Inside a great hall on Tianbao Mountain.
Dozens of strikingly graceful cultivators in colorful skirts danced in the center of the hall.
Several long tables stood in neat rows along either side of the hall. A cultivator of extraordinary bearing sat before each one.
"Young master." A cultivator dressed like a gray-robed servant stepped forward and came to Baili Changfeng's side.
"Speak," Baili Changfeng said softly.
"That Young Master Lei Zhan left Tianbao Mountain half an hour ago."
"Half an hour ago?" Baili Changfeng asked curiously. "He just left?"
"After buying the latest intelligence on the Demon Race in the North Dark Sea from Tianbao Mountain, Young Master Lei Zhan departed immediately," the gray-robed servant said respectfully.
"He bought intelligence on the Demon Race? Could he be planning to slay demons?" Baili Changfeng wondered, then waved lightly.
The gray-robed servant nodded and withdrew.
"This Daoist friend Lei Zhan..." A faint trace of admiration showed in Baili Changfeng's eyes.
"To dare venture out and take risks with three great powers watching him so closely... It seems this Daoist friend Lei Zhan was well worth the risk of befriending." Baili Changfeng thought to himself.
As the son of the Marquis of the North Sea, his cultivation might not be high, but he had far better access to information than other powers.
But precisely because he knew so much, he understood just how powerful the three forces that had been buying intelligence on Immortal Juhua for years were. At the very least, they were not people a young master like him, one among the many sons of the Marquis of the North Sea, could afford to provoke.
"Young Master Changfeng?"
A white-robed young master seated at one of the tables raised his wine cup with a smile. "A performance like this is a rare treat. Inviting these immortals from Tianbao Mountain to dance must have cost quite a bit of Essence Liquid. We must thank Young Master Changfeng for the feast!"
"Thank you, Young Master Changfeng, for the feast!" The other cultivators seated at the tables raised their cups as well.
"Mm." Baili Changfeng glanced at everyone in the hall, then put the matter out of his mind.
"When I have nothing else to do, inviting friends over for wine and dancing is only proper. It's a pity... I can't introduce you all to a peerless genius."
"A peerless genius?" The white-robed young master asked curiously. "It's rare for anyone to earn such praise from you, young master. Who are you talking about?"
Baili Changfeng shook his head. "Never mind. There's no point talking about it. Unfortunately, that Daoist friend has gone out adventuring. Who knows when he'll return..."
"Drink! Drink! Today, we don't leave until we're drunk!"
Beneath the night sky, a massive Dragon-Head Warship sailed through the air like a streak of light, speeding beneath the stars and moon.
"This puppet treasure is so much more comfortable to use."
At his level, he could already fly through the air. But flying on his own was far slower than controlling a treasure... and controlling a treasure wasn't as relaxing as riding a puppet warship.
Lei Zhan sat on the warship's deck, a wine jug in one hand, gazing at the moonlit scenery in utter contentment.
He had intended to leave as soon as he bought the intelligence. Baili Changfeng's visit had been nothing more than a small interlude to him.
Whatever Baili Changfeng was plotting, Lei Zhan had no intention of accepting the invitation to the feast.
Still, Baili Changfeng's show of goodwill had put Lei Zhan on his guard.
His path had been far too smooth. First, he had become the disciple of Immortal Juhua, a top Loose Immortal; then he had obtained the divine ability Star-Plucking Hand and the top-tier spear art Red Snow. In the process, he had lost the wariness he'd possessed when he first embarked on the path of cultivation.
The path of cultivation was a defiance of heaven itself, riddled with perils and overgrown with brambles. As he pressed forward bravely, he also had to preserve a measure of caution.
He had anticipated that Immortal Juhua might have hidden enemies, but he hadn't considered that intelligence could spread so quickly among these great powers.
"The path of cultivation is indeed full of danger. Though I'm familiar with the plot of Desolate Era and have a little foresight, this is the age just after the God-Devil Era ended. The balance of power in the Three Realms alone is vastly different from what it will be in later ages."
"Even after billions of years, all I know are a few major events. Desolate Era recorded very little about the countless little details."
For a moment, Lei Zhan's thoughts churned.
"But I have the Water Mansion, my master, and the Black Bead that came here with me..." Lei Zhan steadied himself and stopped thinking about it.
"Those great clans and powers that are buying intelligence on my master are still far beyond my reach. And my sources of information are scarce. Even if they make a move, I can only adapt as events unfold."
"For now, I'll focus on growing stronger out here in the North Dark Sea. Before absolute strength, any little schemes will crumble on their own."
In the moonlight, Lei Zhan gazed into the far distance. With a cultivator's keen eyesight, he could make out every detail as moonlight spilled across the sea.
Whoosh~~~
At Lei Zhan's thought, an enormous, thick tome appeared in the air before him.
The North Dark Sea was vast beyond measure, and the recorded Demon Race numbered countless. Even though Lei Zhan had bought intelligence covering only the past decade or so, it had still been bound into a tome this thick.
When adventuring in the outside world, intelligence came first.
Without information to guide him, charging in recklessly would not be adventuring. It would be walking straight to his death.
Lei Zhan intended to slay demons and temper himself. He wasn't foolish enough to deliver himself gift-wrapped to some great demon's cave.
After meeting Baili Changfeng that night, Lei Zhan had spent half an hour poring over the book containing intelligence on himself and his master, Immortal Juhua. Then he'd purchased most of the available intelligence on the Demon Race of the North Dark Sea from Tianbao Mountain.
Lei Zhan slowly flipped through the tome.
The North Dark Sea was vast and boundless, with countless islands capable of supporting life.
But in an ocean this boundless, no one could claim an island without sufficient cultivation.
Any clan, power, or even Demon Race that could claim an island needed at least one cultivator at the Purple Mansion level.
The Black Water Clan, whom Lei Zhan had first encountered, had two Purple Mansion cultivators. And even so, they could only survive under the threat of the Demon Race.
The demons born in the North Dark Sea even outnumbered humanity.
"Among the Myriad Phenomena great demons with blood on their hands, the one closest to North Sea Commandery City is a Myriad Phenomena-completion Pishui White Shark. After claiming an island, it grew ever more powerful. Just ten years ago, a Red-Maned Lion King at the early Myriad Phenomena level joined it..."
Lei Zhan turned to a page and examined it closely. Though the Pishui White Shark was a Myriad Phenomena great demon, demons were naturally long-lived. This great demon might well possess a trace of the bloodline of an Ancient Water-Splitting Divine Shark. It had also lived for nearly two thousand years and was exceptionally powerful.
"The latest intelligence says it killed a late-Myriad Phenomena human cultivator—and even swallowed nearly a hundred thousand human beings?" Lei Zhan reached the most recent report, and his fingers paused on the page.
"Complete Myriad Phenomena... And it's a demon. I can fight across realms, but even crossing a major realm is already difficult for me. Who knows when this old demon might reach the Primordial Spirit level..." Lei Zhan shook his head and turned to the next report.
Who could know what trump cards a great demon that had lived nearly two thousand years possessed? The other Myriad Phenomena great demon on God Shark Island was manageable, but the Pishui White Shark was the real thorn in his side.
Besides, anything that had survived for so long had its own means of saving its life. A battle against someone of comparable strength was a trial by fire; recklessly charging at a foe as powerful as the Pishui White Shark was simply suicide.
"I'll wait until I'm stronger before taking on the Pishui White Shark." Lei Zhan made up his mind and turned to the next demon's intelligence.
After a long while.
"Black-Toothed White Elephant Great Demon? You'll do!" Lei Zhan opened the book to a page showing a huge white elephant with thick black tusks, its image clear beneath the cool moonlight.
These past few chapters have been transitional and a little slow.
Next, his strength will increase, and he'll return to the Water Mansion. The pace won't be too slow in the early stages! I hope you brothers won't save up chapters!
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