Chapter 554: Tianxuan transforms, deducing demon cultivation techniques

Spring thunder echoed for an entire night.

Even for cultivators not particularly sensitive to the changing seasons, the moment the spring rain—carrying a hint of chill—began to fall, they understood that spring had arrived.

Indeed, that overbearing Demon Lord Qingyang, as fierce as fire, was leaving; had the spring of the Feiyan Archipelago not finally arrived?

However, despite the agreement to leave after three months, no one had seen the other party depart with any great fanfare.

This left the various great families feeling anxious.

Surely the Demon Lord hadn't gone back on his word!

Every day, Foundation Establishment cultivators craned their necks, gazing toward the center of the archipelago, hoping to see a streak of light fly out.

But they never saw it.

Among these families, only the Cheng family was an exception.

The small manor where the former family head, Cheng Dou, had resided was no longer bustling; only the woman whom outsiders respectfully addressed as Fairy Yaoyue lived within.

Outside the manor, slow footsteps approached, eventually stopping outside a water pavilion.

The owner of the water pavilion seemed to hear the footsteps and let out a soft voice.

"Is that Uncle Ji? Please, come in."

Cheng Ji, with his white hair and aged appearance, slowly pushed open the door, and the back of a woman combing her hair in front of a bronze mirror came into view.

Looking at her, Cheng Ji gave a light cough.

"You should know in your heart why I have come, Xiao Qi. My days are numbered; I feel my end is right before me. The position of the new family head should be taken over by you."

Hearing this, the woman's movements paused.

But she said, "For the head of the Cheng family, let Brother Haichang take it."

"But this..."

"Brother Haichang hasn't gone out to sea much these past few years, and he has been teaching the younger generation in the clan; his prestige is naturally sufficient. As for whether he can manage the family well, there is no need to worry about that. Currently, the Cheng family has neither internal troubles nor external threats; it only needs to be passed down steadily."

Cheng Ji remained unsatisfied; in his view, Cheng Haixin was the most suitable family head.

Although she was young and a woman, she had a deep relationship with Demon Lord Qingyang. With her as the family head, anyone who encountered her would have to give her some face.

In this way...

Just as he was about to persuade her, his gaze fell upon the woman's head, and he suddenly froze.

Her hair was coiled high, a jade hairpin inserted horizontally, and as the dangling hairpin swayed, it vaguely revealed the light, mature charm of a young woman reflected in the bronze mirror.

The old man couldn't help but be shocked.

"Xiao Qi, you!"

Cheng Haixin looked left and right in the bronze mirror, finally stood up, and looked at the old man.

"From now on, I will guard Yaoyue Island alone, focusing on cultivation, aiming for the Jin Dan Dao. Unless the clan encounters a matter of life and death, I will not come out. Uncle Ji, I have disappointed you."

Having finished, the woman walked past the old man and out of the water pavilion.

The old man gazed at the woman's back, opened his mouth, but finally sighed and said nothing.

Perhaps, this was for the best.

With no internal or external threats to the clan, Cheng Haichang's methods were enough to maintain it.

Outside the clan, Cheng Haixin would strive in her cultivation, serving as a pillar for the future.

If one day she ascended to the Core Formation stage, the Cheng family would be the true number one family of the Feiyan Archipelago.

Under such a blueprint, the so-called trivial matters of the family were no longer that important.

It was just a pity for the child, Xiao Qi.

Amidst the old man's sighs, the woman flew all the way toward Yaoyue Island.

Along the way, gazes were cast upon her, but she seemed unaware.

When she stepped onto the shore of the ten-mile flat lake, she flicked her sleeves.

"Go!"

Instantly, five thick, blue-and-white figures flew out from the spirit beast bag at her waist and dove into the lake.

As soon as they entered the lake, the five figures stretched their bodies, and powerful demonic Qi dissipated.

These were the five Blue-Ringed Giant-Toothed Sea Snakes that Luo Chen had casually subdued years ago, all possessing early second-stage cultivation, especially the largest one, which was at the late second stage!

At this moment, the five snakes entered the lake, swimming around the island.

The woman stepped lightly and drifted onto the island.

The layers of white mist on the island, following her arrival, slowly parted, revealing a secluded path.

The woman walked forward all the way until she reached the outside of the Qingyang Palace, her gaze subconsciously falling on a side hall.

Her spiritual sense spread out, and she only felt that in that side hall, there was a thick and vigorous aura slowly breathing.

As her thoughts moved, that aura instantly responded, emitting a humming sound.

Cheng Haixin revealed a look of satisfaction.

"With this third-stage puppet left behind by my husband, plus the five Blue-Ringed Giant-Toothed Sea Snakes, in this vast Feiyan Archipelago, as long as no true Core Formation cultivator appears, I can suppress everything with a flip of my hand!"

"Moreover, I have the token to control the island's array hub; even if an ordinary Core Formation cultivator comes, I can block them for a moment and escape calmly."

Muttering to herself, she walked into the Qingyang Palace.

Looking at the place where the spiritual energy was most abundant, she shook her head with a hint of regret.

The third-stage spiritual vein was not something she could use right now.

However, before her husband left, he had still arranged a suitable place for her to cultivate.

Walking all the way, Cheng Haixin arrived at a simple cave dwelling.

The rich spiritual energy of heaven and earth made her pores relax, and her whole person was immersed in it.

A second-stage high-grade spiritual energy environment!

It could even be said that as long as she cultivated to the ninth level of Foundation Establishment and used the token left by her husband, she could improve it to a weak third-stage level!

By then, she could cultivate smoothly all the way to the Great Perfection and catch a glimpse of the Core Formation realm.

As for the method of Core Formation?

Cheng Haixin flipped her wrist, and a jade slip appeared in her hand.

Her spiritual sense probed into it, and several large characters appeared in her mind.

"Micro-Dust Origin Art (Simplified)" — Authored by Luo Chen.

"So, my husband's real name is Luo Chen."

Holding the jade slip, the woman pursed her lips, her eyes bright, as if she could see that figure walking calmly on the sea ten thousand miles away.

The spring rain was endless, falling into the sea and creating countless ripples.

A red cloud was flying at a moderate pace on the horizon.

On the red cloud, a man and a woman, one standing and one sitting.

Yet a third voice, somewhat abrupt, entered the man's ears.

"Just a fleeting romance, yet you were willing to give things away, and even troubled this old man to personally take action to refine a third-stage puppet for her."

The man chuckled, "Don't put it so harshly; it was mutual affection, after all."

Inside the Ten Thousand Soul Banner behind him, Han Zhan sneered, "Do you really think this old man doesn't understand love? Within the Luoyun Sect, my bloodline has been passed down for several generations, but it wasn't 'mutual affection' like yours. No proper name, no proper status; neither the words of a matchmaker nor the grand ceremonies of a rite."

Luo Chen's smile faded, and he said sternly, "Regardless of what Cheng Haixin thinks, in my view, it was just each taking what they needed. She used my name to stabilize the family situation and obtain resources for the Dao. And I, in turn, left myself a retreat."

"Are you afraid that this trip will have variables?" Han Zhan was surprised.

Luo Chen shrugged, "Who knows? If this trip doesn't go smoothly, or if I feel that the outside is too chaotic, I might just back out. That Yaoyue Island, no matter what, is a quiet place, and with someone as thoughtful as Cheng Haixin guarding it for me, I won't be homeless."

"Is your home really on Yaoyue Island?" Han Zhan asked.

Luo Chen was silent, the people and events of the Eastern Wasteland flashing through his mind, especially the two figures guarding the Green Mountains every time he set out.

Finally, he lowered his eyelids, his tone low.

"Where my heart is at peace, that is my home."

Inside the Ten Thousand Soul Banner, Han Zhan was stunned.

He savored the deep meaning within.

Finally, he took a deep look at Luo Chen's back.

This was a "selfish" person!

Suddenly.

The red cloud descended, falling toward a piece of land below.

In his line of sight, there were shadows of people, and occasionally a few streaks of light rising and falling.

As the red cloud descended, a streak of light came up to meet them.

"This is White Sand Island, private territory of the White family. Outsiders are forbidden from entering; please retreat quickly!"

On the red cloud, a bitter laugh came.

"Please, fellow Daoist, be accommodating. After a long journey, my spiritual power is insufficient. I heard that White Sand Island has a merchant fleet traveling north and south, and I only ask to travel with the fleet. I am willing to offer a generous fare."

As he spoke, the red cloud's spiritual light flickered, showing signs of instability.

Bai Xiang frowned upon seeing this scene.

He cast a streak of spiritual power, and a clear breeze swept over, helping the red cloud stabilize.

Only then did he see the two figures on it.

A man and a woman; the man was tall with an ordinary appearance, the only special feature being a face as red as a burning charcoal furnace. He thought it must be due to some special cultivation technique. The spiritual power fluctuation of the early Foundation Establishment stage radiated from him, showing signs of instability.

As for the woman, she was beautiful, with a three-point resemblance to the man. Her slightly long phoenix eyes, though closed, held a sharp edge. She sat cross-legged on the cloud, adjusting her breath, and her realm could not be discerned.

"What is your name? Where are you from, and where are you going?"

Luo Chen first thanked him for his action, then said calmly, "I am Luo Hai, from the Luo family of Qiyuan City, traveling after Foundation Establishment. I have just returned from the outer seas and heard that there is a large-scale trading fair in the Cold Light area, so I want to go and travel to broaden my horizons."

Bai Xiang snorted, "A mere early Foundation Establishment cultivator, yet you dare to travel everywhere? Do you think this is still the time of the Yuanmo Sect?"

When the Yuanmo Sect was still around, although the demonic path was rampant, there was still a certain order being maintained.

Now that the Demon Sect has been destroyed, with the so-called battle between righteousness and evil, there is chaos everywhere.

Let alone Foundation Establishment cultivators, even some cautious Core Formation cultivators dare not go out to sea.

He didn't know if this Luo Hai was bold or ignorant.

Bai Xiang's gaze fell on the woman, "And who is she?"

Luo Chen's gaze fell on the woman in front of him, and he smiled, "She is my maid. She was injured recently and is recuperating, so she is not suitable for strenuous activity. It is precisely because of this that I want to borrow your family's merchant fleet to rest while traveling."

As he spoke, he took out five spirit stones from a dusty storage bag and pushed them toward Bai Xiang.

"Sorry for the trouble, please be accommodating, fellow Daoist."

Bai Xiang raised an eyebrow, medium-grade spirit stones!

He was a generous fellow; although it was only worth five hundred low-grade spirit stones, the real value of five medium-grade spirit stones was slightly higher.

As a fare, it was enough.

After thinking for a moment, he beckoned to Luo Chen.

"Follow me!"

Luo Chen thanked him and hurriedly followed behind.

The two streaks of light landed on a pier shortly after.

Bai Xiang turned around, pointed to a pale white ship outside the pier, and said, "You came just in time; we will set off tomorrow morning, and I will lead the team then. You wait here for a while; I will go back to report, and then you can board the ship to rest. By the way, my name is Bai Xiang, an elder of the White family on White Sand Island."

"Sorry for the trouble, fellow Daoist Bai."

Luo Chen smiled and cupped his hands, then watched Bai Xiang leave with large strides.

Watching his retreating back, Han Zhan asked with some confusion, "Why not just take the Feiyan merchant fleet's ship directly to Cold Light? Or, with your strength, forcibly requisition a merchant ship; this mere White family would only have to obey. Why go through all this trouble?"

Luo Chen cast a Sound-Isolating Art and said calmly, "Since Wu Qi was able to pass the invitation to me through the Feiyan Merchant Fleet, he must be paying close attention to the Feiyan Archipelago. If I use this as a pretext to travel, I fear I will fall into their sights before I even reach Lengguang Island. The same applies if I reveal my Jin Dan cultivation and forcibly requisition the Bai family's merchant ships."

Han Zhan was stunned.

He had previously thought that Luo Chen was not very worried about the Demon Luo Flow, but now it seemed that was just an appearance.

In other words, Luo Chen was calm in strategy but quite cautious in details.

Once he arrived there, he would probably find out everything clearly before officially meeting with the people of the Demon Luo Flow!

If the situation didn't look right, he might lean toward other forces, or even become a wandering rogue cultivator; that was not impossible.

"No wonder this child, when he was in the Foundation Establishment stage, could unite several major sects to target the Yan Alliance; not only is his courage extraordinary, but his mind is also so delicate."

While Han Zhan was admiring, Luo Chen added another sentence.

"After Tianxuan takes human form, her demonic aura is not perfectly concealed; she still needs some time to cultivate the Qi-Concealing and Breath-Restraining technique I passed down to her. Although the merchant fleet's large ships travel slowly, while they mask my tracks, they also provide her with just enough time."

Standing on the side with her eyes closed, Tianxuan pursed her lips, "I've caused trouble for Master."

"It's fine, it was my lack of consideration earlier." Luo Chen stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the scenery of this pier.

White Sand Island, although an inconspicuous small island, had a good geographical location.

Connecting Feiyan with several places where human cultivators lived, the pier business here was very prosperous.

And the forces that could control such a hub location were not as weak as they appeared on the surface.

The White family was a great family possessing a False Core cultivator!

While Luo Chen was pretending to observe the surroundings blankly, a spiritual sense swept over them, paused for a moment on Tianxuan, and then slowly retracted.

In a complex of ancient buildings in the center of the island.

An old man slowly opened his eyes.

Opposite him, Bai Xiang asked somewhat nervously, "Ancestor, is there a problem?"

The White family ancestor pondered, "There is no problem; the man named Luo Hai indeed only has an early Foundation Establishment realm, and the woman who hid her aura is only at the Qi Refining stage in my investigation. Once on the merchant ship, as long as you are careful, they won't cause you any trouble."

Bai Xiang breathed a sigh of relief; he was at the middle Foundation Establishment stage and possessed a magic treasure.

Let alone early-stage cultivators, even middle-stage cultivators equivalent to him, he didn't take them seriously.

Now that the ancestor said it was fine, it proved it was really fine.

After all, the ancestor was a powerful existence who had failed Core Formation but preserved his life, and even condensed a False Core.

He could be called invincible below Core Formation!

Unless that man and woman had hidden their realms and were Core Formation cultivators one level higher than the ancestor.

Obviously, this was nonsense; that man looked younger than him, how could he be a Core Formation cultivator.

"However!"

Bai Xiang was stunned, seeing the ancestor bring up the topic, and asked, "What's wrong?"

The White family ancestor said calmly, "The current situation is chaotic, with frequent battles between righteousness and evil internally, and beast attacks on the immortal islands externally. A mere five hundred spirit stones for fare is not worth it. If they want to take the ship for protection, then double it!"

Bai Xiang's expression relaxed, "That's simple, I'll just go and tell them. If they are unwilling, then we won't force it."

Late at night.

In a cabin on the second floor of the merchant ship.

Tianxuan was somewhat puzzled, "Clearly our joining increases their strength and makes the journey safer, how can they collect more fare?"

Luo Chen shook his head, "A little bit of petty profit, don't worry about it; perhaps they have their own considerations!"

At this juncture, he didn't want to cause extra trouble.

Letting Tianxuan sit cross-legged, Luo Chen pressed one hand on her back, his spiritual sense flowing through her meridians and acupoints, while injecting streaks of magic power.

"How is your cultivation of that Qi-concealing spirit technique?"

"I feel it's almost at the small success stage, but to completely conceal the demonic power, it will still take some time."

"No rush, take your time. I happen to be familiarizing myself with your body structure, and then I will deduce a suitable cultivation technique for you."

Luo Chen said, carefully examining the body Tianxuan had derived through the Transformation Pill.

Under his examination, he discovered many places different from the human body structure.

Because of these places, ordinary cultivation techniques were not very compatible.

"Is this an acquired defect caused by using the Transformation Pill to shape the body without the help of the lightning tribulation?"

Luo Chen was thoughtful.

What he was doing now was not only to deduce a new technique for Tianxuan but also to study the utility and taboos of the Transformation Pill through her body, so as to perfect his own alchemy.

This work had been going on for some time.

After a while, Luo Chen withdrew his hand, having gained some insights.

Tianxuan looked at Luo Chen nervously, "Master, is it feasible?"

Luo Chen smiled slightly, "I already have some clues; in a few days, I should be able to research a suitable technique for you."

Hearing this, Tianxuan's spirit was greatly lifted.

"Master is wise!"

Luo Chen's mouth twitched; he inexplicably felt that this normal flattery was a bit strange.

After Tianxuan went out, Han Zhan asked, "Can you really deduce a brand-new technique, kid?"

Luo Chen asked back, "Is this difficult?"

Han Zhan was stunned, "It's not difficult, but you are only at the Core Formation stage; to deduce a technique for cultivators of the same stage from scratch is a bit impressive. Those who can reach this level are undoubtedly top figures in major sects with broad knowledge and talent for techniques."

Luo Chen smiled dumbly.

"Oh, then you are mistaken, old man. I'm just taking a few techniques with common principles and mixing and combining them into one."

"Mixing and combining?" Han Zhan was stunned, "Can that work?"

Luo Chen shrugged, "Let's try!"

Although he said let's try, his eyes held a sense of certainty.

Han Zhan didn't believe it from the bottom of his heart.

He admitted that Luo Chen had some talent in spells, but creating a technique, and one that had to fit a demon cultivator of the same stage, was very difficult.

Even if it wasn't creating from scratch, to draw on the strengths of a hundred schools and master them all was not something an ordinary person could do.

Even he, Han Zhan, had only deduced two sets of techniques suitable for Foundation Establishment and one set suitable for Core Formation in his life after condensing the Nascent Soul.

Luo Chen could do it at the Core Formation stage?

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 555 =====