Chapter Ninety-Seven: The Lu Family’s Lady of No Worries, Please Subscribe

Within the sea of consciousness, the flood dragon in the Diagram of the Flood Dragon and the Yellow Springs raised its head and let out a savage roar.

Its dusky yellow scales gleamed with a metallic sheen, while boundless power of true water surged and washed around it.

The waters of the Yellow Springs quivered in response.

The flood dragon had utterly lost the likeness of a fish-dragon it once possessed.

With a horse-like head and a snake’s tail, clad in scales and armor, it was no different from a true dragon save for the absence of horns.

Yet this was only a movement within his sea of consciousness.

The power he had awakened showed no outward manifestation.

Without the latter stages of the cultivation art, the flood dragon could only change in appearance.

It was merely a visualization image in his mind.

Outside.

Above Lu Qian’s head, a faint glow slowly emerged.

When that glow appeared, a bone-chilling wind immediately stirred within the sealed meditation chamber.

This was the yin spirit.

Lu Qian’s yin spirit floated in the air, and an unprecedented sensation swept over him.

His body felt light, weightless, free; it seemed that with a single thought he could rise straight into the heavens.

At this moment, he was an immortal.

As soon as the thought arose, boundless temptation took shape as a demonic shade, gnawing at his heart.

It tempted him to abandon his mortal shell and ascend in feathered transcendence.

“Damn it, it’s a heart demon!”

Lu Qian’s mind jolted. Silently, he recited a calming incantation.

It was said that when some spirit-nourishing cultivators first broke through, they were unable to withstand the temptation of ascension.

The soul would rise to the sky, only to be torn apart by the outside world.

Once his mind had steadied, Lu Qian suddenly felt pain all over his body.

An untempered yin spirit, if left exposed in the air for too long, was in danger.

Realizing this, Lu Qian slipped into the paper figure.

Another Lu Qian, cheeks faintly flushed, appeared in the air.

Ever since the paper figure had been remade with fireproof cloth, the summoned paper body had basically taken on this hue.

The paper clone moved through the air at will.

That was one of the benefits of the early spirit-nourishing stage: one could control objects and fly.

Even if the physical body were destroyed, one could still survive for a time by relying on an object.

Moreover, apart from bodily refinement, all other abilities could be used in full.

Whoosh.

The paper clone flew out through the window.

It rose hundreds of meters into the sky.

The wind hissed in his ears, and not far away there were occasional streaks of sword light, crows, white-headed eagles, and the like passing by.

They were all yin-spirit avatars of spirit-nourishing Daoists.

Lu Qian could feel that the mystical water of the Dark Yin within him was now more than ten times stronger than before.

If he were to face his former self, it would probably take no more than two moves to finish the fight.

After wandering through the air for a circle, the yin spirit returned to his body.

Lu Qian slowly opened his eyes.

Guiding Art of the Great Lunar True Water, Complete: 8000/8000

This time, his seclusion had ended sooner than he had expected.

The reason was that the Yin Blood Soul-Refining Pill had provided him with some additional strength.

From here on, it would be time to temper the body.

Thinking of this, Lu Qian stepped out the door.

A breath of fresh air rushed toward him.

The year and a half had been most rewarding.

Though he had only cultivated one art.

At the Ripple Tower.

This place was still bustling with comings and goings, filled with customers.

Ripple Tower was one of the three great merchant houses in Blackwater City. It owned dozens of fleet vessels, tens of thousands of sailors and laborers, and nearly twenty spirit-nourishing Daoists. It was said that both the master of the tower and the deputy master were Dao Foundation experts.

“Greetings, Lord Fish Dragon.”

The novice attendants at the door saw Lu Qian approaching and immediately bowed.

During this period, Lu Qian had been delivering goods on time, and the quality had been excellent, so the purchasing steward Cui Shan thought highly of him.

Naturally, the novice attendants were all eager to curry favor.

“Xiao Lu, where is Steward Cui?” Lu Qian asked the novice attendant standing nearby.

“My lord, I’ll take you there at once.” Xiao Lu was flattered and hurried forward to lead the way.

The two of them went upstairs. Then Xiao Lu lowered his voice and said, “Daoist, I have a younger sister. She’s eighteen this year, with fair skin and lovely features; she’s been clever since childhood. I wonder if you still need novice attendants?”

For an ordinary mortal, becoming a novice attendant and learning one or two spells was as good as stepping straight into the heavens.

“Hmm? That works. Bring her over another day and let me see her,” Lu Qian said with a nod.

He did indeed need someone to handle trivial matters.

If she had decent aptitude, and could help him with medicine-making in ordinary times, that would count as an extra pair of hands.

“I also have a younger brother. His looks are a little delicate, Daoist, if you like—”

“Get lost,” Lu Qian said with a laugh and a curse.

Master Tao Zhu might like that sort of thing, but Lu Qian had no taste for it.

“My apologies, Daoist, my apologies.”

Xiao Lu gave an awkward laugh, though inwardly he was already more than satisfied. To be able to latch onto such a great expert made his chest feel broader at once.

“Haha! Fish Dragon, you’re here.”

Laughter rang out from nearby as Cui Shan, with his hawk-like nose, came striding over. When he reached Lu Qian, his gaze sharpened and he examined him from head to toe.

“Should I be calling you fellow Daoist now?” Cui Shan said in surprise.

“Haha, Steward Cui, fortunately I have not failed my mission. I have attained spirit-nourishing cultivation.” Lu Qian clasped his hands and smiled.

“Good! Fellow Daoist Fish Dragon, come drink with me at Clear Breeze Tower later!”

Cui Shan stepped forward and slapped Lu Qian on the shoulder. With such a powerful general under him, he no longer had to worry about missing his performance quota.

“Perhaps next time. I’m here today to exchange for something.”

As he spoke, Lu Qian took a manual from his universe pouch. On the cover were the words Six Armor Devouring Gold Art.

“Eh?”

Cui Shan took it and examined it carefully before saying, “This can be exchanged for eight hundred magical coins. I wonder what fellow Daoist wishes to trade for?”

“I want an alchemy art for human-grade pills, and if possible, a few nourishing-blood formulas for spirit cultivation.”

“This...” Cui Shan immediately felt that Lu Qian’s talent in alchemy was truly without equal. “Very well, I’ll give you a twenty percent discount, and throw in three pill formulas as well.”

At that instant, Cui Shan felt that recruiting Lu Qian had been the most correct decision of his entire life.

Once he truly refined a human-grade pill, Lu Qian would be promoted to an alchemy guest elder.

And as the one who had elevated him, Cui Shan would certainly be credited with a merit as well.

Besides, the benefits of befriending a human-grade alchemist hardly needed to be said.

After obtaining the formulas, Lu Qian took his leave of Cui Shan.

The human-grade alchemy art was called the Water-and-Fire Lead-Mercury Alchemy Art, and the pill formulas came with it.

If he wanted to break through into blood-refining, he would likely have to bury himself in hard cultivation for more than a decade.

Only by combining that with the lead-mercury alchemy art could his cultivation increase rapidly.

A few days later, a young girl stood before Lu Qian’s door, with the novice attendant Xiao Lu beside her.

The girl wore a short apricot-yellow skirt and stood gracefully upright. Her peach-like cheeks carried a faint blush, and she was truly a striking beauty.

“Mo Chou, hurry and pay your respects to my lord,” Xiao Lu said sharply.

“Mo Chou greets Lord Fish Dragon.” The girl shyly raised her head. Her beautiful eyes moved with timid grace, her gaze touched with embarrassment.

“Mm. Not bad aptitude. From now on, call me Master,” Lu Qian said after sizing her up.

The girl had a certain liveliness to her, not dull or wooden.

“I’ll take my leave first.” Xiao Lu departed at once.

Lu Qian turned and entered the room, with Mo Chou following behind him with her head lowered.

When Lu Qian stopped and looked silently at her, Mo Chou seemed to understand. She stepped forward to undo his belt, remove his outer robe, and change him into a loose sleeping gown.

The young girl’s face turned bright red with shame, while Lu Qian remained calm and collected.

Though he had once been a novice attendant himself, he had long since grown used to being served.

Servants were merely objects; how could one fear letting an object see one’s naked body?

He then had Mo Chou boil hot water. After a year and a half without bathing, it was time to wash away the dust of the road.

Lu Qian’s well-defined body sank into the water.

The woman’s wet clothing clung tightly to her developing figure, and a strand of hair stuck to her flushed face.

Her tender, slender fingers slid over his body.

Lu Qian watched Mo Chou with interest as she trembled with fear and bashfulness.

“How old are you?”

“Your servant has just turned eighteen this year.”

“Are you still a maiden?”

“Mm...”