A god-level alchemist, starting by manually crafting forbidden pills.

As dusk fell, the fog grew thicker and thicker, reducing visibility to less than ten feet.

Luo Fan found a relatively safe cave and prepared to spend the night there.

The cave was small and very dry.

He set up several simple warning barriers at the cave entrance and lit a bonfire.

He then sat down cross-legged, closed his eyes, and regulated his breathing.

After an unknown amount of time, faint footsteps could be heard outside the cave.

Luo Fan suddenly opened his eyes and instinctively gripped the God-Slaying Sword.

Until the woman in the light blue dress and with her face veiled by a white veil walked in.

"Senior sister?"

Luo Fan was taken aback, somewhat surprised. "Why are you here?"

"I'm worried about you."

Su Qingyuan walked to the campfire and sat down opposite Luo Fan.

The firelight illuminated her face, and her cool, aloof features were faintly visible through the white veil.

She casually tossed two more storage bags to Luo Fan, her voice remaining calm and composed.

"These belong to those two cultivators from the Golden Roc Palace. They're yours."

Golden Roc Hall?

Luo Fan frowned, thinking of the man and woman who had escaped; they must have been stopped by Su Qingyuan.

"This is the Valley of Burial Immortals, where the law of the jungle prevails and it is safest to leave no future troubles."

really.

Those two cultivators died at Su Qingyuan's hands.

Luo Fan wasn't being soft-hearted; he simply adhered to the principle of avoiding trouble.

Killing them would be easy, but what if they have senior members or fellow disciples nearby?

Or, if they cause a bigger commotion before they die and attract more trouble, it would be a loss that outweighs the gain.

It was with these thoughts in mind that Luo Fan decided to let them go for the time being.

He smiled but didn't say anything to Su Qingyuan to thank her.

He simply picked up a dry branch and poked at the fire, making it burn even brighter.

The two fell silent for a moment.

The only sounds were the crackling of burning firewood and the faint rustling sounds coming from outside the cave.

"Is it worth it for that little girl?"

Su Qingyuan asked the same question a second time.

Luo Fan paused for a moment as he poked at the fire.

He looked up and met Su Qingyuan's gaze, and gave her the same answer as before.

"value."

The sound wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear.

Why?

Su Qingyuan pressed for an answer.

A hint of confusion lingered in his cool eyes.

Perhaps there was also a different emotion that she herself was unaware of.

Luo Fan's gaze was fixed on the night outside the cave, as if piercing through a vast distance.

We returned to Peach Blossom Temple.

He returned to the small figure that had been blocking his way.

"At that time, I thought I was going to die, and she stood in front of me."

He turned to look at Su Qingyuan, "She didn't think about whether it was worth it or not, she just stood there in the way."

Su Qingyuan fell silent.

The campfire illuminated their faces, casting flickering light and shadow.

After a long silence, she whispered, "Me too."

Luo Fan was slightly taken aback.

Su Qingyuan looked at him with a faint smile in her eyes, "So, I've come."

"With Uncle Wang teaching that girl, it makes little difference whether I'm here or not."

Luo Fan looked at the faint tenderness in her eyes and suddenly smiled.

"My senior sister is an idiot too."

He said softly.

Su Qingyuan laughed too, "Only fools are lucky."

The two smiled at each other, a warm and peaceful feeling filling their space.

However, this tranquility did not last long.

"Awooo—!!"

In the depths of the pitch-black night, a piercing roar of a beast suddenly resounded!

This roar was unlike that of ordinary demonic beasts; it was filled with violence, piercing through layers of mist and reaching straight to the soul.

Then came the second sound, the third sound... one after another.

Luo Fan and Su Qingyuan both looked alertly out of the cave.

In the darkness, something seemed to be quietly approaching.

The light from the campfire could only illuminate a small area at the entrance of the cave.

Further away, there was boundless darkness and churning gray fog.

Even more terrifying is that there is a natural barrier to spiritual awareness here.

Even Luo Fan's Eye of Truth couldn't see any further.

All that could be heard were the low, heavy footsteps approaching from afar, getting closer to the cave where they were.

Buzz!

In the darkness, countless green lights appeared, like will-o'-the-wisps in the thick black fog.

"It's a bone-rotting wolf."

After seeing clearly, Su Qingyuan said in a deep voice, "These are common monsters on the outskirts of Burial Immortal Valley, but this group is not simple."

The group of demonic beasts were all enormous, their bodies covered in gray-black fur.

The lead one was exceptionally large, and its aura had reached the peak of the Golden Core realm!

The alpha wolf howled to the sky.

As if receiving a command, the wolves pounced wildly towards the cave!

"Be careful!"

Su Qingyuan warned, "There are too many demonic beasts. If we don't defeat them, other demonic beasts will come looking for trouble."

"Then just kill them."

The Crimson Sun True Form was activated with a roar!

With the God-Slaying Sword in hand, he swept the sword across and cut the three-headed Bone Wolf in half at the waist!

Following closely behind Luo Fan, Su Qingyuan formed a hand seal, and the Azure Wood Longevity Seal crashed down!

The two bone-rotting wolves were killed on the spot, their flesh and blood flying everywhere!

The wolf pack is fearless and undaunted.

They killed one batch, and another batch rushed up.

More and more bone-rotting wolves emerged from the mist, seemingly endless.

Something's not right!

Luo Fan killed the charging bone wolf with a single sword strike, but suddenly noticed something amiss.

The corpses of the rotten wolves he killed rotted rapidly.

It turned into black smoke and merged into the surrounding mist.

As a result, the fog became even thicker.

"They are using their lives to strengthen the poisonous miasma!"

Su Qingyuan's expression was grave. "A swift victory is crucial! The longer it drags on, the more disadvantageous it will be for us!"

Luo Fan nodded, no longer holding back.

He mobilized the vast spiritual energy stored within the Great Dao Furnace and channeled it into his own body!

Every sword strike was delivered with full force.

Several sword lights merged, and the sword aura surged several feet, sweeping across the battlefield and killing more than a dozen wolves at the same time.

The black smoke grew even thicker.

Strangely, the black mist did not completely merge into the fog.

Some of them quietly slipped into the God-Slaying Sword.

Luo Fan didn't notice this detail. He broke through the wolf pack's defenses and went straight for the alpha wolf!

A bloodthirsty glint flashed in the alpha wolf's eyes as it slammed a claw down on the God-Slaying Sword that Luo Fan was wielding!

clang--!!!

Luo Fan was sent flying, sword and all!

The alpha wolf isn't having an easy time either.

The sharpness of the god-slaying sword left a bloody mark on its claws.

It lowered its head and licked the blood from its paws, then roared angrily.

The alpha wolf was so fast that it left afterimages, its sharp teeth aimed straight at Luo Fan's throat.

In the moment of crisis, a blue mark descended from the sky and slammed down on the back of the alpha wolf.

"Awooo!!"

The alpha wolf was hit so hard that it froze, its limbs sinking into the ground.

Luo Fan, while in mid-air, forcibly twisted his body and used the momentum to turn around.

The God-Slaying Sword transformed into a streak of light, piercing through the head wolf's skull!

With a mournful howl, the alpha wolf collapsed to the ground!

Strangely, the black mist that its corpse had transformed into did not merge into the mist, but instead seeped into the God-Slaying Sword.

The God-Slaying Sword broke free from Luo Fan's hand and hovered in mid-air, its blade trembling violently.

Om-! !

Black light and crimson flames intertwined, and mysterious patterns appeared on the sword's body.

The aura is rising steadily!

Low grade!

Mid-grade Earth Rank!

The light dimmed.

The God-Slaying Sword, now in Luo Fan's hands, has become even more eerie and sharp.

"You advanced?"

Luo Fan was somewhat surprised.

He never expected that the God-Slaying Sword could absorb the black energy that these bone-rotting wolves turned into after they died.

The remaining wolves saw this and fear flashed in their eyes.

They looked fearfully at the sword in Luo Fan's hand, let out low growls, and scattered and fled.

"This sword is too ferocious, seemingly nurtured by the blood and qi of cultivators and demonic energy. It would be best to use it sparingly in the future."

Su Qingyuan frowned.

I wasn't too worried.

The power of the five elements can purify demonic energy.

As long as the level of the spiritual weapon does not exceed the user's control.

Luo Fan would not be corrupted by demons.

The sky is bright.

The fog was still thick, but it was thinner than at night.

Luo Fan and Su Qingyuan left the cave and continued deeper, where visibility was less than ten feet.

Luo Fan activated his Eyes of Truth, and could barely make out the restrictions and traps ahead.

The two carefully avoided obstacles along the way, and unknowingly arrived at a valley.

Luo Fan suddenly stopped and pointed into the depths of the mist, "Senior Sister, there's something over there."

"Let's go take a look."

As the two approached, they discovered it was a dilapidated stone temple.

Half of the stone hall has collapsed and is covered with vines, indicating that it has been abandoned for a long time.

However, on the stone tablet in front of the stone hall, several ancient characters are engraved.

The Hall of Burial Immortals!

Su Qingyuan looked at those three words, a complex expression flashing in her eyes.

"The Burial Hall of Immortals..."

"Does Senior Sister know this place?"

Luo Fan asked.

Su Qingyuan nodded.

"Ancient books record that the Burial Immortal Palace was one of the most powerful forces in this region in ancient times."

"Many strong individuals have emerged, and their power has shaken the region."

"But then, for some unknown reason, all those powerful figures disappeared overnight."

"Some say it was a natural disaster, some say the whole family ascended to heaven, and some say they offended something they shouldn't have."

"The truth is no longer known."

"As time went by, the cultivators who remained at the Burial Immortal Palace eventually perished in the river of time."

"Only this dilapidated stone hall remains, along with countless restrictions and demonic beasts in the valley."

Luo Fan looked at what was in front of him, his heart filled with complex emotions.

The once mighty force is now nothing but ruins.

Is the path of spiritual practice truly so cruel?

"Let's go in and take a look."

The two cautiously entered the stone hall.

The hall was in a mess, with signs of battle and decaying bones everywhere.

Some of the skeletons remained in fighting poses.

Some of the skeletons were intertwined, as if they were still fighting before they died.

Su Qingyuan looked at one of the skeletons, her pupils shrinking slightly.

"This is a Nascent Soul cultivator."

Luo Fan also noticed.

Although the skeleton was decayed, the remaining aura was still powerful.

It is not a Nascent Soul.

It's halfway to the Out-of-Body stage!

The fact that such a powerful cultivator could perish here suggests that there must be a secret within this stone hall.

Or perhaps there is a secret treasure.