The four lingered for a moment, and after Di Yuanfeng, hand on his knife hilt, exchanged a glance with the Instructor Huang, they dashed towards the verdant mountain.

Earlier, at their landing spot, there was a large circular cyan stone patterned like a caisson ceiling, the kind usually found above in Taoist temples and monasteries. Unexpectedly, in this immortal secret realm, it was trod underfoot.

At the center of the caisson was a lotus flower, encircled by two ouroboros dragons, and further out, sixteen Apsaras, layer upon layer, intricate and exquisite.

Di Yuanfeng tapped it repeatedly with his bamboo staff, producing a metallic sound, indicating it was indestructible.

However, even if they could move it, Di Yuanfeng wouldn’t dare act rashly, as they still needed to pass through this place to leave this immortal mansion ruins.

The reason he and Instructor Huang lingered just now was, of course, to be cautious.

If anyone were secretly following them and infiltrated this place, they would be met with their blade and fist.

Bringing up the rear, Chen Pingan secretly produced a Yang Qi Candlelight Talisman. There was still no trace of baleful aura. Compared to the outside world, the talisman burned even slower.

It should be due to the abundant spiritual energy here.

The other three glanced at it and paid it no further mind.

Amidst the green mountains and clear waters, there was a white jade arch bridge.

Like a white rainbow lying across the water.

On each of the balustrade pillars of the bridge, various exotic beasts were carved, none repeating, with ingenious craftsmanship, resembling slumbering, living creatures.

Near the water surface under the bridge, there were large stone piers, carved with mythical dragonspawn, with horns on their heads and dragon scales covering their bodies, sculpted in a prone position, peering into the water.

Chen Pingan fell into contemplation.

The creature under the bridge wasn’t a particularly rare exotic beast statue, but the name of this dragonspawn was quite peculiar.

In the Great World, it was generally called “Baxia” or “Bixi,” but in the Lotus Flower Blessed Land, Chen Pingan had seen this creature throughout the rivers and bridges of the Southern Garden Kingdom. The style was slightly different from that in the Great World, and according to the books that State Preceptor Zhong Qiu brought back from the Ministry of Works, the “Treatise on Architectural Methods,” which Chen Pingan had read the most, recorded it as a “Gongfu,” a water-averting beast, capable of swallowing river water, raised by the ancient sovereign of the rivers and lakes. Legend has it that it was disliked by the God of Fire, who refined and killed it by boiling lakes and burning the seas.

However, there was no such strange record in the Great World, only a vague mention as one of the nine sons of the dragon, roughly the same, but definitely without the “sovereign of rivers and lakes” narrative.

Chen Pingan suppressed the thoughts in his mind and stopped dwelling on them. He then produced a Sword Qi Crossing Bridge Talisman, hesitated for a moment, didn’t hand it to Instructor Huang and the others, and walked directly onto the arch bridge.

No wind, no waves, no danger.

Chen Pingan walked across the white jade arch bridge, turned around, waved his hand, indicating that there were no mechanisms and that they could cross the bridge without worry.

The other three had different thoughts. Sun Daoren felt that this Fellow Daoist Chen was probably trying to show off as they were about to enter a treasure mountain. It was futile; this fellow Daoist was still going to die. They shouldn’t have agreed to travel together by the creekside cliff back then, and certainly shouldn’t have entered this immortal mansion ruins filled with treasures together. But just as he thought this, before he could even feel sorry for himself, the tall, thin Daoist was startled. Could it be that he too would meet an untimely end?

Young registered immortal masters, coming down the mountain to temper themselves, seeking treasures and cultivating the Dao, as long as they didn’t encounter rival sects, were often harmonious. Even if they were strangers, revealing their identities would create a connection of fate and goodwill. They wouldn’t be so unsightly in their greed.

However, the scattered wilderness cultivators, mostly forming groups of three or four, were ineffective with fewer, and more would easily cause trouble. At the slightest disturbance, they might not even make it to the point of unequal distribution before infighting. Competing with registered immortal masters for opportunities was as difficult as ascending to heaven, so they were often more willing to risk their lives in the process. Once trapped in dire straits, the scattered cultivators would be especially united, sparing no expense, but after the spoils were divided, what difficulty was there in double-crossing? As a wilderness cultivator, if you didn’t have the thought of swallowing all the benefits after the situation was settled, what kind of wilderness cultivator were you?

Di Yuanfeng noticed the shifty-eyed Sun Daoren and laughed, “What, worried about being harmed by Instructor Huang and me? Such a vast, rare blessed land, how much can the three of us actually carry away in the end? Since we can’t carry it all, why would we need you to kill me or me to kill you?”

Hearing this, Sun Daoren felt it made sense and couldn’t help but stroke his beard and squint his eyes, smiling.

The three crossed the white jade arch bridge. Sun Daoren, taking advantage of the others’ inattention, squatted down and touched the white jade bridge. It wasn’t ordinary mutton-fat jade from the mundane world. Dammit, wasn’t this another pile of immortal money lying here untouched?

Sun Daoren lightly tapped it with his finger, the sound crisp and melodious, truly pleasant to the ear.

It was like hearing the sound of two Minor Heat coins gently clinking for the first time in one’s life, enchanting, never tiring.

Approaching the mountain gate, Di Yuanfeng looked up at a staircase leading straight to the mountain peak and said with a smile, “Let’s take a slight detour, enjoy the scenery, and after confirming that no one is around, we’ll head straight to the top.”

The other three had no objections.

The mountain gate had a simple, massive paifang arch, horizontally inlaid with the vigorous characters “Grotto-Heaven Blessed Land.”

The couplets on either side were still carved in stone.

*Stillness and immobility, interlinked, become Spirit.*

*The earth obtains its excellence, becoming the most spiritual.*

Chen Pingan stared at the couplets for a long time.

They weren’t exactly perfect in terms of antithetical parallelism.

But the tone was grand, the meaning profound.

Instructor Huang was the first to stop looking at the horizontal plaque and couplets, shifting his gaze to the distance and high places early on.

Di Yuanfeng looked towards the back of the paifang arch, where thirty-six steles of varying heights stood on both sides, arranged in ascending order. However, for some reason, the inscriptions on them had all been erased.

It seemed that the only thing this ruin could tell future generations about its origins was the “Grotto-Heaven Blessed Land,” which was as good as saying nothing. As for the two couplets, they were even more inexplicable.

Sun Daoren looked up at the ancient seal script horizontal plaque and tsked, “What a bunch of nonsense. They deserved to be wiped out.”

Throughout history, grotto-heavens and blessed lands had undergone many changes. They weren’t immutable, either shattered by great cultivators, disappearing inexplicably, or having grotto-heavens downgraded to blessed lands. But Sun Daoren believed there was definitely no such thing as a “Heavenly Grotto-Heaven.” Furthermore, although the spiritual energy here was abundant, it was still somewhat lacking compared to the legendary grotto-heavens, because there were many similar records in unofficial histories mentioning that grotto-heavens were often associated with “spiritual energy so dense it congealed into water.” The water element here was rich, but it was still far from that description.
Compared to the three beside him, Chen Ping’an possessed a deeper understanding of blessed paradises. However, he too had never heard of a “Heavenly Paradise.” Furthermore, deducing the age of the dwelling based on architectural style was futile, as Chen Ping’an’s knowledge of the Northern Ju Continent was still rudimentary. At times like these, Chen Ping’an felt a greater appreciation for the genealogical immortals from established sects. The foundation of a mountain peak truly required generations of ancestral hall disciples to accumulate.

He could only make a mental note and, given the opportunity, sketch the main buildings to show Cui Dongshan in the future.

Di Yuanfeng retracted his gaze, nodding and chuckling, “Indeed, peculiar.”

Subsequently, the four set off, their pace swift. They traversed great halls and opulent chambers, pavilions, terraces, and vermilion-railed corridors. Every so often, they would encounter skeletal remains, the positions of the corpses indicating sudden, violent deaths.

None dared to enter the buildings.

They still desired to explore the Daoist temple at the mountain peak first.

Generally speaking, the treasures of a sect would be located at the highest point.

This nameless immortal abode was covered in fine scratches, none of them deep.

It was as if a torrential downpour of sword qi had descended without warning, catching everyone off guard.

This sword strike…

Was undoubtedly the work of a sword immortal. The question was whether it was a Jade Purity Realm or a Celestial Realm sword cultivator.

As for why such a strange strike occurred, with sword qi blanketing the sky and somehow accurately targeting individuals as the points of impact…

Chen Ping’an looked up.

Truly, only heaven knew.

In any case, a vast immortal sect had collapsed and vanished in an instant.

As they ascended, the silence deepened.

Sun Daoren walked with trepidation, as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over him. He kept subconsciously stroking the pagoda bell.

What if there were demons or malevolent spirits lurking here?

Or perhaps the souls of some of these corpses had coalesced into vengeful ghosts, occupying this immortal residence for centuries? Even if they were simpletons in life, they should have cultivated into Earth Immortal-level specters by now, right?

Hence, Sun Daoren needed to touch the pagoda bell more often to feel at ease.

In truth, this bell possessed a unique property. The closer a low-level, impure entity approached, the faster and more frantically the bell would ring. Up to the Dragon Gate Realm, it would become so loud it would nearly drive the wearer mad. However, if a Golden Core Realm demon were nearby, the pagoda bell would barely move, appearing silent to outsiders. In reality, it would produce a single “ding-dong” sound within the mind of its refined master.

It was precisely this subtle warning from the pagoda bell that allowed Sun Daoren to escape danger previously.

Sun Daoren only hoped that no bell would resonate in his heart this time.

The three allies had discussed it, and dealing with a Dragon Gate Realm cultivator, even one with a magic treasure, was not too much of a problem.

Therefore, Sun Daoren hoped the pagoda bell at his waist would shake as violently as possible, even if it deafened him.

When the four passed by the corpses, Di Yuanfeng would wave his sleeve, the clothes worn by the deceased disintegrating into dust under the force of his vital energy. Moreover, many cultivator adornments that should have contained spiritual energy also met the same fate, reduced to ashes.

Only the bones remained unscathed by the fist force.

Another oddity.

After a dozen fruitless attempts, the gaunt old man began to act first, imitating Di Yuanfeng. Alas, his luck was no better, and he still couldn’t find a single magic robe.

Di Yuanfeng then turned to Huang Shi, “Brother Huang, care to try your luck?”

Perhaps the tides had turned, for Huang Shi actually succeeded. After waving his arm on the mountain steps, the clothing on the corpse remained intact. Sun Daoren immediately rushed to strip the clothes off.

To hell with the demeanor of a lofty master from Thunder God’s residence!

I’m just a wild cultivator who hasn’t touched half a Rainy Grain coin in his life!

However, after acquiring the garment, Sun Daoren reluctantly handed it over to Huang Shi.

Such were the rules of wild cultivators.

Of course, there were even greater rules waiting for the four ahead, though it seemed they were reserved for Fellow Daoist Chen alone.

Sun Daoren felt a rare pang of unease.

Could it be that he was about to display a rare moment of compassion, persuading Di Yuanfeng and Huang Shi?

If everyone reaped a bountiful harvest, unable to carry all the treasures, there would be no need for murder, right?

However, Sun Daoren hesitated, deciding to assess the situation first before discussing anything else.

Otherwise, if they couldn’t even fill one or two bags in the end, his indecisiveness and womanly kindness would only arouse the disgust of the other two, who might simply kill him along with Chen Ping’an.

Chen Ping’an remained behind the other three.

After ascending the final step, on the white jade plaza before the Daoist temple, lay two smaller sets of skeletal remains. After Di Yuanfeng waved his sleeve, their clothing vanished, but each left behind a relic.

However, both important sect items were riddled with cracks, greatly diminishing their value.

Di Yuanfeng crouched down, collecting them carefully and storing them in his sleeve.

Huang Shi said, “It seems the spiritual tools and magic treasures here won’t be in very good condition.”

Di Yuanfeng nodded, smiling, “Then we’ll win by quantity.”

Sun Daoren was overjoyed.

Even Huang Shi revealed a rare smile.

Chen Ping’an still did not participate. He was still accustomed to first considering an escape route before thinking about treasure hunting and wealth acquisition.

Standing on the mountaintop, looking out, everything within a hundred miles was visible, from the verdant peaks and emerald waters. The only difference was perspective. Further, the mountains and streams faded with distance. Then a clear line came. Beyond the line, everything changed suddenly and became a misty expanse, giving Chen Ping’an a sense of oppression, as if he was at the end of the road in an empty world.

This was both good and bad.

The good news was that this immortal abode was a legendary rootless land, similar to a shattered ancient blessed paradise, not built within real mountains and rivers.

This meant this immortal ruins was definitely old and had a great origin. It might even contain priceless treasures, or one or two immortal manuals that could guide one to the Earth Immortal Realm.

The bad news, it was easy to enter and hard to leave, unless someone could break the restrictions of the small world.

Chen Ping’an had a sword immortal in his scabbard, of course, he could do it, surely a little more sturdy than the Ghost Valley of the Bone Mound.

However, at that point, he would become the target of all the mountain peaks, which was contrary to his initial goal of “secretly picking up treasures for small gains, quietly leaving, and not bothering anyone.”
Chen Ping’an had no desire to become a second Jiang Shangzhen, reduced to a hunted rat in the eyes of the Northern Entirety Continent cultivators, with everyone clamoring for his blood.

The reason Master Huang and the others were so at ease was likely because they hadn’t yet noticed the unusual phenomenon in the distant landscape. This suggested that Master Huang, this Golden Body Realm martial artist, wasn’t a pushover, but wasn’t overwhelmingly powerful either.

The existence of that “line” held little significance for Chen Ping’an at the moment.

However, if the worst came to pass, he would be the only one who could see and escape from this small world.

The other three remained oblivious, perhaps even now secretly discussing how to swindle him, their fellow Daoist.

The Daoist temple before them wasn’t large, and its signboard was missing. Before entering, all four couldn’t help but glance at the green glazed tiles on the roof ridge. Of the many buildings on the mountain, only this one had such tiles.

Through the endless passage of time, the tiles still shimmered with precious light. Clearly, they weren’t the ordinary glazed tiles found in the imperial palaces or princely residences of mortal dynasties. They were genuine treasures from the mountain, the utensils of immortals.

In short, each tile was worth immortal money.

This sight made Daoist Sun tremble all over. He estimated that they were worth at least seven or eight Lesser Heat Coins! If they were truly top-grade glazed tiles forged using secret immortal techniques, they might even fetch Rain Water Coins instead of Lesser Heat Coins!

Master Huang and Di Yuanfeng were both pure martial artists by birth. They had never interacted with mountain sects and major powers, and like Daoist Sun, they couldn’t accurately estimate the value of these glazed tiles. However, of the immortal abodes and sects they had dealt with, none had ever covered their roofs with such tiles. It was more commonly seen in the mortal world below the mountains.

Chen Ping’an cast one last glance in the direction they had come from. Still, there was no movement.

If he had the chance, he wanted to ask the person who had sent them here a question.

Roughly what time they had entered this small world.

In fact, Chen Ping’an had been meticulously keeping track of time in his mind.

Once the flow of time here significantly diverged from that of the Great Azure World, Chen Ping’an would have both the best and the worst plans in mind.

The Northern Pavilion Kingdom’s young Marquis, Zhan Qing, and his entourage arrived at the entrance of the cave.

The Golden Body Realm martial artist serving as the family’s retainer was examining the footprints on the ground.

General Gao Ling of the Hibiscus Kingdom said in a low voice, “Young Marquis, there are quite a few people hiding near the mountain.”

Zhan Qing smiled, “Let them eat our dust. If they dare to enter the cave abode, they must have the courage to be reborn.”

He had no fondness for either rogue cultivators or those with proper sect registration.

Even though he himself was a proper cultivator, perhaps deep down he was still a scion of a powerful clan, accustomed to emperors, generals, and princely mansions. He was used to strategizing and seizing opportunities, rather than relying on fists and treasures to kill his way through. Therefore, Zhan Qing found those high and mighty fellow Daoists extremely annoying. However, when it truly came to a situation where spells were needed for killing, Zhan Qing would naturally not hesitate in the slightest.

Bai Bi teased, “Truly not in a hurry at all? Aren’t you afraid of being beaten to the punch by those two groups?”

Zhan Qing smiled, “If they can refine immortal treasures and devour secret manuals in the blink of an eye, I’ll just admit my bad luck and accept it. Otherwise, where can the people and the treasures escape to?”

Gao Ling was increasingly impressed with this man.

He had previously regarded the so-called Young Marquis of the Northern Pavilion Kingdom as nothing more than a good-for-nothing who had been born with a silver spoon in his mouth.

Now it seemed that anyone who dared to underestimate this man in the future, when the so-called Great Dao contention of the cultivation path arose, would be guaranteed to capsize in the gutter.

Two Golden Body Realm martial artists led the way, holding torches and entering the dark cave.

Bai Bi was in a relaxed mood. As long as there were no major surprises, there would be no need for her to personally intervene in this mountain visit and treasure hunt.

Even if Sun Qing of the Variegated Finch Mansion and Shen Zhenze of the Cloud Ascending City were to arrive in person, it would only be a minor inconvenience.

The two seventh-realm martial artists in their team would be enough to give them a run for their money.

The group arrived at the cave chamber with the four celestial king murals.

Zhan Qing frowned slightly. He wasn’t good at breaking formations. His Nascent Soul master, being a rogue cultivator, had learned a mixed bag of skills and should be familiar with them, but he never taught Zhan Qing anything about exploring secret realms and opportunities. He always said that those unorthodox mechanisms would delay cultivation and that they could talk about other things after Zhan Qing reached the Dragon Gate Realm.

Since the first group of rogue cultivators and the Cloud Ascending City cultivators had already disappeared, they must have entered the immortal mansion ruins one after another.

Bai Bi smiled, “What do we do now? Just stand here and stare at each other?”

Zhan Qing said helplessly, “If we knew the location of the exit, we could just wait for them to come out. But I’m afraid that it’s hundreds of miles away, and we won’t be able to find it.”

Bai Bi put her hands behind her back and looked around. “Let’s look for clues first. If that doesn’t work, you’ll owe me a great favor.”

Zhan Qing asked, “Is the price high?”

Bai Bi nodded. “Not small. It will cost me the equivalent of ten years of cultivation.”

This direct disciple of the Water Dragon Sect’s patriarch carefully summoned a natal treasure, an extremely rare azure talisman. It was actually a talisman pattern of flowing water, both simple and strange. The water drawn on the talisman paper flowed slowly, and one could even faintly hear the sound of water.

For a Core Formation Realm cultivator from a sect to be willing to refine a talisman as their natal treasure, the rank of this talisman should be at least a magical artifact.

Bai Bi said, “This is an ancient talisman that my master obtained unintentionally in his early years, from the ruins of one of the three ancient ancestral temples of the Ji River, called the ‘Inch of Gold Talisman.’ It has many wonderful uses, and it can help one cultivate water techniques with twice the result with half the effort. There was some unpleasantness within the sect regarding the ownership of this talisman, so let’s not mention it. In short, one of its wonderful uses can help us enter the secret realm.”

The Inch of Gold Talisman was also known as the Talisman of Time.

Mysterious and abstruse.

Although Zhan Qing didn’t know the background of this talisman, he still shook his head and said, “Let’s forget about it.”

Bai Bi sighed, “I’m already a Core Formation Earth Immortal, equivalent to ten years of cultivation for an early Dragon Gate Realm Qi Practitioner. What is that? The further you go, the greater the difference between realms. This is true for Qi Practitioners, and even more so for martial artists.”

Zhan Qing said bitterly, “Sister Bai.”

Bai Bi smiled, “One ‘Sister Bai’ is enough.”

Even a cold-hearted princely scion like Zhan Qing couldn’t help but feel a surge of emotion and wanted to reach out and hold her hand.
Bai Bi shook her head, her heart serene, and said, “Those ordinary women you’ve hidden away like treasures, many are willing to die for you. Why aren’t you moved? Just because I’m a Golden Core earth immortal, sacrificing a few years of cultivation moves you? This kind of petty romance, I don’t need it. If, in the future on your path of cultivation, a Nascent Soul female cultivator were to make such a sacrifice for you, would you abandon me for her? True immortal Daoist couples on the mountains are far from so shallow.”

Zhan Qing felt as if struck by lightning, speechless.

Bai Bi suddenly said, “Before using the Inch of Gold Talisman, let’s first deduce the clues, then attempt a forceful entry. The fists of those two Golden Body realm martial artists shouldn’t be wasted. If neither works, then I’ll take a turn.”

Zhan Qing felt slightly better.

Looking at this beautiful Sister Bai again, she felt somewhat unfamiliar.

After Huan Yun appeared in this immortal cave abode, he immediately affixed a unique talisman to each of the three people beside him, concealing their forms and auras.

As for the ripples of aura from the three’s movements, Huan Yun was just a Golden Core earth immortal of the Talisman Sect, not a celestial sovereign of the Daoist sect with all-powerful術法 techniques. He couldn’t achieve perfection.

The Dragon Gate realm elder retainer from Cloud Ascendant City breathed a sigh of relief. Avoiding an ambush was ultimately a good thing.

Huan Yun suddenly said, “From here on, you explore on your own. Apart from life-and-death struggles, this old man won’t interfere with you three. Gains and losses, blessings and misfortunes beyond survival, will depend on your own destinies.”

Then Huan Yun smiled, “Rest assured, I won’t compete with you. At most, I’ll pick up what you’ve left behind, or what you failed to discover, scavenging scraps.”

Huan Yun’s figure dissipated, like clouds and mist, leaving not a trace.

The elder retainer smiled at the two younger companions, “Real Person Huan has always kept his word. Let’s go. How to deal with that group of rogue cultivators is what you two need to worry about.”

Hearing the underlying meaning of this protector, the woman worried, “Uncle-Master, you?”

The elder retainer said helplessly, “Do you expect me to help you two pick up things and carry them? Did you come here for sightseeing? Is this Uncle-Master your porter?”

The elder retainer rose on the wind, wanting to see how high the sky above this cave abode was, and to gain a better view of hidden secrets by looking down from above.

However, as a precaution, the old man first brought out a spiritual artifact that was not his natal treasure, ascending and circling to avoid crashing into a mountain and water formation.

Entering this kind of unowned immortal abode ruin, opportunities to find treasure are naturally everywhere.

And dangers lurk everywhere for those who seek it.

In truth, the old man had both joy and worry. The joy was that the opportunity here was certainly significant, beyond imagination, not just the cultivation residence of a Dragon Gate realm cultivator, but an entire sect. Judging by the scale of the architecture alone, it was in no way inferior to Cloud Ascendant City and Rainbow Sparrow Prefecture.

So, City Lord Shen Zhenze entrusting that dimensional artifact to him was the right decision.

The worry was that this immortal abode couldn’t be moved. If it truly was the cultivation site of a Nascent Soul earth immortal, or even an Upper Five Realms grand cultivator, by the time they returned to Cloud Ascendant City, if even a whisper of it leaked out, those who came to visit and seek treasure would likely not even find scraps. It would only be moved away by the sect closest to the water, using the legendary mountain-moving神通. The closest sects to Northern Ting Country, one to the west and one to the north, were not far apart. That small difference could be completely ignored by sect cultivators with their own ferry boats.

This elder retainer only hoped that the former owner of this place was an unknown earth immortal, and that their cultivation was no higher.

Golden Core would be best, Nascent Soul would be somewhat troublesome, difficult to clean up afterwards.

There might even be cataloged immortals from sects visiting Cloud Ascendant City. Without even a word, the City Lord would have to spit out most of the fat, obediently handing it over, and still worry about their dissatisfaction.

If it was a site where an Upper Five Realms cultivator had resided, there was no need to even think about it, it was likely a situation of intertwined fortune and calamity, great fortune followed by great disaster.

Unless Cloud Ascendant City could immediately shatter this small world, destroying all traces in one fell swoop.

Unfortunately, Cloud Ascendant City could absolutely not do that.

Unless Shen Zhenze made a decisive decision, after the three of them and Huan Yun returned to Cloud Ascendant City, to proactively approach one of the sects and negotiate a reasonably fair split.

As for this land of concentrated water energy and feng shui, plus all those readily available magnificent buildings, it would naturally be a future summer retreat for the other sect.

The spiritual artifact used to probe the way flew around, without any obstruction.

The elder retainer then confidently ascended on the wind.

Just as the elder retainer was hundreds of feet off the ground, the spiritual artifact shattered with a bang. The elder retainer knew something was wrong, and was suddenly pulled, falling towards the ground.

The elder retainer’s heart trembled, then he breathed a sigh of relief. It turned out that Real Person Huan Yun had pressed down on his shoulder, taking him to the ground.

Subsequently, the elder retainer noticed a wisp of subtle aura above his head, flashing past and disappearing in an instant.

Huan Yun said in a low voice, “I advise you not to go up again. Even a military cultivator of the Golden Core earth immortal level cannot withstand that wisp of sword energy patrolling the area.”

Earlier, Real Person Huan had used several patrolling talismans, throwing them into the four directions of the world. He found that whenever a talisman went high into the air, it would instantly turn into dust.

The elder retainer looked up, but the aura from before was nowhere to be found.

This Dragon Gate realm cultivator from Cloud Ascendant City was shocked, “Could it be that there’s a sword immortal guarding this ruin?!”

Huan Yun, who had secretly circled the verdant mountains, shook his head, “They’re all dead. There are no living people, and no ghosts. Only this sword energy continues to exist in this small world.”

Huan Yun’s expression was grave, “Let me tell you another piece of news, half good, half bad. This place is a mystical region left behind after an ancient blessed land was shattered for some reason. The map size is roughly a hundred miles in radius. The age of this small world is hard to say, possibly a thousand years, or even longer. But the approximate time when this mountain cave abode quietly perished, this old man has roughly calculated it to be seven or eight hundred years. But this is also not normal. There has never been such an immortal sect in the history of Northern Ting Country.”
Huan Yun halted his descending figure, hovering a hundred zhang above the ground, suspended in the wind alongside the old retainer. He spoke slowly, “Then there’s only one possibility: this small world, after the sect here was destroyed, was once carried around by an unknown, reclusive expert. They migrated all the way to the Northern Pavilion Kingdom. But for some reason, this immortal wasn’t able to occupy this secret realm and cultivate smoothly, using this place to establish a new sect outside. Either they met with misfortune, and some supreme treasure carrying this small world fell into the deep mountains of the Northern Pavilion Kingdom unnoticed, or this person came to the Northern Pavilion Kingdom and ceased their travels, hiding here to cultivate in seclusion, then silently dissolved and reincarnated.”

Huan Yun sighed, “Life and death are uncertain, the Great Dao is fickle.”

He pondered this matter, this truth, again and again.

It inevitably made one feel disheartened.

However, after lamenting, Huan Yun immediately awoke, recalling the words he used to comfort Shen Zezhen in Cloud Citadel. He instantly returned to normal, his mind free of any darkness.

Daoist cultivation, misleading oneself is the most misleading thing, which is why, among the three teachings and hundred schools, the most difficult barrier to overcome is the heart-searching trial.

The old True Man Huan Yun actually had excellent aptitude, but all the mountain immortals along the Great River of Northern Ju Luzhou felt that Huan Yun had a bright future in the art of talismans, that it resonated with his own Great Dao, hence his current success. But Huan Yun knew very well that it was like swallowing a bitter gourd – he couldn’t speak of his suffering. A master once plainly stated that if Huan Yun had entered a sect of the “Zong” character ranking early on, and stopped learning those fancy, flowery nonsense of drawing talismans, he would have long been a Nascent Soul cultivator with the potential to reach the upper five realms.

Therefore, Huan Yun felt deeply about gains and losses.

When he felt truly helpless, he could only treat it as a trial to hone his Dao heart, to dispel his worries.

On the mountain peak stood a Daoist temple, enshrining a seated statue of a middle-aged Daoist, gazing forward, his hands resting in his lap, palms upward.

On the incense table was a small bronze incense burner, with half a burner of incense ash remaining.

Everyone knew that the gleaming incense burner was definitely a Daoist treasure, but no one dared to touch it.

Di Yuanfeng softly asked, “Daoist Sun, have you ever seen this person in your Daoist statue registers?”

Daoist Sun shook his head, “Never seen him.”

There was something he didn’t dare say: the Daoist before them had an ordinary appearance, and the entire statue gave off a feeling of plainness, even lacking the shock brought by the four heavenly kings in the cave.

Chen Ping’an gazed at the statue, seemingly recalling the three hundred years he spent traveling with the old Daoist of East Sea Temple in the flow of time in Lotus Root Blessed Land. He would occasionally see the old temple master in a similar posture, but it was rare. Perhaps, in the eyes of ordinary people, this posture was not strange at all, but Chen Ping’an had a vague feeling that the old temple master’s true intent of cultivation was somewhat similar to that of the middle-aged Daoist’s statue.

Chen Ping’an recalled four words from a Daoist classic.

Leaving the Realm, Sitting in Oblivion.

Time flows on.

Cultivators are unaware of the seasons in the mountains. The deceased leave behind only a statue. No matter how profound your Daoist arts were in life, what does it matter? Wouldn’t you be even more ignorant of the changing seasons? Daoists cultivate, and where will they ultimately reach in the end?

Chen Ping’an sighed in his heart, took out three sticks of mountain and river incense from his miniature world, lit them, and inserted them into the small incense burner.

Daoist Sun thought that this fellow Daoist was indulging in wishful thinking. Did he really hope that the statue Daoist still had a remnant soul, and that an opportunity would descend just because he lit three sticks of incense?

Huang Shi and Di Yuanfeng didn’t stop him from offering incense.

In fact, they wanted to use the black-robed old man’s rash incense-burning to determine if the small incense burner would trigger any mechanisms, resulting in an opportunity, or trigger a trap, bringing about a fatal disaster.

Because the small incense burner would inevitably be taken away, it was better to have someone willing to risk exploring the way.

When the three sticks of incense had burned to ashes, there was no movement at all.

Di Yuanfeng then laughed and said, “Brother Huang got a Dharma robe first, I got two pieces of jewelry, so who should this incense burner belong to? Daoist Sun, Brother Chen?”

Chen Ping’an laughed and said, “Count me out. There are so many buildings in the mountain, I haven’t explored even a fraction. After we split up, I’ll be busy enough. If Daoist Sun wants this incense burner, just take it.”

Huang Shi said, “I can exchange the Dharma robe for the incense burner with Daoist Sun.”

Daoist Sun felt a pang of pain, but still nodded in agreement.

Huang Shi threw out the Dharma robe and went to carry the incense burner into his bundle.

Then, he cleared out the worthless clothes and bottles from the large bag, casually tossing them on the ground.

He then tore the bag in half, giving one half to Di Yuanfeng as a container. Huang Shi glanced at the embarrassed Daoist Sun, “Daoist Sun, you’re wearing such a large Daoist robe, isn’t taking it off essentially a bag?”

Daoist Sun suddenly understood, overjoyed.

Next, the four of them busied themselves in the small Daoist temple. Di Yuanfeng found a snow-white futon, and Daoist Sun tore off several pieces of golden silk of unknown material.

Huang Shi guessed that there was a secret hidden within the statue, so he simply shattered the entire statue with a sudden punch, but gained nothing.

At that time, Chen Ping’an was squatting on the ground, reaching out to touch the extremely damp blue bricks, tapping and knocking. He had just formed an intention when he heard the commotion. He looked up at Huang Shi, who grinned at Chen Ping’an.

Daoist Sun was greatly startled. Di Yuanfeng merely glanced at the shattered statue, realizing it was just a valueless painted wooden frame, and didn’t look again.

The four of them walked out of the Daoist temple together. Daoist Sun had just crossed the threshold.

A series of cracking sounds rang out around the tall, thin Daoist’s waist.

It turned out that the pagoda bells had directly exploded.

Daoist Sun wailed, “Miserable, miserable! It must be our disrespectful actions that have angered this old Daoist immortal.”

Huang Shi and Di Yuanfeng exchanged glances. Without any hesitation, they went down the mountain to search for treasures in other buildings separately.

Daoist Sun hesitated for a moment, not choosing to follow Di Yuanfeng, but instead following Huang Shi, shouting for him to wait, and running over.

Soon, the small Daoist temple behind the four of them collapsed with a roar, dust flying, obscuring the sky and sun.

Chen Ping’an did not rush down the mountain to search for treasure like the three of them.

Instead, he began to pick up the objects that the other three were unwilling to take.

For example, the overly heavy and space-consuming green glazed tiles, and the blue bricks that contained a rich water essence.
Besides the slanting satchel, Chen Ping’an also possessed spatial items of the “square inch” and “hand’s breadth” variety.

It just so happened that he had recently opened a “Ant Nest” shop on Old Locust Street in Spring Dew Altar, freeing up a great deal of space within them.

However, what Chen Ping’an truly desired to collect were the shattered pieces of the divine statue, destroyed by Master Huang’s fist.

Amidst the ruins of the Daoist temple, Chen Ping’an’s actions were neither hasty nor slow.

Piece by piece, the shimmering, multi-colored glazed tiles were first collected into the “hand’s breadth” space. Simultaneously, he continuously and gently tossed the debris of the Daoist temple ruins onto the plaza, carefully selecting the fragments of the divine statue. He searched for these wooden shards while also loading up on glazed tiles. Legend had it that the White Emperor City’s Glazed Pavilion possessed specially crafted azure glazed tiles, layered upon layers on the roof ridge, earning it the reputation: “Ten thousand tiles on the Glazed Pavilion, reflecting the sea of clouds like emerald waves.”

After Chen Ping’an gathered all the broken pieces of the divine statue, he also collected one hundred and twenty glazed tiles, and his thoughts began to turn peculiar.

Firstly, looking up, it seemed as if he had moved the Daoist temple ruins, relocating it from its original site to the white jade plaza.

Secondly, the green bricks, imbued with wisps of water energy instead of ordinary spiritual energy, placed Chen Ping’an in a dilemma.

To collect all the glazed tiles from the Daoist temple’s roof and the green bricks from the ground, Chen Ping’an would likely need several more “hand’s breadth” spatial items, which he did not have.

However, Chen Ping’an did not agonize over this.

Instead, within his “hand’s breadth” space, he found that it was already filled with some old items that were not worth much at all.

Compared to the green bricks, each imbued with a trace of water energy essence, or the other treasures and opportunities awaiting him in the future halls and pavilions, there was a world of difference.

Chen Ping’an squatted down on the spot, his hands tucked into his sleeves.

He then looked up, rubbed the stubble on his chin, stood up, and carried as many green bricks and glazed tiles as possible.

Not a single old item in his “hand’s breadth” space was discarded.

Finally, Chen Ping’an lit three incense sticks and inserted them into the cracks between two green bricks in the ruins of the Daoist temple.

After they burned to ashes, he gently blew, dispersing the remaining embers.

When digging out green bricks, Chen Ping’an always removed them in neat rows, never taking one here and another there. He also smoothed out the traces of his digging on the ground.

In the end, even his “square inch” space was not spared, filled with over thirty green bricks alongside the contents of his “hand’s breadth” space.

After thinking for a moment, Chen Ping’an placed another green brick and two glazed tiles into his slanting satchel, making it heavy and reassuring.

Then, Chen Ping’an added two more green bricks to the satchel.

Only then did he descend the mountain.

To see that soft-hearted Daoist friend, Sun.

If nothing unexpected happened, the moment this Daoist friend Sun found another invaluable treasure that even Master Huang coveted, would also be the moment of Sun’s demise.

Before crying out to Master Huang to wait for him, Daoist Sun had actually told Chen Ping’an telepathically: “Be extremely careful of that Qin Juyuan! It would be best if you don’t appear again, friend. Take this opportunity, grab any treasures and run, the further the better! Life is more precious than money!”

Chen Ping’an felt that this statement alone was enough to spare Daoist Sun one less misfortune.

This treasure hunt had yielded such abundant results that it far exceeded Chen Ping’an’s imagination, the kind that could make him laugh in his dreams.

Therefore, what followed would be a journey of mountain and river exploration.

If he happened to gain anything more, that would be even better; but if he gained nothing at all, it would not matter in the slightest.

However, the shattering of Daoist Sun’s Treasure Pagoda Bell for no apparent reason was very strange.

But compared to the peculiar nature of this entire cave abode, it almost felt commonplace.

Even though Chen Ping’an had just ignited another Yang Energy Lantern Talisman, there was still no sign of filth or baleful aura, only the appearance of clear and bright skies.

Chen Ping’an was at a loss.

All he could do was face whatever came his way.

Many natural and man-made disasters were, in truth, simply man-made.

Chen Ping’an circled around the mountain of Daoist temple debris on the white jade plaza. Chen Ping’an’s previous scavenging had been meticulous and skillful, leaving nothing to be missed.

If he truly did miss something, there was no need to dwell on it.

Chen Ping’an stood at the top of the steps, gazing afar.

Finally, the second group of people arrived.

Compared to the sneakiness of the first group, this group was far more blatant.

It was the young Marquis Zhan Qing from North Pavilion Kingdom, and Bai Bi, the direct lineage female cultivator of the Water Dragon Sect from Lotus Country.

Chen Ping’an attached a Weight-Bearing Talisman to his body, and sped downwards like a flying bird.