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Chapter 849: Chapter 855: Investigation
"I’ve thought of two methods, but neither is guaranteed to work," Li Zhirui warned Jiang Fengwu in advance.
"The first method is to purchase intelligence from the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion, but it’s not certain that we can get what we need."
After all, if the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion knew the locations of various Spiritual Objects, why wouldn’t they collect them themselves? The related information that could be sold was mostly in the hands of certain major forces and was semi-public knowledge.
As for the hefty cost of intelligence, that wasn’t really a problem. Jiang Fengwu was about to become a Fifth-order Array Master. How could she possibly lack Spirit Stones?
High-ranked Skill Artisans hardly ever were poor; their skills could easily earn them a great amount of Spirit Stones.
"The second method..."
Li Zhirui deliberately left a cliffhanger and said, "Do you still remember the Dongling Breakthrough Array you deduced back then?"
A flash of Spirit Light crossed Jiang Fengwu’s mind. She vaguely had an idea but still couldn’t quite grasp it, like it was obscured by a thin veil.
"Since an array can be used to create a Spirit Realm, it might be possible to use it in place of suppressing the Fengshui Spiritual Plants in the Spirit Realm. Fengshui Spirit Objects tend to be easier to find than Fengshui Spiritual Plants."
Li Zhirui spoke slowly, "However, this is just my idea, and it’s not certain to succeed. Plus, it would require you to invest a lot of time and energy to deduce and refine the method."
If she were successful, it would be a great help to Jiang Fengwu’s future cultivation, but if she failed, it would cast a shadow over her path.
After all, the time wasted would increase the uncertainty of whether Jiang Fengwu could succeed in her Tribulation Transcendence Ascension.
Jiang Fengwu hesitated, uncertain as to whether she should invest her precious time and energy in this.
"Don’t rush, you could first visit the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion to inquire, and while you’re at it, ask Xuanfa Pavilion and Southern Edge Commerce Association as well. Maybe they have ready Fengshui Spiritual Plants," Li Zhirui didn’t want Jiang Fengwu to make a decision in haste.
Da Qing chuckled, "Maybe in the Secret Realm, there’s a high-rank Fengshui Spiritual Plant?"
Even as Da Qing said this, he didn’t harbor much hope; it was just to lighten the mood.
---
The Li family’s unobscured actions immediately attracted the attention of all the Cultivators in the Red Pine Market.
"What is the Li family up to?"
A year or two had passed, and many Cultivators had forgotten about the Secret Realm made public by the Li family. But soon, someone remembered and exclaimed excitedly, "The Li family is going to pioneer a Secret Realm!"
In an instant, that statement sparked everyone’s memories.
"Should we follow them and see? We might score a bargain. That’s a Fourth Order Secret Realm!" Immediately, some Loose Cultivators, blinded by greed, shouted thoughtlessly.
Some Cultivators agreed, thinking it a good idea; others scoffed, considering it a pipe dream; while some Cultivators kept silent.
As discussions buzzed among the various Cultivators, streaks of Spirit Light flew out from the island, spreading the news even further.
The Li family observed the actions of these Cultivators but did not take them seriously, knowing that no matter what they did, it wouldn’t change the fact that the Li family had exclusive rights to the Fourth Order Secret Realm!
As the fleet heading towards the Secret Realm saw that some Cultivators were following them, they immediately cast warning Spells. If anyone continued to be obstinate, their fate would be to plunge into the Boundless Sea and feed the fish.
Most Cultivators suddenly came to their senses, breaking into a cold sweat. They turned around and left as quickly as possible, but a small number of Cultivators still followed.
Boom!
The Li family did not have much patience. When a single warning failed, they struck directly on the second occasion, blasting all the ignorant cultivators to death.
Then the Cloud Whale Spirit Ship proceeded unfazed, boldly continuing forward.
It wasn’t long before everyone arrived at the sea where the Secret Realm had appeared.
Li Chengsheng immediately took out the Boundary-Arranging Device and used his Divine Sense to locate the position set within the core of the device. Initially, for the safety of those who would come later, Xiaoqing and the others had left two locations.
The first was their original settlement. However, the mountain was rich with Spiritual Energy and was easy to defend but hard to attack. After they left, it would undoubtedly be occupied by the Devil Beasts.
Furthermore, those Devil Beasts had watched the Li family and others leave from that place. It was even less likely that they would overlook that spot. Thus, this was not the preferred entry point into the Secret Realm for Li Chengsheng and the others.
The second location was a valley surrounded by mountains. The valley was narrow, and the passage out was winding. It wasn’t suitable for large Devil Races. In other words, it was unlikely that any Devil Race would be interested in it.
Therefore, this place was relatively safe, but it was only suitable as a temporary settlement since the geographical conditions limited their land development.
However, Xiaoqing and the others chose this place for a reason. Just two hundred li to the south was a steep and dangerous Solitary Peak!
This was the settlement that Xiaoqing and the others had set their sights on.
Steep and dangerous meant that an army could not be deployed. The Devil Race couldn’t attack the settlement with the might of their Devil Beast Army, and the few Devil Beasts that managed to charge up there were only met with death!
But when they originally scouted this location, the Solitary Peak was occupied by a flock of Third Order Crimson Feather Golden Eagles. They had just planned to seize this place and establish a new settlement when they heard that their settlement was under siege by a large force of the Devil Race, forcing them to abandon the attempt and rush back to support. They only had time to leave the location of that valley in the Boundary-Arranging Device.
So, when Li Chengsheng and the others were ready to develop the land, the first choice was this valley.
After waiting a moment, the portal to the Secret Realm fully materialized. Led by Li Chengsheng, the family flew into it one after another.
As the last member of the family entered the Secret Realm, the portal vanished in a flash of Spirit Light.
Dozens of years had passed, but the mountain valley remained unchanged, with everyone landing safely.
"Yang, go investigate the situation at Solitary Peak, and be very careful," Li Chengsheng instructed.
Xiaoqing could not enter the Secret Realm, so the fastest was Yang.
"Don’t worry." Before the words had finished, Yang turned into a streak of Spirit Light, appearing on the edge of everyone’s vision.
The mountains below were covered in towering trees, yet the figures of High-Rank Demon Beasts were rarely seen.
Two hundred li was just a moment for Yang.
As he approached Solitary Peak, Yang immediately slowed down, concealed his presence, and hid within the clouds.
Relying on his cultivation, Yang got very close to Solitary Peak and took in the details of the Crimson Feather Golden Eagle flock.
’Ten or so Third Order Golden Eagles, a few hundred Low Rank Golden Eagles...’ thought Yang with a hint of disdain in his eyes. With their strength, he alone could resolve the situation.
This flock of Crimson Feather Golden Eagles managed to occupy this place firstly because of the unique terrain.
Secondly, the Spiritual Energy here was not very rich. In the Secret Realm, there were better Spirit Lands and Spirit Mountains; there was no need to waste time here.
Yang patiently observed for a quarter of an hour without seeing any change. Then, he turned around and left.
Upon hearing the news Yang brought back, Li Chengsheng did not hesitate at all and directed the Spirit Ship straight to Solitary Peak.
