“Hurry up, there isn’t much left! Finish moving and then leave!”
“What?! Time’s almost up, and you’re still not leaving? Do you want to see me make a move?”
Seeing that the Foundation Establishment Cultivators had finished moving their things but were still dawdling, some even standing in place, looking reluctant to leave, Li Mu immediately understood their intention: they wanted to see him make a fool of himself!
Li Mu chuckled, having expected this. He reached into his nine storage spiritual pearl and took out a white jade formation plate, casually injecting a stream of Spiritual Qi into it.
Immediately, a powerful formation light burst forth from the fourth-grade formation plate.
This fourth-grade formation plate, which he had picked up as a bargain at the Foundation Establishment trade fair, unleashed its power once again today. It was a pity, however, that Huanlang Spiritual Mountain was too dangerous, and Li Mu's cultivation was insufficient; he was unwilling to take the risk. Otherwise, with this formation plate, he could have easily acquired a High Grade Cultivator's Immortal Cave for free.
Soon, as the light released by the white jade formation plate flashed.
The scene before the Cultivators’ eyes changed abruptly, and their expressions shifted dramatically. They were startled to find that the world before them had transformed; they were no longer on Yue Qiong Peak. Instead, patches of white mist continuously emerged, some manifesting as the colossal figures of High Grade Yao Beasts, others as them kneeling in the Law Enforcement Hall confessing their sins, and still others as scenes of them being hunted by demonic Cultivators…
The Illusionary Heart Formation, inscribed on the formation plate, materialized and depicted the deepest fears of the Cultivators present, mirroring their past experiences precisely.
“Wow! You, don’t come over here!”
“Quick, quick, remove the illusion formation! I’ll leave right now….”
“Nine Mother Fiend Spiders, Senior Brother, save me!”
“Master, aren’t you dead?!”
...
In an instant, the Cultivators revealed their unsightly states. Some waved their hands to drive things away, others cowered and hid… One by one, their faces were filled with panic, exposing the deeply hidden fears in their hearts. Even the Golden Core cultivator, Wang Jianfeng, changed his expression, trembling all over.
Seeing that the effect was sufficient, Li Mu stopped injecting Spiritual Qi into the white jade formation plate. He looked at the Cultivators who had slowly recovered and coldly urged them, “Hurry up and leave! Get off Yue Qiong Peak immediately! If you don’t, don’t blame me for using even harsher methods!”
“Oh! What other methods do you have? Hurry up and use them, I’m not afraid of you.”
“I’m not leaving, what can you do to me?!”
“Just an illusion formation, and I thought it was some kind of special technique!”
...
A few Foundation Establishment male Cultivators in the crowd, unable to contain their anger, responded stubbornly.
“Oh! Really?” Li Mu looked at the only Golden Core cultivator present, Wang Jianfeng, and asked with a smile.
“Elder Li, feel free to use whatever other methods you have. If it’s just a mere illusion formation, it won’t be easy to make us yield and leave so readily,” Wang Jianfeng said indifferently, looking at Li Mu with cold eyes.
“Alright! To make you completely give up, as the Peak Master of Yue Qiong Peak, I naturally possess knowledge you don't. This Peak is not only equipped with a concealing mist illusion formation, but also a Spirit Yuan Overturning Formation designed to deal with enemies who invade Yue Qiong Peak. Are you sure you want to test the power of this formation? If so, I won't be polite!” Li Mu said with a slight smile, introducing it.
From the moment he entered Yue Qiong Peak, Li Mu had been wandering around, observing the terrain of Yue Qiong Peak, and simultaneously planning what kind of formations he would add to Yue Qiong Peak in the future. He also casually inspected the original defensive formations of Yue Qiong Peak, and effortlessly embedded Spirit Stones into the formation eyes that had lost their power source, thereby reactivating the original power of Yue Qiong Peak's formations.
As soon as his voice fell, Li Mu took out Yue Qiong Peak’s formation plate from his embrace, injected a stream of Spiritual Qi, and activated Yue Qiong Peak’s Spirit Yuan Peak Formation. The ground of Yue Qiong Peak shook, and the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi became restless, undergoing a complete reversal in its flow.
All the Foundation Establishment Cultivators and the Golden Core cultivator, Wang Jianfeng, in the formation quickly changed their expressions. They all felt the Spiritual Qi within their bodies becoming agitated due to the formation's influence, on the verge of running wild uncontrollably.
If they continued to stay, their cultivation might regress, and in serious cases, their entire cultivation could even vanish.
“Elder Li, well done! We concede. Please stop the grand formation and let us leave!” Wang Jianfeng immediately dared not underestimate Li Mu any longer and said submissively.
Upon hearing this, Li Mu quickly manipulated the formation plate and stopped the Spirit Yuan Peak Grand Formation.
This Spirit Yuan Peak Formation harms both others and oneself. If it operates for too long, it will also damage Yue Qiong Peak’s Spiritual Vein.
“The mist formation has been opened. Farewell, everyone. I won’t see you off!” Li Mu watched Wang Jianfeng and his group of Foundation Establishment Cultivators depart.
Confirming that the Spiritual Qi in his body had calmed down, Wang Jianfeng gave Li Mu a meaningful look and bid him farewell with a hint of threat: “Elder Li, green mountains do not change, and green waters flow on forever. We shall meet again!”
With that, Wang Jianfeng led his group of Foundation Establishment Cultivators and flew out of Yue Qiong Peak on their swords.
Watching Wang Jianfeng and his group leave, Li Mu chuckled, completely unconcerned by his threat. A Golden Core cultivator was nothing; he had killed them before.
Li Mu manipulated the formation plate, quickly activating the mist illusion formation to obscure Yue Qiong Peak.
Gazing at the deserted Yue Qiong Peak, with nearly two hundred acres of High Grade Spiritual Fields and Medium Grade Spiritual Fields, Li Mu was in a great mood. He swiftly retrieved the continuous storage spiritual box containing spiritual plants from his nine storage spiritual pearl and transplanted the cloud mist spiritual tea plants and hundreds of experimental spiritual plant seedlings into the two acres of High Grade Spiritual Fields.
He cast a Qingfeng Huanyu Technique, and spiritual rain poured down.
Soon, the transplanted plants in the two acres of High Grade Spiritual Fields, which had been in a dying state, rapidly recovered their vitality under the irrigation of the spiritual rain and the nourishment of the High Grade Spiritual Field’s fertility.
Li Mu couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief. Looking at the large expanse of empty Spiritual Fields, he frowned, pondering what to plant.
“Chirp, chirp!”
Suddenly, there was a movement in his chest, followed by a crisp chirping sound. In a moment, a small white worm, two fingers thick, crawled out of Li Mu’s pocket.
“You’re awake! Hungry? I understand!” Li Mu looked at the little white worm and, through the Spirit Control Contract Seal, understood what it was trying to convey.
Li Mu took out a soul gathering bottle from his nine storage spiritual pearl and casually pulled off the cap.
Before the Yao Beast's spirit could fly out of the soul gathering bottle, a White Feathered Demoness instantly lunged forward, blocking the bottle's opening first. 'Chirp, gurgle,' it wiggled its small behind, excitedly sucking, and the terrified Soul tremors of the Yao Beast's spirit emanated from the soul gathering bottle.
Seeing the little white worm’s cute yet terrifying appearance while eating, Li Mu frowned and quickly diverted his attention, pouring out the Crimson Wolf from his Spirit Beast Pouch, along with the Golden Ape cub he had casually picked up.
The Crimson Wolf woke up, shook its head, stood up, and excitedly nuzzled Li Mu’s leg.
Li Mu smiled slightly, took out a Spirit Pill bottle, and casually tossed a Spirit Nurturing Pill to it.
“Woof!” The Crimson Wolf swallowed the Spirit Nurturing Pill in one gulp and barked contentedly at Li Mu, as if expressing gratitude.
“Squeak, squeak!” The Golden Ape cub’s cry came from his feet. It tugged at Li Mu’s pants, crying and extending a small hand, begging for a Spirit Nurturing Pill, not at all shy with Li Mu.
The little Golden Ape had already been subjected to the Spirit Control Contract Seal and long considered Li Mu its master.
Li Mu smiled and placed a Spirit Nurturing Pill into the little Golden Ape’s hand.
“Squeak, squeak!” The little Golden Ape stuffed the Spirit Nurturing Pill into its mouth and squeaked contentedly at Li Mu.
“Crimson Wolf, take Little Gold to play!” Li Mu smiled and patted the Crimson Wolf’s head, his gaze falling upon the little Golden Ape.
【Green-Eyed Golden Ape (Infancy)】
【Grade: Second-Order Yao Beast】
【Characteristics: Gold Spirit Affinity, Intelligent and Agile, Innate Battle Beast】
【A Green-Eyed Golden Ape cub with a faint ancestral Bloodline of the Arm-Reaching Yao Ape. Its temperament is fierce and stubborn, with extraordinary Battle Intent. Features: Intelligent, erratic temperament, difficult to tame. Feeding it gold-element spiritual items can accelerate its growth. Using High Grade Bloodline spiritual items can purify its Bloodline and promote its ancestral advancement.】
His gaze fell upon Little Gold, and his Heavenly Talent - Identifying Myriad Spirits took effect, Li Mu immediately obtained all the information about the Golden Ape cub.
Li Mu hadn't expected that the Golden Ape cub he had casually picked up, primarily to release the Seal on its beast hide, would turn out to be a Golden Ape cub with extraordinary Aptitude and an ancestral Bloodline.
Thanks to the young lady from Chen's Cultivation Method Building, Li Mu had read many Yao Beast books and knew that the Arm-Reaching Yao Ape was a sixth-grade Spirit Beast.
He hadn't expected such a small second-grade Yao Beast to be connected to it.
However, thinking back to the battle with the Golden Ape King, where the Golden Ape King broke through its grade in a desperate situation, it indirectly proved that the second-grade Golden Ape group probably had a close relationship with the Arm-Reaching Yao Ape in their ancestry.
It’s just a pity that High Grade Bloodline purification spiritual items are hard to come by! I’ll have to look for them when I get a chance!
Watching the Crimson Wolf carrying the little Golden Ape frolic on Yue Qiong Peak, Li Mu smiled and turned his attention to the bustling Yue Qiong Peak, which had many things to attend to. He would be busy next!
First, he needed to set up several formations for Yue Qiong Peak: a Gathering Spirit Formation, a Five Elements Grand Formation, a Dragon Elephant Illusionary Spirit Formation… Additionally, the courtyards where the spirit rice farmers lived would all need to be demolished, and the Spiritual Fields would need to be re-organized…
Li Mu released fifteen Puppets to help him get busy.
Time flew by, and in a blink of an eye, ten days had passed.
Yue Qiong Peak had transformed. A mountain spring stream flowed down, with neat and orderly Spiritual Fields on both sides, arranged in a staggered, fan-shaped terraced structure from top to bottom. In the center, several Spiritual Fields had reddish-yellow soil, as if they had just been reclaimed. The Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi of the entire Yue Qiong Peak converged above the Spiritual Fields, and the Spiritual Field area absorbed the essence of the main Spiritual Vein.
At the apex of the fan-shaped Spiritual Fields, a brand-new courtyard was built. It was not large, about four or five acres, with a small training ground in the center of the courtyard. A crimson dog and a three-year-old child-sized Golden Ape cub were playing and frolicking.
Around the training ground were stone rooms, an Artifact Refining Room, a hide processing room, a reception hall… The courtyard also had a small vegetable garden, a unique pavilion, and a fish pond with flowing spiritual spring water… The architectural style of the entire stone courtyard did not resemble an Immortal Cave for Cultivators; instead, it looked like a low-key yet exquisite farmhouse estate with various complete functions.
Having completed the purchase of the Ice Yuan Formation for the storage room, Li Mu, beaming with joy, took out various items from his nine storage spiritual pearl: barrels filled with cuiling wine, reserves of spiritual fruits, ice-making tools, wooden racks for storing Yao Beast meat…
Next, he would procure another batch of Yao Beast meat, and then he could peacefully stay at Yue Qiong Peak to cultivate and farm.
Emerging from the storage room, Li Mu walked to the pavilion and gazed out. The spiritually rich Yue Qiong Peak, with the scenery below, was fully visible. However, below were patches of bare terraced Spiritual Fields, exactly three hundred acres in total: fifty-six acres of High Grade Spiritual Fields, one hundred and seventy acres of Medium Grade Spiritual Fields, and the rest were newly cultivated Low Grade Spiritual Fields. With the effect of the Gathering Spirit Formation, concentrating the Spiritual Qi essence of Yue Qiong Peak, the spiritualization level of the Low Grade Spiritual Fields and Medium Grade Spiritual Fields would rapidly catch up and improve.
These days, Li Mu had spent all his time arranging formations for Yue Qiong Peak and constructing his Immortal Cave. Along the way, he also cleared and organized the Spiritual Fields, and the dozens of acres of newly reclaimed Spiritual Fields had all successfully spiritualized into Low Grade Spiritual Fields.
Next, he would plant various spiritual plants in these Spiritual Fields, and when they ripened, his cultivation would rapidly increase…
Li Mu immediately couldn't wait; he had to quickly plant spiritual plants in all these Spiritual Fields.
Li Mu took out a brand-new golden Dharma robe from his nine storage spiritual pearl. This was his proof of identity after passing the Artifact Crafting Elder's assessment: a fourth-grade Golden Flame Dharma robe, which only Artifact Crafting Elders of Hundred Refinements Peak were permitted to wear.
After putting on the golden Dharma robe, Li Mu, who had originally possessed a low-key demeanor and ordinary features, immediately exuded an extremely noble aura.
“Crimson Wolf, you and Little Gold stay home and watch the place. I’ll be back soon!” Li Mu instructed the Crimson Wolf, then mounted his sword and flew towards Hundred Refinements Peak.
Now that Yue Qiong Peak had been taken, Li Mu also needed to undertake some Artifact Refining tasks. He planned to accept some Artifact Refining assignments, then make another trip to the Contribution Hall to exchange for some High Grade spiritual plant seeds and auxiliary Materials.
A quarter of an hour later, Li Mu flew to Hundred Refinements Peak.
Beneath the Hundred Refinements Pagoda, the eighteen entrances still had long queues, and Foundation Establishment Disciples flying on their swords came and went incessantly.
Relying on his golden robe as an Artifact Crafting Elder of Hundred Refinements Peak, Li Mu easily flew into the Hundred Refinements Spiritual Pagoda. The guarding Disciples all bowed deeply, no one daring to obstruct him.
“Who is that Elder? I’ve never seen him before!”
“Yeah! Is he new? He’s only at the Foundation Establishment cultivation level, right? How did he become an Elder of our Hundred Refinements Peak?”
“It’s the newly promoted Elder Li! He even drove Wang Jianfeng and his group out of Yue Qiong Peak a few days ago!”
“No way! Where did you get that news? Is this newly promoted Elder really that formidable? Even Senior Brother Wang suffered a loss?”
“Impossible! Senior Brother Wang is a popular candidate for the next True Disciple!”
“It’s true, I saw Senior Brother Wang on Spiritual Moon Peak!”
...
Watching Li Mu enter the Hundred Refinements Spiritual Pagoda, the Disciples of Hundred Refinements Peak discussed amongst themselves, with various rumors surfacing.
Li Mu paid no heed. Seeing Chen Zhuo, Yin Xianwen’s Disciple, on duty, he quickly asked, “Is Elder Yin available?”
“Yes, yes, Elder Li, I’ll take you there.” Chen Zhuo quickly nodded and respectfully led the way.
Regarding this newly promoted Elder Li, Chen Zhuo knew much more than others. His master spoke highly of Elder Li’s Artifact Refining skills and had sternly warned him never to underestimate Elder Li because of his age.
Soon, led by Chen Zhuo, Li Mu met Yin Xianwen, who was currently studying a special Spiritual Artifact.
“Elder Li, why have you come over? Have you finished settling the Immortal Cave matters?” Yin Xianwen looked at Li Mu in surprise and greeted him with a smile.
Because Li Mu was moving into a new Immortal Cave, Yin Xianwen had temporarily not assigned him any Artifact Refining tasks. He hadn't expected Li Mu to be so quick and come to Hundred Refinements Peak to find him so soon.
“Yes, I’ve finished. Elder Yin, when you have time, you’re welcome to visit Yue Qiong Peak!” Li Mu said with a smile, inviting him.
“Yue Qiong Peak, huh! Alright, I’ll pay a visit another day!” Yin Xianwen nodded with a smile.
The two chatted for a bit. Li Mu explained the purpose of his visit and also conveyed his intention to Yin Xianwen, indicating that he would follow Yin Xianwen’s Artifact Refining arrangements and did not wish to interact with other commissioned Artifact Refining requests.
Upon hearing this, Yin Xianwen was not surprised but delighted, very willing to accept Li Mu's wish.
There were many Artifact Crafting Elders on Hundred Refinements Peak. However, due to the organizational structure and the complexity of Artifact Refining, Artifact Crafting Elders had the right to directly communicate with Disciples who needed Artifact Refining without going through him, accepting Artifact Refining commission tasks and simply reporting to him. Not many people were willing to be like Li Mu, unwilling to use this Artifact Refining opportunity to expand their connections and befriend Sect Disciples.
Li Mu’s arrangement of directly receiving Artifact Refining tasks from him greatly increased Yin Xianwen’s authority on Hundred Refinements Peak. If every Artifact Crafting Elder were as hassle-free as Li Mu, it would be wonderful!
“Coincidentally, I have a few Artifact Refining tasks to assign to you. The first is a fire-element Spiritual Artifact to be refined for True Disciple Ling Hongyu. These are the Artifact Refining Materials she provided: Blazing Marrow Crystal, Crimson Flame Dragon Bone, Black Flame Molten Stone… She hopes to refine a fourth-grade High Grade Spiritual Artifact. As for its form, there are no special requirements, but she hopes it can have auxiliary functions.”
“The second is a refining task for True Disciple Shi Changhe. This Disciple has dual Water-Wood Spiritual Roots and primarily cultivates the Heavenly River Wood Comprehension Cultivation Technique. He wants to refine a dual Water-Wood Spiritual Artifact….”
“The third is a refining task for True Disciple Jian Chen. This Disciple has a gold-element Golden Core Spiritual Root and follows the Sword Cultivator path. The Artifact Refining Materials provided are: Skyfall Star Gold, profound abyss heavy gold….”
...
Yin Xianwen spoke voluminously, conveying four Artifact Refining tasks to Li Mu, and enthusiastically gestured: “You first refine these five Artifacts to practice. Hmm! If you need other Materials, you can directly go to the warehouse to collect them; just report it when you hand over the Artifact. If you need to use the Artifact Refining Room, you can tell Chen Zhuo, and he will arrange it.”
“Alright, Elder Yin.” Li Mu readily accepted this Artifact Refining arrangement.