The Longevity Family: Starting from the Foundation Establishment Ancestor

Inside the cave on Green Bamboo Peak, Han Mu slowly opened his eyes.

A fist-sized ball of five-colored liquid floated in front of him, crystal clear and radiating pure spiritual energy of the five elements—this was the "Five Elements True Essence Liquid" refined from the Blood Fiend Seed.

Three days after returning from the Blood Fiend Mountains, he immediately began refining it. Using the Five Elements Sword Formation to extinguish the fiendish energy and supplementing it with the Purifying Spirit Formation, he spent dozens of mid-grade spirit stones to finally transform the Blood Fiend True Seed into a completely harmless cultivation item.

"System, evaluate the effects of the Five Elements True Essence Liquid."

[Item: Five Elements True Essence Liquid]

[Quality: Superior]

[Efficacy: When consumed by Foundation Establishment stage cultivators, it can raise their cultivation level by 1-2 minor realms (depending on aptitude and foundation)]

[Best way to take: Divide into three doses, with a seven-day interval]

A look of satisfaction flashed in Han Mu's eyes. He had a solid foundation and cultivated all five elements simultaneously. This ball of Five Elements True Essence Liquid should be able to help him advance from the fifth level of Foundation Establishment to the sixth level, or even touch the threshold of the seventh level.

However, now is not the best time to take it.

With a thought, he put away the Five Elements True Essence Liquid and took out a bronze mirror instead. The mirror was smooth, and its edges were engraved with intricate runes—this was the "Sky-Gazing Mirror" left by the Han family's ancestors, capable of revealing the scenery of a specific area within a hundred miles.

Han Mu bit his fingertip, dripped a drop of blood onto the mirror, and simultaneously cast several spells.

Ripples spread across the mirror's surface, gradually revealing the scene within the misty forest of Falling Phoenix Slope. This was a mark he had left on Han Yunge beforehand, allowing him to see the situation there in real time through the Sky-Gazing Mirror.

In the scene, Han Yunge, Han Li, and three others are surrounded by cultivators from the Ghost Spirit Sect. The leader, Wang Chan, is at the tenth level of Qi Refining and exudes an imposing aura.

"Wang Chan, the young master of the Ghost Spirit Sect..." Han Mu's eyes turned slightly cold. "He has indeed appeared."

According to the original plot, Wang Chan would pursue Dong Xuan'er during the treasure hunt, but Han Li would eventually escape through a scheme. However, due to Han Yunge's intervention, the plot seems to have undergone a subtle change.

"Yun Ge is in danger," Han Mu quickly assessed.

Although he gave Han Yunge a trump card to save her life, it could only protect her alone. Li Yuanming, Zhang Lie, and that Han Li... if Wang Chan really went for the kill, these people would be in grave danger.

Han Mu stood up, his blue robe fluttering even without wind.

He couldn't intervene directly—a Foundation Establishment cultivator interfering in a treasure-hunting competition for Qi Refining cultivators would break the rules and draw the ire of the seven major sects. Moreover, he had to maintain his persona as a "weak and sickly ancestor at the first level of Foundation Establishment."

But my granddaughter's life must be saved.

"System, bring up the topographic map of the area around Luofengpo and mark the best deployment location."

[Topographic map being generated...]

Three miles northeast of Luofengpo, there is a natural stone forest where you can set up a "maze" illusion array.

Five miles to the west, there is an underground river that runs through it, where the "Water Dragon Trapping Formation" can be set up.

The target location is in a low-lying mountain valley, suitable for setting up an "Earthly Fiend Sealing Array".

Han Mu's gaze fell on the Earthly Fiend Sealing Spirit Array.

This formation is based on the earth's ley lines and malevolent energy, which can temporarily seal off the flow of spiritual energy within a certain area, preventing cultivators below the Foundation Establishment stage from mobilizing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and forcing them to rely solely on their own spiritual energy to fight. Moreover, the formation will cause the earth to shake violently when activated, which can conceal the true identity of the caster.

"This is it."

Without further hesitation, Han Mu stepped out of the cave and transformed into a blue rainbow, soaring straight into the sky. At full speed, he covered two hundred miles in less than a quarter of an hour.

As he approached Falling Phoenix Slope, he concealed his aura, donned the Illusion Mask artifact, and disguised himself as an ordinary early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, quietly landing on the outskirts of the mountain valley.

At this moment, the battle inside the ravine had already broken out.

……

"Wang Chan, do you really want to wipe us out completely?" Han Li said in a deep voice, holding a cyan flying sword in his hand.

Wang Chan smiled sinisterly: "You brat from Huangfeng Valley, and that little girl from the Han family, you've ruined my plans. None of you will leave here today."

The four Ghost Spirit Sect disciples behind him attacked simultaneously, unleashing a barrage of sinister spells including the Yin Soul Claw, Blood Fiend Needle, and Corroding Bone Poison Mist.

Li Yuanming and Zhang Lie gritted their teeth and resisted, but the difference in strength was obvious, and they were in grave danger within a few breaths.

Han Yunge clutched the life-saving jade talisman, her palms sweating. This talisman contained three Foundation Establishment stage sword energies sealed within her grandfather, capable of instantly killing a Qi Refining Stage 10 cultivator. However, it could only be used once, and once used, her trump card would be exposed.

"Junior Sister Han, use that talisman!" Li Yuanming shouted urgently. His shoulder was slashed by a Yin Spirit Claw, and the wound quickly turned black.

Han Yunge gritted her teeth, about to crush the jade talisman—

Suddenly, the entire valley began to shake violently!

Rumble!

Countless cracks appeared in the ground, and dense earth-evil energy surged forth from the earth, instantly filling the entire mountain valley. This evil energy was not blood evil, but pure earth vein yin evil, which had a very strong interfering effect on the spiritual power of cultivators.

"What's going on?!" Wang Chan's expression changed. He realized that his speed in mobilizing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was more than ten times slower!

Not only him, but everyone's spiritual energy circulation became sluggish, as if they were stuck in a quagmire.

"It's a formation!" Han Li was the first to react. "Someone has set up a spirit-sealing formation!"

"Who is it?!" Wang Chan shouted sharply, his eyes scanning the surroundings.

But apart from the pervasive malevolent aura, nothing could be seen.

Han Yunge's heart skipped a beat—could it be her grandfather?

Just then, dozens of thick vines suddenly emerged from the ground, not to attack anyone, but to intertwine into a green wall at the edge of the ravine, trapping everyone inside.

"A wood-type trapping formation..." Wang Chan's face was grim. "Which senior from the seven major sects is here? Please show yourself!"

no respond.

Only as the malevolent energy intensifies, the vine-covered walls grow thicker and thicker.

"Young Master, our spiritual energy is not circulating smoothly. If we stay any longer, I'm afraid..." a Ghost Spirit Sect disciple whispered.

Wang Chan's eyes flickered. This formation was clearly not something a Qi Refining stage cultivator could set up; it was at least the work of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Moreover, the fact that the opponent only trapped but didn't kill was obviously out of consideration for the Seven Great Sects, and they didn't want to cause any casualties.

But he was unwilling to give up. He was so close to obtaining the Purple Monkey Flower and eliminating a promising disciple of Yellow Maple Valley…

"Let's retreat!" Wang Chan finally made the decision. "But I'm taking the Purple Monkey Flower with me!"

He flashed and rushed towards the patch of purple monkey flowers.

However, Han Li was prepared and attacked almost simultaneously. The two exchanged several blows amidst the pervasive killing intent, their spiritual energy fluctuations severely suppressed and their power greatly reduced.

Wang Chan, after all, was at the tenth level of Qi Refining, her strength far surpassing Han Li's. It seemed she was about to seize the Purple Monkey Flower—

laugh!

An invisible sword aura suddenly shot out from the ground, accurately piercing Wang Chan's back.

Wang Chan's hair stood on end, and he instinctively dodged to the side. The sword energy grazed his shoulder, leaving a deep, bone-revealing gash.

"Sword energy... Foundation Establishment cultivator!" Wang Chan finally panicked.

The opponent not only set up a formation but also personally took action. Although this sword strike clearly held back, if he truly angered the opponent, he might perish here today.

"Go!" He dared not linger any longer and fled in a sorry state with his four men. Before leaving, he didn't forget to throw out a few Explosive Flame Talismans, which destroyed some of the Purple Monkey Flowers.

The vine-covered wall automatically parted, allowing them to leave.

Inside the mountain valley, the malevolent energy gradually dissipated, and the vines retreated back into the ground.

Han Yunge and the other three looked at each other, still somewhat shaken.

"Is this Senior Han?" Li Yuanming asked Han Yunge.

Han Yunge shook her head: "I don't know..."

She genuinely didn't know. Although she suspected it was her grandfather, he was clearly in seclusion on Green Bamboo Peak, and the formation and sword energy... seemed to be different from her grandfather's style.

Han Li walked to the Purple Monkey Flower, looked at the destroyed parts, and felt a pang of regret in his eyes, but still quickly picked a few intact plants.

"Thank you for saving me, senior." He cupped his hands in greeting to the void. "I am Han Li from Huangfeng Valley. I will repay your kindness if needed in the future."

no respond.

Han Li didn't mind and turned to Han Yunge and the other two: "This place is not safe to stay for long, let's go quickly."

The four quickly left the ravine.

As they walked away, Han Mu's figure slowly emerged from behind a boulder at the edge of the ravine.

His face was "pale," and his aura was "weak." The sword strike just now seemed effortless, but in reality, it had consumed a lot of his spiritual energy—of course, it was an act. With his cultivation at the fifth level of Foundation Establishment, he could have easily killed Wang Chan with a single sword strike; he was holding back simply to avoid trouble.

"System, is the task complete?"

[Han Yunge's crisis has been resolved]

Side Quest: Protect Han Yunge's safety during the Treasure Hunt (Completed)

[Reward: 1 Spirit Eye Spring]

Han Mu nodded. The Spirit Eye Spring could be placed on Qingyang Peak to accelerate the family's development.

Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly felt something and looked up at the east.

There, a pink streak of light was flying toward them at great speed, followed by several black streaks of light.

"Dong Xuan'er..." Han Mu's eyes flickered slightly.

Although he interfered with the original plot, the general direction seems to have remained unchanged. Dong Xuan'er was still being chased by the Ghost Spirit Sect and fled here.

Han Mu pondered for a moment, but instead of making a move directly, he formed hand seals and set up a simple illusion array on Dong Xuan'er's inevitable path.

A moment later, the pink light entered the illusion array and instantly lost its way. The Ghost Spirit Sect cultivators who followed were also trapped by the illusion array.

Taking advantage of the brief chaos, Dong Xuan'er seized the opportunity, changed direction, and fled towards the outside of Luofeng Slope.

Han Mu watched her figure disappear into the horizon, then dispelled the illusion array and turned to leave.

He did not show up throughout the entire process.

"Manipulating things behind the scenes, leveraging external forces to achieve success," Han Mu muttered to himself. "That's for the best."

Back at his cave dwelling on Green Bamboo Peak, Han Mu took out the newly acquired Spirit Eye Spring and prepared to settle it.

At the same time, he looked at the Observatory Mirror—in the mirror, Han Yunge and the other three had found the third token and were heading towards the exit.

The treasure hunt is drawing to a close.