33: Disasters

“Hmm? Why is it gone?”

Inside the cultivation room, Lu Ming sat cross-legged on a futon, a cold, chilling aura of blood emanating from his body.

But he had barely started to Cultivate when he was startled awake by an anomaly from the golden book.

Looking at the golden book in the Void Realm before him, [Shen Lian] was rapidly dimming until he disappeared.

Lu Ming raised his eyebrows, his expression subtly changing.

Shen Lian was a Late-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivator, no less capable than Yang Hong or Li Yu.

Yet, he had barely started to Cultivate before he was gone.

Even those Early Stage and Middle Stage Qi Refining Cultivators had held on for a long time and were still on the golden book; there was no reason Shen Lian couldn't.

“It definitely has nothing to do with me!”

Lu Ming had a faint suspicion. The Cultivators on the golden book weren't exclusively for him, Lu Ming, to kill.

Cultivator duels were common; 'homebody Cultivators' like him were actually rare.

“Perhaps this Shen Lian was in a duel with someone, and just as I was using him to Cultivate, the severe loss of vital essence and magical power led to a sharp decrease in his combat strength, and he was then killed?”

Lu Ming felt this guess was the most reasonable.

“I told you not to casually fight with others; who knows whether tomorrow or an accident will arrive first.”

Even Shen Lian, a Late-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivator, had perished. Lu Ming sighed with emotion, then grew angry.

“Bold scoundrel, how dare you kill my blood bag!”

This was a Late-Stage Qi Refinement reserve, and now that he was gone, Lu Ming would have to find a new one, which made him a bit depressed.

If he knew who it was, he would definitely seek justice for Fellow Daoist Shen!

However, the only Late-Stage Qi Refinement Cultivators currently on the list were Li Yu and Chang Wei, the former and current leaders of the Talisman Cultivator Alliance.

“Then you two will pay the debt for Fellow Daoist Shen…”

As Lu Ming thought, he selected [Li Yu] and [Chang Wei], then closed his eyes and continued to Cultivate.

Anyway, they were all people who had designs on him; none of them were innocent. Those Early Stage and Middle Stage Qi Refining Cultivators would also die; it was only a matter of time.

...

...

Time quietly slipped away.

Before he knew it, the sun was setting in the west.

Ding Yu was walking towards the residence of Alliance Leader Li Yu.

He was in an extremely bad mood, feeling that everything had been going wrong lately.

First, the strange symptoms that had appeared over the past month had caused his health to deteriorate.

He felt his vital essence was draining, and after much thought, he could only attribute it to excessive indulgence.

Because he had once again become the head steward of the Talisman Cultivator Alliance and held great power again, he had become a bit carried away.

For a long time, he had frequented the Chunxiang Brothel, and his immersion in wine and women made him feel his vital essence was depleted.

Fortunately, he realized it in time. Now that he had abstained, the strange bodily sensations had disappeared.

However, the real reason for his bad mood was a problem with collecting membership fees.

The thought of those people daring to defy him filled him with rage.

Previously, to show off in front of the new Alliance Leader, he had personally led his subordinates to collect the fees.

At first, everything went smoothly; those Loose Cultivator talisman masters obediently paid their fees.

But there were a few troublemakers who refused to cooperate, even if it meant not setting up a stall.

He wanted to use the Talisman Cultivator Alliance's name to intimidate them, but the other party wasn't afraid and even directly stated that he wouldn't dare to act in Green Bamboo Market.

This statement hit the nail on the head; he truly didn't dare to act in the Market.

Even though the Talisman Cultivator Alliance was a major force in Green Bamboo Market, with several Late-Stage Qi Refinement Elders in its ranks, and Alliance Leader Li Yu was an esteemed Cultivator at the Qi Refining Stage Ninth Level.

Compared to the Murong Family, the owners of Green Bamboo Market, they were nothing.

Even a Peak Qi Refinement Cultivator was powerless against a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

Otherwise, why would the major forces in the Market be so obedient, supplying resources to the Murong Family on time every month, and never daring to violate the Murong Family's rules?

Frustrated, he could only utter a few harsh words and leave.

But he never expected that from that day on, even the previously obedient Loose Cultivator talisman masters would follow suit.

Most of them simply stopped setting up stalls, and one by one, they began to conduct private transactions to resist the Talisman Cultivator Alliance.

As a result, the membership fees he had collected over the past month were less than half of what they used to be, which infuriated him.

His position as head steward was already gained through less than honorable means, and there were even negative rumors about him within the Talisman Cultivator Alliance.

This kind of lucrative job also made many members of the Talisman Cultivator Alliance envious, just waiting to see him make a fool of himself.

If Li Yu became dissatisfied because of the membership fees, a single word could remove him from his position.

He didn't want to lose everything he had gained, so he came up with a good idea: he planned to make an example of a few individuals, severely punish them, and achieve a deterrent effect.

Although he dared not act in the Market, these people couldn't possibly stay out of the Market forever, right?

And even if they didn't leave the Market, he could still find people to act on his behalf.

However, he didn't dare to make decisions on his own, so this time he came to advise Li Yu and seek the Alliance Leader's approval.

But when he arrived at Li Yu's residence, Ding Yu was immediately dumbfounded.

He saw that a Formation light screen had risen around Li Yu's residence, blocking him from entering.

This scene seemed familiar to him.

It was like he had just seen it a few months ago.

“This… no way.”

A bad premonition involuntarily arose in Ding Yu's heart.

At this moment, a maid walked out of the courtyard. She first bowed slightly to Ding Yu, then said,

“My master has been unwell recently and is in seclusion to Cultivate. No one is allowed to approach. Steward Ding, please return.”

“Wasn't he fine before? Why did he suddenly go into seclusion? I have an urgent matter to report to the Alliance Leader. Please inform him, young lady.”

Ding Yu said anxiously.

“I apologize, but I have not received my master's order and cannot disturb him.”

Seeing that the maid was unyielding, Ding Yu did not continue to speak.

“I hope the Alliance Leader is alright. I must be overthinking things.”

He was worried. If something happened to Li Yu as well, would he have to seek a new master again?

That was simply impossible!

Li Yu had only recently taken office, and the voice of authority in the alliance was still unified. Even the old factions were gone, so where would he find someone to rely on?

“Why does it feel like the Talisman Cultivator Alliance has been plagued by misfortunes lately?”

The position of Alliance Leader was like a curse; whoever took it would suffer misfortune.

He glanced at the courtyard again, then turned and left.

It seemed he could only act first and report later. As long as he handled the matter well, the Alliance Leader should not blame him too harshly.

...

Two months later.

Inside the cultivation room, surging Spiritual Pressure filled the space.

“Qi Refining Stage Sixth Level, I've finally broken through!”

Lu Ming slowly opened his eyes, feeling the abundant spiritual power within his body. Lu Ming nodded with satisfaction.

For the past month, he had been using Li Yu and Chang Wei to Cultivate. He had initially thought they wouldn't last long, but he hadn't expected them to be so resilient.

“But I guess they're also at their wits' end.”

Lu Ming looked at the two names on the golden book, which had dimmed to almost transparent, smiled, and didn't mind.

Lu Ming stood up and went outside the house.

At this time, outside, the morning light was already faint, and the sky was filled with rosy clouds.

Lu Ming first prepared a spiritual meal for himself and enjoyed a delicious meal.

Now that he no longer lacked Spirit Stones, his quality of life should also improve.

Moreover, for the past few months, he had been diligently Cultivating every day. Although the side effects of cultivation would be transferred out, he inevitably felt bored and irritable.

He decided to go for a walk.