Chapter 85: Shen Yan’s Fortune!

"Zhou Shun!"

Xu Jingyang's expression sharpened. Though he had shown a dismissive attitude toward Shen Yan in front of Xu Shengnan, deep inside, his wariness and fear of Shen Yan had reached an indescribable level.

At this moment, Shen Yan steered his small boat directly to the trio, causing Xu Jingyang's face to change immediately. The disciples of the Sunflower Water Sect gnashed their teeth in anger at Shen Yan’s brazen appearance, but there was nothing they could do. None dared to make a rash move against someone of his renown.

A person’s name casts a long shadow—who would dare provoke such a figure?

Yet Shen Yan dared to appear so openly before three cultivators at the peak of the Qi Refinement stage. Wasn’t this an affront, a deliberate provocation? But even if it was, all they could do was swallow their anger and cast hopeful glances toward the three peak cultivators.

“How audacious!”

“In broad daylight, in front of so many eyes, to act so arrogantly on our Sunflower Water Sect’s territory!” Xu Jingyang snorted coldly, feigning outrage and preparing to strike.

“Fellow Daoist Xu, there’s no need to be hasty,” interjected Chen Hongyu, halting him.

“I’ve heard that this man’s swordsmanship enables him to challenge Foundation Establishment cultivators. Besides, he discovered this spiritual spring. Perhaps he also has clues regarding the secret realm of the Water Moon Sect.”

“Fair point, Fairy Hongyu,” Xu Jingyang replied with a smile, agreeing. “His swordsmanship is indeed exceptional, and his ability to catch so many spirit fish suggests he has unique techniques. He may very well be able to capture the Spirit Fish King and locate the Water Moon Sect’s secret realm.”

Hearing this, Zhao Ruoxu also reined in his impulse to strike.

“Hmph! Since you both say so, I will spare him—for now.”

“Though this land belongs to the Sunflower Water Sect, the Boundless Sea Immortal Sect has already marked it as my domain. If you have business, speak plainly. If not, leave at once.” The crowd fell silent. Even Xu Jingyang, who was earlier clamoring to join forces and kill Shen Yan, now held his tongue.

“Zhou Shun, don’t think your strength allows you to run wild here. This is our territory. The spiritual spring may belong to you, but if you cross the Sunflower Water Sect, Foundation Establishment cultivators will come looking for you. Not even the Boundless Sea Immortal Sect will be able to help you then.”

Shen Yan chuckled coldly. He knew all too well what these people wanted—the Blackscale Fish King. If he made the first move, it would be tantamount to breaking all pretense, giving the Sunflower Water Sect’s Foundation Establishment cultivators legitimate cause to attack.

Let’s see if you’ll dare make a move after I catch the Fish King!

With a cold smile, Shen Yan returned to Green Lotus Island, sitting calmly at the prow of his boat.

“The terrain around Green Lotus Island is peculiar; underwater currents crisscross in all directions. If the Fish King is startled and escapes, who knows when the secret realm of the Water Moon Sect will resurface in the world?”

“Let Zhou Shun fish up the Fish King first. Then we’ll swoop in like hawks for the kill!”

Though resentful, the trio kept their wits about them. They pressured some early- and mid-stage Qi Refinement disciples of the Sunflower Water Sect to dive for the Fish King, all the while keeping a close watch on Shen Yan’s Green Lotus Island.

Shen Yan saw through their intentions but felt no urgency. Instead, he devoted himself to cultivating the Celestial Firmament Qi Technique and the Primordial Geomagnetic Mysteries within Green Lotus Island.

Since acquiring the storage pouch of the Luo family’s patriarch, Shen Yan was flush with resources and no longer frugal with spirit stones, refining innate purple qi with abandon.

In just half a month, Shen Yan had pushed both the Primordial Geomagnetic Mysteries and the Celestial Firmament Qi Technique to the highest level attainable during the Qi Refinement stage—the Minor Achievement realm.

The Primordial Geomagnetic Mysteries had two main functions: enhancing the cultivator’s defense and manipulating geomagnetic force.

While all earth-type techniques naturally bolstered defense, the Primordial Geomagnetic Mysteries offered far superior protection. More importantly, the ability to manipulate geomagnetic force had become Shen Yan’s hidden trump card.

Geomagnetic force here meant gravity. When dueling an opponent, Shen Yan could deliberately miss with his Azure Spirit Sword. While his adversary let down their guard, he could then use geomagnetic force to yank or shift their body, catching them off guard and ensuring a deadly blow.

In a cultivators’ duel, even the slightest misstep often meant instant death.

The Celestial Firmament Qi Technique was equally formidable. Like the Primordial Geomagnetic Mysteries, it increased defense, but it also boosted the practitioner’s stamina and vitality. Moreover, after mastering it, the qi generated during spellcasting became fiercely aggressive; if struck by this firmament qi, one’s body would be torn apart.

Despite mastering both arts, Shen Yan remained dissatisfied with his physical cultivation. He brought out the black pellets condensed from Yin Fiend energy, using them to further temper his body while simultaneously absorbing their power with the Divine Seal of the Heavenly Emperor.

After repeated cycles of this process and consuming vast amounts of innate purple qi, Shen Yan finally honed his body to a level comparable to a supreme-grade defensive artifact.

These two techniques now provided Shen Yan with another key benefit: they would significantly increase his chances of achieving Foundation Establishment.

With both arts mastered, Shen Yan also completely refined the Shadowstep Boots he’d taken from the Luo family patriarch. By channeling his spiritual power into them, he could now match the speed of an early Foundation Establishment cultivator—even without practicing any speed-enhancing techniques.

As for the four artifacts from Xu Mao, one had been damaged when Shen Yan used the Flowing Cloud Sword while performing the Green Lotus Sword Technique, so he regretfully put these supreme-grade artifacts away, planning to study artifact refining and repair them after reaching Foundation Establishment.

Half a month passed, and the three peak Qi Refinement cultivators from the Sunflower Water Sect and the Rippled Wave Sect had grown impatient—the Fish King still hadn’t surfaced.

With his formidable spiritual sense, Shen Yan easily gathered all related information. Having now pushed his techniques to their Qi Refinement limits and refined all his artifacts, his next step was to force the Sunflower Water Sect and Rippled Wave Sect cultivators to act, giving him a chance to strike back and thus buy time to achieve Foundation Establishment.

After carefully inspecting his equipment, Shen Yan stowed away the Azure Spirit Sword and the Soul-Summoning Banner. The Azure Spirit Sword, being a lower-grade spiritual tool, would surely attract the covetous attention of Foundation Establishment cultivators if displayed openly. The Soul-Summoning Banner, meanwhile, was a demonic artifact—if discovered by the Sunflower Water Sect or Rippled Wave Sect, they would have the perfect pretext to “uphold the righteous path” and attack him.

Without the Azure Spirit Sword and the Soul-Summoning Banner, Shen Yan still had the Flowing Cloud Sword, the Shadowstep Boots, and the Southern Bright Fire Pearl at his disposal.

In addition, he possessed the Celestial Crane Talisman, which could summon a crane with power rivaling a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Paired with the firebird conjured from the Southern Bright Fire Pearl, water and fire together would allow him to hold his own against a Foundation Establishment opponent, at least for a short while.