Back on Earth, I am the only cultivator.

After crossing the huge bluestone plaza and passing through an archway shrouded in cold air, Wu Fan arrived at the herb garden on the back mountain of the Xuantian Sect.

Located deep in the canyon at a windy pass, this place is shrouded in a faint blue light curtain.

Ten thousand years have passed. Although most of the precious spiritual herbs have withered and weathered due to the depletion of spiritual energy, turning into residues in the soil, a few extremely resilient top-grade spiritual herbs have miraculously survived thanks to the dual protection of the "Spirit Gathering Array" and the "Ice Array".

As Wu Fan stepped into the herb garden, a refreshing medicinal fragrance wafted towards him.

His gaze sharpened slightly as it landed in the center of the herb garden.

On a piece of ancient ice that exudes a chilling white vapor, a small, crystal-clear, ice-sculpted tree stands quietly.

On the dry branches of the cold tree, hung three fist-sized, crystal-clear fruits, as red as rubies.

"Ice Heart and Vermilion Fruit".

A hint of approval flashed in Wu Fan's eyes as he murmured to himself.

This Vermilion Fruit exudes an extremely cold medicinal fragrance, making it a coveted treasure for cultivators of both water and ice attributes.

For Wu Xi, who was born with the "Heavenly Yin Primordial Body" and cultivates the "Primordial Profound Ice Technique", this is an excellent supplement for his future foundation building.

In addition, Wu Fan's gaze swept over a secluded corner nearby.

In a patch of soil that had turned to gravel, two medicinal herbs were swaying tenaciously.

One plant has heart-shaped leaves with a subtle shimmering light, while the other resembles a nine-petaled Ganoderma lucidum, emitting a faint medicinal fragrance.

"Heavenly Heart Grass, and Nine-Leaf Ganoderma."

Wu Fan's face lit up with joy; this trip to Kunlun had indeed been very fruitful.

These two spiritual herbs are the essential ingredients for refining the "Foundation Building Pill"!

"As long as I gather the remaining few common medicinal ingredients, I will be able to refine the most perfect Foundation Establishment Pill in the world for Xiao Xi."

Wu Fan squatted down, a gentle surge of magical power flowing from his fingertips. He planned to dig out these spiritual herbs by the roots and store them, along with the ten-thousand-year-old mystic ice at the bottom, into his gray stone spatial ring.

However, just as Wu Fan was about to make his move, the glacier ground began to shake violently.

As the tremors occurred, countless pieces of solid ice crashed down from the towering ice walls, creating deep craters in the ground.

"Um?"

Wu Fan stopped what he was doing and frowned as he looked at the crack in the ground in front of him.

"Click, click"

Suddenly, the once-hard glacier ground began to crack rapidly with deep fissures.

"roar!"

A piercing, eerie howl came from inside.

Suddenly, a huge creature burst out from the massive ice crevice.

That was a giant centipede!

Its body, which is hundreds of meters long, still twists and turns in the ice and snow, with countless pairs of ice crystal legs, each several meters long, like sharp scimitars, deeply piercing the glacier ground.

Its back was covered with thick, dark blue carapaces, which shimmered with a cold, metallic luster under the faint red light.

What's most chilling is that its eyes, like two enormous blood-red lanterns, are staring intently at Wu Fan.

His eyes were filled with tyranny.

"Wasteful humans!"

A muffled, deep voice suddenly rang in Wu Fan's mind:

"How dare you steal the Ice Heart Vermilion Fruit that I have guarded for three thousand years!"

This giant centipede actually knows how to transmit sound through divine sense!

Wu Fan was slightly surprised that there were still living monsters on Earth.

After scrutinizing him carefully, he spoke coldly:

"This one? A mere crawler dares to call itself this one?"

"hiss!"

Upon hearing Wu Fan's disdainful address, the giant centipede's hundred-meter-long body trembled. It suddenly raised its upper body, soaring into the sky, its countless sharp legs waving wildly in mid-air.

"Ignorant brat! I am Elder Xuanwu, the guardian of this place!"

The voice echoed in Wu Fan's mind:

I have guarded these three Ice Heart Vermilion Fruits for three thousand years!

"Once they are fully mature, I will be able to use the power of this extremely cold medicine to break through the shackles of my bloodline and advance to the fourth-tier demon beast realm!"

In the world of cultivation, the cultivation levels of demonic beasts and human cultivators correspond one-to-one.

The first rank corresponds to Qi Refining, the second rank corresponds to Foundation Establishment, the third rank corresponds to Golden Core, and the fourth rank corresponds to the Nascent Soul stage in humans.

This centipede has cultivated here for thousands of years and has taken full advantage of the ten-thousand-year-old mysterious ice. Its strength has reached the peak of the third rank, which is equivalent to the perfect Golden Core realm in humans.

"You damned thief, how dare you beat me to it and steal my opportunity!"

Hearing Elder Xuanwu's roar, Wu Fan scoffed, his words dripping with disdain:

"Guardian? Don't flatter yourself."

"I think you're nothing more than a beast trapped in this herb garden, used to guard the medicinal herbs and incidentally as a raw material for alchemy."

"You...you're asking for it!!"

Elder Xuanwu was completely enraged when Wu Fan ruthlessly exposed his true nature.

With a gaping maw, a torrent of eerie blue poisonous mist surged forth.

It was a Taiyin cold poison that could freeze the golden core power of cultivators. Wherever the poisonous mist passed, the glacier ground was corroded and riddled with holes, and then dark blue ice blades pierced out from the holes.

Wu Fan's eyes turned slightly cold.

This monstrous creature absorbed ten thousand years of icy energy here, and its carapace was several times harder than that of ordinary magical artifacts; it was indeed thick-skinned and tough.

A thought flashed through his mind, and he quickly weighed the options.

"It's actually a demon beast that has reached the Golden Core stage."

With my current cultivation level at the fourth level of the Golden Core stage, it wouldn't be easy to finish this quickly without using some real skills.

Wu Fan's expression hardened slightly, and he sighed inwardly.

"If I were to use the essence of a Celestial Emperor, a single breath would be enough to obliterate this beast."

"But forcibly driving the power of origin with the cultivation of the Golden Core stage is too damaging to one's vital energy and may even shake the foundation of this physical body."

"Well, since that's the case, we'll have no choice but to use it."

Wu Fan's gaze was like lightning, and he pointed his right sword upwards.

"Sword, come!"

Buzz!

Accompanied by a clear and melodious sword cry, a dazzling golden light suddenly shone in the void.

A phantom longsword, its entire body flowing with mysterious runes and radiating supreme immortal power, slowly materialized before him.

This is his destined immortal sword!

Although with his current Golden Core cultivation level, he can only unleash one ten-thousandth of the power of this immortal sword, killing a mere Golden Core Perfection demon beast is still a piece of cake.

"What! What kind of power is that?!"

Elder Xuanwu cried out in terror.

When that golden longsword appeared, it sensed a murderous aura that transcended the rules of this world!

Every piece of its shell and every leg trembled under that terrifying sharpness.

"cut."

Wu Fan remained expressionless, lightly swiping his fingertip across the screen.

The natal immortal sword transformed into a dazzling golden light that shot into the sky, suddenly blooming in mid-air and turning into a vast golden sword net.