World of Cultivation - Volume 03 - Seeking Survival On A Desolate Island

by Fang Xiang

  The five fingers on the leaf hands could lengthen and change shape according to his will. Zuo Mo marveled at it.

  Zuo Mo played with the leaf hand until he was exhausted mentally. When he stopped, he noticed something he had missed before. The difficulty of controlling the leaf hand had become much easier than before. He wouldn’t dare to even think about doing such delicate changes before.

  The area covered by his consciousness was much smaller than before. In the beginning, he had thought that his consciousness had weakened, but he understood after studying the leaf hand. At the moment, the root of the leaf hand was still inside the “seed.”

  The great majority of his spiritual power was still in the goose egg sized “seed”. The amount of consciousness that had transformed into the sprout was only a small minority. If all the consciousness inside the “seed” turned to leaf hands, his consciousness would return to the same level as before. The broken “seed” was like soil right now, the leaf hand taking its nutrients from it to grow.

  In the span of one day, the tender leaf hand sprout grew a little bigger.

  When all of his consciousness turned to leaf hands, the speed the leaf hand grew would then be affected by the rate his spiritual power grew.

  Zuo Mo had a direct measure of the benefits that the [Great Thousand Leaf Hands] gave him. Even though the area covered by his consciousness was much smaller than before, but the clarity of the area covered by his consciousness was much higher.

  This benefit had a direct connection to dan-making and forging.

  Zuo Mo’s control of fire had increased to another level. He had a strong impulse to forge a flying sword now, but he suppressed it. His consciousness had not recovered to its peak.

  The growth of the leaf hand was not fast, but it was steady. Zuo Mo wasn’t in a hurry, he had many things to do.

  Like practicing the first three moves of [Little Thousand Leaf Hands].

  Zuo Mo had already learned the first three moves. Pu Yao teaching him personally did have some effect. These three moves were either exquisite or powerful so he naturally would not let up, and continuously practiced them. He needed to practice them to the point that he could execute them with a thought.

  However, he was far from that step.

  What he felt strange was the light at his fingertip when he drew the characters was a faint white light, and not the bloody red of Pu Yao. However, the effect of the completed move did not change. Pu Yao could not find a reason for this, so Zuo Mo, seeing it was not detrimental to casting the spell, threw it to one side.

  Zuo Mo still had not discovered the relation between this [Little Thousand Leaf Hands] and the leaf hands.

  ———

  It was night, the moonlight streaming down.

  A completely golden figure was at the edge of the black lake, his feet bare, and his legs apart.

  Zuo Mo was using [Vajra Profound Sutra]. Small strands of earth energy burrowed into his body through the soles of his feet. The earth energy was thin and felt cold. As it spread through his body, he felt unspeakably pleasurable. As the threads of earth energy entered his body, his muscles became even more strong and hard. Zuo Mo’s body was filled with silence and vitality, just like the great earth.

  He opened his eyes. Glancing at his palms, a faint mountain peak tattoo could be seen.

  He shook his head. When Pu Yao sucked away the earth energy from his body, the mountain peak tattoo would once again disappear.

  Each day, he had to go through this. He had naturally found some trends. The mountain peak tattoo on his palms should be the symbol of the mountain physique. The stronger the body, the richer the earth energy in the body, the clearer it would be. Each time after he absorbed earth energy was the time it was most clear.

  A suction suddenly appeared inside his body. The earth energy that had just spread through his body was like a school of fishes that was attracted by bait, moving through every one of Zuo Mo’s muscles and bones.

  An expression of pain came into Zuo Mo’s eyes.

  It didn’t need his control, his body instinctively rebelled, resisting the departure of the earth energy. It wanted to keep the earth energy, but the suction was so powerful that the earth energy continuously gathered there.

  Pu Yao took all the earth energy inside his body.

  Weakness flooded in, but he could not faint because of the pain. His body felt like it was being pricked by needles all over, each muscle and bone was in pain.

  Zuo Mo understood the reason.

  Absorbing earth energy, and then having Pu Yao drawing it away. In the entire process, Zuo Mo’s body was like a man that had just gotten a treasure after struggle, but suddenly was robbed. It instinctively would defend and try to take it back. But since the enemy was too strong, in the conflict, his body was wounded.

  He had to go through this process daily. The pain could be imagined.

  It was torture!

  The damned gravestone! Each time, Zuo Mo gritted his teeth as he bore the pain. At the same time, he repeatedly cursed the damned gravestone!

  In this period of time, he would run to the sea of consciousness when he had the free time.

  The result was that the gravestone didn’t take any action after the words had popped up.

  Listening to the words, Zuo Mo, who had been trusting of the gravestone, was furious. He finally understood. He had trusted the wrong person!

  No, he had trusted the wrong stele!

  * * *

  Translator Ramblings: No one mentioned it so I’m really curious. Did anyone else think that the Void Pass Pu Yao showed Zuo Mo seem like what he used against the five jindan a long time ago in Dong Fu?

  Also, the Sky Yao who made the Thousand Leaf yao arts would have been before the water method for dan-making was invented. Zuo Mo doesn’t know enough history for these things.

  Chapter 181: Familiar Guests

  Zuo Mo’s former habit had been to listen to the sound tablet every day. After arriving in Desolate Wood Reef, he would open the sound tablet whenever he was idle. This was not limited to just him. All the people on the Desolate Wood Reef were the same. Other than the flying sword messages the elders from the sect sent them, this was the only way they could communicate with the outside world. Even with Zuo Mo’s cultivation,he was unable to send flying sword messages to the sect over such a long distance.

  Every day, they could hear the bad news. It was like the yaomo had suddenly became strong and peerless, the xiuzhe were not a match for them and continuously lost. Each time he heard this kind of bad news, Zuo Mo felt depressed. Theoretically, xiuzhe had been hunting yao for so many years in Bloody Sky Metropolis Jie. While the yaomo were like the livestock being raised in the xiuzhe’s back yard, but why did the xiuzhe suddenly become so weak?

  He went to the lava lake. Inside the fire formation, a scorching flame covered the copper hoop and silently burned. After a long period of tempering, the copper hoop had become completely red like a piece of fire jade.

  Carefully inspecting the fire formation, Zuo Mo’s mood became slightly better. If it was tempered for a bit more time, this copper hoop would completely transform. He anticipated just how powerful this copper hoop would be after it was done tempering.

  After adding new jingshi to the fire formation, he climbed back out.

  The sunlight landed on his body and warmed him, it was so comfortable he wanted to groan. Now that everything on the Desolate Wood Reef had settled into a routine, other than having to endure the “pain of earth energy” every day, he didn’t have any other frustrations.

  The Desolate Wood Reef might be isolated, but compared to the endless conflict inside the sect, it was paradise.

  Suddenly, he raised his head. Several black dots appeared on the horizon, heading at astonishing speed towards the Desolate Wood Reef.

  Xiuzhe!

  Zuo Mo’s heart shook slightly, but compared to the restlessness of the past, he was much more composed. With the [Skyring Moon Chime Form
ation], even though his consciousness had not completely turned to leaf hands, but the leaf hands were so powerful that just the leaf hand of half his consciousness was more powerful in controlling the [Skyring Moon Chime Formation] than before.

  As long as the xiuzhe that were coming were not jindan, he was not afraid.

  Three xiuzhe had come.

  Seeing them speed over, Zuo Mo’s heart was slightly shocked. The three were not weak.

  However, when the three people flew close, he found to his surprise that he knew them. The three people were the xiuzhe that had found him previously to process the Inky Black Lotus Seed.

  When the three came close to the Desolate Wood Reef, they had surprised expressions when they saw Zuo Mo. The three quickly landed.

  “Didn’t think we would encounter Brother Zuo here, it really is fate!” The red-robed man laughed forthrightly, his composure was extremely friendly. The other two tightly followed the red-robed man.

  Last time, having ran into trouble with them, Zuo Mo knew they were not good people. In his heart he was wary. However, with his zombie face, no one could see what he was thinking. With Wu Kong Sword Sect behind him as support, and the island having the big formation, he was very confident.

  “Ha ha, yes, yes,” Zuo Mo bowed with folded hands.

  If it had been in the past, the three would have been furious at this attitude, but Zuo Mo’s present status compared to the past was like the difference between heaven and earth. The status of Wu Kong Sword Sect was rising in Sky Moon Jie. No one dared to provoke this battle-crazy sect, and Zuo Mo was also a core disciple of Wu Kong Sword Sect.

  The red-robed man rejoiced that he had made amends last time, so their relationship wasn’t too terrible. Otherwise, they would have a hard time today. He did not underestimate Zuo Mo due to his zhuji cultivation. Putting aside Wu Kong Sword Sect, Zuo Mo alone was a very dangerous entity.

  He naturally understood a bit about the [Skyring Moon Chime Formation] after having possessed the jade scroll for so long. When he saw Zuo Mo set up the formation in the Great Pine Pavilion, his shock had been indescribable. When he flew near Desolate Wood Reef and saw Zuo Mo, he understood that Zuo Mo definitely had put a formation over the island.

  However, this person was very experienced. He could bow with the circumstances and was extremely perceptive. He smiled and said, “Us three brothers wish to use your place to rest and recover for a few days. This is just a token of our appreciation, Brother Zuo Mo, don’t refuse.”

  The red-robed male handed over a small bag of jingshi. Zuo Mo slightly bounced it, and was very satisfied.

  Three hundred pieces of third-grade jingshi. As expected, this xiuzhe was good with handling relationships.

  “That’s fine. You can pick any residence here. If you need anything, just ask this little brother,” Zuo Mo instantly became much warmer.

  The red-robed male released a breath inside. It was easy now that Zuo Mo was willing to take their jingshi. What he was most worried about was that Zuo Mo held a grudge over the incident of the Inky Black Lotus Seed. So before Zuo Mo had said anything, he had proactively and generously made the first move.

  Looking at it now, he was correct in doing so.

  “Sorry for the disturbance!”

  “Right, I’ve also put a formation on this island. Please do not move around carelessly,” Zuo Mo reminded them.

  The red-robed man thought, as expected. His mouth responded, “Many thanks for the reminder, Brother Zuo.”

  Zuo Mo didn’t waste words, he turned and left.

  ———

  When Zuo Mo disappeared, the three finally relaxed.

  The snarling brawny man snorted coldly, “look at him act like that, I want to grind him to meat paste!”

  “Is this place safe?” The hawk nosed man looked at his leader.

  “We’ll rest here for a day and leave. Then go to Little Mountain Jie,” The red-robed man said decisively.

  “I … …” The snarling brawny man was still going on.

  The red-robed man glared at him, and interrupted, “Don’t waste words. Quickly meditate. We don’t have much time.”

  The brawny man docilely sat and meditated.

  ———

  Taking in three hundred pieces of third-grade jingshi, Zuo Mo felt very good. Business with no cost and all profit was really pleasurable. He recalled that the three seemed quite rushed, as though they wanted to leave quickly.

  He had previously received the jade scroll for the [Skyring Moon Chime Formation]. and had also gotten a [Gold Forging Chapter Remnant]. The gold method was more obscure; adding on that it was just a remnant scroll, Zuo Mo didn’t put any effort in studying it.

  But one point was very clear, these three were clearly quite wealthy.

  Zuo Mo thought about making a transaction. He had a pretty good amount of Golden Crow Fire on his hands and naturally wanted to sell it. However, the Desolate Wood Reef was really too isolated. He would have to fly for a long time to reach the nearest town. He was just a zhuji. If the news got out that he possessed Golden Crow Fire, he would be instantly surrounded and attacked if he stepped out of the Desolate Wood Reef.

  The best and safest way was to attract people to come to him.

  As long as he was on the Desolate Wood Reef, Zuo Mo was not afraid of any ningmai. He didn’t need to worry, no matter how big the attack force was. No power would actively challenge a battle-crazy sect like Wu Kong Sword Sect. What was most worrisome was the small xiuzhe groups of two or three people. They were the primary bandits and robbers. After killing and stealing, they would hide in a place. Once the noise was over, they would come out.

  If he had to attract people to come such a long way to such an isolated place, he needed to have something to attract them. Golden Crow Fire would be one of those things.

  What Zuo Mo needed to do first was pass the news out so other people knew they could buy Golden Crow Fire at Desolate Wood Reef.

  His first target would be these three people.

  ———

  The red-robed male who had been meditating suddenly opened his eyes, a wary expression on his face. The other two quickly opened their eyes.

  Seeing the intruder was Zuo Mo, the wariness in their eyes lessened slightly.

  “Sorry to disturb everyone’s rest,” Zuo Mo brashly sat down, no hint of apology in his voice.

  “It’s nothing,” The red-robed male forced a smile, “What does Brother Zuo need to come so late in the night?”

  Zuo Mo didn’t waste words, heading straight for the topic,“This little brother has something good. Does everyone have an interest?”

  The red-robed male first stilled, and then gave an interested expression, “Oh, something that Brother Zuo finds good, it must not be ordinary.”

  Zuo Mo handed over a jade box, “Everyone, take a look.”

  The red-robed man took the mini box and praised, “Such a fine jade box. Oh, such exquisite formations on here, I have great expectations for what is in the box!”

  He opened the jade box.

  Inside the jade box, a golden flame silently burned as it floated inside the box.

  “Golden Crow Fire!” The red-robed man shouted, the expressions of the two behind him changing as well.

  The other two stared fixedly at the Golden Crow Fire in the box, the heat and desire not disguised at all. The red-robed male stared dazedly at the Golden Crow Fire inside the jade box. After a beat, he sighed, “Brother Zuo is really skilled! I heard before that the Golden Crow Pill was made by Brother Zuo. I didn’t think that Brother Zuo could also make such a pure Golden Crow Fire seed. Such skill is really terrifying!”

  Seeing the other did not show signs of wanting to attack, Zuo Mo’s heart slightly eased. The aura of murder that faintly exuded from the three people suggested that they were frequently involved in shady transactions. Zuo Mo had been very worried that their greed would get the best of them. Even though he had been on guard, there was still danger if t
he three attacked together.

  He didn’t know but in this moment, countless thoughts had turned inside the red-robed man’s mind. Don’t underestimate such a little bit of Golden Crow Fire. It had extremely high value. If one had something to exchange it for, the price wouldn’t be just a little bit. However, when he saw Zuo Mo was so serene, he felt that Zuo Mo had measures in place.

  The red-robed male repeatedly weighed his options and pushed down his greed. The three knew each other very well. Leader didn’t speak, so the other two knew that Leader didn’t want to attack, so they had to control the killing intent inside.

  “You are too complimentary. Are you three interested?” Zuo Mo said.

  The red-robed male said, “How about a trade? This one doesn’t have much jingshi.”

  Zuo Mo instantly became alert and said, “No problem.” What he hoped for the most was to trade for something useful to him. On a place like the Desolate Wood Reef where even the birds didn’t shit, there was nowhere to spend jingshi. It was better to trade for something he could use.

  The red-robed male took out a pile of items for Zuo Mo to choose from.

  Trading was a frequent transaction type between xiuzhe. Because there was no third party, what the transaction process tested was the knowledge of both sides and the price they had inside.

  The red-robed male had taken out a variety of items. There were talismans, materials, and jade scrolls. The other two also took out and displayed what they had.

  The three of them were very wealthy. Zuo Mo’s eyes instantly reddened, but his heart jumped.

  This pile of items was of great variety, and definitely not from one individual. He couldn’t help but think about those xiuzhe that killed for treasure. The number of xiuzhe whose lives were ended by the hands of these three definitely wouldn’t be low.

  Zuo Mo refocused and started to pick.

  * * *

  Translator Ramblings:

  The cast can tell you which chapters these people first showed up in. Zuo Mo’s first customers are here.