The Gate Of Good Fortune c1-905

by Demon Translations

  But Ning Cheng quickly dispelled the idea when he saw the point-reward for these two people. Each one equalled two million points; moreover, alive. Even the person who provided information about these two people’s possible whereabouts could get half a million points, which suddenly jolted Ning Cheng’s heart.

  He was just an inconsequential rogue cultivator here. Even if killed in a sneak attack, the Grand Essence Public Square’s Cave Management Office wouldn’t put such a high price to capture these two people. The only possibility was that this wasn’t a task issued by the Grand Essence Public Square’s Cave Management Office. Either that or the reason for this wanted task had nothing to do with him.

  Ning Cheng, however, didn’t think that this task had anything to do with him. The Heartless Monk and Lifeless Poisonhand had attacked him, and now he saw a wanted task for both of them, which felt a little too coincidental.

  Whether or not he died, only Lifeless Poisonhand and Heartless Monk knew about it. Of course, that didn’t include him. Ning Cheng immediately connected that this wanted task wasn’t just for these two people but also aimed at him. At the very least, someone wanted to confirm his death. Only that, Ning Cheng felt, was a reasonable explanation for capturing Lifeless Poisonhand and Heartless Monk alive.

  But who would spend such a large price to find him?

  The most likely ones were Lifeless Poisonhand and Heartless Monk. But they were on the wanted task themselves.

  Apart from them, the only other force that came to mind was Beyond Heaven Path. These were the only forces he had offended after coming to the Grand essence Ruins. But Ning Cheng also knew very well that Beyond Heaven Path would never dare to search for him using wanted tasks. Let alone through tasks for capturing Heartless Monk and Lifeless Poisonhand. What’s more, Beyond Heaven Path shouldn’t have the means to issue such a high-reward job.

  Ning Cheng walked to a corner of the Quest Hall and ordered a cup of ordinary spiritual tea.

  He picked up the spiritual tea and took a sip unconsciously. However, just when he was about to put down his cup of spiritual tea, he saw a man with a striped face walking into the Quest Hall.

  Ninth Prince?

  Ning Cheng quickly determined that this person wasn’t Ninth Prince. However, this person’s face had nine points of resemblance to the Ninth Prince, Man Jiuren. Although the wrinkle patterns on this person’s face looked similar along with the facial structure, he felt sure that this person wasn’t Man Jiuren.

  Thinking of Man Jiuren, the leaf covering Ning Cheng’s thoughts suddenly disappeared, and Ning Cheng’s heart suddenly turned clear as a mirror.

  Ninth Prince must have returned to the Grand Essence Sea.

  If that is the case, then only his father had this kind of courage and the audacity to use so many points as a lure to search for Ning Cheng.

  Ninth Prince’s father made such a bold move, but it most likely wasn’t just to avenge Ninth Prince. Rather, it most likely had a connection to his Five-coloured Star Splitter Arrow. In any case, Man Jiuren had experienced its power personally. Presumably, Man Jiuren had shared this information with his father, and his father decided to look for the Five-coloured Star Splitter Arrow.

  Ning Cheng had no idea about the cultivation of Ninth Prince’s father. However, Ning Cheng could guess that he most likely was a powerhouse around these parts.

  Now, such a powerhouse wanted to find him, who was just an Eternal cultivator. Just the thought of it turned Ning Cheng’s heart cold. He felt sure that once even a shred of news got leaked, he might not even have the opportunity to escape into the Grand Essence Ruins.

  Ning Cheng forced himself to calm down and started to take some slow deep breaths and pondered over what he should do now. Although the man with stripes and lines on his face wasn’t Man Jiuren, this person most likely had a blood relation to Man Jiuren. Perhaps, this person might turn out to be Man Jiuren’s brother.

  After drinking the cup of spiritual tea, Ning Cheng stood up. Since Ninth Prince’s father wanted to look for him, he must not come here wearing a mask.

  Although an appearance changing mask would certainly not be evident at first glance, it would immediately put him on the list of the most suspected group of people.

  …….

  An hour later, Ning Cheng entered the depths of the Grand Essence Ruins. He removed his mask and started to change his appearance in a straightforward way.

  Under Ning Cheng’s deliberate actions, his original chiselled face turned into an ordinary one. The first impression one would get on looking at this face would be a face filled with vicissitudes. Something only formed by undertaking long-term tasks in the Grand Essence Ruins. He even put a scar on his bare neck that seemed to have come from a poisonous demonic beast. Even his hair no longer looked grey; instead, it had turned into a bright whitish hue of grey.

  After finishing these touch-ups, Ning Cheng felt slightly relieved. These modifications would gradually wear off as he cultivated. If he wanted, he could remove it in an instant with the First Glimmers of Dawn Ice Essence. But at least for now, no one would recognise him as Ning Cheng.

  For a powerful starry sky cultivator, the easiest thing to change was one’s appearance. But what was the most difficult to change? It was none other than the individual’s aura. Moreover, this aura came from the cultivation method the individual used for cultivation.

  If Ning Cheng didn’t have the Mysterious Yellow Formless, he would have never attempted such useless work as physically changing his appearance. It might be challenging, or even an impossible matter, for others to change their aura. But it wasn’t too tricky with the Mysterious Yellow Formless. With the Mysterious Yellow Formless Intangible, one could alter their body’s aura entirely. As long as it wasn’t someone who knew the person inside out, generally, no one would be able to recognise him from his aura.

  Unless there was a top-notch powerhouse who met Ning Cheng in the past, only then could they find some clues about him even after changing his aura. But the most powerful people Ning Cheng knew in his life till now, and who had spent some considerable time with him, were none other than Pan Qian and Cang Wei.

  A few days later, Ning Cheng, after changing his appearance and aura, returned to the Quest Hall of the Grand Essence Ruins. He wanted to test if anyone could recognise him. If anyone recognised him, he would immediately flee into the Grand Essence Ruins.

  ……

  Six months later, an Artefact-crafting Stall in Grand Essence Public Square started growing famous. This artefact-crafting stall had the name ‘Wanderer Artefact Craftings’. The owner of this artefact-crafting stall was also called Wanderer.

  This Wanderer’s looks and cultivation were far from being comparable to the weapons and artefact he crafted. Don’t look at Wanderer with his ordinary appearance; the low-ranked spirit artefact he crafted were all first-rate ones. These artefacts were more beautiful and even more potent than the low-ranked spirit artefact in the Quest Hall’s merchant house.

  But that’s not the main thing. What mainly attracted people to Wanderer’s artefact-crafting stall was that one only needed to provide the materials, along with some points or spirit crystals. In this way, the artefact price was just half of that in Quest Hall’s merchant house.

  No cultivator who took up tasks in the Grand Essence Ruins didn’t know about the Wanderer Artefact-crafting Stall. If they wanted low-rank spirit artefacts, most cultivators would not go to the merchant hall but instead, come here.

  Unfortunately, this artefact-crafting stall could only refine low-rank spirit artefacts. The owner couldn’t refine even one middle-rank spirit artefacts.

  Moreover, this artefact-crafting stall wasn’t too far from the Grand Essence Ruins’ Quest Hall. Every month, the owner of this stall had to pay a lot of points to Quest Hall. Many people tried to persuade Wanderer to switch to another place and set up a different booth. Some even promised to bring their business to this new area. Some even offered to purchase a new
proper shop for Wanderer.

  But this Wanderer didn’t seem to consider any of the offers. Not only did he speak very little, but Wanderer also didn’t seem to mind doing a non-profitable business. He continued to pay the points to the Quest Hall as before and still put his booth next to the Quest Hall.

  This Wanderer Artefact Crafting Stall naturally was set up by Ning Cheng. He had deliberately set up the Wanderer Artefact Crafting Stall next to the Quest Hall. Earning points was just incidental. What he truly wanted to do was to wait for Yan Ji. As long as Yan Ji returned to hand over a task, he would see her immediately. But since Ninth Prince’s father still had his eyes out for him, Ning Cheng didn’t dare to publish the task of finding Yan Ji publicly. As such, he had no other choice but to use such a time-consuming method.

  Half a year later, Ning Cheng could now refine middle-rank spirit artefacts. He could even barely refine ordinary high-rank spirit artefacts. However, Ning Cheng continued to refine only low-rank spirit artefacts for the public. He knew very well that even if he wanted to use the Quest Hall for cover, he couldn’t truly grab all the business of its merchant house.

  Therefore, he not only refined just low-ranked spirit artefacts; he even limited the quantity. Plus, he also paid points to the Quest Hall every month. Therefore, it didn’t matter if he stayed here for a long time; no one would come to bother him.

  The only thing that disappointed Ning Cheng was that he found no trace of Yan Ji even after half a year. He also had no idea if Yan Ji joined a sect in the Grand Essence Domain or was still doing tasks deep in the Grand Essence Ruins, which prevented her from returning.

  However, Ning Cheng could rest assured that despite countless spiritual consciousnesses sweeping over him in the past six months, it aroused no suspicions in anyone.

  On this day, Ning Cheng was helping a rogue cultivator refine a low-rank spirit artefact. Suddenly, he felt a spiritual consciousness that shook his heart coming from somewhere in front of him. It felt as if this spiritual consciousness would see through his disguise at any moment.

  Ning Cheng suddenly raised his head and saw a middle-aged man wearing an imperial crown walking towards the Quest Hall. Although this man didn’t release any suppressive aura, Ning Cheng had the feeling of wanting to look up at him in worship. This person was the most powerful cultivator he saw since coming to the Grand Essence Ruins. This person even felt far stronger than the red-haired man he saw initially and had no idea of the extent of that person’s cultivation.

  Ning Cheng then saw Man Jiuren, with a fully restored body, following behind this person. He instantly understood that this man wearing an imperial crown most likely was Man Jiuren’s father.

  Chapter 0875 – Grand Essence Ruins’ Public Square Selection

  Translated By – DemonKiller

  Checked and Edited By – Livewidsmile

  Proofread By – DemonKiller

  Please do not host our works anywhere else without our permission.

  “Master Wanderer, you must not use your spiritual consciousness to sweep around; otherwise, no one can save you.” The rogue cultivator standing beside Ning Cheng, waiting for Ning Cheng to finish crafting, noticed Ning Cheng staring at the man wearing an imperial crown. Seeing this, he quickly moved closer towards Ning Cheng and whispered.

  Although Ning Cheng usually didn’t talk much, people truly appreciated his high-quality artefacts and the low prices. As such, Ning Cheng had become very popular among the rogue cultivator community. In turn, the cultivators coming to Ning Cheng’s artefact-crafting stall always addressed Ning Cheng as ‘Master Wanderer’ and gave him various pieces of advice and tidbits of information.

  Ning Cheng looked at this rogue cultivator with a blank expression and asked, “Is that person famous?”

  The rogue cultivator lowered his voice even more. “That’s Dragon Emperor Man Huishan of Grand Essence Sea’s top-ranked force, the Grand Essence Barbarian Dragon Clan. Moreover, he’s a Dao Essence powerhouse. You tell me if he’s someone famous?”

  Ning Cheng suddenly spoke up, “No wonder I saw everyone bowing to him when he passed by. So, he’s the Dragon Emperor of the Barbarian Dragon Clan.”

  The rogue cultivator nodded, “Of course, but it’s strange to see the Dragon Emperor at the Grand Essence Public Square. Usually, the major forces would only send some elders for the selection. Plus, the top ten powers wouldn’t even deem it worthy of sending someone here at all.”

  “What selection are you talking about?” Ning Cheng quickly asked. He had stayed here crafting artefacts, not only to increase his proficiency in artefact-crafting but to also wait for Yan Ji. But when it came to other things, he rarely inquired about anything lest his questions raised suspicions. As such, Ning Cheng had never heard of the selection this rogue cultivator just mentioned.

  The rogue cultivator smiled and said, “You know that the Grand Essence Great Meet is about to start, right?”

  “I know that.” Ning Cheng replied. He had no idea about when the Grand Essence Great Meet was to start, but he knew about this event.

  The rogue cultivator pointed to the low-rank spirit artefact in Ning Cheng’s hand. “I asked for this low-ranked spirit artefact in preparation for the Grand Essence Great Meet.”

  “Can anyone join the Grand Essence Great Meet?” Ning Cheng asked in doubt.

  The rogue cultivator shook his head and said, “It’s naturally impossible. Only some sects are eligible to participate in the Grand Essence Great Meet. But once you get a chance to participate in the Grand Essence Great Meet, you could potentially reap a great harvest. Unfortunately, how could those sects allow sharing those reward with us rogue cultivators? Even if that is the case, every time before the Grant Essence Great Meet, some sects would come to the Grand Essence Public Square. They want to recruit powerful rogue cultivators to make up for the shortcomings of their sect’s disciples. Of course, many powerful sects disdain such actions. However, they are also afraid that their rivals might recruit some strong rogue cultivators. Therefore, most sects will come to the Grand Essence Public Square before the great meet and ‘recruit’ rogue cultivators.”

  “Over time, everyone accepted an unwritten rule. Before the Grand Essence Great Meet took place, all the sects would unite and recruit rogue cultivators and jointly fill up the spots. During these few days, all the major sects would engage in recruiting-related activities. If you want, you can also go check out the large number of temporary buildings that sprang up at the edge of the Grand Essence Ruins’ Public Square.”

  Hearing this rogue cultivator’s words, Ning Cheng finally noticed that the Grand Essence Ruins’ Public Square’s edge truly had many more temporary buildings. Rather, they were all abode-type artefacts. Some of the building even had signs of various sects in front of it, as if confirming this rogue cultivator’s words. Glancing over the displays, Ning Cheng also understood that every one of those buildings was recruiting disciples.

  But seeing that display, Ning Cheng asked with even more doubt. “I heard that the Grand Essence Great Meet’s reward is the Extraterritorial Spirit Spring and that this spirit spring has a lot of value attached to it. If so many rogue cultivators participated, wouldn’t it reduce the chances for the sects’ true disciples?”

  The rogue cultivator smiled when he heard Ning Cheng’s words. “You’re overthinking. The Extraterritorial Spirit Spring is the reward for the top ten in the Grand Essence Great Meet. It has nothing to do with rogue cultivators. However, there is a Grand Essence Mystic Realm run every time before the Grand Essence Great Meet. The major sects recruit rogue cultivators to join their disciples in snatching things from this mystic realm.”

  “Only the cultivators who reach the top 100 by gathering treasures like divine grasses from the mystic realm would have the opportunity to participate in the Grand Essence Great Meet. The Grand Essence Great Meet is a competition between the top hundred in the Grand Essence Mystic Realm and has nothing to do with others. I just want to get recr
uited by a sect and win some treasures from the mystic realm. If I could receive a Dao Fruit as a reward, then everything would be worth it.”

  Ning Cheng quickly understood something. That is, this recruitment was nothing but a facade for roping in cannon fodder. He didn’t need to ask to know that it was much more dangerous to grab things in this mystic realm run before the Grand Essence Great Meet.

  If the mystic real truly contained so many treasures, how could the competition not be fierce?

  “So, can you tell me which sects are recruiting disciples here this time? Also, what are the top ten forces that you just mentioned?” Ning Cheng asked in a low voice. He knew that the questions he asked made him look like a big idiot, but he still had to ask.

  Sure enough, when the rogue cultivator heard Ning Cheng’s question, his eyes immediately lit up in surprise. However, he quickly composed himself and explained it very carefully. “The top ten forces are called the ‘Three Sacreds, Three Spirits, and Four Deep Seas’. The ‘Three Sacreds’ refer to River Luo Sacred Sect, Seven Star Sacred Shrine and Nine Revolving Sacred Dao Pond. The ‘Three Spirits’ refer to the Flaming Feather Spirit Mountain, Profound Moon Spirit Gate and Desolate Spirit Palace. As for the ‘Four Deep Seas’, they refer to Barbarian Dragon Clan, Silver Dragon Clan, Profound Aquatic Palace, and Mysterious Ferry Ancient Clan.”

  “I heard that disciples from the Mysterious Ferry Ancient Clan have stopped coming out. They also haven’t participated in the previous few Grand Essence Great Meets. As for the other lesser sects, well, they are just too many, and even I don’t know about all of them. However, you can learn about them by yourself.”

  Ning Cheng handed the low-ranked spirit artefact in his hand to the rogue cultivator and said, “I’ve finished refining your weapon. Since I heard so much from you today, I guess I should try my luck. Plus, I’ll only charge you half the points.”