Still, there was no point making the trip just to sell a few.
He needed to save up a little more.
With that in mind, Wen Jiu slept for a little while, then got up and continued drawing talismans, preparing to grind out a batch of Rank-1 Soul Seizing Talismans.
Over the next few days, Wen Jiu kept repeating the same cycle: selling non-Rank-1 Soul Seizing Talismans for spirit stones, then using the spirit stones he earned to buy Rank-1 talisman paper.
He could sell sixty non-Rank-1 Soul Seizing Talismans.
That was enough to buy thirty sheets of Rank-1 talisman paper.
Although selling sixty Soul Seizing Talismans took a little longer, as far as Wen Jiu was concerned, all that mattered was that he could sell them.
And so, after seven days of this, he had managed four successes a day, with roughly sixteen failures.
Wen Jiu had successfully saved up thirty-seven Rank-1 Soul Seizing Talismans. Unexpectedly, two of them were exceptionally well-made.
They could be called fine pieces.
They might even injure a Qi Refining Second Layer cultivator.
If their opponent wasn't in peak condition, they might even kill him.
Still, they weren't much use to Wen Jiu, though he could sell them for a good price.
At the same time,
his Soul Seizing Talisman proficiency had advanced once more.
It had reached the Great Mastery realm.
[Soul Seizing Talisman (Great Mastery 0/500)]
Just as Wen Jiu was planning to head to the rogue cultivator market in White Birch Mountain, Wang Nian suddenly came by.
He asked whether Wen Jiu wanted to take on a sect mission with him. With Wang Nian there, they would certainly be able to complete it without a hitch.
Even an ordinary sect mission could earn them at least a few Low-grade Spirit Stones.
Of course,
Wang Nian's main reason was that he wanted to take Wen Jiu out to gain some experience.
After all, a sharp sword was forged through honing.
Wen Jiu refused.
But he was curious. Why had Wang Nian suddenly decided to take a mission and leave the sect?
"Over the past few days, two more affiliated family forces have been wiped out. One of them didn't have a single survivor—not even those who weren't at home escaped!" Wang Nian said gravely. Then he added, "So Flying Immortal Peak has issued a bunch of missions. They're determined to find the people behind this, and the rewards are generous. Any one of them could earn you as much as two or three months' work in the Night Patrol Division."
Wen Jiu's expression changed, but his thoughts were nowhere near the rewards. "Was it the remnants of the Blood Robe Tower again?"
"How do you know?" Wang Nian asked, puzzled.
Didn't Wen Jiu barely ever leave his home?
Wen Jiu answered honestly, "I heard some old cultivators talking about it when I was selling talismans at the trading market."
Wang Nian understood and continued, "Are you sure you don't want to come along? With me there, I'll definitely keep you safe."
"No, no."
Wen Jiu shook his head.
He suddenly felt this wasn't the right time to leave Flying Immortal Peak, so he put aside his plan to visit the rogue cultivator market.
He might as well save up a little more.
Then he could sell the whole lot at once.
Besides, with Three Rivers Ghost Concealment and Blood Corpse Escape, he didn't have to worry about robbery cultivators targeting him.
Seeing that Wen Jiu had refused again, Wang Nian stopped insisting. He pushed open the door to leave, tossing out one last remark. "If you don't take this first step today, sooner or later you'll still have to fight someone. Without any combat experience, you'll already be three parts weaker before the fight even begins!"
On the third day after refusing Wang Nian and continuing to cultivate peacefully at home, Wen Jiu suddenly sensed that people had entered the Dead Corpse Land.
And quite a few of them.
The Black Zombie had sensed a large number of living people.
Just as Wen Jiu was wondering what was going on, a deafening explosion suddenly rang out from the heart of the Dead Corpse Land.
Boom—
A purple-black lotus of fire suddenly bloomed.
It scattered the Yin Qi and shattered the stillness of the night.
In that instant, Flying Immortal Peak, which had already settled into the peace of late night, sprang awake. Large numbers of Night Patrol Division disciples were the first to move.
Wen Jiu hurriedly climbed to a treetop to look toward the Dead Corpse Land. What met his eyes was the formation sealing off its central area, forcibly blasted open by the enormous fire lotus. The Night Patrol Division disciples who arrived moments later were swallowed up by the fire lotus as it spread.
The scene was enormous.
Wen Jiu couldn't help but feel his heart tighten.
Seeing this, Wen Jiu had no time to think. He immediately summoned the Black Zombie through spirit communication. It burst out of the ground, and with a Blood Corpse Escape, returned to the place where Wen Jiu lived.
"Good thing I had the foresight to leave corpse-qi marks all over Flying Immortal Peak, so I'd be ready for sudden changes."
Wen Jiu immediately swept his valuables into his Storage Bag, then left with the Black Zombie.
As soon as he opened the door,
he saw Wang Nian's wife peeking out.
Her brows were knitted with worry.
Wen Jiu didn't think twice. He hurriedly said, "Sister-in-law, come with me. We're too close to the Dead Corpse Land. We have to leave right away."
Wang Nian had treated him well. How could Wen Jiu abandon his wife while Wang Nian was away?
At his words, Wang's Wife hurriedly nodded and stepped outside.
Unlike Wen Jiu, who had even taken the time to pack his non-Rank-1 talisman brush.
And so,
Wen Jiu kept leading Wang's Wife as they sprinted toward Flying Immortal Peak.
Only when they reached the foot of Flying Immortal Peak did Wen Jiu finally feel at ease.
The next moment,
the sounds of battle erupted around the Dead Corpse Land. Spells exploded again and again in the night.
Lighting up the darkness.
They also drew even more Flying Immortal Peak disciples toward the fight.
Wen Jiu looked up at the scene. He said nothing, simply watching in silence.
As more and more Flying Immortal Peak disciples rushed over, the fighting around the Dead Corpse Land grew fiercer. But with large numbers of managers and stewards arriving, this sudden disturbance seemed to be nearing its end.
But just then, an enormous crash suddenly rang out from the summit of Flying Immortal Peak. A huge purple-black lotus bloomed.
The commotion was even greater than at the Dead Corpse Land.
"Damn... Sister-in-law, let's go!"
Wen Jiu's expression tightened, and he immediately set off.
He hurried away from Flying Immortal Peak.
When they were four or five li away, Wen Jiu turned around and saw two figures fighting in the sky above Flying Immortal Peak.
Even from a distance, he could feel their surging Mana and the formidable aura that didn't belong to an early-stage Qi Refining cultivator.
Qi Refining Fourth Layer?
Qi Refining Fifth Layer?
No.
Wen Jiu thought they might be at the Qi Refining Sixth Layer.
"No, we need to go farther. When immortals fight, mortals suffer." Wen Jiu glanced at Wang's Wife, who was panicking beside him.
Keep retreating!
As Wen Jiu continued to back away, talismans and spells clashed again and again. But in the battle overhead, the black-robed cultivator whose Mana was purple-black seemed to have the upper hand. Moments later, he struck his opponent down into the forest with a single palm.
Then came several sinister, cackling laughs that rang out through the sky.
But the black-robed cultivator didn't press his advantage. Instead, he suddenly transformed into a streak of light and headed for the Dead Corpse Land.
A hundred breaths later,
the Dead Corpse Land, which had gradually fallen silent, once again erupted with the thunder of spells and talismans.
It continued for nearly a quarter of an hour before gradually fading.
Wen Jiu still watched from afar, not moving.
A quarter of an hour.
Half an hour.
Only after a full hour had passed, when he was sure there was no more commotion, did Wen Jiu take Wang's Wife home.
"Sister-in-law, if anything happens, just call for me." After seeing Wang's Wife home, Wen Jiu hurried back to his own room.
The Black Zombie stood guard at the door.
He cultivated through the night.
He planned to see what was happening after morning came.
To be honest, he still hadn't processed it. The upheaval at Flying Immortal Peak in the middle of the night had come and gone so quickly.
What had happened, exactly?
Early the next morning,
Wen Jiu hurried to the Dead Corpse Land.
When he arrived, he saw that quite a few corpses had been laid out beyond the Dead Corpse Land. Some belonged to ordinary Flying Immortal Peak disciples.
Others were from the Night Patrol Division and the Monster Slaying Division.
There were more than a hundred of them.
Besides those, there were also two or three hundred black-robed cultivators who had raided the Dead Corpse Land the previous night.
He was used to the Dead Corpse Land. If some other newly initiated cultivator had seen this, they probably wouldn't have been able to sleep for several nights.
After all, knowing how cruel the cultivation world was was one thing. Seeing it with your own eyes was another.
When Liu Xiao saw Wen Jiu arrive, he looked him up and down. Seeing that Wen Jiu was unharmed, he didn't say much.
After helping bury the corpses, Wen Jiu went to take a look at Flying Immortal Peak. He found that half the peak was already covered by a formation.
Ordinary disciples weren't allowed up the mountain at all.
Two days later, after asking around, he learned that the peak lord had fought a fierce battle that night against the Blood Robe Tower remnants who had raided Flying Immortal Peak. Unfortunately, he had been badly wounded, and the corpse of Xue Mo San Qian had also been stolen.
For that reason, everyone at Flying Immortal Peak had been in low spirits these past two days, as if their former pride had been trampled underfoot.
But to Wen Jiu,
something didn't add up.
It really didn't.
Xue Mo San Qian's corpse had been in his hands the whole time. He'd even deliberately taken a couple of furtive looks while burying corpses earlier.
So what had the Blood Robe Tower remnants stolen?
Had they stolen nothing at all?
On that very day, Wang Nian hurried back.
After learning what had happened that night, Wang Nian couldn't help exclaiming, "I knew I hadn't put my trust in the wrong person!"
Wen Jiu nodded.
He declined Wang Nian's invitation to celebrate over drinks.
Because he had a feeling that the Blood Robe Tower affair had only just begun.
Sure enough,
four days later, the peak lord of Flying Immortal Peak suddenly appeared on the mountain. His aura wasn't as powerful as before, seemingly just as the rumors claimed: he had been badly wounded that night.
With his appearance, two enormous flying boats took off as well.
An order came down with them.
Flying Immortal Peak.
Everyone above the Qi Refining Second Layer.
Board the flying boats!
Move out at once to avenge the Blood Robe Tower remnants!
At that moment, Wen Jiu understood a lot.
The corpse had been fake.
The peak lord of Flying Immortal Peak had probably faked his injury too.
But.
Why did even those at the Qi Refining Second Layer have to go?
"Damn, I can't dodge this." Wen Jiu was helpless.
Couldn't he just stay peacefully in the Dead Corpse Land?
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