Immortality and Cultivation: Starting with Improving Spiritual Root Aptitude

Meanwhile, Bai Ruanyu, who had just left Baidan Hall in a hurry, had already walked alone through several secluded corridors and arrived at an inconspicuous quiet room in the backyard of Baidan Hall.

She quickly walked to the landscape painting hanging on the wall of the quiet room, reached out her jade-like hand to lift the scroll, revealing the smooth stone wall behind it.

He quickly searched the stone wall with his fingertips, found a hollowed-out area, and pressed down hard.

With a soft "click," the mahogany cabinet beside him began to slowly move to the side.

A moment later, the entrance to an underground passage, just wide enough for two people to walk side by side, was revealed. The passage was dark and deep.

Bai Ruanyu glanced back warily, and only after confirming that no one was around did she step into the passage.

She flicked her finger, and a wisp of pale blue light ignited at her fingertip, illuminating the narrow passage ahead.

The inner walls of the passage are smooth, clearly carved out carefully, and extend downwards.

As you reach the end of the passage, the outline of a secret room becomes faintly visible, with a pale blue array halo surrounding the door.

This is the core of the market protection array set up by the Bai family in Baidan Hall, used to prevent outsiders from entering the secret room.

Bai Ruanyu took out a token engraved with the character "Bai" from the storage bag at her waist, quickly formed hand seals with her fingertips, and uttered a low shout: "Open!"

The token immediately emitted a soft, pale blue glow, which echoed the glow emitted by the array.

A moment later, the pale blue halo began to slowly dissipate, and the array restriction was lifted.

"call......"

Bai Ruanyu let out a soft sigh of relief, her tense nerves relaxing slightly, and took a step to enter the secret room.

Just a moment after she took a step away from the secret room, the air behind her suddenly froze.

A slight gust of wind rustled behind me, accompanied by a faint ripple of spiritual energy, and I arrived silently.

In that life-or-death moment, it's unclear whether Bai Ruanyu was prepared from the beginning or whether her survival instinct was triggered to the extreme.

Her body suddenly defied the momentum of her forward charge. The toe of her right foot lightly touched the stone wall of the passage beside her, and she drifted half a foot to the left like a white feather swept up by a gust of wind.

"call out--!!!"

Then, with a whooshing sound, a cold, dark blue light grazed past the outside of her swinging right arm. The sharp spiritual pressure attached to the magic weapon instantly tore through the sleeve of her tight-fitting clothes, leaving a clear line of blood on her fair skin. Blood beads instantly seeped out and flew around.

The cold light did not stop, but continued to shoot forward, and then a muffled "thud" was heard.

A dagger-like magical weapon, its entire body shimmering with a bluish light, was deeply embedded in the stone wall in front of them, its end still humming and vibrating.

Bai Ruanyu landed gracefully at this moment. The instant she regained her footing, she immediately summoned a defensive magic weapon that quickly rotated to protect her body, and then she turned around abruptly.

When she turned around and saw the figure coming down the passage, her pupils suddenly contracted:

"It's you?!"

"Master Liu!?"

On the passageway, the old man in the gray-blue robe, standing against the light, slowly withdrew his spellcasting motion and stood still with his hands behind his back.

His face, which usually wore a gentle smile, now showed an indifferent expression, and his eyes were cold.

With a flick of his sword finger, a glint of light appeared behind him, and the dark blue dagger embedded in the stone wall began to hum again. It deliberately bypassed Bai Ruanyu and flew back on its own, landing steadily in his palm.

"Young Miss's intuition is truly sharp; she is indeed a leading figure among the younger generation of the Bai family."

Liu Danshi's voice was somewhat hoarse and devoid of any emotion. "It's a pity that my all-out, carefully controlled, deadly strike was wasted."

Bai Ruanyu was extremely shocked.

This alchemist, Liu, has been a veteran alchemist employed by the Hundred Pill Hall for nearly fifty years and is also an old friend of Uncle Liu for many years... Yet, at this moment, in this place, she was ambushed and suddenly killed.

But that astonishment lasted for less than a moment in her eyes.

The next instant, she quietly took a half step back, her back pressed against the stone wall. Her spiritual energy circulated silently throughout her body. Her right hand rested on the storage pouch at her waist, while her left hand quietly slid out a talisman painted with bird patterns. Her tone was as cold as ice:

Why?

"Why are there so many 'whys' in this world?"

Master Liu took a step forward, and the spiritual pressure of the seventh level of Qi Refining suddenly spread out, instantly enveloping the entire passageway with a heavy sense of oppression.

A hint of mockery flashed in his eyes: "If you insist on asking, Miss, it's simply because my surname is Deng. Miss, if you're willing to hand over the control panel of this market array now, it seems that out of our years of friendship, I might spare your life."

"Since you've already identified yourself as surnamed Deng, how can I possibly believe what you're saying?"

As Bai Ruanyu spoke, her spiritual sense rapidly swept across the surrounding environment, taking in the entire environment of this passageway.

"Then don't blame me for turning ruthless!"

Master Liu chuckled and said no more.

With a flick of his withered hand, the dark blue dagger transformed once more into a deadly streak of light, its speed even greater than before it was withdrawn.

At the same time, his left hand was constantly making hand seals, and he was chanting softly:

"Thrust!"

The stone slab beneath Bai Ruanyu's feet suddenly cracked, and several sharp wooden spikes pierced through the stone, heading straight for her lower body.

The attack from above and below completely blocked all her escape routes.

Bai Ruanyu gave a low shout, and the defensive magic artifact that had been hovering beside her immediately unfolded a circular shield, blocking all the wooden spikes that suddenly shot out from below.

Her right hand, which had been resting on the storage bag, was suddenly pulled out, and several beams of blue light shot out instantly. However, they were not aimed at Liu Danshi, but rather accurately hit several moonstones at the top of the passageway.

The bright light suddenly went out, and darkness instantly engulfed the entire passageway.

Liu Danshi's vision and perception were briefly impaired. The dark blue dagger was also struck by something, its trajectory slightly deviated, and it shattered a protruding rock with a "clang".

At this critical moment, Bai Ruanyu's body twisted like a swimming fish, and at the same time, the talisman that had been hidden in her left sleeve flew out.

"Firebird, go!"

The instant the talisman burned out in mid-air, a blazing fiery spirit bird shrieked and swooped down towards Alchemist Liu.

This attack was not intended to injure Liu Danshi, but only to force back the pursuers and create chaos.

Master Liu snorted coldly, his sleeves billowed suddenly, and a yellow array flag appeared out of thin air. Then, a surge of earthy yellow spiritual light rushed out wildly, sweeping away like sand and stones, instantly extinguishing the fire spirit bird.

But this brief obstruction has bought Bai Ruanyu a crucial opportunity.

It's now!

Without turning her head, Bai Ruanyu pushed her family's secret movement technique to its limit and retreated rapidly in the direction she had come from, which was the entrance to the secret chamber.

Her cultivation level was one level lower than her opponent's, and she was in this narrow and cramped passageway, so she didn't have much of a chance of winning in a direct confrontation.

Only by breaking through this unfavorable terrain and entering the complex area of ​​Baidantang can there be a glimmer of hope!

"Trying to leave?"

The fierce look in Liu Danshi's eyes suddenly intensified. He had clearly not expected that Bai Ruanyu, who was only at the mid-stage of Qi Refining, would be so decisive and difficult to deal with.

He pursued swiftly, his speed surpassing that of the other, and at the same time, the dagger flew out again.

This time, the dagger no longer attacked in a straight line, but instead drew a tricky arc, blocking Bai Ruanyu's retreat.

Bai Ruanyu felt a spiritual pressure approaching from behind, a chilling aura piercing her bones.

She suddenly shot a burst of spiritual energy into a small bracelet in her hand.

Yu Huan instantly shone brightly, and a layer of pale golden light, like an eggshell, enveloped her entire body.

"Bang!"

The dark blue dagger stabbed fiercely into the light barrier, causing it to ripple violently, but it did not break through the defense.

But Bai Ruanyu still felt a sweet taste in her throat, and the flow of spiritual energy within her body suddenly became extremely obscure.

"poisonous?"