Unwilling to Accept It
The Dao of Qi Ingestion.
Beside the Accumulated Fire Pool.
Fang Yu checked the three Storage Bags, a smile appearing on his face. "The Three Heroes of the Wang Household really did have some wealth tucked away!"
The three Storage Bags contained over seventy thousand Spirit Stones alone. With the other odds and ends, such as spirit talismans, Law Artifacts, and pills, their total wealth came to roughly a hundred thousand Spirit Stones.
For three Qi Refining Late Stage cultivators, that was neither little nor much.
Putting away the Storage Bags, he picked up a booklet with a cowhide cover titled "Hundred Venomous Insects United Heart Technique" and leafed through it.
"This insect-control technique is rather interesting. I could raise a few insects to pass the time when I'm free!"
Fang Yu murmured to himself and put away the booklet, which was probably the most valuable item of all. The scene of him killing the Three Heroes of the Wang Household flashed through his mind.
After he revealed his Dao Foundation cultivation, the Three Heroes of the Wang Household had clearly taken him for a Foundation Establishment Ancestor.
That was basically in line with his earlier guess: a Dao Foundation on the Dao of Qi Ingestion side was equivalent to Foundation Establishment on the other side.
Even so, killing three Late Stage cultivators so easily had surprised him a little. His Molten Edge Flow Dao Foundation was meant for smithing and was not suited to combat.
If he encountered a Foundation Establishment Ancestor, he wondered how much power it could bring to bear.
As he pondered, he turned his palm over, producing several pieces of bone.
The bones were the essence left behind after the corpses of the three Qi Refining Late Stage cultivators were melted down. Having survived his Molten Edge Flow, they were already comparable to metal and stone spirit materials. With some polishing, they could be refined into a few bone implements.
Refining External Alchemy implements from bone was very common in the External Alchemy Technique, though Demon Beast bone was generally used. There was nothing particularly wrong with using cultivators' bones, but elders of the orthodox Taiyi Profound Gate rarely did so. The Great Thunderclap Monastery, on the other hand, was very fond of using such bone implements to refine external pills, giving them the elegant name "sarira."
Fang Yu hesitated for a moment, then tossed the bones into the Accumulated Fire Pool.
He still could not bring himself to use people as materials, just as he recoiled from the method of refining swords through blood sacrifice.
Having dealt with his spoils this time, Fang Yu rose and wandered along the edge of the pool, thoughts flashing through his mind one after another.
The cultivators on the Dao of Qi Refining side are far too savage and brutish. They just seize whatever catches their eye, like a bunch of gangsters. I only sold a few custom-made pickaxes, and that brought the Three Heroes of the Wang Household down on me. If I keep selling them, I'll probably attract a great Foundation Establishment cultivator, or perhaps the Three Heroes of the Wang Household already have a Foundation Establishment cultivator backing them.
Whether or not they have a Foundation Establishment cultivator backing them, I'll assume they do. I'm not afraid, but there's no need to engage in pointless fighting, especially since I'm not good at it. I'd better not go back to the Dao of Qi Refining side for a while.
As it happens, I've stayed safe and sound here on the Dao of Qi Ingestion side for over two years. The sect's attention should have waned by now, so this is a good time to go out and look for a Dao of Qi Ingestion Cultivation Method that suits me.
Then again, the Dao of Qi Ingestion side seems even more dangerous. Someone could scheme me to death before I knew it, and I might not even know how I died.
Just look at how I achieved my Dao Foundation. The sect guided me step by step into becoming a Dao Foundation for a sword sacrifice. If not for the Yuanchen Pearl, I would have turned into that Earth Grade flying sword long ago.
I may have lain low for more than two years, but who knows if someone is still scheming against me? Even if, on the surface, I'm now a senior laborer whose Dao Path has been severed, who knows if I still have some other value?
If I really do, they should make their move when I go out to travel. After all, there's still a Purple Mansion Sword Immortal's sword intent in my sea of consciousness, and he was the one who took my Earth Grade flying sword.
Hmm, whether or not anyone is scheming against me, I'll assume someone is. I should think deeper and assume it's the Moon-Embracing Sword Immortal. In that case, there's no need to sneak out. I should leave openly. In any case, with the Yuanchen Pearl's Fate Weaving, I can control what the Moon-Embracing Sword Immortal knows and doesn't know. I might even be able to turn the tables and scheme against him.
At that thought, a red cloud appeared beneath Fang Yu's feet and carried him toward Wu Tong's cave abode.
In the small courtyard outside Wu Tong's cave abode.
"Hahaha, Elder Fang, it's rare for you to have time to come over for tea!"
Laughing, Wu Tong poured Fang Yu a cup of tea and gently pushed it in front of him.
"Ah!" Fang Yu sighed deeply, picked up the cup, and took a sip. He said wistfully:
"To tell you the truth, Elder Wu, though I've spent the past two years diligently studying Notes on Heavenly Craft, hoping to carry forward the Heavenly Craft Valley lineage's skills, I've never quite been able to accept my lot."
Wu Tong looked over at once. "Do you want to go out and seek a fortuitous opportunity?"
Fang Yu nodded. "That's right. I'm still young, with over a hundred years of life left. I really can't accept growing old and dying here in the valley. Since the sect has no further inheritance for Molten Edge Flow, I'll search for one in the outside world, and even go to Mount Longhu to seek a fortuitous opportunity."
The smile vanished from Wu Tong's face, replaced by a look of gloom. His voice grew heavy. "It's good to go out and see the world. One has to make that journey eventually. I was just as unwilling to accept it back then, but only after traveling around did I learn that my own destiny had already been exhausted. You achieved your Dao Foundation with an Earth Grade flying sword, so your destiny should be stronger than ours. You might really find a way forward out there."
As he spoke, he turned his palm over and took out a golden slip, which he handed to Fang Yu. "This contains what I saw and heard during my travels. Though nearly a hundred years have passed, it should still be of some help to you. I once wanted to go to Mount Longhu too, but I couldn't go any farther after getting halfway there. If you really make it to Mount Longhu, offer a stick of incense for me."
Fang Yu accepted the golden slip and touched it with his divine sense, perceiving the vast amount of information recorded within: mountains and rivers, terrain, mortal kingdoms, cultivation Aristocratic Clans, the various lineages, and so on. Though many entries were only rough accounts, they would still be a great help to him, sparing him from being completely in the dark once he went out.
"Rest assured, Elder Wu. If I really make it up Mount Longhu, I'll offer incense for you!"
Fang Yu gave his solemn promise, then began chatting with Wu Tong about the outside world and what Wu Tong had seen and heard in the past.
There was certainly a great deal recorded in the golden slip, but many details had surely been left out. By talking with Wu Tong, he could learn more.
They talked for over a week. Only when Fang Yu had asked just about everything he wanted to know, and could plainly sense that Wu Tong was growing impatient, did he rise to take his leave. "Thank you for your guidance, Elder Wu. I won't trouble you any longer!"
"Go, go, go! Hurry up and go!" Wu Tong immediately looked as though he had been granted a pardon. He hurried Fang Yu out the door, then activated the restrictions with a boom, as if afraid Fang Yu would go back in.
"Ah!" Fang Yu was somewhat speechless. He rubbed his nose, summoned his red cloud, and headed for the Metal Stone Immortal Sect's mountain gate.