Chapter 540 - 53: Creation Spirit Fish

Demonic Light surged behind Fang Cheng. A jet-black, flame-like radiance shot out, disappearing into the ground in a flash.

It was his Resentment Celestial Demon avatar.

The avatar dove deep underground. After scouting the area, it quietly flew out and returned to its place behind Fang Cheng.

He took out a Talisman and whispered a few words to it. Then, with a flick of his finger, the Talisman transformed into a beam of golden light that shot into the sky and vanished.

In less than an hour, a dazzling light flared in the distant sky. A magnificent, golden Flying Heaven Palace parted the clouds, approaching at a deceptively fast pace.

It was the Divine Image Sect.

Though inwardly shocked, Zhuang Daojing exchanged a few brief pleasantries with Fang Cheng before quickly arranging for his Cultivators to head underground and investigate.

Soon after, the Divine Image Sect’s Cultivators were bustling with activity.

A Fourth-tier Array covering a radius of a hundred li quickly materialized over the land.

Zhuang Daojing personally presided over the Grand Array, while several other Life Soul Elders led the majority of the Disciples underground to begin mining the Divine Stones.

According to Qiu Wen Si, the Taichu Divine Stone vein was twenty li underground, an area filled with magma of incredible temperatures and exceptionally hard rock.

Ordinary Life Talisman Cultivators wouldn’t be able to descend at all without a third or fourth-rank Magical Artifact for protection.

Only under the protection of Life Soul Cultivators could the Divine Stones be safely excavated.

Fang Cheng, of course, had no need to concern himself with such matters. He sat peacefully on the Golden Radiance Tower Ship, attended by the Qiu Sisters, and waited leisurely.

「A day later.」

The first batch of Taichu Divine Stones was brought up. Zhuang Daojing sent someone to invite Fang Cheng to make his selection, but Fang Cheng gestured for the Qiu Sisters to go instead.

Before long, the two sisters returned to the tower ship with thirty percent of the Divine Stones.

Qiuyu Tan couldn’t contain her excitement. She smiled and asked Fang Cheng, "Master, shall we cut a few open and see what’s inside?"

Fang Cheng waved his hand magnanimously. "Cut them all open."

With his current standards, ordinary third and fourth-tier treasures were no longer worth his notice.

For him, the greatest value of these Divine Stones was to trade them for a Tier Five Flying Sword from this realm, and for the Spiritual Medicines needed to refine the Cyan Dragon Divine Pill.

He trusted Qiu Wen Si’s skill; the treasures cut from the stones would surely fetch a higher price than selling the Taichu Divine Stones directly.

After receiving Fang Cheng’s approval, the two young women began to cut the stones.

"This is Tier Three Taihao Essence Gold."

"This one... Tier Three Flashing Spirit Wood..."

"Tier Four Purple Talisman Celestial Fire!"

"Tier Three Formless True Water..."

As they cut the stones, the sisters announced the names of the treasures, then sorted them by type and placed them into jade boxes.

Fang Cheng watched the two of them work, leisurely admiring their slender figures and elegant demeanor. It was a rather amusing sight.

To his surprise, the sisters seemed to recognize almost every type of Celestial and Earthly Spiritual Object, proving to be quite learned.

Of the nearly one hundred Taichu Divine Stones they brought back, most contained third-tier treasures. The occasional fourth-tier Spiritual Object was enough to make the two sisters gasp in pleasant surprise.

"This is..."

Suddenly, Qiu Wen Si cut open another stone to reveal a small tree, about ten feet tall. Its purplish-black trunk shimmered with a bewitching, crystalline color that seemed wet to the touch.

A closer inspection revealed a deep and mysterious Spiritual Mechanism emanating from it in distinct, cascading waves, like an ocean tide or a field of flowers blooming in succession.

Qiu Wen Si’s eyes lit up. She turned to Fang Cheng, beaming, and said, "Congratulations, Benefactor! This is a Tier Five Spiritual Object, the Black Divine Wood! It is miraculously effective at helping a Tribulation Realm Great Power withstand their heavenly tribulation. Once it appears in the world, Tribulation Realm Cultivators will be fighting over it."

Fang Cheng gave the tree a few looks and said, "In other words, this tree is worth a Tier Five Flying Sword, at the very least."

Qiu Wen Si nodded with a serious expression. "To certain Tribulation Realm Great Powers, this tree is even more precious than a Tier Five Flying Sword."

After Fang Cheng put the Black Divine Wood away, the two sisters continued to cut the stones.

Unfortunately, by the time they finished, they had not found a second Tier Five Treasure.

However, one object did catch Fang Cheng’s attention.

It was a piece of natural jade about a foot long, shaped like a Spirit Fish. It radiated a potent Dao rhythm. Although it was different from the Dao Pattern Spirit Jade of the Red Profound Realm, it was strikingly similar in some respects.

"A third-tier Spiritual Object, the Creation Spirit Fish. This object is primarily used to aid cultivation. It can help a Cultivator focus their mind, calm their heart, and dispel distracting thoughts."

Seeing Fang Cheng’s interest in the object, Qiuyu Tan explained softly.

When Fang Cheng picked up the Creation Spirit Fish, the Creation Golden Talisman in his sea of consciousness did indeed tremble slightly. The number indicating his creation points shot up by more than three thousand!

’The Extreme Jade Heaven doesn’t have Dao Pattern Spirit Jade, but it has Creation Spirit Fish... It seems all great paths lead to the same destination.’

As his thoughts turned, Fang Cheng asked nonchalantly, "Are these common in the markets?"

Qiuyu Tan only had a partial understanding and looked to Qiu Wen Si, who answered, "Three or four out of every ten objects hidden within Taichu Divine Stones are these fish. Rumor has it that the initial market for gambling on Taichu Divine Stones was set by the price of a third-tier Creation Spirit Fish."

Fang Cheng pondered for a moment before saying to the two women, "Contact the Divine Image Sect for me later. All these Spiritual Objects we’ve cut from the Divine Stones are to be traded for more Creation Spirit Fish, or for a Tier Five Flying Sword."

Although the two sisters were somewhat puzzled, they nodded in agreement and made a mental note to mention it the next time they met with an Elder from the Divine Image Sect.

...

The excavation of the Taichu Divine Stone Vein proceeded smoothly.

Each day, Elders and Disciples would bring up a batch of Taichu Divine Stones. The Qiu Sisters would go to select their share, bring them back to the Golden Radiance Tower Ship, cut them all open, and then sort and store the contents.

The grand scale of the Divine Image Sect’s operation alerted the other major powers on the Chu Shao Plateau. They suspected something was afoot and sent people to investigate, but Zhuang Daojing managed to fend them all off.

Fang Cheng kept to himself, meditating and cultivating on the tower ship while a new plan formed in his mind.

The Taichu Divine Stones of this realm were, without a doubt, a major fortuitous opportunity!

In the future, even after obtaining the Demon-Suppressing Immortal Cicada, he intended to stay in this realm for a few more years.

After all, he had the Ten Thousand Worlds Compass and could return to the Red Profound Realm at any time, without needing Monk Haideng to take him back.

Here, he could not only continue to accumulate creation points and advance his Circulation Qi Collection Technique to the Perfect Realm, but he could also further increase his cultivation speed.

He could also search for a Tier Five Flying Sword and the Spiritual Medicines for the Cyan Dragon Divine Pill.

If things went smoothly, he might even be able to press on and reach the Peak of the Dharma Phase in one fell swoop. At that point, he could return to the Red Profound Realm and prepare to break through to the Tribulation Realm.

Besides, the Demon Lord’s avatar was due to return soon. If the Demon Lord learned that it was he who had killed his beloved disciple, a deadly tribulation would be all but guaranteed.

Hiding in this realm would allow him to lay low for a while.

Only after he grew stronger would he have the confidence to return to the Red Profound Realm.

’Pushing the Circulation Qi Collection Technique to the Perfect Realm will require a massive amount of creation points... I wonder what will change once it’s perfected?’

Fang Cheng mused silently.

His Circulation Qi Collection Technique had already reached the stage of major completion. Each time he circulated the Cultivation Technique, the Immortal Sect behind him would open almost completely, and a vast amount of Celestial Realm Spiritual Qi would pour down, far exceeding the amount he could refine.

Therefore, his daily practice primarily consisted of Dharma and Body Cultivation; while increasing his Magical Power, he also refined Talismanic Coins to steadily improve his Physical Strength.

The Nine Revolutions Profound Origin Technique could endlessly increase his physical strength. At his current pace, he might break through to the fifth revolution in another few decades. By then, his physical body would be comparable to that of a Tribulation Realm Body Refining Cultivator.

...