Seeking Fortune and Avoiding Misfortune: Starting from the Celestial Master’s Mansion
Chapter 135: Expandable Opportunities, True Yin Bamboo Core

The old Daoist Huang Sanqian was on the brink of death.

Yet, the eerie intensity and frenzy on his face had vanished.

In his dying moments, his expression was unexpectedly peaceful.

“No… it was I who lost my mind earlier… It was my fault…”

Huang Sanqian looked at Lei Jun and said with difficulty, “May I know your name? Thank you for stopping me…”

Lei Jun nodded gently, then shook his head and answered honestly:

“I really didn’t like what you were doing. But aside from that, another reason is that I won’t allow you to block the Yudai Creek with your Blood River technique for seven days.”

Huang Sanqian froze for a moment, then gave a bitter smile. “You also need Yudai Creek, huh? Heh… Well, no matter how you put it, my life ends here.

Even without you, by forcefully using the heretical Blood River technique to forge my sword, I’d still have violated my Daoist foundation and wouldn’t have succeeded anyway…

If I dared to cross the Heavenly Chasm Tribulation, there wouldn’t be even a sliver of hope… I’d only end up dead without a grave.

It’s just a pity that at the end of my life, I made a mistake and failed to accomplish anything!”

As he spoke, his voice gradually weakened.

Then, the old Daoist’s breath completely ceased.

Lei Jun looked at him and shook his head slightly.

With a wave of his hand, he dealt with Huang Sanqian’s corpse as well.

The Yudai Creek had already been successfully diverted by him.

He did it in a relatively normal manner that didn’t pollute the water source.

Due to Lei Jun’s spell, the creek water gradually began to accumulate.

Lei Jun quietly waited for the three-day period.

The creek needed not only to be temporarily blocked but also restored later.

Otherwise, the Supreme Good Omen would turn into a Moderate Omen.

Sensing no disturbances from the Warding Flag and spirit talismans he left at Xiaoye Peak’s northern side, Lei Jun remained upstream at Yudai Creek.

The trouble caused by Huang Sanqian forced Lei Jun to spend some time cleaning up.

He didn’t want to draw attention, so he simply prevented anyone from approaching the upper stream of Yudai Creek.

A few of the fleeing cultivators returned in less than three days.

However, Lei Jun noticed them early and had his panda scare them away, ensuring they didn’t dare to come closer.

The good news was that no more unexpected incidents occurred.

The escaping cultivators realized that the so-called treasures from an elder’s grotto were Huang Sanqian’s trap.

Because of this, no one would immediately rally friends for another risky attempt.

As foretold by the Supreme Good Omen, Lei Jun’s journey was smooth and uneventful.

He didn’t encounter any actual descendants of the Blood River Sect.

From what Lei Jun deduced, Huang Sanqian, much like Chen Yi, had likely stumbled upon the Blood River Secret Arts by accident.

The old Daoist had gambled everything, hoping the Blood River technique could help him forge a magical weapon to break through his cultivation bottleneck.

Unfortunately, this was destined to be a delusion.

Chen Yi might have had deeper secrets, but his cultivation in the Blood River technique was merely a hidden ace for combat.

His main Daoist lineage was the orthodox Talismanic Branch of the Tianshi Mansion at Mount Longhu.

In contrast, the Blood River techniques had already eroded Huang Sanqian’s own foundation.

Perhaps, deep down, he understood that even if he succeeded in forging the Blood River Sword, he would not survive the Heavenly Chasm Tribulation and achieve the Fourth Heaven Realm.

Attempting the Heavenly Chasm was certain death. There was no other outcome.

…But he refused to accept it.

Like a drowning man clutching at straws, he tried to grasp even the faintest hope.

“Speaking of which, the Blood River Sect really gets everywhere. Among the five Daoist branches of the Witch Sect, they are the most hated and the most active.”

Lei Jun’s gaze turned northwest.

Though he couldn’t see it, that direction led to the ancestral grounds of the Shushan Sect.

Huang Sanqian’s discovery of the Blood River Secret Arts was no accident.

The recent chaos in Shushan had drawn the Blood River Sect like sharks scenting blood.

Wherever there was conflict, the Blood River Sect appeared.

They thrived in places filled with bloodlust, death, and killing intent—fertile grounds for their cultivation.

Earlier, Blood River experts had shown up near Mount Longhu during the fierce battles.

This year, the bloody conflict in Shushan attracted them again.

Lei Jun sometimes wondered if the Blood River Sect secretly instigated such conflicts.

Their methods seemed too chaotic for elaborate schemes, but considering their cultivation path, it was hard not to speculate.

“Troublemakers… or rather, blood-stirrers.” Lei Jun shook his head and reined in his wandering thoughts.

He refocused on his immediate goal.

With the creek blocked, the accumulating water surged with increasing intensity.

The spiritual energy within it grew restless, as if preparing for a small-scale flood.

Fortunately, Yudai Creek’s water volume was limited, and Lei Jun’s current cultivation far exceeded that of a Lower Heaven cultivator.

He continued reinforcing his Earth Yin Thunder spell, maintaining the blockade and forming a small lake upstream.

Finally, the three-day period arrived.

Lei Jun withdrew his Earth Yin Thunder.

The accumulated water roared down the creek.

Lei Jun leapt onto the giant panda’s back. One man and one bear rode the flow downstream.

The gushing Yudai Creek flowed past Xiaoye Peak, circled north, and continued onward.

Lei Jun returned to the northern side of Xiaoye Peak, where the True Yin Land lay.

He withdrew the Warding Flag’s concealment and saw the white bamboo grove in a pitiful state.

In just three days, the bamboo was on the verge of death.

Yet, Lei Jun remained calm.

These spirit bamboos were special; such strange changes hinted at hidden wonders.

As the creek resumed its flow, the withering bamboos suddenly shook.

Spiritual energy surged from the True Yin Land.

Under Lei Jun’s watch, the white bamboos revived.

Then, they blossomed.

Clusters of delicate white flowers bloomed, densely packed and mesmerizing.

The bamboos didn’t wither immediately. Instead, the True Yin Land’s spiritual energy dissipated rapidly.

Lei Jun felt a breeze from his Tianshi Seal and the True-One Altar within his soul, flowing through his body.

As the True Yin Land faded, the white bamboos transformed.

A faint purple glow appeared on the bamboo’s surface, gliding upward like a fleeting shadow.

As the glow passed, the bamboos withered completely, as if reaching the end of their lifespan.

The white flowers atop the bamboos scattered, turning purple like twinkling stars.

The white bamboos bore purple blossoms.

Lei Jun quietly watched.

His giant panda, once drooling over the white blossoms, now stared at the purple ones in a daze.

Lei Jun’s attention turned inward to his True-One Altar.

The Four-Nine Lamps flickered, and banners fluttered.

He took out his True Yang Mystic Flower.

The pure white petals swayed gently, resonating with the purple bamboo flowers.

This was exactly what he had been seeking.

Lei Jun let out a long breath and picked the purple bamboo blossoms.

[True Yin Bamboo Stamen]

The name appeared in his mind.

He stored the purple stamen and watched the white bamboo rapidly crumble to ash, returning to the earth.

The True Yin Land had lost its spiritual essence.

Everything seemed orchestrated for this brief moment of supreme transformation, birthing the exquisite purple stamen.

Yet, this outcome wasn’t guaranteed.

Had he done nothing, the bamboos would have bloomed white flowers—a Fifth-Grade Opportunity, still valuable but not what he desired.

Only by diverting Yudai Creek and restoring its flow after three days did he fully unleash the True Yin Land’s power, culminating in the purple stamen—a Fourth-Grade Opportunity.

“Honestly, if I’d done nothing, that should count as a Lower-Moderate Omen. Time and effort are costs too,” Lei Jun reflected.

Thankfully, he didn’t leave empty-handed.

With the True Yin Bamboo Stamen, his trip to Bashu was worthwhile… and not just for that.

Lei Jun smiled and patted the giant panda, rubbing its head.

The panda turned away sulkily, having missed out on snacks and gotten dirty fighting the Blood River Formation.

Yet, its resolve crumbled at the mention of food, and it followed Lei Jun eagerly.

“Let’s go home. We’ll find you something good to eat.”

Satisfied, the panda trotted alongside Lei Jun.

As they left, Lei Jun looked back at Xiaoye Peak and the southern bamboo sea, his heart filled with reverence.

Nature’s wonders, guided by the slightest touch, yielded profound results.

He set up a ritual altar, offering incense and prayers

to heaven and earth.

The giant panda clumsily joined him, adding its own incense.

Blue smoke curled skyward.

With that, Lei Jun packed his altar tools and climbed onto the panda’s back.

“Alright, let’s go home!”

Their journey back to Mount Longhu was swift, the panda bounding over mountains with ease.

They returned to the familiar sight of the Tianshi Mansion, where his junior brother Chu Kun greeted him joyfully:

“Senior Brother Lei, you’re back?”

Lei Jun smiled and looked him over.

“You’ve grown taller, Junior Brother.”