Chapter 865

The former Jianchuan Shen family can now be renamed the Tuohe Shen family.

What flows in front of the family is no longer that Jianchuan River, which was once soaring and surging like a sharp sword, but has instead become the Tuohe River, filled with mud and sand, chaotic and turbid all day long.

But all of this was a last resort.

Under the moonlight.

Luo Chen stood by the window, his face full of sighs.

"I never thought that in just three short years, the changes in the outside world would be this great."

The changes in the Eastern Wasteland were something no one had anticipated.

The Mingyuan Holy Land being submerged by the Nether Abyss, with endless ghosts filling it, was already shocking enough.

But the fact that the demon beasts in the Million Mountains returned and launched another attack on the human cultivation world was even more unexpected.

And!

The one leading this battle was none other than the holy land of the Feather Clan, Mount Mount Cangwu!

Led by You Quan, the Vice Hall Master of the Du Zhen Hall, they assembled an elite lineup of three great demon emperors—Niugui, Bizheng, and Juan Kuang—and, bringing a vast number of low-level demon beasts, charged into human territory.

In just a few months, they had once again stationed troops outside the six regions of the Far East.

Compared to the last time, the momentum of this demon clan attack was not as grand as before.

But the human side, after more than a hundred years of bitter fighting, could also be considered to have suffered heavy losses.

Especially since the sky behind them—the Mingyuan Holy Land—had collapsed.

For a time, people could not help but feel panicked.

The only unexpected thing was that the demon clan's attack was not as violent as the last time; they merely stationed troops outside the six regions of the Far East and stood firm.

It looked more like a deterrent than a posture of all-out attack.

"Mount Mount Cangwu taking the initiative to get involved in this matter, could it be related to Xixia Yuanjun Sovereign Qixia?"

Luo Chen pondered the crux of the matter, and combined with the Great War of Mingyuan, he vaguely had a few guesses.

When Xixia Yuanjun Sovereign Qixia left, she was definitely not safe and sound without a scratch.

With three great powers, heavenly tribulations, earthly disasters, and the impact of hundreds of millions of ghosts, even if she were made of iron, she would have to suffer some nicks and bruises.

Especially in many ghost legends, before that woman left, she left with a tribulation cloud over her head.

"So, she let Mount Mount Cangwu lead this battle, and it is very likely to deter human powerhouses, so that no petty people go to Mount Mount Cangwu to disturb her while she undergoes the heavenly tribulation?"

Regarding this guess, Luo Chen was not quite sure.

But the fact that the Ancestor Tianyuan Dao Sect descended upon the Eastern Wasteland, although unexpected, was also within reason!

They had long harbored a great desire for the entire Mountain and Sea Realm.

Sending troops to the North Sea, laying out plans in the West Desert, and sending people to spy on the Southern Border—all their actions manifested that wild posture of wanting to swallow the world like a whale.

Perhaps the Eastern Wasteland cultivators were far away and did not feel it deeply.

But Luo Chen had once stayed in the Central Plains, and he remembered clearly the confidence and arrogance that radiated from the bones of the Ancestor Tianyuan Dao Sect cultivators.

Especially this time, the Eastern Wasteland side really gave them a reason to make trouble.

A Dao Sect delegation, a late-stage Nascent Soul Star Gate Elder, a Great Elder of the Eastern Wasteland Ancestor Tianyuan Merchant Alliance, a family patriarch, plus dozens of low-level disciples, all perished inside the Mingyuan Holy Land.

For such a major event, the Ancestor Tianyuan Dao Sect would certainly want to hold them accountable.

Sending a large number of powerhouses to invade the Eastern Wasteland was only natural.

And the Elder Dongyang Region, adjacent to the coast, became their first bridgehead for landing.

The Elder Dongyang Sect and the Jianchuan Shen family and their ilk were truly unlucky.

The last demon clan attack didn't hurt their vitality at all, but now they had been driven out of their homes.

"Perhaps it's not just an unprovoked disaster?"

Luo Chen recalled the situation Shen Shen Qiuhua had just mentioned.

A Dao Sect great power personally arriving at the Elder Dongyang Sect and forcing the Elder Dongyang Sect's Great Elder to submit—the signal revealed by this matter was not that simple.

Everyone knows that the Elder Dongyang Sect is a vassal of the Mingyuan Sect and their number one "lackey."

Now that Mingyuan has been destroyed and the Elder Dongyang Sect has submitted to the Ancestor Tianyuan Dao Sect, doesn't it mean that the sky over the entire Eastern Wasteland has completely changed?

"Next, I'm afraid it will be another troubled autumn."

Just then, dark clouds covered the bright moon.

Luo Chen felt something in his heart.

"Is Xixia Yuanjun Sovereign Qixia really that weak right now?"

Muttering to himself, Luo Chen's figure transformed, and a spark of fire dissipated into the night sky.

"Big brother, the current weakness of the Eastern Wasteland is something you and I both see."

"Those Nascent Soul sects ahead, having gone through the last great war, have long since suffered heavy losses; relying on them, it is impossible to stop the demon beast tide."

"In this situation, if the Ancestor Tianyuan Dao Sect wants to gain a firm foothold, they must take on this wave of impact."

"And are they willing to sacrifice their own disciples?"

"I don't think so. Nine times out of ten, they will learn from the Mingyuan Sect and drive other cultivators to be the vanguard. We are bound to become cannon fodder."

"Therefore, I have recently been recruiting guest elders on a large scale to strengthen our Shen family's power, so as not to have to let you go into battle personally like last time."

In a quiet secret room, Shen Shen Qiuhua was speaking intensely.

His face was flushed, his emotions were agitated, and his sincere heart for the family was fully displayed.

Shen Shen Qiubai, dressed only in simple, unadorned white clothes, had a calm expression. He said indifferently: "I understand your thoughts, but are those people you recruited reliable?"

Shen Shen Qiuhua was stunned for a moment and subconsciously said: "They should be reliable!"

Shen Shen Qiubai shook his head, "Today, this fellow Daoist Gui Yu Xuan, I cannot see through him."

Shen Shen Qiuhua asked in confusion: "What is there not to see through? His style of doing things, and even his speech and demeanor, are truly the style of a rogue cultivator!"

Shen Shen Qiubai stood up calmly and, under his younger brother's puzzled gaze, walked outside.

"What I mean by not being able to see through him refers to his strength."

"Just as the Ancestor Tianyuan Dao Sect wants us to be cannon fodder because our strength cannot be compared to the Dao Sect, our Shen family recruiting outsiders as guest elders to be cannon fodder also requires absolute suppressive power."

"But that Gui Yu Xuan, the realm he shows on the surface is early-stage Core Formation, but the sense of threat he brings to me is no less than those Nascent Soul old monsters I once saw on Mount Mount Shouyang at Ye Lingtian Pass."

"If you bring in such a top-tier powerhouse, our Shen family will instead be inviting a wolf into the house."

Shen Shen Qiuhua opened his mouth wide, his face full of disbelief.

"Can a rogue cultivator become a Nascent Soul?"

Shen Shen Qiubai did not answer him; he walked to the courtyard where Luo Chen was settled and knocked on the door cautiously.

"Shen family patriarch Shen Shen Qiubai, here to visit a fellow Daoist, I hope to see you."

No response.

Shen Shen Qiubai pushed open the gate.

It was empty, with only the silvery-white moonlight spilled after the dark clouds passed.

Shen Shen Qiuhua's spiritual sense spread out and scanned the area, "Left without saying goodbye?"

His elder brother Shen Shen Qiubai, on the contrary, let out a sigh of relief as if a burden had been lifted.

"It's good that he left, it's good!"

Luo Chen did not go to the Elder Dongyang Region to take a look at the people from the Ancestor Tianyuan Dao Sect.

Even with his escape speed, the two places were very close, but he had no such intention.

According to what he knew, the Ancestor Tianyuan Dao Sect was constantly sending people to cross the ocean and land in the Eastern Wasteland.

This kind of troop-hoarding move had already revealed their intention to take root in the Eastern Wasteland.

That meant that in the future, whether it was with the remnants of Mingyuan or the various local forces of the Eastern Wasteland, or even the covetous demon clan, various frictions and conflicts would arise.

He didn't want to get involved in the affairs between these major forces at all right now.

Being deep in the middle of it, one would always be unable to help oneself.

No matter if you are Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, or Nascent Soul, Soul Transformation, there will always be personal factors or coercion from others that force you to make various decisions against your will.

By comparison, he chose to stay away from the hustle and bustle.

This trip was only for one thing.

To take away the Luo Tian Sect!

There were people he couldn't let go of and things he couldn't cut off there; as his realm grew, it had gradually become his Achilles' heel.

How could a so-called Achilles' heel be exposed to the outside?

Only by hiding it could he act freely.

From the Tuohe River to the Luo Tian Region, it was a million miles away.

To avoid being discovered, Luo Chen chose a shortcut.

Escaping to the nine heavens, entering the blue void.

A dark, dull-colored flying shuttle was like an arrow leaving the string.

Under his full-force activation, it took only a month to reach Ye Lingtian Pass.

It could have been faster; after all, the modified Frost Eagle flying shuttle's speed far exceeded what it was before.

The reason it was delayed for a few days was that the blue void was also full of dangers, and from time to time there would be existences like the glow beast, preventing him from flying at full speed.

But once he reached Ye Lingtian Pass, he was not far from the Luo Tian Region.

Luo Chen did not go back directly, but chose to find a quiet place to land and then head toward Ye Lingtian Pass.

Since he planned to escape the hustle and bustle, it was necessary to do some heavy purchasing beforehand, and by the way, inquire about the situation of the Luo Tian Sect, so as not to plunge headlong into some unknown danger.

Luo Chen, having changed his appearance and aura, revisited his old haunts and entered Ye Lingtian again.

Unlike the war fortress that one would imagine would be desolate and lonely after the human-demon war, this ancient heroic city, after experiencing brilliance, revealed a different kind of splendor.

The thick and tall city walls were gone, and they were not rebuilt after the war.

The mountains and flowing water inside were nakedly exposed to everyone's eyes.

Buildings stood like a forest inside, with pavilions and towers hidden among them.

The wide streets were bustling with traffic, and people were rubbing shoulders as they came and went.

The sounds of hawking, soliciting, and shouting and talking were endless.

Obviously, this war fortress had now successfully transformed into a commercial center connecting the east and west.

Every day, a large amount of resources and treasures gathered here.

Luo Chen paused for a long time, then followed his memory to find a shop set up here by a Nascent Soul sect.

"This fellow Daoist, you look a bit unfamiliar!"

An old man waved away the maid and took the initiative to greet him.

It was only because the magic power fluctuation Luo Chen revealed was at the Core Formation realm, which was not something a mere Qi Refining maid could receive.

Luo Chen's gaze swept over the goods in the shop; those restriction formations were like nothing to him, while he dealt with him casually on the surface.

"Cultivators in Ye Lingtian Pass are like clouds and rain; can you really know everyone, fellow Daoist?"

"I naturally don't have that kind of discernment, but I rarely don't recognize a Core Formation superior."

"Hehe, I just advanced to Core Formation not long ago, so it's normal for you not to recognize me, fellow Daoist."

"So that's how it is. I don't know what you want to buy, fellow Daoist? Resources to consolidate the Core Formation realm? My building is not short of those."

Unexpectedly to the shopkeeper, Luo Chen suddenly used spiritual sense transmission.

"Do you have soul essence?"

The old man was stunned, then said with a complex expression: "That kind of thing is harmful to heaven and reason; we don't have it here."

"You don't have it?" Luo Chen looked at him with a half-smile, then slowly shifted his gaze to the upper floor.

This action made the old man's expression change drastically; in a secret room upstairs, there was indeed a large amount of collected soul essence stored.

"You!"

Luo Chen waved his hand, "Don't be excited, I am mediocre in everything else, only my spiritual sense is a bit strong. I heard that soul essence has great benefits for improving the foundation of the soul, so I want to buy a little to see if I can go a step further."

"Is that so?" The old man was half-believing, his gaze constantly measuring Luo Chen.

But because of Luo Chen's concealment spell, he couldn't see his true realm, and only felt that the other party's magic power fluctuation was indeed ordinary, just a very common early-stage Core Formation cultivator.

He hesitated for a moment and said: "Soul essence, this thing, its value is so great that many people can see it, and many powerhouses are secretly purchasing it. But the specific method of use is mastered by few, so there has never been a specific valuation."

Is it priceless?

Luo Chen pondered, "Then how do you usually trade it?"

"A large amount of high-grade spirit stones, or barter!" The old man said so.

Luo Chen nodded, "Since that's the case, I happen to have a treasure I want to sell; I don't know if you, old man, will like it."

The old man revealed a look of curiosity; what kind of thing could be called a treasure?

"Let's talk in a quiet room!"

Luo Chen's gaze swept over the bustling shop and said calmly.

The old man naturally wouldn't refuse and hurriedly took Luo Chen to a quiet room.

After about half a day, Luo Chen left the shop, his face showing neither satisfaction nor disappointment.

But the old man had a look of joy on his face.

Because their shop would have one more treasure to suppress the shop.

"True treasure!"

He never expected Luo Chen to be so generous as to take out a true treasure for trading.

Although this true treasure was tainted by some unknown power, causing its spirituality to be greatly damaged.

But as long as one is willing to spend time, taking ten or more years to remove the taint bit by bit, one can always make it manifest some of its power again.

The treasure appraiser who had just been invited was playing with the flying sword in confusion at this moment.

"It seems to be the taint of Ming water?"

The old man was stunned, then remembered the matter of the Mingyuan Sect.

"Could it be that the person just now just came back from treasure hunting in the Nether Abyss?"

Just as he thought.

The incomplete true treasure that Luo Chen just sold was indeed picked up by him by chance when he crossed the Nether Abyss.

It was not just one, but many.

It's just that most of them were at the magic treasure level, and there were only two or three incomplete true treasures.

The Black Turtle, seeing that he liked to pick up such things, even deliberately took him to places where similar treasures were.

If Luo Chen hadn't remembered to hurry on his way, he might have harvested more.

Such things were useless to Luo Chen.

Even if he bestowed them to his disciples, because they had been tainted by Ming water, it would take a lot of energy to remove the taint and carefully refine them.

It would be better to sell them and exchange them for what he needed.

"It's just that the amount of soul essence is a bit small, and the trading process is too troublesome."

Luo Chen's heart moved, and he walked toward some remote corners of Ye Lingtian Pass in his memory.

These big shops have too many rules.

They are far less convenient than black market trading.

Although black market trading has other risks, with Luo Chen's strength, they can be completely ignored.

"The method of making soul essence was also spread from these black markets back then; now that I want to harvest the fruits, I should also start from the land where I planted them."

"By the way, they are also better informed, so I can inquire about the situation in the Luo Tian Region."

Just when Luo Chen was mingling in Ye Lingtian Pass, collecting resources, and inquiring about news.

Beside the coast of the Elder Dongyang Region, the Demon-Illuminating Treasure Mirror, which had been hanging high for thousands of years, reflected a scene from afar.

A long, large ship, like a sword-halberd whale, cut through the wind and waves and sped over.

There were many figures on the ship, and flags were fluttering.

When it was about to reach the coast, a young girl at the bow of the ship ran to a palace hanging the name 【Kun Xiao】.

"Senior Sister, the Eastern Wasteland is about to arrive!"

The palace gate opened with a bang, and a beautiful figure walked out slowly from it.

She wore a moon-white cloud-patterned silk dress, with silver threads embroidered with orchid patterns flowing on the sleeves, and she looked like she was carrying smoke and clouds as she walked.

Her black hair was tied into a morning cloud bun, with hairpins inserted diagonally, and her dangling hairpins swayed.

Her temples were adorned with two or three rice-pearl flower ornaments, and light green tender leaves were drawn between her brows, making her skin look even more like snow and frost.

Compared to the noble lady of the past, the current Fu Fu Qinglan had a bit more of an aloof and noble temperament that was unreachable.

She looked at the Eastern Wasteland continent that was close at hand, and then her autumn-water-like eyes looked at the vast sea behind her.

"Shi Ju is probably arriving soon too, but I cannot let him be one step ahead of me."