At the same time.
White Cloud Market Town was filled with jubilation after the victory.
Nearly ten thousand independent cultivators within the market town, under the supervision of close to two thousand Ling Clan cultivators, began clearing away the demonic beasts they had slain in battle.
Whenever independent cultivators fought over the same demonic beast, Ling Clan cultivators intervened to mediate.
In the end, however, all the low-level demonic beasts slain by those independent cultivators were reclaimed by the Ling Clan in exchange for merit points.
The independent cultivators could then use those merit points to exchange for high-grade spiritual items rarely seen in ordinary times at the market town's Merit Hall.
Ling Chengping, Lin Fan and his wife, and the others who had arrived as an unexpected force also entered White Cloud Market Town and joined Ling Pengcheng.
At the center of the market town's South City Wall, beside a tea table.
Ling Pengcheng, Ling Chengping, and Lin Fan gathered there, drinking tea and catching up.
Afterward, Ling Pengcheng pointed beyond the South City Wall at the Giant Tortoise spirit beast, which was leading nearly a hundred Hump Mountain Whales in drawing water from the Underground River below to construct a "Protective River," and asked Ling Chengping a question.
"Cheng Ping, is that Black Armored Turtle Eighth Brother's?"
"That's right!" Ling Chengping nodded.
"I never expected that after not seeing it for so long, its cultivation would have already risen to Foundation Establishment Completion. Judging from its methods, its strength has likely long surpassed that of demonic beasts at the same level. Perhaps only Pseudo-Core Realm cultivators can stand shoulder to shoulder with it."
"With its current circumstances, it likely already has a chance to challenge the Golden Core Realm. And with Eighth Brother's means, supporting it through an