Chapter 356 - Making Inventory of His Harvest

Yangzhou City, Yangzhou Inn:

After a month of travel, Chen Fan's left shoulder injury had mostly healed, and he was now in prime condition.

In a rented inn room, Chen Fan sorted through the treasures he had acquired from the Nebulous Mysterious Realm: two earth tier martial skills—Northern Star Reaper Hand and Great Brahma Sacred Palm.

He had already learned the Northern Star Reaper Hand, having comprehended the concept of reaping lives. With his current cultivation, he could execute it several times with considerable power.

As for the Great Brahma Sacred Palm, although he studied it carefully during the journey back and had gained some insights, he had yet to fully delve into its complexities.

After all, the Great Brahma Sacred Palm was a middle-earth tier martial skill. It presented a formidable challenge.

However, Chen Fan wasn't in a hurry.

Even with his limited understanding and practice, the Great Brahma Sacred Palm demanded significantly more primeval force than the Northern Star Reaper Hand.

According to Chen Fan’s estimations, it was likely that he could only succeed in practicing the martial skill after advancing into the Core Formation realm. Therefore, he was not in a rush for now.

Aside from the two earth tier martial skills, Chen Fan also obtained several profound tier martial skills, ranging between upper, middle, and lower.

Except for Prairie Fire Hundred Strikes—obtained from clearing the stages of the Nebulous Battle Palace—he got the other profound tier skills from the corpses of those he had killed.

Given Chen Fan’s current needs, he did not have any use for them. So, he planned on giving his clansmen the martial skills to practice.

In addition to martial arts, there were treasures like the iron spear and the blood-colored halberd, both Grade-4 treasures that were rare even throughout the vast Great Chu Empire.

Chen Fan intended to wield the iron spear himself, but he decided to contribute the blood-colored halberd to the clan to enhance its foundation and strength.

Aside from these, there were also plenty of spiritual stones, elixirs, natural treasures, and more.

Overall, his trip into the Nebulous Mysterious Realm was very bountiful.

He categorized the items accordingly, keeping those he could use in one storage ring and setting aside those for the clan in another.

“The next matter on the agenda is to advance to the Core Formation realm. Only then will I truly be recognized as a top-tier expert in the Great Chu Empire. At that point, even Duan Jingtian would need to reconsider his moves against me.

“Ahh... but I couldn’t condense nine illusory cores. And if I advance to the Core Formation realm without additional illusory cores, my combat strength would not be multiplied.” Chen Fan sighed to himself.

Chen Fan could skip two levels and sometimes even three because he cultivated the Nine Illusory Primeval Vessel Secret Art. When he skipped three levels, although he couldn’t win, at least his opponent couldn’t kill him.

He currently had seven illusory primeval vessels in his dantian. Complete mastery of the Nine Illusory Primeval Vessel Secret Art meant condensing nine illusory primeval vessels: he was short two.

Once he advanced into the Core Formation realm, the nine illusory primeval vessels would provide minimal help.

“Forget it. I’m not thinking about these things for now. I’d better use my time and cultivate the final two illusory primeval vessels first.”

Shaking his head, Chen Fan sat down cross-legged and began cultivating.

His physique experienced a qualitative leap after entering the Divine Strength realm. He could fight squarely against a first-level Core Formation realm expert, relying on his physical strength alone.

Although the Nine Illusory Primeval Vessel Secret Art had very high requirements for the martial artist’s physique, having reached the Divine Strength realm, Chen Fan could cultivate without any obstacles.

The night went by silently.

Early the next morning, Chen Fan opened his eyes, radiating with a brilliant light.

After a night of practice, Chen Fan condensed the final two illusory primeval vessels. He had practiced the Nine Illusory Primeval Vessel Secret Art to complete mastery.

“Given my powerful physique and my qi cultivation, I can now overwhelm a middle or late-stage first-level Core Formation realm expert.”

A sharp aura surged from Chen Fan.

......

Great Chu Empire, the imperial city, the Zhao Clan:

In the Council Hall, the patriarch, Zhao Hong, sat on the first seat to the left, while the previous patriarch, Zhao Tianjue, sat in the main seat.

Zhao Tianjue asked coldly, “How’s the investigation going?”

Zhao Hong replied, “Father, based on our recent investigations, we have confirmed that Zhao Ru received a letter from a branch family we had previously expelled before his death. He then traveled to Watermoon City.”

“Oh, I see. Since we’ve already gotten to the bottom of the matter, go to Watermoon City. They dare kill our Zhao Clan’s people. Wipe out their entire family!” Zhao Tianjue’s cold voice rang out in the hall, sending shivers down everyone's spines.

The Zhao Clan moved quickly. When Zhao Tianjue gave the order, the entire Zhao Clan took action.

They had thoroughly investigated the situation within Watermoon City and were well-informed about the events of the previous City Clash Convention.

Given the magnitude of the incident, gathering information was relatively straightforward.

......

Watermoon City:

The huge battle that completely changed the structure of Watermoon City half a year ago had long since drawn its curtains. Although it raised an enormous storm in the city, the situation gradually calmed down over time.

The entire Watermoon City had long since returned to its former state of peace as if nothing had happened.

Chen Clan:

The Chen Clan now stood unchallenged as the foremost power in Watermoon City. Even if the Qian Clan and the other four major clans united, they wouldn't pose a threat to the Chen Clan.

The Chen Clan continued to flourish, their strength growing each day. Geniuses from the younger generation popped out one after another like spring bamboos after the rain. The number of Qi Grandmasters in their clan exceeded fifty.

Over the past half a year, the Chen Clan had produced even ten Yuanfu realm experts. Although they were only at the first level, this had greatly increased the Chen Clan’s overall strength.

Chen Tianxiong and the other clan higher-ups were discussing some matters in the main hall. When they saw Chen Zhengqing entering the hall, their gazes shifted to him.

“Zhengqing, you’ve made a breakthrough?”

Chen Zhengqing nodded and said, “Mmm. I’ve broken through to the sixth level.”

The room had around twenty first-level Yuanfu realm higher-ups; they sucked in a breath of cold air.

Hiss...

Chen Zhengqing’s cultivation improved in half a year from the fourth to sixth levels. This speed was shocking.

“Haha, that’s great.” Chen Tianxiong laughed out loud.

Chen Zhengqing said, “Unfortunately, the Sun Stone's energy has no more energy. Achieving another breakthrough won't be easy."

"The path of martial arts requires patience and stability," Chen Tianxiong advised. "Though rapid progress is commendable, advancing two levels in six months likely made your foundation unstable. Focus on consolidating your cultivation now. Acting rash can lead to complications."

“You’re right, Father.” Chen Zhengqing nodded in agreement. He sighed and said, “I wonder how Xiaofan is doing in the imperial city?”

“Don’t worry, Xiaofan is not the reckless type,” Chen Tianxiong reassured him.

Meanwhile, outside Watermoon City, Zhao Hong led the Zhao Clan's forces through the air, their formidable presence casting a heavy pressure that seemed to darken the skies over the entire city.