Returning to his cave dwelling, Li Shiming cultivated while organizing all his travel notes.
The travel notes did not mention the Stepping Cloud Jade Token, and he could not ask a cultivator about it. If he did, he would surely arouse suspicion.
The Stepping Cloud Jade Token, closely guarded by a late-stage Golden Core cultivator, would bring immense trouble if any news of it leaked.
In this unfamiliar land, without a firm backing, he dared not recklessly invite trouble.
Ten days later, he received a message from Wang Fan. The gathering would be held three days from now at a pavilion near the mountaintop.
Time passed swiftly. Three days later, Li Shiming arrived at the pavilion to find seven late-stage Golden Core cultivators already present.
"Master Li!"
"Master Li!"
The two greetings sounded almost simultaneously, one naturally from Wang Fan, the other from Baodan Pavilion’s Yu An.
Among the seven late-stage Golden Core cultivators, Li Shiming discovered he knew three: Wang Fan, Yu An, and Master Wei from the Ten Thousand Books Pavilion.
"Li Shizhen greets fellow cultivators. I’m sorry for arriving late!" Li Shiming nodded in acknowledgment to Wang Fan and Yu An before bowing to the late-stage Golden Core cultivators.
Master Wei wanted to greet him but realized he didn’t know what kind of master Li Shiming was, leaving him momentarily stunned.
The title "master" is not casually used; it is a respectful address for someone who has reached a high level in a particular skill.
"Wang, Mr. Yu, aren’t you going to introduce this Master Li to us?" a late-stage Golden Core cultivator loudly asked.
"I am the earliest acquaintance of Master Li, so allow me to introduce him!" Wang Fan said with a smile.
Though he didn’t know when Li Shiming met Yu An, he had known Li Shiming since he moved to dwell on Wuqing Mountain.
After Li Shiming settled in his cave dwelling, Wang Fan heard the news, otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence that he met Li Shiming right after he left the cave?
"Master Li is an Alchemy Master. We are fortunate! We can directly ask Master Li to refine spirit pills, saving us so much trouble!" he continued the introduction.
"Liu Yong greets Master Li!"
"Yang Fu greets Master Li!"
"Jiang Nan greets Master Li!"
"Yang Fei greets Master Li!"
Each late-stage Golden Core cultivator rose to introduce themselves and salute Li Shiming.
This demonstrated the status of an Alchemy Master. Even if they didn’t know Li Shiming’s level, the title of Alchemy Master alone was enough to earn their respect.
Li Shiming returned each salute with a smile on his face.
"You’ve kept me in the dark. If I’d known you were an Alchemy Master, I would have given you a better deal!" Master Wei said with a rueful smile.
His words piqued the interest of the nearby late-stage Golden Core cultivators, realizing Master Wei had known Li Shiming for some time.
"I didn’t intentionally hide it. Should I announce to everyone that I’m an Alchemy Master?" Li Shiming replied with a smile.
Master Wei was unsettled. If Master Li’s alchemy skills were impressive, he would need to seek him out for alchemical help in the future.
Thinking of the alchemical teachings he sold to Master Li, he realized Master Li wouldn’t show him any mercy.
He couldn’t help but want to slap his own head for not recognizing Master Li’s alchemical master status when he bought those teachings.
"Master Li, please take a seat. We’ve just arrived and are exchanging some information," Wang Fan motioned to an empty seat for Li Shiming.
At the same time, he poured a cup of Third Grade Spirit Tea for Li Shiming and pushed a plate of spirit fruit toward him.
"There’s news that the Ten Thousand Beast Sect is pursuing a spiritual pet. It’s unclear what kind of creature it is to have escaped their grasp!" Liu Yong revealed.
"Four Golden Core cultivators from the Ten Thousand Beast Sect are active nearby, and their tempers are quite volatile. Wu from Nanshan fell because of this, so be cautious, everyone!" Yang Fu contributed to the matter.
Listening up to this point, Li Shiming understood the gathering’s purpose: for the late-stage Golden Core cultivators to exchange information.
Looking at the seven late-stage Golden Core cultivators, he wasn’t sure if they were the entire group residing on Wuqing Mountain.
Even so, having seven late-stage Golden Core cultivators was impressive, as Wuqing Mountain was merely a gathering spot for loose cultivators.
In the Beishu Continent, late-stage Golden Core cultivators among loose cultivators were exceedingly rare.
That loose cultivators could reach the late-stage Golden Core level with such resources showed the abundance of resources on the Dongqi Continent.
These updates were intriguing to Li Shiming. While seemingly trivial, they were crucial intelligence that could influence decisions if encountered.
"Master Li, I have three demon cores here and would like to request your help in refining them!" Wang Fan addressed Li Shiming after everyone had exchanged recent events.
He produced a jade box and placed it before Li Shiming.
Li Shiming sighed inwardly. Indeed, Wuqing Mountain wasn’t far from the coast, and the sea nearby had several Beast Luring Formations set by the Ten Thousand Beast Sect, ideal for loose cultivators to form teams and slay Great Demons.
Thus, refining pills here often involved using demon cores as material.
He wasn’t overly concerned, confident that even if he failed, the results wouldn’t be terrible.