Chapter 859: The Wilderness (Part One)

“Shut the door!”

After seeing off Wang Chenming, Wang Chen turned to Su Ziling and said, “Pack your things; we need to leave this place.”

It was truly a case of trouble finding you even when you’re minding your own business!

Today, Lu Huaizhen and Wang Chenming had come knocking one after the other, and not without reason.

These two families were sworn enemies, and the Wang family was now in a precarious position. Once the Yuan Ying Ancestor of the clan passed away, the Wang family would lose their core combat ability, and the Lu family would undoubtedly crush them.

At that point, the Wang family would have no choice but to withdraw from the Sanqun Family!

To ensure their survival, the Wang family was doing everything in their power to expand their strength while also striving to help the ninth level Golden Cores within the clan achieve Yuan Ying condensation, hoping to navigate through this great crisis.

It was under these circumstances that Wang Chen had caught the attention of the Wang family.

Especially after Wang Chen returned from his Golden Core condensation, the Wang family was even more eager to bring him into their fold.

However, the Wang family was in dire straits and lacked sufficient preparation; they couldn’t offer enough enticing terms to win Wang Chen over.

When the Lu family caught wind of this, they immediately sent Lu Huaizhen to stir up trouble.

The Lu family had no shortage of Golden Cores; losing one Wang Chen wouldn’t make a difference, and gaining him wouldn’t tip the scales either.

But they absolutely couldn’t allow the Wang family to recruit him.

If Wang Chen’s joining somehow turned the tide and helped the Wang family survive this crisis, it would be a disaster!

In essence, the newly-promoted Golden Core Wang Chen had become a pawn in the power struggle between the Lu and Wang families.

He was important, but not indispensable.

At the very least, the promises Lu Huaizhen made to Wang Chen would likely be watered down in the future!

The Lu family’s reputation wasn’t exactly stellar.

Wang Chenming earnestly urged Wang Chen not to agree to Lu Huaizhen’s offer just yet, promising to consult with the elders and seniors of the family first and then provide Wang Chen with a satisfactory response.

He assured Wang Chen that he wouldn’t suffer any losses!

While Wang Chenming’s attitude was undoubtedly sincere, the problem was that Wang Chen had no desire to get involved in this mess.

He quickly made up his mind—if we can’t handle the heat, we’ll just stay out of the kitchen!

Though the decision felt abrupt, Su Ziling didn’t question or hesitate.

She immediately closed the shop door and swiftly packed the items from the shelves into her storage bag, then went to the bedroom to gather some personal belongings. The entire process took no more than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

For cultivators, moving was a simple affair; they could leave at a moment’s notice. Aside from immovable properties, large-capacity storage equipment could carry all their belongings with ease.

Wang Chen’s talisman shop was rented, and the rent had already been paid; shutting it down for half a year wouldn’t be an issue.

Even if they abandoned it entirely, the losses wouldn’t be significant.

Once everything was packed, Su Ziling asked, “Master, where are we going? Will we ever come back?”

She was a native of Qianxing Immortal City, having been born and raised there, and the thought of leaving suddenly made her feel a pang of reluctance.

“First, we’ll go shopping,” Wang Chen said, patting her head. “We’ll go into seclusion for a while and see how things unfold later.”

“Hmm!”

Su Ziling nodded vigorously.

For her, as long as she could be by Wang Chen’s side, it didn’t matter where they went.

So, the two left the shop and began to shop eagerly nearby.

Wang Chen wasn’t short on spirit stones, so he filled his Xumi Ring with various high-quality spiritual rice, spiritual tea, spiritual wine, and magical beast meat, not forgetting all the other supplies needed for cultivation.

He only stopped when both Xumi Rings were almost full, feeling unsatisfied.

Then, he took Su Ziling out of the city.

Ten miles outside the city, Wang Chen summoned a magical flying ship, loaded Su Ziling aboard, and flew toward the vast mountains.

As soon as the flying ship took off, Wang Chenming hurriedly arrived and, looking at the streak of light across the sky, pounded his chest in frustration.

Wang Chen was unaware that this relative was trying to stop his departure; he skillfully piloted the flying ship quickly away from Qianxing Immortal City, searching for a place to cultivate among the rolling mountains.

Not all cultivators lived in or around the immortal city.

In fact, some cultivators chose to find a location with gathered spiritual energy among the mountains, fields, and great waters to create secluded caves for themselves and quietly cultivate.

However, without the protection of the immortal city, they faced many dangers.

For instance, Evil Spirits, demons, bandits, and even natural disasters!

Moreover, the life in the wild was certainly not as convenient as in the immortal city, which meant these cultivators were in the minority and were mostly loose cultivators.

Wang Chen didn’t intend to be a loose cultivator living in the wilderness; he sought trouble to avoid becoming a victim in the conflict between the Wang and Lu families.

While he was a Golden Core cultivator, he was weak compared to these two families.

Additionally, he was also looking for a backup plan.

As the saying goes, a cunning rabbit has three burrows; having multiple places to cultivate is always beneficial.

But finding a suitable location was clearly not an easy task.

The number of loose cultivators around Qianxing Immortal City was quite large, and nearly all the prime locations were occupied by someone.

They had created caves.

These places had formations for protection, making them easily recognizable.

Wang Chen had no intention of stirring up trouble, so when he saw them, he turned away to avoid any misunderstandings.

After four to five days of searching, Wang Chen finally discovered a small valley nestled among towering mountains.

The terrain of this valley was favorable for gathering energy, and if there was a spring, it would often make for a good cultivation site.

This small valley was just as described, surrounded by high peaks, with a hidden clear pool fed by a stream of water from the ground, forming a crystal-clear creek leading out of the valley.

After discovering it, Wang Chen put away the magical flying ship and landed in the small valley with Su Ziling.

“This place is great!”

Su Ziling exclaimed joyfully, picking a wildflower to smell and breaking into a sweet smile.

Wang Chen looked around and nodded.

Aside from the slightly lower concentration of spiritual energy, this location and environment were quite good, well-hidden and quiet enough.

But since Wang Chen wasn’t planning to settle there long-term, the minor shortcomings didn’t matter much.

He could also set up a spirit gathering formation; if he was willing to spend spirit stones, he could create a paradise anywhere!

“Let’s choose here!”

As soon as he finished speaking, Wang Chen suddenly felt as if someone was watching him.

He turned sharply and saw ripples forming on the surface of the pool not far away.

Wang Chen’s gaze sharpened as he immediately summoned the Supreme Mysterious Spirit Dragon True Form Image, temporarily storing Su Ziling within this treasure map.

He then leaped into the air above the pool and, looking down, commanded, “Come out!”

There must be something suspicious under this deep pool, most likely a magical beast or demons, as it had triggered his divine sense just now.

If there was a hidden danger, it definitely needed to be eliminated.

Wang Chen shouted three times, but nothing unusual appeared in the pool.

“Still trying to hide?”

This irritated Wang Chen, and he immediately summoned the Longyuan Sword.

As this life treasure emerged, its cold sword energy shone in all directions, swirling around Wang Chen as the sword body trembled and let out an excited hum.

It was eager for a fight!