Cloud Mist Mountain Range, Clear Stream Valley.

By the time Su Ming stood before the somewhat desolate cave dwelling, the sky had completely darkened.

Moonlight spilled onto the weed-choked courtyard, while the stream in the distance gurgled and flowed, producing a pleasant sound.

All around was quiet and still. Apart from the chirping of insects, not a single trace of human noise could be heard.

This place truly was secluded. The small path leading into the valley was mostly obscured by dense vines. His new cave dwelling was located at the very end of the valley, backed against a near-vertical, dark gray cliff face. In front was a rather barren but decently sized flat area, with crumbling courtyard walls and wild grass growing rampant.

“Not a bad location.”

Lin Yu’s ethereal figure drifted out from the ring, hovering in mid-air as he looked around with satisfaction. “Backed by a mountain, facing water, Azure Dragon to the left, White Tiger to the right… *cough*… Mainly, it’s the terrain. There’s a natural fissure in that cliff face behind us. With a little modification, it becomes a perfect escape route. And this stream in front leads directly to an underground river. If someone ever sets the mountain on fire, we can still escape via water.”

Pushing open the heavy stone door, a wave of dust-laden air, the smell of a long-unoccupied space, rushed to meet him.

The interior of the cave dwelling was more spacious than expected, divided into a front hall, a cultivation meditation room, a pill-forging/artifact-forging room (which also served as a study), and a small storage room. The runes of a basic Spirit Gathering Array were faintly visible on the ground in a corner. Though covered in dust, just as Manager Zhao had said, that basic Spirit Gathering Array was still operating. The spiritual energy in the air here was at least ten times stronger than in the menial disciples’ courtyard.

The cave dwelling’s interior was quite large, divided into a main chamber, a meditation room, and an artifact-forging room.

Su Ming took out the one hundred spirit stones from his storage pouch, then placed the bottle of “Condensed Jade Pills” and his identity token on the stone table.

A faint, ethereal spiritual light illuminated the dim stone chamber, also lighting up Su Ming’s face, which looked somewhat weary yet brimming with hope.

He picked up that iron token representing “Formation Peak Candidate Steward,” his thumb stroking its cold, engraved patterns.

From a menial disciple living hand-to-mouth, to now being an outer sect steward with his own independent cave dwelling and holding a huge sum of money. This step he had taken was thrilling, yet also incredibly solid.

“Master,” Su Ming spoke softly.

“Hmm?” Lin Yu floated over to the stone table, looking at that pile of resources. A rare trace of emotion also surfaced in his eyes.

“Do we… count as having gained a firm foothold in this Cloud Hidden Sect now?”

Lin Yu chuckled, extending a semi-transparent finger to point vaguely at that pile of spirit stones.

“What’s this ‘firm foothold’? This is just the first step of our ‘Visible Way of Survival’ plan—acquiring property and settling down.”

Lin Yu turned around, his gaze passing through the cave dwelling’s stone door to look out at the dark, profound night sky outside. His voice carried a hint of strategizing-from-within-a-tent confidence.

“The startup capital is in place. Disciple, next, we’re going to turn this Clear Stream Valley into an impregnable ‘safe house.’ Then, using your ‘standardization’ methods, we’re going to ruthlessly harvest the leeks of this outer sect… ahem, I mean, earn resources.”

Su Ming tightened his grip on the token in his hand, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.

“I’ll listen to whatever Master says.”

Dusk arrived earlier in Clear Stream Valley than elsewhere.

The setting sun was mostly blocked by the sheer cliff to the west, leaving only a few strands of orange-red twilight that barely managed to spill onto the winding stream at the valley entrance, making the water shimmer with rippling light.

Within the valley, the desolate silence that had reigned for many years was broken by a clamor of human voices.

“Gently! All of you, gently!”

Wang Defa’s round, plump body spun around the courtyard like a top, a sweat towel waving in his hand as he directed several menial disciples carrying boxes and trunks. “These boxes contain the core account books of our Repair Hall from over the years! If you chip a corner, I’ll dock you three days’ worth of contribution points!”

“Old Wang, stop hollering.”

Zhang Asheng walked by, carrying two bundles of spirit wood saplings he’d somehow procured, his voice muffled and low. “The Hall Master prefers quiet. Your voice is louder than the sound of hammering from Artifact Forging Peak.”

Wang Defa’s neck shrunk back. He subconsciously glanced towards the depths of the cave dwelling, then immediately lowered his voice, putting on an apologetic smile. “I’m just excited. Our Hall Master is now a person of status and reputation. If moving house doesn’t have a bit of grandeur, wouldn’t people look down on him?”

Inside the cave dwelling’s main chamber.

Su Ming paid no attention to the commotion outside. He stood in the center of the empty stone hall, a wisp of dark blue water spiritual energy swirling around his fingertip.

This place really had been abandoned for too long.

Dark green moss crawled over the stone walls. A thick layer of dust had accumulated on the floor. The air was permeated with a musty, decaying smell. The lines of the basic Spirit Gathering Array in the corner were long blurred and indistinct. Several glowstones originally used for illumination had also lost their luster, embedded in the wall like dead fish eyes.

“Master, this is no small project,” Su Ming said softly.

“Filth, disorder, and poor quality are the mortal enemies of a sense of security.”

Lin Yu’s voice rang out in the Consciousness Sea, carrying a tone of disdain. “Such an environment not only easily breeds inner demons, but also easily harbors filth and grime.”

Su Ming nodded, his eyes closing slightly.

Within the Qihai of his Dantian, that tender green seedling gently swayed. A stream of extremely pure water spiritual energy flowed along his meridians towards his fingertip.

“Go.”

Su Ming uttered a soft command.

The wisp of dark blue spiritual energy at his fingertip instantly exploded, transforming into countless fine, dense mist particles that rapidly spread to every corner of the stone chamber.

This wasn’t an ordinary Cleaning Technique, but the “Silent, Gradual Nourishment” recorded in the *Like Water Art*.

These mist particles seemed to possess life, seeping into the texture of the stone walls, enveloping and stripping away all the accumulated grime, mold, and even lingering foreign energies that had built up over decades.

Su Ming turned his wrist, his five fingers making a grasping motion in the air.

“Gather.”

The mist that had filled the entire room instantly recoiled and condensed, forming a pitch-black water sphere in mid-air that contained all the filth.

Su Ming casually waved his hand. The water sphere flew out of the cave dwelling and fell into a distant deep ravine.

The originally dark, damp stone chamber, though still undecorated, now revealed its original bluish-gray texture. The air had also become fresh and moist.

“Not bad, that ‘high-pressure cleaning’ trick,” Lin Yu commented. “Next is the main event. Since we’re going to survive cautiously, this den of ours has to be an iron barrel. The basic protective formations outside are too lousy, keeping out gentlemen but not villains. They need to be changed.”

Su Ming walked to the center of the cave dwelling and took out a set of Formation Flags he had prepared long ago from his storage pouch.

This set of flags wasn’t standard sect-issue goods, but something he had crafted himself using scrap materials from the Repair Hall.

The flagpoles were made of extremely resilient Water Cloud Bamboo. The flag surfaces were woven from Heavenly Silkworm silk mixed with secret silver thread. The runes drawn on them weren’t the common, fierce and aggressive type, but rather rounded and interlocking, exuding a sense of endless continuity.

“Minor Heavenly Cycle Water Rhythm Formation.”

Su Ming murmured the formation’s name.

This was the result of half a month of deliberation between him and Lin Yu.

It didn’t seek to kill or trap enemies. It sought only one character—”Fluid.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep