Nine Evolutions of the True Spirit
chapter-232

The Crimson Shadow Island Master wasn't the only one that was terrified, the Four Champions were also frightened. Their divine sense suspiciously scanned everywhere, deeply afraid that there was a hidden needle pointing at them as well without their knowledge.

After hearing Lu Ping, the Crimson Shadow Island Master became silent. Whilst there were many methods that would make Lu Ping trust him fully, the feeling of having his life in the hands of another was uncomfortable.

Before Lu Ping could speak, the Crimson Shadow Island Master suddenly said, "A seal mark in our divine sense, or arcane energy in our heartspace."

Lu Ping looked at him with surprise as he didn’t expect him to actually succumb. Lu Ping asked curiously, "Why?"

The Crimson Shadow Island Master answered with relief, "There's no shame in admitting defeat. I only hope that one day, when you've gotten strong enough to the point that we’ve become useless to you, you’ll let us go."

Lu Ping smiled, and asked, "You’re striving for the Core Forging Realm, aren't you?"

This time, it was Crimson Shadow Island Master's turn to be surprised. A moment later, he answered honestly, "Yes, I am."

Due to the lack of cultivation heritage, Crimson Shadow Island Master's cultivation had arrived at a bottleneck after reaching the Peak Blood Condensation Realm.

In order to advance to the Core Forging Realm, he needed to acquire a cultivation method that included the Core Forging Realm.

Since he wasn’t capable enough of finding or even creating such a cultivation method, the more realistic method was to join a party and use their cultivation method and resources to break through.

However, it was rare for any party to simply accept rogue cultivators and help them with their cultivation progress, especially when it came to the Core Forging Realm.

After all, Core Forging Realm Enlightened Masters were the backbone of any group, so a party would naturally select their most loyal disciples to help them breakthrough.

So, even if the Crimson Shadow Island Master joined a party, he wouldn't be able to get what he wanted without decades of service and thorough investigation. However, he couldn't wait that long anymore.

"What makes you think I can fulfill your wish?"

Lu Ping was suspicious of Crimson Shadow Island Master's intentions, as he was too frank such that it felt odd.

The Crimson Shadow Island Master watched as Lu Ping's arcane energy turned into a spiritual sword and stabbed into his chest. His face changed slightly, but he quickly calmed down, and said, "How would I know if I don't take a risk? First of all, I can't beat you. Either I die fighting or I surrender and try to live.

"Secondly, although I still have 200 years to live, I've spent the first 100 years reaching the Peak Blood Condensation Realm. If I can’t achieve a breakthrough within the next 50 years, my body will start to age, and as my condition worsens, my chances will only become slimmer.

"You seem to be in your twenties, yet you’re already in the Eighth Layer Blood Condensation Realm… or even stronger. Bah, whichever it is, your strength is definitely something beyond ordinary. This is only possible for elite disciples from large sects, or you could have received a mysterious heritage. But, no matter which theory is true, it means that your cultivation method definitely contains the Core Forging Realm in it.

"That being said, I’m placing my bet on you. My wish is that if you become a big figure in the future, I can also share some of the benefits as your follower. But even if you fall earlier in the path of cultivation, Hong Ying will also have no regrets as I've tried my best. I can blame no one but myself."

The water dome that trapped them inside broke open. Lu Ping and the Crimson Shadow Island Master walked out side by side, followed by the Four Champions behind them.

The cultivators from the two islands were shocked. They couldn't understand why their island masters walked out peacefully together as if they were friends.

Lu Ping smiled at them, and said, "From now on, the Wave Listening Island and Crimson Shadow Island will be united. The Crimson Shadow Island Master Hong Ying will be your first master, and I will be your second master."

The cultivators didn't know how to react. A few moments later, some quick-witted people quickly greeted, "Greetings to the first master and second master!"

The Three Clans Alliance owned 27 mini islands in the outer layer, but not every island was run by a party. In fact, the 27 mini islands were owned by 16 parties.

But as Crimson Shadow Island and Wave Listening Island had joined together, there were only 15 parties now.

When the news was released, the two islands' position rose greatly in the area, with no other parties daring to provoke them.

Hong Ying had managed Crimson Shadow Island well. The island was richer and more developed than Wave Listening Island.

The biggest surprise was the Jade Fire miniature mine on the island.

Jade Fire was a high-grade spirit material. It was much more valuable than dozens of mid-grade Black Spotted Bamboo spirit materials.

However, the mine's monthly yield was extremely low. Sometimes there would only be a few pieces of Jade Fire Ore per month. When they were lucky, they would occasionally get a dozen pieces per month.

Despite this, the mine was still regarded as the island's biggest secret, with only Hong Ying and his Four Champions knowing of the mine's existence.

Since Hong Ying had given his life to Lu Ping and became his follower, Lu Ping naturally left the island affairs for him to handle.

Lu Ping also gave Hong Ying three bottles of Late Blood Condensation Realm medicinal pellets, which he happily received and thanked him for.

A shortage of medicinal pellets had always been an issue for cultivators. Demand always exceeded supply.

As a result, some Late Blood Condensation Realm cultivators were even forced to use Mid Blood Condensation Realm pellets to make up for their lack of pellets.

These three bottles of Late Blood Condensation Realm medicinal pellets were a huge fortune to Hong Ying, and would be enough for his cultivation for the next three months.

Lu Ping intentionally pushed Hong Ying to the front so that he could step away from the daily affairs and reduce the attention on him from others.

Two days later, Lu Ping disappeared from the islands. Hong Ying naturally didn't dare to interfere with Lu Ping's business.

…

At present, Lu Ping was nearing the middle layer.

Thanks to the Mirage Robe, [Spirit Hiding Art], [Shapeless Sword Art], and many other secret techniques, he was able to quietly avoid the traps and detections of the other islands along the way.

After the merger between the two islands, Lu Ping asked Hong Ying to show his map to him.

To Lu Ping's delight, Hong Ying's map was much more detailed, consisting not only of the location of the 27 mini islands under the Three Clans Alliance, but also a part of the middle layer. On the map, the middle layer clearly marked the Three Clans Alliance's territory and some parts outside of it.

After corroborating the maps, Lu Ping pinpointed the location of the secret place he wanted to go to and easily sneaked his way to the middle layer.

In order to avoid detection from the Enlightened Masters and patrolling cultivators, Lu Ping had to dive to the bottom of the sea and swim towards the secret place.

The Three Clans Alliance's territory consisted of three small islands in the middle layer. A few hundred miles to the west, there was a small cloudy island that sat on the outermost part of Three Clans Alliance's territory.

Any further west of this island would be the Ocean Overturning Gang's territory.

Lu Ping was surprised to learn that the Ocean Overturning Gang also existed in the East Ocean. Hong Ying quickly explained to him that the Ocean Overturning Gang was Crystal Palace's representative in the Fallen Rift. It was also the strongest and most influential organization in the Fallen Rift.

A few moments after Lu Ping surfaced from the sea, he quickly dived back down to the bottom. A couple seconds later, five lights shot across the sky towards the cloudy small island.

Lu Ping's face turned gloomy as he resurfaced. Didn't the Three Clans Alliance repeatedly inspect the island in the past and determine it to be of little value? Why were they here again?

"Junior Brother Wang, is there really Hundred Flowers Ominous Essence and Hundred Flowers Malodor Essence here? After all, your Three Clans Alliance has explored this island several times already and didn’t find anything, not even a few spirit-gathering fields."

"Senior Brother Qi, don't worry. My cousin discovered the secret location, and only he knows the exact location. Even his father, who is my third uncle, doesn't know much. Third uncle initially wanted to keep it for his son, but who would've expected my dear cousin to die young. Coincidentally, Senior Brother Qi needed to cultivate your aegis energy, which is why Third Uncle was willing to point us in the right direction."

"Haha, Junior Brother Wang, don't you worry. As long as the Hundred Flowers Ominous Essence can help me cultivate the Hundred Flower Aegis Energy, I will definitely concoct some medicinal pellets to help you in your breakthrough. I will also request teacher to concoct two cauldrons of Core Forging Realm medicinal pellets for the Wang Clan. Hmph, if it wasn't for the fact that cultivating aegis energy in the Blood Condensation Realm is beneficial for the cultivation of a divine ability, I would've entered the Core Forging Realm a long time ago."

"Senior Brother Qi is naturally a great talent! Has Master Kun Shan arrived at the Fallen Rift too? Our Wang Clan would be honored to have Master Kun Shan's help! I would like to thank Master Kun Shan and Senior Brother Qi on behalf of the Wang Clan!"

"We are allies and friends. I have left a message informing teacher that we have found a place where Hundred Flowers Ominous Essence is located. If teacher is interested, he will perhaps come and take a look too. Junior Brother Wang is now also a part of Crystal Palace. So, as long as you can help the Ocean Overturning Gang takeover the Three Clans Alliance's territory, you will surely be able to be under Junior Uncle Kun Lan's tutelage. The Wang Clan would also be sheltered by Crystal Palace and wouldn’t have to worry about the Northern League's revenge! At that time, you and I would both be brothers of the same discipline, so we naturally have to help each other out."

"Senior Brother Qi, don't worry. With the Ocean Overturning Gang's help, we can definitely chase the Zhang and Li Clan out of the Fallen Rift. Third uncle has already arrived at the Fallen Rift, but because of the carp monster, he may take some time to arrive."

"Huh? The carp monster isn’t eliminated yet? Looks like he has something up his sleeve, I wonder how he ended up in the human race territory. He was also unbridled and openly moved about which caused many people to chase after him. We need Enlightened Master Wang Hua to come quickly. Without an Enlightened Master, we won't be able to enter the depths of this place. Cultivating Hundred Flowers Aegis Energy requires a large amount of Hundred Flowers Ominous Essence, so we need to enter the depths to gather enough essence."

"Senior Brother Qi's cultivation base is really far beyond my reach ......"

"…"