The Treasure-seeking Mouse is a rare exotic beast, naturally endowed with the ability to seek treasures.

Cultivators who were fortunate enough to obtain such a mouse went to great lengths to increase the number of Treasure-seeking Mice, to prevent their bloodline from dying out.

With the scarce number of Treasure-seeking Mice, it was difficult to find a male and female pair; they could only mate them with other Magical Mice.

The number of pure-blooded Treasure-seeking Mice diminished, and those with mixed bloodlines became increasingly prevalent.

After countless years, Magical Mice with the Treasure-seeking bloodline were nearly extinct.

Cultivators are never short of scammers and deceivers; many people profited from selling fake Treasure-seeking Mice, making them "increasingly common."

The trio had sought out this cave because the Treasure-seeking Mouse had undoubtedly identified the Mountain and Sea Pearl as a precious treasure, which led them here.

This indirectly verified that the Treasure-seeking Mouse was genuine.

Although its bloodline was not pure, it could use the Ancestor Beast Holy Pill to help it return to its ancestral bloodline.

Thereby, the value of this Treasure-seeking Mouse increased significantly.

There were Divine Transformation Cultivators from the Seven Fiends Temple in the Giant Marsh Market, making any hostile action extremely risky.

Any matter that involved life and death should be avoided if possible.

This did not mean that the Insect External Incarnation would give up on the Treasure-seeking Mouse; having encountered it, missing the opportunity was out of the question.

Without a sound, the Insect External Incarnation left a Water Moon Mark on the Treasure-seeking Mouse for tracking purposes.

The Water Moon Mark could track the Treasure-seeking Mouse, finding a time when the Divine Transformation Cultivator was absent to resolve the matter and thus secure the treasure while minimizing danger.

Having completed everything, the Insect External Incarnation returned to the Mountain and Sea Pearl and continued its secluded cultivation.

The Nascent Soul of the main body had already condensed into shape and entered the final stage of Heart Demon Pass.

Ancient Well Without Waves, Ice Heart Curse, Spiritual Heart Jade Pendant, Bright Heart Jade Pendant, and Mind-Guarding Talisman... So many methods to guard one's spirit against the Heart Demon.

This was the simplest stage of them all.

「Seven days later.」

A baby that looked ninety percent like Jia Ren crawled up the Supreme Demon-sealing Tower, its face alight with joy.

The Purple Thunder Exorcising Sword appeared before the plump, white Nascent Soul, which wielded the sword and transformed into a streak of purple lightning, vanishing from sight.

"Retrieve!"

The Nascent Soul cast aside the Purple Thunder Exorcising Sword and returned to its body.

Jia Ren, seated in meditation, slowly opened his eyes, a smile on his face.

"I've finally become a Nascent Soul Cultivator!"

From that moment on, his lifespan exceeded a thousand years.

Not only that, but he could now briefly wield Divine Transformation-grade Magic Treasures that were previously beyond his control, greatly enhancing his combat power.

Good news had lifted his spirits. Having just achieved a breakthrough, it was time to collect congratulatory gifts for his Nascent Soul.

Jia Ren made sure no one was nearby before he withdrew the Mountain and Sea Pearl and used his evasion technique to return to the cave from underground.

Seven days had passed, and the Giant Marsh Market had undergone a complete change; the Seven Fiends Temple had killed the resisting Cultivators and plundered the resources of the market.

The Giant Marsh Market was a treasure trove; if managed properly, it would yield a continuous flow of wealth.

The Seven Fiends Temple had no intentions of letting go of this lucrative piece and formally took over the market, becoming its master.

Jia Ren silently released his divine consciousness, searching meticulously.

The whereabouts of the Divine Transformation Cultivators from the Seven Fiends Temple were unknown.

"Mirror Flower Divine Moon!"

Jia Ren disappeared from his spot, leaving no trace.

The market, post-war, was not bustling; most areas bore the scorch marks and craters from Spell attacks.

The few Cultivators one did encounter wore looks of desolation, akin to walking corpses.

Those who were unwilling to pledge loyalty to the Seven Fiends Temple were slaughtered; many, although alive, were merely cannon fodder for the Temple.

Jia Ren walked the streets of the market, undetected by anyone.

The Technique-Nearing-Dao Level of Mirror Flower Water Moon had achieved an unprecedented apex.

Mirror Flower Divine Moon could craft up to four layers of illusion, affecting the target's perception and using Illusion Techniques to assault their Divine Soul.

At this level, this Divine Skill held terrifying power, as the illusions could manifest as actual attacks on the Divine Soul.

Could Mirror Flower Divine Moon deceive a Divinity Transformation Stage Cultivator?

Jia Ren was certain of one thing; even Nascent Soul Late-stage Cultivators with Divine Skills to counter illusions would struggle to break through his Mirror Flower Divine Moon.

"It's time to collect my Nascent Soul congratulatory gift."

Had he not made thorough arrangements and moved the Mountain and Sea Pearl, the culprits attacking his cave might have hindered his advancement, possibly even attracting Divine Transformation Cultivators.

They had almost interfered with his advancement, and now with an exotic beast like the Treasure-seeking Mouse involved, he could exact revenge and claim the beast simultaneously.

"Good, the tracking mark is not far."

Jia Ren looked towards the east, sensing the faint Water Moon Mark over three thousand miles away, disappearing swiftly.

From start to finish, he moved through the Giant Marsh Market as if he were invisible, leaving the place without any obstacles.

The Treasure-seeking Mouse hasn't run into any trouble, has it...

Then again, it is very old...

Xu Mao looked at the Treasure-seeking Mouse in his hand, his face full of distress, yet powerless to do anything.

He looked at the increasingly feeble little creature and memories of the past surfaced in his mind.

Xu Mao had once been a Foundation Establishment Cultivator of the Seven Massacres Sect, with average talent and no special skills.

Without fortuitous encounters, he would have remained at the Foundation Establishment Stage, unlikely to have the chance to ascend to the Golden Core Stage.

Which ordinary Cultivator would be content with mediocrity when most yearned to become immortal, to ascend to the Golden Core Stage and double their lifespan?

Xu Mao encountered someone selling a Treasure-seeking Mouse in the market and thought he had stumbled upon a bargain until he returned to his Sect and was laughed at by others.

A real Treasure-seeking Mouse... How could a Foundation Establishment Cultivator possibly afford one?

Moreover, the appearance of the Treasure-seeking Mouse was more akin to a Bifocal Spirit Mouse.

Markets are never short of swindlers; Cultivators dreaming of fortuitous encounters are the easiest to deceive.

Xu Mao realized he had been duped and quickly returned to the market in search of the seller.

Regrettably, the swindler was just a Loose Cultivator with a temporary stall, which was long gone.

Nearly ten thousand Spirit Stones, all he had left, were spent on only a low-tier spirit mouse, causing him such pain that he felt unable to breathe.

He could but hope to sell it off at a stall to recover his Spirit Stones.

Unfortunately, not only did he fail to sell it, he was instead surrounded by Cultivators who had been duped like him.

He didn't earn any Spirit Stones; instead, he took a brutal beating.

Xu Mao suffered successive setbacks and completely abandoned the thought of cultivation, deciding instead to live out his days in the sect.

Just when he thought all was lost and there was no way out, he found another village bright with willows and flowers.

A few days later, the Treasure-seeking Mouse showed its might and dug up a three-hundred-year-old Spiritual Medicine.

It also found rare Magical Treasure material Ore Stones for him.

Could this actually be a real Treasure-seeking Mouse?!

Xu Mao's broken path of cultivation was once again joined together.

He rose rapidly to prominence with the treasures found by the Treasure-seeking Mouse, and in one fell swoop, advanced to the Golden Core Stage.

No wall in this world is impervious to wind; word of the Treasure-seeking Mouse was discovered by fellow disciples, attracting the covetous looks of many.

But Xu Mao was a seasoned man of the world and had long been prepared for this.

He raised several Bifocal Spirit Mice, which looked almost identical to the true Treasure-seeking Mouse.

Those who attempted to steal the Treasure-seeking Mouse were conned one after another, and as Xu Mao deliberately made it known that the beast's bloodline was mixed and could only find low-grade trinkets, interest dwindled.

This also spared the Treasure-seeking Mouse from others' malicious intents.

To this day, the Treasure-seeking Mouse has lived for sixty years, reaching the lifespan limit of a First-Order Magical Mouse.

Its rise was due to its bloodline and its downfall, too; it was, after all, just a First-Order Magical Mouse.

Even consuming Longevity Fruit couldn't fend off the inevitable end.

The Treasure-seeking Mouse looked back and squeaked.

The man and beast had been here for nearly a day. Had it found another treasure? If the Treasure-seeking Mouse had found something valuable, it wouldn't have waited until now.

A rare Magical Beast?

Or... a human carrying treasures?

Xu Mao turned around to look, but found nothing.

No one?

The Treasure-seeking Mouse's squeaks grew weaker, and its body was lifted by an invisible force, suspended in mid-air.

What was that?

Xu Mao reacted quickly, shooting out a Black Sword that slashed towards the seemingly empty space.

The slash fell through the void, striking nothing.

The cry of the Treasure-seeking Mouse was filled with melancholy and a sense of feebleness.

"So, it was you who found me? It seems you really do have the bloodline of a Treasure-seeking Mouse."

Jia Ren appeared out of nowhere, holding the Treasure-seeking Mouse in his left hand, scrutinizing it before frowning.

"A pity, it's too old..."

With Jia Ren's keen eyes, it was obvious that the Treasure-seeking Mouse was at the end of its lifespan, with not much time left.

The lifespan of Magical Beasts varies; among them, mouse-type Magical Beasts have shorter lives, while Turtle Demon Beasts live longer.

This Treasure-seeking Mouse, with its impure bloodline, couldn't break free from the shackles of a First-Order Monster; sixty years was its limit.

"No big problem, it can still be solved."

If a First-Order Monster's lifespan is insufficient, can't it just advance to the Second Order?

The Treasure-seeking Mouse has enough accumulation; after its bloodline reverts to its ancestral form, advancing to Second Order wouldn't be difficult.

"Let it go! If you have the guts, come at me!"

Upon seeing a Nascent Soul Cultivator grab the Treasure-seeking Mouse, Xu Mao was both shocked and enraged.

Jia Ren glanced back at Xu Mao and said with a smile, "Don't say such things; it makes me sound like a villain."

Xu Mao, processing what the newcomer had just said, was momentarily stunned in place.

"Wait, you can keep Big White alive?"

The fury that had risen in him vanished in an instant, replaced by a look of hope.

A Nascent Soul Cultivator had no need to deceive him; perhaps he truly had a way.

"Please, senior, save it..."

Xu Mao had sought many ways to prolong the Treasure-seeking Mouse's life, but aside from the Longevity Fruit, no other treasures were effective.

The Longevity Fruit's effects were limited and couldn't break through the cap on lifespan; a fruit that was supposed to add thirty years to its life had only allowed the Treasure-seeking Mouse to live for less than three additional years.

"You give it to me, and then I'll save it." Jia Ren's purpose for this trip was the Treasure-seeking Mouse; he wasn't here to do favors for others. "If you refuse to give it to me, I'll also settle the old score of you damaging my cave."

The Treasure-seeking Mouse, sensing its master in danger, bit at Jia Ren's fingers.

The physical body of a Black Dragon Vajra Body is comparable to top Magical Treasures—how could it possibly be pierced by a First-Order Monster?

The last of its teeth shattered, and blood flowed without ceasing.

Jia Ren sighed, "Truly, a deep bond between man and beast."

If one wishes to obtain the Treasure-seeking Mouse, its former master cannot be killed.

Otherwise, the Treasure-seeking Mouse wouldn't willingly work for them.

"I am willing to hand it over to you, please take good care of it." Xu Mao reacted quickly, yielding the Treasure-seeking Mouse.

Having only a few days left, the Treasure-seeking Mouse could hope for a new life only if it followed a new master.

This was the best option.

The Treasure-seeking Mouse, exceptionally intelligent, let go and looked at Xu Mao with an almost human reluctance in its eyes.

Jia Ren opened his hand, and the Treasure-seeking Mouse moved closer to Xu Mao and rubbed against the leg of its former master.

"Big White, after you follow your new master, you must live well," Xu Mao said, not looking at the Treasure-seeking Mouse, preferring it to live in the hands of another than to see it die of old age.

"You almost ruined my cultivation, and I'll take your Treasure-seeking Mouse as compensation—the grudge is settled," Jia Ren said as his hand motioned, and the invisible force took the Treasure-seeking Mouse away, vanishing from sight.

The Treasure-seeking Mouse was on the verge of dying from old age; if this dragged on, even with bloodline reversion, it wouldn't be able to advance to the Second Order.

Jia Ren placed it within the Mountain and Sea Pearl and fed it an Ancestor Beast Holy Pill, waiting for the outcome.

At the riverbank, only Xu Mao was left, staring at the spot where the Treasure-seeking Mouse had been, his expression reflecting loss and resignation.

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