The death of the Crown Prince Yan Beixuan sparked the Holy Martial Empire's fury.
A pursuit warrant was posted across all territories of the Holy Martial Empire, offering a very high reward!
However, no one had seen Li Ping'an's appearance, nor did they know it was his doing.
The warrant only depicted one person, one dog, and one ox, all in blood-red hues, making their features unidentifiable.
Meanwhile, Li Ping'an, accompanied by two dogs and an ox, was on his way to Tianling Mountain.
The journey to Dragon City was quite fruitful.
From Crown Prince Yan Beixuan's Storage Pouch alone, he obtained over a thousand Spirit Stones, and the gains from the underground palace in Stone Forest Valley were even more substantial.
There were eighty thousand Spirit Stones, twelve hundred second-grade Spirit Jades, and dozens of weapons, though many were rusty due to the passage of time.
Based on the engravings on some of the weapons, it could be inferred that the underground palace was a place where resources were stored during the late period of the previous Imperial Dynasty.
In short, he was laden with gains!
Over eighty thousand Spirit Stones—this was definitely striking it rich overnight…
Regarding the Xianyan Sect on Tianling Mountain, Li Ping'an had only heard about it from others, knowing its approximate location was to the southeast.
He inquired along the way, but useful information was scarce.
The useful information he did obtain was that the Xianyan Sect generally did not openly recruit Disciples, and those who came to pledge allegiance to the Sect were as numerous as fish crossing a river, hoping to chance upon a fated encounter with the immortals.
As a result, very few were chosen to become official Disciples.
However, the Xianyan Sect was not entirely heartless; considering many people traveled from afar, they made an exception.
Anyone willing to stay on Tianling Mountain and serve the Xianyan Sect could become a Utility Disciple, helping the Sect Cultivate Spirit Fields, Spirit Medicine, and so on, thereby earning some contribution points.
These Utility Disciples, however, were far from being considered true members of the Xianyan Sect; they were merely laborers.
Li Ping'an did not come with much intention of entering the Xianyan Sect; he merely wanted to see the Mother Tiger and inform her about the matters in Tiankui City.
Afterward, he planned to find a secluded spot on Tianling Mountain, build a few thatched huts, create a courtyard, and plant some Spirit Plants.
This would be ideal and very suitable for his own development.
If he could obtain some Advanced Spirit Medicine seeds from the Xianyan Sect's Outer Gate, that would be even better.
The journey ahead was long.
Crossing the Eastern Python Mountain and traversing the Eastern Bright Lake would bring him within the vicinity of Tianling Mountain, with the Xianyan Sect located deeper within.
Li Ping'an was not in a hurry.
He traveled at a leisurely pace, stopping frequently, and in his spare time, he would clear a few acres of land, gaining a few Cultivation points.
He passed through many villages, helping numerous elderly people clear and Cultivate land, and they all praised him as a good child.
The acre of Spirit Field in the Secret Realm had long been planted with corn, which was growing vigorously and was not far from maturity.
The clouds were light, the wind was gentle, and the falling leaves signaled autumn.
Over a month had quietly passed.
Eastern Bright Lake was already in sight.
Looking out, the sky's reflection was blue, with no single boat visible.
“How do we get across this?”
Li Ping'an scratched his head, feeling a bit troubled.
“What is Boss talking about?” Heihei asked, tilting his dog head. He had grown quite a bit, his physique well-proportioned and robust.
Li Ping'an said, “We need to reach the other side of the lake.”
Heihei wagged his tail, “Boss, you wouldn't happen to not know how to swim, would you?”
Li Ping'an pouted, “Do you?”
“Dogs can! It's in our nature,” Heihei said with a bit of smugness, then rushed into the lake and demonstrated the dog paddle on the spot.
Dahuang had also grown a bit; aside from not being able to speak, he had no problem understanding human emotions.
He followed Heihei into the water, swimming back and forth for a good while.
Heihei looked at Li Ping'an, “How about that, can this dog swim or not?”
“What's there to brag about?” Li Ping'an rolled his eyes at Heihei, then looked at Niuniu, “It can't either.”
“Moo~” Niuniu mooed, then said earnestly, “Boss, actually, I also have the skills of a water buffalo.”
With that, it splashed into the water with a 'plop,' even performing a high-difficulty move, though the splash was absolutely spectacular.
“Damn, even an ox understands water,” Li Ping'an muttered, then went to a tree, quickly cut two sections of trunk, and tied them together.
And so, Li Ping'an lay on the tree trunks, while Heihei and Niuniu were responsible for pushing him across the water.
Upon reaching the shore, Li Ping'an took off his wet clothes and hung them on a tree branch. “Niuniu, blow fire to dry them, be careful not to burn them to ashes.”
“Playing with fire, I'm a professional,” Niuniu said confidently, spewing flames from its nostrils, emitting scorching heat.
It was very clever and did not let the flames get too close.
Yet, even so, when Li Ping'an put on his clothes, they had two new holes…
Three days later, Li Ping'an saw many figures, numerous farmlands, and even medicinal fields on Tianling Mountain.
All the plants grew very well, full of Life Qi; whether due to the environment or the plants themselves, they were all season-agnostic.
During this journey, Li Ping'an also had gains.
Although he did not choose to plant, just clearing land earned him 300 Cultivation points.
“Heavenly Dew.”
Over there, someone was forming hand seals, chanting an incomprehensible incantation.
Before long, it actually started to rain.
“Sun come.”
In the shade, another person formed hand seals and flicked out a Spirit Talisman. The Talisman burned in the Void Realm, manifesting a phantom of a scorching sun that illuminated the plants.
Of course, this was merely due to Spirit Qi Talismans and was far from being a real sun.
Those people were very diligent, taking good care of all sorts of plants.
“Observe Mountain Trends.”
As Li Ping'an walked, he performed this great technique.
While consuming Spirit Qi, the shadowy aura of 'Observe Mountain Trends' began to spread, moving with Li Ping'an.
(Ding: Discovered a first-grade Spirit Field.)
(Ding: Discovered a second-grade Spirit Field.)
(Ding: Another first-grade Spirit Field discovered.)
In just a short while, Li Ping'an found three Spirit Fields.
However, all of them already had plants.
“As expected of Tianling Mountain, almost everywhere is a Spirit Field!”
Li Ping'an was filled with emotion, a little excited.
This trip, I definitely came to the right place!
“Hey, that ox, don't just chew, don't just chew! Those are Spirit Grains!”
Niuniu wanted to chew grass but was stopped by someone.
“And that black dog, where are you peeing? Do you believe I'll chop you up?!”
Heihei was about to relieve himself and was startled by the burly man.
Li Ping'an chuckled, “Friend, don't be angry, they're just beasts. I'm sorry, truly sorry.”
“Hmph~” The brawny man snorted, saying, “You're lucky you met someone as kind-hearted as me. If it were anyone else, they would have already dealt with these two beasts. Watch your ox and dog carefully; if you damage a single Spirit Grain, you won't be able to afford the compensation!”
After speaking, he continued his work.
Li Ping'an glanced at Heihei, who looked like he wanted to bite someone. “Be discreet. We just arrived here, let's not cause trouble.”
After passing through this wilderness, Li Ping'an continued deeper and finally, on a relatively flat area, he saw an ancient city.
The ancient city was named Outer Gate Spirit City.
It was a city built by the Xianyan Sect for those who came from afar, were unable to enter the Sect, and yet unwilling to leave.
Besides this place, there were also many villages around Outer Gate Spirit City, and the people in these villages had ancestors who came here.
Within the city, there was an Outer Gate Utility Disciple Courtyard, where all those who stayed could register and become Utility Disciples.
It was also here that they could receive various seeds for planting, accept tasks, and so on, to exchange for contribution points, which could then be traded for Cultivation resources and some immortal techniques.
There were many people, and it was very lively.
Some were selling goods, others were buying, and the clamor was incessant.
There were also official Disciples of the Xianyan Sect patrolling to maintain order, but they did not interfere with the transactions of these Utility Disciples.
At the Outer Gate Utility Disciple Courtyard, Li Ping'an first completed his registration as an Outer Gate Utility Disciple, then eagerly went to receive seeds.
The person in charge was an official female Disciple of the Xianyan Sect. “Junior Brother, would you like to receive Spirit Grain seeds or Spirit Medicine seeds?”
Li Ping'an said, “I want both.”
The woman frowned slightly. Li Ping'an chuckled, “I've been farming since I was little. In my hometown, I'm the best farmer.”
The woman chuckled, “You just arrived, didn't you?”
Li Ping'an nodded, “Yes, I just finished the Utility Disciple registration process.”
“No wonder,” the woman said with understanding. “Everyone's first time receiving seeds requires a payment of twenty Spirit Stones or twenty first-tier One-Desire Beast Pills as a guarantee.”
“After that, you can exchange various seeds with contribution points. Otherwise, with so many Utility Disciples, if they leave after receiving seeds, the loss would be significant.”
That made sense.
Li Ping'an didn't waste words, asking, “What grade of seeds can Utility Disciples receive?”
The woman was very patient, explaining, “As long as you have Spirit Stones and contribution points, you can receive up to third-grade seeds.”
Li Ping'an asked again, “What about higher-grade seeds?”
The woman chuckled, “Outer Gate Utility Disciples cannot receive seeds above fourth-grade; only official Disciples and Inner Sect Disciples can.”
After a few exchanges, Li Ping'an understood some things. He then used forty Spirit Stones to receive one thousand first-grade Spirit Grain seeds and ten first-grade Spirit Medicine seeds.
Spirit Medicine was very expensive, while Spirit Grain was relatively cheap.
Ultimately, these Spirit Grain seeds were merely imbued with Spiritual Qi and were very common in the world of Cultivators.
Leaving the Utility Disciple Courtyard, Li Ping'an took his three little companions and headed towards the distant Xianyan Sect mountain gate.
Once he saw the Mother Tiger, he could rest assured and find a place to farm and develop. She would surely have a way to obtain better seeds.
At that time, it would also be the moment to fully display his abilities…