On the path to immortality, I can see destiny.

Seemingly because the environment was a bit cold, the three wolf cubs huddled together tightly.

Two of the three wolf cubs were quite large, about the size of an adult tabby cat when they were born, with striking black fur.

The last one, however, was unusually thin, appearing to be less than half the size of its two brothers, and its fur was not black, but a mix of red and black.

Its head and back are black, its chin and limbs are red, and its paws and tail turn black again.

Strangely, only a small portion of the airflow that rushed in from outside enveloped the two larger cubs, while the airflow surrounding the smaller cub was extremely thick.

Zhao Fan sensed something in his heart; this small cub must have some extraordinary qualities.

However, these three cubs were all spirit stones, and Zhao Fan was overcome with greed. He reached out with his right hand, wanting to take all three cubs with him.

However, just as the spiritual energy surged out and was about to approach the cub, a crimson barrier appeared in front of Zhao Fan, preventing him from going any further.

Within the barrier, a small array plate floats, presumably the source of the red barrier.

Upon seeing the barrier, Zhao Fan immediately became alert. The small bell and the spear flew out of his storage bag and hovered around him in case of any unforeseen circumstances.

Outside the cave, the red-clad female cultivator, who was engaged in a fierce battle with the Blood Shadow Wolf, immediately stopped what she was doing, looked in the direction of the cave, and her face was gloomy.

"Someone went into the cave and triggered the array I left behind."

Upon hearing this, the old man and the scholar's expressions instantly turned ugly.

"He doesn't dare to confront us head-on, or even launch a sneak attack. This person's cultivation level must be low. The two of us will hold off this Blood Shadow Wolf first. Fellow Daoist Lin, you go into the cave and find that thief."

The old man waved his whisk and spoke in a deep voice.

The female cultivator in red nodded, put away the array plate, and headed straight for the cave.

At this moment, Zhao Fan observed the array plate for a long time to confirm that it was not offensive before controlling his spear to attack the red barrier.

The barrier's defensive capabilities were not strong. Zhao Fan only used 50% of his strength to pierce through the barrier and knock down the array plate along with it.

"You little thief, you dare steal our things!"

A furious shout came from behind, followed by a rapid whooshing sound.

Zhao Fan didn't have time to turn around. He immediately controlled the small bell, scattering a golden light, and at the same time took out his shield and held it behind him.

At this point, it was no longer possible to steal all the cubs.

Zhao Fan had no choice but to reach out and grab the smallest Blood Shadow Wolf cub.

Before the cub could even be grasped, a violent impact resounded from the large shield behind them.

After the impact, Zhao Fan was swept away by the powerful force transmitted from the shield.

Zhao Fan had no time to resist and could only grab the cub in his hand.

He tumbled through the air several times before finally coming to a stop.

Behind him, the sound of wind breaking rose again. Zhao Fan had no time to think. He rolled to the side and at the same time controlled his spear to fly towards the place where the sound had just come from.

Above, there was a sound of something colliding with the mountain wall.

Zhao Fan finally had a chance to look up at the female cultivator in red.

At this moment, the female cultivator in red held a sharp awl in one hand and easily grasped a spear in the other.

"Turns out it was just a five-story little doll."

The female cultivator in red looked at Zhao Fan with disdain in her eyes.

Zhao Fan knew he was no match for them, but he couldn't bear to part with the cubs he had acquired.

Moreover, after what happened before, Zhao Fan was no longer so naive. He knew that even if he left the cubs behind, he would probably have a hard time getting out alive.

So he simply tucked the cub into his arms, and a fiery red light appeared in his hand, transforming into a long spear.

Zhao Fan made a hand seal, and the spear immediately began to struggle violently. He flicked his right hand and thrust the spear straight at the female cultivator's face.

"Oh my, you little brat, you're pretty ruthless."

The female cultivator looked at Zhao Fan's desperate stance, a mocking smile playing on her lips, her words full of ridicule.

However, her hands were quick; the awl in her right hand flew out rapidly and reached her face in the blink of an eye.

Zhao Fan did not dodge, but cleverly controlled the small bell to hold it horizontally, skillfully inserting the awl into it.

By controlling the small bell, he painstakingly changed the direction of the cone, making it fly over his shoulder.

Then, he thrust his spear straight at the woman's face.

The female cultivator stomped her foot hard, and the two poles were exposed from both sides.

A simple formation was formed in the blink of an eye, and then several threads flew out from all directions, tightly binding the spear.

Seeing that even his spear had been captured by the enemy, Zhao Fan was left with only a broadsword.

Although he couldn't use spiritual power to activate it, Zhao Fan still drew his broadsword and slashed at the female cultivator's neck.

The female cultivator was somewhat surprised. This young man had only just entered the fifth level of cultivation, yet he possessed so many magical artifacts.

However, she did not panic. A flash of fire appeared on her right hand, and she directly gripped the broadsword with her hand.

The female cultivator's arms looked very slender, but Zhao Fan was completely unable to budge them when she unleashed her power.

Zhao Fan simply abandoned his broadsword, and with a wave of his left hand, three talismans appeared in his palm.

The talisman was instantly activated, transforming into three fireballs. One of them headed towards the female cultivator, while the other two were aimed at the array flags on either side.

With her hands restricted, the female cultivator had no choice but to release the spear that was struggling incessantly in her left hand as she faced the low-level fireball coming towards her.

She had just expended a lot of spiritual energy outside, and now, with her cultivation at the seventh level, she could only barely exert half of it. Therefore, even when facing this low-level fireball spell, she dared not take it head-on.

He casually made a hand seal, unleashing a wind blade that collided with the fireball and annihilated each other.

However, the female cultivator had no way to deal with the two array flags. As the two fireballs hit, the array flags were destroyed, and the array lost its function and its restriction on the spear in the blink of an eye.

This is what Zhao Fan learned from fighting Zhu Hao: when the weak defeat the strong, the attack should be continuous so that the opponent has no time to make a move, thus creating an opportunity.

"Kid, you've really made me angry!"

The female cultivator felt frustrated and was in poor condition, unable to fight back against a mere fifth-level cultivator.

Zhao Fan's attack continued. The female cultivator had barely opened her mouth when Zhao Fan's spear was already in front of her.

The female cultivator instinctively used the green broadsword in her hand to block, but found that her spiritual power could flow into the broadsword without any hindrance.

Only then did the female cultivator realize that there were no spiritual traces within the greatsword!

In other words, a spirit mark is the refinement a cultivator makes on a magical artifact.

The most important function of refining magical artifacts is to make them belong to oneself; otherwise, if someone else seizes them during battle and can use them directly, that would be a side effect.

After being refined, corresponding spiritual marks will appear on the magical artifact. The longer the refinement lasts, the deeper the spiritual marks become, and the harder it is for others to steal them.

Zhao Fan naturally couldn't refine this magical artifact, since he couldn't unleash its full power.