Entering the Mountains

The courtyard before the winter solstice appeared even more desolate, making all the cultivators in the market seem more anxious than usual.

Ye Jingcheng opened the window of the room, letting the crimson sunset stream into his room.

He straightened his clothes and then walked out of the room.

Two days have passed since the trading meeting, and today is the opening day set by the Taiyi Sect.

Ye Jingcheng naturally dared not be negligent. After nurturing the magic Law Artifacts, he headed towards the outer courtyard.

The rest of the Ye Family have now gathered in the outer courtyard.

"Third Uncle, Fourth Brother, I've been nurturing a Law Artifact for a while," Ye Jingcheng said apologetically.

Ye Xingliu nodded:

"It's alright, it hasn't started yet, we'll have to wait for the Chu Family."

Although they did not form an alliance with the Chu Family, they would not forget that the Chu Family was Lineage related by marriage.

Once everyone had gathered, there were over thirty people at the Ye Family's side, and over sixty people on the other side of the courtyard.

Among them, there are five people who have reached the Foundation Establishment.

It should be noted that the Chu Family had also experienced considerable turmoil before, so having this quantity indicates that the Chu Family has been developing well recently, and they probably bought quite a few Foundation Establishment Pills before.

The Chu Family was still led by Chu Xiyu, the head of the Chu Family. He was wearing a golden crown and brocade robe, and his aura was particularly strong today. His cultivation level had reached the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage, which was comparable to Ye Xingliu's.

After exchanging greetings, Chu Xiyu and Ye Xingliu headed out of the market.

The streets and alleys were much more crowded today, and at a corner, several more cultivators joined the Ye Family's procession.

These seven or eight Rogue Cultivators were temporary hires recruited by the Ye Family. For major sects, it is naturally more reliable to expand into the Taihang Mountain Range by large Lineage, since they can find their roots and clansmen.

Unlike Rogue Cultivators, they can leave at any time, which is why major sects don't take ordinary Rogue Cultivators with them when they expand.

These Rogue Cultivators who want to join can only do so by joining Lineage, taking out 60% of the profits, giving 30% to the sect and 30% to the Lineage.

Of course, even so, quite a few people still went to the Taihang Mountain Range, most of them to earn enough Spirit Stones to buy Foundation Establishment a year later.

The group continued walking to the outside of the market, where they saw a large open space that was already packed with people.

Countless cultivators were neatly arranged according to their respective Lineage banners, with the four major Golden Core Lineage at the forefront.

Among them, the Zhang Family and Zhong Families had the most members, while the Jin Family and Kong Families, the two major spiritual pill Lineage, had fewer members, but still had more than a dozen Foundation Establishment and two Purple Mansion cultivators.

Ye Jingcheng squinted and examined all the Foundation Establishment cultivators. Perhaps, one of them would be a formidable opponent.

At this moment, Ye Xingliu also took out a Jade Slip and placed it in Ye Jingcheng's palm.

"The latest!" Ye Xingliu's voice echoed in my mind.

Ye Jingcheng smiled knowingly and continued to look at the Mo Family and Xu Families, who were still very close. He couldn't help but glance at the female cultivator.

But when he looked over, he found that the female cultivator was staring at him coldly, and that chilling aura was approaching again!

"Be careful, it might be Foundation Establishment Late Stage, or even peak Foundation Establishment." Ye Xingliu also secretly transmitted his voice, clearly having noticed the situation on the other side as well.

However, the latter's face was also full of doubt; he didn't know when the Xu Family had acquired such a person.

"She kept switching to ice-attribute materials during the Foundation Establishment Conference," Ye Jingcheng replied telepathically.

Before they could continue speaking, suddenly, the entire Crimson Firmament Sky was obscured as an enormous Spirit Boat flew in from afar.

This Spirit Boat is four stories high, with dozens of cloud sails, each engraved with various Spirit Patterns.

As these Spirit Patterns circulated, they were like a primordial beast unleashing its power, exerting endless pressure on everyone.

On the Spirit Boat, Mingyuan Master Tianzhen, and Taihao Master were all at the Spirit Boat, controlling the enormous Spirit Boat.

This also demonstrates the seriousness with which the Taiyi Sect is undertaking this expansion.

"Such a large Spirit Boat must have consumed a lot of mid-grade Spirit Stones!" Ye Jingli remarked from the side.

This Spirit Boat is simply too big.

Even if Ye Jingcheng's Divine Sense were to cover the entire area, it would take several breaths.

"This is the Taiyi Sect -Fourth Stage Wonderful Dharma Treasure Ship of the Taiyi Sect's Miaofa True Person. The core Spirit Gathering Formation and driving spirit array both use high-grade Spirit Stones, not to mention the mid-grade Spirit Stones. As long as it is fully activated, the daily consumption is not small." Chu Yanqing explained after hearing Ye Jingli's sigh next to Ye Jingcheng.

Ye Jingli looked at Ye Jingcheng and Chu Yanqing with some strangeness, glancing back and forth between them, and then looked at Ye Jingyong.

It seems there's doubt about their identities.

"Sixth Brother, be careful," Ye Jingcheng reminded him repeatedly.

There are about ten Purple Mansion Lineage and four Golden Core Lineage here, not to mention the Taiyi Sect.

Boom!

Just then, the Spirit Boat finally stopped, hovering in mid-air.

Like an island in the sky, it completely covered the entire blue sky.

"Everyone board the Spirit Boat and follow the areas designated by your respective Lineage. Remember, do not wander off, or you will bear the consequences!" Mingyuan's words resounded in everyone's hearts like a thunderclap.

Then, the group of cultivators began to board the ship.

All procedures proceeded smoothly, and the Ye Family was no exception; they quickly boarded the Spirit Boat.

"There's Spirit Vein on this Spirit Boat?" Ye Jingcheng was also extremely surprised as soon as he landed on the Spirit Boat.

This was the first time he had ever heard of Spirit Boat with Spirit Vein.

"Many of the secret realms controlled by the major sects were explored using these treasure ships." Chu Yanqin clearly knew more, and she continued to explain to Ye Jingcheng.

Upon learning that this treasure ship was a Law Treasure artifact, Ye Jingcheng felt even more aggrieved by its extravagance.

The speed at which the Treasure Ark next also exceeded Ye Jingcheng's expectations.

"Based on this estimate, we should reach the Taihang Mountain Range in three days at most." Ye Jingcheng gave a simple time estimate, as he originally thought his Mysterious Shadow Azure Cloud Boat was already extremely fast.

Now, the difference is like night and day.

Moreover, the Treasure Ark was filled with various cultivation rooms.

Ye Jingcheng chatted with the rest of the Ye Family for a few minutes before entering the cultivation room, whereupon the Jade Slip in his hand landed between his eyebrows.

It contained descriptions of the appearances and information of many Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Among them are ten sect cultivators, such as Cloud Sword Master and Xiao Ta'a of Taiyi Sword Peak. These two not only learned the sword light of the Taiyi Sect, but also possessed Sword Embryos. It is said that once the Sword Embryos are released, they can take the head of enemy cultivators from a hundred miles away.

There are also Wang Tianfa and Xiao Qianhe, young Artifact Refining Masters from Taiyi Dharma Peak; Liu Huan and Liu Yunzhi Liu Huan, young Array from Taiyi Illusion Peak; Chen Yunzi, the Foundation Establishment senior brother from Taiyi Purple Peak, and so on.

Ye Jingcheng glanced at them and saw that almost all of them were renowned Foundation Establishment Late Stage Cultivators.

When facing these sect cultivators, Ye Jingcheng had only one principle: avoid them if possible, and if avoidance is not possible, try to minimize conflict.

Besides the sect cultivators, the Jade Slip also contained powerful Foundation Establishment figures from the four major Golden Core Lineage.

However, when Ye Jingcheng looked at the Xu Family, there was no record of a single cultivator with the Ice Spirit Root.

Ye Jingcheng observed very carefully; he was willing to lower his guard against any of these Foundation Establishment cultivators.

After all, if you miss even one person, the opponent might be hiding a deadly move.

Even Qi Refining cultivators were full of hidden talents back then, so Ye Jingcheng felt that Foundation Establishment cultivators must be even more dangerous, since many of them probably carried Talisman Treasure.

Ye Jingcheng looked at the Jade Slip for a long time before putting it down and starting to cultivate.

To Ye Jingcheng's surprise, his Divine Soul suddenly began to stir.

Furthermore, within the Beast-Link Mark, the spiritual power of the wood element continuously surged forth.

This spiritual energy is extremely pure, and there's a considerable amount of it.

It seems the Three-Color Cloud Deer is breaking through.

Ye Jingcheng felt a mixture of joy and worry in an instant.

He was happy that the Three-Color Cloud Deer was finally about to break through, but worried that the other party was currently in the Stone Spirit Grotto-Heaven, which he could not enter at the moment, and of course, he could not enter.

Ye Jingcheng could only wait until the exploration was completed and he entered the secret realm, where no Purple Mansion cultivator could secretly observe him.

The breakthrough of the Three-Color Cloud Deer also indicates that Ye Jingcheng's strength has further improved.

The only regret is that Ye Jingcheng did not use the Heavenly Soul Art split his soul because the time for the secret realm was too short.

After all, one will be weak for a period of time after splitting their soul. If there is no battle, it's fine, but if there is a battle, it is absolutely not advisable to split the soul.

He also took out a spiritual pill and began to cultivate slowly.

Although significant progress may not be possible in a short period, perseverance is key; taking it slow is always beneficial.

Time passed by, minute by minute.

Ye Jingcheng only felt the sky outside change, from the blazing sun to a serene bright moon.

Many stars appeared in the sky. At that moment, he suddenly realized that he had entered Taihang Commandery.

The distance that takes Foundation Establishment cultivators more than half a month to reach, this treasure ship seems to be able to cover in just over a day.

Ye Jingcheng did not continue cultivating, but landed on the deck. Ye Jingli, and Ye Jingyu Ye Jingyong were also there beside him.

Ye Jingli and Ye Jingyong kept talking, while Ye Jingcheng was worried that Ye Jingyu might overhear something.

After all, this isn't the real Ye Jingyu. If the Beast-Link Mark is leaked, things will get really serious.

Otherwise, he would have continued his cultivation in the room.

However, Ye Jingli noticeably more mature than before. He and Ye Jingyong talked about everyday things, including Ye Jingyong's son.

Ye Jingyong's son was born last year and is currently named Ye Wen. If he has Spirit Roots and is assigned a generation name, he will be named Ye Qingwen.

Ye Jingyong and Ye Jingli both at the ninth level of Qi Refining, only a wall away from Foundation Establishment. So even though one has a son and the other is Artifact Refiner, they are both prepared to take a gamble to buy Foundation Establishment and prepare for Foundation Establishment.

After all, the Taihang Mountain Range are no easy task this time.

This newly acquired territory belongs to the Three-Eyed Demon King and also to the Three-Eyed Roc Clan.

Ye Jingcheng estimated that if more than half of the people on the Spirit Boat could leave safely, it would mean that the expedition had gone relatively smoothly.

After all, the benefits of joining a sect aren't so easy to come by.

If it were that simple, the Taiyi Sect would have come on their own.

"Jingcheng, what about you and Chu Yanqing?" Ye Jingli asked, glancing at Ye Jingcheng as he spoke.

Ye Jingli was interested in weapon crafting and also in some of the novel things happening to his clansmen.

"It's just a normal Lineage relationship, Sixth Brother. Don't make wild guesses. I have higher expectations for the Great Dao right now," Ye Jingcheng explained repeatedly.

Upon Ye Jingli nodded with a regretful expression.

Ye Jingyong then spoke up:

"Jingcheng, Chu Yanqing is likely a key figure in the Chu Family."

Ye Jingyong's wife is Chu Yanliu.

He was also a Chu Family. Ye Jingcheng was not surprised by this statement. He could tell from the fact that the other party seemed to be able to go into seclusion whenever he wanted, and that he could still take charge of Taichang Market and get very close to Chu Xiyu after breaking through.

He might even be a genius with two Spirit Roots.

Unfortunately, Ye Jingcheng didn't like the other party to be too inquisitive. That kind of cultivation life was not good news for him or the Ye Family.

After a brief chat, a sliver of pale light began to appear at the edge of the sky.

At terrifying speed, it was like a golden sun, constantly shooting towards the crowd.

The magnificence and grandeur were indescribable.

All that is known is that the golden sun rose from the end of the mountains, and countless golden rays shone on the Spirit Boat, making it appear exceptionally dazzling.

The next moment, the treasure ship began to descend, heading towards the valley.

The group was familiar with this valley; it was the Jade Dragon Valley they had previously explored.

The waters of Jade Dragon Lake above were now even clearer and more vibrant. Then, a group of the Purple Mansion cultivators took flight to greet them.

The Purple Mansion within this area includes Ye Haicheng from the Ye Family and Xu Chunlin from the Xu Family.

There were also several Purple Mansion Realm Elders from the Taiyi Sect, who had obviously set up camp here in advance. As for Golden Core True Person, Ye Jingcheng hadn't seen them yet, but they were most likely on the Spirit Boat.

This is why, even with the Array in place, he dared not observe the Three-Color Cloud Deer's breakthrough progress on the Spirit Boat.

Now he can only sense things through the Soul Pact, which makes Ye Jingcheng feel somewhat uneasy.

"Everyone, take a day off, and we'll begin the expansion tomorrow!" Mingyuan shouted again.

These arrangements had clearly been planned in advance, so there were no problems.

All the cultivators performed their duties, and each Lineage also set up camp in their pre-arranged locations.

Seeing Ye Haicheng, Ye Jingcheng felt more at ease, and Ye Xingliu even handed a Spirit Beast pouch to Ye Haicheng.

Moreover, Ye Xingliu was clearly exchanging glances with Ye Haicheng, which made Ye Jingcheng feel even more at ease.

He couldn't actually see through Ye Haicheng's or Ye Xingliu's cunning, but he could tell whether the Lineage was prepared.

Once everything was prepared, there was no problem. After arriving at the encampment, Ye Jingcheng took out the Lineage Token and began communicating with Ye Xingliu.

He did not continue to conceal the secret from Stone Spirit Grotto-Heaven. He wanted to ask the latter if he wanted something in advance, but Ye Xingliu obviously did not, and even asked Ye Jingcheng to continue using the Bone-Hiding Ring.

This Bone-Hiding Ring can serve as the first layer of cover. Even if it is leaked later, there is no need to worry, since the Ye Family's true treasures are hidden in the Grotto-Heaven.

Upon hearing this, Ye Jingcheng naturally nodded, and his concerns vanished.

After waiting for half a day, Ye Jingcheng suddenly discovered that the Soul Pact of the Three-Color Cloud Deer had finally stabilized, and the fluctuations in its Divine Soul were extremely healthy, indicating that it had successfully broken through. However, Ye Jingcheng still could not take it out.

He still needs to wait.