Begin your practice with the crane-shaped stance.

The nest of the Yinming insect was originally an underground cave, but now it has become a dead and silent ice cave.

Xia Dong followed the gaze and saw that the nest of the Yinming insects, which should have made one's scalp tingle, was now frozen by a layer of cold moonlight that seemed to be real.

The solid ice, resembling condensed moonlight, presents a dark, deep blue color. Through the ice, hundreds of yin moths can be clearly seen, poised to take flight or frantically biting.

There was no sign of life, only a deathly stillness that could freeze even the soul.

This is the "Taiyin Divine Light" left behind by the Lonely Moon Immortal.

Summer and winter are slowly approaching.

When he was still several feet away from the frozen insect nest, he felt an extremely terrifying chill rushing towards him.

This chill was not the ordinary cold of ice and snow, but rather it completely ignored the body's defenses, penetrating into the meridians and the sea of ​​consciousness.

After taking only a few steps closer, Xia Dong felt that the Xuan Yin magic power that was originally flowing smoothly in his body had become as sluggish as a swamp, and even his divine sense had become much slower, as if his thoughts were about to be frozen.

"This Taiyin Divine Light is so terrifying." Xia Dong managed to muster a hint of shock.

After this experience, he gained a completely new understanding of Gu Yue Zhenren's strength.

He had long known that Senior Lone Moon was virtually unmatched in the Foundation Establishment realm.

After all, she was a great cultivator who had accumulated enough foundation to open up the "Purple Mansion". If it were in the medieval era, when spiritual energy was abundant, she would definitely be a genius in the sect.

However, what he saw before him was merely a Taiyin Divine Light restriction left by the other party to seal the insect nest. Even though more than half a month had passed, the aura it emitted could still make him feel so uncomfortable.

One can imagine that with his current strength, if he were to face Master Guyue directly on the battlefield, he probably wouldn't even be able to withstand a single finger from him.

Xia Dong didn't dare to be overconfident any further.

He took a deep breath, activated the Dragon Capture Technique, and instantly stimulated the martial arts energy within his body.

With a muffled boom, a surge of pure, masculine energy coursed through his body like a furnace.

A surge of warmth immediately coursed through his body, forcefully expelling the chilling cold of the Yin energy that had invaded his body.

As the flow of qi and blood surged, the magic power returned to normal, and the stagnation in his mind vanished without a trace.

Xia Dong breathed a long sigh of relief.

It seems that martial arts qi and blood do indeed have a special resistance effect against the supernatural powers and spells of cultivators.

After regaining her composure, Xia Dong began to carefully observe the frozen Taiyin divine light.

He did not use his "innate Qi" to forcibly dispel the Taiyin Divine Light, but instead, with a thought, he slowly activated the "Mingzhe" talisman seed in his dantian.

The Netherworld Seed is highly compatible with the Taiyin Divine Light in terms of attributes, and it also contains the profound meaning of "stealing the subtle"—it can silently steal the most subtle life force and spiritual power in the world.

It is the perfect tool to steal the mysterious aura of the Taiyin Divine Light.

Xia Dong carefully manipulated the talisman seed, peeling back layers like silk threads, gently drawing a trace of the extremely faint Taiyin divine light from the escaping cold air and freezing the chill, then incorporating it into the talisman seed.

He planned to use the talisman seed to thoroughly explore Senior Lone Moon's Taiyin Divine Light and see what mysteries it contained.

Immediately, the Netherworld Seed slowly circulated within the dantian.

Xia Dong clearly felt that the talisman seed was devouring and digesting the extracted Yin coldness. It was an extremely strange experience; he actually sensed a kind of craving and satisfaction from the talisman seed within his body, similar to "eating".

"That's too little."

In just a few breaths, the chilling sensation was completely absorbed by the talisman seed. It felt like Pigsy eating a ginseng fruit; before Xia Dong could even savor its flavor, all that remained was a lingering emptiness.

"Again?" A hint of greed rose in Xia Dong's heart.

He looked up at the nest of Yinming insects frozen in front of him by the divine light. Logically speaking, these Yinming insects should have been frozen to death under the power of the Taiyin Divine Light of the Lonely Moon Immortal.

He was still somewhat hesitant, but his curiosity about the mysteries of high-level spells prevailed.

"Just a little bit more? Just a little bit!" Xia Dong gritted her teeth and made up her mind.

He cautiously extended his divine sense, preparing to once again draw in and devour a bit of the freezing chill emanating from the Taiyin Divine Light.

This time, he focused intently, preparing to analyze the mysteries of this supernatural power even more carefully.

However, just as Xia Dong was about to make his move!

A bone-chilling cold suddenly rushed out from the dark corner of the mine tunnel beside me.

Xia Dong's pupils contracted sharply. He instantly recognized that this chilling aura, filled with fierce killing intent and tyrannical power, was definitely not the deathly, still, frozen chill of the Taiyin Divine Light in front of him!

Under the chill, Xia Dong felt almost instantly the death crisis of having the Grim Reaper choking him.

What is that?!

In the face of life and death, Xia Dong didn't even have time to turn around and look.

Almost without hesitation, he frantically poured his Xuan Yin magic power into his chest, instantly raising the protective aura of the Xuan Snake Inner Armor he wore close to his body.

boom!

A deafening thud exploded in the enclosed underground space.

A terrifying force, like a battering sledgehammer, struck Xia Dong's body hard.

Under this irresistible force, Xia Dong was sent flying backward, crashing heavily into the hard ice wall beside him, causing the surrounding ice shards to fall in a shower.

The immense recoil caused Xia Dong's internal organs to churn with qi and blood.

He was filled with extreme fear. If it weren't for his insistence on engaging in a life-or-death sparring session with Brother Snake, which was almost one-sided and resulted in him developing near-instinctive combat reflexes, and the fact that the Xuan Snake Inner Armor crafted by Madam Xu had protected him from fatal damage, he wouldn't have been able to react to that silent attack and would have been instantly killed!

At this moment, Xia Dong quickly clung to the ice wall to steady himself.

In the instant the distance was created, he also truly felt a powerful pressure emanating from the darkness.

This fierce and bloodthirsty aura was in no way inferior to that of Brother Snake, who had completely stabilized his late-stage Qi Refining realm!

With his back against the hard ice wall, Xia Dong also took the opportunity to see the true face of the attacker.

It was a jet-black spider, about the size of a calf.

On its carapace, covered with barbs as sharp as steel needles, was a pale and distorted human face. In this dark and cold abandoned mine, the pale face exuded a chilling eeriness and venom.

"Ghost-faced Spider?" Xia Dong's pupils suddenly contracted, and the records in "Miscellaneous Records of Cultivation" flashed through his mind, allowing him to recognize the other party's origin.

This is an extremely rare and troublesome alien species that is born with a fondness for yin energy and flesh and blood, and its existence lies somewhere between ghosts and monsters.

Judging from the fierce aura emanating from this ghost-faced spider, it is at least at the late stage of Qi Refining!

The ghostly spider's eight long legs, like spears forged from fine steel, were firmly pinned to the ice. Its eerie human face twitched slightly, and a hint of human-like astonishment flashed in its eerie green eyes.

It clearly hadn't expected that its seemingly inevitable sneak attack would fail to disembowel its seemingly weak prey.

But the astonishment lasted only a moment before the greed in the face of the ghost spider completely overshadowed the surprise. It had clearly regarded the vigorous Xia Dong as an extremely delicious meal.

On that eerie face, the lips that were originally tightly closed suddenly split open to both sides, stretching all the way to the ears, revealing a gaping maw covered with fine, serrated teeth.

At the very front of the gaping maw, two sharp, hollow, slender fangs, resembling those of a vampire, protruded out.

A few drops of venom, exuding a foul stench and chilling cold, dripped from the fangs onto the ground, instantly corroding the solid ice and producing a pungent white smoke.

Faced with such a ferocious creature at the late stage of Qi Refining, Xia Dong felt his scalp tingle and almost instinctively wanted to activate his perfected "Wind Control Technique" and "Crane Shadow Step" to turn around and run away.

He knew in his heart that if he were to fight this vicious beast head-on in this sealed underground ice cave, his chances of survival would be slim.

However, just as the ghost-faced spider suddenly lowered its body, its eight legs gathering strength, preparing to transform into a blur and launch a deadly attack once again!

clang!

A deep, ancient bell tolled, resounding without warning deep within Xia Dong's consciousness.

Upon hearing that incredibly familiar, clear, and melodious bell sound, Xia Dong's extremely tense mind instantly calmed down. This mysterious ancient bronze bell.

"Brother Zhong, please help me!"

However, before Xia Dong's joy could fully show, a sudden change occurred!

Xia Dong clearly felt that with the sound of the bell, the Xuan Yin power that was originally abundant in his dantian was completely drained away by the ancient bronze bell in his sea of ​​consciousness in an instant, like a flood bursting its banks, leaving not a trace!

The depletion of his magical power was just the beginning. What made him even more alarmed was that his "innate Qi," which he had locked deep within his divine treasure and which was related to his foundation in cultivation and the origin of his life, was forcibly drained away by this unreasonable and terrifying suction force in the blink of an eye!

At the same time, a wonderful feeling of truly "controlling" the ancient bronze bell arises spontaneously.