Bombarding Cultivators with Cluster Artillery
Chapter 502 - 487: I Don't Know Him

Jiang Ding concealed his form, flying at the border between Chu Country and Tushan, his speed reaching terrifying levels, a pace not even high-level cultivators at the Golden Pill Peak sacrificing all their essence blood could match by a third.

"Even with Sword Escaping, I can't increase my speed."

Jiang Ding sighed.

He rummaged through his Storage Jade Pendant and pulled out several blood-red metallic fragments. After piecing them together, a small blood-red knife about a foot long, without a handle, thin and curved, appeared before his eyes.

The embryo of the Hua Xue Magical Blade!

Originating from the Nine Heavens Relics, it dropped from the clone of Patriarch Hua Xue after he was slain. Considering its usefulness, he had kept it for over a hundred years, where it lay gathering dust in the Storage Jade Pendant.

Jiang Ding's mana and Divine Sense surged into the Blood Knife, not refining the already damaged array patterns but exploring, gathering, and collecting the remaining aura within.

Soon, thread-like strands of blood light, nearly invisible to the naked eye, converged and solidified into a thread, a bright red color, exuding a malicious aura of blood and curses.

"Aura locked."

With a flick of his finger, Jiang Ding unleashed a streak of bluegold Sword Qi, then shed his own aura, allowing it to revert to a half-transparent color without any distinctive features. The Sword Qi trembled internally, constantly changing its frequency and aura, shifting hundreds to thousands of times each second, exhausting all possibilities.

Three days later.

Hum!

Accompanied by a humming sound, the half-transparent Sword Qi resonated with the extracted crimson aura, indicating mutual attraction.

"This is it."

A trace of joy appeared on Jiang Ding's face.

It wasn't any sophisticated secret technique, just a pure understanding of cultivation and mana. Against a Golden Pill Cultivator, it was more than enough.

Taking out several ore stones, he refined them and produced a substantial half-transparent Sword Qi, shrinking it to the size of a cow's hair needle.

Casually dropping it onto a rock, it adhered and stuck to the surface.

"Within a hundred kilometers, I should be able to sense Mu Tiansnow's aura, and unless she has Nascent Soul level concealment measures, she cannot be exempted," Jiang Ding murmured with his eyes closed, making a judgment.

This was the fate of those who offended high-level cultivators!

Even with numerous restrictions, as long as one remembered, finding loopholes or bypassing them was easy.

He then exhaled Elixir Fire and refined thousands of cow-hair fine needles.

"If you have a Nascent Soul level concealment technique, then I accept it," he said.

Jiang Ding concealed his form, flying in the sky along the border of Chu Country, not stopping along the way, at intervals of seventy to eighty kilometers, he dropped three cow-hair fine needles, also inspecting the livelihood of the kingdoms.

The Three Kingdoms had been at peace for over a century.

It was evident, the population had increased significantly, with each country having several hundred million people, nearly reaching the governance limit of a feudal dynasty. If nothing unexpected occurred, within a few decades, massive uprisings and revolts would happen, leading to the fall of one dynasty and the birth of a new one.

This pattern was almost unavoidable.

Cultivators could intervene, forcibly contravening this natural law, but like a dam, it could be blocked, yet it required the continuous expenses of spirit stones and mobilization of numerous cultivators for mundane management each year.

This was a losing proposition.

Tushan was also similar; in the beginning, Li Qingyun had established the Tu Dynasty due to the suitability of the location, with princes guarding all four boundaries and the state and wilderness systems being implemented side by side. With the increase in population, the elimination of demon beasts and wild beasts in the wilderness, the luxury and decadence of the nobility, and the proliferation of their clans, the system was no longer quite suitable.

There was not enough land for the growing population, and internal corruption was rampant.

Conflicts and contradictions among the people were fierce, with the only restraint being the fear of causing a large number of casualties.

The measures adopted by Tushan Immortal City also included gradually easing control and not imposing restrictions, after all, the Tu Ting wasn't of the bloodline of Tushan Immortal City's City Lord; they were not going to pour spirit stones into this bottomless pit, allowing the annexation and infighting among the princes to run rampant.

The only strict restriction was that they were not to disrupt the mundane order or cause extensive casualties among the populace.

Otherwise, the ruler of that area would be executed without concern for the reasons, who caused it, or who died.

Even going so far as to conduct non-invasive Soul Searching investigations for things such as framing others for murder was something that would only make Foundation-building cultivators laugh.

After spending more than a month, he circled around Chu Country, setting up an elaborate trap. The moment Mu Tiansnow stepped out, she was immediately discoverable.

"This is it; the jurisdiction is vague, how to handle it..."

Just as Jiang Ding was about to return, he halted mid-step.

As his Divine Sense Scanning passed by, there was an auction happening at the border of Chu Country near the side of Chu, gathered with many Golden Pill Cultivators and Foundation-building cultivators, auctioning off items such as Vital Souls, furnace cauldrons, and diabolic magic tools and treasures that Tushan Immortal City explicitly forbade.

...

"The final key item, the Thousand Soul Banner, is acquired by Li," the Gold Pill mid-stage cultivator from Lingbao Commerce Association announced from the stone platform. "Fellow Daoists, if you wish to trade items, you can come up in turn. Our association will only take a fee of ten percent, which can be converted to spirit stones."

This was customary; the Lingbao Commerce Association provided strict security and escape measures, item authentication among other services, and many cultivators showed no surprise, having grown accustomed to it.

Here, more than thirty Golden Pill Monks and nearly a thousand Foundation-building cultivators had gathered, creating a scene of bustling activity.

Although many people disliked it,

they had to admit that many Diabolism treasures, despite being somewhat cruel and carrying the risk of backlash, were undoubtedly attractive due to their relatively low prices and potent powers.

As such, they had a substantial market among cultivators, who were willing to take the risks.

"The finale is just a low-grade magic tool?"

"This doesn't look like what your Lingbao Commerce Association's once-every-twenty-years auction should be like."

A Golden Pill Monk expressed dissatisfaction, stirring up the crowd, "I recall nearly a hundred years ago in Tushan Immortal City, treasures like the blood relative Spiritual Root secret technique, Heavenly Spiritual Root Cauldron, Golden Core Pill, Stage-breaking pill, and others appeared. Now it seems rather lacking."

"Could it be that you are afraid of the Tushan City Lord and don't dare to offer up the real treasures?"

"Right!"

"I have plenty of heavenly material and earthly treasures..."

Many Golden Pill Monks shouted along eagerly.

Stage-breaking pills, secret techniques, Heavenly Spiritual Root Cauldrons, and such were items they desperately desired, capable of advancing their cultivation.

"Esteemed guests, indeed there aren't any,"

said a Golden Pill of the Shang Clan, a scholar without a trace of white on his beardless face, who forced a smile upon hearing the comments, "The Lingbao Commerce Association does not actively seek conflict with the master of any territory, even if it were just a Foundation Building Clan."

"Due to the war in the Northern Plains, treasures have been greatly depleted, and considering this remote location might not need too many precious items, the seniors of the Commerce Association have given much thought... This is beyond my control, so please do not blame me, fellow cultivators."

His words were diplomatic, but the Golden Pill Monks present could read between the lines, and their faces turned a shade uglier.

They were too poor!

Having fled here, their highest cultivation was at the Middle Jindan Stage. The higher-ups of the Lingbao Commerce Association didn't pay much attention to this place. Of course, that was the attitude of the top tier. The next tier down, naturally, paid great attention to it as it related to their cultivation resources.

Unfortunately, their say was limited.

But no one dared to voice any objections, for despite being a commerce association with a seemingly low profile, the Lingbao Commerce Association was a truly prominent force in the Northern Plains with a Patriarch Nascent Soul at the helm, not to be insulted lightly.

"Alas!"

"The foresight of the Shang Clan's ancestors is naturally meticulous,"

sighed a Golden Pill Monk. "I have cultivated in Tushan Immortal City for nearly a hundred years. I've spent a mountainous and oceanic amount of spirit stones over the years with not much income. In fact, my savings are running low."

"Even if there were precious treasures ahead, it would be helpless."

"Alas, what you say is true..."

Other Golden Pill Monks around also sighed, their worry spreading throughout the area like a contagion.

Golden Pill Monks,

they need territories, they need Spiritual Veins, they need sustenance!

Otherwise, they would end up like these monks, consuming their stock without replenishment. Merely relying on Third-Order Symbol Masters, Third-Order Array Masters, Third-Order Refining Masters wasn't impossible, but it also required a vast market.

Tushan Immortal City clearly couldn't satisfy this need; even suitable places for cultivation were numbered merely three or four and extravagantly priced.

In such a small place, overrun with too many Golden Pill cultivators, it was overcrowded. Even if every Golden Pill cultivator was willing to set aside their pride to refine artifacts and draw talismans for Foundation-building cultivators, they wouldn't earn much.

"Since we're struggling with poverty,"

"Why not consider, Tushan Immortal City, what do you think?"

A black-robed Golden Pill monk, his figure concealed, spoke up eerily. "This cultivation region is wealthy, and only one person can truly be called such. We have over forty Golden Pills here; are we really to be afraid?"

Enshrouded with chilly, vengeful spirits of resentment, it was clear he was a cultivator accustomed to living on the edge, unafraid of any reputation.

The surrounding area suddenly became silent.

You could hear a pin drop.

The noisy chatter disappeared, all the Golden Pill monks' eyes filled with deep meanings, glancing at this person.

"*Cough* *Cough*,"

"I have something else to attend to, so I'll take my leave."

"Goodbye for now."

"I plan to take a trip to Yue Country, are there any fellow cultivators who would like to come along? Although Immortal Baimei is known for his rules, after all, it's not Tushan City, it's still good to be prepared."

"Bro Liu, we're willing to accompany you..."

In the blink of an eye, the Golden Pill monks flew away with their escape lights, vanishing without a trace, and the Foundation-building cultivators scattered like birds and beasts, as if there was something terribly fearsome here.