Beast Taming Immortal Clan

Chapter 555 A Trip to Montenegro [Please Subscribe]

Tianyuan Immortal City.

After Zhou Chun rushed back to this place, he did not visit Luo Qingni. Instead, he went to inquire about the situation of chasing the two-headed black dragon a few years ago, as well as the situation of Thunder Cliff Valley.

Several years have passed, and the matter of the two-headed black dragon has come to an end.

The final result was not surprising: the two-headed black dragon successfully escaped, reportedly fleeing to a country called Qu in the northeast, where it disappeared without a trace.

Given that Chu Liao had been hiding in the Black Mist Swamp for countless years without being discovered, the chances of finding him again in a short time after this disappearance are extremely slim.

In any case, the Great Zhou Kingdom basically gave up on this matter and just casually issued a notice with a high reward.

As for the unfortunate Master Kuang Lei, there is still no news about him. Leiya Valley's mountain closure policy remains unchanged, and it is unknown when the mountain will be closed.

This shows that Master Kuang Lei was indeed seriously injured, to the point that he could only isolate himself from external forces by sealing off the mountain.

This was certainly good news for Zhou Chun, which reassured him and allowed him to contact Luo Qingni with peace of mind.

Not long after, in the "Qingni Residence", Zhou Chun, who had changed his appearance, met Luo Qingni again.

"Hehe, Fellow Daoist Zhou, you arrived quite quickly."

Inside the cave, Luo Qingni looked at Zhou Chun, who had changed his appearance again, and couldn't help but smile, making a rare joke at him.

Zhou Chun jokingly replied, "Fellow Daoist Luo summoned me, how could I not hurry over? It would be my fault if I were late and kept you waiting!"

Upon hearing this, Luo Qingni couldn't help but smile and say, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, you're too kind. How could Qingni dare to blame you? You're now a major customer of mine!"

After exchanging some playful banter, the two finally got down to business.

Luo Qingni looked at Zhou Chun with a serious expression and said, "To let Fellow Daoist Zhou know, I have reached an agreement with Flower Moon Valley regarding the exchange of the [Jade Dew of Qionghua]. They very much want Fellow Daoist Zhou's three-thousand-year-old [Jade Marrow Fungus] and are willing to exchange it with you!"

"As for the three-thousand-year-old Golden Thread Dendrobium, Qing Ni only recently learned that a sect in Liang Kingdom called the Cold Crow Sect has been cultivating this spiritual herb for generations, and they likely possess Golden Thread Dendrobium of the age that meets our needs!"

"Qingni has also inquired about the situation of the Cold Crow Sect. Although there were Nascent Soul stage cultivators in their ancestors, the sect has now declined. There are only six Golden Core stage cultivators in the sect now, and the highest cultivation level is late Golden Core stage."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chun immediately said, "Exchanging a three-thousand-year-old Jade Marrow Ganoderma for Jade Dew is not a problem, but how does Fellow Daoist Luo plan to obtain the three-thousand-year-old Golden Thread Orchid?"

"This is precisely why Qingni invited Fellow Daoist Zhou here."

Luo Qingni nodded slightly, then looked at Zhou Chun and said, "Liang Kingdom is several countries away from Da Zhou Kingdom. I only know the general situation of Han Ya Sect from a fellow Daoist who traveled from Liang Kingdom. I have no idea how to exchange with them."

"Therefore, for safety's sake, Qingni would like to invite Fellow Daoist Zhou to accompany me to Liang Kingdom. We will visit the Golden Core cultivators of the Cold Crow Sect and see what conditions they want in exchange for the spiritual medicine!"

Judging from her words, she had no connections to rely on this time and planned to use the most direct method—visiting them in person to ask for medicine.

This kind of thing is not uncommon in the cultivation world. Many Golden Core cultivators do this, either to purchase spiritual herbs or to purchase spiritual materials for refining magic weapons.

However, without connections, traveling to foreign countries to purchase precious medicinal herbs is still dangerous.

Especially since Luo Qingni is a rogue cultivator with no one to rely on, and is also a master alchemist, it's hard to guarantee that no powerful force might harbor ill intentions towards her.

Therefore, it was only natural for her to ask Zhou Chun to protect her.

Having understood this, Zhou Chun naturally couldn't refuse and immediately replied, "I have no problem with that. May I ask when Fellow Daoist Luo plans to depart?"

"About two weeks from now. This trip is expected to be quite long, so Qingni needs to make arrangements with all parties and take care of some matters at hand!"

After a moment's thought, Luo Qingni gave her answer.

"Then Zhou will meet with you outside the city in half a month."

Zhou Chun nodded and readily agreed.

He then bid farewell to Luo Qingni and headed to Zhou Daoyi's cave dwelling.

Several more years have passed, and Zhou Daoyi has fully recovered from his injuries. He is now living a very comfortable life in Tianyuan Immortal City.

Zhou Chun came over mainly to tell him about the family's development over the years and to talk about some noteworthy things within the family.

For example, the Zhou family's "Tianling Morning Post" became a bestseller, which attracted the covetousness of the Moon Wheel Sect and the Flame Sun Sect.

For example, what were his considerations in placing Lei Jiao Bai Bai's nest outside the Su family's mountain gate?

Zhou Chun recounted a wide variety of things, focusing on the most important ones.

However, Zhou Daoyi was more concerned about the situation of Zhou Zhiying, a junior with top-grade spiritual root aptitude, and specifically asked Zhou Chun about it.

Zhou Chun could only recount the relevant circumstances.

As he spoke, Zhou Daoyi's eyes grew brighter and brighter, until finally he couldn't help but click his tongue and say, "Tsk tsk, hearing you say that, Zhengchun, I'm even more eager to meet Ying'er. How about when you return to the family, I'll hide my identity and secretly meet her?"

Hearing this, Zhou Chun replied with a helpless expression, "If that's really what you think, how could I possibly stop you?"

After thinking for a moment, he continued, "How about this, it's not appropriate for you to go directly back to Jing Kingdom. After I return to Jing Kingdom, you should go to Bamboo Leaf Island in Le Kingdom first. Then, under the pretext of inspecting the family territory, I will bring Ying'er there to meet you!"

"Then it's settled."

Zhou Daoyi's eyes lit up, and he immediately made the decision.

He then talked about his activities in Tianyuan Immortal City.

After his injuries gradually healed, following Zhou Chun's advice, he also began to befriend the Golden Core cultivators in Tianyuan Immortal City.

Because of Zhou Chun's previous experience and knowledge, the progress was quite smooth.

Furthermore, he has already begun investigating the matter of purchasing a shop in Tianyuan Immortal City. He has already selected several locations and plans to observe them further before making a decision based on a comprehensive consideration of all aspects.

After all, every inch of land in Tianyuan Immortal City is incredibly valuable, and the transaction price of a single shop can easily reach millions or even tens of millions of spirit coins!

Although installment payments are an option, the initial payment would be no less than a million spirit coins, leaving him no choice but to be cautious.

Zhou Chun also advised him to be extremely cautious, since the Zhou family's finances were not very good at the moment, and the large-scale development of the wilderness had not yet begun, so there was no need to make a decision in such a hurry.

Zhou Chun stayed in Zhou Daoyi's cave for half a month before meeting Luo Qingni in the wilderness outside the city. The two then headed to the location of Liang Kingdom together.

Liang is a small country, and its overall strength is not as good as Jing. It only has four Nascent Soul stage cultivators, who belong to three different forces.

However, this country's land area is even larger than that of Yasukuni, and half of its territory is a desolate desert with no inhabitants!

The Cold Crow Sect is among the top five in Liang Kingdom, second only to the three major forces that possess Nascent Soul stage cultivators.

After Zhou Chun and Luo Qingni arrived in Liang Kingdom, they easily found out some information about the sect, and then the two of them frowned together.

According to what the two had learned, the current situation of the Cold Crow Sect was quite dire.

This sect recently offended the powerful Di Huo Sect of Liang Kingdom and was forced to close its mountain to protect itself.

The Cold Crow Sect has a history of producing Nascent Soul stage cultivators and was once quite wealthy. Its mountain gate's protective array is quite powerful. Under the guidance of a late-stage Golden Core cultivator, and with the assistance of other Golden Core stage cultivators and numerous disciples, even the Nascent Soul stage cultivators of the Earth Fire Sect would not be able to easily breach its mountain gate.

Moreover, such acts of annihilating a mountain and exterminating an entire family are generally not carried out unless it is a hatred that requires a life-or-death struggle.

The other two major powers in Liang Kingdom probably wouldn't sit idly by and watch the Earth Fire Gate easily destroy the Cold Crow Gate.

However, if Zhou Chun and his group were to rashly visit, not only would the Cold Crow Sect dare to open its protective mountain formation to let them in, but the Earth Fire Sect would probably not let them off easily either.

Faced with this situation, Zhou Chun could only say to Luo Qingni, "It seems we can only stay in Liang Kingdom for the time being and gather more detailed information."

He then added, "Even if a sect like the Cold Crow Sect is forced to close its doors to protect itself, it will still maintain some communication channels outside. If we patiently investigate, we should be able to make contact with their higher-ups!"

Hearing his words, Luo Qingni could only sigh helplessly and say, "Well, that's all we can do now. Fellow Daoist Zhou, you have a lot of experience in this area, so you can make the arrangements."

Zhou Chun accepted the offer without hesitation.

Following Zhou Chun's advice, the two concealed their cultivation levels and transformed into a pair of late-stage Purple Mansion cultivators. Luo Qingni also disguised herself as a man. The two claimed to be friends traveling in Liang Kingdom, using the aliases Zhang Peng and Li Qing respectively.

To make it easier to gather information, the two moved directly into "Black Mountain Market," the largest market for cultivators in Liang Kingdom.

Black Mountain Market is controlled by the Zhenyang Sect, the largest power in Liang Kingdom. However, its location is very far from the Zhenyang Sect's mountain gate, so the Zhenyang Sect must station several Golden Core elders here for a long time to ensure the sect's control over the area.

Less than 500 miles from Black Mountain Market lies the most dangerous place in Liang Kingdom, Mixian Ridge, a place where even Golden Core cultivators face life-or-death dangers upon entering, and where even a fifth-order demon king exists!

Although Mixian Ridge is dangerous, it is rich in spiritual energy, grows many rare medicinal herbs, and is home to many rare birds and beasts. There are even ancient cultivation caves there, making it a place that cultivators from Liang Kingdom have always flocked to for adventure.

Black Mountain Market is the only place these cultivators can pass through on their way to and from Mixian Ridge. It is precisely by controlling this market that Zhenyang Sect has firmly occupied the throne of the largest power in Liang Kingdom and has been steadily suppressing other forces.

After Zhou Chun and Luo Qingni rented a temporary cave dwelling together in Heishan Market, they began to contact local cultivators to gather information about the Cold Crow Sect.

Because Black Mountain Market is very far from the gate of Cold Crow Sect and is also the territory of True Yang Sect, they are not afraid of attracting the attention of Earth Fire Sect when they gather intelligence here.

After several days of investigation and inquiry, Zhou Chun and his team gained a deeper understanding of the situation.

According to the information gathered, the conflict between the Earth Fire Sect and the Cold Crow Sect suddenly occurred because their Golden Core cultivators went on an adventure in the Misty Immortal Ridge together. As a result, they disagreed on how to distribute the spoils and ended up fighting each other.

The result of this fierce battle was that the Golden Core cultivator from the Cold Crow Sect was seriously injured and escaped back to the sect, while the Golden Core cultivator from the Earth Fire Sect perished in the Misty Immortal Ridge!

Although the Golden Core elder of the Cold Crow Sect swore that he absolutely did not kill the Golden Core elder of the Earth Fire Sect, someone clearly saw the two of them fighting from afar!

So the Earth Fire Sect objected and demanded that the Cold Crow Sect hand over the Golden Core elder for them to interrogate and deal with.

The Cold Crow Sect would never do something so humiliating and disgraceful. If they did, what reputation would the sect have left? How could the disciples trust the sect?

Therefore, after several unsuccessful negotiations, facing the threat from the Earth Fire Sect, the Cold Crow Sect directly activated the mountain-protecting formation to seal off the mountain, while also seeking help from the True Yang Sect to mediate the matter.

"This is all the intelligence we can gather about the Cold Crow Sect for now. Fellow Daoist Zhou, do you have any thoughts?"

In a private room of the teahouse, Luo Qingni and Zhou Chun enjoyed fragrant tea together and discussed the important matters of their trip to Liang Kingdom.

After hearing her question, Zhou Chun replied somewhat irrelevantly, "I've heard that the spiritual energy within the Misty Immortal Ridge is as rich as that of a major sect's mountain gate, and its terrain is complex, with various unique formations interspersed throughout. Many rare and precious spiritual herbs, seldom seen in the outside world, have been spotted being harvested. As a master alchemist, Fellow Daoist Luo, wouldn't you like to stay in Liang Kingdom a little longer to see if you can collect some of these rare spiritual herbs?"

Upon hearing this, Luo Qingni shook her head repeatedly and said, "Fellow Daoist Zhou is joking. Even if the Misty Immortal Ridge truly produces various rare spiritual herbs, the cultivators of Liang Kingdom have been continuously venturing into it for so many years, they would have already harvested all the spiritual herbs that are worthy of our attention. Although Qingni likes to collect various spiritual herbs, she doesn't collect just any junk!"

At this point, she changed the subject and continued, "Furthermore, with the existence of Black Mountain Market and True Yang Sect, even if someone did bring out some rare spiritual herbs, it wouldn't be something an outsider like Qing Ni could get her hands on. Fellow Daoist Zhou surely understands this!"

Towards the end, there was a hint of complaint in his voice.

Upon seeing this, Zhou Chun chuckled and said, "Hehehe, Fellow Daoist Luo, please don't be angry. I was just saying it casually and didn't mean to tease you."

Then, he said seriously, "I intend to reveal my true cultivation level and visit the Golden Core Elder of the True Yang Sect who is in charge here, to see if I can learn some more important information from him and obtain a way to contact the Cold Crow Sect."

Upon hearing his words, Luo Qingni was slightly taken aback, then looked at him with a slight change in expression and said, "Is it necessary to be in such a hurry? What if the Golden Core elder of the True Yang Sect is unwilling to speak?"

Zhou Chun replied calmly, "If the Cold Crow Sect is destroyed by the Earth Fire Sect, it's probably not something the True Yang Sect would want to see. So, unless that Golden Core elder of the True Yang Sect harbors resentment towards the Cold Crow Sect, he'll most likely still do them a favor."

"If he truly refuses to help in the slightest, then we'll have no choice but to return to the Great Zhou Kingdom and come back after the Cold Crow Sect has weathered this crisis!"

His tone was firm, clearly indicating that he had made up his mind.

Upon hearing this, Luo Qingni could no longer persuade him and could only agree.

After discussing it, Zhou Chun left Black Mountain Market first, and then returned to the outskirts of Black Mountain Market as Yan Changfeng, a Golden Core cultivator.

Liang Kingdom is not the Great Zhou Kingdom, and Black Mountain Market is not Tianyuan Immortal City.

There are only a few dozen Golden Core cultivators in this country. Even if they don't know each other, they have probably met or seen each other's portraits.

When Zhou Chun, a Golden Core cultivator from outside Liang Kingdom, arrived at Black Mountain Market, the cultivators responsible for maintaining order in the market dared not let him in easily. They hurriedly informed the Golden Core elder of the True Yang Sect who was in charge of the market.

Soon after, a bald, burly man in a fiery red robe came out to personally greet Zhou Chun.

This person was also at the early stage of the Golden Core realm. Upon seeing Zhou Chun, he immediately took the initiative to speak, saying, "Greetings, fellow Daoist. I am Gu Lie from the True Yang Sect. May I ask your name and where you are from?"

"So it's Fellow Daoist Gu. Greetings, Fellow Daoist. I am Yan Changfeng, from the Great Yun Kingdom. I have come here to collect spiritual herbs."

Zhou Chun returned the greeting with a slight bow and calmly explained the origin and purpose of the fabricated story.

He had spent some time in the Great Yun Kingdom before, so he was familiar with the general situation there. If he encountered any related questions, he could handle them without any problem.

It's unlikely that the Golden Core cultivators of Liang Kingdom would be very knowledgeable about a country tens of thousands of miles away.

As expected, the bald, burly man, Gu Lie, did not press Zhou Chun for details about his origins. He simply nodded and said, "Since you are a distinguished guest who has come from afar from the Great Yun Kingdom, the Black Mountain Market cannot neglect you. I will first take you to the Treasure Pavilion, which is run by our sect, to see if you can find what you need. If not, you can then go to the market to look for it yourself. What do you think, Fellow Daoist Yan?"

"Then I, Yan, will humbly accept your invitation and trouble you, Fellow Daoist Gu."

Zhou Chun smiled faintly and readily agreed.

Next, the bald giant Gu Lie personally led him into the Black Mountain Market, arriving at the most impressive shop in the market, and directly summoned the shop's manager to a quiet room to keep him company.

In fact, Zhou Chun had visited this Qizhen Tower before to inquire about the spiritual herbs needed to refine the [Ancient Dust Pill], but he returned empty-handed.

At this point, in order to fit his character, he listed out all the materials needed to refine the [Ancient Dust Pill], [Purple Dust Pill], and [Jade Dew Golden Glow Pill].

Hearing him rattle off the names of dozens of rare and precious medicinal herbs in one breath, the bald giant Gu Lie also took a slight breath.

Then, unable to contain himself, he asked, "Fellow Daoist Yan, are you perhaps a master alchemist? Otherwise, why would you need to collect so many rare and precious medicinal herbs at once?"

"Although I am not an alchemist, I have a close friend who is a master alchemist, so during my travels, I was asked by her to help me collect some rare and precious medicinal herbs!"

Zhou Chun smiled slightly and replied.

"I see!"

Gu Lie nodded slightly, then didn't delve any further. He simply turned to the head steward of the Rare Treasures Pavilion and asked, "Junior Nephew Xu, do you think our pavilion has the spiritual medicine that Fellow Daoist Yan needs?"

The head manager of Qizhenlou was a beautiful middle-aged woman. After hearing Gu Lie's words, she hesitated slightly before saying in a low voice, "We do have a few spiritual herbs that meet Senior Yan's needs, but those are just the store's prized possessions, prepared for future auctions!"

The so-called "signature item" can be interpreted as something that is only for viewing and not for sale, used to attract customers.

Zhou Chun wasn't sure if the head steward was lying, but he immediately said, "Fellow Daoist Xu, rest assured. I, Yan, never take advantage of others when exchanging spiritual herbs. If you provide the spiritual herbs I need, I will exchange them for spiritual items of equal value!"

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged woman couldn't help but look at Gu Lie standing to the side.

After frowning slightly, Gu Lie nodded gently and said, "Since Fellow Daoist Yan has said so, Junior Nephew Xu, why don't you take out the items and let him see them and hear his price?"

Upon hearing his words, the middle-aged woman immediately stopped hesitating and respectfully replied, "Yes, junior obeys."

He then brought over five or six thousand-year-old spiritual herbs, three of which happened to be the herbs needed to refine the [Ancient Dust Pill].

This practice of tailoring dishes to individual tastes left Zhou Chun somewhat speechless.

Although he was displeased with the woman's actions, he didn't show it on his face. Instead, he immediately offered some spiritual items that he was willing to exchange.

Subsequently, under Gu Lie's witness, Zhou Chun exchanged all the spiritual herbs needed for the three [Ancient Dust Pills]. As for the auxiliary herbs needed to refine the [Jade Dew Golden Glow Pills], since he still had them on hand and the other party's asking price was too high, he did not insist on exchanging them.

After exchanging the medicinal herbs, before Gu Lie could even thank him, he immediately looked at him and said, "By the way, I have another question for you, Fellow Daoist Gu. Before I came to Liang Kingdom, I heard that the Cold Crow Sect cultivated the medicinal herb Dendrobium nobile on a large scale. Do you know if Fellow Daoist Gu knows if they have any Dendrobium nobile that are three thousand years old?"

"A Dendrobium nobile with a medicinal age of three thousand years?"

Gu Lie was slightly taken aback, then looked at Zhou Chun with a look of realization and said, "I'm afraid this is the real reason why Fellow Daoist Yan came to Liang Kingdom!"

Zhou Chun did not deny this, but simply cupped his hands in a gesture of respect and said, "I would like to ask Fellow Daoist Gu for your help. If it is successful, I, Yan, will certainly offer a reward!"

"Well..."

Gu Lie hesitated for a moment, weighing the options in his mind.

After a while, his expression suddenly changed, and he immediately nodded to Zhou Chun and said, "Alright, I can make a connection for Fellow Daoist Yan, but whether Fellow Daoist Yan can persuade the Cold Crow Sect to trade with you is beyond my ability to help."

(End of this chapter)