Chapter 144: The Final One of the Five Treasures, Found!

[Year 60, Age 78.]

[Your cultivation realm has reached the twelfth level of the Spirit Sea realm. Reaching the peak is merely a matter of time.]

[However, the search for Forgetful Dust Water has hit a bottleneck.]

[Xiliang has the smallest area among the Five Regions.]

[Once the Ten Thousand Souls Banner's Imperial Decree was issued, basically everyone and every artifact knew about it within a year.]

[This Spirit Artifact Nation's ruler usually doesn't have much to trouble everyone with.]

[This time, he's finally issued a task, and even stated that whoever finds this thing will be rewarded with a thousand pieces of gold and granted a Marquisate with Ten Thousand Households.]

[Everyone and every artifact in Xiliang has been searching for the Forgetful Dust Water with great seriousness.]

[But so far, there has been no news.]

[You recall the records on the pill formula.]

["It depends on luck; only a destined person can see the Forgetful Dust Water...

Could it be that Forgetful Dust Water randomly spawns in Xiliang?

Then who on earth could find this thing?

How did the ancient sages discover this thing and use it to refine the Five Regions Sacred Pill?"]

[The creation of the Five Regions Sacred Pill has encountered a difficult problem.]

[The Ten Thousand Souls Banner, however, is having a blast in the Spirit Artifact Nation.]

[Ten thousand artifacts come to pay homage, shouting "Great Emperor!" from the mountains.]

[He appointed the Immortal-Binding Rope as Prime Minister. After all, this guy had been the nation's ruler for twenty years, understands state affairs, and things really wouldn't work without him.]

[He appointed the Demon Refining Pot as Chief Eunuch, which infuriated the pot so much it cursed him for three days and three nights without repeating a single phrase.]

[As for you, you hold no official position, but you are the man behind the Ten Thousand Souls Banner!]

[Whatever government decree you tell the Ten Thousand Souls Banner to issue, he issues.]

[Whatever resources you tell the Ten Thousand Souls Banner to get for you, he has to scrape them together from Xiliang.]

[The feeling of being a treacherous minister is also something you're thoroughly enjoying.]

[But the fact that the Forgetful Dust Water can't be found is also a genuine headache.]

[Year 61, Age 79.]

[You replaced "Man and Sword as One" with "Luckier with Age".]

[You used your "Treasure-Sniffing Nose" to search all over Xiliang for the Forgetful Dust Water.]

[Yet you could never catch the scent of a Supreme Treasure, forcing you to temporarily return to Great Artifact City and wait for news.]

[Your Elder Brother, your beloved, your respected teacher, your old friends—they all know you are currently in Great Artifact City in Xiliang, so they often send you intelligence.]

[You learn that the four great Demon Ancestors—Azure Dragon, Vermilion Bird, Black Tortoise, and White Tiger—have led ten Demon Saints, a hundred Demon Kings, and a million elite Demon Tribe warriors to press their army against Cangqiong Ridge!]

[Over the past few years, because you forewarned everyone about the impending Demon Tribe invasion, everyone was somewhat prepared.]

[Thus, the Four-Eyed Spiritual Monkey's vanguard army failed to succeed.]

[This time, they couldn't infiltrate the Five Regions to slaughter indiscriminately; they were all blocked outside Cangqiong Ridge.]

[But now, the situation is not optimistic.]

[Although the Five Regions side was prepared, they didn't go all out. Each faction only dispatched a portion of their forces to assist in the defense.]

[The Demon Tribe, however, is going all in!]

[This creates immense pressure for those currently defending Cangqiong Ridge!]

[Currently, all factions within the Five Regions have realized the severity of the situation and are urgently sending reinforcements.]

[All parties have reached a consensus.]

[The Demon Tribe has come to exterminate the Five Regions.]

[If this calamity cannot be overcome, given the accumulated hatred between the two races over many years, the Demon Tribe will certainly seize the chance to slaughter every last person in the Five Regions, leaving not even a chicken or dog alive!]

[Therefore, all internal wars cease immediately, and all grudges are set aside!]

["The Demon Tribe, huh..."]

[After learning about the tragedy of the human-demon war thirty thousand years ago and how the Dragon-Man tribe backstabbed the Demon Tribe,]

[you actually don't want to see the humans of the Five Regions and the Demon Tribe of the Great Wastes repeat that tragedy.]

[But some things can't be achieved by mere talk.]

[Only by beating the Demon Tribe until they are afraid! Until it hurts! Will they quietly listen to you explain the stakes.]

[Peace is never negotiated out of discussion.]

[Everyone understands the principle, but to make the other side listen to your reasoning, you must first make them submit.]

[This battle is unavoidable.]

["I haven't broken through yet, haven't reached the level of absolute invincibility below the Martial King Realm. My impact there would be limited, but..."]

[You crush the letter in your hand into powder, caught in a dilemma.]

[At that moment, a meteor hammer rushed in.]

["Report—Your Majesty! There's a monk outside who says he's found the Forgetful Dust Water and has come to claim the reward!"]

[The Ten Thousand Souls Banner sat on the imperial throne, giving orders arrogantly.]

["Bring him before Zhen!"]

[You immediately stood up and rushed out.]

[The Ten Thousand Souls Banner instantly changed his tune.]

["Ah... For such an important matter, Zhen should personally go out to welcome him."]

[You arrived outside the palace at your fastest speed and saw a familiar figure.]

["That damn bald donkey?!"]

[Zhen Pin, wearing a patched-up kasaya, pressed his palms together and said to you,]

["Why does the gentleman open his mouth to insult? Do you harbor some prejudice against our Buddhist faith?"]

[It was that familiar tone, unchanged no matter what happened.]

["Hahaha! Monk! You truly are my benefactor! I never thought I'd meet you again... Yes, yes, you're not dead yet, not dead yet."]

["The gentleman's words are rather unpleasant. Do we know each other?"]

["We do."]

["When?"]

["Just now."]

["..."]

["Alright, let's enter the palace. I'll have Little Wan appoint you as State Preceptor! Right, remember to tell me where the Forgetful Dust Water is!"]

["This 'Little Wan' couldn't possibly be the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, His Holy Majesty, could it?"]

["Haha! What 'Holy Majesty'? He's just a lowlife!"]

["..."]

[The Spirit Artifact Nation gained a Grand State Preceptor.]

[It's just a bunch of amateurs anyway, let them do as they please.]

[Zhen Pin gave you directions, leading you to a tidal flat along the Yuexia River in Xiliang.]

["It's right here."]

[You indeed caught the scent of a Supreme Treasure!]

["How strange!"]

[You had been to this place before.]

[The Yuexia River is the largest river in Xiliang. The name "Forgetful Dust Water" obviously sounds water-related, so you naturally investigated all water bodies first.]

[But when you came here before, you didn't smell any Supreme Treasure scent!]

[Following the scent, you found some water droplets in a small puddle on the tidal flat that did not dissolve into the soil.]

[They were like little glass marbles, bouncing around in the puddle, emitting a faint blue halo.]

[This indeed matched the appearance of Forgetful Dust Water as recorded in the pill formula.]

["This humble monk saw that the 'Forgetful Dust Water' mentioned in the bounty bore a strong resemblance to the strange water droplets I saw here, so I thought to report it at the palace to try my luck."]

["Good thing you didn't touch it. If someone comes into contact with this thing, it immediately turns into ordinary water."]

["The bounty mentioned that point. This humble monk naturally wouldn't touch it recklessly."]

[You circled around Zhen Pin a few times, sizing him up and down.]

["Amitabha. What is not in accordance with propriety, one should not look upon. Why is the gentleman examining this State Preceptor so intently?"]

["You, step away first."]

["Go where?"]

["Anywhere. Just go far away."]

[Although Zhen Pin didn't understand, he complied.]

[After Zhen Pin walked far away, you suddenly discovered the Forgetful Dust Water had disappeared!]

["Come back, come back!"]

[Hearing your voice, Zhen Pin slowly walked back.]

[When he came within a hundred-meter range, the Forgetful Dust Water reappeared!]

["So that's what 'destined person' means! But why is it Zhen Pin?"]