Chapter 1187: Enemy Attack

"Fellow Daoist Wang is truly worthy of being Sword Sovereign Xiaoyao's disciple. I am impressed. I am merely one of the Eighteen Prodigies of the Great Yan Dynasty; there are many more powerful than me." Dugu Yunfei said meaningfully. He didn't feel like he had truly lost, driven by a desire to prove himself. He formed a hand seal, and a large burst of golden flames erupted from the frozen golden fire crow, melting the ice. The golden fire crow then transformed into three golden flying swords, returning to his sword scabbard.

Wang Qingshan was an unregistered disciple of Sword Sovereign Xiaoyao, but his exceptional strength led other cultivators to automatically omit the "unregistered" part, acknowledging his prowess. In the cultivation world, strength commands respect; if you are strong enough, others will submit to you.

"I have long heard of the Great Yan Dynasty's abundance of talented individuals, and seeing it today confirms its reputation. Fellow Daoist Dugu, if you have time, you are welcome to visit the South Sea. Our Wang family would be delighted to host you. All the seniors and fellow daoists present here are also welcome to visit our Green Lotus Island anytime." Wang Qingshan spoke politely, expressing goodwill towards the cultivators present. He did not wish to harm relations; a win-win situation was the best choice. The Wang family was currently in a period of growth and needed to seek many allies. Making more friends and fewer enemies was the strategy set by Wang Changsheng.

"Haha, certainly! If I have the chance, I will definitely visit Green Lotus Island," Dugu Yunfei said heartily, accepting the invitation. Wang Qingshan had withstood three moves and received a bottle of Hundred Beast Pills. The Hundred Beast Gathering had been paused due to their match. Returning to his seat, Wang Qingshan's expression was as calm as ever.

The Hundred Beast Gathering resumed. After winning three consecutive matches, the Three-Headed Fox was defeated by a top-grade third-tier Lion-Peng Beast. Wang Qingshan had undoubtedly stolen the spotlight. The Murong family naturally could not allow Wang Qingshan's spirit beast to enter the top ten again, but Wang Qingshan did not care about such trivial fame. Whether it was him sparring in person or the Three-Headed Fox battling other spirit beasts, it was all a form of valuable experience.

After witnessing Wang Qingshan's strength in this battle, other Core Formation cultivators were filled with admiration and eagerly engaged him in conversation. Dugu Yunfei and Zhao Richen also struck up a conversation with Wang Qingshan. Losing a spar was nothing; they weren't resentful towards Wang Qingshan because of it. Those who cannot face their own failures squarely will not go far on the path of immortality. If one's skills are inferior, one should diligently cultivate. Dugu Yunfei and Zhao Richen exchanged insights on sword arts and Dao methods with Wang Qingshan, and Wang Qingshan shared his knowledge truthfully, benefiting both parties.

"Fellow Daoist Dugu, Fellow Daoist Zhao, do you know where Fellow Daoist Zhou Yunxiao is?" Wang Qingshan asked earnestly. He had come to the Central Plains Cultivation World this time intending to spar with Zhou Yunxiao.

"Fellow Daoist Zhou's whereabouts are uncertain. Like the Seven Severing Blade Emperor, this fellow constantly challenges other Core Formation cultivators. If he's not sparring with someone, he's practicing blade arts somewhere. If you want to find him, you can try your luck in Kyoto. Kyoto is teeming with experts; even if you don't find him, you can spar with others. However, you'd best avoid sparring with female cultivators in Kyoto," Dugu Yunfei said meaningfully. The Great Yan Dynasty had a strong literary tradition, but its martial arts culture was also formidable. Cultivators in the Great Yan Dynasty enjoyed sparring with others to make friends through martial arts.

"Seventh Uncle, female cultivators in Kyoto often hold martial arts competitions to choose a husband. If you defeat them, they might cling to you," Wang Tianwen explained via spiritual transmission. Female cultivators in Kyoto were more audacious, and many of them actively pursued male cultivators. This situation was relatively rare in the Eastern Wasteland and the South Sea but quite common in the Great Yan Dynasty. Wang Qingshan nodded, making a mental note of this.

An hour later, the Hundred Beast Gathering concluded, and Wang Qingshan and the other visiting cultivators returned to their residences.

"Qiuming, Tianwen, I plan to make a trip to Kyoto. Qiuming, you're responsible for escorting the goods back. It's safer to send them in batches, returning to the Eastern Wasteland before going back to the South Sea." Wang Qingshan instructed. He was stuck at a bottleneck and wouldn't be returning to the South Sea anytime soon. Wang Qiuming's strength was not weak, so escorting the goods in batches should pose no problem.

"Understood, Seventh Uncle, I'll take care of it. Tianwen, you should return to the Myriad Immortals Bureau to report back! The family will need your help with future development in the Central Plains Cultivation World. If you encounter any difficulties, you can always ask the family for help; the family will always be your backing." Wang Tianwen smiled and said, "Understood, Uncle Qiuming, I know what to do."

Three days later, Wang Qingshan and the other two left the Myriad Clouds Mountain Range. Wang Qiuming returned to Golden Swallow Market, Wang Qingshan headed to Kyoto, and Wang Tianwen returned to the Myriad Immortals Bureau to report. The three went their separate ways.

South Sea, Five Dragons Sea Region. Mysterious Moon Island. The morning sun was just rising, casting its first rays over Mysterious Moon Island.

On Mysterious Moon Peak, Wang Yingjie sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion, his body enveloped by a shroud of green light. After a moment, the green light dissipated, and he opened his eyes. "Finally, Qi Condensation Layer Eight!" Wang Yingjie exhaled a long breath, his face beaming. It had taken him over ten years to advance from Qi Condensation Layer Six to Layer Eight. This was largely due to his previous meritorious service, for which Ancestor Wang Qingling had allocated him a sum of cultivation resources. Otherwise, Wang Yingjie might not have reached Qi Condensation Layer Eight even in thirty years, let alone ten. Strictly speaking, the cultivation resources spent on him would have been enough for a three-spirit-root cultivator to advance to the Foundation Establishment stage. Yet, Wang Yingjie had only reached Qi Condensation Layer Eight, showing just how difficult it was for a five-spirit-root cultivator to advance. His stomach rumbled, seemingly protesting. Having just advanced to Qi Condensation Layer Eight, Wang Yingjie was in high spirits and planned to cook a delicious dish to reward himself.

Just then, a low beast roar echoed from his body. Wang Yingjie frowned and pulled out a palm-sized yellow formation plate. The plate had a wolf head carved on its surface, which was continuously emitting roars. Wang Yingjie frowned, realizing that this phenomenon occurred when someone was attacking the formation. Who could it be? Who dared to be so presumptuous? Mysterious Moon Island was an island directly controlled by the Wang family; attacking Mysterious Moon Island was tantamount to provoking the Wang family.

"Fairy Lan, Madam Du, come out quickly! Enemy attack! Enemy attack!" Wang Yingjie sent voice transmission talismans to his two companions and was the first to rush out.

He saw five Qi Condensation cultivators besieging the formation on Mysterious Moon Peak. A few hundred feet away, a middle-aged man with a severed arm lay on the ground. His clothes bore a green raven emblem, the mark of the Xue family from Green Raven Island.

"Fellow Daoist Wang, I am Xue Pingyi from Green Raven Island. The ones attacking the formation are disciples of the Zhao family from Mysterious Wonder Island. The Zhao family wants to monopolize that jade mine. Please, Fellow Daoist Wang, lend us your swift aid!" the middle-aged man cried out, enduring intense pain.

Upon hearing this, Wang Yingjie was startled. Green Raven Island was an affiliated force of the Wang family, while the Zhao family of Mysterious Wonder Island was an affiliated force of the Lu family. If Xue Pingyi wasn't lying, then the Zhao family intended to silence them and seize the jade mine for themselves. The outer perimeter of Mysterious Moon Peak was protected by an illusionary formation, originally intended to deter wild beasts and mortals from disturbing their cultivation. It seemed that Xue Pingyi had rushed into the illusionary formation and inadvertently activated other restrictions. The Zhao family disciples, intending to kill witnesses, then began attacking the restrictions.

At this moment, Lan Xueyun and Du Jiao also rushed out. Seeing five cultivators attacking the formation, they too were startled. "Fairy Lan, Madam Du, follow me to meet the enemy! Leave one alive," Wang Yingjie commanded, summoning a spider puppet beast. The spider puppet beast swiftly charged down the mountain. The Wang family was renowned for producing puppet beasts; every Wang family cultivator carried at least one. Wang Yingjie and his two companions, stationed on Mysterious Moon Island, each possessed a first-tier puppet beast. Besides cultivation, Wang Yingjie regularly practiced combat with them, and now, unexpectedly, they were proving useful.