Chapter 168: The Canyon’s Frozen Pool, Ice Soul Frostfiend (I)

Where to? Of course, to the safety of the inner city!

Although the chaos in Dahe Market originated from the Jade Cauldron Sect’s Golden Core cultivator, the inner city remained the safest place at this moment.

It was protected by a third-tier grand formation encompassing the entire city and guarded by a Golden Core Adept. Hence, even if a beast tide erupted, the inner city would remain the safest place in Dahe Market.

Luo Chen was not the only one with this idea.

As he entered the city, the streets were packed with people, nearly to the point of suffocation.

Fortunately, Luo Chen returned home with ease with his guards clearing the way and Duan Feng, a renowned expert ranked on the Elite Prodigy Board at the ninth stage of Qi-Refining.

Upon arriving home, Luo Chen first settled the earnings with Duan Feng from the past month. After all, with the situation likely to change, their business of repairing and reselling enchanted artifacts would probably have to be put on hold.

They had already agreed on the terms when they first started this partnership. Luo Chen provided the startup capital and purchased all the raw materials, while Duan Feng supplied the labor and expertise.

As a result, Luo Chen generously offered an equal split of the profits. During this period, they had earned two thousand spirit stones, with each taking half.

Additionally, most of Luo Chen's initial investment was tied up in the second-hand enchanted artifacts they had acquired, making it temporarily difficult to liquidate.

In the short term, it seemed like Luo Chen had taken a loss on this investment.

"What a pity, the time was too short." Luo Chen said as he put away his one thousand spirit stones.

Duan Feng sighed, still somewhat unsatisfied. "Yeah, if I had a little more time, I would have turned a profit sooner or later."

But things rarely went exactly as one wished. A stable situation allowed cultivators to cultivate in peace, even indulge in some comforts.

However, in times of chaos, certain exceptional individuals could rise to prominence. If given a choice, Luo Chen would still prefer a more stable cultivation environment.

***

In the quiet depths of the night, the backroom lay in silence. The Moonlight Herb, growing ever more vigorous, unfurled its leaves beneath the soft glow of moonlight streaming through the glazed skylight. A small incense burner in the room released a rich and soothing fragrance of calming incense.

After soaking in the essence-nurturing liquid, Luo Chen sat cross-legged on his bed, practicing the Long Spring Art as he did every night.

After a long while, he slowly withdrew from cultivation, slightly parted his lips, and exhaled a stream of white breath, resembling a tiny dragon of mist. His gaze landed on his status panel, specifically the cultivation progress bar.

Realm: Qi-Refining Stage Eight (30/100)

It had been three to four months since he reached the eighth stage of Qi-Refining, yet his progress had barely reached the halfway mark. For an average rogue cultivator, this speed would already be considered incredibly fast.

But for Luo Chen, who had previously broken through the seventh stage in just three months, the slowdown was glaringly obvious. He felt dissatisfied and the reason was simple—he was not an ordinary rogue cultivator.

Although his spirit roots were slightly inferior, the cultivation resources he had access to far surpassed most rogue cultivators.

He had never stopped consuming Dust Transformation pills, constantly burned calming incense, cultivated alongside Moonlight Herb, practiced in spirit vein caves, and meditated under a spirit gathering formation—all while frequently taking top-grade Jade Essence pills.

Such abundant cultivation resources were beyond even what disciples of major sects could enjoy. Perhaps disciples of major sects had access to more profound techniques and the guidance of renowned mentors.

However, Luo Chen's Long Spring Art had already reached Perfected Mastery, and the system had patched up all its flaws. It could be said that his current cultivation conditions were even better than those of major sect disciples.

"Being at the eighth stage of Qi-Refining still isn't secure enough, but this is the best I can do for now.

"From now on, until I reach the ninth stage of Qi Refining, I must keep a low profile in all things.

"No, I should stay low until Foundation Establishment." Luo Chen looked around, feeling somewhat dissatisfied.

Having grown accustomed to the abundant spirit energy of the spirit vein caverns, the cultivation environment of an ordinary inner-city residence simply did not compare.

"I still need to stay in Crescent Moon Valley to cultivate. This place is seriously holding me back. Hopefully, the beast tide won't last too long!"

***

Early the next morning, Luo Chen sent Dongfang Liang to gather information about Qinghe Mountain.

By noon, Dongfang Liang hurried back and brought him good news.

The beast tide had not truly erupted! After attacking a section of the outer city's eastern district, the demonic beasts had retreated back into the Ancient Plains.

It was said that Steward Miao and True Inheritor Luo of the Jade Cauldron Sword Sect had personally intervened, leading the enforcement team. They had even invoked a trace of the sword intent of Golden Core Adept Pang Renxiong to drive back the beast tide.

Currently, the eastern district was undergoing reconstruction. Many people had also begun inquiring about the details of the Golden Core ruins in the Ancient Plains.

Luo Chen was curious as well, but his top priority was leading his people back to Crescent Moon Valley.

Cultivation could not be neglected!

Moreover, Crescent Moon Valley and the Ancient Plains were not adjacent; they were separated by the entirety of Dahe Market, positioned on opposite ends—one in the west, the other in the east.

Relatively speaking, this side was much safer.

Of course, that was assuming there were no incidents in the neighboring Howling Moon Mountains.

However, from Luo Chen’s perspective, the Howling Moon Mountains were now significantly safer. Not only were there no longer any spirit wolves near Huiye Mountain, but even the more distant Changyin Mountain had very few left.

Who knew where all the spirit wolves had gone?

Sikong Shoujia was quite surprised that, in the midst of danger, Luo Chen had still returned to Crescent Moon Valley to take charge.

Luo Chen’s reasoning was simple. "The grand enterprise of alchemy must not stop!

"This concerns the livelihood of thousands of my fellow brothers—I simply can't bear to see them suffer!"

This excuse made Sikong Shoujia's teeth ache with frustration and thought to himself.

How was it that Little Luo could spout words so effortlessly, yet they always sounded so righteous?

Sure enough, once Luo Chen resumed his regular alchemy work, the previously anxious atmosphere within the gang settled down in no time.

Of course, this "gang atmosphere" only applied to the Alchemy Hall and the adjacent Medicine Hall. The other halls, such as the Beast Hall and the Mining Hall, had been left leaderless since their hall masters and even the gang leader had gone to the Ancient Plains.

Recently, things have gotten quite chaotic. This left Mi Junping, who was overseeing the Main Hall, completely overwhelmed.

After refining pills in the afternoon, Luo Chen started chatting with Sikong Shoujia again.

"I wonder how the struggle over the ruins is progressing?"

Sikong Shoujia said with deep concern, "I'm afraid it's not looking good."

"You always seem to know some insider information. Let's hear it."

Luo Chen only had connections among the gang’s higher-ups. When it came to intelligence about the Ancient Plains, this old man in front of him knew far more than he did.

Sikong Shoujia let out a bitter smile. "This isn't insider news at all! Just ask around, and you’ll know what happened in the Ancient Plains recently."

As he explained, Luo Chen finally understood just how chaotic things had become in the Ancient Plains.

At first, things were relatively in order and everyone was focused on excavating treasures and rare herbs. But as time passed, rogue cultivators began to take advantage of the chaos and started engaged in large-scale pillaging.

After all, why spend days painstakingly digging up herbs when robbing someone else was much quicker? This situation was somewhat alleviated once Poshan Gang and Xuanyi Society established their standoff.

However, everything changed when the Heavenly Spirit Seizing array suddenly shrank a few days ago, forcibly expelling all Qi-Refining cultivators while allowing only Foundation Establishment cultivators to remain inside.

The thousands of cultivators remaining outside, no longer held in by the Foundation Establishment cultivators, could no longer contain themselves.

Poshan Gang, Xuanyi Society, and a handful of Dajiang Gang cultivators fought against each other violently. Whereas, the remaining rogue cultivators got caught up in the chaos, each fighting desperately for their own opportunities.

"Do you remember Luo Erduo?" Sikong Shoujia asked.

"Hah, how could I forget that brat?"

Luo Chen clearly remembered that Luo Erduo was the first to jump out and declare his departure from the Alchemy Hall to head for the Golden Core ruins. It was one thing to leave, but did he really have to do it right after Luo Chen laid down the rules?

That was a direct slap to his face!

"He's dead!" Sikong Shoujia sighed. "Yesterday, one of the Alchemy Hall's fire handlers escaped back.

"He was scared out of his wits and figured that honestly tending the furnace for a steady wage was much safer, so he wanted to return to the Alchemy Hall."

"Oh?" Luo Chen narrowed his eyes.

Sikong Shoujia quickly reassured him. "With your order in place, of course, I didn't take him back. But before I refused, I got a lot of information from him about what’s happening in the mountains.

"Thousands of cultivators were locked in a chaotic situation spiraling completely out of control. Everyone had gone mad with bloodlust.

"A little nobody like Luo Erduo? There was no way he could have survived."

Luo Chen nodded slightly, satisfied with how Sikong Shoujia had handled the traitor and pleased with Luo Erduo’s demise.

He had betrayed the Alchemy Hall! He deserved to die sooner!

But thinking about thousands of cultivators locked in battle still made Luo Chen’s scalp tingle. "What about the beast tide?

"The reason for the beast tide is quite simple!" Sikong Shoujia spread his hands. "With so many people fighting in the demonic beasts' territory, did you think the beasts wouldn't react?

"They held back for a while, but even the previously secured safe zones have become dangerous now. Once the Foundation Establishment cultivators stopped showing up, demonic beasts led by Golden Spirit Monkeys and Explosive Apes began slaughtering and hunting cultivators.

"Then the low-tier rogue cultivators started fleeing in groups, the beasts gave chase, and soon it snowballed into a small-scale beast tide."

Recalling his fleeting glance at Qinghe Mountain yesterday—

That vast swarm of demonic beasts, was that really just a small beast tide?

Luo Chen couldn't even begin to imagine what a true large-scale beast tide would look like.

He simply said, "The main forces should be returning soon."

"Let's hope so."

With the Heavenly Spirit Seizing Array shrinking, all Qi-Refining cultivators had lost their chance to compete for further opportunities. A small-scale beast tide had also erupted in the mountains, leaving the lower-tier rogue cultivators with no choice but to retreat.

Thinking of his son, Sikong Shoujia muttered once more, "The sooner, the better!"