Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Chapter 217 – The Brave Seafolk Willing to Die

In a forest outside the city, Qin Yu opened his eyes, his face weary. As he thought, this sort of method of forcibly controlling another person’s body couldn’t be used casually. He had specifically chosen a Golden Core body cultivator whose soul cultivation was low, yet his losses had been terrifying. If it were any other cultivator they wouldn’t have been able to last.

Moreover, the camouflage plan he especially came up with didn’t seem to have any use at all. Heavenseek Pavilion had somehow managed to recognize his identity.

It was obvious that his two questions had given him away. Or to be more precise, when he asked how to break through to Nascent Soul with more than one Golden Core. This was the question that had given him away. Heavenseek Pavilion seemed to be paying attention to him, otherwise, with the countless cultivators they received each year, how could they place so much effort on him?

Just what was their end goal?

Qin Yu’s complexion darkened as he thought of the young man who had suddenly appeared afterwards. Although this person had a warm and gentle personality, one that was extremely affable and even somewhat intimate, Qin Yu inexplicably felt a sense of fear and apprehension. In particular, that young man’s eyes seemed to have some strange strength that peered into the depths of his soul.

Who was that person?

Qin Yu looked up, staring at the city in the distance. Then he turned and walked away, vanishing after a few breaths of time.

…

In front of a black cabin, a young man held his hands against his back. There was a light happy smile on his lips; it was clear he was in a very good mood.

A figure swathed in black, revealing only its eyes, quietly drilled out from a shadow in the corner. “Master, as you expected, he has already left.”

The young man smiled. “My appearance has made him uneasy. With his cautious personality, it's normal for him to leave. But as long as he wants to break through to Nascent Soul, he will certainly come back. Ghost, the perfect body that I have waited so many years for is soon going to appear. I am truly happy.”

Without any warning, a wrinkle climbed up his handsome face. Then, the number of wrinkles quickly increased, age spots appeared, and his hair turned a dead flowery gray.

It was like the flow of time had rapidly accelerated. In just a few breaths of time, a hundred years, a thousand years had passed.

“Master!”

“I’m fine.” He waved his hand, his voice light. “Ghost, continue according to plan. This time, I plan on a true rebirth…and no one can stop me!”

…

Qin Yu hesitated for a long time. His intuition told him that Heavenseek Pavilion was harboring evil intentions towards him. But, if he ignored them then there would be no way for him to find the method of reaching Nascent Soul.

This left him in a dilemma.

But after wasting some time thinking over this matter, Qin Yu pushed these thoughts to the side. No matter what, he still had a year, so perhaps he would be able to find a solution by then.

Then what should he do during this year?

Qin Yu’s cultivation had fallen into a total bottleneck. After failing ten breakthroughs, the magic power within his body had achieved the limits of purity. Even with his potent Demon Body, there would be major issues if he continued to try breaking through.

In the past when he tried breaking into Golden Core, he had nearly died on the scene. It was only You Qi’s appearance that had saved his life. Qin Yu didn’t believe he would experience the same good luck; he had to pause his cultivation. The most he could do was swallow pills to strengthen his soul and body. But, doing this for an entire year was undoubtedly a waste of time.

Perhaps it was time to find a solution and resolve the hidden danger of the little blue lamp being extinguished.

Qin Yu thought deeply about this for a long time and then came to a decision.

…

Several days later, facing the boundless sea, Qin Yu sighed with emotion. He never thought that after leaving for just four years, he would step back in. But just like Jiang Li said, the land wasn’t suitable for him to keep making an uproar. In the end, the fewer people knew about the little blue lamp’s secret, the better. The sea region was the best choice.

With the pure number of powerhouses in the sea region, there were bound to be numerous seafolk stuck at the Golden Core realm. Perhaps it wouldn’t be too long before the little blue lamp could eat whatever it wanted.

Shua –

There was a flash of light. Qin Yu’s figure exploded forwards as he soared deep into the sea region.

…

In its depths, there was a mountain range that rose up from the sea floor. It possessed a grand and astonishing aura, and what was most surprising was that atop this seabed mountain range, there was actually a giant moon that hung above it. According to the passing of time, this moon would wax and wane, but regardless of what size or shape it was, the bright moonlight constantly sprinkled down, covering this giant mountain tribe.

If one came closer and carefully looked, they would discover that this full was carved and polished from a giant boulder. It seemed to be one with the mountain, as if it had grown from it.

This land was the land of Moon Praying Shrine, the tribe with the most ancient inheritance in the sea region, the most formidable strength, and with power that could even contend with the capital city! The tribe was built into the side of the mountain, which was dense and thick, almost impossible to see the end of. Compared to the capital city, it was actually much larger.

With this mountain as the center, the surrounding half million miles of the sea region were all within Moon Praying Shrine’s sphere of influence; here, they were the supreme rulers.

Countless caravans came here each year, bringing treasures from all over the sea region to trade with this formidable tribe. At the same time, special products were purchased here and transported to other places in the sea region.

Ever since the Lord Priest took control and opened up passages of free trade, even assigning wolf riders to guard the main trading routes, Moon Praying Shrine had clearly become livelier and more prosperous. All of the seafolk here looked towards the Lord Priest’s kindness with gratitude and took him as their life’s teacher.

So each time the Lord Priest went on a trip, the seafolk he passed would all kneel in reverence on the ground. They would lower their heads and kiss the very ground he walked over.

Under the bright and regal robes of his station, the Lord Priest smiled warmly, often gently smiling to his followers and reaching out to stroke their heads. And any seafolk that could obtain the caress of the Lord Priest would become the target of envy for those watching. According to custom, that person could not comb their hair or wash their face for the next three years, lest they destroy the blessings granted by the Lord Priest.

After reaching out to gently stroke the cheek of a baby, he said in a low voice, “May the sea spirit be with you.” The Lord Priest had performed this countless times before, so it was natural for him to maintain a scared and solemn expression. As the woman carrying the baby nearly choked with excitement, the Lord Priest continued forwards. But at this time, he suddenly stopped and looked towards the crowd.

With some strange and inexplicable strength, the seafolk automatically parted to the sides, revealing the edges of the long street and a black-robed figure that stood there. He should be someone who arrived with a caravan. But even though his face was covered in shadows, one could see that there was no awe or reverence in his gaze.

This caused the seafolk to be angry!

To keep one’s appearance hidden while in the presence of the Lord Priest was in itself a great disrespect. But to even be rude enough to stare him in the eyes, this was something worthy of death!

The caravan master had an ugly complexion. Just as he wanted to curse at this mysterious person out loud, the Lord Priest suddenly spoke up, “Visitor from a far off land, I can see that you are a caretaker of the sea spirit. I wonder whether or not you are willing to return to Sea God Palace with me?”

The black-robed figure smiled. He bowed slightly, “It would be my honor.”

Like this, envy filled the eyes of all the seafolk.

Caretaker of the sea spirit…they had never heard of this title before. But, it seemed to possess an incredible momentum, one that was rich and burning.

The other caravan members were all stunned. They thought about this young boy who had just joined them a few days ago. He was clearly some common scrubby boy, so when did he become the caretaker of the sea spirit?

And, did they offend him somehow before this? Should they leave Moon Praying Shrine ahead of time?

As they were lost in their thoughts, the Lord Priest expressed his apologies to his followers. He ended that day’s walk early, and brought the mysterious sea spirit caretaker with him as they vanished into the end of the street.

Sea God Palace was luxurious and dignified. Since it was considered the direct reflection of Moon Praying Shrine, it was enormous in scale, so large that it could even compare with the royal palace in the capital city. It occupied the largest and highest mountain peak in the mountain range, and overlooked the sprawling tribal lands below.

The Lord Priest waved his hand, ordering his followers to leave. He smiled, “It is truly a happy surprise that little friend has come to my Moon Praying Shrine. Could it be that you have thought things through?”

The man in the black robes pulled down the hood to reveal a smiling face. Although he couldn’t be considered handsome, every line of his face was filled with firm resolve. “Lord Priest, the reason this junior came today is that I wish to make a transaction with you.”

The so-called sea spirit caretaker was the aura of the flower gifted to him by the Saint Flower. He had released it from his body deliberately, allowing the Lord Priest to recognize him.

The Lord Priest’s eyes flashed. “For little friend to brave the dangers and return to the sea region once more, it seems that this transaction isn’t simple.”

“Of course.” Qin Yu faintly smiled. “Lord Priest, do you want Moon Praying Shrine to become even more formidable?”

An hour later, the Lord Priest raced out of Sea God Palace as if he were being chased by the wind. Countless priests watched with wide eyes, even suspecting that they were seeing things.

That sacred, noble, and regal Lord Priest, how could it seem like he was drunk? He nearly stumbled to the ground a few times and there was even a bit of drool on the edges of his mouth; just what was going on?

They were mistaken, they were definitely mistaken. This must be an illusion!

On the same day, there were strict orders issued. Concerning this ‘illusion’, no one was to utter a single word about it.

A day later, a secret order of the highest degree was sent out by Sea God Palace. It was delivered to the hands of 10 seafolk. These seafolk were puzzled. They had been requested to keep this strictly secret and not disclose anything about it. Otherwise if they were exposed, they would be subject to the most severe punishment.

When they arrived at Sea God Palace and gathered in an underground hall, the 10 people glanced at each other. They were anxious, but soon straightened their backs.

Moon Praying Shrine was very large, but in a way it was also very small. Everyone here knew each other or had heard the others’ names before. They soon found a common ground they shared.

First, they were all at the peak Golden Core realm and hadn’t made much progress in these past years. Second, they had all gone through tests to ensure their loyalty to the tribe.

There was no need to speak of anything else.

The tribe was certainly sending them on some secret mission. Was it to assassinate an important figure in the capital city?

The emotions of the 10 seafolk surged. Although they knew they were destined to die, and perhaps die without any reputation or fame, they were still willing to do so, without any hesitation at all.

Everything was for Moon Praying Shrine!

So when the Lord Priest arrived, what greeted him were fearless eyes that blazed with passion.

Many of them were in a heroic stance, as if wanting to tell the Lord Priest that they were willing to splash their blood on the ground if necessary!

The Lord Priest was a shrewd and astute person. He looked around and could clearly see what these people were thinking. He earnestly said, “Everyone, the reason I gathered you all here today is because I have an important mission to pass to you. The success or failure of this mission concerns the prosperity or decline of the next thousand years of my Moon Praying Shrine. So, I hope that you can confront this matter with all your hearts!”

“We will not disappoint Lord Priest!”

But what followed that was far simpler. There wasn’t much nonsense spoken. Everyone obediently listened; none of them asking a single question.

The Lord Priest stroked his beard and smiled, pleased by his own quick wit.