Chapter 357: 208. Substitute one’s own punishment, the Immortal Treasure of Mountains and Seas

Following Xuan Li’s story, Tan Shuchang came to understand that the cultivating families in the Land of the Four Pillars were not forever unchanging. Every so often, a group of cultivating families would disappear from this world, owing to a True Immortal’s descent to undergo tribulation.

It seemed like some unwavering constant.

Whether a cultivating family could continue to thrive often hinged on luck. Even if a cultivating family had never offended the True Immortal descending to face their tribulation, and had even aided them significantly, they might still be vanquished by a mere comment: “You, the strongest family in this land, did not control the cultivators here, allowing them to be too idle, which is indeed a way to court death.”

Therefore, when faced with a possible descent of a True Immortal for tribulation, the best strategy was to say nothing and hide the entire family away.

After all, no matter how one might be “courting death,” one must first be found!

“That reason, why does it sound so much like, ‘if a sheep dares to stare us down today, it might dare to eat people tomorrow’?” After hearing this, Tan Shuchang couldn’t help but feel that the True Immortal descending to undergo tribulation was akin to descending to randomly kill a bunch.

Nevertheless, this helped Tan Shuchang further ascertain the hierarchy within this realm: the Immortal Clan at the top, then the thirty-six Dao Palaces, followed by the Immortal Sect, with the larger and smaller cultivating families on the same level of the food chain.

Last were the Loose Cultivators, who also could be considered the lower-tier cultivators.

Though among these Loose Cultivators, there were quite a few formidable ones. After all, with a large base, there would always be a few lucky ones. Maybe a True Immortal took a whim, or two powerful figures used them for a wager, resulting in a strong Loose Cultivator.

But such powerful Loose Cultivators, despite seeming to have unlimited glory, were seen by those cultivating families as merely having transformed from someone who could be summoned and dismissed at will, into someone who needed a bit of incentive to be controlled.

It was much like raising a dog.

After all, even in training a dog, one needs to give something to make the dog obey.

So, in a world where everything was judged by one’s birth and connections, even if Loose Cultivators had high cultivation and had established families, they were still counted among the lowest rank of cultivators.

Between poverty and wealth, there has always been only the distinction of the poor and the rich.

Then, after thanking Xuan Li for the information, Tan Shuchang got up to leave. However, before his departure, Xuan Li expressed a wish to borrow Tan Shuchang’s Alchemy Furnace for some time.

“Brother Tan, I don’t have an Alchemy Furnace. Could I use this Immortal Treasure as collateral? It is a Fang Tian Hua Ji that I recently obtained by lucky coincidence. It’s very suitable for a warrior to use,” Xuan Li said. Realizing Tan Shuchang’s previous intentions, she hadn’t finished her words before she presented the Fang Tian Hua Ji.

Tan Shuchang glanced at the Fang Tian Hua Ji but didn’t pay it much mind, as the bottom of his Blood Pool was already filled with a stack of treasures. Throwing in another one as a return favor was no harm.

Therefore, he agreed and exchanged treasures with Xuan Li before leaving.

Xuan Li saw Tan Shuchang out all the way to the door and waited until she couldn’t see his figure anymore before returning to her cave dwelling.

As soon as she returned, a figure jumped out from the void, anxiously saying, “Why did you exchange that treasure away? It’s related to your bloodline!”

This figure was only the size of a palm with one horn on its head, just like Xuan Li, but it also had an extra pair of wings.

“Do not fret. This treasure doesn’t suit me very well, and besides, its arrival seemed too coincidental. My bloodline has been awakened for some time now. If my bloodline could really attract such a treasure, it should have done so sooner. Moreover, this treasure requires serving as a general in the royal court for full compatibility. Since that is the case, why not exchange this treasure with Tan, the Patrol Mountain Envoy?” Xuan Li looked at the figure calmly as she spoke.

However, in her eyes there flickered a hint of meaningful intent.

This look was not directed at Tan Shuchang, but at the unique creature in front of her, the size of a palm.

She had encountered it when she was young: its name was “Shuang Jia.”

For her, Shuang Jia was both a mentor and a friend. If it wasn’t for Shuang Jia awakening her bloodline, enabling her to truly start on her cultivation path, she would have long since perished.

Because originally, she was no more than an ordinary mortal girl.

It was with Shuang Jia’s help that she had come so far.

Xuan Li had always thought this way, until recently, when an immensely powerful Immortal Treasure appeared in front of her without anyone summoning it. After slaying three Immortals who had achieved eternal life, it came straight to her.

Shuang Jia said that it was attracted by her bloodline.

It was from that moment that Xuan Li began to harbor suspicions toward Shuang Jia, her mentor, and friend. She pondered whether she might be a lucky one, perhaps a pawn in a wager between two powerful cultivators.

Those with three achievements were known among cultivators of the Immortal Path, though not yet Immortals, could be called formidable beings with at least a thousand years of cultivation. For them, considering an Immortal as a mere piece in a game wasn’t inconceivable.

The difference between them was as vast as heaven and earth.

Read latest Chapters at WuxiaWorld.Site Only

One achievement for eternal life, two to unite with the Dao, three to leave one’s name in the Immortal Path; these were three great realms in themselves.

Xuan Li’s subtle expressions did not escape Shuang Jia’s detection, for after many years together, it believed that Xuan Li had immense trust in it.

After all, having been together so long, and with Xuan Li’s usual lively character, it couldn’t always be concealing its true feelings, right?

Vote

1