Chapter 485: Chapter 483: Earth Listening (Making up for 39 missed updates)_1
Western Desert.
Endless dunes of yellow sand swept over a deserted oasis; occasionally, a tip of a building emerged above the sand dunes, soon to be drowned again by dust and earth...
Underground, within an ancient teleportation array.
A flash of silver light, and Fang Xi’s figure stepped out from it.
"Finally back, Western Desert..."
He muttered to himself, flicked his finger, and the Taiyi Green Wood Divine Light turned into a flying knife, leaving a cut on one of the array patterns in the teleportation array.
With that, this ancient teleportation array was now considered destroyed.
Even if someone were on Jade Island, they would be unable to activate the teleportation.
And with Fang Xi’s current mastery over arrays, fixing this cut would naturally be an exceedingly simple task.
"This trip to the Western Desert is mainly to lay low... at the same time, there are three things I must do."
Fang Xi walked out of the underground palace into the barren oasis outside, looked up at the blazing sun, "The first is to find a place to settle down and cultivate, preferably with a fourth-order Spiritual Vein!"
"The second thing is to search for information on the ’Blood River Stone’ and several kinds of Demon Fire."
’The method of Demon Fire Refined Infant School mentioned the flames needed to sacrifice a Heterodox Nascent Soul must be Spirit Fire of the Demon Path!’
Therefore, the Azure Luan True Fire was no use, given its conflicting properties.
Fang Xi even suspected that if Xiao Qing breathed out a mouthful of Azure Luan Spirit Flame, the Heterodox Nascent Soul would just... be gone!
"The third thing is to enhance my skills in alchemy, and attempt to refine the ’Splitting Spirit Pill’..."
He muttered to himself, recalling the overview of the Western Desert Cultivation World.
The Western Desert Cultivation World is vast, mostly made up of deserts and oases, divided into dozens of ’Regions.’ Within each region, there is often one or more Nascent Soul Sects.
Where he currently was is near the ’Quicksand Region’ of the East Eight Domains. Decades ago, the Monster Clan descended, and the Nascent Soul Sects of the East Eight Domains jointly established ’Tianwei City,’ holding back the beast tide firmly within the Great Array.
"Now, I’m unaware of the situation. It should not be worse than the South Wilderness. After all, in the Western Desert Cultivation World, there might well be Transcendent God cultivators...
For this very reason, Fang Xi also planned to keep a low profile, not drawing too much attention to himself.
Fortunately, with his current cultivation level, even if he only used the puppet skill, he was powerful enough to dominate, unafraid even if he encountered a great cultivator.
After all, this time, Fang Xi had also brought along the Puppets refined by Elder Qing...
"Previously, I went by the name Master Mu outside of Tianwei City, where I killed a member of the Five Elements Qilin Tribe. The ’Sky Demon Slaying Immortal Tactics’ and the ’Biyi Universal Skills’ were obtained from the beast skin manuscript on its body..."
"If the Monster Clan has spies, they definitely won’t let Master Mu off... This disguise won’t do; time for a change."
Fang Xi touched his Storage Ring, and from it, he brought out a conical bamboo hat.
This bamboo hat was woven from a certain kind of bamboo splint, with a layer of gray gauze drooping all around the edges, just enough to cover the face.
A gleam of spiritual light flickered within it, forming faint patterns of runes—indeed, it was an Exotic Treasure!
This item was something Fang Xi had found inside Elder Qing’s Storage Artifact, capable of concealing facial features and obstructing Divine Consciousness probes, highly effective even against Nascent Soul cultivators.
It clearly belonged to the human race, and it was unknown which unfortunate human race Nascent Soul cultivator was slaughtered by Elder Qing, resulting in this exotic treasure being carelessly collected.
Now that Fang Xi wore it, his presence became obscure, and even Lord Black Sand would likely not recognize him even if they were face-to-face.
Last time he came, Fang Xi had already become extremely familiar with the geography.
Turning into a streak of blue light, he swiftly departed.
...
Wood Beam City.
This city was under the rule of the Eight Desolate Sect, a trading city established by the sect.
Even now, as the Monster Clan had descended, the cultivators of the East Eight Domains did not feel much chaos, thanks to the strong defenses of Tianwei City.
Nevertheless, every family contributing manpower and suffering heavy casualties was unavoidable.
Fang Xi suppressed his aura to around Core Formation level and entered Wood Beam City through the main entrance, planning to find an information organization to gather news.
"Eh?"
Suddenly, his Divine Consciousness stirred, and he noticed a female cultivator just coming out of a certain pavilion building.
This female cultivator moved like a snake, exuding mature charm—it was none other than ’Lady Snake,’ whom he had traded with for the Enlightenment Pill in the past!
"This lady is here too..."
Fang Xi sighed inwardly, with no intention of approaching and making her acquaintance.
Now he was a stranger, a Core Formation cultivator, not Master Mu, and to Lady Snake, they didn’t know each other at all.
Furthermore, last time, after the trade was concluded, he even helped Lady Snake’s family avoid a catastrophic disaster. If anything, she owed him quite a bit, so there was no need to rush and collect the debt.
"Is this senior visiting Wood Beam City for the first time?"
Perhaps because Fang Xi had been standing at the city gate for too long, a Qi Refining cultivator who had originally been squatting in a corner brightened up, stepped forward to greet him with a bow.
"Hmm, I have just finished a period of secluded cultivation and have come out of the mountains. I’m looking for a commercial house to ask about recent information in the Cultivation World."
Fang Xi casually tossed over a low-grade Spirit Stone: "Lead the way, and if I am satisfied, you won’t lack for a reward."
"Many thanks, senior. My name is Tu Longz, and I will make sure to handle this matter well for you."
Tu Longzi accepted the Spirit Stone, feeling secretly pleased with himself.
"Those scoundrels, they’re too scared to approach when they see someone with high cultivation. Little do they know that it’s exactly such seniors who give generous rewards... Those Qi Refining cultivators roam around for half a day and only give a few Spirit Crystals, Where would you find a senior like this who gives a Spirit Stone so readily?"
He immediately led the way ahead, speaking enthusiastically, "The largest merchant guild in Wood Beam City is the ’Eight Extreme Commercial House’, the owner behind the scenes is the ’Eight Desolate Sect’. They are the most trustworthy, with many treasures inside... They also engage in the information brokerage business, but the pricing is very high, and some intelligence related to the sect itself is completely sealed off..."
"Aside from the ’Eight Extreme Commercial House’, Earth Hearing building, Three Communications Assembly, and Zhai Family’s old shop... are also all well-informed parties."
After listening, Fang Xi pondered for a moment and then said, "Let’s go to Earth Hearing building first."
"Yes!"
Tu Longzi led the way, while Fang Xi strolled slowly behind, occasionally using his Divine Consciousness to observe the passing cultivators and the price tags for artifacts and talismans on the stalls... He found the prices had risen compared to before, and couldn’t help but sigh inwardly: ’This is the war economy...’
About the time it takes to burn a few sticks of incense later, Tu Longzi brought Fang Xi to the front of a pavilion.
This pavilion was four-square, narrow on top and wide at the base, constructed from a type of rare wood that emitted a faint fragrance.
Colorful prohibition array patterns emerged, tightly guarding the building, with the words ’Earth Hearing building’ written on the plaque above.
Fang Xi stood under the plaque, his gaze lingering on the lines that seemed like patterns around the words Earth Hearing building.
Just when Tu Longzi thought the senior had some instructions to give, he saw him stride in.
’What’s there to look at on this plaque?’
Tu Longzi looked up, glanced at the plaque, and couldn’t help feeling speechless.
As Fang Xi entered Earth Hearing building, he was greeted by a female attendant: "Honored guest, please come to the side hall for tea!"
"Hmm."
Fang Xi responded and then tossed a Spirit Stone to Tu Longzi: "You’ve done a good job. There’s no need to visit the other places. You may leave..."
"Thank you, senior."
Tu Longzi caught the Spirit Stone, then left with his head filled with confusion.
This senior’s way of doing things was really peculiar; how did he already decide this was a good place without even starting?
However, high-level cultivators often had eccentric characters; he didn’t dare to ask more and quickly left...
...
"This way, please, honored guest."
This female attendant was dressed very lightly. Her top was just a wrap around the chest, and below she wore a short blue skirt. Small rings made of gold and silver adorned her wrists and ankles, jingling as she moved.
Fang Xi followed the attendant, passed through a flower garden, and entered a side hall.
The hall seemed to be hollowed out of a tree trunk, with tables and chairs inside carved from logs, seamlessly integrated with the floor, giving a quirky appearance.
"Honored guest, please enjoy the Seven Treasure Tea!"
The attendant quickly poured a cup of Spiritual Tea.
The tea was served in a wooden cup, appearing to contain seven types of Spirit Fruit petals, and the scent of flowers and fruits was overwhelming, different from what’s found in the South Wilderness.
Fang Xi took a sip, enjoying the sour and sweet flavor, and couldn’t help but smile slightly: "Indeed, good tea..."
It wasn’t long before a woman in her thirties, the manager of the establishment, entered the hall. Her skin was fair, dressed similarly to the attendant, and her face covered with a translucent veil, greeted him with a bow: "Wanying meets the honored guest..."
Her cultivation level was around late Foundation Establishment, and seeing Fang Xi’s Core Formation cultivation, she acted with extra caution.
"No worries, I’ve just come out of seclusion and I would like to know the latest intel on Tianwei City."
Fang Xi said straightforwardly.
"So the senior wishes to inquire about the Monster Clan?" Wanying relaxed a bit: "Over the last few decades, a Purple Thunder Kirin from the Monster Clan has repeatedly attacked the defenses of Tianwei City, causing many cultivators to die or be injured... Specific information is here, priced at two hundred lower-grade Spirit Stones."
The price was quite cheap, so Fang Xi naturally handed over two middle-grade Spirit Stones, and received a jade slip in exchange.
He sent his Divine Consciousness into it, and the first thing he saw was the phantom image of a Purple Thunder Kirin!
It looked like a Kirin with split horns on its head, and faint thunder was forming around it.
Even though it was just a phantom, Fang Xi felt it was much stronger than the Azure Horned Qilin he had seen before.
"Purple Thunder Kirin, four-clawed superior... repeated attacks against the Tianwei City defenses, demanding ’Master Mu’?"
As he continued reading, the first piece of shocking news was related to himself. Fang Xi’s expression remained unchanged, but he felt as if a storm was raging inside him.
’Good thing I concealed my identity... Seems there’s no need to visit Lady Snake anymore.’
He kept reading and found that aside from the ’Elder Zi’ of the Purple Thunder Kirin, there was another superior-grade four-clawed monster beast that nearly breached Tianwei City’s defenses a few years ago. Luckily, a late-Nascent Soul cultivator, Buddhist Monk Master Golden Light, arrived with reinforcements just in time, averting a dire outcome.
’Buddhist Monks... That’s somewhat interesting.’
Whether it’s Buddhism or Confucianism... they’re all essentially cultivation methods pursued by the seekers of Long Life within the human race factions.
In the face of significant events like resisting the Monster Clan, naturally, it’s necessary to unite and cooperate.
After verifying that Tianwei City’s defenses were still secure, Fang Xi put away the jade slip and turned his attention to the beautiful lady.
"Do you have any further orders, senior?"
Wanying asked with some trepidation.
"You... You’re a worm cultivator, aren’t you?"
After a moment of contemplation, Fang Xi slowly spoke, revealing the woman’s true nature.