[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-starlight-professional":3,"chapter-starlight-professional-starlight-professional-chapter-69":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Starlight Professional",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2308729,4512,"Chapter 69: 69. Chapter 69: Jin Yu (In Honor of the New Alliance Leader Who Bought Nothing but Loneliness)","starlight-professional-chapter-69",69,"\u003Cp>69. Chapter 69: Jin Yu (In Honor of the New Alliance Leader Who Bought Nothing but Loneliness)\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chick Hawk Star.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside the bedroom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Xing lay on the bed, a sense of peace rising from within.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Recalling the second-rank flying beast he had just seen, his eyes narrowed slightly: “Second-rank beasts vary among themselves… This one exerted a far greater pressure than the last one I encountered… Perhaps it’s mid-rank or even high-rank second-rank?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had once seen a Foundation Establishment cultivator in the marketplace easily kill a second-rank beast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Fang Xing believed that if this beast had been the target, the Qingxuan Sect’s elder stationed at the marketplace would have fled in panic!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even worse, due to its flight speed, it might not even be possible to escape!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“At my current level, I’m still not qualified to fight a second-rank beast… not even a low-rank one…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Xing had a clear understanding of his own strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among Qi Condensation cultivators, he was certainly very strong—capable of sweeping aside most, as long as he didn’t face an exceptionally overpowered one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But facing a Foundation Establishment cultivator, or being surrounded by late-stage or full-stage Qi Condensation cultivators, he’d be in grave danger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Foundation Establishment cultivators had awakened their spiritual sense, greatly enhancing their intuitive awareness of danger—even if he used his laser gun, he couldn’t guarantee a kill.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If the first laser shot missed, he’d lose his stealth advantage, making subsequent hits nearly impossible—the enemy couldn’t dodge the laser beam, but could dodge the gun’s muzzle!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Second-rank beasts had thick hides and immense vitality—making them even harder to deal with.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Precisely because of this, Fang Xing had waited several days on Chick Hawk Star before daring to return to Qinglin Marketplace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upper-grade cave dwelling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everything in the basement remained unchanged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh? It seems this second-rank beast’s spiritual sense is sharp—it didn’t detect any life signs here, so it didn’t come…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not having to move out, Fang Xing was very satisfied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over the next few days, he followed his usual routine: consuming spirit rice and taking pills to train.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although overuse of pills caused toxic buildup, when he ascended to the Puyu Realm, he had undergone a tendon-renewing and marrow-washing transformation, expelling most of the accumulated impurities from his body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, the Puyu Realm’s internal qi flowed continuously, refining his five organs and six viscera, granting him far greater tolerance to pill toxins than in his previous two realms.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Added to that, Fang Xing carefully controlled his dosage, keeping it within his body’s limits—his Wu Gong advanced rapidly while his foundation remained exceptionally solid…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fu Hu Zhu has progressed rapidly… but Long Xiang Gong has stalled due to lack of Whale-Elephant Paste…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Several days later, Fang Xing glanced at his attribute panel, slightly disappointed: “I need to prioritize finding a substitute for Whale-Elephant Paste.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On Chick Hawk Star, even if substitutes existed, he had no access, connections, or sufficient star yuan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But here, the problem was clearly manageable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Morning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Xing, as usual, wore a black robe covering his face, blending into the thick fog.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Occasionally, scattered figures emerged from ruins and basements, all similarly cloaked and armed with artifacts and talismans, watching everyone with wary eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“These cultivators in this world are just unfriendly…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He mentally grumbled, heading toward the Ghost Market.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This place was once the old stall area, later abandoned—only a few cultivators dared to trade here during morning fog, when beasts were less likely to detect them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Today’s fog was unusually dense; beyond three meters, no one was visible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Feels strange… could this be some special effect of a formation? Or a formation master adapting to the conditions?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Xing reached a stall and found it displayed nothing but mundane rice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How about it? Cheap—ten spirit stones for twenty catties…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The vendor was a Qi Condensation cultivator, likely only early-stage, smiling broadly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Before the marketplace collapsed, ten catties of spirit rice cost one spirit stone…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Xing was speechless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though Qi Condensation cultivators couldn’t sustain long-term fasting, look at this—how desperate had they become?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ah, what was life like back then? What is it like now?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The vendor sighed heavily: “Just having something to eat is good enough… Wait until the remaining supplies in these ruins are gone, then come back!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Xing knew well: all spirit fields beyond the marketplace had been abandoned; next year would be even worse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These cultivators clung on despite the risk of occasional second-rank beast hunts because: first, the wilderness outside was even worse, with equal chances of encountering high-rank beasts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Second, the marketplace ruins still held some supplies; scavenging occasionally yielded rewards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if beasts came, there were many people—surely it wouldn’t be their turn, thanks to Jiaoxing  psychology!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Third, perhaps the faint hope that major sects might one day reclaim this place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He shook his head and walked toward another stall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Big brother, wanna have some fun?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At a street corner stood several elegant female cultivators, dressed provocatively; seeing Fang Xing’s sturdy, robust frame with no sign of weakness, their eyes gleamed: “I used to work at Tingyu Pavilion, skilled in the Seventy-Two Postures of Dongxuanzi, the Nine Transformations of Fish-Dragon, and the Spring Battle Techniques… I’ll make you forget everything else—just give me a few catties of spirit rice or fasting pills…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hmm, prices have plummeted since before…” Fang Xing nodded inwardly, walking past without glancing aside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was here to stroll and search for Whale-Elephant Paste substitutes—not to be distracted by trivialities.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Clearly, this Ghost Market won’t do… next time, I’ll go straight to the Cave Black Market…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as Fang Xing thought today would yield nothing, he halted before a stall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The stall displayed a few vials of pills—rarely seen in the Ghost Market.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though the pills were common, in this environment, they were already quite good.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The vendor was an elderly cultivator, his black wood hairpin broken halfway, his spirit robe tattered, looking utterly destitute.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet he still carried an air of pride, a faint medicinal fragrance clinging to him, revealing his identity as an alchemist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Him? Wan Fenglin… this old bastard is still alive?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Xing stared at the clearly fallen Wan Fenglin, surprised.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>During the First Five Scorpion Valley battle, he had been outmaneuvered and barely escaped using a life-saving talisman, one of the first eliminated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Chen Yi and Hei Hu Bang’s internal conflict, he was no longer involved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Fang Xing assumed Hei Hu Bang wouldn’t let him live—yet here he was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t know Wan Fenglin had nearly been driven to death, even captured by Hei Hu Bang—until Qingxuan Sect intervened, suppressed Hei Hu Bang, and their leader was slain by a Golden Core true cultivator, dissolving the entire gang and giving Wan Fenglin a chance to escape.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But his cultivation had been shattered; now he’d regressed to Qi Condensation Layer Three, and with the marketplace disaster, he barely scraped by, barely able to afford his own clothes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Friend, would you like to buy pills? This ‘Bu Jin Dan’ rapidly heals any wound, and this ‘Chun Hua Dan’—take it regularly, and you’ll retain youth forever…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wan Fenglin didn’t recognize Fang Xing’s altered form and masked face, enthusiastically promoting his pills.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Xing glanced—pure trash.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No wonder he’d sunk further.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He thought for a moment, pulled out the box that once held Whale-Elephant Paste—the ointment was gone, but residual essence remained, enough for an alchemist to identify its properties: “I used this kind of body-refining ointment before. Do you have any substitutes?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wan Fenglin took it, sniffed slightly, and his expression changed: “This essence is incredibly fierce… I misjudged you. You’re not a martial artist—you’re a body cultivator, even a late-stage Qi Condensation body cultivator. Your qi-concealing technique is truly exceptional.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You got that right!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Xing crossed his arms, coldly: “So?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This substance is too fierce—it likely contains second-rank spirit herbs and second-rank beast flesh. I can’t think of a substitute—even Qingdan Workshop might not have one…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wan Fenglin sighed and returned the empty box.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I see… well then…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Xing shook his head. He’d known Long Xiang Gong was hard to cultivate—but not this hard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The required ointment involved second-rank materials!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Do I have to kill a second-rank beast? My blood-refined weapons cut through people easily—but they barely scratch second-rank beasts…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Still, Wan Fenglin’s character is terrible… next time, I’ll ask Xiao Rui.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He turned to leave, then suddenly stopped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Honestly, Wan Fenglin had once plotted against him—he still remembered that grudge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But seeing him so pitiful, broken, perhaps merely surviving was punishment enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Friend, what else do you want?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wan Fenglin, startled by Fang Xing’s pause, froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he saw a lower-grade spirit stone in Fang Xing’s hand—his eyes widened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m interested in that secret realm. Since you went there before, you must know something. Tell me everything—if I’m satisfied, these spirit stones are yours…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Xing pulled out more lower-grade spirit stones, tossing them lightly in his palm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wan Fenglin’s face turned pale, torn between fleeing and staying, finally settling into bitter resignation: “I truly don’t know what happened in Five Scorpion Valley—I barely escaped by luck. After returning, Hei Hu Bang hunted me down, kidnapped me…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In truth, Hei Hu Bang had thought Wan Fenglin knew secret realm secrets and was a valuable alchemist, so they spared him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But while in Hei Hu Bang, I heard a few rumors…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the spirit stones flicking in Fang Xing’s hand, Wan Fenglin swallowed hard: “Someone claimed the secret realm was left behind by the ‘Wan Fa Shangren’—an extremely valuable inheritance, which drew Qingxuan Sect’s Golden Core true cultivators…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wan Fa Shangren?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Xing frowned, then tossed a lower-grade spirit stone: “Continue…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, yes…” Wan Fenglin’s eyes lit up; the secret realm was surely overrun by beasts now—useless—so selling rumors for a few spirit stones was better than nothing: “This ‘Wan Fa Shangren’ was no ordinary figure—a legendary genius from a thousand years ago. Supposedly, he had abysmal spiritual roots, yet ascended through every realm to reach Golden Core fullness…”\u003C\u002Fp>",1672,"2026-06-20T11:03:20.053Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","66840bd7b0c90db7a7235040c36d4e2018aff486e90a9d762d9b7148852731c0","starlight-professional-chapter-70","starlight-professional-chapter-68",726,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fstarlight-professional-cover.jpg"]