《Cultivation Begins From The Desert》


 Chapter 1

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    The far west, within the Boundless Sand Sea.


    The Boundless Sand Sea was just like its name, a vast, endless, and boundless sea of sand.


    Its environment was harsh with very few suitable places for humans to live in. Only a few desert oases could accommodate humans. One of them was Yuquan Lake.


    Yuquan Lake was an oasis strategically located at the foot of Yuquan Peak, a mountain on the east side of the lake standing hundreds of meters high dotted with trees and surrounded by clouds. As such, the east side of the lake was higher in elevation than its west side.


    The entire lake covered an area of more than ten square kilometers. The water in the lake originated from an underground river that supplied large amounts of clear and sweet water. Its quality was good enough to be drunk directly.


    More than a hundred thousand humans and countless animals that live within a twenty-kilometer radius of Yuquan Lake Oasis depended on it to survive.


    Like all precious resources with human presence, Yuquan Lake was owned by the Yuquan Zhou clan.


    The first person to discover Yuquan Lake Oasis was the ancestor of the Yuquan Zhou clan, Zhou Yuquan. Now, the more-than-a-hundred-thousand humans that lived on this oasis were members of the Zhou clan, a branch of the Yuquan Zhou clan.


    The Yuquan Zhou clan was a clan that practiced immortal cultivation. Its ancestor, Zhou Yuquan, was a disciple of the immortal cultivation sect, Yellow Sand School. He had resigned from the sect over two hundred years ago and established the Yuquan Zhou clan in Yuquan Lake Oasis. Since then, seven generations had passed.


    Zhou Yuquan had long passed away but the amount of time that had spanned since he established the clan had allowed it to develop into a powerful immortal cultivation clan with a foundation establishment cultivator, dozens of Qi Refinement cultivators, and more than one hundred thousand ordinary members.


    Ordinary members of the Zhou clan mainly lived a carefree self-sustaining life in three small towns in the oasis, either cultivating the land or herding livestock.


    The cultivators of the Zhou clan lived on Yuquan Peak, which was rich in spiritual Qi.


    The spiritual Qi of Yuquan Peak was contained in Grade-2 advanced-tier natural veins. After more than two hundred years of cultivation by the Zhou clan, the veins had now evolved to Grade 3 intermediate tier which could be used for cultivation by several Foundation Establishment cultivators and hundreds of Qi Refinement cultivators.


    Zhou Yang was the Yuan (sixth) generation cultivator of the Yuquan Zhou clan.


    Zhou Yuquang had drafted up twelve generation titles ¨C Yu, Hua, Ming, Guang, Xuan, Yuan, Guang, Tong, Fu Ze, Rong, and Sheng ¨C when he established the clan.


    The members of the Zhou clan could only be listed in the family tree after their spiritual roots had been tested for cultivation potential. If they have been deemed worthy, their spiritual tablet will be placed in the ancestral hall and worshipped by the descendants.


    There were a total of fifteen members of the Yuan generation of the Yuquan Zhou clan. Zhou Yang was ranked ninth, but he was the best of the fifteen in terms of cultivation.


    At this moment, he ¨C a rather famous ¡®little genius¡¯ of the Zhou clan ¨C was sitting cross-legged in a natural cave on the mountainside of Yuquan Peak with his eyes closed. He put his hands together and used all his strength to circulate his cultivation method to absorb and refine the mist of spiritual Qi of earth veins in the cave.


    The spiritual Qi of earth veins was a kind of Qi essence formed from the combination of nurtured spiritual and earth veins. The absorption and refining of it were very beneficial for low-level immortal cultivators to break through to the next level.


    However, it was difficult to obtain the spiritual Qi of earth veins as it could only form in certain places where the earth and spirit veins intersected. In the entire Yuquan Peak, such spiritual Qi could only be found in Yuyang Cave, Zhou Yang¡¯s current location.


    The amount of spiritual Qi of earth veins formed in Yuyang Cave was only enough for Qi Refinement cultivators to break through every ten years. Moreover, it was only effective for cultivators of Qi Refinement Level 7 and below.


    Therefore, among the dozens of Qi Refinement cultivators of the Zhou clan, only a few particularly outstanding clansmen were able to use the spiritual Qi of earth veins to break through to the next level.


    Of course, Zhou Yang was able to use the spiritual Qi of earth veins in Yuyang Cave to break through. He was, after all, the Yuan generation¡¯s best of fifteen. Otherwise, even his father, the sixth elder of the Yuquan Zhou clan, would not be able to get a seventeen-year-old like him access to an opportunity that only came once every ten years.


    Many of the Zhou clan Qi Refinement cultivators had waited for this opportunity for ten to twenty years!


    Zhou Yang sat cross-legged with his hands pressed together as he breathed in and out evenly. With each breath he took, the milky-white spiritual Qi of earth veins would transform into two mist spirit snakes and enter through his nostrils to be refined into his own mana.


    When the amount of the milky-white spiritual Qi of earth veins in the cave had been reduced to less than thirty percent, Zhou Yang¡¯s tightly shut eyes suddenly opened. His aura had almost doubled compared to before as his shoulder-length hair fluttered behind him even though there was no wind.


    He stood up and muttered to himself with a face full of joy, ¡°I¡¯ve finally broken through to Qi Refinement Level 6. The spiritual energy of earth veins really lives up to its reputation. This has saved me at least three years of cultivation!¡±


    To be only seventeen years old and to have already reached Qi Refinement Level 6 was only something a few elite disciples with advanced-tier spiritual roots could achieve, even in immortal cultivation sects like Yellow Sand School.


    And Zhou Yang¡¯s spiritual root potential was only of intermediate tier.


    ¡°The clan leader said that it¡¯s my body, not my spiritual root, that possesses a special potential, which is why my cultivation speed far surpasses other cultivators with the same spiritual root potential. Unfortunately, the examination of it is difficult, and only large sects like Yellow Sand School can detect it through secret methods.


    ¡°Although the Zhou clan I belong to is a vassal of Yellow Sand School, it is impossible for me to ask them to help me examine my potential unless I am willing to join them!


    ¡°If I join Yellow Sand School, I will be bound by their rules. Moreover, there will suddenly be countless seniors in the sect who can order me around. How will I be able to live comfortably there as I do in my clan now?


    ¡°It¡¯s better to be the head of a dog than the tail of a lion, after all. Yellow Sand School has a large family business with no lack of geniuses of advanced-tier spiritual roots in every generation. Even if I have a special potential, I will only be an elite disciple when I join them. The benefits I will enjoy there might not be as good as what I have now with the Zhou clan. Here, at least the seniors hope for and support me to break through to Foundation Establishment in the future. They value me and my abilities to be equally as important to bring honor to our clan.


    ¡°Moreover, as long as I break through to Foundation Establishment, my special potential will naturally awaken and grant me some form of treasured magical ability. By then, I should already be able to tell what kind of special potential I have.¡±


    Zhou Yang was indeed not an ordinary person ¨C he was a reincarnation of a person from Earth. Thus, he still possessed more than twenty to thirty years¡¯ worth of memories from his previous life, unlike an ordinary person who had none.


    Although not much of these memories from his previous life could not be used in this Xianxia world because its environment was very different from Earth¡¯s, some methods, experiences, and principles were universal and thus, could still be useful.


    To others, Yellow Sand School was awe-inspiring. Its Grandmaster had already achieved the Golden Core in Core Formation and the sect had dozens of vassal desert oases like Yuquan Lake Oasis contributing to its collection of cultivation methods and treasures. Who wouldn¡¯t be eager to join such a successful sect?


    However, not many realized that despite the benefits of joining Yellow Sand School, the rules governing it were strict. Ordinary Qi Refinement cultivators had to complete the sect¡¯s compulsory mission every year. If they could not complete the mission and were lucky, they would be barred from receiving the benefits of being a disciple of the sect. If they were unlucky, their cultivation will be removed and they would be expelled from the sect!


    Furthermore, to appeal to the sect seniors and elders, or to obtain access to cultivate in spiritual locations it was almost necessary for low-level disciples to form cliques and use all their strength to suppress their competitors. Since the sect was so large and widely spread, it wasn¡¯t surprising that competition among disciples was very high.


    The Zhou clan¡¯s ancestor was a Yellow Sand School cultivator at Foundation Establishment stage. As such, the clan¡¯s ancient records had information regarding Yellow Sand School, which meant that any disciple of the Zhou clan would be able to join Yellow Sand School unless they did not have good spiritual roots or did not want to.


    Zhou Yang was of the latter as he was very tired of those office politics in his previous life. He had decided that he would never get himself involved in any similar kinds of politics in this life even if there was no hope of achieving the Great Dao or longevity.


    Xiantian, Qi Refinement, Foundation Establishment, Zifu, Core Foundation, Nascent Soul, Heavenly Tribulation, Void Reversion, and Dao Integration. These were the nine major cultivation realms. If one wanted to achieve true immortality, one had to be a Celestial Immortal of the realm of Dao Integration.


    However, as far as Zhou Yang knew, despite the presence of immortal cultivators since the beginning of time in this world, no one had ever heard of true immortality. After all, the nine major cultivation realms were something that was fed to them based on legends of Celestial Immortals. The existence of Celestial Immortals or anyone who had achieved all nine realms had never been verified.


    In fact, Core Foundation and a lifespan of a thousand years was the most 99% of cultivators could achieve.


    This was why Zhou Yang did not want to get involved in the superficial political pursuit of such legendary immortality.


    The ability of one to cultivate successfully required the synchrony of the heart too. Since his heart was unwilling, Zhou Yang did not bother to push himself.


    Having just broken through, his mind was a little too excited to think too much. It took Zhou Yang quite a while to suppress the messy thoughts in his mind. He looked at the remaining milky-white spiritual Qi of earth veins in the cave.


    ¡°Although I can absorb the spiritual Qi of earth veins as much as I want every time the Jade Sun Cave opens, I have already broken through so absorbing anymore will only help me increase the stability of my cultivation in the realm of Foundation Establishment. It won¡¯t be of much use otherwise.


    ¡°I might as well leave the remainder of this spiritual Qi of earth veins to bring forward the next opening of the Yuyang Cave to benefit the other clansmen.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t advisable to drain the pond of its fish. The spiritual Qi wasn¡¯t easy to produce and simply using it to raise one¡¯s mana and cultivation level was too wasteful. Since Zhou Yang was determined to stay in the clan to develop, he naturally wouldn¡¯t do such a vile thing that would harm public and private interests.


    Having made up his mind, he immediately walked out of the cave and explained the situation to the elders of his family who were guarding outside.


    Yuyang Cave is the Zhou family treasured place that was guarded all year round by the family elders. The current guard was Xuan generation cultivator Zhou Xuanhe, Zhou Yang¡¯s fourteenth uncle.


    Zhou Xuanhe was wearing a blue Taoist robe embroidered with white cranes and auspicious clouds. When he heard of what had happened and Zhou Yang¡¯s thought process, he immediately nodded with a gratified expression and said with a smile, ¡°Not bad, not bad. Yang, you are indeed the most promising person in the Yuan generation of the Zhou family to be able to draw a big picture at such a young age. If the clan head and my older brother knew about this, they would definitely be very pleased!¡±


    The clan leader that he mentioned was the only Foundation Establishment cultivator in the Zhou family, Zhou Minghan. He was the only surviving member of the Ming generation. The older brother Zhou Xuanhe referred to was Zhou Yang¡¯s father, Zhou Xuanhao. He was the sixth of eight elders at Qi Refinement Level 9 in the Zhou clan. Zhou Xuanhao was also the eldest of the Xuan generation.


    Zhou clan cultivators who were of the same generation would address each other as brothers. Those of different generations would address each other those older as uncle, and younger as nephew.


    Despite his fourteenth uncle¡¯s praises, Zhou Yang simply responded that this was his duty as a member of the Zhou clan. He did not allow his status and cultivation to prevent him from being humble.


    This only made Zhou Xuanhe think much more highly of his nephew.


    It was already very rare for someone at his age to achieve Qi Refinement Level 6. In addition to being able to remain humble and see the bigger picture was a combination that was extremely hard to find. The hope of the next generation of the Zhou clan might just fall on the shoulders of this young man.


    Zhou Xuanhe suddenly remembered something and said, ¡°Since you have already successfully broken through, quickly go to the cave-dwelling on the mountain top to pay a visit to the clan leader. The old man has already instructed that if you can successfully break through, you must be sent to see him.¡±


    ¡°Oh, really? I won¡¯t hold you then, Uncle. Thank you for protecting me.¡±


    Zhou Yang¡¯s expression changed as he thanked Zhou Xuanhe and quickly rushed to the cave-dwelling of the clan leader at the top of Yuquan Peak..

 Chapter 2

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    The top of Yuquan Peak was hundreds of meters high. The higher the elevation, the denser the spiritual Qi. Qi Refining cultivators of the Zhou clan would usually cultivate on the mountainside where comfortable palaces and pavilions were built for them to live in, staffed with others who would cater to their needs.


    Only Foundation Establishment cultivators would live in the cave at the top of Yuquan Peak and cultivate with the denser spiritual Qi there.


    The entire Yuquan Peak was surrounded by a Grade-3 advanced-tier array formation, the Ten-Thousand Flora Array, which could absorb the spiritual Qi of any plants inside the formation to increase its power. As such, aside from the established spiritual fields and herb gardens, the entirety of Yuquan Peak was covered with all kinds of tall trees. Some of them were hundreds to thousands of years old.


    The density of these towering trees formed a canopy that blocked the sunlight and reduced the mountain¡¯s temperature to be several degrees lower than its surroundings. Waves of winds that blew through the mountain forest further cooled the area.


    Zhou Yang was dressed in a fluttering white robe as he used a light-body spell to assist his climb to the top. He followed the stone steps that had been placed through the forest soon arrived at his destination.


    The top of Yuquan Peak was only ten acres large, despite the richness of its spiritual Qi, and had become quite flat as the Zhou clan had planted a high-grade spiritual herb garden in front of three cave shelters for the cultivators.


    As Zhou Yang entered the area, a medicinal fragrance that was a mixture of various spiritual herbs entered his nose. Just a whiff of it boosted his spirit and enhanced the circulation of mana throughout his entire body.


    If he could cultivate here all year round, his cultivation speed would be much higher than when he was at the mountainside.


    But this was simply impossible.


    The spiritual herb garden was a sacred place of the Zhou clan. Many of the spiritual herbs planted were precious varieties that the Zhou clan had cultivated for one to two hundred years. The loss of any one plant would be enough to make the clan leader Zhou Minghan¡¯s heart ache for several decades.


    Therefore, other than the two Grade-2 spiritual herb farmers of the clan, even Zhou Yang the highly favored genius disciple of the clan was strictly prohibited from taking even half a step onto the top of Yuquan Peak unless the clan leader summoned him.


    Moreover, even if Zhou Yang or anyone else tried to enter without permission, they wouldn¡¯t be able to. After all, this was the core of the Ten-Thousand Flora Array, protected by a powerful barrier and guardians who could not manipulate it at will to let just anyone pass. Even a Foundation Establishment cultivator would have to break the array to force his way through.


    ¡°I am Zhou Yang of the younger generation. I have been ordered to pay my respects to the clan leader. Please allow me to pass,¡± said Zhou Yang as he respectfully cupped his hands and bowed towards the white foggy array from the outside.


    ¡°So it¡¯s Zhou Yang, the ninth ranker. The clan leader has already informed me about your arrival. You may enter.¡±


    An old voice came from beyond the white fog which suddenly had a small clearing that revealed a safe passage for just one person to walk through.


    Zhou Yang quickly cupped his hands again and thanked the person. ¡°Thank you, Seventh Grandfather.¡±


    Then, he followed the path and eventually found himself standing next to a white-haired old man sitting cross-legged under a dozens-of-meters-tall tree.


    The old man was Zhou Yun, the fourth elder of the Zhou clan and the seventh among the Guang generation. He was at Qi Refinement Level 9 and was also one of the only two Grade-2 spiritual herb farmers of the Zhou clan.


    The youngest cultivator of the Zhou clan¡¯s Guang generation was already over eighty years old. Thus, it wasn¡¯t a surprise that the fourth elder, Zhou Yun, was already close to a hundred years old. This puts him very close to the lifespan limit of 120 years old for a Qi Refinement cultivator.


    Although an increase in age did not reduce the ability of a cultivator to fight, older Qi Refinement cultivators of major cultivation families who were getting close to a hundred years in age would leave for their ancestral lands to retire in peace. Only a threat to their families would disturb the retirement of the meritorious elders who had served their families for most of their lives.


    And since Zhou Yun was a Grade-2 spiritual herb farmer, he was allowed to live in seclusion at the top of Yuquan Peak so that he could take care of the spiritual herbs.


    When he saw Zhou Yang walking over, the old man waved his sleeve, and a tea table, tea set, and a praying mat appeared out of thin air before him, he pointed at the empty praying mat and said, ¡°The clan leader is just finishing up. Yang, have a cup of tea with me while you wait. I hear you can be quite a chatterbox.¡±


    It was rare for a junior of an ordinary family to be summoned to the top. Other than the clan leader, who often went into solitary cultivation, Zhou Yun was all alone with no one else to talk to. Retirement could be peaceful but also lonely and boring sometimes.


    Now that Zhou Yang. the most outstanding junior of the younger generations was around, Zhou Yun was naturally very happy.


    Any other younger person might not understand Zhou Yun¡¯s happiness, but Zhou Yang had lived two lifetimes. Thus, he understood him quite well. He was also looking forward to chatting with these old men without the influence or interruption of official clan business. Zhou Yang wanted to hear more about the interesting things in the immortal cultivators¡¯ world.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not every day I get to drink a cup of herbal tea made by Seventh Grandfather himself. So today, I must drink until I¡¯m full.¡± Zhou Yang smiled and walked over to the praying mat and sat down. He picked up the tea set and began to brew tea.


    Immortal cultivators brewed tea differently from mortals. The flames used to brew the tea was formed from mana. It only took a moment for the tea to boil, and there was no smell of smoke.


    After the pot of tea was ready, Zhou Yang poured the tea for the two of them. He then impatiently picked up his cup of fragrant hot tea and drank it in one gulp.


    If mortals drank tea like this, they would probably burn their throats. However, immortal cultivators¡¯ bodies had been tempered by mana. Thus, the temperature of the tea to them felt just like the warm temperatures comfortable for ordinary people to drink in.


    Rather than displeased, Zhou Yun smiled happily at Zhou Yang as the latter gulped down his tea. The former asked, ¡°How is it? How do you like my new herbal tea?¡±


    After asking, Zhou Yun gently picked up his teacup and took a sip, then closed his eyes with a look of enjoyment on his face. Zhou Yun proudly said, ¡°This is a new tea that I concocted with the withered leaves of the Grade-2 spiritual herb Immortal Cloud Grass, the root of a twenty-year-old White Jade Ginseng, the Grade-1 spiritual herb Fragrant Leaf Chrysanthemum, and five other spiritual herbs. I was able to concoct three taels of tea. Even the water used to make this tea is from the spiritual dew I collected from the spiritual herbs in the garden this morning.¡±


    ¡°The tea does taste good. No tea that I¡¯ve drunk so far can match up to the herbal tea Seventh Grandfather has made, both in terms of taste and efficacy. If we can mass produce it, the Zhou family will have an additional income!¡±


    Zhou Yang put down the teacup and sensed the changes in the mana within his body. He savored the remaining herbal fragrance on his lips and looked back at Zhou Yun admiringly.


    When the old man heard his praise, he initially looked overjoyed, but then he shook his head a little sadly and helplessly said, ¡°I also had the same idea. Unfortunately, Immortal Cloud Grass is the main ingredient to refine the spiritual Grade-2 Immortal Cloud Pill. We can¡¯t just waste the spiritual herb just for the sake of making tea, right?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­¡±


    Zhou Yang lowered his head in embarrassment, not knowing how to respond.


    There was only one Grade-2 alchemist in the family, and that was his father, Zhou Xuanhao. Once the Immortal Cloud Grass matured, it would be used by his father to refine pills. If he dared to tell his father that he wanted to use the spiritual herb to make tea, the latter would definitely slap him to death.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I am still able to see the bigger picture too, you know? Those were just casual words that I said just now!¡±


    The old man smiled. He knew what Zhou Yang was thinking. He comforted Zhou Yang first, then told him some interesting stories from his youth to resolve the awkwardness.


    The two chatted for about fifteen minutes before the door of the cave opened. The clan leader¡¯s vigorous voice came from the door. ¡°Is Zhou Yang here? Come in.¡±


    Zhou Yang and Zhou Yun stopped talking the moment they heard the clan leader¡¯s voice. Then, Zhou Yang stood up and cupped his hands to Zhou Yun, ¡°Seventh Grandfather, I¡¯ll be leaving to pay my respects to the clean leader now.¡±


    ¡°Alright, go ahead. Don¡¯t keep the clan leader waiting.¡±


    After saying goodbye to Zhou Yun, Zhou Yang walked into the cave through the open door. Soon, entered a cultivation room deep inside the cave and finally faced the current clan leader of the Zhou family, Zhou Minghan, a Foundation Establishment cultivator.


    Zhou Minghan was already more than 150 years old this year, but he looked much younger than Zhou Yun. The hair on his head was not completely white, and his face was still as rosy as a baby¡¯s.


    Such an appearance for a Foundation Establishment cultivator as they usually had a lifespan of more than two hundred years. If nothing unexpected happened, Zhou Minghan still had at least forty to fifty years to live. Moreover, his cultivation level was high, which explained how he looked younger than Zhou Yun.


    Zhou Minghan was sitting cross-legged on the cold jade bed, meditating. Zhou Yang didn¡¯t dare to stare at him too much. He simply bowed deeply and said, ¡°Zhou Yang is here to pay respect to Great-grandfather.¡±


    As the only Ming generation and Foundation Establishment cultivator in the Zhou clan, Zhou Minghan naturally became the great-grandfather to all Yuan generation cultivators.


    ¡°Xuanhe has already informed me of your performance in Yuyang Cave. Zhou Yang, well done. Even when I was your age, I was still far inferior to you in terms of my overall performance!¡±


    Zhou Minghan opened his eyes slightly and looked at Zhou Yang with undisguised admiration. Despite his praises, the joy that Zhou Minghan felt was beyond words.


    It would be a lie to say that Zhou Yang did not feel the smallest bit of happiness from Zhou Minghan¡¯s words. Zhou Yang was the first person to receive such praise from the clan leader. If word of this was to spread, his reputation among the Zhou clan¡¯s elders and disciples would definitely rise by another level.


    However, Zhou Yang did not allow himself to be carried away because of this. He hurriedly responded with respect. ¡°Great-grandfather, you¡¯re too kind. I merely did what should be done. I don¡¯t believe that I deserve such praise from you.¡±


    ¡°How humble of you! If every member of the Zhou family was as sensible as you, imagine how harmonious our family would be?¡±


    Zhou Minghan could not help but reveal a wide smile on his face. It was obvious that he was extremely satisfied with Zhou Yang¡¯s answer.


    He raised his hand and an invisible force brought Zhou Yang¡¯s bent-over body to him.


    ¡°Come, stand up straight. Let me have a good look at the Zhou clan¡¯s unicorn!¡±


    For the clan leader to have so joyfully called him a unicorn, Zhou Yang must have been a highly-valued person to Zhou Minghan..

 Chapter 3

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Zhou Minghan had great expectations for Zhou Yang.


    The Yuquan Zhou clan¡¯s leaders had always been Foundation Establishment cultivators ever since it was founded by Zhou Yuquan. That was how they had been able to develop so much over the past two hundred years.


    However, after Zhou Minghan, there hadn¡¯t been a Foundation Establishment cultivator for over a hundred years. This was dangerous as a cultivation clan¡¯s biggest fear was the sudden loss of a high-level cultivator.


    Without the protection of a Foundation Establishment cultivator, the Zhou clan might not even be able to defend Yuquan Lake Oasis and Yuquan Peak. They wouldn¡¯t even be able to continue to expand their clan.


    Therefore, Zhou Minghan had secretly instructed to halt the development of the Zhou clan in recent years. They were afraid that their continued expansion would attract the attention of others which might lead to their destruction upon Zhou Minghan¡¯s death.


    But that wasn¡¯t the best solution for the clan¡¯s survival. The best way was for the Zhou clan to develop a new Foundation Establishment cultivator to take over the clan in time.


    As long as there was a Foundation Establishment cultivator to lead the clan, the clan would be able to fend itself with its Grade-3 Ten-Thousand Flora Array and dozens of Qi Refinement cultivators against the attack of other Foundation Establishment cultivators.


    Zhou Minghan had initially placed his hopes on the cultivators of the Xuan generation. He had even made up his mind that if no one in the Zhou clan was able to advance to Foundation Establishment before his death, he would rather give most of Yuquan Lake Oasis and the Zhou clan¡¯s estates to Yellow Sand School in exchange for the latter¡¯s protection. He couldn¡¯t let the Zhou clan be the target of extermination by others due to their reputation and resources.


    But now, Zhou Minghan realized that perhaps he should change his mind.


    With Zhou Yang¡¯s potential, his chances of reaching Foundation Establishment might just be higher than those of the Xuan generation if he was given another twenty to thirty years.


    He carefully looked at the youth standing before him. Zhou Minghan could care less about Zhou Yang¡¯s pleasing appearance. What the former valued was the youth¡¯s confident yet humble temperament and his calmness in the face of scrutiny or challenge.


    When he was done judging him, Zhou Minghan had only one thought left in his mind: this child could be of great use!


    Of course, as an elder, no matter how satisfied and happy he was in his heart, he would not show it outwardly for fear of encouraging the youth¡¯s arrogance.


    Therefore, his outward expression remained calm despite the happiness in his heart. He looked at Zhou Yang indifferently and asked, ¡°Do you know why I asked you to come here?¡±


    ¡°Please enlighten me, Clan Leader,¡± said Zhou Yang honestly.


    ¡°According to the rules of the clan, our young cultivators must train at the base of the mountain and serve the clan for a period of time before they can return to cultivate.


    ¡°However, your situation is special. Although you are only seventeen years old, you are already at Qi Refinement Level 6. No one has been able to make their way up the mountain at your age in the past twenty years.


    ¡°Now that you have broken through with the help of the spiritual Qi of earth veins, you will need to spend at least five more years to temper your mana. If I let you stay on the mountain, wouldn¡¯t it be a waste of your potential?


    ¡°Therefore, I have decided to make special arrangements and let you return to the mountain base early to serve the clan. This is also for your training and will be of great benefit to your cultivation in the future.¡±


    Zhou Minghan¡¯s mouth curled up slightly as he instructed Zhou Yang who listened attentively.


    As expected, Zhou Yang¡¯s expression changed. He did not expect that he would be called here for such a thing.


    But it was hard to tell if he was happy or depressed. Still, he quickly regained his calm composure as he respectfully bowed to Zhou Minghan and said, ¡°I understand. I am willing to obey the clan¡¯s instructions.¡±


    Zhou Minghan asked, ¡°Don¡¯t you want to know where I plan to assign you?¡±


    ¡°I believe that no matter Great-grandfather¡¯s plans, it is ultimately for the good of me and the clan.¡±


    Zhou Yang¡¯s response made Zhou Minghan speechless.


    After a long while, the latter laughed and playfully scolded the former. ¡°You are indeed a little rascal. Xuanhao and his wife are both upright people and yet they gave birth to a little rascal like you!


    ¡°Your spiritual root is biased towards the metal and fire attributes. You also cultivate the Golden Sun Blazing Fire Technique which is a masculine and overbearing cultivation technique. Other than a lack of battle experience, your fighting skills are not inferior to any other cultivator of the same level.


    ¡°Since the cultivator stationed at Qingping Mountain is almost done serving his time, you will be the one to replace him for the next five years. Once you¡¯ve served your time, I will send a replacement after you.


    ¡°I hope that during this period of time, you will be able to make good use of your time to learn one of the hundred arts of immortal cultivation, the Artifact Refinement Technique. The clan currently doesn¡¯t have any good artifact refiners that can take my place. If you are able to make good progress in artifact refinement, it will be a great contribution to the clan.¡±


    Once he was done speaking, Zhou Minghan waved his hand to throw a gray storage bag and small silver shield into Zhou Yang¡¯s hand.


    ¡°There are some low-level materials to practice artifact-refinement in the storage bag. I¡¯ve also included some of my notes in learning the Artifact Refinement Technique as well as a copy of the clan¡¯s ¡®A True Understanding of Artifact Refinment¡¯ collection. You must take good care of these things and not let the knowledge get out.


    ¡°The Silver Shield is a magical weapon and it¡¯s the best of the many Grade-2 magical weapons I¡¯ve refined. Think of it as my compensation for assigning you to the mountain at such a young age.


    ¡°Alright, if there¡¯s nothing else, you may leave. It¡¯s best to complete the journey to Qingping Mountain within a month.¡±


    Zhou Minghan¡¯s words and actions left Zhou Yang dumbstruck for a moment. He quickly gathered himself and the items the clan leader had given him. ¡°Then I¡¯ll take my leave first, Clan Leader.¡±


    It was not until he had walked out of the cave and heard the sound of the door closing behind him that he fully came back to his senses and understood what had happened.


    He recalled Zhou Minghan words in the cave but his eyes were full of confusion as he muttered to himself, ¡°What happened to me just now? How could I not have any reaction as if I had lost my soul? This is not like me!¡±


    His heart skipped a beat as he made a bold guess.


    ¡°Could it be that the clan leader cast some spell on me?¡±


    But he immediately stopped himself from thinking of such a dangerous idea.


    Even if the clan leader had cast a spell on him, it must have just been a joke. There was no need to think too much about it. As the saying went, curiosity killed the cat.


    He quickly cleared his head again and looked at the storage bag and magical weapon in his hand before carefully putting them away. On his way out, he greeted Zhou Yun who was drinking tea under the tree by himself. Zhou Yang respectfully requested the elder to open the array for him to descend the mountain.


    Before he took his final step out of the mountain, Zhou Yang turned back to look at the top and saw Zhou Yun standing under the tree and watching him leave with a smile.


    ¡°The kid seems to have noticed. Guess I can¡¯t use such tricks to tease him in the future, lest I cause a bad misunderstanding.¡± Zhou Minghan had been observing Zhou Yang through his Divine Sense after the latter left the cave. The clan leader tugged at his beard awkwardly and a hint of regret appeared on his face.


    He had indeed secretly cast the Soul-Absorbing spell that he had learned in his early years to influence Zhou Yang¡¯s mind.


    It was not that he was afraid that Zhou Yang would disagree with his instructions, but it was purely because he could not bear to see Zhou Yang¡¯s mature reactions. Zhou Minghan simply wanted to tease Zhou Yang.


    Seniors would initially feel proud that they had successfully teased their juniors. But when they soon realize that their joke might have gone too far and affect the juniors¡¯ mentality in the future, the seniors would regret their decisions.


    This was currently the case for Zhou Minghan.


    Fortunately, Zhou Yang was quite mature psychologically. He did not blame the dedicated clan leader over one small little joke.


    Once he had descended from the mountain, Zhou Yang quickly returned to his loft on the mountainside. He closed his door and began to properly take a good at his new inventory.


    First was the storage bag that the clan leader had given him. This kind of magical storage item was made from the skin of the demon beast, Spirit Void Rat, and was something that almost every immortal cultivator had. Even the poorest itinerant cultivator would try their best to get one.


    Of course, there were different grades of storage bags. The storage bags used by ordinary Qi Refinement itinerant cultivators usually only had bags with storage space of up to three square feet. It was barely enough to hold a few sets of clothes and miscellaneous items.


    However, a Qi Refinement cultivator of the Yuquan Zhou clan would receive a storage bag with five square feet of space for free. Since Zhou Yang had a good father, he used a ten-square-foot storage bag on a daily basis.


    And now, his storage bag has been upgraded.


    The seemingly gray and unattractive storage bag given by the clan leader had a space of thirty square feet. Besides a cauldron used for refining artifacts and a few books on artifact refinement, the storage bag was also filled with materials such as black iron, red copper, century-old ironwood, and other low-grade refining materials.


    Zhou Yang did a rough calculation in his head. If he only wanted to refine artifacts that used a minimal amount of materials, what he had would be enough for him to refine artifacts a hundred times over.


    ¡°Ordinary disciples learn the Artifact Refinement Technique with freely-provided materials which would give them a hundred chances to practice at most. But the amount of materials the clan leader gave me would even allow the dumbest newbie to succeed two or three times!¡±


    Zhou Yang looked at the storage bag filled with materials. It would be a lie to say that he was not moved.


    He knew that the old clan leader had always kept a clear line between personal and work affairs. Even if he was talented, the clan leader would not make an exception for him.


    Then there was only one reason he was given so many materials to practice with. The clan leader had used his personal savings to exchange for these materials from the clan¡¯s treasury.


    ¡°It seems that the clan leader really wants me to inherit his Artifact Refinement Technique. As the only Grade-3 artifact refiner in the clan, he must have noticed something. Perhaps I really do have a talent in artifact refinement.¡±


    Zhou Yang recalled the cultivation technique the clan leader had mentioned earlier, the Golden Sun Blazing Fire Technique. He suddenly had an epiphany, and a knowing smile appeared on his face.


    He carefully put away his new storage bag and looked at the other thing the clan leader had given him, the Grade-2 magical weapon, the Silver Shield..

 Chapter 4

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    The Grade-2 magical weapon, Silver Shield, was made by combining the fallen scales of the Grade-2 spiritual items, Dragon Scale Tree and Silver Shield Stone.


    Just as there were nine immortal cultivation realms, there were also nine grades of magical and spiritual items including weapons, medicinal pills, formations, and talismans used by immortal cultivators. Each item grade corresponded to the respective immortal cultivation realm. For example, Grade-2 magical items corresponded to Qi Refining cultivators.


    Each grade of magical and spiritual items was also further divided into advanced, intermediate, and lower tiers. The Silver Shield, for example, was a Grade-2 advanced tier magical weapon as it was meticulously refined by Zhou Minghan, a Grade-3 artifact refiner.


    Currently, the Silver Shield was merely the size of a palm. However, if Zhou Yang was to use it in battle, it would transform into a shield to protect its user¡¯s entire body. Zhou Yang would also be able to adjust the shield size at will.


    Moreover, the Silver Shield Stone fused into the weapon during refinement meant that the Silver Shield could block attacks from flying swords and sabers of the same grade and tier or lower. The shield could also protect its user from magical attacks of other immortal cultivators or demon beasts, greatly offsetting the damage of Grade-3 spells and below.


    ¡°Zhou clan has a Grade-2 Dragon Scale Tree which produces a few mature tree scales that can be harvested every ten years. So we¡¯re pretty much self-sufficient for that spiritual item. The Silver Shield Stone, on the other hand, is not very common. Even a piece of it the size of a fist is equivalent to at least five hundred pieces of lower-tier spiritual stones. It seems that the clan leader¡¯s gifts are quite valuable!¡±


    As an immortal cultivation clan, members could obtain spiritual stones from the Zhou clan every year until they were over sixty years old as long as they were Qi Refinement cultivators.


    According to the current clan rules, a member of the Zhou clan at Qi Refinement Level 1 would receive ten lower-tier spiritual stones a year, while a member at Qi Refinement Level 2 would receive twenty lower-tier spiritual stones a year, and so on until they reached Qi Refinement Level 9.


    This was because unless something extraordinary happened, Qi Refinement Level 9 was the limit for typical Qi Refinement cultivators. The current rules of the Zhou clan were that as long as a clan cultivator had reached Qi Refinement Level 9, they would be promoted to clan elder, and each elder would then receive 150 lower-tier spiritual stones a year until his last breath as the consecration was not limited by age.


    Zhou Yang had been at Qi Refinement Level 5 for two years. As such, he had been receiving fifty lower-tier spiritual stones a year. At that rate, even by spending wisely, he would still need another ten years to exchange for a fist-sized Silver Shield Stone.


    At present, Zhou Yang had already accumulated a wealth of about three hundred lower-tier spiritual stones (excluding the gifts from his parents) as a result of beginning his Qi Refinement training early.


    Thus, the clan leader¡¯s gift of the Silver Shield to Zhou Yang was a huge reward for the latter!


    ¡°Since the clan leader thinks so highly of me, I must not disappoint him. Whether it is learning the Artifact Refinement Technique or guarding Qingping Mountain, I must perform well!¡±


    Zhou Yang¡¯s heart warmed, and he could not help but clench the magical weapon in his hand. He was determined to do a good job to repay the trust of his elders.


    In the next few days, Zhou Yang locked himself in his room to continue refining the Silver Shield. Once he had refined it to his heart¡¯s content, he finally walk out of his room to prepare for his trip down the mountain.


    He first went to one of the Zhou family¡¯s underground Scripture Cave and learned the Golden Sun Blazing Flame Technique of Qi Refinement Level 6. He then selected another five Grade-2 offensive spells from the Scripture Cave¡¯s depository that were useful for combat: the Golden Saber Technique; Fire Snake Technique; the Grade-2 defensive spell, Golden Light Technique; and the Grade-2 auxiliary spells, Heavenly Eye Technique and Earth Evasion Technique.


    The Qi Refinement cultivation methods and spells in the Zhou Family¡¯s Scripture Cave could only be read and learned by clansmen as long as they were in the cave. The cultivation methods and spells could not be taken out of the cave and clansmen were strictly forbidden to teach them to outsiders.


    Zhou Yang had previously followed the teachings of his parents and elders, including learning some simple Grade-1 auxiliary spells. He did not spend much time or energy learning combat spells as his main priority was in improving his cultivation.


    But now that he was going to descend the mountain and stand guard at Qingping Mountain, it was impossible to survive without knowing any combat spells. The artifacts he had with him were simply not enough to fend off others and keep him alive.


    Spells were easy to learn but difficult to master. With Zhou Yang¡¯s cultivation at Qi Refinement Level 6, it only took him about half a month to learn all five spells.


    By then, it wasn¡¯t long until the one-month period the clan leader had given him to prepare was over. Zhou Yang wrote a letter to his parents who were stationed at an immortal cultivator market thousands of miles away and requested the help of the elders to deliver it. Then, he bade farewell to the elders and cultivators of his generation with whom he was familiar and descended the mountain alone.


    Once he had arrived at the base, Zhou Yang took a camel, a must-have mode of transportation to travel through the desert, from the clansmen and rode straight into the Boundless Sand Sea.


    This was the first time he had left Yuquan Lake Oasis in seventeen years. It was also the first time he had set foot in a desert within his two lifetimes.


    It was easy for people to get lost in the Boundless Sand Sea.


    Once lost, even immortal cultivators who carried a large amount of fresh water and food in their storage bags would eventually starve to death or die of thirst if they could not reach an oasis in time.


    Immortal cultivators were much stronger than ordinary people. However, the former¡¯s tolerance to hunger and thirst would be no different from the latter unless they had reached Core Foundation. Even those who had reached Zifu needed to regularly eat food from the spiritual valley or the spiritual meat of demon beasts to maintain their physical needs.


    Still, those who have reached Core Foundation would still not carelessly wander the Boundless Sand Sea as dangers other than hunger and thirst could claim their lives.


    There were all kinds of terrifying natural disasters and powerful demon beasts that were deadly even for Core Foundation cultivators.


    An example of one of the dangers was the famous Black Sandstorm. If a Core Foundation cultivator got caught up in one, they would be isolated from their divine and five senses by the strange power contained within the sandstorm. Eventually, they would be worn to death as the sandstorm never ends.


    Another example was the most famous Grade-5 demon beast in the Boundless Sand Sea, the Sandworm. Its body was over ten thousand feet long and it had terrifying sharp teeth in its mouth. Its biting power could break through a Grade-5 defensive magic weapon. If a Core Foundation cultivator was careless and fell into the mouth of the sandworm, needless to say, they would also lose their lives.


    As such, Core Foundation cultivators would stay out of the Boundless Sand Sea unless it was absolutely necessary.


    Fortunately, neither the terrifying Black Sandstorm nor Grade-5 Sandworm that was usually sleeping in some underground spiritual vein deep in the desert would appear near the oasis. Otherwise, Zhou Yang would not have dared to enter the desert alone.


    He traveled through the desert strictly according to the map issued by his family for about five days and finally arrived at his destination, Qingping Mountain, without a hitch.


    Qingping Mountain was also an oasis, but it was man-made.


    It was very small ¨C only about ten square kilometers in size ¨C and only existed because the Zhou family had spent tens of thousands of lower-tier spiritual stones here to create a Grade-2 lower-tier spiritual vein thanks to an almost-lost Zhou family member¡¯s discovery of a medium-sized refined iron vein there.


    Refined iron was a kind of spiritual ore that contained some spiritual Qi. After being smelted and processed, it could be transformed into a Grade-1 refined iron spiritual item and Grade-2 dark iron spiritual item. Both refinement products were main materials used by cultivation clans or sects to build important buildings such as ancestral halls, scripture pavilions, treasure vaults, and so on. They were also the main materials used by artifact refiners to refine most Grade-1 and Grade-2 magical artifacts. As such, the market demand for the spiritual items was quite high.


    In order to mine the refined iron ore from its vein, the Zhou family had to build an oasis there for the miners to live in and assign cultivators to guard the place against the attacks of lower-tier demon beasts in the desert.


    Of course, all the investments were worth it.


    The annual sales of processed refined iron from this medium-sized refined iron vein could bring the Zhou family a net profit of more than five hundred lower-tier spiritual stones. After more than fifty years, the family had managed to double its initial investment.


    Moreover, an assessment of the refined iron vein revealed that it could be mined for at least another fifty years.


    Still, Qingping Mountain Oasis was extremely small and most of the area had become the living spaces of the miners. Only a small hill a hundred meters high at the center of the spiritual vein had been carved out to serve as the residence of the cultivators and the warehouse of the finished materials.


    The small hill was essentially the actual Qingping Mountain.


    A Grade-2 Cloud Sea Light Diffraction Array had been set up around the spiritual vein of Qingping Mountain by the current great elder, a Grade-2 array master, of the Zhou family. The power of the array had produced a mist of clouds covering the mountain all year round.


    Zhou Yang arrived at the outskirts of the array. He circulated his mana to amplify his shout and the mist of clouds before him surged, opening up a path for him to enter the mountain.


    He followed the path and immediately saw the cultivator standing guarding inside. The guard was a thin middle-aged scholar ranked 16th among the Xuan generation cultivators of the Zhou clan. His name was Zhou Xuanjin.


    ¡°Hmm? Why is Yang here to replace me? You¡¯re not even twenty years old yet, right?¡±


    Zhou Xuanjin, who was dressed like a scholar, saw Zhou Yang enter and could not help but exclaim in surprise. Zhou Yang decided to answer first before greeting Zhou Xuanjin.


    ¡°To respond to your question, 16th Uncle, I am here under the instructions of our clan leader. He said that my cultivation has already reached a level where I should descend the mountain. He made an exception to let me to go early to gain experience,¡± said Zhou Yang as he answered honestly.


    Zhou Xuanjin looked puzzled as he muttered softly, ¡°Your cultivation has reached a level where you can already descend the mountain? When did the Zhou clan have such a standard?¡±


    Then, Zhou Xuanjin¡¯s heart skipped a beat, seemingly having thought of something. He quickly used the Heavenly Eye Technique and his eyes shone with a golden light as he looked at Zhou Yang from head to toe.


    The moment he saw it, he exclaimed. ¡°You¡¯ve broken through to Qi Refinement Level 6!¡±


    ¡°Yes, I was lucky enough to break through after cultivating for a month in Yuyang Cave.¡± Zhou Yang faintly smiled and nodded his head in acknowledgment, not minding at all.


    It was taboo to use the Heavenly Eye Technique to figure out the cultivation of others. However, Zhou Xuanjin was an elder of his family, so Zhou Yang didn¡¯t care about such a small matter.


    ¡°How amazing! How amazing indeed! How old are you?!


    ¡°As an uncle, I have cultivated painstakingly for forty to fifty years to reach Qi Refinement Level 7. And yet, you have already reached Level 6 at the young age of seventeen. I¡¯m afraid you will surpass me in another eight to ten years!


    ¡°I¡¯m getting old, I can¡¯t be compared to young people anymore. They all have intermediate-tier spiritual root potentials. Why is the gap growing so big?¡±


    Zhou Xuanjin put away his spell and looked at his outstanding junior with a complicated gaze. He didn¡¯t know whether he should feel happy for his family to have such a genius, or he should feel ashamed and disappointed that his cultivation was about to be surpassed by a junior who was dozens of years younger.


    It wasn¡¯t the first time Zhou Yang had encountered such a situation. Ever since he broke through to Qi Refinement Level 6, his peers and elders on Yuquan Peak had been amazed at his cultivation speed and happy for him. However, they had also felt disappointment and dejection like Zhou Xuanjin.


    Zhou Yang decided that it was best that he simply remained silent in such situations..

 Chapter 5

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Zhou Yang really couldn¡¯t say much.


    The more his cultivation level increased, the greater the gap between his cultivation level and that of his peers, and the more he realized the importance of spiritual roots aptitude to cultivators.


    The chances of a mere mortal giving birth to a cultivator with spiritual roots were one in ten thousand. The chances of a cultivator giving birth to a cultivator with spiritual roots were higher ¨C one in ten.


    Among those with spiritual roots, the vast majority of would have lower-tier spiritual roots and only one in ten would have intermediate-tier spiritual roots. Cultivators with advanced-tier spiritual roots were even rarer ¨C only one in a hundred.


    There were more than a hundred thousand members of the Zhou clan in Yuquan Lake Oasis. However, less than a hundred of them were Qi Refinement cultivators and seven or eight of them were outsiders who married into the Zhou family.


    Yet, none among them had advanced-tier spiritual roots. Even the Foundation Establishment Advanced Stage clan leader, Zhou Minghan, only had an intermediate-tier spiritual root.


    But how much of an impact did the tier of spiritual roots have on cultivators?


    If two people were at Qi Refinement Level 1 but one had lower-tier spiritual root while the other had intermediate-tier spiritual root, the former would have to train for ten days in order to achieve as much as the latter would in a day despite both cultivating with the same techniques and meditating in the same place.


    The same could be said when comparing a cultivator with intermediate-tier spiritual roots and another with advanced-tier spiritual roots.


    And it wasn¡¯t just in terms of cultivation speed. The tier of one¡¯s spiritual roots would affect the probability of one¡¯s breakthrough to Foundation Establishment from Qi Refinement, for example. Even if a cultivator with intermediate-tier or lower-tier spiritual roots took the Foundation Establishment Pill, they would only increase their chances of a breakthrough by 30%. A cultivator of advanced-tier spiritual roots, on the other hand, would not even need to consume the pill to break through.


    It was said that a cultivator¡¯s potential could go beyond the potential of one¡¯s spiritual root, and might lay in their bodies such as those with spiritual and Dao bodies.


    For a cultivator with a spiritual body, it was almost a guarantee that they would be able to become a Core Foundation grandmaster without encountering any bottlenecks as long as they did not die prematurely.


    Cultivators with a Dao body, on the other hand, were so rare that they were almost legendary. There were less than a handful of cultivators with a Dao body and they were super powerhouses who ruled over an entire generation.


    Other than spiritual and Dao bodies, there was also an unusual and extremely special type of body in the cultivation world called the treasured body.


    Any cultivator with a spiritual root could have a treasured body and if they cultivated a technique that matched the attributes of their treasured body, then their cultivation speed would be much higher than cultivators with only spiritual roots of the same quality. As their cultivation increased, cultivators with treasured bodies would also obtain a special treasured body divine ability.


    For example, Zhou Yang might have a treasured body with masculine attributes. Therefore, even though he had intermediate-tier spiritual root potential, the cultivation of the Golden Sun Blazing Fire Technique, a masculine and overbearing cultivation technique, would increase his cultivation speed to one comparable to that of a cultivator with an advanced-tier spiritual root.


    If nothing unexpected happened, Zhou Yang would definitely be able to reach Qi Refinement Level 9 before the age of forty.


    An ordinary intermediate-tier spiritual root cultivator like Zhou Xuanjin would probably have to wait until he was sixty or seventy years old before he could reach Qi Refinement Level 9.


    And an ordinary lower-tier spiritual root cultivator might not even be able to reach Qi Refinement Level 9, even if he lived to the upper limit of a Qi Refinement cultivator¡¯s lifespan!


    Additionally, the cruel reality was that the older a Qi Refinement cultivator was, the more difficult it would be for them to reach Foundation Establishment. The probability of a Qi Refinement Level 9 cultivator above the age of sixty reaching Foundation Establishment was less than half of that of a cultivator below the age of sixty. The probability of a Qi Refinement cultivator above the age of eighty reaching Foundation Establishment would drop even further. Zhou Yang had never even heard of a hundred-year-old Qi Refinement cultivator achieving Foundation Establishment.


    With Zhou Yang¡¯s age and cultivation speed, his success rate of reaching Foundation Establishment was indeed much higher than that of most others. This was also the reason the clan leader, Zhou Minghan, valued him so much.


    It was a pity that the treasured body did not increase a cultivator¡¯s success rate of reaching Foundation Establishment. Otherwise, Zhou Yang would be able to confidently attempt to break through from Qi Refinement Level 9 regardless of his age.


    Both Zhou Yang and Zhou Xuanjin knew all of these deep down. Thus, Zhou Xuanjin came back to his senses and began the handover process with Zhou Yang.


    ¡°There are three main responsibilities for those standing guard at Qingping Mountain. First, upon receiving the alarm from the mine managers assigned by the family, you must hurry down to the mine and help the miners get rid of Grade-1 and Grade-2 demon beasts that occasionally intrude. Second, guard the miners¡¯ camp on the outer periphery and store the refined materials in the warehouse on the mountain in time for those sent by the family to collect them. Lastly, take care of the ten-or-so acres of spiritual fields on the mountain. The health and safety of the fields are directly related to your fill during mealtimes.


    ¡°In addition, if you encounter powerful demon beasts and human cultivators that you can¡¯t deal with, don¡¯t leave the area of the array. The best way is to guard the array, use your blood essence to activate the Grade-3 message-transmitting talisman, and await the clan¡¯s rescue


    ¡°Finally, this is the array flag and control methods of the Qingping Mountain array. I can only leave after you¡¯ve refined the array flag and familiarized yourself with the array.¡±


    As Zhou Xuanjin spoke, he handed over all the things needed by the guards to Zhou Yang and taught him how to use these things step by step.


    This went on for another four to five days. Only after Zhou Yang had completely mastered how to control the Grade-2 Cloud Sea Light Diffraction Array did Zhou Xuanjin return to his clan with the progress report of Qingping Mountain¡¯s mine production over the past year.


    After Zhou Xuanjin left, Zhou Yang held the highest status at Qingping Mountain.


    He first summoned a few managers of the Zhou family in charge of the mining and smelting of the ores to have a preliminary understanding of operations. Then, he handed a few message-transmitting talismans that contained his own aura to them so that they could immediately inform him if something happened.


    Though they were cultivators in the realm of Xiantian from the Zhou family assigned as managers at the mines, they did not have spiritual roots and were unable to cultivate mana to become Qi Refinement immortal cultivators. These managers would remain in the realm of Xiantian for the rest of their lives.


    Of course, to mortals, the strength of a cultivator in the realm of Xiantian was impressive enough.


    Mortals who became cultivators in the realm of Xiantian were able to cultivate True Qi in their bodies, move as fast as a horse, carry cauldrons with their bare hands, and easily fight against one hundred people. They also had a great resistance against various diseases.


    Unfortunately, they were mortals without spiritual roots. Even if they cultivated True Qi in the realm of Xiantian, they would not be able to use even Grade-1 spells.


    True immortal cultivators with spiritual roots would not recognize these mortals as immortal cultivators, nor did they bother to communicate with them.


    These people had been discriminated against by true immortal cultivators for a long time. The concept of superiority and inferiority had long been deeply rooted in the hearts of both sides. Though Zhou Yang did not discriminate against mortal cultivators, none of them would dare treat him as a fellow clansman even if he took the initiative to invite them over for a chat with him. Therefore, in the end, he could only let these people leave.


    Zhou Yang¡¯s following days were simple.


    Every morning, he would meditate and breathe for six hours in front of the sun, then practice the five spells he had learned from the scripture depository for six hours. By the time evening came, he would allocate an hour to weed and get rid of the pests in the spiritual fields to keep the crops healthy.


    The spiritual vein on Qingping Mountain was man-made and only at lower-tier Grade 2. After supplying the daily spiritual Qi needed by an advanced-stage Qi Refinement cultivator, only 20-30% of the spiritual Qi was left.


    As such, only about fifteen acres of spiritual fields had been tilled there and the spiritual grains harvested were meant specifically for the cultivators stationed there. There was simply not enough to return to the clan.


    The spiritual grains planted in these spiritual fields were called Golden Pearl Rice due to the fruit¡¯s pearl-like shape. Its appearance was similar to the cotton trees of Zhou Yang¡¯s previous world. The plant bore dozens of fruits once a year which would be harvested and peeled open to remove the grains within.


    Since the Golden Pearl Rice grew in spiritual fields, it needed to absorb spiritual Qi to survive and mature. Therefore, apart from being rich in nutrients and having an excellent taste, the rice also contained a small amount of spiritual Qi, further providing another easy source of spiritual Qi for cultivators to absorb.


    Qi Refining cultivators would eat Golden Pearl Rice as a staple. A small bowl would be enough to fulfill two or three days¡¯ worth of nutrition, in addition to slightly increasing their cultivation levels.


    Even the food eaten by Foundation Establishment and Zifu cultivators had mostly consisted of Golden Pearl Rice.


    When Zhou Yang first started cultivating at four years old, he had only spent three years reaching Level 9 of the realm of Xiantian. Apart from having his spiritual root and body¡¯s potential, his parents served him Golden Pearl Rice for his meals, which complemented well with low-grade demon beast meat.


    Since he wasn¡¯t a farmer, Zhou Yang didn¡¯t know many of the spells that spiritual farmers had to learn to increase the production of their spirit fields. Alas, he could only water the Golden Pearl Rice, remove the weeds, and catch insects like an ordinary farmer. So long as he did not have a black thumb, the harvest of this fifteen acres of Golden Pearl Rice would be sufficient to sustain him with some surplus.


    Zhou Yang knew that this surplus was a bonus allowed by the clan for the guards. After all, it was the duty of every adult clansman to go down the mountain to complete the clan¡¯s mission with no expectation of any extra rewards.


    After taking care of the spiritual fields on the mountain for an hour every day, Zhou Yang would spend the rest of his evening learning the Artifact Refining Technique.


    But he did not start refining anything substantial immediately. Instead, he carefully read the artifact refining books and the notes given by the clan leader. Once he had his artifact refinement basics down, he used some of the refined iron to practice with.


    The passing of such simple and fulfilling days eventually turned into three years.


    Once Zhou Yang had fully comprehended the knowledge recorded in the artifact refining books as well as completely mastered the Artifact Refining Technique, he finally took out the materials given to him by the clan leader to refine his first proper artifact.


    To save materials, he chose to refine the simplest Grade-1 magical sword, the Azure Edge Sword.


    The main material of the Azure Edge Sword¡¯s blade was refined iron while its hilt was made from the spiritual century-old ironwood. Its magic came from the infusion of True Qi from a cultivator in the realm of Xiantian. The cultivator¡¯s level of cultivation would determine the glow intensity of the sword which could range from three inches to one foot to injure the enemy.


    Refining the magical sword was quite simple. First, the refined iron would be tempered with spiritual fire to form the blade. While maintaining the temperature of the blade with the flame, the immortal cultivator¡¯s mana and divine sense would be used as the guide to form a Sharpening Restriction around the blade.


    The restriction would be removed once the blade had been tempered ¨C the edges and tip of the blade had been sharpening into a double-edge sword. If the body of the tempered sword glowed with the unique spiritual light of a magical sword, it meant that the artifact had been successfully refined. Otherwise, it would simply look like a typical sword without any glow.


    All of this sounded simple, but it was not easy to do. Even though Zhou Yang had already envisioned the refinement process countless times in his head as well as practiced the formation of the Sharpening Restriction countless times prior, his first attempt at refining the sword ended in failure, unsurprisingly, with an explosion from his cauldron.


    Along with an explosion coming from within the cauldron, his first refining ended. He did not even reach the flame-tempering stage..

 Chapter 6

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    But the failure did not dampen Zhou Yang¡¯s enthusiasm. He wasn¡¯t expecting to succeed from the get-go anyway.


    Even the most talented artifact refiners would not be able to succeed on their first try.


    If Artifact Refinement Technique was that easy to master, being an artifact refiner would not become the most popular profession in the immortal cultivation world.


    While talent was important, most artifact refiners relied on countless materials to build up their skills. As such, there weren¡¯t many artifact refiners among itinerant cultivators who did not belong to any sects or clans simply because couldn¡¯t afford the materials to hone their skills.


    Even for a family like the Zhou family that had Foundation Establishment cultivators, it was very difficult to nurture a Grade-2 artifact refiner that could return the investment. After all, they had to select talented disciples and invest a lot of money into them.


    Before Zhou Yang, there had been quite a number of Xuan generation cultivators in the Zhou family who had learned the Artifact Refinement Technique. However, only his seventh uncle, Zhou Xuanlin, was barely able to advance to become a Grade-2 artifact refiner. This was because he had the guidance of a Grade-3 artifact refiner like Zhou Minghan and the luxury of spending several thousand spiritual stones¡¯ worth of materials.


    However, becoming a Grade-2 artifact refiner was the furthest a Qi Refinement cultivator could go. If one wanted to become a Grade-3 artifact refiner, one had to first become a Foundation Establishment cultivator.


    Therefore, when Zhou Minghan said that he hoped for Zhou Yang to inherit the Artifact Refinement Technique, the clan leader was actually hoping that Zhou Yang could successfully achieve Foundation Establishment.


    As long as he could become a Foundation Establishment cultivator and display a bit of talent in artifact refinement, Zhou Minghan was confident that Zhou Yang would be able to become a Grade-3 artifact refiner no matter how many spiritual stones they had to sacrifice!


    Of course, Zhou Yang had not read that far into Zhou Minghan¡¯s intentions. He was currently worrying about the amount of materials he should use since he knew they were valuable resources in artifact refinement.


    Therefore, he wasn¡¯t in a hurry to try again after his recent failure. Instead, he cleaned up the waste in the cauldron then carefully reflected on his experience and lessons.


    Once he had regained some confidence, he began to try again.


    Failure, reflection, failure again, reflection again¡­


    After failing seventeen times, Zhou Yang finally succeeded in refining a complete Azure Edge Sword and officially became a Grade-1 artifact refiner.


    Like the snowball effect, Zhou Yang¡¯s first success had increased his artifact refinement success rate to 10%.


    Zhou Yang continued to refine and improve his Grade-1 Azure Edge Sword over a hundred times more. Once he had increased his success rate to 20%, he stopped and refined another Grade-1 magical sword, the Flaming Saber.


    The main material of the Grade-1 Flaming Saber was also refined iron with another one-fifth being spiritual gold copper. Once the magical sword had been refined, cultivators in the realm of Xiantian would infuse their True Qi into it to activate the flames of the saber which would cause burning damage to the enemy. The Flaming Saber could also deal damage to some ghosts that were otherwise immune to physical attacks.


    The refining process of the Flaming Saber was roughly the same as that of the Azure Edge Sword. The only difference was that when refining the Flaming Saber, the artifact refiner would have to form the Raging Flames Restriction instead of the Sharpening Restriction.


    Even though Zhou Yang had the success of refining the Azure Edge Sword, he still failed when refining the Flaming Saber for the first time.


    Still, he reflected on his failure and attempted a second time. He succeeded. After further improving the Flaming Saber, he successfully increased his success rate of refining the saber to above 20%.


    Despite having many materials leftover from the clan leader¡¯s supplies, Zhou Yang did not continue refining. Instead, he continued to work on those finished magical weapons to keep collecting insights from his refinement experiences. He also wrote a letter to his parents as Zhou Qi, a cultivator of the same generation had arrived to collect the refined iron ores from Qingping Mountain. Zhou Yang passed the magical swords he had refined and the letter to Zhou Qi to be delivered to the clan leader and his parents respectively.


    Zhou Qi was ranked third in the Yuan generation of the Zhou family. He was thirty-two years old and born to parents who were ordinary mortals. Though he was lucky to be born with spiritual root, it was in the lower tier. As such, despite cultivating diligently, Zhou Qi¡¯s cultivation had barely reached Qi Refinement Level 3. He probably would not have much of a chance to achieve Foundation Establishment in this lifetime.


    Zhou Qi was pleasantly surprised to hear that Zhou Yang had become a Grade-1 artifact refiner. With a face full of joy, he took the ores and Zhou Yang¡¯s letter and nodded vigorously. ¡°Zhou Yang, don¡¯t worry. I will definitely deliver these items safely to the clan leader and your parents.¡±


    Then, Zhou Qi earnestly said, ¡°But you also have to cultivate well. Don¡¯t put all your energy into artifact refinement. You are the hope of our entire Zhou family. The elders and fellow generation mates are counting on you to successfully achieve Foundation Establishment and continue the Zhou family!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right, Zhou Qi. I will work hard in my cultivation and not disappoint the elders!¡± Zhou Yang nodded with a straight face.


    ¡°Alright, I trust that you have things under control here. I¡¯ll leave now.¡±


    Zhou Yang reopened the path in the array for his clan brother to leave before closing it up again. He went back to his room and read the long letter his parents had sent to him through Zhou Qi.


    Zhou Yang¡¯s father, Zhou Xuanhao, had devoted himself to cultivation in his early years. It was not until he was over sixty years old that he realized he had no hope of reaching Foundation Establishment and ended up listening to the advice of his clan elders to marry and have children.


    Coincidentally, at that time, his mother, Lin Yuting, was being chased by enemies and had escaped to the vicinity of Yuquan Lake Oasis. Zhou Xuanhao saved her and eventually the two became husband and wife. Then, they gave birth to Zhou Yang a few years later.


    Since they were both immortal cultivators, their first child was lucky enough to be born with intermediate-tier spiritual root. From then on, Zhou Yang became the apple of his parents¡¯ eye. They were very protective over him, afraid that he was too fargile for the world. That was how precious he was to his parents.


    It was also because of the love he had received from his current parents that he was able to let go of his past memories and put them behind him. He accepted and acknowledged his parents and the Zhou family from the bottom of his heart.


    Zhou Xuanhao and Lin Yuting wanted Zhou Yang to cultivate further than they did. As such, they did not have any other children after him. Instead, they put all their energy into earning spiritual stones and taking care of Zhou Yang.


    When they realized that Zhou Yang was naturally intelligent from a young age, the couple left him in the care of the clan elders while they kept watch over the shop the clan had opened in an immortal cultivator market. His parents put their mastery of the Alchemy Technique and Wine Brewing Technique to earn spiritual stones for the clan and their son.


    Zhou Yang had a similar upbringing in his previous life so he never questioned his current parents¡¯ decisions.


    His past parents had left their hometown to work in the city when Zhou Yang was young to earn the money that would help support his education. Zhou Xuanhao and Lin Yuting were basically doing the same thing but for him to advance his cultivation to Foundation Establishment instead of his studies.


    Therefore, he was never upset over not being able to see his parents all year. Instead, he would write many letters to them, delivered through the elders, to update them about his daily life. Despite the seemingly mundanenes of his daily life, he knew that those were what his parents wanted to know about the most.


    ¡°Yang, Qingping Mountain is far away from the family. You must think twice before you do anything. Always protect yourself first¡­¡±


    ¡°Son, the business of the restaurant has been getting better and better recently. This is all because of the idea you gave me last time. My son is indeed a genius. You will become a Foundation Establishment cultivator in the future. No, you will definitely become a Core Foundation grandmaster!¡±


    Zhou Yang looked at the letter his parents wrote to him and a sincere smile appeared on his face. Such a simple letter from his parents was far more valuable to him than a thousand of words from others.


    After reading the entire letter, he carefully put it away and muttered to himself, ¡°There are still two years left until I complete my guard duty. After that, I will return to the clan to prepare for the breakthrough to Qi Refinement Level 7. As long as I am able to do so and enter the realm of Qi Refinement Advanced Stage, I will request the clan leader to assign me guard duty at the market. Then, I will finally be able to reunite with my family!¡±


    In the meantime, Zhou Qi returned to the clan and handed over the magical swords and notes to the clan leader. The sight of the items piqued Zhou Minghan¡¯s interest.


    He personally inspected the magical swords that Zhou Yang had refined and noted shortcomings as well as suggestions for improvement. He also answered the questions Zhou Yang had asked in the notes. Once Zhou Minghan was done, he had an elder of the Light generation personally make a trip to Qingming Mountain to deliver more higher-grade refining materials and notes to Zhou Yang.


    ¡°Oh, Zhou Yang, you really live up to our expectations. I have lived for more than a hundred years and this is the first time I¡¯ve seen the clan head value a junior so much. Your nickname as the Zhou clan¡¯s unicorn child has spread. Even the clan members in the outer world are talking about you!¡±


    The Zhou clan¡¯s Light generation elder in charge of making the delivery to Zhou Yang was Zhou Quan. He was ranked third among his peers and was the second oldest among the eight elders of the Zhou clan.


    The old man was already 112 years old and was very close to the end of the lifespan of a Qi Refinement cultivator. If it wasn¡¯t for Zhou Minghan¡¯s personal instructions to make the trip, no one in the clan would have dared to disturb him.


    ¡°How could I make Third Grandfather journey here? I have sinned!¡±


    Zhou Yang looked at the old man who was smiling so much that his cheeks should be aching by now. He was touched but Zhou Yang sighed in his heart.


    He knew that if the cultivators in the realm of Qi Refinement Advanced Stage had not been sent out on their own missions, the clan leader would never have requested Zhou Quan to make such a trip.


    The clan leader¡¯s decision not only showed how much he valued Zhou Yang, but also the lack of manpower in the clan.


    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m already this old and I get to see such an outstanding junior as you appear in the clan. Even if I pass away tomorrow, I will be able to go in peace!¡±


    Zhou Quan chuckled and reached out to gently pat Zhou Yang¡¯s shoulder. The former had long treated life and death lightly.


    However, Zhou Quan couldn¡¯t help but sigh with some regret. ¡°What a pity that I won¡¯t be around when you reach Foundation Establishment. Otherwise, I would at least be able to face the ancestor of Yuquan when I go!¡±


    Zhou Yang fell silent as the mood turned heavy.


    In the past hundred years, several generations of cultivators of the Zhou clan had been stuck in Qi Refinement. As a result, elders like Zhou Quan had always obsessed over seeing another Foundation Establishment cultivator appear in the Zhou clan within their lifetime to replace the clan leader and protect the clan.


    In fact, Zhou Yang¡¯s father, Zhou Xuanhao also had this kind of obsession. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t have worked so hard to earn spiritual stones away from his child.


    Just as Zhou Yang was thinking about how to break this heavy atmosphere, a ball of flame suddenly passed through the sea of clouds from beyond Qingping Mountain and landed in front of him. The panicked voice of a mine manager came from within.. ¡°Save us, Master Immortal Cultivator! A powerful demon beast has attacked the mine!¡±

 Chapter 7

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Within fifteen minutes, Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan had rushed to the mine where the incident had occurred.


    Dozens of miners had already gathered outside the mine, looking greatly terrified. They didn¡¯t even have much of a reaction when they saw the immortal cultivators, Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan coming over.


    Zhou Yang couldn¡¯t help but frown.


    Although they were mortal miners, these people were, after all, members of the Zhou clan. They had grown up listening to the stories of immortal cultivators and demon beasts; that Zhou clan cultivators would bring all kinds of demon beast corpses every few years to give the mortals insight and courage. In addition, the mortal school teachers and heads of villages and towns would often teach their people about the various low-level demon beasts in the desert. So how could they be so frightened by a mere demon beast now?


    Moreover, this wasn¡¯t the first time Zhou Yang had been to the mine to eliminate demons over the past few years he had been stationed at Qingping Mountain. Although the miners were frightened then, they weren¡¯t stunned like today ¨C everyone was so terrified that they forgot to salute him when he arrived.


    He looked over the crowds and noticed that the manager from earlier wasn¡¯t around. Zhou Yang started to become angry.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on? What kind of demon beast attacked the mine? Where¡¯s your manager?¡± asked Zhou Yang with a clear voice as he felt that something was off and started to circulate his mana to radiate the aura of an immortal cultivator.


    The mortal miners immediately fell to their knees when they felt the aura. This was exactly what Zhou Yang wanted. The mortal miners quickly recovered from their fear and noticed the


    ¡°Master Immortal Cultivator is here!¡±


    ¡°Master Immortal Cultivator, save us! A demon beast is here! The demon beast is killing people!¡±


    ¡°Save my child! Master Immortal Cultivator, please save my child! He is still in the mine!¡±


    It was as if the miners had awoken from a dream as they begged Zhou Yang.


    The Zhou Yang who had just arrived at Qingping Mountain would not have been used to seeing dozens of people kneeling in front of him. However, now that he had been there for a few years, such a scene did not faze him as he calmly faced the miners. He did not even let them get up, because he knew that for these mortals, kneeling and talking to immortal cultivators would make them feel at ease.


    He slightly mobilized some mana to cast a Grade-1 auxiliary spell, Sound of Confusion Technique, to transmit his voice with a special effect. ¡°Don¡¯t panic. I will get rid of the demon beast. Now, answer me honestly. Where is your manager? What does the demon beast look like?¡±


    As mere mortals, the miners could simply succumb to the effects of the sound and Zhou Yang quickly got the information he wanted.


    ¡°The manager had been eaten by the demon beast after he sent out a cry for help. We heard his screams and escaped. No one alive has seen the demon beast. Anyone who did is dead!¡±


    Zhou Yang turned to look at Zhou Quan. The latter knew what he meant with just a glance but simply said, ¡°I¡¯m only here to help. You¡¯re the cultivator in charge here, so we will follow your word.¡±


    Zhou Yang knew what he meant. The message was clear. This was Zhou Yang¡¯s job and Zhou Quan would only intervene if the former couldn¡¯t handle it.


    ¡°I understand. Then I¡¯ll need your help to escort these miners back. I¡¯ll go down to the mines to eliminate the demon beast now.¡± Zhou Yang cupped his hands in respect to Zhou Quan as he announced his plans.


    However, he did not expect Zhou Quan to turn bitter. ¡°What? Do you think that I¡¯m too old and useless? Do you think that I will be a burden if I follow you to the mines?¡±


    ¡°Third Grandfather, you¡¯ve misunderstood me. I didn¡¯t mean it that way. I¡¯m just worried-¡±


    ¡°What are you worried about?! I may be old but ten of you are no match for me in terms of fighting experience. Instead of worrying about me, you should worry about yourself. If anything happens to you, how will I be able to face the clan head? Do you want me to become a sinner of the entire clan?¡±


    Although Zhou Quan was more than a hundred years old, his temper was as strong as ever. He was grateful for Zhou Yang¡¯s good intentions, but he was not happy about the young cultivator¡¯s plan. It made him so angry that he pointed at and scolded Zhou Yang on the spot.


    Zhou Yang was stunned speechless. He could only admit his mistake with a bitter smile on his face, ¡°Third Grandfather, please calm down. I know I¡¯ve made a mistake, so let¡¯s go to the mines and get rid of the demon beast together.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s more like it!¡±


    Zhou Quan¡¯s anger slowly subsided, as if he had accepted Zhou Yang¡¯s apology.


    Therefore, the two of them took out their magical artifacts from their storage bags and simultaneously cast the Grade-2 defensive spell, Golden Light Protection Technique to cover themselves in a layer of golden light. Then, they entered the mine.


    The refined iron vein in Qingping Mountain had been mined for decades. After many years of expansion and reinforcements, the tunnel of the mine was large enough to accommodate two people entering and exiting at the same time.


    Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan followed the tunnel straight into the mine. Their eyes darted around, shooting off a golden glow after being blessed with the Heavenly Eye Technique. The dark environment in the cave did not affect their vision at all.


    They moved quickly and in just a short while, they arrived at the initial site of the incident. They found the clothes and traces of blood of the dead miners. The duo followed the traces of blood on the ground and the demonic aura radiated by the demon beast. Eventually, they found the demon beast gnawing on the miners¡¯ bodies in another mining cave.


    It was a huge rat that was as big as a wolf-dog. Its fur was as sharp and cold-looking as steel needles. The skin under its fur faintly reflected the luster of metal.


    ¡°Be careful, it¡¯s a Grade-2 advanced-tier demon beast, the Metal-Eating Rat!¡±


    In addition to being a Qi Refinement cultivator, Zhou Quan was also the only Grade-2 beast tamer in the Zhou family. Therefore, he was able to quickly identify the demon beast and warn Zhou Yang.


    Zhou Quan quickly briefed Zhou Yang on the strengths and weaknesses of the demon beast. ¡°The Metal-Eating Rat gained its name due to its propensity to consume all kinds of metals. When it reaches adulthood, it will become a Grade-2 advanced-tier demon beast. It mainly attacks with its teeth and claws which can even take out a Grade-2 magical weapon. When it feels threatened, it will shoot out its fur with an attack strength equivalent to the Grade-2 lower-tier magical weapon, the Flying Needle. In addition, this beast is proficient in the Burrow Escape Technique and likes to sneak back attacks.


    ¡°Since the Metal-Eating Rat can devour all kinds of metals, its skin, fur, and bones are extremely tough. Only a Grade-2 advanced-tier magical artifact or true fire can injure it. Its only weak point is its eyes.¡±


    The Metal-Eating Rat had been alerted by their presence as Zhou Quan informed Zhou Yang. It stopped eating the corpse and its pair of scarlet beast eyes looked at the two of them with a cold killing intent.


    Zhou Quan immediately forgot about how he had allowed Zhou Yang to be in-charge as the former instructed the latter. ¡°The clan leader told me that he gave you the Silver Shield. Activate it with your mana to protect yourself. I happen to have a Grade-2 advanced-tier Mountain Quaking Hammer with me. So, leave this demon beast to me.¡±


    Zhou Yang did not try to put on a brave front. He immediately nodded and replied, ¡°I understand. Third Grandfather, you have to be careful too. If things don¡¯t work out, we can retreat first and gather reinforcements later to deal with this demon beast!¡±


    Zhou Yang then took out his Silver Shield and turned it several times larger to form a dome-shaped barrier around him that could defend against attacks from any direction at any time.


    Zhou Quan heaved a sigh of relief, thankful that Zhou Yang was obedient. He had been afraid that Zhou Yang would try to act tough due to his young age. If the young cultivator decided to rebel, it would really give him a bad headache.


    With nothing to worry about, he immediately waved his hand and released a small greenish-black shield to surround and protect himself. Then, he reached into his storage bag and took out his gourd hammer to strike the Metal-Eating Rat.


    With a loud boom, the entire mine rumbled violently.


    Zhou Yang looked over and saw that the gourd hammer had left a huge ten-foot-diameter pit where the Metal-Eating Rat had stood. However, not a single trace of blood could be seen.


    ¡°Be careful, it¡¯s coming for you!¡± Zhou Quan quickly shouted at Zhou Yang who was still distracted by the size of the pit.


    Before Zhou Yang could react, a black shadow pounced out from the cave wall beside him and slammed into the Silver Shield¡¯s barrier.


    The Silver Shield was indeed a high-quality magical armor refined by the clan leader, Zhou Minghan. Although it had yet to receive the command from its master, Zhou Yang, to unleash its full potential, the shield was able to sturdily defend the attack from the Metal-Eating Rat.


    However, the amount of power needed to hold that defense against the demon beast¡¯s attack had exhausted the mana Zhou Yang supplied to activate the shield. As such, the barrier collapsed soon after.


    ¡°Damn it!¡± Zhou Yang cursed. He quickly turned alert and hurriedly used his spiritual sense to establish a connection with the magical armor. He then injected his mana into it to activate the barrier again.


    The Metal-Eating Rat, on the other hand, had burrowed into the ground after its previous attack missed.


    Zhou Quan had witnessed everything and shook his head as he thought, ¡®He¡¯s still too young.¡¯ But he did not blame Zhou Yang.


    After all, when Zhou Quan was at Zhou Yang¡¯s age, the former¡¯s reaction wasn¡¯t as good as the latter¡¯s when facing a demon beast. Rather than panic and scream like most others, Zhou Yang was able to remain calm and clear-minded enough to buy himself enough time to reform his defenses.


    Once Zhou Yang¡¯s Silver Shield barrier had been put up, Zhou Quan said, ¡°Zhou Yang, be careful. When it comes out again, I will use the Earth to Steel spell to prevent it from using its Burrow Escape Technique. You must remain alert until that moment to prevent it from jumping over the wall in desperation!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Third Grandfather. I will definitely not make the same mistake again!¡± Zhou Yang nodded with a bashful look on his face. He was already on full alert..

 Chapter 8

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    The Metal-Eating Rat was a type of demon beast with very strong attack power. Although Zhou Quan¡¯s and Zhou Yang¡¯s auras were not weak, they were not enough to intimidate the demon beast. The Metal-Eating Rat was already angered when the duo interrupted its meal and would not let them off easily.


    When its attack on Zhou Yang failed due to the Silver Shield¡¯s barrier, the cunning demon beast hid in the dark for about fifteen minutes before it launched another attack.


    In order to lure it out, Zhou Quan had deliberately put away his protective golden light, making the demon beast think that it had found an opportunity. This time, the Metal-Eating Rat¡¯s target was Zhou Quan.


    Fortunately, Zhou Quan had plenty of fighting experience, unlike Zhou Yang who was still a newbie. As soon as the demon beast pounced out of the cave wall, it was immediately smashed to the ground by a flying round shield.


    Then, just as the Metal-Eating Rat was about to escape again, a golden light suddenly shot out from Zhou Quan¡¯s fingers and into the ground of the mine.


    In an instant, the ground within a radius of dozens of meters became as hard as steel. The Metal-Eating Rat had merely begun to burrow itself before the ground hardened and got it half-stuck.


    What a great opportunity!


    Neither Zhou Yang nor Zhou Quan had expected that the Earth to Steel spell could be used to capture the demon beast. Their eyes lit up as they launched counterattacks almost simultaneously on the demon beast.


    When Zhou Quann raised his gourd hammer, it immediately expanded to the size of a water tank before it was brought down directly onto the Metal-Eating Rat stuck in the ground.


    Zhou Yang remembered one of the attacks effective against the Metal-Eating Rat that Zhou Quan had mentioned earlier. Thus, rather than using one of his magical artifacts, Zhou Yang used the Grade-2 spell he had been practicing for the past few years, the Fire Snake Technique.


    He quickly formed an incantation gesture and pointed at the Metal-Eating Rat, summoning a huge blazing python several meters long that shot straight towards its target.


    The clan leader had once said that cultivating the Golden Sun Blazing Fire Method was beneficial to Zhou Yang¡¯s ability to cast spells, especially for combat, and he wasn¡¯t wrong. After all, the Golden Sun Blazing Fire Method was highly compatible to Zhou Yang¡¯s spiritual root attributes. Since Zhou Yang had been practicing his spells alongside his cultivation of the Golden Sun Blazing Fire Method, his execution of the Fire Snake Technique was twice more powerful than one executed by a typical Qi Refinement Level 6 cultivator.


    After a series of earth-rumbling explosions, the entire tunnel collapsed from Zhou Quan¡¯s and Zhou Yang¡¯s attacks. The duo¡¯s faces turned pale, afraid that they would get buried or trapped by the crumbling tunnel.


    They had been so focused on eliminating the demon beast that they forgot that they were fighting tens of meters underground. If the tunnel collapsed, it would turn into a situation that the two Qi Refinement cultivators could deal with unscathed. A Core Foundation cultivator would have better luck.


    ¡°Quick, let¡¯s retreat first.¡±


    Zhou Quan quickly decided to temporarily retreat. He did not even have time to retrieve his gourd hammer as pulled Zhou Yang, who was still in shock, out along the path they had come from.


    Right now, ensuring the safety of Zhou Yang, the genius disciple and future of the Zhou family was more important than the demon beast.


    The two ran over dozens of meters until they finally saw the exit and started to walk the rest of the way. Eventually, the rumbling stopped and Zhou Quan instructed Zhou Yang to wait outside before the former returned into the mine to check on the situation.


    Not long after, Zhou Quan returned empty-handed.


    ¡°That demon beast is too resilient to be able to escape with such heavy injuries!¡± Zhou Quan resentfully complained and Zhou Yang regretfully sighed. ¡°It¡¯s truly a pity. Such a Grade-2 advanced-tiered demon beast is not common here. If we can capture and hand it over to the clan leader, our clan would have obtained enough materials to refine a few Grade-2 advanced-tier magical artifacts!¡±


    But the moment Zhou Yang was done speaking, he quickly realized that he shouldn¡¯t have said anything as Zhou Quan¡¯s expression only turned uglier.


    Zhou Quan had initially intended to show the young cultivator that he was still strong and full of vigor despite his age. He did not want Zhou Yang to view him as a frail and deteriorating old man like those mortals who simply sat at home and waited for death.


    Now that things had turned out like this, how could Zhou Quan not feel frustrated?


    ¡°This matter isn¡¯t over yet. The Metal-Eating Rat is a demon beast that held grudges. We may have severely injured it but it will heal again. And once it¡¯s ready, it will come for feast on people again. By then, we will have prepared ourselves and bait it with some treasures. Once we have captured it, we shall kill, skin, and dismember it!¡± Zhou Quan spoke with a face filled with hatred.


    Zhou Yang felt a squeeze in his heart when he heard Zhou Quan¡¯s words. If the Metal-Eating Rat was sure to return with revenge, should they still continue to mine?


    The clan had sent him to guard Qingping Mountain. His main responsibility was to protect the refined iron vein. If they stopped mining because of the demon beast, they would lose spiritual stones!


    But as much as Zhou Yang tried not to let his concerns show on his face, Zhou Quan still noticed it and immediately understood what he was worried about. ¡°Zhou Yang, don¡¯t worry. I will help you explain the situation the clan. The Metal-Eating Rat is Grade-2 advanced-tier demon beast, a demon beast type that exceeds your ability to deal with. No one will look down on you because of this.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for your words of comfort, Third Grandfather. However, I still have a bit of doubt. The Zhou clan has been mining this refined iron vein for decades. As such, getting attacked by the demon beasts from the desert attracted by human presence is not something new to us. However, this is the first time we have encountered a Metal-Eating Rat.


    ¡°Plus, it¡¯s already an adult. If it had been lurking throughout the mine, how did we not detect it earlier?¡± asked Zhou Yang, slightly puzzled.


    Besides the clan leader, one else in their clan would understand the behavior of demon beasts as well as Zhou Quan, a Grade-2 beast tamer.


    ¡°You¡¯re right. Demon beasts like the Metal-Eating Rat have always liked to nest and reproduce in metal veins. If a Metal-Eating Rat had been living in our decades-old veinss, the clan elders and Zhou Qia who were the first to explore the ore vein should have discovered it long ago. Unless¡­¡±


    ¡°Unless it migrated here recently!¡±


    The duo cried out almost at the same time. Then, they looked at each other with joy.


    ¡°That¡¯s right. According to what I know, if a demon beast like the Metal-Eating Rat wants to advance to Grade 3, it needs to devour a large amount of metals with different attributes. That demon beast that escaped must have migrated here recently from another mineral vein!¡±


    Zhou Quan excitedly stretched out his hand to stroke his beard as he beamed proudly.


    Zhou Yang was equally as excited at their recent deduction. ¡°Since Third Grandfather said so, then it¡¯s definitely not wrong. But we don¡¯t know where and how far away the ore vein that the Metal-Eating Rat came from is. If we¡¯re able to get to it, the Zhou clan might be able to strike it rich!¡±


    And that was why the two were so happy. Ever since Zhou Yuquan established their clan, there had been a rule: any Zhou clan disciple who found and reported an unclaimed ore vein or natural spiritual vein in the Boundless Sand Sea, the person would receive a 10% annual lifetime dividend of the profits once the clan had occupied and developed the resource.resources.


    If the origins Metal-Eating Rat were as Zhou Quan and Zhou Yang had guessed, then could receive the dividend once they had discovered and reported the location of the ore vein to the clan, provided that no one else had found and claimed the vein yet.


    Under such circumstances, how could the two of them not be happy?


    But aside from the happiness on their faces, they remained relatively calm. After all, they still needed to maintain their image as dignified immortal cultivators.


    Moreover, they had simply made educated guesses and deductions. Nothing had been verified yet, except for the existence of the Metal-Eating Rat.


    Just as Zhou Yang started to calm down and think about how to locate the possible ore vein, Zhou Quan suddenly turned to him and hesistantly said to him in a low voice, ¡°Zhou Yang, there is something I would like to discuss with you.¡±


    ¡°Please speak, Third Grandfather.¡± Zhou Yang looked back at Zhou Quan in surprise. The latter was not using the usual tone of an older person speaking to a younger person. Moreover, Zhou Quan looked like he was slightly blushing as he gritted his teeth and said, ¡°If you really discover the ore vein, I am willing to let you enjoy the full 10% of the dividends. But, would you be willing to give 30% of your dividends to your second brother?¡±


    ¡°I¡­¡±


    Zhou Yang¡¯s expression changed as he immediately understood what Zhou Quan meant.


    According to the clan¡¯s rules, if more than one person discovered a vein at the same time, then those privy to the discovery would have an equal share of the 10% dividends. If one of them passed away, his share of the dividends would return to the clan.


    Since Zhou Quan was already over a hundred years old, he would only be able to enjoy a share of the dividends for a few more year before the clan took it. This would also mean that Zhou Yang would be enjoying less than 10% of the dividends for the rest of his life.


    However, if Zhou Yang alone received the full 10% dividend at such a young age, the amount of dividends he would accumulate over the years would be massive. And his eligibility to receive the dividends was regardless of whether he achieved Foundation Establishment or now.


    Thus, if Zhou Yang was willing to give only 30% of his 10% dividend to Zhou Bao, his second brother in name and the biological grandson of Zhou Quan, then Zhou Quan¡¯s family would still be able to profit greatly in the long run.


    But the reason Zhou Quan was so hesitant to make such a request was because it was a rather selfish one, going against public interest and wealth. Moreover, it was shameful for him as the head of his family.


    Zhou Quan knew how disgraceful his request was and he only grew more ashamed when he saw that Zhou Yang continued to remain silent as his expression continued to change greatly. But Zhou Quan swallowed a bit more pride and continued to speak.


    ¡°I know that this is quite a disgraceful request I am making of you. But Zhou Yang, I hope you can think of this as being considerate to your second brother. He only has a lower-tier spirit root and his parents have already passed away. Once I pass away, how hard would it be for him to provide for the large family I leave behind? In my hundred-over years of living, I have never done anything to let down the family. For once in my life, I hope you will be able to grant my request!¡±


    By the time he was done speaking, his eyes had already started to fill with tears..

 Chapter 9

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Who in this world would be completely selfless, anyway?


    When an old man who had dedicated more than a hundred years of his life to his family cried in front of Zhou Yang, willingly putting his dignity aside as the older person, how could Zhou Yang refuse?


    It was human nature for an old man to want to leave a considerable inheritance to his descendants when he was approaching the end of his lifespan.


    Even the harshest person could not blame him for this.


    Moreover, Zhou Quan wasn¡¯t abusing his seniority to force the wealth out of Zhou Yang¡¯s hands. He simply wanted to ensure that his share of the dividends continue to be given to his family, albeit via an alternative method.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Third Grandfather. If I truly discovered a new ore vein, I will definitely give Zhou Bao 30% of my share as long as I am alive. However, I must clarify that if I or Zhou Bao die prematurely your share of the dividends will still be handed over to the Zhou Family.¡±


    Zhou Yang made a solemn promise to Zhou Quan.


    Agreeing to Zhou Quan¡¯s terms was already pushing the boundaries of the clan rules, but Zhou Yang did not want the full share of the 10% dividends either. If he had to make a choice, Zhou Quan¡¯s proposal was the best of the two.


    ¡°Thank you, Zhou Yang. Thank you so much. Regardless of whether this matter succeeds or not, Third Grandfather and Zhou Bao will always remember your kindness for the rest of our lives!¡± Zhou Quan held Zhou Yang¡¯s hand tightly in his with excitement as the former spoke through choked sobs.


    If the deal went through, Zhou Quan would be able to pass in peace, knowing that his descendants would be able to continue living comfortably.


    Otherwise, Zhou Quan¡¯s passing would plummet the quality of life of his descendants. In less than one or two generations, they would probably end up no different from ordinary commoners. And this was what he did not want to happen.


    The best-case scenario would be for one of his future descendants to be born with a spiritual root.


    Zhou Quan was very grateful to Zhou Yang. Otherwise, he would not have lost his composure like this.


    Zhou Yang, on the other hand, did not know whether he should laugh or cry. He definitely empathized with Zhou Quan, but the latter had disregarded all sense of seniority just to make such a request. Zhou Yang could not help but struggle a little to free himself from Zhou Quan¡¯s grip and helplessly said in a lowered voice, ¡°Third Grandfather, please calm down. Even if you want to thank me, you have to wait until we have already found that ore vein. You don¡¯t want to end up feeling happy for nothing after all that work. Wouldn¡¯t this all be a waste, then?¡±


    Zhou Quan immediately blushed and he quickly pulled stroked his beard in embarrassment as he said, ¡°Zhou Yang, what you said makes sense. I have completely lost my composure!¡±


    Zhou Yang decided not to remain on the matter any longer as he move on. ¡°Third Grandfather, you are very knowledgeable. What do you think about the possibility of finding the ore vein?¡±


    ¡°In my opinion, instead of the two of us searching in the Boundless Sand Sea like headless chickens, why don¡¯t we wait for our target to return? When the Metal-Eating Rat comes back I will use the Blood Spirit Tracing Technique to mark it. Then, we will injure it once more, let it return to its nest, and use the mark to trace its location.


    The lairs of rat-type demon beasts are usually deep underground. If they have any form of injury, they will usually hide in their lairs to recuperate. As long as we are able to trace it wherever it goes, we should be able to locate the ore vein the Metal-Eating Rat is nesting.¡±


    Zhou Quan was indeed a shrewd old man. Once he had calmed down, he had immediately thought of a way that made Zhou Yang clap his hands in approval.


    ¡°Wonderful, the older the ginger, the spicier it is. I like your idea, Third Grandfather. Let¡¯s do it!¡± Zhou Yang¡¯s face beamed with joy and excitement.


    Zhou Quan wasn¡¯t wrong, after all. The Boundless Sand Sea was, well, boundless. It was impossible for the two of them to cover the entire range of it just to find this one ore vein.


    If the ore vein where the Metal-Eating Rat was nesting was that easy to find, the Zhou family seniors who discovered the Qingping Mountain refined iron vein would have found it long ago.


    ¡°Since you agree with my idea, then let¡¯s go back and make the necessary preparations. I estimate that it would take a month or two for that demon beast to recover, which should be long enough for me to go back and forth between here and my family. Since we will eventually have to track the demon beast without getting lost ourselves, I will also bring along the Camel Beast.¡±


    Zhou Yang hadn¡¯t rejected any of his suggestions so far, so Zhou Quan continued to tell the former of the next steps of the plan.


    The Camel Beast was a Grade-1 advanced-tier demon beast tamed by the Zhou clan. It was said that this demon beast evolved from an ordinary camel but with ten times the physical strength and endurance of its ancestor. It was the best mode of transportation through the desert for low-level cultivators as well as the immortal cultivating Zhou clan¡¯s camel trading group.


    The Camel Beast also had a particularly powerful ability to remember all the paths and routes it had taken within thirty days. Essentially, the Camel Beast was able to make a map as it traveled. This ability was simply a godly skill for desert travel and survival.


    Unfortunately, it was difficult for the Camel Beast to reproduce. And because it often carried heavy loads through the desert, its lifespan was generally lower than that of other Grade-1 demon beasts. Even the Zhou clan¡¯s herd of Camel Beasts that reproduced over more than two hundred years had resulted in thirty-four old and young individuals.


    The Camel Beasts were precious resources of the Zhou family. As such, ordinary Zhou family disciples could not use them for personal use at all. Only Zhou Quan, an elder of the Zhou family and the only Grade-2 beast tamer in the clan had the authority to do so.


    After the plan was formulated, Zhou Quan immediately set off to return to Yuquan Lake Oasis. Zhou Yang, on the other hand, calmed down the miners who were still making a commotion and re-elected a new manager to organize the people and resume mining.


    Since Zhou Quan said that the Metal-Eating Rat¡¯s injuries would not recover for another month or two, they should be able to continue mining for the time being.


    The miners had already prepared for death the moment they chose to take up the profession. Moreover, the Zhou family had always been generous with the compensation for the miners who died.


    Therefore, when Zhou Yang, the Master Immortal Cultivator, personally came to explain that the demon beast had been chased away, the miners¡¯ emotions quickly stabilized and they gradually returned to work willingly.


    After more than a month, Zhou Quan returned to Qingping Mountain with two Camel Beasts and a companion, his biological grandson and Zhou Yang¡¯s second brother, Zhou Bao.


    Zhou Yang greeted them but with a slightly puzzled expression. Zhou Quan noticed and decided to explain himself.


    ¡°Once you and I leave Qingping Mountain to chase after that demon beast, there won¡¯t be any of our clan cultivators to guard the place in your stead. If something happened and the clan finds out, it would be very disadvantageous for your future assessment. Zhou Bao is on leave anyway so I thought that he could come be your temporary replacement while we¡¯re away.¡±


    Then, he lightly nudged his grandson as a hint.


    Zhou Bao was ranked second in the Yuan generation and at Qi Refinement Level 4. He and was already in his thirties or forties so his face was a little stiff and his skin was dark and rough like a farmer who had been working hard in the field. But he was an honest guy.


    Despite being in the same generation, Zhou Bao and Zhou Yang had only met less than ten times. It was partially due to the age gap but mainly because Zhou Bao had been tagging along on the travels of the camel trading group since he was twenty. Thus, Zhou Bao was hardly around when Zhou Yang had been cultivating at Yuquan Lake Oasis.


    Now that Zhou Yang had properly met Zhou Bao, the former finally understood Zhou Quan¡¯s request regarding the dividends. If Zhou Quan did not leave behind a substantial amount of family assets for his descendants while he was still alive, it would be difficult for large family to live a good life in the future, especially with Zhou Bao¡¯s current appearance.


    Due to the nudge, Zhou Bao hurriedly said, ¡°Zhou Yang, Grandpa told me everything. If you succeed, you will be the great benefactor of our family. Although my cultivation level is low, running errands is not a problem for me. Please feel free to let me know however I can be of service in the future.¡±


    Zhou Bao lowered his head right after speaking, not daring to look at Zhou Yang¡¯s handsome face.


    Zhou Yang was simply too dazzling!


    Even though he was almost twice the age of Zhou Yang and was often away from home, Zhou Bao had often heard from the elders and his peers of Zhou Yang¡¯s achievements: he started cultivating at the age of four, began Qi Refinement at the age of seven, reached Qi Refinement Level 4 at the age of twelve, broke through to Qi Refinement Level 5 at the age of fifteen, entered Qi Refinment Level 6 at the age of seventeen, and became a Grade-1 artifact refiner at the age of twenty.


    Every word mentioned about Zhou Yang was a compliment of him. And it almost became inevitable for elders and seniors to use Zhou Yang as an example when teaching the juniors.


    Only God knows how much despair and helplessness Zhou Bao felt every time his elders speak Zhou Yang¡¯s name.


    He also wanted to work hard, but he only had lower-tier spiritual root and an average ability to comprehend things. Even with the amount of attention and care he had received from his grandfather, Zhou Quan, Zhou Bao was only barely able to break through to Qi Refinement Level 4. Forget about Foundation Establishment. Zhou Bao didn¡¯t even know if could even reach Qi Refinement Level 9.


    With such mediocre achievements, he didn¡¯t even have the confidence to look at Zhou Yang in the eye.


    Strength was everything in the world of cultivation. No immortal cultivator would dare treat those stronger as a peer or junior, regardless of their clan or seniority.


    This was especially so for Zhou Bao. As a person who had traveled far and wide with the camel trading group, he had long witnessed the cruel reality of the cultivation world ¨C he knew to to respect and fear the strong.


    Zhou Yang was someone deemed by the clan leader as the clan¡¯s unicorn child, and a person his grandfather could not stop praising everytime they met. As such, Zhou Bao knew that Zhou Yang was an existence that he had to respect.


    And Zhou Bao wasn¡¯t the only one who felt this way. Many among the Zhou clan¡¯s Yuan generation cultivators, aside from those close to Zhou Yang, had developed something close to psychological trauma towards the person in question. No one dared to treat this person as a peer anymore.


    It seemed that their generation was destined to live under Zhou Yang¡¯s shadow for their entire lives..

 Chapter 10

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Zhou Yang did not know how high his reputation had reached and what it meant for his clansmen.


    So when he saw Zhou Bao¡¯s behavior, he simply thought that the other party was introverted. Thus, Zhou Yang did not think too much of it.


    He and Zhou Bao did not have much of a relationship anyway. And in the future, he would take care of the other party only for the sake of Zhou Quan. It seemed that these two were destined not to interact too much.


    Zhou Yang had always been an oddball among the Yuan generation cultivators of the Zhou family.


    Due to his memories from his past life, he had been wise since he was young. He might have been a child physically, but his mind had outgrown the childhood stage. Thus, he was not like other children who could not sit still and would rather play. Zhou Yang would hide in secluded places to cultivate quietly for the entire day instead.


    Due to this, he did not have much of a relationship with his peers and would often be ostracized.


    But his tendency to cultivate by himself while others played was also one of the contributing factors to his ability to reach his current cultivation level at such a young age, other than having a good spiritual root.


    When his fellow clansmen grew up and understood things better, they apologized to him. But unfortunately for them, this sense of alienation had already been established. Even if he did not mind, his fellow clansmen usually felt uncomfortable being around him because they were ashamed. As such, despite it all, Zhou Yang¡¯s relationship with his peers had and probably would not improve much.


    And the rate at which his cultivation grew did not help either as it only further propelled his reputation and increased the gap between him and his peers, both in terms of cultivation and their relationship.


    In the end, the others could only continue looking up to him as a senior. They had completely lost the courage to treat him as an equal.


    In any case, Zhou Bao¡¯s arrival had indeed helped Zhou Yang a little.


    Although this clan brother¡¯s cultivation wasn¡¯t that great, he was at least at Qi Refinement Level 4. With him around to take care of the spiritual fields and other miscellaneous matters of the mines, Zhou Yang could be at ease when he journeyed with Zhou Quan to go after the Metal-Eating Rat.


    Now that they had gone through the formalities of greeting each other, Zhou Yang suggested letting the miners stop working and withdraw from the mine as he and Zhou Quan deal with the Metal-Eating Rat because he knew that there would be casualties otherwise.


    However, the cruel reality of the immortal cultivation world once again revealed itself as Zhou Quan directly and mercilessly rejected Zhou Yang¡¯s idea. Zhou Quan sternly said, ¡°Zhou Yang, you must remember that mercy and compassion are feelings that cultivators should avoid having the most. As cultivators, we must be ready and willing to make sacrifices, regardless of whether they entail ordinary miners or other cultivators like me, for the greater good of our clan. No matter what happens, you must never hesitate to abandon any of us! Do you understand?


    ¡°A gecko¡¯s tail can regrow if it has been cut off. But if the gecko is dead, there are no second chances. We may lose cultivators and clansmen today, but as long as the clan survives, we will be able to gain more tomorrow!


    ¡°You are the hope of the Zhou clan. If you are able to achieve Foundation Establishment in the future, the position of Clan Head will be passed to you. Once you¡¯re in that position, having mercy and compassion will only result in the demise of the clan!¡±


    It was as if Zhou Quan had turned into a completely different person ¨C cold and stern ¨C as he warned Zhou Yang.


    And it was at that moment Zhou Yang knew that Zhou Quan was speaking to him as a clan elder and not as his usual third grandfather.


    As a disciple of an immortal cultivation clan, one must put the clan¡¯s interests first before anything at all times. Hesitation and mercy will only cause more harm than good.


    But honestly, Zhou Yang did not completely agree with the view that the clan¡¯s interests were paramount. Yet, he also knew that this was the norm for all immortal cultivation clans in this world.


    Though Zhou Quan¡¯s advice might seem cold and heartless, it left no room for weakness which was important when dealing with enemies such as demon beasts.


    Unlike normal wild beasts that could only act on instinct, demon beasts possessed intelligence and demonic energy. The Grade-2 Metal-Eating Rat, for example, already had a relatively high enough intelligence to think and reason.


    If they ordered the miners to withdraw and seal off the mine, the Metal-Eating Rat would definitely realize that something was wrong when it came over and wouldn¡¯t appear again.


    Therefore, in order to lure the demon beast out, the miners had to be used as human bait. Sacrifices must be made for the greater good!


    Zhou Yang realized all this. Thus, he could only consent to Zhou Quan¡¯s advice.


    They just had to make sure that the miners did not know that they were being used as human bait. In order to do so, Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan used the Breath Concealing Technique to conceal their auras as they quietly snuck in and hid in an uninhabited branch of the mine to wait.


    Waiting was torturous because no one knew when the Metal-Eating Rat would come. Still, Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan didn¡¯t dare to make any noise, let alone cultivate while waiting.


    To ensure they succeed in their mission without any disruptions, Zhou Quan even prepared two bottles of Grade-2 spiritual pills, the Fasting Pill, in advance. A Qi Refinement cultivator would only need to take one pill and be able to fast for an entire week.


    Eventually, more than ten days had passed since Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan sat in waiting.


    One afternoon fifteen days later, Zhou Yang was too bored and took out the artifact refining manual given to him by the clan leader to study the Artifact Refining Technique. Suddenly, the terrified cries of the miners were heard.


    ¡°Ah! There¡¯s a demon beast! A demon beast has killed someone!¡±


    ¡°Run! Alert Master Immortal Cultivator to get rid of the demon!¡±


    The miners cried out in alarm as they threw away the mining tools and ran out of the mine desperately.


    None of them knew that the immortal cultivators they so desperately needed were already in the mine.


    When Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan heard the screams of the miners, they immediately removed their Breath-Concealing Technique and made their move.


    Rather than squeezing through the narrow tunnel with the miners, Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan used the Earth Evasion Technique to bypass them and headed straight to the scene of the incident.


    They arrived in a short while and saw the demon beast once more.


    Zhou Quan immediately bit the tip of his tongue and spat out a mouthful of blood essence to cast the Blood Spirit Tracing spell.


    ¡°With blood as the guide, the blood spirit will reveal itself!¡±


    With a flash of light from the Zhou Quan¡¯s blood, a glowing blood mark appeared on the Metal-Eating Rat¡¯s body before it could react.


    Since Zhou Quan was a Qi Refinement Level 9 cultivator, the blood mark he had placed on the demon beast would last for about a day. As long as the mark was still there and the distance between him and the demon beast was not more than a thousand miles, Zhou Quan could locate the Metal-Eating Rat at any time through his subconscious.


    To the Metal-Eating Rat, it did not think much of the bloodstain on its body. It was shocked when it first received it and did suspect that the human that it had previously severely injured had used the blood to cast some kind of attack spell on it.


    But when the Metal-Eating Rat realized that the bloodstain did not hurt at all, its fur relaxed. A human-like sneer flashed in its scarlet eyes as it bared its teeth at the duo.


    It let out a sharp squeaky cry before its figure instantly dived into the ground and disappeared sight.


    Just as Zhou Yang took out his Silver Shield and prepared to set up the barrier to protect himself against the Metal-Eating Rat¡¯s surprise attack, Zhou Quan had sensed something amiss.


    ¡°What a cunning beast. But you¡¯re still too young to play tricks with me!¡±


    It turned out that when the Metal-Eating Rat had suffered a loss last time, it had developed a fear of Zhou Quan¡¯s afraid of the old man¡¯s Earth to Steel spell. Thus, when it reencountered the duo, it had no intention of fighting back head-on and decided to create a diversion instead.


    The Metal-Eating Rat had pretended to hide in the ground to sneak an attack on the two. But in actual fact, it had secretly fled to the exit of the mine and chased after the escaping miners.


    ¡°We need to get to the exit,¡± said Zhou Quan in a slightly hushed voice before dashing for the mine¡¯s exit.


    Zhou Yang, who was slow to realize what was going on, quickly reacted and followed after Zhou Quan.


    At the exit of the mine, the miners were just about to rejoice when they saw a black rat the size of a wolf-dog breaking out of the ground with its mouth wide open to take a bite of the nearest person.


    ¡°Run!¡±


    The miners were shocked and immediately fled in all directions like frightened sparrows.


    However, how could these two-legged mortals outrun the four-legged demon beast?


    As they ran, the miners merely saw a huge black shadow darting left and right and people started collapsing t the ground screaming in pain. In just ten breaths, nearly half of the dozens of miners had fallen.


    At this rate, the dozens of miners would die under the claws of the Metal-Eating Rat in less than a minute.


    Fortunately, that was not the conclusion.


    Before the Metal-Eating Rat could finish off everyone, Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan finally rushed out of the mine.


    They immediately found the rat and pointed to the ground to seal the ground with the Earth to Steel spell at the same time.


    Zhou Quan cast the spell directly while Zhou Yang used the Grade-2 talisman that the former had handed him earlier.


    The Grade-2 talisman for the Earth to Steel spell had been personally drawn by Zhou Dan, the third elder of the Light generation in the Zhou family and a Grade-2 advanced-tier talisman maker. Zhou Quan had specially requested the talisman from Zhou Dan when he last returned to Yuquan Lake Oasis.


    With two Earth to Steel spells being used simultaneously, the ground and rocks within a hundred square meters around the Metal-Eating Rat were turned into fine steel, preventing it from further using its Burrow Escape Technique.


    Without waiting for the demon beast to react, Zhou Quan pulled out his gourd hammer, ready to take the Metal-Eating Rat out.


    Zhou Yang wasted no time standing idly either. He summoned the Grade-2 intermediate-tier magical flying sword, the Scarlet Flame Sword that his father had gifted him for his 15th birthday.


    With a flash of fire, Zhou Yang slashed at the Metal-Eating Rat that was trying to escape.


    However, the demon beast¡¯s fur was tough and couldn¡¯t be broken so easily unless it was attacked with a Grade-2 advanced-tier magical weapon just as Zhou Quan had previously mentioned.


    When the Grade-2 intermediate-tier Scarlet Flame Sword slashed on the demon beast¡¯s body, it only slightly cut off a strand of its fur, leaving a shallow white mark on its body. The sword¡¯s attacks were not able to cause any proper damage on the Metal-Eating Rat at all!


    However, Zhou Yang was not discouraged. He had intentionally used his sword attack to restrain the Metal-Eating Rat to create an opportunity for Zhou Quan¡¯s magical weapon, the gourd hammer to attack the demon beast.


    As expected, the Metal-Eating Rat¡¯s body inevitably slowed down for a moment after Zhou Yang¡¯s attack. And it was at this moment that the gourd hammer smashed heavily on its back.


    The demon beast let out a miserable cry and fell to the ground, spitting out large mouthfuls of blood. Some pieces of its internal organs that had been badly mutilated were visible too.


    The ¡®quake¡¯ in Zhou Quan¡¯s magical gourd hammer¡¯s name, the Mountain Quaking Hammer was not there for nothing. Once the magical weapon made a hit, it would activate its ¡®quaking¡¯ divine ability to form a powerful shockwave that would cause secondary damage to the enemy.


    Ultimately, the direct impact of the gourd hammer damaged the Metal-Eating Rat¡¯s exterior while the hammer¡¯s magical properties dealt damage to the demon beast¡¯s internal organs.


    It was a consecutive combo attack that made sure there was no room for chances and escape for its victim.


    ¡°Amazing. Third Grandfather is so strong despite his age! The older the ginger, the spicier it is!¡±


    Zhou Yang withdrew his flying sword and praised Zhou Quan with a face full of admiration.


    To be able to receive such praise from Zhou Yang, the number one person among the younger generation of the Zhou family, Zhou Quan could not help but feel proud and stroked his beard with a laugh even though he knew there was a sense of intentional flattery and exaggeration.


    ¡°Oh, this is nothing, Zhou Yang. I am simply older than you. In another ten or eight years, your cultivation will increase and by then, you will be able to easily handle a demon beast such as this too.¡±


    ¡°In that case, I will do my best to cultivate to a level as good as yours, Third Grandfather.¡±


    Zhou Yang¡¯s face faintly smiled as he unceremoniously accepted the Zhou Quan¡¯s praise.


    The two were no longer paying much attention to the Metal-Eating Rat.


    It was not until the demon beast vomited blood and dragged its severely injured body out of the area affected by the Earth to Steel spell and disappeared underground that the two of them looked at each other and smiled with hidden intentions..

 Chapter 11

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    In the Boundless Sand Sea, two Camel Beasts were sprinting with all their might with two riders on their backs.


    And more than ten miles in front of the Camel Beasts was a bulge that moved rapidly into the depths of the desert at a speed faster than that of a galloping horse, leaving a thin trail.


    The bulge did not move in a straight line as it swayed to the sides occasionally. However, no matter how it turned, the two Camel Beasts chasing after it always changed direction accordingly.


    When the bulge stopped moving and disappeared, the riders on the Camel Beasts would dismount in time to rest and wait. When the bulge reappeared and started moving again, the riders would mount their Camel Beasts and continue the pursuit.


    The sun shone brightly onto the riders who bumped hard against the back of the Camel Beasts as they chased after the bulge. For Zhou Yang, a first-time rider of a Camel Beast, it had been quite an uncomfortable journey.


    Thankfully he had the physique of an immortal cultivator and had been fasting the past few days. Otherwise, he might have vomited several times. However, the bumpy ride did make him feel as if his internal organs had shifted.


    When Zhou Yang looked at the other rider on his Camel Beast ahead of him, his journey was equally as bumpy too. But Zhou Quan sat tall and firm against the humped back of the Camel Beast as if it was the easiest and most comfortable thing in the world.


    Zhou Yang felt embarrassed that a twenty-year-old like him was feeling this much discomfort when the hundred-year-old ahead of him had no issues.


    Ultimately, there was nothing he could do but clench his teeth and endure the pain as he internally cursed the Metal-Eating Rat for putting him through all of this.


    If it wasn¡¯t for their plan to use the Metal-Eating Rat to discover a new ore vein, Zhou Yang would have killed the demon beast at Qingping Mountain¡¯s mine earlier.


    After chasing for half a day and over hundreds of miles, Zhou Yang, whose face had turned pale from the bumpy ride on his Camel Beast finally saw Zhou Quan come to a stop.


    ¡°Whew! Are we finally here?¡±


    He pulled the reins with both hands to stop his Camel Beast and jumped off to dismount. Zhou Yang was exhausted. He sat down on the sand with sweat all over his head and panted heavily. He was so out of breath that it was hard to imagine how miserable he was.


    ¡°Oh, Zhou Yang. It seems that there are things that you can¡¯t do too. And here I thought you could do anything!¡±


    Zhou Quan walked over to Zhou Yang, still looking calm and relaxed. Zhou Quan could help but laugh out loud as he teased Zhou Yang¡¯s appearance.


    ¡°Gosh, Third Grandfather. Please let me catch my breath first!¡±


    Zhou Yang could only smile bitterly and roll his eyes as he struggled to catch his breath.


    Zhou Quan stopped smiling and turned serious. ¡°Alright, I won¡¯t tease you anymore. That beast is probably back at its lair. I will go over to investigate the situation first. Rest here and wait for me.¡±


    ¡°Alright, Third Grandfather. Be careful.¡±


    Zhou Yang nodded. He had no issues with Zhou Quan acting alone.


    They had already severely injured the Metal-Eating Rat. Now that it had traveled hundreds of miles, it should be so exhausted that it wouldn¡¯t pose a threat to Zhou Quan.


    Zhou Yang was more worried that they were wrong and would not discover any ore veins or that the ore vein would not have much value. That would be too much of a blow.


    Zhou Yang started to worry about gains and losses.


    He just hoped that they would be able to discover a vein of great value this time, allowing both his family and himself to make a fortune.


    But what if the trip had been in vain? Not only would it be a waste of energy, but it would also mean that the miners¡¯ deaths had been for nothing.


    As his anxiety grew, the seconds started to feel like hours. He almost lost patience and wanted to go after Zhou Quan several times.


    After waiting for nearly an hour, Zhou Quan finally returned.


    ¡°How is it? Third Grandfather? What did you find?¡± asked Zhou Yang as he welcomed Zhou Quan with anticipation.


    ¡°Our plan is a success. We¡¯ve found a red flame iron vein!¡±


    Zhou Quan didn¡¯t keep him in suspense and immediately revealed his discovery.


    ¡°Amazing!¡±


    Zhou Yang clapped his hands in excitement and was so happy that he almost jumped up.


    Red flame iron was also a type of Grade-1 spiritual metal like refined iron. However, red flame iron was suitable for refining fire-type magical artifacts. Many Grade-2 fire-type magical artifacts would add red flame iron as a supplementary material. Therefore, red flame iron was considered to be higher in value compared to refined iron.


    The refined iron in the Zhou family¡¯s Qingping Mountain could bring in a net profit of five hundred lower-tier spiritual stones annually. If they mined the red flame iron, the profit would definitely not be lower than that of mining refined iron. Once Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan were officially deemed as the discoverers of the red flame iron, the dividends they would receive would equate to dozens of lower-tier spiritual stones per person.


    It might not sound like a lot for a year, but in the long run, it was a lot of spiritual stones one would be able to receive.


    Now that he was about to receive such a large amount of spiritual stones for free, how could Zhou Yang not be excited?


    ¡°Zhou Yang, don¡¯t be happy just yet. There¡¯s more!


    ¡°It¡¯s true that we¡¯ve discovered the red flame iron vein, but there are also Venomous Fire Scorpions living in there besides the Metal-Eating Rat. There are at least hundreds of the scorpions and dozens of them are Grade-2 demon beasts. I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if the Venomous Fire Scorpion King is in there too!¡±


    What?


    Zhou Yang¡¯s expression changed, greatly shocked by Zhou Quan¡¯s news.


    Venomous Fire Scorpions were common desert demon beasts in the Boundless Sand Sea. Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpions only had stings that contained fire venom. Even Xiantian cultivators could easily kill it as long as they didn¡¯t get stabbed.


    However, a Grade-2 Venomous Fire Scorpion was able to cast a Venomous Fireball spell, spitting fireballs to attack enemies from a distance. If it went all out, it could even shoot the sting on its tail at enemies. Its attack power was equivalent to a Grade-2 Flying Needle but with highly venomous fire.


    If a cultivator below the Qi Refinement Advanced Stage was hit by the scorpion sting, they wouldn¡¯t be able to endure for more than fifteen minutes before their body was burned by the venomous fire with no corpse left behind unless they immediately consumed a special Grade-2 Detoxification Pill.


    And this wasn¡¯t even the most terrifying part. The most terrifying part was that once the population of a demon beast like the Venomous Fire Scorpion reached hundreds or thousands, one of them would have a certain chance of evolving into a Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion King that was equivalent to a Foundation Establishment cultivator.


    The Venomous Fire Scorpion King was a Grade-3 lower-tier demon beast. However, if it had the support of a group of Venomous Fire Scorpions, it would be much more difficult to deal with than many Grade-3 intermediate-tier demon beasts. Even a cultivator in Foundation Establishment Advanced-Stage wouldn¡¯t dare to say that they would be able to win.


    ¡°That makes sense. Venomous Fire Scorpions love heat and have a tendency to swallow fire-attribute spiritual ores to strengthen their bodies. Since red flame iron has a fire attribute, it¡¯s not a mystery why the demon beasts have been attracted to the vein for breeding and settlement.¡±


    Zhou Yang recalled the records of Venomous Fire Scorpions that he had read in the book ¡®Illustration of Demon Beasts in the Desert¡¯ and immediately believed Zhou Quan.


    Then, an idea came into his mind and he suddenly thought of something more important. He couldn¡¯t help but exclaim as he stared at Zhou Quan with wide eyes.


    ¡°Third Grandfather, the Venomous Fire Scorpion King is a Grade-3 demon beast, which is not something a Grade-1 or Grade-2 demon beast can compare to. When a demon beast reaches Grade 3, it must occupy a spirit vein like us immortal cultivators in order to continue developing. If there really is a Venomous Fire Scorpion King here, doesn¡¯t that mean that there is a natural Grade-3 spiritual vein underground, in addition to the red flame iron vein?¡±


    ¡°Not bad, you are quite sharp. It took me a while to realize this after I discovered the group of Venomous Fire Scorpions.¡±


    Zhou Quan was impressed by Zhou Yang¡¯s sharpness.


    Hearing the name ¡®Venomous Fire Scorpion King¡¯ would immediately arouse fear among ordinary Qi Refinement cultivators, limiting their ability to think further.


    Even he, a cultivator of at Qi Refinement Level 9 who had lived for more than a hundred years, was quite frightened when he saw the black mass of Venomous Fire Scorpion.


    It was only after he had retreated to a safe place and calmed down that he thought of the same thing Zhou Yang spoke of because of his profession as a beast tamer.


    Zhou Yang didn¡¯t care about Zhou Quan¡¯s praise at all. He had heard similar compliments many times over the years and had long become immune to them.


    What he was more concerned about was what the two of them should do next. ¡°What do you plan to do next, Third Grandfather? Should we go back and ask the clan leader to personally investigate the situation or should we take the risk and do it ourselves before returning reporting back to the clan and the clan leader?¡±


    ¡°What are your thoughts? I want to hear yours too.¡± Zhou Quan did not answer and threw the question back at Zhou Yang to test him.


    Zhou Yang frowned for a moment and lowered his head to think.


    After thinking quietly for about half an hour, he looked back at Zhou Quan with bright eyes and said, ¡°I think that we should not care about the Venomous Fire Scorpion and instead go kill that big rat first. We can¡¯t let those miners of the Zhou family die in vain while waiting to make our next move.¡±


    In the end, he still felt guilty towards those miners who had died. Even if he couldn¡¯t save them, he should at least take revenge for them.


    Fortunately, this time, Zhou Quan didn¡¯t object to his proposal.


    ¡°Okay, then we¡¯ll go with your plan. Let¡¯s go destroy that demon beast¡¯s nest right now. We¡¯ll skin it alive and tear its bones apart to comfort the spirits of those dead miners in heaven!¡± Zhou Quan nodded slightly as he agreed with Zhou Yang¡¯s proposal.


    And thus, the duo immediately found a safe place to shelter the two Camel Beasts before Zhou Quan sensed for the specific location of the Blood Spirit Trace. Then, they directly charged toward the lair of the Metal-Eating Rat..

 Chapter 12

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    The Metal-Eating Rat had originally thought that after escaping back to its nest in the red iron vein, it would be able to rely on the presence of the Venomous Fire Scorpions outside to protect it as it recovered from its injuries and escape this calamity.


    Unfortunately, it had underestimated the abilities of the human immortal cultivators, including Zhou Yang¡¯s determination to kill it.


    With the aid of the Blood Spirit Trace, Earth Evasion Technique, and other magical artifacts, Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan forcibly opened a passage and slaughtered their way into the rat¡¯s hole fifty to sixty meters underground. The duo descended right into the nest as the Metal-Eating Rat was sleeping and recuperating.


    Without wasting time, Zhou Quan had already used the Earth to Steel spell to seal off the surrounding ground and rocks.


    Now that its most convenient escape method had been sealed off, how else could the Metal-Eating Rat attempt to successfully escape in such a narrow space while heavily injured?


    After a desperate struggle, the rat was finally smashed in the head by Zhou Quan¡¯s gourd hammer. The deaths of dozens of miners had been avenged.


    ¡°Demon Beast, this is your retribution for eating people!¡±


    Zhou Quan gently raised the gourd hammer and struck the head of the Metal-Eating Rat again. He did not stop until the rat¡¯s head was smashed into several pieces.


    It was only then that Zhou Yang realized that Zhou Quan was not completely cold and heartless. He did take the lives of ordinary clansmen seriously.


    It was just that Zhou Quan had lived for more than a hundred years and was already used to seeing life and death flash before him. As such, he was able to hide his emotions well and not reveal them easily.


    Zhou Yang remembered Zhou Quan¡¯s stern words back then and still found himself disagreeing with them even now.


    Nevertheless, he did not dare to voice out his thoughts as he was still a junior to Zhou Quan. After all, Zhou Yang was still not as strong as Zhou Quan.


    Seniority was the foundation of a clan¡¯s stability. The only way an immortal cultivator belonging to a clan could escape the hierarchy was to achieve the realm of immortality.


    Throughout the whole time Zhou Yang was busy entertaining the thoughts in his head, Zhou Quan had already put away his gourd hammer and said, ¡°Zhou Yang, you can keep this demon beast¡¯s corpse. Bring it to the clan head and he can help extract and refine some of the materials from it. You should be able to refine a few good magical artifacts from it.¡±


    Zhou Yang was stunned. He had never thought that Zhou Quan would say such a thing. Now he felt ashamed for the negative thoughts he had towards Zhou Quan earlier. Zhou Yang slightly blushed, shook his head, and said, ¡°No, Third Grandfather was the one who slayed it. How could I dare claim it?¡±


    ¡°If I ask you to take it, then take it. Third Grandfather is already so old. Even if I were to claim the corpse and get a Grade-3 or Grade-4 magical artifact, how many more years can I use it? Besides, you¡¯re about to reach Qi Refinement Advanced Stage. If you don¡¯t have enough magical artifacts in your inventory, how will you win in a fight in the future?¡±


    Zhou Quan glared unhappily at Zhou Yang, feeling as though Zhou Yang was looking down on him by not accepting the gift.


    Zhou Yang felt even more ashamed when he heard Zhou Quan speak, but he still declined. ¡°I appreciate your kindness, Third Grandfather, but this item is too valuable. I¡¯m ashamed to accept it, I¡¯m just too ashamed to accept it!¡±


    Zhou Quan could tell that Zhou Yang was not faking his reaction, which only made the former confused.


    What kind of situation was this?


    The juniors of today were really hard to understand!


    Zhou Quan stared at Zhou Yang with a puzzled expression. Then, he asked, ¡°What do you have to be ashamed of? This demon beast was discovered and killed by the both of us. Even those itinerant cultivators who team up to hunt demon beasts would have a share in the spoils. So why not you and me?¡±


    What he could not understand was why Zhou Yang was acting as if only seniors were allowed a share of the spoils and juniors were expected to simply watch from the sidelines.


    Zhou Quan could tell that the guilt Zhou Yang was feeling and expressing was genuine. However, Zhou Quan could also tell that Zhou Yang would not say what he had in his mind, and that he only wanted to let this matter pass as soon as possible.


    Since that was the case, Zhou Quan decided not to pursue the matter any further as he helplessly said, ¡°Look, how about this? Just treat this as me asking a favor from you for the benefit of your second brother¡¯s future!¡±


    Zhou Quan was afraid that Zhou Yang would still disagree so the former immediately used the Earth Evasion Technique to leave the rat¡¯s nest. It was as if Zhou Quan was the one with the guilty conscience, not Zhou Yang.


    This was not something Zhou Yang was expecting as he was left standing there, dumbfounded.


    After a long while, he finally came back to his senses and let out a bitter smile before sighing. ¡°Forget it. I¡¯ll just accept the gift today and find an opportunity to return the favor through Zhou Bao and the others!¡±


    After putting away the corpse of the Metal-Eating Rat, Zhou Yang rummaged around in the nest for a while and found some of its feces.


    The feces of the Metal-Eating Rat were also considered treasures due to their metal-based diets. In fact, the feces of the Metal-Eating Rat sometimes contained some special spiritual metal that was not digested. If the spiritual metal was extracted and used to refine magical artifacts, it could slightly increase the success rate of refining. It was also an excellent material for repairing damaged magical artifacts.


    Knowing that, Zhou Yang immediately got to extracting the undigested refined iron and red flame iron ores from the Metal-Eating Rat¡¯s feces. These would definitely be of great use when refining Grade-2 or Grade-3 magical artifacts in the future.


    After raiding the nest, Zhou Yang quickly used the Earth Evasion technique to return to ground-level and meet up with Zhou Quan who had been waiting for him.


    ¡°Zhou Yang, now that this demon beast is dead, what do you plan to do next?¡± asked Zhou Quan as he made a quick glance at Zhou Yang¡¯s bulging storage bag on his waist.


    ¡°I thought Third Grandfather already had a plan,¡± said Zhou Yang confidently after a brief moment of surprise at the sudden question.


    ¡°Regardless of whether there is a Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion King or not, hundreds of Venomous Fire Scorpions are not something the two of us can deal with. Why do we have to take the risk to confirm the presence of the Venomous Fire Scorpion King anyway? We should return to Qingping Mountain first. Then, Third Grandfather will report this matter to the clan leader and let him decide on this matter.¡±


    The round of applause rang out as Zhou Quan clapped at Zhou Yang with a gratified expression and praised the young cultivator. ¡°Well said! As expected of the apple of the Zhou clan and clan leader¡¯s eyes. Zhou Yang, I have long heard of your wisdom but this is the first time I get to experience it directly. Despite your age, you already know when to advance and when to retreat, and you know how to weigh the pros and cons. I don¡¯t think there are no more than three cultivators between the Xuan and Yuan generation of our Zhou clan who are as insightful and wise as you!¡±


    Then, Zhou Quan turned serious and said, ¡°Let me give you a piece of advice. In the future, whenever you encounter such opportunities and risks, you must restrain your greed and curiosity to avoid taking risks as much as possible. Self-preservation is very important. You must remember that only when people are alive can they be met with and take opportunities. Nothing is possible once you¡¯re dead!¡±


    ¡°I will always remember Third Grandfather¡¯s advice. Thank you for your guidance.¡± Zhou Yang bowed respectfully to Zhou Quan.


    Although Zhou Quan¡¯s words were not new to him, Zhou Yang was also grateful for the kindness the elder had shown him throughout.


    Zhou Quan accepted his bow calmly. Then, he let out a long sigh with a complicated look on his face.


    ¡°It¡¯s good that you¡¯re willing to take my advice. In the future, our Zhou family will rely on you juniors to carry on the clan¡¯s name. Us elders are already in our senior years. Now, we can only pass on the baton of insights and experiences that we have summed up throughout our lives to you. With that, we hope that you will be able to raise your cultivation with fewer detours than we had!¡±


    When Zhou Yang heard Zhou Quan¡¯s sudden words, the former knew the latter was thinking of their ancestors who had died violently in the Boundless Sand Sea.


    Their current world was filled with dangers. Not only were there natural disasters and demon beasts but there were man-made disasters as well.


    The vastness of the Boundless Sand Sea meant that there were other oases like the Yuquan Lake Oasis that hosted other cultivation clans like the Zhou clan.


    Even smaller oases would host itinerant cultivators who did not have the benefits or systematic inheritance of cultivation techniques or refining tools and pills of those who belong to clans or sects. If they wanted to obtain talismans, pills, spiritual stones, and magical artifacts, they would have to hunt demon beasts or collect spiritual herbs to be exchanged for in the immortal cultivator market.


    But such items weren¡¯t the only things that could be traded in the market. Lives could be exchanged too.


    Therefore, many itinerant cultivators simply formed groups and acted as sand bandits in the Boundless Sand Sea. They engaged in no-cost business, specifically killing and plundering other cultivators¡¯ belongings to benefit their own cultivation.


    Some powerful itinerant cultivators even deliberately left spiritual items in the desert as traps, spreading the news of the treasures everywhere to attract cultivators who thought they had stumbled upon an opportunity before killing and robbing them.


    The Boundless Sand Sea was a place such that anyone could easily get away with murder ¨C it was easy to clean one¡¯s hands and find a place to hide or disappear.


    There were a total of thirteen Light generation and eighteen Xuan generation cultivators in the Zhou family tree, but only eighteen of them were still alive between the two generations.


    Of the thirteen who disappeared, three accidentally died at the hands of demon beasts and the remaining ten had mysteriously disappeared when they had left to carry out clan missions or go on adventures. Not even their bones had been found.


    Compared to the poor itinerant cultivators, the clan or sect cultivators were sometimes more easily targeted by those evil people since they had more assets.


    For this reason, the Zhou clan and many immortal cultivation clans had specially set down family rules: any cultivator who had not reached Qi Refinement Advanced Stage was not allowed to leave the clan to travel and explore alone.


    Zhou Quan had lived for more than a hundred years and as such, he had encountered many wandering cultivators¡¯ attacks, traps, and temptations. For him to be able to live until now only meant that his hands must have been stained with the lives of many people.


    Therefore, Zhou Quan was definitely not exaggerating when he talked about the importance of clan juniors inheriting insights and experiences from their seniors and elders..

 Chapter 13

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Despite having successfully seen their plan through, Zhou Yang was still slightly haunted by the chase and battle with the Metal-Eating Rat earlier. As such, Zhou Quan had to slow down their pace and keep a more careful eye on the young cultivator as they journeyed back to Qingping Mountain. This time, they took almost two days to return.


    Qingping Mountain was in a mess. The Metal-Eating Rat had killed twenty to thirty miners, and Zhou Yang, the cultivator stationed there, was nowhere to be seen. Although Zhou Bao was the temporary replacement, he was simply given the position by Zhou Quan and Zhou Yang, not officially by the clan. He couldn¡¯t appease the frightened miners or control the overall situation at all.


    The honest and dull-witted Zhou Bao could only stand guard on Qingping Mountain, watching the miners wreak havoc at the base. There was nothing he could do to vent the fear and anger in his heart.


    When Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan returned to this situation, they fell speechless, feeling both incredulous and angry.


    The sight of the duo¡¯s return brought so much joy to Zhou Bao that he rushed out happily to meet them.


    But Zhou Quan returned his grandson¡¯s greeting with a slap while Zhou Yang went ahead to deal with the mess.


    ¡°What a waste of potential! Aren¡¯t you a Qi Refinement Level 4 cultivator? Why are you hiding behind the array helplessly like a mere mortal? What use is the magical artifact you have equipped, then? Did you learn spells to play with children?¡±


    Zhou Quan reprimanded furiously his grandson with a face full of disappointment.


    However, the honest and dull Zhou Bao was still stubbornly clueless to defend himself as if he had been wronged. ¡°Grandpa, you don¡¯t understand. The family has a rule that forbids cultivators from hurting the family¡¯s mortals. I can¡¯t just kill those people if they don¡¯t listen to me, right?¡±


    Zhou Bao¡¯s words only made his grandfather angrier, so much so that he gave his grandson another slap with an angry curse. ¡°Kill? Do you even have the guts to kill people with that timid personality of yours? Can you not see and learn from how Zhou Yang deals with such situations? Honestly, the only thing you have over him is your age.¡±


    ¡®I¡¯m never going to be as good as Zhou Yang anyway!¡¯ thought Zhou Bao, still feeling extremely wronged. But he did not dare to talk back anymore. Instead, he obediently used his Heavenly Eye Technique to look at the miners¡¯ camp, to see how Zhou Yang had been dealing with those miners.


    Zhou Yang¡¯s solution was very simple. He used his Scarlet Flame Sword to drive the miners to an open area. Then, he threw the corpse of the Metal-Eating Rat before them.


    ¡°Look, the human-eating demon beast is now dead!


    ¡°I know you are afraid, afraid of being eaten by the demon beast, but fear is not a reason for you to destroy the family¡¯s property!


    ¡°Now, I¡¯m giving you a chance. Clean up the camp immediately and obediently await the family¡¯s instructions. Otherwise, I will report what you have done in the past two days to the family and suggest that you be stripped off your family name and have your entire family be expelled!¡±


    Zhou Yang used the Grade-1 Sound of Cleansing spell to calmly and clearly convey his words to the minds of the miners he was speaking to.


    The miners suddenly recalled the family rules that they had recited since young and started to break out in cold sweat as they looked at the young Master Immortal Cultivator standing next to the corpse of the Metal-Eating Rat.


    Although the Zhou clan¡¯s rules strictly forbade clan cultivators from killing clan mortals, they also did not allow the clan¡¯s mortals to destroy the clan¡¯s spiritual resources. If any mortal violated this rule, they would be killed or have their Zhou name stripped from their family and be banished.


    Either way, they would no longer be members of the Zhou clan and receive the protection or benefits of the clan. By then, it would not be a violation of the clan rules if the clan cultivators decide to kill them.


    ¡°Spare our lives, Master Immortal Cultivator! Please, spare us!¡±


    ¡°We were wrong. We know we were wrong. Master Immortal Cultivator, please show mercy and spare us this time. We won¡¯t dare to do it again!¡±


    ¡°I had nothing to do with this, Master Immortal Cultivator. I¡¯ve been in the barracks for the past two days and did not participate in the destruction of the camp at all. Master Immortal Cultivator, your vision is as sharp as a hawk¡¯s. You must realize the truth and know that I¡¯ve been wronged!¡±


    In an instant, the miners who had understood the consequences of the matter knelt and prostrated themselves as they begged for mercy. They no longer had the crazed look of a desperate person.


    Zhou Bao was completely astonished when he witnessed the scene through the Heavenly Eye Technique.


    Zhou Quan saw the scene too and took the opportunity to educate his grandson, ¡°Did you see that? Now, do you know how foolish your words were earlier? To fight with and kill a mere group of mortals? What¡¯s the difference between that and being a sand bandit, then? Why else do you think we first teach you the simple Grade-1 spells that did not seem that beneficial to your cultivation from a young age instead of the other more advanced and offensive ones?¡±


    Zhou Bao was speechless. Although he was stubborn, he was not a true one-track-minded fool. The truth was right in front of him, and there was no room for him to deny it or defend himself any longer.


    ¡°Learn well. You¡¯re not young anymore. You need to use your brain more when you do things in the future. If you ever find yourself in a situation where you¡¯re unable to make a decision, you should just consult Zhou Yang. Listen to his opinion before making a decision!¡±


    Zhou Quan could not bear to hit and scold Zhou Bao anymore. The latter was his own grandson, after all. He could only sigh and try to persuade him, hoping that he would change eventually.


    Down where the miners had been gathered, Zhou Yang waited for the miners to kowtow until their heads were covered in blood. Only then did he agree to forgive them for their mistakes. Without another word, he dismissed them with a wave of his hand so that they could start cleaning up the camp. Zhou Yang picked up the Metal-Eating Rat¡¯s corpse and returned to Qingping Mountain.


    ¡°What a good show of kindness and intimidation ¨C using the clan rules to intimidate them until their courage is broken, then use kindness to appease their hearts. Zhou Yang, for you to have understood this concept and apply it so effectively truly puts my heart at ease knowing that you will do the clan well when you take over from us elders!¡±


    Zhou Quan did not bother hiding his fondness and praises for Zhou Yang in front of his own grandson, who naturally felt a little jealous. Still, he knew his place. The position of clan leader was only for the capable and there were fifteen Yuan generation cultivators in the Zhou clan. Even if Zhou Bao¡¯s talent was not right at the bottom, it was still in the bottom half. He probably would never have a chance to be the clan leader.


    ¡°Third Grandfather, although these mortal miners have been temporarily appeased, it is unlikely that they will be able to enter the mines to mine again so soon. Therefore, can you please report this situation to the clan leader upon your return to the clan and ask the clan to recruit a new batch of miners to replace this group?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. When I return, I will definitely help you settle this matter,¡± said Zhou Quan with a slight nod as he easily agreed to Zhou Yang¡¯s request.


    Thus, after resting for another day on Qingping Mountain, Zhou Quan and Zhou Bao rode their Camel Beast back to the Zhou clan.


    After sending the pair off, Zhou Yang finally had the time to deal with the harvest from this trip.


    First, he peeled off the skin from the corpse of the Metal-Eating Rat, then proceeded to preserve the skin, teeth, claws, bones, and eyes. These body parts could be used to refine weapons while the meat could be cooked with the Golden Pearl Rice to make a spiritual meal and improve their nutrition.


    Zhou Yang set up a red copper cauldron that he had refined himself and threw the grape-sized rat droppings into the cauldron. Then, he added spring water and charcoal before bringing it slowly to a boil.


    After boiling thousands of rat droppings, Zhou Yang obtained a few kilograms of metal granules.


    These metal granules were not the special spiritual metal that Zhou Yang wanted. He still needed to further extract them, the next step that would test his skills as an artifact refiner.


    Zhou Yang switched out the red copper cauldron with the Grade-1 advanced-tier magical cauldron that he usually used for artifact refining. Then, he took out dozens of palm-sized pieces of fiery-red wood charcoal, stuffed them under the cauldron, and used a spell to ignite them.


    This fiery-red wood charcoal was made from a Grade-2 spiritual wood called the Flaming Sun Wood that only grew near active volcanoes and lava. Upon ignition, the flames produced would be white compared to the color of true fire mastered by Foundation Establishment cultivators. Ten palm-sized charcoal pieces of it were worth one lower-tier spiritual stone ¨C they were extremely precious.


    Qi Refining alchemists or artifact refiners would burn Flaming Sun Wood charcoal to raise the temperature of the flames if they didn¡¯t have any earth fire to use when refining artifacts that required high temperature.


    The Flaming Sun Wood charcoal was taken out from the clan¡¯s treasury and given to Zhou Yang by Zhou Minghan via Zhou Quan. It was both a reward and hint for Zhou Yang to quickly become a Grade-2 artifact refiner after Zhou Minghan had examined the Grade-1 magical artifacts that Zhou Qi had helped Zhou Yang bring back.


    The pieces of Flaming Sun Wood charcoal under the cauldron instantly ignited into bright, high-temperature, white flames that caused even a cultivator like Zhou Yang to start sweating profusely after standing next to the cauldron for a while.


    However, Zhou Yang had no time to wipe his sweat off as he activated his spiritual sense to see into the cauldron and witnessed the metal grains inside slowly melting. Then, he quickly got to work, continuously using the Artifact Refining Technique to remove the impurities from the concoction and leave behind the special spiritual metal that he wanted.


    This kind of work tested the artifact refiner¡¯s eyesight and ability to control the timing of his techniques. It also consumed a lot of spiritual sense and mana. With Zhou Yang¡¯s cultivation at Qi Refinement Level 6, he only lasted for less than an hour before he started to feel dizzy and weak. In the end, he had to put out the furnace fire and stop the extraction for the time being.


    Zhou Yang continued the extraction over the next few days. Finally, he managed to extract a palm-sized dark gold spiritual metal from all the metal grains.


    This palm-sized dark gold spiritual metal was at least at Grade 3. Though its weight was not that much different from refined iron, it was harder than the Grade-2 spiritual metal, black iron.


    This was the first time Zhou Yang had obtained such a highly-graded spiritual item, and it was something that he had obtained by himself. He could not put it down as he held it in his hands and played with it with a face full of joy for a long time..

 Chapter 14

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    It was deep into the night at Qingping Mountain as Zhou Yang read the notes the clan leader had written when he was a Grade-2 artifact refiner. They were useful for Zhou Yang who was preparing to become a Grade-2 artifact refiner as well.


    According to the clan leader¡¯s notes, a Grade-1 artifact refiner could try to refine a Grade-2 magical artifact after achieving a 30%-or-higher success rate of refining a Grade-1 advanced-tier magical artifact.


    While continuing to refine Grade-1 magical artifacts would be easier, it would not be profitable. An artifact refiner could only start earning refining spiritual stones when his artifact refinement had reached Grade 2. As such, clans would use the same strategy as the one written in the Zhou clan leader¡¯s notes to ensure their artifact refiners can start making a profit from artifact refinement.


    However, the spiritual items used to refine a Grade-2 magical artifact were not cheap, and thus should not be used without restraint for the sake of helping artifact refiners reach Grade-2. Even a Foundation Establishment family like the Zhou family would only provide thirty sets of refining materials for free to artifact refiners attempting a Grade-2 magical artifact. If they were still unable to produce a Grade-2 magical artifact after exhausting all thirty sets of free materials, the artifact refiners would have to pay for more materials.


    Currently, Zhou Yang¡¯s success rate of refining a Grade-1 advanced-tier magical artifact was only less than 20%. There was still some time before he could attempt to become a Grade-2 artifact refiner. However, the clan leader had already sent him the thirty sets of refining materials.


    Zhou Minghan must have thought quite highly of Zhou Yang¡¯s potential at artifact refinement since the latter had failed fewer times as a Grade-1 artifact refiner. While sending him the sets of materials might have been a bit too early in terms of Zhou Yang¡¯s progress, it was still in accordance with the clan¡¯s rules and not purely because Zhou Minghan favored Zhou Yang.


    Around midnight, Zhou Yang suddenly heard a beeping sound.


    His heart skipped a beat and he hurriedly walked out of the room to look for the source of the sound. Then, his expression instantly changed.


    The beeping came from the main formation flag of the Cloud Sea Light Diffraction Array at his door. The formation flag was shaking violently as if an invisible hand had gripped it.


    ¡°This is Yuquan Zhou clan¡¯s spiritual mountain! Who dares to trespass?¡± Zhou Yang announced his presence and quickly stepped forward to stabilize the formation flag with his mana. He then used the power of the formation to search for the figure of the intruder.


    However, before he could find him, he heard a swoosh and a hand was suddenly silently placed on his back.


    ¡°Zhou Yang, don¡¯t be alarmed. This is just a small test from me.¡±


    It was a familiar voice. Zhou Yang¡¯s body, which had been extremely tense, relaxed before he turned around and looked at the person who had arrived. He could not help but smile bitterly. ¡°Great-Grandfather, do you have something against this grandson of yours? I can be quite timid, you know!¡±


    It turned out that the person who had suddenly barged into the array in the middle of the night was none other than Zhou Minghan, the clan leader of the Zhou family who had been overseeing Yuquan Lake Oasis.


    ¡°Oh, Zhou Yang, are you blaming me? Do you know how worried I was when I heard Zhou Quan say that you almost barged into a nest of the Venomous Fire Scorpions?¡± asked Zhou Minghan with a smile on his face. His face made Zhou Yang¡¯s heart skip a beat.


    ¡°Do you know how much expectations the clan and I have of you? Do you know how much we need you? It¡¯s one thing if you don¡¯t cultivate properly on the mountain, but another for you to chase a demon beast into the lair of another more deadly one without telling any of us. Do you know what a loss we would have suffered if anything happened to you?¡±


    ¡°But the Zhou clan needs another ore vein.¡±


    ¡°No! What the Zhou family lacks now is a qualified Foundation Establishment successor who can take my place to protect this family business after I pass away!


    ¡°You say you are timid, but it seems to me that you are not only not timid, but also reckless and unafraid of death!¡±


    Zhou Minghan¡¯s words rang clearly in Zhou Yang¡¯s head just as the latter¡¯s words did in the miners¡¯ the other day. Every word went straight to Zhou Yang¡¯s heart and soul, triggering him so much that his body kept retreating. His face went as pale as a sheet of paper. He couldn¡¯t even say a single word to defend himself.


    ¡°I know that you¡¯ve been wise since you were young and have your own ideas about everything. But you have to know that the dangers and cruelty of the immortal cultivation world are far more than what you¡¯ve learned from the ancient books and elders


    ¡°I don¡¯t object to you wanting to see the outside world, but ask yourself, are you prepared to die at any time?


    ¡°Like just now, if the person who came was not me but a Grade-3 demon beast or a hostile Foundation Establishment cultivator, do you really think you could have held up the array until reinforcements arrive?¡±


    The questions from the clan leader, Zhou Minghan, kept striking deep into Zhou Yang¡¯s heart. The usually composed and eloquent Zhou Yang was now sweating profusely and could not speak a single word.


    ¡°Great-Grandfather, please calm down. I know my mistake now. I know that I was wrong.¡±


    Zhou Yang no longer dared to face Zhou Minghan as the former¡¯s head drooped dejectedly.


    Seeing Zhou Yang acting like this dissipated Zhou Minghan¡¯s anger. Zhou Yang was the junior that he valued the most after all. How could he be so harsh on him for that long?


    Zhou Minghan softened up as he calmly said, ¡°Look at me. If I really wanted to punish you, I would have already sent someone to bring you back to the clan. I¡¯m only teaching you a lesson this time. I just really want you to know you¡¯re a member of a clan. When you do things, you can¡¯t just think of yourself. You need to think more of the clan, your family, your parents who work hard in the marketplace every day. Don¡¯t you know for whom they¡¯re working so hard and far away?


    ¡°I know. I will definitely remember Great-Grandfather¡¯s teachings from now on. I will not make the same mistake again!¡± Zhou Yang raised his head with determination. Though there were a few droplets of tears in his eyes, it was clear from his gaze that he had truly learned his lesson.


    Zhou Minghan was grateful that Zhou Yang was able to reflect and heed his advice so well, but he did not let his emotions show on his face. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s cut the small talk. I can¡¯t leave the clan for too long. While there is still some time left, how about you let me witness you refining a magical artifact? I want to see your skills and techniques. I can also give some immediate feedback if you have any issues.¡±


    ¡®Great-Grandfather still loves me!¡¯


    Zhou Yang¡¯s heart was filled with joy when Zhou Minghan had moved on with the conversation. He knew that he had passed today¡¯s test. As such, he did not linger on what had passed and hurriedly took out the artifact refining cauldron and materials to refine a magical artifact on the spot.


    This time, he was extremely focused and completed the entire refinement process in one go, successfully refining the Grade-1 advanced-tier magical armor, the Black Steel Shield.


    ¡°Please give me some pointers, Great-Grandfather,¡± said Zhou Yang as he immediately handed the Black Steel Shield to Zhou Minghan the moment the magical armor was out of the furnace without bothering to wipe the sweat off his forehead.


    Zhou Minghan was sitting cross-legged next to Zhou Yang and unexpectedly shot out a stream of sword Qi to cut the magical armor into several pieces without another look at it.


    Then, Zhou Minghan picked up and examined a few of the magical armor fragments closely, pointing out the flaws and mistakes that had occurred when Zhou Yang was refining.


    ¡°Look, here. The lines along the place of fracture are disorderly, which means that you have not completely removed the impurities in the metal. Something so slight might not affect the use of the magical armor but it reduces its pressure-bearing ability. Such a mark will become the magical armor¡¯s weak point!


    ¡°And the technique you used when refining the magical armor¡­¡±


    There was a huge difference in learning the Artifact Refinement Technique with and without an instructor.


    Before this, despite having read a lot of artifact refinement manuals, all of Zhou Minghan¡¯s notes, and reflecting after every refinement session, there was only so much Zhou Yang was able to learn and improve on. No matter how much he read, learned, practiced, and reflected, it was difficult for him to identify where he had failed some times.


    Everyone needs a fresh set of eyes to give better opinions and advice if they wanted to improve. For Zhou Minghan, the flaws and mistakes Zhou Yang failed to notice were as plain as day. Zhou Minghan was a Grade-3 artifact refiner after all.


    After receiving constructive feedback from Zhou Minghan, Zhou Yang felt as if he had a sudden epiphany in Artifact Refinement Technique. If digested the knowledge imparted by Zhou Minghan well, he should be able to attempt a Grade-2 magical artifact soon.


    After the session on artifact refinement, Zhou Minghan stayed a little longer to answer a few more questions from Zhou Yang about cultivation. Then, Zhou Minghan left just as quietly as he came.


    Although the old clan leader did not say where he was going, Zhou Yang knew that he was most likely going to the red flame iron vein that he and Zhou Quan had discovered the other day.


    As expected, a day after Zhou Minghan had visited Zhou Yang, the latter received a message-transmitting talisman sent by the clan leader.


    The clan leader told Zhou Yang that there was indeed a Grade-3 lower-tier spiritual vein and a Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion King in the red flame iron vein, and to not go near that area. However, Zhou Minghan did not say anything about how to deal with the matter.


    Since Zhou Minghan had chosen not to speak any further on the matter, Zhou Yang did not bother to question anymore. After all, this matter involved a Grade-3 demon beast, it wasn¡¯t something Qi Refinement cultivators like him could deal with and decide. If the clan leader wanted to deal with the matter, he would probably know what to do and act accordingly.


    Zhou Yang just pitied Zhou Quan a little because the latter wouldn¡¯t be able to get a share of the profits because he probably would be able to last past the day the clan claimed and opened the red flame iron mine.


    After another two years, Zhou Yang¡¯s mission to guard Qingping Mountain had come to an end.


    By then, he had already been stationed at Qingping Mountain for five years and severely missed Yuquan Lake Oasis ¨C the scenery, the sweetness of the lake¡¯s water, and his parents who he had not seen for seven or eight years.


    Therefore, when the clan elder and seventeenth uncle, Zhou Xuanzhao, had arrived to replace Zhou Yang as instructed by the clan, Zhou Yang hurriedly completed the handover process as he did not want to stay any longer. Despite the grumbles of the elder, Zhou Yang set off for Yuquan Lake Oasis as quickly as an arrow the moment he was ready..

 Chapter 15

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Zhou Yang¡¯s journey home went smoothly.


    After a few days since departing from Qingping Mountain, Zhou Yang had successfully returned to Yuquan Peak.


    When he left the mountain five years ago, he was a high-spirited and elegant young man who had just broken through to Qi Refinement Level 6.


    Though his cultivation level had not changed in that five years, the high-spirited and elegant young man had grown into a handsome and charismatic six-foot-tall young man.


    According to the clan rules, the clan cultivators who came back from guard duty outside had to first report to the clan¡¯s elder of general affairs.


    The current Zhou clan¡¯s elder of general affairs was the seventh elder, Zhou Xuanyu. She was the only female cultivator among the eight elders of the Zhou clan and was also the female cultivator with the highest cultivation level in the Zhou clan.


    Zhou Xuanyu was ranked third in the Xuan generation and a direct descendant of the clan leader, Zhou Minghan. She possessed an intermediate-tier spiritual root, thus she was able to reach Qi Refinement Level 9 before turning sixty. If she had taken the Foundation Establishment Pill back then, her chances of reaching Foundation Establishment would have been quite high.


    Unfortunately, sexism existed even in the Zhou clan. Even though she was the direct descendant of the clan leader, not all the clan elders agreed to buy her a Foundation Establishment Pill for her to break through to Foundation Establishment because she was a woman.


    Cultivators with advanced-tier spiritual roots would not need a Foundation Establishment Pill to break through to Foundation Establishment as they had a one-third success rate. Cultivators with intermediate-tier spiritual roots, on the other hand, only had a less-than-10% success rate in breaking through without the pill.


    Breaking through to Foundation Establishment was both difficult and dangerous. To attempt it, cultivators had to circulate a surge in mana throughout their meridians. If they failed to break through, 90% of cultivators would explode their meridians due to the surge of mana. Some would lose their mana and become a cripple, while unluckier ones might die from the meridian explosion.


    Which Qi Refinement Level 9 cultivator was willing to take such risks? Those who weren¡¯t willing to take such risks would either choose to die a martyr or take the Foundation Establishment Pill to increase their breakthrough chances.


    Still, even among Qi Refinement Level 9 cultivators, it was hard to find few who dared to take such risks, with or without the pill or spiritual roots tier.


    A cultivator who could cultivate to Qi Refinement Level 9 had already suffered countless hardships and sacrifices in their entire life. No one was willing to lose their hard-earned cultivation base just like that.


    Even in a Foundation Establishment clan such as the Zhou clan, one would be able to rise to the upper echelons of the clan and hold great power as long as one was able to cultivate to Qi Refinement Level 9. There was really no need to take such a risk.


    As such, clan cultivators would rather spend the rest of their lives in Qi Refinement to spiritual stones and nurture their own descendants than risk their lives to break through to Foundation Establishment. The strategy was to obtain enough spiritual stones through the continuation of the next two to three generations to buy a Foundation Establishment Pill.


    Though the cultivators who strategized this would have died by then, at least their descendants might be able to use the Foundation Establishment Pill to successfully break through to Foundation Establishment and make all their sacrifices, efforts, and deaths worth it.


    Only itinerant cultivators at Qi Refinement Level 9 would dare take a risk and forcefully break through to Foundation Establishment because they didn¡¯t see the need to nurture their descendants. Instead, they envied the long lifespans and power of Foundation Establishment cultivators.


    Anyone who managed to break through to Foundation Establishment would have their lifespans double to two hundred and forty years. If one could live that long, they would have the time to form their own immortal cultivation clan or join a pre-established clan and become an elder. Even failure to break through would be worth it. Anything would be countless times better than being stuck as a Qi Refinement itinerant cultivator.


    It was obvious that itinerant cultivators were more determined to reach Foundation Establishment than clan cultivators such as Zhou Xuanyu. Her determination to break through had been dampened by the comfortable lifestyle she was brought up in. Though she would be lying if she said that she wasn¡¯t disappointed that the clan was not agreeable to her having the Foundation Establishment Pill to break through, she didn¡¯t resent the clan because of it. Instead, she recruited a young itinerant cultivator at Qi Refinement Intermediate Stage to join the Zhou clan to prove that she was still loyal to the clan, regardless of what they had decided for her.


    However, the elders, including Zhou Minghan, did feel guilty about it, as if they had let her down. Therefore, they let her take on the position of the elder of general affairs as a way to make it up to her, allowing her to stay in the family to take care of her children and descendants for a long time.


    Zhou Yang¡¯s mother, Lin Yuting, had a very good personal relationship with Zhou Xuanyu. She had also doted on him since he was young, so he was not worried at all about this so-called debriefing.


    Zhou Yang had just entered the clan¡¯s general affairs hall when he saw a beautiful middle-aged woman in a white lotus dress sorting through files. When she saw him enter, the beautiful middle-aged woman¡¯s beautiful eyes instantly lit up, and she hurriedly put down the files in her hands. She smiled and started to tease him.


    ¡°Well, well, well. We haven¡¯t seen each other for a mere few years but our unicorn child has been getting more handsome over the years. I wonder which family¡¯s daughter will be lucky enough to marry our dashing child genius.¡±


    Even though Zhou Yang had always been mentally mature, his face still felt hot from her comments. He couldn¡¯t help but smile bitterly and repeatedly cup his hands to beg for forgiveness. ¡°Third Aunt, please don¡¯t tease me too much. I am still young. Isn¡¯t it still too early to discuss marriage?!¡±


    Only cultivators with lower-tier spiritual roots and lower chances of reaching Foundation Establishment would get married and start a family. Cultivators with higher spiritual root tiers and strong determination to reach Foundation Establishment would not follow that life path and risk losing their yuan Qi and yin Qi.


    Based on the experiences of the pioneers, cultivators who maintained kept their yuan Qi and yin Qi not only had a higher cultivation speed, but their success rate to break through to Foundation Establishment was also higher compared to those who have lost their yuan Qi and yin Qi.


    Since immortal cultivation clans like the Zhou clan also valued the continuation of their bloodlines, they would simply encourage their high-potential cultivators to marry and have children later in life, usually from the age of sixty onwards.


    Even cultivators such as Zhou Yang¡¯s father, Zhou Xuanhao, and Zhou Xuanyu married later in life since they eventually realized that despite their cultivation efforts, they would not reach Foundation Establishment.


    Fortunately, immortal cultivators had strong physiques and could use healing spells to heal their injuries. Even if they gave birth after the age of sixty, their lives would not be in danger like the typical mortal woman. However, each child produced would damage the parents¡¯ cultivation, causing their cultivation speed to slow down.


    Zhou Yang¡¯s mother, Lin Yuting, gave birth to him when she was at Qi Refinement Level 7, and she was still stuck there despite the passing of twenty years. That was how damaging the birth of a child could be for a low-level cultivator.


    Zhou Xuanyu¡¯s conditions were better than Lin Yuting¡¯s as the former was already at Qi Refinement Level 9 by the time she got married and gave birth to her first child. Unless she had reached Foundation Establishment, her cultivation would not be able to advance even an inch further for the rest of her life. For Zhou Xuanyu, giving birth to a child was more damaging to her longevity than her cultivation.


    And Zhou Xuanyu¡¯s luck had always not been good. Even though she and her husband both had intermediate-tier spiritual roots, only her daughter, out of her three children, was born with a spiritual root but at a lower tier.


    The damage of childbirth to Zhou Xuanyu¡¯s lifespan was evident on her face. Zhou Minghan started to worry that he would lose her too soon. Without heeding her objections and complaints, the clan leader made Zhou Xuanyu infertile to prevent her from having any more children.


    Ever since Zhou Yang heard of all the sacrifices his third aunt had to go through, he had developed a great deal of respect for her.


    ¡°You¡¯re right. With your talent, you¡¯ll have a great chance of achieving Foundation Establishment in the future. The situation of the family is much better now than it was in the past. With your parents¡¯ savings, they should be able to afford a Foundation Establishment Pill for you. Once you succeed and become a Foundation Establishment cultivator, you¡¯ll have plenty of time to find the right partner!¡±


    Zhou Xuanyu looked at the handsome nephew standing before her in a daze, reminiscing her youth. At that time, she had wholeheartedly wanted to follow in her grandfather¡¯s footsteps to become a Foundation Establishment cultivator that everyone envied. She didn¡¯t even think about marrying.


    Unfortunately, her luck in cultivation wasn¡¯t good. When she was Zhou Yang¡¯s age, the Zhou family spent a lot of money to buy a Foundation Establishment Pill for Zhou Qian, the current great elder, instead of her to consume. They had almost emptied the entire treasury just for that one purchase back then. But now that decades had passed, the treasury had not only recovered but also flourished.


    Surprisingly, when Zhou Qian consumed the Foundation Establishment Pill, he advanced to Qi Refinement Level 10 instead of breaking through to Foundation Establishment. Zhou Qian¡¯s cultivation progress was termed as having reached the Great Circle of Qi Refinement.


    Although a cultivator at the Great Circle of Qi Refinement was much stronger than a Qi Refinement Level 9 cultivator, there was still a huge difference between the former and a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Moreover, a cultivator at the Great Circle of Qi Refinement was still in the realm of Qi Refinement, thus there wouldn¡¯t be any increase in his lifespan.


    Because of this, Zhou Qian had essentially wasted a Foundation Establishment Pill, and from then on, he was burdened with a huge amount of family debt. Not only did he work hard for his family to pay off his debts, but he also didn¡¯t even leave behind any descendants.


    And because Zhou Xuanyu¡¯s family savings were all used up, she had also lost the opportunity to buy a Foundation Establishment Pill, leaving behind a lifelong regret.


    Such a small pill was able to change the fates of two Zhou clan elders.


    Zhou Yang had been warned by his parents since he was young to not mention the Foundation Establishment Pill in the presence of his third aunt to avoid hurting her feelings.


    Thus, when Zhou Xuanyu mentioned it herself, his heart skipped a beat and the casual conversation abruptly ended. Zhou Yang hurriedly handed over the report he had written and used the excuse of visiting the clan leader, Zhou Minghan, to escape from the clan¡¯s hall of general affairs..

 Chapter 16

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    After leaving the hall of general affairs, Zhou Yang headed straight for the top of Yuquan Peak.


    The cultivator stationed at the top was still Seventh Grandfather Zhou Yun. As usual, the old man was sitting under the tall Dragon Scale Tree. As soon as he saw Zhou Yang, Zhou Yun insisted that he sat down to taste the herbal tea he had just made.


    Since the elder had invited him so warmly, how could Zhou Yang refuse? Moreover, he usually liked the herbal tea made by the old man.


    As Zhou Yang drank the tea, his gaze kept getting pulled to the Dragon Scale Tree.


    It was a very rare and special spiritual wood, getting its name from its dragon scale-like bark.


    A hundred-year-old Dragon Scale Tree¡¯s bark scales were as black and hard as Black Refined Iron. It was classified as a Grade-1 spiritual wood that could be used to refine a Grade-1 defensive magical artifact.


    Dragon Scale Trees that were more than five hundred years old would have silver-gray scales that were harder than Black Refined Iron. These older Dragon Scale Trees were classified as Grade-2 spiritual woods and could be used to refine Grade-2 defensive magical artifacts.


    If Dragon Scale Trees could grow for more than a thousand years, their scales would turn pure silver and they would be classified as a Grade-3 spiritual wood that could be used to refine Grade-3 defensive magical artifacts.


    It was said that once Dragon Scale Trees were more than five thousand years old, their scales would turn golden like a real dragon¡¯s scale. These scales could be used to refine Grade-5 defensive magical artifacts. Such older Dragon Scale Trees were regarded as precious resources that even Core Foundation Grandmasters would fight over.


    The Zhou clan¡¯s Dragon Scale Tree was around eight hundred years old, not far from becoming a Grade-3 spiritual wood. It was already there when Zhou Yuquan, the Zhou clan¡¯s founder, discovered Yuquan Peak.


    Since then, the Zhou clan would take a few pieces of scales from the Dragon Scale Tree every ten years or so for artifact refinement. The main material of Zhou Yang¡¯s Silver Shield, for example, was a piece from the Dragon Scale Tree.


    Though Zhou Yang had known of the tree and its features, he had never thought so highly of it because it looked just like any other ancient giant pine tree on the mountain.


    He even thought that the Grade-2 Dragon Scale Tree at Yuquan Peak was far less valuable than the several Grade-2 spiritual Fire Crystal Jujube Trees in the spiritual fruit orchard on the mountain.


    The Fire Crystal Jujube Tree could at least bear fruit once every five years. For a person like him with a masculine cultivation method that had yet to reach the Advanced Stage of Qi Refinement, eating jujube was equivalent to ten days of bitter cultivation. Moreover, spiritual jujubes tasted amazing, far surpassing any fruit he had eaten in his previous life.


    However, now that he had become an artifact refiner, Zhou Yang finally realized and appreciated the value of the Dragon Scale Tree.


    ¡°Zhou Yang, do you also want a piece of this Dragon Scale Tree? Well, it¡¯s not that I look down on you. But even though you are already a Grade-2 Artifact Refiner, it is not your turn to harvest and use them yet because they can only be used to refine Grade-2 Advanced-Tier magical artifacts. For now, only the clan leader is allowed to harvest them as he is the only one who can refine such magical artifacts as the clan¡¯s only Grade-3 Artifact Refiner. No matter how highly the clan leader thinks of you, he will not let you waste such a treasure until you have become a Grade-2 Advanced-Tier Artifact Refiner!¡±


    Zhou Yun knew what Zhou Yang was thinking when the former noticed the latter¡¯s fixated gaze on the tree.


    The elder could not help but tease the young cultivator. Being able to do so gave him some form of satisfaction and entertainment that was rare for his usually solo presence at the mountain top.


    However, the smile on Zhou Yun¡¯s face only bloomed for a few seconds before it was erased in astonishment by Zhou Yang¡¯s response.


    ¡°Seventh Grandfather is right. Since I am only a Grade-2 Intermediate-Tier Artifact Refiner, I am not yet skillful enough to fully utilize the potential of the tree¡¯s scales. I will wait until I have become a Grade-2 Advanced-Tier Artifact Refiner and wait my turn then. I am confident that it won¡¯t be too long until then.¡±


    ¡°What? You have become a Grade-2 Intermediate-Tier Artifact Refiner?!¡± asked Zhou Yun with a slightly broken voice due to the shock.


    Wasn¡¯t he just a Grade-2 Lower-Tier Artifact Refiner just last year? How and when did he become a Grade-2 Intermediate-Tier Artifact Refiner in just a year¡¯s time?


    Did the clan leader secretly descend the mountain to tutor him again?


    Nevertheless, Zhou Yun still could not believe how quickly this young cultivator was progressing.


    Could it be that this young man was not only a cultivation genius but also had more talent in artifact refinement?


    Otherwise, how could he go from a simple cultivator who knew nothing about artifact refinement to a Grade-2 Intermediate-Tier Artifact Refiner in less than five years?


    If he remembered correctly, even the clan leader, the most talented Grade-3 Advanced-Tier Artifact Refiner in the history of the clan, had spent a total of twelve years just to become a Grade-2 Intermediate-Tier Artifact Refiner!


    ¡°Seventh Grandfather? Seventh Grandfather!¡±


    Zhou Yang noticed that Zhou Yun was still stunned and it would be a lie if the former said that he did not feel proud of being able to reveal his achievements.


    After all, a twenty-two-year-old Grade-2 Intermediate-Tier Artifact Refiner was indeed something worth bragging about. The rate of such progress was high enough to write Zhou Yang in the history of both the two-hundred-year-old Foundation Establishment Zhou clan and the two-thousand-year-old Yellow Sand School.


    Even he had never thought that his artifact refining talent would be that good.


    He never noticed anything that stood out about his process or skills when he was a Grade-1 Artifact Refiner. However, after he had become a Grade-2 Artifact Refiner and had to start mixing several kinds of materials to refine magical artifacts, he noticed that he had an excellent innate ability to control the temperature of the heat, the most crucial component in concoction during artifact refinement.


    When he compared his ability to the notes of other Artifact Refiners, including the clan leader¡¯s, he realized that he was better than most Artifact Refiners of the same level.


    If it weren¡¯t for the fact that his cultivation was still a little lacking and he didn¡¯t have the right materials, he was confident that he could have refined a Grade-2 Advanced-Tier magical artifact by now.


    ¡°Has Zhou Yang arrived? Come in, quickly. I have something to tell you.¡±


    Zhou Minghan¡¯s timely request helped Zhou Yun¡¯s predicament of not knowing what to say after hearing of Zhou Yang¡¯s achievements. Zhou Yun¡¯s tense face finally relaxed as he said, ¡°Zhou Yang, did you hear that? The clan leader is calling you. Hurry up and go over. Don¡¯t let him wait for you.¡±


    If Zhou Yang was able to see through Zhou Yun¡¯s thoughts, he didn¡¯t bother to say them out loud. Zhou Yang wouldn¡¯t let Zhou Yun lose his dignity just because of a moment of anger. Zhou Yang simply held back his laughter as he bowed respectfully to Zhou Yun. Then, he walked briskly toward the clan leader¡¯s cave.


    ¡°Gosh, I must be getting on with age. I can¡¯t keep up with these youngsters anymore!¡±


    Under the Dragon Scale Tree, Zhou Yun sat and looked on as Zhou Yang walked towards the cave entrance.


    However, his sigh only lasted for a few seconds before Zhou Yun¡¯s expression face changed and instantly turned red. His eyes turned bright as he started to laugh out loud. ¡°Young people nowadays are really amazing. A twenty-two-year-old Grade-2 Intermediate-Tier Artifact Refiner? I didn¡¯t expect to be able to meet one in my lifetime. God bless the Zhou clan, God bless the Zhou clan indeed!¡±


    For an old man like Zhou Yun who had worked hard for his clan his entire life, there was probably nothing happier than seeing an outstanding junior appear in his clan.


    Bigger clans with Core Foundation or Nascent Soul Grandmasters as clan leaders might have existed for generations over hundreds or thousands of years. However, they were bound to have internal conflicts between the heirs and concubines over the distribution of resources.


    A smaller clan like the Zhou clan that had only been around for five or six generations with less than three hundred years of history and a Foundation Establishment Cultivator holding the fort had to remain united and selfless to ensure the continuation of the clan. If they allowed conflicts such as those in the bigger clans, it would only hinder their efforts in nurturing the next Foundation Establishment Cultivator.


    After all, the Zhou clan already struggled to afford a Foundation Establishment Pill without exhausting its entire treasury. If the family were to have internal conflicts and divide into factions, no one would be able to reach Foundation Establishment, which would result in the extinction of the Zhou clan.


    Since Immortal Cultivators had lifespans that far exceeded that of ordinary people, their wisdom should measure as much as their lifespans. Immortal Cultivators would not make such a stupid mistake.


    Moreover, even if there are individuals within the clan who wanted to act selfishly and cause conflicts, the small size of the clan would allow the culprit to be discovered and punished quickly according to the clan rules.


    Therefore, even though Zhou Yang was not their direct descendant, the elders of the Zhou clan were genuinely happy for him and the clan.


    The stronger the clan, the easier it was to accumulate the necessary cultivation resources, and thus, the better their descendants could live. They would be paving an easier and more well-trodden path to Foundation Establishment for future generations.


    Zhou Yang had entered the cave at the top of Yuquan Mountain and met the clan leader, Zhou Minghan, once again. He did not even have the time to bow before the clan leader directly invited him to the latter¡¯s artifact refining room.


    ¡°I heard everything when you were out there with Zhou Yun just now. Come, refine a Grade-2 Intermediate-Tier magical artifact for me. If you need any materials, just let me know and I will supply them!¡±


    Zhou Minghan was indeed worthy of being the clan leader as he spoke with such confidence in his disciples. After all, Zhou Yang was a Qi Refinement Cultivator who had become a Grade-2 Artifact Refiner. His achievements had made him worthy of Zhou Minghan¡¯s spiritual item supply.


    And what was Zhou Yang waiting for? He immediately rolled up his sleeves and got to work.


    After going through three sets of materials in a row, Zhou Yang successfully refined a Grade-2 Intermediate-Tier magical flying sword with his fourth set of materials.


    ¡°Not bad, not bad at all. Your artifact refining skills have improved greatly. This flying sword could already be sold in the marketplace. It seems that your artifact refining talent is much higher than what I had originally expected.¡±


    Once the clan leader had inspected the magical flying sword that Zhou Yang had just refined, the former finally revealed a happy smile on his face, an expression rarely seen by the clan¡¯s juniors.


    Since Zhou Minghan was in a good mood. He decided to reward Zhou Yang. The former stretched out his hand to take Zhou Yang¡¯s with a smile. ¡°Now, come watch me refine. Hand me the rat skin and teeth that you had obtained back then. I will refine two Grade-2 Advanced-Tier magical artifacts for you ¨C one for attack and one for defense. Consider it as your reward for becoming a Grade-2 Artifact Refiner..¡±

 Chapter 17

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Zhou Minghan was a Grade-3 Advanced-Tier Artifact Refiner personally refining Grade-2 Advanced-Tier magical artifacts. There would be no possibility of failure.


    Moreover, he was a Foundation Establishment Cultivator who could convert his mana into Foundation Establishment True Fire. Although the temperature of this type of True Fire was slightly lower than that of the Earth Fire, it was much higher than the white flame formed by the burning of Flaming Sun Wood charcoals. Plus, True Fire was easier to control than Earth Fire since it was gathered and dispersed from the heart of the Foundation Establishment Cultivator.


    Zhou Minghan deliberately refined at a slower pace to make it easier for Zhou Yang to observe carefully. The former would also use his Divine Sense to split his attention at some critical moments to explain things to Zhou Yang. Such a treatment was only for chosen disciples.


    It was clear from Zhou Minghan¡¯s behaviour that Zhou Yang was the chosen one to be his successor.


    Zhou Yang knew that opportunities to interact with the clan leader such as this was rare and priceless. Regardless of whether he understood the clan leader¡¯s explanation, he diligently memorized everything he heard and saw. He would transfer everything into his notes later to properly digest the information eventually.


    Although Immortal Cultivators were able to remember things by sight, remembering too many things could also make them forget some of their memories. Therefore, it was still necessary to make notes for some important matters.


    Only Nascent Soul Cultivators and beyond would be able to attain an ability called Memory Recovery, allowing Immortal Cultivators to recall at will any and all memories as early as when they were in their mother¡¯s womb. By then, Immortal Cultivators would no longer have to take notes.


    After about four hours, the clan leader had finally finished refining the artifacts ¨C the Black Gold Armor, a defensive inner armor made from the rat¡¯s skin, and a set of four Armor Breaker Daggers made from four of the rat¡¯s front teeth.


    Zhou Minghan had also used two drops of Zhou Yang¡¯s Blood Essence as a sacrificial tool during the refining process, allowing one to use the magical artifacts immediately.


    Zhou Yang wasted no time the moment the magical artifacts were ready. He immediately took off his outer robe and put on the Black Gold Armor. Then, he put the set of Amor Breaker Daggers that were about seven inches long into the leather sheath and tied them to his waist to used at any time.


    Zhou Minghan watched as Zhou Yang equipped the magical artifacts eagerly. ¡°Your cultivation should be able to break through to Qi Refinement Level 7 soon, right? Once you have, equipping the Black Gold Armor, Armor Breaker Dagger, and Silver Shield that I gave you last time would allow you to fight against a Rogue Cultivator at Qi Refinement Level 9!¡±


    The cultivation base of a cultivator determined the number and grade of the magical artifacts he could use. With Zhou Yang¡¯s current cultivation base of at Qi Refinement Level 6, it would be somewhat difficult for him to use two Grade-2 Advanced-Tier magical artifacts at the same time. If he could break through to Qi Refinement Level 7, thus improving his mana and Divine Sense, he would be able to truly unleash the power of the three Grade-2 Advanced-Tier magical artifacts he possessed.


    As for the more powerful Grade-3 magical artifacts, even if he were to refine them, he would not be able to unleash half of the power of contained within them with his current level of mana and Divine Sense. It would be more useful if he used a Grade-2 Advanced-Tier magical artifact instead.


    Therefore, Zhou Minghan would not give the surplus Grade-3 magical artifact resources to Zhou Yang to refine, not yet. It would be a waste of resources and could also risk Zhou Yang¡¯s life.


    After all, many Foundation Establishment Rogue Cultivators still used Grade-2 Advanced-Tier magical artifacts. If they knew Zhou Yang, a Qi Refinement Cultivator, had a Grade-3 magical artifact, they might just want to kill him.


    Zhou Yang knew all this and that if Zhou Minghan truly valued him, the latter would not encourage him to have anything remotely to do with Grade-3 artifact refinement or magical artifacts yet.


    Zhou Yang immediately turned serious and respectfully said, ¡°Actually, I would also like to report something to you. Recently, I have felt the barrier of the Qi Refinement Advanced Stage and I am planning to use the abundant spiritual Qi here in this cave to make a breakthrough. I hope Clan Leader will allow me.¡±


    ¡°Very well, then you can the cave opposite mine for Closed Door Cultivation and make a breakthrough. This is the array token of that cave. Remember to return it to me after you have used it,¡± said the clan leader as he handed a token Zhou Yang.


    ¡°Thank you, Clan Leader. I will take my leave now.¡±


    Zhou Yang took the token and impatiently bade farewell to the clan leader, Zhou Minghan, before moving into opposite cave.


    Of the three caves at the top of Yuquan Peak, only one had been claimed ¨C Zhou Minghan¡¯s. If anyone in the clan wanted to use the abundant spiritual Qi of any of the caves to break through, they had to put in a formal request to the clan leader for temporary Closed Door Cultivation.


    However, there were not many Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivators in the Zhou clan. In addition, it often took more than ten years for an Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivator to raise their cultivation level. Therefore, these two caves on the top were often vacant.


    Dust Removal Arrays were set up around each cave. As such, even if no one had lived in them for many years, the caves were still as clean as new. Zhou Yang entered one of the caves using the token in his hand. After checking out the decorations and furnishings around the cave, he headed straight for the Closed Door Cultivation room in the deepest part of the cave.


    The Closed Door Cultivation room at the mountain top was directly connected to the Spiritual Eye of Yuquan Peak¡¯s spiritual vein. It was the place with the densest spiritual Qi in the entire Yuquan Peak. Furthermore, each Closed Door Cultivation room had a Cold Jade Bed carved out of the Grade-2 spiritual item, Cold Jade.


    The cold air emitted from the Cold Jade bed was helpful for cultivators to clear and focus their minds, preventing them from going crazy. It was a common item found in wealthy Foundation Establishment Cultivators¡¯ caves.


    Wealthy Foundation Establishment Cultivators would also have other treasures such as the Heart-Clearing Praying Mat and the Mind Concentrating Incense to help with their cultivation.


    Zhou Yang sat cross-legged on the Cold Jade Bed and immediately felt cold air seep into his body before rushing straight to his head.


    He instantly felt more energetic and he was able to meditate twice as quickly.


    For the next few months, Zhou Yang did not take a single step out of his cave at the top of the mountain as he went into Closed Door Cultivation in peace. When he was hungry, he would cook a bowl of Golden Pearl Rice. When he was thirsty, he would use a spell to condense clean water to drink. He did not take a single step out of the cave until he had reached Qi Refinement Level 7.


    Three months later, the door of the Closed Door Cultivation room opened with a creak. Zhou Yang walked out with a face full of fatigue after meditating for days without rest. But he had finally broken through the barrier between Qi Refinement Intermediate Stage and Qi Refinement Advanced Stage. Alas, he had reached Qi Refinement Level 7 with one final breath.


    Now that the barrier had been broken, he could not hold up any longer. He slowly walked into the bedroom next door and fell into a deep sleep on the Warm Jade Bed.


    He slept for three days and three nights before he woke up feeling indescribably comfortable. He had never slept so well in his entire life.


    But that was to be expected. It wasn¡¯t simply because he had not slept so sufficiently between his current and past lives, but also because he had slept on a Warm Jade Bed, another treasure like the Cold Jade Bed that was a luxury for cultivators to rest on.


    The Warm Jade was also a Grade-2 spiritual item that emitted warm air that helped a cultivator relax his mind, greatly improving his quality of his sleep.


    ¡°No wonder everyone wants to become a high-level cultivator. Low-level cultivators not only have a lower lifespan but also a lower amount and quality of mana as well as resources from the clan like clothing, food, shelter, and transportation! It¡¯s like the difference between nobles and commoners!¡±


    Zhou Yang looked at the smooth and warm jade bed beneath him and could not help but sigh.


    Wine and meat rotted behind the rich man¡¯s gate while the poor froze to death on the roadside.


    Unequal resource distribution in the immortal cultivation world was even more severe than in Zhou Yang¡¯s previous world.


    Low-level Rogue Cultivators were willing to fight to the death for a Lower-Tier spiritual stone while high-level cultivators merely need to struggle a little to be able to afford a jade bed.


    ¡°Fortunately, I¡¯m the one sleeping on the bed now!¡±


    He decided not to ponder on such thoughts for too long. Zhou Yang stood up from his bed and took his first step out of the cave after many months.


    Zhou Yang wanted to pay a visit to the clan leader to tell him the good news.


    But he didn¡¯t expect to see Zhou Yun¡¯s usual sitting spot under the Dragon Scale Tree now empty with only a white cloth hanging over it the moment he stepped out.


    Zhou Yang¡¯s facial expression suddenly changed. Hanging a white cloth on the Dragon Scale Tree was something done only when an elder had passed away.


    ¡°Which elder passed away?¡±


    His heart sank. The joy of breaking through to Qi Refinement Level 7 was instantly depleted by the ominous sight.


    There were only eight elders in the Zhou clan. The sudden loss of one wasn¡¯t as simple as the loss of a disciple. It was the loss of a high-level powerhouse and definitely not a loss a recent Level-7 Qi Refinement Cultivator could make up for.


    Zhou Yang immediately changed his route and rushed to the clan¡¯s ancestral hall at the foot of the mountain.


    When he arrived, he discovered that all the clan cultivators in Yuquan Lake Oasis, including the clan leader, Zhou Minghan, were present to take care of the funeral arrangements for the deceased elder.


    Only then did he know that the deceased elder was the Zhou clan¡¯s great elder, Zhou Qian, the one who had once taken the Foundation Establishment Pill but failed to break through and instead became a Great Circle of Qi Refinement Cultivator.


    Zhou Qian was the leader of the Light generation with an Intermediate-Tier spiritual root. He was also a rare Grade-2 Advanced-Tier Array Formation Master.


    It was precisely because Zhou Qian was extremely talented in array formations and had a good aptitude in his spiritual root that the Zhou clan was willing to invest in the Foundation Establishment Pill for him.


    If he could successfully reach Foundation Establishment, then not only would the Zhou clan have one more Foundation Establishment Cultivator, but they would also have one more rare Grade-3 Array Formation Master. The strength of the entire Zhou clan would double.


    It was a pity that he had failed!


    His failure not only caused the Zhou clan to waste an incomparably precious Foundation Establishment Pill, but also caused his Dao Heart to be covered in dust. From then on, he no longer had the chance to break through to become a Grade-3 Array Formation Master. Moreover, he spent the remaining half of his life working hard to repay his debt to the clan. He did not even leave behind a descendant.


    Zhou Yang had just came out of the ancestral hall after paying his respect to Zhou Qian when he saw Zhou Quan with bloodshot eyes, regretfully saying, ¡°Zhou Qian was only three years older than me. With his cultivation at the Great Circle of Qi Refinement, he should have been able to endure for a few more years. Unfortunately, after he found out that the clan was preparing to build the Red Flame Iron mine, he resolutely gambled the rest of his lifespan to forcefully break through to Grade-3 Array Formation. He wanted to form a Grade-3 array for his clan!¡±


    Zhou Yang did not know Zhou Qian well because he seldom made an appearance to juniors like him, unlike Zhou Quan and other elders.


    In fact, Zhou Yang had seen Zhou Qian less than five times in total. And every time he saw him, it was at some important clan gathering. When Zhou Yang did interact with him, it was only to greet Zhou Qian.


    Thus, when he heard Zhou Quan mention the reason for Zhou Qian¡¯s death, Zhou Yang suddenly grew a deep admiration for the elder who had dedicated his entire life to the clan behind the scenes.


    Then, Zhou Yang comforted Zhou Quan by saying, ¡°Third Grandfather, I¡¯m sorry for your loss. Although Great Elder has passed away, his contributions to the clan will always be remembered in the hearts of those he has left behind!¡±


    Zhou Yang did not bother asking if Zhou Qian had succeeded in his break through or not, because it wasn¡¯t important at the moment.


    Many were only focused on the results, but they do not realize that there were moments when the process was more important than the results.


    If Zhou Qian had not made up his mind to break through to Grade-3 array formation, would there be any results to expect in the first place?


    What was important was having the heart to achieve the goal!

 Chapter 18

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Immortal Cultivators did not have as many common customs as mortals. Even in a cultivation clan like the Zhou clan, when Grand Elder Zhou Qian passed away, only clan cultivators at Yuquan Lake Oasis were summoned to the ancestral hall to guard his spirit for three days. Then, the clan leader, Zhou Minghan, used his Foundation Establishment True Fire to cremate Zhou Qian¡¯s corpse and bury his ashes in the clan graveyard.


    The cremation of a deceased cultivator characterizes a small immortal cultivation clan because it did not have the manpower to guard its graveyards against Devil Cultivators who used the Devil¡¯s Path¡¯s Corpse Refinement Spell to resurrect the dead and refine them into zombies.


    If the corpses of a clan¡¯s ancestors were refined into zombies by Devil Cultivators, it would not only defile the ancestors but endanger the lives of the clan¡¯s cultivators as well as the mortals under their care.


    This was because newly refined zombies need to consume large amounts of blood to grow, and the blood from those of the same bloodline would greatly improve the zombies¡¯ growth.


    Therefore, for small immortal cultivation clans like the Zhou clan, the corpses of the deceased would be cremated and buried to avoid being misused by Devil Cultivators.


    Only large sects and clans like Yellow Sand School with Core Foundation or Nascent Soul Grandmasters could afford to bury the corpses of their deceased high-level cultivators in the cemetery. They would also use arrays and highly talented people to guard the graves.


    After dealing with the funeral of Zhou Qian, Zhou Yang was summoned by Zhou Minghan, to enter the cave at the top of Yuquan Peak for a private chat.


    ¡°You already know the reason for Zhou Qian¡¯s death. The clan is about to send people to get rid of the demon beasts in the Red Flame Iron vein. Since you are our only hope of being our clan¡¯s future Foundation Establishment Cultivator and have just broken through to Qi Refinement Level 7, I will most likely forbid you from going. What do you think?¡±


    ¡°Clan Leader, please don¡¯t do this!¡±


    Zhou Yang quickly bowed deeply to the clan leader. ¡°I was the one who discovered that Red Flame Iron vein and will be the one to get a share of the profit¡¯s dividends. If I don¡¯t participate in the clean-up and be there to enjoy the fruits of our collective labor, how else will I be able to convince others of my leadership and worth?


    ¡°I may not be the most talented, but I am willing to use my lifetime of learning to contribute a meager amount of strength to the expansion of the Zhou clan¡¯s territory!¡±


    At the end of his speech, Zhou Yang took out an Armor Breaker Dagger from his waist and held it in his hand, as if he wanted to prove his determination.


    Zhou Minghan was gratified and amused at the same time when he saw how determined Zhou Yang was.


    ¡°Alright, alright, I know how determined you are. Put away the magical weapon first. When the time comes, I¡¯ll appoint you as the leader!¡±


    The old man smiled. He really admired Zhou Yang¡¯s courage as a mere Qi Refinement Cultivator to hold a dagger in his presence, a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.


    Moreover, this matter also proved Zhou Yang¡¯s loyalty to the Zhou clan. If he didn¡¯t sincerely agree with the clan¡¯s plan, why else would he say such impassioned words just now? Why would he unwittingly draw his dagger in front of the Foundation Establishment Stage clan leader?


    Zhou Minghan definitely did not dote on this kid for nothing!


    The old man sighed internally as his expressions slowly softened. He started to look at Zhou Yang with love as if he was looking at his own grandson.


    ¡°Since you are so determined and courageous, I will tell you the truth. In about ten years and no more than fifteen, the Chen clan leader in Jinsha Square City will organize people to prepare the Foundation Establishment Pill. Since the Zhou clan and the Chen clan are allies, they have agreed that only Foundation Establishment Cultivators would be able to bid for the Foundation Establishment Pill when the time comes.


    ¡°Once the clan obtains the Foundation Establishment Pill in the auction, it will definitely be consumed immediately. Therefore, Zhou Yang, in the next ten years or so, you must work hard to cultivate to Qi Refinement Level 9. Otherwise, this opportunity will be wasted!¡±


    The clan leader looked at Zhou Yang with a face full of affection but his tone was solemn as he slowly revealed this secret matter that would have shocked the other Zhou clan cultivators.


    Zhou Yang¡¯s pupils suddenly constricted and his breathing instantly became heavy.


    This was the Foundation Establishment Pill that they were talking about! In all his years of cultivation, Zhou Yang had never been moved by a spiritual item except for the Foundation Establishment Pill, and he was determined to obtain it.


    Though the Foundation Establishment Pill was only a Grade-3 lower-tier spiritual item, its value in the eyes of the majority of Qi Refining Cultivators was something that even Grade-5 medicinal pills couldn¡¯t compare to.


    It was a well-known fact that Foundation Establishment Pills were hard to come by.


    In order to refine a batch of Foundation Building Pills, not only did one need to use the rare Grade-4 spiritual herb ¨C the Essence Condensing Fruit ¨C or the Grade-4 Demon Beast Core, but another thirty-six extremely rare Grade-3 spiritual herbs as supplementary medicines too. The total value of these spiritual herbs was even greater than that of those needed to refine a batch of Grade-4 spiritual pills.


    Even a large sect like Yellow Sand School that had a history of thousands of years and was led by a Core Foundation sect leader could only refine a furnace of only five to seven Foundation Establishment Pills every ten years.


    Such a small number was not even enough to be distributed to the members of Yellow Sand School¡¯s main branch, what more a small cultivation clan like the Zhou clan, which was attached to Yellow Sand Sect.


    Thus, if a small cultivation clan like the Zhou clan wanted to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill, they would either exchange it for a main ingredient to refine a Foundation Establishment Pill or cooperate with other cultivation clans to refine one.


    Zhou Yang had heard of the Chen clan since he was young. They were a cultivation clan that had existed for over seven hundred years. The current clan leader of the Chen clan was not only an Advanced-Stage Zifu Cultivator Expert, but he was also a Grade-4 Intermediate-Tier Alchemist.


    And yet, because the Chen clan leader was not born in a sect, it was impossible for him to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill from Yellow Sand School for his descendants to consume.


    Therefore, when the Chen clan leader had reached the Advanced Stage of Zifu, he started to organize a Foundation Establishment Meeting every thirty to fifty years where invited and willing immortal cultivation clans or Rogue Foundation Establishment Experts would send a team to join the Chen clan leader to hunt Grade-4 demon beasts in the Boundless Sand Sea to obtain a Grade-4 Demon Core. Only then would they be able to obtain the right to bid for the Foundation Establishment Pill once it had been refined.


    This was how the Zhou clan acquired the Foundation Establishment Pill more than sixty years ago.


    At that time, not only did they drain the Zhou clan¡¯s treasury, but also caused the Zhou Jian, the Zhou clan¡¯s second Foundation Establishment Cultivator and clan leader after Zhou Yuquan from the Hua generation, to be seriously injured. His lifespan had also been greatly reduced to less than two hundred years and he passed away prematurely.


    Zhou Jian was the biological grandfather of Zhou Qian.


    When Zhou Minghan revealed to him that the Zhou clan was preparing to participate in the Foundation Establishment Meeting, Zhou Yang¡¯s heart was filled with excitement, but there was also a hint of worry.


    It wasn¡¯t because he only had ten years to prepare himself. He was worried that the clan leader, Zhou Minghan, would participate in the Foundation Establishment Meeting.


    Despite Zhou Minghan being a cultivator at Advanced-Stage Foundation Establishment Level 7 and a Grade-3 Advanced-Tier Artifact Refiner, a Grade-4 demon beast had strength equivalent to that of a Zifu Cultivator. Zhou Minghan would not be strong enough to deal with such a demon beast if the latter attacked the former at full strength. The clan leader could get himself killed.


    Zhou Minghan was the Zhou clan¡¯s leader and only Foundation Establishment Cultivator. If he became seriously injured or killed, it would be a terrible news for the entire Zhou clan and would very likely lead to the destruction of the clan.


    By then, even if Zhou Yang had succeeded in obtaining the Foundation Establishment Pill, he would not be able to feel at ease for the rest of his life.


    After thinking about it over and over again, he finally mustered up the courage to ask, ¡°Clan Leader, I once heard that after crossing over twenty thousand kilometers to the east side of the Boundless Sand Sea 40,000 Li and into the Broken Cloud Mountain Range, one would be able to reach the immortal cultivation world of Liuyun Continent. Immortal cultivation resources are abundant there. Even the Foundation Establishment Pill can be bought in the markets there with spiritual stones. Why don¡¯t we go there to buy the Foundation Establishment Pill, instead? Why must a Foundation Establishment Cultivator like you risk your life to hunt Grade-4 demon beasts?¡±


    Zhou Yang had learned of the immortal cultivation world of Liuyun Continent from the notes of an Artifact Refiner written in an artifact refinement book over the past few years.


    He had asked Zhou Quan about it but even the elder, who had lived for more than a hundred years, had only heard of the immortal cultivation world of Liuyun continent. He didn¡¯t know much about the specifics of the place.


    Zhou Yang had also wanted to ask the clan leader about it upon his return from Qingping Mountain. But unfortunately, he had immediately gone into Closed Door Cultivation and temporarily forgot about this matter. Now that they were discussing the Foundation Establishment Pill, Zhou Yang finally recalled the place.


    And it was just as Zhou Yang had expected. As the clan leader and a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, Zhou Minghan did know quite a bit about the immortal cultivation world of Liuyun Continent.


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised that you know of the immortal cultivation world of Liuyun continent. Unfortunately, what you¡¯ve read was only about the prosperity of the immortal cultivation world of Liuyun continent. You don¡¯t know how many dangerous places we have to go through and demon beasts and bandits we would have to deal with just to reach the place.


    ¡°We¡¯re talking about crossing twenty thousand kilometers of the Boundless Sand Sea. Forget about the Grade 3 and Grade 4 demon beasts. There are even rumors that there are Grade-6 demon beasts with strengths comparable to Nascent Soul Cultivators living in seclusion in the depths of the mountain range.


    ¡°If you want to go through Broken Cloud Mountain Range without yet being Zifu Cultivator, the only question to ask is whether you will turn into food for a demon beast.


    ¡°Even if you were lucky enough to cross Broken Cloud Mountain Range, reach the immortal cultivation world of Liuyun Continent, and buy a Foundation Establishment Pill, do you think that a Foundation Establishment Cultivator would be able to safely return to the far west region with such a treasure?¡±


    Zhou Yang was instantly rendered speechless.


    Possessing such a treasure was not a crime, but it was equivalent to placing a large target on his head!


    The clan leader was right. A spiritual item like the Foundation Establishment Pill was too precious. It was so precious that even a Foundation Establishment Cultivator would easily be killed if they carried it with them.


    If a small clan like the Zhou clan obtained such a treasure, they would usually let a Level 9 Qi Refinement Cultivator consume it immediately. Otherwise, if outsiders were to know about it, it would very likely lead to the destruction of the clan.


    That was why the clan leader had told him earlier to cultivate to Qi Refinement Level 9 before the Foundation Establishment Meeting within ten years. Otherwise, when the clan obtained the Foundation Establishment Pill, it would not go to him.


    ¡°I understand. Please rest assured, Clan Leader. I will definitely cultivate to Qi Refinement Level 9 before the Foundation Establishment Meeting and not let you and the clan¡¯s efforts go to waste!¡±


    His jaws tightened as he looked at the clan leader with a determined gaze as if he had been given a military order..

 Chapter 19

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    By the time Zhou Yang came out of Zhou Minghan¡¯s cave, he had already calmed down.


    Going from Qi Refinement Level 7 to Qi Refinement Level 9 within a dozen years was almost impossible for ordinary Qi Refinement Cultivators with Intermediate-Tier spiritual roots.


    Each breakthrough on the path of cultivation increased in difficulty as one progressed. Taking ten years to break fthrough to the next level after reaching Qi Refinement Level 7 was already good enough for a cultivator with Intermediate-Tier spiritual roots.


    For example, Zhou Yang¡¯s father, Zhou Xuanhao, and Zhou Xuanyu both reached Qi Refinement Level 7 in their thirties. Zhou Xuanhao only reached Qi Refinement Level 9 at the age of sixty-three. Zhou Xuanyu reached it slightly earlier at the age of fifty-eight.


    Since Zhou Yang reached Qi Refinement Level 7 at the age of twenty-two, he would most likely be able to raise his cultivation to Qi Refinement Level 9 before the age of fifty. By then, he would still have ten years to work towards Foundation Establishment.


    However, since the clan leader, Zhou Minghan, had already offered to obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill, Zhou Yang had to give it his all. Otherwise, they wouldn¡¯t be able to afford the spiritual stones needed to buy two Foundation Establishment Pills in a short period of time.


    Zhou Yang didn¡¯t want what happened to Zhou Xuanyu to happen to him.


    ¡°I thought I could improve my Artifact Refinement Technique after breaking through to Qi Refinement Level 7. But now it seems that I have to switch priorities and work on reaching Qi Refinement Level 9 as soon as possible.¡±


    The most important thing for an Immortal Cultivator was to improve their cultivation level. Learning techniques such as artifact and pill refinement could also be beneficial but not have much of an effect on Zhou Yang¡¯s intended cultivation rate.


    If Zhou Yang worked on his Artifact Refinement Technique and hope that it would also improve his cultivation sufficiently in the meantime, he would simply be putting the cart before the horse.


    Now that he had made up his mind, Zhou Yang returned to the Closed Door Cultivation room in the cave and focused on cultivating.


    To achieve the goal, the clan leader had specially arranged for Zhou Yang to occupy the cave for the time being and exempt him from any clan missions other than to cultivate the best as he could to reach Qi Refinement Level 9 as soon as possible.


    While Zhou Yang was in Closed Door Cultivation, Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivators that had been sent away on clan missions or stationed elsewhere were still being summoned to return to the clan temporarily to pay their final respects to Zhou Qian.


    Among the cultivators who returned were, Zhou Yang¡¯s father and mother ¨C Zhou Xuanhao and Lin Yuting.


    A few months later, Zhou Yang received a telepathic message from the clan leader, informing him to descend the mountain and head to the clan ancestral hall for a meeting. When he arrived, Zhou Yang immediately saw his parents standing among a group of elders. In an instant, his eyes turned red.


    ¡°Father, Mother, when did you return? Why didn¡¯t you tell me earlier? Do you know how much I have missed you?¡±


    ¡°Mother misses you too, Yang!¡±


    Lin Yuting¡¯s eyes also turned red as she walked out from the crowd and hugged her son whom she had not seen for seven to eight years.


    ¡°Look how much taller you have grown, Yang. The last time we left, you were only up to my shoulders. Now, you¡¯re even taller than me. You¡¯ve grown more handsome too!¡±


    Lin Yuting looked at her son affectionately with one hand on his shoulder and the other caressing his face. She was happy to see her son again.


    Zhou Xuanhao was quite a patient man. He was also touched when he saw his wife and son reunite. However, he was also aware that they were in the presence of other clansmen and did not want to disrupt the meeting and attract too much attention. He walked over and advice them with a lowered voice.


    ¡°Alright, alright. Don¡¯t forget, we¡¯re in the ancestral hall for a meeting. Once we¡¯re done, I¡¯ll let the two of you talk in private.¡±


    However, the moment he did that, Zhou Xuanyu unexpectedly walked over and said, ¡°Yuting and Yang haven¡¯t seen each other for eight years. So what if they want to hug and say how much they¡¯ve missed each other? Zhou Xuanhao, it¡¯s fine if you say these words if the juniors were present. But this hall is now filled with seventy- and eight-year-olds who have families of their own. Who wouldn¡¯t be understanding?


    ¡°Even if you didn¡¯t want to visit Yang in the cave at the top of Yuquan Peak, but do you have to interfere with the reunion of a mother and her child?¡±


    The older generation of the Zhou clan knew that Zhou Xuanhao and Zhou Xuanyu had not seen eye to eye since they were young.


    Both of them had Intermediate-Tier spiritual roots. Though one of them was a few years older and always considered himself the boss, the other was the biological granddaughter of Zhou Minghan, the clan leader, and had been doted on by the elders since she was young. Zhou Xuanyu had also always been one cultivation level higher than Zhou Xuanhao so she clearly did not see him as the senior at all.


    They had fought openly and secretly in the clan, and it was only when they were older and separated from each other due to clan missions that their relationship improved slightly.


    Still, as long as there was an opportunity, Zhou Xuanyu would seize the opportunity to mock Zhou Xuanhao.


    She simply could not help it. Women had always been more vengeful than men!


    When they heard Zhou Xuanyu and Zhou Xuanhao going at it again, the Xuan generation cultivators in the ancestral hall immediately looked at each other with strange expressions before deciding to turn a blind eye to the escalating situation. No one dared to help or say anything.


    The Light generation cultivators like Zhou Quan and Zhou Yun, on the other hand, decided to just let things be. This wasn¡¯t a new situation after all. In fact, some winked at each other and chuckled lightly, secretly hoping for a proper fight to break out.


    Only Zhou Yang had been left in the dark.


    He appreciated Zhou Xuanyu speaking up for him and his mother. But he also worried that the situation would go out of hand.


    He knew that his father did not visit him because the latter cared about him too much that he did not want to disturb his cultivation and delay his path. It was not because his father did not care about him.


    Thus, he hurriedly broke free from his mother¡¯s embrace with a face full of anxiety and said to Zhou Xuanyu, ¡°Third Aunt, you have misunderstood my father. My parents did not visit me because they did not want to disturb my cultivation. Moreover, I had been a little rude just now by selfishly interrupting the meeting like that. I hope that the elders can forgive me.¡±


    Those privy to the history of Zhou Xuanyu and Zhou Xuanhao had to hold back their laughter, including Lin Yuting, when they saw how seriously Zhou Yang was acting.


    Zhou Xuanyu simply rolled her eyes and huffed dissatisfiedly. ¡°Zhou Yang, you really are an ungrateful wretch. As soon as your father and mother came back, you immediately forgot how good I have been to you. As expected of what would happen when two people are only family in name and not by blood!¡±


    Lin Yuting finally broke out in laughter when she heard Zhou Xuanyu¡¯s words.


    Then, she lightly tapped on her son¡¯s nose with her jade-like finger as she smiled and said, ¡°Yang, it seems that your third aunt is being jealous. I think that since all the elders in the clan are here today, why don¡¯t you just acknowledge your third aunt as your godmother? Otherwise, her pot of jealousy will always be on the verge of splashing your father¡¯s face with acid!¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a bad idea either. Zhou Yang, what do you think?¡± Zhou Minghan had been observing everything silently from the beginning but couldn¡¯t help but agree with Lin Yuting when he heard her proposal.


    Zhou Xuanyu had still been looking unhappy when she heard Lin Yuting call her jealous. But when the former heard the latter¡¯s intentions, Zhou Xuanyu allowed the joy in her heart to betray her through her beautiful eyes as she nervously looked at and awaited Zhou Yang¡¯s response.


    ¡°If you¡¯re willing, Zhou Yang, I won¡¯t object either,¡± said Zhou Xuanhao.


    Zhou Xuanyu had indeed doted on him since he was young. Since both his parents and the clan leader agreed, Zhou Yang merely spent a brief moment of thought before immediately kneeling and kowtowing three times respectfully to Zhou Xuanyu. ¡°I, Zhou Yang, would like to greet Zhou Xuanyu, my godmother.¡±


    Zhou Yang should have also paid his respects to Zhou Xuanyu¡¯s husband, Wu Tao, as well. However, as the son-in-law of the Zhou clan, Wu Tao was secondary to the Zhou clan members in terms of trust. The Red Flame Iron vein was classified information among the Zhou clan. Zhou Minghan had already given strict orders that unless Zhou Yang succeeded in reaching Foundation Establishment, no one could reveal the slightest bit of this information to anyone else.


    Therefore, Wu Tao and a few other relatives who had married into or sworn allegiance to the Zhou clan were sent to stand in for the clan cultivators who had been summoned back temporarily.


    ¡°You¡¯re a good child, Zhou Yang. Quickly get up, get up!¡±


    The nervousness on Zhou Xuanyu¡¯s face disappeared. With a flower-like smile, she quickly reached out to help Zhou Yang up with eyes filled with joy.


    ¡°Congratulations to our third sister for obtaining a new godson!¡± The Xuan generation cultivators of the Zhou clan who had been relatively uninvolved earlier finally laughed and congratulated her.


    The Light generation elders, on the other hand, also laughed out loud and gave their blessings. ¡°Zhou Xuanyu had always wanted a son. Today, she finally got what she wanted. It is indeed worth congratulating. Congratulations, Xuanyu!¡±


    When she heard the congratulatory words of the elders and her peers, her smile only grew wider. Without hesitation, she grabbed Zhou Yang¡¯s arm and pulled him into her embrace, giving him a tight hug. ¡°You can say whatever you want. I just really like Yang since he was just a child, especially his calmness and intelligence. This is what a good man in the Zhou clan should be like.¡±


    Zhou Yang was dumbstruck as he stayed still in Zhou Xuanyu¡¯s embrace. His wide eyes stared back at his mother, Lin Yuting, who was smiling. For some reason, he felt a little betrayed by her.


    Sure enough, in the next second, he saw his mother¡¯s beautiful eyes narrow as she said, ¡°When a master accepts a disciple, the latter will be bestowed some gifts from the former. Since Sister Xuanyu has accepted Yang as her godson, you should have a gift for him too, right? My son doesn¡¯t lack medicinal pills or spiritual stones. How about Sister Xuanyu just give me some spiritual talismans that she has refined herself?¡±


    ¡°I see, Lin Yuting. I was wondering why you were so kind all of a sudden to willingly allow me to be the godmother of your son. So it turns out that you have been eyeing the treasures I have!¡± Zhou Xuanyu glared at Lin Yuting with resentment. It wasn¡¯t a secret that the former was a little angry.


    However, when she turned around to look at the embarrassed Zhou Yang in her arms, she couldn¡¯t help but start to giggle. ¡°Yang, you still care for your godmother, unlike your heartless mother who schemed against her good sister for so many years just for a few spiritual talismans!¡±


    Despite her words earlier, she did not hesitate to reach into her storage bag and took out a stack of shining spiritual talismans before stuffing them into Zhou Yang¡¯s hands.


    ¡°Alright, my good boy. These talismans you see here were all handmade by me. Feel free to use them. If you run out of them, you can just ask for more from me. I may not have many assets, but I don¡¯t lack these self-made talismans!¡±


    Handmade?


    These handmade talismans were all Grade-2 Advanced-Tier talismans?


    Zhou Yang looked at the thick stack of talismans in his hands and he felt incredibly touched by his godmother¡¯s generosity.


    He knew how much effort Zhou Xuanyu had put into making these talismans.


    Even if Zhou Xuanyu was a Grade-2 Advanced-Tier Talisman Maker, she could not have made this many talismans so easily. Yet, she had given him a thick stack of them. If this gesture did not show how much she loved him, he did not know what would..

 Chapter 20 - Zhou Yang’s Proposal

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    And thus, the event of Zhou Xuanyu¡¯s adoption of Zhou Yang as her godson had ended, finally giving way to the true reason the purpose of the Zhou clan¡¯s Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivators gathering at the ancestral hall: to discuss the expansion of the Red Flame Iron vein.


    Two years had passed since the discovery of the Red Flame Iron vein. During that time, Zhou Minghan had been there several times to investigate the size and quantity of the Venomous Fire Scorpions. After his last visit, he had finally understood the situation.


    According to Zhou Minghan¡¯s investigations, the number of Venomous Fire Scorpions in the Red Flame Iron vein should be between five hundred and seven hundred which included a Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion King and thirty to forty Grade-2 Venomous Fire Scorpions. The rest were all Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpions.


    Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpions were nothing to be afraid of. Among the cultivators gathered in the ancestral hall today, only Zhou Yang had recently entered Qi Refinement Level 7. The others had already been in the Advanced Stage of Qi Refinement for many years and were equipped with Grade-2 magical armor refined by Zhou Minghan. No matter how many Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpions there were, the demon beasts shouldn¡¯t pose too much of a threat as long as they were not given the opportunity to fully utilize their stings.


    What the cultivators needed to discuss was how they were going to deal with the Grade-2 Venomous Fire Scorpions and Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion King. Unlike the Grade-1 versions, these demon beasts could pose a fatal threat to the cultivators. As such, they needed to plan well before taking action.


    After a series of discussions, everyone finally came to a unanimous decision. Zhou Minghan would first hold down the Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion King while the rest would do their best to kill the Grade-1 and Grade-2 Venomous Fire Scorpions. After destroying its minions, the cultivators would then form an array around the Venomous Fire Scorpion King to kill it.


    With that plan in mind, the eighteen Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivators of the Zhou clan, including Zhou Yang, quietly left Yuquan Lake Oasis on Camel Beasts with Zhou Minghan on his flying sword leading the charge toward the Red Flame Iron vein.


    With the strength of the Camel Beast¡¯s legs, it only took a few days for them to carry the Zhou clan¡¯s group to their destination.


    In order to avoid alerting the enemy, the group stopped more than ten kilometers away from their destination. Then, Zhou Xuantai, a Grade-1 Advanced-Tier Array Master, set up a Grade-1 Illusory Array to hide the Camel Beasts. The group abandoned their mounts and journeyed the rest of the way on foot with the Breath Concealing Technique to conceal their aura as they charged to the enemies¡¯ lair.


    The Venomous Fire Scorpion¡¯s nest was located on a sand slope of the Red Flame Iron vein that looked no different from other sand slopes in the desert that were covered with dense and lush desert plants due to the stream flowing just beneath it.


    Its seemingly ordinary appearance masked the huge natural underground network of tunnels and caves, according to Zhou Minghan. One of the tunnels was connected to an underground spiritual vein with a spiritual Qi density equivalent to that of a Grade-3 Advanced-Tier spiritual vein.


    Since the growth of desert plants was the hunting grounds of the Venomous Fire Scorpion, the drop in temperatures due to the arrival of dusk meant that it was about the time for the demon beasts to crawl out.


    There were many kinds of desert animals that would take refuge in a growth of desert plants in the Boundless Sand Sea ¨C there were desert chickens, sand swallows, vultures, ostriches, and other birds of various sizes; there were desert wolves, sand rabbits, camels, sand foxes, gerbils, and other various sizes of land mammals; and there were many kinds of reptiles and arthropods, such as snakes, scorpions, centipedes, lizards, and spiders. Insect, of course, topped the list with the highest quantities of various species.


    Each day, various types of animals revealed themselves and explored the surrounding vegetation for food and shelter.


    Sand rabbits, gerbils, and insects feed on plant stems and leaves; sand finches and lizards feed on insects; snakes and sand foxes feed on gerbils, sand rabbits, lizards, and desert chickens; and desert wolves feed were the predators that fed on all the animals in the desert.


    However, the apex predator was not the desert wolves. It was the Venomous Fire Scorpion instead.


    Venomous Fire Scorpions had heads as big as buckets and could forage over a range of more than ten square kilometers of land around the sand slope.


    Every time a prey passed by, these hunters would bury their bodies under the sand and ambush their prey by clamping them down with their pincers. If their prey was larger than them, they would use their stingers instead.


    A Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpion was as big as a human head and needed to eat about five hundred grams of fresh meat each time. Once it was full, it would not eat for up to ten days. However, a Grade-2 Venomous Fire Scorpion was as big as a bucket and needed to eat more than five kilograms of fresh meat each time. Once it was full, it would not eat for seven days.


    As for the Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion King, it no longer ate the meat of ordinary beasts. Instead, it would eat the old, weak, and sick scorpions. Every half a month, it would eat a Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpion regardless of its health condition.


    Because the Venomous Fire Scorpion King would eat one of its own kind, the desert¡¯s food chain did not collapse. Otherwise, the Venomous Fire Scorpion population would continue to grow and simply eradicate their own food source. Eventually, they would either starve to death or end up killing each other.


    But only Zhou Yang knew what a food chain was due to his previous memories. And though he knew about the terrible consequences of a collapsed food chain, he was also an Immortal Cultivator that had the ability to find a solution to any problem thanks to the existence of spells and techniques. With such resources, he wasn¡¯t worried about the clan¡¯s plans to get rid of the Venomous Fire Scorpions.


    It was not until he had followed the elders of the clan to the destination and observed the Venomous Fire Scorpion hunting strategy from afar through the Heavenly Eye Technique and noticed how fragile the desert food chain on the sand slope was that he came to a realization: there was another method besides having to charge into their nest and exterminate the Venomous Fire Scorpions.


    ¡°I¡¯m so stupid! Why didn¡¯t I think of this beforehand? If I had thought of this earlier, why would I have the clan leader summon the elders back? We just need to set a few fires to burn the desert plants on the sand slopes to starve the Venomous Fire Scorpions to death!¡±


    Zhou Yang slapped his head in frustration and quickly found Zhou Minghan to inform him of his solution.


    Of course, he wouldn¡¯t mention anything to do with food chains or ecology. He just kept things simple for Immortal Cultivators to understand.


    ¡°Wonderful! This is a great plan!¡±


    Zhou Minghan was a Foundation Establishment Cultivator and the clan leader who had lived for more than a hundred years. Of course, he would be able to get Zhou Yang¡¯s plan from the get-go. He did not hesitate to praise Zhou Yang for his suggestion.


    ¡°Zhou Yang, you are indeed the lucky star that the heavens have bestowed upon the Zhou clan. How could you have thought of such a brilliant plan? How could I have not thought of anything remotely similar to it?!¡±


    Zhou Minghan immediately telepathically informed the other elders of the change in plan. ¡°Listen up, Quan, Xuanhao, and everyone else. Here¡¯s Zhou Yang¡¯s brilliant plan. Do you think it¡¯s feasible?¡±


    ¡°It is indeed a brilliant plan. This plan will create an effortless domino effect. Even us Immortal Cultivators will not be able to realize that we have fallen under such a trap if it happens to us. Excellent job, Zhou Yang!¡± Zhou Quan was also able to quickly understand Zhou Yang¡¯s plan and immediately voiced his support.


    ¡°This plan is very good and easy to implement. It can not only be used here, but it can also be used to deal with other demon beasts that live in groups in the Boundless Sand Sea in the future. However, this plan will harm the harmony of heaven and earth. It is better not to use it unless there is no other way!¡± Zhou Yun was also feeling optimistic about Zhou Yang¡¯s plan, but as a Grade-2 spiritual herb farmer, he was still instinctively repelled by and vigilant against acts that interfered with nature.


    However, the person who really hit the nail on the head was Zhou Yang¡¯s father, Zhou Xuanhao. ¡°Let me add one more thing. This plan should never be implemented in an oasis. It must be kept strictly confidential. Otherwise, we will definitely be viewed with hostility by other cultivators in the Boundless Sand Sea and bring disaster to our clan!¡±


    Oases were the most strategic and precious resource in the Boundless Sand Sea. With the existence of an oasis, mortals could live. More mortals meant more Immortal Cultivators with spiritual roots could be produced.


    Therefore, anyone who dared to destroy an oasis in the Boundless Sand Sea would definitely be viewed with hostility and hunted down by other Immortal Cultivators. Even a large sect like Yellow Sand School would not dare to do such a thing that would offend the public.


    The cultivators of the Zhou family grew up in the desert and knew the importance of the oasis. And Zhou Yang was no exception. He suddenly realized the potentially devastating consequences of his plan and felt a chill in his heart. The excitement on his face disappeared and he immediately restrained himself.


    Zhou Minghan nodded solemnly and said, ¡°Well said, Xuanhao. This kind of strategy indeed needs to be used carefully. It¡¯s best if it was not used. And we must, it must be kept a secret. Do not let the news leak out and let outsiders know!¡±


    After saying this, he narrowed his eyes and looked at the sand slope to the west of the setting sun. ¡°Retreat to Qingping Mountain first. Leave this place to me.. We will soon find out whether Zhou Yang¡¯s strategy will work or not!¡±

 Chapter 21 - A Brilliant Plan to Eliminate Demon Beasts

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Qingping Mountain Oasis.


    The dozen or so Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivators of the Zhou clan had retreated to Qingping Mountain while Zhou Minghan carried out Zhou Yang¡¯s plan to prevent the Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion from retaliating.


    The spiritual vein at Qingping Mountain Oasis was only at Lower-Tier Grade 2 and could only supply enough spiritual Qi to support one Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivator and seven or eight Primary-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivators. There was simply not enough spiritual Qi to support the more-than-a-dozen Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivators currently occupying Qingping Mountain,


    The importance of a spiritual vein and its spiritual Qi to Immortal Cultivators was beyond doubt.


    If an Immortal Cultivator wanted to increase his cultivation level normally, he had to cultivate in a spiritual vein at a grade that corresponded to his cultivation level.


    If a Qi Refinement Cultivator, for example, did not cultivate in a Grade-2 spiritual vein such as the one at Qingping Mountain and simply cultivated normally at an oasis or somewhere out in the desert, his cultivation would be ten times slower. But if the Qi Refinement Cultivator cultivated in a Grade-3 spiritual vein like the one at Yuquan Peak, his cultivation would return to the expected rate.


    If a Foundation Establishment Cultivator left a spiritual vein, the amount of spiritual Qi in the world beyond was so little that improving his cultivation would simply be a dream.


    Therefore, in the immortal cultivation world, any Immortal Cultivator who wanted to improve their cultivation level would think of ways to occupy a spiritual vein.


    A spiritual vein also had a limited amount of spiritual Qi it could produce daily. If the number of cultivators at the spiritual vein was too high, the amount of spiritual Qi consumed daily would exceed its limit and the spiritual vein might drop by a grade or simply dry up and dissipate.


    The Qingping Mountain spiritual vein was one that had been cultivated by the clan with a huge amount of spiritual stones. As such, the Zhou clan cultivators wouldn¡¯t do such a stupid thing by draining the spiritual Qi there.


    Therefore, they unanimously decided through a discussion that Zhou Yang, the future hope of the Zhou clan, would be the one to cultivate with the spiritual Qi of Qingping Mountain¡¯s spiritual vein. The rest of them would retreat to the oasis and cultivate by refining the spiritual Qi of spiritual stones.


    After all, the spiritual stone was a spiritual item formed from the highly-condensed Spiritual Energy of Heaven and Earth. The total amount of spiritual Qi in a Lower-Tier spiritual stone was comparable to the amount of spiritual Qi a Foundation Establishment Cultivator needed to cultivate in a day or for a Qi Refinement Level 7 Cultivator to cultivate for ten days.


    Therefore, many lower-level Rogue Cultivators who were unable to occupy a spiritual vein to cultivate could only absorb the spiritual Qi in spiritual stones to cultivate daily and improve their cultivation.


    But such a method meant the consumption of spiritual stones, a commodity few Rogue Cultivators could afford all year round. This was the reason poor and lower-level Rogue Cultivators were stuck in their circumstances.


    The Zhou clan¡¯s Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivators were fortunate enough to be able to refine their own spiritual stones for cultivation in a short period of time.


    Zhou Yang also knew the weight of the responsibility he was shouldering now. He silently accepted the kindness of his elders and did not say anything pretentious.


    Meanwhile, when Zhou Yang and the others had left, Zhou Minghan immediately flew up into the sky and hovered above the sand slope. He was going to start a fire.


    There was no need to kill a chicken with a butcher¡¯s knife ¨C Zhou Minghan didn¡¯t need to waste his mana to release his Foundation Establishment True Fire at all. He simply released the Grade-2 Advanced-Tier Sea of Fire Spell and a small amount of the Grade-2 Lower-Tier Gale Spell to burn some of the ordinary desert plants. Then, he let nature do the rest of the work. Eventually, the sand slope started to burn up with flames reaching the sky.


    The fire spread everywhere. Some of the desert animals hiding on the sand slope were instantly ignited, emitting explosive sounds like beans and the smell of meat.


    Then came the cries of the beasts ¨C the roars, hisses, and chirps. They sounded extremely miserable and filled with despair.


    Zhou Minghan looked down from hundreds of meters in the air. Everywhere he looked, he could see desert animals fleeing frantically, many still on fire. Most of the animals had grown thick fur to counter the cold nights in the deserts. But now, their thick fur had become the catalysts of their deaths.


    Only a small number of animals were quick enough to burrow themselves into the ground to avoid and put out the flames on their bodies, while the rest of the unfortunate 70-80% had turned into charcoal in the raging flames.


    Even the Venomous Fire Scorpions could not escape the flames as most of them had been burned to death.


    The sudden fire had alerted the Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion King that had been cultivating deep underground.


    When it heard the hisses of its underlings, the Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion quickly rushed out of the cave from where it was hiding. The flames posed no threat to the demon beast¡¯s body.


    The moment the dark-red Venomous Fire Scorpion King appeared, it brandished its giant pincers and roared angrily at Zhou Minghan in the sky. The demon beast was as big as a calf and had developed intelligence. Thus, it immediately sensed the powerful aura that Zhou Minghan emitted and felt threatened.


    However, Zhou Minghan couldn¡¯t be bothered with it. He simply released a shining Grade-3 flying sword and killed the remaining lower-level Venomous Fire Scorpions below him.


    This only further provoked the Venomous Fire Scorpion King as it smashed its pincers on the ground, causing the entire sand slope to shake and instantly setting off a huge sandstorm.


    Yellow sand danced in the sky, obscuring Zhou Minghan¡¯s vision and quickly extinguishing more than half of the spreading fire.


    The difference in strength between Grade-3 and Grade-2 demon beasts was just like the difference between Foundation Establishment and Qi Refinement Cultivators ¨C it was as big as heaven and earth.


    Every move of a Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion could cause collapse mountains and split the earth, triggering small-scale natural disasters. If there were no Immortal Cultivators of the same level to fight against it, a Grade-3 demon beast could destroy a small oasis such as Qingping Mountain Oasis.


    Although Zhou Minghan was not scared of the sight of the Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion, he didn¡¯t rashly start a battle with it. Instead, he quickly withdrew his flying sword and rode it away from the battlefield.


    Demon beasts weren¡¯t like Immortal Cultivators who could learn how to ride a flying sword. Aside from flying-type demon beasts and a few other demon beasts with special abilities, the vast majority of land-type and water-type demon beasts were unable to master the ability to fly before Grade 4.


    Thus, when Foundation Establishment Cultivators faced a Grade-3 land-type demon beast like the Venomous Fire Scorpion, the former could easily get the upper hand on the battlefield as long as it wasn¡¯t in the enemy¡¯s lair.


    Of course, the reverse was also true. Although the Venomous Fire Scorpion couldn¡¯t fly, it could easily escape by burrowing underground unless a Foundation Establishment Cultivator set up an array to stop it.


    When the Venomous Fire Scorpion King saw Zhou Minghan leave, it thought that the other party had been frightened by its display of power. It proudly hissed and brandished its large pincers to show off to its underlings. Then, it reached its pincers toward a nearby Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpion that was half-dead from the fire.


    The poor Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpion had just managed to escape from the fire with great difficulty. But before it could rejoice, it had become dinner for its king.


    After eating an injured minion, the Venomous Fire Scorpion King¡¯s eyes flashed with a fierce light as it glanced at the other ordinary Venomous Fire Scorpions that had started trembling. It hissed and issued a few commands before returning to the underground cave to sleep.


    Once the Venomous Fire Scorpion King had left, the rest of the Venomous Fire Scorpions immediately celebrated a feast. The desert animals that had been burned to death by Zhou MingHan became the main course, including the corpses of the Venomous Fire Scorpion that had died.


    None of them realized that the destruction of the desert vegetation around the sand slope would bring great harm to their own tribe.


    For these demon beasts, the battle today was no different from when the Venomous Fire Scorpions were attacked by other powerful demon beasts in the past. Although the intruders had killed some of their members, their king had always been able to chase off their enemies and defend their territory. Even those who died would be ¡®repurposed¡¯ into new members eventually.


    It was not until half a month later when the Venomous Fire Scorpion had awoken from its deep sleep and found that the number of its Venomous Fire Scorpions had greatly decreased. The remainders were killing each other due to the lack of food, and it was at that moment the king realized the viciousness of the fire.


    Unfortunately, it was too late. Although the Venomous Fire Scorpion King was strong, it was impossible for it to produce a large amount of food out of thin air to save its minions.


    In the end, the Venomous Fire Scorpion King could only gather the old, weak, and sick Venomous Fire Scorpions for the stronger ones to eat before driving all remaining survivors out of the underground cave to go to the depths of the desert to hunt for food.


    However, the Venomous Fire Scorpion King did not expect that the moment it chased the Venomous Fire Scorpions out of the underground cave, Zhou Minghan ¨C who had been monitoring the situation on the sand slope ¨C would immediately seize the opportunity to kill dozens of chased-out Venomous Fire Scorpions. Before the Venomous Fire Scorpion King had heard the cries of distress and came to check on the situation, Zhou Minghan had already flown away on his flying sword like last time.


    After this incident, the Venomous Fire Scorpion King finally confirmed that they were being targeted. It was an intelligent demon beast, after all. It immediately changed tactics, moving right beneath the surface as it followed the group of Venomous Fire Scorpions that were out for a hunt. The Venomous Fire Scorpion King knew that Zhou Minghan would find them and launch an attack.


    Due to its new strategy, it was not easy for Zhou Minghan to detect it, and its sneak attack almost caused the clan leader to fall off.


    After trying to attack a few more times, Zhou Minghan realized that he could no longer gain any advantage over the Venomous Fire Scorpions and finally turned around to return to Qingping Mountain Oasis..

 Chapter 22 - The Family Fights Together

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    ¡°Zhou Yang, your plan seems to have worked. After I incinerated all the plants around the sand slope, the Venomous Fire Scorpions¡¯ food source had been destroyed. In less than half a month, the Venomous Fire Scorpions began to kill each other. I also took advantage of the situation and managed to decrease the number of Venomous Fire Scorpions by 50%.


    ¡°However, the Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion King has already noticed our intentions. It forcefully stopped the Venomous Fire Scorpions from killing each other and sent them out to the depths of the desert to hunt. For the time being, they seemed to have found a way to survive the food crisis.¡±


    Zhou Minghan had gathered all the Zhou clan cultivators and was reporting the progress of his month-long battle at the sand slope.


    When they initially heard that Zhou Yang¡¯s plan had eliminated 50% of the Venomous Fire Scorpions, the Zhou clan cultivators were delighted.


    However, the joy on their faces faded when they heard how the Venomous Fire Scorpion King had reacted at the end.


    The Venomous Fire Scorpions were demon beasts, after all ¨C their abilities to fight and survive in the desert were many times stronger than ordinary desert animals. If they were able to locate food sources during their hunts, it would be easy for them to survive even though they were away from their nest.


    It seemed that Zhou Yang¡¯s plan was not as perfect as everyone had imagined. But Zhou Xuanyu suddenly broke the silence to lighten up the mood and defend her godson¡¯s plan.


    ¡°Hey, what are you all thinking about? Right now, we have reduced the number of Venomous Fire Scorpions by 50% without injuring a single person. This is already a great victory. Did you really think that we could have annihilated all the Venomous Fire Scorpions without releasing a single spell? Stop dreaming. Those are demon beasts. They are not bugs that ordinary people can simply stomp to death. In all these years, have you ever heard of anyone killing demon beast without a direct fight?¡±


    Although her words were not pleasant to hear, they did make the others realize that they had fallen into a misunderstanding.


    There was no such thing as a perfect plan because things would never go as planned. They knew this and still expected Zhou Yang¡¯s plan to successfully eliminate a group of demon beasts? How ridiculous was that?!


    Moreover, if a plan to eliminate demon beasts could be used by mortals, what was the point of having Immortal Cultivators around, then? How could they proudly call themselves Immortal Masters and claim to be able to solve problems for mortals?


    Thus, Zhou Xuanhao decided to stand up for his son. This was also the first time in so many years that he had taken the initiative to respond to Zhou Xuanyu¡¯s words.


    ¡°Although Third Sister¡¯s words were a bit harsh, they speak the truth. Look, we don¡¯t have time to wait around for the Venomous Fire Scorpions to eliminate themselves.


    ¡°And we can¡¯t keep our absences at our stations a secret for much longer. If we don¡¯t return soon, it will also arouse the suspicion of outsiders. And if people find out what happened here, the damage to the Zhou clan will be much greater than the problem of the Venomous Fire Scorpions!¡±


    The sight of these two people who usually didn¡¯t get along now standing on a united front for a junior brought a sense of relief and joy to the others. It was such a rare sight!


    Unity among a clan¡¯s cultivators was one of the foundations of a clan¡¯s strength. Though most of the Zhou clan¡¯s cultivators were united, the discord between Zhou Xuanhao and Zhou Xuanyu had always been an Achilles¡¯ heel for the clan. It didn¡¯t help that the two figures were significant members of the Zhou clan, often being entrusted with important clan missions. Their absence due to the clan missions was understandable, but the clan would also start to worry and grow anxious if they had been gone for too long. Thus, hearing them agree with each other for the first time was a reason for the others to rejoice.


    Moreover, Zhou Xuanyu and Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s words were indeed reasonable.


    ¡°Zhou Yang, do you have anything to say?¡±


    Zhou Minghan wanted to know what the young cultivator thought about all this.


    ¡°Clan Leader, it is true that my plan was flawed. We had just taken the smaller path to reach our bigger goal. Now that we have completed that journey, it is time to realize our true potential as Immortal Cultivators, return to the greater path, and wield our magical artifacts in the field once more!


    ¡°Didn¡¯t the Venomous Fire Scorpions start to venture further out in the sand sea to hunt for food? Then we will surround and attack them and lure out the Venomous Fire Scorpion King. We will eliminate them all in one fell swoop!¡±


    Zhou Yang confidently looked at the elders before him as he spoke of his thoughts passionately.


    ¡°Realize our true potential as Immortal Cultivators?¡±


    Zhou Minghan narrowed his eyes as he pondered upon that phrase before laughing out loud. ¡°To realize our true potential as Immortal Cultivators. These may be simple words to understand but they speak true to the Great Dao. Immortal Cultivators like us have painstakingly cultivated for thousands of years. Other than seeking eternal life and unfettered freedom, don¡¯t we want to realize our own potential?¡±


    Then, the clan leader turned solemn as he instructed the clan elders. ¡°We will do as Zhou Yang says. I will lead out hunt to eliminate the Venomous Fire Scorpions out in the sand sea.¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir.¡±


    With that, the Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivators of the Zhou clan quickly followed Zhou Minghan into action.


    The entourage set off from Qingping Mountain on their Camel Beasts. In less than two days, they arrived at the periphery of the Red Flame Iron vein. Then, they used the sand rabbits, gerbils, and other wild beasts that they had brought from Qingping Mountain Oasis to bait the dozens of Venomous Fire Scorpions that were out hunting.


    Hiss¡­


    Dozens of Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpions led by a few Grade-2 Venomous Fire Scorpions rushed over due to the smell of blood. Soon, more than half of them had been killed with magical artifacts wielded by more than a dozen Zhou clan cultivators who had concealed their auras. The surviving Venomous Fire Scorpions cried out for help while desperately digging holes to escape underground.


    Zhou Yang had been observing from the sidelines the entire time. When he saw the Venomous Fire Scorpions starting escape by burrowing, he finally cast the newly- learned Grade-2 Advanced-Tier Earth to Steel Spell. It took almost a minute for the spell to take effect.


    When one¡¯s cultivation reached Level 7 of Qi Refinement, one would be able to cast a Grade-2 Advanced-Tier spell, and Zhou Yang¡¯s first attempt at that was the Earth to Steel Spell.


    Though this spell was not very useful against Immortal Cultivators, it worked wonders against demon beasts that were very good at burrowing. It was a spell that every Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement Immortal Cultivator in the far west had to learn.


    However, spells were easy to learn but difficult to master. Zhou Yang had only learned this spell for a few months and thus found it very difficult to successfully cast. If he wanted to speed up the casting speed to the level of Zhou Quan, he would need more than ten years of dedicated practice.


    Only one or two out of a hundred Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivators Zhou Quan could cast a Grade-2 Advanced-Tier spell like Earth to Steel Spell in just a few breaths of time. Moreover, capable castors of the spell were usually more than a hundred years old.


    Generally speaking, other than geniuses who had a special talent in spell learning, ordinary Immortal Cultivators could only dream of reducing their casting time to a few seconds or even one second, unless they were willing to practice like Zhou Quan for ten years or resolve to cast low-level spells despite having high-level cultivation.


    Zhou Yang had learned many spells, excluding the non-combat Grade-1 spells. The fastest spell he could cast now was the Grade-2 Intermediate-Tier Fire Snake Spell ¨C it took him less than five seconds to cast but he could barely use it in normal battles.


    It was precisely because spells were easy to learn but hard to master that they were difficult to use in battles that corresponded to the cultivators and spells¡¯ levels. That was why Immortal Cultivators developed talisman-making and artifact-refining skills.


    Talisman makers could seal spells inside special talisman papers for Immortal Cultivators to activate with their mana. It was very convenient.


    As for the magical artifacts made by artifact refiners, Immortal Cultivators could use them at will and repeatedly, unlike the spiritual talismans, which could only be used once.


    Immortal Cultivators without such talismans or artifacts would be ten times more disadvantageous in situations compared to those who have such items with them.


    The moment Zhou Yang cast his spell, the Venomous Fire Scorpions immediately realized that the originally-soft sand had turned as hard as steel. Their pincers merely scraped against the surface as they tried to dig.


    The other Zhou clan cultivators noticed what had happened and did not waste another second to whip out their spiritual talismans and magical artifacts to take out the remaining stranded Venomous Fire Scorpions. Soon, the Immortal Cultivators had ended the one-sided battle aboveground.


    At this moment, an angry cry came from afar.


    Then, everyone saw the calf-sized dark red Venomous Fire Scorpion charging toward them like a gust of wind, kicking up sand and dust in its wake.


    Ordinary black Venomous Fire Scorpions also quickly drilled out from the sand in other directions.


    ¡°You guys deal with Venomous Fire Scorpions newcomers. Leave the Venomous Fire Scorpion King to me,¡± said Zhou Minghan who had also been observing from the sidelines this whole while. Now that the king had revealed himself, he finally made his move. With a flash of sword light under his feet, he intercepted the incoming Venomous Fire Scorpion King.


    Since the clan leader was engaged in battle, the next-in-command was Zhou Quan as he had the highest seniority among the nineteen cultivators of the Zhou clan present.


    Zhou Quan quickly ordered the others in response to the change in situation.


    ¡°Xuanhao, Xuanyu, Yuting, and Zhou Yang, you are responsible for clearing out the demon beasts on the east side.


    ¡°Seventh Brother, Ninth Brother, Xuantai, Xuanbin, and Xuanyan, you are responsible for the south side.


    ¡°Fifth Brother, Xuanhe, Xuanying¡­¡±


    Zhou Yang followed his parents according to Zhou Quan¡¯s orders and swiftly moved toward the dozens of Venomous Fire Scorpions that had appeared on the east side.


    Among the dozens of Venomous Fire Scorpions, there were only seven Grade-2 Venomous Fire Scorpions, among them was one Grade-2 Advanced-Tier. It was the weakest group of demon beasts that had appeared among all sides.


    This was the first time Zhou Yang fought alongside his parents. He wanted to show his abilities to his parents, to let them see the results of his cultivation over the years.


    Therefore, as soon as he got close to the Venomous Fire Scorpions, he immediately took out his Grade-2 Advanced-Tier Armor Breaker Dagger that the clan leader had refined for him with the four front teeth of the Metal Eating Ratand, and nailed the four Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpions to the ground in an instant.


    Though Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpions had exoskeletons that were as hard as Refined Iron, they were easily stabbed through like a slightly-thick layer of paper by the Armor Breaker Daggers.


    When Lin Yuting saw this, she immediately praised her son. ¡°Well done, Zhou Yang! You just deal with the Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpions. Leave the Grade-2 ones to us!¡±


    Zhou Yang was happy at first. But when he heard how he was simply assigned to the easy targets while his parents and godmother handled the more challenging ones, he was a little dissatisfied. He could tell that she still thought of him as a child who needed their protection.


    ¡°I understand.¡±


    He replied weakly, but he did not have any intentions of protesting. This was because he knew that even if he protested, his parents would not listen anyway.


    He decided to convert his dissatisfaction into his strength and vent all his anger on the Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpions. The way he wielded his four Armor Breaker Daggers made him look like he was wielding the sickle of the Grim Reaper as he crazily harvested the lives of these low-level demon beasts..

 Chapter 23 - The End

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Yellow sand flew into the sky as the setting sun painted the sky red.


    The battle between the Zhou clan cultivators and the Venomous Fire Scorpions dyed the yellow sand on the battlefield a brownish-red color. Most of the fresh blood was from the Venomous Fire Scorpions, but there were also some from the wounds of the Zhou clan cultivators.


    Getting injured during such a battle was inevitable, even for Zhou clan cultivators. However, the Zhou clan had been preparing for this battle for two years. Not only had Grade-2 Advanced-Tier Alchemist Zhou Xuanhao started to mass-refine Grade-2 Detoxification Elixirs two years ago, Grade-2 Advanced-Tier Talisman Makers Zhou Dan and Zhou Xuanyu had also used the talisman-making spiritual materials collected by the Zhou clan to create a large number of Grade-2 spiritual talismans and distributed them to the those participating in the battle.


    With these spiritual talismans and elixirs that had been prepared beforehand, they would always be able to take the elixirs to detoxify their injuries and reduce the number and possibility of casualties.


    More than half of the hundreds of Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpion had died after more than an hour of battle. Only a few Grade-1 and Grade-2 Venomous Fire Scorpions were still stubbornly resisting.


    On the battlefield in the east, Zhou Yang had dealt with more than half of the Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpions. Instead of chasing after the remaining ones that managed to escape, he quickly went to his mother, Lin Yuting, to help.


    ¡°Mother, I¡¯m here to help you.¡±


    Lin Yuting was only at Qi Refinement Level 7. Although she had stayed at the same Qi Refinement level for more than twenty years and her mana was much stronger than Zhou Yang who had just reached Qi Refinement Level 7, her cultivation method was not good for fighting. As such, her field combat strength might not be as good as Zhou Yang¡¯s.


    Zhou Xuanhao and Zhou Xuanyu also knew this. Therefore, they had allowed her to handle the Grade-2 Lower-Tier Venomous Fire Scorpions.


    However, Lin Yuting ended up having to deal with a few Grade-1 Venomous Fire Scorpions, which made her consume her mana faster than expected. In less than an hour, more than half of her mana had been used up as beads of sweat appeared on her forehead. She seemed to have strained herself.


    Therefore, when she saw Zhou Yang coming over to support her, she heaved a sigh of relief. She hurriedly bit her tongue to raise her spirits and shouted, ¡°My good son, help me restrain that demon beast for a while. I will come back to assist you after I have killed this one.¡±


    She then withdrew her Divine Sense and flying swords from the Venomous Fire Scorpion she assigned Zhou Yang and focused on finishing off the demon beast before her. One green and one blue flying sword slashed at the Grade-2 Venomous Fire Scorpion at the same time.


    ¡°Don¡¯t underestimate me, Mother. Let¡¯s compete to see who can kill the demon beast First!¡±


    Zhou Yang laughed loudly and directly commanded his four Armor Breaker Daggers to attack the Grade-2 Venomous Fire Scorpion that his mother had assigned him, which had already used up a lot of its demonic energy on Lin Yuting. Therefore, the power of the Venomous Fireballs from its mouth was not as strong as before. Its attack did not pose any threat to Zhou Yang, who had the protection of the Silver Shield.


    Zhou Yang¡¯s four Armor Breaker Daggers, on the other hand, were Grade-2 Advanced-Tier magical weapons that were even sharper than ordinary Grade-2 Advanced-Tier flying swords. Zhou Yangs¡¯ every attack would leave a wound on the Venomous Fire Scorpion¡¯s pincers. The two had only exchanged a few attacks before the Venomous Fire Scorpion was forced to use its trump card.


    Whoosh!


    A red light flashed in the air and the venomous stinger on the Venomous Fire Scorpion¡¯s tail was headed straight for Zhou Yang¡¯s chest.


    The stinger moved faster than Zhou Yang¡¯s daggers, almost at the speed of sound.


    However, little did the Venomous Fire Scorpion know that Zhou Yang¡¯s Silver Shield had an auto-activate protection feature. Plus, Zhou Yang had already seen this move coming.


    The stinger was immediately blocked by the Silver Shield and Zhou Yang took advantage of the moment, slowed his breathing, and attacked the Venomous Fire Scorpion from the back.


    With a miserable hiss, the Venomous Fire Scorpion¡¯s body was split into four by the four Armor Breaker Daggers as the demon beast fell to the ground and died on the spot.


    Lin Yuting also happened to strike the other Venomous Fire Scorpion two pincers, chopping them down to the ground along with the scorpion¡¯s head.


    When she saw that Zhou Yang had killed the demon beast, Lin Yuting smiled with relief and let out a long sigh. ¡°My son has really grown up!¡±


    When Zhou Yang heard his mother¡¯s words, he felt indescribably happy. ¡°Mother, you should rest first. I will help Father and my godmother.¡±


    He immediately took off in high spirits as he used his magical artifact to help his father, Zhou Xuanhao.


    Lin Yuting smiled again. Her son was so sensible. As a mother, she had to play her apart as well.


    She immediately braced herself and picked up her two swords to help Zhou Xuanyu.


    Half an hour later, except for a few Venomous Fire Scorpions that had escaped by chance, the rest of the demon beasts on the east side had died at the hands of Zhou Yang¡¯s family.


    Zhou Yang¡¯s family only took a short break before heading to the other sides to help the other clansmen.


    With their arrival, the Zhou clan cultivators were able to quickly build up their advantage to work together to destroy most of the Venomous Fire Scorpions.


    Except for a few Venomous Fire Scorpions that didn¡¯t participate in the battle or were lucky enough to escape, hundreds of Venomous Fire Scorpions had died.


    Once their battle had ended, Zhou Quan wasted no time to move on. He immediately summoned the other six elders and the remaining array formation master of the clan, Zhou Xuantai, to another battlefield.


    ¡°The Venomous Fire Scorpions have been eliminated. Everyone, take a break. Xuantai and the elders at Qi Refinement Level 9, come with me. We will help the clan leader kill that Venomous Fire Scorpion King!¡±


    The battle between a Foundation Establishment Cultivator and a Grade-3 demon beast was extremely dangerous. Only cultivators at Qi Refinement Level 9 could pitch in.


    However, if Qi Refinement Level 9 Cultivators recklessly interfered in such a life-and-death battle, they would also face a great risk of death. Therefore, Zhou Quan specially brought along the clan¡¯s remaining array formation master.


    Zhou Xuantai was ranked second among the Xuan generation. As the remaining array formation master in the Zhou clan, he possessed a set of the Grade-2 Advanced-Tier Eight Gates Golden Light Array formation flags that had been refined by the late Zhou Qian.


    The Eight Gates Golden Light Formation was an array that trapped something or someone within it. As long as eight Qi Refinement Level 9 Cultivators placed the formation flags in the right place and formation while an array formation master stood in the middle, they would be able to trap even Primary-Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators in a short period of time.


    Zhou Minghan would eventually kill off the Venomous Fire Scorpion King in a one-on-one fight as a Foundation Establishment Level 7 Cultivator.


    However, if the Venomous Fire Scorpion King wanted to escape, Zhou Minghan didn¡¯t have much confidence that he could keep it within sight in the Boundless Sand Sea.


    An escaped Venomous Fire Scorpion King would certainly take revenge on the cultivators and mortals of the Zhou clan stationed at the Red Flame Iron vein.


    Therefore, to ensure absolute safety from the Venomous Fire Scorpion King, Zhou Minghan needed help to trap the Venomous Fire Scorpion King for a period of time so that he could kill it once and for all.


    During the battle, Zhou Minghan intentionally lured the Venomous Fire Scorpion King to a distance, making it impossible for the Venomous Fire Scorpion King to grasp the situation of its Venomous Fire Scorpion minions in time.


    It wasn¡¯t until it saw Zhou Quan and the other eight humans appear that it realized that the Venomous Fire Scorpions might have met with misfortune.


    This made the Venomous Fire Scorpion King extremely furious. It immediately gave up on the troublesome Zhou Minghan and pounced on the newcomers.


    ¡°Good timing!¡±


    Rather than shock, Zhou Quan and the other eight were delighted to see the Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion King head towards them. They hurriedly positioned the formation flags of the Eight Gates Golden Light Array and activated the array.


    Eight thick golden beams of light instantly shot into the sky from the eight formation flags and transformed into a huge golden cage, immediately trapping the Venomous Fire Scorpion King in the middle. No matter how hard it charged, Venomous Fire Scorpion King would not be able to break out of the Eight Gates Golden Light Array.


    ¡°Alright, hold on. Give this old man fifteen minutes!¡±


    Zhou Minghan made his way over from the sky, beaming with joy as he looked down at the Venomous Fire Scorpion King in the array. He quickly stopped his sword light and prepared his ultimate move.


    Half an hour later, Zhou Quan and the others were already drenched in sweat and the golden cage had begun to shake violently. But Zhou Minghan had finally finalized the preparations for his ultimate move.


    ¡°Die, vile creature!¡±


    The clan leader let out a furious roar as he pushed his hands forward. A faint purple fireball that flickered with silver lightning shot out from his hands and shot straight towards the Venomous Fire Scorpion King within the golden cage in an arch.


    The Venomous Fire Scorpion King¡¯s eyes flashed with fear as it hissed sharply.


    Its sound started to give everyone a headache as blood flowed out from their eyes, ears, mouth, and nose.


    However, the eight of them knew that this was a critical moment that would determine their victory or defeat. They endured the discomfort and tried their best to inject the remaining mana in their bodies into the formation flags to maintain the power of the array. No matter how much the Venomous Fire Scorpion King struggled, it must not take a step out of the golden cage.


    Finally, the pale purple fireball that flickered with silver lightning landed on the Venomous Fire Scorpion King¡¯s body.


    An earth-shattering rumble reverberated throughout the Boundless Sand Sea. Even though Zhou Yang was tens of miles away, he could still feel the intense tremors on the ground.


    ¡°Is it over?¡±


    He looked in shock towards the source of the roar.


    Was this the power of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator¡¯s all-out attack?


    How terrifying!

 Chapter 24 - Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    It was over.


    When Zhou Minghan used the ultimate move that he had spent fifteen minutes preparing, the result had already been decided.


    Zhou Yang and the other Zhou clan cultivators saw the corpse of the Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion King brought back by the clan leader, Zhou Minghan.


    The dark red giant scorpion, which was originally as big as a calf, had been broken into dozens of pieces of flesh. Only its two hard pincers and stinger remained intact.


    ¡°The defense of Grade-3 Venomous Fire Scorpion King¡¯s exoskeleton is even stronger than ordinary Grade-3 Lower-Tier magical armor. What kind of powerful magical ability did the clan leader use to break through it into so many pieces?!¡±


    Zhou Yang felt both shocked and regretful. As a refiner, there was probably nothing more heartbreaking than seeing a piece of good material destroyed.


    If the calf-sized Venomous Fire Scorpion King¡¯s exoskeleton was intact, Zhou Minghan could have a 50% chance of refining a set of Grade-3 Lower-Tier magical armor ¨C a breastplate, helmet, arm armor, leg armor, and a few other magical armors.


    A whole set! Not just a single piece of magical armor!


    Individually, they would merely have a Grade-3 Lower-tier defense level. But worn together, they could achieve a defense level of Advanced-Tier Grade 3.


    If a Primary-Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator wore such a set of magical armor, it would be easy for him to enhance his cultivation level to fight against an Intermediate-Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator.


    Zhou Yang¡¯s four Armor Breaker Daggers would simply be a child¡¯s plaything against such a set of magical armor. They were on a completely different level.


    It would be a lie if Zhou Minghan said that he did not feel the pain of seeing the exoskeleton in pieces. Unfortunately, to ensure the certain death of the Venomous Fire Scorpion, the clan leader had no other way of defeating the demon beast besides tearing it apart.


    But the other Zhou clan cultivators did not feel the same way as Zhou Minghan and Zhou Yang. On the contrary, they breathed a sigh of relief and smiled upon the sight of the Venomous Fire Scorpion King¡¯s corpse.


    Now, the Zhou clan¡¯s operation to expand the Red Flame Iron vein could finally proceed. Now, it was time to reap the rewards.


    They had killed one Grade-3 demon beast, dozens of Grade-2 demon beasts, and hundreds of Grade-1 demon beasts. Those were quite bountiful results of a battle.


    To Immortal Cultivators, the entire body of a demon beast was a treasure. Except for a few demon beasts whose flesh contained deadly poison, the flesh of a vast majority of demon beasts could be eaten and affect them in a way that was better than the Golden Pearl Rice.


    The blood of demon beasts was the main material used by Talisman Makers to make blood ink. The skin and fur could be used to refine artifacts or made into blank talisman papers.


    Even the feces of demon beasts could be used to enhance spiritual wood and herbs!


    Since they had a bountiful battle, the storage bags of the Zhou clan¡¯s cultivators had been filled to the brim, and yet there was still more than half of the harvest left. In the end, they had no choice but to pile the leftovers together so that they could transport them back to the clan another time.


    After clearing up the battlefield, they regrouped and looked at Zhou Minghan excitedly.


    Zhou Minghan knew what these people were thinking. Although the corpses of hundreds of demon beasts had yielded them a huge harvest, it could not be compared to a Grade-3 natural spiritual vein or a Red Flame Iron vein.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go. We¡¯ll head to the spiritual vein first.¡±


    Zhou Minghan led the way on his flying sword toward the nest of the Venomous Fire Scorpions.


    There were some Venomous Fire Scorpions left in the nest, mainly consisting of female Venomous Fire Scorpions that were waiting to give lay eggs and a few male Venomous Fire Scorpions that were guarding them. They had not been aware of what was happening in the outside world.


    When Zhou Minghan arrived, he drew his flying sword and started a merciless slaughter.


    Zhou Yang and the others arrived later and saw the headless corpses of Venomous Fire Scorpions sprawled all over the ground.


    They were already tired of looking at Venomous Fire Scorpion corpses. Zhou Yang was no exception. Instead, he used the Heavenly Eye Technique to observe the huge underground cave and felt the abundant spiritual Qi in there.


    Zhou Yang was observing the environment in the cave when he heard the excited exclamation of his fourteenth uncle, Zhou Xuanhe from next to him.


    ¡°What pure Spiritual Energy of Heaven and Earth! It¡¯s as pure as the spiritual Qi on the mountainside of Yuquan Peak. As expected of a Grade-3 Lower-Tier natural spiritual vein. Even at a lower tier, the spiritual Qi here is not inferior to an artificially-cultivated Grade-3 Intermediate-Tier spiritual vein!¡±


    Zhou Xuanhe¡¯s words tempted Zhou Yang to silently circulate his cultivation method and absorb a wisp of the spiritual Qi into his body to refine it. Then, a look of shock appeared on his face.


    Zhou Xuanhao was right beside Zhou Yang, so he naturally saw Zhou Yang¡¯s little movements. After seeing his expression, he couldn¡¯t help but smile and explain his thoughts.


    ¡°How is it? You can feel it, right? Not only is the spiritual Qi here dense, but its attribute is more inclined towards the Fire and Earth elements. Since you and your father are both cultivators with spiritual roots with Fire element, you two should cultivate here and you can improve your cultivation much faster than at Yuquan Peak, where the five elements tend to be balanced!¡±


    A cultivator¡¯s spiritual root had a bias towards certain elements, so naturally, they would also be biased towards certain spiritual veins.


    For example, dense clouds of vapor around the ocean, rivers, or lakes would have spiritual Qi from spiritual veins that were more biased towards the Water element. Thus, those locations would be perfect for Immortal Cultivators with Water-based cultivation methods.


    Spiritual veins in a hot land of a volcano would have spiritual Qi that was inclined towards the Fire element, making the place suitable for Immortal Cultivators who practiced Fire-based cultivation methods.


    The natural spiritual veins of the Boundless Sand Sea would have spiritual Qi of Fire, Earth, and Metal elements. Few would be inclined toward Water and Wood elements.


    Generally speaking, unless everyone cultivated with the same elemental bias in their spiritual roots, Immortal Cultivators would use Spirit Gathering Arrays and spiritual stones to modify the elemental inclinations of the spiritual veins into a state of equilibrium of the five elements for the sake of their juniors once the pioneers have occupied a spiritual vein.


    For example, when Yuquan Lake Oasis was first occupied by the Zhou clan, it was a Grade-2 Advanced-Tier natural spiritual vein. Its spiritual Qi was initially inclined towards Wood and Metal elements. Once the Zhou clan had invested a large number of spiritual stones to modify it, the spiritual vein slowly become a Grade-3 Intermediate-Tier spiritual vein with a state of equilibrium of the five elements.


    Zhou Yang recalled these records of the spiritual vein knowledge that he had read before. Suddenly, he remembered another matter related to natural spiritual veins.


    He turned around and asked, ¡°Father, I read from the ancient records that the natural spiritual veins usually have some special spiritual item of Heaven and Earth. For example, the Dragon Scale Tree on Yuquan Peak. I wonder if something similar can be found here too?¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao looked slightly awkward. ¡°Oh, this question is not easy for me to answer.¡±


    Then, to prevent Zhou Yang from asking another difficult question, he simply flung his sleeves and said, ¡°Let¡¯s go. Hasn¡¯t the clan leader already entered? Let¡¯s go and take a look.¡±


    The underground cave was quite deep. The Venomous Fire Scorpions¡¯ nest was mainly settled in the main cave hall. But there were many underground passages that extended in all directions from the cave hall.


    Those underground passages were naturally formed, but most of them were dead ends that had been explored by the Venomous Fire Scorpions.


    Among them were two relatively spacious passages. Even if Zhou Yang didn¡¯t enter it, he could still feel the cold water vapor emitted from the depths of the passage. Needless to say, this passage definitely led to that underground river.


    The other passage was also two to three meters wide and could allow several people to walk through. It had been forcefully dug out by a powerful external force as dense spiritual Qi flowed out from this passage. It was probably where the spiritual eye of the spiritual vein was.


    Zhou Yang and Zhou Xuanhao entered this tunnel.


    After walking for hundreds of meters, the father and son came upon a stone room that could accommodate dozens of people. The clan leader, Zhou Minghan, and a few elders of the Light generation were already there and currently looking at an object in the stone room.


    ¡°Clan Leader, did you discover any treasures?¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao brought Zhou Yang forward and stretched his neck to look at the object surrounded by the others.


    Zhou Yang looked over as well and saw that the object was a cream-colored stalactite pillar that protruded three feet out of the ground.


    ¡°This¡­ could this be¡­?¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s eyes suddenly widened in surprise, then joy as he looked at the stalactite pillar and Zhou Minghan. He was afraid that he had seen wrongly.


    ¡°That¡¯s right. This is the extremely rare Grade-3 spiritual item, the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence!¡±


    The clan leader affirmed what Zhou Xuanhao had been wondering.


    Zhou Xuanhao couldn¡¯t help but suck in a breath of cold air, and his body started to tremble slightly.


    When Zhou Yang saw his father like this, he was also shocked. Ever since he was young, this was the first time he saw his father lose his composure like this.


    ¡°Father, what is the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence?¡± asked Zhou Yang in doubtful surprise as he looked at the cream-colored stalactite pillar.


    ¡°The Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence is an extremely rare Grade-3 spiritual item. It is a kind of spiritual item of Heaven and Earth that has been nurtured by the ten-thousand-year-old stalactite. Not only can it be used as a substitute for many Grade-3 spiritual pills, but it is also an important supplementary spiritual herb to refine many Grade-4 and even Grade-5 spiritual pills. You¡¯ve heard of the Foundation Establishment Pill, right? To refine one requires the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence!¡±


    Knowing that Zhou Yang was relatively young and had spent most of his time cultivating, Zhou Xuanhao knew that his son was not familiar with some of the rare spiritual items in the cultivation world, so he hurriedly explained the use of the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence to him.


    After saying this, he searched around his storage bag on his waist, took out a stack of jade bamboo strips used by Immortal Cultivators to record important knowledge, and handed it to Zhou Yang. ¡°This is the Book of the World¡¯s Treasures. It has recorded over three thousand rare treasures of Heaven and Earth, arranged from Grade 1 to Grade 7. Zhou Yang, when you have time, give it a read. You shouldn¡¯t enter a treasure mountain empty-handed next time.¡±


    The clan leader turned around and said, ¡°Xuanhao, you left out one more thing about the effects of the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence!¡±


    In an instant, Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s expression changed..

 Chapter 25 - Hao Yang Cave

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    ¡°The Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence is a necessary supplementary herb for refining Foundation Establishment Pills, but it also has another function ¨C to restore the body¡¯s vitality to the state before the age of sixty and provide another opportunity to break through to Foundation Establishment!¡±


    Zhou Minghan ignored Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s crazy change in expression.


    ¡°Clan Leader, you¡­¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao wanted to say something but then decided against it after much hesitation.


    But Zhou Minghan knew what Zhou Xuanhao wanted to say and was not happy with it. ¡°Xuanhao, I know what you want to say. But let me just say this, once you have embarked on the journey of cultivation, you must keep moving forward with an indomitable will!


    ¡°If you merely want to be an Immortal Cultivator just to live twenty to thirty years longer than a mortal, then you might as well be an ordinary person and live a peaceful life!¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao seemed to be struggling with his feelings.


    But Zhou Minghan continued speaking. ¡°Xuanhao, you know that your spiritual root aptitude is not at all inferior to Xuanyu¡¯s. If you didn¡¯t have to dedicate your time and effort to alchemy due to the lack of alchemists in the clan back then, you would have advanced to Qi Refinement Level 9 before your sixties!¡±


    Zhou Dan also chimed in. ¡°That¡¯s right, Xuanhao. The clan leader is right. You missed the opportunity to break through to Foundation Establishment for the sake of our clan. Now that you have the chance to do it, why not take it? Even if you fail, you still have Zhou Yang, your outstanding son to continue your career. You shouldn¡¯t have any regrets in this life!¡±


    When Zhou Xuanhao heard this, the struggle with his conflicting emotions increased. He looked at Zhou Yang, who was a little dumbfounded.


    ¡°Alright, enough. It seems that this Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence will take about eight to ten years to condense. Xuanhao, you still have a lot of time to think about it. When the time comes and you have thought it through, let me know what you¡¯ve decided. As long as you want it, I will let you have the first taste!¡±


    Zhou Minghan didn¡¯t want the other Light generation cultivators to keep pestering Zhou Xuanhao, or for Zhou Xuanhao to remain conflicted and say something he would regret.


    Zhou Xuanhao knew that so he held back the words that he wanted to say. ¡°I understand. I will take your advice into consideration.¡±


    Zhou Yang did not say anything because it took him a moment to fully understand what was happening.


    ¡°So Clan Leader and the others wanted Father to use the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence to break through to Foundation Establishment? No wonder Father, who has always respected his elders, was struggling to agree this time!¡±


    Zhou Yang¡¯s heart started to feel heavy.


    Zhou Xuanhao was already eighty-seven years old this year and he had also lost his Yuan Qi. Even if he used the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence to restore his body¡¯s vitality to the state before he was sixty years old, the probability of him successfully reaching Foundation Establishment would not exceed 5%!


    With such a low probability, it was no wonder Zhou Xuanhao was hesitant.


    After all, he now had to consider more than just himself. He had a wife and son he cared about.


    But on the other hand, it was just as Zhou Dan said. Since he already had a wife and a son and had lived for nearly a hundred years, there shouldn¡¯t be any more regrets if he took up the second chance to break through to Foundation Establishment, even with the possibility of failure.


    ¡°Will Father agree? What would I choose if I was in his shoes?¡±


    Zhou Yang stole a glance at his father who still looked conflicted. Although Zhou Yang had a thousand words in his head, he couldn¡¯t say a single word.


    If he persuaded his father to agree, he might end up as an unfilial child if his father failed to break through to Foundation Establishment and died.


    However, as an Immortal Cultivator, persuading his father against taking up the chance would be equivalent to cutting off his father¡¯s path of cultivation. This was also unfilial.


    Perhaps the best thing he could do currently was to play dumb!


    Fortunately, other elders of the Zhou clan entered the room to report the findings from their cave exploration to the clan leader, helping him to relieve this awkwardness.


    The first to report among them was Zhou Xuanyan, a female cultivator who was ranked eighth in the Xuan generation of the Zhou clan. As a relatively rare cultivator that practiced Water-based cultivation methods in the Boundless Sand Sea, she had been tasked to check out the underground river.


    ¡°Clan Leader, I have explored the underground river and didn¡¯t find any other demon beasts hiding or traces of spiritual objects. It seems that it is just an ordinary underground river flowing through.¡±


    The underground river was a strange place that might contain some water-type demon beasts, including those that have reached Grade 3 or 4. These demon beasts had almost no natural enemies.


    Therefore, once Immortal Cultivators discovered an underground river, they would carefully investigate it before deciding whether or not to build a settlement nearby.


    Zhou Minghan pondered for a moment when he heard Zhou Xuanyan¡¯s report and decided to be cautious.


    ¡°We can¡¯t be careless about this. I believe Qian had once repaired a water-type Grade-2 Advanced-Tier array in the family¡¯s treasury. I will ask Xuantai to get it and set it up in the underground river. When the time comes, lend him a hand, Xuanyan.¡±


    Although the water-type Grade-2 Advanced-Tier array was unable to defend against the attacks of Grade-3 and Grade-4 demon beasts, it could at least serve as a warning system to alert future clan cultivators stationed there in time.


    However, when he thought of the deceased Zhou clan¡¯s Grand Elder, Zhou Qian, Zhou Minghan¡¯s mood became heavy.


    Then, he looked at the Zhou clan cultivators and, with a wave of his hand, a metal disk with dozens of pale yellow formation flags on it appeared in his hand. With a sigh, he said, ¡°This Earth Garrison Golden Spear Array is Qian¡¯s last work in the world. Although it is only at Lower-Tier Grade 3, it is extremely compatible with this spiritual vein¡¯s attribute. Now, go and assist Xuantai in setting up this array!¡±


    Zhou Minghan gently tossed the formation flags to Zhou Quan, and upon receiving the clan leader¡¯s orders, the others started to leave one after another.


    Suddenly, the clan leader remembered something and instructed Zhou Yang to stay behind and the latter started to wonder why.


    ¡°Zhou Yang, since this spiritual vein was discovered by you, have you thought what you¡¯re going to name it?¡±


    Zhou Yang was not expecting the question and he fell silent for a moment. ¡°Well, since Clan Leader has asked me this, then I will not hesitate to be bold. What do you think of the name ¡®Hao Yang Cave¡¯?¡±


    ¡°Hao Yang Cave, Hao Yang Cave. Hmm, I like the sound of it. Very well, then. From now on, this place will be called the Hao Yang Cave!¡±


    The clan leader muttered ¡®Hao Yang Cave¡¯ and waved his arm. A stream of sword light quickly flew out and carved the words ¡®Hao Yang Cave¡¯ on the wall of the stone room.


    Then, Zhou Minghan turned back to Zhou Yang seriously. ¡°Zhou Yang, Hao Yang Cave is a Grade-3 Lower-Tier natural spiritual vein connected to an underground river. It has great potential for development in the future. I was thinking that once you have achieved Foundation Establishment, you can move here and be in charge of the place. What do you think?¡±


    Why was Zhou Minghan asking him about this when Zhou Yang hadn¡¯t reached Foundation Establishment yet?


    Zhou Yang looked confused as he gave it a thought. Suddenly, he was moved and couldn¡¯t help but blurt out his thoughts. ¡°Clan Leader, are you saying that you want me to spend the rest of my time here for Closed Door Cultivation?¡±


    ¡°This child is definitely worth teaching!¡±


    Zhou Minghan looked at Zhou Yang with approval in his eyes and nodded, then he told him his plan.


    ¡°As I mentioned earlier, Hao Yang Cave is a Grade-3 natural spiritual vein, adjacent to the Red Flame Iron vein. In terms of its actual value, it is not that much more inferior to Yuquan Lake Oasis. I cannot let low-level cultivators come here until there is a Foundation Establishment Cultivator to stand guard and prevent the outside world from knowing about this place prematurely.


    ¡°Once the Earth Garrison Golden Spear Array has been set up, the others will follow me back to the clan. Only Quan, Dan, Xuanyan, and you will stay behind to guard the place. With four Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement cultivators and the array protection this place, I am confident it will hold up until reinforcements arrive even if Grade-3 demon beasts attack!


    ¡°More importantly, the environment here is more suitable for your cultivation than at Yuquan Peak. If you cultivate here, your chances of advancing to Level 9 of Qi Refinement within a dozen years would be higher.¡±


    Zhou Yang knew the rationale behind Zhou Minghan¡¯s intentions well. But when he thought about how he had just reunited with his parents and now had to separate from them again, he couldn¡¯t deny that he was starting to feel reluctant.


    In fact, he really wanted to request the clan leader to let his father, Zhou Xuanhao, stay with him as well.


    However, he also knew that his father was the clan¡¯s only Grade-2 Advanced-Tier Alchemist and would best benefit the clan if he returned to the market.


    Moreover, if his father had decided to break through to Foundation Establishment in the next eight to ten years, he would have to choose an alchemy successor from the Yuan generation just in case he failed, which meant that he would have to be at the clan to choose and train someone. He couldn¡¯t afford to be the last alchemist of the clan.


    ¡°I understand.¡±


    Zhou Minghan decided to suppress the pain in his heart.


    ¡°I know this isn¡¯t easy for you or your family.¡±


    Zhou Minghan let out a long sigh and couldn¡¯t help but reach out to pat Zhou Yang¡¯s shoulder. Zhou Minghan was not an apathetic person.


    If there was another way, Zhou Minghan wouldn¡¯t have requested this of Zhou Yang, and Zhou Yang would have the option to refuse him. However, the predicament the Zhou clan was facing forced them to do this.


    If a clan wanted to develop, someone had to make a sacrifice.


    As a cultivator of a clan, he couldn¡¯t enjoy the benefits of the clan without doing anything. The more benefits he enjoyed, the more he had to give.


    Zhou Qian and Zhou Xuanyu had also faced something similar back then.. Why would Zhou Xuanhao and Zhou Yang be an exception now?

 Chapter 26 - Eight Years

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    When one cultivated, time passes indefinitely.


    In a blink of an eye, Zhou Yang had been stationed at the spiritual vein of Haoyang Cave for eight years. After almost non-stop cultivation, he has successfully advanced to Qi Refinement Level 8. Now, he was just one step away from Qi Refinement Level 9.


    But time was relative. Eight years might feel like a short time for one person, and a long time for another.


    For Zhou Yang, eight years was only enough to raise his cultivation from Level 7 to Level 8 of Qi Refinement. But many great changes had occurred in the Zhou clan within the same period of time.


    First of all, Zhou Quan and Zhou Dan who were stationed together with Zhou Yang to guard the spiritual vein of Haoyang Cave had passed away. Their lifespans were already close to the limit of a Qi Refinement cultivator. With the internal injuries that they had suffered from the battle with the Venomous Fire Scorpion King, it was only a matter of time before they passed.


    Since they were stationed together, Zhou Yang was there to witness the slow passing of the two elders. He had seen the two men¡¯s mana dissipate overnight, their originally rosy and healthy faces instantly covered with wrinkles, and their white hair and teeth fall off. He was shaken when he witnessed these events.


    He thought that he would be more immune to witnessing the life and death of a person with his history of having a past life. Perhaps that would be true if he had witnessed the passing of someone more distant from him, relationship-wise and logistically. It was not true for those whom he was familiar with ¨C men who had been brimming with powerful mana, chatting and laughing with him just the day before, and dying the night after. How could he not be shaken?!


    The great power of immortal cultivators came from within themselves. Even if a cultivator at Qi Refinement Level 9 was empty-handed, he could easily slaughter an army of tens of thousands of mortals.


    However, death was fair to everyone, regardless of one¡¯s status as an immortal cultivator or a mere mortal. No one could resist the power of time.


    Without reaching the realm of Foundation Establishment, the lifespan of an immortal cultivator at the realm of Qi Refinement was limited to 120 years. If he did not achieve immortality, even a Core Foundation Grandmaster with a Golden Core and a thousand-year lifespan would die in meditation at the end of his life!


    Immortality!


    Immortality!


    Immortality!


    After witnessing the deaths of the two elders in meditation, Zhou Yang started to have an unprecedented desire for immortality.


    He wanted to live forever. He didn¡¯t want to one day be like the two clan elders and have all his efforts in developing his hundred-year-old cultivation base dissipate in an instant. He didn¡¯t want to die with regret.


    The two elders might still have some regrets even as they met their end.


    Zhou Quan and Zhou Dan had the opportunity to attempt a breakthrough to the realm of Foundation Establishment, but they were both afraid of the extremely high risk of death that came with failure. No one dared to take the risk of cutting off their own path to immortality.


    It was also possible that Zhou Quan and Zhou Dan did not regret their choice. After all, the two elders were able to live twice as long as the countless cultivators who died attempting to reach the realm of Foundation Establishment in their fifties and sixties.


    But Zhou Yang still remembered the look in their eyes as they faced death¡¯s door. It was the look of regret, even ever so slightly.


    Zhou Yang didn¡¯t want to end up like them!


    Therefore, he made up his mind at that moment. As long as he had the chance to improve his cultivation in this life, he would never give it up no matter how difficult and dangerous the road ahead was.


    And it was precisely because of this newly-established firm belief that allowed him to advance smoothly on the cultivation path from Level 7 to Level 8 of Qi Refinement in less than five years. Three years later, he had reached the cusp of Qi Refinement Level 9.


    His newly-established firm belief wasn¡¯t the only thing that allowed Zhou Yang¡¯s cultivation to increase so quickly. Other than his own hard work and the highly-compatible spiritual vein of Haoyang Cave, there were also the medicinal pills that his father had given him before he left.


    Zhou Xuanhao had given Zhou Yang three different types of Advanced Grade 2 spiritual pills. The effect of taking one of each type was equivalent to the effect of his own meditative cultivation for half a year. Zhou Yang had taken twelve pills over the eight years.


    This was also the first time that Zhou Yang had taken pills so frequently to increase his cultivation.


    Before, he would simply listen to his father¡¯s and clan leader¡¯s instructions to cultivate. He would never consume medicinal pills until he was just about to break through.


    Although medicinal pills could greatly increase the cultivation of an immortal cultivator¡¯s mana, they would also leave behind some residue of pill poison. If too much pill poison had accumulated in one¡¯s body, it would take too long for it to dissipate and would not only fill the immortal cultivator¡¯s mana with impurities but also affect future breakthroughs. It would also damage the body of the immortal cultivator and reduce their lifespan.


    Pill poison was particularly damaging to Qi Refinement cultivators. If they consumed too many spiritual pills to increase their cultivation before they reached the realm of Foundation Establishment, they would not be able to remove the poison in time and the success rate of reaching the realm of Foundation Establishment through the consumption of the Foundation Establishment Pill would be much lower.


    Therefore, seniors of immortal cultivation sects or clans with great heritage in the immortal cultivation world would be sure to explain the dangers of pill poison to their juniors early on and strictly control the distribution of medicinal pills to prevent people from being addicted to the temptation of rapid cultivation with no regards for the risks that entailed.


    Only rogue cultivators who were lucky enough to make a fortune without the reminder of their masters would happily buy a large number of spiritual pills to increase their cultivation with little regard for the dangers of accumulating pill poison. They simply thought that this was the only way they would be able to catch up with those cultivation geniuses who had better aptitudes than them.


    Little did they know that they were doing the opposite.


    Zhou Yang had taken very few spiritual pills in the past. Thus, the small amount of pill poison that had accumulated in his body had long been refined to nothing after years of bitter cultivation. That was why Zhou Xuanhao dared to give him spiritual pills without worry.


    Unfortunately, Zhou Yang had accumulated a considerable amount of pill poison in his body from consuming all the medicinal pills within eight years. As a result, he was now facing a cultivation barrier. He would not be able to break through to Qi Refinement Level 9 any time soon.


    Fortunately, Zhou Yang had foreseen that this little bit of pill poison would not affect his future path. As long as he did not take any more of these kinds of spiritual pills to improve his cultivation in the next eight to ten years, the remaining pill poison in his body would naturally be washed away by the Spiritual Energy of Heaven and Earth once he had reached the realm of Foundation Establishment.


    ¡®It¡¯s been eight years. The Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence should be refined by now. I wonder how Father has been feeling about this!¡¯


    Zhou Yang stood in Haoyang Cave and looked at the cream-colored stalactite pillar with mixed feelings.


    The cream-colored stalactite pillar was akin to a top-grade jade. It looked as ethereal as jade and emitted a faint glow. Zhou Yang had been in the stone room for many days and nights and could sense that there was a familiar energy gathering and strengthening inside the pillar. It was the Spiritual Qi of Earth Veins that he had once absorbed.


    According to the records of Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence that he had seen in the ¡®Book of the World¡¯s Treasures¡¯ that his father had given him last time, once the Spiritual Qi of Earth Veins in the stalactite pillar had gathered and strengthened to a certain threshold, the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence would overflow from the tip of the stalactite pillar.


    Apart from the benefits previously mentioned by the clan leader, the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence was also a kind of rare spiritual item for demon beasts to increase their cultivation. The reason that Venomous Fire Scorpion King was able to become a Grade 3 demon beast was most likely because it had swallowed a large amount of Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence.


    Zhou Yang had been undecided on whether he should persuade his father to consume the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence to break through to the realm of Foundation Establishment. However, after witnessing the deaths of the two elders of the Zhou family, he now wanted his father to take the risk.


    Of course, as his son, he still did not dare to say it out loud. He simply secretly hoped that his father could think it through.


    Zhou Yang decided to put his concern about his father aside for now and started to wonder about the oasis construction above.


    ¡®I wonder how Second Uncle and the others are doing with the construction of the oasis. Since I can¡¯t make a breakthrough in my cultivation right now, I¡¯ll work on my Artifact Refinement Technique and help them build the oasis.¡¯


    Although the three Light generation elders, Zhou Qian, Zhou Quan, and Zhou Dan, had passed away, Zhou Xuantai, Zhou Xuanbin, Zhou Xuanlin, and Zhou Xuanyan had also broken through to Qi Refinement Level 9 and replaced the three elders who had passed away. As a result, the number of elders in the Zhou clan had increased to nine.


    During the time Zhou Yang was in Closed Door Cultivation, the elders of the Zhou clan had discovered the reserves of the red flame iron vein near Haoyang Cave¡¯s spiritual vein. They quickly realized that the vein was massive.


    This discovery made the Zhou clan cultivators who knew the inside story overjoyed. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that the Zhou clan lacked Foundation Establishment cultivators who could guard the spiritual vein of Haoyang Cave, the clan leader would have immediately organized a large number of their people to develop their cultivation at the spiritual vein.


    Still, the Zhou clan elders discussed among themselves and ultimately decided to migrate thousands of mortals from Yuquan Lake Oasis to the aboveground area of Haoyang Cave¡¯s spiritual vein to build a huge earth city.


    Of course, this was insider news. For outsiders, they were simply told that the Zhou clan¡¯s mortals were moving to Qingping Mountain Oasis because the Zhou clan wanted to increase the mining of refined iron.


    With the arrival of the mortals, the spiritual vein of Haoyang Cave finally became more populated. Zhou clan¡¯s two new elders, Zhou Xuantai and Zhou Xuanyan, mortals, and cultivators worked together to redirect the water from the underground river to a low-lying area in the desert to artificially create a desert lake ¨C thus an oasis ¨C that spanned an area of hundreds of square meters.


    With the artificial lake as the starting point of the oasis, Zhou Xuantai and the others began to organize the mortals of the Zhou clan to carry water on their shoulders to irrigate the sandy land and plant drought-resistant plants. Then, they used a growth-inducing spell to accelerate the growth of these ordinary plants.


    It was worth mentioning that ordinary plants enhanced by immortal cultivators¡¯ spells could not survive long. The fruits and grains produced by these plants could not be eaten by mortals either.


    Their main benefit was to act as fertilizers once they have withered and died.


    After many years of experiments, the immortal cultivators of the Boundless Sand Sea had long developed a complete plan for the construction of an oasis. As long as the geographical environment was suitable and they were willing to invest manpower and material resources, it was not a pipe dream for the desert to become an oasis.


    Zhou Yang was deep in thought when he left the stone room where he had been in Closed Door Cultivation. He came upon his fifth uncle, Zhou Xuanbin who had been tasked with guarding him and was now meditating with his eyes closed.


    Of the four Zhou clan cultivators in Haoyang Cave, the other three were already at Qi Refinement Level 9, and their mana could not be increased any further.


    Therefore, in order not to disturb Zhou Yang¡¯s cultivation, they would cultivate in the cave outside. Every day, they would take turns to guard Zhou Yang who was in Closed Door Cultivation.


    And Zhou Yang was the only person in the history of the Zhou clan who had received such treatment.


    Because of this, Zhou Yang also felt an immense weight of expectation on his shoulders. He knew that he had to reach the realm of Foundation Establishment to be worthy of his clan¡¯s elders¡¯ sacrifices..

 Chapter 27 - Artifact Refinement Technique Breakthrough

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Zhou Yang greeted his fifth uncle Zhou Xuanbin before leaving Haoyang Cave.


    Eight years had passed and a large number of desert plants had grown around the sandy slope aboveground again. And this time, the Zhou clan¡¯s mortals¡¯ green thumbs had allowed the plants to grow more luxuriously than before and with higher diversity as well. Some mortals even raised desert chickens, desert antelopes, sand rabbits, and other animals.


    Not far below the sandy slope was the earth city where the Zhou clan¡¯s mortals lived. Another two thousand meters to the west of the earth city was the oasis that was still in construction, encircled by grasslands irrigated by the underground river.


    Zhou Yang stood on the sand slope and took in the view. The thousands of Zhou clan mortals had been divided into four teams and assigned to each corner of the desert lake ¨C the current state of the oasis. Those in the first team would fill wooden buckets with lake water and pass them from one person to another to irrigate the land of sand behind them.


    A bucket of water could only soak through half a meter of sand. But they needed the water to soak through more than five meters on average.


    If the people used such a primitive method to irrigate the land, it would be difficult to create an oasis of a hundred square meters within a year. And this was assuming the desert sand would not erode.


    Therefore, it was now the immortal cultivators¡¯ turn to play his part.


    Among the Grade 1 spells commonly used by immortal cultivators, there was a small spell called Cloud Gathering Rain Transformation Technique that could condense water over even the hottest part of the Boundless Sand Sea.


    However, if a Foundation Establishment cultivator used this Grade 1 spell near a great lake, the resulting effect would be just like the name of the spell ¨C heavy rain falling on an area several kilometers in radius.


    Zhou Xuanyan was just a cultivator at Qi Refinement Level 9. Despite being one step away from the realm of Foundation Establishment, the effect of her Cloud Gathering Rain Transformation Technique could not be compared to that of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.


    The most Zhou Xuanyu could do as a Level 9 Qi Refinement cultivator who practiced Water-based cultivation methods was to use her Water Cloud Banner ¨C a Water-type magical artifact that enhanced Water-type spells ¨C to make a moderate amount of rainfall over a kilometer-square of land.


    In order to create an oasis as soon as possible, Zhou Xuanyan would cast Cloud Gathering Rain Transformation Technique dozens of times every morning, noon, and evening to water the land around the desert lake until her mana was exhausted.


    Therefore, the sand being irrigated by the mortals that Zhou Yang was witnessing had actually been irrigated by Zhou Xuanyan¡¯s magic. The mortals were merely adding an amount just enough to account for the amount of water being evaporated due to the desert¡¯s temperature.


    ¡°It must be really hard on Aunt Xuanyan. Such a small matter should have been done by the low-level cultivators of the family. An elder like her doing this kind of thing is not only a waste of talent but also too beneath her dignity!¡±


    Zhou Yang couldn¡¯t help but shake his head and sigh. In the end, the Zhou clan was still too weak.


    In the eyes of ordinary rogue cultivators, the Zhou clan ¨C which occupied a medium-sized oasis and had a Foundation Establishment cultivator for Clan Leader ¨C was an existence that they couldn¡¯t reach.


    However, in the eyes of high-level cultivators, the Zhou clan was an existence they could easily step on anytime they wanted to.


    If people knew that the Zhou clan now occupied a Grade 3 spiritual vein in addition to Yuquan Lake Oasis, other Foundation Establishment cultivators would definitely come knocking on their doors within a month to force the Zhou clan to give up Haoyang Cave¡¯s spiritual vein and red flame iron vein.


    The more vicious and merciless cultivators among them might even decide to join hands with other Foundation Establishment cultivators or clans to break through Yuquan Peak¡¯s protective array formation and take apart the entire Zhou clan!


    Such incidents were not unheard of.


    In order to prevent this kind of thing from happening, an additional Foundation Establishment cultivator was needed in the Zhou clan.


    Therefore, all higher-ups of the Zhou clan who knew about Haoyang Cave were secretly looking forward to Zhou Yang¡¯s success in becoming a Foundation Establishment cultivator. He was the junior who had been indirectly entrusted with the hopes of the entire clan to one day lead the Zhou clan through their difficult times.


    Seeing that Zhou Yang had come out of Closed Door Cultivation without having broken through to Qi Refinement Level 9, Zhou Xuanyan and Zhou Xuantai felt regretful but secretly relieved.


    Since Zhou Yang was no longer in Closed Door Cultivation, they didn¡¯t need to assign one person to protect him every day. The redistribution of manpower meant that there would be three, instead of two, immortal cultivators sharing the work of building the oasis. Moreover, Zhou Yang would be able to help them occasionally.


    Building an oasis wasn¡¯t something that could be done in a day. Zhou Yang and the others were still cultivating towards the realm of Foundation Establishment. If they really wanted to build a large oasis around Haoyang Cave, it would take at least several generations or tens to hundreds of years to do so.


    Therefore, even though he was taking a break from Closed Door Cultivation, he wanted to make the best use of his time to focus on improving his Artifact Refinement Technique.


    He hadn¡¯t been able to do so in the past eight years since he had been focused on his Qi Refinement cultivation. As such, he felt a little rusty.


    However, his foundation was still there. After refining a few times to refresh his memory and feel of the artifacts, he had more or less gotten the hang of artifact refinement again.


    During the battle to exterminate the Venomous Fire Scorpions, the Zhou clan had obtained a large amount of Grade 2 demon beast materials. As an Intermediate Grade 2 artifact refiner, Zhou Yang had also received quite a large share of the spoils. Thus, there was no lack of refining materials for him.


    However, this was still his first time using the materials of demon beasts for artifact refinement, which would prove to be quite a big challenge for him.


    The materials from demon beasts were not like metal ores that could be melted into a liquid and shaped. Artifact refinement with demon beast materials meant that one had to first decide on the type of magical artifact based on the appearance of the materials.


    For example, the stingers of the Venomous Fire Scorpion could only be used to refine flying needles.


    If the stingers were melted, the venomous fire unique to the Venomous Fire Scorpion¡¯s stingers would also dissipate and the materials would be wasted.


    But demon beast materials had an advantage over metal ores as the former had been refined by the demon beasts¡¯ demonic power over the years. Not only were there fewer impurities, but it was also more convenient for artifact refiners to set up restrictions within them. When special demon beast materials were refined into magical artifacts, they would also be attached with some kind of magical ability that the demon beasts had mastered when they were alive.


    Since he had never used demon beast materials for artifact refinement before, Zhou Yang did not dare to use the precious Grade 2 materials. Instead, he used the materials from the Grade 1 Venomous Fire Scorpions to first practice with. There were plenty more of those stored in the warehouse of Haoyang Cave anyway so it would not be a pity to waste them.


    Only the pincers and stingers of Grade 1 Venomous Fire Scorpions could be used for artifact refinement. The pincers were suitable to be refined into the unique Iron Arm Divine Hook while the stingers could be refined into Venomous Fire Flying Needles.


    Between the two, the bulky and heavy Iron Arm Divine Hook was undoubtedly more suitable for beginners to refine. It was also known as Exoskeleton Armor, a mechanical arm.


    Zhou Yang took out the pincers in stock and first shaved off all the air-dried meat shreds left in them before throwing them into the furnace. After that, he poured the products into a special solution that was mixed with a variety of acidic ores and plant juices. Then, he lit the furnace fire to soften the pincers.


    At this time, he sent his Divine Sense into the furnace to observe the degree of softness of the pincers. When the pincers began to soften under the effects of the high temperature and the acidic solution, he began to perform the relevant refining techniques recorded in the artifact refining books, making minor adjustments here and there to mold the softened pincers into the shape of an Iron Arm Divine Hook.


    After the molding was completed, Zhou Yang maintained the temperature of the flame while using the Artifact Refinement Technique of forming a Vibration Restriction in the Iron Arm Divine Hook.


    Once the restriction had been set up, he used the Object Capturing Technique to retrieve the Iron Arm Divine Hook from the furnace and threw it into the quenching pool that he had prepared beforehand. With a strong hiss, a white mist rose and the magical artifact was considered to have been successfully refined.


    There was no need to refine the magical armor to Grade 1. Zhou Yang simply needed to inject True Qi and mana into a cauldron, place the Iron Arm Divine Hook in, and dozens of thin and long cracks as thick as chopsticks appeared in the cauldron with a loud boom. Then, two pale yellow spiritual lights struck the Iron Arm Divine Hook and shook the entire refining room, almost knocking the cauldron to the ground.


    ¡°Oh, this power is almost close to a Lower Grade 2 magical artifact. It seems that I am quite close to reaching the level of Advanced Grade 2¡±


    With a wave of his sleeve, he shot out a streak of mana to straighten the refining cauldron. Zhou Yang took out another set of materials and threw them into the cauldron, continuing to refine.


    After about half a year and hundreds of refining attempts, Zhou Yang finally succeeded in breaking through to become the youngest Advanced Grade 2 artifact refiner in the history of the Zhou clan.


    Zhou Yang immediately passed on the good news to the clan leader and his parents. Not long after, he saw his travel-worn parents rushing over to Haoyang Cave.


    Zhou Yang looked at his parents who had suddenly arrived. He was slightly stunned for a moment before he immediately understood why the two of them had come over.


    ¡°Father, have you made up your mind?¡±


    ¡°Why? Can¡¯t I come over to see you just because I miss you?¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao smiled faintly as if he did not see Zhou Yang¡¯s suddenly solemn expression.


    ¡°Alright, don¡¯t act like enemies the moment you meet. Why are you talking about such depressing things on this joyous day?¡± Lin Yuting saw that the atmosphere was not right, so she quickly interjected to ease the atmosphere.


    After saying that, she grabbed Zhou Yang¡¯s hand and smiled. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Yang, bring me to your cave. This time, I brought you a lot of local delicacies that are only available in the marketplace..¡±

 Chapter 28 - Fathers Teachings

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    The arrival of his parents, Zhou Xuanhao and Lin Yuting, finally made Zhou Yang¡¯s daily life not so boring anymore.


    Ever since he was seven years old, his family had always been apart from each other. Now that they could finally reunite and live together, the three of them cherished this wonderful time very much.


    Zhou Yang even stopped his daily cultivation. Instead, he would go outside with his mother every day to help build the oasis or forage through the desert in search of unique edible plants. Sometimes, he would listen to his father tell him all sorts of strange stories that he had seen at or heard from the marketplace. Zhou Yang¡¯s life was both fulfilling and happy.


    And as a family of immortal cultivators, the topic of cultivation would always come up at some point.


    One day, Zhou Xuanhao and Zhou Yang were talking about what they had seen and heard when they had visited a certain immortal cultivation clan. Then, Zhou Xuanhao asked, ¡°Yang, the clan leader said that you will be in charge of Haoyang Cave in the future. Do you have any plans for the development and utilization of the spiritual vein here?¡±


    When Zhou Yang heard this, he couldn¡¯t help but reply somewhat awkwardly, ¡°Father, you¡¯re asking a child who has been busy cultivating all these years. I haven¡¯t thought about this aspect yet.¡±


    ¡°Right, cultivation is important.¡± Zhou Xuanhao nodded, indicating that he agreed with Zhou Yang¡¯s answer. Then, the father looked at his son encouragingly and said, ¡°But now that you¡¯ve reached a barrier, you might as well start planning for this matter. Since your mother and I are here, feel free to let us know whatever you have in mind so that we can also provide some advice and input.¡±


    When Zhou Yang heard this, he knew that his father already had an idea in his heart. Saying this was just a small test.


    If he was allowed to be honest, he still had some complaints about how his father and the other elders always had the urge to test the actions of the younger generation before the latter was allowed to do anything.


    Although Zhou Yang and his peers were part of the younger generation, most of them were already in their thirties or forties. In the mortal world, they would be old enough to be grandparents. Yet, they were still treated like children by the elders. How could anyone be happy about this?


    Even if they passed the test and received a few compliments from the elders, what good was that?


    Were they expected to play their part as children and expect praise and candy as rewards?


    He grumbled internally, but he put on a thoughtful look and lowered his head to think. After a moment, he looked up with a troubled face and said, ¡°I don¡¯t have much knowledge or experience in this area. I really can¡¯t think of any good ideas yet. Father, I would need your advice for this since you have more knowledge than me in this.¡±


    ¡°Well, how rare it is for Yang to not know about something!¡± Zhou Xuanhao burst into laughter. He seemed satisfied to finally have an upper hand against his own son.


    Each time they conversed over the past few days, Zhou Xuanhao would always have a difficult time catching up with or interjecting Zhou Yang. It didn¡¯t matter if it was about general matters, cultivation, or other topics. His son seemed to know about almost everything.


    Zhou Xuanhao wondered how his son, who had only been cultivating in the clan, could know so much. The past few days had made it difficult for him to act like the fatherly figure for his son.


    If it was not because Zhou Yang looked so young and was the son he had watched grow up from a baby, Zhou Xuanhao would not have doubts if someone else told him that Zhou Yang was an immortal cultivator with a Golden Core who had cultivated for hundreds of years.


    Sadly, Zhou Xuanhao could not confide in others about the conflicts and dejection in his heart. Wouldn¡¯t that just make him a laughing stock to others?


    Now that his son was willing to seek his advice on the development of the spiritual vein, Zhou Xuanhao finally regained his confidence as a father. He laughed and looked at Zhou Yang with a smug expression as he said, ¡°Haoyang Cave¡¯s spiritual vein is hidden deep underground and surrounded by rocks. It is impossible for you to open up a spiritual field like the one at Yuquan Peak!


    ¡°However, this is not entirely a bad thing. The rocks around the spiritual vein are nourished by the spiritual Qi all year round and are much harder than ordinary rocks. It will be more suitable to open up a spiritual beast room to raise some low-level demon beasts for their meat. This will also serve as a good source of income.


    ¡°In addition, you can also borrow some storage bags from the clan leader to transport some of the spiritual soil from Yuquan Peak¡¯s spiritual fields to be spread out in the caves just beyond Haoyang Cave. Then, you will be able to grow some Grade 3 and Grade 4 spiritual herbs that usually require a lot of spiritual Qi.


    ¡°The spiritual Qi of Hao Yang Cave is more inclined to the Fire element, which means that the layer of magma in the earth here is relatively shallow. Once you have reached the realm of Foundation Establishment, you can collect a sum of spiritual stones and go to Jinsha Square City. Once there, you can ask the Chen clan leader to help you open up a channel of magma to supply Earth Fire here for the alchemists and artifact refiners of the clan to refine high-level pills and magical artifacts. That way, they won¡¯t have to go to Jinsha Square City to rent an Earth Fire chamber.¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao had lived for nearly a hundred years, and he had been in charge of the immortal cultivator market for a long time. He had even visited other immortal cultivator clans on behalf of the Zhou clan many times. The young Zhou Yang could not compare to his father in terms of the amount of experience and exposure to the immortal cultivation world.


    The few suggestions made it seem as if Zhou Xuanhao had simply thought of them out of thin air. But he had actually been investigating and planning for the development of Haoyang Cave¡¯s spiritual vein over the past few days.


    Each suggestion was the best choice after considering every possible solution and outcome.


    Zhou Xuanhao did not have to explain the efforts he had put into his thought process. As an office worker in his precious life, Zhou Yang already knew how hard Zhou Xuanhao had worked to be able to come up with these suggestions.


    Then, he remembered that he had just complained that his father didn¡¯t care about his juniors. He couldn¡¯t help but feel ashamed of himself. He lowered his head and bowed deeply to his father. ¡°Father, you are wise. I am ashamed I didn¡¯t know that I was sitting on a treasure mountain. I have let down the clan and elders¡¯ love!¡±


    ¡°Why are you acting like this, Son?¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao was surprised by Zhou Yang¡¯s response. He did not understand why Zhou Yang had suddenly turned so serious.


    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry about me. I just feel ashamed and I have lost my composure for a moment.¡±


    Zhou Yang was embarrassed. He quickly used his mana to suppress the negative emotions in his heart and laughed dryly as he raised his head towards his father.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s also a good thing to know how to be ashamed. To be able to reach your current level of cultivation at your age, it¡¯s inevitable that you will grow arrogant and belittle your peers and even senior cultivators. It would be terrible to have that kind of mentality! I think you should go out and experience the outside world more in the future. You should interact with the cultivators outside the clan. When you have seen and heard of the many geniuses in the cultivation world, you will know that your current achievements in the immortal cultivation world are nothing!¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao nodded lightly. He didn¡¯t delve into the reason Zhou Yang was ashamed. He simply looked at him and lectured him on the principles of being a person.


    ¡°You¡¯re right, Father. I have the same intentions too. However, I¡¯ll explain this matter to the clan leader after we¡¯ve settled ¡®that matter¡¯.¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao fell silent when his son brought it up.


    Taking the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence to break through to the realm of Foundation Establishment was quite risky. Whether or not it could succeed depended on the will of the heavens. It was useless to discuss it any further.


    When he saw the change in his father¡¯s expressions and body language, Zhou Yang immediately regretted bringing up the pot that had yet to boil. He hurriedly changed the topic and said, ¡°Father, since you suggested creating a spiritual beast room, why don¡¯t we give it a go now since we have nothing better to do?¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao nodded willingly, wanting to avoid the awkward topic.


    Since Zhou Yang and Zhou Xuanhao were at Qi Refinement Level 8 and Level 9 respectfully, and both of them were equipped with Advanced Grade 2 flying swords, they were able to easily carve out a part of the stone walls to open up a spiritual beast room.


    In less than half a year, the father and son took advantage of the hole created by the Venomous Fire Scorpions outside the cave to open up four ring-shaped stone rooms that were more than two thousand feet long, ten feet wide, and seven feet tall.


    These ring-shaped stone rooms were surrounded by thick stone walls. Even a Grade 2 demon beast would not be able to escape unless it could burrow to escape like the Metal Eating Rat.


    The Zhou clan usually raised the Advanced Grade 1 Phoenix Crown Turkey at Yuquan Peak. This demon beast could grow up to forty to fifty kilograms in weight and produced meat that was firm and chewy that could easily fill one¡¯s stomach. It was a highly preferred food choice of low-level rogue cultivators.


    Zhou Yang planned to wait until he reached the realm of Foundation Establishment before he brought in a batch of Phoenix Crown Turkeys from Yuquan Peak to be kept in the spiritual beast room.


    Not long after the spiritual beast room had been built, the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence flowed out from the ten-thousand-year-old stalactite.


    The Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence that flowed out was amber in color and emitted a strange, alluring fragrance. There wasn¡¯t much of it, only less than a liter.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take half of it. Yang, keep the rest of the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence well. I¡¯ll hand it over to the clan leader later.¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao was an alchemist, so collecting ingredients such as the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence was a must. He used a jade bottle to collect the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence that flowed out. Then, he poured half of it into another jade bottle and handed it to Zhou Yang.


    After gazing deeply at his wife and son for a full fifteen minutes, he finally broke into a laugh and said, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ve already told you what I needed to tell you. No one is allowed to cry today. Just quietly wait for my good news!¡±


    ¡°Xuanhao!¡±


    Lin Yuting cried out in a low voice with tears streaming down from her beautiful eyes. Her jade-like hands tightly held the man¡¯s hands, unwilling to let him go.


    Although she had already tried to persuade him, she understood his choice. Still, it was hard to hold back her tears.


    Zhou Yang looked unusually calm at that moment. He looked at his father, nodded slightly, then reached out to pull his mother away. He gently advised her. ¡°Mother, let¡¯s go. What Father needs the most right now is to calm his mind. We can¡¯t let him break through with his worries!¡±


    ¡°Take good care of your mother. Don¡¯t let her do stupid things!¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s mana surged as he gently pushed his wife¡¯s hands away. Then, he turned around and walked into the Closed Door Cultivation room without looking back. The door to the room lowered shut with a boom..

 Chapter 29 - Zhou Xuanhao’s Foundation Establishment

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s breakthrough attempt to reach the realm of Foundation Establishment was a major event for the entire Zhou clan.


    It had been decades since anyone in the Zhou clan had been able to do so. The last Zhou clan cultivator who broke through to the realm of Foundation Establishment without the Foundation Establishment Pill was an elder of the Light generation from more than fifty years ago.


    Therefore, after Zhou Xuanhao entered the Closed Door Cultivation room, not only Zhou Yang and Lin Yuting, but even Zhou Xuantai and Zhou Xuanbin stood guard to protect him.


    It made sense for them to be so cautious.


    When an immortal cultivator was attempting a breakthrough to the realm of Foundation Establishment, not only could he not utilize his mana, but his mind could not be disturbed by any external force. The immortal cultivator was in an extremely vulnerable state.


    A full-on attack would not even be necessary. All one needed to do was to make cause some minor disturbance outside Haoyang Cave¡¯s spiritual vein to stir its spiritual Qi and Zhou Xuanhao would fail to break through.


    Therefore, before immortal cultivators attempted a breakthrough to the realm of Foundation Establishment, they would first ensure the safety and stability of their surroundings by choosing only their closest and most trusted people to guard outside their Closed Door Cultivation room. Only then would they dare to work towards the breakthrough to the realm of Foundation Establishment without worry.


    Usually, there was a time limit for immortal cultivators to make the breakthrough. It could be as short as one month, and as long as three months. If there was no news after that, it was sure to be a failure.


    After a month passed since Zhou Xuanhao went into Closed Door Cultivation, the others were still able to calmly meditate as they stood guard without worry.


    However, when it was already approaching two months and there were still no movements in the Closed Door Cultivation room. Lin Yuting and Zhou Yang started to grow anxious.


    The longer it took to break through to the realm of Foundation Establishment, the lower the success rate. Even if one barely succeeded to break through to the realm of Foundation Establishment after two months, there would still be some residual effects that could hinder one¡¯s future cultivation.


    Zhou Yang noticed that his mother was looking more anxious than he was.


    ¡°Father didn¡¯t take the Foundation Establishment Pill so it¡¯s normal for him to take a longer time to reach the realm of Foundation Establishment. Mother, you should have confidence in him.¡±


    ¡°I¡­¡± Lin Yuting started to speak. But when she saw that her son and two clan brothers were looking at her, she immediately realized that she had lost her composure. She quickly shut her mouth and silently chanted the Clear Heart Incantation to control her anxious emotions. Once she had calmed down, she nodded slightly to show that she understood.


    However, when there were still no movements after fifty days, Zhou Yang also started to lose his calm composure.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. No news is good news. Even if he failed to reach the realm of Foundation Establishment, we would have heard something. If you and your son feel uncomfortable, why don¡¯t you go out and calm yourselves for a moment so that you won¡¯t disturb Brother Xuanhao?¡±


    ¡°Second Uncle is right. No news is good news!¡±


    The voice transmission from Zhou Xuantai startled Zhou Yang but he quickly recovered and nodded in agreement.


    Then, he got up and walked to his anxious mother to comfort her. ¡°Mother, we have to believe in Father. He will succeed!¡±


    ¡°Son, I¡¯m so scared. I¡¯m so scared that I won¡¯t be able to see your father again!¡±


    Lin Yuting grabbed her son¡¯s hand tightly. Her pretty face had turned pale and her eyes were filled with fear.


    She had always been opposed to Zhou Xuanhao taking the risk to break through to the realm of Foundation Establishment. She had tried to persuade her husband to give up on this dangerous idea, but it was obvious that he did not listen.


    As such, she had been quite pessimistic from the start, which only intensified the longer Zhou Xuanhao remained in Closed Door Cultivation.


    ¡°It won¡¯t happen. I believe Father will succeed. Mother, you have to believe in Father too. He won¡¯t let us down!¡±


    It was all Zhou Yang could do to comfort her, although deep down he knew that his father¡¯s attempt to break through to the realm of Foundation Establishment had been anything but smooth sailing.


    Despite his simple words, they were enough to bring Lin Yuting back from despair. Even though he knew it wouldn¡¯t be that effective, he firmly grasped her hands with hope.


    ¡°That¡¯s right. Xuanhao will not let us down. He has never let me down, and he won¡¯t this time either!¡±


    She muttered to herself and slowly started to calm her nerves.


    Time slowly passed and soon, it had been more than two months since Zhou Xuanhao entered the Closed Door Cultivation room.


    At this point, even Zhou Xuantai and Zhou Xuanbin were starting to feel uneasy.


    In all these years, no one in the Zhou clan had taken more than two months to succeed in breaking through to the realm of Foundation Establishment. Could Zhou Xuanhao break this record?


    Finally, after sixty-seven days, the Closed Door Cultivation room that had been quiet all this time finally erupted with an intense burst of spiritual Qi.


    ¡°It¡¯s the condensation of spiritual Qi! Is he going to succeed?¡±


    Zhou Xuantai, who had the highest cultivation level among those present, was the first to sense the change in spiritual Qi. His face changed drastically as he stood up from the ground and looked at the Closed Door Cultivation room in shock.


    ¡°It¡¯s indeed the condensation of spiritual Qi! This is the final stage right before reaching the realm of Foundation Establishment. As long as he can survive the condensation and refine the turbulent spiritual Qi into the True Essence of Foundation Establishment, he will be able to succeed in reaching Foundation Establishment!¡±


    Zhou Xuanbin also stood up from the ground and looked at the Closed Door Cultivation room solemnly. His eyes flashed with deep envy.


    This was the realm of Foundation Establishment that they had always been dreaming of reaching.


    Once Zhou Xuanhao succeeded, it would not only mean that the Zhou clan would have one more Foundation Establishment cultivator, but also that Zhou Xuanhao, the oldest cultivator of the Xuan generation would be the one who would live the longest among them.


    Moreover, Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s son, Zhou Yang, also had a high chance of becoming a Foundation Establishment cultivator. So Zhou Xuanbin felt a little jealous.


    What an enviable family!


    He looked at Zhou Yang and Lin Yuting who were hugging each other and cheering. Only he knew the feelings in his heart.


    ¡°Mother, it¡¯s a success. Father has succeeded in reaching the realm of Foundation Establishment!¡±


    Zhou Yang hugged his mother¡¯s shoulders tightly. The worry in his eyes had disappeared and his face looked excited.


    ¡°Son, pinch me. I¡¯m not dreaming, right? I¡¯m afraid this is just a dream!¡±


    Lin Yuting also held her son¡¯s shoulders tightly, almost stunned.


    The surprise came too suddenly.


    Who would have thought that after more than two months, Zhou Xuanhao would be able to successfully reach the realm of Foundation Establishment without taking the Foundation Establishment Pill!


    Such an achievement was something the entire immortal cultivation world, even in the far west, would deem as a rare and bizarre event that could only happen once in decades.


    Boom!


    On the third day after the start of the condensation of spiritual Qi and seventy days since Zhou Xuanhao made his attempt, the Closed Door Cultivation room finally opened outwards.


    Zhou Xuanhao walked out wearing a green robe and a smile on his face as Zhou Yang and the others stared at him with widened eyes.


    Zhou Xuanhao was almost a hundred years old. Before this, his skin was loose and wrinkled while almost half his hair had become white. he looked like an elderly person in the mortal world.


    But now that he had successfully reached the realm of Foundation Establishment, his lifespan had greatly increased and his appearance had been rejuvenated to make him look like a middle-aged man in his forties.


    The others almost couldn¡¯t recognize him.


    ¡°Father!¡±


    ¡°Xuanhao!¡±


    Zhou Yang and Lin Yuting finally came back to their senses. They rushed forward and hugged him tightly.


    ¡°Fifth Brother, Eighth Sister, let¡¯s go out first. The clan leader and the rest of the clan are still waiting for news from us!¡±


    Zhou Xuantai looked at Zhou Yang and his family who were hugging each other tightly. He smiled slightly and gave Zhou Xuanbin and Zhou Xuanyan a look. The three of them quietly left the stone room.


    Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s success was a joyous occasion for the entire Zhou clan.


    After receiving the news, the clan leader immediately flew over from Yuquan Peak on his flying sword. He must see it with his own eyes.


    Upon arrival, the clan leader walked straight into Hao Yang Cave and was immediately greeted by Zhou Yang¡¯s family who was all smiles.


    ¡°Xuantai and the others told me that you spent more than two months to successfully reach the realm of Foundation Establishment. Honestly, I thought that there must have been a mistake. I had to be sure, especially with Xuanyu, so here I am!¡±


    The aura of a Foundation Establishment cultivator from Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s body could not be faked. When Zhou Minghan saw it, the last bit of worry in his heart completely disappeared.


    Zhou Xuanhao chuckled and said, ¡°Well, even I still have a hard time believing it as well. If I was given the choice again, I would take it!¡±


    Zhou Minghan let out a long sigh and said, ¡°Luck is also a kind of strength. We, immortal cultivators, cultivate for our entire lives and will always encounter all kinds of opportunities. Some people seize the opportunities and ride the wind. Some people miss the opportunities and bury them!¡±


    Zhou Yang was listening as well and Zhou Minghan¡¯s words made him realize something.


    He thought of the Foundation Establishment Meeting that the clan leader had once told him. The Zhou clan would definitely use up their savings to buy a Foundation Establishment Pill during that time.


    If he couldn¡¯t break through to Qi Refinement Level 9 before then, wouldn¡¯t he miss an opportunity?


    His heart tightened and he suddenly felt an unprecedented sense of urgency.


    He was only one step away from Qi Refinement Level 9. Technically speaking, he still had quite a bit of time to break through.


    But who knew if there would be any hiccups along the way?


    What if the time for the Foundation Establishment Meeting was suddenly moved forward?


    ¡°I heard that when many seniors in the immortal cultivation world faced a bottleneck, they chose to travel and cultivate to temper their minds and broaden their horizons. It seems that the trip to the marketplace is inevitable.. Perhaps my opportunity to break through lies there!¡±

 Chapter 30 - Encountering Sand Bandits at Night

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s success in reaching the realm of Foundation Establishment was a joyous occasion for the entire Zhou clan. Therefore, Zhou Minghan ordered his people to send out invitations the moment he returned to the clan from Haoyang Cave to immortal cultivators from all over the world to the celebratory ceremony.


    Almost all immortal cultivation clans and expert rogue cultivators around Yuquan Lake Oasis who had a good relationship with the Zhou clan received an invitation.


    Clans who had been invited would either send their clan elders over with gifts as representatives to congratulate the Zhou clan or personally attend with their younger generation to broaden the latter¡¯s horizons.


    The cultivators that the Zhou clan had originally sent to the outside world were also called back temporarily to participate in the celebration.


    After all, it was the first one to be held in decades.


    A large number of immortal cultivators gathered at Yuquan Peak, causing the usually quiet place to become lively.


    The Zhou clan took this opportunity to hold a small-scale trade fair on-site as well, displaying their stored medicinal pills, magical artifacts, spiritual talismans, and other treasures from the treasury. Their target customers were the rogue cultivators present. In exchange, the Zhou clan bought all sorts of pill refining and artifact refining materials from the rogue cultivators.


    The Zhou clan did not target or expect sales from cultivators from other immortal cultivation clans as the latter usually had their own artifact refiners and alchemists to refine their own Grade 2 spiritual pills and magical artifacts.


    On the other hand, the cultivators from other immortal cultivation clans were more interested in the random spiritual items that were occasionally offered by the rogue cultivators.


    With whatever spiritual stones they had obtained from their sales, the rogue cultivators would use them to buy the Zhou clan¡¯s magical artifacts and medicinal pills.


    However, Zhou Yang was not able to witness such liveliness.


    When he had his epiphany the day Zhou Minghan arrived at Hao Yang Cave to witness Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s success, Zhou Yang had expressed his wish to travel the world.


    Once he had arrived back at the clan, Zhou Yang received some advice from Zhou Xuanyu and the clan leader. Then, after saying his goodbyes, he rode off alone on a Camel Beast and left Yuquan Lake Oasis.


    If he didn¡¯t count his time at Qingping Mountain, this would be the first time Zhou Yang went on a long journey alone after having been in this mysterious and vast immortal cultivation world for thirty-two years.


    His first destination was White Sand River Oasis, a desert oasis that was more than three thousand kilometers away from Yuquan Lake Oasis. It was where Jinsha Square City, the largest marketplace in the immortal cultivation world, was located.


    The ruler of White Sand River Oasis was the White Camel Ridge Chen clan. The Chen clan was an immortal cultivation clan that had been around for seven hundred to eight hundred years. The founder of the clan was a Zifu expert and the current head of the Chen clan, Chen Yaohui was already at a point where he would soon surpass the founder¡¯s cultivation level.


    Currently, the White Camel Ridge Chen clan had one immortal cultivator in the realm of Zifu, twelve in the realm of Foundation Establishment, over a thousand in the realm of Qi Refinement, and over a million mortal members. It was the largest immortal cultivation clan within a radius of tens of thousands of miles.


    When disciples of the White Camel Ridge Chen clan went out, even disciples of Yellow Sand School would respect them. It was obvious how illustrious the Chen clan was.


    The Chen clan had a notable background, unlike the small immortal cultivation Yuquan Zhou clan. The two clans were not on the same level at all.


    However, the Zhou clan¡¯s founder, Zhou Yuquan, had once helped Chen Yaohui when the latter was young and the former was still a part of Yellow Sand School.


    Therefore, when Zhou Yuquan established the Yuquan Zhou clan, the Chen clan leader not only gave the former two shops in Jinsha Square City as congratulatory gifts, Chen Yaohui had also recognized the Zhou clan as an ally of the Chen clan. As such, the Zhou clan had been able to have a share of the welfare of the Alliance Circle.


    The ability to attend the Foundation Establishment Meeting was one such privilege of being a part of the Alliance Circle.


    Zhou Yang¡¯s trip to White Sand River Oasis was not only to look for an opportunity to open up the bottleneck but also because he had been entrusted by his clan to succeed his father at the clan¡¯s shops in Jinsha Square City.


    The route from Yuquan Lake Oasis to White Sand River Oasis was a well-trodden path. Although there was no road in the desert in a strict sense, the joint efforts of several generations of Zhou clan cultivators, especially their array formation masters, had erected signal towers along the thousands of miles between the two oases to ensure that cultivators of the Zhou clan would not get lost.


    Of course, only Zhou Yang called them signal towers. In the immortal cultivation world, they were called Advanced Grade 1 Magnetic Traction Arrays.


    As long as the cultivators of the Zhou clan or those who were close to the Zhou clan walked on this road with a specially refined Grade 1 Yin Yang Compass, they would not have to worry about getting lost.


    The only thing that could interfere with one¡¯s travels along the road was the natural environment, which did not allow Zhou Yang¡¯s journey to be that smooth.


    The moment he left Yuquan Lake Oasis, he had encountered three sandstorms in just half a month. And every time a sandstorm came, he could only hide under the belly of the Camel Beast and pray that the sand would not bury him alive.


    If it wasn¡¯t the sandstorm, then it was the quicksand that interfered with his travels. But unlike sandstorms that made their arrival obvious and could be detected by Camel Beasts even before one could be spotted, one would only realize there was quicksand when one had already stepped on it because when undisturbed, it looked just like the surrounding sand. Quicksand could swallow up any weight and size of an object within seconds.


    Even a Camel Beast could not avoid one.


    Zhou Yang and the Camel Beast weighed more than three tons together. If they fell into quicksand, they would sink in less than three seconds.


    The first time they stepped into one, Zhou Yang did not have time to react and fell in with the Camel Beast.


    Fortunately, the clan leader had repeatedly advised Zhou Yang before he left to put a few Earth Escape Technique talismans in his sleeves so that he could escape predicaments such as quicksand by activating the talismans in time.


    This experience of being trapped in quicksand really scared Zhou Yang. The terrifying suffocation that felt like he was falling into an abyss was even more terrifying than death.


    Ever since his first encounter with quicksand, he had been using his Divine Sense to scan the ground ten meters ahead with the Earth Escape Technique talismans stuck on his arms and legs.


    Although doing so consumed a lot of mental energy, it at least put him at ease.


    Unfortunately, it also meant that Zhou Yang¡¯s travel time had been greatly increased. He could only advance less than three hundred miles every day, far below the normal speed of a Camel Beast¡¯s typical distance coverage of five hundred miles.


    Zhou Yang was exhausted after traveling for the day so he decided to set up camp on a sand slope.


    Zhou Yang first set up the tent, then fed the Camel Beast a few Grade 1 Essence Pills refined from the blood and flesh of demon beasts to replenish the Camel Beast¡¯s strength. Then, he hung the Camel Bell.


    After doing all this, he was finally relieved and left the Camel Beast outside to keep watch for him with the Camel Bell. Then, he entered his tent in peace to meditate and recover the strength of his Divine Sense.


    The temperature in the desert at night was cold, cold enough to go below zero. Zhou Yang was better off inside the camel skin tent. The Camel Beast outside had curled up into a ball as its breath condensed into white mist around its muzzle.


    The Camel Beast was not only the most suitable mount in the desert but also a good guard.


    Camel Beasts had the outstanding perceptive ability to sense even the sound of rats digging a few meters deep underground. With them standing guard, no desert demon beast could launch a sneak attack from underground.


    The night gradually deepened and the temperatures started to drop. The Camel Beast guarding his tent had already buried most of its body into the sand, leaving only its head above the ground.


    All of a sudden, the Camel Beast opened its eyes and raised its head to look toward the top of the sand slope with vigilant eyes.


    Ding, ding, ding!


    The rapid sound of the Camel Bell accompanied by the anxious cry of the Camel Beast woke Zhou Yang from his meditative rest.


    Without thinking, he whipped out his Silver Shield and rushed out of the tent.


    Whoosh!


    Just as he did, Zhou Yang heard a sharp sound exploding in his ear. He was not unfamiliar with this sound as he speculated that it was the sound of an immortal cultivator commanding a flying sword through the air.


    Sure enough, in the next moment, he saw a golden light collide with his Silver Shield.


    ¡°An Advanced Grade 2 magical armor!¡±


    The golden light scattered upon contact with the Silver Shield, revealing a two-foot-long golden conical magical weapon and a surprised cry that came from not far away.


    Zhou Yang followed the sound and looked over. He saw two black-robed masked cultivators standing on the sand slope, looking in his direction.


    When they saw him looking over, one of the black-robed cultivators stretched out his hand and beckoned the conical magical weapon that had failed the sneak attack as he greedily eyed the Silver Shield in Zhou Yang¡¯s hands. ¡°Kid, I¡¯ll give you a chance to live. Hand over your Advanced Grade 2 magical armor and I¡¯ll spare your life!¡±


    ¡°Sand bandits?¡±


    Zhou Yang frowned.


    ¡°You know that we are sand bandits and yet you are still so calm. It seems that you are not an ordinary cultivator from an ordinary clan. May I know which clan you came from?¡±


    ¡°Why? Will you give up and just leave if I tell you?¡± Zhou Yang looked at the two people with a faint smile and mocking eyes.


    ¡°Of course not!¡±


    The black-robed cultivator who spoke shook his head and waved his hand. Then, he took out a bright red banner and looked at Zhou Yang with a cold smile. ¡°However, if you tell us where you came from, we might be kind enough to return your corpse to your clan after we kill you and if we get a good harvest!¡±


    ¡°I see!¡±


    Zhou Yang nodded and, with a wave of his hand, the four Armor Breaker Daggers on his waist became unsheathed. They turned into four beams of white light as they shot into the sand not far behind him.


    ¡°Ah!¡±


    A shrill scream instantly came from the ground behind Zhou Yang.


    ¡°Third Brother!¡±


    ¡°Third Brother!¡±


    The two men instantly shouted in surprise.


    It turned out that the group was a trio, not a duo ¨C one of them had been hiding underground, waiting for an opportunity to launch a sneak attack.


    They had not expected Zhou Yang to have already realized what was happening.


    Zhou Yang had been stalling for time as he attempted to pinpoint the third bandit¡¯s location. Once he did, he launched a sneak attack back on the bandit with no hesitation..

 Chapter 31 - Crushing Strength

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    ¡°How is your Divine Sense so strong? Don¡¯t say it was because of the Camel Beast. Third Brother has cultivated the Earth Evasion Technique to a silent level. It¡¯s impossible for a mere Camel Beast to discover his whereabouts!¡±


    The two black-robed cultivators who attacked Zhou Yang were both shocked and angry. They couldn¡¯t help but look at the white-robed young man with a hint of fear in their eyes.


    This was too strange!


    They knew their companion¡¯s ability. Although his cultivation was not as high as theirs ¨C only at Qi Refinement Level 7 ¨C he had been practicing the Earth Evasion Technique for more than thirty years. His mastery of the technique could fool even a Level 9 Qi Refinement cultivator.


    The trio had worked together and relied on this technique to kill countless powerful enemies, including expert rogue cultivators. But who would have thought that today was the day their technique would fail against a young man who looked to be in his twenties or thirties? This was too strange!


    ¡°You guys talk too much!¡±


    Zhou Yang looked at the two shocked sand bandits and raised his hand to throw two Grade 2 spiritual talismans at them.


    He would never reveal the reason his innate Divine Sense was much stronger than cultivators of the same level was that he had been reincarnated from another world. Although his mana equaled to that of a Level 8 Qi Refinement cultivator such as the sand bandits before him, his Divine Sense was at a level that could surpass that of an immortal cultivator at the Great Fulfillment of Qi Refinement.


    He had once asked the elders in his family at Qi Refinement Level 8 and learned that the range of the Divine Sense of an ordinary immortal cultivator at that cultivation level was only within a radius of seventy to eighty meters.


    But Zhou Yang¡¯s current Divine Sense range was within a radius of more than 150 meters!


    This range might not be comparable to the Divine Sense range of Foundation Establishment cultivators which could easily reach thousands of meters in radius, but Zhou Yang¡¯s Divine Sense range was impressive enough for ordinary Qi Refinement cultivators.


    Even Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s Divine Sense range was only within a hundred meters.


    Though an immortal cultivator¡¯s Divine Sense range was not as important as the cultivation of their mana, the benefits of having a higher range of Divine Sense were obvious.


    Zhou Yang, for example, was able to identify many dangers that could not be seen with the naked eye earlier than other immortal cultivators. The attack range of his spiritual artifacts also far exceeded that of immortal cultivators of the same level.


    Moreover, if an immortal cultivator¡¯s Divine Sense was powerful enough, his resistance to many mind-deceiving spells and divine abilities would also be much stronger than that of ordinary cultivators. Better Divine Sense would also make it easier for immortal cultivators to break through to the realm of Zifu as well as work on their Golden Cores to reach the realm of Core Foundation.


    In short, there were many benefits to having a powerful Divine Sense. Though Zhou Yang was born with a powerful Divine Sense, he had not even told his parents about it, so how could he casually reveal it to outsiders?


    The elders in his family had warned them from a young age that if they wanted to live long in the immortal cultivation world, they had to learn what could be revealed and what to keep secret to be used as a trump card later. The more trump cards they had, the stronger they would be as they would have a greater chance of winning when fighting with the enemy.


    The two sand bandits thought that he would be easy to bully due to his age. After all, the duo was already at Level 8 of Qi Refinement and had the advantage in numbers. They were confident they could take him out.


    Unfortunately, they had completely underestimated him.


    Zhou Yang did not have many other things on him, just his many spiritual talismans, medicinal pills, and magical artifacts!


    What could he do? He had a good godmother who was an Advanced Grade 2 talisman maker and an alchemist for a father who was now a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Zhou Yang himself was also an Advanced Grade 2 artifact refiner!


    After he threw out the first two spiritual talismans at the sand bandits, he decided to throw out more.


    Usually, using an Advanced Grade 2 spiritual talisman would only consume less than half of his mana as a Level 8 Qi Refinement cultivator. However, Zhou Yang had almost more than twenty such talismans on him.


    The market price of Advanced Grade 2 spiritual talismans was usually around thirty lower-tier spiritual stones. The price of defensive and other special types of spiritual talismans would be slightly higher.


    For a normal Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement cultivator, having one or two Advanced Grade 2 spiritual talismans on them was already good enough since they would be used as trump cards to turn the tables. They were extremely precious, so how could anyone bear to throw them out like Zhou Yang did as if they were trash?


    The Fireball Talisman, Ice Spear Talisman, Golden Sword Qi Talisman¡­


    When they saw several Advanced Grade 2 spells of different elemental types bursting forth from Zhou Yang¡¯s spiritual talismans, the two bandits¡¯ faces turned pale. They finally realized what they had gotten themselves into.


    ¡°Damn it, I didn¡¯t expect this kid to be a Foundation Establishment Seed of a certain clan. We¡¯ve suffered a great loss this time!¡±


    The two bandits lamented over their bad luck as they quickly took out their life-saving talismans and activated them while activating their magical armor with their mana to defend themselves.


    For bandits like them, strength might be beneficial but having a good eye was more important.


    They would never provoke anyone they found more powerful or dangerous than them. They would rather let their prey go than risk their lives.


    Their existence today was proof that they had had a good eye in choosing their victims so far.


    Before ambushing Zhou Yang, the three sand bandits had been secretly following Zhou Yang for half a day. After several investigations, they found out that Zhou Yang was indeed alone, so they decided to attack him that night.


    Under normal circumstances, Zhou Yang shouldn¡¯t have been able to stand up against their attacks even if he had an exceptional magical artifact.


    After all, they were pretty well equipped themselves. Even the Scarlet Banner held by one of the sand bandits was an Advanced Grade 2 magical artifact.


    However, who hasn¡¯t made a mistake before?


    The trio had planned so well but never would they have been able to predict that the prey they had chosen was actually a Foundation Establishment Seed of an immortal cultivation clan!


    The Foundation Establishment Seed was a clan genius like Zhou Yang who had been placed with high hopes by the elders of their respective immortal cultivation clans. Strictly speaking, as long as they didn¡¯t die prematurely, the Foundation Establishment Seed was the person expected to take the Foundation Establishment Pill to reach the realm of Foundation Establishment.


    These Foundation Establishment Seeds generally wouldn¡¯t leave their clan¡¯s territory easily. Even if they did, they would usually travel together with their clan elders and would certainly carry life-saving items given by their clan elders.


    When sand bandits encountered a group that consisted of the young and old, the sand bandits would generally avoid them. No one wanted to mess with potential Foundation Establishment cultivators or an entourage of immortal cultivation clan elders.


    Since Zhou Yang was alone and at Qi Refinement Level 8, the sand bandits simply thought that he was just another cultivator from an ordinary clan. How were they expected to know who they were dealing with until it was too late?


    Now that they had realized the reality of the situation, the sand bandits immediately knew that they would definitely not be able to see through their mission today.


    Therefore, after using up the defensive spiritual talismans and their magical armor to block Zhou Yang¡¯s attacks, the black-robed cultivator waved the Scarlet Banner and released seven or eight crimson fireballs the size of a human head to counterattack Zhou Yang. ¡°Second Brother, the winds have turned against us. We need to go, now!¡±


    The sand bandit shooting the fireballs immediately slapped a Lower Grade 2 Divine Escape Talisman on his back to increase the speed of his movements. Then, he turned around and fled.


    ¡°Wait for me, Big Brother!¡±


    The other sand bandit with the conical magical artifact panicked and hurriedly slapped the same talisman on his back to chase after the other sand bandit, afraid that he would not be able to leave if he was a step late.


    Zhou Yang had been defending himself with the Silver Shield against the oncoming fireballs and noticed that the sand bandits had fled. ¡°You want to run after wasting so many of my talismans? You¡¯re not going anywhere!¡±


    Zhou Yang raised his right hand and shot out a foot-long dark red flying needle.


    The needle flew through the night at the speed of sound, aiming for the fleeing sand bandits. Never would they have thought that Zhou Yang would also have a yin magical weapon.


    By the time their Divine Sense detected the dark red flying needle, they had no time to react.


    ¡°Ah! Brother, save me!¡±


    A dark red spiritual light flashed and the sand bandit with the conical magical weapon fell forward with a scream.


    The flying needle was an Advanced Grade 2 magical weapon that specialized in breaking through protective spells such as the poorly-casted Golden Protection Light Technique that was just as thick as a piece of paper on the sand bandit¡¯s body .


    When the other sand bandit saw this, he ran even faster. He even used a black shield to protect his back as he ran. It was obvious that he had learned a lesson from his companions, fearing that Zhou Yang would stick a needle in him too.


    Once you have lost the element of surprise, the tide of the battle would have turned on you.


    It was not easy to refine a flying needle. The magical weapon was much weaker than a flying sword of the same level. If one were to attack rashly with it only to be intercepted, the flying needle would be easily destroyed. Zhou Yang did not want to take such a risk with his flying needle.


    Besides, he¡¯s got more than one card up his sleeve.


    He looked at the desert bandits who were about to escape the range of his Divine Sense and gritted his teeth as he activated a talisman in his hand that was glowing with faint blue electricity.


    Rumble!


    Suddenly, there was the sound of thunder in the pitch-black night sky. Then, a blue thunderbolt as thick as an arm zapped down from the sky and struck the body of the sand bandit who had escaped to the top of the sand slope mountain.


    The sand bandit¡¯s defense was no match for this attack. He didn¡¯t even have time to take one last breath before his entire being, along with the belongings, were zapped into a pile of charcoal..

 Chapter 32 - Examining the Spoils of the Battle

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    ¡°How formidable! As expected of the Thunderbolt Spell. Its power is almost comparable to the Grade 3 spells of the five elements!¡±


    Zhou Yang stood on the sand slope, looking down at the charred corpses of the sand bandits with a face full of amazement.


    He had long heard of the astonishing power of the Thunderbolt Spell. There were very few other spells of the same grade that could rival the Thunderbolt Spell in terms of power. Now that he had witnessed it with his own pair of eyes, he knew that the rumors did not appear out of thin air.


    However, the Thunderbolt Spell was also one of the hardest to cultivate.


    Generally speaking, only cultivators with Wind-Lightning-based spiritual roots could learn the spell more easily.


    Cultivators like Zhou Yang with Fire-based spiritual roots would have ten times more difficulty learning the Thunderbolt Spell. Moreover, even if someone like him learned it, the power of the spell would be much lower than that of a cultivator with Wind-Lightning-based spiritual root.


    As such, though many wanted to use the spell, they were not willing to spend that much time and effort on learning it. The ability to utilize it to its full potential was extremely rare.


    Inserting the spell into a spiritual talisman not only required a highly-skilled talisman maker but also Wind-Lightning-based spiritual materials.


    The high requirements of making a Thunderbolt Talisman were precisely the reason its value was always the highest among spiritual talismans of the same level. Sometimes, its value would be on par with the higher-level spiritual talismans.


    As such, the talisman was usually a rare find. Possession of one was an indicator of the possessor¡¯s luck, either in being able to make or obtain it.


    Zhou Yang¡¯s Advanced Grade 2 Thunderbolt Talisman was given to him by the clan leader. It had been intended as a trump card for Zhou Yang to use for self-protection.


    The clan leader had specially warned him not to use this talisman unless it was absolutely necessary.


    Neither of them would have expected Zhou Yang to use the talisman, which had been kept well by Zhou Minghan for decades, in less than a month.


    ¡°What a waste! If I had known that the Thunderbolt Talisman was so powerful, I would have let this fellow off!¡±


    Zhou Yang recalled how solemn the clan leader had looked when the latter was handing the Thunderbolt Talisman to the former. Zhou Yang was starting to regret his decisions.


    Although the sand bandits deserved to die, he probably didn¡¯t have to use the Thunderbolt Talisman to kill them!


    However, what was done was done. There was no point in regretting. He could only look at the sand bandits¡¯ corpses on the ground and muttered to himself, ¡°I hope their storage bags will have some surprises for me. Otherwise, I might have suffered a huge loss today!¡±


    On a more serious note, this was the first time Zhou Yang had killed people, and three immortal cultivators in one go too.


    However, he did not feel too repulsed or guilty, most likely because of the training and teachings he had gone through since he was a young cultivator. The sight of the dead bodies of the sand bandits on the ground did not make him feel uncomfortable at all.


    Why would those corpses make him squirm when he had seen worse back at Qingping Mountain Oasis ¨C many of the corpses of the miners who had been bitten to death by the Metal Eating Rat were not even complete. He did feel slightly uncomfortable back then but it wasn¡¯t anything terrible.


    After all, immortal cultivators had mana to protect their bodies. They would not suffer from any simple illnesses, and even if they had been afflicted psychologically, they would be able to circulate their mana to suppress the effects.


    Zhou Yang shook the unnecessary thoughts out of his head as he searched the sand bandits¡¯ corpses on the ground. Once he was satisfied with his search, he used the Earth Escape Technique to bury the corpses before returning to the tent on the sand slope to check out his steals.


    Rogue cultivators weren¡¯t like the cultivators of sects and clans. The former did not have a settlement to store their assets like the latter did. Cultivators who belonged to sects and clans didn¡¯t have to worry about break-ins.


    Rogue cultivators had to bring their belongings with them at all times. As such, they would carry multiple storage bags of various sizes, and each would almost always be full.


    Zhou Yang did not bring back three storage bags from the corpses. He brought back ten.


    Three of the bags had a volume of ten cubic feet, six had a volume of five cubic feet, and one had a volume of three cubic feet.


    He emptied all the storage bags before him and found all sorts of items ranging from gold cups and jade bowls for meals to cowhide tents and rosewood beds. The sand bandits had everything.


    But, of course, the most common items he obtained from the storage bags were Golden Pearl Rice and frozen demon beast meat. The three bandits were probably afraid that they would starve to death in the desert. Each of them carried enough Golden Pearl Rice and demon beast meat to last them three to five years!


    ¡°No wonder the clan elders always spoke of rogue cultivators strangely, calling them disdainful, beggars, and vagrants in the immortal cultivation world!


    ¡°Who wouldn¡¯t be called those names if they were found walking around with these items in their storage bags?¡±


    Unfortunately, most of the items were more useful for mortals than immortal cultivators. He felt both amused and extremely disappointed.


    He was hoping to find some valuable goods from these storage bags to make up for the many Advanced Grade 2 spiritual talismans, including the Thunderbolt Talisman that he had wasted on the sand bandits earlier. It seemed that his spoils hadn¡¯t been worth it.


    Those rogue cultivators were sand bandits for a reason. They couldn¡¯t have had a rich family background. Otherwise, they wouldn¡¯t have become sand bandits. And it wasn¡¯t easy to become a sand bandit either.


    However, patience was a virtue. After spending a little more time searching the ten storage bags more thoroughly, Zhou Yang finally found some decent spiritual items for cultivation including two to three hundred pieces of lower-tier spiritual stones and several bottles of Grade 1 and Grade 2 spiritual pills with various uses. These pills would be worth over a hundred spiritual stones.


    Zhou Yang also found a few Grade 2 spiritual talismans as well as materials for artifact refinement and alchemy that the three sand bandits had stolen from who-knows-where and had yet to use or sell.


    By themselves, the materials weren¡¯t very valuable, probably only worth a dozen or twenty spiritual stones. But since Zhou Yang was an artifact refiner and his father was an alchemist, they would be able to refine those materials into magical artifacts or spiritual pills that were valued several times more.


    As he continued to rummage through the storage bags, Zhou Yang found another eight low-level cultivation methods, a few cultivation notes, and two immortal cultivator travel notes that recorded some strange things in the immortal cultivation world. Zhou Yang examined the cultivation methods and found that six of them already existed in the Zhou clan¡¯s Scripture Cave. He decided to donate the remaining two to the clan. He could probably also exchange them for twenty lower-tier spiritual stones.


    If he added up the value of all his spoils, including the magical artifacts that the sand bandits had equipped, he had made a return of investment from his battle with the sand bandits earlier.


    ¡°Those who kill and start fires wear a golden belt, but those who repair bridges and patch the roads don¡¯t even have their corpses left as remnants!¡± Zhou Yang let out a long sigh and decided to take back his previous words.


    Although rogue cultivators were poor, they could still be useful!


    After all, the three sand bandits were Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement cultivators. They had been in their trade for many years, so it was not a wonder that they had accumulated some wealth.


    If he excluded the life-saving talismans and pills that the clan elders had graciously given him, his wealth might not be much higher than the sand bandits¡¯.


    Even in the Zhou clan, only the elders ¨C besides the Foundation Establishment cultivators Zhou Minghan and Zhou Xuanyu ¨C at Qi Refinement Level 9 could surpass these three sand bandits in terms of personal wealth.


    After Zhou Yang was done admiring his finds, he burned the useless things and stuffed those he wanted to keep in two large storage bags at his waist, while the remaining empty storage bags hung along the back of the Camel Beast to later be given to the clan shop upon arrival at White Sand River Oasis.


    This was one of the advantages of being a clan cultivator. As long as the treasures obtained from the outside world had a clean background and did not belong to cultivators from other clans and sects, they could be sold at the marketplace freely. The only catch was that the clan cultivator seller would have to give back 50% of the sales to the clan as handling fees.


    Rogue cultivators would be able to sell things at the marketplace too, but only at 30% of the normal price.


    If they were unlucky or inexperienced, they would foolishly sell the goods stolen from clan or sect cultivators to well-established shops and risk confiscation or arrest and interrogation by law enforcement cultivators of the market. If the unlucky or inexperienced ones were found guilty of obtaining their steals through murder, their lives would be in danger.


    Thus, rogue cultivators would rather sell their spoils to smaller stalls than risk their lives at the bigger shops, unless they were desperate for spiritual stones.


    After all, rogue cultivators had to pay a fee to the marketplace managers just to sell their items.


    It wasn¡¯t fun being a rogue cultivator in the immortal cultivation world.


    Zhou Yang was very glad that he was a cultivator of a clan. Although the Zhou clan was not big, it was better than being a rogue cultivator in the immortal cultivation world.


    Fortunately, the battle with the three sand bandits earlier did not take up too much of Zhou Yang¡¯s time. On the contrary, it took him only half a night to examine his spoils.


    By the time he was done, the sky was already gradually getting brighter. He put away his tent and continued his journey on the Camel Beast..

 Chapter 33 - Chen Fangping

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    White Sand River Oasis was more than 3,200 miles long from east to west, 1,700 miles wide from north to south, and had a population of more than a million people. It was one of the most famous large-scale oases in the Boundless Sand Sea.


    The place gained its name after a long river with sand as white as jade that ran from White Camel Ridge in the south to Golden Water Lake in the north.


    It was said that a thousand years ago, White Sand River Oasis was only about half the size of what it was today. It was eventually occupied by the immortal cultivation clans along the river. After more than a thousand years of continuous investments of manpower and resources, they managed to expand the area of the oasis to its current size.


    There were four clans led by clan leaders in the realm of Foundation Establishment and dozens of smaller clans led by clan leaders in the realm of Qi Refinement, all of which were affiliated to the White Camel Ridge Chen clan led by a clan leader in the realm of Zifu. With so many immortal cultivators occupying such an expansive land, White Sand River Oasis was like a small self-sufficient immortal cultivation world of its own.


    Chen Yaohui¡¯s presence as the Chen clan leader and an Advanced-Stage Zifu Cultivator allowed White Sand River Oasis to confidently welcome foreign cultivators to its immortal cultivator market without the fear of getting ambushed or exterminated. The Chen clan and its affiliated smaller immortal cultivation clans ensured the safety of the millions of resident mortals by setting up gateways along the four sides of the oasis and assigning their own clan cultivators to guard them all year round. Doing so allowed the clans to properly guide and monitor the foreign cultivators without disturbing the mortals.


    If foreign cultivators did not enter White Sand River Oasis through any one of these gateways and were discovered by the clan cultivators on patrol, they would be punished at best with a light penalty of spiritual stones or be regarded as intruders and killed immediately in the worst-case scenario.


    At the southern gateway of White Sand River Oasis, a young man in a white robe riding a Camel Beast approached.


    Like most newcomers, the young man¡¯s face was full of fatigue.


    It was not until he saw the splendid palace on the mountain peak in the distance that his spirits were lifted and his eyes revealed a touch of excitement.


    The young man was Zhou Yang who had been traveling through the desert for forty-two days since he left Yuquan Lake Oasis.


    His journey had been relatively smooth after his encounter with the sand bandits besides killing two ignorant Grade 1 desert demon beasts along the way.


    His exhaustion was mainly from having to use his Divine Sense to navigate and identify potential dangers. By the time he arrived at the gateway, he urgently needed to find a safe place to rest.


    ¡°Fellow cultivator, welcome. I am Chen Fangping of White Camel Ridge. I have been assigned by my clan to guard this gateway and guide all incoming visitors. May I ask for your name and background?¡±


    Zhou Yang had arrived at the gateway in the Chen clan¡¯s jurisdiction.


    As they were only responsible for bringing in foreign cultivators to the market, the Chen clan did not have high requirements for the cultivation level of the assigned cultivators. The Chen clan cultivator that greeted Zhou Yang was Chen Fangping who seemed to be more than ten years older than him. Chen Fangping had a fair, plump, and kind appearance, and he was only at Qi Refinement Level 5.


    Despite being at a lower cultivation level, Chen Fangping treated Zhou Yang as an equal without acting servile or arrogant.


    Zhou Yang wasn¡¯t surprised by this. Chen Fangping had a clan leader who was a Zifu cultivator after all. Zhou Yang would have probably acted in the same way unless he was greeting a Foundation Establishment cultivator.


    He smiled, cupped his hands in return, and amiably said, ¡°Hello, Brother Chen Fangping of White Camel Ridge. I¡¯m Zhou Yang from the Zhou clan of Yuquan Lake Oasis. I¡¯ve come to Jinsha Square City under the orders of my clan to take over the Zhou clan¡¯s Yuquan Pavillion on behalf of my father, Zhou Xuanhao. This is my identity token.¡±


    Chen Fangping¡¯s expression changed when he heard that Zhou Yang was from an allied clan of the Chen clan. When he took the identity token and saw the message from Zhou Minghan, Chen Fangping smiled.


    ¡°Greetings, Brother Zhou Yang from the Yuquan Zhou clan. I¡¯m sorry for my rudeness earlier. Although my cultivation is low, I know of your father as an Advanced Grade 2 alchemist. I didn¡¯t expect you to inherit your father¡¯s job at such a young age. With a distinguished father such as yours, you must be quite accomplished as well!¡±


    Zhou Xuanhao had lived in White Sand River Oasis for a long time, so his reputation as an Advanced Grade 2 alchemist was well known among the various clans in the oasis. Moreover, Chen Fangping had noticed that Zhou Yang had reached Level 8 of Qi Refinement at such a young age. Having such an identity and family background had made Chen Fangping treat Zhou Yang more respectfully,


    As he returned Zhou Yang¡¯s identity token, he gestured invitingly to Zhou Yang and said, ¡°Brother, you must be exhausted from your journey from Yuquan Lake Oasis. Let¡¯s not talk too much. This way, please. I will get someone to prepare some food to welcome you.¡±


    ¡°Brother Chen, you are so righteous. Let me thank you first.¡±


    Zhou Yang did not hesitate either. After keeping the token, he followed Chen Fangping into the visitor arrival hall while his Camel Beast was taken care of by an assigned stableman.


    After going through the visitor arrival hall, Zhou Yang headed straight for the hot spring with the guidance of a servant for a hot bath. Once he had changed into a clean set of clothes, he returned to the visitor arrival hall and found that Chen Fangping had already prepared a table of dishes and wine for him.


    The dishes consisted of demon beast meat, hundred-year-old sealwort, hundred-year-old spiritual ginseng, and other Grade 2 spiritual herbs while the rice was steamed Golden Pearl Rice. After a meal together, those who did not know better would think that the two of them had been good friends for many years!


    Despite filling himself with the good food and wine, Zhou Yang still looked at the table and Chen Fangping with a puzzled expression.


    This was only the first time they met. Even if Chen Fangping wanted to make friends with him because of his father¡¯s reputation, this meal was a little too sumptuous.


    However, since the other party had started eating and the dishes did look quite delicious, Zhou Yang did not hesitate to dig in. He just assumed that the Chen clan were both rich and generous.


    It wasn¡¯t until he saw the bill the other party handed him that Zhou Yang suddenly realized that he had been tricked.


    Chen Fangping wasn¡¯t trying to befriend him. He was using Zhou Yang to buy himself a meal.


    He had been too gullible and should have realized sooner that despite Chen Fangping¡¯s friendliness, the Zhou and Chen clans were allies on the surface but the former was the lackey of the latter in reality. Although Chen Fangping¡¯s cultivation was low, he was still a legitimate Chen clan disciple. Why would he lower himself even slightly if he did not have an ulterior motive?


    Chen Fangping must have assumed that Zhou Yang was a rich kid since he was the son of the great Zhou Xuanhao. That was why Chen Fangping was willing to treat Zhou Yang so well.


    Moreover, Chen Fangping was in his clan¡¯s territory. There was no need to be afraid of how Zhou Yang would react.


    After thinking through all of this, Zhou Yang¡¯s expression gradually returned to normal. He remained calm despite knowing that he would have to pay the bill of the food they had just eaten, even his own portion.


    ¡°Brother Fangping, you are really smart. I truly admire you!¡±


    Chen Fangping seemed to be playing dumb when Zhou Yang respectfully cupped his hands together and handed over more than a hundred spiritual stones.


    When he received the spiritual stones, Chen Fangping immediately smiled. ¡°Zhou Yang, you are indeed worthy of being an outstanding disciple of the Zhou clan. You are really generous. Don¡¯t hesitate to treat me as a brother in the future. If you ever need my help with anything in White Sand River Oasis, just say the word. My cultivation level might not be very high, but I can always put in a good word for you to my father.¡±


    ¡°Oh, and who is your father if I may ask?¡± asked Zhou Yang to Chen Fangping in surprise.


    Could this thick-faced black-hearted fatty also be a second-generation immortal cultivator?


    ¡°My father is Chen Pingan!¡± Chen Fangping revealed his father¡¯s name arrogantly.


    ¡°Chen Pingan?! The senior immortal cultivator who killed the Advanced Grade 2 Golden Swallowing Toad with one strike of a sword?¡± Zhou Yang couldn¡¯t help but exclaim in surprise as he looked at Chen Fangping, astonished.


    ¡°Of course!¡± Chen Fangping was very satisfied by Zhou Yang¡¯s reaction.


    ¡°I see, no wonder¡­¡± Zhou Yang looked at the proud round-faced fatty and thought to himself, ¡®No wonder this guy, who was only at Qi Refinement Level 5, dared to trick a Level 8 Qi Refinement.¡¯


    It seemed that Chen Fangping¡¯s clan and family background were quite formidable.


    Chen Pingan was not an ordinary person. He was one of the more-than-ten Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Chen clan. In fact, he was already at Foundation Establishment Level 9, and thus the number one Foundation Establishment cultivator of the Chen clan, ranking just right below the Chen clan leader. His most infamous battle record was using the Grade 4 flying sword, the White Rainbow Sword to kill an Advanced Grade 3 Golden Swallowing Toad that was known for its high defense.


    With such a powerful father, Chen Fangping could basically do whatever he wanted in White Sand River Oasis as long as he didn¡¯t offend a Zifu cultivator. So why would he be afraid of or subservient to a Level 8 Qi Refinement cultivator like Zhou Yang?


    Seeing the change in Zhou Yang¡¯s expression, Chen Fangping knew what he was about to say. However, he didn¡¯t mind. After all, this was the truth.


    He narrowed his eyes, walked to Zhou Yang¡¯s side with a friendly expression, and patted the latter on the shoulder. ¡°How is it? Do you think you¡¯ve suffered a loss? You treated me to a meal and now have the opportunity to establish a relationship with my father. This is definitely a huge gain for you. You have to know that with my father¡¯s status, even your clan leader would have a hard time gaining an audience with him!¡±


    ¡°I¡­¡±


    Zhou Yang looked at the gloating Chen Fangping before turning his head slightly to avoid the latter¡¯s round and chubby face. Then, he coughed awkwardly and said, ¡°Well, since Brother Chen has said so, then I¡¯ll take the liberty to ask another question. You don¡¯t need spiritual stones to sleep here, right?¡±


    Zhou Yang was also afraid of being tricked and had learned from his mistakes. He no longer knew what was free and what he had to pay for, other than the fact that he could breathe freely without losing spiritual stones.


    Chen Fangping was amused by Zhou Yang¡¯s words and could not help but laugh out loud. ¡°My dear Zhou Yang is really interesting. Don¡¯t worry, not only is there no charge for sleeping, but I will also give you two beauties to warm your bed for free.. How about that?¡±

 Chapter 34 - Farewell!

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Zhou Yang did not want his bed warmed. Lust was like a bone-scraping knife. Countless geniuses in the immortal cultivation world had failed to resist the temptation of lust and beauty, losing their virginity too early, and thus destroying their cultivation.


    There was nothing more foolish than allowing a one-night stand to stand in the way of one¡¯s cultivation. A woman¡¯s seduction should be nothing compared to longevity.


    Moreover, the women Zhou Yang had interacted with were immortal cultivators such as his mother and godmother. Though they were nearly a hundred years old, their beauty and temperament were not something ordinary women could compare to. Why would he be interested in the regular women the Chen clan offered him?


    But Zhou Yang knew that some of the older cultivators who had already lost their virginity or who had extremely poor spiritual roots would often visit Fengyue Brothels ¨C places set up by each of the various clans in White Sand River Oasis ¨C to be treated like emperors.


    Though the women at Fengyue Brothels were mortal clansmen of their respective immortal cultivation clans, their purpose in serving the men was to gain the opportunity of giving birth to a baby with spiritual roots.


    Based on the statistical calculations of the experienced and seasoned immortal cultivators, the chances of a mortal woman and an ordinary Qi Refinement cultivator giving birth to a child with spiritual roots were more than one percent, much higher than the chances of a mortal couple trying to do the same.


    Any woman in a Fengyue Brothel who gave birth to a child with spiritual roots, even if it¡¯s of a lower level, would receive a reward from their clan.


    The reward might not be much to immortal cultivators, but it was a huge sum of money for mortals to use within a lifetime. Plus, the clan would gain a new immortal cultivator to add to their ranks. It was a double-win situation for everyone.


    The first clan to set up a Fengyue Brothel was the Chen clan. At least 30% of their Qi Refinement cultivators and two of the more-than-ten Foundation Establishment cultivators were offsprings of the women who worked in the brothel.


    It was precisely because of the Chen clan¡¯s genius that the other immortal cultivation clans in White Sand River Oasis decided to follow in the Chen clan¡¯s footsteps and set up their own Fengyue Brothels. Sometimes, the major clans would even offer spiritual stones to the cultivators who visited the clan¡¯s Fengyue Brothels when there was a lack of cultivators frequenting the Fengyue Brothels.


    Many young rogue cultivators who did not know how precious their Yuan Qi was would fall victim to the beauties and spiritual stones of Fengyue Brothels.


    It seemed that the Fengyue Brothels in White Sand River Oasis had been so successful that other clans in the Boundless Sand Sea had opened their own versions.


    However, this model was not without its limitations. It could only survive in large oases with immortal cultivator marketplaces like White Sand River Oasis due to the high traffic of immortal cultivators.


    For example, the Zhou clan of Yuquan Lake Oasis would not be able to open a Fengyue Brothel because they didn¡¯t have the traffic. The Zhou clan was just a small clan that did not have the manpower or resources to protect themselves should a large number of foreign immortal cultivators move around and through Yuquan Lake Oasis.


    When Zhou Yang first heard of Fengyue Brothels from an elder, he was quite surprised and used to envy the cultivators who were able to visit such a place. After all, some of them were paid to visit them, a concept he could never dream of in his previous life!


    In addition to offering spiritual stones, some of the clans would go one step further and train their mortal women in many aspects, including etiquette, dance, vocal music, bed techniques, and so on. They had based these skills on the standards of the concubines of the mortal countries in the immortal cultivation world of Liuyun continent. Having this set of skills could guarantee an emperor-like treatment for all immortal cultivators who visited Fengyue Brothels.


    But not all clans allowed their cultivators to visit the brothels. The Zhou clan was one of many beyond White Sand River Oasis with clan rules that prohibited any of their clansmen from visiting a Fengyue Brothel. For the Zhou clan, it was one of the top rules on the list.


    The rule was put in place to not only prevent young cultivators of the clan from being blinded by the temptation of beauty but also to prevent the blood of the clan from leaking into the outside world and being used by enemies against the clan.


    Immortal cultivation clans, especially the larger ones, would usually add a Divine Bloodline Restriction in their clan¡¯s treasury and territory protection array formation. This will ensure that any trespassers that managed to enter with a token or magical artifact and planned to rob the treasury but had a bloodline that did not meet the entry requirements of the restriction would trigger the array formation to kill them directly or by self-destructing.


    With such precautions in place, how could they risk the death of a fellow blood brother who had fallen in with the wrong company?


    The Zhou clan was not large so they did not set up such precautions for their treasury. Still, it was better to be safe than sorry. If they did not make efforts to stop the problems at their source now, it might come back to haunt them when the Zhou clan became large and prosperous enough to attract the enemies¡¯ attention in the future.


    Thus, no immortal cultivation clan that had even the tiniest bit of foresight would willingly allow their bloodline to leave the clan. Even if their female cultivators had found their Dao partners elsewhere, the clan would mostly have the Dao partner marry into the family or make them swear a Netherworld Blood Oath to never have children.


    For Zhou Yang, it didn¡¯t matter whether it was because of the clan rules or the pursuit of longevity, but he was determined not to lose his Yuan Qi before reaching the realm of Core Foundation.


    The moment he rejected the women Chen Fangping had sent him, Zhou Yang immediately closed the door to his room and fell asleep.


    He slept very comfortably for more than twenty hours before he woke up, full of energy and no longer feeling as tired as before.


    Then, he tidied up his appearance and left the room for the visitor arrivals hall. He was ready to bid farewell to Chen Fangping and head over to Jinsha Square City.


    When Chen Fangping saw Zhou Yang walk in, the former immediately greeted the latter with a smile. ¡°Zhou Yang! You¡¯re finally awake. so, do you want me to arrange another feast before I send you off?¡±


    Zhou Yang¡¯s face instantly darkened. He was so angry that he almost turned around and left.


    But he held it in, rolled his eyes, and looked at the black-hearted, round-faced fatty with a look of annoyance. ¡°Brother Chen, do I look so easy to rip off? You¡¯re the descendant of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Don¡¯t tell me that I can afford more spiritual stones than you?¡±


    ¡°Oh, Zhou Yang. What are you talking about? Doing business is all about being honest and fair. Why are you talking about rip-offs? Besides, who said that the descendants of Foundation Establishment cultivators don¡¯t have enough spiritual stones? But who wouldn¡¯t want more?¡±


    Chen Fangping shook his head disagreeably.


    Chen Fangping liked spiritual stones just like a businessman liked money. Everything had a price. How could Zhou Yang use such insulting words like ¡®ripping off customers¡¯ with him? This was an insult to Chen Fangping and his father, Chen Pingan!


    He looked at Zhou Yang and seriously said, ¡°Zhou Yang, are you really not going to reconsider? Let me just say this, if it wasn¡¯t for the fact that you and I hit it off from the beginning, I would not have let anyone else drink or eat at the same table as me!¡±


    Zhou Yang looked at Chen Fangping with a straight face, completely unmoved.


    Most people wouldn¡¯t have been able to afford the wine Chen Fangping drank anyway. Even a Foundation Establishment cultivator wouldn¡¯t be so extravagant with a table full of wine and food worth over a hundred spiritual stones.


    The more Zhou Yang thought about the meal yesterday, the more his heart hurt. He had just spent over a hundred spiritual stones with an annual income of only eighty lower-tier spiritual stones!


    He had just eaten a meal worth more than a year¡¯s income! How could he not wince at that memory?


    An Advanced Grade 2 magical artifact on the market would only cost between five hundred to one thousand lower-tier spiritual stones. This meal was equivalent to eating a Lower Grade 2 magical artifact, or four Advanced Grade 2 spiritual talismans!


    After staring at each other for a long time, Chen Fangping realized that Zhou Yang would not budge at all. In the end, the former helplessly shrugged and said, ¡°Alright, since you insist, then I wish you a safe journey!¡±


    ¡°Farewell, Brother Chen!¡±


    Zhou Yang cupped his hands and turned around to leave the hall without looking back.


    Chen Fangping watched Zhou Yang¡¯s figure gradually disappear into the distance, and the smile on his face disappeared. Chen Fangping turned thoughtful as he muttered to himself. ¡°This guy is already at Qi Refinement Level 8 at such a young age, and he has such a good temperament too. He¡¯s a good Foundation Establishment Seed. It seems that the Zhou clan will have another Foundation Establishment cultivator after this Foundation Establishment Meeting!¡±


    Chen Fangping was one of the many who had been assigned by their respective clans to welcome and guide cultivators in and out of White Sand River Oasis. But their purpose was not just to prevent cultivators from barging into the oasis and disturbing the mortals. People like Chen Fangping were also on a mission to secretly observe the potential of visiting cultivators.


    If they encountered rogue cultivators perceived to have good potential, the stationed clan cultivators would inform their clans to secretly inquire about their personal lives. If the investigations confirmed that there was nothing amiss with the rogue cultivator¡¯s character, the clan would throw an olive branch to the rogue cultivator, hoping to recruit him as a guest elder or disciple of the clan.


    If they met a cultivator from another immortal cultivation clan like Zhou Yang, they would simply collect his information and compile it into a book to be submitted to the clan. Such information might not seem useful now but if the clan wanted to deal with or recruit the cultivator in the future, they would already have the necessary information..

 Chapter 35 - Jinsha Square City

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Jinsha Square City was located on Jinxia Mountain to the south of White Sand River Oasis. It was less than two hundred meters from the base camp of the Chen clan in White Camel Ridge.


    In the beginning, Jinxia Mountain had a Lower Grade 3 natural spiritual vein. When Jinsha Square City expanded, the Chen clan had spent a lot of money to upgrade the spiritual vein to one that ranked at Advanced Grade 3 to allow a sufficient amount of spiritual Qi emissions that could satisfy several Foundation Establishment cultivators and hundreds of Qi Refinement cultivators at one time.


    As such, the number of resident immortal cultivators at Jinsha Square City was five hundred with more than one hundred shops in the market.


    As the only market for immortal cultivators within a radius of tens of thousands of miles, Immortal cultivators came to Jinsha Square City every day to buy or sell cultivation materials. The poll tax collected annually from the marketplace alone could total up to thousands of spiritual stones.


    Some had calculated that just the poll tax imposed on visiting immortal cultivators and the annual rent paid by the shops and cultivation caves in Jinsha Square City could provide the Chen clan with a net income of ten to twenty thousand spiritual stones. And this was aside from the Chen clan¡¯s profits from their own shops in the marketplace.


    With such a large amount of income, it was easy for them to attract the envy of others. In order to protect their golden goose, the Chen clan not only set up a Lower Grade 4 array formation in the market but also stationed more than three of their Foundation Establishment cultivators there all year round.


    Combined with the law enforcement team of the Chen clan, even Zifu cultivators or Grade 4 demon beasts would not be able to break through the array formation and stationed manpower for several hours before the clan leader Chen Yaohui would come to the rescue.


    Zhou Yang left the Chen clan¡¯s gateway and rode on the Camel Beast for another day before he arrived at the city¡¯s border that was shrouded by the array formation¡¯s fog.


    Zhou Yang saw a few Chen clan cultivators collecting poll tax. Usually, an Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement cultivator like him who wanted to stay in the city for less than ten days would have to pay one lower-tier spiritual stone as a fee. If he wanted to stay for more than ten days, then he would have to pay an extra lower-tier spiritual stone as a detention fee.


    However, as an allied clan of the Chen clan, Zhou clan cultivators only had to pay one-third of the poll tax when they entered the market.


    Zhou Yang was not sure how long he would have to stay in the marketplace, so he paid the one-year fee first. Then, he brought his payment receipt and a refined iron token with a special mark before slowly walking into the marketplace shrouded in clouds.


    An immortal cultivation clan¡¯s marketplace was, of course, very different from the ones built by ordinary mortals.


    Upon entry, Zhou Yang discovered that what looked like a marketplace shrouded in clouds from the outside was actually a spiritual mountain that was hundreds of meters tall. There were pavilions, palaces, lofts, and pagodas on one side of the mountain, emitting all kinds of dazzling spiritual lights that attracted cultivators from all directions to go there.


    Day or night didn¡¯t matter in the marketplace.


    Zhou Yang stood at the foot of the mountain and looked around for a while before spotting the Yuquan Pavilion among the many pavilions.


    The Yuquan Pavilion was located on the side of a pond in the marketplace. The entire building was seventy feet tall and was made of hundred-year-old ironwood. It had three floors where the lower two floors sold magical artifacts, pills, spiritual talismans, and other items refined by Zhou clan cultivators while the upper floor was used to receive distinguished guests.


    The two shops that the Chen clan had given to the Zhou clan back then were the Yuquan Pavilion and the Drunken Immortal Restaurant ¨C the latter had been managed by Zhou Yang¡¯s mother, Lin Yuting.


    Before Zhou Xuanhao reached the realm of Foundation Establishment, he was in charge of Yuquan Pavilion. Now that he was back at Yuquan Lake Oasis, the Zhou clan cultivator in charge now was the new elder, Zhou Xuanlin.


    Zhou Xuanlin was ranked seventh among the Xuan generation. He was also a Grade 2 artifact refiner of the Zhou clan besides the clan leader and Zhou Yang. However, his talent in artifact refinement was not very good. Despite already being at Qi Refinement Level 9, Zhou Xuanlin could only refine up to Intermediate Grade 2 magical artifacts with not-very-high success rates.


    Besides Zhou Xuanlin, there were also three juniors from the Yuan generation ¨C Zhou Ping, Zhou Yu, and Zhou Xiong ¨C and an external Zhou clan relative ¨C Qian Hongyu. They were the sales assistants of the shop.


    Qian Hongyu was Zhou Xuanchen¡¯s Dao partner who ranked twelfth in the Zhou family¡¯s Xuan generation. Zhou Ping, Zhou Yu, and Zhou Xiong were ranked fourth, fifth, and thirteenth in the Yuan generation respectively. Zhou Yang was most familiar with his thirteenth brother, Zhou Xiong as they were closest in age to each other.


    Zhou Xiong had been assigned to Yuquan Pavilion to observe and learn from the business because of his younger age. The clan wanted him to improve his eloquence and observation skills.


    When Zhou Yang led the Camel Beast to the front of the building, Zhou Xiong immediately recognized the former whose name had already spread throughout the entire clan.


    ¡°Zhou Yang! Why are you here? I didn¡¯t hear Seventh Uncle and the others mention this matter beforehand!¡±


    Zhou Xiong was five years younger than Zhou Yang. He was turning twenty-seven years old that year and was growing into quite a handsome young man.


    Zhou Xiong was surprised to see Zhou Yang. The former hurriedly ran forward and took the reins from Zhou Yang¡¯s hands before greeting the new arrival warmly. ¡°Zhou Yang, you must have had a hard journey coming all the way here. Don¡¯t worry, I will help you take care of this Camel Beast in the backyard. It just so happens that Seventh Uncle is upstairs today. You can see him on the third floor.¡±


    Zhou Yang was now a prominent figure in the Zhou clan. Even if the news of his father¡¯s breakthrough to the realm of Foundation Establishment had not reached White Sand River Oasis yet, Zhou Yang¡¯s achievement as an Advanced Grade 2 artifact refiner and Level 8 Qi Refinement cultivator was enough for Zhou Xiong and the others of the same generation to look up to him.


    Now, everyone in the Zhou clan knew that if nothing unexpected happened, Zhou Yang would definitely be the next clan leader of the Zhou clan.


    As such, wouldn¡¯t it be beneficial for them to start building a good relationship with Zhou Yang now?


    Besides the Yuan generation cultivators like Zhou Xiong, only a small number of the elders of the Xuan generation dared to offend Zhou Yang.


    After all, the strong were respected in the immortal cultivation world. One¡¯s identity as an elder was not a reason for them to act recklessly, not if they took the future into consideration.


    Zhou Yang had lived two lifetimes which meant that his actual age was much older than his appearance. So he did not think Zhou Xiong¡¯s or the other elders¡¯ behavior was inappropriate.


    He would also not use his status to suppress others because he never liked it when others did so. He preferred to treat others how he would like to be treated.


    ¡°Then I¡¯ll have to trouble you with my Camel Beast because I do have something to discuss with Seventh Uncle.¡± Zhou Yang thanked Zhou Xiong, let go of the reins, and walked into the building.


    When Zhou Ping and Zhou Yu heard the sound of footsteps approaching, they immediately perked up. They had been feeling listless due to the lack of guests that day. The duo thought that guests were coming, so they quickly prepared to welcome them.


    ¡°Are you¡­are you Zhou Yang?!¡±


    ¡°Zhou Yang, why are you here in the market?¡±


    When they saw that the guest was Zhou Yang, whom they had not seen for many years, Zhou Ping and Zhou Yu were also surprised because, like Zhou Xiong, they had not received any notice in advance. After all, this was a visit by the clan¡¯s genius!


    ¡°Zhou Ping, Zhou Yu, it has been many years since we last met. How have you been?¡± Zhou Yang smiled slightly and greeted his two clan brothers with a cordial smile.


    Zhou Ping and Zhou Yu were flattered. ¡°Zhou Yang, you¡¯re too kind. Long time no see. We miss you a lot too.¡±


    It was true that they had missed him. The two of them had been away from home for many years and could only return to the clan once every three to five years. If they wanted to know about the clan, they had to rely on the camel trading group, and most of the news they had heard was related to Zho Yang.


    Every time they heard about him, they could not help but think about how that taciturn and somewhat withdrawn youth from the past had managed to do something that countless elders of the Zhou clan had not been able to do in the past two hundred years.


    ¡°Our younger brothers and sisters back at the clan also miss the two of you very much, especially our fourteenth and fifteenth siblings. They always talk about wanting to quickly come of age and descend the mountain to come to the marketplace and explore the immortal cultivation world with you.¡±


    Zhou Yang chuckled. He could tell that the two of them were trying to be reserved, so he smiled and tried to break the ice by talking about some interesting things about the younger cultivators of the same generation.


    Sure enough, when they heard him talk about things other than cultivation, skills, and talents, the reserved front Zhou Ping and Zhou Yu put up had relaxed slightly. They hurriedly responded by sharing some interesting stories from their side.


    After chatting like this for a while, the initial awkwardness from not seeing each other for so long gradually disappeared.


    Of course, during their conversation, the two of them could not help but express their admiration for Zhou Yang¡¯s rapid improvement in cultivation, and they also asked Zhou Yang for advice on some of the problems they had been facing in their cultivation.


    Zhou Yang generously helped them, trying his best to answer their questions, and even lent the notes of his cultivation experience to them.


    The three of them chatted for about an hour when Zhou Yu slapped his forehead and said, ¡°Oh my, we have been so engrossed in catching up that we forgot that you must have some official business to attend to. Seventh Uncle is upstairs. We won¡¯t delay you any longer.¡±


    When Zhou Ping heard this, he was also startled. Then, he hurriedly nodded and replied, ¡°Zhou Yu is right. Zhou Yang, your official business is more important. We are not in a hurry to catch up on our old matters. After you finish your official business, we will have plenty of time to chat.¡±


    Zhou Yang agreed with his brothers. Through the conversation with his two clan brothers, he now had a slightly better understanding of the recent situation at Yuquan Pavilion. ¡°Alright, then. I¡¯m heading up now to pay my respects to Seventh Uncle. We will meet later..¡±

 Chapter 36 - Taking Over the Shop

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    After bidding farewell to Zhou Ping and Zhou Yu, Zhou Yang went to the second floor to pay a visit to his twelfth aunt, Qian Hongyu. Then, he went up to the third floor to meet his seventh uncle, Zhou Xuanlin, the current person in charge of Yuquan Pavilion.


    Zhou Xuanlin had only reached Qi Refinement Level 9 at the age of ninety. When Zhou Yang saw him, Zhou Xuanlin was sitting leisurely while sipping tea and listening to a song. He looked like an old rich man among the mortals.


    Though the song sounded like it was being sung live by a singer, it was actually being played by a Grade 1 magical artifact called the Sound Retaining Bead.


    Zhou Xuanlin was so immersed in the moment that he almost did not notice the sound of Zhou Yang coming up the stairs.


    ¡°Oh, Zhou Yang. Aren¡¯t you supposed to be cultivating in Yuquan Peak? What are you doing here?¡± The former put down his teacup and stood up from his seat in surprise.


    As one of the elders who had joined the battle at Haoyang Cave, he knew that Zhou Yang had been in Closed Door Cultivation there all these years. He was not expecting Zhou Yang to show up so suddenly.


    ¡°Greetings, Seventh Uncle.¡±


    Zhou Yang first respectfully saluted as a junior before lightly smiling. ¡°As you know, my father has successfully entered the realm of Foundation Establishment. Now that the family is preparing to hold a celebratory ceremony, the clan leader has asked me to take your place at Yuquan Pavilion so that you, Zhou Xiong, Zhou Ping, Zhou Yu, and the others can return to the clan and participate in this ceremony.¡±


    ¡°What? Your father is now in the realm of Foundation Establishment?¡±


    Zhou Xuanlin was shocked by the news brought by Zhou Yang.


    Of course, he knew that Zhou Xuanhao had gone back to the clan to break through to the realm of Foundation Establishment. However, he didn¡¯t expect Zhou Xuanhao to succeed. In fact, he was expecting Zhou Yang to be delivering the news of Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s death from failure and for them to return to pay their final respects!


    ¡°Wow, never would I have thought that he would be able to succeed!¡±


    He muttered to himself with a face full of disbelief.


    Almost all of the Zhou clan members had expected Zhou Yang to be the next Foundation Establishment cultivator of the clan. No one had expected Zhou Xuanhao ¨C who was almost a hundred years old and had seemingly almost no hope of reaching the realm of Foundation Establishment ¨C to succeed before his son.


    Zhou Xuanhao was able to succeed with just a slight increase in breakthrough success rate! How lucky of him!


    But Zhou Xuanlin refused to believe that luck was all Zhou Xuanhao needed. The former was already almost ninety years old and had to rely on the power of pills to cultivate to Qi Refinement Level 9. ¡®Could it be that apart from restoring the vitality of Qi Refining cultivators, the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence can also increase the success rate of breaking through to the realm of Foundation Establishment?¡¯


    Zhou Xuanlin was more willing to believe that Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s success was mainly due to the Grade 3 Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence having an unexpected and additional effect on reaching the realm of Foundation Establishment


    If that was really the case, could he also request permission from the clan to use the remaining portion of Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence to break through to the realm of Foundation Establishment?


    However, as soon as this idea popped up in his mind, he immediately smiled bitterly and put it out of his head.


    So what if the Spiritual Milk of Earth Essence had an additional effect on breaking through to the realm of Foundation Establishment?


    Zhou Xuanhao dared to take the risk because he already had an intermediate spiritual root and a genius for a successor. Even if he failed, he would be able to die without regrets.


    But what about him, Zhou Xuanlin?


    He had a lower spiritual root and would only have a 30% success rate in reaching the realm of Foundation Establishment even with the Foundation Establishment Pill. How could he take such a risk?


    Unlike Zhou Xuanhao who didn¡¯t have to worry too much about his family if he failed, Zhou Xuanlin had descendants who didn¡¯t have spiritual roots.


    ¡°Everything is fated, in the end!¡±


    Zhou Xuanlin let out a long sigh filled with bitterness.


    Mortal beggars could end up wearing noble robes and cultivators with lower spiritual roots could become Nascent Soul cultivators. But the number of people who could change their fate was low.


    99% of mortals and immortal cultivators had their fates sealed from the moment they were born.


    Mortals born to wealthy families lived a life of luxury and immortal cultivators with advanced spiritual roots would almost always succeed in reaching the realm of Foundation Establishment.


    And the opposite was true too. Ordinary mortals born to a commoner¡¯s family might not be guaranteed a life of luxury despite their hard work, and cultivators with lower spiritual roots would only go as far as being Qi Refinement cultivators.


    Zhou Xuanlin had lived for more than ninety years and had witnessed such fates. Therefore, after painstakingly cultivating to Qi Refinement Level 9, he had basically given up on the illusion of reaching the realm of Foundation Establishment. He only wanted to spend his remaining twenty to thirty years enjoying life to its fullest with no regrets.


    Zhou Xuanlin finally came back to reality and saw Zhou Yang looking at him strangely. Only then did he remember that his words earlier had seemed a bit inappropriate. ¡°Ah, I misspoke just now. Zhou Yang, please don¡¯t misunderstand. I am sincerely happy for Zhou Xuanhao and the clan on his achievement of becoming a new Foundation Establishment cultivator of the clan. I do not have any intentions to slander him, I swear!¡±


    How could Zhou Xuanlin dare to say otherwise? Zhou Xuanhao had now become the second Foundation Establishment cultivator of the clan, which meant that he had a new and higher status.


    If there were rumors of him, a clan elder younger than Zhou Xuanhao, being jealous of the new Foundation Establishment cultivator, Zhou Minghan would probably demote him from his elder position in a fit of anger and the other cultivators of the same generation would probably severe ties with him too. Those repercussions would be worse than dying in Zhou Xuanlin¡¯s perspective.


    The reassurance by Zhou Xuanlin relaxed Zhou Yang and the latter finally smiled. ¡°Seventh Uncle, don¡¯t be so agitated. The clan leader and my father know of your loyalty to the clan. The Zhou clan cultivators have always been united. Of course, I believe that you won¡¯t slander my father. Please, relax!¡±


    ¡°Gosh, Zhou Yang. I¡¯m glad you understand. Thank you.¡±


    Zhou Xuanlin carefully looked at Zhou Yang. When he saw that the smile on his face did not seem to be fake, only then did he let out a sigh of relief and stop worrying.


    Now that the tensions had eased, Zhou Yang and Zhou Xuanlin engaged in a long conversation that lasted for more than half a day. It was mainly Zhou Xuanlin introducing the business of Yuquan Pavilion to Zhou Yang, including their connections in the marketplace and how to quickly contact the clan if there was an emergency.


    The person in charge of Yuquan Pavilion was the representative of the Zhou clan in Jinsha Square City, responsible for handling all affairs of the Zhou clan in the marketplace.


    Before Zhou Yang arrived, the person in charge had always been an elder of the Zhou clan.


    Zhou Xuanlin had been staying at the marketplace for more than ten years before he was assigned to take over. However, the person in charge there had always been Zhou Xuanhao, an elder of the Zhou clan.


    After completing the handover of Yuquan Pavilion with Zhou Xuanlin, Zhou Yang went to Drunken Immortal Restaurant.


    Drunken Immortal Restaurant used to be managed by Zhou Yang¡¯s mother, Lin Yuting. After his mother accompanied his father back to the clan, Zhou Xuanlin¡¯s wife, Luo Meiwei, took over as the manager while three female cultivators of the Yuan generation in the Zhou clan ¨C Zhou Yuanchun, Zhou Yuanxia, and Zhou Yuanzhen ¨C served as waitresses and cooks.


    Zhou Yuanchun was ranked sixth among her peers and was the only cultivator with spiritual roots among Zhou Xuanyu¡¯s three children. She was also the disciple of Lin Yuting, inheriting his mother¡¯s unique profession as a winemaker.


    Zhou Yuanxia and Zhou Yuanzhen were ranked seventh and twelfth respectively. The two female cultivators were mortals of the Zhou clan. Their spiritual roots were the same as Zhou Yuanchun¡¯s and they would probably cultivate no further than the realm of Qi Refinement.


    Zhou Yang was a handsome young man with an extraordinary background, reputation, and set of achievements. His cultivation was also far higher than his peers. When he appeared in Drunken Immortal Restaurant, the beautiful eyes of Zhou Yuanchun and the other female cultivators of the Zhou clan lit up.


    He was simply the ideal partner for female immortal cultivators such as Zhou Yuanchun and the others.


    ¡°Hey, Zhou Yang. Should I still call you Ninth Brother or Little Yang?¡± Zhou Yuanchun teased Zhou Yang with a smile.


    ¡°Sister Yuanchun, stop teasing me. You can just call me Zhou Yang.¡± Zhou Yang smiled awkwardly.


    ¡°Little Yang is quite a strange name, after all!


    Then, he smiled at Zhou Yuanxia and Zhou Yuanzhen, who were also looking at him eagerly. ¡°Hello, Zhou Yuanxia, Zhou Yuanzhen. After not seeing each other for so many years, it seems that you girls have become even more beautiful. I have always heard from Mother that your suitors have already lined up from Drunken Immortal Restaurant to Yuquan Pavilion. I did not believe it before, but now that I have seen you with my own eyes, I know Mother¡¯s words are not false.¡±


    The three girls immediately beamed with joy when they heard Zhou Yang¡¯s compliment.


    Zhou Yuanzhen¡¯s age was the closest to Zhou Yang¡¯s, and she was also the youngest. She started to act a little flirtatiously and said, ¡°Zhou Yang, you¡¯re spouting nonsense. Aunt Yuting would never say that. I don¡¯t have any suitors anyway. Those people are here to pursue Sister Yuanchun and Sister Yuanxia. It has nothing to do with me.¡±


    Zhou Yuanxia was quite a reserved and shy person. As such, when she heard Yuanzhen say such words, Zhou Yuanxia said, ¡°Yuanzhen, your ability to lie with your eyes wide open has been growing recently. If what you say is true, then what¡¯s with that uncle from the Liu family? Why does he come to Drunken Immortal Restaurant a few times every month, and you always accompany him every time?¡±


    ¡°Yuanxia, you have the nerve to criticize me? Aren¡¯t you the one who taught me how to drink and chat with guests and make them feel at home in Drunken Immortal Restaurant? I was so pure when I first came here. It was you who led me astray!¡±


    Zhou Yuanzhen snorted in embarrassment and annoyance. She was a little angry at Zhou Yuanxia¡¯s words.


    However, Zhou Yuanchun revealed a mischievous smile and started to laugh. ¡°Yuanzhen, you are mistaken. According to what I know, the words you said, including the water-sleeved dress you are wearing now, were all courtesy of Zhou Yang. Even the spiritual stones that we received as a commission were only agreed to by the clan because of Zhou Yang¡¯s suggestion!¡±


    Zhou Yang immediately felt embarrassed as he awkwardly stood there and had his secrets revealed. He did not dare to look at the shocked and embarrassed Zhou Yuanxia and Zhou Yuanzhen.


    Back when he heard his mother complain about the restaurant¡¯s business, he thought of this solution. Lin Yuting, out of trust in her precious son, had asked Zhou Yuanchun to try it out and found out that his solution was really effective.


    Soon, all employees of Drunken Immortal Restaurant were replaced with women such as the young, beautiful, and pure-looking Zhou Yuanzhen who was transferred over at the age of twenty. Not long after her arrival, she was given the title of the restaurant¡¯s Gold-Medal Waitress..

 Chapter 37 - Reporting Back to the Clan

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Zhou Yang fled out of Drunken Immortal Restaurant in a sorry state.


    His glorious image had been completely destroyed when he learned that he was the reason they sacrificed their looks to earn money for the restaurant.


    He also knew that if Zhou Yuanzhen and the others were unwilling, his crooked ideas would not have worked at all.


    The clan could assign them to work in the restaurant as a clan mission, but the clan couldn¡¯t force them to sacrifice their looks for profit. That would not only make the other clans laugh at them, it would also hurt the hearts of their clan members.


    However, the reason Zhou Yuanzhen and the others were willing to listen to his crooked ideas was not only because they could get a commission, but also because they were self-aware enough to know that the clan¡¯s cultivation resources weren¡¯t easy to come by. They wanted to make themselves useful to their clan.


    Their male counterparts were already working tirelessly on months-long clan missions, risking their lives fighting sand bandits and demon beasts, just to earn spiritual stones for the clan.


    These girls simply had to use their body and they could get as many spiritual stones for the clan. What reason did the girls have to refuse?


    Without the clan¡¯s protection, these low-level female cultivators would have a hard time surviving in the immortal cultivation world, even with their looks.


    They couldn¡¯t simply receive benefits from the clan without giving anything in return. They had to do their part for the greater good.


    However, it still wasn¡¯t a glorious thing for the female cultivators of the clan to earn money with their looks.


    Zhou Yang was ashamed of himself. Compared to his peers who had silently sacrificed themselves for the clan, he felt like a rice worm.


    Technically, his contribution of discovering Haoyang Cave and the red flame iron vein was greater than those of all Yuan generation cultivators combined.


    Zhou Yang thought for a while longer as he watched the passersby in the marketplace. Finally, he made a decision.


    ¡°Now that I¡¯ve come to the marketplace, let me atone for my sins with my artifact refinement skills!¡±


    The next day, Zhou Yang¡¯s three peers from Yuquan Pavilion ran to the places with the most traffic in the marketplace and loudly shouted the words that Zhou Yang had taught them.


    ¡°Come one, come all! Fellow cultivators. Hear ye, hear ye! Yuquan Pavilion has been open for two hundred and thirty years. From today onwards, anyone who spends more than three hundred spiritual stones at Yuquan Pavilion will be allowed to order a Lower Grade 2 magical artifact for free. Anyone who spends more than five hundred spiritual stones will be allowed to order an Intermediate Grade 2 magical artifact for free. Anyone who spends one thousand spirit stones will be allowed to order an Advanced Grade 2 magical artifact for free. If the refinement of the magical artifact fails, the customer will be compensated at seventy percent of the original price.


    ¡°In addition, all custom-made magical artifacts rated below Grade 3 will be sold at 30% of the original price. If the refinement fails, we will refund 70% of the cost of the materials. Don¡¯t miss this great bargain.¡±


    Zhou Yang¡¯s success rate of refining an Advanced Grade 2 magical artifact might only be around 30%, but since he was already an Advanced Grade 2 artifact refiner, he still had a success rate of more than 60% when refining an Intermediate Grade 2 magical artifact.


    Refining a magical artifact was different from refining pills. In artifact refinement, the materials would not be completely destroyed upon failure as long as they were saved in time. However, the quality of the materials and resulting magical artifact would be lower than usual. This was the reason Zhou Yang dared to take orders wantonly.


    Moreover, the most straightforward way for an artifact refiner to improve their skills and success rates in artifact refinement was to refine more magical artifacts. The more they refined, the higher their success rates.


    It was the same for alchemists as well. Zhou Yang¡¯s father, Zhou Xuanhao, for example, might only be an Advanced Grade 2 alchemist. However, his success rate in refining Advanced Grade 2 spiritual pills was as high as 50%, surpassing most of the other Grade 2 alchemists in Jinsha Square City.


    His impressive success rates could be attributed to his track record of having refined Advanced Grade 2 spiritual pills hundreds of times.


    Yuquan Pavilion used to accept custom magical artifact orders, but they were only limited to Lower Grade 3 magical artifacts. And since Zhou Minghan was the only artifact refiner qualified to make them, the orders had to be delivered back and forth between White Sand River Oasis and Yuquan Peak.


    In addition to the logistics, there was also the issue of assembling the necessary materials to refine Grade 3 magical artifacts. Therefore, customers often had to expect their orders to be completed in more than ten years.


    However, things were different now. Zhou Yang, an Advanced Grade 2 artifact refiner, had arrived at Yuquan Pavilion and could finally revive the custom magical artifact order business that Zhou Minghan had looked down on and had a hard time fulfilling in a reasonable amount of time.


    Zhou Yang¡¯s pricing was also very reasonable. For every successfully refined magical artifact, he would only charge 30% of the supposed value of the magical artifact. This was a highly attractive offer to rogue cultivators.


    An Advanced Grade 2 magical artifact, for example, could be sold to a shop for at least 500 lower-tier spiritual stones. However, the materials necessary to refine such a magical artifact were only worth a hundred lower-tier spiritual stones at most.


    Since it was easier for rogue cultivators to obtain the materials rather than a magical artifact, let alone refine one, they could only sell the materials at a low price and accumulate about five to ten times more spiritual stones to buy a magical artifact.


    With Zhou Yang¡¯s offer, all the rogue cultivators needed to do was bring their materials directly to the former and order a custom magical artifact for only 30% of what they had to spend. Even if the artifact refinement failed, they would only lose less than thirty lower-tier spiritual stones. A success, on the other hand, would be equivalent to earning at least two to three hundred lower-tier spiritual stones!


    Double the investment, ten times the return!


    Where else would they be able to find such a good bargain?


    Eventually, Yuquan Pavilion had become a hotspot in Jinsha Square City. Among the crowds were many rogue cultivators who had heard the news and come to inquire about its authenticity.


    When customers entered the shop, they would be greeted by the sight of various medicinal pills, magical artifacts, and spiritual talismans. It was easy for people to find what they needed and hard for them to not purchase them. Needless to say, the sales of Yuquan Pavilion had greatly increased since Zhou Yang¡¯s arrival.


    Zhou Yang was no fool either when it came to receiving and prioritizing orders. Orders for custom Advanced Grade 2 magical artifacts would be placed at the end of the to-do list to make way for the orders for custom magical artifacts with lower ratings. This was all part of Zhou Yang¡¯s strategy to allow him to use the refinement of the custom magical artifacts with lower ratings to improve his artifact refinement skills and success rates before attempting the refinement of the custom magical artifacts with higher ratings. This way, Zhou Yang could eventually bring up his success rates of refining magical artifacts with higher ratings to be at par with his success rates of refining magical artifacts with lower ratings.


    Eventually, it became almost a custom for Yuquan Pavilion to be filled with customers, a sight that did not escape the eyes or envy of other shopkeepers in the marketplace. The artifact refiners from other clans were also waiting to see Zhou Yang make a fool of himself.


    The service of making custom-made magical artifacts had always been available in other shops that specialized in dealing with magical artifacts. But the common consensus was that 1) none of them would ever accept orders for custom magical artifacts with ratings that matched that of the artifact refiner; 2) if they failed, they would refund only half the value of the materials provided; and 3) if they succeeded, they would charge a fee that was 50% of magical artifact¡¯s market price.


    Only by doing so could they guarantee a profit. Otherwise, they would be working for the rogue cultivators for nothing.


    Therefore, in the eyes of these artifact refiners, Zhou Yang was destined to make a loss in the end. Who did he think he was? A Grade 2 artifact refiner?


    It was not only the artifact refiners who saw Zhou Yang in this way. Zhou Xuanlin was still in the marketplace to buy spiritual items for his family and Zhou Xuanhao¡¯s celebratory ceremony, and even he had doubts when he heard about Zhou Yang¡¯s plan. Zhou Xuanlin even attempted to persuade Zhou Yang otherwise.


    However, Zhou Yang¡¯s plan had helped Zhou Xuanlin settle some accounts. As such, the latter didn¡¯t bother to interfere anymore.


    Zhou Yang did not care what others thought of him and his plan. After he had settled the internal affairs of the clan¡¯s business at Jinsha Square City, he went to the Earth Fire cave that the Chen clan had opened on Jinxia Mountain and rented an artifact refining chamber. He was planning to stay there for a long time.


    He had already planned for his absence at Yuquan Pavilion as well. While Zhou Ping returned to the clan with Zhou Xuanlin, Zhou Yu and Zhou Xiong would stick around the pavilion. As long as they followed his instructions, they would be able to maintain the normal operations of Yuquan Pavilion. If there was anything Zhou Yang needed to handle, they could use a voice transmission talisman to inform him.


    As for Drunken Immortal Restaurant, it had been temporarily closed because Zhou Minghan had ordered the ladies to return to the clan and assist in entertaining a few distinguished guests at the celebratory ceremony.


    Earth Fire was a type of high-temperature flame that originated from magma. Its temperature was much higher than that of Foundation Establishment True Fire. Moreover, its usage did not consume a cultivator¡¯s mana. Thus, one would never have to worry about being too exhausted when using it.


    Due to these benefits, the discovery of Earth Fire and its benefits by immortal cultivators had convinced alchemists and artifact refiners that have yet to reach the realm of Nascent Soul to switch from using True Fire to using Earth Fire when refining pills and artifacts.


    After all, refining pills and artifacts required a lot of energy. The reliance on mana to maintain the heat of True Fire while refining increased the chances of failure due to the risk of not having enough mana.


    This was especially true for the refinement of high-level pills and magical artifacts that could easily take several or dozens of days. Even a Core Foundation cultivator would have to expend a lot of vitality to maintain a sufficient mana supply.


    Unfortunately, despite the benefits of Earth Fire, it was not a source accessible to just anyone.


    First, one would need an immortal cultivator at least in the realm of Zifu to draw out Earth Fire from the magma. Then, one would need to ask an array formation master that had been rated Grade 3 or higher to set up a suppression array formation to suppress and seal the violent Earth Fire. Next, the person would need an artifact refiner rated at Grade 3 or above to refine a special purification magical artifact to purify the poisonous and evil aura contained in Earth Fire.


    Without these steps, it would be impossible to use Earth Fire.


    Therefore, the only ones who could truly build an Earth Fire chamber and use it were large sects and clans with cultivators in the realm of at least Zifu or above.


    For cultivators from small clans like Zhou Yang¡¯s, he had no other choice than to travel across the desert just to get to Jinsha Square City and rent an Earth Fire chamber from larger clans such as the Chen clan to refine large amounts of highly-rated pills and magical artifacts.


    The Chen family had thirteen Earth Fire chambers in the Earth Fire cave of Jinsha Square City. The number of spiritual stones charged was according to the ratings of the chambers: Grade A, B, and C. The only Grade A Earth Fire chamber cost ten lower-tier spiritual stones a day; the four Grade B Earth Fire chambers cost three lower-tier spiritual stones a day; and the remaining Grade C Earth Fire chambers only cost one lower-tier spiritual stone a day.


    Zhou Yang was only refining Grade 2 magical artifacts, so renting a Grade C Earth Fire chamber was more than enough..

 Chapter 38 - Earth Fire Artifact Refinement

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    Although he was occupying the Earth Fire chamber with the lowest rating, Grade C, Earth Fire was still Earth Fire. As long as it could produce flames with temperatures higher than that of Flaming Sun Wood charcoal with less effort, a Grade C Earth Fire chamber was good enough.


    Zhou Yang followed the steps to cast an opening spell on the fire outlet of the Dragon Head made from Grade 3 spiritual gold obsidian in the Earth Fire chamber. The Dragon Head immediately let out a light roar, opened its mouth, and spat out a pale purple stream of Earth Fire as thick as an arm that landed below the cauldron in front of it.


    This Grade C Earth Fire chamber was usually equipped with Lower Grade 2 cauldrons for renters. However, once Zhou Yang had broken through to become an Advanced Grade 2 artifact refiner, the clan leader had given the Advanced Grade 2 cauldron that he had used in the past. Clearly, Zhou Minghan did not like using Lower Grade 2 cauldrons and did not want Zhou Yang to be using them either.


    The clan leader¡¯s cauldron was called the Purple Phoenix Rising Sun Cauldron, a treasure cauldron refined from Grade 2 spiritual gold copper which had excellent heat conductivity and resistance. It was the first-choice material for refining pill furnaces and cauldrons.


    Zhou Yang had used the Purple Phoenix Rising Sun Cauldron before but this was his first time using it with Earth Fire. As a way to familiarize himself with the new combination, he focused on practicing with refining Grade 1 magical artifacts first.


    After two to three days of working experience with the properties of the Purple Phoenix Rising Sun Cauldron and control techniques of Earth Fire, he officially started artifact refinement.


    Since the Purple Phoenix Rising Sun Cauldron enhanced the temperature of Earth Fire that already burned at higher temperatures than True Fire, Zhou Yang would not take more than an hour to refine a Lower Grade 2 magical artifact. Even an Intermediate Grade 2 magical artifact would not take more than two hours to refine.


    In addition to Zhou Yang¡¯s current cultivation level and Divine Sense, the minimal amount of mana needed to operate Earth Fire meant that Zhou Yang would be able to refine magical artifacts for an entire day without eating or drinking.


    But Zhou Yang would not want to fast because it might affect the refinement success rates. After refining two or three magical artifacts, he would choose to rest for one or two hours to recover his spirit and reflect on his experience. Zhou Yang ended up refining magical artifacts roughly fifteen to twenty times a day.


    Through repetition, Zhou Yang was also delighted to find that his success rate of refining Lower Grade 2 magical artifacts had slightly increased by 10% with the help of Earth Fire and the Purple Phoenix Rising Sun Cauldron.


    10% was no small amount. For a refiner, a 10% increase in artifact refinement success rate meant that he was a big step closer to reaching the next level of the Artifact Refinement Technique.


    Zhou Minghan had once told Zhou Yang that if an Advanced Grade 2 artifact refiner wanted to break through to become a Grade 3 artifact refiner, the former would first have to increase the success rate of refining a Lower Grade 2 magical artifact to 100% and an Advanced Grade 2 magical artifact to 60%.


    Currently, Zhou Yang was still quite far from meeting this requirement. However, the 10% increase in his artifact refinement success rate meant that his skills were now at least on par with the most experienced an Advanced Grade 2 artifact refiners.


    After days of persistency in artifact refinement, Zhou Yang had finally completed the refinement of the hundreds of custom orders received by Yuquan Pavilion in less than half a month.


    The other artifact refiners and shopkeepers stared at the results of his efforts in shock upon his return. They realized that Zhou Yang had not only succeeded in meeting the expectations of his customers but also earned thousands of lower-tier spiritual stones despite the deduction of the compensation of material cost due to the failures!


    And since Zhou Yang had completed all the orders by himself, he only needed to hand over 30% of his earnings to his clan.


    ¡°Wow, what a crafty kid. Look at the orders they have completed. Since they had only received less than ten orders for custom Advanced Grade 2 magical artifacts, the kid was able to use the fees earned from the successful refinement of Lower and Intermediate Grade 2 magical artifacts to cover the cost of the failed refinement of Advanced Grade 2 magical artifacts. No wonder he gained such a huge profit instead of making a loss!¡±


    Most immortal cultivators were quite intelligent. They simply needed a short amount of time to observe the results of Zhou Yang¡¯s strategy to realize how cunning he had been.


    Every artifact refiner knew that being an Advanced Grade 2 artifact refiner meant that refining Lower Grade 2 magical artifacts would bring more profit than losses.


    However, due to the way magical artifacts were valued in the marketplace, rogue cultivators would rather buy than put in orders for custom magical artifacts, which only gave artifact refiners more profits.


    Moreover, unlike Zhou Yang who was able to accomplish so much mainly because he wanted to kill two birds with one stone ¨C to improve his artifact refinement skills and success rates as well as bring in more profit to the Zhou clan¡¯s business ¨C the usual artifact refiners belonged to larger and wealthier clans and sects with a reliable supply of refining materials for them to work on their artifact refinement whenever they wanted.


    Before Zhou Yang came along, none of the artifact refiners had realized the beneficial concept of low-profit margin, high sales volume. By simply completing 30%-50% of a large volume of custom magical artifact orders, artifact refiners could already bring in a lot of profit.


    ¡°Alright, I can¡¯t do this anymore. I must lower the prices of my service. Zhou Yang¡¯s success rate of refining an Advanced Grade 2 magical weapon was only at 30% but mine is already at 40%!¡±


    ¡°Cut the price. We must cut the price. If we can make more money by cutting the price, why not?¡±


    ¡°We can¡¯t let the Zhou clan take all our business. The Luo clan needs to earn money too!¡±


    When the competitors realized what Zhou Yang had done, they decided to lower the prices of their services to re-enter the competition.


    Unfortunately, the competitors soon discovered that despite their efforts to follow in the footstep of Yuquan Pavilion, rogue cultivators still preferred to be patrons of the Zhou clan¡¯s business.


    No matter how much they try to convince potential customers that their artifact refinement skills and success rates were better than Zhou Yang¡¯s, it was pointless. Zhou Yang had established his and Yuquan Pavilion¡¯s credibility with one big move and there was nothing the other artifact refiners in the marketplace could do about it except watch the Zhou clan continue to make huge amounts of profits. It didn¡¯t help that news of the Zhou clan¡¯s services had spread far and wide, causing their sales to increase exponentially.


    And all of this was part of Zhou Yang¡¯s plan.


    His experience in his previous life made him aware of the importance of first impressions more than anyone else here. As long as immortal cultivators were still human beings, their mentality would not be any different from mortals in this regard.


    ¡°Even if someone surpassed me in terms of their Artifact Refinement Technique, it won¡¯t be a big deal. Jinsha Square City may be big but there is still a limited number of rogue cultivators. Within a few moments, half of the customer population will be Yuquan Pavilion¡¯s patrons. By the time we have the entire customer population as our patrons, my Artifact Refinement Technique would have reached new heights as well.¡±


    Zhou Yang smiled confidently. It was as if he had the entire market ]in the palm of his hands.


    And it was indeed the case. Although all the magical artifact stores were desperately advertising how good their artifact refiners¡¯ skills were, the rogue cultivators who came from afar to get their custom magical artifacts refined with the materials they had brought had mainly heard of ¨C and thus preferred ¨C Yuquan Pavilion.


    The rogue cultivators were only this biased because they used to be taken advantage of by the other artifact refiners of immortal cultivation clans and sects by being made to pay higher for less.


    As such, the other stores¡¯ efforts backfired ¨C the more they advertised themselves, the more the rogue cultivators avoided them, suspecting their intentions to be as impure and corrupted as ever.


    Of course, there were also rogue cultivators who had suffered losses at Yuquan Pavilion and decided to frequent the competitor¡¯s business. However, there were more customers who still had faith in Yuquan Pavilion than there were dissatisfied customers.


    Eventually, the number of customers frequenting Yuquan Pavilion made up 60% of the entire customer population of Jinsha Square City. The other shops, including the Chen clan¡¯s magical artifact shop, could only watch with envy and hatred as they resolved to pick up Yuquan Pavilion¡¯s leftovers despite their pride and dignity.


    The more successful Zhou Yang¡¯s strategy was, the bolder he became ¨C he started to take on more orders for custom Advanced Grade 2 magical artifacts.


    He had already racked up enough spiritual stones that he was willing to make sacrifices just to improve his Artifact Refinement Technique.


    Even if he started to run out of money, he already knew how he could earn them back. However, missing the opportunity to improve his Artifact Refinement Technique through the large-scale refinement of Advanced Grade 2 magical artifacts was not something he could afford. Opportunity never knocked twice. If he passed it up, he might have to spend more time, effort, and resources after.


    His heart was as clear as a mirror ¨C he knew what he had to do.


    Unfortunately, the Earth Fire chamber was not a comfortable place to spend long periods of time in. Though Earth Fire had been suppressed and purified by the array formation and magical artifact, it had a very fiery Qi which would negatively affect the body and mind of even an Advanced-Stage Qi Refinement cultivator like Zhou Yang who practiced Fire-based cultivation methods if he stayed in there for too long.


    That was one of the reasons Zhou Yang had developed his previous schedule ¨C refining for two days and resting for a day. But it was no longer possible for Zhou Yang to follow this schedule because he could no longer afford to leave his Earth Fire chamber whenever he wanted since it would immediately be occupied by other artifact refiners who had followed in his footsteps and now needed to rent Earth Fire chambers to complete the higher volume of orders they had received. In other words, once he left the Grade C Earth Fire chamber, there was no guarantee that he would be able to rent one again. He might not be able to rent a Grade B Earth Fire chamber either.


    Therefore, to keep up Yuquan Pavilion¡¯s business, make a name for himself, and improve his Artifact Refinement Technique, Zhou Yang had to revert to what he used to hate doing in his previous life ¨C staying up late and working overtime ¨C and endure whatever discomforts he was facing as he remained in the Earth Fire chamber.


    This went on for a month but by that time, Zhou Yang had refined magical artifacts more than ten times per day on average. His success rate of artifact refinement had also steadily increased. By the time he walked out of the Earth Fire chamber, his success rate of refining an Advanced Grade 2 magical artifact had already reached more than 40%.


    With that kind of success rate, he could guarantee no losses when accepting custom orders to refine Advanced Grade 2 magical artifacts, no matter the order volume.


    Other than the great improvement in refining techniques, during his month-long high-intensity artifact refinement period, Zhou Yang was also pleasantly surprised to find that the bottleneck he was facing to break through to Qi Refinement Level 9 was also slowly opening up. He predicted that it would only be another year at most until he would finally be able to break through to Qi Refinement Level 9..

 Chapter 39 - Exotic Gold

    Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation


    After more than a month of refining, Zhou Yang had completed hundreds of orders. Within less than three months after Zhou Yang took charge of Yuquan Pavilion, the initially ordinary shop had become one of the most profitable shops in Jinsha Square City.


    Thanks to the huge flow of customers brought in by the highly-demanded service of custom magical artifact refinement, more than half of the pills, magical artifacts, and spiritual talismans had been sold. The sales from just a few short months of operation had already surpassed that of the past ten years.


    And Zhou Yang had steadily earned nearly two thousand lower-tier spiritual stones as Yuquan Pavilion¡¯s artifact refiner.


    Though the shop¡¯s recent successes were mainly due to Zhou Yang¡¯s ideas and efforts, he was not selfish to keep them to himself. He decided to give Zhou Yu and Zhou Xiong who had been working hard as the shop¡¯s sales assistants a bonus of one hundred spiritual stones each from the shop¡¯s sales. The money did belong to the clan but with how well the shop was doing, Zhou Yang didn¡¯t think they would have an issue with his decision.


    Two months later, the number of custom orders for magical artifacts had declined, just as Zhou Yang had expected. The market had been saturated.


    After all, magical artifacts were not one-time consumables like medicinal pills and spiritual talismans. If cultivators frequently refined and maintained the upkeep of their magical artifacts, it was not impossible for them to be passed down for thousands of years, especially magical artifacts with higher ratings.


    Regardless, Zhou Yang was not in the least bit worried. He and Yuquan Pavilion had already earned enough spiritual stones to last more than ten years.


    And ever since he discovered that cultivating in the Earth Fire chamber could help him open up his cultivation bottleneck, Zhou Yang had been staying there for twenty days a month, not to refine magical artifacts but to practice his spells while Earth Fire burned in the furnace.


    It was a very effective tactic. After two to three months of cultivation in the Earth Fire chamber, the bottleneck preventing Zhou Yang from breaking through had let up even more. Zhou Yang could feel that there was only a thin layer left between his Qi Refinement Level 8 and the Qi Refinement Level 9.


    All Zhou Yang needed now was to find a place with rich spiritual Qi for Closed Door Cultivation for a few days and he was confident he would be able to break through the thin layer and reach Level 9 of Qi Refinement.


    Zhou Yang decided to go into Closed Door Cultivation at Yuquan Pavilion and immediately left the Earth Fire chamber.


    Just as he arrived at the doorstep of Yuquan Pavilion, he heard Zhou Xiong arguing with a guest inside.


    ¡°Fellow cultivator, I don¡¯t want to argue with you either. But if you really think that what you have in your hand is such a precious treasure, you should go somewhere else to sell it. Let¡¯s see if they are willing to exchange an Advanced Grade 2 magical artifact for this lousy stone of yours!¡±


    ¡°Lousy stone? Kid, how can you say that? This is an exotic stone that can¡¯t be refined even with Earth Fire. It¡¯s at least a Grade 4 spiritual item, and a Grade 4 spiritual item can only be exchanged for an Advanced Grade 2 magical artifact of yours. Do you understand?¡±


    ¡°Do you think that any hard stone can be a Grade 4 spiritual item? It¡¯s not even emitting the slightest bit of spiritual Qi. You¡¯re lying! If you don¡¯t leave now, don¡¯t blame me for being rude to you!¡±


    ¡°Rude? How can a puny Level 4 Qi Refinement cultivator be rude? I won¡¯t stoop to your level. I want to speak to your manager. I heard that he is an Advanced Grade 2 artifact refiner. If he takes a look at this, he will know that I am not a liar!¡±


    When Zhou Yang overheard the commotion, he immediately became curious and strode into the building.


    Zhou Xiong was glaring at a burly middle-aged man who was holding a pitch-black ore the size of a human head in his right hand.


    The burly middle-aged man was at Qi Refinement Level 8. No wonder Zhou Xiong was humiliated by him even in his own territory.


    When Zhou Xiong saw Zhou Yang walk in, he thought he finally had some backup. Zhou Xiong started to act even more arrogantly as he said, ¡°Zhou Yang, you came at the right time. This guy just waltzed in with a broken stone that doesn¡¯t have any spiritual Qi and claimed that it is some kind of exotic gold he could use to exchange for the Fire Cloud Banner!¡±


    The Fire Cloud Banner was an Advanced Grade 2 magical artifact that Zhou Yang had obtained when he killed the sand bandits at the sand slope. It was a well-refined magical artifact that had inspired Zhou Yang to improve his Artifact Refinement Technique.


    And since Zhou Yang was already satisfied with his collection of magical artifacts, he had decided to put up the Fire Cloud Banner for sale at Yuquan Pavilion, along with the other magical artifacts and spiritual items that he had seized from the sand bandits.


    With sales doing so well, the Fire Cloud Banner was the only magical artifact left that had not been sold due to its high price. Therefore, when he heard Zhou Xiong reporting to him, Zhou Yang immediately cupped his hands toward the burly middle-aged man and said, ¡°I am Zhou Yang, the manager of Yuquan Pavilion. May I know if this brother of mine is telling the truth? Fellow cultivator, may I have a look at the spiritual item in your hand?¡±


    ¡°You are Zhou Yang of Yuquan Pavilion? You look as young as the legends say, but I don¡¯t know if you are as powerful. Please don¡¯t let be undeserving of your name!¡±


    The burly middle-aged man¡¯s thick eyebrows and big eyes sized up Zhou Yang with a suspicious look. He stretched out his hand and handed the pitch-black ore to Zhou Yang.


    Zhou Xiong jumped up and shouted, ¡°Zhou Yang, look, this guy is too rude. Please don¡¯t be fooled by him. We have seen many of these kinds of tricks. I dare to bet that this broken stone has been handled by other refiners at least ten times. If it was a treasure, it would have been claimed long ago. Why would he come to us now?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Zhou Xiong. I know what to do. How about you entertain other customers?¡±


    Zhou Yang gave this clan brother a reassuring look. Then, he smiled as he reached out to receive the pitch-black ore that the burly middle-aged man handed him and carefully examined it.


    He was not at a level where he knew the artifact refinement book collection of the Zhou clan inside out. But he had read the ¡®Book of the World¡¯s Treasures¡¯ that his father had given him. He knew that there were no less than a thousand types of ores and spiritual items in the world. However, even after thoroughly examining the pitch-black ore with methods such as Mana Cleansing and Divine Sense Penetration Analysis, he was still unable to match it with any of the spiritual items in his memory.


    The only thing he could be sure of was that this rock that did not have any spiritual Qi was indeed very hard. The burly middle-aged man was probably not lying when he said that even Earth Fire would not be able to refine it.


    But Zhou Yang was having a hard time believing the burly middle-aged man¡¯s claim that this pitch-black ore was an exotic gold.


    Exotic gold came from the upper realm and it would usually be of Grade 5 or above. Its spiritual Qi could be sensed even from hundreds of miles away. How could this pitch-black ore with no spiritual Qi at all be it?


    But though this pitch-black ore was not an exotic gold, it was not a broken stone like Zhou Xiong had mentioned. Just based on its hardness and heat resistance, it was definitely not an ordinary item.


    Zhou Xiong himself might have also known about this. The reason he said that the pitch-black ore was a broken stone was probably not only because he was angry at the burly middle-aged man for asking for too much, but also because he wanted to bargain.


    If he could get this pitch-black ore at a lower price and bring it back to the clan for the clan leader to examine, perhaps the latter might be able to recognize it.


    However, Zhou Yang knew that since the burly middle-aged man dared to ask for an Advanced Grade 2 magical artifact in return, he definitely wouldn¡¯t sell this ore at a low price.


    Therefore, Zhou Yang pretended to continue examining the ore with wide eyes, as if he was trying to ascertain the ore¡¯s origin. But internally, he was figuring out the minimum price the burly middle-aged man would agree to.


    After thinking for a while, he finally had a plan.


    He looked at the burly middle-aged man with regret and said, ¡°Fellow cultivator, please forgive my poor eyesight. I really can¡¯t see anything special about this ore of yours.¡±


    After saying that, he handed the ore back to the other party.


    When the burly middle-aged man saw this, his face immediately sank. He couldn¡¯t help but snort coldly and say, ¡°It seems that you are a person who does not live up to your reputation. You can¡¯t even recognize the exotic gold and you still have the cheek to call yourself a great artifact refiner!¡±


    ¡°Fellow cultivator, you can say whatever you want. In any case, you can¡¯t use this unknown ore to exchange for an Advanced Grade 2 magical artifact such as our Fire Cloud Banner. It¡¯s impossible to sell it for less than eight hundred spiritual stones.¡± Zhou Yang faintly smiled, he wasn¡¯t agitated at all.


    ¡°What unknown ore? This is clearly exotic gold! Don¡¯t speak nonsense if you don¡¯t know what¡¯s good for you!¡± The muscles on the burly middle-aged man¡¯s face twitched as he angrily shouted in protest.


    ¡°That¡¯s right. We don¡¯t know what¡¯s good for us, and we¡¯ve wasted your time earning spiritual stones. Sir, since you insist that this is exotic gold, why don¡¯t you sell it to the shops of Yellow Sand School or the Chen clan? A treasure like exotic gold is not something that a small clan like us can appreciate. You should just go back to where you came from!¡±


    Zhou Xiong had reappeared and retorted sarcastically at the burly middle-aged man.


    In his opinion, this burly man had come to cause trouble at Yuquan Pavilion because he saw that its business had been booming recently. Since Zhou Yang had just given him a bonus of a hundred spiritual stones due to the recent increase in the sales of the shop, he would hate for people to want to disrupt their business.


    ¡°You¡­¡± The burly middle-aged man pointed at Zhou Xiong with a face full of shame and anger. He wanted to scold Zhou Xiong, but Zhou Yang¡¯s eyes and aura suddenly turned fierce, making the man swallow the words that were about to come out of his mouth.


    Of course, he had been to the shops of Yellow Sand School and the Chen clan, but the workers of those two shops were not as easy to bully as Zhou Xiong. After the appraisers and artifact refiners in the shops both denied that the black ore was a spiritual item, they unceremoniously chased him out. But he did not dare to reveal any of this.


    Zhou Yang softened a little and said, ¡°Fellow cultivator, I respect you as a man and know that it is not easy for rogue cultivators to cultivate. If you truly like that magical artifact, I am willing to be friends with you and let you exchange the ore with our magical artifact if you just pay an additional five hundred spiritual stones.¡±


    The burly middle-aged man was moved. He looked at Zhou Yang and hesitated for a moment. In the end, he nodded and said, ¡°Alright, since the manager has said so, I, Zhong Quan, will accept your friendship and do as you say!¡±


    Zhong Quan, also knew that the black ore in his hand did not look like the legendary exotic gold at all. It was just that he had found this item in a sinkhole in the Boundless Sand Sea. And because the item seemed to match most of the description of exotic gold, he decided to believe that it was.


    However, no one had been willing to buy his claims, and he slowly became convinced that it probably wasn¡¯t exotic gold.


    The only reason he was still relentlessly carrying on his bluff was that he was unwilling to sell it cheaply and waste the time and effort he had spent. Moreover, it was an item that he had obtained by chance.


    Now that Zhou Yang was willing to buy it at the price of an Advanced Grade 2 magical artifact, he did not want to hesitate anymore.


    If he missed this opportunity he would not be able to find anyone in the market who could offer a higher price than Zhou Yang. And if news of today¡¯s incident spread, others would probably only buy it at even lower prices.


    Interestingly, the moment Zhong Quan agreed to the deal, it was as if he had let go of his obsession and his mind and spirit felt indescribably clear. The bottleneck he had been facing over the years to break through to the next level of Qi Refinement was starting to open up


    This discovery pleasantly surprised him. He hurriedly took out five hundred spiritual stones and handed them along with the pitch-black ore to Zhou Yang. When he received the Fire Cloud Banner, he hurriedly bade farewell to Zhou Yang and rushed home to prepare for his breakthrough.


    When Zhou Xiong saw this, he couldn¡¯t help but curse. ¡°This guy really has no manners. He ran away after taking advantage of us. Zhou Yang, you¡¯re too kind-hearted. If it were Seventh Uncle, he would have chased off this troublemaker. How could you allow him to behave atrociously here?!¡±


    ¡°Alright, Zhou Xiong. You should stop talking too much. I came back to explain something to you guys. I¡¯m going to enter Closed Door Cultivation in the backyard to break through to Qi Refinement Level 9. Even if something big happens, don¡¯t disturb me.¡±


    Zhou Yang waved his hand to stop Zhou Xiong¡¯s cursing. After giving a few instructions, he put the spiritual stones and the black ore that Zhong Quan gave him into his storage bag and went straight to the Closed Door Cultivation room in the backyard of Yuquan Pavilion..