The summons was up. Ye Qin and Huangfu Bing'er returned to the gates of Lingwu City. Cultivators conscripted from the major immortal cultivation sects of the Lingwu Realm, along with some cultivation families and rogue cultivators, gathered in Lingwu City before setting off together.
This assembly of Lingwu cultivators, numbering over a thousand strong, moved out in a grand procession, flying eastward toward the Central Continent on their artifacts.
Midway, they encountered another group of six to seven hundred cultivators traveling from Tianqiong Plain toward the East Sea. However, given that the two realms had recently fought a major war and the hatred between them had not yet dissipated, they found no common ground and did not travel together.
The entire Central Continent was vast, teeming with numerous cultivation worlds.
The Lingwu Cultivation World, the Tianqiong Plain World, and the Wanyue Lake World were merely a few among many. Furthermore, warfare was incessant among the cultivation worlds of the Central Continent; nearly every few decades or centuries, an old cultivation world would be extinguished, and a new one would rise in its place.
After flying for over a year, traversing several cultivation realms, the Lingwu cultivators finally arrived together at the easternmost tip of the Central Continent, at a place named Dongyu Town.
Dongyu Town was sequestered in a corner of the continent. Originally, it was just a small fishing village, home to only a few dozen impoverished fishing families who made their living from the sea, largely unnoticed for ages.
Later, cultivators attempting to leave the Central Continent to venture into the East Sea in search of overseas spiritual medicines found this small fishing village the most convenient point for crossing the sea. Gradually, the village prospered, evolving into a large town.
Although called a town, its scale was hardly smaller than Lingwu City; it was simply not designated a 'city' because it lacked protective walls. This place became a nexus for cultivators from all corners of the Central Continent who intended to cross the sea to the East Sea Archipelagos, its prosperity rivaling any major cultivation center.
Not all times were suitable for sea travel.
The East Sea was often plagued by hurricanes, ferocious gales whose power rivaled high-tier wind spells, capable of tearing apart fifth or sixth-rank sea beasts. These hurricanes posed a significant threat to Foundation Establishment cultivators, necessitating extreme avoidance. Even Golden Core cultivators found them vexing.
There were, however, brief periods on the East Sea when the waters calmed, becoming placid and windless.
This period was the optimal time to venture out to sea.
Cultivators arriving at Dongyu Town usually would not set sail immediately but would wait here for the sea to grow calm. During these lulls, numerous Foundation Establishment cultivators would flock to Dongyu Town, using it as the launching point for the East Sea Archipelagos.
When the Lingwu cultivators arrived at Dongyu Town, the East Sea was wracked by storms—dark clouds obscured the sun, accompanied by lightning and thunder—making passage impossible.
They rented a large, seaside inn in Dongyu Town to reside temporarily.
The cultivators of the Qingdan Sect were led by four of their nine Golden Core Ancestors. The foremost among these four was Ancestor Sun Ran, who had previously visited the East Sea and was familiar with the maritime conditions.
Inside the inn, he addressed the Qingdan Foundation Establishment disciples following behind him.
“The journey to the East Sea this time is fraught with unpredictable dangers. The sea surface is not as secure as the Central Continent. There are countless demonic beasts in the waters, and one cannot linger carelessly on the surface. Moreover, after flying for millions of li across the sea, one might struggle to find even one small island to rest upon. A single leg of airborne travel could take months; if one’s spiritual power falters, they will fall into the sea and perish.
“The entire voyage spans nearly ten million li of ocean, consuming three to five years to reach our destination, the East Sea Archipelagos.
“Although four Golden Core Ancestors from our sect are heading to the East Sea, we cannot guarantee complete protection for every disciple. Each of you must prepare meticulously for every contingency. Before departure, the sect has already issued each disciple over a hundred mid-grade spirit stones. Here in Dongyu Town, you may use these to purchase artifacts and other necessities for the crossing. Once the storms on the East Sea subside, we will set forth.”
“Yes!”
The Qingdan cultivators replied in unison.
“Very well, disperse and make your preparations. Little…”
Golden Core Ancestor Sun Ran waved, dismissing the cultivators to prepare themselves in Dongyu Town.
Leaving the inn, Ye Qin joined Shen Bao and a few other ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators from the Qingdan Sect, wandering around Dongyu Town to look for useful artifacts to purchase. It was a coincidence that Shen Bao, only at the first layer of Foundation Establishment, was also conscripted for the East Sea voyage.
The situation in Dongyu Town greatly opened their eyes.
The most striking sight was undoubtedly the harbor, where dozens of colossal sailing ships were anchored. Each vessel stood as tall as ten stories, immense in size, with decks spacious enough to accommodate over a thousand people, feeling as steady as solid ground when walked upon.
The wood used for the hulls was exceptionally precious, crafted from the finest, sturdiest spiritual timber like Iron Birch—wood so potent it could be used to forge low-tier wood-attribute spirit swords. The enormous sails were woven from various rare spiritual silks. It was easy to imagine the enormous cost invested in constructing such a ship.
Various fierce and grotesque sea beast patterns were painted on the sails, each ship bearing a different creature. Most cultivators from the Central Continent had never seen such beasts.
As Ye Qin gazed upon the sea beasts on the sails, his heart stirred.
In the underground mausoleum of the Land of Chaos, he had seen numerous bas-reliefs of sea beasts on the walls of the Sacred Emperor’s palace. A small portion of those creatures bore a resemblance to the ones painted on these sails. The beasts drawn by the Sacred Emperor must be the sea beasts of the East Sea.
At the harbor, numerous Qi Refining cultivators were diligently repairing the hulls of the great sailing ships. Mortal hands could not repair such vessels; only cultivators could manage the task.
“Strange. We are setting sail to fly on our swords; why would we need these great sailing ships? Are the cultivators here using these to fish?” Shen Bao asked in astonishment, running over to pull aside a craftsman cultivator working on a hull.
“Senior, these great sailing ships are colossal spirit artifacts. They can float on the sea like islands. Each one here is the personal vessel of a renowned Golden Core Ancestor of Dongyu Town; they are certainly not for fishing.”
The craftsman cultivator, seeing that he was being questioned by a Foundation Establishment cultivator, quickly explained.
“What? A ship resembling a small mountain is a spirit artifact? Such enormous spirit artifacts exist in the cultivation world?” Shen Bao was greatly shocked. He and the craftsman cultivator began an earnest exchange.
Seeing Shen Bao’s intense interest in those great sailing spirit artifacts, Ye Qin did not rush him. With a faint smile, he bid farewell to the other fellow disciples and ventured alone into Dongyu Town to look around for any useful magical tools for himself.
Within Dongyu Town, pavilion shops lined the streets, and in the center stood a marketplace specifically designated for cultivators from various realms to trade. Even on a normal day, thousands of cultivators engaged in buying and selling here. When the time came for the sea crossing, the number of cultivators gathered became countless.
One had to remember that these cultivators came from the cultivation worlds across the entire Central Continent, and almost every realm possessed unique spiritual treasures.
Consequently, the spiritual items sold in the Dongyu Town market were naturally myriad and strange, encompassing everything imaginable.
As Ye Qin walked through the marketplace, he saw stalls everywhere, covered with assorted artifacts and raw materials.
“Come look! Wing Spirit Artifacts! A pair forged from the wings of the fourth-rank demonic bird, the Startled Wing Bird! It consumes minimal spiritual power and allows for prolonged flight—more economical than using a flying sword! Only five hundred low-grade spirit stones, hurry up!”
“Flying swords for sale! Mid-grade Fire-attribute flying sword artifact, slightly damaged, only one thousand seven hundred spirit stones!”
“Who needs Demon Ox Horns? Top-grade horns, refine them into spirit artifacts capable of transmitting sound across dozens of li. Cheap! One hundred twenty spirit stones!”
Ye Qin scanned the noisy array of ground stalls in the market, shaking his head inwardly. There were plenty of bizarre raw materials, but unfortunately, they were all low-grade, offering little use to him. There were also numerous low- and mid-grade artifacts, but none were what he truly desired.
He already possessed more than ten common artifacts in his storage bag—the Dark Yin Sword, the Immortal Binding Rope, the little green sword, the little golden sword, the flying hammer, the Ruyi Ring, and others—very few of which he ever used.
However, top-tier, high-power artifacts were nowhere to be found in this market.
Ye Qin mused thoughtfully. Even if there were truly good items, they likely wouldn't be sold cheaply at these roadside stalls. He glanced around and spotted a large shop called the ‘Sea Heaven Pavilion’ ahead, a multi-story structure that was the largest among the surrounding shops. It should carry better items.
Ye Qin entered the pavilion and looked around. On the first floor of the Sea Heaven Pavilion, over a dozen low-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators were examining goods at the counters. Several female Qi Refining attendants inside were explaining the functions of the artifacts to them.
It was quite a spectacle: in Dongyu Town, the number of Foundation Establishment cultivators far outnumbered those in the Qi Refining stage, a phenomenon unique across the entire Central Continent.
One of the attendants sized up Ye Qin, noting his common attire suggested he wasn't wealthy, and initially paid him no mind, approaching to introduce the low-grade artifacts on the first floor.
“I need items suitable for crossing the sea. Does your esteemed pavilion have any superior water-attribute artifacts? High-grade raw materials would also suffice.” Ye Qin glanced casually at the low-grade artifacts being presented and lost interest quickly.
“Senior, our second and third floors have some excellent mid- and high-grade artifacts and materials, but the prices are quite steep.” The attendant hesitated, uncertain whether she should escort Ye Qin upstairs.
“Let’s go take a look. Does a shop owner fear a customer doesn't have money to spend?”
Ye Qin fixed her with a cold stare.
Under Ye Qin’s icy gaze, the attendant snapped back to reality. As a mere Qi Refining cultivator, she had no right to question a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. “Forgive me, Senior, please follow me!” She stopped hesitating and quickly led Ye Qin towards the second and third floors.
The second and third floors of the Sea Heaven Pavilion sold mid-grade and high-grade artifacts and materials.
Under normal circumstances, buying a single high-grade artifact would suffice for Ye Qin’s use. But this journey to the East Sea was notoriously perilous, carrying the risk of death at any moment.
He needed to prepare for the worst-case scenario, hence the need to acquire one or two top-tier water-attribute artifacts suitable for the East Sea, just in case. He certainly didn't want to reach the sea only to realize his preparations were inadequate and he lacked the proper tools—that would be truly heartbreaking.