Seven-Colored Rainbow Silver Fish

In the early morning, Yang Ning opened his eyes, feeling his full spirit and a world that seemed to have come alive. He just wanted to shout, "Awesome!"

He had entered stillness, he had truly entered stillness!

Not the stillness achieved through breathing techniques, but a true mental stillness!

"My mind is like a calm lake, my body like a boat. I thought entering stillness meant having no thoughts, no desires. Is that not the case?" Yang Ning pondered, feeling there was some logic to it.

He had only just begun, so expecting to be free of all thoughts and desires was unrealistic. Being able to enter stillness now was a good start.

"Hmm, I'll name this meditation method the 'Calm Lake Lone Boat Meditation Method'. However, meditation is personal, so this technique is hard to put into words!"

Yang Ning was excited for a while until he remembered Lin Tianheng's casual gesture, which finally calmed him down.

As his spirit grew, his subconscious also strengthened. For example, he remembered to absorb Innate Purple Qi every morning, so he woke up just before sunrise while meditating.

This wasn't some superpower; ordinary people could do it too. For instance, setting an alarm for 6 AM, you'd wake up at 5:59 AM.

He found the tallest nearby tree and climbed to its crown. There was no boat or person above him, but he wondered if any divine senses were watching him.

Yang Ning estimated there weren't any. If Lin Tianheng were that diligent, he would have found the person himself with his divine senses, instead of making the Immortal Seedling search the mountains.

"That's it!" Yang Ning suddenly grasped Lin Tianheng's mindset.

He actually didn't care about Tuo Buchuan at all, nor did he intend to search seriously. He was just playing.

What did the Golden Core Stage represent? It was the seventh level of Qi Refining. At this realm, all techniques converged into one, and one could cultivate more Spiritual Powers. Their strength was hundreds of times that of the fifth level of Qi Refining and tens of times that of the sixth level.

Not to mention, Tuo Buchuan was only at the fourth level of Golden Core. Logically, it would be the same for Lin Tianheng to fight Zhao Bu as it would be to fight Tuo Buchuan – it would only take a single finger.

Look at how Wang Yi used Tuo Buchuan's Treasure Artifact as a hairpin. What you consider a treasure might just be an ornament in someone else's eyes!

Could such a Tuo Buchuan escape from Lin Tianheng? Or run from the Northern Barbarians to Qin Mountain?

The distance from the Northern Barbarians to Qin Mountain is over 8,000 kilometers!

How could someone who was severely injured, had their Mana sealed, and could only rely on their physical body, run 8,000 kilometers without being caught?

So Lin Tianheng's intention was clear: I just won't kill you, ha, I'm just playing!

I won't even make a move myself. I'll let a bunch of kindergarteners find you and catch you!

If that was the case, then him slacking off was inconsequential. Lin Tianheng didn't care at all.

Anyway, Golden Core cultivators live for three thousand years. Never mind forty days, what difference would forty years make?

"Carefree True Immortal, carefree True Immortal. Only with strength can one be carefree. Without strength, one can only be the object of someone else's carefree amusement!"

After absorbing the Purple Qi, Yang Ning returned to the boat and continued practicing his punches.

Punching trained not only the Blood Essence field but also muscle control.

He had discovered a few days ago that he could imitate the martial arts moves he had seen in his previous life, such as Tekkai, Shigan, Eight Extremes Collapse, and Tai Chi Sky-Shattering Hammer.

He remembered Tang Zichen saying that with extremely high control over muscles, one could even walk on water without sinking, as long as the water wasn't deeper than the knees.

It wasn't about running on water at high speed, but about continuously pushing down the water through muscle vibrations to stay afloat.

Yang Ning hadn't reached that level yet, but after practicing all morning, he could now control the boat using only the vibrations of his leg muscles, without needing the pole.

He could not only control the boat's direction but also make it travel upstream.

It seemed to be related to the "Calm Lake Lone Boat Meditation Method." After one night, he clearly felt that his understanding of water currents had become much clearer. When practicing on the water, he often didn't need to calculate; he could adjust himself purely by instinct.

With such progress, he simply threw away the pole, stepped onto the small boat, and practiced his punches while moving upstream. By the time night fell and the stars filled the sky, he realized he had traveled 220 kilometers that day!!

It was one thing to travel upstream, but in some places, the terrain was so treacherous it could host dangerous rafting activities, yet he could still go against the current.

Controlling the lone boat felt like instinct. In fact, because he was engrossed in his practice, the boat had unknowingly traveled a great distance!

"Such a long distance, what if Tuo Buchuan is hiding somewhere and I miss him?" Yang Ning thought, then shook his head. "Whatever."

He had a good excuse. "You're just a low-level cultivator at Body Refinement Triple Layer. If he's determined to hide, how can he be found so easily?"

The difference between Body Refinement Tenth Layer and Body Refinement Triple Layer is greater than the difference between a human and a pig. Forget finding someone; if someone wrote the "Tengwang Pavilion Preface" on your back with a pen, you might not even notice.

Besides, out of a thousand people, nine hundred and ninety-nine wouldn't find him. Why should it be me!

He dragged the boat ashore, then found another tree and began meditating.

With the experience of the first night, he entered meditation much faster this time.

This meditation felt different from entering the Spiritual Realm. In the Spiritual Realm, time was infinitely long; years could pass inside while only an instant passed outside.

But during meditation, time was infinitely short. He felt like he had only drifted for a moment before opening his eyes to find that it was almost dawn!

After absorbing the Purple Qi, his Blood Essence seemed unchanged, yet it felt more active.

Yang Ning knew this was a matter of slow accumulation. The effects of this Purple Qi might not be apparent in three to five days or three to five years, but accumulated over thirty to fifty years, or three to five hundred years, it would definitely be useful.

Cultivation wasn't about immediate gains, but about a very long process of accumulation. Every effort made now would become a stepping stone for future progress.

It didn't take much time anyway, just a breath of effort in the early morning.

"Only about 300 kilometers left to the main peak. If I go at full speed, I can reach it today. But why would I rush? It's not like the sect is recruiting." Yang Ning stood on the tree and observed the water flow. After a long slope, there was a pool, and beyond the pool was a waterfall.

The waterfall was extremely high. Even from this distance, he could see a ribbon of water seemingly falling from the heavens. He wondered what it would feel like to be beneath the waterfall.

"I'll spend the night below the waterfall today!" Yang Ning remembered that protagonists in novels always had scenes of training under waterfalls, and he wanted to try it too.

If he planned to stay here for a long time, he intended to build a wooden cabin by the waterfall.

"Forward!" Stepping on the small boat, it felt like stepping on a surfboard. Today's speed was even faster than yesterday's, reaching the foot of the waterfall in just over three hours!

"Holy crap, that's huge!" Yang Ning stared at the waterfall in shock. "How tall is it?"

"The vertical drop of this waterfall is 1476 meters!" Shen Lan's voice sounded. "The waterfall with the largest drop on Earth is Angel Falls in South America, with a drop of 979.6 meters, which was also a filming location for the movie 'Up'."

Yang Ning was a little astonished. While Angel Falls had a large drop, it was narrow. This waterfall before him not only had a greater drop but was also incredibly wide, a full 258 meters!

Looking up from below, it was like a white silk scarf hanging from the stone wall. The crashing waves roared like thunder, and the pool at the bottom, where the water smashed down, was over thirty meters deep. The entire pool was eight hundred meters wide and one thousand four hundred meters long, shaped like a mulberry leaf.

Such a marvel could only be seen in another world!

Yang Ning drifted on the boat, watching the fish and turtles in the water. Suddenly, his eyes lit up. He saw a small, silver-white fish shimmering with seven-colored light.

"What is that?" Yang Ning asked incredulously.

"Yes, it's a Seven-Colored Rainbow Silver Fish, ranked seventh among the Eighteen Treasures of the Mortal Realm recorded in the Vast Universe Records!" Shen Lan said. "It's an ultimate delicacy. Because of its rarity, mortals can't get it; cultivators monopolize them. This one, about a foot long and weighing 4 kilograms, can be sold for 400,000 taels of silver or four Jade Crystals in Ascension City outside Ascension Academy!"

"Awesome!" 400,000 taels, what a concept. Last year, Yue Kingdom's entire fiscal revenue was only 1.7 million taels, and that was after Yang Ning's reforms.

Don't think the cultivation world doesn't use money. It does. Cultivators below the Qi Refining Stage use silver for transactions. And because the items used by cultivators are few in quantity but expensive in price, the amount of funds required is astronomical.

When Yang Ning reached Ascension Academy, he would need to cultivate and buy pills, all of which cost money. The problem was, when he was an official, he never thought he'd be cultivating later, so he didn't amass any wealth!

Why would such a precious fish appear here?

But there was no need to overthink it; who knew the habits of such a fish?

What he needed to do now was catch it. If he caught this fish and sold it, he wouldn't have to worry about money for at least a year or two!

"Where do you think you're going, Little Seven!" Yang Ning stomped on the small boat that had accompanied him for days, leaving only a wooden plank. Then, stepping on the plank, he slid directly across the lake.

The Seven-Colored Rainbow Silver Fish was extremely fast, but it was still a mortal fish. Within minutes, Yang Ning caught up. He reached out and scooped it up, and the fish was in his hand.

"400,000 taels in hand!" Although the Seven-Colored Rainbow Silver Fish was rare, it was due to difficulties in breeding and being preyed upon by other fish. It wasn't inherently delicate and could be kept in a temporary fish tank, not easily dying.

"Yang Ning, another one!" Shen Lan exclaimed.

"Huh?" Yang Ning was stunned and quickly turned his head. Sure enough, not far away was another Seven-Colored Rainbow Silver Fish, seemingly unfazed by its companion being caught, still leisurely paddling.

Yang Ning strode across the waves. Just as he bent down, he saw another one next to it!

"Holy crap, I've stumbled upon a nest of Seven-Colored Rainbow Silver Fish!" Yang Ning first grabbed the one within reach, then rushed to catch the other. Just as he scooped it up, another one appeared before him!

It was longer, bigger, and nearly two feet long!

"This!" Yang Ning was instantly dumbfounded.

If one Seven-Colored Rainbow Silver Fish appeared on the market, it was considered good luck, a rarity.

If two appeared, it was like one's ancestors' graves were smoking!

If four appeared, what was that?

People would suspect you'd found a large nest or discovered the breeding technique for Seven-Colored Rainbow Silver Fish and would try to kill you!

"No, I can't catch any more!" Yang Ning quickly regained his senses, gritted his teeth, and took out a chisel to gut the Seven-Colored Rainbow Silver Fish.

He had been gutting fish for three days and was incredibly skilled. In less than ten seconds, he cleaned all four fish and then, opening his mouth, stuffed them in like he was eating spicy strips.

"Delicious!" Yang Ning's eyes lit up. He couldn't describe the taste, only feeling an incredible freshness explode on his tongue, then spread through his skull to his brain.

As expected of the seventh among the Eighteen Treasures, it was so delicious even raw, without any seasoning. If a professional chef prepared it, how much more delicious would it be?

But that was all. He couldn't take any more. After all, he wasn't the only one on this mountain. This waterfall was so conspicuous; others would come sooner or later and discover the Seven-Colored Rainbow Silver Fish in the lake.

This might happen in a few days, a dozen days, or even the next second.

With such immense profit, Yang Ning couldn't imagine anyone willing to share it with him. If an Immortal Seedling came, it would be fine; they could negotiate. But what if it was one of those Ascension Academy employees at Body Refinement Sixth or Seventh Layer?

Although he had a talisman that would allow Lin Tianheng to come if he was killed, what if someone impulsive decided to kill him regardless?

A wise person doesn't stand under a dangerous wall. Retreat!

Yang Ning turned around and, remembering the boat that brought him here, quickly returned. He kicked the boat planks stuck in the reeds back into the river, letting them drift downstream.

The last one, he stepped on.

"Master!"

"Master!"

Shen Lan cried out.

"What?"

"Behind you, someone!"

Yang Ning's heart skipped a beat. He suddenly turned around and saw a bald youth wearing a gray robe, with sunken eye sockets, a gaunt expression, and pale skin, who had appeared behind him at some point!

He was standing on the water, not sinking an inch!

The youth held a basketball-sized gray bead in his hand. The bead flickered, emitting a gray light like a breathing lamp.

"I was wondering who it was waiting for, turns out it's you!" the youth's voice was hoarse, his eyes bloodshot, staring intently at Yang Ning.

Yang Ning almost choked. Of course, he recognized the person before him; Lin Tianheng had given him a picture!

Tuo Buchuan!

Yang Ning quickly reached into his pocket, but before he could even extend his hand an inch, he felt a tearing, soul-wrenching pain.

Turning his head, he saw his arm twisted into a pretzel!

"Damn it!" Yang Ning cursed inwardly. I knew Tuo Buchuan was strong, but I didn't expect him to be so strong that I wouldn't even have time to use a talisman?

And besides, you're running for your life, so why come to such a conspicuous spot by the waterfall? Are you playing the "hiding in plain sight" trick!

Yang Ning's thoughts raced as he pondered how to escape using his wits, but the next second, he felt a sharp pain in his neck.

And then, there was no more "then."