87: Chapter 88 The Storm of Seclusion

[fish pond LV3]

[Effects: Spiritual fish growth speed increased by 40%, 20% chance of advancement, 4% chance of voluntarily recognizing a master.]

[fish pond Lv 4 Upgrade Requirements: Foundation Establishment Early Stage, Mid-Grade Spirit Stone × 50, Water-Purifying Lotus × 5.]

Looking at the effects of the Rank 3 fish pond, Li Qing was not surprised at all. After all, it was the same pattern when he upgraded the beast enclosure before; once the Rank increased, the effects would double and improve.

After checking the fish pond, Li Qing did not delay and clicked the upgrade option for the Spirit Well on the control panel.

A white light emerged from the mouth of the Spirit Well. After it slowly faded, the Spirit Well successfully upgraded to Rank 3, and the water inside exuded a clear, refreshing Spiritual Qi.

[Spirit Well LV3]

[Effects: Automatically produces ten drops of spirit dew every month.]

[Spirit Well Lv 4 Upgrade Requirements: Foundation Establishment Early Stage, Mid-Grade Spirit Stone × 50, Spirit Nectar × 5.]

Seeing the words "spirit dew," Li Qing finally felt a sense of relief.

The spirit dew he had managed to save up with great difficulty before had all been taken by Luo Bing, leaving him with not a single drop.

Now things were better; the Rank 3 Spirit Well could produce ten drops of spirit dew every month, so he would never have to worry about spirit dew again.

Having upgraded both the fish pond and the Spirit Well, Li Qing felt much more at ease. He walked over to the stone stool in his Immortal Cave, sat down, and began to count his Spirit Stones.

One hundred Mid-Grade Spirit Stones.

Looking at his Low-Grade Spirit Stones, they were piled even higher. Counting the bounty he received today, there were over thirty-two thousand of them.

For someone currently in the Qi Refining Stage, these savings were already quite substantial, making him far wealthier than the average Loose Cultivator.

After counting his Spirit Stones, Li Qing looked at the storage area for spiritual rice in his Immortal Cave; he had stockpiled a full six thousand catties of spiritual rice.

Before, he had thought that if he didn't have enough Spirit Stones, he would sell a portion of his spiritual rice to trade for them. But now, seeing how many Spirit Stones he had on hand, he immediately dismissed the idea of selling spiritual rice.

These Low-Grade Spirit Stones were enough for him to Cultivate peacefully until the Qi Refining Peak, so there was absolutely no need to sell anything off now.

Besides, he was currently in Yingshui City, a complete stranger in a strange land.

Moreover, he had just killed two Disciples from cultivation Families. If he left his Immortal Cave now, he would immediately face their joint pursuit.

Only by staying in this rented Immortal Cave under the protection of the Luoshui Sect would Li Qing be safe.

As for the corpse he had brought into the Immortal Cave, Li Qing also planned to refine it into an Iron Corpse.

And then there was Zhou Yao.

Zhou Yao's condition was stable for now, so there was no need to rush into taking risks.

Furthermore, he knew very well that he was currently just a minor Cultivator in the Qi Refining Stage with meager cultivation and limited abilities. Even if he did meet a Soul Cultivator, with his current strength and resources, he would have nothing to impress them with. Why would they help him?

Not to mention the soul-restoring pill, which was a rare treasure. Even if it did appear in a market or an auction, with his cultivation and assets, he would never be able to compete against those high-level Cultivators or wealthy Sect Disciples.

If he acted impulsively and tried to snatch it, he would only throw his life away for nothing, with absolutely no benefit.

Having thought this through, Li Qing laid out his plan clearly in his mind:

Next, he would enter secluded cultivation. He would ignore everything else and focus entirely on raising his cultivation, charging up from his current Realm all the way to the Qi Refining Peak, then Qi Refining Perfection, and if there was an opportunity, directly attempt to break through to the Foundation Establishment Stage.

Only when his cultivation rose and his strength grew would he have the confidence to seek out Soul Cultivators and the soul-restoring pill, the ability to protect himself, and the capacity to help Zhou Yao. Otherwise, it was all just a pipe dream.

He took out Low-Grade Spirit Stones handful by handful, scattering them evenly around himself in circle after circle until they formed several dense layers. As soon as the Spirit Stones were laid out, wisps of Spiritual Qi drifted out from them, slowly enveloping his body.

Li Qing closed his eyes, cast aside all the random thoughts in his mind, abandoned all distractions, and focused his entire being on Cultivation. He then circulated the Five Elements Art, greedily absorbing the Spiritual Qi from the surrounding Spirit Stones, officially entering a state of secluded Cultivation.

...

The Gao Family estate was located in the eastern district of Yingshui City, with high gray-brick walls and vermilion gates. Standing at the entrance were two guards of the Qi Refining Stage 7, their majestic Aura making it clear at a glance that this was no ordinary household.

The two Loose Cultivators did not dare to barge in. They quickly cupped their hands to the guards at the entrance and said in an urgent tone:

"Brother, please pass word inside. We have news of Young Master Gao Ping's death to report to the Family Head. This is of grave importance and cannot be delayed!"

Upon hearing that it was news of Gao Ping's death, the guard's expression changed drastically. Not daring to delay, he immediately turned and ran into the estate to report.

Before long, a furious roar echoed from within the Gao Family estate, shaking the leaves in the courtyard so hard they rustled and fell.

The Gao Family Head, Gao Tianxiong, who possessed a cultivation of Qi Refining Great Perfection and was only a step away from Foundation Establishment, was discussing matters with the clan elders in the main hall. Upon hearing the guard's report, he slammed his hand on the table and stood up on the spot, his eyes bloodshot and filled with towering rage.

"What did you say? Gao Ping is dead? Killed by a Loose Cultivator?!"

Gao Tianxiong roared, his entire body's Spiritual Qi surging violently, frightening the clan members in the hall into silence.

The messenger Loose Cultivator knelt on the ground, trembling with fear, and quickly recounted everything that had happened in the bamboo forest in detail.

Gao Ping was dead, unexpectedly killed in an instant by an anonymous Loose Cultivator, and he had died such a miserable death. Gao Tianxiong's face was so dark it could drip water, and his voice was bone-chillingly cold, filled with killing intent:

"A mere Qi Refining Level 8 Loose Cultivator dares to kill someone from my Gao Family? He is simply courting death! Pass down my order: immediately mobilize the Family Disciples to search the entire city. I want him found, dead or alive! Anyone who dares offend my Gao Family—I will tear him into ten thousand pieces and scatter his ashes to the wind!"

Gao Tianxiong was utterly beside himself with rage. He smashed his fist against a stone pillar in the hall, causing a crack to instantly spiderweb across it. "To dare kill someone from my Gao Family, I will skin him alive and pull out his tendons to appease my hatred!"

The entire Gao Family instantly fell into a state of fury. All Disciples were mobilized, carrying portraits of Li Qing to search the entire city, and the atmosphere became tense to the extreme.

Almost at the same time, the Loose Cultivator who went to the Sun Family to deliver the news also passed the message along.

The Sun Family's reaction was even more furious than the Gao Family's. Sun Xiang was the biological nephew of the Sun Family Head and was highly favored. Upon learning that Sun Xiang had his throat slit and was killed by a Loose Cultivator without even a corpse left behind, the Sun Family Head flew into a rage on the spot and roared at the Family Disciples:

"Search! Flip Yingshui City upside down if you must, but find that Loose Cultivator! I will kill him with my own hands to avenge my nephew!"

"The people of my Sun Family are not to be killed at whim by some nameless Loose Cultivator! Inform the Gao Family; our two Families will join forces to search together. Anyone who dares to harbor him will be executed without exception! I'd like to see just how much of a storm a mere Loose Cultivator can whip up!"

Within a mere half-hour, the Gao and Sun Families joined forces, dispatching dozens of Qi Refining Stage Disciples to frantically search for Li Qing inside and outside Yingshui City. Wanted posters were plastered all over the city, declaring that anyone who captured Li Qing would be rewarded with a thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones.

The entire Yingshui City was in complete uproar due to the battle in the bamboo forest. Everyone was discussing how that nameless Loose Cultivator, having killed Disciples of the Gao and Sun Families and angered two great cultivation Families, probably wouldn't survive.