Chapter 247 : Displacement Consultation

Chapter 247: Displacement Consultation

Chen Beiwu lightly tapped the serpent egg with his fingertip.

“Knock, knock!”

A dull sound echoed from the eggshell surface, instead of the crisp ring that an Earthly Sha Treasure Egg should have.

‘The sound is off, and this serpent egg is radiating far too much vitality. Even for a Third-Tier Earthly Sha Treasure Beast, this is a bit exaggerated.’

Chen Beiwu raised his eyebrows and channeled his divine sense to penetrate the interior of the eggshell.

Unexpectedly, the infant treasure beast inside the egg did not resist this act of probing. It allowed his divine sense to seep in freely, almost as if it had given up.

In the next instant, Chen Beiwu’s eyes darkened. The liquid life essence that should have filled the inside of the egg was almost completely dried up.

A shrunken Scarlet-Patterned Scorchfire Serpent hatchling, its red eyes gleaming like glazed crystal, curled up within. Though it appeared vigorous, it was in fact critically lacking in origin essence.

“Vitality leakage… shows signs of premature death. No wonder the Pinball Manufacturer would place an Earthly Sha Beast egg into a random Blind Box.” Chen Beiwu sighed inwardly.

Hatchlings born with innate deficiencies found it difficult to awaken their innate gifts, harder still to break through bottlenecks, and were prone to dying mid-path.

Take the Scarlet-Patterned Scorchfire Serpent, for example. It grew by relying on its bloodline and could eventually reach the peak, becoming a Third-Realm Beast General comparable to a Golden Core True Person.

But one with lost origin essence might be stuck as a Second-Realm Lesser Beast, unable to reach the level of a Beast General.

Simply put, treasure beasts with innate deficiencies and high Companion risk were rarely chosen by cultivators for contracts, causing their value to plummet.

But Earthly Sha Treasure Beasts were different!

In the bounty listings published by the Immortal Alliance, intelligence on an uncontracted Earthly Sha Treasure Beast was worth at least ten high-grade Spirit Stones—equivalent to a hundred thousand low-grade ones.

A well-formed Scarlet-Patterned Scorchfire Serpent egg started at no less than a million Spirit Yuan in price, far surpassing Third-Tier treasure pills and artifacts, and could rival Fourth-Tier Mystic Pills—high in demand yet rarely available.

It was no exaggeration to say that cultivators from less prestigious backgrounds or circles, even if they possessed a million Spirit Yuan, would be unable to find a proper channel, lacking even the qualification to purchase an Earthly Sha Treasure Beast.

This illustrated just how precious Earthly Sha Treasure Beasts were.

Though the Scarlet-Patterned Scorchfire Serpent egg in Chen Beiwu’s hand was innately deficient and had lost much value, it was still worth at least twenty high-grade Spirit Stones.

If he encountered a cultivator whose spiritual root attributes and cultivation methods matched perfectly, it might even sell for fifty high-grade Spirit Stones—a whopping five hundred thousand Spirit Yuan.

After all, the lost origin of an Earthly Sha Treasure Beast wasn’t entirely irreparable; it just depended on the cost to replenish it.

‘Should I use it myself, give it to Dad, or just sell it?’

After a moment’s hesitation, Chen Beiwu quickly made up his mind and picked up his phone to update the purchase information on the Ten Thousand Spirits app.

【High-price acquisition of Five-Element Earthly Sha True Qi. Willing to overpay or trade with an Earthly Sha Treasure Egg. Interested parties, contact me. No time-wasters.】

After cultivating the Taiyi Pill Forging Method of the Five Great Emperors of the Five Directions to a small achievement, Chen Beiwu could borrow the might of the Five Emperors, using the Five Elements Mountain in his Dantian Qi Sea to freely convert high-grade Earthly Sha True Qi among the Five Elements, thus further cultivating the Yuqing Nine Revolutions Yuanshi Pill Canon.

Under such circumstances, the more Five-Element Earthly Sha True Qi he could gather, the better—and it also helped obscure the origin of the Southern Wastes' Five-Element Earthly Sha.

“Buzz!”

“Buzz!”

“Buzz!”

Once the purchase notice was changed, Chen Beiwu’s phone buzzed non-stop as a flood of messages poured in, a sharp contrast to its earlier silence.

【What kind of Earthly Sha Treasure Beast is it? Can I buy it with Spirit Yuan?】

【Can I trade a mid-grade Earthly Sha with a Third-Tier Treasure Pill?】

【How many strands of high-grade Earthly Sha would it take to exchange for the Earthly Sha Treasure Beast?】

Ignoring the weirder messages, Chen Beiwu replied while unboxing the remaining twenty-four Blind Boxes.

Just getting one Earthly Sha Treasure Egg was already a massive win—he was content no matter what came out next.

Who would’ve thought that the last box would reveal another familiar Spirit-Sealing Box?

“Gulp!”

Golden Egg tilted his head in disbelief, questioning his entire fishy life.

Same unboxing, yet all the good stuff ended up in Chen Beiwu’s hands.

Chen Beiwu was also a bit surprised. He quickly focused his mind and looked at the four strands of deep-blue fate floating within the chaotic inner world.

Clearly, the fate he’d accumulated using the Nine-Breath Chaos Divine Ability hadn’t decreased at all.

‘Interesting... could I have wrongly blamed the Pinball Manufacturer?’

Chen Beiwu narrowed his eyes slightly, still feeling that something wasn’t quite right.

The odds of winning big today were absurdly high.

Click.

As the Spirit-Sealing Box opened, a pristine white jade bottle appeared before Chen Beiwu’s eyes, with a label above reading: Five Foundation-Establishment Spirits—the very same sold on the Immortal Alliance Official Website for five thousand Spirit Yuan.

……

Yunmeng Lake.

Fine rain fell like threads as a green jade pleasure boat floated amidst the misty waves.

Inside, a warm stove boiled tea. White steam coiled upward as two palace-robed female cultivators sat facing each other, fingers gently caressing their tea cups. Rippling raindrops on the lake reflected in their eyes.

Xu Lingling poked the stove fire, sighing softly. This drew a glance from Xu Ziqing.

“What’s wrong?” Xu Ziqing asked in confusion.

“I might have to repeat the year.” Xu Lingling patted her cheeks with both hands and tried to pull herself together.

The Tianyan Immortal Sect was filled with heaven’s chosen. Overlimit Foundation Establishers were as common as grains of sand.

Her entering the sect as a mere peak-stage Ninth Level Qi Refining cultivator was like a husky among wolves. In four words—completely out of place.

Now, nearly a year had passed since joining the sect. Xu Lingling had only reached the Tenth Level of Qi Refining, her progress stable—so stable that even she found it terrifying.

“I’m last in every assessment. I seriously can’t deal with this.” Xu Lingling said with a bitter expression.

“I’m pretty much the same at the Nine Refinement Sect.” Xu Ziqing gave a gentle smile and poured her a cup of hot tea.

Back in Yuankong County, whether it was family background, talent, appearance, or figure, they were top-tier.

But in Tianyan Immortal Sect—or the Nine Refinement Sect—there were too many female cultivators who were more beautiful, more talented, and from even better families.

Even though Xu Ziqing pushed herself, cultivating day and night, her ranking still hovered in the middle of the class. She couldn’t even break into the newcomer rankings.

Xu Lingling’s frustration was understandable; wanting to go out and relax was only natural.

“Did that guy Chen Beiwu reply to you?” Xu Ziqing changed the subject.

“Sometimes he does. Other times, not even once in ten days or half a month.” Xu Lingling’s eyes dimmed, then she asked, “What about you?”

“I feel the same.” Xu Ziqing spoke mildly. “What, are you thinking of giving up?”

“Of course not.” Xu Lingling stood up immediately, her tone resolute.

“Yes, yes, I know.” Xu Ziqing gave a gentle smile. “After all, you said before—ever since you first saw Chen Beiwu, you fell in love.”

“Don’t spout nonsense, I’m not that pathetic.” Xu Lingling’s gaze instinctively drifted outside the pleasure boat. “I only said he looks really good. He just happens to be exactly my type.”

“Buzz, buzz!”

At that moment, the special alert tone chimed.

Xu Lingling’s face lit up with joy as she swiftly took out her phone.

“Look at you—so pathetic.” Xu Ziqing shook her head with visible disdain.

But the very next second, the same alert tone rang again inside the pleasure boat.

Xu Ziqing’s hand paused as she was making tea. She set the teapot down and discreetly retrieved her phone, her speed no less than Xu Lingling’s.

After reading the messages, the two women exchanged glances, each seeing the shock in the other’s eyes.

“Earthly Sha Treasure Beast.”

Xu Ziqing had just spoken half the phrase when Xu Lingling finished, “Scarlet-Patterned Scorchfire Serpent Egg.”

Both women cultivated with Fire-Attribute Spiritual Roots and naturally understood how valuable an Earthly Sha Treasure Beast was, and how coveted they were on the market.

Yuqing Immortal Sect was full of elites born to True Venerable lineages and Immortal Dao clans.

That Chen Beiwu didn’t sell the Earthly Sha Treasure Egg in Yuqing Immortal Sect for cultivation resources, but instead chose to notify them first, showed that he held them in his heart.

“Unfortunately, this Earthly Sha Treasure Egg is innately damaged.” Xu Ziqing frowned slightly.

Had the Scarlet-Patterned Scorchfire Serpent Egg retained its full origin essence, she would’ve been willing to sell everything she owned for it.

Because it represented a chance at achieving the level of Golden Core True Person—or even Nascent Soul True Monarch.

It must be understood, if nurtured properly, an Earthly Sha Treasure Beast could potentially evolve via bloodline transformation into a Heavenly-Gang Mystic Beast, surpassing countless Fourth-Tier Mystic Beasts.

However, though Xu Ziqing was from a branch of a Nascent Soul family and her father was a Golden Core True Person, she lacked no cultivation resources. Unfortunately, her mother was completely unloved, and Xu Ziqing received no support from her family.

A single strand of high-grade Earthly Sha was still manageable—she might barely scrape it together if she persuaded her mother.

But gathering five strands of Five-Element high-grade Earthly Sha was far too difficult. Xu Ziqing simply had no confidence she could manage it.

Seeing the distress on her best friend’s face, Xu Lingling pursed her lips and sent a message to her dear father.

……

Meanwhile, at the Xu Residence—

True Person Xu stared at the message from his beloved daughter, eyes flashing with surprise.

Even though he resided in the distant Yuankong County, he had still heard news of Chen Beiwu from old acquaintances in the Tianyan Immortal Sect.

For good reason—every year, the rookie rankings of the Upper Three Immortal Sects drew the attention of the Thirteen Immortal Sects.

And Chen Beiwu had entered Foundation Establishment and immediately debuted as number three on Yuqing’s rookie rankings. This was unmistakably a deliberate move by Yuqing Immortal Sect, announcing that among their new disciples, another flawless Foundation Establishment cultivator had emerged.

‘If I had known earlier, I would’ve acted back then.’ True Person Xu’s eyes darkened.

His daughter’s vision was too narrow to understand what five strands of high-grade Earthly Sha True Qi truly meant.

If he guessed correctly, Chen Beiwu had grand ambitions. Trading an Earthly Sha Treasure Egg for Earthly Sha Qi was clearly aimed at cultivating Yuqing Immortal Sect’s supreme immortal art.

The Yuqing Nine Revolutions Yuanshi Pill Canon was only a Foundation Establishment-level immortal art. Even if Chen Beiwu failed in cultivating it, with a Flawless Dao Foundation, he could still form a First-Grade Golden Core.

Should he succeed, and form a Golden Core worthy of the Yuanshi title, he might become the top disciple of Yuqing Immortal Sect, perhaps even entering its core and inheriting the Dao lineage of Dao Venerable Yuanshi.

Which meant that whether Chen Beiwu succeeded or failed, if this prodigy—who had risen from humble origins—became his son-in-law, it would bring new vitality to the Xu Clan and ensure they remained invincible in future competitions.

‘Very well.’

True Person Xu’s eyes gleamed with determination.

For Xu Lingling’s future Golden Core path, he had already prepared high-grade Earthly Sha of Wood and Fire elements in advance.

With a few more favors and additional sacrifices, he could gather the remaining Metal, Water, and Earth elements in a short time. Acquiring the Scarlet-Patterned Scorchfire Serpent Egg should be feasible.

It was just that poor Ling’er would need to cultivate a secret art from the Tianyan Immortal Sect to repair the foundation of the Fire-Attribute Companion Beast. It would cost her vast amounts of time, effort, and resources—and her own cultivation progress would be delayed in the process.

But compared to the path to the Golden Core, all these costs were worth it. Ling’er would surely accept it gladly.

……

“Beiwu, I want the Earthly Sha Treasure Egg. But I’ll need some time to gather the Five-Element Earthly Sha. I can get it to you by next week.”

Seeing Xu Lingling’s reply, Chen Beiwu promptly removed his purchase notice from the Ten Thousand Spirits app.

Better to sell to someone familiar than a stranger.

Since Xu Lingling could secure it, he didn’t mind waiting a week.

“Gulp.”

Golden Egg came over and rubbed his head against Chen Beiwu’s cheek.

‘Don’t worry. That Blood-Dragon Ginseng doesn’t have legs. It won’t escape our grasp.’ Chen Beiwu mentally reassured.

Xu Lingling needed time to gather the Five-Element Earthly Sha.

During that week, he could head into the Tianyan True Realm and retrieve the rare spiritual herbs planted in the Jade-Embellished Medicine Beds.

However, just thinking of the words left behind on the inheritance stele, Chen Beiwu’s expression grew solemn.

【Evaluation of Three Origins is Supreme Grade. If you encounter the Heart Monkey, you may attempt to subdue it.】

【If acknowledged by the Heart Monkey, you may inherit my mantle and wield the Tianyan Star Chart.】

Though according to the stele, he could attempt to subdue the Heart Monkey with much higher chances than Zhao Qingluo’s five percent...

Chen Beiwu hadn’t forgotten—every cultivator who came into contact with the inheritance stele had their fate turn to extreme misfortune.

Senior Brother Han and the others had all perished within the Tianyan True Realm. Chen Beiwu suspected they had either died to the stele’s restrictions or been killed by the unknown Heart Monkey.

Whichever it was, it proved the Tianyan True Realm was extremely dangerous and required utmost caution.

‘To be safe, let’s cast a divination first.’

Chen Beiwu closed his eyes and used the Supreme Spirit Treasure Karma Sutra to divine, consulting the Nine-Breath Chaos Divine Ability about this unknown supreme treasure to get a reliable result.

As for using the Nine-Breath ability to directly assess his own fate grade—that was still far beyond his current capability.

He could only observe whether Scarlet Baleful Fate or Calamity Qi was forming in the chaotic world within him.

“Primary Hexagram: Thunder above, Mountain below—Minor Excess Hexagram. An omen of great misfortune.”

Chen Beiwu frowned and then looked at the changing lines, letting out a breath of relief. “Earth above, Fire below—Early stages show minor regret. Persistence brings no major fault. This is an auspicious hexagram.”

The divination from the Supreme Spirit Treasure Karma Sutra appeared dire, but in truth it foretold great fortune. This indicated that though he might face setbacks in his plans, he would also reap many benefits.

With this in mind, Chen Beiwu closed his eyes again and cast two more hexagrams in succession.

“Fortune hidden within misfortune—no harm in the end.”

Once he confirmed that all three readings were consistent, Chen Beiwu picked up his phone and sent a message to True Monarch Su Miao.

Given his current skill in formation arts, he had no way to break the protective formation of the Jade-Embellished Medicine Beds. But that didn’t matter—Yuqing Immortal Sect had no shortage of formation grandmasters.

Take, for example, True Monarch Ni Xia, the one who taught the Marvelous Method of Companion Beast Landscape. She was a renowned Fourth-Tier Mystic Array Master in the sect—just one step away from becoming a Fifth-Tier Origin Array Master.

“Buzz.”

Elsewhere, upon seeing the message pop up, True Monarch Su Miao couldn’t help but feel exasperated.

What was with all the quirks in this year’s batch of prodigies from Yuqing Immortal Sect?

Yu Zhaohua was like this. Now Chen Beiwu too.

A Foundation Establishment cultivator skipping class and cultivating the sect’s supreme methods to form a core, yet somehow interested in ancient, broken high-grade formations? What a waste of time.

Still, remembering that Chen Beiwu’s master was True Venerable Changqing of Dongming—a powerhouse expected to reach the Soul Formation Realm—Su Miao glanced casually at the formation diagram.

‘Hmm, the concept behind this Third-Tier High-Grade Formation isn’t bad.’

Su Miao praised it aloud, though her tone was nonchalant—it was clear she didn’t think much of the formation Chen Beiwu had inquired about.