The Rich Cultivator-Chapter 41. Golden Crystal Sand Desert

Golden Crystal Sand Desert, a landscape bathed in shimmering beauty. As far as the eye can see, undulating dunes of golden-hued crystal sands stretch into the horizon, resembling an endless sea of precious metal. Under the relentless gaze of the sun, the desert radiates an ethereal glow, casting a mesmerising spectacle upon travellers who dare to venture into its depths. Each grain of sand gives a vibe that it seems to hold a secret, glinting with the promise of untold treasures buried beneath the surface.

Journeying through the Golden crystal Sand Desert is akin to navigating a realm of dreams, where reality merges with fantasy. The shifting sands whisper tales of ancient civilizations and forgotten legends, their echoes carried by the wind. Despite its harsh and unforgiving nature, the desert exudes a sense of otherworldly tranquillity, drawing wanderers into its embrace with an irresistible allure. Beneath the golden sheen lies a world teeming with life, where resilient flora and fauna carve out an existence amidst the arid expanse.

Yet, amid the breathtaking beauty of the Golden Crystal Sand Desert, danger lurks in every shadow. Sandstorms rage across the landscape, engulfing unwary travellers in a swirling vortex of golden dust. Hidden beneath the dunes lie treacherous traps and mysterious ruins, remnants of civilizations long past. Only the most skilled and daring adventurers dare to explore its depths, seeking the fabled treasures said to lie buried beneath the sands. These are stories and rumours about the Golden Crystal Sand Desert.

Golden Sand City is the only Town near the Golden Crystal Sand Desert. People simply called it Outer City. Because there is another City with the same name inside the Golden Crystal Sand Desert. That’s inner City, where tired travellers would stay.

Outside the outer city a Golden Carriage which reflects the same shiny colour of the Golden Sand Desert arrived.

"We finally arrived near the Gold Crystal Sand Desert." Tyler said as he looked at the two gluttons who were fighting for food. He couldn’t understand why they are fighting for food when they can just copy as many as they want.

Also he couldn’t understand why Mana is in her grown up form. She sometimes changes into this form but never speaks a word. Actually Tyler prefers this Young Lady Mana because the Loli Mana with cat ears and devil tail is totally a pervert. Even though it’s the same person he couldn’t understand why she has a different personality.

The small black Dragon turned into a ray of light and went back to his ring.

"Zuzia is a good girl." Tyler said.

Mana ears perked up. She divided into Tyler’s body. Her head popped out from his chest and looked at him.

"Alright, Mana is also a Good Girl." Tyler said. Mana nodded in satisfaction before entering inside him. No pun intended.

Tyler looked at the city. As a city near the desert it has a unique blend of architectural styles, with buildings designed to withstand the heat and occasional sandstorms. Tyler is able to see a lot of earthy tones in the buildings and landscaping, and there are also palm trees and other desert-adapted flora. Sand dunes and rocky outcrops are visible on the outskirts of the city, emphasising its proximity to the desert.

Behind this small city is a vast desert and it is stretched far away. According to history these deserts were once a giant sea. But it was many centuries ago. Even prehistoric Beast Bones can be found in this vast desert.

Tyler stopped the carriage at an inn. The temperature outside was so high. Even Cultivators are sweating profusely. There are no mortals in this city, so everything is paid in Spirit stones. Tyler just rented a courtyard because the Inn is not up to his liking. Then he installed a small cooling formation in his room. He paid the Carriage Driver for his job, he even paid a little more. The Driver left happily after receiving the payment.

Tyler then took out the communication talisman and contacted his senior brother Chen Xi. Chen Xi soon arrived at Tyler’s house with his teammates. He also saw Chi in that group. The others are also outer disciples of the Frozen Heart Sect. They greeted him politely. Tyler is little famous for his wealth so they are not surprised by him renting a whole courtyard.

"There is still a year for the competition. Are you here to practise the Body Refinement Method?" Chen Xi asked. Tyler mentioned to him before that he will reach the city faster and practice there for a few months.

"Yes. My Elemental Body Refining Method has reached a threshold, as well as my Lake View art. I will probably reach 7 th stage of Qi Refining Realm in 6 months." Tyler said.

"Wow.. Fast." Chen Xi exclaimed.

After talking about random topics Chen Xi and his team left. They still have a mission to complete. Tyler left the courtyard and brought Mana to explore the city. Due to the sun shining highly, the Yang Energy in the desert is high. Mana doesn’t like it so she enters his body and refuses to come out.

The night came, Tyler didn’t sleep. Instead he walked towards the edge of the desert. The Moon shone on the desert which reflected the Golden Crystal Sands making the whole desert beautiful. Mana also popped out in her young lady form. She looked at the beautiful sight and memorised it.

┉┈ ◈ ◉ ◈ ┈┉

The following days are just Tyler training.

A month later,

Tyler is wearing a conical hat and travelling on a war horse in the desert. He stopped in a place and walked towards an empty ruin. These ruins were already explored, but people love to visit as sight seeing. Tyler was casually looking at the ruins, and suddenly Mana warned him.

"You are surrounded." Mana said.

"Huh... I failed to notice." Tyler said, "but my spiritual senses are suppressed inside the ruins."

"Hand over all your wealth." Five to six People surrounded Tyler.

"They are just at the 3rd stage of the qi refining realm." Mana’s voice reached his ears.

Tyler’s eyes shined because he always wanted to fight a real battle. Today he didn’t expect to be lucky.

He excluded his 6th stage of Qi Refining Realm aura. But the bandits didn’t panic. Because it’s 1 vs 6. As long as they work together and make him lose energy it’s their win.

Tyler used his footwork to dash forward. He reached one of the bandits easily. He grabbed his face and shouted, "Freeze."

His face turned into ice. Instead of panicking, the other bandits showed a happy face.

"He is an ice cultivator. The water vapour in the air is less. His Cultivation Art is weakened." One of the bandits said. The remaining five bandits stood in a formation. A fire beast image was formed in the air.

Tyler didn’t care about the attack; he touched his ring and poured some water out. Looking at the storage ring, the Bandits’ eyes turned even greedy. They used all their power to attack him.

The heat emitted from their spell made the water turn into vapour. The of the fire beast rushed towards Tyler. They decided to attack him with everything they got.

The fire hit Tyler, who is standing as a statue. Half of his body broke.

"We got him." The bandits rejoiced.

But suddenly their laughter stopped because what broke was just a statue of Tyler made of ice.

"How is it? It is a combination of Elemental Body Refining Technique and all of my movement art. I will call it After Image or Ice Image or After Ice Image? Well I will decide the name later." Tyler’s voice sounded behind them.

The Bandits already used their energy so they can barely fight against him.

Tyler stomped his left leg first and made a stance. Then he stomped his right leg and made the ground tremble. Then he launched his fist which was shining in red colour. Three people got hit and were thrown away. Two people managed to dodge.

"That attack is so powerful but also easy to dodge. I should come up with an extra step along with a good name." Tyler touched his chin and pondered.

Two remaining bandits were running away from the ruin. But one of the bandits suddenly stopped and punched his comrade.

Mana emerged from his body and disappeared. The Bandit who was possessed by Mana looked at his fist in confusion. Why did he attack his friend?

He then saw the floating girl behind him. He sat on his butt in frozen fear.

"Hiyah." Mana made a round kick in the air and made him faint.

"Don’t casually go inside other people’s bodies." Tyler said.

"Oh Oh... Are you jealous?" Mana winked at him.

"Me? Jealous? Never!" Tyler said confidentiality. He is a little jealous but he heard about her possession skill. There is a chance she might get backlash if that skill didn’t work. So he doesn’t want her to take risks.

"For me, Taking Risk, is like Eating Rusk." Mana said when she guessed his thoughts. She also took a Rusk from the ring and ate it.

"Let’s Go back. It almost time for me to breakthrough. After that we will meet our teammates." Tyler then hopped on the horse and travelled back to his rented courtyard.