As soon as Xie Zongyuan asked this question, Liu Tao's gaze also followed along.
Zhang Yan smiled lightheartedly and said, "People like us who cultivate to attain immortality have always been a path that goes against the heavens, and difficulties and dangers are all tempering. Since there's a door of convenience before us, how can we not go?"
Xie Zongyuan was overjoyed and said, "Good! Senior brother Zhang is straightforward, then it's a deal. "
Liu Tao said, "However, entering the eye of the devil's cave has some rules, and we can't be too hasty. We still need to make preparations. For example, the female immortal of the Guardian Palace won't let you go for no reason. Everyone needs to pay five hundred spirit shells."
Xie Zongyuan waved his hand and said, "It's just a small number, don't worry about it. Leave it to me."
The Xie family was ranked second among the twelve main families, and Xie Zongyuan was a direct disciple. Thousands of spirit shells were naturally not a problem for him, and he could take in Zhang Yan and Liu Tao. No matter how one looked at it, it was a good deal.
Liu Tao stood up and cupped his hands at Zhang Yan and Xie Zongyuan. He said, "I won't hide it from you two. I know a Daoist friend who has long passed the third level of Clear Qi. Due to his limited talent, he spent three years to condense the Seed of Mysterious Light, but he couldn't break through. This time, he also has the intention to go."
Xie Zongyuan was startled, then said without a care, "Since he's a friend of Senior Brother Liu, he's naturally someone worth befriending. Let's go together. Entering the devil's cave is also dangerous, and one more person means one more force."
Liu Tao smiled and said, "Of course I won't ask Senior Brother Xie to spend money for nothing. This person also comes from the Cold Book. Although his family has long declined, they have a magic treasure passed down from their ancestors, called the Agarwood Boat. It can go thousands of feet deep into the pond, and the eye of the devil's cave is also under the pond. If we hold our breath and go, it will inevitably consume our vital energy. With this boat, we can go there."
Xie Zongyuan said happily, "Good, Senior Brother Liu is very thoughtful. When I return to the clan, I will also ask my clansmen to see if I can get some information about the devil's cave."
He patted the table again and pulled Liu Tao to sit down and drink with him.
After discussing this matter, the three of them let loose and enjoyed the fine wine and delicacies to their heart's content. When they were in high spirits, Zhang Yan saw that the moon was bright in the sky and the tides were surging on the Great Marsh. He waved his hand and a beautiful Yu Ji swam over from the water.
He lowered his head and whispered a few words to her. Beauty Yuji nodded cheerfully, dived into the water, and disappeared.
Xie Zongyuan asked curiously, "What is Senior Brother Zhang doing?"
Zhang Yan smiled and said, "Senior brothers, you will know soon."
Not long after, the surrounding waters suddenly lit up with a brilliant brilliance. Specks of light floated up and down in the water as they flickered. Xie Zongyuan and Long Tao glanced over, and they felt as if they were floating on a boat in the Milky Way. When they looked carefully, it turned out that over a hundred Yu Ji beauties had floated up to the surface of the water together, and each of them held a shining pearl in their hands that reflected the bright moon in the sky.
Xie Zongyuan's eyes lit up. He hit the wine cup with his chopsticks and praised, "Wonderful, wonderful, this scene deserves a jug." After saying that, he rolled up his sleeves, raised his head, and poured the jug of wine into his mouth.
Liu Tao sighed and said, "This must be the scenery of the Water Country, the 'Yu Ji holding the pearl'. I didn't expect to see it in the sect today. Hmph, if we let Zhuang Bu Fan do as he pleases, I'm afraid we won't be able to see such a wonderful scene."
Xie Zongyuan glared at him with dissatisfaction and said, "There is a beautiful scenery in front of us, why did Senior Brother Liu mention him? Drinking as punishment!"
Liu Tao smiled and drank the wine in one gulp.
The three of them swam until late into the night, both the host and the guest were happy.
After deciding on a date for their next meeting, Zhang Yan sent Long Tao away but asked Xie Zongyuan to stay behind.
He cupped his hands and said, "Senior Brother Xie, I have a favor to ask of you."
Xie Zongyuan said with emotion, "Junior Brother, you don't have to be so polite, please speak."
Zhang Yan took out a book and placed it on the table, "This book is called the 'Red Cloud Red Flame Scroll'. Wang Pan lost to me in a duel that day and I plan to return it to the Wang Clan. I am willing to swear that I won't spread it, so I hope Senior Brother Xie can be a middleman."
Xie Zongyuan glanced at the book and stopped smiling. He nodded slightly and said, "What do you want, Junior Brother?" His mind was clear. Zhang Yan naturally wouldn't return the book to the Wang Clan for no reason. If he wanted to return it, he would have returned it long ago. Therefore, he must have a plan.
Zhang Yan said, "I want a good fire-attribute cloud sand."
Xie Zongyuan chuckled and said, "It's just a cloud sand. Senior Brother, you don't have to worry. It won't be difficult for me to handle this matter. I'll have a reply in two or three days."
He didn't ask Zhang Yan what he wanted the fire-attribute cloud sand for. In his opinion, these were all minor details. Moreover, everyone had their own secrets, so he definitely wouldn't ask what he shouldn't ask.
After a few more words, Xie Zongyuan bid farewell and left.
Zhang Yan didn't return to his cave abode either. He poured himself a cup of wine and drank by himself, but he was thinking about Liu Tao.
Liu Tao coming here today shouldn't have been a spur of the moment idea. He must have planned this a long time ago. However, the people he wanted to rope in were all useful for entering the Devil's Cave. His friend had a treasure boat, Xie Zongyuan had wealth and connections, and his own cultivation level wasn't high. In the eyes of others, he didn't have much wealth, so why did he seem to care so much about whether he could go or not?
However, he could also see that although this person was scheming, he didn't have any evil intentions. It was just that he couldn't let his guard down. After all, this trip to the Devil's Cave was very risky, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he had a slim chance of survival. He also needed to make sufficient preparations so that he wouldn't be caught off guard.
He thought to himself, 'Senior Brother Zhou has been in the sect for more than two hundred years, so he must know some things about the Devil's Cave. Why don't I go and ask him tomorrow?'
After making up his mind, he got up and returned to his cave abode to meditate.
The next day, when the sky was just beginning to turn white, he took a bath and changed his clothes. Then, he boarded a flying boat and went to Danding Courtyard to see Zhou Chongju. He told him about his plan to go to the Devil's Cave.
"What? You want to go to the Sea's Eye Devil's Cave to cultivate? "
After hearing this news, Zhou Chongju frowned, as if he had something difficult to do. He stood up and paced back and forth in the pavilion. Then, he stood still and turned his head to say, "Junior Brother, let me ask you. That day, the Cloud Sand that Yan Gongzhen bestowed upon you belonged to what?"
Yan Gongzhen was Zhenren Yan's real name. Zhang Yan had never heard of it, but he knew who he was talking about. He immediately answered, "It's a Gold Cloud Sand."
Zhou Chongju sneered and said, "I knew he was a very narrow-minded person. You've offended his disciple, so how could he be so kind?"
He looked at Zhang Yan again and said, "Junior Brother, don't blame me for knowing his intentions but not telling you. I have other plans, so I'm not afraid of him playing tricks on you. But if you go to the Sea's Eye Devil's Cave now, it'll be a little troublesome."
Zhang Yan said sincerely, "Senior Brother naturally won't harm me. What kind of trouble is it?"
"Yes." Zhou Chongju nodded and said, "Now I won't hide it from you. When the senior left, he passed on a Five Direction Five Element Taixuan True Light. This is not a cultivation technique, but a technique left behind by the Taixuan Sect ten thousand years ago. It is said to be very powerful, and he wanted me to give it to the person with great luck. Thus, in the past two hundred years, I haven't looked through it."
Pausing, he sighed again. "It wasn't until you entered the Dan Ding Pavilion that I took it out and flipped through it. I found that there was a key step. You need to find the Five Element Cloud Sand before the Mystic Light Realm and form a Xuan seed. I originally wanted you to cultivate in peace and then slowly find it and give it to you. That day, when Yan Gongzhen gave you the Cloud Sand, I was happy to see it happen."
Hearing this, Zhang Yan couldn't help but understand. His talent was obviously not high, and he had never revealed that he was cultivating the Taiyi Golden Book. He didn't know why Zhou Chongju always had so much confidence in him. Now, it seemed that not only did he believe in the judgment of the senior, but he also had this technique, so he was very confident.
"It's just that man proposes, God disposes. I didn't think that you were planning to go cultivate in the Demonic Cave. Right now, I only have three Cloud Sand on me."
Zhou Chongju raised his hand and took out three brocade boxes from his sleeve. He placed them on the table and opened them. He took out three Cloud Sand each. He pointed at one of them. It was a dark green Cloud Sand and said, "This is the Wood Cloud Sand. I obtained it by chance in the herb garden fifty years ago. Its quality is very good."
He then pointed at the other one and said, "This is the Metal Cloud Sand. I obtained it recently, but compared to the one Yan Gongzhen gave you, it's probably much worse. Don't mention it."
Then he reached out and picked up the last one. He said, "This is the Earth Cloud Sand. I bought it recently, but the quality is much worse. It's a bit ugly."
The amount of Earth Cloud Sand in this world was the highest. Even in the mortal world, there was a lot of it. Unfortunately, the quality of Earth Cloud Sand was the hardest to obtain. Zhou Chongju, as the monastery head of the Dan Ding Pavilion, couldn't find it in such a short period of time.
Zhang Yan smiled and said, "Everything is difficult in this world. Having it is better than not having it. Senior apprentice-brother, you don't need to be so demanding."
Zhou Chongju nodded slightly and then sighed. "But I'm still missing two. One is the Water Cloud Sand and the other is the Fire Cloud Sand."
Zhang Yan thought for a moment and said, "I have a way to find the Fire Cloud Sand. But I don't know where to find the Fire Cloud Sand."
Hearing this, Zhou Chongju suddenly became spirited. He asked, "Oh, you can find the Fire Cloud Sand? How confident are you? "
Zhang Yan thought for a moment and said, "Eighty to ninety percent."
"Good, good, good!" Zhou Chongju said the word 'good' three times. His eyes flashed. "Do you still remember the Clear Nether Lake I told you about last time?"
"Of course I remember. But that time, I had already reached Clear Nether Mountain. Because I encountered a demon, I was forcefully brought back by Zhuang Bufan."
Zhou Chongju said in a low voice, "Then you need to go again. A thousand feet below the Clear Nether Lake, there is that Cloud Sand."
…
…
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
