Chapter 796

He sat cross-legged, formed hand seals, and the power of the Way of the Universe within him slowly surged. As the secret technique was enacted, his consciousness gradually sank into the Time River, seeking the traces of the twelve zodiac animals.

Shortly after, images appeared in Yan Buji's mind. He saw the twelve zodiac animals traveling through different times and spaces, undergoing countless battles and trials.

"Are... the twelve zodiac animals growing older?" Yan Buji sensed the condition of these zodiac animals.

Each zodiac animal had additional halos; each halo resembled tree rings, with one ring representing one year.

Sensing the law of ages within them, Yan Buji felt a hint of delight.

"I never expected these twelve zodiac animals to bear traces of the law of ages!"

The law of ages seems to be contained within the Law of the Way of the Universe, but Yan Buji has only just begun to study the Law of the Way of the Universe and does not yet understand the power and nature of the law of ages. However, for the Time Secret Technique, the first layer of the twelve zodiac animals already receives the empowerment of the law of ages within the Time River, showing that this secret technique is truly immensely powerful!

Aside from a few that somehow disappeared earlier and thus have few rings, the others are roughly similar; surprisingly, the zodiac dragon sharing Yan Buji's own zodiac sign has actually accumulated a hundred years of rings!

Even across space and time, Yan Buji can still sense the aura emanating from that zodiac dragon, which should be no weaker than that of a Lianqi Phase cultivator.

"It appears that within the Time River, the twelve zodiac animals can increase their law of ages. Each hundred years of ring might represent a stage, right?" Yan Buji secretly rejoiced.

This improvement requires no control from him; as long as the twelve zodiac animals grow normally within the Time River, they might even reach the Nascent Soul stage or higher!

Moreover, how long has it been since he completed the Time Secret Technique and gathered the twelve zodiac animals to pour into the Time River?

"Perhaps with Time Sand, the growth of the twelve zodiac animals could be accelerated. Furthermore, the final layer of the Time Secret Technique likely requires a large consumption of Time Sand as well." Yan Buji's expression turned solemn.

However, just as he prepared to continue observing, he suddenly felt a mighty force surge from the Time River, directly striking his consciousness. Yan Buji's heart jolted; he quickly steadied his mind and resisted the impact of that force.

"Is this... a backlash of the Time River?" Yan Buji inwardly warned himself.

The Time River contains boundless power. He dared not be careless; he immediately gathered his thoughts and slowly withdrew the secret technique.

After a moment, Yan Buji opened his eyes and exhaled deeply. Although he had not fully ascertained the condition of the twelve zodiac animals, at least he knew they had received tremendous enhancement within the Time River.

"Next, we just wait for the twelve zodiac animals to grow to a certain stage; there will likely be further feedback." Yan Buji mused to himself.

A few days later.

Yan Buji was still cultivating when Zhou Wan'an came over saying he had something to discuss; Yan Buji found it strange, so he left seclusion to inquire.

"What exactly happened?"

Zhou Wan'an sighed: "Hall Master Yan, major trouble—the monster clan's supply and channels have all been cut off!"

Yan Buji's face grew solemn as he frowned in thought.

Seeing Yan Buji's expression, Zhou Wan'an asked doubtfully: "Hall Master Yan, do you know something?"

"After the Heaven Celebration Grand Ceremony, a fellow cultivator from the monster clan told me that a branch of the Azure Phoenix clan intends to establish a monster clan merchant association on Luohuang Zhou, and this is done under the decree of the monster clan royal court; for now, there's probably no way to resolve it."

"Ah?" Zhou Wan'an's face drastically changed; hearing Yan Buji say that, he also realized the situation was somewhat troublesome.

After a moment of silence, Yan Buji said: "This matter depends on the attitude of the monster clan side; we can simply wait and see."

Zhou Wan'an's face looked grim as he asked: "Even if the monster clan tribes friendly to us wish to help, after all it is the decree of the monster clan royal court—can they defy it?"

"Well, that's what you said." Yan Buji smiled: "After all, the Azure Phoenix clan's branch came to establish a merchant association, not to fight us. The issue is that the leadership and decisions of the Azure Phoenix clan actually have little impact on us. Since they want to do business, they couldn't possibly be truly treating us as fools to deceive; therefore, to some extent our trade with the monster clan is merely a change in form."

Zhou Wan'an listened, bewildered, but then came to his senses: "Oh, Hall Master Yan means, as long as the Azure Phoenix clan cultivators aren't stupid, our trade won't be completely cut off."

"Hmm, so we need not rush."

"That said, what about the backlog of goods?"

"Those that won't spoil soon can be left as is; for those needed immediately, we'll hold off ordering and quickly notify everyone."

"Good."

Yan Buji also took this opportunity to find Wu Yuan.

Wu Yuan had also heard about the monster clan matter and asked Yan Buji: "Hall Master, once the monster clan merchant association is established, will it greatly affect us?"

Yan Buji shook his head: "Not much; the monster clan royal court either values the huge profits from trading with us, or thinks we shouldn't recklessly sell their spiritual materials. Either way, normal commodity flow will surely resume; the rest depends on what moves the monster clan merchant association makes."

Wu Yuan nodded after hearing that.

"Since Hall Master Yan has his own plans, I won't inquire further." Wu Yuan finished speaking and turned to leave.

Yan Buji called out to Wu Yuan, who was about to leave, asking: "Elder Wu, please wait, has Elder Yuan returned?"

"Not yet, what's the matter?" Wu Yuan asked.

"Still hasn't come back." Yan Buji frowned: "After all, once the monster clan merchant association is established, we'll definitely need someone over there to make contact; just one subordinate probably won't suffice, and it'd be best to let the monster clan merchant association see our sect's strength."

Yan Buji's words were watertight; after all, even if Wu Yuan isn't well-versed in business, he knows that in trade the biggest taboo is a huge disparity in strength—only when both sides are equal can everyone feel secure, without fear of betrayal.

And Yan Buji's purpose is simple: he just wants to ask how much information Yuan Zhen has gathered.

"This... why not send a message to Elder Yuan to let him know?" Wu Yuan thought it over and also felt that made sense.

Yan Buji clasped his hands and said: "Then please trouble Elder Wu."

"Hmm."

Having said that, Wu Yuan briefly described the matter and sent a message to Yuan Zhen in Yan Buji's presence.

Seeing this, Yan Buji also confirmed that Wu Yuan didn't know what Yuan Zhen was up to; otherwise, if he knew Yuan Zhen was investigating Yun Qing and involved a treasure like the Primordial Child, he would surely hesitate and dare not disturb Yuan Zhen's affairs.

Moreover, I also want to make use of Elder Wu." Yan Buji narrowed his eyes and gave a cold chuckle.

Coincidentally, this monster clan merchant association also presents an opportunity for me to create an alibi!