Chapter 31: Carrying the Mountain (Please keep reading! Please collect!)

"Poverty is true poverty."

"Looking at the low-grade ling stone and dozens of spirit crystals before him, Yunhe couldn't help but complain."

"Cultivators without storage bags usually don't carry all their belongings with them."

"Just as he used to before having a storage bag, he habitually hid valuables in a secret compartment under the bed planks."

"But this doesn't matter at all."

"This time, his move wasn't just for the few spirit stones on Zou Dacheng's body."

"He took out a net pouch seemingly woven from golden threads."

"Net-bee gold pouch, a mid-grade magical artifact."

"Yunhe tried to infuse spiritual power into it."

"But soon, his spiritual power seemed to encounter some obstruction and was immediately bounced back."

"He furrowed his brow."

"Indeed, an object with an owner, not belonging to Zou Dacheng; from the spiritual power mark, it is at least mid Qi Refining."

"A magical artifact bearing a spiritual power mark is hard to have that mark erased, unless the owner dies or absolute power suppresses and forcibly removes it."

"Besides that, the only way is to slowly wear it down, continually consuming it."

"But fortunately, the owner is only at the Qi Refining stage, their spirit sense cannot be projected outward, and their perception is weak, so slowly wearing it down is fine; I have plenty of time."

"After all, it's a mid-grade magical artifact, worth doing this for."

"Well, sigh, the spirit nourishing pills are finished, and cultivation progress has slowed again."

"Yunhe somewhat misses the days of taking pills and cultivating."

"Without elixirs, the demon beast body's cultivation base lead is almost erased; the slow growth of cultivation feels suffocating."

"But he quickly perked up."

"Cultivation is a matter of perseverance lasting up to a hundred years or more; diligent practice without cease is a required course for every cultivator."

"Soon he entered a meditative state, and his inner spiritual power began to circulate according to the Gold Water Element Classic."

"By the Vastwater Lake, graceful willows droop threads."

"Ripples shimmered, and sparkling water reflections bathed in the warm sun."

"Plop—"

"A Ni Qiu quietly poked its head out of the water, and soon after, a black fish's head, several times larger, followed."

"However, their movements were extremely cautious, as if afraid that any disturbance might affect someone."

"The two fish quietly gazed at each other, simultaneously seeing curiosity and doubt in each other's eyes."

"Soon they each averted their gaze, looking toward the nearby shore."

"Only see."

"On a large stone on the shore stood a turtle cloaked in golden sunlight, eyes tightly shut, head slightly raised; with each breath, sunlight fell, as if specks of light adorned it, and wisps of white mist swirled with its respiration."

"Under the Golden Crow, amidst the sparkling light, thin mist wove like delicate gauze. On the lakeshore willow and boulder, the golden turtle faced forward, absorbing essence."

"Black Fish: 'What's the boss up to?'"

"Ni Qiu: 'Plop?'"

"Black Fish:."

"One fish and one Ni Qiu stared at each other, big eyes meeting small, only then realizing they couldn't understand each other's language."

"Just then."

"A white cloud covered the sun, and the golden sunlight and dark shadow created a stark dividing line; the large turtle within it slowly opened its eyes."

"A gleam flashed in the eyes straddling yin and yang, and the calm depths hinted at a sense of true Dao law."

"The Ni Qiu and Black Fish, upon meeting those eyes, instinctively shrank their bodies."

"Actively absorbing heaven and earth spiritual energy, drawing in the essence of sun and moon, isn't greatly beneficial for cultivation; it would be nice if there were a compatible cultivation method."

"Such thoughts had already appeared in Yunhe's mind more than once."

"Even cultivators struggle to obtain techniques, let alone this turtle dwelling in a snail's shell."

"'At this moment, demonic power is full, and thoughts are clear.'"

"Yunhe ignored the Ni Qiu and Black Fish in the water, slowly raising his claw."

"'Let's draw a talisman!'"

"At this point, a palm-sized fish scale appeared from somewhere, unknown how."

"After drying and undergoing special polishing, the surface became extremely smooth."

"Swish—"

"The sharp claw tip lightly traced strange patterns on the fish scale."

"Each etched mark that appeared was accompanied by an even infusion of demonic power."

"'Done in one breath, demonic power flowing freely. This talisman, become!'"

"Hum—"

"The faint spiritual light on the fish scale dissipated and hid, ultimately returning to nothing, and Yunhe revealed a satisfied smile."

"Dust Avoidance Talisman, completed."

"However, it is a 'demon-modified version' made from demonic power and scales."

"He lightly tapped his claw, infusing a bit of demonic power."

"The talisman markings on the scale resurfaced, emitting a faint glow."

"As the scales scattered like ash, Yunhe's body, under a gentle touch of a strange power, shed its dust and mud, becoming completely renewed."

"From now on, being a tidy, exquisite little turtle——"

After finishing these, Yunhe then looked toward the Ni Qiu and Black Fish in the water.

Under their gaze, he slowly entered the water.

After diving to the lake bottom, one could see that the underwater ecological environment had undergone considerable change.

Under his directions and arrangements, the Ni Qiu and Black Fish worked together, finally restoring the lake-bottom ecology near Huanhu Dao to about seventy‑percent.

Yunhe leisurely patrolled his territory like a little lord.

The aquatic plants recovered, the scattered schools of fish gradually returned, and the lake bottom once again burst with vigorous vitality.

During this time, Yunhe continually tried to ask the Black Fish some questions.

The frustrating part was that, even if it could speak, and even though the Black Fish's spiritual intellect was higher than that of other demon beasts, their communication remained like talking to a cow's head and a horse's mouth—answering unrelated to the question.

This once made Yunhe quite troubled.

"Indeed, maybe I should just eat it outright?"

He scratched his head, secretly pondering.

"Gurgle!!"

It seemed to sense something; the Black Fish suddenly shuddered, looking at the pondering Yunhe, its mouth opening, closing, opening.

"It feels very sensitive; the more like this, the more I think I should eat it."

Yunhe instantly felt amused.

In his spare time, teasing this fellow also added a bit of color to his dull cultivation life.

The Black Fish swam beside Yunhe in a seemingly appeasing manner, its eyes showing contemplation.

"Gurgle!"

Suddenly, this fellow seemed to have thought of something, becoming excited all at once; after flicking its tail a few times, it nudged Yunhe's turtle back, signaling him to follow.

"Huh?"

Yunhe eyed this fellow suspiciously.

Again?

This situation had happened not just once or twice, but each time they went in high spirits and returned disappointed.

The Black Fish always struggled to understand what he actually wanted.

But this time.

In the territory of the Black Fish beside Huanhu Dao.

Watching the Black Fish leader lead Yunhe and the Ni Qiu inside, the active Black Fish in the area made way, silently observing their entry into the territory, occasionally spitting out a couple of bubbles.

Soon after.

Yunhe saw a place made of piled aquatic plants, barely deserving to be called a 'nest'.

He saw the Black Fish tossing about in it, producing quite a few things.

There were various fish bones of different sizes.

There were also some strangely shaped stones, plus a few wood chips and rubble.

Seeing this, Yunhe's forehead showed black lines.

What all kinds of things are hidden here?

Suddenly.

Yunhe's eyes lit up; he approached the Black Fish, lightly waved his claw, scooped up an irregularly shaped stone emitting a faint spiritual glow, and grasped it in his hand.

"Spirit Stone?"

It was not the kind of Spirit Stone specially treated and uniformly sized in the cultivation world, but a raw Spirit Stone embryo.

I guess this fellow was hiding something after all.

Just as Yunhe was about to ask, he suddenly saw the Black Fish overturn a pile of miscellaneous junk, but a palm‑sized milky‑white bone among them caught his attention.

Or rather, the instant he saw that bone, Yunhe himself was inexplicably stunned.

He almost instinctively seized the bone.

Though called a bone, its texture was extremely heavy; even with Yunhe's current strength, it felt ponderous in his hand.

Its white, crystalline texture also resembled a fine jade; were it not for an obvious bone crack running through the middle, Yunhe would likely have mistaken it for jade and had no doubt.

And at the moment he touched the bone fragment, Yunhe sensed an abnormality in his internal demonic power.

Threads of demonic power flowed along his claw into it.

Moreover, the flow speed of the demonic power kept increasing!

Yunhe's expression changed; he wanted to fling the bone away, but it seemed to cling to his claw as if adhered, impossible to shake off.

Just as he began to feel panicked.

Buzz—

Yunhe only felt his thoughts suddenly plunge into chaos, a dazed haze.

Before his eyes, mist gradually spread; within the fog, the layered peaks of the Group Jade Mountain Peak, under the silver radiance of the Toad Palace's Anhui Moon shining everywhere, where the vaulted clouds mingle with the vast wilderness, a Mount‑bearing Giant Turtle lifted its head, its pieces of jet‑black like true scales inlaid upon it.

"Ao—"

A long howl, like the evening drum and bell, suddenly reverberated.

"Tu Shan."

A phrase rose in Yunhe's heart, his body tensing and trembling slightly; under the gaze of the Black Fish and Ni Qiu, he slowly drifted down to the lake bottom.

He fell into a coma.

This scene startled the Ni Qiu and the Black Fish.

Fortunately, Yunhe had merely fainted; they exchanged a glance, and their expressions simultaneously grew solemn.

Soon, a large school of Black Fish gathered around, tightly and densely packed.

Huh—

Yunhe, sitting on the mat, jerked his head up, eyes wide, breathing ragged, as the image of the mountain‑carrier giant tortoise rearing back and letting out a long howl kept surfacing in his mind, tinged with sorrow and resolve.

"What is this?"

After a long while, this question finally surfaced in Yunhe's mind.

"Is this bone from that giant tortoise?"

He rubbed his temples.

Though he had only looked at a single "painting," it felt as if his head had been stuffed with a lot of things—many unclear, jumbled matters.

But whenever he tried to recall that scene, he found the image remained perfectly clear, showing no sign of fading due to memory inertia.

He pressed his forehead.

"The turtle's body has gone straight into a coma, but with the loach and the black fish around, it shouldn't be a big problem."

He had the feeling he'd discovered something momentous, yet couldn't grasp its true meaning, which left him somewhat uneasy.

"Forget it; once the Demon Beast Body wakes up, we'll naturally be able to investigate."

He rose and went to the window.

On the eastern hilltop, the morning mist was thin and pale.

Buzz—

The Red Pattern Spirit Bee Queen flew over slowly and landed on his shoulder.

Behind it followed another spirit bee, its body similarly reduced in size, its abdomen bearing ten fine red lines.

Seeing it, Yunhe smiled.

"Finally done."

The male bee he had been carefully rearing successfully entered the early first‑stage demon‑beast level!

"Huh—"

Yunhe stretched out lazily.

"We can mate now!"

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(End of chapter)