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Chapter 706: Chapter 712: The Great Net
"Taoist Jin, aren’t you looking for a fourth-grade Taiyin Spiritual Object?"
Li Chengshuo, disguised as Jin Xiuli, lifted her head excitedly upon hearing what the occasional team member at the Golden Core stage had said and asked, "Does Taoist Liu know of clues to the Spiritual Object?"
Yet, inside she grew wary. How could such a precious Spiritual Object be kindly disclosed to her, someone he was barely acquainted with?
In all her years in the Central Region, Li Chengshuo had, by a stroke of luck, obtained a Full Moon Spirit Fruit. After being consumed by the Moon Serpent, it had recently completed its bloodline evolution, transforming into a massive Moon Python.
However, in recent years, her luck was not as good, so she had no choice but to spread the news, hoping to rely on the power of the masses to acquire the second Taiyin Spiritual Object as soon as possible.
But all along, there had been no response.
Besides, Li Chengshuo’s cultivation was still stuck at the Middle Golden Core Stage, although there were some signs of loosening. She didn’t know when she would manage to break through successfully.
"Yes, in the neighboring State Domain, a Taiyin Liuzhu Fruit has appeared. It’s planned to be auctioned off in half a month’s time. If you don’t have any other leads, you might as well give it a try," he said.
An auction? Could it be that I’m overthinking, and he’s genuinely just giving me a heads up? Li Chengshuo thought to herself, but her reply was, "Thank you for the information, Taoist friend, but isn’t it beyond the reach of a mere Golden Core like myself to compete for an item on auction?"
Those words were a deflection, but also the truth.
As a Golden Core cultivator, could she really snatch a fourth-grade Spiritual Object right from under the noses of Nascent Soul cultivators and get away with it? 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙥𝙪𝙗.𝒄𝙤𝙢
"That’s truly a pity. Taiyin Spiritual Objects are hard to find; should you miss this chance, who knows how long it will be until the next?" Taoist Liu commented sympathetically.
Such behavior, however, confirmed Li Chengshuo’s suspicions of his ill intent. Her face remained composed as she responded, "Indeed, but what can I do when my fortune is not enough? Attending would be a waste of effort."
"Since you are already aware of this, I won’t disturb you any further." They were not close, and there was little need for pleasantries, so Taoist Liu quickly excused himself.
After the door closed, Li Chengshuo furrowed her brows in contemplation, murmuring, "What is his purpose? Does he intend to use the Spiritual Object to lure me out and then ambush and kill me?"
"If that’s the case, how does he know which way I will go? Could it be that he has done something to me?"
With this thought, Li Chengshuo immediately used her Divine Sense to search her entire body, including her clothing and accessories, and even checked every item in her storage ring. But after a comprehensive search, she found nothing amiss.
Despite this, she couldn’t shake off an uneasy feeling, as if an invisible, silently forming net was slowly enveloping her.
Reflecting on her years in the Central Region, Li Chengshuo questioned why she had become a target, given she had never revealed her wealth.
——
After Liu Qingqi left, he carefully entered a concealed cave.
The three Golden Core cultivators already waiting inside eagerly asked as he arrived, "Third brother, how did it go? Did you attract her attention?"
If Li Chengshuo were there, she would recognize these people as temporary teammates she had encountered a few times.
In the Central Region, the most dangerous beings are not demon cultivators, nor devil beasts, but cultivators themselves!
Many cultivators live by plundering, and these four were no different.
"Probably not, she said she couldn’t take out that many Spirit Stones and is unlikely to attend the auction," Liu Qingqi replied with a displeased expression.
The burly man with the highest cultivation level frowned and said, "That shouldn’t be the case. She has been searching for Taiyin Spiritual Objects for so many years and now finally has a lead. How could she not even want to have a look?"
"She’s just a Golden Core cultivator; how could she have the means to compete with the various Nascent Souls?"
The only female cultivator spoke up, "Big brother, since she’s not falling for it, we should change our target sooner rather than later. We don’t want to end up busy for nothing, with no gains at all."
"What do you know? She’s clearly the direct descendant of some major force. If we can capture her, we might be able to practice our cultivation in peace for the next few years," the burly man scolded, his face filled with reluctance.
"Big brother, how could you tell?"
"When you were hunting devil beasts with her, didn’t you notice the high-quality magical treasures she used and spirit pills she consumed? Not to mention, just consider the price of the cave residence she’s renting now - it’s fifty percent higher than ours!"
But the most important reason, the burly man didn’t say out loud.
Since Li Chengshuo was collecting Taiyin spiritual objects, it was very likely she had a Taiyin spiritual root or a Taiyin spirit body. Either way, she was the best possible cauldron!
If he could harvest her Yuan Yin, perhaps he could advance even further and break through to the Nascent Soul stage.
Those external possessions were merely his pretext, used to entice these few people. How could they compare to the enhancement of his own strength?
"But she’s unwilling to leave Immortal City, how do we make our move?" the others, upon hearing this, were also not willing to give up so easily, but they couldn’t think of any good ideas.
The burly man thought for a moment, then said, "Third brother has just gone to test her, it’s best not to probe a second time too soon, to avoid arousing her suspicion. Let’s switch to another target for now, and revisit this after some time has passed."
The three of them agreed with alacrity.
At this moment, Li Chengshuo was still unaware of the conspiracy that had yet to fully hatch, feeling vaguely uneasy and wishing to leave the place, yet fearful of falling prey to the villians’ schemes once she went out.
Although she had checked many times and found no traces of others’ trickery, she still felt insecure and uneasy.
After pondering it over, she eventually decided to cultivate in seclusion within her cave residence for a while, to see if she could break through the bottleneck and advance past the Golden Core late stage.
After all, as long as she had sufficient power, she could handle anything that came her way with ease.
----
Far above the Boundless Sea on Wanxian Island.
Li Zhirui, who had been at a loss on how to go about creating a pill recipe, heaved a dejected sigh and said, "Without breaking through to Divine Transformation, how could I create a Precious Pill of Divine Transformation?"
He had been presumptuous before.
After regulating his breath, Li Zhirui rose from his meditation seat and walked out of the quiet room only to see the sound transmission talismans left by Xiaoqing and Da Qing.
"Da Qing has finally come around!"
The talisman spoke of his intention to enter seclusion to cultivate for a period and entrust the care of the young turtles to Xiaoqing.
Regardless of how much progress Da Qing might make in his seclusion this time, the fact that he had decided to come out of it was already the greatest gain.
And the sound transmission talisman from Xiaoqing brought Li Zhirui an unexpected surprise; he had not expected that the method he spontaneously thought up would lead to such a formidable divine power.
He immediately called Xiaoqing over, eager to witness the "Pot Sky Skill" for himself.
Xiaoqing, having received the sound transmission talisman, quickly arrived at the cave residence.
"Jiu, how have you left your seclusion so quickly?" He had thought it would take years.
