Chen Qing finally saw his appearance clearly—he was about forty years old, with a thin face, three long wisps of beard, and a scholarly air between his brows. A jade pendant with a restrained spiritual light hung at his waist, engraved with the two characters "Ling Shu". He looked like an immortal and had a somewhat otherworldly appearance.

"This is Meng Yuanbai, Senior Brother Meng." Qian Youfu stepped aside to introduce him, then smiled at Meng Yuanbai, "Senior Brother Meng, this is Chen Qing, Junior Brother Chen, whom I mentioned to you."

Chen Qing stepped forward, cupped his hands in a respectful but not servile manner: "Chen Qing of Beast Taming Peak greets Senior Brother Meng."

Meng Yuanbai slowly stepped down from the flying boat, his gaze sweeping over Chen Qing. He nodded slightly and returned the greeting: "Junior Brother Chen, there's no need for such formalities. Junior Brother Qian has mentioned you to me quite a bit, saying that you are a rare talent among the younger generation of Beast Taming Peak. Judging from your aura, it won't be long before you break through to the sixth level of Qi Refining, which is much faster than I was back then."

Chen Qing smiled and said, "Senior Brother Qian, you flatter me. Senior Brother Meng, please."

Having said that, he stepped aside and led the two into the small building.

Qian Youfu didn't stand on ceremony and swaggered ahead, while Meng Yuanbai followed slowly, his gaze sweeping over the surface of Half Moon Lake, the willows, the small building, and the spirit fish without making a sound, a hint of approval flashing in his eyes.

This place is really nice.

……

The small building is on the first floor, in the hall.

The three took their seats as host and guest, and Chen Qing took out a tea set from his storage bag. After activating his spiritual power for a moment, the aroma of tea rose gently.

Chen Qing poured three cups and pushed them towards the cups one by one.

Qian Youfu picked up his teacup, smelled it, took a small sip, and squinted his eyes: "Hmm, not bad, not bad, even better than last time."

Meng Yuanbai also picked up his teacup, blew on it gently, took a sip, and nodded slightly: "Fragrant and mellow, not bad."

After a few words of small talk, Chen Qing put down his teacup, knowing that the main topic was about to get started.

Sure enough, Meng Yuanbai put down his teacup, looked up at Chen Qing, and said bluntly, "Junior Brother Chen, Junior Brother Qian should have already told you why I'm here, so I won't beat around the bush."

Chen Qing nodded: "Senior Brother Qian has already said so, Senior Brother Meng, please feel free to speak frankly."

[I apologize for the lack of updates during the new book period, and I'm shamelessly asking for votes! ^O^]