Seeking Immortality in a Bizarre World-Chapter 432 - 427 Old Friend? Trap? Fisher?!_1
Ancient Treasures, Profound Treasures, and All-Heaven Profound Treasures.
This was the path of Artifact Refining of the ancient cultivators, a development route completely different from that of Spirit Treasures.
The power of Ancient Treasures is greater than that of ordinary Magical Treasures, and Profound Treasures are also greater than Spirit Treasures.
Why did cultivators abandon the path of Ancient Treasures?
The fundamental reason is that Ancient Treasures cannot be stored within the body; after other cultivators kill someone, they can easily seize their Ancient Treasures and unleash their full power.
The requirements for refining Ancient Treasures exceed those for Spirit Treasures, consuming top-notch materials. If you kill your target, you can easily snatch their Ancient Treasure for your own use. This also led to rampant killing and frequent treasure snatching in the Cultivation World.
Unlike Ancient Treasures, Spirit Treasures are connected to their owner’s intentions. Even if the owner dies, some Spirit Treasures will either follow their owner in death or avenge them. Killing for treasure does not enable one to obtain Spirit Treasures, and one must face the desperate counterattack of the Spirit Treasures. You’ll gain little, attracting a whole host of trouble instead.
Were it not for this, how could the Lingbao Sect, with its eye-catching abundance of Spirit Treasures, remain peaceful to this day? The Spirit Treasures left by forebears are also the foundation of the Lingbao Sect; they have a deep sense of belonging to the Sect. Outsiders who obtain Spirit Treasures find them difficult to use.
When the Lingbao Sect encounters life-and-death struggles, no one can guarantee that the treasured Spirit Treasures of the Sect won’t self-detonate. Not only would they fail to acquire the treasures of the Lingbao Sect but also suffer a huge loss.
If the Lingbao Sect had chosen the path of Ancient Treasures, the situation would be different. The numerous Profound Treasures and All-Heaven Profound Treasures could be obtained simply by killing and plundering. Every disciple of the Lingbao Sect venturing outside would become a juicy target in the eyes of others. Facing covetous opponents, with all manner of overt and covert attacks, how long could the Lingbao Sect endure?
The Demon-Sealing Tower is not suitable for following the path of Ancient Treasures and Profound Treasures; once the connection with one’s Life-bound Magic Treasure is severed, there is no way to cultivate the Heavenly Treasure Spirit Cultivation Technique.
Jia Ren wouldn’t want to affect his future cultivation. His Life-bound Magic Treasure would not consider becoming a Profound Treasure.
However, other treasures, such as the Heavenly Fire Palace Lantern and the Xuan Gui Shield, could consider this path.
As for the specifics, he would have to wait until he learned the Ancient Treasure Refining Technique before making a decision.
The lecture had concluded, and everyone hurriedly left. The purple Taoist robe was too conspicuous, as everyone else wore white robes, with him being the exception. Jia Ren stood out among the ordinary disciples.
As a True Disciple, his status was not low, and rumors that he was also a Spirit Treasure Refiner made the gazes from the disciples of the Artifact Refining Auxiliary Hall change.
"Senior Brother Jia, do you have a Dao companion? If you already have one, would you mind having another concubine?"
"My younger sister is sixteen, in the prime of her youth..."
"Senior Brother Jia, if you have any menial tasks to be done, please feel free to command me."
In that moment, Jia Ren finally experienced the benefits of being a True Disciple. A True Disciple, in addition to being a Spirit-level Refiner, became a treat in many eyes. He had no interest in building his own circle and declined them one by one.
Jia Ren was immersed in learning, utterly engrossed. He spent every day cultivating and learning fundamental artifact refining techniques, strengthening his foundations, and using other times to learn and master a few Divine Skills.
The Yama Heavenly Child is a great Divine Power from the Demonic Path, and the Demonic Path Divine Skills obtained from Xia Zonglong were not suitable for use within the Sect, for fear the higher-ups would regard him as a spy. He did not wish to cultivate Demonic Path Divine Skills and be mistaken for a Demonic Sect spy by a passing Fusion Ancestor, who would then kill him with a slap.
The only techniques he could cultivate were Heart-Mind Sensing and the Ji Kong Palm. Still unable to make an entry into the Ji Kong Palm, Jia Ren planned to continue cultivating for a few more days; if he still failed to make an entry, he would rely on Technique Demon Pills for rapid advancement.
Compared to the slow progress with Ji Kong Palm, Heart-Mind Sensing was very compatible with Jia Ren, capable of free use shortly after the initial learning. Heart-Mind Sensing could not only sense the target’s location but also detect intelligence, functioning as a Divine Skill. As a mental-type Divine Skill, it had the ability to perceive the current thoughts of a target, similar to Telepathy. Which of the two was stronger or weaker, Jia Ren did not know.
Heart-Mind Sensing was not all-powerful and could not probe the thoughts of all cultivators. The effectiveness of Heart-Mind Sensing in probing thoughts was related to the strength of one’s Divine Soul. It could only probe targets whose Divine Souls were significantly weaker than one’s own. Moreover, if the target had mastered a secret technique or Divine Skill for protecting the mind, the difficulty of probing with Heart-Mind Sensing would increase further.
Jia Ren didn’t dare to use it recklessly, applying it only to Inner and Outer Sect Disciples from the Artifact Refining Auxiliary Hall, as well as to the Grey Robed Miscellaneous Duties. The effects were quite good, with a steady increase in Proficiency Level.
Over seven days, the lecture covered basic artifact refining techniques, the selection and matching of Inscriptions, and how to pair materials and Inscriptions for maximum effect.
Jia Ren had some understanding of this aspect, but unfortunately, the Inscriptions he obtained, both in quantity and quality, were far from matching the Lingbao Sect’s Refining Palace. This was his biggest flaw.
Having made up for his deficiencies in this aspect of artifact refining foundations, the subsequent lectures became increasingly less useful to him. There was no need to stay any longer in the Artifact Refining Auxiliary Hall, wasting his precious time.
Jia Ren was considering entering the Hall of Artifice to try to integrate what he had learned and form his own unique system. Just then, a Grey Robed Miscellaneous Duties brought news.
"Senior Brother Jia, someone outside Lingbao Mountain seeks you, claiming to be an old acquaintance of yours."
An old acquaintance?
There were many from the Sealed Land; they were either dead or forever remained in the Sealed Land. In the Mysterious Realm, old acquaintances were few, with only Wang Fugui coming to mind. There was no need for Wang Fugui to contact him in such a roundabout way as he would have already used a Magical Treasure for communication. He was no longer a handyman; communication would not be obstructed.
Who could it be? After hesitating for a moment, Jia Ren hurried toward the gate of the Lingbao Sect.
It’s been a long time since I left the Sect, Jia Ren sighed inwardly as he looked at the mountain’s stone platform. The last time he’d left the gate, he was a mere handyman, and the person he met was Wang Fugui. The Giant Forest Secret Realm and the Heiyuan Secret Realm are Secret Realms; they don’t count as officially leaving the gate.
Jia Ren stood in front of the Sect’s gate, hesitating to move forward; behind him was the Formation of the Lingbao Sect. This was the safest place—if he were to retreat, he could return to the Sect in an instant, and even a Void Refinement Cultivator would have difficulty taking him down.
He looked into the distance and saw a young man waiting at the bottom of the mountain. The person’s face was familiar—indeed, someone he knew. He was a Steward of the Western Bizarre-Suppressing Alliance, the nephew of his so-called uncle Fan Xin; his name seemed to be Fan Lin. The two had dealt with each other several times and had a good relationship. He had followed Wang Fugui to leave the Sealed Land and enter the Mysterious Realm.
How did he find this place?
How did he know that I’ve become a disciple of the Lingbao Sect?
Very few people knew he was a disciple of the Lingbao Sect, and among acquaintances, only Wang Fugui was aware. For his own safety, Wang Fugui wouldn’t casually divulge his whereabouts.
This situation didn’t seem right no matter how he looked at it.
People are inscrutable; our past relationship was decent but not intimate.
After so many years in the Mysterious Realm, who knows what he’s experienced? What’s his intention in coming to find me this time?
"Junior Brother Jia, it really is you!" he had just spoken when Jia Ren suddenly thought of a crucial issue...
The name he had revealed to this person was Zhen Yi, not Jia Ren!
Wang Fugui, who shared in his glories and losses, wouldn’t possibly leak his real name.
Besides, there’s another critical point.
His Heart-Mind Sensing caught the other person’s thoughts... this was to lure him out and kill him!
It was indeed a trap!
Jia Ren decisively dove back into the Sect, denying the other person any opportunity to act. Since he’d discovered something was amiss, it was best not to take risks.
"You dare play tricks on me? Do you still want to live?"
"Your father’s life is in my hands."
A chilling voice echoed in Fan Lin’s mind, turning his face pale and causing his body to shake, as if he might fall at any moment.
"I... I’ve done as you instructed," Fan Lin stammered. After regaining some composure, he hurriedly explained his plan in detail: "Zhen... Jia Ren is cautious by nature. I only know his alias, so he must be wary of my arrival. It won’t be easy to lure him out and control him. I deliberately mentioned Jia Ren’s name to heighten his suspicion. Jia Ren will definitely wonder how I obtained this information. If he can’t contact Wang Fugui, he’ll inevitably suspect something has happened to Wang Fugui! He and Wang Fugui are very close—there’s a high probability he’s Wang Fugui’s illegitimate son. If Jia Ren suspects me, he’ll surely leave the Sect quietly to follow me in secret. That’s when your opportunity will arise! I’m the bait, Jia Ren is the fish, and you are the fisherman holding the rod!"
The voice in his head was silent for a long while before responding, "I don’t care how you do it, as long as you can lure him out of the Sect. Otherwise, you and your father will die!"
Fan Xin was not Fan Lin’s uncle but his biological father. Very few knew the truth, and in front of the Soul Searching Technique, they had no secrets.
"Hmph, I hope so. If the outcome is unsatisfying, you’ll know the consequences," the voice said before disappearing.
Fan Lin glanced in the direction of the Lingbao Sect with envy and resentment in his eyes. Jia Ren had become a disciple of the Lingbao Sect, listed among True Disciples. It was difficult for him even to be accepted as a handyman in the Lingbao Sect... Their statuses were like heaven and earth.
Both were cultivators who had left the Sealed Land, but the other’s achievements made him look up in awe. Since leaving the Sealed Land, they seemed like people from two different worlds, fated never to intersect again. He was implicated because of Jia Ren.
So, perhaps it would be better for Jia Ren to just die.
Jia Ren, ’reminded’ by Fan Lin, realized the seriousness of the situation.
If someone could find Fan Lin, it indicated that the forces behind him were complex and not easy to deal with.
He hadn’t provoked any important figures, so what were they after?
Such grand preparations couldn’t possibly be just for a nobody like him.
The most likely target was Ma Tianbao.
Although he hadn’t become Ma Tianbao’s sworn father, leaving that role to Ancestor Ji Kong, he did so to avoid drawing others’ attention as much as possible.
Unfortunately, he still couldn’t completely sever the connection.
His master was Ancestor Ji Kong, and he also had a past connection with Ma Zhongyuan—it was inevitable he would draw attention.
Ma Tianbao was heavily protected, and it was impossible for suspicious individuals to get close; Ancestor Ji Kong was a Refining Void Peak cultivator who spent most of his time within the Sect, likewise leaving no opportunity to act.
In comparison, exploiting Jia Ren was a simpler breach.
Find someone close to him, deceive him to leave the Sect, and covertly take control.
Using this sharp blade, they aimed to cut down the hopeful child of the Lingbao Sect’s revival.
Only by snuffing out Ma Tianbao in the cradle could the Sects hostile to Lingbao Sect rest at ease.
