Chapter 145: Bright Eyes Technique

Chapter 145: Chapter 145: Bright Eyes Technique

The once-ruined entrance to Fire Dragon Valley was now a flat plaza. The valley’s entrance was enveloped by an array, and streaks of light passed through it, landing on the plaza.

The moment Liu Chen landed, he spotted Purple Cloud Valley’s massive Flying Ship. He instinctively glanced around and, not seeing his three senior brothers, headed straight forward.

"Senior Brother, would you be interested in becoming an Honored Guest Elder for our Li Family? You’d get an extra share of cultivation resources every month."

Liu Chen had only taken a few steps when a Li Family disciple approached him. After Liu Chen politely shook his head, the disciple gave a simple bow and went off to bother another disciple from the Three Immortal Sects.

Liu Chen shook his head in resignation and followed the flow of the crowd toward the edge of the plaza.

Arriving at the edge of the plaza, Liu Chen handed his Token to the True Disciple responsible for collecting them, at last escaping the bustling crowd.

Seeing the Purple Cloud Valley Flying Ship nearby, Liu Chen didn’t board it right away. Instead, he turned his head to look at the Loose Cultivators in the distance, who were sitting cross-legged and tending to their stalls.

’The only Magic I haven’t mastered yet is the Celestial Thunder Technique. I might find something interesting if I go have a look.’

Liu Chen began strolling leisurely in that direction. Aboard the Flying Ship, Mo Xuan and Bai Qiulan watched him in silence.

"Meridian Passage Middle Stage."

Bai Qiulan couldn’t help but glance at Mo Xuan. Though she knew Liu Chen’s Talent was great, advancing from Body Tempering Peak to Meridian Passage Middle Stage in just a single month was an astonishing speed.

For an ordinary Cultivator, this was an advancement they might never achieve in a lifetime. Even among the chosen geniuses of Purple Cloud Valley, such a breakthrough would take years, if not decades.

Otherwise, Purple Cloud Valley wouldn’t have so few True Disciples.

"Nangong Ye is still alive. The boy actually showed mercy."

Mo Xuan shook his head. He was seventy percent certain that the matter with the Nangong Family was related to Liu Chen. He just hadn’t expected Nangong Ye to escape Fire Dragon Valley alive. Mo Xuan didn’t believe Qingxu Hall could stop Liu Chen, and now that he’d confirmed Liu Chen’s Cultivation, his conviction only grew stronger.

For Nangong Ye to have left Fire Dragon Valley alive could only mean that Liu Chen never intended to attack him to begin with.

"Why are you so convinced the affair with the Nangong Family is connected to Liu Chen?"

Bai Qiulan was very confused. Logically speaking, since Fire Dragon Valley had just opened, they should have to wait for the disciples from the trial to report back before learning what had happened to the Nangong Family. So why was Mo Xuan so sure this incident had to be related to Liu Chen?

"Based on my understanding of him, he doesn’t actually have much affection for Linglong and Suyao. The only reason he guides their cultivation isn’t because he genuinely values the bond between fellow disciples, but because they are our apprentices.

"Liu Chen is repaying the favor of our instruction in his own way. Back when you mentioned he could target the Nangong Family in the trial, you guaranteed he would strike if he got the chance. The only question is how much he ended up doing."

Mo Xuan spoke with great solemnity as he recalled past events. "Don’t be fooled because Linglong and Suyao get his guidance every day and appear to have a good relationship with him. If they weren’t truly his fellow disciples from the same sect, it wouldn’t affect Liu Chen at all even if they both died."

"That sounds rather twisted."

Bai Qiulan nodded. She had some understanding of Liu Chen’s personality herself, and right now, she didn’t feel Mo Xuan was completely wrong. In fact, she felt he had a point.

"He’s an orphan. The first time I saw him, he was in a rundown shack, bandaging his own wounds. That’s a common enough sight. But after he finished, he used the cover of a rainy night to sneak into his enemy’s house. He lay in wait, motionless, for four hours, only making his move once his target was sound asleep."

Mo Xuan recalled that time. It was because of this incident that he had decided to bring Liu Chen back. Although he disliked such methods, he still admired it. He could even see Liu Chen’s desperate will to survive in that act.

"If everything you’ve said is true, then without you, he might have become a Loose Cultivator by some bizarre twist of fate. Then, to survive, he would have pursued stronger Magic and Cultivation Techniques. Most people like that end up becoming Evil Cultivators."

Bai Qiulan’s eyes narrowed. ’If we extrapolate based on the Talent Liu Chen has shown... him becoming an Evil Cultivator would be terrible for the Three Immortal Sects. And he knows how to be patient. The Three Immortal Sects might be able to expel him, but by the time he returned, he would probably have enough strength to crush them all.’

’Given that the strongest fighters in the Three Immortal Sects are at the Foundation Establishment realm, with Liu Chen’s Talent, it wouldn’t even take a century.’

"For now, everything is developing in a positive direction, isn’t it?"

Mo Xuan watched Liu Chen’s back, somewhat looking forward to the clash between Liu Chen and those so-called prodigies of the Mo Family, who boasted of enjoying a hundred times more resources than anyone on Purple Bamboo Peak.

’Then again,’ Mo Xuan thought, ’according to the Sect Leader’s feedback, Liu Chen didn’t even participate in the final contest for the eighteen pillars of light. If he really did fight them, the Mo Family prodigies would probably end up just like the members of the Nangong Family: dead before anyone even knew what happened.’

***

"Can you go a little cheaper on this Bright Eyes Technique manual?"

Liu Chen was squatting in front of a stall. He’d actually stumbled upon a Magic he was interested in—the Bright Eyes Technique. At the Beginner level, its most basic ability was night vision. Beyond that, it could also strengthen the eyes, letting one see things on a deeper level.

"Disciple of Purple Cloud Valley, let me give you a word of warning. The Bright Eyes Technique is not easy to cultivate. I’ve studied it painstakingly for almost ten years and I’m still at the Beginner stage. You can’t come looking for trouble with me if you can’t learn it."

The stall owner was a Loose Cultivator. He sized up Liu Chen and ultimately chose to tell him the truth. Ripping off other Loose Cultivators inside Fire Dragon Valley was one thing, but if he scammed a Purple Cloud Valley disciple, his plans to make a living at the Purple Cloud Valley Marketplace would probably be ruined.

"Don’t worry. As long as there’s nothing wrong with the Magic itself, I won’t come looking for you just because I can’t learn it."

Liu Chen waved his hand. The Bright Eyes Technique was an Intermediate Magic, which made Liu Chen even more satisfied. His only regret was that it wasn’t Advanced Magic, otherwise it would have been an even better deal.

"The original price is two thousand Spirit Stones. I’ll be honest, none of the Loose Cultivators who’ve bought the Bright Eyes Technique before have managed to learn it. How about this: just give me one thousand Spirit Stones for it. Consider it my compensation to you in advance."

"Decent of you."

Liu Chen took out a thousand Spirit Stones and piled them on the stall. Once the owner confirmed the amount was correct, he handed the Bright Eyes Technique to Liu Chen. The transaction was complete.

"Do you have any other Intermediate Magic?"

After stowing away the Bright Eyes Technique, Liu Chen couldn’t help but ask. He wasn’t interested in any of the other Basic Magic Techniques at the stall. To be precise, they either conflicted with what he had already mastered or were too similar, making them not worth the effort to learn.

"I’m just a lowly Loose Cultivator. If it weren’t for the fact that basically no one can successfully cultivate the Bright Eyes Technique, it never would have ended up in my hands."