Qinghe Immortal Clan.

"You promised not to wander off, so why are you nowhere to be found as soon as I get back?"

Seeing that the person who came was Song Qingyu, whom he had been looking for, Song Qingming was somewhat surprised, but also relieved of a little worry.

"Fellow Daoist Li asked me to help refine a sword formation, and I happened to want to refine one myself, so I agreed."

"Seventh Brother, it's not convenient to talk outside. Let's go back and I'll tell you slowly!"

Faced with Song Qingyu's reminder, Song Qingming thought for a moment and decided not to scold her any further. He turned around and took her back to the cave.

Once back in the cave, Song Qingyu recounted how Li Xianyun had sent a message to Song Qingming, asking them to help search for materials to forge a sword formation.

After Qi Yuqian was ambushed and killed, Li Xianyun, who became a wanted criminal in the market, completely disappeared without a trace.

Upon hearing that Li Xianyun was still alive and well, Song Qingming couldn't help but feel happy for him.

"Seventh Brother, Fellow Daoist Li seems to be looking for trouble with the Qi family while searching for materials to refine a sword formation. Do you think we should step in and help him?"

"I originally thought that Fellow Daoist Li's goal was only to kill Qi Yuqian, but now it seems that his hatred for the Qi family is not so simple."

I did ask him before if he wanted to help.

Fellow Daoist Li, not wanting others to get involved, directly declined the offer.

He did this simply because he didn't want to involve us.

After all, the Qi family's strength was far superior to that of ordinary Nascent Soul sects, and they also had an ancestor at the half-step Divine Transformation realm in charge.

Even if Fellow Daoist Li masters the sword formation you mentioned and joins forces with us, we'll likely find it difficult to gain any advantage on their territory.

Upon hearing that Li Xianyun was alone and still wanted to continue fighting against the Qi family, Song Qingming sighed slightly.

Deep down, he also didn't want to see Li Xianyun fight a losing battle and ultimately perish in Zhongyuan Immortal Continent.

Having witnessed Li Xianyun's strong determination to take revenge, Song Qingming knew he couldn't persuade him at all, and could only watch helplessly as everything unfolded before his eyes.

Not only Song Qingming, but Song Qingyu, who was sitting next to him, also felt somewhat heavy-hearted upon hearing this.

He wanted to say something, but ultimately couldn't find the right words, so he just fiddled with the teacup in his hand.

Seeing this, Song Qingming immediately changed the subject and asked, "Qingyu, I heard from Xuanyi that your cultivation is about to break through the bottleneck."

Have you found any spiritual items that can help you break through to a higher realm?

"Don't worry, Seventh Brother. This time, I helped Fellow Daoist Li refine a sword formation and also took the opportunity to exchange cultivation experiences with him, and I gained some new insights."

Even without using any spiritual items, I should be able to break through to a higher realm this time.

As a genius who rose from humble beginnings to the Nascent Soul stage, Li Xianyun also possesses his own unique understanding of the path of sword cultivation.

In assisting the other party in refining the sword formation, Song Qingyu not only learned the method of refining the sword formation, but also received some guidance on cultivation.

Upon hearing Song Qingming's question about his upcoming seclusion to break through his cultivation level, Song Qingyu displayed great confidence.

Upon hearing this, Song Qingming was also very pleased and nodded repeatedly, saying, "In that case, you should prepare to go into seclusion as soon as possible."

We've been living in Xuantian City for years; it's time for us to go out and explore.

"Once you emerge from seclusion, we'll leave this place and explore other parts of Zhongyuan Prefecture."

"Husband, are you saying that we'll be leaving Xuantian City soon? We've lived here for so long, it's really hard to leave?"

Upon hearing Song Qingming's sudden announcement that he was leaving "Xuantian City," Li Xuanyi thought of the weapon-refining room she had just tidied up, and a hint of reluctance appeared on her face.

"We agreed to travel, so we can't just stay in Xuantian City all the time. If we don't take this opportunity to go out and explore, we'll have to prepare to return to Donghuang Prefecture in a few years."

"Yes! Seventh Brother is right. It's been almost twenty years since we left. I wonder how much Chiyun Mountain has changed since we went back."

"Then we'll leave Xuantian City once I emerge from my seclusion."

Upon hearing what Song Qingming said, Li Xuanyi and Song Qingyu nodded slightly and quickly agreed to his suggestion.

On the third day after Song Qingming returned, Song Qingyu took the initiative to enter the secluded stone chamber, preparing to break through the bottleneck of the fifth level of the Nascent Soul stage in one go.

Meanwhile, Li Xuanyi was busy processing the refining materials in her hands, preparing to earn a small sum of spirit stones before leaving "Xuantian City".

Seeing that the two women had started to get busy, Song Qingming returned to his secluded stone chamber and took out all the gains he had obtained from the "Northern Underworld Immortal Continent".

Besides the monster materials and the "Jade Purity Elixir" obtained along the way,

Song Qingming also had several "storage artifacts" in his hands, which were found on the body of the possessed "Xu Gu Zi" after he was killed.

In his haste to get there, Song Qingming had broken the restriction on the "storage bag," but he hadn't had time to organize its contents.

Only after returning to his secluded cave did he patiently empty out all the various spiritual items inside, filling almost half of the stone chamber.

Besides "Xu Gu Zi", it seems that the "storage artifacts" of Han Yu and Xu Yu Liang, who had previously perished together, also fell into the hands of the other party.

Han Yu and Xu Yuliang were both rogue cultivators, and Song Qingming did not know their specific origins.

When "Xu Gu Zi" invited these people to travel together, he probably had already taken this into consideration, which is why he dared not invite those cultivators from major sects.

Once they successfully find the "Jade Purity Elixir," Xu Gu Zi will secretly intervene and leave them all in the "Northern Underworld Immortal Continent."

Unfortunately, despite his meticulous plan, there was still a flaw, and all these spiritual items eventually fell into Song Qingming's hands.

After clearing all the spirit stones aside, Song Qingming quickly found a white porcelain bottle containing the most important "Jade Purity Spirit Liquid" to him.

Apart from the portion that Yang Kaishan and Wang Zhixing each received, the remaining "Jade Purity Elixir" all ended up in Song Qingming's hands.

I roughly estimated that there were four portions of spiritual liquid.

Adding to the portion that Song Qingming originally possessed, he now has five portions of "Jade Purity Spirit Liquid," which should be more than enough for him to break through to the half-step Nascent Soul realm in the future.

All that was left was for Song Qingming to put away all the "Jade Purity Elixir" in his hand.

Qu Bai, who was studying the corpse of the "bronze flying insect" not far away, was also attracted by the colorful spiritual light shining in front of him.

Seeing the many high-level spiritual items that Song Qingming had taken out, Qu Bai also looked somewhat surprised and immediately teased:

"I didn't expect you to really make a fortune this time. That guy was quite good; he left you a lot of good stuff."

"I was tricked by that person that day. If it weren't for the help of the senior, I would probably have fallen into his hands long ago. How could I have had the chance to obtain these spiritual items?"

"Speaking of which, I owe this opportunity to Senior Qu."

"Hehe! Young friend, you flatter me a bit too much."

With so many high-level magic treasures on you, plus a replica of a space-sealing magic treasure, even if I hadn't made a move that day, that person probably wouldn't have been a match for you.

I always thought that your ability to cultivate to the late Nascent Soul stage with your four spiritual roots was just due to good luck.

Looking back now, I realize I was indeed short-sighted and underestimated you, fellow Daoist.

Although the two had known each other for many years, Qu Bai spent most of his time cultivating alone in Yin Feng Ridge and did not know much about Song Qingming.

During this trip to the "Northern Underworld Immortal Continent," it was discovered that in addition to the "Golden Palace Cloud Light Sword," Song Qingming also possessed a replica of the "Purple Sun Token," a magical treasure.

Qu Bai now looks at the other party with more curiosity, and his attitude has also begun to change compared to before.

Upon hearing this, Song Qingming smiled slightly and said, "Senior, you misunderstand. The replica spiritual treasure in my hand was actually found by luck in a senior's cave."

.

At that time, I was stranded far beyond the Nine Heavens. If I hadn't mistakenly entered the Purple Sun Heavenly Palace and obtained this item, I would probably be dead by now, and would never have been able to see Senior Qu again.

"Hehe! For us cultivators, whether it's luck or personal opportunity, it's often part of your ability."

Since you were able to survive in that kind of place and find the legacy left by this ancient cultivator, that is enough to prove that you are qualified.

Otherwise, if it were a cultivator of average ability, they would likely have perished and their cultivation would have been extinguished.

Although Qu Bai was not a native cultivator of Huayang Realm, he had been here for countless years and was naturally aware of the dangers beyond the Nine Heavens.

Upon hearing Song Qingming's detailed explanation, "Qu Bai" replied with a profound meaning, clearly not believing that these were merely strokes of good luck.

Seeing that the other party's gaze had shifted back to the many spiritual objects in front of them, Song Qingming didn't explain further and instead smiled, changing the subject and asking directly:
"Senior, is there something you've taken a fancy to? Let's not stand on ceremony, just say it."

Upon hearing this, Qu Bai smiled slightly and used magic to retrieve a blue ball of light from his body.

Upon seeing the familiar ball of light appear, Song Qingming immediately noticed a small, blue and white cicada pupa lying inside, and recognized it instantly.

The contents inside seem to be related to the "Mysterious Jade Ice Silkworm" they fought that day.

Before Song Qingming could ask, "Qu Bai" immediately spoke up:

"Although this thing has degenerated into a pupa, its aura has not completely disappeared, so it should still have a breath left."

That person was able to cultivate adult Xuanbing Jade Silkworms, so they must possess a special manual similar to those for cultivating spirit insects.

"Please help me search and see if there's any way to revive him."

Seeing that "Qu Bai" seemed very interested in the Xuan Jade Ice Silkworm in his hand, Song Qingming did not ask any further questions, nodded, and began searching among the many spiritual objects.

After searching for a while, just as Qu Bai had predicted, the two found a rather ancient jade slip among a pile of spiritual objects.

It contains the method for cultivating Xuanbing Jade Silkworms that Qu Bai wanted.

Upon receiving the jade slip, Qu Bai's face lit up with joy. He turned around and focused solely on studying the object in his hand, ignoring everything else in front of him.

Seeing this, Song Qingming also began to slowly organize the other spiritual items.

".."

After careful sorting, Song Qingming finally managed to categorize all the spiritual items in front of him and put them into the "storage magic artifacts" he had prepared.

Looking at the several "storage magic items" that were already full in his hands, Song Qingming's face showed a hint of joy.

After the recent sorting, besides the "Jade Purity Spirit Liquid," these storage bags contained as many as 1.2 million spirit stones, eight high-level magic treasures of level four or above, more than a dozen high-level spirit talismans, as well as various pills, magic arrays, monster materials, and other high-level spiritual items.

Even with a preliminary estimate, these spiritual items are worth no less than five million, most of which were found in "Xu Gu Zi's" storage bag.

This guy has lived for tens of thousands of years and has indeed accumulated a lot of good stuff.

Among the many spiritual items on the table, the most valuable were the two top-grade level four magic treasures.

They were a silver-white whisk and a crimson flying sword.

The silver-white whisk was previously on "Xu Gu Zi" and was called the "Silver Dragon Whisk," inside which a level four silver python's divine soul was refined.

This treasure not only possesses considerable offensive capabilities but also has the power to trap enemies, making it no less powerful than the "Purple Flame Divine Fire Silk" in Song Qingming's possession.

The remaining sword was a crimson flying sword, which Song Qingming seemed to have seen Xu Yuliang use before. It was probably taken from Xu Yuliang by "Xu Gu Zi" after he killed him.

Compared to the "Silver Dragon Dust Brush", this crimson flying sword is slightly less powerful and does not possess any particularly strong supernatural abilities.

Of the remaining level-four magic treasures, apart from a level-four mid-grade green jade tablet with relatively outstanding defensive capabilities.

The others are of average quality and power, and don't seem to have anything particularly special about them.

Of the dozen or so level-four talismans, only one attack talisman was of high quality at level four, which was somewhat useful to Song Qingming.

There were also some high-level materials such as elixirs and magic arrays, which Song Qingming collected together.

I plan to return to "Donghuang Immortal Continent" and then find a suitable opportunity to deal with it.

After all, the fact that "Xu Gu Zi" could scheme against them like this meant that this wasn't the first time he had tried to harm other cultivators.

Who knows where the items seized from the other party came from, or whether there will be victims coming to them in the future?

After all, being in "Zhongyuan Immortal Continent", Song Qingming didn't want to cause himself any trouble.

After tidying up the more valuable spiritual items on the table, he looked at the few high-level demonic beast materials remaining on the table.
Song Qingming raised his hand and took out several high-level monster materials that he had obtained on the way, and put them all in one place.

Song Qingming recognized most of these monster materials.

It was something they had seized in the valley before they searched for the "Jade Purity Elixir," so they didn't need to worry about trading it with anyone now.

After tidying up everything on the table, Song Qingming returned to the side of the stone chamber and began to meditate and cultivate.

It must be said that although this trip to the "Northern Underworld Immortal Continent" was quite risky, Song Qingming did indeed gain a lot from it.

The "Jade Purity Spirit Liquid" he held alone was enough to cause a sensation in the market, making countless Nascent Soul cultivators envious.

Fortunately, only Yang Kaishan and Wang Zhixing knew about this, and on the way back, the three of them swore an oath not to reveal it.

Song Qingming doesn't need to worry that others will find out about this and come knocking on his door.

".."

Just as Song Qingming was about to go into seclusion to cultivate for a while, an acquaintance unexpectedly came to his door after only half a month.

The person who arrived was none other than Wang Zhixing, who had previously accompanied Song Qingming on a treasure hunt and had lost his physical body and suffered severe injuries.

At this moment, having lost his physical body, he can only possess a humanoid puppet.

Upon meeting, before exchanging even a few pleasantries, Wang Zhixing took the initiative to state his purpose: he wanted to borrow some spirit stones from Song Qingming.

After returning to "Xuantian City", Wang Zhixing inquired everywhere in the market, looking for high-level spiritual items that could restore a cultivator's physical body.

As the top-tier immortal city in Zhongyuan Immortal Continent, Xuantian City naturally has a higher chance of finding high-level spiritual items compared to other places.

After half a month of painstaking searching, Wang Zhixing soon learned that a Nascent Soul cultivator possessed a piece of high-grade level four spiritual wood that could help him re-refine his Dharma body.

However, this item was quite valuable, and Wang Zhixing did not have enough spirit stones.

He wanted to sell several sets of high-level magic arrays in exchange for spirit stones, but because he didn't know anyone in the market, he couldn't find a suitable price to sell them.

Fearing he might miss out on the magical item, Wang Zhixing took the initiative to seek help from Song Qingming.

He wanted to use a high-level magic array he possessed as collateral to exchange for some spirit stones.

I will try to redeem this magic array when I am better off in the future.

Upon hearing this, Song Qingming inquired about the matter and immediately lent Wang Zhixing 400,000 spirit stones.

As for the high-level magic array that the other party had mortgaged to him, although its value was clearly not worth that much, Song Qingming didn't care too much about it.

After all, the two had gone through hardships together on their previous trip to the "Northern Underworld Immortal Continent," so there was no need to worry about these spirit stones anymore.

After receiving Song Qingming's help, Wang Zhixing quickly took his leave.

To Song Qingming's surprise, Wang Zhixing did not return, even though he had promised to come back to redeem the magic array within six months at most.

Seeing that the agreed time had long passed, Song Qingming went out to inquire and learned that Wang Zhixing had left "Xuantian City" several months ago and had never returned.

It is unknown whether the other party went to another place to heal their wounds in seclusion, or left "Zhongyuan Immortal Continent" and returned to Xihua Continent.

".."

Time flies, and two years have passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day, Song Qingming and Li Xuanyi were enjoying tea and chatting at the stone table in the main hall of the cave when their divine senses suddenly detected a fluctuation of a restriction.

As soon as the two arrived in front of a stone gate, the barrier in front of them slowly dissipated, and a figure in green robes walked out with a smile on his face.

"Qingyu, congratulations on your successful breakthrough in cultivation."

"Congratulations, Qingyu."

".."

Sensing the change in Song Qingyu's aura, Song Qingming and Li Xuanyi immediately stepped forward to offer their congratulations.

"After trying for so many years, this seclusion has finally been fulfilled. Qingyu thanks Seventh Brother and Senior Sister for their help in protecting the Dharma these past two years."

After two years of seclusion, my wish has finally come true.

Now that Song Qingyu has stepped out of the secluded stone chamber, a smile has finally appeared on her face.

Li Xuanyi, standing to the side, looked on with a hint of envy as she saw Song Qingyu successfully break through her cultivation level.

"Qingyu, I didn't expect you to have reached the fifth level of the Nascent Soul realm so quickly. I think you're not much worse than your husband, and you'll advance to the late Nascent Soul realm sooner or later."

"Then the sect will have another great cultivator, and we'll no longer have to worry about those demonic beasts in the north."

"Every step in the Nascent Soul realm is extremely difficult. I am still far from advancing to the late Nascent Soul stage. It's not as easy as Senior Sister thinks."

Please don't make fun of me anymore.

Although she was full of confidence before going into seclusion, Song Qingyu did not use any other spiritual objects to assist her in this breakthrough, and the process was still quite difficult.

After two years of seclusion and numerous attempts, Song Qingyu finally managed to break through the bottleneck and raise his cultivation to the fifth level of the Nascent Soul realm.

Although her insistence on not using auxiliary spiritual objects did indeed benefit her greatly, it also made Song Qingyu deeply aware of the difficulties involved.

Even just reaching the fifth level of the Nascent Soul stage is already this difficult.

If she cannot find a suitable spiritual object, breaking through to the late Nascent Soul stage will be incredibly difficult for her.

Fortunately, Song Qingyu still has plenty of lifespan left, and there will be plenty of opportunities to find spiritual objects to help her break through her cultivation level in the future, so there is no need to rush.

Seeing that Song Qingyu seemed to lack confidence in advancing to the late Nascent Soul stage, Song Qingming quickly spoke up:

"Qingyu was able to break through the bottleneck this time without using any auxiliary spiritual objects, which shows that her talent for cultivation is indeed no less than mine back then, and she has great potential in the late Nascent Soul stage."

Moreover, the path of cultivation is not only about one's own talent, but also about personal opportunities.

"Since you've received Senior Ling's inheritance, reaching the late Nascent Soul stage isn't unthinkable for you."

"Yes! Seventh Brother is right. I can't let Master down. I must catch up with you."

Upon hearing Song Qingming mention his master, Ling Zhentian, Song Qingyu, who had been somewhat cautious, relaxed and nodded with a smile to the two of them.

The three chatted and laughed all the way, and soon arrived at the main hall of the cave.

Once a pot of spiritual tea was served, Li Xuanyi turned to Song Qingming and asked:
"Now that Qingyu has emerged from seclusion and her cultivation has stabilized, husband, don't you think we should start preparing to leave Xuantian City?"

"Yes! I already discussed this with Fellow Daoist Lu some time ago. We can leave the cave at any time. Let's pack up in the next few days."

"In a few days, we'll send a message to the guards to come and take over, then we can leave."

A year ago, Song Qingming and Li Xuanyi had already begun planning to leave "Xuantian City".

It was only because Song Qingyu had been in seclusion for a long time that the delay was caused.

After spending a few days tidying up their cave dwelling, the three immediately sent word to the "Xuantian City" guard team to take over the cave dwelling, and then left the market together.

Having lived in the city for over a decade, Lu Yuan, Xiao Ziliang, and a few others who were on good terms with Song Qingming and his companions came to the market gate to see them off upon learning that they were leaving.

"Fellow Daoist Song, Madam Song, Fellow Daoist Qingyu, we'll see you off here."

If you ever come to the vicinity of Xuantian City in the future, please be sure to inform us so we can host a welcoming feast for you all.

"Thank you for your kind farewell, fellow Daoists. I will definitely pay you a visit in the future if I have the opportunity. Until we meet again!"

"See you later!"

After bidding farewell to Xiao Ziliang and the others, Song Qingming took out the "White Bone Flying Boat" and, along with Song Qingyu and Li Xuanyi, transformed into a streak of light and headed west.

In a short while, they disappeared from everyone's sight. (End of Chapter)