Chapter 51
Chapter 51
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 51
Chapter Title: Foundation Establishment
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Chen Jianghe flew above Port One, slowly descending, drawing envious gazes from the crowd of junior Fishery Farmers.
This time, he hadn't come by boat. A mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator could already fly by manipulating their qi.
Besides, his purpose this time wasn't to buy daily necessities but to purchase talisman-crafting materials. There was no need to bring a boat.
Flying by qi was much faster than rowing.
"Brother Chen."
Wang Kui, who was searching for targets at the port, spotted Chen Jianghe and greeted him with a smile. However, his current appearance had fully entered middle to old age.
"Brother Wang, teaching people again?"
"Haha, life forces my hand. This is the only skill I have," Wang Kui laughed heartily.
Chen Jianghe's tactful words pleased him greatly and eased some of the burden in his heart.
*"That's right. I'm just teaching those newcomers how to conduct themselves, showing them the dangers of the cultivation world. They should be grateful to me; otherwise, they'll suffer a great loss sooner or later."*
Wang Kui thought to himself.
Chen Jianghe didn't know what Wang Kui was thinking. After a brief exchange, he left the port and headed for the market.
He strolled around the market to see if anything had changed and noticed that the old woman at the pill stall wasn't there.
The stall was still there, but the owner had been replaced by a beautiful young woman.
She was likely the old woman's daughter or daughter-in-law.
He didn't linger at the pill stall, heading straight for the talisman material stall he always frequented.
"Thirty sheets of fine yellow paper and two boxes of spirit ink."
"Fellow Daoist, I always see you buying materials, but rarely do I see you selling spirit talismans!"
The middle-aged stall owner remarked casually as he packed the fine yellow paper and spirit ink. His meaning was obvious: he had never seen Chen Jianghe come to his stall to sell talismans.
"Hehe."
Chen Jianghe chuckled lightly without responding. After paying the spirit stones, he took the packaged paper and ink and left.
*"Even now, the Yun Clan is still playing the saint."* The middle-aged stall owner cursed inwardly.
He had clearly guessed that Chen Jianghe went to the Lakeheart Island to sell his spirit talismans.
The Yun Clan's purchase price for spirit talismans was five percent higher than that of itinerant merchants like him. Any Talisman Master who knew this would naturally go to Lakeheart Island.
This meant that these stall owners could only earn a small profit from selling materials.
*"I really can't stay at the Yun Clan's port any longer. Otherwise, I'll starve to death sooner or later."*
—
Chen Jianghe returned to his fishing boat. Just as he was about to cut the fine yellow paper, he heard the duck-like call of the egret outside.
He walked to the bow and removed the message tube.
"A letter from Daniu."
Chen Jianghe opened the letter and glanced through it. The contents were brief but extremely alarming.
There were two pieces of information. The first was that Yun Bufan had emerged from his seclusion in the ancestral hall. The news spreading was that he would attempt to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage at the end of next year.
Yu Daniu told Chen Jianghe to prepare a hiding place.
Because he had received news that when Yun Bufan attempted his breakthrough, Foundation Establishment Ancestors from other powers would come to interfere.
The Yun Clan's Ancestor was holding on to his last breath precisely to protect Yun Bufan during this process.
The second piece of news was about Lan Tianxiang, the remnant of the Lan Clan.
The Yun Clan had received confirmed intelligence that Lan Tianxiang had snatched a low-grade Foundation Establishment Pill outside Qinghe Market City and had successfully reached the Foundation Establishment stage six months ago.
A month ago, Lan Tianxiang had raided the market of the White Clan of Qiyun Mountain, plundering valuables worth no less than three thousand spirit stones.
Yu Daniu urged Chen Jianghe to avoid Port One as much as possible, fearing that Lan Tianxiang might attack it.
He even suggested that Chen Jianghe buy Fasting Pills and offered to provide some spirit stones if he was short.
After reading Yu Daniu's letter, Chen Jianghe couldn't help but frown.
Yun Bufan attempting to reach Foundation Establishment was a certainty. It was better to face it sooner rather than later; it was inevitable.
When that time came, Mirror Moon Lake would likely fall into a brief period of chaos.
However, the chaos would end in one of two ways.
Either Yun Bufan succeeded in his breakthrough, and the Foundation Establishment Ancestors from other powers would offer their congratulations and then withdraw.
Or Yun Bufan failed, and the other Foundation Establishment Ancestors would also withdraw, but they would wait for the Yun Clan's Ancestor to die before carving up the Yun Clan's assets.
Chen Jianghe was already prepared for this. When the time came, he would hide at the bottom of the lake and observe the situation. If Yun Bufan failed, he would leave the Yun Clan's territory early.
If Yun Bufan succeeded, he would continue to stay with the Yun Clan for another ten or twenty years to build up his foundation.
Therefore, while Yun Bufan's breakthrough attempt seemed perilous, the actual risk wasn't that great. The Foundation Establishment Ancestors of other powers were no fools.
The Yun Clan's Ancestor was only nearing the end of his lifespan, he wasn't dead yet. Who would dare be the first to obstruct Yun Bufan's breakthrough at a time like this?
It was highly likely they would break into Lakeheart Island simply to watch Yun Bufan's attempt and see if he could succeed.
If he succeeded, everything would naturally remain peaceful.
If he failed, they would wait until after the Yun Clan's Ancestor died to make their move.
If one of them were to trade their life with a Foundation Establishment Ancestor at the end of his rope, it would be a massive loss.
Even suffering a serious injury was unacceptable. The Foundation Establishment Ancestors of other powers would likely be the first to kick them while they were down.
Anyone could understand the difference between the benefits of carving up one major power and carving up two!
However, Lan Tianxiang's successful breakthrough caught Chen Jianghe somewhat off guard. He had not yet reached a state where he could fast.
He still needed to go to Port One to buy daily necessities.
Just as Yu Daniu had worried in his letter, Lan Tianxiang might attack Port One any day now.
If a Foundation Establishment stage Lan Tianxiang were to attack the port, the Yun Clan could only watch helplessly, completely powerless to respond.
The Yun Clan's Foundation Establishment Ancestor would certainly not intervene; he had to conserve his remaining strength to protect Yun Bufan during his breakthrough.
"That bastard really went to Qinghe Market City to snatch a Foundation Establishment Pill. But wasn't the rumor that he was slapped to death by a Foundation Establishment Ancestor?"
Chen Jianghe couldn't help but recall the gossip he had heard at the market earlier. He had thought it was false, but it turned out to be half-true.
Lan Tianxiang hadn't made his move at the auction but outside the market, and he had successfully stolen that low-grade Foundation Establishment Pill.
The most crucial part was that the bastard had actually succeeded in breaking through to Foundation Establishment using a low-grade pill.
That was simply outrageous.
"The White Clan's Qiyun Market has become Lan Tianxiang's personal bank."
Chen Jianghe calculated the reported sightings of Lan Tianxiang. If they were all his doing, then Lan Tianxiang had already withdrawn resources worth nearly five thousand spirit stones from Qiyun Market.
"They say demonic cultivators advance rapidly and never lack resources. It seems there's a reason for it."
Chen Jianghe sighed in admiration.
"Murder and arson pave the way to riches." Before falling to the demonic path, Lan Tianxiang had worried about spirit stones and his breakthrough.
After becoming a demonic cultivator, he had no more worries.
Now, it was the White Clan of Qiyun Mountain's turn to worry.
After all, the White Clan of Qiyun Mountain had started as rogue cultivators, and their Qiyun Market was open to them as well!
"I need to hurry up and draw talismans, save as many spirit stones as possible, and buy a gourd of Fasting Pills. Next year is bound to be turbulent; I can't go to the port anymore."
There were still over three months until the new year. If he was frugal with his current supplies, he could barely last until New Year's Eve.
By then, he could go to Lakeheart Island to buy a gourd of Fasting Pills, allowing him to stay in his own cultivation waters for a year without going out.