A declining lineage

In a cliffside cave five li northwest of Green Vine Ravine, Lu Zhao sat cross-legged in a corner.

A tree so thick it took two people to encircle it concealed the entrance, making it exceptionally well hidden.

His hands formed seals, and wisps of blue spiritual light flowed from his palms, slowly seeping into his body to mend his damaged meridians.

He was using the Water-Nurturing Art from the Little Spirit Rain Art to heal himself.

After more than two hours, his wounds finally stopped bleeding, color gradually returned to his face, and his flagging aura stabilized.

He slowly opened his eyes, a trace of the ferocity from that fight to the death still lingering in his gaze.

It had been the most dangerous battle he had experienced since embarking on the path of cultivation.

Had he hesitated even slightly, he would have been the one lying dead now.

"The Small Thunderclap Talisman... truly terrifying."

Unleashing it at close range had left his opponent gravely wounded and on the verge of death, but he had also been caught in the blast.

Had he not forced himself to hold on with his last breath, he would probably have passed out long before. Fortunately, that young cultivator had lacked experience; otherwise, the outcome would have been hard to predict.

He had finally escaped danger for the time being, but knowing someone had him in their sights was unpleasant.

Not only had he played his trump card in this battle, he had also used four first-tier superior-grade talismans-if he could not recover the cost from his enemies' Storage Bags, he would have taken a tremendous loss.

He carefully took out a nearly ruined Storage Bag (after a cultivator died, the soul imprint dissipated, allowing the Storage Bag to be opened freely).

Besides some healing pills and Detoxification Pills, it contained a few ordinary talismans.

Lastly, there was a first-tier middle-grade bell-shaped defensive artifact and twenty-odd Spirit Stones.

There were also some miscellaneous objects Lu Zhao did not recognize.

He sighed.

This hardly seemed like the wealth a ninth-level Qi Refining cultivator should possess.

Lu Zhao guessed that the man had probably sent most of his resources back to his lineage or hidden them elsewhere.

Though somewhat disappointed, three first-tier middle-grade artifacts and one damaged first-tier superior-grade artifact meant he had not suffered a loss.

Unfortunately, none was water-attribute.

He casually picked up another Storage Bag, pale purple with cloud patterns embroidered on its surface.

"Looks more like something a female cultivator would own."

Lu Zhao muttered to himself.

When he extended his divine sense inside, his expression froze.

Two hundred Spirit Stones and several bottles of pills were neatly arranged within.

He opened one bottle and found nine crimson pills-he judged them to be first-tier middle-grade fire-attribute pills.

He recognized the contents of the other bottles: Spirit-Restoring Pills and Spring-Rejuvenation Pills, both commonly used supplementary cultivation pills.

There was also a jade box.

He opened it and found a pale blue talisman.

Before he could examine it closely, the panel information automatically popped up:

"Quasi-second-tier talisman: Ice Dragon Talisman!"

Lu Zhao sucked in a cold breath.

Had that young man possessed even a little experience and prepared this talisman beforehand, Lu Zhao would probably have been the one to die.

Though quasi-second-tier talismans like this were not as precious as true second-tier talismans, they could still fetch fifty Spirit Stones in the market district, and even then, there were buyers but no sellers. Obtaining one depended entirely on luck.

Finally, a gilt bronze token fell into his hand, with two large characters clearly inscribed on it:

"Zheng Ping."

At the sight of those two characters, Lu Zhao's pupils abruptly contracted!

"The Northern Plains Zheng Household? When did I ever offend them?"

No, that was not right. Something suddenly occurred to Lu Zhao. He vaguely remembered that his own lineage's territory was not far from the Zheng Household.

"Looks like I'll have to return to the Northern Plains after reaching Foundation Establishment."

He murmured to himself.

Lu Zhao had no doubt whatsoever that he could reach Foundation Establishment. With an opportunity as tremendous as the Puppet Pearl already in his hands, if he could not even achieve Foundation Establishment, he might as well dash his head against a wall and die.

Three days later, Lu Zhao returned to Green Vine Ravine. He greeted those on duty as though nothing had happened and returned to his stone chamber.

After returning to his stone chamber, Lu Zhao dropped his pretense. He first released two Puppet Guards, then activated the Divine-Sense-Avoidance Formation. Once he let down his guard, he slowly fell asleep. He was far too exhausted.

He slept for an entire day and night. When he woke, all his fatigue had vanished. If not for the faint ache of his injuries, he might have thought nothing had happened.

Lu Zhao sat cross-legged in his stone chamber, pondering one question: whether he should report this incident to the Zhou Household.

The Zhou Household had a fairly good reputation and treated its Guest Elders quite generously, but those who survived in the cultivation world were hardly modest gentlemen.

He had killed two members of the Zheng Household. Even if they had struck first, the Zheng Household was a Foundation Establishment lineage, and the Zhou Household might not be willing to shelter him.

After repeated consideration, he decided to tell Shopkeeper Zhou the truth first. For the time being, he really did not want to leave the Zhou Household Market.

Moreover, judging their actual strength, the Zhou Household should be much stronger than the Zheng Household, since the Northern Plains had three major Foundation Establishment lineages, while Changfeng had only the Zhou Household.

Lu Zhao planned to sound out the Zhou Household first. If they brushed him off or gave him no real answer, he would probably have to prepare for the worst.

Three days later, Lu Zhao visited the Nine Abyss Pavilion again.

The old shopkeeper was still wiping ornaments behind the counter. Upon seeing him, he said with a beaming smile, "Fellow Daoist Lu, it's only been a few days, and you're back already. Missed this old man, did you?"

"You jest, Shopkeeper. Without important business, how would I dare disturb you?" Lu Zhao smiled faintly, his tone respectful but not servile.

"This isn't the place to talk. Do you have a private room, Shopkeeper?"

Seeing Lu Zhao's solemn expression, the shopkeeper put away his smile and nodded, leading him to a quiet room on the second floor.

"Go on, what is it?" He lifted a cup of spirit tea and took a small sip.

Lu Zhao drew a deep breath and recounted what had happened at Rosy Cloud Slope a few days earlier, then produced Zheng Ping's token as evidence.

"Though I'm only a Guest Elder of the Zhou Household, I still count as half a member, don't I? Would the Zhou Household be willing to negotiate on my behalf?"

The shopkeeper answered instinctively, "That's beyond my authority. If you want an explanation, Fellow Daoist, you can seek out the Enforcement Team."

The moment the words left his mouth, he realized something was wrong.

This was a test! The lad really was shrewd. I've hunted geese all my life, only to have a goose peck out my eye.

This lad still has considerable use. I'll have to tell him a few things, or I won't be able to keep him settled, the shopkeeper thought.

"Rest easy, lad. The Zheng Household's days are numbered. They certainly won't have the energy to come to Changfeng Commandery looking for you."

"And don't worry. Even at their height, the mere Zheng Household amounted to little in our Zhou Household's eyes, much less now."

A quarter of an hour later, Lu Zhao also asked the shopkeeper to let him make deliveries once every three months from then on. The shopkeeper hesitated upon hearing this, but ultimately agreed.

After Lu Zhao left, the shopkeeper stood by the second-floor window, seemingly admiring the market district's scenery, though his thoughts had already drifted far away.

Half a month earlier, he had received a piece of intelligence: Zheng Yun, a direct-line son of the Northern Plains Zheng Household, had failed his attempt at Foundation Establishment and died on the spot.

The other two powers in Northern Plains Commandery were stirring restlessly, while unease spread within the Zheng Household itself.

"Zheng Yun truly had gall enough to fill the heavens. He dared force a breakthrough without a Foundation Establishment Pill. He really had no fear of death."

Thinking of the Zheng Household's circumstances, he could understand somewhat.

The Zheng Household's ancestor had at most thirty years of life remaining. If no one else in the lineage reached Foundation Establishment, its downfall would not be far off.

"If the lineage really weren't in such a poor position to expand right now, this would be a good pretext for gaining a foothold in Northern Plains Commandery."

"Damn the Chu Household."

As though something had occurred to him, the shopkeeper's expression suddenly darkened.