Chapter 2019 - 78: Tides_2

He paused for a moment but didn’t continue speaking.

The gray-haired elder nodded, squinting his eyes, as threads of dark light flickered within them:

"The Taoist Master is right. After the Immortal Forbidden Land was cleared, there haven’t been any double pupil individuals appearing for years. Now, unexpectedly, a living person with double pupils has emerged. Maybe there has already been some change in the Immortal Forbidden Land... Unfortunately, the Taoist Master currently has important matters and cannot free himself. Otherwise, he would be able to investigate the situation of the Immortal Forbidden Land."

"Indeed, this matter must not be known by those people."

Then, he suddenly showed a hint of regret:

"It’s a pity you couldn’t capture this person..."

Zu Wenqiu heard this and said sternly:

"Before leaving the realm, Master specially bestowed an upper-grade innate Dao Treasure. If I encounter him again, I will surely capture him!"

The gray-haired elder snorted.

Encountering him by chance once is already fortunate enough. Now that we have missed him, in the vastness of the Sea of Chaos Realm, if the opponent truly wants to hide, they will attempt to find him only with resolute determination; otherwise, it’s nearly impossible.

Thinking of this, he suddenly remembered another matter, his gaze turning sharp:

"By the way, for those few destroyed forces recently, have we found the culprits?"

Zu Wenqiu shook his head:

"Both Senior Brothers Wenshan and Wenshui personally led the team, but there’s no news as of now."

"Both Wenshan and Wenshui went? With them involved, I worry less..."

The gray-haired elder nodded reassuringly, and then his face became cold again:

"To silently destroy several forces in one go, even if it’s not the handiwork of Double Body Realm and Holy Desecration Realm, they’re likely related... They are dead set on pinning this on us."

"Let them revel for a while, since the Taoist Master can’t be here!"

The Jade Pot Realm’s reputation in the Sea of Chaos Realm has worsened considerably, and with these forces vanishing without explanation, the Jade Pot Realm’s name becomes even more tarnished.

Previously in the market, when Wanbao Pavilion accused Jade Pot Workshop, with Double Body Realm and Holy Desecration Realm stepping in to mediate, it had already made Jade Pot Realm seem guilty regardless of the situation.

Yet, Li Zhongping remains unruffled, as mere reputation can pose some troubles, but it ultimately isn’t much compared to the true strength of the Jade Pot Realm, especially considering what’s behind them...

After pondering for a while, he instructed:

"Try to make contact and probe them; covertly have someone watch those at the Primitive Demon Mountain, and if anyone heads to the Sea Market, you know what to do."

Zu Wenqiu nodded:

"Martial Uncle, rest assured, I’ll handle this matter."

...

In a secret room some distance away from Primitive Demon Mountain.

Wang Ba slowly opened his eyes, feeling rather exhausted in his heart.

"It’s finally over."

Opposite him, Daoist Yuanci also showed weariness, rose to give Wang Ba a slight bow, and then stepped into Wang Ba’s body, disappearing without a trace.

Wang Ba quietly closed his eyes to rest for a while, then finally opened them again.

A green glow suddenly flickered in his double pupils.

He then looked down at the crystalline jade Wind-Driving Staff in his hand, feeling increasingly delighted.

"Twenty-eight Innate Cloud Bans, and finally, through joint effort, it’s refined to the twentieth!"

"I can feel that further progress will be much more difficult, and it might be hard to refine any more for a while..."

"Top-grade Innate Dao Treasure is indeed worthy of its name."

Every nine Innate Cloud Bans bring a qualitative change.

Previously, the Wind-Driving Staff had only ten Innate Cloud Bans, and besides maintaining the Little Cang World or increasing traveling speed, it seemed rather lacking. But it wasn’t until he continued refining more Innate Cloud Bans that he realized the true value of the Wind-Driving Staff.

Not to mention, the speed augmentation provided by the Wind-Driving Staff has reached an astonishing level.

Wind, by nature, is unpredictable and moves freely.

The Wind-Driving Staff is the ultimate treasure for harnessing these changes.

It allows one to walk smoothly amid rule changes, unaffected.

Furthermore, it can utilize these rule changes to enhance oneself.

The more changeable the terrain, the more advantageous it becomes for the Wind-Driving Staff.

It’s as if there’s a natural sense of freedom.

At this moment, Wang Ba felt incredibly fortunate for decisively purchasing it upon meeting that bamboo-like cultivator, yet more regrettable for missing the fragment containing five Innate Cloud Bans before him.

Regret is useless, however.

With a thought, the Wind-Driving Staff quietly merged into his Primordial Spirit.

The next moment, the Primordial Spirit suddenly felt a light yet enormously heavy pressure, the sensation of being crowded, as if the Primordial Spirit was as delicate as a lotus leaf, bearing the burden of ten thousand tons, and the Wind-Driving Staff seemed ready to fall out from it anytime.

"This top-grade Innate Dao Treasure is a bit too much for the Void Refining stage Primordial Spirit."

Wang Ba’s heart sank slightly.

He’s approaching the limit of the Void Refining stage, with his strong foundation and various empowered techniques, so even the Five Ghost Kings—whose Primordial Spirits don’t match their realms’ ’Unification’ cultivators—are no match for him.

Yet, compared to top-grade Innate Dao Treasure, he’s still clearly lacking.

"From what I’ve learned, only a late-stage Integration Primordial Spirit might truly wield high-grade Innate Dao Treasures freely and fully. From this perspective, although I’m able to refine the Wind-Driving Staff now, truly mastering it is likely still far off."

His only advantage over others lies in having a Primordial Spirit far sturdier than those in the same realm.