Eternal Life: My Talents Can Refresh-Chapter 322 - 162: Foundation Establishment-Level Puppet Beast 3
Of course, his appearance and aura had also completely changed.
At this moment, Chu Ning had assumed the guise of a middle-aged cultivator at the Seventh Layer of Qi Refining, while Ling Xiaobai, who might reveal his identity, was kept in the Spirit Beast Bag.
After a slight examination, this island did not stir any sense of familiarity in him.
"Either I’ve never been to this island before, or I stayed for too short a time without delving in.
However, such dense Spiritual Qi suggests it resembles an island with a Tier Two Spirit Vein."
Muttering to himself, Chu Ning cautiously flew deeper into the island.
In the Thousand Lakes and Thousand Islands, if an island is inhabited by cultivators, the teleportation array is usually located in a relatively central position.
After flying for about five or six miles, Chu Ning’s eyes lit up as he spotted a cultivator.
This cultivator bore a resemblance to his current appearance in terms of age, but his cultivation seemed to be at the Fifth Layer of Qi Refining.
Chu Ning immediately called out, "Fellow Daoist in front, please wait a moment."
Hearing Chu Ning’s shout, the middle-aged cultivator halted, casting a somewhat wary gaze at Chu Ning.
Chu Ning smiled slightly at him and cupped his hands in a greeting:
"Greetings, fellow Daoist. May I ask the way to the teleportation array on this island?"
Hearing that Chu Ning was inquiring about the teleportation array, the expression on the middle-aged cultivator’s face relaxed considerably.
He pointed slightly towards the east of the island’s center and said:
"That’s the direction of the teleportation array, but don’t head straight towards the center. That’s where the Isle Masters’ cave mansions are.
General cultivators are not allowed to approach freely."
Upon hearing this, Chu Ning adopted a serious expression, then reached into his Storage Bag and took out a Lower Grade Spirit Stone.
"Fellow Daoist, your advice is truly valuable. I wonder if you could guide me there? This Spirit Stone will serve as compensation."
The middle-aged cultivator, upon hearing that guiding someone could earn a Spirit Stone, instantly beamed with joy and agreed without hesitation.
The two of them employed a simple Wind Manipulation Technique to fly towards the direction of the teleportation array.
Chu Ning casually picked up a few topics, effortlessly gathering some useful information.
However, a peculiar expression did cross Chu Ning’s face.
"What a coincidence, the island I’ve come to is actually Fengya Island."
When he previously encountered Song Ye, Chu Ning had fabricated the identity of a cultivator from Fengya Island.
And indeed, Chu Ning had been to Fengya Island before.
As an island with a Tier Two Spirit Vein, it housed many cultivators.
It even had a small gathering place for Loose Cultivators to trade.
This was chiefly because not every cultivator was willing to pay the teleportation array fees solely to conduct transactions on Thousand Illusion Island.
Especially for small transactions.
Yet that place was just small-scale and hadn’t developed into a full-fledged market.
Chu Ning had previously visited a couple of times specifically to seek out alchemy materials.
Both times, he’d gone directly to the Loose Cultivator trading area.
He had never ventured to other parts of the island, thus explaining the lack of familiarity when he first arrived.
After flying a few dozen more miles, Chu Ning had acquired nearly all the information he wanted.
He then fabricated a reason, saying he now recognized the way to the teleportation array, and parted ways with the middle-aged cultivator.
Before leaving, Chu Ning took the opportunity to purchase a few stalks of Spirit Medicine called Fire Maple Grass for two Spirit Stones from the cultivator.
This Spirit Medicine was unique to the island, and the middle-aged cultivator mentioned he intended to sell it at the Loose Cultivator gathering place.
Chu Ning said that he had precisely come to this island to find this kind of Spirit Medicine, offering a price consistent with its normal trade value.
The middle-aged cultivator happily sold it to Chu Ning.
Once the cultivator turned to leave, Chu Ning’s expression became more solemn.
"Considering that I previously concocted the identity of a cultivator from this island, that red-faced elder might indeed come to investigate.
Being an unfamiliar cultivator abruptly appearing here could indeed raise suspicion.
Now, with a concrete identity and motive, even if someone probes, there won’t be much issue."
With these thoughts in mind, Chu Ning swiftly proceeded towards the teleportation array.
Before long, he arrived at the teleportation array.
Like elsewhere, the cost of traveling to Thousand Illusion Island here was also ten Spirit Stones.
As a middle-aged cultivator at the Seventh Layer of Qi Refining, it wasn’t feasible for Chu Ning to pay it all himself.
So he waited at the teleportation array with three other people.
After a short while, two more cultivators arrived, which did not particularly concern Chu Ning.
However, suddenly his gaze froze momentarily before returning to normal.
"Senior Song, we have truly never heard of a cultivator named He Jie on our Fengya Island.
The opponent possesses cultivation at the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining and can escape from the Senior’s grasp, if they were from our Fengya Island, I’m sure I would have known."
As this voice echoed, several figures emerged outside the teleportation array.
The lead elder had a red face, exuding a formidable presence. It was none other than Song Ye, whom Chu Ning had previously encountered on Luoxia Island.
Beside him stood an Early Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.
Chu Ning had seen this person from afar during the Thousand Islands competition; it was Zhou Xinquan, Isle Master of Fengya Island.
This person also possessed Foundation Establishment cultivation but addressed himself as a junior before Song Ye.
Aside from being younger in age, it naturally had to do with the fact that Song Ye was at the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment and a member of the Song Family.
Upon seeing the newcomers, Chu Ning was quite startled.
He hadn’t anticipated Song Ye arriving on Fengya Island so swiftly.
In his view, the opponent should have lingered a while longer on Luoxia Island.
Song Ye’s face was somber. He had originally stayed on Luoxia Island but found nothing after two days.
He had finally grown impatient.
Recalling that "He Jie" possessed treasures that could counteract Divine Sense, Song Ye immediately headed to Fengya Island to investigate.
Contrary to his expectations, Fengya Island claimed there was no such person.
"That guy really hid his identity from the first moment he saw me."
Thinking about it, Song Ye couldn’t help but gnash his teeth in anger.
Moving into the area of the teleportation array, Song Ye ignored Zhou Xinquan, who was still explaining.
His gaze swept coldly over Chu Ning and others, and he asked:
"Are you all cultivators from Fengya Island? Have you seen a cultivator named He Jie?"
That was just a name Chu Ning had made up, so naturally, no one had heard of it.
Everyone shook their heads accordingly.
Song Ye’s brows furrowed, and he turned to the person next to Chu Ning, asking:
"What’s your name? Are you from Fengya Island?
If you’re from Fengya Island, what are you going to do now?"
Song Ye questioned two or three people in succession before fixing his gaze on Chu Ning.
"What is your name?"
