Chapter 167: Chapter 4: Suanni, Thousand-Faced Insect, Divine Pillar Mountain

Fang Cheng cultivated for several months in Canglan Cave on Demon Lion Peak, gradually stabilizing his Life Talisman Cultivation.

As for his Sword Technique, he practiced diligently every day, focusing on the principle of constancy. He wanted to fully internalize the supreme Sword Dao insights brought by the mysterious Golden Talisman until they became second nature.

He didn’t neglect his Gu refining either. Using the Tier Two Demon Beast Flesh and Blood from the gifts he received at his Life Talisman Ceremony, along with the highly toxic Spiritual Objects he had the Ye Family’s Cangshan Pavilion acquire, he opened three more Gu Pits in his Cave Mansion.

Two pits were for cultivating Vajra Gu, to increase his supply.

The last pit was for upgrading his Poison Gu.

His status in the Ye Family had risen dramatically, and the manpower, wealth, and resources he could command were now comparable to those of a senior clan elder.

He also had the Ye Family organize a merchant caravan to travel to various markets throughout Yun Country to purchase Dao Pattern Spirit Jade!

All the required expenses were covered by the Ye Family.

The Ye Family Elders’ Meeting had no objections to this.

After all, Fang Cheng’s value and influence on the Ye Family far outweighed this minor expense.

In his spare time, aside from enjoying himself with his beautiful wives and concubines, he focused on refining his Magical Artifacts.

He now possessed three Tier Two Flying Swords. The first, the Dragon Abyss Sword, he had purchased himself.

The second, a Crimson Flying Sword, was taken from a Flame God Palace Cultivator. He didn’t know its original name, so Fang Cheng later named it Fire Palace.

The third was a gift from his Second Senior Brother, Huang Shen, which he received at his Life Talisman Ceremony.

This flying sword was named Flying Fish. Huang Shen had personally refined it, and although it was only a Tier Two Lower Grade, its quality was far superior to both the Dragon Abyss and the Fire Palace.

Huang Shen had been able to become Sun Fugai’s disciple and had risen all the way from a True Disciple to an Inner Sect Elder; both his Sword Technique and cultivation were extraordinary.

His personal history was also quite legendary.

His father had been a Loose Cultivator who fell in love with a woman from the Dong Family in his youth, but the Dong Family did not approve of their relationship.

The two later eloped, traveling far to Jin Country. There, they had a fortuitous encounter, and many years later, both broke through to the Life Talisman Realm.

After the Dong Family learned of this, they sent envoys to persuade them, inviting the couple back to the Abyssal Marsh. Huang Shen’s father then became an Honored Guest Elder of the Dong Family.

With the Dong Family’s help, Huang Shen was able to bypass the outer sect trials and directly enter the Yinluo Sect’s Inner Sect.

Furthermore, having been taught by two Life Talisman Cultivators since childhood, his foundation was exceptionally solid, and he quickly made a name for himself among the Inner Sect Disciples.

After more than a decade of building his foundation in the Inner Sect, he broke through to the Life Talisman Realm, became a True Disciple of the Yinluo Sect, and took Sun Fugai as his master.

Huang Shen was also a sword enthusiast who loved to collect all kinds of Profound Iron Immortal Gold and forge swords in his spare time. Many True Disciples and Inner Sect Elders in the Yinluo Sect possessed flying swords that he had refined. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

This Huang Shen was also a frequent patron of Miaoxiang Tower!

Among the rumors circulating about the great figures who often visited Miaoxiang Tower, Huang Shen’s name appeared in every era and every version of the tales.

He had an elegant nickname: the Female Subduing Sect Leader of Abyss Lake.

His romantic reputation was known throughout the Yun Country Cultivation Realm.

Fang Cheng had heard of Huang Shen’s reputation years ago when he was refining a Love Gu at Miaoxiang Tower. He never expected that Huang Shen, along with his Third Senior Brother and Fifth Senior Sister, would personally attend his Life Talisman Ceremony.

In addition to the three flying swords, he also thoroughly refined the Fire Crow Gourd, the Flying Boat, the Talisman Beast, and the Immortal Binding Rope.

These four items were all Tier Two treasures. Even without the cultivation method from the Flame God Palace’s "Profound Fire Record," the Fire Crow Gourd could still summon over a hundred incredibly powerful Fire Crows using only Magical Power, making it a powerful tool for dealing with group battles.

The Talisman Beast was a gift from the Wang Family of Chixia Island. It looked like a Talisman, but when activated with Magical Power, it could transform into a Tier Two Demon Tiger that was just like a real beast. It was extremely convenient, whether for charging into battle or as a mount.

As for the Immortal Binding Rope, Fang Cheng was slowly studying its mysteries.

This Magical Artifact was different from the others. It was originally a Fourth-rank Magical Artifact that had been damaged for some reason, causing its rank to drop to its current state.

If he could find the right refining method, he might be able to restore it to its former glory!

The Immortal Binding Rope had already become his most important protective treasure, second only to his flying swords.

Additionally, as a True Disciple, he was allowed to choose two more of the sect’s ultimate techniques to study and cultivate.

This time, Fang Cheng chose two Artifact Cultivator techniques, the Netherworld Banner and the Bridge of Helplessness, to supplement his combat abilities.

After he gave a single order, the Ye Family had someone deliver all the precious materials needed to refine these two Magical Artifacts.

Fang Cheng didn’t spend too much time on these matters for now. He only refined the initial embryos for the Netherworld Banner and the Bridge of Helplessness before setting the task of artifact refining aside.

His ambition was to reach the Dharma Realm, so he would eventually have to cultivate all nine of the Yinluo Sect’s ultimate techniques. However, with his current energy, he decided to first focus on mastering the Netherworld Sword Technique and advancing to the Mid-Life Talisman Stage before slowly tackling the rest.

「On this day.」

Fang Cheng was meditating in his Cave Mansion when a Golden Sword Communication suddenly landed before his gate, emitting a low hum.

Die’Er opened the eastern gate, drew the golden sword into her hand, and turned to bring it inside the mansion.

After Fang Cheng took the message and read it, his expression changed slightly. He stood up, said a few words to Ye Yan, and then left the cave.

This Golden Sword Communication was from his eldest senior sister, whom he had never met.

Among Sun Fugai’s seven disciples, the one with the most years of cultivation and the highest cultivation level was Cai Li!

Although Fang Cheng had never met this eldest senior sister, he had learned a great deal about Demon Lion Peak recently and knew quite a bit about her.

It was rumored that this female cultivator had been practicing for a hundred years and had already reached the Late-Life Talisman Stage. Her strength ranked among the top three on all of Demon Lion Peak.

Sun Fugai was the nominal Hall Master of the Yinluo Sect’s Law Enforcement Hall, but its daily affairs were managed by this Vice Hall Master.

Fang Cheng exited Canglan Cave and flew straight toward the top of Demon Lion Peak. Before long, he saw a majestic and solemn, ancient-looking grand hall.

The grand hall was extremely old. It was surrounded by dense, dark vegetation and was deathly quiet, yet a thick, palpable Evil Qi faintly emanated from it.