novelraw Chapter 211
Chapter 211
The Demonic Earth Valley was not close to Jade Spirit City, yet it was considered a second-rate power. Compared to sects like the Ink-Water Sect, which only possessed one or two Core Formation cultivators, it was a tier stronger.
They had five to ten Core Formation cultivators and were now attempting to break through to the Nascent Soul stage. If successful, they could ascend to the ranks of first-rate powers such as the Yin Ghost Palace, which possessed one or two Nascent Soul experts.
Even before the Five Great Demonic Sects, they would receive some degree of respect.
Inside the spatial ring of the Earth Puppet Old Demon, there were indeed many treasures.
“One third-rank earth-element cultivation method, Earth Spirit Vein Subduing Art, fourteen supporting techniques, three secret arts, three artifact-refining methods, and five pill recipes…
“And also—Earth Grievance Puppet Master's Sutra!”
The latter made Wang Yu’s eyes light up. The inheritance of puppet masters was often mixed with artifact refinement techniques, and it was rare to find a text devoted entirely to the path of puppet mastery.
This scripture described in great detail the method of crafting a puppet known as the Earth Grievance Puppet, whose rarity surpassed even that of the Lunar Yin Corpse.
However, after studying it, Wang Yu could not help but reveal a pitying expression.
No wonder the Earth Puppet Old Demon had failed to refine it. Setting aside the numerous rare spiritual materials required, the most basic condition alone demanded the living corpse of a Nascent Soul cultivator.Simply put, it required the body of a Nascent Soul cultivator whose soul had exited. How could a mere Core Formation cultivator ever refine such a thing?
This puppet master inheritance was likely something the old demon had acquired by chance. The Earth Spirit Vein Subduing Art was the core inheritance of the Demonic Earth Valley itself, which Core Formation cultivators qualified to possess.
Unfortunately, he did not obtain any divine abilities.
As for wealth, Wang Yu split it equally with True Personage Qingyang. Altogether, it amounted to about one hundred and twenty thousand spirit stones in value, which was decent.
There were no third-rank magic treasures.
Or rather, the two early third-rank puppets the old demon owned were his magic treasures.
After carefully inventorying everything, Wang Yu stored all items away.
Among them was a core secret art of the Earth Spirit Vein Subduing Art, known as the Vein Binding Method.
Once mastered, it allowed one to draw and anchor spiritual veins or earth veins from thousands of miles away, relocating them at will. For a sect, this was a supreme-grade secret technique.
Wang Yu planned to learn it when he had time. It might prove useful one day. He also needed to master the Purple Dragon Earth Movement Technique from Purple Dragon Mountain soon.
Strictly speaking, there were still many things he needed to perfect.
…
…
A month later.
As the Fragrance Gathering incident subsided, rumors began spreading from Cloud Mist City that Feng Huazi and Daoists Rainflower had been slain. The situation was developing in the worst possible direction.
The Fragrance Gathering became the hottest topic in the region. Little Talisman Lord Luo Chen never appeared again, not even offering an explanation.
The residual spiritual fluctuations from that battle in front of the City Lord’s Mansion still lingered.
That day.
After absorbing a round of midday Sun Essence, Wang Yu’s body trembled slightly. His soul felt a deep warmth, as though a stream of gentle energy was nourishing his very spirit.
“This is…
“My Ancient Soul Art has reached perfection!”
His divine sense had long reached the peak of the Foundation Establishment realm. In recent years, by consuming supreme-grade Soul Essence Pills, he had solidified that foundation further.
Now, as his cultivation art reached completion, his spirit began to nurture a mysterious Ancient Soul. In the future, he would gain strong resistance to all powers that targeted the divine soul.
His divine sense began to advance naturally, stepping into a crucial new realm.
Divine Sense Ascension.
In the Niwan Palace between his brows, a gray mist was suddenly dispersed. Countless threads of divine sense, shimmering with icy blue light, drifted freely within, growing rapidly in strength.
After just three days, the divine light in Wang Yu’s eyes gradually faded, and all disturbances subsided without anyone noticing.
Silently and without fanfare, he had broken through.
Although the harvest was great, it was not as dramatic as the benefits gained from breakthroughs in core cultivation or physical body refinement. This puzzled him slightly.
“My divine sense has reached early third rank. The Soul Essence Pills can push it to the early limit, but after that… I will need a stronger soul-refining art. Perhaps the Ancient Heavenly Soul Sect.”
After obtaining the Prajna Heart Sutra previously, he had contacted Jin Miaoshan, intending to ask Golden Abundance Tower to help locate the ruins of the Ancient Heavenly Soul Sect.
But she had since gone into seclusion and never responded. Perhaps she was being tormented to death by the Asura Killing Intent.
If one path was blocked, he would simply take another.
Now, Wang Yu was preparing to visit the Heaven Trasure Pavilion to commission the search.
Just then, his movement halted.
Although his divine sense breakthrough to third rank did not bring massive immediate benefits, he remembered something: back in the Black Mountain Demonic Lands, when his body refinement reached the second rank, a new Idle Slot had been unlocked.
He focused his mind.
【Idle Slot 6: Empty】
“Hahaha, as expected!”
The five slots were not the limit. The unlocking mechanism had simply changed.
“Each major realm breakthrough unlocks a new slot.”
Then… would that mean the seventh slot at Nascent Soul stage, and the eighth at Spirit Transformation stage? The pace was slow, but acceptable.
Thinking for a moment, he placed the Cold Chi Alchemy Technique into the new slot.
The just-perfected Ancient Soul Art was then replaced with the Yin Nether Demonic Flood Dragon Technique.
He planned to continue searching for the Ancient Heavenly Soul Sect’s inheritance. When he had obtained that legacy in the Withered Leaf Marsh years ago, the jade slip had contained some clues—clues pointing toward the Crimson Kite Demonic Domain.
Perhaps this time, he could let the Jade Spirit City Lord’s Mansion conduct the search instead of relying on the Treasure Heaven Pavilion or Golden Abundance Tower.
The destination indicated was none other than the northern region of Cloud Ridge Prefecture: the Heavenly Demon Bone Forest.
This vast Cloud Ridge mountain range was not only enormous in area but also filled with dense, poisonous miasma.
Rumor had it that within the depths of this place, there were Nascent Soul–level poisonous beasts cultivating in seclusion. Because of them, this immense stretch of forest spanned across Cloud Ridge Prefecture, Secluded Prefecture, and Night Jade Prefecture.
However, Wang Yu, being a disciple of the Blood Reversal Sect, understood the truth better than most.
Normally, the Northern Broken Boundary Mountains and Southern Broken Boundary Mountains, which cut across Taihu Spiritual and Crimson Kite, were the main regions where cultivators hunted demonic beasts.
Among them were several smaller territories such as Black Mountain Demonic Lands and Withered Leaf Marsh, which were all given names by cultivators. Within the domains of major powers, such places were rare.
If there were any, they were often mysterious ancient lands such as Vermilion Bird Divine Mountain, Desolate Ancient Plains, Dead Silent Desert, or Wind Sand Wasteland, all connected to ancient secrets or man-made disasters.
But the Heavenly Demon Bone Forest was different.
Although Wang Yu had never personally asked the Nascent Soul Ancestor, the records and scriptures from the Scripture Hall mentioned that a Spirit Transformation–level poisonous beast resided deep within this place.
That was precisely why the Blood Reversal Sect had never attempted to clear it out completely. Keeping it intact also brought them certain benefits.
For Gu cultivators, this place was considered a sacred treasure ground.
In the future, when seeking the ruins of the Ancient Heavenly Soul Sect, Wang Yu would most likely have to delve deep into the Heavenly Demon Bone Forest.
But that was not an urgent matter. He would think about it again after reaping more benefits as Lord of Jade Spirit City.
As for the Idle Slots, Wang Yu reorganized and arranged them into a more comfortable order.
Now they appeared completely renewed. With six available idle slots, he no longer felt constrained.
Idle Slot 1: Heavenly Cold Yin Blood Art (Perfected)↑
Idle Slot 2: Heavenly Cold Yin Blood Art (Perfected)↑
Idle Slot 3: Yin Nether Demonic Flood Dragon Technique (Perfected)↑
Idle Slot 4: Corpse Demon Secret Technique (Second Rank, Complete)
Idle Slot 5: Cold Chi Alchemy Technique (Second Rank, Complete)
Idle Slot 6: Ice Wheel Art
[Ice Wheel Technique (70/100): Practice 48 times a day, achieve perfection in 3 years.]
After arranging everything neatly, the sixth slot was specifically reserved for various techniques and secret arts such as Earth Spirit Vein Subduing, Purple Dragon Earth Movement Art, Wind Thunder Spirit Mark, and even the Wailing Heart-Slaying Blade.
It was about time to gradually cultivate these to the Perfected Realm.
As for the Lesser Asura Killing Fist, with the assistance of the Killing Intent Stone Slates, it did not progress any slower than a dedicated Idle Slot. Spending more time comprehending it daily would suffice.
After all, it was a divine ability technique. Without sufficient mana, it was difficult to cross realms to use it as before.
Breaking through to the Core Formation Stage was a true transformation, one that also affected the divine abilities themselves.
Using divine arts beyond one’s level could easily injure both the enemy and oneself.
Moreover, this particular art affected one’s mind and willpower. Excessive killing intent could distort one’s personality.
It was best practiced alongside the Prajna Heart Sutra, a design intentionally set by the Asura Sword Master, and certainly not without reason.
However, the Prajna Heart Sutra required three hundred years to complete, which was quite difficult to bear.
Wang Yu stopped thinking about the Idle Slots.
The joy from his divine sense advancement finally lifted him out of the gloom that had lingered over the past month.
Since the Fragrant Gathering had gone awry, his management strategy also needed timely adjustments.
Either he would rebuild it, or he would simply change course entirely.
While overlooking the city and pondering these matters, Xu Ruozhou hurriedly approached and respectfully said,
“City Lord, the president of the Violet Golden Chamber of Commerce wishes to see you.”
“Let him in.”
“Yes, sir.”
The Blood Saber Gang and Cloud Dream Pavilion in the northern district had already been sent to cause trouble in Sanmao City. The Violet Golden Chamber of Commerce was another major subordinate force under him.
They mainly operated through the Yanluo Ghost Market, managing channels, connections, and occasionally smuggling certain prohibited resources into Jade Spirit City.
Soon, the president of the chamber appeared before Wang Yu.
He looked like a middle-aged man, his cultivation at the Foundation Establishment Sixth Layer. Constant dealings with spirit stones naturally made his financial power formidable.
A bit greedy, perhaps, but Wang Yu did not mind as long as he accomplished the assigned tasks properly.
“What is it?”
The man immediately replied,
“My lord, the Yanluo Ghost Market Auction is about to begin. I came to ask if you would like to attend.”
“The Ghost Market Auction? What are the rules?”
Wang Yu became interested.
The origins of the Ghost Market’s goods were mysterious. Most of its spiritual items could not see the light of day. Only the Yanluo Ghost Market, managed by a pair of Nascent Soul cultivator Dao Companions, had managed to operate safely until now.
That said, the treasures found there were truly excellent.
The Void Escape Talisman in Wang Yu’s possession had also been purchased there, though its original owner remained unknown.
His subordinate explained, “The Ghost Market Auction has four tiers. Any Qi Refining–stage shopkeeper can host one. Foundation Establishment auctions require Ghost Market approval.
“From the Core Formation Stage onward, only the Ghost Market itself can organize them, usually held in anonymous format. This time, our Violet Golden Chamber has received an invitation.
“This event will be a Nascent Soul–tier auction, something that happens only once every three hundred years. The two Nascent Soul cultivators, Yanluo and Yanfú, will personally preside over it.”
Upon hearing this, Wang Yu grew even more intrigued.
A fourth-tier auction was exceedingly rare. It was guaranteed to feature at least three to five Nascent Soul–grade spiritual treasures, sometimes even more.
Although their origins were often questionable, making transactions somewhat risky, the prices were generally lower than those at orthodox auctions like Heaven Treasure Pavilion or Golden Abundance Tower.
Whether to broaden his horizons or to acquire a coveted treasure, it was definitely worth attending.
Thinking so, he said,
“I understand. Go prepare. When will it be held?”
“In three months.”
After the man departed, Wang Yu summoned True Personage Qingyang.