Eternal Life by Dual Cultivation-Chapter 196 - 156: Flow Shadow Ice Cicada: Fellow Daoist Ling, Please Stay Your Steps

The new Mechanical Puppet that Ling Changqing had just released was primarily for scouting and surveillance.

From its high vantage point, it could gain a clear, unobstructed view of the environment in a radius of five thousand feet.

By narrowing its detection range, it could increase its identification accuracy and even see through some of the less sophisticated Invisibility Concealment Divine Techniques.

If it detected an unidentified Cultivator approaching, the Mechanical Puppet would immediately issue a warning, allowing Ling Changqing to prepare to meet the enemy.

With that done, Ling Changqing resumed directing the Daoist Soldier Puppets on the lakebed, and they began to churn up large swaths of grayish-black silt.

This commotion startled more creatures lurking deep in the silt. As a result, the four working Daoist Soldier Puppets faced an even more intense barrage of attacks, and the damage to their bodies gradually increased.

Fortunately, Ling Changqing provided full support with his Flying Sword, slaughtering these troublemakers in droves and preventing the Daoist Soldier Puppets from being worn down and destroyed.

About fifteen minutes later, several more Purple Tide Crystals of varying sizes were successively uncovered, all of which Ling Changqing placed into his Storage Pouch.

According to the information in the Jade Scroll, Jingyue Lake was quite large, spanning hundreds of acres. It would be impossible to excavate the entire area.

Therefore, Ling Changqing planned to stay for another hour before leaving, content with however many Purple Tide Crystals he could dig up in that time.

The opportunities in Dragon Soul Valley were countless; he couldn't possibly expend all his energy here.

'...I wonder how Liu Qin and the others are doing?'

Ling Changqing wondered to himself.

'Luo Qingxuan's personal Female Official is one of us, after all. I hope they're safe.'

An hour passed quietly. By the time Ling Changqing called it a day, his Storage Pouch contained a new pile of precious Purple Tide Crystals, the largest of which was the size of a large soup bowl.

The reason for such a bountiful harvest was Ling Changqing's extraordinary Destiny, much like the rich hauls he always brought back from his work at sea.

A Foundation Establishment Cultivator with average luck and ordinary talent would be hard-pressed to obtain even a tenth of Ling Changqing's haul.

One moment of carelessness, and they would be devoured by those troublesome native creatures until not even a bone fragment remained.

However, when he retrieved the four Daoist Soldier Puppets, Ling Changqing couldn't help but frown. The iron lumps were covered in pits and dents, their Spiritual Light had dimmed considerably, and they were quite severely damaged.

If he didn't want them to be completely scrapped, the four Daoist Soldier Puppets were certainly unusable for the time being. He would have to wait until the expedition in Dragon Soul Valley was over to take them back for repairs.

Of course, compared to what he had gained, the expedition was still a net positive, so there was nothing to feel sorry about.

After cleaning up the battlefield, Ling Changqing took out ten antique Jade Coins and a Bronze Turtle Shell. After Concentrating and Calming the Mind, he performed a divination.

'Hmm, I'll head over to the Luoying Mountain Range first. The opportunity the Queen Mother mentioned is there...'

Based on the results of the divination, Ling Changqing made his decision.

...

「In a remote stone cave.」

Seven or eight male and female Cultivators from the Yu Family were gathered around a bonfire. Some of them still bore traces of blood, looking as if they had just survived a fierce battle.

A plump, exotic deer was roasting on an iron rack over the fire. It had been gutted and stuffed with foraged Spirit Medicines and mountain delicacies, its glistening skin looking tender as an enticing aroma filled the cave.

In the seats of honor sat the twin brothers of the Yu Family. Both were dressed in Profound Black Magical Robes with Longswords on their backs, their apathetic eyes suggesting a lack of interest in anything.

Yu Piaoyun and Yu Piaoyue. The brothers came from a rather ordinary background; within the Yu Family, they weren't even considered part of a branch family.

However, their Spirit Root Talent was Top Rank Earth Grade, and their Luck and Fortune were extraordinary. As a result, they were discovered by a Yu Family ancestor at the age of thirteen and taken under his wing for careful nurturing.

Among the younger generation of the Yu Family, the Yu Piaoyun brothers were undoubtedly a cut above the rest. As long as they didn't perish prematurely, reaching the Nascent Soul Realm was a distinct possibility for their future.

At that moment, a captivatingly beautiful young Female Cultivator beside them put away her Jade Scroll and said gently,

"According to the map, we should be near Sahuan Hill. The Drunken Dragon Platform is just over five hundred miles to the east."

Yu Piaoyun remained silent. Yu Piaoyue lifted his gaze slightly and said softly,

"In that case, shall we head to the Drunken Dragon Platform next? I hear the opportunities there are quite good, ranked among the top thirty in all of Dragon Soul Valley."

"That's true, but we don't know what the situation is like there. If one of the other Noble Families has already claimed it, we'll have another bitter fight on our hands!"

the young Female Cultivator said cautiously.

Yu Piaoyue smiled. "Good things don't come to those who wait. If you want something, you have to take it by force! So that's the plan. We'll set out after we've had our fill!"

"Then... aren't we going to wait for the other family members to rendezvous with us?"

someone asked.

Yu Piaoyue replied, "We'll leave that to fate. We'll take whoever we happen to meet along the way. We won't force anyone who doesn't want to join us."

The internal competition within the Nine Great Families was far more intense than any outsider could possibly imagine.

Even those with the same surname would mercilessly turn on their own kin to get ahead or seize an opportunity.

No one voiced any objections, and so the matter was settled.

Among the disciples the Yu Family had sent this time, the few Immortal Seeds from the Direct Lineage received far more support than the twin brothers did.

Therefore, meeting them too early would not be good news for anyone involved.

...

Between the mountains, an inky-black river, over a thousand feet wide with a gentle current, snaked its way through the landscape.