Chapter 21
Chapter 21
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: The Lan Clan's Remnant
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Not long after Chen Jianghe sent his letters, replies arrived.
The replies from Gao Peiyao and Yu Daniu arrived at almost the same time, likely because the egret brought back the responses immediately after delivering his letters.
The egrets had a system for delivering mail: left leg for sending, right leg for returning.
He opened Gao Peiyao's letter first.
"The Crimson Flame Flood Dragon Art and the high-grade magical artifact, the Profound Heaven Dragon Pattern Rope. It really was that great cultivator at the ninth level of Qi Refining from the Lan Clan."
The letter mentioned that the Yun Clan had revealed the artifact used by the attacker, as well as the unique aura of his cultivation technique.
It was rather strange.
The Lan Clan had started as spirit farmers, and they all cultivated wood-element techniques. Only the current patriarch cultivated a fire-element technique.
Rumor had it that when the Lan Clan Patriarch, Lan Tianxiang, was young, he had stumbled into the final meditation ground of a Foundation Establishment Ancestor and obtained this superior fire-element technique, the Crimson Flame Flood Dragon Art.
He also acquired a high-grade magical artifact, the Profound Heaven Dragon Pattern Rope. This was common knowledge among the major Qi Refining families of Mirror Moon Lake.
Therefore, the one who raided the Yun Clan's Port Number Two had to be the Lan Clan's remnant, Lan Tianxiang.
The Profound Heaven Dragon Pattern Rope could be replicated, but the unique aura of the Crimson Flame Flood Dragon Art was difficult to imitate.
"In the eyes of high-level cultivators, human lives are truly as worthless as grass."
The port market was the first to be attacked. The mortals there had no chance to escape; over a thousand people died in the great fire, burned to cinders.
The smell of roasting meat that Chen Jianghe had noticed came from this.
Afterward, Lan Tianxiang attacked the market association, resulting in the deaths of dozens of Fishery Farmers. Additionally, more than ten disciples from the Yun Clan's branch families and three stall owners also perished at his hands.
"Has this guy fallen to the demonic path?"
Chen Jianghe stared at Gao Peiyao's letter, his heart filled with shock and dismay. This fiend was more depraved than any marauding cultivator.
First, he had tricked and slaughtered over a hundred Fishery Farmers, and now he had come to the port to harm the innocent.
How was this different from a demonic cultivator?
"He escaped!"
Chen Jianghe's expression changed as he read the end of the letter.
Because three of the Yun Clan's elders had gone to oversee the Linyun Mine, their home base was left vulnerable, and the Foundation Establishment Ancestor could not intervene.
The two elders at the ninth level of Qi Refining were unable to stop Lan Tianxiang, allowing him to escape once more.
Lan Tianxiang's escape not only posed a hidden threat to the Yun Clan but also put all the Fishery Farmers of Mirror Moon Lake in danger.
Who knew when this depraved monster would attack a port again?
The fiend had clearly abandoned all restraint and given up on reaching Foundation Establishment; otherwise, he wouldn't be slaughtering the innocent so wantonly.
Next, Chen Jianghe opened Yu Daniu's reply.
It was a full two pages long.
The first part was similar to Gao Peiyao's letter, but with more detail.
He had personally seen seven late-stage Qi Refining cultivators fly out from the central island to engage Lan Tianxiang in battle.
Only two of them could face Lan Tianxiang head-on; the others could only look for opportunities to land sneak attacks from the side.
In the end, Lan Tianxiang used some unknown secret art. One of his arms exploded into a mist of blood, and he vanished within it.
"From Daniu's description, it sounds a bit like the blood escape techniques of demonic cultivators from the novels of my past life."
In any case, Lan Tianxiang's escape left him with an unsettling feeling of a crisis looming over his head.
"Hmm? No talent for the Art of Talismans!"
The second page of the letter was filled with a sense of loss and sorrow.
Yu Daniu had received the legacy of the Talisman Dao for first-tier middle-grade talismans and below from Zhou Miaoyun, and he had used the two spirit stones from Gao Peiyao to buy talisman-making materials.
But after more than three months, Yu Daniu hadn't even managed to get started with the Art of Talismans, let alone draw the most basic unranked talisman, the Cleansing Talisman.
This was no longer a matter of having good or bad talent; it meant he had no talent for it at all.
A cultivator with talent in the Art of Talismans, even without a legacy, could get started within three months by relying on their innate ability, drawing some unranked spirit talismans like the Freshwater Talisman, Flame Talisman, or Cleansing Talisman.
With a legacy, if Yu Daniu had decent talent, he should have been able to get started and draw unranked spirit talismans in about ten days.
After practicing for six months to a year, he should have been able to draw common low-grade spirit talismans, such as offensive ones like the Water Arrow Talisman, Fireball Talisman, or Earth Spike Talisman.
Even with poor talent, he should have been able to draw unranked spirit talismans after three months.
From what Yu Daniu wrote in his letter, he had already given up on the Art of Talismans.
And at the very end of the letter, every word expressed disappointment, unwillingness to accept defeat, and a deep sense of inferiority.
He was asking for Chen Jianghe's opinion on whether he should voluntarily leave their alliance.
As for the two spirit stones from Gao Peiyao, Yu Daniu stated clearly in the letter that he would definitely gather the amount in the future to repay her.
Yu Daniu came from a mountain village and was already insecure. He had thought about backing out even when they first formed their mutual aid alliance.
It was Zhou Miaoyun's Talisman Dao that had given him a sliver of confidence.
But now, his lack of talent for the Art of Talismans was like the last straw that broke his spirit.
He was close to Chen Jianghe.
From the very beginning of their three-person agreement, he had the best relationship with Chen Jianghe.
This was because, like him, Chen Jianghe had also been brought here by the Yun Clan and was an orphan.
This gave Yu Daniu's insecure heart something to lean on.
"His spiritual root talent is poor, he has no aptitude for farming, and now his attempt at the Art of Talismans has failed as well. Sigh..."
Chen Jianghe found himself in a difficult position.
He truly didn't want Yu Daniu to leave the alliance. Otherwise, the group would be dominated by women, and he would sooner or later be isolated and pushed out.
But forcing him to stay would only crush Yu Daniu's spirit further.
"If I had enough spirit stones, I could help Daniu buy a Spirit Beast Ring, but..."
Chen Jianghe thought of the dwindling amount of spirit sand in the cloth bag he carried; only thirty grains remained.
"Daniu can't leave the alliance, especially not now."
Mirror Moon Lake was in turmoil. If the great ship that was the Yun Clan were to capsize, Yu Daniu would be heading to his death by leaving the alliance.
Sticking together, they might still have a glimmer of hope.
They had known each other for eight years, and he had a decent impression of Yu Daniu. In this world, he was arguably his only friend.
Chen Jianghe immediately wrote a reply to Yu Daniu, telling him not to rush and to wait another two years, no matter what.
Perhaps something would change in those two years.
Of course, he knew that nothing was likely to change in two years, but for Yu Daniu's safety, this was the only way he could persuade him.
Whether Yu Daniu listened or not, he would have done his part and honored their friendship.
*Gwak, gwak~~*
The duck-like cry of an egret sounded nearby. Chen Jianghe stepped out of the cabin to see one perched on the bow.
"Gwak~"
Its gaze and its cry were both full of disdain.
Chen Jianghe didn't get angry. He took the letter, gave the bird two large green fish that weighed about a pound each, and turned back into the cabin.
It was a reply from Zhou Miaoyun.
In the letter, however, she wrote that she didn't know much about what had happened at the port. Her location in water area 312 was quite far from Port Number Two, so she could only hear some commotion and see a faint glow of fire.
However, Zhou Miaoyun asked Chen Jianghe to meet her at Port Number One in three days, and she mentioned that she had also written to Gao Peiyao and Yu Daniu.
"Meeting ahead of schedule... is it to get news about Port Number Two, or is it about Daniu's lack of talent in the Art of Talismans?"