Chapter 49: A Sword Comes from the West, Overwhelming the Great River

"Just beat them up, and it's done!"

Qin Liangchen spoke with great confidence, his words exuding self-assurance.

Luo Chen was half-convinced.

But upon careful reflection, he realized that Qin Liangchen had risen from obscurity, established a family and career in the complex and challenging environment of the Great River Market, and even sent his son to the Luo Yun Sect, which was second only to the Jade Tripod Sword Sect.

He must have had his own exceptional qualities.

The rules for the eighteen-man death match between the two gangs had been fully revealed through the widespread dissemination of information over the past few days.

Only cultivators below the Foundation Establishment stage were allowed, with no restrictions on methods.

The only limitation was the number of talismans, strictly controlled to ten or fewer.

This rule was proposed by Uncle Mi Shuhua of the Mountain Breaker Gang.

He was probably afraid that the Great River Gang, backed by the Lian Yun Merchant Alliance, had the financial means to provide a large number of talismans to their combatants.

Compared to spells and magical artifacts, talismans had a faster activation speed and comparable power.

If someone really prepared dozens of talismans and engaged in a spirit stone battle, the scene would be absolutely stunning.

No Qi Condensation stage cultivator could counterattack under a barrage of talismans.

Luo Chen had already given the warning and couldn't nag any further.

As an outsider, he couldn't possibly know more than the high-ranking members of the Mountain Breaker Gang.

Even the insider information Sun Shou casually shared might not be entirely accurate.

The two continued chatting for a while, and the kitchen began to emit a delicious aroma.

"Time to eat!"

Luo Chen hurried home, bringing out the braised pork leg he had stewed all morning. This meal wasn't freeloading; he had contributed the dish!

"Come, try your sister-in-law's cooking. Little Hu was most reluctant to leave his mother's cooking before entering the sect."

Qin Liangchen warmly invited him, and Luo Chen didn't hesitate, picking up his chopsticks and taking a piece of meat.

"Mm, good, delicious!"

Mourning Qinglian smiled and shook her head, pouring a cup of water wine for the two men.

Qin Liangchen took a sip of wine, then picked up the meat Luo Chen had cooked.

"You live alone, I bet you just eat whatever is available. In my opinion, in the future—"

He widened his eyes, as if the food had no taste.

Then he eagerly picked up a large piece of meat, chewing it carefully this time.

"Melts in your mouth, not greasy, and there's a faint medicinal fragrance, like mint, fresh and invigorating."

"Madam, Xiao Luo's cooking seems even better than yours!"

Praise flowed endlessly, and Qin Liangchen didn't know what politeness was, frequently picking up his chopsticks.

Mourning Qinglian was quite surprised; it was rare to find a wandering cultivator who put effort into cooking these days.

Tasting the meat Luo Chen made, she squinted her eyes.

"Xiao Luo Daoist, your cooking is really delicious."

Luo Chen chuckled, not being modest at all.

In fact, his cooking skills were indeed impressive.

Perhaps due to his mixed Sichuan-Chongqing heritage in his previous life, he had developed excellent culinary skills under his mother's guidance.

While he might not be skilled in handling ingredients, his use of various seasonings and spices was deeply rooted in Sichuan cuisine.

Later, he even found a beautiful girlfriend through his cooking skills.

Unfortunately, in the big city, life wasn't just about food.

Sigh, the past is like the wind, best not to dwell on it.

After crossing over, Luo Chen discovered that the ingredients in the cultivation world were truly top-notch.

All kinds of spirit beast and demon beast meats, vegetables, and fruits, imbued with spiritual energy, had unique flavors.

The original owner of this body also had unique insights into some medicinal herbs.

Combining these, he could occasionally improve his diet with limited resources.

Occasionally, he would make snacks like beef jerky and stir-fried bitter hazelnuts, which were highly praised by Wang Yuan, Chen Xiuping, Gu Caiyi, and others.

In theory, cultivators didn't place much importance on food.

But in reality, this only applied to high-stage cultivators.

Low-stage cultivators couldn't survive on wind and dew, abstaining from food for a hundred years.

Due to the constant refinement of wild spiritual energy, they often suffered from meridian damage.

Therefore, food supplements were quite popular among low-stage cultivators, second only to elixirs and medicinal baths.

Luo Chen was no exception. Even in tough times, he never ran out of spirit rice and demon beast meat.

Without these foods containing spiritual energy, his already poor constitution might not have withstood the hardships of cultivation.

The three ate and chatted.

Upon learning that Luo Chen was a pill master, Qin Liangchen and his wife were extremely surprised.

Luo Chen was also curious about their current jobs.

After some inquiries, he learned that they were also in business.

"The Ancient Plain Mountains are rich in resources. My wife and I led a team to capture the Purple Moon Lake, which is abundant in a type of spirit fish."

"Although the gang takes most of the profits, the remaining part is enough to support our family's cultivation."

Their words of pride and satisfaction were evident, reflecting their pride in their past hunting expeditions.

From this, Luo Chen understood why the Great River Gang and the Lian Yun Merchant Alliance coveted the safe entry routes controlled by the Mountain Breaker Gang.

Just one spirit fish habitat made the Qin family, both at the Ninth Qi Condensation stage, live a prosperous life.

This was after the Mountain Breaker Gang took the majority, leaving only a small portion for the Qin family.

On a larger scale, the Mountain Breaker Gang, with over a thousand members, had been deeply rooted in the Ancient Plain Mountains for over a hundred years.

Through their efforts, they had control over countless spirit herb habitats and demon beast patterns.

These were all highly coveted interests.

The three continued chatting when they suddenly looked up simultaneously.

A sharp whistle, like a thunderclap in clear skies, echoed.

Then, in the distance, a golden streak of light shot from the west, heading straight for the Great River Market.

"What is that?"

The golden streak was so fast that it was near in the next moment.

Luo Chen hastily stood up, his eyes fixed on the golden streak.

After about five breaths, the golden streak slowed down, leaving a faint trail as it dove into the market like a bird returning to its nest.

The Jade Tripod Sword Pavilion!

Qin Liangchen walked beside him, looking at the white trail left in the sky, taking a deep breath.

"A sword cultivator, a Golden Core sword cultivator from the Jade Tripod Sword Sect, who has upgraded his sword pill to a magical treasure and can fly using sword light!"

The sword pill, flying with light.

A sword comes from the west!

Luo Chen was deeply moved.

This was the first time he had seen the power of a high-stage cultivator in this world.

Just a fleeting glimpse, but the momentum of breaking through the air and moving swiftly left him unsettled for a long time.

"Among peers, sword cultivators have the strongest attacks and the fastest speed. The Jade Tripod Sword Sect has a large number of high-end combatants, which allows it to stand firm on the edge of the million mountains."

Qin Liangchen pointed out, then stroked his chin and said, "This Golden Core elder must be here to oversee the opening of the Great River Market's Dao Discussion Platform."

Luo Chen was curious, "Is a mere Dao Discussion Platform worth the mobilization of a Golden Core elder?"

"Haha, Xiao Luo, you don't know. The Dao Discussion Platform is one of the few major assets of the Jade Tripod Sword Sect. If operated properly, it can earn a lot of spirit stones."

"Moreover, although each market only has a Foundation Establishment cultivator from the sect, the facilities are built to accommodate Golden Core cultivators."

"For example, the city defense array in the inner city of the Great River Market can defend against a Third-Stage Beast King."

"However, due to the difficulty of advancing to the sword cultivator stage, the Jade Tripod Sword Sect cannot assign a Golden Core cultivator to each market."

Understood, the facilities are at the Golden Core level.

But the sect's population is too small, so they can only have Foundation Establishment cultivators in charge.

"This Golden Core elder must have arrived first due to his speed."

Qin Liangchen looked into the distance, pondering, "The opening of the Dao Discussion Platform will attract many inner and outer sect disciples to handle various tasks."

As a Ninth Qi Condensation cultivator who had traveled to other regions, his knowledge was indeed broader than that of ordinary low-stage cultivators.

As expected, about half an hour later, several streaks of light appeared in the west of the Great River Market.

About seven streaks of light of different colors escorted a massive flying boat, slowly approaching the Great River Market.

This "slowly" was only relative to the speed of the sword from the west.

In reality, their speed was also very fast.

From the first sighting to their arrival above the Great River Market, it took less than half an incense stick's time.

Such an open and grand entrance naturally attracted the attention of the entire Great River Market.

Countless people looked up, their eyes fixed on the seven figures riding flying swords and the flying boat hovering above like a shadow.

Then, numerous figures appeared on the flying boat.

One by one, Qi Condensation cultivators, either riding flying swords or using wind techniques, emerged from the boat.

They entered the inner city like gnats, one after another.

After everyone left, the flying boat slowly shrank and shot into the towering Jade Tripod Sword Pavilion, as if being recalled.

The sky was once again empty, as if the previous scene was just an illusion.

But everyone in the Great River Market, whether local wandering cultivators or outsiders, knew that their true masters had arrived.

The name of the Jade Tripod Sword Sect weighed heavily on everyone's mind.

(End of Chapter)