Chapter 464 - 433: Reshaping the Gourd

Chapter 464: Chapter 433: Reshaping the Gourd

It was just as Xiao Chan had arranged.

On the second day after the two arrived in the White Lion Dynasty, a veritable flood of Cultivators passed through. The sky was filled with rainbow-colored lights and sword glints, a sight that looked to mortals like a procession of Immortals streaking past. The largest group numbered over a hundred.

Most were Foundation Establishment Cultivators, but there were even quite a few Golden Core cultivators secretly hidden among them.

However, there were few they recognized.

Most hailed from Faqian City, and every one of them looked aggressive and imposing.

In fact, during their search, quite a few Cultivators clashed with one another, their battles shaking the heavens and earth with thunderous booms. In the eyes of Chen Che and Xiao Chan, it was nothing more than a few kittens squabbling, but to mortals, it seemed as if the sky itself were falling.

The constant flying back and forth overhead left the mortals trembling in fear.

Of course, few Cultivators would have ever imagined that Chen Che and Xiao Chan had taken refuge directly in the Mortal World, much less that they were recuperating here.

The battle had been beyond brutal. By the end, both Chen Che and Xiao Chan were not only spent forces but had also suffered damage to their very foundations. Chen Che, in particular, now had a crack in his Golden Core.

A typical Cultivator would have needed seven or eight years of quiet recuperation to fully heal from such injuries.

Fortunately, before they left, he had refined a batch of ’Fierce Beast Pills’. These Pills were refined from two of the Three-Headed Fierce Flood Dragon’s heads. They could not only rapidly restore True Essence but also repair the physical body.

At most, it would only take half a year for the two of them to return to their peak condition.

So, neither of them was in a hurry.

Chen Che even had time during his convalescence to take stock of his gains from the battle.

Unfortunately, the battle had been far too brutal.

The Magical Artifacts of the defeated Golden Core True Masters had been shattered during the fight. Yu Zhen’s Jade Ruyi, in particular, was in dozens of pieces. Fortunately, this Magical Treasure didn’t involve much technical skill; its power came entirely from the superiority of its materials.

After a brief inspection, Chen Che found that even he could perform simple repairs on it.

All told, there were only four or five Magical Artifacts worth repairing. One was Yu Zhen’s Duster. The Duster Tail, made of some unknown beast’s fur, had withstood a direct hit from a Sword Pill without any damage. In contrast, the Duster Handle was covered in cracks from the impact.

In addition, there was Jiang Yutong’s Talisman Brush. As a Talisman Cultivator, she had displayed extraordinary wealth; the Talismans she had thrown out during the final battle were worth at least five or six hundred thousand Spirit Stones.

Unfortunately, she, along with her Storage Bracelet, had been burned to ash by his Nine Transformations Spirit Flame Technique. All the items inside were incinerated, leaving only this relatively intact brush.

Fan Sulan’s Flying Sword was broken in two, but it was also repairable. However, Chen Che’s own Ruyi Wind and Thunder Sword had been damaged in the battle as well. He planned to melt down both swords and reforge them into something new.

Among the many Golden Core combatants, Ke Zhengwen had died the earliest, so his Storage Ring and weapon were the best preserved. However, Chen Che had no use for his weapon.

Furthermore, the Storage Bracelets of the others contained countless Talismans, Pills, and Spirit Stones.

After a quick tally, Chen Che found that the Spirit Stones alone amounted to a million, which was a welcome supplement to his depleted finances.

After a moment of thought, he decided to keep what could be repaired for his own use. As for what couldn’t be fixed, he would simply melt it all down into materials and give it to Liang Yuan to forge new Magical Artifacts. It was all a pile of junk anyway, so he wouldn’t feel bad if it was ruined.

In contrast, most of the spoils on Xiao Chan’s side were perfectly intact.

This made Chen Che secretly marvel that his Sword Cultivator companion was far more ’ferocious’ than even an Evil Cultivator.

However, there were very few things from Xiao Chan’s loot that he could use. Some items would have to be dealt with later when an opportunity arose. Only things like Pills, Talismans, and Spirit Stones were readily usable.

Thus, in his spare time, Chen Che sat under a tree, simultaneously healing his injuries and repairing the Jade Ruyi.

Of course, he wasn’t restoring it to its original form. Instead, he planned to attach it to his Gourd.

He had witnessed the immense crushing power of the Jade Ruyi firsthand. If that power was combined with his Yellow Gourd and brought down unexpectedly, perhaps even a Fierce Beast like the Three-Headed Fierce Flood Dragon wouldn’t be able to withstand it.

As for its ability to rapidly gather Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, that was more or less irrelevant here.

Chen Che had no firm idea what to do with the Duster. If he had no use for it, he might as well cut it up and use all the fur to make Talisman Brushes.

「Five days later.」

Chen Che melted down all the Jade Marrow and fashioned it into a gilded jade shell, completely encasing the Yellow Gourd. At first glance, the Gourd now seemed to be made of White Jade. Combined with the patterns adorning its surface, it looked exceptionally exquisite and magnificent.

Of course, it wasn’t finished yet.

The greatest function of the Baiye Mountain Jade Marrow was to gather Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi. The work would only be complete once he carved an Array onto it. He could even borrow the power of the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi to increase the Gourd’s Suppressing Power several times over.

Although it was only a semi-finished product, the sight made Xiao Chan’s eyelids twitch wildly.

Back then, that Jade Ruyi had smashed him so hard he coughed up blood. Now, combined with the Yellow Gourd, he suspected it might be enough to kill him outright.

"Not bad."

Chen Che nodded in satisfaction, toying with the Gourd.

The only thing he found regrettable was that the space within the Gourd was still sealed. Even with the current strength of his Divine Sense, he had no idea how many years of patient effort it would take to sever the chains inside.

However, Chen Che wasn’t in a hurry.

Given that someone with his level of Cultivation couldn’t break the restriction, the Gourd’s original owner must have been a Nascent Soul True Monarch at the very least. If he lacked the strength but forced it open, it might bring about disaster instead.

That was why he had stopped trying to unlock it six months ago.

He wanted to avoid causing a situation he couldn’t control...

Of course, the only consequence of this was that he still couldn’t truly master the Gourd or uncover its real purpose.

"Hm?"

Just as Chen Che was toying with the Gourd, his eyelid suddenly twitched, and he looked into the distance.

He had sensed several auras hovering over the White Lion Dynasty.

Interestingly, these same auras had passed by before, and now they had returned without a sound.

"Interesting!"

Xiao Chan also glanced in their direction.

The two exchanged a look, both with smiles on their faces.

...

Within the Imperial City, seven Cultivators rose into the air, flying directly above the Imperial Palace. It was currently the morning court session, and all the civil and military officials were gathered in the main hall. Every one of them stared in terror at the ’Immortals’ in the sky.

There were also many Innate Grandmasters in the Imperial Palace, but faced with such overwhelming might, they didn’t even have the courage to look up.

Aside from one Golden Core cultivator, the other six were all at Foundation Establishment Great Perfection.

"Smart of them to look for us in the Mortal World."

Xiao Chan grinned, but a cold glint appeared in his eyes.

"It’s to be expected."

Chen Che narrowed his eyes slightly.

’It’s a classic case of hiding in plain sight. So, after a fruitless search, some Cultivators will naturally try the opposite approach and look in places that might have been overlooked.’

’And there will only be more and more of them.’

"They really are here..."

At the same time, the Foundation Establishment Cultivators descended. The leading Golden Core True Master had just conjured portraits of Chen Che, Xiao Chan, and the other Golden Core cultivators whose bodies were never found, when he noticed an imperceptible contraction in Li Cang’s pupils.

Although Li Cang hid it well, a mortal’s every move was no secret before a Golden Core True Master.

"To wear out iron shoes in a fruitless search, only to find them here by chance. Someone really is hiding here."

The Golden Core True Master’s face immediately lit up with ecstasy.

Originally, they had only sensed that there were many Loose Cultivators in this Mortal Dynasty and had planned to use them to search the area. They never expected to find their targets so easily.

"Speak. Where are they hiding?"

The Golden Core True Master drifted over, looking down on Li Cang from above.

A light flashed in his eyes. Li Cang, who had been struggling to back away, froze on the spot like a puppet. His right arm rose mechanically and pointed in a certain direction.

Everyone looked where he was pointing.

They saw a quiet and elegant manor. A thin layer of mist shrouded the outside, which looked perfectly ordinary, but as Cultivators, they could tell at a glance that it was an Array.

"Found them!"

A look of ecstasy appeared in the Golden Core True Master’s eyes.

At that very moment, however, a White Jade Gourd suddenly shot out from the manor, flying straight at him.