Chapter 328: Descending the Mountain to Search for Treasure
"Your friend is gone, so let go of me right now!"
Hearing the embarrassed and annoyed voice, Zhang Fan suddenly realized what was happening and quickly let go of her hand, repeatedly saying to Tian Ling'er, "Senior Sister, I didn't mean to. I was just afraid that you would accidentally hurt A-Ling."
Seeing that Li Ling had already disappeared, and then glancing at Zhang Fan who looked dazed, Tian Ling'er angrily stepped on his foot and yelled, "You big idiot! My mother, your good friend is even more capable than me!"
Wan felt a little afraid to see Zhang Fan again, so she turned around and rushed out of the courtyard, leaving Zhang Fan standing there in a daze.
As for Li Ling on the other side, he was refreshed and thought to himself, "Fan, I've done right by you. Not only did I give you my precious pills, but I also deliberately sowed discord between Qi Hao and created an opportunity for you."
"If you live up to expectations, you will be able to marry your first love, a beautiful and wealthy woman, make great progress in your cultivation, and reach the pinnacle of life. That would be a reward for the kindness you showed me by giving me the 'Great Brahma Prajna'."
Upon returning to Dragon Head Peak, Li Ling resumed his seclusion. After all, having just obtained the "Great Brahma Prajna," it would be a disservice to himself not to properly study and cultivate it.
The disciples of Dragon Head Peak were used to Li Ling's frequent seclusion. Most of them had only heard of Li Ling as their junior brother, but because Li Ling had spent most of the past two years in seclusion, he had become a legend of Dragon Head Peak.
Everyone knows that Master Cangsong has taken in such an outstanding disciple, but apart from Qi Hao, there are very few senior brothers who have actually met and talked with Li Ling. His cultivation speed and enthusiasm have become the topic of conversation among these senior brothers.
Time flies when cultivating immortality. Another half year passed in this way. Li Ling's "Taiji Xuanqing Dao" naturally entered the fifth level of Yuqing, and even approached the sixth level. "Da Fan Prajna" was also at a similar level.
At this point, Li Ling felt that his cultivation had reached a certain level, so he asked Cangsong for permission to travel.
"You want to travel?" Cangsong frowned as he looked at Li Ling. Qingyun Sect disciples all had the custom of traveling outside to seek opportunities and magical treasures once they reached the fourth level of the Jade Purity Realm.
Of course, this is not only for finding magical treasures, but also to let disciples experience the ways of the world and be tempered in the mortal realm.
Generally speaking, most of the disciples of Qingyun Sect who can enter the fourth level are in their twenties, and those who progress faster are around sixteen or seventeen. As masters, they can let them consolidate their cultivation for one or two years, and it is just right for them to go down the mountain at this age.
However, Li Ling is only fourteen or fifteen years old. According to common opinion, his temperament is not yet settled, and it is not a good time for him to go down the mountain alone. However, Li Ling's cultivation has already reached the fifth level of Jade Purity, so it would not be appropriate for Cangsong to refuse.
After a moment's thought, Cangsong said, "A-Ling, you already have the Nine Divine Weapons Dragon Slaying Sword, so you no longer need to go down the mountain to look for opportunities. Moreover, there are less than four years until the 'Seven Veins Martial Arts Tournament,' so you should focus on your cultivation and wait to achieve a good result in the tournament."
“Master, I have been feeling lately that there is an opportunity waiting for me in the dark, and I cannot concentrate on my cultivation. That is why I want to go down the mountain and travel around.”
Li Ling's reason is quite sophisticated. The first four levels of "Taiji Xuanqing Dao" are actually for building a foundation. After that, in addition to hard work, one also needs opportunities and comprehension. Therefore, most disciples' progress slows down after reaching the fourth level.
The reason why Li Ling has been able to make rapid progress is not only due to his own talent and the speed of his cultivation, but also because his understanding of the 'Dao' has prevented him from encountering any bottlenecks to this day.
However, Li Ling was aware of his own situation, but Cang Song was unaware of it. Therefore, he was already quite surprised that Li Ling was able to break through to the fifth level so quickly. Now that Li Ling was looking for opportunities, Cang Song's first thought was that his disciple was probably favored by the local people and had extremely good fortune.
Li Ling sensed something, which seemed to be true, so after thinking for a while, he agreed.
With Cangsong's consent, Li Ling began preparing to descend the mountain. Upon returning to his room, Li Ling waved his hand, and eight precious swords appeared before him.
This is a precious sword that Li Ling forged over the past two years, referencing the eight treasured swords of the Famous Sword Manor.
The original eight swords were forged from precious materials collected by the ancestors of the Famous Sword Manor. However, while those materials were rare in the world of "Young Zhang Sanfeng", they were very common in the world of "Zhu Xian".
Over the course of two years, Li Ling collected these materials, each possessing different properties, and forged these eight famous swords. Of course, to be fair, the materials used in these swords were far inferior to those used in the Dragon Slayer Sword.
Moreover, due to Li Ling's insufficient sword-forging skills and abilities, these swords can at most be considered magical swords with a slight spiritual quality, and cannot be considered flying swords. During this trip, Li Ling had the idea of reforging these eight swords.
After carefully wiping each of the eight magic swords, Li Ling also took out the Dragon Slayer Sword. Looking at the nine precious swords, another thought popped into his mind. After pondering for a while, he put all the swords away, thinking to himself, "I can go down the mountain tomorrow."
...
The next morning, Li Ling took out the Dragon-Slaying Sword, and with a chilling blue light, it transformed into a streak of light and rushed down the mountain.
Before leaving, Cangsong also specially passed on the cultivation methods for the next six to nine levels to Li Ling. After all, Li Ling's power was already at the fifth level and he was not far from breaking through, so Cangsong simply passed on the cultivation methods for the next few levels to him.
With Li Ling's current sword-riding speed, it only took half an hour to leave the towering, misty Qingyun Mountain and land in the 'Heyang City' at the foot of the mountain!
There was no way around it! The world of Zhu Xian was completely different from the worlds he had been in before. Worlds like 'Special Forces,' 'A Better Tomorrow,' and 'Young Zhang Sanfeng' were all parallel worlds of Earth, with similar place names and locations. But 'Zhu Xian' was a completely fictional world, utterly unfamiliar to Li Ling.
Li Ling's purpose in descending the mountain this time was to obtain the 'Mysterious Fire Mirror' and the first volume of the "Book"! These were currently the only things he could acquire.
As for the Xuanhuo Mirror, with my current cultivation level, I don't have enough spiritual power to wield it. I estimate that I'll run out of spiritual power soon. So, I should first get my hands on the first volume of the book and improve my cultivation level before doing so.
Unfortunately, the original text only mentions that the first volume of the book is located at Mount Kongsang, three thousand li east of Heyang City. This location is quite vague, so Li Ling will need to put in a lot of effort to find it.
When Li Ling first descended the mountain, he found a set of clothes typical of wealthy young men, which he had already changed into when he left Qingyun Sect.
This is also why Li Ling didn't want to reveal his identity as a Qingyun Sect disciple. After all, Heyang City is not far from the Qingyun Sect, and many people in the city have seen Qingyun Sect disciples and are familiar with their attire.
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Chapter 329: Zhou Yixian's Awkward Moment
Heyang City is the largest and most prosperous town within a hundred miles of the foot of Qingyun Mountain, with a population of at least 100,000. With the addition of passing travelers and merchants, it is bustling with activity every day.
Looking at the bustling market next to him, Li Ling stepped into the largest restaurant in Heyang City, 'Shanhaiyuan'.
In Li Ling's memory, this was the place where Zhang Fan and Bi Yao first met in the original novel!
After casually ordering a few excellent dishes, Li Ling took out a bottle of his own brewed wine from his storage bag and poured himself a drink.
The aroma of the fine wine attracted the attention of many guests, including the second one. One person even dared to approach, but was scared away by a murderous glare from Li Ling.
After a satisfying meal, Li Ling called over the waiter to pay the bill, but then took out a piece of silver from his pocket and said, "Let me ask you a question. If you can answer it, this is yours. How about it?"
"Hey, sir, just ask away. There's nothing in Heyang City that I don't know!" The shopkeeper's eyes lit up at the sight of the silver, and his smile instantly brightened.
Li Ling tossed the silver in his hand and asked his question: "Hmm! Then let me ask you, have you ever heard of Mount Kongsang?"
"Kongsang Mountain?" The shopkeeper frowned and thought for a long time before saying, "Sir, there are many people coming and going in our Heyang City, and I have heard of many places, but I have never heard of such a strange mountain name as Kongsang Mountain."
"Never heard of it even once?" Despite not having high hopes, Li Ling couldn't help but sigh slightly.