Chapter 506 - 274: You think I’m a cultivator?

「Two hours later.」

Inside the cave, Cheng Zongyang finally let out a sigh of relief after confirming that the Spiritual Power of the two Teleportation Arrays was circulating without issue. He stored the Lighting Lamp in the Wilderness World and turned to walk to the cave’s entrance.

He placed the stone blocks his Soul Slave had prepared for camouflage over the entrance, sealing it in a way that ensured no difference could be seen from the outside.

Although there were a few cracks, it was of little consequence. As long as one didn’t look too closely, nothing special could be seen from the outside.

Having resolved the island’s fixed-point teleportation issue, Cheng Zongyang returned to the mountaintop to retrieve his rope.

Standing on the summit, he looked down at the Dragon Bone Ship sailing around the island. ’It’s time to deal with that person.’

’An Innate Expert like him has probably lost all desire to cause trouble by now.’

With a thought, the Dragon Bone Ship, which had just completed half its circuit, abruptly stopped and turned around.

On the deck, Li Cungang sensed the change in direction and immediately opened his eyes. As he watched the ship beneath him race toward the cliffs at incredible speed, a guess immediately formed in his mind.

’Is he... done with his business?’

His first thought was that the Cultivator on the island had finished his business. Otherwise, why would the ship, which had been circling the island for two hours, suddenly change course?

Li Cungang immediately took stock of his physical condition.

The Internal Injury he had sustained from the Sea Beast was almost fully healed, but he had recovered less than a third of his True Qi. Still, after these past two hours, his Essence, Qi, and Spirit were in much better shape than before.

As the ship neared the cliffs, Li Cungang saw someone standing atop them, looking down in his direction.

Li Cungang’s heart suddenly tightened. He was terrified, afraid that his earlier attempt to seize the ship had already angered the other party.

’How strong could I possibly be in front of a Cultivator?’

He didn’t need to think hard about it; the fact that the ship was unfazed by the Sea Beast’s barrage of water spheres said it all.

Seeing the ship approach, Cheng Zongyang didn’t hesitate. He took a running leap and jumped off the summit.

At the same time, he executed the third form of his Body Technique, Stepping Wind.

Aided by his True Qi, he descended step by step through the air. There was no sensation of falling; instead, it was as if he were walking down a flight of stairs, landing at a slightly quickened pace on a reef below.

The moment the Dragon Bone Ship drew near, he gave a light tap of his toes and leaped aboard.

"I am Li Cungang, paying my respects to the Immortal Master! Thank you, Immortal Master, for saving my life and not holding my past transgressions against me!" The moment Cheng Zongyang landed on the ship, Li Cungang, who had been waiting, dropped to one knee without a word and offered a cupped-fist salute.

Cheng Zongyang was taken aback. ’I didn’t expect this guy to pull a move like this.’

But he didn’t respond, instead moving up to the Third Level.

With a thought, the ship began to slowly reverse. Only then did he look at Li Cungang and ask, "You think I’m a Cultivator?"

’Given everything that’s happened with this ship, I knew he would think that. Still, I need to make things clear.’

’Although I have ways to deal with an Innate Expert, I don’t want to cause any misunderstandings that would waste time on explanations later.’

"Yes! Only such methods could frighten away the Exotic Beasts in the sea and effortlessly block a Sea Beast’s water sphere Ability. Besides a legendary Cultivator, not even an Innate Great Perfection expert could do that. I was trapped here for five years and was desperate to leave, which is why I was possessed and blind, attempting to steal the Immortal Master’s ship. Please, Immortal Master, punish me!"

Cheng Zongyang shook his head. "Get up. I’m not a Cultivator yet."

’Not yet?’

Li Cungang froze. He looked up and, after a moment of nervous probing, discovered that Cheng Zongyang was actually a Third Grade Martial Artist?

This left him utterly bewildered.

But Cheng Zongyang saw the look on his face and knew what he was thinking. He said coolly:

"The matter of you trying to take the ship is a trivial affair to me. Besides, as you’ve seen, no one can take it away. Since you want to leave, I can give you a ride. Where are you from?"

Li Cungang couldn’t figure out Cheng Zongyang’s situation, but his ability to control the ship, combined with his earlier statement of "not yet," could only mean one thing: he was a Cultivator. He just hadn’t completed his training!

With that thought, he maintained his respectful demeanor and said, "I am from the Li Family, a core family under the command of the Tuoba Family, one of the Thirteen Royal Families. Because..."

Fearing that Cheng Zongyang wouldn’t want to listen to a long-winded story, Li Cungang didn’t elaborate, instead quickly and simply explaining his situation.

The main points were that the Tuoba Family had abandoned him here due to a personal grudge, and his feud with the Sea Beasts had kept him trapped for five years.

After listening, Cheng Zongyang said coolly, "In that case, you can sit anywhere you like, just don’t come up to the Second or Third Levels. I happen to be returning to the Da Liang Territory, so I can give you a lift. I have some other business to attend to along the way, so the journey might take a while. Otherwise, feel free to do as you please. Oh, right."

As if remembering something, Cheng Zongyang materialized a bottle of Five Grains Inner Replenishing Pills out of thin air and tossed it to Li Cungang. "One of the pills in here can spare you the need to eat for three days. There are twenty of them. They’re yours."

Li Cungang subconsciously reached out and caught it, his mind reeling as he recalled Cheng Zongyang’s feat of conjuring an object from nothing.

’Conjuring objects from nothing... and he’s still not a Cultivator?’

The next moment, he abruptly dropped to one knee again and said to Cheng Zongyang with utmost reverence:

"Immortal Master, I have already reached the Innate Late Stage Realm, and I am only a few years away from the Great Perfection Realm. For hundreds of years, the path beyond the Innate Realm has been a dead end. Countless people are trapped in the Realm of Perfection until their lifespans run out and they die. Therefore, I beg you, Immortal Master, to grant me a Realm-Breaking Method! I will agree to any task within my power, I ask only for a method to break through!"

Seeing that the man had walked right into his trap and brought up the matter himself, Cheng Zongyang smiled inwardly.