Qingyun Sect's announcement that it was willing to offer ten Foundation Establishment Pills to recruit rogue cultivators for wilderness reclamation was finally made public.
Hearing that they could exchange Wilderness Reclamation Merits for Foundation Establishment Pills, many rogue cultivators grew excited, and the number of applicants exceeded that of previous years.
The prices of cultivation spirit items such as Spirit Pills, Talismans, and Magic Artifacts rose steadily.
Shen Xuan, however, had a vague feeling that Qinglong Bay Market was showing signs of instability.
Shopkeeper Ding wouldn't tell him about something like this.
Shen Xuan asked Zhao Chunsheng about it.
"The Ding Family Old Ancestor is advanced in years, with little Lifespan remaining. And among the Ding Family's Two Hundred Cultivators, not one new Foundation Establishment cultivator has appeared so far."
Zhao Chunsheng left it at that.
Shen Xuan understood at once.
The Ding Family had no successors.
If anything happened to the Ding Family Old Ancestor, it would be difficult for the Ding Family to hold on to the Qinglong Bay Spirit Land it occupied.
In the Cultivation World, strength was everything.
Many Cultivation Families nearby were watching like tigers eyeing their prey.
"How many years does the Ding Family Old Ancestor have left?"
"Who can say for sure? Maybe twenty or thirty years, or maybe he'll be gone tomorrow."
"Who's most likely to take advantage of the situation?"
"The Zifeng Mountain Zhao Family, the Wohu Ridge He Family, and the Wanzhu Forest Tao Family. All three are Foundation Establishment families, and each has at least two Foundation Establishment Grand Cultivators."
Seeing the worry on Shen Xuan's face, Zhao Chunsheng reassured him, "Talisman Master Shen, you don't need to worry too much. You're not a member of the Ding Family, and you're a Mid-grade Talisman Master."
"Whichever family settles in Qinglong Bay will treat a talent like you well."
Shen Xuan sighed. "I hope so."
In his heart, the Ding Family was still decent.
He had lived in Qinglong Bay for over forty years and had grown accustomed to life there.
If another Cultivation Family moved in, it was hard to say how things would turn out.
After all, he had married a Ding Family Mortal Woman.
I still need to raise my strength as quickly as possible. That's the only way to protect myself!
As long as the Ding Family Old Ancestor remained alive, Qinglong Bay would be safe and sound.
In the Cultivation World, the strength of a family was determined by the cultivation level of its highest-ranking cultivators.
One Foundation Establishment Grand Cultivator was a greater deterrent than ten cultivators at Qi Refining Perfection.
Still, Shen Xuan had to prepare for the future.
If the Ding Family Old Ancestor suddenly died, he would definitely have to leave Qinglong Bay Market.
He had it easy enough.
He could use Breath Concealment, knew Invisibility, and possessed Water Control Talent.
As long as he jumped into Longze River beyond Qinglong Bay Market, he could get away.
But his wife, Ding Yuyao, was nothing more than a mortal.
Even if she cultivated Internal Force and True Qi and became a second-rate martial artist, she would still be no match for cultivators.
If the situation changes, I'll send my wife back to the mortal world first.
That was one way.
Qingyun Sect had decreed that wars between Cultivation Families could not spill over into the mortal world.
It was a universal rule on Xuan Yuan Continent.
Ding Yuyao was a mortal, not a true member of the Ding Family.
That night.
Shen Xuan went alone, registered his identity, and left Qinglong Bay Market.
Not far from the Market was a harbor.
A great river, winding thousands of miles, flowed eastward all the way to the East Sea.
This was Longze River.
Shen Xuan walked alone along the riverbank.
Soon, his figure vanished into the night.
[Breath Concealment Technique]! [Invisibility Technique]!
Shen Xuan looked at Longze River before him and slowly walked toward it.
This was his first time going underwater.
A dozen breaths later, his entire body had sunk beneath the river's surface.
[Water Control Technique]!
At that moment, an indescribable sense of closeness and familiarity spread through him, giving him the strange illusion that he was a fish in water.
Shen Xuan felt as if he had transformed into a Green Feather Fish.
The pressure and resistance of the river water dwindled until they were negligible.
More than that, he could command the currents within three zhang of him, making them surge according to his will.
He could part the water to open a path, or make it close in and crush his target.
Moreover, his Spiritual Sense was less affected in the river.
His perception range shrank from thirty zhang to ten.
Within ten zhang, he could sense the movements of every living thing.
"A Green Feather Fish can travel a thousand li an hour. I wonder how fast I can go."
Shen Xuan took a deep breath and circulated the [Divine Treasure Canghai Technique] within him.
The next moment, he shot through the depths of the river like an arrow loosed from its bow, leaving a blur behind as he sped a hundred zhang away.
"A Green Feather Fish can swim at more than a hundred and thirty meters per second. Right now, I'm only at thirty percent of its speed."
Shen Xuan mused silently.
Forty meters per second—that was four times the speed of the sprinting champions from his Previous Life!
He was even faster than Late Qi Refining Stage cultivators flying through the air with Sword Control!
"I'll try the [Water Condensation Edge Shaping Art]!"
Shen Xuan focused his Spiritual Sense. A translucent, crescent-shaped Ice Blade soon formed in his hand, radiating a bone-chilling aura. It shot out in an instant.
"Good. Even deep in the river, it can still kill within three zhang!"
And this was underwater.
A rifle with a range of up to four hundred meters could effectively kill at only one or two meters underwater.
Half an hour later.
Shen Xuan walked out of Longze River.
Not a drop of water showed on his clothes.
"As long as I escape the Market and jump into Longze River, I can leave in safety."
With Water Control, Breath Concealment, Invisibility, and Self-Healing to protect him, plus the [Water Condensation Edge Shaping Art], Shen Xuan's fighting strength underwater was off the charts. Ordinary Qi Refining cultivators were no match for him.
Even Foundation Establishment cultivators would be helpless against him in Longze River.
Shen Xuan had few ties to the Ding Family.
He wouldn't bind his own life to the Ding Family's fate.
The road to immortality was treacherous.
Shen Xuan trusted only himself!
With his escape route planned, he continued cultivating.
Zhao Chunsheng brought him Mantis Shrimp.
Seven or eight jin at a time.
"This stuff is cheap. Just two Spirit Stones a jin!"
"Sorry for the trouble, Fellow Daoist Zhao."
In the training room, Shen Xuan used the Mysterious Jade Talisman to plunder the Mantis Shrimp's Bloodline Talents.
[Plunderable Talent: Water Control, Iron Fist, Critical Strike]
Shen Xuan chose the [Critical Strike] Talent.
[Talent: Critical Strike (16/100)] [Dao Rhyme: 10]
"Looks like Critical Strike is relatively easy to plunder, but it yields an average amount of Dao Rhyme."
Shen Xuan plundered the Mantis Shrimp's Talents mainly to improve his Spirit Root Aptitude, obtain Dao Rhyme, and increase the power of his Spell Techniques. He didn't need to develop new Talismans for a new Talent.
"That being the case, I can pick up the pace a little!"
Afterward, Shen Xuan had Zhao Chunsheng increase his Mantis Shrimp purchases.
By making [Spring Return Talismans], he had a surplus of more than sixty Spirit Stones a month, and he invested all of it in plundering the Mantis Shrimp's Talents.
At a time like this, he couldn't afford to worry about anything else.
Fortunately, Mantis Shrimp were common aquatic beasts.
Given Zhao Chunsheng's status as a Late Qi Refining Stage Monster Hunter, buying some First-Order Middle Grade Demon Shrimp drew no attention.
While Shen Xuan shut himself away to cultivate.
The Ding Family's senior members were in a state of utter panic.
The Ding Family Old Ancestor had little Lifespan left, and the nearby Foundation Establishment forces were stirring, beginning to test the waters.
"We must help the Ding Family Foundation Establishment Seed achieve Foundation Establishment as soon as possible!"
The Ding Family Elder Meeting set the tone.
To obtain Foundation Establishment Pills, the Ding Family increased recruitment of rogue cultivators for wilderness reclamation within its territory.
The Merits earned by these rogue cultivators during wilderness reclamation would be credited to the Ding Family.
Rewards would also be given to the Ding Family first, which would then distribute them according to each person's contributions.
"Increase the labor draft!"
"The Substitute Labor Tax must not go unpaid! Anyone who fails to pay the Substitute Labor Tax and refuses to report for labor duty will be suppressed!"
Before you continue