Chapter 27: Two Foundation Establishment Cultivators
Chapter 27 Two Foundation Establishment Cultivators
"What! All the cultivators at the family's compound have disappeared?"
An hour later, Lan Chang'an looked at the young girl from the Mu Family who had returned to report, doubting if he had heard correctly.
After confirming it again and again, the young girl's eyes reddened and she was at a loss.
There was not a single cultivator in sight at the family head's residence, only some mortals remained at Feiyue Manor and the surrounding areas.
Lan Chang'an realized that he might have overlooked some important information.
"Could it be that the Mu Family had received news of Liang Shaotian's impending attack, so the cultivators collectively went into hidding?"
After all, at this time, the Mu Family did not have a Foundation Establishment cultivator in their midst, and they were powerless to resist the evil cultivator Liang Shaotian.
After another two hours. As dawn broke, finally some cultivators from the Mu Family came to investigate, acting very cautiously.
"You all... are alright?"
They were so shocked that their jaws almost dropped.
Not long after, the patriarch Mu Maode, Mu Xiuyun, and others successively rushed to the herb garden.
Everyone found it hard to believe. If a few people had been injured or killed, they could understand. Yet, there were no casualties at all in the entire herb garden.
"Liang Shaotian didn't make a move to kill anyone?" Mu Maode suppressed the astonishment in his heart and inquired about the situation.
"When I was patrolling the herb garden, I suddenly sensed a terrifying demonic aura, knowing that I was no match for it I had everyone hide themselves..."
"During the period of unconsciousness, I don't know what happened. After waking up, I discovered that most of the precious spiritual herbs in the herb garden were gone." Lan Chang'an explained the situation, with Li Ergou and the others added on from the sidelines. The entire process was so simple that it was hard to find a flaw.
After listening, Mu Maode praised, "Lan Chang'an, you were indeed very alert and composed in the face of danger." It was he who went against the majority and appointed Lan Chang'an as the guardian of the herb garden. Based on the current situation, this decision was indeed correct.
Mu Maode did not know that this decision had allowed the Mu Family to narrowly avoid a disaster. If it weren't for Lan Chang'an, with the speed of the evil cultivator Liang Shaotian, after plundering the herb garden, he would most likely have killed his way to the Mu Family's location.
Although Mu Xiuyun discovered the traces of the evil cultivator and promptly returned to report it, her return speed could not match that of a Foundation Establishment evil cultivator, and she might have even encountered him.
"I can't believe that the infamous deviant cultivator Liang Shaotian could actually show mercy at times." Mu Xiuyun stood silently for a while before speaking. Her delicate features were haggard, with a hint of bloodshot eyes, and her bright starry eyes occasionally glanced at Lan Chang'an, revealing concern and a lingering sense of fear.
"According to the intelligence, Liang Shaotian generally couldn't be bothered to take action against low-level cultivators who avoided him. Lan Chang'an's impromptu decision was absolutely correct!" Mu Maode once again praised Lan Chang'an's level-headed wit.
"What exactly did Liang Shaotian do?" Lan Chang'an did not ask directly: Why did all the Mu Family cultivators run away?
Mu Maode coughed dryly, appearing slightly awkward.
Mu Xiuyun smiled and began to recount the information about Liang Shaotian's killings and plundering at the Zheng Family.
After listening, Lan Chang'an understood the truth of the matter. In such a situation, if he was at the helm of the Mu Family, he might have made the same choice.
Looking back on this incident. Lan Chang'an, as the person who had frightened Liang Shaotian away, knew that there was still a minor doubt, it being why Liang Shaotian, after "plundering" the herb garden, had not proceeded to the Mu Family's residence.
The Mu Family cultivators had all fled at the time, perhaps thinking that Liang Shaotian had come but found no one there, and dared not linger for long. Or perhaps, for some reason, Liang Shaotian had aborted his plan.
The truth of the matter, only Lan Chang'an and Liang Shaotian truly knew.
...
"This junior's cultivation and experience are lacking. Now that the hostilities at the front-line mining area have ceased, may I request that a late-stage Qi-Refining cultivator from within the clan take over the duty of guarding the herb garden." Taking advantage of the family head's presence, Lan Chang'an brought it up himself. He felt that the feng shui of the herb garden was not good, as it had faced two crises in less than a year.
One was an inside mole, and the other was an evil cultivator.
"Lan Chang'an, you are a blessing to my Mu Family. Even if you don't serve as the Garden Master, you can still assist in guarding it." Mu Maode tried to persuade him.
"Now that the conflict between the two clans has ceased, and the evil cultivator Liang Shaotian is being pursued by the sects, he would not dare linger in the vicinity. You can rest assured..."
Lan Chang'an understood this reasoning but still excused himself.
By staying at the herb garden, he would have to exert effort to some extent. Although it was close to the family's location, the safety was slightly lower.
At the family's compound, he only needed to refine some talismans annually, which was safer and more leisurely.
"Alright, someone will come to take over from you in a couple of days." Mu Maode knew he could not force him.
Now that half of the cultivators from the frontline mining area had withdrawn, there were a lot of wounded to take care of. The Mu Family head left ahead of time.
Leaving Mu Xiuyun to oversee the accounting of the losses in the herb garden and some other follow-up matters.
...
"Lan Chang'an, there are some details that require your verification." Mu Xiuyun's eyes flickered, and she smiled subtly.
Lan Chang'an had originally planned to slack off, but due to the request of the young lady of the Mu Family, he had no choice but to accompany her.
As they walked through the herb garden, Lan Chang'an caught a whiff of a lingering, delicate, and refreshing fragrance, unsure if it came from the gentle and serene young lady or the nearby spiritual flowers and herbs.
"Lan Chang'an, are you really not interested in marrying any of the women from the Mu Family?" Mu Xiuyun moved with graceful steps, her starry eyes slightly lowered, as if she wanted to continue the matchmaking attempt from before.
"Not interested." This time, Lan Chang'an answered with peace of mind. Previously, when he had come to the Mu Family to leech off their cultivation grounds, he lacked a bit of confidence. Now, as a first-rank senior talisman master, he had a cooperative relationship with the Mu Family.
"Why?" Mu Xiuyun unconsciously clutched the folds of her dress, looking at him in bewilderment.
"The cultivation world is ever-changing, and those at the Qi-Refining realm are like cannon fodder. At least reaching the Foundation Establishment Realm provides a basic foundation; otherwise, with an uncertain future, how could one dare to take a wife and have children." Lan Chang'an reiterated the explanation he had given to Li Ergou in the past. Didn't the recent conflict between the two clans prove this very point?
Mu Xiuyun lightly bit her ruby lips, hesitating to speak further. Given Lan Chang'an's age, spiritual roots, and current cultivation level, the hope of reaching the Foundation Establishment Realm was practically non-existent.
Even for Mu Xiuyun, who was around the same age as Lan Chang'an and had recently advanced to the seventh layer of Qi-Refining, reaching the Foundation Establishment realm in the future was still a concern.
Compared to major sects and great families, it was simply too difficult for a small cultivation family to obtain Foundation Establishment Pills!
"By the way, Young Lady, you said earlier that Liang Shaotian was infamous. Do you know why he was being pursued by the sects?" Lan Chang'an changed the subject, breaking the atmosphere between the single man and woman.
"It is said that Liang Shaotian defiled and killed a female disciple of the Xuanyin Pavilion..." Mu Xiuyun's eyes revealed disgust, as she spoke with difficulty.
Lan Chang'an was astonished. He only had a brief encounter with Liang Shaotian, yet he couldn't see this person being capable of committing such a beastly act.
...
Two days later.
The Mu Family brought in a cultivator at the seventh layer of Qi-Refining to take over Lan Chang'an's duties. It was someone he was acquainted with.
"Brother Yunfei, congratulations on advancing to the late stage of Qi-Refining." Lan Chang'an looked at the young man with a missing arm before him, whose once handsome face now bore a dark purple burn scar.
This reminded him of Zheng Wugong who had tried to assassinate the immortal seedlings back then. That person also had a centipede-like scar on his face. Was he also as handsome as Mu Yunfei in his youth?
"Brother Chang'an, I've heard about your meritorious deeds in the herb garden. Recruiting you into the family was the Mu Family's most correct decision." Mu Yunfei's mouth cracked into a smile, the scar on his face slightly distorting, adding a hint of fierceness to his expression compared to before.
Through their conversation, Lan Chang'an learned that after the life-and-death battles on the front lines, Mu Yunfei had awakened his hidden potential and advanced to the seventh layer of Qi-Refining.
There were two common ways to break through a bottleneck. One was through gradual tempering over a long period; the second was to consume breakthrough pills to increase the chances of success.
Mu Yunfei's situation belonged to the less common third kind: awakening his potential in the extremes of life and death, breaking through his shackles. This method of breaking through bottlenecks had harsh conditions and the highest risk. Unexpectedly, the one-armed Mu Yunfei was able to breakthrough using the most difficult method.
Although Lan Chang'an admired him, he still kept a respectful distance from such a breakthrough method. In his view, only the legendary sons and daughters of destiny could repeatedly break through at the brink of life and death, turning calamities into blessings.
In this life, Lan Chang'an aimed to steadily reach the Nascent Soul Realm, living a long life and progressing at a steady pace. He did not wish to attempt such a low-tolerance approach.
...
Bidding farewell to Mu Yunfei, Li Ergou, and the others, Lan Chang'an returned to Feiyue Manor, back to his familiar detached courtyard.
On the third day after Lan Chang'an's return to the family. A sect disciple came to the Mu Family to investigate leads on the evil cultivator Liang Shaotian.
They only went to the herb garden to inquire about the situation. Lan Chang'an, as one of the parties involved, was not summoned. After a simple inquiry, the sect disciple quickly left.
The fewer matters Lan Chang'an was involved in, the better, so he naturally would not step forward.
He secluded himself in cultivation, studying the 'Cloud Sand Body Refinement Manual' that he had obtained from Liang Shaotian.
Body refinement methods were relatively obscure. In his previous life, he had to cultivate, research talismans, and work for the family, so he simply did not have the energy to delve into this field and collect such manuals.
Two months later.
During his secluded cultivation, Lan Chang'an suddenly sensed something and looked toward the direction of Feiyue Lake.
"The Mu Family Ancestor has returned?"
"No! There are actually two Foundation Establishment auras!" Lan Chang'an's heart skipped a beat.
One of the decaying Foundation Establishment auras was indeed the Mu Family Patriarch but the other Foundation Establishment aura was rather unstable, making it easy to sense.
"A newly formed Foundation Establishment cultivator!" Lan Chang'an immediately made this judgment.
As expected, that afternoon, Mu Renlong appeared at Feiyue Manor with the status of a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
The second Foundation Establishment cultivator! The entire Mu Family was in an uproar, celebrating fervently.
Amidst the heated atmosphere, only Lan Chang'an's brow was slightly furrowed, his expression not looking too good.
"Two Foundation Establishment cultivators? It seems the conflict between the families has not yet ended." Because the equilibrium between the two families had been broken!
The very next day.
The Mu Family at Feiyue Lake convened a full clan mobilization meeting, preparing to counterattack the Zheng Family and avenge their previous shame!
(End of chapter)