Cultivation: I can solidify equipment attributes

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It was nearly dusk when we returned to the market.

As soon as Li Yuan stepped onto the main street, he felt a heavy sense of oppression from the sky above.

Not one, but four.

Four auras at the Golden Core level lingered above the Ghost Mist Forest, like four giant rocks suspended in mid-air. Although they had deliberately restrained most of their power, the remaining pressure still made it difficult for the low-level cultivators in the market to breathe.

Li Yuan looked up and glanced at it.

The thick fog obscured the view, making it impossible to see anything. However, Dark Fiend's keen perception clearly outlined the location and strength of the four auras.

Xuanpu Zhenren. Late stage of Golden Elixir cultivation. Located approximately forty li to the northeast.

Blood Fiend. Late stage of Golden Core. Located approximately fifty li to the northwest.

The third aura belonged to an early-stage Golden Core elder of the Yuan Yang Sect, located slightly south of Xuanpu and Xue Sha.

The fourth aura was newly appeared. It belonged to the mid-stage Golden Core realm, and its spiritual power attribute was inherited from the Yuan Yang Sect. It was positioned right next to the early-stage Golden Core elder.

The Yuan Yang Sect sent reinforcements. The new recruit was a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator, a minor realm higher than the previous early-stage Golden Core cultivator. Liangzhou was, after all, Yuan Yang Sect territory, so transferring a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator from their own sect wasn't difficult.

Four Golden Core cultivators formed a delicate standoff above the Ghost Mist Forest. One was a late-stage Golden Core cultivator from the Tianyue Sect, another from the Shamo Sect, and the last from the Yuanyang Sect—one mid-stage and one early-stage Golden Core cultivator. Their strength was roughly equal on paper, and none dared to make the first move.

Beside a roadside stall run by a wandering monk, two monks were squatting on the ground, chatting quietly.

"If it's not going to fight, what's it doing floating in the sky? It's been floating for almost two days."

"Who knows? What does the business of those Golden Core cultivators have to do with us? We might as well go back to cultivating; what's the use of just staring around here?"

Li Yuan withdrew his senses and entered the stone house.

The moment the door closed, I caught a signal from afar.

Not in the direction of Ghost Mist Forest.

It's Mexico City.

The signal came from the monitoring nodes he had previously deployed underground in the Stone Wasteland of Mozhou. Those nodes were originally set up to monitor the activity around the entrance of the diversion system, and with the addition of spiritual vein perception, they were extremely sensitive.

Four clusters of demonic energy signals.

One cluster was extremely dense and powerful, far exceeding the upper limit of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. It represented the early Golden Core stage, and was at a high level, approaching the threshold of the mid-Golden Core stage. The other three clusters were slightly weaker, all representing the late Foundation Establishment stage.

The four people were moving slowly on the surface of the Mozhou Stone Wasteland, heading straight for the outer entrance of the flow system.

The people from the Demon Slayer Sect have arrived.

The Golden Core cultivator transferred from the Northern Branch, accompanied by three late-stage Foundation Establishment followers, has arrived in Mozhou. They are searching for the entrance to the diversion system, attempting to enter the underground to find clues about the Abyss Cavern.

Li Yuan stood in the stone house, closed his eyes, and counted several breaths.

It takes less than half an hour to travel from the market town to Mozhou via the teleportation array.

The fact that the four people were searching for the entrance on the surface indicates that they were not familiar with the internal structure of the diversion system. The search process will take at least one to two days.

There is enough time.

After disguising himself, Li Yuan arrived at the Stone Wasteland of Mozhou via a teleportation array.

After landing, he did not head directly to the enemy's search area, but instead infiltrated an abandoned branch of the diversion system.

This branch path was a dead end he had discovered while exploring the diversion system. The passage was completely blocked by collapsed rock layers about 300 feet from the entrance, making it a worthless abandoned mine tunnel.

But precisely because of this, it is the best ambush location.

Dead end. Enclosed space. Only one entrance and exit.

Li Yuan spent half a day setting up formations in the branch passage.

A high-grade second-tier trapping array was set up at the entrance of the passage, with a dark-attribute array stone at its core. Once activated, it could form a spiritual energy barrier at the entrance that would last for thirty breaths. The barrier was not strong enough to trap a Golden Core cultivator for too long, but it was enough to keep three late-stage Foundation Establishment followers outside.

Two attack formations were set up in the middle of the passage, covering the left and right sides of the passage respectively. Once activated, they could release dense spiritual energy barrages from the sides to suppress and distract the enemy.

At the end of the passage, in front of the collapsed rock layer, there was a clearing about five zhang square. This was the area he had chosen for the decisive battle.

After the array was set up, Li Yuan returned to the main channel of the diversion system and began to create traces.

He deliberately left extremely subtle traces of spiritual energy at several key intersections along the main passage. The direction of these traces was carefully designed, with each one pointing towards that abandoned branch line.

The disguise of traces is extremely delicate. It cannot be too obvious, or a Golden Core cultivator will become suspicious. Nor can it be too concealed, or the other party may not notice it at all. It must present just the right effect of "someone trying to cover up their tracks but failing completely."

After doing all this, Li Yuan sneaked deep into the abandoned branch line and sat down cross-legged on the open ground in front of the collapsed rock layer.

Four clusters of demonic energy signals entered the outer passage of the diversion system. The leading Golden Core cultivator walked at the front, followed by three late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators in a triangular formation. Their advance was much faster than the previous treasure-hunting team, clearly indicating greater experience in underground activities.

The Golden Core cultivator stopped at the first fork in the road.

He released an extremely precise pulse of demonic energy that spread along the walls of the passage. The pulse was highly accurate, scanning almost every crevice in the stone wall.

The first trace of spiritual energy left by Li Yuan was detected.

The Golden Core cultivator's aura slightly solidified, and then he moved in the direction indicated by the remaining traces.

The second fork in the road. The third. Every trace of debris was accurately discovered, and with each discovery, the enemy's advance accelerated.

He took the bait.

When the Golden Core cultivator reached the entrance to the abandoned side quest, he paused briefly.

He released a deeper probing pulse, scanning the first fifty feet of the branch passage. The pulse's coverage naturally weakened at fifty feet, failing to reach the deeper formations or Li Yuan's hiding place.

The Golden Core cultivator stepped into the side quest.

Three late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators followed closely behind.

As the last late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator crossed the entrance, Li Yuan's divine sense suddenly stirred.

The trap formation is activated.

At the entrance to the passage, dark-attribute array stones emitted a fierce burst of spiritual light. A pitch-black spiritual energy barrier rose from the ground, completely sealing the entrance. The three late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators were blocked on one side of the entrance by the barrier, instantly creating an insurmountable barrier between them and the Golden Core cultivators ahead.

"There's an ambush!"

The Golden Core cultivator reacted extremely quickly. The instant the trapping formation was activated, his demonic energy surged, and a dense layer of dark red protective demonic light enveloped his entire body. His eyes flashed with a fierce light, and he abruptly retreated, attempting to return to the entrance to rejoin his followers.

He took two steps back.

The attack formations on both sides were activated simultaneously.

Dense barrages of spiritual energy poured out from both sides of the passage, dozens of beams of spiritual energy crisscrossing and covering the entire width of the passage. The Golden Core cultivator's protective demonic light withstood the first wave of the barrage, but the second and third waves followed closely behind, forcing him to continue retreating deeper into the passage.

When they retreated to the open ground in front of the collapsed rock layer, the barrage of comments stopped.

There was utter silence ahead.

The Golden Core cultivator stood in the center of the open space, his body surging with demonic energy, his eyes bloodshot, scanning every corner around him.

"come out."

His voice was deep and cold, carrying the unique oppressive aura of a Golden Core cultivator.

As soon as he finished speaking, his divine sense had already swept over every inch of darkness in the open space ahead. It wasn't just a simple investigation, but a piercing gaze with an oppressive feel, as if trying to force the ambushers out of the shadows.

The next moment, another divine consciousness silently approached from the depths of darkness.

There was no roar, no strange phenomenon.

But the moment the two Golden Core level divine senses made contact, the air in the passage seemed to suddenly sink. Several already loose rocks simultaneously cracked and crumbled away.

In the darkness opposite the open space, a figure silently emerged.

Li Yuan.

The veil of concealment vanished the moment he deliberately removed it, and the demonic pressure of an early-stage Golden Core cultivator slowly spread from within him, colliding head-on with the opponent's aura. Both were at the early-stage Golden Core realm, but the Demonic Fiend Sect cultivator's heart sank the moment their auras clashed.

The other person didn't seem like an ordinary Golden Core cultivator.

He did not hesitate at all.

With a flick of his right hand, a jet-black short sword appeared in his grasp. The dark red blood patterns on the blade lit up instantly after the demonic energy was poured in, but instead of releasing any of its light, it concentrated all its killing intent within three feet of the blade.

He took a step forward and slashed horizontally with his short sword.

This slash was so fast that it left only a dark afterimage. Wherever the blade passed, the surrounding demonic energy was forcibly gathered into a line, and the entire space seemed to be dragged out by the blade's intent, creating a narrow crack.

Li Yuan did not take the hit head-on.

The Sky-Splitting Slash cut out diagonally first, but its target was not the blade itself, but the weakest line connecting the opponent's protective magical light and the right arm holding the blade.

The gray cracks moved silently.

The Golden Core cultivator of the Demon Sect suddenly felt his eyelids twitch, his sword strike abruptly changed, and the original slash that was meant to kill was forced to be blocked midway. The moment the short sword collided with the crack, he felt a numbness in his wrist, and the protective demonic light around his body was shaken out, creating a noticeable ripple.

The first shot missed.

Li Yuan, however, had already seen through the other party's protective habits.

The second Sky-Splitting Slash followed closely, faster and more cunning than the first. It didn't aim for the head or slash through the chest or abdomen, but instead sliced ​​along the outermost edge of the opponent's left-side protective demonic aura.

That was precisely the area that the opponent had deliberately thinned out in order to maintain the burst damage of the short sword.

laugh.

The protective magical light was torn open with an extremely fine crack.

Although it was only a very small crack, it was enough to send a chill down the spine of the Golden Core cultivator from the Demon Sect.

He let out a low shout, and the demonic energy within his body surged outward, attempting to forcefully regain the initiative with a greater overall force. The intense protective demonic light instantly returned, and the sword's momentum also surged, trying to forcefully push back the two sky-splitting slashes from before.

But this was the moment Li Yuan had been waiting for.

The third Sky-Splitting Slash came from his blind spot.

This time, the Golden Core cultivator from the Demon Sect barely avoided a fatal blow, but the rift still left a bloody gash on the outside of his left arm. The injury wasn't serious, but the slash had entered at an extremely poisonous spot, precisely at the point where his demonic energy was flowing back to protect his body.

His protective magical light was a beat too slow.

Just this half-beat.

Li Yuan took a step closer.

He raised his right index finger, the tip of which glowed with a dark gray light so intensely it was almost invisible. The Golden Core cultivator of the Demon Sect shrank his pupils and instinctively activated his protective demonic light to return to his chest, but the dark gray finger light seemed to pass through him effortlessly, as if it were completely unimpeded.

Dark erosion finger.

There was no sound of collision, no explosion of spiritual energy.

Only a chilling, demonic aura pierced directly into the meridians of the chest.

The Golden Core cultivator of the Demon Sect trembled violently.

What he felt wasn't just simple pain, but a sensation as if a sharp needle had been forcibly driven into the circulation of demonic energy within his body. The protective demonic light that had been flowing normally lost its cohesion in that instant, and the defenses on his chest, shoulders, and throat simultaneously faltered.

The fifth Sky-Splitting Slash that Li Yuan had been holding back finally arrived.

The gray line flashed by.

This slash cuts through more than just flesh and blood.

Rather, it is the last thread of energy connecting the other person's head, sea of ​​consciousness, and golden core within their body.

A line of blood appeared on her neck.

The head flew off, and a jet of blood gushed out. The headless corpse, still clutching the third-tier short sword, staggered forward two steps. The blade clattered to the ground, and then the entire body fell heavily to the ground, leaving a long trail of blood before coming to a stop.

At the entrance, the barrier that trapped them shattered at the same moment.

Three late-stage Foundation Establishment followers rushed out, only to find the ground covered in blood and their commander's headless corpse.

Their faces turned deathly pale instantly.

Before they could react, the attack formations on both sides of the passage activated for the second time. Dense barrages of spiritual energy rained down from both flanks, enveloping the three in a crossfire.

The protective magic artifact, which was at the late Foundation Establishment stage, could not withstand the array driven by Golden Core level spiritual power for more than three breaths.

Three muffled thuds were heard one after another.

The passageway fell silent.

Li Yuan stood in the center of the open space and withdrew his spiritual power.

A panel pops up.

[Sky-Splitting Slash: Mastery → Minor Success (0/1600)]

[Dark Eclipse Finger: Beginner → Proficient (0/400)]

Both spells achieved breakthroughs in proficiency simultaneously. The Sky-Splitting Slash advanced from mastery to minor mastery, while the Dark Erosion Finger improved from beginner to proficient. Combat at the Golden Core level is the most efficient form of training; the spiritual energy consumption and precision requirements of each strike far exceed those of overwhelming battles against lower-level cultivators.

Li Yuan looked down at the headless corpse on the ground.

The third-tier short sword was still held in the corpse's right hand, and the blood patterns on the blade slowly faded.

He crouched down and began to count the spoils.