Chapter 37: The Sect Forsakes Immortal Cultivation for the Art of War

Watching the scattered traces of blood on the floor, Shen Lian extended his spiritual sense toward the rooms adjacent on both sides.

The rooms aboard the spiritual ship were divided into three levels. The top, designated as Type A, belonged to disciples of the Azurewater Sect. Type B housed late-stage Qi Refining rogue cultivators and mid-stage ones with particular skills. Type C was reserved for ordinary mid- and early-stage Qi Refining cultivators; deep within the ship’s hold, the rooms crammed in varying numbers of wandering cultivators.

When Shen Lian had arrived, he stayed in the lower cabins.

His spiritual sense spread outward; there was a cultivator in the room to the left, but he refrained from probing too deeply and withdrew his senses. The room to the right was empty, but his sense picked up the scent of blood there as well.

After a thorough search, he investigated thirty-two rooms apart from the Type A cabins; of these, twenty-one bore the scent of blood. Though the rooms had been cleaned with talismanic spells and appeared spotless, the hidden traces of blood were still clear to Shen Lian’s spiritual sense.

Whoosh—

Having erased the lingering energy left by the talismans, Shen Lian rose and strode toward the exit.

“What are you doing?” asked a stationed Azurewater Sect cultivator at the ship’s entrance, eyeing Shen Lian as he emerged.

“I… left something in my lodgings at the market…” Shen Lian replied, feigning urgency. “I’ll retrieve it and return immediately.”

The Azurewater Sect cultivator cast him a cold glance. “The ship departs in half an hour. If you're late, you’ll be left behind.”

“Alright, alright…” Shen Lian answered hurriedly, then quickly descended the ship and dashed into the market.

He didn’t use the full half hour.

In only a quarter of an hour, Shen Lian, having changed his appearance, slipped out from another direction of the market and entered the wild forest.

…

In the miasma-shrouded mountains, Shen Lian concealed himself among the trees, looking up. High above, a spiritual ship flashed with mystical light, breaking through the haze and vanishing at the edge of the forest.

“He...tui…” he muttered, disgusted.

He had regarded Azurewater as a righteous faction, but they treated him like a fool.

Sudden lifts of the blockade, the construction of new cities, the opening of fresh relics, the frequent appearance of so-called minor sons of destiny, the acquisition of second-grade spiritual treasures—all nothing but smoke and mirrors.

Not just rogue cultivators—even sect disciples would rebel under such strict lockdowns. The tighter the blockade, the stronger the urge to resist.

Military strategy advises leaving three sides surrounded and one open, letting defenders escape rather than forcing them to fight to the death.

Restoring the route was just a token gesture for rogue cultivators.

With Foundation Establishment experts and elite disciples from the sect on board, slaughtering rogue cultivators was no different from herding sheep for slaughter. It was far easier than chasing them through the endless wilds.

What fortune could be so great that a Golden Core sect would act with such caution, weaving truth and lies alike?

A dignified Golden Core sect, instead of devoting itself to cultivation, resorted to military tactics.

No virtue in cultivation, indeed.

Very soon, Shen Lian vanished deep into the forest.

He had previously prepared a large cache of resources for survival in the wild, and now he truly needed them.

He would rather crawl through mountain ravines than return to the market.

He could trust Azurewater Sect no longer.

The journey back to Chu Kingdom would be arduous, fraught with peril, notorious as a near-certain death—yet Shen Lian was not ready to cross the wilderness now. With ample resources, he would first find a safe place to cultivate.

Qi Refining seventh stage, spiritual sense nearly fifty zhang, and possessing the secret art of Blood Refining and Soul Augmentation, he planned to advance to the ninth stage and extend his spiritual sense to a hundred zhang before traversing the wilds. His chances would be much greater then.

Had it not been for Azurewater Sect’s stratagems, he would never have chosen this path.

Night fell.

In an unknown mountain hollow, Shen Lian hid within a narrow cave, its entrance marked with dried blood stains and demon wolf dung he had scattered.

Demon wolves, notorious bullies in the miasma forest, terrified other beasts much as thugs do in human society.

Wolf dung was nothing; he had also bought ape dung.

Since he had resolved to survive in the wild, Shen Lian took stock of his possessions.

First, spirit stones: three thousand seven hundred sixty-three.

One Barrier-Breaking Pill.

Thirteen bottles and sixty-three pills of Essence Restoration.

Seven bottles and sixty-five pills of Yellow Sprout.

Seventeen bottles and a hundred sixty-seven Detoxification Pills.

Twenty-two bottles and two hundred twelve Miasma-Dispelling Pills.

One hundred ninety-seven top-grade first-tier talismans.

Twenty-three top-grade first-tier magical artifacts, thirteen mid-grade.

He had restocked Thunder Seeds to twenty.

Three Red Sun Crossbows, with fifteen arrows.

Seventy-seven first-tier spiritual herbs.

Two and a half first-tier demon beasts remaining.

Three measures of spiritual rice, plus half a basket of white sweet potatoes he had been reluctant to throw away.

Additionally, thirteen bottles of top-grade spiritual ink, just over twenty packs of top-grade talisman paper, totaling two hundred and three sheets.

Five top-grade first-tier talisman brushes, two mid-grade, two low-grade.

Three portable array sets.

Bug-repellent powder, demon beast dung, and other supplies, all bought in bulk—five times standard amounts.

Looking over these, Shen Lian felt his mood improve. With all this, so long as he avoided second-tier demon beasts, he would not be in much danger.

Even against second-tier beasts, he still had Hundred Spirit Poison.

For now, he needed to find a secure place to settle.

He was not afraid to run out of talismans or pills—he could always make more.

With these supplies, he could last several years.

By then, he should advance to the ninth stage of Qi Refining.

Then, he could seek a way out, and his chances of success would be much higher.

Whatever Azurewater Sect was plotting—be it the fortune of a true immortal—Shen Lian felt no envy. He had his own destiny.

Yunmeng, Changhe, and Nanjiang, three markets, formed the points of a triangle; Yunmeng lay furthest east, the other two to its southwest and northwest.

The wilds were not being developed in the spaces between the markets, but each market pushed out into the wilderness independently.

For example, Yunmeng market’s expansion stretched east and north.

The market locations were only reference points; the ultimate goal was to connect the region north of the markets to Chu's cultivation world.

Shen Lian possessed a map issued by Yunmeng Market; the furthest marked point lay over a thousand li from Yunmeng.

After careful consideration, Shen Lian decided to head northeast, toward the edge of Yunmeng Market’s initial expansion.

Initial expansion had not been undertaken by rogue cultivators, but by Foundation Establishment experts from Azurewater Sect.

They cleared second-tier demon beasts and marked dangerous areas for later reference by rogue cultivators.

On the map issued by Azurewater Sect, the furthest point was named Thousand Cloud Mountain.

Azurewater Sect would later assign numbers using the celestial stems and branches for areas they investigated in detail.

This area had not yet been thoroughly explored, so no detailed numbering had been assigned.

…

Ten days later, at Thousand Cloud Mountain.

Within a nondescript hollow deep in the hills, amidst piles of jagged rocks, a boulder several zhang wide masked the entrance to a cave.

Inside the cave, talismans for suppressing breath were affixed above and below the entrance, their faint spiritual glow barely visible.

Seated cross-legged in the cramped space, Shen Lian examined his data panel.

[Shen Lian: Qi Refining, Seventh Stage]

[Five Elements Spiritual Roots: Fire 72, Earth 18, Metal 17, Wood 29, Water 18]

[Comprehension Points: 2023]

[Divine Comprehension Points: 0]

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After wandering the wilds, Shen Lian’s previous plan of mixing in with a pill master identity was no longer feasible for now.

These days, running through remote mountains, he felt it better not to pursue pill mastery for now, but to cultivate beast taming instead.

He recalled how, upon arrival, he’d been driven by a sense of crisis, moving as a talisman master.

Now, a talisman master, he found himself encircled by anxiety.

Becoming a beast tamer was not a whim; after days of surviving in the wilds, he had judged it best according to his circumstances.

The spiritual beasts he sought were not dragons or azure birds, but ant or bee colonies.

If he could subdue a queen ant or queen bee, he would gain a swarm—ideal for guarding his cave and pioneering paths, making it far easier to navigate the wilds.

Of course, spiders would do; even cockroaches were acceptable.

Even the dung-rolling beetles—if they could help scout, he would accept them, holding his nose if needed. Practicality was his guiding principle.