Chapter 43: Preparing for the Unknown

Chapter 43: Chapter 43: Preparing for the Unknown

Ye Xuan realized that antagonizing the White Peacock Sect would pose a threat to him, especially given its ties to the Dao Sword Sect alliance.

However, trying to predict the future was pointless, and worrying about his uncertainties was exhausting.

The best choice he could make was to ensure his own safety and avoid putting himself in unnecessary danger.

Since his business in the Sword Graveyard Desert was finished, Ye Xuan invited Qingyu to leave for another location.

With the opportunity he had now, he planned to cultivate and break through to Late Foundation Establishment in the near future.

Everything was already prepared. Even the spirit stones he needed for his breakthrough were ready.

All he needed now was an ideal location where he could safely and smoothly complete his breakthrough without worrying about any threats.

[To protect yourself, you need to become stronger.]

"I know. However, to do that, I first need to find a suitable place to cultivate," Ye Xuan replied.

They arrived outside the Sword Graveyard Desert, and Ye Xuan landed on the ground.

He gently patted his bag of holding, summoning a map of the Xiao Empire in front of him.

The map unfolded to the sides, revealing several marked locations.

Ye Xuan examined the positions of the White Peacock Sect and the Cloud Sword Sect. Both were clearly affiliated with the Dao Sword Sect.

Even so, Ye Xuan didn’t know which other sects had allied themselves with the Dao Sword Sect besides those two.

He was worried that his lack of knowledge might expose him to unnecessary threats.

His choice was simple. He needed to gather valuable information about these sects.

"Since there’s a chance they’ll start hunting me, I need to find out which sects belong to the Dao Sword Sect alliance and which ones don’t," Ye Xuan replied.

[You can look for that information in a city. That’s the best place to gather information about them.]

Ye Xuan listened to Qingyu’s suggestion. However, to protect his safety, he also needed to start paying attention to his appearance.

After all, his appearance was closely associated with the Sky Cloud Sect.

If Ye Xuan changed his appearance, especially his sect robes, the chances of them attacking him based on his true identity would be much lower.

He raised his hand and activated the spiritual qi at his fingertips. A brilliant light shone as the robes he wore underwent a significant change.

The white robes Ye Xuan had been wearing instantly turned blackish-gray, resembling the typical attire of a wandering cultivator with no affiliation to any sect.

Although he had successfully changed the appearance of his robes, that didn’t mean he could alter his facial features.

Still, this was enough. Not many people knew what he looked like, especially when he wore the black robes typical of wandering cultivators.

"Alright," Ye Xuan murmured. "This should be enough."

After changing his robes, Ye Xuan flew swiftly toward the nearest city on his flying sword.

It was Yanlong City, the only city near his current location, although it was merely a small city.

Still, Yanlong City was undoubtedly much safer for Ye Xuan because it was far from the territories of major sects. Its relatively small size also put him at ease.

His flight came to a halt when he arrived before Yanlong City’s gates.

He carefully observed the other cultivators coming from various backgrounds, including both sect disciples and wandering cultivators.

Even so, none of them recognized Ye Xuan’s identity. They didn’t react excessively to his presence, as though he posed no significant threat to them.

Ye Xuan walked along the city’s main street and arrived at a shop selling cultivation supplies.

He stepped inside and found himself facing the same shopkeeper, whose speech was always excessively dramatic.

"Welcome, Fellow Daoist!"

"Your arrival is undoubtedly a sign of heavenly destiny and good fortune for me."

"Please, is there anything you’d like to look at?" the man asked.

Ye Xuan immediately asked the shopkeeper about Water Elemental Essence. The man responded with a smile, explaining in detail that he had the item in stock.

"I have Mortal-Stage and Yellow-Stage Water Elemental Essence."

"Which one would you like to buy? I’d recommend the Yellow-Stage variety, as it’ll help you greatly in your cultivation," the man replied.

"I’ll take all of them," Ye Xuan answered.

His words immediately stunned the shopkeeper. The man broke into a broad, satisfied smile before heading into the back room to retrieve the items Ye Xuan had requested.

While waiting, Ye Xuan looked around and examined the shelves lining the walls, inspecting the quality of the swords and technique scrolls displayed by the shopkeeper.

Although the swords were decent, their power couldn’t compare to that of Ye Xuan’s lightning sword.

That was why he had absolutely no interest in buying any of them from this shop.

Before long, the man returned with three black pouches containing a total of 200 pieces of Mortal-Stage Water Elemental Essence and 100 pieces of Yellow-Stage Water Elemental Essence.

There were 300 pieces of Water Elemental Essence in the shopkeeper’s hands—a considerable quantity in his eyes, but not in Ye Xuan’s.

"Is this all you have?" Ye Xuan asked.

"The heavens have only ordained me to possess this much, Fellow Daoist."

"How much does it cost?" Ye Xuan asked.

"I charge one low-grade spirit stone for each piece of Mortal-Stage Water Elemental Essence. As for each piece of Yellow-Stage Water Elemental Essence, I charge three spirit stones."

Hearing this, Ye Xuan agreed to the price. He took out five black pouches containing 500 low-grade spirit stones in total.

Of these, 200 spirit stones were for the Mortal-Stage Water Elemental Essence, while the remaining 300 were for the Yellow-Stage Water Elemental Essence.

"Thank you, Fellow Daoist!"

Ye Xuan accepted the Water Elemental Essence and stored it in his bag of holding.

Just as he was about to say goodbye and leave the shop, he paused.

"Wait, Fellow Daoist."

"What is it?" Ye Xuan asked.

"I heard there’s an auction taking place in two hours. The grand prizes are a Spirit-Stage technique scroll and a treasured weapon," the shopkeeper replied.

Participating in the auction and competing for the grand prize isn’t worth the risk for me. Plenty of powerful masters will attend.

Still, there’s no harm in participating. After all, it was at an auction in this city that Qingyu obtained her ancestral artifact.

Ye Xuan listened to the man and nodded indifferently before walking out of the shop.

His goal was now simple: visit the auction and see if he could obtain anything useful.

[Do you have a plan for attending this auction?]

"Not really. I haven’t decided what my plan should be yet. However, I should see what happens first."

"... Then I’ll act when necessary."

[Alright!]