sinovels Chapter 32 Bad News
Chapter 32 Bad News
Inside the secluded room.
With a thought, Fang Qing transformed all of his Black Water magic power, which was at the initial stage of Qi Refining Level 7, into [Ji Water] magic power.
Glug glug!
A clear spring gurgles, and a gentle breeze blows.
Ripples subtly surrounded him, and a flash of dark light appeared in his eyes: "Six levels of Qi cultivation, as expected, I haven't broken through the seventh level bottleneck..."
Fang Qing was not surprised, because in terms of magical power, the "Guan Heiling Jing" was superior to the "Shui Jing Zhu".
He transformed again and found that his black water magic had become much more concentrated and refined.
"Once you reach a certain level, your magical power can be cultivated quickly, and refining it once is actually a good thing."
Fang Qing nodded in satisfaction and took out the "Five Dragons Elixir Classic".
After studying it for a while, he felt that the alchemical text was not very well written and had many omissions.
"Now, I can refine first-grade high-quality pills in at most two or three attempts before I can definitely get the hang of it..."
"What incredible talent for alchemy! If I were willing to put in the effort, I imagine drawing talismans and forging weapons wouldn't be much of a problem... No wonder most Foundation Establishment cultivators, if they put in the effort to study, can acquire a second-tier skill..."
He threw away the "Five Dragons Elixir Classic" and took out the "Viewing the Black Tomb Book" to study.
"I see a spring in Heiling, where the Ji River flows gently..."
"This book... possesses the essence of Taoism..."
After a long while, Fang Qing exhaled a long breath, swallowed a fasting pill, meditated to regulate his breathing, and then tried the "Horse-Headed Vajra Protector Divine Skill".
This time, the moment his consciousness stirred, the visualized Hayagriva seemed to come alive, and the vajra held in its ferocious hand suddenly became solid.
"Um?"
"By combining divine sense with visualization, it seems possible to condense the Vajra Pestle for subduing demons, transforming it into a secret technique... Is this... a secret method of divine sense attack?"
Fang Qing was overjoyed: "Indeed, there are many secrets within this technique."
After studying the cultivation method for a while, he began to read other miscellaneous books, among which the most important was the "Plum Blossom Divination".
"Among the various cultivation arts passed down on Jade Island, there is no divination-related one... It seems that the Qi Refining Path does not have this kind of inheritance? There is only astrology and physiognomy, which seem to be somewhat related..."
He studied the Plum Blossom Divination and gradually gained insights: "This Plum Blossom Divination is indeed closely related to the art of numerology, including the Eight Trigrams and the hexagrams of the Six Lines..."
……
a few days later.
At sunrise.
Fang Qing exhaled a wisp of purple aura towards the rising sun.
As he activated the Qi Gathering Technique, the last wisp of Great Sun Purple Qi took shape and was guided into a jade bottle.
Inside the jade bottle, a complete [Great Sun Purple Qi] was clearly displayed.
"Ninth-grade superior quality, Eastern Jade Purity... It's done!"
"It's a pity... I still haven't been able to find the Great Sun Technique..."
Fang Qing sighed softly. He had spent several years working hard to obtain this "Great Sun Purple Qi".
Although it is only a short meditation session at sunrise each day, it still requires unwavering patience.
"This spiritual resource... I wonder what kind of upheaval it will cause in the ancient Shu region?"
With something on his mind, Fang Qing immediately cast a divination using the Plum Blossom Divination method, which he had just begun learning.
Naturally, nothing can be calculated.
"This... is not because my cultivation is shallow, but because the heavenly secrets are wrong... So-called divination and prediction are actually 'asking the heavenly secrets,' which only heaven and earth know. But I am calculating the 'heaven' of another world, which is equivalent to not existing in the heavenly secrets of this world, so naturally there are no divination results..."
"However, even in ancient Shu, I probably couldn't calculate such a vast causal relationship. My cultivation level is too low..."
Fang Qing thought for a moment, put away the jade bottle containing the Great Sun Purple Qi, and then calculated his own fortune.
"A bit unlucky?... Am I going to have some bad luck coming up?"
Looking at the divination result, Fang Qing frowned: "What kind of bad luck could there be in the sect? This Plum Blossom Divination is also just so-so. It only gives a divination result, and you still have to interpret it yourself... The interpretation I can make is very vague."
At present, I am just starting out with Plum Blossom Divination. Not only are many things involving profound cause and effect difficult to predict, but the results that can be obtained are also very few, with only a handful of hexagrams such as major misfortune, minor misfortune, neutral, minor good fortune, and major good fortune.
On a whim, he went to Wanbao Island.
"Um?"
As soon as Fang Qing entered the General Affairs Hall, he sensed something was wrong.
Teams of law enforcement cultivators stood guard at various locations, their expressions solemn and dignified, a stark contrast to their usual lazy demeanor.
"Junior brother, what happened?"
He casually grabbed a disciple at the fourth or fifth level of Qi Refining and asked him a question.
The disciple, initially annoyed, immediately became wary upon sensing the concealed sixth-level Qi Refining aura emanating from Fang Qing: "Senior Brother Qibing... it's the Zhong family of Taibai Island! They've started a war against our Biyue Sect! It's said they've begun attacking ships in various seas, and our disciples at sea... have suffered heavy casualties!"
"Um?"
Upon hearing this, Fang Qing was suddenly startled.
The Zhong family of Taibai! They are one of the three major Core Formation forces in the Xiaohuanhai cultivation world! Along with Bihaimen and Tianxin Linked Islands, they are famous for their ice-type cultivation techniques.
"No wonder my luck is bad; after all, an individual's fortune is bound to be affected by the overall situation... With two major sects at war, I'm lucky I haven't been conscripted."
Fang Qing sighed inwardly.
Rumble!
Just then, a tremendous tremor shook the earth.
He hurriedly walked out of the General Affairs Hall, steered the Azure Leaf Boat into the air, and saw a beam of light, rippling with blue waves, emanating from the seven islands in the lake, forming a continuous curtain of light, like an inverted giant bowl, protecting the entire Azure Sea Gate.
"Is it the sect's protective formation—the Seven Profound Azure Wave Formation—at full power?"
Beside him, a disciple from the formation island exclaimed in amazement.
"All disciples of the Azure Sea Sect, heed my command! The General Affairs Hall is temporarily closed for mission assignment. Return to your respective caves and prepare to await further orders..."
On Wanbao Island, several streaks of light flew out, the leader being the 'Elder Wanbao,' whose voice was solemn.
"Elder... my brother hasn't returned yet."
"Elder Qi, my family is still outside..."
The disciples were in complete chaos.
"Alright! The sect has opened the port, allowing disciples outside the great formation to enter, but they still need to undergo one more check!"
Several law enforcement officers flew out and began to explain.
Upon hearing this, a large number of streams of light immediately flew towards the passage of the great formation.
When Fang Qing arrived at the dock, he saw flying boats descending from the sky as if fleeing from disaster and coming to anchor in the port.
However, at this moment, the dock and the sect were still separated by a light barrier. The law enforcement disciples had cold expressions and used magic tools to check the disciples' tokens, for fear that spies might infiltrate.
The later the airships appeared, the more dilapidated they looked, clearly indicating that they had been through a major battle.
Some of the Bihai Sect disciples who came down breathed a sigh of relief, while others had solemn expressions, and still others had tears in their eyes, their faces showing signs of relief after surviving a calamity...
"Is...we really going to fight?"
Fang Qing let out a long breath and suddenly thought of Cha Zhu and the others who had gone to sea.
"If it were me, even without any special abilities, I would definitely run straight to the deep sea, find an island, and stay there for a year or two to see how things develop..."
As he was pondering his next move, he saw a three-toothed sea ship descend from the sky.
These ships were primarily built to fight against sea monsters. Their flight function was practically useless, and they consumed a lot of spirit stones, so they were rarely used.
The reason for activating it at this time was, of course, to escape.
The deck was stained with blood, clearly indicating that a fierce battle had just taken place.
After the three-toothed ship was moored, several cultivators immediately flew down.
Fang Qing looked closely and saw only Hua Lian and a few other disciples, including Li Yusu.
Huo Tianhuo, Ming Lingzhen, and even Cha Zhu... were nowhere to be found.
"No way?"
A thought struck him, and he cast a divination for Cha Zhu.
"A terrible omen, the master has passed away... Is this... death?"
Fang Qing fell silent, as if he had returned to many years ago and saw that little girl in a red coat holding a large blue and white porcelain bowl.
"Cultivating immortality... is truly lonely."
He looked somber and waited a moment before seeing Li Yusu.
Li Yusu was covered in blood and had lost her right hand. When she saw Fang Qing, she looked miserable.
"How are Cha Zhu, and Ming Shixiong and the others?"
Even though she already knew the answer, Fang Qing still asked.
"They're all dead... dead."
Li Yusu's voice was hoarse: "The Zhong family of Taibai! It was the Zhong family of Taibai who did it! Waaah... Senior Sister Cha..."
Fang Qing bit her lip and then saw Hua Lian next to her, who had just finished her check-up.
Hua Lian's face was pale, indicating that he had overexerted his magical power, affecting the source of his magical power.
When he saw Fang Qing, he gave a bitter smile: "It's over...it's all over."
Fang Qing glanced at it and asked, "Where is Junior Sister Yu Taohua?"
"To cover my escape, she was struck by an enemy's ice spike attack and died instantly..."
Hua Lian's voice was low and deep.
My condolences...
Fang Qing offered a few words of comfort and then took his leave.
Now that he knows what happened to Hua Lian and the others, he should go find Xu Wusu and the others from the Five Dragons Society to discuss the next steps.
However, after saying goodbye and leaving, he felt as if a heavy stone was pressing on his heart, which he found difficult to shake off.
"Hua Lian... and Li Yusu, too?"
Fang Qing was not one to keep things to himself, so he immediately cast a divination for each of them.
"Hua Lian was very mean to me?"
"Li Yusu... Zhongping?"
Why is this happening?
Fang Qing fell into deep thought, a surge of resentment rising within him: "The Plum Blossom Divination method is too low-level, and I've only just begun. I can barely perform divination, and it's difficult to reveal more clues... But it seems that the deaths of Cha Zhu and the others are inextricably linked to Hua Lian? Could it be that this person has been cultivating intelligence all along?"
Considering that Hua Lian's fleet had always achieved great success with few casualties and had a great reputation, Fang Qing suddenly felt that this person possessed the ability to overcome all dangers.
"However... he was outmaneuvered by my divination."
"Should we report him to the sect?"
"But this person has Flying Fish Island backing him; I'm afraid his words are unsubstantiated and might only bring trouble upon himself."
Fang Qing's expression turned somber: "Wait... Could it be that Flying Fish Island was involved in this sudden attack by the Zhong family of Taibai? Has this Foundation Establishment faction, originally belonging to the Azure Sea Sect, defected to the enemy?"