txolops Chapter 186 Secret Realm Cave
Chapter 186 Secret Realm Cave
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Upon hearing Yu Menghan's proposal to leave the Western Wilderness through the Yinghai Chamber of Commerce, they were immediately struck by the condition.
Li Ping fell into deep thought.
With his current skill level as a third-tier alchemist and a second-tier high-grade talisman maker, as well as the third-tier puppeteer skill he will soon learn, he will be able to achieve great success.
He has no shortage of cultivation resources; it would be so much better for him to live a comfortable life as a rogue cultivator.
If he had a choice, he certainly wouldn't give up his freedom to join any faction.
However, it seems that danger is approaching.
Compared to their own safety, a little bit of freedom seems insignificant.
After pondering for a moment, he finally asked, "Fairy Yu, are there any restrictions or conditions associated with joining your esteemed chamber of commerce?"
If the conditions aren't too demanding, it's fine for him to join the Yinghai Chamber of Commerce temporarily.
Upon hearing Li Ping's words, Yu Menghan's face immediately lit up with joy: "I hope Fellow Daoist Li can understand that if you join this chamber of commerce and enjoy the benefits, you will naturally also need to bear the corresponding responsibilities."
At this point, her expression turned serious: "As long as you, fellow Daoist, swear an oath to serve the Merchant Guild for a hundred years and never betray it, I can guarantee that you can leave the Western Wilderness through the Merchant Guild's channels. Of course, during your service with the Merchant Guild, the guild will also issue a corresponding amount of contribution points based on the tasks you perform. These contribution points can be used to exchange for various rare spiritual items..."
As Yu Menghan explained, Li Ping finally understood the conditions set by this "evil tiger-tooth girl".
The main point is: sell yourself for a hundred years in exchange for a way to leave the Western Wilderness.
Besides this, there are some other clauses, but these are not very important.
"A hundred years!" Li Ping sighed inwardly.
He's only seventy-three now, but he'll be one hundred and seventy-three in a hundred years.
A Foundation Establishment cultivator's total lifespan is only 240 years; 173 years is equivalent to being half-buried in the ground.
"There are no good people in the cultivation world," Li Ping sighed inwardly.
It's just a matter of using the passage to leave the Western Wilderness once, yet such a huge price has to be paid.
He frowned and said, "Fairy Yu, may I have some time to consider this? I will give you an answer after I have thought it through."
"Of course, no problem." Yu Menghan smiled and waved her hand.
She then took out a token engraved with the words "Yinghai" from her storage bag and handed it to Li Ping: "This is our association's communication token, the 'Yinghai Token.' It allows you to communicate with other token holders within a range of tens of thousands of miles. Fellow Daoist Li, please accept this token. If you make a decision, you can contact me through the token."
Li Ping accepted the token and nodded slightly: "I understand."
……
Yu Menghan left, and Li Ping held the Yinghai Token in his hand, his eyes thoughtful.
According to Yu Menghan, the Yinghai Token is normally just like scrap metal, but once it is activated by injecting magic power, it can also have the functions of positioning and communication.
It is divided into four grades: A, B, C, and D.
Those who possess a high-grade Yinghai Token can contact those of lower grade, but those who possess a low-grade token cannot initiate contact with those of higher grade.
The one in Li Ping's hand was naturally the lowest-level Ding-grade Yinghai Token.
However, Yu Menghan had added him as a friend before leaving, so even though Yu Menghan's Yinghai Token was of a higher grade than his, he could still contact Yu Menghan as long as they were within the communication range.
Li Ping strongly suspected that even if he didn't inject magic power to activate it, as long as he possessed the Yinghai Token, the Yinghai Chamber of Commerce could directly know his location.
"This should not be carried around unless absolutely necessary," he thought to himself.
……
The past year of cultivation, apart from the cultivation of magical power.
Li Ping finally succeeded in cultivating the "Myriad Spirits Divine Technique," a method for tempering spiritual sense, and his spiritual sense improved by about 20% compared to before he started cultivating it.
Of course, other people's cultivation is not as easy as his.
The reason he was able to master the first level of the "Myriad Spirits Divine Technique" so quickly was mainly due to his divine sense, which was already 50% stronger than that of an ordinary mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator.
The stronger one's spiritual sense, the easier it is to cultivate this technique.
Sensing the powerful divine sense residing in his sea of consciousness, Li Ping chuckled, "Time to upgrade that old devil Yan Liming's abilities!"
Since he planned to flee, he naturally had to pack his valuables and prepare enough supplies before he fled.
After all, even though they can use the Yinghai Chamber of Commerce's channels, it's hard to say that they won't encounter danger when they run away.
He felt it was necessary to learn the third-tier puppet-making technique before fleeing. If he could create a few second-tier puppets, it would greatly help him escape.
"Where exactly is this danger coming from?" Li Ping pondered silently as he entered the weapon-refining room.
If he doesn't sense any danger, he will stay in the Immortal City until he reaches the Core Formation stage, without even considering running away.
After all, the person in power in the Immortal City is his friend, and the three deacons who hold real power in the Immortal City are his sworn brothers.
There is a connection, and there is a spirit stone.
He was living a very comfortable life in the Immortal City and was too lazy to go out.
……
Upon entering the weapon-refining room, Li Ping casually set up a soundproof magic shield.
Before opening the jade bottle, Li Ping continued to circulate the "Nine Tribulations True Saint Scripture," transforming into the appearance he had on the day he captured Yan Liming, before nodding in satisfaction. The latest update is now online, awaiting your interpretation.
Although he planned to use Yan Liming's soul as nourishment to the Tree of Inheritance after the soul search, it seemed there was no need to hide his true identity.
But Li Ping knew all too well that many things could go wrong, and the world of cultivation was full of strange and mysterious techniques.
What if his true identity is exposed, attracting retaliation from the four major demonic sects?
Therefore, to be on the safe side, Yan Liming should just pretend to be clueless.
"Pop!"
Li Ping opened the jade bottle and used a secret technique to extract Yan Liming's soul.
Because of the numerous restrictions placed on him by Li Ping, Yan Liming's soul could only float blankly in front of him, unable to move or even make the slightest sound.
The soul floated, its face shrouded in mist, but Yan Liming's features could be vaguely discerned.
He stared intently at Li Ping, his eyes filled with resentment.
Normally, when a cultivator dies, unless they immediately possess another body, their soul will dissipate and enter the cycle of reincarnation.
However, Li Ping forcibly imprisoned his soul for several years using a secret technique. If reincarnation truly exists in this world, he has already lost his eligibility for reincarnation.
All that remains is the ending of being utterly destroyed and dying completely.
"Heh heh... How dare you look at me like that? Today I'll show you what cruelty is."
A blood-red light flashed in Li Ping's eyes. At the same time, a wisp of blood-red crystal shot out from between his eyebrows and disappeared into Yan Liming's soul in a flash.
Speaking of which, the soul-searching technique that Li Ping is currently using actually comes from the "Blood Spirit Hundred Transformations True Scripture" that Yan Liming is practicing.
Using Yan Liming's techniques to search Yan Liming's soul can be considered a matter of fate.
Forced to undergo a soul search, Yan Liming's soul immediately became extremely unstable, and faint, mournful cries echoed within the weapon-refining room, accompanied by gusts of yin wind...
……
Half a day later, Li Ping put the half-dead Yan Liming's soul back into the jade bottle. He rubbed his temples wearily, but his face showed a mixture of surprise and joy.
Just now, he had successfully used the Soul Searching Technique on Yan Liming.
Although Yan Liming was a Core Formation cultivator, he had experienced possession, which weakened his soul considerably. Later, he was captured and tortured by Li Ping, leaving his soul practically crippled.
After Li Ping cultivated the "Myriad Spirits Divine Technique", his divine sense became so powerful that it was close to that of a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.
Searching the soul of a half-crippled Core Formation cultivator was still extremely difficult, but it was ultimately successful.
Li Ping rubbed his temples with his knuckles, pondering the information Yan Liming had obtained from the soul-searching.
Other miscellaneous memories also have some value, but the only one that Li Ping is most concerned about is where he obtained the crafting method of the "Zhou Tian Xing Chen Banner".
It was this memory that surprised and delighted Li Ping.
As he expected, Yan Liming had indeed not told the truth earlier.
The silver pages were not obtained by him from killing an unknown Qi Refining cultivator, but were discovered in a secret cave in the Cloud Mist Mountains.
The reason Yan Hengchuan sensed his aura suddenly disappear was because he had entered that secret cave.
Once inside the secret cave, he was no longer in this world, so Yan Hengchuan naturally couldn't sense him.
From Yan Liming's memories, Li Ping learned that the spiritual energy concentration inside and outside the secret cave reached the second-grade upper level, which was suitable for Foundation Establishment cultivators to cultivate. He himself took Foundation Establishment pills to break through to Foundation Establishment in the secret cave!
The Foundation Building Pill and the Silver Pages were both found on the outskirts of the secret realm.
He guessed that there should be even more precious treasures at the core of the secret realm.
However, the core of the secret realm is protected by a third-order formation, and since he doesn't understand formations, he can't enter.
If he were to forcefully attack and break the formation, given his Foundation Establishment stage strength, he probably wouldn't be able to break it even on the day he dies.
Therefore, he could only gather the spiritual herbs outside the cave before returning to the Western Wilderness.
His original plan was to wait until he reached the late stage of Foundation Establishment, then capture a few array masters to break the array.
To his surprise, Yan Hengchuan, who had cultivated the "Foundation-Seizing Technique," had been waiting for him all along.
As soon as he appeared in the Western Wilderness, Yan Hengchuan located him in real time.
Finally, Li Ping took him down.
……
"The secret cave is wonderful!" Li Ping was overjoyed.
After all, the so-called secret realm is actually an independent space.
Anyone who does not have a way to enter will be turned away.
As long as he hides in the secret cave, he can completely "lock himself up and become a unified entity".
This means that as long as he collects enough spiritual herbs to refine second-grade high-quality pills, he can stay there as a recluse and cultivate until he reaches the peak of the late Foundation Establishment stage before coming out.
The war in the Western Wilderness had absolutely no effect on him.
Running away is an option, but if the cost of running away is too high, digging a hole and hiding is also a good strategy.
As for joining the Yinghai Chamber of Commerce, this option was naturally put out of Li Ping's mind.
Both are one hundred years.
One option is to work like a slave, the other is to stay home comfortably. Even a fool would know which to choose.
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