Chapter 874 - 356: Old Affairs, Old Acquaintances

Without waiting for Chu Ning to ask, Cen Zijin continued.

"It is said that the Cyan Creek Sect initially sent a group of disciples to the Yin Demon Sect, but surprisingly, one of them did not receive Spirit Charm, and was instead impersonated by a Nascent Soul Elder from the Cyan Creek Sect.

After the Yin Demon Sect’s Yin Demon Old Monster came out of seclusion, they used a secret technique to locate the Wood Spirit Seed, but could not find it.

In the end, they forcefully demanded the disciples from the Cyan Creek Sect who had acquired Spirit Charm years ago.

Unexpectedly, for unknown reasons, the Cyan Creek Sect actually handed over those disciples to the Yin Demon Sect."

Upon hearing this, Chu Ning slightly raised an eyebrow.

Compared to other sects he had interacted with, the Cyan Creek Sect really lagged behind in terms of protection for its cultivators.

In the eyes of the Grand Sect Leader Xin Wuya, these disciples were merely pieces on a chessboard that could be discarded at will.

Cen Zijin continued:

"It’s said that most of these cultivators had successfully established their foundation by refining the Spirit Charm, but after the Yin Demon Sect acquired them, they used a certain secret technique.

They managed to re-condense and extract the Spirit Charm from within them and ultimately used it to locate and acquire the Wood Spirit Seed."

As Cen Zijin said this, she observed Chu Ning’s expression.

Seeing that although Chu Ning’s brow was slightly furrowed, his overall expression appeared normal, she was reassured.

The fate of those Cyan Creek Sect cultivators was obvious, even without mentioning it.

She was worried Chu Ning might know someone among them.

"Originally, this matter was extremely secretive, yet somehow it leaked out. Some say the Yin Demon Sect deliberately spread it.

There are even rumors that Sect Leader Xin Wuya benefited from this process.

He might have even received a portion of the Wood Spirit Seed."

As Cen Zijin spoke these words, a hint of disdain was evident in her eyes.

"Because of this conduct by the Cyan Creek Sect, many cultivators there became extremely angry, and it’s rumored that in order to obtain the Wood Spirit Seed,

the Cyan Creek Sect sacrificed over ten thousand Qi Refining cultivators.

Once this news spread, major sects were deeply disdainful.

Some sects even used the Cyan Creek Sect as a negative example when recruiting cultivators, promising they would never treat new disciples like that.

Despite the distance, even in Yaochi Palace, I heard about this."

After hearing this, Chu Ning gained a general understanding.

"Did Xin Wuya actually receive a share of the Wood Spirit Seed?"

At this moment, what caught Chu Ning’s attention was exactly this point in Cen Zijin’s words.

The Wood Spirit Seed he had previously obtained from that bald man always seemed incomplete to him.

If he matched it with Cen Zijin’s words, it all seemed to fit.

Yet he wondered how the Yin Demon Sect knew of such a secret technique, enabling them not only to search for the Wood Spirit Seed but even to divide the Spirit Seed.

It’s no wonder that bald man was able to break through to the Nascent Soul Stage.

Apparently, he was already at the Golden Core Late Stage Peak, and then he utilized the Wood Spirit Seed.

It’s uncertain whether Xin Wuya, having exchanged so many disciples’ lives for an incomplete Wood Spirit Seed, had also entered the Nascent Soul Stage.

Seeing Chu Ning remain silent, Cen Zijin assumed he was struggling to accept the state of his former sect and comforted him, saying:

"Chu Ning, you don’t need to feel too sad.

There’s really nothing to be distressed about; you’ve long since left the Cyan Creek Sect and are now an elder of the Jiuhua Sect."

Hearing this, Chu Ning smiled and said:

"I’m not really upset, just curious how the Yin Demon Old Monster went to such lengths to use the Spirit Seed to break through.

Why did he end up sharing the Wood Spirit Seed with Xin Wuya and that bald man?

Or did the old monster simply divide the Wood Spirit Seed into three parts?"

This answer from Chu Ning left Cen Zijin unable to respond.

He then smiled and said, "As for the rest, it’s just a reflection on the Cyan Creek Sect’s ruthlessness toward its disciples.

Rather, I feel fortunate to have left early, as compared to them, the treatment of cultivators by the Jiuhua Sect is significantly better."

"Do you want to visit the Cyan Creek Sect?" Cen Zijin asked at this moment.

"There’s no need to go specifically to see it." Chu Ning lightly shook his head.

"But it seems our path passes by there, so we don’t need to go out of our way to avoid it."

Then, Chu Ning smiled again and said:

"Speaking of which, Bai Ling was actually encountered there at that time.

She kept saying that there was a creature bullying her in the nearby mountains and she’s itching for revenge."

Upon hearing Chu Ning say this, Cen Zijin quickly replied:

"Oh yes, where is Bai Ling? Quickly summon her; she often transforms into human form, and I haven’t seen what her original form looks like now."

Hearing Cen Zijin say this, Chu Ning immediately tapped his Spirit Beast Bag, summoning Bai Ling.

"Master!"

As soon as Bai Ling appeared, she first looked at Chu Ning, then turned to Cen Zijin.

"Oh, Fairy Cen, we’ve reunited."

"Indeed." Cen Zijin replied while examining Bai Ling, her bright eyes gleaming.

"You’re as cute as before; no, even cuter.

You have wings now, and three tails."

Cen Zijin held Bai Ling, touching here and pinching there.

Then, with a casual tap of her Storage Bag, she took out a Spirit Fruit.

"Do you still like eating Spirit Fruit?"

Chu Ning replied with a smile:

"She does like to eat spirit fruits, but her taste has become picky; she won’t eat ordinary spirit fruits."

"If it’s given by the young master or Fairy Cen, I will eat it," Bai Ling said with a grin, receiving the spirit fruit from Cen Zijin.

Chu Ning chuckled and then brought up the topic he discussed earlier with Cen Zijin, asking:

"Are you still planning to go there to take revenge on that fellow?"

"Yes!" Bai Ling replied resentfully.

"Although it was because of him that I met you unexpectedly, young master.

However, that big guy chased me for so long, almost ate me, of course, I need to take revenge."

Upon hearing this, Chu Ning couldn’t help but ask curiously:

"What kind of demon beast was that ’big guy’ who chased you?"

Bai Ling tilted his head and thought for a moment: "Seems it was a Tier Three Tornado Wolf."

"Tier Three?"

Upon hearing this, Chu Ning nodded slightly.

"When I found you back then, you were just a Tier One Intermediate Demon Beast, no wonder.

By the way, do you remember why you appeared in the Cyan Gorge Mountain Range?"

Bai Ling shook his head, somewhat puzzled:

"No, I only know that I woke up from my slumber there.

Soon after, I was chased by that guy."

"Then let us also go to the Cyan Gorge Mountain Range to see if we can find any clues."

Saying this, Chu Ning directed the Golden Thunder Eagle to accelerate its flight forward.

Passing through the Tianyi Mountain Range, Chu Ning and Cen Zijin didn’t linger and intentionally avoided some Major Sect’s territory.

Though they encountered some other cultivators along the way, given Chu Ning’s cultivation at the Golden Core Late Stage and Cen Zijin as a Golden Core Cultivator accompanying him,

along with the Tier Five Golden Thunder Eagle, whose cultivation was equal to that of an Early Stage of Golden Core Cultivator, ordinary Golden Core Cultivators wouldn’t easily provoke them.

As for Nascent Soul Cultivators, being regarded as the top combat power among various major sects, they are inherently fewer in number.

The probability of encountering them isn’t high.

Thus, soaring over the Tianyi Mountain Range, they quickly entered the realm of the Cyan Gorge Mountain Range.

However, from the direction of Tianyi Mountain Range, they didn’t immediately enter the realm of Cyan Creek Sect, but rather arrived at the Wind Canyon territory.

Flying over the Wind Gorge Square with Cen Zijin and Bai Ling, Chu Ning couldn’t help but feel nostalgic.

Back then, he possessed a talisman-making talent, but due to the extremely high success rate, he dared not fully admit it to the sect.

Hence, many talismans were sold at Wind Gorge Square.

This experience was something even Bai Ling wasn’t very aware of, after all, at that time, the little one most loved sleeping.

And Chu Ning was worried Bai Ling would be discovered by other cultivators, so they stayed at Yan Workshop.

In the blink of an eye, it was nearly a century ago.

Without overly disturbing the cultivators at Wind Canyon, the group continued flying eastward, soon coming to where Yan Workshop once stood.

To Chu Ning’s slight surprise, Yan Workshop was nowhere to be found, the area had become solely owned by a cultivation clan.

This led Chu Ning, originally intending to help Bai Ling retrace past memories, to abandon the idea, and instead directly headed into the branch mountain near the Cyan Gorge Mountain Range.

Flying swiftly towards the main mountain range of Cyan Gorge Mountain, Bai Ling quickly found the area where she first began her activities.

Perhaps due to the proximity to the branch mountain or having entered the Cyan Gorge Mountain Range, relatively few cultivators appeared.

That Swift Wind Wolf’s lair still remained, however, the Tier Three Swift Wind Wolf had broken through to a Tier Four status, comparable to a Foundation Establishment Late Stage Cultivator.

Moreover, Chu Ning faintly sensed that the opponent was nearing Core Formation, promoting to a Tier Five Demon Beast.

"Woo!"

This Tier Four Peak Demon Beast, ruling the surroundings, was shivering at the entrance of its lair.

It couldn’t fathom how it, merely a small Tier Four Demon Beast, was targeted by a Golden Core Cultivator for hunting.

A response came in the form of a blue chill beam casually spat by Bai Ling.

The Tier Four Demon Wolf couldn’t even muster any struggle before being directly frozen into an ice sculpture.

"Let’s go, young master."

Having avenged herself, Bai Ling spoke cheerfully, but Chu Ning shook his head, his gaze fixed towards the depths of the Cyan Gorge Mountain Range.

"Wait!"

Seeing Chu Ning’s strong divine sense in action, Cen Zijin and Bai Ling were intrigued and looked at him curiously.

"We’ve encountered some old acquaintances, let’s go check it out."

With that, Chu Ning rushed towards the Cyan Gorge Mountain Range.

Cen Zijin, seeing this, followed along with Bai Ling.

At this moment, a hundred miles ahead, a man and two women stood facing each other.

The man was a middle-aged gentleman with a refined, beardless face.

Opposite him were two female cultivators, with the older one appearing around sixty, boasting Early Stage Golden Core cultivation; her features showed she had a charming presence in her youth.

The other appeared around forty, possessing gentle and graceful qualities with excellent demeanor.

At this moment, the older Golden Core Female Cultivator gazed at the beardless, middle-aged cultivator with a hint of sadness in her eyes.

"Sect Leader Xin, do you truly refuse to let my disciple and me leave?"

Upon hearing the female cultivator’s words, the beardless, refined face middle-aged cultivator spoke slowly, his gentle face showing a dark and fierce intent.

"Zhong Ying, you obviously know asking this is pointless.

The moment you stepped away from the Cyan Creek Sect with Gu Xiaoqing, you already knew the outcome."