Upon a towering peak.
Fang Qing gazed at the brilliantly multicolored light barrier ahead and could not help sighing in frustration. “A fourth-rank restriction, troublesome indeed.”
After obtaining the benefits within the Void-Stepping Hall, he had immediately hurried toward the next marked location recorded in the Zhoutian Star Palace Map.
Unfortunately, the restrictions here had been preserved in remarkably complete condition. Even Qin Ruxue had no especially effective solution.
“After all, no Core Formation perfection cultivator ever attacked this place. Looks like I can only wait another sixty years.”
Most restrictions within the secret realm were subsidiary array linked to the grand array protecting the realm itself.
Now that cracks had already appeared throughout the secret realm, it could no longer remain hidden and was forced to endure the constant pressure of void storms from the great emptiness beyond.
Thus, the cracks would only continue growing larger, while the restrictions gradually weakened.
Until one day in the future, the entire secret realm would finally collapse completely and be swallowed into the void. Its treasures would scatter into the chaotic spatial currents, perhaps someday coincidentally falling back into the mortal world and becoming the legendary fortune of some lucky cultivator.
“I wonder how much that child of destiny has gained by now?”
Fang Qing somewhat expectantly took out a jade pendant, only for his expression to suddenly change.
“It failed?”
This had been the tracking method he secretly planted on Zhan Hongxiu years ago, allowing him to locate her with ease.
Yet after a moment of surprise, excitement instead appeared in his eyes.
“As expected of a child of destiny. She’s obtained another tremendous opportunity?”
“No wonder I suddenly felt the urge to think about her.”
“Still, although she managed to break my tracking method, her aura and karma remain. Calculating her whereabouts is still far too easy.”
Fang Qing pinched his fingers together as the Plum Blossom Divination silently circulated.
“Hm? If I forcibly kill her now, there is actually some minor ominousness in the hexagram. Has this girl already obtained a method capable of threatening me?”
“On the other hand, if I continue raising her, there may be even greater opportunities to harvest later?”
A gratified smile appeared on his face.
“This child of destiny has truly grown…”
“Fortunately, between us there is gratitude, not hatred.”
According to the practices of Ancient Shu, once a child of destiny showed signs of escaping control, even if great fortune still remained ahead, they would immediately be eradicated to eliminate future trouble.
One generally had to act while at least one or even two major realms higher than the target to ensure absolute certainty.
But Fang Qing still leaned toward continuing to nurture her and observing the eventual harvest.
He continued his divination, his gaze suddenly shifting.
“Mountain below, wind above. The wind is blocked by the mountain, causing stagnation and decay… a ghost-official hexagram?”
“This signifies spirits and ghosts entangling the body.”
“Could it be that this heaven’s chosen girl has finally encountered her old grandfather?”
“No wonder she now possesses the strength to retaliate.”
“So then, how should I handle this girl from here onward?”
“If Sangji were here, he would definitely rejoice upon seeing her. He would teach her esoteric dharma and instruct her in the ‘Path of Achieving the Intermediate State Body through Ritual Refinement,’ allowing her fate and that old grandfather’s destiny to unknowingly fuse together through refinement, ultimately becoming a ‘fivefold child protector deity’”
…
Void-Stepping Hall.
Zhan Hongxiu walked out from within and asked inwardly, “Senior Turtle, aside from the inheritance of the Devouring Sea Demonic Sect, were there any other treasures inside this hall?”
“Not many.”
Old Turtle’s voice echoed back.
“There was only one ancient treasure and a piece of ‘Nine Abyss Stone.’ That spiritual material is extraordinarily rare. It is worthy even of refining Nascent Soul dharma treasures.”
“The truly important matter is that inheritance of the Devouring Sea Demonic Sect.”
“It is extremely significant. You absolutely must determine who obtained it.”
“This…”
Zhan Hongxiu’s brows furrowed slightly.
“There were many cultivators who entered the secret realm. How could I possibly investigate them one by one?”
“Also, Senior Turtle, there is something I do not understand. If the inheritance of the Devouring Sea Demonic Sect is so dangerous, why did the ancient cultivators not simply destroy it? Why leave it here instead?”
Light flowed through her eyes as she continued asking, “Moreover… according to what Senior Turtle said earlier, the Zhoutian Star Palace was the greatest power in the Eastern Sea cultivation world. What could they possibly have feared?”
“Well… that…”
For once, Old Turtle’s voice carried hesitation.
“This old man’s divine sense is incomplete. I have forgotten.”
“In any case, for that inheritance to have been preserved here, it must be extremely important.”
Zhan Hongxiu merely smiled faintly without replying.
After wandering the cultivation world for so many years, she was no naïve innocent girl anymore. This mysterious Old Turtle suddenly residing within her was itself highly suspicious.
She could only continue probing for more information without revealing her thoughts.
“Hmph. You little girl don’t even realize you were already being schemed against.”
“Fortunately, this old man already removed the abnormalities from your body. Otherwise, if disaster suddenly struck you, would this old man not have been implicated as well?”
Old Turtle’s aged voice continued.
At the mention of this matter, Zhan Hongxiu’s beautiful face darkened immediately.
“Does Senior Turtle know who planted those methods on me? Could it have been True Personage Zhong?”
“The methods were rather ingenious, but they do not seem to have come from a Core Formation cultivator.”
“And they were planted long ago. Most likely during your Qi Refining days.”
Old Turtle replied.
“Qi Refining?”
Zhan Hongxiu looked somewhat lost. “At that time, my mana was weak. There were far too many cultivators capable of secretly placing something on me.”
One and a half months passed in the blink of an eye.
The void passage reopened, and one battered Qi Refining cultivator after another staggered out.
Even those who had merely scavenged spiritual materials around the outer regions had encountered countless dangers. The casualty rate had reached nearly sixty to seventy percent!
A flash of light appeared.
A figure dressed in snow-white robes emerged from the passage. His temperament was sharp and cold as a drawn sword. It was none other than Fang Qing.
Not only was his aura completely steady, even his clothes lacked the slightest wrinkle. The contrast between him and the nearby disciples with severed limbs and miserable injuries could not have been more obvious.
“What a sword cultivator.”
Heiyuan True Personage chuckled softly, his gaze shifting toward Ruan Zhixuan.
Ruan Zhixuan, however, remained expressionless, her eyes calm and without the slightest ripple.
Fang Qing merely offered a salute toward Zhong Lingxiu before stepping behind his own sect’s banner.
This time, the three factions had learned their lesson as well. The disciples emerging from the secret realm were no longer inspected immediately. Instead, they were simply placed under supervision. Once they returned to their sects, there would naturally be countless methods available for examination, while also preventing any leaks of information.
Several more hours passed after Fang Qing’s return before Tianding, Yu Xiang’er, and the other Foundation Establishment cultivators also emerged from the passage. All of them wore expressions tinged with joy, clearly having obtained considerable gains.
Boom!
At last, the array could no longer sustain itself. The void passage exploded apart and transformed into a raging void storm.
“Mm?”
Fang Qing glanced toward Zhan Hongxiu beside him, then looked toward the other groups.
The Blue Sea Sect had been rather fortunate. Aside from Tianding, another late Foundation Establishment cultivator had survived as well.
At this moment, although Ruan Zhixuan’s expression remained unchanged, her divine sense lingered upon Fang Qing. She had clearly already learned that this sword cultivator possessed a third-rank body refinement physique.
Heiyuan True Personage, meanwhile, had terrible luck. Of the three late Foundation Establishment demonic cultivators under him, only Yu Xiang’er had survived. Worse still, the Five Elements Spirit Fruit had been lost!
Clearly, he had already discovered the trick played by the Blue Sea Sect, and could not help but glare viciously at Tianding.
‘The Tide-Birth Pearl is truly an unusual treasure. After refinement, it can be hidden within the dantian without revealing the slightest aura and the Blue Sea Sect definitely possesses specialized secret arts or treasures for concealment as well.’
‘Only because I have used the Tide-Birth Pearl before, combined with the strength of my divine sense, was I able to notice something unusual about Tianding in advance.’
Taibai Island.
Zhong Lingxiu dispersed his escape light and gazed toward the dozen or so Qi Refining cultivators gathered inside the great hall. His voice turned solemn.
“Take out all your harvests. This Island Master always keeps his word. If the value is sufficient, you may exchange them for Foundation Establishment spiritual items, or even Foundation Establishment Pills.”
Naturally, these Foundation Establishment Pills had once again been refined by that imprisoned third-rank alchemist.
With Zhong Lingxiu’s strength, obtaining a few second-rank demon cores was effortless. Finding second-rank demon beasts was actually more troublesome.
“Yes… Island Master.”
The pale-faced Qi Refining cultivators, many missing limbs, bowed one after another before taking out their storage bags and pouring everything onto the ground.
In an instant, multicolored treasure light flooded the entire palace hall.
The majority consisted of spirit herbs, strange ores, and demon beast materials.
There were also several damaged ancient magical treasures of unusual design.
“Excellent, excellent…”
Fang Qing swept his gaze across the scene, inwardly extremely satisfied.
The thousand-year spirit herbs and other precious resources in his possession had long ago been refined into pills used to increase mana, most of which had been consumed after reaching Foundation Establishment perfection.
This time, he had finally replenished his reserves in a massive way.
Aside from that, there were also rare third-rank spirit woods, ores, and similar materials. Even Zhong Lingxiu’s eyes brightened at the sight.
“Third-rank Coral Gold? And that is Purple Pattern Dragonwood? Such a large piece… Ah, if I had possessed resources like these back then, gathering the materials for my natal magical treasure would have been effortless. Why would I have needed to owe the sect so many contributions? My natal magical treasure might even have reached an even higher quality.”
He slapped his storage bag and immediately distributed jade bottles containing Foundation Establishment Pills as rewards.
The Qi Refining cultivators who received Foundation Establishment Pills instantly flushed red with excitement, looking as though they would willingly die for the Island Master on the spot.
Even those whose contributions were insufficient for a Foundation Establishment Pill still looked forward eagerly to later rewards. Whether Foundation Establishment spiritual items or other rare resources, all of them were smiling broadly.
“Enough. Proceed to the side hall for two rounds of inspection.”
Zhong Lingxiu waved his hand.
To prevent these Qi Refining cultivators from secretly hiding spiritual resources, Fang Qing had gone to extraordinary lengths. He had even brought out methods from Ancient Shu.
Moreover, Zhong Lingxiu himself came from a Nascent Soul great sect. His inspection methods were several levels more sophisticated than even those of the Blue Sea Sect.
This matter could not be treated lightly!
Fang Qing understood these local cultivators far too well. After all, he himself had once been one of them, and had seized tremendous opportunities through precisely such means.
Sure enough, not long afterward, Zhong Lingxiu stormed back into the hall with killing intent radiating from his body, carrying an unusual storage bag.
Within divine sense, this storage bag was practically nonexistent.
“This… seems to be a storage bag refined from the hide of an ancient Trickster Beast? It specializes in concealment.”
Zhan Hongxiu’s eyes lit up immediately upon seeing it.
“You have good eyesight. Unfortunately, the storage space is very small.”
Zhong Lingxiu casually tipped the bag over, causing several spiritual objects to tumble out.
The first was a pale-blue second-rank demon core. Aside from that, there were three brilliantly multicolored fruits and several chunks of unknown ore.
“Men die for wealth, birds die for food. The saying truly holds.”
Standing to the side, Fang Qing could not help but sigh faintly.
He was subtly reminding Zhan Hongxiu.
After all, the items carried by this child of fortune were likely the true grand prize!
In the next moment, Zhong Lingxiu’s divine sense spread outward layer by layer, bringing terrifying pressure with it as he looked toward Zhan Hongxiu.
“Now it is your turn… the two of you. Please proceed.”
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