Six months later.
Baochuanfang City.
Fang Xiyi, disguised as a hunchbacked old man, walked out of Longmen Pavilion with a proud expression on his face.
Behind him, Zhong Wangu respectfully saw him off.
During this time, he had been constantly disguising himself as various people, handling materials related to the remaining seven great demon kings of Dingzhou such as Old One-Eye and Great Peng King.
Incidentally, he also spent time in Longmen Pavilion in different appearances.
"The Ten Thousand Beast Body," the heritage of talisman-making, and others were all acquired.
After all, after planting trees, he would have to stay in one place for many years, so all necessary preparations had to be made.
Thinking of the "Ten Thousand Beast Body," Fang Xiyi's expression turned somewhat gloomy.
This orthodox immortal body refining technique was not only extremely difficult but also consumed quite a terrifying amount of resources.
This technique had four levels!
To cultivate the first level, one needed to spend dozens of spirit stones on resources, and after cultivation, one would be equivalent to a first-level cultivator in the Qi Refining stage.
But for the second level, it required over a hundred pieces of medicinal soup made from spirit stones, as well as various demon beast blood to temper the body.
The third level required close to a thousand spirit stones and could cultivate the "Beast Transformation Secret Technique," but not only was it difficult, it was also very easy to fall into demonic ways.
As for the final fourth level...
"To actually require the blood essence of a specific second-order demon beast... How am I supposed to get my hands on that?"
"And the amount of resources it consumes is outrageous. No wonder body cultivators are all poor! Nearly a thousand spirit stones for the third level, what about the fourth level?"
"I cultivated the Primordial True Qi to 'Qi Permeating All Around,' and the total cost of the pills I consumed didn't exceed two hundred spirit stones!"
Fang Xiyi thought somewhat dejectedly.
Fortunately, he purchased this body refining technique solely for reference with the Primordial True Qi.
With a significant amount of research on the "True Gang Manifestation" from the Grandmaster Association and his own insights into the four levels of body refining techniques, Fang Xiyi also had some ideas for the future breakthroughs in his own Primordial True Qi.
"But I should visit Longmen Pavilion less in the future... Even though I've tried to extend my visits as much as possible, it's still a bit conspicuous..."
After wandering around the city for a few rounds and confirming that he wasn't being followed, Fang Xiyi left Baochuanfang City.
After reverting to his original appearance, he changed direction, stepped on the "Green Wheat Sword," and quietly flew back to his cave residence.
At the entrance of the cave residence, a sound transmission talisman was floating by the door, emitting a faint spiritual light.
"Hmm?"
Fang Xiyi's expression changed, and he reached out to grab the sound transmission talisman.
After injecting a bit of mana, the voice of the old wood daoist came through: "Friend Fang... The gathering is about to begin, please come to the teahouse tomorrow."
"It seems... the old wood daoist has found another way?"
Fang Xiyi appeared thoughtful.
The next day.
Inside the private room of the teahouse.
Fang Xiyi entered and found several people already seated.
Naturally, he knew the old wood daoist, and besides him, there were three other cultivators, one man and two women.
One of the female cultivators, with an ordinary appearance, was dressed in a peach-colored palace dress, with two silver bells wrapped around her left wrist.
The other man and woman seemed intimate, like a daoist couple.
"Everyone, this is Friend Fang Xiyi!"
The old wood daoist introduced the three people to Fang Xiyi with a smile and then said to Fang Xiyi, "This is Ruan Xingling, a first-grade artifact refiner. These two are Wei Yixin and Hua Chuanjuan, a virtuous couple!"
"Greetings to all!"
Fang Xiyi smiled gently, sat down, and discreetly observed the three people.
Ruan Xingling was at the seventh level of Qi Refining, and being an artifact refiner in the later stages of Qi Refining, she was considered the highest among them in terms of status and identity, sitting in the main seat.
She had an ordinary appearance, but her fair and delicate skin exuded a gentle and graceful aura, like a small piece of jade.
In fact, the higher the cultivation level of cultivators, the more they underwent body refinement and enhancement through their cultivation techniques, resulting in them being mostly handsome or beautiful.
Especially with breakthroughs in higher realms, they could achieve effects similar to cosmetic surgery.
However, some cultivators went against the norm and deliberately preserved or even downplayed their appearance to show their dedication to the Dao and avoid personal matters.
Compared to her, Hua Chuanjuan had charming eyes and a lovely smile, surpassing Ruan Xingling in appearance, but lacking in temperament.
Both Hua Chuanjuan and Wei Yixin were at the fifth level of Qi Refining. Wei Yixin, dressed in black, had a cold and resolute demeanor, showing that he was a determined individual.
"Everyone..."
The old wood daoist looked around and then spoke with a smile, "I won't beat around the bush. I invited you all here today because of the request from Friend Wei and Friend Hua. Finally, there is progress... Ruan Friend, what do you think of these three?"
Ruan Xingling nodded and said slowly, "Friend Old Wood, I trust your introductions. These three friends are all in the middle stage of Qi Refining, and their cultivation is barely enough... but it seems like one person is missing!"
The old wood daoist maintained his smile, "How about me, Friend Ruan? To be honest... I also have the urge to make a move! If Friend Old Wood is willing to take action, I have no problem."
Ruan Xingling seemed to think of something, a hint of joy flashing across her face.
"Cough... Friend Old Wood, what is this all about?" Fang Xiyi had some guesses but still furrowed his brow discontentedly.
"Hehe, I neglected to mention... Friend Fang, you've always wanted a large spiritual land for cultivation, right?" The old wood daoist's voice carried a hint of respect, "This Friend Ruan is the Mistress of Peach Blossom Island!"
"Peach Blossom Island?"
Fang Xiyi was taken aback, then recalled the geographical map of Wan Dao Lake, vaguely remembering it as one of the thirty-six islands.
But the island's master seemed to be surnamed Lu, not Ruan.
"Friend Old Wood, you flatter me. I'm just a stray dog..." Ruan Xingling forced a wry smile.
After the old wood daoist explained further, Fang Xiyi understood the situation.
This Ruan Xingling was the daughter of the former master of Peach Blossom Island.
There was a first-grade spiritual vein on Peach Blossom Island, discovered and occupied by the ancestors of the Ruan family hundreds of years ago. Over generations, they had formed a small family of Qi Refining cultivators—the Ruan family of Peach Blossom Island!
However, decades ago, the Ruan family's bloodline was thin, with several generations lacking spiritual root talent, and after the elder of the Ruan family in the later stages of Qi Refining passed away, the family suffered repeated calamities, losing several Qi Refining cultivators.
Seeing this situation, one of the guest cultivators, a cultivator surnamed Lu, conspired with others to rebel, nearly wiping out the entire Ruan family and openly taking over the entire island.
Fortunately, within the Ruan family, there was still a direct bloodline remaining, which was Ruan Xingling.
At the time of the family's crisis, this woman was traveling outside, only in the early stages of Qi Refining, and could only leave with tears, leaving her homeland behind.
It wasn't until her recent breakthrough to the later stages that she harbored thoughts of revenge and returned to Wan Dao Lake.
"After the matter is settled, Ruan Fairy is willing to share Peach Blossom Island with us. The Wei couple is tired of fighting and wants to retire to the countryside, establish a family. Peach Blossom Island has two peaks and a lake, so one peak will be given to the Wei couple, and I will take another peak without hesitation. As for Ruan Fairy, she will naturally preside over the main vein, Mirror Moon Lake, as the Mistress of Peach Blossom Island!"
The old wood daoist looked at Fang Xiyi with a smile, "As for Friend Fang... Peach Blossom Island also has a 'Jade Cliff,' a branch of the first-grade spiritual vein on the island. Although the quality of spiritual energy is not top-notch, there is enough space to cultivate over a dozen acres of spiritual fields. Ruan Fairy is willing to lease it to you for a hundred years, without asking for spirit stones, as long as you lend a helping hand this time."
After hearing the old wood daoist's words, Fang Xiyi was speechless.
"So, being at the fourth level of Qi Refining means nothing? Am I just a filler? You all think you're superior just because your cultivation levels are higher than mine? Do you want to try me in a fight? I can take you down with one hand!"
However, soon his mood calmed down, and he carefully weighed the pros and cons of the whole situation.
This kind of matter could be easily verified with a little inquiry, so Ruan Xingling's identity as the former Mistress of Peach Blossom Island should be genuine.
At this moment, Fang Xiyi even felt a bit of relief:
"That was close. I almost fell for that Lu guy's script..."
"This is a lesson. In the future, when eliminating enemies, I must eradicate them completely, or there will be endless troubles!"
"However, a hundred-year lease on a second-rate spiritual land is indeed not bad. It's worth making a move this time!"
"Wait a minute..."
Fang Xiyi looked at the old wood daoist, "Friend Old Wood, are you also going to help?"
"Yes..." The old wood daoist smiled bitterly, "I've heard that you've been persistent about this. I've also had some thoughts myself. Being able to be an island master, farming and fishing, living freely, is much better than relying on an old face to scrape by in the city. Besides... I'm nearing the end of my life, so I have to consider future generations."
Fang Xiyi secretly despised this old guy and then asked Ruan Xingling, "Friend Ruan... When that Lu surname was acting tyrannical, didn't you appeal? Or did the Thirty-Six Islands Alliance turn a blind eye?"
Ruan Xingling answered with a bitter smile, "The structure of the Thirty-Six Islands Alliance is loose, and there are even deep-seated grudges between members... Mutual attacks are common, as long as it's not the Longyu Zhong family coming to attack, everything is fine...
Back then, my Ruan family had a few relatives, but after that Lu surname seized our resources, he quickly broke through to the later stages of Qi Refining and forcibly married a distant female member of the Ruan family, becoming the island master. The Feng family of Baiyu Island and the Mo family of Black Sand Island didn't intervene..."
"It's truly a twisted and bizarre story..."
Fang Xiyi sighed and silently commented in his heart: 'The temple is small, but the demons are rampant, and the water is shallow with many turtles...'
"Today, please help me seek revenge. I, Ruan Fairy, am willing to make a vow of the heart demon. I will fulfill my previous promise and make it happen."
Ruan Xingling stood up and bowed gracefully to the others.
As she moved, the bells hanging from her hand jingled, making everyone's minds inexplicably calm.
"Please rest assured, we cultivators have an obligation to eliminate evil and promote good!"
Wei Yixin was the first to promise.
"The old daoist will also lend a helping hand!"
The old wood daoist spoke with a fierce aura, "To be honest... I have some connections in the Thirty-Six Islands. With Ruan Fairy seeking revenge as the direct bloodline, as long as we kill that Lu surname, no one can say anything!"
"What about the strength of the Peach Blossom Island bandits now?" Fang Xiyi, the last one, asked somewhat awkwardly.
"That 'Lu Jingqing' broke through to the eighth level of Qi Refining a few years ago and has four mid-level Qi Refining cultivators under him..."
Ruan Xingling truthfully reported, "When the time comes, Lu Jingqing will be handed over to me, and I'll have to ask you all to deal with his subordinates!"
(End of this chapter)