Two years after Jiang Ming reached the Foundation Establishment Realm of martial arts, Yue Changmu finally broke through to the late stage of the Qi Refinement Realm and became the number one individual cultivator on the small green peak. Even in Xiaoqian Mountain, he was considered a figure at the top of the pyramid.
However, this old cultivator was quite generous. He still treated Jiang Ming equally and still made Rain Talismans with him every day. However, his efficiency had increased by several times, and their profits had increased a lot.
Jiang Ming was also happy with this. With the protection of a late-stage Qi Refinement Realm cultivator, people who had designs on his business vanished entirely. Thus, he could earn spirit stones and cultivate in peace.
The green jade lotus that he had planted ten years ago had also finally completed its first life cycle. It withered and died, leaving behind only about twenty lotus seeds. The color of the lotus seeds this time was much deeper than the one he had planted before. It looked like real green jade.
Under the strong begging of the King of Medicine, Jiang Ming let it eat three of the seeds, and the rest were planted in the pond.
* * *
Time flew by, and another twenty years passed by quickly.
It had been more than fifty years since Jiang Ming first arrived at Xiaoqian Mountain.
Xiaoqian Mountain seemed to be in trouble again.
Jiang Ming strolled around the round valley market and bought a large piece of demonic beast meat from a butcher shop opened by a Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator. He carried it home. However, he was frowning.
After living here for decades, Jiang Ming knew the prices of goods in Xiaoqian Mountain very well. Although there were occasional fluctuations, they were all quite stable.
The only time it was out of the ordinary was when Xiaoqian Mountain was under attack.
And now, the prices of goods in Xiaoqian Mountain seemed to have started to rise again.
In addition, the prices of pills, talismans, and so on were also steadily increasing. Even the Qi-Returning Pill that Jiang Ming refined was in high demand again.
"This is not a good sign!"
Jiang Ming had an ominous premonition in his heart. After the chaos last time, there was news that the storm was only suspended. However, it was not completely over. Could it be that an even bigger storm was brewing?
"Sixty years have passed, and the Black Rock Ruins are about to open. Could it be related to this?"
The commotion back then had started because of the Black Rock Ruins. Later, the Cloud Dream Sect and other grotto-heavens and blessed lands also crept into the Litfire Region for the Black Rock Ruins.
Jiang Ming thought, "Whether it's Xiaoqian Mountain or the Fire Lotus Valley, there are more terrifying behemoths behind them. If those behemoths fight, Xiaoqian Mountain will crumble."
Jiang Ming thought for a moment, and he already had the intention to retreat.
"Twelve years ago, I had already broken through to the ninth level of the Qi Refinement Realm. Although the progress of the last level of the Qi Refinement Realm is slow, I am almost at the peak of this realm. The biggest hurdle now is the Foundation Establishment Realm. It is more dependent on my own transformation. Whether or not the spiritual energy in the outside world is rich does not matter much."
Although the spiritual energy in his cave abode was very rich, Jiang Ming's progress had been getting slower and slower in recent years. It could be said that he had encountered the biggest bottleneck in immortal cultivation so far.
Jiang Ming's main purpose for coming to Xiaoqian Mountain back then was for the rich spiritual energy. However, it was useless to him now.
From now on, he would have to find a Foundation Establishment Realm technique, and then slowly practice to break through the bottleneck. Or, he had to be lucky enough to get a treasure that could improve his cultivation base. The only other option he had left was to find a medicinal pill to assist him.
However, he had spent a lot of money on cultivation over the years. Such medicinal pills or treasures were easily priced at thousands of spirit stones. Jiang Ming could not afford them at all.
Moreover, treasures of that level were much rarer than middle-grade magical tools. You could hardly find them in Xiaoqian Mountain.
All in all, it was meaningless to stay in Xiaoqian Mountain now.
Moreover, his current identity was a man who was already over a hundred years old on the surface. That was very close to death for a fifth-level Qi Refinement Realm cultivator. If he stayed any longer, he would be easily exposed.
"I'll just find out some information and collect what I need. It's time to leave."
That night, Jiang Ming once again invited Feng He for a meal and asked him about the situation at Xiaoqian Mountain.
"No one is as cautious as you."
In the Jade Pavilion, Feng He was drinking spirit wine, and his expression was a little incredulous. Although the Plant Hall encouraged its members to have a low profile, no one was as cautious as Jiang Ming. He had been practicing alchemy for decades and had never been involved in any trouble.
If there was any trouble, he would be the first to slip away.
"However, Xiaoqian Mountain is really going to change drastically this time. I'm also preparing to leave!" Feng He sighed. "I don't know if I can come back in the future. The Cloud Dream Sect and the grotto-heaven behind the Fire Lotus Valley seem to have an old grudge. Now that they're using Xiaoqian Mountain as an excuse, I'm afraid they're going to fight again. The thing that our elder obtained last time seems to be quite important in relation to the Black Rock Ruins. I'm afraid this time, a bloody battle will really take place."
Jiang Ming's eyes darkened. It seemed that his guess was right.
"And the Black Rock Ruins this time will probably be countless times more lively than usual!" Feng He suddenly laughed and looked amused.
"With a Golden Core Realm expert making a move, other than some desperate cultivators, there aren't many who would dare to join in the fun, right?" Jiang Ming asked with a smile.
"There have always been a lot of desperate cultivators." Feng He shook his head and continued, "This time around, it seems that the ancient formation in the Black Rock Ruins has undergone some strange changes during the collapse. I heard that the restrictions on cultivation levels in most of the areas have intensified again, and only Qi Refinement Realm cultivators can enter. This seems to be the original rule of the ruins. However, I don't know why it has been restored again! There's only a small part of the area where the formation is broken, and the restrictions don't apply. It can allow Foundation Establishment Realm and Golden Core Realm cultivators to break in. However, they can only move within a certain area, and it's extremely dangerous. With such a change, I'm afraid that many Qi Refinement Realm cultivators, who didn't dare to participate in the beginning, will swarm in!"
Jiang Ming was stunned.
