Longevity through Upgrading Buildings Chapter 711 - 306: Ji Yuan’s Path Forward

After all... he's connected to the Shang Court.

He surely won't perish that easily.

Regrettably, no response came after dispatching the message.

Apparently, he hasn't made it back to the Water Dragon Sect as well.

Ji Yuan lingered briefly before calling forth the Wind Willow Flying Boat and departing from Wuyou Island.

His intention was to head straight to Water Dragon Island, inquire about Du Wanyi's current mission, and discover the reason for her delay. If feasible, he might even retrieve her.

He intended to question Master Xuan Shui regarding the Water Dragon Sect's departure time too.

As soon as Ji Yuan departed Wuyou Island, he observed a surge in cultivators flowing in and out of the Water Dragon Sect's domain.

Plenty had come back, while others arrived due to the mockery aimed at the Water Dragon Sect's territory.

In particular, passing by Chulong Island and witnessing the hordes of Qi Cultivation cultivators stirred in him a sensation that the Water Dragon Sect had reclaimed its past glory.

Regrettably, he understood full well these were mere facades.

Or maybe... just a fleeting resurgence.

The bulk of these Qi Cultivation cultivators served as mere fodder, the sacrificial sparks in this clash between righteous and demonic forces.

Soon enough, he reached Water Dragon Island, where Master Xuan Shui informed him that the vessel crossing to the Desolate Ancient Continent would set off no later than ten days from now.

Typically, such details stay under wraps, yet Master Xuan Shui had gleaned some intelligence from Ancestor Kong Xifeng and grasped the circumstances.

These secrets might elude others, but Ji Yuan deserved to know.

"Ten days... that's awfully close, truly just a moment's notice without hyperbole."

Ji Yuan pondered deeply, a wave of pressing anxiety rising within him.

"By the way, Uncle Master, I'd like to look up a friend's location and learn her mission details." Ji Yuan inquired further.

The situation mirrored the previous one.

Rules demand safeguarding every disciple's privacy.

Yet with Master Xuan Shui involved... Ji Yuan embodied the exception.

"Fine, tell me the name, and I'll look it up for you."

Despite the heap of pressing affairs, Master Xuan Shui inquired with steady patience.

"Taian Isle Master, Du Wanyi."

"Du Wanyi..."

Master Xuan Shui's brow furrowed faintly as he lifted his right hand to divine, while books on the hall's corner shelf flipped rapidly at the same time.

In mere moments, Master Xuan Shui provided the answer.

"Du Wanyi... she still hasn't come back to the sect."

"Indeed."

"Two years back, she traveled from Huanglin City to the Nine Clouds Mountain Artifact Refining Workshop and stationed there on duty up to three months prior, when Blood Luo Mountain and Demon Flame Palace launched a frenzied assault on the workshop."

"The market fell, fearing its total collapse she fled alongside cultivators from Medicine King Valley and Corpse Transporting Mountain, vanishing thereafter."

"These represent all sect records on Du Wanyi from recent years."

Hearing Master Xuan Shui's words, Ji Yuan sensed the challenge ahead.

"Nine Clouds Mountain Artifact Refining Workshop... that's inside Corpse Transporting Mountain's domain, correct?"

"Correct, Corpse Transporting Mountain and Spirit Control Sect have long overseen that artifact refining workshop, and the current chaos there... you're aware."

Master Xuan Shui let out a profound sigh, holding back further comment.

"Does her Soul Lamp... remain burning?"

Ji Yuan's mind weighed heavy, bracing for the direst outcome.

"Hold on, I'll inquire on your behalf."

With that, Master Xuan Shui produced a Communication Talisman.

The Water Dragon Sect's Soul Lamps reside in the Ancestral Hall; ascertaining their status requires consulting the guardians there.

Post-transmission, within a handful of breaths, the talisman in his grasp quivered lightly.

"She's alive, though her precise whereabouts remain unknown."

"Many thanks, Uncle Master."

Ji Yuan clasped his hands in salute and bowed, adding, "Also, once the transfer roster emerges, might I have a copy?"

"Of course."

Master Xuan Shui gave a subtle nod.

"This disciple bids farewell."

Though he gained intelligence, it wasn't the tidings he sought, yet Ji Yuan departed regardless.

Upon exiting Water Dragon Island, he veered southward on instinct.

Not until he spotted the vacant spot where Wuyou Island once stood did he recall his own island was gone.

His eyes drifted inevitably toward Taian Island.

"Second Sister..."

Ji Yuan whispered under his breath.

Reflecting now, the predicament struck as profoundly tough, chiefly from ignorance of Du Wanyi's path.

Should her exact spot be known... Ji Yuan would readily enlist Hua Yaoyue's aid.

Du Wanyi's natural aptitude fell short, and fortune had scarcely favored her.

To put it bluntly, achieving Foundation Establishment for her was already a tremendous challenge, let alone attempting Core Formation down the line.

Thus, venturing to the Desolate Ancient Continent represented her optimal path ahead.

Yet now she has vanished... Ji Yuan gazed at the fully triggered arrays across Taian Island, ultimately overcome by helplessness.

Before his departure, he had bestowed upon her abundant Immortal Talent, including even the upgraded Qi Blood Pills.

Furthermore, Du Wanyi possessed a naturally cautious disposition, far from any reckless sort.

Provided she avoids instant death, endurance and survival should prove no issue.

Naturally, this assurance stemmed primarily from Ji Yuan's recollection of her standout display within the Nine Nether Cave Heaven.

So long as her fortune doesn't plummet too harshly, pulling through shouldn't pose a problem.

However, that likely bars her from reaching the Desolate Ancient Continent... Ji Yuan released a quiet sigh deep within.

He halted merely briefly in that spot, then noticed a late-stage Foundation Establishment Female Cultivator soaring from the eastern sector of former Hu Yue Island.

"Greetings, Junior Brother Wu You."

Ji Yuan observed her, faintly recalling her as a past neighbor.

"Senior Sister Youlan."

Ji Yuan offered his polite return.

Soon after, they swapped a handful of courteous remarks, the substance of which... amounted to mere laments over the chaotic world affairs.

Right as Ji Yuan prepared an excuse to depart, Isle Master Youlan sent a voice transmission:

"Junior Brother Wu You, are you seeking the Isle Master of Taian?"

"I once worked alongside her at the Nine Clouds Mountain Artifact Refining Workshop two years prior, and picked up some news about her..."