Starting with a daily divination to build an immortal clan

Chapter 206 Fusion of Underworld Aura
On the east side of Blackwater Pool Manor, there is a somewhat desolate courtyard.

This was originally the courtyard where Shen Wenyan and Zhao Xuan got married, and the whole family lived in this courtyard.

However, with the passing of Shen Wenyan and Zhao Xuan, their eldest son, Shen Chongxuan, inherited the literary path and moved to the academy at the foot of the mountain, leaving the courtyard idle.

Only Shen Chongxu lived here.

As winter deepened, a heavy snow fell, covering the courtyard with snow and withered leaves, creating a desolate scene.

The servants used to come and clean the house regularly.

But they were all driven out by the irritable Shen Chongxu.

Over time, the courtyard gradually fell into disrepair.

In the courtyard pavilion, a figure was fast asleep on the stone table, with many wine jars scattered around him.

squeak-

The sound of the old courtyard gate being opened came from behind. The figure didn't look up, but shouted in a slightly hoarse voice.

"I said, it's none of your business!"

"Everyone get out!"

The figure at the gate paused slightly, then slowly walked over, stepping through the thick snow.

Upon hearing footsteps, the figure lying on the stone table suddenly sprang up and threw a punch at the newcomer!
Suddenly, the character "Shield" appeared in front of the newcomer, its spiritual energy gathering and easily blocking the violent fist containing spiritual power.

"elder brother?"

The disheveled figure was slightly taken aback, and the violent aura emanating from him slowly dissipated upon seeing the newcomer.

"If it were a servant from the manor, or even my grandmother and the others, were you trying to kill them with that punch?"

Shen Chongxuan spoke expressionlessly.

Meeting his gaze, Shen Chongxu remained silent, turned dejectedly back into the pavilion, grabbed a wine jar beside him, and tilted his head back to drink it down.

A sword beam formed from literary energy suddenly flew over and shattered the wine jar in his hand!
Half a jar of wine spilled, soaking his clothes.

Shen Chongxuan walked slowly to the pavilion, his eyes catching sight of an old reclining chair next to him. He vaguely saw his mother lying there quietly, waiting for his father to return.

Gently brushing away the fallen leaves and snow from the recliner, Shen Chongxuan sat quietly on it.

“Both my uncle and Ming have come.”

"I know……"

Are you really going to just keep wallowing in this despair?

Seeing his unkempt and disheveled appearance, Shen Chongxuan felt both heartache and anger, as well as helplessness.

"Grandpa asked about you many times, and I always told him you were in seclusion, cultivating your skills..."

Upon hearing this, a slight ripple appeared in Shen Chongxu's dejected eyes, followed by a sorrowful laugh: "Why are you asking me?"

"I'm a good-for-nothing, not even as talented as that little vixen."

As he spoke, he slowly stood up and rummaged through the messy wine jars to see if there was any unfinished wine.

Upon seeing this, Shen Chongxuan lightly flicked his sleeve, shattering all the wine jars in the pavilion.

"Your Majesty!"

He let out a sharp shout.

Shen Chongxu was slightly stunned, staring at him blankly for a moment, and then knelt down on the broken pieces of the wine jar scattered on the ground with a thud.

"Brother, tell Grandpa to expel me from the Shen family."

“I’m just a burden in this family.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than a flash of anger appeared in Shen Chongxuan's eyes. He suddenly swung his hand and slapped him across the air.

"You've been cultivating since childhood, but where has all that cultivation gone for over ten years?"

"Looking at my Shen family members outside the clan, they toil day and night just to obtain the resources for cultivation, while you..."

A trickle of blood spilled from the corner of Shen Chongxu's mouth. He slowly raised his hand, gently wiped his mouth, and a strange smile suddenly appeared on his face.

"Practice..."

"Grandpa once said that cultivation is for making oneself stronger and protecting those one wants to protect... But Mother is gone!"

"Big brother."

Tell me, what is spiritual practice?

Looking at his younger brother's gaunt face, Shen Chongxuan remained silent for a long time.

He knew very well that he had to help his younger brother resolve this inner conflict.

"In spiritual practice... there are three points to consider."

"See heaven and earth, see all living beings, see your true self."

"The laws of heaven and earth are the waxing and waning of the moon, the cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death."

"Your parents have passed away. If they are watching from heaven, they certainly wouldn't want to see you so dejected."

His deep voice carried a hint of elder brotherly love, like a father's love, showing his deep affection for his younger brother.

Compared to him, his younger brother Shen Chongxu had never seen his father since childhood and had never experienced the taste of fatherly love.

Hearing his words, Shen Chongxu remained silent.

The shards of the wine jar beneath his knees had pierced his flesh, and his blood had soaked through the snow on the ground.

"Get up first."

Upon seeing this, Shen Chongxuan got up and helped him up.

The two brothers stood in the pavilion, gazing at everything familiar around them.

Shen Chongxu tidied the messy hair at his temples, and the image of his mother, Zhao Xuan, busy in the courtyard before she fell ill couldn't help but appear before his eyes again.

Shen Chongxuan continued, "All living beings are human, and demons, monsters, fame, fortune, power, and love are all forms of cultivation."

"The true self is desire, the seven emotions and six desires, greed, anger and ignorance are all obstacles that prevent us cultivators from seeing our true self."

He slowly turned around, looked at Shen Chongxu beside him, and said in a deep voice:
“For cultivators, seeing the heavens and earth is easy, and seeing all living beings is not difficult either.”

"Only by seeing one's true self...can one overcome numerous hardships and obstacles."

"You have been intelligent since childhood and have exceptional talent. I need not elaborate on your understanding of the world and all living beings."

"Only by seeing your true self... I hope you can get through this."

Shen Chongxu did not answer, but quietly watched his brother pick up the broom in the corner and sweep the snow and fallen leaves in the yard.

……

The back hill of Shenjia.

Large amounts of dark clouds gathered from all directions, accumulating over the entire Yunshui City.

The people in the city weren't too surprised by this; they simply thought another blizzard was about to fall.

However, the cultivators from the Shen family all sensed something unusual.

Because the clouds overhead seemed to be gathering terrifying power of thunder!
Even the slightest leak would be enough to easily wipe them out.

A cave dwelling on the mountain.

Lightning flashed in the dimly lit stone chamber, and the once smooth stone walls were charred black by the pervasive lightning.

Sitting cross-legged in the center of the stone chamber, Shen Chongming seemed to have transformed into a creature formed of lightning, his body constantly flashing with terrifying lightning energy.

However, at this moment, he was unaware of everything that was happening in the outside world.

All his divine senses were immersed in the depths of his dantian, focusing intently on creating an ancient and simple thunder pool.

The miniature Thunder Pool was just like the one he had seen in the murals of the Seven Sages Mountain Secret Realm; its surface was covered with mysterious and ancient patterns.

As streams of lightning-attribute spiritual energy flowed from his dantian into the lightning pool, the patterns on the pool slowly lit up, radiating a supreme divine aura.

Shen Chongming's divine consciousness stood quietly not far from the Thunder Pool, looking at the Thunder Pool that was beginning to take shape, a hint of joy on his face.

"After several months of work, we have finally completed the illusory image of the Thunder Pool."

"But my current cultivation level..."

For ordinary cultivators to break through from Qi Refining to the Embryonic Breathing stage, they need to use a wisp of innate spiritual energy to condense their cultivation and form an immortal embryo in their dantian, thus achieving the Embryonic Breathing stage.

However, he is now using a wisp of high-grade innate spiritual energy as a carrier, exhausting all his cultivation to forge a strange phantom of a thunder pool within his body.

The illusory image of the Thunder Pool has now taken shape, but Shen Chongming is unsure whether his current realm qualifies as the embryonic breathing realm.

But in his own opinion, his current state is indeed several times stronger than when he was at the peak of Qi Refining. He should be considered to be at the level of Fetal Breathing, right?

With a slight thought, a large white bone bow suddenly appeared above the Thunder Pool in his dantian!
That white bone bow was the Silent Guest, a magical artifact that my third uncle, Shen Wen'an, had seized from a cultivator in the Western Wilderness.

After constructing this illusory Thunder Pool within his body, Shen Chongming discovered that the Thunder Pool's first ability was to nurture magical artifacts.

He put the magical artifact he had refined into the Thunder Pool, continuously absorbing the power of thunder to slowly temper it.

It can not only slowly improve the quality of magical artifacts, but also make them evolve towards the lightning attribute.

He already had a great fondness for the Silent Guest magical artifact, and now that the Thunder Pool phantom had just taken shape, he couldn't wait to take the Great White Bone Bow into it and slowly nurture it within the Thunder Pool phantom.

"This illusory Thunder Pool can also store a large amount of spiritual energy, which is equivalent to having an extra dantian compared to other cultivators, and accumulating twice as much spiritual energy as other cultivators of the same realm."

"If used properly, it can produce remarkable results."

"If I could learn some powerful techniques and spells, and unleash them with all my might, I might be able to instantly kill a cultivator who is a minor realm above me if caught off guard."

"It's a pity that there aren't many lightning techniques passed down in the cultivation world. It would be very difficult to find even some lightning techniques, let alone techniques with extremely high explosive power."

Watching the Silent Guest Great Bow hover above the illusory image of the Thunder Pool, constantly absorbing the spiritual power of the thunder attribute, Shen Chongming pondered to himself, then shook his head and withdrew his divine sense from his body.

Waking up in the cave, he looked up at the top of the cave and could feel the thunderclouds gathering in the sky slowly dissipating.

A bitter smile appeared on Shen Chongming's face.

This breakthrough has likely triggered some unusual phenomena, which will require a thorough explanation later.

He took out a brand new set of clothes from his storage bag, changed into them, and slowly walked out of the cave.

The first floor of Blackwater Pavilion.

Shen Yuan, Shen Wen'an, Shen Chongming, and others sat together.

"What level have you broken through to, kid?"

Shen Wenxing looked at his son with a smile and said, "A breakthrough has caused such a stir, with dark clouds looming over the city and thunder flashing. Anyone who didn't know better would think you were undergoing a tribulation."

The previous situation reminded him of the scene when the Twelve Immortal Sects plotted against the Purple Mansion Perfected Flood Dragon in Hidden Dragon Mountain, but unexpectedly caused the Flood Dragon to undergo tribulation and transform into an Infant.

At that time, thunderclouds stretched for three thousand miles, and a large part of Yangnao was shrouded in the terrifying aura of heavenly tribulation.

Although the commotion Shen Chongming caused this time was not as terrifying, it was extremely similar.

Facing the gazes of his father and the others, Shen Chongming smiled faintly and cupped his hands in greeting.

"I only broke through to the embryonic breathing stage. It's probably because I used high-grade innate lightning-attribute spiritual energy that this phenomenon occurred."

He didn't mention that he had condensed the phantom of the Thunder Pool within his body.

The main reason was that I chose this unconventional approach to break through, fearing that my father and other elders would worry.

"Judging from your aura, your strength must have increased considerably after this breakthrough."

Shen Wen'an smiled slightly and spoke.

Over the years, the pressure of protecting the Shen family has always rested on his shoulders alone.

Now that his elder brother and nephew have both made breakthroughs, he suddenly feels a great relief from the pressure he feels.

In the days to come, I should be able to focus on my cultivation for a while.

"Xiu Mu was born, and you also broke through."

"Today, in front of your grandfather and third uncle, I hereby formally pass on the position of head of the Shen family to you."

"From now on, you will be in charge of making decisions regarding all matters, big and small, in the household."

Looking at his son, Shen Wenxing spoke solemnly.

"Brother, wait a moment."

However, no sooner had he finished speaking than Shen Wen'an said, "I'm afraid the matter of passing on the throne will have to wait a while, elder brother."

Upon hearing this, Shen Wenxing frowned slightly and looked at him with confusion.

Shen Wen'an looked at Shen Chongming and said, "Pack your things these next two days. You'll be going to Danzhou with your third uncle in a while."

Going to Danzhou?
Shen Yuan and Shen Wenxing were both somewhat suspicious after hearing this.

Meeting their gazes, Shen Wen'an explained, "The Sword Immortal Ling Shan once said that once Chongming breaks through to the Nascent Soul stage, she would ask me to take him to the Azure Vine Sword Pavilion."

"She wants to see Chongming."

"This time it just so happens to be Senior Jiang's Golden Elixir Ceremony, and Chongming has also broken through, so it's a good opportunity to take him and Mother along."

"The Sword Immortal Senior wants to see me?" Shen Chongming asked, puzzled.

Although he often heard the name "Sword Immortal Ling Shan", he had never had any interaction with her.

I don't know why the other party specifically asked to see me.

However, the Shen family received many favors from the Sword Immortal Ling Shan and also received many gifts from her.

Now that they've asked to see me, I have no reason to refuse.

When does Uncle San plan to set off?

Shen Wen'an pondered for a moment and said, "There is still half a month until Senior Jiang's Golden Core Ceremony. Your third aunt has been unwell these past few days, so let's wait a little longer."

"It just so happens that Chongxuan sent over a few secular sword techniques these past few days. I'll try to modify them into sword techniques that cultivators can practice."

Shen Chongming nodded, and the group took this rare opportunity to briefly discuss the current situation of the Shen family.

……

Western wilderness.

After the Shen family relayed the news of the appearance of those corpse cultivators to Fengxian County, Qiyun Valley took the matter very seriously.

Because Luoxia Mountain has been too busy to attend to the western wilderness in recent years, Qiyun Valley and the Liu family under its rule have already seized 70% of the western wilderness.

The people of the Western Wilderness, who made up 70% of the land, along with the spirit fields and some spirit mines, brought great benefits to the Liu family and Qiyun Valley.

Now that a new threat has suddenly appeared, they are naturally unwilling to let that so-called corpse cultivator destroy everything they have worked so hard to build.

As the chief of Qiyun Valley, Li Heshan immediately dispatched a large number of people to the Western Wilderness to investigate after receiving the news, and now they have finally found out the whereabouts of the group of corpse cultivators.

In the depths of winter, the vast grasslands are covered in snow, and the biting wind howls.

A group of disciples from Qiyun Valley and cultivators from the Liu family stood quietly on the hill, gazing at a large Western Wilderness tribe that had been attacked.

“Immortal Master, we have found out that this is the Hunyu tribe. At its peak, it had 100,000 members. My Liu family sent people here three years ago.”

"Following the instructions of the immortal master, our clan's cultivators passed down the cultivation method in the Hunyu tribe."

“During the last inspection by the tribe, the Hunyu tribe had already produced eleven cultivators at the Qi Refining Realm. This time… this time, all 100,000 members of the Hunyu tribe have disappeared.”

Liu Bufu, the head of the Liu family, respectfully reported the current situation to Li Heshan.

Li Heshan, dressed in a moon-white robe and with a snow-white fox fur shawl around his shoulders, gazed silently at the endless rows of yurts before him, his expression solemn.

"The Shen family informed us that this group of corpse cultivators possesses the ability to refine corpse puppets from ordinary people."

"For every hundred people, one iron corpse can be made, which is equivalent to a cultivator at the fourth or fifth level of Qi Refining. If cultivators are used as materials, the resulting corpse puppets will be even stronger."

He spoke in a low, deep voice.

The disciples of Qiyun Valley and the cultivators from the Liu family all looked grim upon hearing this.

A hundred people crafted a corpse puppet equivalent to the fourth or fifth level of Qi Refining...

The entire Hunyu tribe has 100,000 people, which means that those corpse cultivators can refine at least a thousand corpse puppets!

This is only what has been discovered.

The Western Wilderness is vast; who knows if those corpse cultivators abducted people from other tribes before attacking the Hunyu tribe?
"Senior Brother, this matter is probably not easy to resolve."

Among the crowd, a female cultivator from Qiyun Valley spoke in a deep voice.

This female cultivator was Zhong Liqing, who had come to Yangnao Land with Li Heshan back then.

However, later, in order to give his daughter some experience, Pei Zhao had Li Heshan bring Pei Yuwan to Yangnao Land, while Zhong Liqing stayed in the sect to cultivate.

"The Western Wilderness has abundant resources, and in recent years, my Qiyun Valley has also selected many immortal seedlings with spiritual roots from the common people of the Western Wilderness."

"Although these corpse cultivators are not easy to deal with, my Qiyun Valley absolutely cannot give up on them."

A sharp glint flashed in Li Heshan's eyes as he spoke in a deep voice.

Qiyun Valley's decline was intensifying, but with the destruction of Hundred Beast Mountain, the Western Wilderness became a no-man's land.

Because of the previous crisis, Luoxia Mountain was too busy to take care of itself, leaving Qiyun Valley to enjoy the vast western wilderness all to itself.

Over the years, Qiyun Valley has scavenged a large number of immortal seedlings with spiritual roots from the Western Wilderness, and has also found some rare and precious materials and spiritual minerals.

All of this finally gave Li Heshan some hope.

He was naturally unwilling to let go of this hard-won opportunity.

Zhong Liqing nodded.

"As per my senior brother's instructions, I have requested assistance from the sect. The sect has replied that they will send strong experts and disciples soon."

"At that time, we will definitely be able to wipe out these corpse cultivators in one fell swoop."

Li Heshan nodded.

The news that Jiang Xiuqi of Luoxia Mountain broke through to the Golden Core stage, directly elevating Luoxia Mountain to the status of a Golden Core Immortal Sect, has already spread throughout Danzhou.

At the same time, another piece of news also emerged.

That means that after Luoxia Mountain becomes a Golden Core Immortal Sect, it is highly likely that it will sweep through Qishan, subdue all the major immortal sects in Qishan, and become the sole overlord of Qishan.

Li Heshan didn't quite believe the news.

Although Luoxia Mountain has a Golden Core Realm expert in charge, its foundation is still not as strong as that of a true Golden Core Immortal Sect. Therefore, it will not easily risk offending all the Immortal Sects in Qishan and occupying the entire Qishan Mountain Range.

But he also knows that this speculation only represents the present moment.

In the future, Luoxia Mountain will certainly not be content with sharing this precious land of the Qishan Mountains with many immortal sects and aristocratic families.

Even the immortal sects and forces that were once close allies with them are no exception.

That's the rule in the cultivation world: the greater your strength, the more resources you can control.

Li Heshan is now eager to enhance the strength of Qiyun Valley so that it can find a good way out when the situation in Qishan changes drastically in the future.

So that the Qiyun Valley, which has been passed down for countless years, would not be destroyed in their generation.

"Let's go back first."

"Once the sect's reinforcements arrive, we'll go find those corpse cultivators."

As soon as Li Heshan gave the order, the people around him immediately rode the wind and headed towards Fengxian County.

When they arrived at Yingxian Garden in Fengxian County, they were surprised to find that the garden was already filled with disciples of Qiyun Valley.

Upon seeing this, Zhong Liqing's face lit up with joy and he said, "The sect's support is quite swift, but I wonder which elder or headmaster is leading the team this time."

The two entered Yingxian Garden together. When they reached the backyard through the long corridor, they saw a figure standing with his hands behind his back in the pavilion. Upon seeing that figure, Li Heshan frowned slightly.

Zhong Liqing was also somewhat surprised.

The two exchanged a glance, hesitated slightly, and then quickly stepped forward to bow.

"Greetings, Uncle Yao (Master Yao)."

This person is Yao Lin, the head of the Cliff Mountain Academy in Qiyun Valley.

Because of Shen Wen'an's matter, Yao Lin was punished by Yun Zhongzi, the sect leader of Qiyun Valley, and the entire Yashan Academy was closed for nearly ten years.

Li Heshan hadn't expected that the sect would send her to lead a team to Yangnao Land this time.

Yao Lin's purplish-red face showed little expression. After nodding slightly, she said, "The sect leader has already told me all the news you sent back to the sect."

"Is there anything else to add?"

Li Heshan cupped his hands and said, "Uncle-Master, Heshan and Junior Sister Qing have just returned from the Western Wilderness."

"That corpse cultivator recently attacked a Western Wilderness tribe of 100,000 people. According to previous estimates, those 100,000 people could have been used to forge over a thousand iron corpses..."

“In the cultivation of this world, there are gains and losses.” Yao Lin said in a deep voice, “According to what you said before, for a mere mortal to cultivate an Iron Corpse and possess the strength of the fourth or fifth level of Qi Refining, it must require the use of a large number of spiritual treasures of heaven and earth.”

"If the corpse cultivator truly possesses so many rare and precious treasures, why would he craft these low-quality corpse puppets?"

"This is illogical."

Li Heshan nodded and said, "My nephew has also thought of this."

"My nephew sent someone to inquire with the Shen family. It is said that those corpse cultivators used a lava lake containing gold essence and fire energy to refine a large number of corpse puppets."

"Oh?" Yao Lin was taken aback at first, then sneered, "Since the Shen family knows about this treasure land, why don't they send that little beast to kill all the corpse cultivators and collect all the golden essence and fire energy from that lava lake?"

"Is this an attempt to harm my Qiyun Valley?"

Upon hearing this, Li Heshan sighed inwardly.

When the Shen family sent someone to deliver the message, they made it very clear that they had no time to attend to the Western Wilderness.

If Qiyun Valley doesn't want to intervene, it can only let those corpse cultivators develop slowly in the Western Wilderness.

Once they have amassed their strength, whether they choose to attack Yunzhong or Fengxian County is entirely up to fate.

Li Heshan knew very well that this Uncle Yao had always held a prejudice against Shen Wen'an and the Shen family, and no matter how he explained, it would probably be of no use, so he simply didn't bother to waste his breath.

Yao Lin seemed too lazy to bother with these matters.

The Yai Mountain Academy suffered heavy losses of disciples in previous years, but in recent years it has recruited quite a few talented disciples from the Western Wilderness.

She also knew that the Western Wilderness could not be abandoned.

"How strong are those corpse cultivators?"

Li Heshan shook his head slightly.

"His exact strength is unknown, but according to a Qi Refining Perfection cultivator from the Shen family, the aura of those corpse cultivators is not much stronger than his."

"I reckon he's at the peak of Qi Refining, or at most the early stage of Fetal Breathing."

Upon hearing this, Yao Lin pondered for a moment before saying, "The words of the Shen family cannot be trusted."

"Tell me the approximate location where those corpse cultivators appeared, and I will go and take a look myself."

"If possible, we'll wipe them out while we're at it."

"The remaining corpse puppets are all yours to deal with."

Li Heshan nodded and immediately ordered someone to bring a map, on which he marked the approximate location where the group of corpse cultivators had appeared.

Yao Lin glanced at it, didn't say much, and directly rode the wind away from Yingxian Garden, heading towards the vast Western Wilderness.

……

Danzhou.

A massive bronze ship passed through the barrier and appeared above Mount Qi.

On the ancient boat, Shen Chongming helped Hu Yufen look at the vast, distant mountains.

"The mountains here are much bigger than Hidden Dragon Mountain."

Looking at the rolling green hills in the distance, Hu Yufen was somewhat surprised.

Having lived for so many years, she had never even left Anyang City. She never imagined that she would now leave Yangnao Land and witness the wonders of another world.

Shen Chongming was also very excited at this moment.

Compared to Danzhou, Yangnao is indeed just a remote rural area on the outskirts of a big city.

This is the true world of cultivators.

Wei Qiuling walked over slowly, and seeing her expression, she smiled softly and said, "There's no need to be so surprised. The Shen family will definitely establish itself in Danzhou in the future."

"Besides, Yangnao is not much worse than Danzhou now."

"More than a hundred years from now, there shouldn't be much of a gap between the two places."

Shen Chongming nodded slightly.

The ancient bronze ship swept past the vast mountains below, and along the way, it also saw some huge cities.

However, these cities were so large that Hu Yufen, who had never seen the world, exclaimed in surprise again.

"Mother, you don't need to be so careful, you won't fall."

Seeing that Hu Yufen was only standing about ten feet away from the ship's side, craning her neck to look down at the city below, Wei Qiuling smiled and spoke.

Upon hearing this, Hu Yufen, supported by Shen Chongming, leaned forward a little further.

The grandfather and grandson looked down at everything with surprise and excitement.

The bronze ship soon arrived at the newly selected mountain gate of Luoxia Mountain.

A winding stream flows slowly between several beautiful mountain peaks.

During their absence, the disciples of Luoxia Mountain had built a large number of wooden houses here, and a huge array had also been erected, covering many of the wooden houses.

After the bronze ship landed, the disciples of Luoxia Mountain who were guarding the formation saw that it was Wei Qiuling and Shen Wen'an, so they quickly activated the formation.

The group of four passed through the formation and went straight to Le Zhiyi, the sect leader of Luoxia Mountain.

After the introductions, Yue Zhiyi said, "Your grandmaster cultivates on that peak."

"Wen'an, go there."

Shen Wen'an cupped his hands in greeting and immediately flew on his sword toward the peak that Le Zhiyi had pointed to.

A moment later, two figures gracefully descended from the peak.

Le Zhiyi knew there was nothing for her to do here, so she bowed and left.

"Senior, this is my mother."

"This is my elder brother's son, Chongming."

Shen Wen'an began to introduce them.

Jiang Xiuqi's gaze swept over Hu Yufen and then noticed Shen Chongming.

"This child has... a lightning-attribute spiritual root!?"

He seemed somewhat surprised to sense the faint lightning power emanating from Shen Chongming.

Shen Chongming quickly cupped his hands in greeting: "Senior, you have a discerning eye. Chongming's spiritual root is indeed Yi Wood Divine Thunder."

Upon receiving the answer, Jiang Xiuqi nodded in approval.

“In the cultivation world, cultivators with the five elements of spiritual roots are common, and those with mutated spiritual roots are mostly wind-attribute, ice-attribute, etc.”

"Lightning-attribute spiritual roots are quite rare."

"This child not only possesses the divine lightning spiritual root of the Wood element, but has also broken through the embryonic breathing stage at such a young age. His future achievements are limitless."

Upon hearing this, Shen Wen'an cupped his hands in greeting and said, "Senior, please don't praise him too much."

Jiang Xiuqi laughed heartily, showing no airs of a Golden Core Realm expert whatsoever.

"Master, let's get down to business first," Wei Qiuling said with a faint smile.

After Jiang Xiuqi nodded, he glanced at Hu Yufen and then pulled Shen Wen'an aside.

“Wen’an, logically speaking, since I have agreed to give you this elixir, I should not say any more.”

"But your mother is so old..."

Shen Wen'an turned around and glanced at his mother who was drinking tea, then bowed slightly to Jiang Xiuqi and said, "Please forgive me, senior. I know the value of this elixir. It is a creation of nature that can allow ordinary people to defy fate."

"My mother is quite old, and over the years she has been relying on various rare and precious herbs to nourish her body."

"Since our Shen family embarked on the path of cultivation, the greatest worry for the younger generation, fathers, brothers, sons, and nephews has been her."

Jiang Xiuqi stroked his beard and nodded, saying, "I have already experienced filial piety, and I have almost forgotten worldly affection. Since the Shen family has made their decision, then so be it."

"Wen'an, please have your mother come with me."

Shen Wen'an cupped his hands in greeting and turned to stand in front of Hu Yufen.

"Mother, Elder Jiang wants to examine your health. Would you like to come this way with me?"

Hu Yufen was somewhat puzzled upon hearing this.

But thinking that her son was there, she didn't think much of it and got up to follow him to a quiet room.

Inside the quiet room, Jiang Xiuqi sat cross-legged. Upon seeing her arrival, he bowed slightly and said, "Please sit down, Madam."

Hu Yufen bowed in return and sat cross-legged opposite Jiang Xiuqi.

"Madam, please close your eyes. No matter what happens later, you must endure it and not resist."

As Jiang Xiuqi's voice rang out, a gentle spiritual energy emanated from his body, slowly imprisoning Hu Yufen's body and soul.

Immediately afterwards, he made a hand seal, and the spiritual power in his body surged and slowly gathered in his dantian.

A moment later, a strange energy as thin as a hair was extracted from his dantian.

This energy was pale gold in color, emanating an ancient and mysterious aura that was slightly different from the golden nature of the Golden Core.

Is this the elixir of immortal destiny?

Beside the quiet room, Shen Wen'an sensed the aura emanating from the pale golden energy and was somewhat horrified.

He vaguely sensed the so-called "profound Daoist charm" from this tiny bit of energy, the charm of the Great Dao that contains ancient mysteries and supreme principles.

A fleeting moment, yet it felt like eternity.

Unbeknownst to Shen Wen'an, at this very moment, the sword embryo within his dantian was undergoing a subtle change.

At this moment, the eerie dark aura of the underworld mysteriously seeped into the sword embryo, forming a strange mark on the three-inch Dragon Soul Sword.

That mysterious feeling abruptly ended after the celestial energy from the elixir was injected into his mother, Hu Yufen's, body.

When Shen Wen'an came to his senses, he saw a look of pain on his mother's face, and her whole body was radiating a five-element, five-colored halo.

On the other side, Jiang Xiuqi had finished casting the spell and was quietly watching the changes in Hu Yufen's body.

"senior……"

Shen Wen'an spoke in a low voice.

Jiang Xiuqi slowly got up and went with him outside the quiet room.

"Senior, is my mother alright?"

Jiang Xiuqi nodded with a smile: "Your mother is fine. Now it's up to her to see which kind of spiritual root she can obtain."

Upon hearing this, Shen Wen'an breathed a sigh of relief.

The two stood outside the quiet room for a moment, when suddenly a rich wood-attribute spiritual energy burst forth from inside the quiet room behind them.

Sensing this aura, Shen Wen'an quickly went to the quiet room.

At this moment, Hu Yufen was emanating a faint fluctuation of wood elemental energy.

Clearly, this time, receiving the pill energy not only granted him the Wood Spiritual Root of the Five Elements, but also allowed his cultivation to break through to the Qi Refining Realm!

"It's the element of wood in the Five Elements theory, so you're in luck."

At the entrance to the quiet room, Jiang Xiuqi spoke with a faint smile.

The Shen family gave this precious wisp of elixir energy to their matriarch, Hu Yufen, primarily so that she could cultivate and live a long life.

Among the five elements of spiritual roots, the wood element is the most suitable.

"Wen'an, come here."

Jiang Xiuqi called Shen Wen'an out.

Wei Qiuling and Shen Chongming, who were not far away, also came to the quiet room and helped the still somewhat bewildered Hu Yufen out.

Jiang Xiuqi led Shen Wen'an outside the room, pondered for a moment, and said, "There is a force in Danzhou called the Azure Emperor Sect."

"The strength of the Azure Emperor Sect is barely comparable to that of my Luoxia Mountain before, but its foundation far surpasses that of Luoxia Mountain, and can be traced back to the Immortal Dynasty of Danzhou."

Shen Wen'an was curious upon hearing this, as he didn't understand why Jiang Xiuqi would suddenly mention the Azure Emperor Sect.

"I'm telling you all this so that you can know that the Azure Emperor Sect has a miraculous cultivation technique called the Azure Emperor Longevity Technique."

"Among the many immortal sect inheritances, the 'Azure Emperor's Longevity Technique' is considered a rather useless technique. Its only advantage is that cultivators who practice this technique can have twice the lifespan of ordinary cultivators."

After saying this, Jiang Xiuqi looked at Shen Wen'an with a half-smile.

Shen Wen'an's eyes widened slightly, and joy appeared in his heart.

This "Azure Emperor's Longevity Technique" is simply a magic technique tailor-made for my mother!
For the Shen family, their mother Hu Yufen's cultivation level and combat strength were secondary; their only hope, along with that of their father, brothers, nephews, and nieces, was that their mother could stay with them.

"Please tell me, senior, how can I obtain the 'Azure Emperor Longevity Manual' from the Azure Emperor Sect?"

Shen Wen'an quickly cupped his hands and asked.

He had figured it out: as long as the Azure Emperor Sect was willing to offer the "Azure Emperor Longevity Manual," paying a certain price would be worthwhile.

If the Azure Emperor Sect is unwilling to hand over the "Azure Emperor Longevity Technique," I will wait until my cultivation reaches the Perfected State of Fetal Breathing before I even have to storm their door to snatch it back!

Jiang Xiuqi shook his head slightly and said, "I don't know about that."

"However, I have invited the Azure Emperor Sect to this Golden Core Ceremony. I can introduce you to the sect's patriarch at that time."

"You can ask him directly what his specific requirements are."

After a moment's thought, Shen Wen'an nodded: "Thank you, senior."

Jiang Xiuqi waved his hand and sighed slightly, "Let's end it here for today. I need to consolidate my cultivation, so I won't keep you any longer."

Shen Wen'an cupped his hands again, saying, "Respectfully seeing you off, senior."

Jiang Xiuqi nodded, his figure gracefully rising into the air and flying towards the mountain where he had previously been cultivating in seclusion.

"What did your master say to you?"

After Jiang Xiuqi left, Wei Qiuling came to his side and asked.

Shen Wen'an replied in a deep voice, "Senior said that there is a celestial sect in Danzhou called the Azure Emperor Sect..."

"The Azure Emperor's Longevity Manual!?"

As soon as he spoke, Wei Qiuling understood.

"The Azure Emperor's Longevity Technique is indeed a perfect cultivation method for Mother."

"However... this technique is the core inheritance of the Azure Emperor Sect, and it will be very difficult to obtain it."

Shen Wen'an narrowed his eyes slightly, pondered for a moment, and said, "I'll ask first when the Dharma Assembly arrives."

"If the Azure Emperor Sect truly refuses to part with it, I will personally pay them a visit in the future..."

Wei Qiuling gave him a deep look but didn't say anything.

……

Western wilderness.

A figure flew towards the southernmost part of the Western Wilderness like a shooting star.

Soon, a scorching lake of lava appeared in front of them.

Yao Lin slightly changed the hand seals in her hands, and her speed gradually decreased.

While in the air, she had already seen the corpse cultivators and corpse puppets that Li Heshan had mentioned.

The few corpse cultivators were sitting cross-legged not far from the lava lake, cultivating in seclusion. Behind them were thousands of stiff and lifeless corpse puppets.

Among these thousands of corpse puppets, most were iron corpses, their bodies pitch black and emitting varying shades of eerie light, while only a dozen or so were bronze corpses with an antique bronze color.

Yao Lin stood atop the clouds, quietly observing the corpse cultivators and corpse puppets below, her brows slightly furrowed.

With her late-stage Nascent Soul cultivation, she could easily tell that the seven corpse cultivators below were indeed at the early stage of Nascent Soul cultivation.

As for those corpse puppets, judging from the baleful aura on their bodies, their strength is indeed slightly stronger than that of a Qi Refining Level 4 Immortal Cultivator. Some of them with even stronger ghostly light are probably comparable to Qi Refining Level 7 or 8 Immortal Cultivators!

"These corpse cultivators' corpse refining techniques are so incredibly effective!?"

"Even ordinary mortals, using this lava lake, are able to continuously produce such a large number of corpse puppets..."

After observing for a while, Yao Lin secretly thought to herself, a hint of greed flashing in her eyes.

She could naturally tell that those iron corpses weren't particularly strong, but their sheer number made up for it.

One iron corpse poses little threat to a cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage, but what about a thousand or ten thousand?
With such defensively focused corpse puppets charging forward in hordes, even a cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage would have to waste a lot of spiritual energy to kill them.

The more she thought about it, the stronger the greed in Yao Lin's eyes became.

Gradually, a crazy idea took root in his mind!

I've obtained this Corpse Refining Technique!

We absolutely must obtain this Corpse Refining Technique!

Currently, over 70% of the Western Wilderness's territory belongs to Qiyun Valley. If they mastered the Corpse Refining Technique and the Lava Lake, given the sheer number of mortals in the Western Wilderness, they could easily create a large number of corpse puppets.

Qiyun Valley is proficient in alchemy and formation techniques. If they could improve this corpse refining technique, they might even be able to achieve a stronger effect!
Until then……

His thoughts were like wild horses, and crazy ideas quickly took root and sprouted in his heart, nourished by his ambition.

Yao Lin was already showing signs of falling into a nightmare.

A fierce glint flashed in his eyes, and his hand seals changed slightly. He immediately transformed into a streak of light and rushed towards the seven corpse cultivators below!

Before the lava lake, seven corpse cultivators were meditating to recover their energy when they suddenly sensed an extremely powerful aura rapidly approaching from the sky!

"Oh no, it's a cultivator from the Immortal Path!"

Among the seven corpse cultivators, one who was about to reach the mid-stage of the embryonic breathing realm was the first to sense Yao Lin's aura and immediately shouted!
The remaining corpse cultivators were instantly awakened!
The stiff and motionless corpse puppets around them also sensed the approaching enemy and rushed forward, baring their fangs and claws!
However, Yao Lin was at the late stage of the Fetal Breathing realm, which was two minor realms higher than the seven people present.

While he was still in mid-air, he struck down with his palm!
Suddenly, a large amount of fire-attribute spiritual energy in the surrounding air surged violently, forming a giant palm that smashed down towards the seven people and the corpse puppets below!

boom!
The enormous fiery hand, carrying immense force, slammed the surrounding corpse puppets into the hard rock!

If it were an ordinary Qi Refining Realm cultivator, facing this palm strike, they probably wouldn't even be able to find a complete corpse.

However, the corpse puppets that had been slammed into the rocks were still struggling violently and had not died completely.

More than a dozen of the bronze corpses unleashed a terrifying aura, blasting away the hard rocks that bound their bodies and breaking free unharmed!

Seeing this, Yao Lin was overjoyed!

Those corpse puppets were actually stronger than I had imagined!
This further strengthened his determination to obtain the Corpse Refining Technique from the other party!
With a quick glance, she decided not to get entangled in a fight with these corpse cultivators and corpse puppets. Her figure flashed, transforming into a streak of fire as she charged directly toward the one with the strongest aura among the seven!
(End of this chapter)