Chapter 489: Chapter 16: Attending the Dao Discussion
With a lingering fear in his heart from Wu Miaozhen’s earlier anomaly, Li Ji’an forced himself to show the kind of excitement and caution that an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator should have upon receiving one hundred and fifty thousand Spirit Stones, but he quickly lost interest in continuing.
Fortunately, Wu Yishan was only there to meet him briefly, and afterwards he arranged for someone to take him to an empty Dao Field to rest, without mentioning any future arrangements.
As for Wu Yehua, he clearly still had much criticism to face, and he could not spare any attention for Li Ji’an for the time being.
After entering the temporary Dao Field, Li Ji’an did not take any measures, but simply sat cross-legged in meditation, reflecting on his brief interaction with Wu Miaozhen.
"She wants to test my strength!"
"The reason lies with that Earth-level assassin from Yellow Springs Prison."
...
Carefully reviewing all of Wu Miaozhen’s words and actions in that short period, Li Ji’an had a vague suspicion.
What caught his attention was that Earth-level assassin from Yellow Springs Prison.
Moreover, he wanted to know the reason behind that assassin’s failure.
"Did she hire an assassin to commit murder?"
A moment later, Li Ji’an slowly opened his eyes and ruled out the possibility of Wu Miaozhen being harmful to him.
As for the sordid scheming within the Jinhua Commerce Association, he wasn’t surprised in the slightest, nor did he want to waste energy thinking about it.
Whenever there’s a transfer of power, such things are all too common.
As for the strange energy fluctuation just now from Wu Miaozhen, combining with what he knew from the Three Lives Cultivation Realm, he had several guesses. To determine for sure, further probing would be necessary, but since he now knew Wu Miaozhen’s intentions weren’t directed at him, Li Ji’an didn’t wish to create any additional complications.
For now, he just needed to maintain this identity sensibly for six months, and the rest was not his concern.
"I wonder how many of my trump cards she just detected?"
Luckily, he practiced the Divine Soul Secret Technique, and in his Sea of Consciousness, there was an alarm mechanism; no matter how potent that energy might have been, even surpassing Ning Sujin’s Primordial Spirit in strength, it hadn’t been able to penetrate his Sea of Consciousness just then.
At most, it could only detect the true state of his physical body and magical power.
As for the Little Fire Spirit within his dantian, it was inherently destructive to all things, and the divine soul of a human cultivator couldn’t touch it, so there was no cause for concern.
The universe within Gugu’s mouth not only isolated the divine soul but also shielded causality, which was also not a concern.
After pondering for a while, Li Ji’an confirmed there was no adverse impact, and then he gathered his thoughts to stop worrying.
Meanwhile, in the Shuiyun Dao Field of the Jinhua Commerce Association.
Wu Miaozhen sat cross-legged at the deep pool, endless Water Spirit Essence circulating within her body, continuously washing over her Spirit Veins.
In her mouth was a jade-like Water Light Pearl that alternated between dim and glowing; it was the key to controlling the Water Spirit Essence.
"Grandma Shui, can we confirm that it was that chubby cultivator who killed the Earth-level assassin?" Waiting for a full circulation to conclude, Wu Miaozhen asked.
Soon, a gentle yet slightly desolate voice came from the Jade Water Pearl: "Probably not wrong."
"What exactly is his strength?" Wu Miaozhen still felt somewhat surprised.
"Foundation Establishment Peak cultivation, and his magical power is rather strong. Though the cultivation technique he practices is far inferior to the Immortal Scripture I’ve taught to you, in the current cultivation realm, it’s not bad. The most crucial is that his magical power is extremely pure. Given the cultivation technique he practices, it shouldn’t be that pure, indicating there’s some special opportunity.
However, this alone isn’t enough to kill a Fake Pill junior; at most, he can remain undefeated.
His greatest strength lies in his Second Tier Body Cultivation, which surely follows an ancient path seeking the Dao Body, a superior path that today’s surface-level Body Cults cannot compare to.
And this young friend seems to have already comprehended Dao Charm, so he must have studied the ancient Body Cultivation Secret Technique.
With this alone, taking an opponent by surprise, killing a mere Fake Pill isn’t a problem." The usually gentle and desolate voice, this time, actually carried a hint of admiration.
Wu Miaozhen’s expression changed immediately, and she quickly pleaded, "Grandma Shui, my dear grandma, I promise to find a way to help you restore your true form and reconstitute the Artifact Spirit; please don’t leave me."
"Ah!" The gentle and desolate voice sighed softly.
"Miaozhen, your talent is insufficient. Although the Ancient Immortal Scripture has solidified your foundation, without massive resources to supplement, it’s difficult to achieve much. Truly, to help me restore my true form, nothing short of reaching the True Monarch Realm will suffice. The road is long and hard, don’t be stubborn.
I am entrusted by your Great Grandmother to do my utmost to take care of you, so don’t overthink it."
Upon hearing this, a hint of joy flashed across Wu Miaozhen’s face, but in her heart, she vowed to avoid contact with that chubby cultivator as much as possible in the future, lest Grandma Shui be led away, which would be a huge loss.
"Rest assured, Grandma Shui. This time, acting like this wasn’t solely to avenge my mother, but also to frame my second brother. As long as he and that beast both lose power, I can hope to inherit the Commerce Association.
Only in this way can I possibly secure massive resources."
"The method is ultimately somewhat dishonorable." Grandma Shui silently sighed after a moment.
Wu Miaozhen was taken aback, somewhat indignant, "Grandma Shui, you don’t understand how that beast ruined my mother back then, and... if people don’t look out for themselves, heaven and earth will destroy them, and for your sake..."
But this time, before she could finish, the Jade Water Pearl flickered, its light restraining, indicating Grandma Shui had sealed the Artifact Spirit again, plunging into slumber.
Wu Miaozhen stood with her mouth agape in the same place, her expression soon darkening.
After quite a while, she sighed deeply, notifying Yellow Springs Prison through a Secret Talisman to cancel the mission.
Having wasted a hundred thousand Spirit Stones without being able to kill Wu Yehua, she was quite annoyed.
But it had to be this way; otherwise, if Yellow Springs Prison pursued endlessly, it could plunge the Jinhua Commerce Association into disaster, which would be detrimental to her.
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Li Ji’an stayed at the temporary Dao Field of the Jinhua Commerce Association for half a month.
