Chapter 436: Three Years

Wei State, Myriad Snake Valley. From a hidden cave, loud rumbling sounds occasionally echoed, as if someone was engaging in a magical combat inside.

Inside the cave, fifteen cultivators were besieging a black spider about a zhang in size.

Among the fifteen cultivators were both men and women, all wearing lotus patterns on their clothes, identifying them as members of the Wang family.

Wang Qingshan had emerged from his eleven-year seclusion, having cultivated the "Azure Nether Sword Scripture" to the fourth level, reaching the fourth layer of Foundation Establishment.

He would need several more years to cultivate the "Azure Nether Sword Scripture" to the fifth level.

What appeared to be a siege was actually Wang Qiuming and other Qi Refining stage family members attacking the black spider, while Wang Changhao, Wang Qingshan, and Wang Qingjun merely watched.

The black spider was merely a first-tier high-grade demonic beast, and Wang Changhao and the other two were intentionally using it to train the Qi Refining stage family members like Wang Qiuming.

As Wang Changsheng's grandson, Wang Qiuming was naturally well-protected by Wang Changhao and the other two.

Wang Qiuming had cultivated multiple basic spells to Grand Completion, allowing him to cast spells instantly. He rubbed his hands together, and a fiery glow flickered in his palms, quickly forming a gigantic fire elemental orb the size of a millstone. Emitting terrifying heat, it hurtled towards the black spider.

The other Qi Refining stage family members were also busy, either wielding spirit artifacts, casting spells, or controlling puppet beasts to attack the black spider.

The black spider, being only a first-tier high-grade demonic beast, was no match for the twelve Qi Refining cultivators. It was covered in wounds, and two of its claws had fallen off.

It served as a living target, allowing Wang Qiuming and the others to gain combat experience.

Wang Qiuming formed hand seals, and countless green lights appeared before him, transforming into a gigantic wind blade two zhang long, which slashed towards the black spider.

The gigantic wind blade was incredibly fast; it appeared before the black spider in a flash, effortlessly slaying the heavily wounded creature.

"Well done," Wang Changhao said, offering guidance. "Qingfeng, your casting speed could be a bit faster. Qinghua, you're not yet proficient at controlling puppet beasts in combat; you missed several opportunities and need to practice more. Qiuming, you should have started with a wind-type spell; its speed would have caught it off guard. Then, you could have followed up with spells of other types. While a Grand Completion fire elemental orb spell is powerful, its drawback is its slower speed. By the time your fire elemental orb hits an enemy, they would have already activated their defenses."

Every time they hunted demonic beasts, Wang Changhao would point out the juniors' shortcomings and instruct them to correct them.

"Thank you for your guidance, Eighteenth Uncle/Granduncle. Your nephew/grandson will remember it," they replied.

Wang Changhao nodded and instructed, "Quickly process the demonic beast materials and prepare to leave."

Two family members approached the black spider's corpse, while Wang Qiuming turned to Wang Changhao and excitedly asked, "Granduncle Eighteenth, I've been hunting demonic beasts for three years now, but I've never hunted a second-tier one! When will you take me to hunt a second-tier demonic beast?"

Wang Qiuming was already at the sixth layer of Qi Refining. As Wang Changsheng's grandson, he had primarily been responsible for vigilance during second-tier demonic beast hunts and hadn't personally participated. After three years of training, he felt ready to join in hunting second-tier demonic beasts.

Wang Changhao glared at him and scolded him impolitely, "You're only at the sixth layer of Qi Refining. A single counterattack from a second-tier demonic beast could easily cost you your life. Practice with first-tier demonic beasts first, and we can talk about it once you reach the eighth layer of Qi Refining."

"Ah! The eighth layer of Qi Refining? Who knows how long that will take!" Wang Qiuming exclaimed, making a bitter face.

Wang Qingshan smiled faintly and said, "We've been out for quite a while; it's time to return to Green Lotus Villa for a period of rest. Qiuming, cultivate diligently. Once you reach the seventh layer of Qi Refining, Seventh Uncle will take you to hunt a second-tier demonic beast."

"Really? Seventh Uncle, you're not tricking me, are you?"

Wang Qingshan was the foremost among the Qing generation and an object of admiration for Wang Qiuming.

"When have I ever tricked you?" Wang Qingshan replied. "The moment you reach the seventh layer of Qi Refining is the moment I take you to hunt second-tier demonic beasts."

"Alright, it's a deal then!"

A short while later, Wang Changhao and his group emerged from the cave. Each summoned a Green-Scaled Horse, mounted it, and spurred their horses with whips, galloping back the way they came.

Southern Sea, Purple Algae Sea Region.

On an unnamed small island, the sky was cloudless, and the sea was calm.

"Rumble!"

With a loud crash, the calm sea surface suddenly surged with waves several zhang high.

A completely black crab emerged from the seabed. The crab was five to six zhang in size, and its powerful giant pincers reflected a metallic sheen under the sunlight, clearly indicating it was a second-tier high-grade puppet beast.

The black crab moved incredibly fast, charging towards the beach.

Not long after, a massive red crab emerged from the sea.

Its eyeballs darted about, revealing it to be a second-tier high-grade demonic beast.

It let out a strange roar from its mouth, appearing very excited.

The red crab pursued the black crab, unwittingly moving farther away from the coastline.

Just as it reached a large open area, a distant large tree suddenly glowed with a blue light, revealing Wang Changsheng's figure.

Wang Changsheng flicked his finger, and thirteen streaks of blue light shot out, heading straight for the red crab.

The blue lights were incredibly fast, piercing through the red crab's head in a flash.

Wang Changsheng gestured with one hand, and the thirteen blue lights flew back into his grasp, revealing them to be thirteen faintly blue flying needles.

This set of flying needles, refined with two teeth from a Tiger Shark, possessed immense power, qualifying them as a Natal Artifact—just one step away from becoming a proto-magic treasure.

For the past three years, Wang Changsheng had been hunting demonic beasts in the Purple Algae Sea Region. He primarily hunted second-tier demonic beasts, though he sometimes encountered third-tier demonic beasts or demonic birds. However, the moment he sensed the aura of a third-tier demonic beast or bird, he would immediately flee, never engaging in direct confrontation.

Of course, he had also encountered Foundation Establishment stage rogue cultivators, but they were no match for him and were easily eliminated, netting him a small fortune.

In three years, Wang Changsheng had accumulated over 200,000 spirit stones, and now possessed more than 300,000. He was able to amass such a large sum partly because of the abundant cultivation resources in the Southern Sea, and partly because the rogue cultivators who committed murder and robbery often carried considerable wealth. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to accumulate over 200,000 spirit stones within three years.

He conjured three blue flying swords, slicing the red crab in half and severing its pincers, which he then stored in his alchemy storage bead.

"Hmm, what's this?"

Wang Changsheng murmured softly, crouched down, and picked up a piece of cyan-colored shard from the beach.

The shard was enveloped in a layer of spiritual light, clearly indicating it was no ordinary object.

It also had bloodstains on it, apparently having fallen from the red crab's body.

Wang Changsheng examined it carefully and discovered it was a fragment of a bronze mirror, emanating powerful spiritual energy, seemingly a remnant of a magic treasure.

He inspected it repeatedly but found no anomalies. Dismissing further thoughts, he tossed the shard into his storage bead and transformed into a streak of blue escape light, soaring into the sky.

Calculating the time, the auction was about to begin soon.