Of the four disciples, the one who had changed the most was, without a doubt, Iron Head. Although his long life meant his appearance hadn’t changed in two years, his temperament had matured considerably. There was a natural air of dignity in his every move, whether standing, sitting, or walking.

The number of Acupoints he had opened in his True Yang Body had now surpassed Yang Jing’s, reaching a total of forty-five. He had also comprehended a new Magic called the Fire Swallowing Technique, which allowed him to heal his injuries by consuming Spiritual Fire.

It was an exceptionally practical Healing Technique.

"Let’s depart,"

Yang Jing said.

He had kept his destination on this trip to the Dong Family extremely secret. Besides his four disciples and Zuoqiu Feng, only Meng Sima and Canxuan True Monarch knew of it. Even the Demon Suppression Army soldiers and his assistant, Yang Jingxu, aboard the Flying Boat only knew that Yang Jing was taking a long journey.

The Flying Boat slowly ascended, vanishing over the horizon in a flash.

Yang Jing sat cross-legged in the Flying Boat’s Quiet Chamber. Since the boat was powered by a Spiritual Eye Object, the Spiritual Qi it provided was more than enough for a Cultivator of his Foundation Establishment Cultivation level. However, Zuoqiu Feng would have to be inconvenienced.

With her Golden Core Realm Cultivation, if she were to absorb Spiritual Qi without restraint, no one else on the Flying Boat would be able to cultivate.

"I’m sorry for the inconvenience on this trip, Junior Martial Uncle Feng,"

he said, bowing to Zuoqiu Feng.

Zuoqiu Feng reached out with a delicate hand, took Yang Jing’s, and began to gently stroke it.

"Given our relationship, what’s a month of not being able to cultivate? It’s a shame the Mingfei Joyful Method is forbidden, or I’d really want to try it out with you,"

she chuckled softly.

Yang Jing felt helpless and could only let her be. Though his Daoist heart was firm, he still felt a flutter in his chest as he felt her soft, delicate palm.

Over the past two years, Zuoqiu Feng had been making slow and steady advances, bringing their relationship to where it was today.

Suddenly, Chi Yu came hopping and skipping into the Quiet Chamber. Seeing Zuoqiu Feng holding her master’s hand, she let out a mischievous giggle. Zuoqiu Feng grabbed her and tapped her on the head twice.

Tears instantly welled up in Chi Yu’s eyes. Zuoqiu Feng picked her up and cooed a few words, and only then did she stop crying.

She had grown tired of the view from the deck and had come back inside the cabin.

"Master, how many days until we reach the Dragon Taming Dong Family?"

"The Dragon Taming Dong Family is located in the Dong Kingdom, where they are the Royal Family. The Dong Kingdom is on the shore of the East Sea. It will take our Flying Boat about fifteen days to get there."

In truth, it would only take seven days if we flew in a straight line over the sea. Unfortunately, the vast ocean is home to all sorts of Demons and Sea Monsters. Even a large vessel like a Martial Might-level Flying Boat cannot protect itself if it travels alone and encounters one of those massive Sea Monsters.

Furthermore, the sea has all kinds of naturally occurring illusory arrays. Without a large-scale Celestial Star Array, it’s extremely easy to get lost on the vast ocean; not even Cultivators are immune.

The Martial Might-level Flying Boats were built only for coastal escort missions, so they naturally aren’t equipped with the kind of large-scale Celestial Star Array that consumes immense amounts of Spiritual Qi.

On the shipping routes between the Central Continent and the Western Continent, merchant ships typically travel in fleets of several dozen for mutual protection. Even so, there’s no guarantee of safety on any given voyage.

This is precisely why the Seven Nations Ticket Shop never accepts merchant ships as collateral for their loans—they could be destroyed at any moment along the route.

The route Yang Jing had planned was to fly along the coast. Although it was longer, it passed through territory governed by the Six Kingdoms, so there wouldn’t be much risk.

The Dong Kingdom was different from the Northern Domain Seven Kingdoms. In the Seven Kingdoms, numerous Immortally Cultivation Clans, and even Golden Core Clans, co-ruled the nation alongside the Royal Family. The Dong Kingdom, however, was entirely in the hands of the Dragon Taming Dong Family alone. Even the mortals there shared a bloodline connection with the Dong Family.

After tens of thousands of years of proliferation, the Dong Family’s clan members numbered in the tens of millions.

And this was after the Dragon Taming Dong Family had removed members with overly distant bloodlines from the official clan register.

"Master, can we see the great sea?"

Chi Yu asked with great anticipation. Although she practiced the Profound Whale Body, a Cultivation Technique intrinsically linked to the ocean, she had never actually seen it before.

"Of course,"

Yang Jing said with a nod.

"We should be able to see the sea in another day. But the waters are dangerous, so you should wait until we’ve reached the Dong Kingdom before you go playing in the water."

Although the threat from the sea on the Western Continent was less severe than that of the Demon Sects and the Demon Country, it still caused endless suffering for the coastal nations. The Demons in the sea often came ashore to reproduce, leading to fierce conflicts with the various kingdoms.

As for fishing in the ocean, that was tantamount to putting your life on the line, as you could fall prey to a Sea Demon at any moment.

「The next day, Yang Jing led his four disciples onto the deck of the Flying Boat.」

The salty sea breeze washed over them. The vast surface of the ocean stretched to the distant horizon. The sky was clear and azure. The calm water reflected the colors of the sky. Looking down from the Flying Boat, they could see a few small islets in the distance. Since there were no major rivers flowing into the sea nearby, the water was exceptionally clear, like a colossal, deep blue crystal.

Yang Jing’s Eye Power was outstanding; he could even see through the water to the fish swimming in the shallows.

Some Cultivators were out on the water, fishing from their sea vessels.

Even in the coastal waters right next to the shore, mortals didn’t dare to fish. The Spiritual Qi in the sea was abundant, and some of the slightly larger fish possessed tens of thousands of pounds of Giant Power, enough to easily drag a sampan under the waves.

In fact, to avoid the Sea Monsters that came ashore, the land within a mile of the coast was completely uninhabited.

Even Cultivators who could pilot sea vessels that were Magical Artifacts only dared to operate close to the coastline, so they could quickly retreat to shore if they encountered a Sea Monster.

At this time, it was not uncommon to see Cultivators fishing in the coastal waters. Although the Seven Nations Ticket Shop didn’t accept merchant ships as collateral, it was more than willing to provide loans to Cultivators who wanted to buy sea vessels for fishing.

Firstly, as long as one didn’t venture too deep into the ocean, capturing Sea Demons in coastal waters was relatively safe. Secondly, they could use these Independent Cultivators to control the number of Demons active near the coast, thus easing the pressure on their maritime defenses.

Although these sea vessels were also Magical Artifacts, they were far cheaper to build than Flying Boats because they only needed to be able to fly for short periods. A Tier One sea vessel cost only about four thousand Spirit Stones.

For a single Independent Cultivator, this price was naturally difficult to afford, but it was easy to gather the sum if several of them took out a loan together.

The Demon Fish in the sea were generally enormous, far larger than the Demons found in inland rivers and mountains. Catching a single one could easily fetch anywhere from one hundred to several hundred Spirit Stones. Four thousand Spirit Stones might seem like a huge sum, but it could be easily earned back after just a few trips out to sea.

Furthermore, because only Foundation Establishment Clans previously had the financial resources to organize fleets of sea vessels, the number of Demons in the coastal waters was plentiful. Almost every voyage yielded a great harvest, with the ships returning fully loaded.

Thanks to these Independent Cultivators, all sorts of fresh seafood could now be bought even in the inland areas of the Northern Domain. Not only was it inexpensive and available in great variety, but it was also nearly half the price of Demon Beast Flesh.

This seafood was rich in Spiritual Qi, especially Water Element Spiritual Qi, making it perfect for Cultivators who practiced Water Element Techniques.

This had practically opened up a brand-new source of cultivation resources for the Cultivators of the Northern Domain Seven Kingdoms. In the long run, the overall standard of the Cultivators in the Northern Domain Seven Kingdoms was bound to rise to a new level.

Yang Jing stood with his hands behind his back, watching the vibrant scene on the ocean’s surface. This sight was a clear testament to how the Seven Nations Ticket Shop had changed the very atmosphere of the Seven Kingdoms. Before the Seven Nations Ticket Shop existed, these poor Independent Cultivators could never have afforded expensive sea vessels that were Magical Artifacts.

"Minister, those Independent Cultivators have you to thank for what they have today. They’re bound to have some fresh seafood on hand. Should we stop the boat and buy some?"

a soldier from the Demon Suppression Army said. He had previously escorted Meng Sima north, and on the return journey, his favorite thing to do was purchase seafood to sell back inland. On a good trip, he could even earn over a hundred Spirit Stones.

Yang Jing shook his head and said,

"There’s no need to create unnecessary complications. Continue onward." 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

’Too many people leads to too much talk. If we stop to buy things, our location might be exposed.’

’Even though many years had passed, Yang Jing hadn’t forgotten that the bounty on his head from the Illusion Demon Sect had not been rescinded. Moreover, the Evil God behind the Mingfei Joyful Method was still lurking in the shadows.’

’Better to be safe than sorry.’