Starting My Cultivation With Time Management-Chapter 925 - 65 Bluffing

Chapter 925 -65 Bluffing

Aside from the Central Continent, the Eastern Emperor Realm is surrounded by oceans to the southeast, northwest, and southwest.

Among these, the harshest climate belongs to the North Sea.

The North Sea is bitterly cold, its winds like sharp blades, relentless day and night, persisting without end in recent years. Its Spiritual Energy leans toward the yin attribute and aligns with the Water Element, thus making its erosion power exceptionally strong—it’s said that the northern shores of North State shrink every year due to the constant battering of the North Sea’s tides.

After a long journey, Long Long and Long Hu finally reached the coastal region of North State.

Because of the corrosive nature of the North Sea, most members of the Kun Race are unwilling to settle near it. Imagine spending a year painstakingly building a tribal settlement, only to have the foundation collapse beneath it and sink into the ocean the next year… That’s absolutely unfeasible.

Currently, the only ones willing to live near the North Sea are the Dragon Louse Clan.

Just from their name alone, one could tell they likely have some connection to the Azure Dragon Clan, though the specifics of their secrets remained unheard of even by Long Long.

Ever since an alliance was formed between the Xuan Gui Clan and the Qilin of North State, the Dragon Louse Clan has essentially been relegated to the oppressed tier, frequently conscripted by the Xuan Gui Clan to patrol and search the North Sea for traces of the Jiaolong’s descendants.

The outcome, naturally, has been futile—while the Dragon Louse are indeed part of the Kun Race, the long years of mistreatment have all but eroded their loyalty to the Xuan Gui Clan.

Long Long even maliciously speculated that if the Dragon Louse did happen to discover traces of Beiming Fanyang, they’d likely hide them rather than report to the Xuan Gui Clan.

The two of them arrived at a village of the Dragon Louse Clan along the North Sea coast.

The village contained roughly fifty to sixty people, most of whom lived off fishing and had no interest in cultivation. Their unusual appearances were distinct traits of the Kun Race.

Only one elder resided in the center of the village, occupying a house located in the area’s central spot.

Scanning the elder, Long Long confirmed that he was the village’s sole Transformation Realm cultivator, though his Cultivation Level was decidedly unimpressive.

While the elder’s living conditions and treatment were the finest in the village, they didn’t even compare to those of a mere servant from the Azure Dragon Clan—such was the harsh and perilous environment near the North Sea.

“Long Long,” Long Hu whispered, “What should we do now?”

“I’ll go in and have a look first,” Long Long replied.

The North Sea was vast, and combing through it inch by inch would be as futile as searching for a needle at the bottom of the ocean. That was not an option.

The safest and most reliable way, of course, would be to seize a local Dragon Louse Clan member who knew the lay of the land, have them lead the way, find Codfish Bay in the northern corner, and then kill them to silence loose ends… but such an approach would not only lack ethical integrity, it would also invite suspicion and wariness from the Jiaolong Clan, who kept a watchful eye over the North Sea.

Thus, after careful consideration, Long Long decided it would be far better to simply steal a map.

For most cultivators, stealing a map would be incredibly troublesome—not knowing whether a map even existed or guessing where one might be hidden made grabbing a local far more convenient. But with Long Long’s scanning ability, as long as a map had been created by one of the village’s cultivators, no matter where it was hidden within the house, he could ferret it out.

Using Ah Jing’s Illusion Technique, he silently infiltrated the heart of the village and soon approached the residence of the elder in the Transformation Realm.

Outside the elder’s doorway were three or four villagers standing in a semicircle, speaking with troubled expressions.

“Revered Elder,” one Dragon Louse villager began, “This year’s excuse, we honestly can’t come up with one!”

“Then think of something!” snapped the elder, seemingly exasperated by such matters, waving his hand dismissively. “Find some traces of shrimp soldiers or crab generals and let me report that to muddle through!”

“But it’s been nearly three hundred years!” another villager protested. “What excuse haven’t we already used?”

“Excuses we haven’t used yet can still be thought up!” the elder deflected skillfully. “For instance, spotting the remnants of mist and fog, suspecting the Jiaolong might have used their Divine Skills to ride those clouds—we’re currently conducting urgent investigations… That would suffice, wouldn’t it?”

“You’ve used that excuse seven times already!” one villager reminded nervously.

“Nonsense, it was only three times!” the elder snapped in anger. “Seven? Ridiculous!”

“Even three times is quite a lot,” another villager said, furrowing his brows. “Last time, the Xuan Gui Clan even sent people to investigate our alleged ‘discovery’… Any misstep, any flaw revealed, and we’d be accused of deceiving the Upper Clan!”

“Not coming up with something would mean failing in our duty!” the elder sneered coldly. “And you think you could bear the punishment of disrespecting the Upper Clan?”

The Dragon Louse villagers shook their heads repeatedly, muttering:

“No, we couldn’t… but isn’t West State attacking North State lately? When will that Xuanwu die already? If their clan were exterminated, we wouldn’t need to keep searching for Jiaolong anymore!”

“Stop spouting such pointless nonsense!” the elder spat in disdain. “Always wishing for the sky to fall—when has that ever realistically happened? Go and think up more excuses, and hurry!”

The villagers sighed and grumbled as they dispersed, while the elder shook his head and turned to enter his home.

As he pushed open the door, he was greeted by the sight of a Xuan Gui cultivator seated leisurely in one of his chairs, drinking tea.

The elder immediately recognized the intruder as a Xuan Gui cultivator, for no other race would drink tea with such a languid manner… His heart froze, but he quickly plastered a smile over his face and said:

“Honored envoy of the Upper Clan, what brings you here unannounced? Forgive my lack of proper hospitality…”

The Xuan Gui cultivator, of course, was Long Long in disguise. With the aid of Ah Jing’s Illusion Technique, he had planted subconscious hints, causing the elder to instinctively believe his assumed identity to be genuine.

Long Long set down the teacup deliberately and said slowly:

“With war raging fiercely in North State, greater vigilance must be paid to prevent the remnants of the North Sea from stirring trouble.”

“Tell me, how are the efforts to search for these remnants coming along?”

“Reporting to the Honorable Envoy,” the elder quickly adopted a fawning expression, “This year, we haven’t uncovered any new clues…”

The elder opted to say this because he feared the Xuan Gui cultivator may have overheard their earlier discussion through the door.

If they had been talking outside about fabricating excuses, and upon meeting the cultivator immediately lied as though nothing had happened, it would severely provoke the envoy if already aware. It was better to admit ineffectiveness outright in hopes of leniency.

Long Long sneered and asked:

“Are you aware of your guilt?”

The elder instantly dropped to the ground, trembling in fear, and pleaded:

“Our clan is guilty… but… in consideration of the many years we’ve dutifully searched the North Sea, I beg the Upper Clan for mercy!”

While his words appeared to be an appeal for kindness, their deeper implication reminded Long Long, “Which other race, apart from the Dragon Louse, could withstand the frigid agony of the North Sea and conduct such a prolonged search?”

Long Long naturally caught the undertone, responding with a cool laugh:

“I truly don’t understand. Beiming Fanyang has remained in the North Sea for centuries, unable to move or flee. How have you failed to uncover any trace of it after all this time?”

“Honored Immortal,” the elder prostrated himself and replied with trembling desperation, “The Jiaolong Clan is notoriously cunning, never once venturing out of Beiming Fanyang in all these years. Its location remains concealed with extraordinary secrecy.”

“But our clan patrols the North Sea tirelessly day and night. Should the Jiaolong dare step beyond their sanctuary, we would immediately trace them to their hidden domain and secure it in one strike!”