Mortals: Take Mo Juren at the start

According to the route map, the Bewitching Lotus is located deep within the Yin Wind Swamp, in a relatively remote location, nearly two million miles away.

Even with Mo Juren's escape techniques, assuming everything goes smoothly and there are no delays, it would still take more than ten days to reach that place.

However, it is clear that things cannot go smoothly. The randomly appearing illusions alone will consume a certain amount of time. Moreover, the Yin Wind Swamp is not only troubled by illusions, but there are other dangers as well, which we have just not encountered yet.

"Your escape technique is quite good, and it seems somewhat familiar!" During the journey, Chi Yun Patriarch suddenly spoke up as he looked at the five-colored escape light shining around Mo Juren.

"Familiar?" Mo Juren's heart skipped a beat, then he calmly asked the other party in return.
"This is the 'Great Five Elements Divine Light Technique.' Could it be that you have seen it before, senior?"

"The Great Five Elements Divine Light Technique?" Upon hearing this name, Ancestor Chi Yun fell silent for a moment, seemingly deep in thought, before speaking again after a long while.

"I remember now. In ancient times, the Flying Spirit Clan had a powerful figure named Five-Colored True Monarch. It is said that he was a descendant of the True Spirit Peacock and his cultivation reached the peak of the Integration Realm."

"The opponent seems to be practicing a similar escape technique. I have indeed seen it with my own eyes. It is extremely similar to your 'Great Five Elements Divine Light Technique,' but its speed is far superior."

“The Flying Spirit Clan!” Mo Juren was slightly surprised. He hadn’t expected that this clan would be involved. If he remembered correctly, the Flying Spirit Clan had many branches, and some of them did indeed possess the bloodline of the True Spirit Peacock.

To his surprise, this "Five-Colored True Monarch" had actually cultivated a technique similar to the "Great Five Elements Divine Light Method." He wondered if it was true or not.
If that's true, then there's a problem. After all, the Great Five Elements Divine Light Technique originated from the Fairy Xuanming, who is the Primordial Netherworld Sparrow, a variant of the True Spirit Five-Colored Peacock. However, the two are essentially completely independent.

Moreover, when she was in the lower realm, Fairy Xuanming had unintentionally mentioned that her relationship with the True Spirit Five-Colored Peacock lineage was not exactly harmonious.

Consider that Five-Colored True Lord; his clansmen are all descendants of the True Spirit Peacock. If he had truly cultivated the inheritance of other True Spirits, it would be no small matter. Once his clansmen found out, who knows what problems might arise.

"Could you tell me about this Five-Colored True Monarch? What happened to him afterward? Did he break through to the Mahayana stage?" With his thoughts back, Mo Juren's expression remained unchanged as he asked in a calm tone.

"Really, no." Ancestor Chi Yun, oblivious to the unusual tone in the other's words, immediately began to explain.
"Speaking of this Five-Colored True Lord, his fate can be described as full of twists and turns. He originally came from a good family, but for some unknown reason, he betrayed his clan and was chased all the way to the territory of the demon clan. Then, by chance, he became a secret guest of the Black Phoenix clan."

Originally, he thought he could finally settle down, but unexpectedly, less than a thousand years later, he was caught in the demonic calamity. During one of his missions, he unfortunately encountered a demonic Mahayana and ultimately died in battle.

The other party was a person who made great contributions to both the human and demon races. In this respect, even I cannot compare with him. It's just a pity that he was so unlucky and died young. It's truly a shame.

"So that's how it is!" Mo Juren was moved after hearing the other party's explanation.

Just as he had guessed, this Five-Colored True Lord did indeed clash with his clan, which meant that he might have truly received the inheritance of the Xuanming Fairy, at least in terms of escape techniques.

Therefore, it is not surprising that conflicts arose with the tribe.

Unexpectedly, he later joined the Black Phoenix Clan and became a secret guest elder.

That would have been fine, but the crucial point is that when the demonic calamity struck, he died fighting against the demons as a member of the demon race.

Although the other party was of a different race, as the saying goes, actions speak louder than words. Regardless of what the other party was thinking, his actions instinctively inspired respect in him.

At the same time, he wondered again what the other party's relationship was with Fairy Xuanming. He thought he could ask her about it when he met her in the future.

"If my guess is correct, your 'Great Five Elements Divine Light Technique' should be a modified version of the technique, which allows humans to cultivate it. Unfortunately, you have only grasped some of the basics, and your speed is completely different from that of the former Five-Colored True Monarch."

"Of course, it's also possible that the other party has a higher cultivation level, and as a member of the Flying Spirit Clan, they are naturally skilled in flight, which is why the difference in cultivation level is so great." At this moment, Ancestor Chi Yun spoke again.

"Senior is right. This escape technique is profound and mysterious. I haven't had it for very long, so I can only be considered to have entered the realm of it. I'm still far from truly mastering it." Mo Juren didn't deny it, but then changed the subject.
"Senior was once a being who stood at the pinnacle of this world, so you must have a lot of knowledge about the Five Elements cultivation techniques, right?"

"I know what you're thinking, young man. You want to know if there's a way to increase the speed of cultivating this kind of technique, right? And coincidentally, what you cultivate is a Five Elements technique," Patriarch Chi Yun chuckled and continued.

"Actually, there's no need to hide it from you. I do know some methods, such as certain pills or special spiritual objects, which can all play a certain role."

But in the end, these are just external forces, treating the symptoms but not the root cause. Moreover, these things are not easy to find and may consume a lot of your time and energy.

In short, this is something that can be done, but don't have too high expectations, and certainly don't put the cart before the horse.

The path is long and arduous, fraught with peril. Opportunism and trickery are not shortcuts. For us cultivators, how far we ultimately go depends on ourselves; aptitude, perseverance, opportunity, and many other factors are indispensable.

"What you say is absolutely right, senior. I will keep your teachings in mind." Mo Juren nodded solemnly. He understood these golden words and would not put the cart before the horse.

"It's good that you have a clear understanding. As for those auxiliary pills, spiritual items, and so on, I will tell you about them when I have time later."

"Then thank you very much, senior!" "Given our current relationship, my life and death are practically tied to yours, so there's no need to be polite. I only hope that you will achieve even greater things in the future, which would be a good thing for me as well..."

"Well, that's true..."

"..."

……

Time flies, and half a month has passed in the blink of an eye. They are not far from the area where the Bewitching Lotus is located.

The journey over the past two weeks has certainly not been smooth. The illusions we've encountered have become increasingly powerful, and these illusions are quite unique, all arising from the mind, almost on par with the tribulations of inner demons.

Fortunately, Mo Juren himself possessed extraordinary composure, and with the help of Ancestor Chi Yun, he would never have made it this far.

Of course, there is also a good side: by breaking through the illusions time and time again, his own mindset has been thoroughly tempered, becoming increasingly indestructible.

The greatest contribution of the "Houtu Jingxin Method" was to this, which completely exceeded his expectations.

His understanding of this witchcraft technique has become increasingly refined, and the more he uses it, the more profound and mysterious it seems. Its value must be among the top of similar secret techniques.

According to the records, in addition to the omnipresent illusions, there are other dangers in this Yin Wind Swamp, such as some special strange beasts that live here.

However, perhaps due to good luck, he did not encounter it along the way.

Even so, he dared not let his guard down, especially since the route map given to him by Madam Yuanli specifically mentioned a dangerous place.

The creator of this route map once encountered this danger while entering the Yin Wind Swamp. He had no idea what it was, but he almost died because of it.

If his guess was correct, the other party must be a powerful expert at the Void Refinement level. If he almost suffered a setback with such an expert, then the situation must be even more dangerous for him.

Speaking of this, he thought of another point of doubt.

Since that being entered the Yin Wind Swamp and discovered the Bewitching Heart Lotus, why didn't it take it away directly at that time?
Was it because they didn't like it? Or was it because it was too early, and the Bewitching Lotus hadn't fully matured yet?
He had inquired about this matter with Madam Yuanli, but she only said that she had obtained the jade slip by chance and did not know the specific reason.

Mo Juren could only refrain from speculating for the time being, and perhaps the answer would be found once the location of the Bewitching Lotus was discovered.

A few days later, he suddenly stopped while traveling at high speed. After taking out the route map and comparing it with the map, he was certain that the so-called dangerous place was only about a hundred miles ahead.

"Senior, have you discovered anything?" Mo Juren did not continue forward, but asked Chi Yun Ancestor. The other party's divine sense could explore a range of over a thousand miles, so he must have made some discoveries, right?
However, things turned out completely differently than he had imagined. Upon hearing the inquiry, Patriarch Chi Yun immediately replied,

“I started investigating long ago, but even now, after being more than a hundred miles away from that dangerous place, I still haven’t sensed anything unusual.”

"No?" Mo Juren frowned.

"Are you sure? This is no laughing matter. This place is closer, so why don't we check it a few more times?"

"Very well..." Ancestor Chi Yun did not refuse, and immediately released his divine sense to explore ahead. After a moment, he said helplessly again,

"There should be a lake about a hundred miles ahead, but I can confirm that there is nothing unusual there. By the way, could the information recorded on your route map really be outdated because it's been so long?"

"This..." Mo Juren was stunned. It was certainly possible. After all, the route map was obtained by Lady Yuanli by chance, but the time when it was made was unknown, and it might even have been a long time ago.

"Since there are lakes, is it possible that they are deep at the bottom of the lake?"

"Perhaps. The lake is quite large and deep, and the water can also interfere with divine sense. I really can't investigate it clearly. Perhaps I can find something if I get closer."

"It seems we have no choice but to take the risk and go ahead. We can investigate later."

Thinking of this, Mo Juren no longer hesitated and immediately transformed into a five-colored ray of light, rushing forward at top speed. In just a moment, he arrived at the so-called dangerous place.

Looking up, there was indeed a lake about a hundred feet ahead. It was quite large, with no view of the opposite shore, and the water was as black as ink, making it impossible to see anything inside. (End of Chapter)