Stealthily cultivating in the chaotic world of demons and martial artists
Chapter 149 - 148: Negotiations (Congratulations to the Silver Alliance!)_1

Chapter 149: Chapter 148: Negotiations (Congratulations to the Silver Alliance!)_1

"What’s going on here?"

It was still the Southern Wilderness Cultivation Realm, inside an underground Dongfu.

Fang Xi was sitting cross-legged.

But his Divine Consciousness, through the Bronze Mirror, could see from another perspective.

Water flowed with a gurgling sound, shimmering with reflected light...

Pebbles were scattered at the bottom of the stream, with water grass thriving, and fish and shrimp swimming about...

Looking around, Fang Xi found that his Divine Consciousness wasn’t enough.

"After my Divine Consciousness reached Foundation Establishment, it was supposed to have a range of fifty zhang, so why is it only five zhang here?"

He was somewhat puzzled.

It seemed as if he was crossing worlds, or rather, the consumption of connecting through another world, his Divine Consciousness on that side was subjected to terrifying suppression!

"Wait a minute, who is ’I’?"

Fang Xi’s Divine Consciousness swept over himself and saw a fragment resembling half of a bronze mirror, lying quietly at the bottom of the river.

That Bronze Mirror fragment had serrated edges from the cracks, and the surface bore faint, engraved lines that were rough, as if naturally formed.

"This fragment, it seems to be part of the Bronze Mirror in my Sea of Consciousness?"

"Am I spreading my Divine Consciousness around it as the center?"

"This is bad... only Divine Consciousness, can’t move anything!"

"How should I retrieve this piece?"

...

Fang Xi felt a headache coming on.

And maintaining a continuous connection with the Divine Consciousness was also gradually making him feel weary.

So, he retracted his Divine Consciousness and disconnected from the Bronze Mirror fragment in that world.

"It is known... that through the Bronze Mirror, I can connect with a fragment from another world and release my Divine Consciousness using that fragment as the anchor..."

"Besides that, it seems there’s pretty much nothing else I can do."

"Of course, I know that the spirit treasure’s instinct is letting me reunite the fragments, but how am I supposed to collect all of them... if I can’t even get there..."

Fang Xi fell silent.

He was still hoping that once the door was opened, he would be in the Immortal Realm, where cultivation techniques, treasures, and pills were in abundance, where he could easily become a Transcendent God and ascend to immortality!

But this is it?

"This cheater is broken!"

"Forget it, I might as well go back and honestly work for another fifty years!"

...

Baize Immortal City.

The outer city.

Mingqing Loft.

The loft was elegantly furnished, and as Fang Xi entered, musicians were playing.

"Senior, you are..."

A middle-aged beautiful woman came forward to greet him. Seeing Fang Xi, a hint of doubt flashed in her eyes: "Are you Mr. Fang?"

"Indeed, didn’t Lu Zhi arrange a private room already? Lead the way..."

Fang Xi nodded his head, then glanced at the middle-aged beauty: "Fairy Yun Meng, long time no see... We were able to meet thanks to Mr. Chen Ping’s introduction back then."

"Indeed..."

This beautiful lady was Fairy Yun Meng herself. Mentioning Chen Ping, her face showed a fleeting discomfort.

She remembered how short-sighted they were in the past, kowtowing to so-called distinguished guests, and kicking out the now Foundation Establishment great Cultivator, feeling uneasy, fearing that he might blame her.

After all, she had failed to reach Foundation Establishment in her early years and was later arranged to manage the family business, gradually being removed from the core of the family.

The door to the private room creaked open, with several people sitting inside.

Lu Zhi was there, along with an old man with white hair and a skeletal frame, his face covered with liver spots, where one could vaguely make out Chen Ping’s features from his younger days.

Besides him, there was a stout man in a purple robe, broad-foreheaded and wide-eyed, looking formidable, with a cultivation around early Foundation Establishment.

Seeing Fang Xi, the purple-robed man smiled: "Is this Mr. Fang Xi? I am Xu Shulei, Supreme Elder of the Qing Ye Xu Family."

"I’ve seen Mr. Xu!"

Fang Xi sat down, saw Fairy Yun Meng about to leave, and said: "This matter involves you too, why don’t you stay and join the conversation?"

Fairy Yun Meng involuntarily trembled and looked toward her patriarch with a pleading gaze for help.

To her surprise, Xu Shulei appeared indifferent: "Since that’s the case, Yun’er, you stay and make tea..."

"Yes!"

Fairy Yun Meng knelt at the tea table, offered a bow, and began to make tea with her bare hands...

The faint scent of tea wafted through the air...

Fang Xi first observed Fairy Yun Meng, then turned to Lu Zhi, feeling quietly reflective.

Fairy Yun Meng obviously had taken Youth-Retention Pills or the like, still looking beautiful at the age of fifty or sixty.

By contrast, Lu Zhi must have endured many hardships over the years.

Of course, the one who had suffered the most was Chen Ping next to her. Seeing Fang Xi, he choked up, unable to speak, with tears in his eyes.

Sensing the feeble life force of this man, like the last flicker of a candle in the wind, Fang Xi sighed.

This sigh broke the silence in the room.

Xu Shulei spoke with a righteous tone: "The Qing Ye Xu Family has never engaged in abducting people. Mr. Chen Ping is here at our warm invitation, serving as our family’s guest elder, without any confinement or coercion... is that right, Mr. Chen?"

Chen Ping was startled and quickly nodded: "Yes, yes..."

Fang Xi smiled faintly: "So it was all a misunderstanding, that’s even better. But since Chen Ping is an old friend from my youth and wishes to spend his twilight years peacefully in Baize Immortal City, what about the Xu Family?"

"Our Xu Family naturally supports it! Mr. Chen Ping has worked hard and deserves a residence in the outer city to enjoy his retirement!"

Xu Shulei solemnly promised, slapping his chest to assure.

"If that’s the case, I have nothing more to say... but what about Fairy Yun Meng?"

Fang Xi tentatively asked.

Xu Shulei raised an eyebrow: "Yun’er has caused offense before, and I have apologized on her behalf. Our family will punish her harshly later, and she will compensate Mr. Chen with a sum of Spirit Stones..."

"Mr. Xu handles matters with fairness and strictness, which I admire..."

Having nothing more to say, Fang Xi cupped his fist in greeting, rose with Lu Zhi and Chen Ping, and took his leave.

...

It wasn’t until the three left that Fairy Yun Meng looked anxiously at the elder: "Supreme Elder..."

"Are you wondering why the elder let Chen Ping go?"

Xu Shulei sipped his tea with a smile, "This man has served his purpose, and his life span is no more than a month. Do you want him to die in our household, giving it the name of abuse?"

Fairy Yun Meng had a sudden realization: "So, the elder did it for the sake of reputation?"

"After all, we are a family of the Righteous Path; we must maintain some face... Moreover, we have planted measures on him, he cannot take a step outside of Baize Immortal City, nor can he tarnish our family’s reputation, and he’s living in our house, essentially still under our surveillance, just changing the location. Plus, we’ve left behind the Talisman heritage... Now that a Foundation Establishment guest from Baize Immortal City has spoken on his behalf, we might as well give him some face."

"Besides, his Taoist Companion Lu Zhi has always been in our control. Even if he’s on the brink of death, he wouldn’t dare make any trouble... unless he doesn’t care about his family anymore!"

Foundation Establishment cultivators are akin to Supreme Elders and high-ranking powers; there’s no need for needless slaughter if it’s not necessary.

After all, with a lifespan of two hundred years, why struggle violently? Enjoying life is the priority.

Xu Shulei shook his head and showed a hint of regret: "It’s just a pity, this man has been in our family for many years, but he hasn’t produced offspring with both Spiritual Root and Spirit Body... It seems that the gourd picked by force is indeed not sweet."

Upon hearing this, a blush spread across Fairy Yun Meng’s face.

...

On the main street.

Lu Zhi supported Chen Ping, looking like an ordinary elderly couple from the countryside, slowly making their way forward.

Chen Ping, though, couldn’t stop looking around, taking in the surroundings as if he couldn’t see enough of them.

"Mr. Fang... no, Senior Fang... I can’t thank you enough for your great kindness!"

Standing in front of their residence, he suddenly bowed deeply to Fang Xi.

"After all, we are friends; it was just a small effort on my part..."

Fang Xi hurriedly helped him up, only to be handed a Blood Jade Slip.

He discreetly pocketed it, watching as Chen Ping and Lu Zhi entered their home, then he turned and departed.

...

"I will never forget the kindness you’ve shown, Mr. Chen. I offer you my life’s work as a gift..."

"Please evaluate the heritage of this Talisman, and you may pass it on to Lu Zhi’s descendants in the future..."

Smoke Willow Lane, Number Eighty-Seven.

As Fang Xi held the Blood Jade Slip, he saw Chen Ping’s message at the start.

"To be passed on to Lu Zhi’s descendants? Wouldn’t that be the children of Master Zong Symbol?"

"The Master Zong Symbol back then, was very likely to be considered as a sacrificial material for the Blood Talisman Spirit Body..."

He mused to himself, what did Chen Ping’s actions signify, guilt and compensation?

"Human nature... truly is a complicated thing."

Fang Xi continued to read and found that the Talisman heritage inside the slip had reached the upper-level of the second rank!

And there was even a hint of breaking into the third rank!

"Blood Talisman Spirit Body, truly the Talisman Path’s favored..."

"It’s a pity, my expertise in Talismans is only a mid-level first rank... could it be that I will need to draw Talismans to earn Spirit Stones in the future?"

Fang Xi considered for a moment, then put away the slip.

Just then, Fairy Teng Luo, dressed in a translucent palace skirt, walked in gracefully: "Senior..."

Her voice was tender, seductively sweet.

"Fairy Teng Luo... I am grateful for your assistance these past days. Take these Spirit Stones as your compensation."

Fang Xi’s expression was cold as he tossed a few Spirit Stones.

Fairy Teng Luo’s expression changed, her face turning ashen: "Senior?"

"Leave now!" Fang Xi waved his hand, not wishing to speak further.

In the human world, the grander the family, the more crucial the positions of steward and doorman, often filled by trusted confidants. Handled well, they ensure smooth social relations; handled poorly, they become sources of countless enemies.

"Senior, what wrong have I committed?" Fairy Teng Luo asked in shock, bowing down.

"The hairpin on your head is not bad, is it a newly bought magical instrument?"

Fang Xi shook his head: "I have just met with Mr. Yuan, and before I could even agree, the news was already spreading... Just for these two reasons, even if I killed you, I would be in the right!"

By the end, he spoke sharply, with a terrifying murderous aura that made Fairy Teng Luo stagger back in fear: "I was wrong, I was wrong..."

"Aren’t you going to leave?!"

Fang Xi’s shout made Fairy Teng Luo flee, tumbling and scrambling away in a very disheveled state.

He looked at Fairy Teng Luo’s retreating back, then stroked his chin, deep in thought.

In fact, he had long known of her vanity.

Previously, he simply went with the flow to build momentum for himself and to prepare for rescuing Chen Ping.

Now, however, she held little value to be used anymore.

Even if he truly wanted to take a concubine, he couldn’t choose a woman who lacked discretion and awareness.

"Senior..."

At that moment, the delicate and lovely Jin Ling entered: "It seems Fairy Teng Luo was quite scared..."

"Miss Jin Ling..."

Fang Xi’s expression softened, and he sighed: "These past few days, I really owe you a lot..."

This woman had been proper in her comings and goings, quite to Fang Xi’s liking.