I established the Eternal Immortal Clan by taming beasts.

Guided by the inexplicable attraction transmitted by the Alligator Turtle through the Soul Pact, Lin Che took off on his sword and sped towards the east of Chuyang City.

He quickly located the target area.

It was that dangerous public area located on the edge of the Li family's sphere of influence, yet not fully controlled by any family.

The Stone Forest Mystery.

Along the way, Lin Che skillfully used the secret technique to change his appearance, transforming his body, face, and even aura, once again becoming Han Li, the ordinary-looking, cold-auraed, Foundation Establishment cultivator with a golden spiritual root.

After all, the Stone Forest Maze is a no-man's-land, a public exploration area where all sorts of people mingle. Using this pseudonym is the safest option and the least likely to implicate the Lin family itself.

The Stone Forest Maze wasn't too far from Shattered Star Lake, and with Lin Che's speed on his sword, he arrived at its outer area in no time.

From afar, a forest of gray-white stone pillars comes into view, which is quite spectacular.

Countless naturally formed stone pillars rise from the ground, ranging in height from over ten zhang to nearly a hundred zhang, scattered and irregular, resembling a giant stone forest frozen by time.

The surface of the stone pillar is covered with holes and spiral patterns formed by wind erosion, and it gleams with a cold, hard luster in the sunlight.

The further in you go, the taller and denser the stone pillars become, and the more chaotic their arrangement becomes, like chess pieces thrown in at random.

The Stone Forest contains a unique natural magnetic field, which, together with these special stone pillars, forms a vast and complex natural maze.

It not only severely distorts a cultivator's sense of direction, but also interferes with, weakens, or even misleads the exploration of divine sense.

The wind howls incessantly year-round, passing through the bizarre stone holes and producing ever-changing, sometimes mournful, sometimes low, wailing sounds.

These sounds themselves have the effect of disturbing the mind, and certain combinations of frequencies can even trigger the resonance of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, causing intruders to experience auditory hallucinations or fall into a state of mild dizziness.

In addition, some of the stone pillars contain strongly magnetic minerals, which greatly interfere with positioning tools such as compasses and directional needles, making it difficult for cultivators to determine their location using these tools.

This is the origin of the Stone Forest Mystery.

Lin Che concealed his sword light and landed in an open area on the outskirts where the stone pillars were relatively sparse and short.

He was dressed in an inconspicuous black outfit and carried a plain-looking longsword on his back.

The magical artifacts that were damaged in the Burial Valley Secret Realm have long been replaced.

This is the standard attire for the identity of "Han Li".

His arrival from the air as a Foundation Establishment cultivator immediately attracted the attention of several Qi Refining stage rogue cultivators who were cautiously exploring or resting in the outer area.

The group immediately fell silent, exchanging surprised and uncertain glances, and whispering among themselves:

"Flying through the air? This... is a Foundation Establishment senior?"

"The outer perimeter of this Stone Forest Maze is a desolate wasteland. What good stuff could there be besides some first-tier rock rats and stone lizards? How come even Foundation Establishment cultivators have been attracted here?"

"Silence! Don't discuss it, or you'll get yourself into trouble! How could we possibly fathom the actions of such a senior? Quickly move away, lest you get in their way and cause them unnecessary trouble!"

The few rogue cultivators dared not look any longer and, like startled birds, quickly retreated in the opposite direction from Lin Che, soon disappearing behind the jagged stone pillars.

The area surrounding this place is resource-poor, with few high-value spiritual items produced, and most of the cultivators active here are at the Qi Refining stage.

The appearance of Lin Che, a Foundation Establishment cultivator, was like a pebble thrown into a calm pond, instantly breaking the surrounding balance and becoming particularly conspicuous.

Fortunately, he used a fake identity.

Otherwise, if the Lin family patriarch were to appear here, the news would likely reach the ears of all the major families in Chuyang City within half an hour, attracting unnecessary attention and speculation.

Because the Alligator Turtle was too large and had difficulty moving around in the complex terrain and confined space of the stone forest, Lin Che did not release it directly, but instead kept it in a special spirit beast bag for the time being.

He communicated telepathically with the alligator turtle in the bag through a soul contract.

"How is it now? Can you perceive the source of that attraction more clearly? Specifically, where is it located?"

The divine sense of the alligator snapping turtle immediately transmitted, carrying obvious excitement and certainty:

"Yes, Patriarch! It's very clear! As soon as we got to this area, the summoning sensation became many times stronger! It's in the deepest part of this stone forest, in that direction!"

Through the soul contract, it transmitted a clear sense of direction to Lin Che.

Without further delay, Lin Che once again mounted his sword and rose into the air, transforming into a dim golden streak of light. He flew past the surrounding low stone pillars and headed towards the depths of the stone forest.

Soon, he entered the middle section of the Stone Forest Maze.

The scenery here is completely different from the outside. The stone pillars are densely packed like a forest, and the gaps between them become narrow and winding, like a natural giant stone maze.

The light was much dimmer because of the stone pillars blocking it, and the air was filled with a stronger smell of earth, stone and wind erosion.

What's more troublesome is that the intensity of the special natural magnetic field in this place has greatly increased.

Lin Che immediately felt that the control of the sword light became sluggish and unstable, and the flight trajectory was difficult to control precisely. The dense stone pillars around him, which were often tens of feet high, also posed a huge obstacle.

"This area is not suitable for flying."

Lin Che made a decisive move, pressing down the blade and landing back on the solid ground.

He concealed his aura and suppressed his spiritual energy fluctuations to the minimum.

Using his movement technique, he transformed into a faint golden phantom, relying on the sense of direction provided by the River Crocodile Turtle to quickly traverse the intricate crevices of the stone forest.

However, the true dangers of the Stone Forest mystery began to emerge.

The omnipresent, strange magnetic field severely interfered with Lin Che's divine sense. The range of Lin Che's divine sense was compressed to only a few dozen feet around him, beyond which everything was blurry and distorted.

All I could hear was the ceaseless howling of the wind, like the wailing of ghosts and wolves.

These sounds are not just simple noises, but rather they carry a peculiar rhythm, constantly trying to penetrate the mind and disrupt the balance of the mind.

If it weren't for his unwavering will and spiritual awareness far surpassing those of his peers, he would probably have been already in a state of agitation.

Just as he was passing through a narrow triangular area formed by three huge stone pillars, a strange thing happened!

"Ugh—!"

The sound of something cutting through the air was difficult to distinguish from the wind. A long, stone tail, almost exactly the same color as the surrounding gray-white stone pillars, resembled a poisonous whip that had been gathering power for a long time.

It suddenly lashed out from the shadow of a stone pillar on the side, carrying a sharp gust of wind, and struck Lin Che in the waist!

Although Lin Che's consciousness was disturbed, his fighting instincts and physical senses remained sharp.

The moment a warning thought crossed his mind, his forward momentum abruptly halted.

With a slight shift in his footing, his right hand shot out like lightning, fingers spread wide, and with perfect precision, he caught the incoming stone tail!

It is hard and cold to the touch, with the texture of rock, yet it contains the unique toughness and power of a demon beast's muscles.

"roar!"

A low, angry roar came from the shadows.

The owner of the stone tail revealed his identity.

It turned out to be a giant lizard nearly two zhang long, whose skin color blended seamlessly with the surrounding rocks, making it almost impossible to distinguish with the naked eye!