I Accumulate Spirit Roots for My Next Life

Chapter 427 - 276: Wanshu Daoist Venerable

Poison City is the gathering place of the top cultivators in the entire Ten Thousand Poison Swamp, unlike Guzhu City where I lived for over a decade in a past life. Here, there are quite a few Nascent Soul True Monarchs, and Divinity Transformation Daoists appear frequently.

The emaciated old man before me clearly practices evil arts, and the Soul-Calling Banner in his hand is a top-grade Spiritual Treasure.

However, Li Jizhou, in the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment, faced his crazy gaze without a hint of fear.

"Kill!"

The old man was slightly startled at the single word.

The surrounding spectators backed off alertly.

Hong Luan didn’t hesitate at all, and immediately, the golden light of her Primordial Spirit shot out.

The evil cultivator old man had just entered the Early Stage of Divinity Transformation and thought that Li Jizhou, who had a half-demon at the Early Stage of Nascent Soul, would not dare to act rashly; instead, he ordered so decisively, making the old man slightly dazed.

That moment of daze almost allowed Hong Luan’s Primordial Spirit, which was on par with the Early Stage of Divinity Transformation, to take advantage, but fortunately, the Soul-Calling Banner in his hand was itself a Soul Artifact, which finally managed to block it.

"Hmph! A mere half-demon dares to block this old man? I will refine you into the Soul-Calling Banner and torture you day and night!" The old man coldly snorted, and the Soul-Calling Banner shook suddenly.

In an instant, gloomy winds rose, and hundreds of ghosts howled.

"Boom~" However, before the old man could move again, a surge of Evil Qi soared to the sky, directly crashing into him high above.

Then, a blood-red blade slashed down from the sky, followed by the appearance of a yellow-haired girl less than five feet tall wielding a giant blade single-handedly, a moment later.

While Cang Huang attracted all attention, a streak of cyan light passed through the old man’s split body, which went unnoticed by most.

"Pu~" In an instant, blood splattered across the sky,

as the vertical eye on Hong Luan’s forehead reappeared with golden light, pulling the obviously dazed Primordial Spirit of the old man into it.

Three breaths later, only a pool of blood and a corpse remained at the scene.

Li Jizhou, however, did not move from start to finish.

Liu Hongling, a Tier Four Earth Spirit Master, stood firmly in the Blood Evil Space Earth Spirit, leveraging Li Jizhou as a medium to communicate with the power of this land’s spirit, which was beyond what the careless old man at the Early Stage of Divinity Transformation could withstand.

Cang Huang, nourished by the Blood Fiend over these years, had long been at the cusp of a breakthrough, awaiting the awakening of her bloodline to transition directly to Divinity Transformation.

Similarly for Cyan Dome!

"Hiss~" It was only at this moment that the surrounding cultivators gasped in shock.

In the short span of three breaths, their perception of Li Jizhou shifted from that of a mere fat sheep to an extremely dangerous entity.

Being a small cultivator with Foundation Establishment level strength, stepping into Poison City, where great cultivators gathered, was an opportunity to showcase his strength,

otherwise, how could he focus on doing serious business?

The old man was merely an unlucky tool.

Killing a chicken to scare the monkey, showing one’s fangs.

Everything returned to normal, and as they moved forward, there was almost no feeling of being spied upon.

At the entrance of the City Lord’s Mansion, Li Jizhou had Hong Luan present a greeting gift of a thousand Middle Grade Spirit Stones.

Within the Ten Thousand Poison Swamp, Lower Grade Spirit Stones were not very useful, being quite cheap in Guzhu City, and were mostly exchanged for Spiritual Artifact materials, as the abundant Spiritual Qi in the swamp meant cultivators below Nascent Soul True Monarch did not need Lower Grade Spirit Stones to cultivate.

However, Middle Grade Spirit Stones were essential for great cultivators above Nascent Soul True Monarch, particularly when attempting to charge into Divinity Transformation, where refining a large number of Middle Grade Spirit Stones was needed to ensure a high concentration of Spiritual Qi.

Additionally, the high-tier puppets of Qianji City required Spirit Stones of Middle Grade and above as a source of energy supply.

Since the Ten Thousand Poison Swamp did not produce Spirit Stones, they had to be traded from Central State.

This made Spirit Stones of Middle Grade and above especially precious.

The lavish gift of a thousand Middle Grade Spirit Stones quickly earned the City Lord’s audience.

This was also Li Jizhou’s purpose for the visit.

The City Lord of Poison City, Wanshu Daoist Venerable, was an elder of the Ten Thousand Poison Sect. His life worm had already ascended to a Tier Five Gu King, which alone made him a terrifying figure in the Ten Thousand Poison Swamp.

Yet, his reputation throughout the swamp was excellent, with almost no stories of him being bloodthirsty, and even his true strength and the divine abilities of his life worm were unknown to anyone.

On the contrary, his elegance, amiability, respectfulness, and integrity were famed throughout the swamp.

Following the city guards into the main hall of the City Lord’s Mansion, a gentle breeze of scholarly air surrounded a seven-foot-tall, clean and tidy man in a scholar’s robe, with a hint of silver at his temples, who stood with slightly lowered arms and a mature presence, quietly awaiting.

He had none of the malevolence, evil aura, or bloody scent typical of Gu Masters but was rather surrounded by the fragrance of books.

If it weren’t for the Jin Zhaoyu incident and the fact that Jin Zhaoyu frequently interacted with the Ten Thousand Poison Sect, with Wanshu Daoist Venerable being the key person involved, Li Jizhou might not have immediately confirmed his identity before coming, having reviewed the relevant information.

"Prince Qing of the Jiuli Dynasty comes to visit, greetings to Wanshu Daoist Venerable!" Li Jizhou emphatically highlighted his Prince Qing identity, saluting with a scholar’s gesture.

His posture was calm, his demeanor cordial.

"To think it is Prince Qing himself; I apologize for not greeting you earlier. Please forgive me." Wanshu Daoist Venerable reciprocated the courtesy with a scholar’s salute.

In the Ten Thousand Poison Swamp, Wanshu Daoist Venerable was considered among the top ten individuals.

His true combat strength, with Divinity Transformation Peak level and the Tier Five Gu King unity, was formidable enough to challenge even Gongsun Dang.

Yet, at this moment, facing Li Jizhou, whose cultivation was merely at the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment, he could lower his stance and greet him as an equal, demonstrating his mindset.

"Please, come in and have a seat!" Wanshu Daoist Venerable gestured with a wave inviting.

Entering the hall symbolized an acknowledgment of status.

"Please, City Lord." Li Jizhou smiled and invited in return.

A moment later, after the pleasantries ended, Li Jizhou directly stated his purpose.

"The reason for my personal visit is to demonstrate my sincerity. The burden upon my grandfather was for many years, as it had been the case."

Regarding the Jin Zhaoyu matter, the Saint Emperor had always kept it suppressed; until now, the two branches of the Jin family were still under house arrest in the palace,

and to prevent Jin Zhaoyu from discovering the link, a veil of secrecy had been maintained, and now the Saint Emperor’s orders concealed the news, so the swamp and the Red Flame Demon Division were not yet aware of it.

"I see, Daoist Jinyang and I do indeed go way back," Wanshu Daoist Venerable chuckled, stroking his beard without revealing any information.

"After I formally assume my post, I wish to establish eternal trade relations with the Ten Thousand Poison Swamp for mutual exchange," Li Jizhou proposed straightforwardly, dropping a bombshell without any reservation.

"Hmm?" A brief surprise flashed across the usually gentle face of Wanshu Daoist Venerable.

Even to verify Li Jizhou’s words, his Primordial Spirit burst forth instantly, sensing within a hundred-mile radius, followed by a careful scan of Li Jizhou himself.

"Is it true?" Ultimately, he found Li Jizhou’s Divine Sense fully open without any defenses or disturbances.

"The King’s word is his bond, carefully considered over many years, not child’s play," Li Jizhou thought as he truly considered it, though the real difference was that he intended not to trade with the Ten Thousand Poison Swamp post-apparition but after ascending to the throne.

Li Yuan and the successive Jiuli Saint Emperors ruled the Jiuli, focusing on resource control within its territories, believing that controlling resources within its borders securely would ensure the everlasting reign of the Li dynasty.

However, Li Jizhou, having lived three lives and experienced diverse political ideologies, did not agree.

All internal consumption will be ultimately ended!

Only by expanding externally can we enrich the people, and only by enriching the people can we strengthen the nation!