Chapter 154: Chapter 147: Never Seen It, Don’t Recognize It

Three Foundation Establishment Cultivators had left in name, but one secretly remained.

Only a few disciples of the Primordial Sect were privy to this.

Tonight, the Golden Dragon Carp was lured away. Zhou Changping, a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, had given chase at top speed, while the other disciples were slightly slower. By the time they arrived, they found only a ravaged battlefield. With no sign of the Golden Dragon Carp or Zhou Changping, the more alert disciples realized something was terribly wrong.

"Oh, no..."

"The Golden Dragon Carp is gone, and Tutor Zhou is missing! Quick, inform the other disciples! Inform Steward Cao! Inform Jinyun Valley...!"

「An hour later.」

Hundreds of disciples from the Primordial Sect and Jinyun Valley gathered at the scene. Cao Xiong’s face was ashen as he surveyed the area, with a disturbed Ye Jingzhou standing beside him.

"These marks... they’re almost identical to the ones at the scene with Ye Zhihan..."

Sword scars and Evil Qi.

Cao Xiong stood still for a long while, examining the battlefield around him.

In truth, they hadn’t just released Fish Dragons in the Black Water River, but in several major rivers throughout Yunzhou. The Junior Brother who had seduced Mother Xiao had learned the secret of the Fish Dragons, including the method to lure them out. He reported this to the Sect in exchange for merit. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

That was why, on the surface, they were strictly investigating Pill Masters.

But secretly, they were using the Fish Dragons as bait.

As the sole heir, hunted by the Primordial Sect and unable to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill, Xiao Chan had no choice but to target the Fish Dragon. Who would have thought...

’Instead of catching the fish, we lost one of our own, and the tracking mark is gone too.’

The corner of Cao Xiong’s eye twitched.

’This is bad!’

Losing one Fish Dragon was nothing. The death of one Foundation Establishment Cultivator was also nothing. But to gain a new Foundation Establishment Cultivator as an enemy—and an Evil Cultivator at that—was a major problem. If they didn’t kill him, the Sect’s disciples would live in constant fear. Morale would plummet, and the other Major Sects would look down on them. This was a matter of reputation.

"Brother Cao, that thief took the Fish Dragon. He can’t have gone far. He might be hiding right here in Jinyun Valley. I will order my disciples to search for him at once," Ye Jingzhou said coldly.

"Search Jinyun Valley?"

Hearing this, Cao Xiong almost laughed out loud.

"A Fish Dragon that large can’t be stuffed into a Storage Pouch. He couldn’t possibly evade the eyes and ears of so many Cultivators, so why would he be foolish enough to enter the valley?"

Cao Xiong’s gaze grew cold.

’Xiao Chan is a cautious and patient man, but decisive when he needs to be. Even if the Fish Dragon were torn to pieces, the mark would have remained. It’s obvious he found the mark, erased it, and still managed to take the entire Fish Dragon with him.’

"Xiao Chan..."

Cao Xiong took a deep breath and looked at Ye Jingzhou.

"My apologies for disturbing your seclusion, Fellow Daoist Ye. However, I must ask you to order your disciples to search along the river!"

"Very well!"

Ye Jingzhou nodded slightly.

Cao Xiong’s eyes were half-closed.

’A Fish Dragon might aid in Foundation Establishment, but it only increases the odds by thirty percent at most. Plus, Xiao Chan frequently uses Evil Artifacts, which must have taken a toll on his body. Even with the Fish Dragon, his chances of successfully reaching Foundation Establishment can’t be that high.’

’There’s still time...’

’It would be best to kill him before he can establish his foundation...’

...

「Jinyun Valley, a cultivator’s residence.」

"Xiao Chan!"

After leaving the river, Ye Jingzhou appeared in a simple shack, his expression unreadable. With a raise of his hand, he enveloped the surroundings in a Silence Array.

He glared at Xiao Chan, who was once again disguised as a decrepit old man, and said with narrowed eyes,

"I told you to stay within Jinyun Valley and not to provoke the Primordial Sect. And yet you killed a Foundation Establishment Cultivator! Do you have any idea how much trouble you’ve caused tonight? It’s only because I secretly misdirected him that he didn’t become suspicious of Jinyun Valley."

"Who would have thought they’d leave a mark on the Fish Dragon?"

Xiao Chan pushed the millstone with both hands, watching the soy milk flow down a groove and into a wooden bucket. "I was forced into it," he replied without looking up.

Ye Jingzhou narrowed his eyes.

"Did you really kill Zhou Changping?"

"That’s right!"

"Why did you capture the Fish Dragon?"

"Felt like eating it."

"And where did you hide such a large Fish Dragon?"

"I ate it!"

Seeing Xiao Chan spouting nonsense, Ye Jingzhou gave a cold snort, flicked his sleeve, and turned to leave.

"...Valley Master, about tonight?"

Lu Yi was waiting at the valley entrance. Seeing Ye Jingzhou’s furious expression, he asked cautiously.

"Zhou Changping is dead. From now on, the disciples in the valley will follow Cao Xiong’s orders. You will be responsible for coordinating this. Also, have the ordinary disciples conduct a door-to-door search for the Evil Cultivator..."

"Huh?!"

Before Lu Yi could even react, Ye Jingzhou had slammed the stone door shut with a BANG.

Lu Yi stood there stunned, his heart sinking. Clearly, the death of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator was not a good thing for Jinyun Valley. It had managed to provoke the Valley Master to such an extent.

「Quiet Chamber.」

Ye Jingzhou strode to the center of the room and sat cross-legged on the Pumpon.

Around him stood more than ten stone steles, each half a man’s height and made entirely of Wuyin Ore Mine. These steles were covered in densely packed, tadpole-like script. On closer inspection, a golden light seemed to flow within the engraved characters.

The corners of his mouth turned up in a light chuckle, which then grew into wild laughter.

A crazed look filled Ye Jingzhou’s eyes.

"To think he could actually kill a Foundation Establishment Cultivator! Haha! The heavens are smiling on me..."

...

"Finally, that’s taken care of!"

Back in his Cave Mansion, Chen Che finished processing the Golden Dragon Carp.

Like Cultivators, a Great Demon’s Qi Mechanism gradually dissipates into the world after death. If the body is preserved in time, the Pills refined from it will be far more potent. He carved out the fish’s intestines and other entrails, tossing them to the Little Chick, which had been staring with longing eyes.

The Little Chick immediately began to peck at them excitedly.

’A Foundation Establishment Cultivator!’

Though the night had been perilous, Chen Che couldn’t suppress his joy at having personally slain a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

’Still, I did have the advantage of a sneak attack...’

Winning with a sneak attack was a skill in itself.

If Zhou Changping had been a little more cautious and notified the other two Major Cultivators instead of rushing in, the night might have ended very differently.

"Don’t touch any of this. If you so much as steal one bottle, I’ll pluck every feather from your body and use you for Alchemy!"

After sorting the processed fish meat and storing it in a side hall, Chen Che turned to see the Little Chick’s covetous gaze and issued a stern warning.

CHIRP~

The Little Chick dejectedly tucked its wings and shook its head.

"So much stuff?"

He took out Zhou Changping’s Storage Pouch and emptied it, sending a large pile of items CLATTERING to the ground.

The wealth of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator was on a completely different level from that of an ordinary Loose Cultivator.

Inside his Storage Pouch were nine Middle-Grade Spirit Stones and eight or nine hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones. Not to mention a large amount of Spiritual Sand, there were also quite a few medicine bottles.

Opening them, he saw that every bottle was filled with Pills.

Although each Pill bore the mark of a Primordial Sect Pill Master, he could erase it with a wave of his hand. After a few minor alterations, he could put them up for sale at a Pill Shop and make another tidy sum...

As for Magical Artifacts, there were none.

Cultivation Techniques, none of those either.

Beyond that, there was the sword Zhou Changping had used. It was also Tier Two Low Grade, but it was too recognizable to be used openly.

"A quick calculation... a small profit of about two thousand Spirit Stones..."

Chen Che clicked his tongue in amazement.

Of course, Zhou Changping was from the Primordial Sect; most of his assets were likely still within the Sect. Yet what he carried on his person was already comparable to Chen Che’s entire net worth.

"Hm? What’s this?"

After rummaging through the Storage Pouch a few more times, a piece of Wood fell out with a CLUNK.

Chen Che picked it up curiously. It was surprisingly heavy, and he couldn’t identify it. He hadn’t yet reached the level where he could identify a species just by looking at a piece of its trunk. Besides, this thing looked like a piece of wood that had been soaked in water for a long time and had become swollen.

He held it to his nose and sniffed, but there was no expected fragrance.

He was about to toss it away, but then he had a second thought. ’Something a Foundation Establishment Cultivator would hide in his Storage Pouch couldn’t possibly be ordinary.’

’It might be something valuable. I’ll ask Old Li about it later...’

He used his Pure Jun Sword to slice off a small piece and put it in his pocket.

A Foundation Establishment Cultivator would surely recognize it, and besides, Old Li had a sister in the Nascent Soul Realm. If she asked where he got it, he would just say he found it on the ground.

After finishing his inventory, he hurried off to school.

As for Alchemy, that would have to wait a few days. His success rate with Tier Two High Grade Elixirs was not high, so he needed to be extremely cautious. At the very least, he had to wait until he was back in peak condition.

The first class was already over, and the second was more than halfway through.

"Permission to enter!"

Chen Che stood in the doorway.

"Come in..."

Li Xiaoshuang nodded.

His classmates weren’t surprised. He was a student with guaranteed admission, after all. The school wouldn’t mind even if he skipped classes, since he had already counted toward their matriculation rate.

"Why are you so late?" Lin Yi whispered.

"I was too focused on my Cultivation and lost track of time."

He tossed out a casual excuse, and Lin Yi believed him. After an all-night battle with a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, his expression was indeed somewhat listless and weary.

After class, Chen Che went straight to the office. After listening to Li Xiaoshuang’s routine lecture about ’balancing work and rest,’ he pulled the piece of Wood from his pocket and handed it over. "Teacher Li, it’s like this..."

"I found a piece of Wood after school last night. I don’t know why, but I have a gut feeling that this piece of Wood is special. Could you take a look at it for me?"

"Oh, sorry..."

Old Li took it and instinctively gave it a squeeze. With a CRACK, the part he was holding crumbled to dust. Seeing the pained look on Chen Che’s face, he quickly explained:

"You said it was special, so I was just testing it... Hmm, I don’t recognize this piece of Wood. It seems pretty ordinary! Teacher Ding, take a look. Do you recognize this thing...?"

Spotting Ding Dawei, who had just finished class and was walking into the office with a book, he casually handed the Wood over.

Old Ding pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and examined it for a moment before shaking his head. When he heard it was found on the road, he frowned.

"It’s probably just a wood chip for starting a coal stove. Does anyone even use coal stoves anymore?"

"Let me ask my sister for you..."

Perhaps feeling guilty for crushing his student’s precious find, Li Xiaoshuang took the initiative. After placing the call, he aimed his Micro Crystal Brain at the Wood. "Sis, do you recognize this?"

"I’m in the middle of my Cultivation."

A holographic 3D image of Li Tingyu appeared, sitting cross-legged in the void. Her long skirt hid her feet, so it was impossible to see if she was wearing an anklet. She glanced at the object and frowned.

"...This."

Chen Che’s eyes lit up, and his heart filled with joy.

’I really did find a treasure.’

But before he could get too excited, Li Tingyu’s voice came through again:

"Never seen it. Don’t recognize it."