Clear Water

"The black market?!" Hua Chunning was somewhat surprised upon hearing this.

Azure Cloud Market has only been established for a short time, yet a black market has already emerged.

This shows that although Azure Cloud Market has developed rapidly, it still cannot meet the needs of cultivators, which is why the black market has emerged as a supplement.

Du Qingquan sighed inwardly and said in a low voice, "It's called a black market, but it's actually tacitly approved by the market authorities. It's a place where they do business that can't be done openly."

"The person behind it all is most likely Market Master Lin."

"It is said that he is a descendant of Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Azure Cloud Sect. Even the Qiao Household cultivators, to whom the Azure Cloud Sect leader resides, treat him with utmost respect and dare not offend him."

Hua Chunning nodded in agreement, not particularly surprised.

Lin Muyang was chosen to oversee this place, so he is definitely not an incompetent person. How could he possibly allow the black market, which is not under his control, to steal business from the market?

Xue Yong, too, likely also received a share of the profits.

I always addressed him with respect and treated him with courtesy.

This old man, however, showed no respect for his seniors, keeping even such a matter a secret.

Hua Chunning secretly decided to turn back and order the old steward of the Hua Household to ask for an additional 10% of the market revenue, and then see how Lin Muyang and Xue Yong would react.

Seeing Hua Chunning deep in thought, Du Qingquan realized the information was likely useful and secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He then casually remarked, "In the past, cultivators were only found in the blessed lands of Mount Ling; mortals rarely did."

"I don't know what's going on lately, but a lot of cultivators have suddenly appeared from all over the place, and the market is almost overflowing with people."

"Even drawing talismans seems much easier now, as if some invisible constraint has been removed."

Hua Chunning smiled upon hearing this, realizing that Du Qingquan was cautiously probing. She couldn't say much about the lord's demise, but she could reveal a few things. "A great change is about to occur in the Southern Edge Continent; the Old Method and traditions are reviving."

"In the future, there will likely be more and more people who stumble upon secret treasures, find Cultivation Method, awaken their bloodlines, and obtain inheritances."

"[Manifestation] are difficult to improve, and [Proper Qi] remains difficult to gather."

"However, [Mixed Qi] and [Lesser Qi] should be easier to obtain, and entering the Qi Ingestion cultivation will be much easier than before."

Upon hearing this, Du Qingquan was deeply shaken. Even though he was most used to restraining himself, he couldn't help but show a look of joy on his face.

"Really?" Hua Yuhe's reaction was more pronounced, and she pressed, "Then is there any hope for Qingquan and me to enter the Daoist cultivation path?!"

Hua Chunning ran her fingers across her eyes, using the [Qi Observation Technique] to examine them.

My cousin Hua Yuhe's [Yi Wood] Manifestation was already shallow, and now it's even more tainted by worldly affairs, so I'm afraid it will be difficult for her.

However, Du Qingquan's work was quite interesting. Although the Manifestation was still insufficient, it showed signs of a spring emerging from the ground, which looked very mysterious.

"Sister Yuhe, I'm afraid there's no hope." Hua Chunning, now of high status, had no need to be tactful and answered directly, "However, this is the first time I've seen my brother-in-law's Manifestation, and I can't quite understand it, so I dare not make a judgment."

Although Hua Yuhe was somewhat disappointed, she had already accepted reality in her heart. She couldn't help but look at her husband. "So, Qingquan still has a chance to become a Daoist?"

Du Qingquan, who had endured half his life, was still incredibly excited at this moment.

Hua Chunning naturally wouldn't give a definitive answer, but instead asked, "Since brother-in-law possesses the family's secret art of talisman drawing, his ancestors must have passed it down. May I ask which lineage it belongs to?"

After a moment of silence, Du Qingquan replied, "My ancestors cultivated the [Clear Water] sect for generations, and it is said that they were once very prominent. However, their descendants were unworthy, and now only I remain in the Du Household, and I only know some rudimentary talisman techniques."

"It's [Clear Water]..." Hua Chunning found the name quite familiar.

I recall the [Azure Origin Fate-Weighing Plate] that my grandfather used to measure his own Fate, which was jointly refined by the Hua Household ancestor and a friend, the [Clear Water] True Person.

At the time, I thought it was from a long time ago and just listened to it as a story.

Now, seeing a successor of the [Clear Water] style standing before me, who is also my cousin's husband, truly makes one sigh with emotion.

When it came to matters of cultivation, Hua Chunning dared not be careless. After a moment of thought, she solemnly said, "I cultivate [Yi Wood], and among the various Water Virtue paths, I am only familiar with [Kan Water]."

"Regarding [Clear Water], I've only read a few Daoist scriptures, and I vaguely remember that [Clear Water] is a [Changing Position] within the Water Virtue."

"Now that the world in the Southern Edge Continent has undergone tremendous changes, it probably coincides with the imagery of [Clear Water]'s [Changing Position], which is why it has been promoted without anyone noticing, greatly benefiting its cultivation."

"As for the specific truth, and whether I will be able to enter the path of cultivation in the future, that is Non-Self ability to say."

Du Qingquan nodded slightly, remaining relatively calm.

Hua Yuhe couldn't help but show her delight. "Excellent, excellent. Qingquan has wasted half his life in the mortal world, I never thought he would have the possibility of entering the Dao."

Du Qingquan frequented the black market and had seen many cultivators of all kinds. However, he was more well-informed and knowledgeable than Hua Yuhe, the market manager. In return, he told her a lot of the market's secrets and promised to regularly summarize the information and hand it over to the Hua Household manager in the market.

Seeing that Du Qingquan was a smart man, Hua Chunning nodded slightly and didn't say anything more. She looked at Hua Yuhe, who was excited but couldn't hide her aging appearance, and sighed softly, saying, "Most pills are poisonous, especially those that preserve youth; you should take them sparingly."

Hua Yuhe was taken aback upon hearing this, and nodded silently.

Hua Chunning remembered their childhood friendship, so she made a hand Method Formula and activated a wisp of [Lesser Yang Qi], which transformed into a Yang Spring breeze and blew directly onto Hua Yuhe.

Through diligent cultivation, Hua Chunning's Spring Breeze Technique has long since evolved beyond simply promoting the growth of hair and nails.

This spring breeze fell on Hua Yuhe without any hindrance, passing directly through her skin and flesh, and blowing into her bones and internal organs.

Hua Yuhe felt a cool breeze blow into her body, as if all her fatigue and grime had been blown away. Then a warm feeling spread from her toes all the way to the ends of her hair, and her whole body suddenly felt light.

This spring breeze technique naturally has no effect on prolonging life or restoring youth.

However, it is not difficult to cleanse the body and cultivate vitality for ordinary people.

Hua Chunning frowned slightly, glanced at Hua Yuhe, and said uncertainly, "I sensed something unusual about my cousin's life force when I felt the spring breeze; I'm afraid... she's already pregnant."

Hua Yuhe was first surprised, then overjoyed, and subconsciously touched her belly. "Really?!"

Du Qingquan was also pleasantly surprised.

After all, rumors had already circulated in the market that the old inhabitants of the Southern Edge Continent lacked Spirit Root and could not cultivate the New Method, so they could only take the dead end of Body Refining techniques.

Newborn babies may have Spirit Root, be able to cultivate New Method, and have the potential to join the Azure Cloud Sect in the future!

Du Qingquan and Hua Yuhe abandoned worldly wealth and status to struggle for survival in Azure Cloud Market, partly because they knew they had no hope of entering the Dao, and more so to prepare for their children's possible path to immortality in the future.

Hua Yuhe came from Rejuvenation Valley, so she naturally knew the difficulties of practicing the Old Method.

The Hua Household has pooled all its resources to support only one person Hua Chunning.

As a manager in the market, Hua Yuhe had heard a lot about how convenient and simple the New Method practice was.

As long as your Spirit Root is good enough, you can have plenty of elixirs.

I can't say for sure about the Golden Core Foundation Establishment.

Even if you know that the New Method of Foundation Establishment may differ from the Old Method Foundation Establishment, it is still Foundation Establishment!

Du Qingquan still harbored some deep-seated beliefs, thinking that his children should cultivate Ancient Method, preferably [Clear Water]. He disregarded everything else and only asked hopefully, "When my children are born, if they wish to cultivate Ancient Method, are there any ways to accumulate [Manifestation] and [Fate]?"

Of course.

Just Grotto-Heaven like you would.

However, Hua Chunning knew the taboo and wouldn't recklessly mention such sect secrets. After a moment's thought, she slowly said, "It's not that there's no way..."