Beast Taming Immortal Clan

Chapter 527 Heavenly Mirror Bestows Treasure, Treasure Map Appears in the World [Please Subscribe]

Zhou Chun was unsure of what Tianjing Zhenren was thinking due to his attitude.

Originally, according to his idea, Master Tianjing should at least ask how Yu Jinghua died, where he was hiding before his death, and how the Zhou family found him.

But now Master Tianjing's attitude is so indifferent, as if he doesn't care at all whether Yu Jinghua is alive or dead, and has no interest in asking about the dead man.

Such a calm attitude was truly unexpected for Zhou Chun.

Is this the state of mind of a Nascent Soul stage cultivator?

Zhou Chun muttered to himself, not wanting to speculate too much.

Unfortunately, this means that it's basically impossible to get help from Master Tianjing to put pressure on the Yuling Sect.

This debt can probably only be settled with the Spirit Control Sect after he reaches the Nascent Soul stage!

The thing he should be thinking about right now is how to answer Master Tianjing.

The other party's decision to let him make his own request, seemingly a reward for offering Yu Jinghua's head, was actually a test for him.

If you ask for an exorbitant amount, your impression on the other party will be greatly reduced.

But if he just casually asks for something, not to mention whether he'll suffer a loss, Master Tianjing might not really appreciate it. He might just go with the flow and casually send him away, leaving him with no reason to complain.

With various thoughts flashing through his mind, Zhou Chun ultimately chose an answer that was fair in all aspects.

He replied respectfully, "Replying to the Master, this junior desires a spiritual item that can aid in the formation of the Core!"

A Core Formation spiritual item may seem rare, but in reality, it's only worth a few hundred thousand spirit coins. For a Nascent Soul cultivator, it's not a precious item at all.

The head of Yu Jinghua, a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator, couldn't possibly be worth less than this.

Therefore, after hearing Zhou Chun's answer, True Person Tianjing nodded slightly and said, "This request is not unreasonable. However, I do not currently possess the Core Formation spiritual item you require. If you are willing to wait a few more years, I can have someone purchase or exchange it!"

Hearing his words, Zhou Chun couldn't help but smile wryly and cup his hands in greeting, saying, "To be honest, I had already applied to the Heavenly Spirit Alliance to exchange for three parts of Core Formation spiritual items. However, because the Alliance produces a limited number of such spiritual items, and there are many people who need them at the same time, I have not yet been able to queue up and receive the relevant spiritual items."

"But time waits for no one. One of my elders is now nearly four hundred years old, and if we delay any longer, he may miss the optimal age for forming his core. That's why I want to acquire a spiritual artifact for him as soon as possible!"

This wasn't an excuse; Zhou Daoyi's age was definitely not young compared to cultivators at the Purple Mansion stage.

Furthermore, over the years, he has worked tirelessly for the revitalization of the Zhou family, engaging in fierce battles with others, resulting in numerous hidden injuries and significant depletion of his vital essence.

If one waits until they are over four hundred years old to form their core, without the aid of a precious elixir like the [Holy Spirit Blood Pill], the success rate of forming the core is hardly something to look forward to.

Therefore, he must enter a state of seclusion to form his core within ten years, only then will he have a chance to truly succeed in forming his core!

After hearing his words, Master Tianjing fell silent for a moment.

After a moment of silence, he sighed softly and said, "Very well, since you're unwilling to wait any longer, let's change the reward!"

After saying that, he didn't let Zhou Chun choose the reward again, so as to avoid a situation where he couldn't fulfill his promise.

He then raised his hand and waved a jade box in front of Zhou Chun. "This talisman inside was crafted by me in my spare time. Because the sealed primordial power is relatively small, it can only be used once. It can probably unleash about one-tenth of the magic weapon's power. I'll give it to you for self-defense!"

A talisman made by a Nascent Soul stage cultivator?

Zhou Chun's eyes lit up, and he quickly accepted the jade box, repeatedly expressing his gratitude: "Thank you so much for your generous gift, senior! Thank you for bestowing this treasure upon me!"

Unexpectedly, just as he finished expressing his gratitude, Master Tianjing waved his hand and said, "Alright, since you are satisfied with this treasure, I won't keep you any longer."

They simply saw the guests off.

Seeing this, Zhou Chun had no choice but to take his leave and depart from Tianjing Manor.

"I always feel there's something strange about this Heavenly Mirror True Person. Even if all Nascent Soul stage True Persons have high levels of mental cultivation, they shouldn't be as detached from desires as him, right? When he first successfully formed his Nascent Soul, he was quite ambitious, wasn't he?"

After returning to his cave on Tuyun Ridge, Zhou Chun reviewed his experience of visiting the Heavenly Mirror Master and immediately became suspicious of the Heavenly Mirror Master's personal condition.

Judging from several experiences and the fact that there has been very little news about Master Tianjing in recent years, Master Tianjing's condition seems to be somewhat abnormal.

If I had to describe it in one word, it would be "lying flat".

The feeling Zhou Chun got from Tianjing Zhenren was that he was lying flat, without desires or wants, and didn't care about anything.

However, it is highly abnormal for such a situation to occur in a Nascent Soul stage cultivator, especially one who has only formed their Nascent Soul less than two hundred years ago.

Normally, even if one successfully forms a Nascent Soul and knows that there is almost no chance of further advancement in the future, other desires will arise as a result.

For example, he enjoys pleasure and takes in many female cultivators as concubines, eating all kinds of delicacies at every meal and living a life of wine and meat, in order to make up for some regrets left over from his single-minded cultivation over the past thousand years.

To put it another way, after a lifetime of cultivation, you finally succeed in forming your Nascent Soul, shouldn't you enjoy it a little?

Many rogue Nascent Soul cultivators like True Person Tianjing have the idea of ​​establishing their own sects and becoming patriarchs.

However, Zhou Chun had not heard any rumors about Tianjing Zhenren taking a concubine, otherwise many cultivation families would have rushed to Tianjing Manor to send their female cultivators!

"It seems the problem still lies in Qingxiao Zhenren's capture of his Nascent Soul back then. Perhaps this high and mighty Nascent Soul cultivator isn't as carefree as people think!"

Zhou Chun muttered to himself, as if he vaguely understood something.

Even if he guessed why Master Tianjing had become like this, there was nothing he could use against him.

So he quickly dismissed these conjectures and took out the jade box that the Heavenly Mirror Master had given him to examine.

Inside the jade box was a talisman that shimmered with a faint golden light. The talisman was imprinted with a golden mirror pattern, and it was probably made by the Heavenly Mirror Immortal by drawing upon the power of his own natal magic weapon.

Extracting a small portion of the magic weapon's original power to create a talisman will not cause any permanent damage to the magic weapon; it will only temporarily reduce its power, requiring nurturing and cultivation to restore it.

With the cultivation level of True Person Tianjing at the Nascent Soul stage, as long as his natal magic weapon has not yet been upgraded to a spiritual treasure, it will not take long for him to recover.

Even though his natal magic weapon was only a top-grade magic weapon, this talisman that could unleash one-tenth of the power of his natal magic weapon was still considered a superior treasure for Zhou Chun, a cultivator in the early stage of the Golden Core realm.

If used in combat, it will be no less powerful than a top-grade magic weapon!

The only pity is that this talisman can only be used once, so Zhou Chun needs to make good use of it and not waste it easily.

After examining the talisman, Zhou Chun put it away and then took out the mid-grade magic weapon [Taibai Dragon-Slaying Sword] that he had obtained from Yu Jinghua.

This [Taibai Dragon-Slaying Sword] was a magic weapon used by Zhou Tong, the ancestor of the Zhou family, to slay a fourth-order dragon. It was not his natal magic weapon, but something he obtained through chance encounters. It should be a natal magic weapon left behind by a powerful Golden Core cultivator.

This treasure wasn't originally called by this name. It was only after it slew a fourth-tier dragon that the sword gained a legendary status within the Zhou family, and it was renamed after the death of Zhou Tong, the ancestor.

This treasure can be considered the most precious magical artifact of the Zhou family, and it is no exaggeration to call it the family's most prized possession.

Zhou Chun originally possessed the [Myriad Transformations Golden Cauldron], and did not necessarily need to refine this magic weapon.

However, after giving Zhou Mingde both the [Earth Vajra Shield] and the [Blazing Gloves], he had no other magic weapon to use.

When he needs to supplement his defenses, he still has to use the [Myriad Transformations Golden Cauldron] to protect himself.

Therefore, refining this magic weapon will provide more room for error.

Because it was a mid-grade magic weapon, Zhou Chun spent almost a month refining it before he could finish refining the [Taibai Dragon-Slaying Sword].

Then they also learned about the magical powers of this treasure.

This flying sword is incredibly hard and sharp, and it contains the rare and precious magical material [Taibai Refined Gold]. It has powerful armor-piercing and shield-breaking effects, and can even easily cut through the scales of a fourth-order low-grade dragon.

Furthermore, the sword can also store a "Tai Bai Tian Xin Sword Qi" within its blade, which, when unleashed, will possess extraordinary power.

Previously, when besieging Yu Jinghua, this thief used this "Tai Bai Tian Xin Sword Qi" to break through Su Yuzhen's defenses and injure her.

However, Zhou Chun felt that the true power of this sword should be more than that, and that it should be used in conjunction with the sword cultivator's sword control technique to fully unleash its true power.

Unfortunately, true sword cultivators are few and far between, and those who have reached the Golden Core stage are even rarer. For this sword to fall into the Zhou family's hands is truly a waste of its potential!

However, the advantage of magical artifacts is that as long as someone continues to refine and nurture them, they can still be used even after thousands or tens of thousands of years.

As long as this treasure continues to be passed down in the Zhou family, it will eventually have the opportunity to meet a true connoisseur who will make it shine!

Since Zhou Chun was unable to obtain the essential materials for Core Formation from True Person Tianjing, Lin Hongyu went to the Great Zhou Kingdom to collect such materials for Zhou Daoyi. Zhou Chun also gave her several unused thousand-year-old medicinal herbs and some magical materials to exchange for them with some Golden Core cultivators.

For many Golden Core cultivators, Core Formation Spiritual Objects are merely rare spiritual objects that they cannot use. If they do not have the need to cultivate future generations, they are willing to exchange these objects for other treasures.

If Zhou Chun were willing to part with one of his magic weapons, exchanging it for a set of spiritual items to aid in the Core Formation stage wouldn't be a problem!

Of course, such opportunities are still very rare.

After that, Zhou Chun focused mainly on cultivation in his cave and paid little attention to family affairs, leaving everything to Zhou Mingde.

At this time, the Zhou family had won against Qinglian Temple in a gambling contest and then purged the family of traitor Yu Jinghua, resulting in an unprecedented surge in morale.

External forces also held the Zhou family in high esteem for their strength. Apart from a few major powers, few families or sects in Jing Kingdom dared not give the Zhou family any face.

The Zhou family's various businesses suddenly became much easier to run.

Even some smaller families have started to actively seek refuge with the Zhou family, wanting to become vassal forces of the Zhou family, betting their entire clan's fate on the belief that the Zhou family will become a regional hegemon in the future!

These small families mostly lasted only one or two generations. Their founders strengthened themselves through repeated adventures and eventually built a successful business.

Because of their successful experience, they are not afraid to take a gamble!

Anyway, their entire clan only has a few people, maybe a dozen or so!

As for these minor factions that wanted to pledge allegiance, after discussing it with Zhou Chun, Zhou Mingde decided to refuse such a vassal relationship and instead give them a gift as a token of gratitude for their "good intentions".

After all, the Zhou family has already set a low profile for the future, so there's no need to cross the line with Qinglian Temple in this matter.

The Zhou family's current plan is to support Zhou Daoyi in attempting to form his core at the higher levels, discover and cultivate talent at the middle and lower levels to solidify the family's foundation, and at the same time increase the development of the wilderness.

Anyway, time is on the Zhou family's side now. The lifespans of several Golden Core cultivators in their family are still quite long, so they can slowly wait and see how things change.

……

The Ice Kingdom, atop a precipitous snow-capped peak.

After transforming herself into an old man with white hair, Qing Weizi arrived at this place based on the intelligence she had gathered, and then carefully used her divine sense to search the area.

But no matter how he searched, his divine sense could not detect anything unusual on this snow-capped peak where the spiritual energy was not particularly abundant.

After trying several times, he gave up and then took out a specially made magic talisman and activated it.

As the talisman was activated and transformed into a white eye pattern that hovered motionless in the air, Qingweizi could only wait patiently from the side.

After waiting for about fifteen minutes, he suddenly felt a movement in his mind and looked at a snowy area a hundred feet away.

A flash of white light appeared in that spot, and a figure completely covered by a white robe appeared out of thin air.

Qingweizi's divine sense was repelled when it approached the person. With his mid-stage Golden Core cultivation, he couldn't even see the other person's cultivation level clearly, only knowing that he was definitely a Golden Core cultivator.

"Could the technique you just used be Ice Release?"

Qingweizi stared intently at the white-robed cultivator and tentatively asked a question.

The ice escape technique he mentioned is actually an unorthodox escape technique, derived from water escape techniques, and can only be used in places with ice and snow.

However, the advantage of this kind of escape technique is that once it is successfully mastered, it can be used freely in icy and snowy places.

At the summit of the snow-capped peak where Qingweizi is now, the snow and ice beneath her feet are dozens of feet thick, making it impossible to use ordinary earth-遁 (earth-遁) techniques, and the same goes for water-遁 (water-遁) techniques.

However, the Ice Escape Technique can be used here just like these two escape techniques, allowing one to easily traverse and fly through the ice and snow.

In such an environment, cultivators who have mastered the art of ice escape would truly be able to advance and retreat freely, holding a significant advantage in terms of terrain.

Seven or eight tenths of the land in the entire Bingyi Kingdom is covered by ice and snow!

However, when faced with Qing Weizi's question, the white-robed cultivator showed no intention of responding. He simply asked in a cold tone, "You've come with a token, so you must know our sect's rules. May I ask who you wish our sect to deal with?"

Upon hearing his words, Qingweizi knew that it was impossible for her to get close to him.

Therefore, he quickly became serious and said solemnly, "Of course I know the rules. The person I need your sect to deal with this time is a Golden Core cultivator in the early stage, who lives tens of thousands of miles away from Bingyi Kingdom. His relevant information has been recorded here!"

After saying that, he waved his hand, and a jade slip flew towards the white-robed cultivator.

The white-robed cultivator took the jade slip but didn't immediately examine its contents. He coldly stated, "Our sect needs time to investigate the target's true situation and assess the reward for this operation. We will contact you once the assessment is complete!"

After saying that, he made a hand seal and disappeared underground right in front of Qingweizi.

Upon seeing this, Qingweizi narrowed her eyes and quickly turned and left.

He still needed to wait in the Ice Kingdom, waiting for the Ice Prison Gate to contact him again to discuss specific compensation.

This is the rule of the Ice Prison Sect: when the assassination target is a Golden Core cultivator, they will not immediately accept the mission. Instead, they will investigate the situation, determine the danger level of the target, and then make a comprehensive offer based on all aspects.

If they find the target too difficult, they might even refuse the assassination mission.

Without this caution, their assassin sect would probably have been wiped out long ago after kicking someone in the foot!

After all, in the world of cultivation, you can't hide your sect or mountain gate in some unknown dark place and expect no one to find you.

For some Nascent Soul stage cultivators, they only need to collect a trace of your aura to find your hiding place from thousands of miles away.

Even in the cultivation world, there are miraculous divination techniques that can directly predict the hiding place of a target!

……

Zhou Chun, who was content to stay at home within his family's mountain gate, had no idea that Qing Weizi had already traveled to the Bingyi Kingdom to hire assassins to kill him.

The reason he stayed in the family's mountain gate to cultivate instead of going to the Great Zhou Kingdom was mainly because he was worried that the Qinglian Temple would not accept defeat in the bet and would secretly do something to deal with the Zhou family.

In addition, he doesn't have much need for the Great Zhou Kingdom at the moment.

Aside from needing Luo Qingni's help to refine the [Dragon Transformation Pill], there was no other reason for him to go to the Great Zhou Kingdom.

The task of collecting materials for refining the Ancient Dust Pill can be handled by Lin Hongyu or by other cultivators in the family.

To this end, he even sent some Foundation Establishment cultivators and Purple Mansion cultivators from his family to travel to various countries to help him collect relevant materials.

If Luo Qingni emerges from seclusion and reads the message he left behind, she will send someone to notify him, so he won't need to go there to wait for her.

"That's strange indeed. The duel ended over a year ago, and Qinglian Temple hasn't made a single move. Could it be that they're afraid to make any small moves because of Master Baiyue's warning? That doesn't seem like the style of Daoist Yiyang and Qingweizi!"

That day, Zhou Chun went to Zhongping Hall to check on the family's financial situation. After learning that everything was steadily improving, he couldn't help but feel uneasy upon returning.

He had already prepared for Qinglian Temple to use its business acumen to target the Zhou family from all sides. Given Qinglian Temple's size, this would certainly cause the Zhou family considerable trouble.

Moreover, this kind of targeting is strictly speaking just business competition. The Moon Wheel Sect can't possibly interfere with how the Green Lotus Temple does business!

To his surprise, Qinglian Temple did nothing at all, and even the Zhou family's shops in Hongyafang Market in Lanzhou were still operating normally, without being deliberately targeted.

This unexpected situation gave Zhou Chun a sense of unease, like the calm before the storm.

After some thought, he issued an order for the family elders and other high-ranking members to minimize their outings in the coming years, or to conceal their true identities when they do go out, in order to avoid any accidents.

For the Zhou family now, as long as no high-level cultivators above the Purple Mansion stage die unexpectedly, even if a few Foundation Establishment stage cultivators go missing or die, the losses are still within an acceptable range.

Several months later, Zhou Mingde suddenly came to Zhou Chun's cave to see him.

"Zhengchun, do you still remember the treasure map we obtained from the Jiang family's secret vault after we destroyed them?"

Inside the cave, as soon as Zhou Mingde saw Zhou Chun, he suddenly asked about an old story from many years ago.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chun immediately realized what he meant and looked at him with surprise, saying, "Of course I remember. You've suddenly brought this up; could it be that you've discovered another treasure map that corresponds to it?"

He clearly remembered that the animal skin scroll was only half complete, a fragment, but the animal skin was that of a third-tier demon beast.

A treasure map made from the hide of such a demonic beast must be no ordinary treasure, which is why it was collected by the Jiang family and stored in their secret vault.

Zhou Chun remembered that he had placed a rubbing of the treasure map in the family library many years ago. Any Zhou family cultivator who could enter the library could look at it and make copies for free, and it was noted that there would be a generous reward for the person who presented the other half of the treasure map.

When Zhou Mingde, who now manages the family affairs, suddenly brought up this matter, Zhou Chun realized that the measures taken back then might have already yielded results.

Sure enough, after hearing his words, Zhou Mingde immediately smiled and said, "That's right. The other day, Zhou Sihan, a junior member who was traveling outside the clan, suddenly returned to the clan and handed over the other half of the treasure map. After Xin Yi learned of this, he immediately contacted me to compare them and confirmed that the two treasure maps are exactly the same in terms of material, and there is no possibility of them being counterfeited!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chun thoughtfully replied, "If I remember correctly, this junior Zhou Sihan is currently at the mid-Foundation Establishment stage. After obtaining the other half of the treasure map, didn't he try to find the treasure's location?"

"Hehehe, of course he tried, but unfortunately that place is located within the territory of Cheng Kingdom, and it's now protected by a powerful formation and demonic beasts. With his strength, there's no way he could possibly obtain that opportunity!"

Zhou Mingde chuckled and gave the answer with a smile.

(End of this chapter)