Chapter 316 - 209: Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment, an Old Acquaintance Visits

If this news were to spread, it would undoubtedly shock countless people.

’How could someone with a mere Low Grade Spirit Root break through so quickly?’

This breakthrough speed defied what normal Cultivators thought possible.

At that point, a Core Formation Cultivator would likely show up at his door and capture him for study.

’I’d better keep a low profile. I’ll stick to showing an Early Stage Foundation Establishment cultivation base to the public. I’ll wait a few decades before "breaking through" again.’

Li Chang’an performed a technique to conceal his aura.

He sat down again, circulating his Cultivation Technique to stabilize his new realm.

...

「Seven days later.」

Li Chang’an officially came out of seclusion.

He resumed practicing the Five Elements Spiritual Light Escape, intending to cultivate the technique to the Great Success stage.

The world was growing more chaotic. The better one’s escape skills, the better.

In cultivation, the years passed unnoticed. Before he knew it, half a year had gone by.

On this day, amidst the mountain ridges, a Cyan Eagle Great Demon, its body shimmering with cyan and gold, was fleeing at top speed.

"Vile beast, still trying to run!"

Li Chang’an was in hot pursuit.

This Cyan Eagle Great Demon was the very one that had led eight other Great Demons to attack Cui Ping Mountain.

It was a rare Wind Element Demon Beast, existing outside the Five Elements. Similar to the Shadowless Finch Li Chang’an had once killed, it excelled at the Wind Escape Technique, making its escape abilities second to none.

For this very reason, even though many years had passed and it frequently appeared to wreak havoc, it was still alive and well.

With its Tier Two Late Stage strength and mastery of the Wind Escape Technique, an ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivator stood no chance of catching it.

However, today, it ran into Li Chang’an.

BOOM!

A beam of Cyan Wood Divine Light shot through the sky, slamming into the Cyan Eagle’s back.

It shrieked in pain as blood flew and countless cyan feathers fluttered down. It had been grievously wounded!

But its speed didn’t drop. In fact, it grew even faster, as if it had activated some innate escape ability that burned its potential, desperately trying to shake Li Chang’an.

But it was all futile.

Li Chang’an had already cultivated his Five Elements Spiritual Light Escape to the Great Success stage. He caught up to the Cyan Eagle in the blink of an eye and unleashed another beam of Cyan Wood Divine Light.

Wielded with his Middle Stage Foundation Establishment strength, the Cyan Wood Divine Light was particularly terrifying.

An ordinary Middle Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator would be killed instantly on contact.

Even a Late Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator would be blown to smithereens if caught unprepared!

Although the Cyan Eagle Great Demon’s physique was formidable, comparable to a Human Race cultivator at the Late Stage of Tier Two Body Refining, it couldn’t withstand the continuous bombardment of the Cyan Wood Divine Light.

A little over ten breaths later, it let out a final, mournful cry and plummeted, crashing heavily into the forest below, unable to rise again.

RUMBLE!

With a casual wave of his hand, Li Chang’an fired another beam of divine light.

’Demon Beasts are cunning. It’s best to completely obliterate their heads just to be safe.’

During the years the Beast Tide had raged, many Cultivators had let their guard down, assuming a Demon Beast was dead. As they went to harvest its parts, they were killed by its final, desperate strike.

As the Cyan Eagle Great Demon’s head shattered, its body gave one last shudder and fell still, its aura completely vanishing.

And so, this Great Demon—which had run rampant for years, its Demon Techniques, physique, and Escape Technique all equally astonishing—died at Li Chang’an’s hands.

Li Chang’an walked over, retrieved the Demon Core, and inspected it with his senses.

’Not bad. This Demon Core isn’t Attributeless, but it’s perfect for Alchemy. It’s a Tier Two Top Grade core. I might be able to refine two High-quality Foundation Establishment Pills from it.’

A smile touched his lips as he stored away the Demon Core and Demon Corpse before returning to Changqing Mountain.

No one in the entire Southern Zhao Country Cultivation Immortality Realm knew that the Cyan Eagle Great Demon had fallen.

For a long time to come, the patrol teams from the major Sects and Noble Families continued to search for any sign of the Cyan Eagle Great Demon.

...

「Half a month later.」

On Changqing Mountain, inside the Alchemy Room.

The Pill Fire blazed, and a rich Pill Fragrance filled the air.

Li Chang’an beckoned with his hand, and three perfectly round Elixir Pills flew out of the Pill Furnace, landing in the Small Jade Bottle he held.

’Not bad. Two High-quality Foundation Establishment Pills. The third one isn’t quite high-quality, but it’s much better than a normal Foundation Establishment Pill.’

’I can trade these for another huge haul of resources.’

Even though many Tier Two Great Demons had died during the Beast Tide, Foundation Establishment Pills remained a hot commodity.

This was because many Human Race Foundation Establishment Cultivators had also perished.

The various Noble Families and Sects were desperate for Foundation Establishment Pills to nurture a new generation of Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

As a result, the price of Foundation Establishment Pills hadn’t dropped at all. In fact, it had risen by ten percent compared to before the Beast Tide.

The same was true for other Elixir Pills.

The prices of Talismans, Puppets, Arrays, and more had all gone up.

Conversely, the prices of raw materials had dropped significantly.

Just as Li Chang’an had originally predicted, this Beast Tide had allowed him to amass a great deal of resources.

However, he still hoped the Beast Tide would subside soon.

The Beast Tide had simply caused too much turmoil, throwing the entire Southern Zhao Country Cultivation Realm into disarray.

If this chaos continued, sooner or later it would shatter the peace of Changqing Mountain.

’The Three Great Sects and the Seven Great Noble Families should be stronger than this. Why haven’t they made an all-out effort to end the Beast Tide?’

Li Chang’an put away the Elixir Pills, left the Alchemy Room, and began to ponder.

Just then, Chen Qianya came up the mountain with a message.

"Senior, someone is here to see you at the foot of the mountain. He claims to be an old acquaintance who once sought the path of cultivation with you."

"An old acquaintance?"

Li Chang’an stopped his train of thought and looked down the mountain.

’After all these years since reaching Foundation Establishment, an old acquaintance has finally come to find me.’

’He had actually been waiting all these years.’

’The news of his Foundation Establishment should have spread throughout the Zhao Country Cultivation Immortality Realm long ago, but none of his old acquaintances had ever shown up. He’d found it rather surprising.’

’Normally, after reaching Foundation Establishment, one could expect many old friends and acquaintances to visit and rekindle old ties.’

...

「At the foot of the mountain.」

An old man and a young girl were waiting.

The old man’s hair was white, his face weathered by time. A hint of sorrow creased his brow, as if he had endured many hardships.

His aura wasn’t strong; he was only at the Qi Refining Sixth Layer and hadn’t even broken through to the Late Stage.

Beside him was a young girl in green robes.

"Grandfather, why must we seek out Changqing Ancestor?" the girl in green asked via voice transmission, clearly confused.

"Our family is aligned with Fire Cloud Ancestor, isn’t it? Fire Cloud Ancestor is at the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment, while Changqing Ancestor is only at the Early Stage. If we just ask Fire Cloud Ancestor for help, our family’s crisis can be resolved."