Chapter 994: Mingshui True Essence, Black Dragon Appears

"Senior Sister, I'll trouble you."

Inside the Zhaoxi Palace, Luo Chen solemnly handed a letter to Shi Miaoyin.

Shi Miaoyin took it, "It's no trouble, just a small matter."

To her, this was indeed not a troublesome matter.

Luo Chen's request was merely to have his Senior Sister send a letter to the Zhou family, then bring his younger sister, Zhou Qingyu, to the Tiannan Dao Palace to audit cultivation, and to provide some care for her in daily life.

Yes, the Master had already agreed to Luo Chen's request, allowing his younger sister to join the Houtu Hall.

From now on, the siblings could live together again.

Shi Miaoyin did not care about these small matters, sighed, and said, "Earlier, when Master asked for your opinion, you could have used the excuse that your Core Formation realm was unstable to avoid going to the shores of the East Sea. Why did you agree so readily?"

Luo Chen said calmly, "Since Master asked me, it means she had this idea. How could I disobey? Besides, is my realm truly unstable?"

Shi Miaoyin was speechless.

There was a matter that defied common sense, presented before everyone in the Houtu Hall.

That was that Luo Chen, who had formed his Core at forty, showed no signs of an unstable realm; instead, his magic power was incomparably pure and deep as the sea, as if he had been in seclusion polishing it for over a decade.

This was simply unbelievable.

"Actually, I roughly understand Master's thoughts."

"My cultivation speed is truly too fast, yet my realm is exceptionally stable. Everything seems fine on the surface, but there is one shortcoming."

"I am too young, and my experiences are too few, to the point where my state of mind is lacking."

"Master is afraid that if I continue to forge ahead like this, I might suddenly suffer from qi deviation one day. Once such a thing happens, it will be irreparable. To prevent any accidents, Master wants me to gain more experience. Whether it is to broaden my horizons, temper my state of mind, or accumulate combat experience, it will ultimately be of great benefit to the future."

Luo Chen spoke eloquently, with no dissatisfaction toward Master Qinglan on his face.

Seeing this, Shi Miaoyin stopped trying to dissuade him.

"I will ask your Second Senior Brother and other senior brothers and sisters to take good care of you. You must also be careful yourself."

"Mm, thank you, Senior Sister."

After Shi Miaoyin left, Luo Chen stood at the gate of Zhaoxi Palace, his expression somewhat dazed.

The next time he returned, he might have to change to a different place to cultivate.

That place would be called Zhaoxi Palace according to his habits, but whether it was the grade of the spirit vein or the servants waiting on him, it would far exceed this place. What Luo Chen was thinking was that he hoped to see his little sister when he returned.

"I don't know how long this trip will take. I'd better prepare a little!"

Luo Chen muttered to himself and returned to the cultivation room in his sleeping quarters.

He first performed internal observation

to check his condition.

Just like before!

The dantian was deep, and the Jin Dan floated and sank.

Especially that pure black Jin Dan, containing not a trace of impurity, crystalline and deep like an ox's eye.

The pure magic power contained within it made even Luo Chen gasp in admiration.

When he was in the middle stage of Foundation Establishment, his spiritual power was no less than that of those in the early stage of Core Formation. By the time he reached the Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment, he even felt that ordinary middle-stage Core Formation cultivators were nothing more than this.

Now that he had formed his Core, the magic power derived from it gave Luo Chen an even more extreme sense of expansion.

Under this extremely expanding and powerful force, he felt as if he could do anything!

His spiritual sense circled around the Jin Dan, and Luo Chen's mind was somewhat obsessed, even wanting to sink into the dantian, which felt like an abyss, along with this Jin Dan.

"Hmph!"

With a low shout, Luo Chen suddenly woke up.

A look of lingering fear appeared on his face.

His power was increasing too fast. If he didn't restrain it, he feared he would lose himself in it and become a beast that only knew how to pursue power.

"What we seek is longevity, not power. Power is merely a means to protect the path to longevity. Master letting me go down the mountain to gain experience, wanting me to master this surging power, is truly well-intentioned!"

After sighing, Luo Chen paused his cultivation.

Instead, he turned his attention to external objects.

Because his realm improved so quickly and his magic power was so abundant, his combat style had always been based on crushing and sweeping away.

And his combat methods, due to his shocking talent for spells, meant he had mastered a large number of water-based spells.

But what Luo Chen truly regarded as his trump card was the "Qihai Futian" passed down by his ancestors.

This spell not only possessed growth potential but also had strong inclusivity, just like water, encompassing all things without contention!

Initially, Luo Chen refined a large amount of miasma from the White Egret Marsh, giving "Qihai Futian" strong toxicity, which could threaten early-stage Core Formation cultivators.

Later, through his constant attempts, some low-level spells were also integrated into it. Such as Water Arrow, Fog Concealment, Water Escape Treading Waves, Glazed Sky Curtain, and so on.

During the half-year journey accompanying his ancestor, his ancestor, as the creator of this spell, gave Luo Chen many suggestions, helping him perfect this spell more and more.

By now, Luo Chen could even integrate some third-tier water-based spells into it.

For example, "Fog Locking the Jade Tower" and "Psychic Form Retention."

As long as "Qihai Futian" was deployed, Luo Chen could quickly cast these water-based spells without any scruples; not only would they not conflict with each other, but their power would be doubled.

This also conformed to the philosophy of "encompassing all things without contention."

In this way, this one spell alone gathered

many advantages, including concealment and escape, defense and protection, suppression and blockade, and combat and attack.

Of course, there were disadvantages.

That was that the required magic power was massive!

However, this disadvantage was almost non-existent for Luo Chen. In his few battles in his life, he had never experienced exhaustion, and he couldn't imagine any situation that would drain his magic power.

And at this moment, after some sorting, Luo Chen took out a jade pot with flowing treasure light.

It was the most common "Wave-Swallowing Sea-Holding Pot" in the cultivation world, specifically used for storing liquid-like materials.

However, compared to the common goods outside, the material of this pot, personally bestowed by his Master, was unknown how many times better. And the things stored inside were also something many people dreamed of.

Pinching a spell, Luo Chen casually guided it, and immediately a black, mercury-like stream flowed out.

"Mingshui!"

"And it's the highest-grade Mingshui True Essence among Mingshui!"

"Legend has it that if the Mingshui Sect of the East Wasteland Sacred Land wants to refine a drop of Mingshui True Essence, they must let a Nascent Soul True Person use Nascent Soul True Fire to boil and refine Mingshui day and night for 180 days! The pot Master gave me is worth more than ten million spirit stones, right?"

Luo Chen, who was usually indifferent and cold to outsiders, couldn't help but feel warm in his heart when thinking of his Master's care for him.

He took a deep breath and steadied his mind.

Next, he planned to refine the Mingshui True Essence bit by bit into "Qihai Futian" to add power to this spell!

But this process required full concentration throughout, without the slightest negligence.

Mingshui could pollute a cultivator's magic power, and even the Jin Dan and Nascent Soul.

If one was not careful, it would damage the foundation of their Dao.

Luo Chen intercepted a drop of Mingshui True Essence and then deployed Qihai Futian. Instantly, streams of black air surged from his body, wrapping the Mingshui True Essence tightly.

During this process, he was extremely cautious, fearing something would go wrong.

But after only a moment, an expression of disbelief appeared on his face.

"It was refined successfully just like that?"

Three days later.

In the Tiannan Dao Palace, four magic treasure-level flying boats slowly took off, circling above the Dao Palace.

Then, one figure after another drove escape lights, soaring from the four great halls into the flying boats.

Luo Chen was among them.

After boarding the flying boat, he greeted the Second Senior Brother who was leading.

"Greetings, Second Senior Brother!"

The Second Senior Brother's name was Fu Bin, and it was said that he was a clansman of Master Qinglan.

Seeing Luo Chen, he immediately smiled and signaled.

"Your room is the one in the middle, adjacent to mine. If you have anything, just call me."

Luo Chen nodded, and after greeting other senior brothers and sisters, he didn't hesitate, jumping past everyone and entering the room.

A moment later, a blue light curtain completely shrouded the room.

Seeing this scene, Fu Bin couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.

The Fifth Senior Sister, Eighth Senior Sister, and Seventh Senior Brother beside him also didn't react in time.

Why hide inside so quickly?

The Seventh Senior Brother frowned, "Junior Brother is too diligent. Later, we still need to arrange the squad affiliation and meet with the Core Formation True Persons from the other three halls. Why is he so indifferent?"

Fu Bin waved his hand, "Perhaps this is the main reason why Junior Brother successfully formed his Core at a mere forty years old, far surpassing mediocre people like us!"

The Seventh Senior Brother curled his lips, not thinking so.

Their Core Formation age was actually not old, mostly in their early hundreds, which would be considered top-tier geniuses in any sect.

It was just that the Junior Brother was too monstrous, not that they were mediocre.

"Don't worry, I will handle the subsequent matters. You guys first build the squads according to the list of personnel. I will personally arrange for Junior Brother!"

Fu Bin gave the order, and the junior brothers and sisters responded one after another.

On this trip, the Houtu Hall dispatched five Core Formation True Persons, namely the Second Senior Brother, Fifth Senior Sister, Seventh Senior Brother, Eighth Senior Sister, and Luo Chen.

In addition, there were one hundred Foundation Establishment True Cultivators accompanying the team on the expedition.

The other three halls had roughly the same configuration.

In this way, the Tiannan Dao Palace quickly formed an elite team with twenty Core Formation and four hundred Foundation Establishment True Cultivators. If there were no accidents, this team would be deployed to the battlefield on the shores of the East Sea in the near future to slay demons and eliminate evil, in order to defend the Dao Sect!

Fu Bin stood at the bow of the boat, facing the strong wind outside, his expression somewhat melancholy.

If it were the Central Plains of the past, teleportation arrays would be spread across the continent, and going to the shores of the East Sea would only take two or three teleports; where would it be so troublesome.

It was all the fault of that demon phoenix, which shattered the Central Plains, causing most of the teleportation arrays to be nearly paralyzed.

Now that the demon scourge had risen again, it was truly a headache.

"Forget it, it's just imitating the old deeds of our predecessors and doing it again. What our predecessors could do, we can also do!"

"Set off!"

Since boarding the Houtu flying boat, Luo Chen had been immersed in refining the Mingshui True Essence.

He discovered that refining this thing was actually faster than the White Egret Miasma!

Not only was it fast, but after refining, it was exceptionally satisfying to control, simply as easy as moving one's own arm.

Therefore, he didn't delay at all, constantly refining Mingshui True Essence into "Qihai Futian" day and night.

And the power of this spell was also

improving day by day.

Like this, half a month later.

Luo Chen slowly opened his eyes.

Above his head was a pitch-black sky, formed by a large amount of White Egret Miasma.

And beneath him was a pool of flowing black liquid.

Qihai Futian, black clouds pressing down on the city.

Still water flows deep, choosing people to devour!

With a thought, Luo Chen beckoned outward, and a sound transmission talisman flew in.

The sound transmission talisman burned without wind. Luo Chen raised his eyebrows, and instantly Qihai Futian returned to his body, and he stood up and came to the deck of the flying boat.

At this moment on the deck, cultivators had already gathered, waiting quietly.

Luo Chen scanned and saw several familiar figures.

He didn't greet them and walked to the side of the Second Senior Brother and the other three.

"Second Senior Brother, are we there yet?"

The Second Senior Brother smiled gently, "There's still a bit of distance, but the City Lord of Zhenhai City has sent word that he wants to come and welcome us. So, let's prepare in advance to avoid losing etiquette."

"City Lord of Zhenhai City?" Luo Chen was startled.

The Seventh Senior Brother beside him introduced, "It's True Person Wen. Their family has lived on the shores of the East Sea for generations and luckily survived the Central Plains catastrophe, so the Dao Sect also continues to entrust them with the important task of coastal defense."

Luo Chen was somewhat surprised; a dignified Nascent Soul True Person actually had to lower himself to welcome them?

The Second Senior Brother straightened his back and explained lightly, "Junior Brother, don't underestimate the status of our Dao Palace disciples!"

Hearing this, Luo Chen suddenly realized.

Usually in the Dao Palace, everyone competed with their peers. Except for a few like himself, others didn't feel their position deeply.

But in reality, the young people who could join the Tiannan Dao Palace were all talented geniuses with excellent aptitude, and all were the backbone of various major families in the future.

And if they developed well in the future, they were even more likely to become big figures in the Tianyuan Dao Sect!

Like this time, the more than four hundred cultivators sent by the Four Imperial Halls were synonymous with geniuses.

Among the Foundation Establishment cultivators, none were over a hundred years old.

The Core Formation cultivators were also mostly young and strong, geniuses with hopes of reaching the Nascent Soul realm in the future.

That True Person Wen lowering his status to welcome them in advance showed his importance and also his desire to build a good relationship.

After figuring this out, Luo Chen became exceptionally calm.

They were guests, and also VIPs!

Soon, a gorgeous and magnificent flying boat flew toward them from afar.

One escape light after another flew out from it, carrying a large amount of wine and fruit to comfort the Dao Palace disciples.

And the twenty Core Formation cultivators of the Four Imperial Halls boarded that flying boat to

accept the banquet hosted by True Person Wen, the City Lord of Zhenhai City.

Thousands of miles away, a wisp of green smoke swirled in the clouds.

Looking at the flying boat fleet over there, the green smoke stopped its forward progress.

"That kid has been in the Tiannan Dao Palace for twenty years. I didn't expect that when he came out, he would already be in the Core Formation realm!"

"Tsk tsk, this cultivation speed is something even the Master couldn't reach back then!"

"With a Nascent Soul True Person appearing, although I'm not afraid of being discovered, it's better to stay a bit further away."

The green smoke turned into a dark cloud, embedded in the clouds, and drifted slowly.

Bypassing the stopped flying boat fleet, it drifted to the vast sea at midnight.

Suddenly!

"Such heavy demon qi!"

The dark cloud dispersed, moonlight fell, revealing a graceful and charming figure.

It was Xiao Bai, who was responsible for secretly observing Luo Chen!

At this moment, she frowned and spread her spiritual sense to check the situation on the East Sea.

The demon qi was so heavy that she almost thought she had returned to the battlefield of the great war between humans and demons in the East Wasteland.

Especially the vigorous soul power, which made her discover several powerful auras.

"One, two, three... there are actually three Nascent Soul demon cultivators!"

"With such a big battle, could it be... No, this aura?"

Xiao Bai's expression changed slightly, and she concentrated her spiritual sense, rushing toward a sea area.

There were many sea demons there, birds circling, and the demon qi was incomparably thick.

And in the center where the demon beasts gathered, a gorgeous palace stood quietly on the seabed.

Xiao Bai's spiritual sense was like a broken bamboo, rushing straight into the palace.

Inside, a transformed demon cultivator was enjoying the beautiful dance of the clam women and mermaids below.

And in the seat below him, a thick black python was burying its head into a wine vat.

"Brother Black, the taste of my Qianlan Ice Wine isn't bad, right?"

The black python heard this and suddenly raised its head, spilling countless wine.

Looking closely, where was there any snake or python?

With horns and eyes like an ox, it was clearly a black dragon!

Just at this time, the transformed demon cultivator seemed to sense something, anger erupted on his face, and he raised his hand to launch an attack outside the palace.

"Sneaky person, how dare you spy on this Emperor!"

"You ghost-like creature, you dare to spy on this Emperor!"