Chapter 1109: Yōu Dū Dān Fǔ

Chapter 1109: Youdu Danfu

The night sky was profound, with shattered stars like dust.

Under the moonlight, this land was not peaceful. The experts who had gone to pursue Ye Chen had not returned and were still diligently searching for him.

Moreover, not only those pursuing Ye Chen, but also people from Ku Yue, the six major disciples under Ku Yue including Yue Shan, and the eight princes' followers were flying out in large groups to help with the search. They showed no intention of stopping until Ye Chen was captured, making the operation extremely grand.

At that moment, Ye Chen had already reached Youdu's third level.

To speak of Youdu's third level, though it was slightly smaller than the second level, it still had nearly a thousand ling mountains.

These ling mountains on the third level could be bought and sold, but only if one had the money. However, those who could afford to buy a ling mountain were rare on the entire Zhuque Star, mostly from the nine great families.

As for Ye Chen's visit, it was naturally to select a ling mountain for building a dan fu.

As he walked along, he looked around at the ling mountains, which varied in size and location. Notably, every ling mountain had incredibly abundant spiritual energy.

After some time, Ye Chen stopped at the base of one ling mountain.

This ling mountain was not small; based on its area, it was comparable to half of Heng Yue Zong, entirely enveloped in clouds and mist.

What a great location!

Ye Chen stroked his chin. Whether in terms of position or terrain, this ling mountain was an ideal place for refining dan.

Thinking this, Ye Chen stepped into a pavilion at the base of the ling mountain.

Perhaps because it was late at night, the pavilion was quiet. As Ye Chen entered, he saw a rotund old man sitting there, holding an ancient book and flipping through it, occasionally stroking his small beard.

Sensing someone enter, the old man looked up and scrutinized Ye Chen. Perhaps because Ye Chen was cloaked in a black robe and had secret techniques concealing his aura, the old man couldn't see through him, which surprised him greatly.

This is a yao guai!

Ye Chen stroked his chin, meaningfully examining the fat old man. He could tell that the old man was not a human cultivator but a dog that had cultivated into human form, with a cultivation at the quasi-huang level.

“Buy ling mountain?”

“This one, I want it.”

“One million.”

“Too expensive, make it cheaper.”

“That one is cheaper, five hundred thousand.” The fat old man pointed to the ling mountain nearby.

“I want this one.”

“One million, no haggling.” The fat old man tucked his hands away, shaking his plump head like a rattle drum. “This is set by the higher-ups. Don't make it hard for me; I'm just here doing my job.”

“I'm not short on money.” Ye Chen didn't bother bargaining and directly handed over a storage bag.

“Even if you were short, I wouldn't sell it to you.” The fat old man muttered, took the storage bag, and when he opened it, his eyes widened at the mountain of yuan stones, nearly blinding him.

“Is that enough?”

“Enough, enough, enough.” The fat old man quickly put away the storage bag and handed over a jade token. “Dao friend, you're straightforward. From today on, this ling mountain is yours.”

“You can head home now.” Ye Chen took the jade token and walked up the ling mountain.

“These days, there are so many rich people.” Watching Ye Chen leave, the fat old man sighed and turned to go. He'd been guarding this place for so long, and finally, this ling mountain was sold. Though it wasn't his, selling it meant he'd get a good commission.

Meanwhile, Ye Chen wandered around the ling mountain. The environment was quite nice, with palaces, pavilions, and terraces, along with winding paths leading to secluded spots, and many areas planted with rare flowers and exotic grasses.

Come in!

Ye Chen said lightly.

Immediately, nine figures also cloaked in black robes entered. Their auras were well-hidden, and upon closer sensing, they were all experts at the huang jing ninth level, serving as Nian Wei's personal guards.

After they arrived, they began working busily, setting up secret formations throughout the ling mountain and even bringing in a barrier that enveloped the entire mountain. Even cultivators at the huang jing peak level couldn't penetrate it.

The purpose of all this was to prepare for complete isolation from the outside world in the future. He didn't want people snooping around every few days. For training lian dan shi, a sealed environment was best.

Soon, Ye Chen erected a massive ten-zhang stone stele at the base of the ling mountain, with two powerful characters engraved on it: Dan Fu.

The night passed without incident, and dawn broke.

Those who had gone to pursue Ye Chen still hadn't returned, though many who had gone to watch the spectacle had come back.

However, as soon as day broke, the entire Youdu was buzzing with excitement due to a piece of news. Notices could be seen everywhere on the first and second levels of Youdu, all related to lian dan shi.

“Dan Fu?” The lian dan shi gathered around the notices were mostly scratching their heads.

“What's Dan Fu?” Everyone had heard of Youdu's Ling Dan Ge, but no one knew about anything called Dan Fu.

“Who cares what it is? The important thing is the content. See? As long as you're a lian dan shi, no matter the level, Dan Fu accepts everyone, provides housing, and offers annual salaries. That's the same treatment as Ling Dan Ge!”

“Is that real? Such a good deal?” The low-level lian dan shi were all stroking their chins.

“As if there's such a good thing.” Some dismissed it with a cold laugh. “It's probably someone trying to climb the ranks by leveraging Ku Yue Zhen Ren's status and competing with him. What a joke.”

“Whether it is or not, we'll know soon enough.”

“What's there to see? Dan Fu is on the third level, and we don't have housing tokens, so we can't even get to the second level, let alone the third.”

“You don't know that?” Someone laughed. “Dan Fu is bold—they've made tongxing tokens for all lian dan shi. With those tokens, lian dan shi can freely enter the third level.”

“Then what are we waiting for?” Some were already rushing off. “I've never even seen what the third level looks like.”

“Dan Fu?” On the eighth level, when Yue Shan and the others heard about this, they merely raised an eyebrow before closing their eyes to meditate again. “Send some people to check it out. I want to know who's being so arrogant.”

They all maintained a superior attitude and didn't pay much attention to Dan Fu. What they cared about was Ye Chen and whether the people they'd sent had caught him, as that would affect their chances of inheriting from Ku Yue.

At that moment, Youdu's third level was extraordinarily lively.

Many people had come, mostly gathering at the base of Dan Fu's ling mountain—not just from the first and second levels, but also from above the third level, including quite a few lian dan shi.

“Wow, what a huge ling mountain.” The low-level lian dan shi were like country bumpkins seeing the world for the first time, their eyes shining as they gazed up at Dan Fu's ling mountain. “Is this the Dan Fu from the notices?”

“It must be; it's written on the stone stele.”

“How much money must that have cost? The owner of Dan Fu is really bold.”

“Lian dan shi may enter; others must stop.” A ethereal voice came from the mountain, and the gates of Dan Fu's ling mountain opened wide.

As soon as the gates opened, many lian dan shi tentatively stepped inside, looking around cautiously, afraid that someone might suddenly kick them or a dog might bite them.

Once a few entered, more followed, including many low-level lian dan shi and quite a few high-level ones.

Naturally, a few non-lian dan shi tried to sneak in out of curiosity, some even on missions, but the moment they stepped into Dan Fu's ling mountain, they were thrown out by Nian Wei's personal guards.

“Dan Fu sincerely recruits lian dan shi, regardless of level. Housing is provided, and there are annual salaries.”

Such announcements, recorded and copied onto memory crystals, echoed endlessly throughout Dan Fu's ling mountain, making the lian dan shi's eyes light up, especially the low-level ones and those without housing in Youdu. They were all energized, like they'd been given a shot of adrenaline.

This was like manna from heaven. Once they joined Dan Fu, they wouldn't have to worry about housing or live in fear outside. Here, they could enjoy treatment on par with Ling Dan Ge.

Moreover, the lian dan shi who had been overlooked during the previous lian dan shi selection were now finding a great new opportunity.

Immediately, long lines formed in Dan Fu's ling mountain, all for registration. Counting them, there were nearly ten thousand people—ten thousand lian dan shi gathered here, creating an impressive scene.

At the mountain peak, Nian Wei, also cloaked in a black robe, smiled lightly. “Holy Master, this place is quite popular!”

“Of course it is.” Ye Chen coughed. “To make those tongxing tokens and provide housing, I spent all the yuan stones Xie Yun gave me.”

“That doesn't matter. Next time, I'll borrow some from the old ancestor. She's always spoiled me.”

“That sounds reliable.” Ye Chen stroked his chin and glanced up at the vast sky, thinking that after Nian Wei borrowed some, he might go up and borrow more himself. The old ancestor of the Zhuque family must be wealthy, and borrowing would help their family escape difficulties.

Thinking of Tian Zhuque, Ye Chen looked at Nian Wei. “Have you noticed that your family’s old ancestor resembles someone from Da Chu?”

“Resembles?” Nian Wei was stunned and said in surprise, “Is the old ancestor a reincarnated person from Da Chu?”

“I'm not sure.”

“That can't be!” Nian Wei scratched her head. “The old ancestor is three thousand years old, while the people who died in Da Chu's war were from a hundred years ago. That means even after reincarnation, they'd only be a hundred years old, which is a huge age difference.”

“I'm not talking about those who died in Da Chu's war a hundred years ago.” Ye Chen said leisurely. “I once saw someone in Da Chu who looks exactly like your family’s old ancestor, as if they were cast from the same mold.”

“Exactly the same, from Da Chu?” Nian Wei raised her eyebrows. “Who?”

“Have you heard of Yan Fei?”

“No.”

“What about Chen Huang?”

“Of course I've heard of him.” Nian Wei said, her beautiful eyes showing reverence and nostalgia. “The ninth emperor of Da Chu, the founder of the three sects. Every one of his legends is a myth.”

“Yan Fei was Chen Huang's imperial consort.” Ye Chen revealed a secret. “And your family’s old ancestor looks just like Yan Fei.”

“This...”