Chapter 161: Suanni
Li Qingqiu thought it over repeatedly and felt that the port was very likely the work of the disciples of the Source Iron Blessed Land, because the Source Iron Blessed Land was located by the sea.
He was very curious about that port, but before Jiang Zhaoxia and Xu Ning returned, he could not leave the Clear Sky Sect.
After chatting with Li Sijin for a while, Li Qingqiu returned to his cave dwelling to cultivate.
Right now, he needed to seize the time and make himself as strong as possible.
He liked to overestimate his opponents as much as possible; only then was it safer.
Ever since he had obtained a cave dwelling, Li Qingqiu had found the feeling of immortal cultivation.
He began to enter closed-door cultivation for several days at a time.
Worldly affairs surged like tides, and the Clear Sky Sect’s actions shocked the martial world.
Many people had guessed that the Clear Sky Sect would not sit and wait for death, but they had not expected the Clear Sky Sect to strike so ruthlessly.
With Jiang Zhaoxia and Xu Ning as the leaders, the Clear Sky Sect’s disciples were sweeping through the Lingtian Residences across the various provinces.
Before Li Qingqiu had slain the Demonic Emperor and the Emperor, Jiang Zhaoxia and Xu Ning had been the representative figures of the Clear Sky Sect.
They were peerless geniuses who had shocked the martial world.
Just as people of the martial world were about to forget them, they once again displayed terrifying strength.
Experts of the Lingtian Sect who roamed north and south were no match for the joint efforts of these two.
Because the Lingtian Residences were located within cities, many people witnessed the battles between the Clear Sky Sect and the Lingtian Sect.
For a time, the Clear Sky Sect was praised to the skies by martial artists.
Some even said that the Clear Sky Sect’s disciples could fly.
All kinds of exaggerated rumors spread in all directions, making truth and falsehood hard to distinguish.
The only thing that could be confirmed was that the Lingtian Sect was completely no match for the Clear Sky Sect.
The Lingtian Sect wanted to unify the martial world under heaven, while the Clear Sky Sect was a towering mountain they could not cross.
When the two collided, people of the martial world finally realized that they were not opponents on the same level at all.
The martial worlds of the various provinces under heaven were in an uproar.
The title of the Number One Sect Under Heaven was once again on everyone’s lips, and the opinions were increasingly inclined toward a unified answer.
When Jiang Zhaoxia, Xu Ning, and the others had yet to return, news of their battle achievements had already spread to Clear Sky Mountain, greatly boosting the morale of the entire sect.
The pressure on the Tempering Hall surged sharply, because far too many disciples wanted to go down the mountain and help the sect ascend to the position of Number One Under Heaven.
Time came to late March.
After noon, Zhang Ping walked through the main gate of the Tempering Hall.
Seeing the long queue in the courtyard, his brows could not help but knit together.
“Why are there still so many people?”
Zhang Ping felt puzzled.
It was not because he had heard of Jiang Zhaoxia and Xu Ning’s battle achievements that he came; he simply wanted to earn Dao Affinity.
With the Emperor having been slain by the Sect Master and the Demonic Cult disappearing without a trace, and with the sect now engaged in a great battle with the Lingtian Sect, he felt that even if Chu Jing were still alive, he probably would not be squatting to target him.
Being in the Free Spirit Hall, he was very clear about the number of disciples at each level within the sect.
More and more disciples were surpassing him, and this made him grow anxious.
He realized that he needed enough Dao Affinity to go to the fourth floor of the Scripture Repository to exchange for a supreme legacy.
He had already learned the upper volume of the Earth Talisman Codex and the Ghostly Immortal Needle of Rejuvenation, but he lacked sufficient talent in these two arts and could only barely grasp them at present.
Having stayed in the Free Spirit Hall for these years, he had already seen his own future.
Precisely because he could see it, he felt fearful and wanted to change it.
Now that he saw so many people in the hall, Zhang Ping began to worry, fearing that he would not be able to take on a suitable task.
“This junior brother, are you here to take a task, but afraid that the good ones will be gone?”
A voice came from behind.
Zhang Ping turned around and saw a young man looking at him with a smile on his face.
This was the Clear Sky Sect, so Zhang Ping was not worried that the other party would harm him.
He thus replied, “Yes, there are really too many people.”
The person who struck up a conversation with him was none other than Bai Ning’er, who possessed the “Lucky One” fate trait.
At twenty-two years old, he could indeed call himself senior brother in front of the nineteen-year-old Zhang Ping.
Hearing Zhang Ping’s words, the smile on Bai Ning’er’s face became even brighter.
He laughed and said, “My name is Bai Ning’er. In my early years, I often followed Hall Master Li Sifeng down the mountain for training. Later, I stayed in the spirit mine. I’ve already taken on a task and want to find someone to accompany me. Junior brother, if you’re willing to go with me, after the job is done, you and I will split three hundred Dao Affinity equally.”
Three hundred Dao Affinity!
Zhang Ping raised his brows upon hearing this.
His current monthly stipend was only forty Dao Affinity.
To obtain one hundred and fifty Dao Affinity in one go, how could he not be tempted?
“May I ask, Senior Brother Bai, what type of task is this, and how far is it?” Zhang Ping asked cautiously.
Bai Ning’er leaned in and warmly put an arm around his shoulder, saying, “Let’s talk somewhere else. If you agree, we’ll come back to register. If you don’t, we’ll just consider it making a friend.”
Hearing that they could return to the Tempering Hall to register, Zhang Ping felt relieved.
The Enforcement Hall had regulations stating that Dao Affinity could not be directly transferred.
Although many disciples privately traded Dao Affinity through various means, bringing it into the open was definitely not allowed.
If they did not register and Bai Ning’er later went back on his word, he would have no recourse.
“Alright.”
Zhang Ping agreed.
Strangely enough, he would feel guarded toward anyone he faced, but when he looked at Bai Ning’er, he inexplicably felt a sense of goodwill, feeling that they were quite compatible.
On the other side.
Inside the Lingxiao Courtyard, Li Qingqiu was listening to a True Transmission Disciple report on the matter of the seaside port.
“That port is not far from the Source Iron Blessed Land. The reason for building the port was that we discovered a whirlpool within the shallows, emitting extremely rich spiritual energy. Previously, Elder Shen discovered a large fish over two zhang long and wanted to capture it, but the fish directly drilled into the whirlpool and disappeared. Elder Shen then felt that this whirlpool had something to it, possibly a treasure land similar to the Source Iron Blessed Land. Thus, he ordered us to build pavilions on the shallows, using the port as a cover.”
After listening to this True Transmission Disciple’s report, Li Qingqiu secretly sighed that ginger was indeed spicier when old.
Shen Yue really knew how to handle matters.
Li Qingqiu could be certain that within that whirlpool there must be a spatial teleportation formation similar to a low-tier demonic realm.
As for where it led, that was unknown for the time being.
However, since it was around the Source Iron Blessed Land, it meant that this whirlpool did not pose a threat to him for now.
After all, this was a blessed land chosen for him by the Dao Lineage panel.
Of course, Li Qingqiu would not be careless.
The so-called lack of threat came with no guarantee of time.
What had posed no danger to him before might not be the case now, and the future was even harder to say.
“You go back and tell Elder Shen and the other disciples not to act rashly. If there’s something evil hidden inside and you get injured, or if it gets released, that would be bad.”
Li Qingqiu said seriously.
The Ancient Great Mountain Range connected to the eastern sea.
If there truly was a powerful demonic creature that broke out, the first to be threatened would be the Clear Sky Sect.
“Sect Master, don’t worry. We know what we’re doing. It’s just that Elder Shen feels our craftsmanship isn’t good enough and wants you to transfer some disciples from the Heavenly Works Hall to build the port. The various coastal resources are still very abundant. It’s said that the Xi River connects to the sea. In the future, we could even establish a waterway to provide the sect with various kinds of marine fish.”
The True Transmission Disciple nodded and made the suggestion in passing.
Li Qingqiu nodded and praised, “Good idea. I’ll remember you. Work hard. Go back and rest for now. Tomorrow morning, go to the Heavenly Works Hall and wait. I’ll arrange for a batch of disciples to go with you.”
“Yes!”
The True Transmission Disciple beamed with joy, quickly raised his hands in salute, then turned and left.
Having been away from the sect for so long, he also had someone he missed and wanted to see.
Li Qingqiu sat in front of the long table and thought.
He suddenly felt that it was necessary to draw a map, but in the early stages of the sect, this map could not be leaked.
After thinking for a while, he rose and headed to the Heavenly Works Hall.
Whether it was the Source Iron Blessed Land or that mysterious whirlpool, both were related to the sect’s development.
He planned to send Ming Guang, who was skilled in formations, together with Wu Xingyue, who was adept at forging magic implements.
Perhaps the Source Iron Blessed Land and the seaside resources could promote the development of the Clear Sky Sect’s artifact path and formation path.
That night, Li Qingqiu summoned Zhang Yuchun and Zhu Yan.
He explained the matter of the Source Iron Blessed Land and the whirlpool, then instructed, “I need people to build ships. I need people to plan routes, and I also need someone who can make maps.”
Zhu Yan responded, “I’ll contact shipbuilding craftsmen. As for the map, I’ll do it personally; otherwise I won’t feel at ease. This matter is of great importance and cannot be handled carelessly.”
“As for the routes, I’ll dispatch a group of disciples to follow the Xi River downstream and see if we can bypass the coastline,” Zhang Yuchun followed up.
He paused, then said with emotion, “If that whirlpool connects to a place similar to a low-tier demonic realm, setting aside resources, just the cultivation grounds alone would be an additional location. The disciples will be blessed.”
Zhu Yan smiled and said, “Just from the Ancient Great Mountain Range alone, we’ve discovered so many blessed lands. This shows that this land still hides even more treasure grounds waiting for us to explore.”
She had already realized one thing.
That was, in this world, it might be that only the Clear Sky Sect was cultivating immortality, and only the Clear Sky Sect could discover and utilize these treasure grounds.
The next hundred years would all be a period of rapid development for the Clear Sky Sect.
No wonder the Sect Master disdained competing for supremacy in the martial world; he had higher goals.
Li Qingqiu said to Zhu Yan, “Hall Master Zhu, you can select some craftsmen with different skills to enter the Clear Sky Sect. I allow the Heavenly Works Hall to open Registered Disciple positions, making it easier to unearth more talent.”
“Thank you, Sect Master.” Zhu Yan immediately responded.
Such trust and heavy use made her very happy.
Zhang Yuchun did not contend for the authority to open Registered Disciple positions.
After all, the Free Spirit Hall and the Heavenly Works Hall had different responsibilities and did not require so many people.
Zhu Yan continued, “By the way, Sect Master, according to investigations by our Zhu Family, the Lingtian Sect and the Qi Clan have already begun cooperating. The Lingtian Residences that the Lingtian Sect has established across various regions were all estates previously purchased by the Qi Clan. The Qi Clan wants to annex the world, and the Lingtian Sect is their blade. Once the Lingtian Sect unifies the martial world, when the Qi Clan’s army goes on campaign, it can play a role of internal and external coordination.”
“The Qi Clan is currently attacking Weizhou. Judging from the battle situation, Weizhou won’t last half a year.”
She had also learned that the Lingtian Sect had provoked the Clear Sky Sect, which she could not understand.
She felt that the Lingtian Sect was acting foolishly.
Li Qingqiu nodded and said, “I understand. As for the Qi Clan, you just need to keep watching them. There’s no need to take any action.”
Zhang Yuchun spoke up, “I have a friend from the north who said that a fierce general has appeared in Cangzhou. It’s said that he has obtained the true inheritance of the Martial Legend and possesses the courage to face ten thousand men alone. This person’s mount is also an ancient exotic beast, the Suanni.”
“Suanni?” Li Qingqiu raised his brows, somewhat surprised.
Zhu Yan frowned and said, “According to ancient records, the Suanni resembles a giant cat, with thick mane growing from its head and neck. Its four claws are as sharp as a tiger’s, its body like a savage bear, and it has a dragon’s tail. If it is as recorded in legend, then with this general riding it, he truly could charge through thousands upon thousands of troops.”
Zhang Yuchun seemed to recall something and said, “Speaking of which, the Prison Qilin has been quite restless lately. I heard from Sijin that it has become irritable, and ordinary disciples cannot even get close to it.”