Nine Evolutions of the True Spirit
chapter-437

The teleportation formation was small, capable of teleporting one cultivator at a time. It was also a long-range formation, capable of teleporting Lu Ping to the Central Plains, something he had been longing for.

After clearing up the area around the formation, Lu Ping discovered that despite existing for thousands of years, the formation was still perfectly intact. From the looks of it, the formation was created by Qing Jian, who turned out to be a cultivator from the Central Plains.

Lu Ping forcefully suppressed the happiness surging inside him and started examining the teleportation formation. He was trying to determine if it was still working, and the result was positive. The only problem was that there were a total of thirteen slots around the formation. Lu Ping realized that he was supposed to insert a spirit stone into each slot, with the central slot requiring a top-tier spirit stone. This meant that a single-way trip to the Central Plains would cost a top-tier spirit stone and twelve graded spirit stones.

The potential of a top-tier spirit stone could only be drawn out by a Law Avatar Realm cultivator. Although Lu Ping owned one, enabling him to take a trip to the Central Plains, he had no idea when he would acquire a second one. The Central Plains was a sanctuary for all cultivators, but a top-tier spirit stone was a very important resource.

Hence, even if he longed to go to the Central Plains, Lu Ping would not carelessly head to it without enough preparations.

Lu Ping headed to the other side of the pool while the snake trio scanned for threats along the passage opened by the Water Shuras. With their speed and efficiency, the snake trio could cover a large area.

When Lu Ping arrived at the entrance, he ran into Lu Ling’er, who was returning to report back to Lu Ping. Surprised, Lu Ping quickly returned to the teleportation formation and disguised the pillars.

According to Lu Ling’er’s report, the nest of the Water Shuras was on the other end of the passage, and it was currently under siege.

Lu Ping immediately realized why the Water Shuras abruptly retreated and why only two Blood Condensation Water Shuras ambushed them in the pool. They had not retreated from the human cultivator's reinforcement but because their nest was under attack.

After giving it a thought, Lu Ping pulled out a simple set of armor made of stone from his inter-spatial ring. After putting it on, Lu Ping summoned Lu Ling’er back into the Golden House.

The stone armor was made from two mysterious stone slabs that Lu Ping had stumbled on in the Fallen Rift. The stone slabs possessed the unique ability to blur the divine revelation of a cultivator. Initially, he had tried getting Chen Lian to forge one stone slab into a piece of equipment capable of resisting the divine revelation of a cultivator. However, Chen Lian did not recognize the stone slab either. In the end, one of the stone slabs was turned into a simple stone armor for Lu Ping, while the other was left in Chen Lian’s care to see if he could find a way to turn it into equipment.

When Lu Ping exited the long and dark passage, the rumbling sounds caused by the battle were

weakening, implying that the siege on the Water Shuras’ base was ending.

Lu Qing and Lu Hai briefly explained the situation to Lu Ping before they were summoned back to the Golden House. After that, Lu Ping carefully approached the battlefield by sneakily maneuvering through the complicated terrain.

When he managed to get closer, the siege was already over. Only two figures were left at the scene. Lu Ping was extremely shocked when he got a better look at the two individuals because he recognized one of them. The other person appeared to be in his thirties and was foreign to Lu Ping, but the words he was saying gave Lu Ping an even greater shock.

“How is my nephew doing, dear brother-in-law?” said the cultivator in a carefree manner.

The other figure was actually Li Xuan-Yin of the Zhen Ling Sect. With a cold and emotionlessly tone, he replied, “Chu’er is doing good, but that’s none of your business.”

Lu Ping’s heart skipped a beat. “Yin Zi-Chu is Xuan-Yin’s son? How come no one in the sect knows about this? Why does Yin Zi-Chu have a different surname?”

The cultivator in his thirties had seemingly anticipated Li Xuan-Yin’s reaction. His lips curled up, and he said, “The humans must have noticed the appearance of the Shuras. I reckon you’re here specifically to deal with this Water Shura tribe?”

The cultivator continued, “I didn’t think we'd run into each other here. Come to think of it, it's been years since we last met after my sister’s passing.”

Li Xuan-Yin kept mum, but Lu Ping could still capture the sadness in his eyes at the mention of the passing of his wife.

“I’ll be taking my leave now if that’s everything.” Li Xuan-Yin made it clear that he was unwilling to talk. The water around him started swirling rapidly, pushing him toward the surface.

“Wait!” shouted the cultivator. “Li Xuan-Yin, have you forgotten how my sister died? Do you not want vengeance?”

Li Xuan-Yin halted in his tracks and spat out coldly, “I’ll avenge her no matter what!”

“Good,” the cultivator said. “Why do you think I’m here?”

“You’re here for me?” Li Xuan-Yin asked as his pupil shrunk.

With a nod, the cultivator replied, “Finding you took quite a while.”

“Speak,” replied Li Xuan-Yin.

The cultivator went straight to the point and started talking while Li Xuan-Yin stood silently. Li Xuan-Yin maintained his usual stoic expression, and after the cultivator was finished speaking, he nodded.

The cultivator was struck by happiness, and said, “It’s risky, but with careful planning, we have a chance to strike him down, not to mention you’re one of the best assassins in the North Ocean.”

Li Xuan-Yin shrugged it off, causing the cultivator to smile bitterly. “I’m starting to wonder what my sister saw in you when she married you.”

Li Xuan-Yin replied, “If that’s all, I’m leaving.”

With that, he turned around and left decisively.

After Li Xuan-Yin’s departure, the cultivator remained silent. A moment later, the cultivator heaved a sigh, shook his head, and mumbled something before disappearing into thin air.

Lu Ping remained patient and continued hiding in tangles of seaweed. Suddenly, Lu Ping’s pupils shrunk as the cultivator that had left the scene a moment ago reappeared. He scanned around to make sure that no one was spying on him before heading toward the bottom of the sea mount, revealing a mini teleportation formation hidden in the bush.

He inserted a few spirit stones into the formation, activated it, and disappeared after being warped to another place. When the formation was activated, the energy disrupted the water flow, stirring up the mud and grass around it. With the energy dispersed, calmness returned, and the mud and grass sank back to the ground, covering the formation once more.

Lu Ping decisively stood up from his hiding spot. He shot a glance at the ruins that were once the Water Shuras’ nest before clearing the area around the teleportation formation. Lu Ping examined it closely and realized that the formation could only teleport a person 3,000 kilometers away at most. The destination of the teleportation, however, remained unknown.

“Why did he build a teleportation formation here? If it was built before the siege, then it’s fine. But if not, things are getting complicated,” Lu Ping thought. He quickly discarded his thoughts after hesitating if he should notify Li Xuan-Yin about this. He returned to the pool in front of Qing Jian’s residence and performed the Vicissitudes of Ocean Art. Despite not having mastered it to a high level, Lu Ping’s achievement in this art was more than enough to grant him the power to destroy the passage.

After that, he returned to the submerged cave. As he exited it, he concealed his tracks and sealed up the tunnels. With that, he headed to Nucleus Island.

Upon his arrival, he headed to the Frozen Mist Palace and greeted Tian-Xue, sharing his experiences in the cave with her. He also handed over Qing Jian’s heritage and the recipe for the Essence of Life to Tian-Xue.

Tian-Xue was happily surprised, and said, “Not bad. Qing Jian was a renowned cultivator back then, but he preferred a relaxed and carefree life like Tian-Lin. I didn’t think he would leave behind a heritage, let alone a mid-Law Avatar Realm heritage. It’s only one tier lower than the five great heritages of our sect. The Essence of Life is also something the sect doesn’t have. In addition to the Longevity Pill recipe you contributed, I suppose Junior Brother Tian-Kang will have a better chance.”

From her words, Lu Ping concluded that Tian-Kang’s injuries were not as simple as he thought. The answer was not currently within his reach, so all he could do was guess.

Right as Lu Ping was about to take his leave, Tian-Xue said, “Return to Tian Ling Mountain as soon as possible. The five greatest sects of the East Ocean have arrived at our sect to discuss the alliance against the Monsters. These sects are powerful, equivalent to the proper sects from the Central Plains. The top ten sects in the North Ocean are nothing in comparison. The elite disciples of these sects are all cultivators in the Core Forging Realm under a hundred years of age. Rumor has it that the Xuan Ling Sect only managed to win three matches out of ten against the disciples of the East Ocean. As a result, your presence is needed. You don’t have to do anything if our sect manages to win four matches, but if we can’t, you will be needed. Remember, you must not brag about it if you win.”