"Fortune is as tangible as substance; this small cup can change the fate of an ordinary person," Zhao Xing gazed at the Fortune Golden Cup.
The increase in Fortune should manifest in different aspects.
It could be in romantic fortune, where one suddenly encounters an outstanding opposite sex, who, despite being blind to their own merits, insists on marrying down.
Or it could be in financial fortune, where one accumulates wealth within a few years that would have been difficult to obtain in a lifetime.
There is also the possibility of meeting a benefactor, becoming a support in governance, and being promoted along the way.
What if it were a cultivator? Then it would be the classic case of finding treasure in a garbage heap, picking up a great deal at an auction, encountering a master for guidance, or acquiring divine skills after jumping off a cliff.
It can be said that Fortune influences all aspects of life; aside from lifespan, what Zhao Xing desires most is 'Fortune.'
"This small cup can elevate my Fortune from the First Level to the Second Level, but I am already at the Second Level of Fortune, so I shouldn't reach the Third Level."
Zhao Xing brought the cup to his nose and took a gentle sniff.
The Fortune within the golden cup instantly vanished.
The cup transformed into an ordinary stone cup.
"The feeling of my heartbeat quickening has disappeared; everything is normal." Zhao Xing looked at the panel, and indeed, as he had estimated, there was no breakthrough; he remained at the Second Level.
The path of Fortune is mysterious and profound, the most enigmatic and the hardest to enhance, so Zhao Xing was not surprised.
"To advance from the Second Level to the Third Level, I probably need to obtain two more high-quality Spiritual Beauties." Zhao Xing casually tossed the dull stone cup onto the ground and walked out of the cave.
Although he did not advance to the Third Level, having gained a small cup of Fortune, he would undoubtedly experience good luck next; he just didn't know in which aspect.
"Hmm?" As Zhao Xing stepped out of the cave, he felt a sense of emptiness in his heart, reluctant to leave, as if he was about to miss a great opportunity.
"Meow~" The mountain cat rubbed against Zhao Xing in confusion, wondering why he had stopped.
"Little mountain cat, is there anything good left in the cave?" Zhao Xing asked.
The mountain cat nodded and then shook its little head.
"Is there or isn't there? Forget it... I'll go in and take a look myself."
Having just obtained a cup of Fortune, and with good luck about to arrive, he naturally wouldn't let this feeling go to waste.
Returning to the cave, he searched all four branching paths thoroughly.
After searching for a full hour, Zhao Xing found nothing unusual.
"Strange, I searched all four paths in the cave and found nothing, yet as soon as I step out of the cave, that feeling of reluctance appears."
"Could it be my illusion? Am I placing too much faith in the effects of Fortune?" Zhao Xing began to doubt himself.
He re-entered the cave and approached the Ice Lotus Pool.
"Could it be them? But these three Ice Lotuses are far from mature; even being this close, I don't feel any surge of inspiration."
Being close to Spiritual Beauties should evoke a strong feeling, yet Fortune feels relatively vague.
"No, it's not them."
Zhao Xing did not pluck the immature Spiritual Beauties; destroying the Spiritual Beauties that the heavens had yet to fully nurture would bring misfortune.
At that moment, the mountain cat tugged at Zhao Xing's pant leg.
"Hmm?" Zhao Xing looked down.
He saw that the mountain cat had picked up the stone cup he had discarded at some point, seemingly wanting to play with it.
"This broken cup is useless now; why are you picking it up? Go away, I don't have time to play right now," Zhao Xing said irritably.
"Meow meow~" The little mountain cat looked a bit wronged.
"Ah, I'm not scolding you... Alright, alright, let's play." Zhao Xing picked up the stone cup, intending to throw it outside.
However, as soon as he picked it up, Zhao Xing raised an eyebrow.
At that moment, he suddenly felt a sense of 'peace of mind.'
"Could it be this?"
Logically, the Fortune had already vanished, and this was just an ordinary stone cup.
Zhao Xing examined it closely, finding no peculiarities.
"Little mountain cat, let's go."
With a thought, Zhao Xing exited the cave.
This time, he moved far away from the cave and did not experience that feeling of 'loss' again.
"It really is it!"
Zhao Xing happily rubbed the mountain cat's head; although he still didn't know what use it had, there was no doubt that this time the mountain cat had made a significant contribution.
"Want to play? No problem, but just the two of us isn't fun; let's find someone else, I guarantee you'll have plenty of fun."
After Zhao Xing and the mountain cat left, a figure riding a bamboo horse watched from a distance.
He gazed at the backs of the person and the cat, a hint of confusion flashing in his eyes, before quickly rushing into the cave.
At the first watch of the tiger hour, the people at the Temple of Divinity gradually dispersed.
The last wave of incense offerings had been released, and the temple doors closed once more.
Everyone began their new day in search of Spiritual Beauties.
However, the effects of offering incense gradually diminished; those who came later were destined to rely on luck.
Some people quickly patrolled the mountains, attempting to seize others' opportunities.
In an instant, sounds of battle erupted all over the mountain.
On a certain cliff, there was a small tree that sparkled with vitality, bearing three purple fruits that were crystal clear.
However, the small tree was quite inconspicuous, growing in a crevice, and its fruits were obscured by dense leaves, making them hard to spot.
"Clang!" Qin Feng drove his knife into the rock, using it for leverage to leap upward for a distance.
"Zizi~" The knife got stuck in the crevice and suddenly slipped down, causing rocks to tumble, and Qin Feng followed suit.
"Be careful, Brother Qin!"
"Brother Qin!"
Three companions below exclaimed in alarm.
Qin Feng quickly drew the dagger from his waist and stabbed it into the cliff again, finally halting his descent.
He found a foothold and managed to stabilize himself.
"Clang~"
The stones fell, shattering into pieces.
Qin Feng glanced down and couldn't help but break into a sweat.
If he fell, he would likely end up like the stones, shattered to pieces.
"This place is quite treacherous; the higher I go, the greater the resistance. You all should be careful too," Qin Feng called down.
"I can feel it," a companion replied, "In other places, I could easily jump seven or eight meters high, but now, even with all my strength, I can only jump one or two meters."
"Heavy cliff, what a heavy cliff; this place is too dangerous. I jumped down from three meters earlier, and my feet hurt from the impact." Another person, still shaken, seemed hesitant.
"Keep it up; the harder it is, the more it proves that the treasures above are rare. It might even be a mid-grade Spiritual Beauty!" Qin Feng licked his lips.
"Alright, I'm coming; Brother Qin, pull me up."
"Okay."
Although their climbing speed was slow, the four of them worked together to conquer the over two hundred-meter-high cliff.
"My heart is racing! It must be a mid-grade Spiritual Beauty!" Qin Feng looked at the small tree that was within reach, his face revealing a greedy expression.
"Brother Qin, how many fruits does the small tree have?" someone below asked.
"There are three!" Qin Feng replied with a smile.
"Hurry and pick them from the cliff; it's hard to breathe up here."
"Sure."
Naturally, they couldn't consume the fruits on the cliff, as mid-grade Spiritual Beauties that increase vital Qi require meditation to absorb, and as for comprehending the law? That requires a secluded place.
On a heavy cliff where even standing on tiptoes is difficult, who would dare to consume Spiritual Beauties?
The four began to slowly descend.
The process of going down was also somewhat perilous, but fortunately, no one was injured in the end.
They safely reached the ground.
"We're on the ground," Qin Feng panted, looking at his three companions, a strange thought arising in his heart.
Three fruits, but there were four of them; how to divide them?
Since they couldn't split them evenly, wouldn't it be better for him to take them all?
"Brothers, let's divide the fruits," Qin Feng walked over, unconsciously gripping the hilt of his knife.
"Hahaha, timing is everything; Brother Qin, what a coincidence..." At that moment, a voice came from the woods, and several straw men appeared carrying a chair, on which sat a smiling young man.
He pointed ahead, "Brother Qin, there are four of you, but only three fruits; why not hand them over to me, to avoid your brotherhood from turning against each other."
"What?" Qin Feng was instantly stunned, recognizing the familiar voice.
He was just about to make a move when, before he could act, a shadow rushed over.
In the next moment, Qin Feng felt a numbness in his wrist, and the three fruits slipped from his grasp.
Looking again, they had vanished, appearing in Zhao Xing's hand.
"You, you..." Qin Feng wanted to stab this person's handsome face; how could he be so unscrupulous, robbing him again and exposing his thoughts?
"Brother Qin, I helped you resolve the crisis; why not say a word of thanks? Are the people from Lake City Martial Division so ungrateful?" Zhao Xing said with a smile.
"I..." Qin Feng glared at him, filled with anger, cursing inwardly. The other three also recognized Zhao Xing as the 'senior' who had previously beaten them, and although they had been robbed, they dared not voice their anger.
"Thank you!" Qin Feng gritted his teeth, forcing out a smile that looked worse than crying.
"You're welcome; I hope to see you again next time," Zhao Xing waved his hand, instructing the straw men to carry him away.
Qin Feng and the others could only watch helplessly, unable to do anything.
What could they do? They simply couldn't defeat him!
Zhao Xing patted the mountain cat in his arms, "See, you took their things, and they still have to thank us. Isn't that fun?"
"Meow!" The mountain cat nodded its little head, indicating it was very happy.
"..." Qin Feng could still hear his voice, feeling so frustrated he wanted to spit blood.
Fun for your eighteen generations of ancestors! I worked hard to obtain that Spiritual Beauty!
"Brother Qin, we have another location we can try our luck at; forget it, forget it." One of the younger brothers saw Qin Feng gripping his knife tightly and couldn't help but advise.
"Right, you're the forty-eighth incense stick, and Seventh Brother is the forty-second; we still have a chance."
Aside from the top ten who would be relocated, the rest would enter and exit as they came. Qin Feng and his group were acting together, and they had more than one location.
"Let's go." Qin Feng had no choice but to regain his confidence and quickly leave for the next location.
East Lake Mountain truly lived up to its reputation as a spiritual mountain; as they headed to the location mentioned by 'Seventh Brother,' they sensed the presence of Spiritual Beauties again.
It was a pond, crystal clear, with two unknown 'eggs' at the bottom, emitting a faint glow.
"Looks like a low-grade Spiritual Beauty?"
"Indeed, my senses tell me the same."
"Is the water deep?"
"Not deep, only seven or eight meters!"
"Is there any danger?"
"I'll throw a stone to test it."
"Plop~"
The stone sank into the pond, and nothing fierce appeared.
The four were instantly overjoyed; their luck was truly good!
Generally speaking, even if one knew the location of Spiritual Beauties, obtaining them would still be challenging.
Like that heavy cliff earlier, climbing up was quite difficult, and there could be dangers.
Now, although it was just a low-grade Spiritual Beauty, there were two, and with no danger, it was practically a gift.
"Seventh Brother has such good luck; the forty-second incense stick has this effect, and it doesn't even require effort."
"Yeah, it's a pity about what Brother Qin discovered..."
"Don't mention that." Qin Feng waved his hand. "Who wants to go down?"
"I'll go."
Soon, someone retrieved the two unknown 'eggs' from the pond.
The joy of obtaining the Spiritual Beauties somewhat dispelled the previous gloom.
However, before they could celebrate, a familiar voice rang out.
"Hahaha, you all truly have a connection with me."
"Very well, I shall resolve another disaster for you!"
Zhao Xing lay back in his chair, grinning as he patted the mountain cat.
With a whoosh, the mountain cat leaped out like lightning.
The Seventh Brother, holding the two eggs, felt a numbness in his wrist and soon discovered the treasures had vanished.
"Damn it, this is too much!" Qin Feng cursed inwardly, instinctively drawing his knife.
"Brother, forget it, forget it..." The other three quickly held Qin Feng back, "Have you forgotten how we were beaten before?"
Seeing that Qin Feng dared to draw his knife, Zhao Xing smiled faintly, "What? I helped you resolve a disaster, and you still don't appreciate it?"
Qin Feng pulled out his knife and turned to Seventh Brother, "Seventh Brother, does my knife look good?"
Seventh Brother: "..."
Having been robbed twice in a row by the same person, Zhao Xing felt that Qin Feng and the others were indeed having terrible luck.
"Perhaps it's not that their luck is bad, but that others' luck has improved, making theirs seem worse by comparison."
"The strong grow stronger; after the first and second nights, the originally similar officials have had their differences widened."
"It’s not just in cultivation; in spells, and even in the mysterious aspects of Fortune."
Without a doubt, Zhao Xing now belonged to the strong!
"After consuming those three fruits, I have already broken through to Gathered Essence Seventh Level. Although my realm isn't among the highest on the mountain, with the little mountain cat, there are very few who can match my combat power." Zhao Xing felt quite pleased.
Before he ascended the mountain, he was only at Gathered Essence Fourth Level, but now, in just two days, he had reached Gathered Essence Seventh Level!
Under normal circumstances, even with decent talent, it would take at least three months.
As for the improvement in spells, that was even more exaggerated; if he hadn't gone up the mountain, reaching this level might have taken a year. After all, following a routine, one couldn't spend all day cultivating, with various mundane matters to attend to.
How could one cultivate so quickly by following a routine?
"Low-grade Spiritual Beauty." Zhao Xing looked at the two eggs, then cracked the shells and sucked in the yolk and egg white.
[You have consumed a low-grade Spiritual Beauty; additional lifespan increased by 1 year.]
[You have consumed a low-grade Spiritual Beauty; additional lifespan increased by 1 year.]
"My additional lifespan has increased by 38 years." Zhao Xing was quite satisfied, "I've made a bit more progress toward my goal of longevity."
"After obtaining a cup of Fortune, I've encountered 'good luck' twice in a row; according to the pattern, there should be another instance of 'good luck' in a short time."
"I wonder where it will be."
Zhao Xing instructed the straw men to carry him as he wandered aimlessly.
"Cousin, after eating this vital Qi Spiritual Beauty, your injuries should have improved, right? Have you made a breakthrough?" On a sheltered slope, Zhang Boran sat on a rock resting.
"Breakthrough? Hmph!" Wen Zhao snorted coldly.
"Could it be that you haven't broken through yet?"
"If it weren't for you, would I have wasted this Spiritual Beauty?" Wen Zhao pointed to his swollen eye socket, "Most of this Spiritual Beauty's effects were used to heal my injuries!"
Zhang Boran stammered, "Cousin, this, this can't be blamed on me; who would have thought that wasteful brat could invite an old official from the Temple?"
"Alas, it's fate." Wen Zhao sighed heavily.
Originally, they had hoped to obtain the location of the third incense stick and find a high-grade Spiritual Beauty.
However, Zhang Boran was interfered with by 'Yuan Bo' and entered as the tenth, far from their expectations.
Only the top five could summon the True Lords to manifest, and those who entered later had little chance of obtaining high-grade Spiritual Beauties.
To be safe, Zhang Boran chose the more certain mid-grade Spiritual Beauties and obtained two locations.
However, after going out, he didn't act immediately but first found Wen Zhao.
After letting Wen Zhao heal his injuries with one of the Spiritual Beauties, he then went to seek the second location.
Without Wen Zhao, he was just an ordinary Gathered Essence Eighth Level warrior; with Wen Zhao, he was stronger than the average Gathered Essence Ninth Level.
Of course, it was safer to act together with his cousin.
Below them was a small valley, where a robust monkey tree grew, bearing many golden chestnuts, but many powerful ape-like beasts guarded it below.
"Cousin, have you rested enough?" Zhang Boran was eager to try; he could sense many treasures in the valley below that attracted him.
"Eastward to the sky's edge, the Qi stirs the universe and settles far."
Wen Zhao chanted, and Zhang Boran immediately felt invigorated, his complexion rosy.
He leaped from the rock and jumped into the valley.
A quarter of an hour later, Zhang Boran reappeared on the hillside.
A blood mark had been scratched on his left shoulder, his hair flying as he ran quickly.
Seeing this, Wen Zhao was greatly alarmed: "How did you lose your knife?"
"Cousin, run! I found a big haul."
Zhang Boran didn't feel sorry at all for losing his battle knife; his arms were bulging, and he was also holding a clay jar sealed with mud.
"The earth from my heart, a distance of a hundred miles!" Wen Zhao chanted, stepping out and appearing a hundred meters away.
Zhang Boran ran with all his might, while behind him, angry roars of pursuit echoed, as many monkeys chased after him from the ground and trees.
The two had no idea how far they ran.
Finally, they no longer heard the cries of the monkeys behind them.
"Okay, okay." Wen Zhao was exhausted.
"Whoosh~" Zhang Boran also stopped.
"We've shaken them off; there's a bamboo grove ahead; let's rest there."
"This bamboo grove is quite tall and dense, perfect for hiding."
"Good." Zhang Boran nodded, and the two headed toward the bamboo grove ahead.
As Zhao Xing waited in the bamboo grove for the Golden Bamboo to mature, he suddenly heard faint sounds.
He got up from his recliner, looking strangely at the two figures ahead.
"Is that... Wen Zhao and Zhang Boran?"
(End of Chapter)