bayedsolid Chapter 329 Thrilling Escape
Chapter 329 Thrilling Escape
In the cultivation world of the Great Zhou Dynasty, somewhere in a desolate mountain range.
A faint light suddenly flashed in the sky, hundreds of feet high.
A man in white appeared out of thin air without warning and then began to fall.
This person was none other than Lin Changsheng, who was teleported here after using the 'Minor Teleportation Talisman'.
Feeling the force of the fall, Lin Changsheng quickly activated his magic to stabilize himself, and a strange flying boat suddenly appeared beneath his feet.
After taking a quick look around, Lin Changsheng found himself in a completely unfamiliar place. Without dwelling on it, he quickly determined his direction and then activated the Water Cloud Boat, transforming into a streak of light and disappearing into the vast sky.
……
Seven days later.
After flying tirelessly for seven days and seven nights, Lin Changsheng finally encountered a small market town where cultivators gathered.
Using his disguise and bone-shrinking technique, Lin Changsheng transformed into a tall, thin old man and swaggered into the market.
After making some inquiries, he learned that the area is now located on the southwestern border of the Great Zhou Kingdom, and beyond this border town, there are two neighboring countries.
They are the 'Yan Kingdom Cultivation World' and the 'Great Zhu Cultivation World', respectively.
Both countries are still within the territory of the 'Qianzhou' cultivation world.
Considering that he has been targeted by a Nascent Soul True Monarch, the entire territory of 'Qianzhou' may not be safe now.
Since he couldn't return to Gunzhou via the teleportation array for the time being, Lin Changsheng decided to leave Qianzhou temporarily to find a safe place to lay low before making further plans.
That night, after a short rest and recovery, Lin Changsheng continued his journey and entered the territory of the 'Great Zhu Immortal Cultivation World'.
The reason for choosing the 'Great Zhu Immortal Cultivation World' is simple.
This country is located on the edge of 'Qianzhou' and borders the neighboring 'Youzhou'. The two countries have had close trade relations for many years, and cultivators often travel between the two countries. No one has ever investigated it in detail.
Unlike Qianzhou, Youzhou is not located in a remote area. It is directly adjacent to several other major cultivation worlds and has frequent trade exchanges.
Therefore, in the cultivation world of Youzhou, many large immortal cities and immortal markets have long-distance teleportation arrays to facilitate trade between cultivators.
This was also Lin Changsheng's ultimate goal.
As long as he can successfully enter the cultivation world of Youzhou, Lin Changsheng can use this place as a transit point to teleport to other places.
Even if one experiences several more teleportation transfers along the way, even a Nascent Soul True Monarch would be unable to find a trace of a Golden Core True Person in the vast world of cultivation.
This method of turning around and running away was also one of the signature skills of "Master Tiandu" in my memory.
Back when 'Heavenly Poison True Man' was still in the early stages of cultivation, he often plundered the resources of other cultivators. Whenever he provoked enemies that were difficult to deal with, he would use teleportation arrays to travel back and forth through more than a dozen countries in order to escape the crisis.
A month later.
Lin Changsheng disguised himself as a traveling merchant and arrived in the cultivation world of Youzhou, at a cultivation market called Zhoujiabao.
Upon arriving in this place, Lin Changsheng inquired about the backgrounds of the major forces here.
The owner of Zhoujiabao is the renowned 'Zhou Clan' in the vicinity.
Originally, the Zhou Clan was just a third-rate family in the vicinity.
However, a hundred years ago, a direct descendant of the clan was chosen by a nearby Nascent Soul level power and taken as their personal disciple.
Now, that legitimate daughter has long since transformed into a Golden Core True Person of a Nascent Soul level power.
As a result, the Zhou Immortal Clan rose to prominence, received approval from a major sect, and was able to build a teleportation array here to handle trade and reception for local cultivators.
They have made a fortune over the years simply by charging fees for activating the teleportation array.
……
Inside Zhoujiabao.
Lin Changsheng, disguised as a smuggler, only revealed his mid-Foundation Establishment cultivation level to the outside world.
An elderly Foundation Establishment mid-stage cultivator is generally not someone that fellow cultivators would provoke.
With a cultivation level that is neither too high nor too low, one will not attract too much trouble due to a low cultivation level.
It won't appear conspicuous because of its high level of attainment.
Although Zhoujiabao is not located in a prosperous area, it is larger than ordinary immortal workshops and even comparable to some small immortal cities because of the construction of an external teleportation array.
In order to guard the teleportation array here, in addition to the Zhou Family Fortress clan's own forces, there are also several pseudo-core cultivators from the local Nascent Soul level sect, the Tianxing Sect.
On this day, Lin Changsheng, disguised as a smuggler, came to apply for the use of the teleportation array.
The person in charge of receiving them was Zhou Haoyang, a young Qi Condensation disciple from the Zhou family.
"Senior, if this is your first time using my 'Zhou Family Fortress' teleportation array, it will take seven days to complete the identity verification. Please go back and wait."
"I heard that this senior is teleporting for the first time," Zhou Haoyang, a young disciple of the Zhou family, explained casually.
Although there was no offense in his words, there was no respect that should be shown to a Foundation Establishment Master.
"Thank you, little friend."
"Senior, you're welcome."
Lin Changsheng thanked him in an aged tone and turned to leave.
The young disciple from 'Zhou Family Fortress' looked somewhat perfunctory and bored.
Although Zhou Haoyang was a Qi Condensation disciple, he was responsible for registering the identities of visiting cultivators who needed to use the teleportation array and distributing teleportation tokens.
He often interacts with Foundation Establishment cultivators and even Golden Core cultivators.
If a familiar elder from the clan comes to borrow the teleportation array, Zhou Haoyang will, as appropriate, "cut in line" for his own people, so they don't have to wait in line.
Occasionally, a Golden Core cultivator would arrive from afar, and he would immediately suspend the teleportation array for everyone else, prioritizing the Golden Core cultivator for a private teleportation.
Over time, he became acquainted with several Golden Core cultivators and could greet them when they met.
Sometimes when he was in a bad mood, and encountered unfamiliar Foundation Establishment cultivators who acted like seniors, Zhou Haoyang would deliberately make them wait an extra half a day.
Over time, people will lose their sense of awe towards high-level cultivators.
In his view, the elderly Foundation Establishment cultivator in front of him was dressed rather shabbily compared to other Foundation Establishment cultivators of the same level, and spoke very politely, which made Zhou Haoyang feel that he was easy to control, so he casually said the longest time limit.
Anyway, the 'Zhoujiabao' teleportation array has a limited number of daily teleportation slots, and the demand exceeds the supply, so there's no shortage of one or two.
On that day, Lin Changsheng rented a room at an inn.
As night fell, Lin Changsheng, who was meditating, seemed to sense something, and his expression suddenly changed.
"Not good, the Azure Wood Spirit Cauldron is acting strangely again. It must be that True Monarch Puppet Wood using some kind of perception technique again!"
Lin Changsheng quickly activated the Everlasting Spring Technique to suppress the wood-attribute energy leaking from his body.
Perhaps because of the greater distance, the unusual movements of the Azure Wood Cauldron this time were noticeably smaller than the last time.
But Lin Changsheng knew in his heart that his current location had once again been exposed to the eyes of 'Ku Mu Zhenjun'.
……
The next day.
In the inn.
Lin Changsheng sat in a secluded corner with a Foundation Establishment mid-stage cultivator who had an ordinary appearance but whose brows revealed a shrewdness.
Both of them twitched their lips slightly, but no sound came out. They were clearly communicating in a secret voice, which only the two of them could hear.
“The Zhou family disciples said that someone like me, who is using the teleportation array for the first time, needs to wait seven days to have my identity verified.”
Lin Changsheng quietly looked at the middle-aged man in front of him.
He naturally noticed that the man's face was vaguely shrouded in a layer of magical power, clearly indicating that he was intentionally concealing his true identity.
"Fellow Daoist, rest assured, as long as the fee is in place, the seven-day period can be shortened accordingly. Even if you want to activate the teleportation array today, it is not impossible to discuss."
The middle-aged man made this promise with great confidence.
This person is the scalper that Lin Changsheng found in Zhoujiabao today.
They specifically help guests who can't wait by facilitating the activation of the teleportation array.
In fact, these scalpers are not uncommon in various immortal cities that have teleportation arrays.
Normally, depending on the local authorities that control the teleportation array, the identity of the cultivators using the teleportation array will be verified to a certain extent, and a record will be kept.
This is to prevent wandering cultivators from using teleportation arrays to cause trouble and commit evil.
Behind these scalpers are usually those who collude with local forces to sell teleportation slots at exorbitant prices, sometimes several times or even dozens of times the normal teleportation fee.
The two exchanged a few words and both expressed interest.
The middle-aged man casually quoted a price that was far higher than the teleportation fee.
"Fellow Daoist, your demands are so outrageous, amounting to more than ten times the normal teleportation fee. Isn't that a bit too greedy?"
Lin Changsheng, disguised as an old man, feigned shock at the price and frowned as he spoke.
"Hehehe, Fellow Daoist is absolutely right. I also think the price is a bit too high and not worth it."
The middle-aged man seemed to have expected this, and with a look of complete agreement, he said with a half-smile:
"However, we don't require you to register your name here. No matter what you've done, we won't pursue it, and we can arrange the teleportation today. If you're still not satisfied, you might as well wait a few days for the identity verification results and go through the normal process, which would be more cost-effective."
The middle-aged man seemed to be giving a hint, leaving no room for negotiation in his words. Instead, he confidently sipped his spiritual tea, waiting for Lin Changsheng to make his choice.
"Hehe, fellow Daoist must have misunderstood. I am a legitimate merchant, but the delivery date is approaching. If I wait for seven days, it will definitely delay the date, so I have no choice but to take some shortcuts."
The old man, in the guise of Lin Changsheng, stroked his beard and spoke calmly.
"Hehe, that's natural. Fellow Daoist has such an otherworldly and dignified demeanor; you must be an honest and upright person. We like to cooperate with decent people."
The middle-aged man chuckled and echoed his agreement.
Soon after, the two reached an agreement.
After paying a large sum of spirit stones, Lin Changsheng immediately received a token to use the teleportation array. Led by the other party, he swaggered past the Zhou family disciples' guards and arrived at the teleportation array to wait in line.
"Dude, make sure you have your teleportation token. It's already registered with your legitimate identity information. During the teleportation, they'll only recognize the token, not you..."
After bringing Lin Changsheng to the back, the middle-aged man gave him a final instruction via telepathy before leaving alone.
At the same time, Lin Changsheng also noticed that, besides him, there were at least a hundred other cultivators queuing up to activate the teleportation array today.
Most of them arrived early to queue and wait patiently.
There were also about twenty people, in the same situation as Lin Changsheng, who were brought to queue up by others, and it seemed that they had all taken a 'shortcut'.
Some of these people looked nervous, their eyes darting around, and they were somewhat uneasy holding the teleportation tokens. Others seemed to be used to it, and they exchanged glances, understanding each other without saying a word.
Lin Changsheng couldn't help but sigh inwardly, thinking that those who took shortcuts were the real big clients of the 'Zhou Clan'.
Perhaps because of the 'high' cost, Lin Changsheng and the other cultivators who took the 'shortcut' were almost all placed at the front of the queue.
Before they could even finish a meal, members of the Zhou family came forward with a list to verify the teleportation tokens and registration information one by one.
They soon arrived at Lin Changsheng's place.
The Zhou family members took the teleportation token, carefully checked it repeatedly, then lightly ticked it on the list and returned it.
Before long, ten cultivators, including Lin Changsheng, entered the teleportation array.
At the same time, several miles away in the sky, a faint light streaked across the sky like a shooting star.
"All forces within the territory, immediately halt this True Monarch's teleportation!"
Suddenly, a whooshing sound echoed throughout Zhoujiabao, accompanied by the majestic aura of a Nascent Soul True Monarch's magical power.
From afar, one could see a majestic man with a pair of wooden wings on his back flying towards them at an extremely fast speed.
"Zhenjun Nascent Soul!"
Whether it was the Zhou family members stationed here or other visiting cultivators, they were all amazed and looked up to admire the demeanor of the Nascent Soul True Monarch.
Such powerful figures as Nascent Soul True Monarchs are rarely seen on ordinary days; in fact, more than 80% or 90% of cultivators have never even seen one.
"True Lord Kuimu!"
"He arrived so quickly!"
Lin Changsheng remained outwardly calm, but inwardly he was greatly shocked!
Clearly, he underestimated the speed of this 'Kuaimu Zhenjun'.
As the familiar aura of authority grew clearer, Lin Changsheng couldn't help but tense up.
Even the cultivators who were teleported together looked horrified under the shock of the Nascent Soul aura.
Fortunately, the teleportation array has already been activated, and it cannot be stopped unless it is forcibly destroyed by external force.
A spatial force slowly rose from within the teleportation array, enveloping Lin Changsheng and the others inside from below.
In an instant, the space within the teleportation array rippled.
The external scenery gradually blurred in Lin Changsheng's eyes. In the distance, he seemed to see the cold and anxious appearance of the Puppet Wood True Lord, who had just arrived.
The next moment, everyone inside the formation vanished into thin air.
All that remained were a group of dumbfounded cultivators, staring blankly at the unexpected Nascent Soul True Monarch before them.
"Senior True Lord, I am an elder stationed at 'Zhou Family Fortress'. May I ask what brings you here, Senior?"
At this moment, an old man exuding the aura of a fake elixir stepped forward respectfully and bowed.
"Why didn't you do as I ordered earlier to stop the teleportation?"
Kui Mu Zhenjun's face was gloomy, and his cold voice questioned him.
His magical power was so tangible that it instantly intimidated everyone around him with just his aura.
As he spoke, he scanned his surroundings with his divine sense, passing over the people queuing to activate the teleportation array.
Everyone present felt a sudden heaviness, as if they were being suppressed by an invisible mountain.
But soon, True Lord Kui Mu discovered that the person he was looking for was not present.
"Where did those people who were teleported away go?"