Time flew like an arrow, the sun and moon sped like a shuttle, and in the blink of an eye, ten years had passed.
For those who cultivated toward Dao Attainment, seeking to become immortals and sages, those same ten years seemed no more than yesterday.
But for ordinary Qi Refining cultivators and people of the mortal world, they marked a new chapter in life.
Many mortal people whose wives and children had been scattered, whose homes had been shattered and loved ones lost, began to emerge from the gloom and settle once more into peaceful lives and productive work. Production and labor that had ground to a halt throughout the region gradually resumed, restoring the prosperity of old.
Around Horsehead Island and Tulin Harbor, the cultivation market ward that had been replanned to accommodate the Incense Market was crowded with people everywhere, bustling with activity.
It was another Market Gathering day. Rogue cultivators from all over converged here, and the streets brimmed with the sounds of commerce.
"Spirit incense! Spirit incense! Finest-quality spirit incense!"
"Magical artifacts imported from the North Sea! Cheap and practical!"
"Talismans on sale! Come and take a look!"
This market ward had been jointly established by the West Sea Branch Headquarters and the North Sea's Incense Accumulation Sect. By now, the Incense Accumulation Sect had gained a foothold here.
The eastern street housed the Incense Market, which specialized in incense products. But a market ward needed goods besides spirit incense to fill its shops, and they could hardly earn every last coin themselves.
Li Ling and the people of Jade Lang Mountain had agreed to operate the place through a cooperative arrangement of seventy-thirty splits and cross-shareholding, sharing both the profits and the risk of a resurgence by the Demonic Path.
This followed an entirely