Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

The Crimson Nether Mountains, which originally had some signs of life due to the birth of spiritual veins, are now barren except for wild grass.

And once something grows out, it is a sign of the birth of a spirit—both sides will risk their lives for it.

As Lin Zhao and his companions landed on their spirit boat, the cultivators in the camp all looked up.

Five spirit boats hovered between the three peaks, their hulls radiating a dazzling aura in the camp.

In the chaotic rocky forest, some Qi Refining cultivators came out to watch, but were scolded back by Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Lin Zhao and his group entered the camp without much fanfare.

He went directly to the mountain peak where the sect's Core Formation was located and took over the third-order formation of the camp.

Control of the formation was transferred from the Yan family to him, making the sect's power the biggest leader in the expeditionary force.

The whole process was very quiet, and no one from the Yan family came out to stop it; they were very cooperative.

Standing atop the mountain, Lin Zhao scanned every area within the core of the formation with his divine sense, feeling somewhat surprised.

The Yan family just watched as he took away the array controller.

The Yan family even took the initiative to ask Lin Zhao to summon all the Core Formation cultivators of the expeditionary force, but Lin Zhao refused.

Although he is powerful, he is only at the early stage of Core Formation, so it is not appropriate for him.

I heard that the Yan family patriarch has gone into seclusion again, supposedly due to a relapse of his injuries.

Lin Zhao had no idea what the Yan family patriarch was planning.

But ultimately, it comes down to ability.

With two clones and a fourth-tier magic weapon, they are enough to rival a peak Core Formation cultivator.

Now that he had taken over the leadership of the expeditionary force, Lin Zhao naturally had to do something.

He sent Nianwei Zhenren with several Core Formation cultivators to fight several battles, and each time they returned with some victories.

In total, we killed two Core Formation cultivators on the other side, forcing them to send out a late-stage Core Formation cultivator to stabilize the situation. Otherwise, our gains could have been even greater.

She was ambushed and attacked several times by the opposing side, but she still managed to break through.

As a direct descendant of a Nascent Soul True Monarch, she possesses an extraordinary number of trump cards to protect her life.

In addition, the true disciples of the sect are inherently powerful, and they can fight against late-stage Core Formation cultivators without being at a disadvantage in the middle stage of Core Formation.

After several battles, the morale of the expeditionary force clearly rebounded significantly.

Lin Zhao went to see Zhong Tiangu again.

He was asked to find a huge rock on the outskirts of the chaotic forest and build an auction house there.

Zhong Tiangu worked quickly and finished it in one day.

Lin Zhao asked him to bring out all kinds of supplies he had brought from the sect: Foundation Establishment Pills, magic weapons, elixirs, and talismans, which were put on the shelves in a continuous stream.

Among them were even hundreds of Foundation Establishment Pills, all taken out at once.

The news sent shockwaves through the entire camp—Foundation Building Pills were a highly sought-after commodity, and many cultivators at the peak of Qi Refining were desperate for even one.

Lin Zhao specifically discussed with Zhong Tiangu, asking him to find a few accomplices to liven up the atmosphere, but not to raise prices, but to secretly lower them.

Zhong Tiangu was somewhat reluctant, but he still did as Lin Zhao instructed.

According to the sect's rules, Lin Zhao is now the highest-ranking person in charge of the expeditionary force.

For Core Formation cultivators, a single sentence can rewrite the fate of many people.

On the day the auction house opened, Lin Zhao and Zhong Tiangu stood on a pile of rocks in the distance, watching the lights and crowds of the auction below.

Zhong Tiangu crossed his arms, his tone tinged with pain: "Junior Brother Lin, because of what you said, I not only haven't earned any spirit stones these past few days, but I've also lost quite a bit of them."

Lin Zhao smiled and looked at the entrance of the auction house: "These are specialties from the desolate region. If you bring them back to the major immortal cities of Yunzhou, you can sell them for several times the price."

Even if you sell directly to the sect, the price will be several times higher than here.

Zhong Tiangu did not refute it; it was a fact.

"Moreover," Lin Zhao added, "if we can take over the Crimson Nether Mountain Range, the sect might gain another important location."

Senior Brother Zhong has a chance to compete for the position of guarding a third-tier important area.

Zhong Tiangu remained silent for a while before saying, "Then we need to take it down first. Junior Brother Lin, do you have any plans?"

Lin Zhao did not answer.

He has already taken action.

On the very night he arrived at the Crimson Nether Mountain Range, he secretly dispatched his Azure Lotus clone to investigate the entire mountain range.

The Azure Lotus clone has a spirit-sealing seal given to it by True Monarch Azure Abyss. As long as one is careful, no Core Formation cultivator can detect it.

The affairs of the expeditionary force are complex in some ways, but simple in others.

The core lies in that fourth-tier opportunity. Once the fourth-tier opportunity is decided, many things will be settled.

Lin Zhao sent out his Azure Lotus clone to find out exactly what that fourth-tier opportunity was—was it a treasure or a spiritual herb?

Ordinary fourth-tier spiritual items may not necessarily enable someone to advance to the Nascent Soul stage, or they may be something else entirely.

Only the leaders of the Yan family and the Jiexiu Alliance knew this information; otherwise, neither side would have gone to such lengths to fight to the death.

At the same time, the main peak.

Inside the cave dwelling of the Yan family patriarch, the patriarch sat in the highest position, his body thin and his full head of white hair particularly striking in the dim light.

His eyes were closed, as if he were asleep.

The seven Core Formation cultivators from the Yan family below were arguing about the impact of Lin Zhao and his group's arrival. Their voices were low, but their tone was not very friendly.

The Yan family had disagreements about whether or not to request support from the sect.

Asking for help means giving up the right to use a fourth-tier opportunity.

The fourth-tier opportunities are allocated by the sects, and whether the Yan family can get a share depends entirely on the sects' attitude.

In the end, it was the Yan family patriarch who overruled all objections and made the decision—the power of the aristocratic lineage still existed, and the Yan family, even if they paid some price, might still be able to obtain the right to use the fourth-tier opportunity in the future.

But no one expected that the mission would be intercepted by True Monarch Qingyuan, and that the people who came were from the Dao Inquiry Hall of the sect.

Although Nianwei Zhenren also came from a noble family, she was a member of the Nascent Soul Li family and didn't really care much about the Yan family's affairs.

The Yan family is currently in a dangerous situation, and the only way out is for the Yan family patriarch to reach the Nascent Soul stage.

But how well the Yan family patriarch had prepared was a mystery to the Core Formation cultivators present.

The Yan family patriarch never opened his eyes.

After discussing for most of the day, nothing was decided.

After the seven Core Formation cultivators left, only the Yan family patriarch remained in the cave.

It was quiet for a long time.

The Yan family patriarch opened his eyes and took out a shield.

Fire Element Spirit Shield, his natal magic weapon, is a top-grade third-tier item.

The fire patterns on the shield surface flowed slowly under the infusion of spiritual power, and there was even a faint spiritual power fluctuation that surpassed that of a third-tier magic weapon—although it was weak, it was definitely there.

It already has the potential to become a fourth-tier magic weapon.

He stroked the shield, his fingers tracing from one fire pattern to another.

He is almost seven hundred years old.

His potential is almost exhausted, and his lifespan is also running out.

The sect has no shortage of fourth-tier opportunities, but it won't give them to an old man whose potential has been exhausted.

The Yan family has earned a terrible reputation within the sect in recent years for their efforts to plunder resources for Nascent Soul cultivators—the sect is well aware of their actions, such as forcibly interfering with the Dao Inquiry Hall's training and misappropriating sect resources.

Previously, it was only because of the protection of the aristocratic families that the Yan family was able to escape being purged.

But now, the sect's attitude has been revealed.

Only by producing a Nascent Soul True Monarch can the Yan family survive this calamity.

The opportunity in the Crimson Nether Mountains was a fourth-order Earth Flame True Fire.