Yellow Court Daoist

"Let's set aside the matter of the Six Dust Temple for now."

"The Eight Demons hide in Qingluo Valley, and the Snow Mountain Formation they rely on for concealment is arranged with the 'Snow Soul Pearl' as the array's foundation. This treasure is precious; Junior Brother, quickly secure it so we can head to the underground palace in Qingluo Valley and eliminate the remaining demons!"

In this battle, Lu Qingfeng made the greatest contribution. Among the treasures left by the Eight Demons, the 'Snow Soul Pearl' was the most valuable and rightly belonged to Lu Qingfeng.

Though Bing Yi Daoist coveted it, he was sensible and did not succumb to greed.

"Thank you, Senior Brother."

Lu Qingfeng expressed his gratitude.

Then, following the traces of the Great Array, he searched for the location of the Snow Soul Pearl.

Without the Eight Demons to preside over it, the Snow Mountain Formation operated automatically, losing eighty percent of its mysterious power.

In no more than an hour, Lu Qingfeng found the foundation of the array.

Boom!

Deep within a mountain peak, he blasted it open, and numerous talismans appeared. In the midst of them, there emerged an ice crystal-like sphere the size of a fist. Even through the talismans, one could feel a bone-chilling cold coming forth.

It seemed to stir one's inner True Yuan and Mana.

Truly formidable!

"This is the Snow Soul Pearl."

Lu Qingfeng dared not be careless. Holding the Iron Centipede Bamboo Stick, twelve Iron Wire Centipedes flew out and surrounded the Snow Soul Pearl. Together, they constructed a Great Array, and with a rumbling from all directions, the Snow Soul Pearl was extracted from the Snow Mountain Formation.

At that moment.

Within tens of thousands of miles of Qingluo Valley, countless valleys collapsed and numerous snow mountains roared.

Standing in Qingluo Valley, the Snow Mountain Formation used by the Qingluo Eight Demons for concealment was thus destroyed on the spot.

"What a treasure."

Lu Qingfeng stared at the Snow Soul Pearl, feeling the endless ice cold and snowy power within, his face revealing a joyous color. Not daring to delay, he threw out countless talismans to seal it, waiting to refine it later.

Beside him, Bing Yi Daoist looked on with a covetous expression, "This Snow Soul Pearl is a rare treasure indeed. Back then, the Snow Mountain Ancestor Wei Fengniang used the 'Earth Penetrating Divine Needle' to pierce through Wind Wave Valley to the peak of Xiaofeng Mountain in the North Pole Snow Domain, descending 7,300 feet straight down, and obtained a Snow Soul Pearl condensed from the essence of ten thousand years of ice and snow. With it, she cultivated the 'Snow Mountain Great Method' and became unmatched in the North Pole Snow Domain."

"Over the next thousand years, while Wei Fengniang cultivated, she continued to search for more Snow Soul Pearls. Incredibly, she found another Snow Soul Pearl on the main peak of the No Return Mountain in the North Pole Snow Domain. She used a second 'Earth Penetrating Divine Needle' to delve deep into the snowy cave to retrieve the treasure. When the well-known Deng Xian of the region learned of this, she clandestinely laid in wait, using a Great Method to seal the cave. However, Wei Fengniang was prepared and broke the seal, severely wounding Deng Xian."

"Fortunately."

"While Wei Fengniang suffered thousands of hardships from the bitter cold in the cave and was fundamentally wounded, she barely preserved her life through the mysterious powers of the Snow Mountain Great Method, but all her treasures were stolen by the Eight Demons."

"Including this Snow Soul Pearl."

Bing Yi Daoist was angling to get closer to Lu Qingfeng and shared the details about the Eight Demons he'd introduced three days prior in greater depth and detail.

Speaking, he glanced at the Snow Soul Pearl in Lu Qingfeng's hand. Bing Yi Daoist shook his head, "Actually, it's a good thing that the Eight Demons stole the Snow Soul Pearl. Incapable of refining it and lacking the skills to refine treasures, they could only use it to erect the Snow Mountain Formation for protection. Had it remained in Wei Fengniang's hands and she refined this second Snow Soul Pearl, who knows how much more advanced her 'Snow Mountain Great Method' would become. Even outside of the North Pole Snow Domain, she would have been one of the most formidable masters, and that would have been a true calamity!"

As Bing Yi Daoist conversed with Lu Qingfeng, the two headed toward the underground palace in Qingluo Valley.

Along the way.

Bing Yi Daoist addressed Lu Qingfeng, "The Eight Demons were mere riffraff, with only rudimentary cultivation techniques. In my Ten Thousand Beasts Immortal Mountain, there are countless methods to refine the 'Snow Soul Pearl,' at least more than a handful, so Junior Brother can rest assured. There should be methods for using it to refine magic artifacts as well. However, as valuable as the Snow Soul Pearl is, using it to enhance one's cultivation would benefit the Divine Soul, flesh, and Mana. To merely use it for refining artifacts, frankly, isn't well-advised."

While speaking, Bing Yi Daoist's gaze fell on the Iron Centipede Bamboo Stick in Lu Qingfeng's hand, his expression turned slightly peculiar.

Clearly.

Lu Qingfeng had a history of 'wasting' the Iron Wire Centipedes, and Bing Yi Daoist worried that Lu Qingfeng might again resort to such a 'foolish' method and use the Snow Soul Pearl in artifact refinement, so he couldn't help but voice a reminder.

"Thank you for the reminder, Senior Brother."

"I was just worrying about how to handle this Snow Soul Pearl, now I can be at ease."

Lu Qingfeng observed and listened, stowing away the Iron Centipede Bamboo Stick not to provoke Bing Yi Daoist, while responding verbally.

The Snow Soul Pearl was indeed a rare gem, capable of creating powerful magical artifacts if refined.

But cultivation was the foundation, and Lu Qingfeng would not mistake the means for the end. As for methods to refine the Snow Soul Pearl, he had far more than just fifty in hand.

However, it would naturally be a welcome opportunity to obtain methods from the Ten Thousand Beasts Immortal Mountain, and Lu Qingfeng certainly wouldn't reject it.

The two flew swiftly.

Soon, they located the underground palace in Qingluo Valley.

Centering on Qingluo Valley, the Qingluo Eight Demons had gathered a host of Demon Cultivators, causing no small harm to the three realms. Having slain the Eight Demons, it was necessary to deal with the remaining demonic host and rid them of the potential for further mayhem.

Without the Qingluo Eight Demons.

The Qingluo Demon Palace was no match.

In less than an hour.

Lu Qingfeng and Bing Yi Daoist had killed most of the Demon Cultivators hiding in various parts of the underground palace. The rest who fled were of no concern. After sweeping through the palace and taking all the treasures, the two left Qingluo Valley.

From then on.

The once formidable Qingluo Demon Palace collapsed and dissipated with the death of the Qingluo Eight Demons.

As for the various treasures of the Eight Demons—

Including the handy magic artifacts, weapons, the Snow Soul Pearl, and even their corpses, all fell into the hands of Lu Qingfeng and Bing Yi Daoist. The remaining treasures aside from those in the palace were all stored in the Mustard Spaces created by the Eight Demons.

After slaying the Eight Demons.

Upon their return, by tracing the cause and fate and making some calculations, they could deduce the location of these mustard spaces. Without the Eight Demons to guard and defend them, the mustard spaces were utterly defenseless, and thus, calculating and opening them was not difficult.

...

Ten Thousand Beasts Immortal Mountain.

This is the First Immortal Gate of Biyang Lake, the leader of the righteous sects within the thirty-six million-mile Earth Realm. The gate of the mountain is located on the north bank of the Chengyang River in the southern territory of Biyang Lake.

Known as Xiling Gorge.

Inside the gorge, the scenery is bright and magnificent, with towering peaks on both sides of the river, standing walls hemming the river. Precipitous cliffs hang across the sky, with peculiar rocks jutting out, cascading springs like hanging silks, and ancient vines and trees that obscure the sun.

A smaller gorge within a larger one, indeed a rare and splendid sight among the Three Mountains and Nine Waters.

Outside Xiling Gorge.

Lu Qingfeng looked at the majestic and marvelous Xiling Gorge, listening to the rapid flow of water and the vast springs, feeling refreshed and delighted for a moment. It made him recall the time when he began his journey from Black Wood Village, following the course of the Chengyang River downhill.

Back then, he felt that the successive gorges of the Chengyang River were marvelously dangerous, almost becoming the final resting place for him and his two siblings.

However, compared with the present Xiling Gorge, that was but a small trick in front of a master.

"Xiling Gorge stretches for ninety thousand miles along the river, with Broken Water Gorge, Soldier Book and Treasure Sword Gorge, Rice Storage Gorge, White Dog Gorge, Mountain Guardian Gorge, Ox Liver Horse Lung Gorge, and so on, all being spectacular sights of the sect, each with their own marvels."

"Junior brother, since it's your first visit, you should take a good look around."

Bing Yi Daoist saw Lu Qingfeng in a trance and cheerfully spoke.

Lu Qingfeng looked ahead, unable to see in the distance, but there was a gorge right in front of him.

In a crack in the steep cliff on the north shore of the gorge, there seemed to be something like a rolled scroll, resembling a mortal's Soldier Book, filled with layers of mystery. At first glance, it was as if the sounds of warriors and iron horses could be heard ringing in one's ears.

He closed his eyes.

Tap, tap, tap!

Visions of iron horses crossing frozen rivers surfaced, entering his dreams.

Vast and boundless, a spectacle of relentless killing, the endless qi flushes through the divine soul and mind. If an ordinary Spirit Void Practitioner were to look for too long, they would find their divine soul wounded and their mind not their own.

Lu Qingfeng's divine soul was powerful, on par with a Golden Core or even a Nourishing God Realm Cultivator, so naturally, he was unaffected.

Instead, this energy served to temper him.

Having cultivated here for a long time, his divine soul would surely become more condensed.

Lu Qingfeng composed himself.

And looked further.

Below the unparalleled 'Soldier Book Stone' rose a strangely shaped rock, broader at the top and tapering at the bottom, with countless mysterious lines, pointing straight into the river, resembling a bas-relief of a treasure sword.

As if it split the gorge at the waist, piercing through the center.

Lu Qingfeng saw it.

He felt an endless Sword Intent approaching. On closer inspection, he realized that the iron horses crossing the frozen river were ridden by knights wielding sharp blades, enveloping infinite Sword Qi as they boldly charged over.

Countless streams of Sword Qi converged.

Lu Qingfeng counted carefully, tallying a thousand strands, which seemed familiar.

Upon reflection, he realized that these thousand streams of Sword Qi had some similarities with the Sword Array Techniques used by Bing Yi Daoist and Gu Yue Daoist in Qingluo Valley. However, these two had refined their Sword Dao to a profound and unpredictable level.

On top of the base of one thousand Sword Qi, they made courageous and precise advancements.

The former could merge one thousand Sword Qi into seven streams, creating the Beidou Xuan Guang Sword Formation.

The latter even transformed them into three streams, capable of forming the Three Talents Invincible Sword Formation, surpassing Bing Yi Daoist in both might and mystery.

"I wonder what level it would be, and what power it would have, if a thousand Sword Qi merged into one."

Lu Qingfeng looked on.

The one thousand Sword Qi gave rise to countless variations, seemingly capable of forming arrays, with potential for fusion. But a mere first glimpse into such complexity offered no clear starting point.

If he were to carefully observe, for decades, even centuries, perhaps he would achieve something.

But this place was the entrance to the Ten Thousand Beasts Immortal Mountain.

With his current status, if he wished, he could observe. But if he were not a disciple of the Ten Thousand Beasts Immortal Mountain, despite the treasure land before him, he most likely could not stand above the gate of the Ten Thousand Beasts Immortal Mountain, freely contemplating the mysteries.

It might seem that everyone could view and ponder from afar, yet it was designed to guard against the prying eyes of outsiders.

"Treasure Sword Stone."

Lu Qingfeng looked at it, inwardly marveling at the profoundness of heaven and earth's creations and admiring the deep heritage of the Immortal Sect.

To possess such a treasure land.

He had just arrived and had seen such a place filled with Great Methods. It was hard to imagine how many secret realms unknown to others were hidden within Ten Thousand Beasts Immortal Mountain.

Bing Yi Daoist had promised him access to all cultivation secret realms when he recruited him on Fiery Fire Island; Lu Qingfeng wondered whether this gorge was included.

"This is the Soldier Book and Treasure Sword Gorge."

"Soldier Book Stone and Treasure Sword Stone each contain their own mysteries. If junior brother is interested, after meeting Elder Gu Yue, you may practice in the gorge. The Soldier Book Stone holds the True Intent of battle formations, and the Treasure Sword Stone harbors the 'Thousand Mechanism Sword Dao'—both are top-tier inheritances, rare to find in the outside world."

Bing Yi Daoist pointed to the Soldier Book and Treasure Sword Gorge and informed Lu Qingfeng.

"Cultivation can wait; it is time to first meet Elder Gu Yue."

"Please lead the way, senior brother."

Upon hearing this, Lu Qingfeng's heart settled, and he withdrew his gaze.

...