True Person's Invitation, Crane Head Arrives Voluntarily

"Fellow Daoist Yang might not know this, but among cultivators, techniques are rarely traded. It's uncommon to see someone use a cultivation method as a trade item."

"Why is that?"

Yang An was a bit confused.

"Fellow Daoist, you should also know that not every cultivation method can resonate with a cultivator. If one cannot adapt to the costs of a cultivation method during the Resonance Stage, it means that method isn't the optimal choice and would instead waste a lot of time. This becomes a very high screening requirement."

"Secondly, the value of cultivation methods is extremely high, and very few cultivators can afford them. Moreover, cultivators with the means to pay generally wouldn't spend a large sum to trade for a cultivation method. It's considered rather impractical, unless the cultivation method is truly powerful."

"Third, and most importantly, each cultivation method represents a secret inheritance of a faction or a powerful being. Most cultivation methods that circulate externally are common ones. If one is fortunate enough to encounter a top-tier cultivation method circulating externally and manage to acquire it, it might actually bring about significant trouble."

Pan Shi explained in detail.

"Take my Three Pine Mountain for example. If we discovered that the cultivation method practiced within the sect was circulating externally, my Three Pine Mountain would absolutely find ways to locate everyone involved and would not let them off lightly! It would be the same for anyone else!"

"Even your Immortal Mountain would do the same. Only by preventing the leakage of inheritances can the foundation of a sect be preserved!"

These were relatively common knowledge, but Pan Shi didn't doubt Yang An because of it.

In his opinion, cultivators like Fellow Daoist Yang must have a sufficiently deep sect foundation, which is why they never worried about cultivation methods. It was a classic case of "why don't they eat meat?"

Even he and his junior sister, Pan Yu, were the same.

This was the benefit of relying on a faction with sufficient backing.

Hearing Pan Shi's words, Yang An understood, but he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

He had originally planned to see if he could find a cultivation method at the Communal Feast Convention and start cultivating.

But after hearing Pan Shi's explanation, he realized it wasn't that simple.

To encounter a cultivation method that had no entanglements, suited him, and was absolutely powerful.

Achieving all three conditions simultaneously was too demanding.

This meant that to meet these three conditions and obtain a cultivation method to become a cultivator.

The most suitable method would be to join a cultivator faction or become a disciple of a cultivator.

Yang An sighed, but due to his lack of understanding of these cultivator sects, he decided to observe further.

After all, there were so many cultivators participating in the Communal Feast Convention, at least a thousand, coming from various factions and sects, a mixed bag.

He also possessed the ability to purify and eliminate costs. While others needed to meet three conditions, he only needed to meet two, as he didn't need to consider whether he could bear the cost of the cultivation method.

Therefore, he could accept any cultivation method, as long as it wasn't too bad.

Perhaps he might still have a chance.

The three walked and chatted, and the number of cultivators they saw increased, with many places so crowded they were impassable, seemingly due to some magic artifact drawing the attention of many cultivators.

Out of curiosity, the three decided to join the crowd and see what was happening.

Yang An was at the back, but before he could take two steps, he suddenly found several Muckworm Children approaching him from the side, instantly surrounding him.

Yang An's heart tightened. These humanoid creatures, formed from countless sticky worms, had surrounded only him, clearly targeting him.

At this moment, the senior and junior siblings Pan Shi were walking ahead, having already moved a considerable distance, and seemed not to have noticed this scene.

A sense of unease crept into Yang An's heart. Just as he was about to speak, a Muckworm Child in front of him spoke first:

"Fellow Daoist, True Person requests your presence. Please come with us!"

True Person?

The only one the Muckworm Children would call True Person was the Mother Diviner True Person of Xi Yue River, their master.

Yang An felt a sense of dread. He couldn't think of any reason why a True Person would specifically send someone to invite him.

He was just an unremarkable participant among the many cultivators attending the Communal Feast Convention.

Could it be that his impersonation of a Fate Crane Sect disciple had been exposed?

But how could that possibly attract the attention of a True Person?

He glanced at the Muckworm Children, who had blocked almost all his escape routes, and it seemed he had no choice.

"Please!"

The Muckworm Child urged him again.

Yang An looked at the senior and junior siblings Pan Shi, who still hadn't noticed him, and even the other cultivators brushing past seemed oblivious to his situation.

The situation felt somewhat strange.

"Alright!"

He took a deep breath and nodded.

Soon, Yang An was led by the Muckworm Children to a secluded place where almost no other people could be seen.

Upon arriving here, Yang An's heart became even more tense, and he didn't even dare to breathe loudly.

But even though they had brought him here, the Muckworm Children around him actually increased, making it impossible for him to escape.

"May I ask, Fellow Daoist, where is the True Person?"

He mustered his courage and asked the Muckworm Children, but as soon as he spoke, everything within his line of sight was instantly plunged into darkness.

Suddenly, Yang An felt as if he was completely enveloped by something dark. The surroundings were pitch black, and he couldn't see his hand in front of his face. Even the Muckworm Children had vanished in an instant.

A feeling of loneliness, silence, and overwhelming unease surged into Yang An's heart.

But just then, a woman's voice, inexplicably soft and soothing, suddenly appeared in his ear.

"What junior dare to trespass into my Xi Yue River? Your sect is... Huh? No spiritual power? You're a mortal?!"

The woman's voice, about to question Yang An, suddenly noticed that he possessed not a trace of spiritual power, and was taken aback.

Anyone who could enter Golden Egg Jade Qiong Island must have first consumed the Illusionary Insect Corpse to arrive here. And mortals, upon consuming the Illusionary Insect Corpse, would inevitably fall into hallucinations worse than death, perishing from the inability to endure it.

How did this mortal manage to sneak in?!

The woman's voice suddenly appeared and then disappeared, startling Yang An. But at that very moment, a light suddenly appeared beside him.

A perfectly round sphere, about the size of a fist, appeared, emitting a golden light that immediately caught Yang An's attention.

But as he looked at the glowing sphere, the light suddenly exploded, vanishing into the darkness. Immediately after, the woman's voice reappeared.

"You can see?! So the Illusionary Insect Corpse has no effect on you. How did you do it?"

The sudden appearance of the light was merely a test. The Lamp Soul responsible for welcoming cultivators on the wooden boat would never dare to neglect its duties. Therefore, the person before him had undoubtedly consumed the Illusionary Insect Corpse but had not fallen into a hallucination. This anomaly immediately piqued the curiosity of the voice.

Before Yang An could even speak, he guessed that the owner of the voice was the legendary Mother Diviner True Person. He hadn't expected his origins to be so quickly discerned, and a chill ran down his spine.

However, Yang An tried his best to steady his emotions, while also trying to figure out how to answer the Mother Diviner True Person's question.

But just as he was about to play dumb, claiming he had no idea himself, intending to answer the Mother Diviner True Person.

Crack!

In the silent darkness, the sound of something breaking suddenly echoed. Accompanied by the sudden appearance of a faint light, a massive bird's head, as large as a human head, suddenly emerged from the darkness, almost a foot away from Yang An. Its eyes, reflecting the faint light, seemed filled with brutality and urgency. Its sharp beak opened, and it spoke human words.

"Mother Diviner, you old hag! You're taking so long to bring someone, are you trying to die?"