Chapter 110: Officially Leaving Seclusion
A little over half a day after Huang Changling left, in the dense forest, Huang Tankong finally stopped crouching and flew towards the southern part of the Liang Kingdom.
Murderous intent flickered in Lan Chang'an's eyes.
Huang Tankong not only attacked Mu Renlong but also wanted to stay here and perish together with him?
However, upon rational consideration, Lan Chang'an decided that killing the elderly Huang Tankong was not worth it.
This person had only a few months left to live, while Lan Chang'an had more than four hundred years of life expectancy.
Killing him would be too much effort for too little gain.
The risk, however, was not insignificant.
Huang Tankong was eager for him to appear. As a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, burning his last life force in a desperate fight would be unpredictable and could lead to severe counterattacks.
Lan Chang'an was determined not to let him have his way.
...
Compared to Jin Yun Valley and Feiyue Lake.
Wuqi Mountain was closer to Bamboo Leaf Mountain Market Town.
Seven days later, in the hilly area eight hundred li outside Bamboo Leaf Mountain.
An elderly man with prominent cheekbones, riding a flying boat, appeared despondent and slightly fatigued.
He was none other than Huang Changling, the Foundation Establishment cultivator of the Huang Family, who was about to return to Bamboo Leaf Mountain Market Town.
Huh?
Huang Changling suddenly sensed something.
In the mountain ravine below, a black shadow pounced towards him, seemingly a bird of some kind.
A sweep with his spiritual sense revealed it was a puppet bird. The tearing wind from its claws brought a chill to Huang Changling.
It was clearly a superior first-rank puppet.
"Courting death!"
Huang Changling's face darkened. With a wave of his sleeve, a dark blue ice pillar grew six or seven zhang long in the wind and struck the puppet bird fiercely.
Boom! Crack!
The puppet bird was sent flying dozens of zhang far, its wings and claws breaking, with large patches of frost forming on its surface.
"Who's there...?"
Huang Changling was not foolish and remained wary of the puppet's master.
In the distant mountain ravine, a shadow suddenly appeared.
In the next moment, a roaring sound filled his mind, and his body swayed, nearly falling.
An invisible blade of spiritual sense, carrying eerie shockwaves, caused his soul to tremble with intense pain.
"Not good!"
Huang Changling's face turned pale. Just as he struggled to recover, he instinctively activated a protective barrier of magical power.
Boom!
A blue lightning bolt as thick as an arm descended from the sky, accompanied by branching arcs of electricity, enveloping an area of several zhang.
Huang Changling's protective shield shattered like paper.
The power of this spell was at the level of a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.
"Late-stage Foundation Establishment? No—"
Huang Changling's scalp tingled with fear. He screamed internally:
A dignified late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator actually ambushed and plotted against a mere early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator like himself.
A shrill scream echoed.
Huang Changling's entire body was charred black like coal, surrounded by flames, and with the flying boat, he fell towards the hills below with great force.
"Up!"
The damaged and smoking flying boat was caught steadily by a fair hand before it hit the ground.
"Hmm, completely dead."
A sweep of Lan Chang'an's spiritual sense confirmed that the charred corpse of Huang Changling was unrecognizable, showing no signs of life.
Earlier, he had used a superior second-rank lightning talisman.
The power of this talisman, equivalent to a late-stage Foundation Establishment lightning attack, instantly killed the early-stage Foundation Establishment Huang Changling.
Due to the open terrain and the opponent flying at a high altitude, he couldn't use close combat like last time.
The combination of the puppet and spiritual sense attack ensured absolute certainty.
It was impossible to determine if the opponent had any life-saving or escape methods.
If there was an excellent defensive magical weapon, it might at least struggle and resist; if there was a high-quality escape talisman, there was a slight chance of escape.
Crack!
Huang Changling's storage pouch burst open, scattering a pile of loot.
Fortunately, most of the lightning's power was absorbed by Huang Changling, and the storage pouch's sturdy material and protective enchantment left only a few items damaged.
Lan Chang'an used his magical power to gather the loot.
He also collected Huang Changling's corpse, the damaged flying boat, and the puppet into an empty storage pouch.
Taking away the corpse and stolen goods left no traces.
Earlier, Lan Chang'an had caught the flying boat with his hand to prevent it from crashing to the ground, mainly for this reason.
...
After finishing the cleanup, the entire process took less than ten breaths.
Lan Chang'an retracted all his magical power and, relying solely on his physical strength, moved at a speed comparable to a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
In a moment, his figure merged into the depths of the mountains and disappeared without a trace.
Even if a passing cultivator happened to notice, it wouldn't be a big problem.
Through body refinement techniques and disguises, Lan Chang'an now appeared as a burly man.
Ten li away, a small iron boat carried an old man and a child towards Bamboo Leaf Mountain.
"Grandpa! That lightning seemed like a lightning spell?"
The boy in the Qi-Refining stage squinted, staring at the distant sky where the lightning had just passed.
"Run! That magical fluctuation is likely from a mid to late-stage Foundation Establishment battle!"
The hunchbacked old man in the late stage of Qi-Refining showed a look of fear.
He had once witnessed an early Foundation Establishment spell, but the evidence of the lightning spell just now far surpassed any he'd seen before.
Without thinking, he turned the iron boat around and fled.
"This Bamboo Leaf Mountain Market, I've heard it was chaotic with evil cultivators rampant in the past. Indeed, it's not a place to stay."
The old man's heart was still pounding with fear.
The grandfather and grandson fled in panic, vowing never to visit such a lawless market again.
...
An hour later.
In the deep mountains a thousand li from Bamboo Leaf Mountain.
Lan Chang'an quickly counted the spoils, his powerful spiritual sense scanning for suspicious items.
Among the loot were more than three thousand spirit stones, a supreme-grade defensive magical weapon, and three superior-grade magical weapons.
There were over a dozen second-rank talismans and more than a dozen bottles of second-rank pills. Other items included various magic weapons, spirit wine, tea, spirit fruits, and a heap of material resources.
Among them were two types of breakthrough pills for the mid to late stages of Qi-Refining.
"Huang Changling, as an old Foundation Establishment cultivator long stationed at the market, is indeed wealthier than Young Master Huang."
This harvest exceeded Lan Chang'an's expectations.
"Huh! These materials..."
While sorting through a pile of herbs, Lan Chang'an found them familiar.
Aren't these materials for the Foundation Establishment Pill?
Except for the Xuanling Fruit, the main ingredients were gathered, and most of the auxiliary ingredients were present. The completion rate of the materials was over seventy percent.
"The Huang Family, with the convenience of the market and abundant resources, was also planning for Foundation Establishment Pills."
Lan Chang'an smiled knowingly.
Sixty years ago, there was talk of three Foundation Establishment cultivators in the Maple Leaf Huang Family.
In recent decades, the Huang Family didn't just produce Young Master Huang as a Foundation Establishment cultivator but two others.
Among the original three Foundation Establishment cultivators, one had already died of old age.
This was the advantage of the Huang Family's market, with ample financial resources, even pulling in some branches of the Beast Taming Zhou Family.
...
After killing Huang Changling, Lan Chang'an quickly returned to Wuqi Mountain, as it was relatively close.
Seven days later, at nightfall...
Lan Chang'an sneaked back to Wuqi Mountain.
With his ability to conceal his aura, the other two peak masters couldn't detect him.
He found the tunnel entrance in the hidden area of the vine-covered hillside of Little Turtle Peak and returned to the secret room in the mountaintop cave.
Even if someone found this hidden tunnel, they couldn't reach the mountaintop.
Because there was also Lan Chang'an's protective mountain formation on the mountaintop, with the formation token in hand, he could freely enter and exit. In the cultivation world, any normal formations had isolation effects underground as well.
In his previous life, he had read about such a case in a miscellaneous collection of cultivation stories: how someone managed to burrow through the earth and enter the grounds of a massive sect using the earth burrowing spell.
In the secret room.
Lan Chang'an recalled the operation, checking for any oversights.
This time, he didn't impersonate Liang Shaotian. If Liang Shaotian was blamed twice in a row for killing the Huang Family's Foundation Establishment cultivators, it would be too coincidental.
It would attract a thorough investigation by the sect.
The desired outcome was:
Huang Changling mysteriously disappeared, with the Family only confirming his death through the soul token but unable to find any clues or traces.
Lan Chang'an had again instantly killed and collected all the corpse items.
He had scanned with his spiritual sense during the attack, and there were no nearby cultivators.
"This operation wasn't as perfect as last time. Sigh, mainly because no one took the blame."
"Killing Huang Changling, the Maple Leaf Huang Family might suspect me but it's impossible for them to be certain."
Lan Chang'an was clear on this point.
Huang Tankong and Huang Changling had been watching over him from afar. Huang Yingchun, another Foundation Establishment cultivator of the Huang Family, should have known; perhaps a few key figures within the family may have had some inkling.
Lan Chang'an didn't think there would be any problems.
Firstly, the Huang Family lacked evidence and proof, having only baseless suspicions at most. Over the course of several decades, they had expanded their influence, including opening markets, so naturally they had made many enemies along the way.
Secondly, with the loss of Huang Changling, and Huang Takong nearing the end of his life, the remaining members of the Huang Family were left with only one Foundation Establishment cultivator: a female cultivator.
It would inevitably attract attention when a lone cultivator attempted to control both the spiritual vein of the Huang Family and the Bamboo Leaf Mountain Market Town simultaneously. The Huang Family would face a crisis, leaving them unable to focus on themselves.
Lastly, as a second-rank talisman master, Lan Chang'an's connections were extraordinary, and killing an early Foundation Establishment cultivator who sought his demise did not exceed the bounds of propriety—indeed, it was righteous.
The weak Huang Family could at most harbor suspicions, lacking moral high ground, powerless against him.
"Hehe, even the Huang Family's plans for their Foundation Establishment Pill have become my spoils of war. Not only is the family facing crisis, but it will be difficult for them to produce a new Foundation Establishment cultivator anytime soon," Lan Chang'an chuckled lightly.
That old miscreant Huang Tankong, if he didn't provoke him before the end of his lifespan, Lan Chang'an wouldn't have moved against him. In the past, the Huang Family's enmity toward him stemmed solely from Young Master Huang's personal grudge, with no other conflicts or grievances between them.
The next day, Lan Chang'an formally emerged from seclusion and soaked in a relaxing bath under Guan Qiaozhi's care.
Two days later, he set off for Feiyue Lake.
As for Huang Changling's corpse, it was disposed of outside the mountain as waste material from medicine concocting.
Ten days later.
Approaching Feiyue Lake several hundred li away, Lan Chang'an restrained his presence and descended to the ground, resuming travel on foot.
His spiritual sense surpassed Huang Tankong's, so with proper precautions, he had no need to worry about ambushes.
Passing through a canyon, Lan Chang'an slowed down, because this place lay along the path between Wuqi Mountain and Feiyue Lake, and many cultivators frequented it.
He disguised himself as an ordinary secular martial artist. The aura of the Evergreen Technique concealed his identity well enough that even Fake-Dan Immortals couldn't see through him.
"Eh? Huang Tankong isn't here?"
Lan Chang'an fused his consciousness with the second life soul imprint from the Nine Seal Stele, greatly enhancing his spiritual senses, which were now comparable to that of a cultivator in the early Core Formation Realm at the least.
Because his consciousness needed to merge with the Nine Seal Stele, this enhancement ability could only be used in a non-combat state.
Half a day later, Feiyue Lake came into view.
Lan Chang'an was slightly surprised—Huang Tankong hadn't been lurking near Feiyue Lake to ambush him? On his way here, he'd slowed down when nearing Feiyue Lake, hoping to pinpoint Huang Tankong's hiding spot.
Lan Chang'an didn't necessarily plan on causing trouble for the man; if he could determine where Huang Tankong was holed up, it would give him some peace of mind.
"Perhaps..." Lan Chang'an considered a possibility: Perhaps Huang Tankong had guessed that Lan Chang'an would be cautious and not take the normal route, so he'd chosen to lurk somewhere along an unconventional detour?
Lan Chang'an shook his head internally, unwilling to dwell further on it.
As he neared Feiyue Lake, he transformed back into his original appearance and flew toward the Mu Family's residence.
He sensed the aura of someone at Foundation Establishment.
A middle-aged man with puffy eyes and a slight paunch emerged from Moonheart Island. "Big Brother, you've finally returned."
Li Erqing's eyes were bloodshot, face exhausted. The moment he saw Lan Chang'an, all his fatigue seemed to melt away.
(End of chapter)