Chapter 176: Chapter 78: First Arrival at a Major Cultivation Country

When the Blood Fiend initially forms, to gather and solidify, it will not go to places with insufficient Spiritual Qi; it will only devour the life essence of beings in Spirit Vein lands.

As long as one hides in a place without Spiritual Qi, there is generally no danger,

but one must worry about the lack of Qi Replenishing Pills or Spirit Stones for supplementing. Long periods in barren lands can lead to a drop in cultivation level, drying up the Dantian, and easily damaging one’s foundation.

Yang Yuyan succeeded in Foundation Establishment back then, and her pill-making skills were taught by Li Jizhou. Perhaps she prepared many pills before the Blood Fiend crisis, allowing her to survive.

Li Jizhou didn’t stop at the Yang family and went straight to Golden Sun Sect’s Xiaogang Peak.

Passing through the area where Chen Yuankang once established his family, he saw a desolate ruin, most likely a scene of doom.

Moreover, Chen Yuankang’s lifespan was already running out; even without the Blood Fiend’s disaster, he likely would have fallen.

Upon arriving at Golden Crow Immortal City, it was still quite populated.

However, it was apparent that the cultivators’ levels within the city were generally lower. The Spirit Veins in the city had decreased by at least thirty percent. The lowest-level Lower City District had degraded to a Tier One Spirit Vein land, while the highest-level Upper City District barely reached Tier Two.

Additionally, this area was no longer under the command of the Golden Sun Sect.

Li Jizhou made a deliberate visit to the Celestial Secret Pavilion within the Immortal City.

Despite some efforts, he couldn’t find any information about the Golden Corpse and eventually bought a map of Yan Kingdom before leaving.

The once proud Golden Sun Sect had its nameplate replaced by the Rong family.

Roughly sensing the Spirit Vein that was once Tier Three Middle Grade, it had now fallen to Quasi-Third Tier.

“Perhaps this is why the Golden Sun Sect ultimately decided to move out of the Qi Kingdom.”

Li Jizhou visited Xiaogang Peak, which had already become someone else’s training ground, and its Spirit Vein had dropped to Tier Two.

“The consequences of Corpse Nourishment on Spirit Veins are truly severe!”

“If the Spirit Veins of the entire Celestial Profound Continent are depleted by Corpse Nourishment, wouldn’t this sever the path to immortality for everyone in this realm?” Li Jizhou frowned slightly.

“If all the Spirit Veins in this realm are exhausted, what meaning would my reincarnation for a hundred lifetimes hold?”

“Without achieving immortality, I will ultimately become dust; how can I roam freely?”

Li Jizhou’s expression grew solemn as he gazed into the distance toward the direction of Inverted Mountain, which was soon to be engulfed in the dust of history.

If nothing unexpected occurs, clues about the person behind Corpse Nourishment should be found in the downfall of the Thunder Flame Sect from years ago.

After pondering for a long time, he finally turned and headed toward the depths of the Purple Vine Mountain Range.

The Spirit Veins of the current Qi Kingdom had been greatly damaged, making it unsuitable for cultivation in the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment, let alone attempting Core Formation. Lingering here served no purpose.

Moreover, his destination was Yan Kingdom.

With three Tier Four Spirit Veins, more than thirty Tier Three Spirit Veins, and quite a few Quasi-Fourth Tier Spirit Veins, the numerous Tier Two Spirit Veins were endless.

It bordered the cultivation realm of Qinzhou in the Central Domain, with permanent trade routes and abundant resources across vast lands.

The two Nascent Soul sects were in seclusion, indifferent to worldly affairs, merely guarding their own territories.

The five major merchant guilds with Qinzhou connections had established a trade alliance, occupying the third Tier Four Spirit Vein, recognizing money but not people,

with countless small sects and factions, standing in opposition between righteousness and evil, and a world filled with turmoil…

Half a year later,

exuding the aura of the Early Stage of Core Formation, dressed in a red-black magic robe and with an imposing demeanor, Li Jizhou passed without incident through the Tier Three demon beast area deep within the Purple Vine Mountain Range, arriving at the boundary mountains near the territory of Yan Kingdom.

According to the map purchased in Qi Kingdom’s Celestial Secret Pavilion, only a thousand miles remained before entering the cultivation realm of Yan Kingdom.

Along the way, Tier Two Great Demons fled from afar, yet several Tier Three Fake Pill demon beasts dared to challenge.

Ultimately, they were resolved by Gua Gua and the puppets, acquiring their Demon Pills.

The materials would be useful for future Alchemy.

There was also a Tier Three Mid Stage Earth-Shaking Black Bear that pursued him; fortunately, it was slow in speed, allowing Li Jizhou to escape easily using a Tier Two Divine Speed Talisman.

“Roar~” Just then, a beast roar came from the west.

Turning his head, Li Jizhou saw a Tier Two Mid Stage Blazing Flame Tiger madly chasing three individuals.

The three individuals were casting spells while running, but they couldn’t effectively harm the Blazing Flame Tiger.

Two of them were in the Early Stage of Foundation Establishment, and one was in the Late Stage of Qi Cultivation, appearing quite beleaguered.

“Senior, save us…” Suddenly, someone spotted Li Jizhou ahead and urgently called out.

Li Jizhou squinted at the Blazing Flame Tiger, and his Early Stage of Core Formation aura instantly enveloped it.

The next moment, the Blazing Flame Tiger turned and ran away.

“Thank you, Senior, for saving our lives, thank you.”

“Woo woo, Senior, if we hadn’t met you, the three of us sisters would have undoubtedly died.”

“Senior, please let us repay you.”

The three women, having narrowly escaped death, held their chests and thanked him with tears of gratitude.

“It’s nothing, just a small favor.” Li Jizhou waved his hand.

“Senior, if you have no urgent matters, please come to Fenghuo Immortal City and let us sisters repay your lifesaving grace,” one woman said sincerely.

“Fenghuo Immortal City? What are your identities?” Li Jizhou, being new to the area, had all his information about Yan Kingdom from the Celestial Secret Pavilion.

He was already wary of the Celestial Secret Pavilion.

“To answer Senior, we three sisters are songstresses from Red Dust Pavilion in Fenghuo Immortal City. I’m Ji Rou, the second sister is Ji Wan, and the third sister is Ji Xian. Today, we came to hunt Demon Cores for the third sister’s Foundation Establishment, but we encountered a Tier Two Mid Stage Great Demon,” Ji Rou explained candidly.

“Red Dust Pavilion?” Li Jizhou hadn’t seen this organization on the Celestial Secret Pavilion’s map.

“Senior, are you from another region?” Ji Xian asked curiously.

Ji Rou quickly pulled at Ji Xian, then explained to Li Jizhou, “Our Red Dust Pavilion is one of the leading intelligence networks in Yan Kingdom, with our songhouses in every Immortal City.”

“Hmm, I’ll accompany you, then.” Li Jizhou no longer hesitated.

Being new here, he needed to understand the situation and the relationships among the powers.

Only then could he decide on subsequent matters related to Core Formation.

For this, an intelligence network like Hongchen Square was most suitable.

Without further delay, Li Jizhou launched a Flying Ship, taking the three women straight to Fenghuo Immortal City.

Upon entering the borders of Yan Kingdom, Li Jizhou felt the overwhelming Spiritual Qi.

Though Yan Kingdom was over ten times larger than Qi Kingdom, its internal Spirit Veins were more advanced and more numerous.

Thus, the Spiritual Qi dispersed in the air was denser.

Even places without Spirit Veins had faint Spiritual Qi.

Near higher-tier Spirit Veins or areas with concentrated Spirit Veins, even the wilderness could possess no less than Tier One Spiritual Qi.

No wonder it’s considered the Sacred Land for Loose Cultivators!

In such a place, lower-level Loose Cultivators might not need to worry about Spirit Vein residences in the early stages.

Separated by a mountain, and yet the cultivation environment is entirely different.

Three days later, Fenghuo Immortal City, located in the southernmost part of Yan Kingdom, came into view.

Sitting atop a Tier Three Spirit Vein, it belonged to the trade alliance and was twice the size of Golden Crow Immortal City.

The city was teeming with merchants and a constant flow of people, bustling with activity.

Compared to the strict regulations of Golden Crow Immortal City, this city appeared much more relaxed.

Entering and leaving the city was free, with no need for registration or inspection, and flying wasn’t prohibited either.

Things were done as conveniently as possible.

While observing, Li Jizhou felt quite satisfied; Tier Two materials were available everywhere, indicating abundant resources.

Soon, led by the three women, Li Jizhou arrived at a large pavilion in the city center.

Inside Red Dust Pavilion, there was music and dance, with a steady stream of guests.

It was indeed an excellent place for gathering intelligence.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep