“Everything is fine within the Wind and Rain Fortress, but outside, there’s been a disaster.”
A monk surnamed Liu sighed deeply.
Originally, the main forces of the seven major sects were suppressing the Elemental Infant beast at the Wind and Rain Fortress. However, unbeknownst to them, a new beast that had just broken through to the third rank suddenly appeared on the outskirts of Dream Swamp.
This beast did not make a big fuss about its breakthrough, but it commanded hundreds of thousands of beasts on the outskirts of Dream Swamp, starting to besiege the sixty-six markets of the seven major sects.
After the ancestor of the Divine Wood Sect arrived at the Wind and Rain Fortress, the markets on the outskirts thought the situation was under control and let their guard down.
It was at this moment that the long-hidden third-rank beast made its move.
In just one day and night, it broke through the large formations of twelve markets, scattering the spiritual veins that the seven major sects had painstakingly cultivated with its innate divine power.
Fortunately, this beast focused all its attention on breaking the formations, leaving the subsequent attacks on the island to the beasts that were already surrounding it. It then quickly moved to the sixty-six markets on the outskirts of Dream Swamp.
However, the response from the seven major sects was also swift. They would not allow the third-rank beast to wreak havoc so wantonly.
Several Golden Elixir ancestors received the news and immediately arrived at the Wind and Rain Fortress through the teleportation array. They then jointly used a magical tool capable of locating powerful beasts to lock onto its aura.
For a quick resolution, the ancestor of the Divine Wood Sect even used a fourth-rank Wind Escape Talisman. He and the ancestor of Golden Cliff managed to block the newly promoted third-rank beast in a very short time.
However, they did not expect the beast to be unexpectedly powerful. It was a direct descendant of the Elemental Infant beast that was suppressed by the Primordial Ancestor in the past. Although the two Golden Elixir ancestors could defeat it, they could not kill it.
The battle lasted for three days and nights, turning the waters within dozens of miles into a desolate area. In the end, the ancestor of Golden Cliff had to use his lifeblood flying sword to severely injure the beast.
Then there was a month-long pursuit. Two Golden Elixir ancestors even left the Wind and Rain Fortress, intending to kill this third-rank beast with unlimited potential and nip it in the bud.
But at this time, the Elemental Infant beast that had been hidden for a long time in the center of Dream Swamp made a move, attacking the seal left by the Primordial Ancestor.
The four Golden Elixir ancestors eventually had to give up the pursuit and retreat to the Wind and Rain Fortress.
After all, if the Elemental Infant beast were to break free, the seven major sects would probably have to abandon the Eastern Wilderness and flee far away.
As cultivators who had lived for hundreds of years, they naturally understood the weight of the situation.
After hearing the words of the monk surnamed Liu, Chen Mobai finally understood why Qingguang Island had been breached.
A third-rank beast, along with a divine power that could specifically break spiritual veins, was indeed not something that a market guarded by a few Foundation Establishment cultivators could withstand.
At this moment, he couldn’t help but feel fortunate that he wasn’t there at the time. Otherwise, he might not have been able to find an eight-second gap in the beast tide to teleport back to the Immortal Gate.
“Wait, doesn’t that mean that the third-rank beast could return at any time? This place isn’t safe either.”
Upon further thought, Chen Mobai’s expression changed slightly.
He realized that this island could repeat its previous fate at any time. Moreover, the teleportation array was now damaged. If the beasts attacked, they would be sitting ducks.
“Don’t worry about that. If the seven major sects hadn’t already solved the problem, how dare we come back?”
The monk surnamed Liu revealed another piece of news, which was that last month, the seven major sects announced that they had expelled the third-rank beast from Dream Swamp.
It was for this reason that these cultivating families dared to send people over to rebuild this trade route.
After all, the spiritual items produced in Dream Swamp accounted for more than thirty percent of all the daily needs of the cultivators in the entire Eastern Wilderness.
If they were to give up this place, not to mention the cultivating families, even the seven major sects would be severely affected.
Although the seven major sects did not reveal how they expelled the third-rank beast, their credibility in the eyes of all the cultivators in the Eastern Wilderness was still very good. Therefore, the cultivators who had previously fled from Dream Swamp began to gradually return.
Upon hearing this, Chen Mobai also felt relieved.
He was still unfamiliar with the Eastern Wilderness. If the beasts of Dream Swamp were to break out, his plan to join the Divine Wood Sect would be aborted, and he would have to flee to other territories in the Tianhe Realm.
Upon arriving on the island, Chen Mobai registered his name.
There was a group of new cultivators coming from Nanxi Market, and the fleet was currently being repaired. There would be a return trip in about three days.
Without hesitation, he paid the fee of three spirit stones and got a boat ticket.
The price had tripled from before, but he had no choice. If he didn’t take the boat and went back on his own, it would be a waste of time, and he didn’t know if he would encounter beasts on the waterway. For safety’s sake, it was better to follow the main force.
Chen Mobai wandered around the island. The cultivators built houses very quickly, and the market that had been destroyed was taking shape again.
Unfortunately, there were very few transactions, and there were only a few stalls.Chen Mobai went up and asked around, only to find that the prices of magical instruments and talismans had plummeted. The prices of elixirs had also dropped a bit, but they were still relatively firm. Some elixirs for healing and cultivation enhancement even began to rise against the trend after the beast tide.
Many people had realized that cultivation was the key.
Therefore, many cultivators who had narrowly escaped death were no longer stingy with their accumulated spirit stones and began to buy large quantities of cultivation-enhancing elixirs.
As for the healing elixirs, it goes without saying. Some cultivators had managed to escape from the beast attack on the island, but they had paid a heavy price.
Chen Mobai remembered the sixteen bottles of elixirs he had brought out from Qingguang Island. He glanced at the labels, most of which were for cultivation enhancement, and a small part without labels should be the products of those anonymous alchemists.
Unfortunately, the shops of the major cultivation families on this island had not yet opened, and the individual cultivators selling elixirs did not have enough spirit stones to buy the sixteen bottles in Chen Mobai’s hands.
He could only sell them slowly after returning to Nanxi Market.
After a round of browsing, Chen Mobai rented a room and settled down.
Three days later, he took his boat ticket to the shore and found a familiar face.
“He Daoist, I didn’t expect to meet you here.”
He Qun, who was boarding the boat, was also a bit surprised to see Chen Mobai. However, his situation was not good. He had only one hand left, and his face was even more aged than before, covered with wrinkles.
“Chen Daoist.”
The two of them just knew each other, greeted each other, and each took their seats on the boat.
Chen Mobai noticed that He Qun was alone. Thinking of the seven-member team he had mentioned before, they must have suffered heavy losses during the beast attack on the island, and only he had escaped.
He didn’t know which market they had gone to.
He had been somewhat wary of He Qun before, but now he thought about it, it might have been Lu Shu who had influenced him with his words, making him suspicious.
Ever since he found out that Lu Shu had tampered with the talisman-making insights he had given him, Chen Mobai began to reflect on all his previous conversations with him, at least no longer blindly believing in him.
In this Tianhe Realm, one should always be skeptical of anyone.