Luo Chen's visit to Mulan Court had been entirely by chance.
He had arrived coincidentally and departed in haste.
He paid no mind to the Orthodox-Demonic Armistice Conference. To him, there were few people or matters in the Northern Sea cultivation world worth lingering over; he was merely a passerby.
Therefore, after achieving his intended goals, he quietly slipped away with his companions to avoid any lingering troubles stemming from his previously high-profile actions.
He had already obtained the Soul Essence from Old Monster Netherfire. As for the other two bottles promised by Fu Chaosheng, along with whatever else might follow, those would have to wait until they reached the Central Plains.
Yet that hardly mattered. A single bottle containing Soul Essence extracted from tens of millions of souls was enough for him to refine plenty of Great Soul Pellets.
Moving forward, all he needed to do was gather the requisite supplementary ingredients before he could begin refining.
Furthermore, Luo Chen had no need to exhaust himself running around to procure them.
The third condition he had agreed upon with Fu Chaosheng was both a stipulation and a transaction: he would utilize the might of Fu Chaosheng's Tianyuan Commerce Alliance to gather the resources he needed.
Those two simple words—"resources"—covered a vast array of items.
Among them were the supplementary ingredients for Great Soul Pellets and Tier 4 Hongyuan Pellets.
Had Luo Chen been forced to collect these on his own, the time required would have been unimaginable.
In addition, Luo Chen had entrusted Fu Chaosheng with procuring fire-attribute cultivation methods, secret techniques, and spell tomes. If any body-refining methods came their way, Fu Chaosheng was to collect copies of those as well.
Fu Chaosheng was not collecting these resources out of charity, of course.
Luo Chen was paying for them!
Nor did Fu Chaosheng doubt Luo Chen's wealth. During the Nascent Soul transaction at Guiyuan Palace, Luo Chen had squandered a hundred million spirit stones without batting an eye, thoroughly demonstrating his formidable financial might.
All of the above naturally pertained to cultivation.
Meanwhile, another of Luo Chen's objectives had been seamlessly fulfilled through their negotiations: using the Tianyuan Commerce Alliance's routes to journey to the Central Plains!
The Northern Sea covered a vast expanse. Even with a map, crossing that boundless ocean to reach the Central Plains would consume an exorbitant amount of time, to say nothing of the perils along the way.
The Tianyuan Commerce Alliance was different. They maintained their own merchant caravans, operated mature, secure routes, and even possessed short-range teleportation formations capable of bypassing treacherous terrain and forbidden zones.
The time saved through their methods would be at least tenfold!
Setting aside how the Armistice Conference at Mulan Court was progressing, and regardless of how Old Ghost Nanqi and the others would fly into a rage upon discovering his disappearance, Luo Chen was thoroughly enjoying his leisure at this moment.
Tucked away inside Black King's belly, he was completely engrossed in the beast-skin booklet in his hands.
This was a complete set of Tier 4 fire-attribute primary cultivation methods!
It was something Fu Chaosheng carried on his person—not a technique belonging to the Tianyuan Dao Sect, but an item he had acquired through purchases over the years.
After finalizing their third condition, Fu Chaosheng had handed the manual over to Luo Chen.
For this, Luo Chen had paid a full five million spirit stones!
And that was considered a friendly discount!
Yet Luo Chen had had no choice. Tier 4 cultivation methods were exceedingly rare!
Although this manual, titled the Yanhuang True Scripture, was relatively ordinary, it was remarkably complete, forming a cohesive path stretching from Qi Refinement all the way to the Nascent Soul stage.
Its specific contents were somewhat broad, lacking the meticulous divisions found in modern cultivation manuals. Still, with a bit of effort and adjustment, one could easily carve out sections for Qi Refinement, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, and beyond.
In other words, this single manual was sufficient to found a sect and cultivate disciples from scratch.
Luo Chen studied it carefully from the beginning, omitting nothing.
Although the Heavenly Phoenix Nirvana Scripture given to him by Youquan was hailed as the world's foremost fire-attribute manual, it contained only the Core Formation chapters.
Even though Luo Chen had cultivated it to an unprecedented realm of Great Perfection and could continue using it after reaching the Nascent Soul stage, it still felt slightly lacking in his eyes.
In the past, he had endured commonplace primary methods like the Eternal Spring Art and the Burning Wood True Art because he had no alternative.
Now, however, he was an exalted Nascent Soul True Lord. To remain so careless regarding his primary cultivation method was simply unacceptable.
Thus, he had constantly sought a superior, more fitting Tier 4 primary method.
If no suitable option existed, then he would forge a better one himself!
The massive hoard of achievement points accumulated on his attribute panel was not just for display.
Luo Chen had asked Fu Chaosheng to collect fire-attribute manuals regardless of rank or whether they were complete or fragmentary; he welcomed them all without exception.
In that regard, Luo Chen had already prepared himself to draw upon the strengths of diverse schools to pioneer his own method.
With Black King journeying onward, Luo Chen dedicated himself to studying the manual. As stars and moons turned, time slipped swiftly by.
On this day, Luo Chen closed the beast-skin booklet.
A look of disappointment hung on his face.
The Yanhuang True Scripture was indeed complete, but it was far too conventional.
In terms of cultivation speed bonuses, even at Great Perfection, it would likely be on par with his current Heavenly Phoenix Nirvana Scripture.
More importantly, it lacked detailed descriptions of communion between heaven and man and merging the spirit with the world. It merely noted that during this step, one should choose a safe, quiet spiritual vein, release the Nascent Soul, and comprehend the true intent of worldly laws.
Of course, the study had not been entirely fruitless.
At the very least, its mention of unblocking the acupoints throughout the body and drawing upon the principles of celestial circulation to absorb worldly spiritual energy offered valuable food for thought.
Luo Chen's acupoints had already been fully opened back during his Foundation Establishment stage.
Over the years, he had merely used them as secondary reservoirs to store spiritual energy outside his sea of qi.
If he could properly utilize them and integrate their function into his primary method, it would surely provide some measure of boost to his cultivation speed.
'On the other hand, the two Tier 4 fire-attribute spells recorded in this manual would be of immense help to my combat arsenal if I can master them!'
Recalling the descriptions of those two spells, Luo Chen felt his interest pique.
One was called Fire Phoenix Scorching Plains, and the other was Flame Dragon Advent.
The former was similar to the Qingyang Great Handprint—an area-of-effect attack with immense coverage. When unleashed with the full might of a Nascent Soul True Lord, it possessed the power to shatter mountains, sever seas, incinerate cities, and destroy nations.
The latter, however, was a spell fashioned after the heavenly tribulations endured by cultivators during their breakthroughs, targeted purely at a single entity.
It sounded less domineering than Fire Phoenix Scorching Plains, but what was the defining trait of a heavenly tribulation?
Unavoidable, inescapable—one could only endure it head-on!
When casting Flame Dragon Advent, one not only had to mobilize their own dharmic power, but also attune to the ambient fire-attribute spiritual energy drifting through the world. One even had to push their divine soul to its limits to lock onto the enemy's movements, achieving a tracking-strike effect.
'I'll try practicing it myself first. If I can learn it on my own, excellent; if not, I still have plenty of achievement points to help me master the basics.'
Luo Chen smiled faintly, finding himself something productive to do for the remainder of the journey.
***
Mogan Mountain.
Surrounded by the sea on three sides, only a precarious, narrow path connected it to the islet behind it.
In the shadow of the mountain's shaded slope, a massive dragon's head slowly broke the surface of the dark water.
"Master, we have arrived."
The dragon's jaws parted slightly, and a white-robed Daoist stepped out. His smooth black hair hung loose down his back, secured in a simple topknot with only a wooden hairpin.
Behind him emerged a tall woman with haughty eyes and a middle-aged man with an honest countenance.
With a wave of the white-robed Daoist's hand, the colossal frame lurking in the shadows shrank down to the size of a loach and slipped into his sleeve.
He gazed at Mogan Mountain before him and then at the sea behind him—a waterscape both familiar and estranged—and nodded faintly.
"Indeed, this is where the Mo family fishery once stood."
Tianxuan looked somewhat surprised. "How did it become like this? I remember that back then, the entire sea was filled with fish cages, and the spiritual energy was reasonably abundant."
Luo Chen remarked with a touch of melancholy, "It endured the battle between me and the various Core Formation forces of Lengguang Island, followed by the shockwaves of a Nascent Soul clash. It is already fortunate that the main mountain structure survived at all. How could we ask for more?"
After sighing casually, Luo Chen set foot upon the land.
Tianxuan and Sang Jinghe followed close behind.
Instead of ascending Mogan Mountain, they walked along the narrow path, making their way step by step toward the islet ahead.
Halfway across, Tianxuan and Sang Jinghe received their orders and took to the air in different directions to search for their target.
Luo Chen boarded a small boat alone, heading toward the ruins of the former Feileng City.
On the vessel, the boatman, a Qi Refinement cultivator, enthusiastically briefed Luo Chen on the current state of the Lengguang Archipelago.
Yes, it was now the Lengguang Archipelago, no longer Lengguang Island.
Once the greatest island of the southeast, Lengguang Island had been shattered into pieces during that cataclysmic Nascent Soul battle.
The entire landmass had fractured, and countless spiritual veins had collapsed.
Even after several decades of continuous repairs by the local cultivators, it could not be restored to its original state. Instead, they had gathered the fragmented veins and erected formations based on the individual islands, gradually demarcating thirteen islands of varying sizes.
"That battle was truly tragic!"
"Feileng City, which once shook the entire island with its prestige, was reduced directly to rubble."
"The sect grounds of Lianfeng Hall, where rogue cultivators once struggled to acquire a single treasure, were completely destroyed. Baizao Mountain managed to survive, but when the Master of Baizao Mountain failed to show his face for decades afterward, that great Core Formation sect splintered into several smaller clans amidst internal power struggles."
"The Qian family is gone—wiped out entirely. Their family head fell at the hands of the renowned Demonic Lord Qingyang. When the Nascent Soul battle broke out, they had no one at the helm to direct them, and their stronghold was demolished on the spot. Later, a swarm of rogue cultivators surged in and stripped the wealthy Qian family clean. Heh, you might wonder where so many formidable rogue cultivators came from. Who knows if those claiming to be rogue cultivators weren't actually brigands in disguise from other factions?"
"The Wu family, however, is still doing well. They suffered terribly at first, with their clan's Core Formation experts either dead or wounded. But later, they brought back Xiang Baiyang, who had been recuperating elsewhere, instantly giving the clan a leader. Under his stewardship, the Wu family has regained its vitality and now stands as the foremost power in the Lengguang Archipelago."
"Still, watching what was once the preeminent island of the southeast, bustling with gathered cultivators, fall to such a state... it's hard not to sigh."
Luo Chen listened with a faint smile as the boatman described the current state of the Lengguang Archipelago, chiming in now and then.
"In my view, it might not be entirely a bad thing. If Lengguang Island hadn't ended up like this, this ownerless territory surely would have been engulfed by the flames of war during the clash between the orthodox and demonic factions. How then could rogue cultivators like you live and work in peace?"
The boatman froze for a moment, then chuckled. "Senior speaks with great insight."
Disguised as a Core Formation cultivator, Luo Chen smiled faintly. He extended his divine sense to sweep over the surrounding islands as the boat advanced.
For some inexplicable reason, he felt a flicker of surprise.
He murmured under his breath, "A formation?"
Overhearing his murmur, the boatman explained, "Lengguang Island was gravely damaged in that battle, and its spiritual veins could not be restored. Later, someone procured an island-linking array method from the Canghai Alliance, allowing them to gather the scattered spiritual veins. Afterward, the surviving factions built their own formations on top of that foundation, creating the star-strewn layout of islands we see today. Because of this, the factions are quite xenophobic. Anyone wishing to enter their territory must be ferried in on small boats like ours; otherwise, unnecessary conflicts will arise."
'The Canghai Alliance's island-linking array method?'
A brilliant light flashed in Luo Chen's spirit eyes as he surveyed the surroundings. There was indeed a familiar feeling to it.
A similar formation had been deployed across the Flying Swallow Archipelago, though it lacked the primary formation plate and thus fell short in spiritual resonance.
The setup at Mulan Court was far more mature, but it, too, incorporated the principles of this island-linking array.
In that sense, Luo Chen's prior deduction had been entirely correct.
The Canghai Alliance's formation had now spread throughout the Northern Sea, no longer restricted to internal use among the alliance's own factions.
Yet what puzzled Luo Chen was that such a formation was meant to evoke a sense of surging vitality and resonance with the earth veins. Why did it feel so oppressive here?
'Is it because I advanced to the Nascent Soul stage and possess a deeper perception of heaven and earth, making me more sensitive to the formation's constraints?'
Luo Chen shook his head, choosing not to ponder it too deeply.
The small boat swayed gently as waves rippled across the water.
Gliding steadily forward, it eventually came to a halt before a colossal ancient tree.
The tree was lush with foliage, spreading like a massive umbrella across the azure sea.
Its trunk and lower branches, however, were completely submerged beneath the water's surface.
"Senior, we have arrived. This is Feileng City!"
Even though he had already learned of Feileng City's current state from Fu Chaosheng, witnessing it in person still sent a tremor through Luo Chen's heart.
A city once so grand and magnificent had left behind nothing at all, save for a single, unyielding spiritual tree standing erect in its place.
The rest of the city's ruins had been entirely swallowed by the ocean!
Luo Chen stood quietly at the bow, looking down beneath the water's surface as though gazing into an abyss.
That great war ignited by Blood Nightmare Moluo, Fairy Feileng, and Daoist Jiyuan had brought about Lengguang Island's tragic ruin. Who knew how many lives had perished here back then?
Countless mortals, tens of thousands of cultivators... perhaps that was the tally?
In all likelihood, even that estimate was on the conservative side.
Just then, a graceful figure flew back.
"Master, it has been confirmed. That Xiang Baiyang is indeed the elder of the Xiang brothers from Lianfeng Hall."
Luo Chen smiled.
In the battle where they had ambushed him all those years ago, most had perished; even the Master of Baizao Mountain had died on the Seven Star Islands.
Only a pair of twins who could rival a late Core Formation cultivator when joining forces had managed to break through the array, with the elder brother surviving by sheer luck.
He remembered that the man belonged to Lianfeng Hall.
Now it turned out that fellow also had ties to the Wu family!
"Very well. The Wu family was more or less involved in the events back then as well. We might as well settle both debts together!"
Luo Chen casually tossed a mid-grade spirit stone to the boatman, stepped into the air, and flew toward a medium-sized island not far from the ruins of Feileng City.
Tianxuan followed close behind.
The boatman seemed to realize what was happening. Curiosity and restlessness flickered across his face, but in the end, he gritted his teeth and steered his vessel away from the area as fast as he could.
***
Baiyang Island!
This was the name of the island where the Wu family now resided, named after the clan's Supreme Elder, Xiang Baiyang.
It sounded somewhat peculiar: why would the Supreme Elder of the Wu clan carry the surname Xiang?
The reasons behind it were rather intricate.
Had Fu Chaosheng not mentioned it in passing and Tianxuan not investigated specifically, Luo Chen likely would never have learned the truth.
Xiang Baiyang did possess a trace of Wu family bloodline, but he and his younger brother had severed ties with the Wu family at a young age to join Lianfeng Hall.
Later, Lianfeng Hall was destroyed and his younger brother was killed. The leaderless Wu family then used a marriage alliance to invite him back. Over the several decades since, not only had the Wu family become the preeminent clan of the Lengguang Archipelago, but Xiang Baiyang himself had cultivated to the seventh layer of Core Formation.
"A late Core Formation grand cultivator, is he?"
Luo Chen smiled faintly from midair, gazing down at the island that spanned hundreds of li.
Mortals thrived and multiplied upon it, while cultivators came and went in droves. It truly possessed an aura of revival.
In his perception, Xiang Baiyang's aura shone as brilliantly as a star amidst fireflies.
He was indeed in the late Core Formation stage.
Slightly dimmer than that star were four or five other auras, likely other Core Formation cultivators.
Sang Jinghe asked curiously, "True Lord, what should we do next?"
Tianxuan said venomously, "Why not kill them all!"
That single phrase—"kill them all"—made Sang Jinghe's scalp tingle.
He had never imagined that Fairy Tianxuan, who seemed gentle and amiable during their day-to-day interactions, could be so ruthless.
There were at least tens of thousands of people living on this island!
What he did not know was that during that ambush against Luo Chen years ago, Tianxuan had also been gravely injured. Had Luo Chen not exhausted every effort to heal her, her life would have been ruined.
Moreover, monster beasts possessed unruly natures; even after taking human form, their temperament remained exceedingly brutal.
Luo Chen waved his hand. "There is no need for that. Although they crossed me, that was merely the wrongdoing of their leadership. In seeking vengeance today, we execute only the chief culprits!"
With those words, he no longer concealed his aura.
A terrifying, overwhelming pressure instantly engulfed all of Baiyang Island.
In that moment, every cultivator on the island was shaken to the core.
Seven streaks of escape light struggled to rise into the sky from the island.
Seeing Luo Chen's hostile demeanor, they reflexively opened their mouths to speak.
Yet Luo Chen wasted no breath. With a flick of his finger, a spark of fire rose from his fingertip.
In the blink of an eye, it swelled into a blazing sun.
The sun abruptly split into seven radiant orbs that hurled toward the seven figures.
"Senior, you—"
Before their cries of alarm could fully leave their throats, all seven burst into agonized shrieks, utterly unable to put up any resistance.
How could ordinary Core Formation cultivators withstand a Nascent Soul senior?
The suppression of his domain alone was enough to render them helpless lambs for slaughter.
Having exacted his revenge, Luo Chen felt no lingering attachment. Paying no heed to the dumbfounded tens of thousands below, he turned to leave.
Yet before his foot could take that departing step, Luo Chen paused.
His gaze fell upon one of the fireballs.
That person was not dead yet!
Within the flames, shrouded in a crimson glow, the figure continued to resist desperately amidst relentless shrieks.
"Quite capable, aren't you? Then... wait!"
Luo Chen's expression shifted slightly, and he reached out through the void to seize the figure.
However, the fireball detonated, and a figure broke free. Though horribly mangled, the figure's aura surged wildly, forcefully shattering Luo Chen's grasping hand.
That dense crimson radiance and that eerily familiar aura called forth an unforgettable image from the depths of Luo Chen's memory.
Witnessing this scene, Luo Chen's expression darkened completely.
"A Blood God Child!"
Chapter 726