Treasure Gathering Immortal Furnace

woohoo...

Just as Lu Fan was stunned, he heard a series of whooshing sounds above his head. Looking closely, he saw that they were all disciples of the Xuan Yang Sword Sect, more than a thousand of them, all rushing towards the secluded training cliff.

Clearly, the passing of the Xuan Yang Sword Sect's patriarch is a once-in-a-millennium event and a major occurrence.

Lu Fan immediately released his flying sword and followed closely. After all, forming the Core Formation wouldn't make a difference of a day or two. Since he had joined the Xuan Yang Sword Sect, he was now a disciple, and it wouldn't be right not to go and see the patriarch before his passing.

Before long, thousands of disciples flew to a plaza below the secluded training cliff, and almost all of them knelt down.

Lu Fan also knelt to the side. He had just arrived at the Xuan Yang Sword Sect and had taken their Five Extremes Yuan Hunting Sword Formation. He also wanted to use this place to form his core. It would be unreasonable not to pay his respects.

"Ah! Ancestor, how could you abandon us!"

"Ancestor! What will we disciples do if you leave! How can you bear to do this!"

"Ancestor! I don't want to live anymore, so let me go with you!"

At this moment, the square was filled with wails, and almost all the disciples were weeping and wailing, beating their chests and stamping their feet.

Several disciples even threatened to be buried alive with him, but fortunately, other disciples held them back, preventing them from doing anything foolish.

Lu Fan was also touched by the genuine feelings of these disciples. It seems that the patriarch of the Xuan Yang Sword Sect really cares about these low-level disciples, otherwise they wouldn't have shown such true feelings.

Just then, two beams of light, as bright as the sun, suddenly shot out from the secluded cliff and instantly hovered in mid-air.

Lu Fan looked up and saw two Nascent Soul elders. One of them was wearing a purple robe and had white hair at his temples. He was Elder Jingchuan, whom Lu Fan had met once before.

There was another one with a strong physique and long, fiery red hair that resembled flames, exuding domineering power.

Although Lu Fan had never met this red-haired cultivator, he had heard of his name, "True Lord of Heavenly Fire," who was the second Nascent Soul ancestor of the Xuan Yang Sword Sect.

However, only these two appeared; the third Nascent Soul Ancestor was probably not in the sect, so he did not show up.

"How could Senior Brother Cheng Yun just pass away like that? Didn't he still have thirty years of lifespan left?" True Monarch Tianhuo said solemnly, looking at the spiritual energy spreading all over the sky.

"Alas... I suppose Senior Brother knew his lifespan was limited and tried to force his way through the Yuan Hou realm to extend his lifespan, but suffered a backlash. He tried to suppress it with his true essence, but ultimately failed," Jing Chuan shook his head and sighed. He added, "In the entire Canglan realm, there are only a handful of Yuan Hou cultivators. How could it be so easy to break through? Senior Brother was too impatient."

"I don't blame Senior Brother for being impatient. The four of us Nascent Soul cultivators don't even have a combined lifespan of five hundred years. If we all pass away one after another, the Xuan Yang Sword Sect, which has been passed down for ten thousand years, will be destroyed!" True Monarch Tian Huo said in a deep voice, his heart burning with anger.

"This is fate, so why force it?" Jingchuan shook his head.

"Not forcing it? Before Master passed away, he entrusted the sect to us, wanting to make the Xuan Yang Sword Sect flourish again. But what about now? The sect is in decline. That damned Core Formation incident has brought us to a standstill. If we pass away like this, how will we have the face to see Master! To see Ancestor Xuan Yang!" As True Monarch Tianhuo said this, his body erupted with raging flames, clearly extremely angry.

The disciples below were also trembling with fear at the overwhelming heat wave that swept over them.

Jingchuan slowly raised his hand to dispel the heat wave and said, "Alright, don't scare the disciples."

"I'm just not happy! My Xuan Yang Sword Sect has a ten-thousand-year heritage, why can't it produce a Core Formation cultivator!" True Monarch Tian Huo became more and more agitated as he spoke, and then suddenly waved his sleeve, and a terrifying wave of flames swept out.

Boom!

A deafening roar erupted, and the towering wave of flames flattened a mountain peak several miles away! The violent explosion was clearly visible from a thousand miles away.

This scene left Lu Fan below dumbfounded. It was the first time in his life that he had ever seen a Nascent Soul Ancestor unleash such fury. The destructive power was terrifying!

"Sigh..." Old man Jingchuan shook his head and sighed bitterly.

Just as the entire Xuan Yang Sword Sect was plunged into grief and indignation due to the passing of its patriarch, a sinister voice rang out at an inopportune moment.

"Hehe~ I thought some rare treasure had been born here, but it turns out that Fellow Daoist Cheng Yun of the Xuan Yang Sword Sect has passed away. This is the first time I have ever seen a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator pass away. It's quite a sight."

As soon as that eerie voice came out, True Monarch Tianhuo and Ancestor Jingchuan looked into the distance almost simultaneously, but they could only hear the voice and not see the person. It must have been a Nascent Soul expert using a telepathic ability to transmit sound over long distances.

"Blood Longevity Old Monster, you are also a dignified Nascent Soul cultivator, do you only know how to hide your head and show your tail? Is it because you saw that my Xuan Yang Sword Sect's ancestor had passed away, and you want to take this opportunity to spar with my Xuan Yang Sword Sect?" Jing Chuan obviously recognized the owner of this voice.

"Fellow Daoist Jing, what are you saying? I've come to offer my congratulations. Fellow Daoist Cheng has passed away peacefully at the age of 18. This is a joyous occasion. Your Xuan Yang Sword Sect should celebrate with lanterns and decorations for three days and three nights."

Upon hearing this, the ever-tempered Heavenly Fire True Monarch instantly flew into a rage, roaring, "You old thief, Blood Longevity! Are you only good at mocking behind my back? Dare to come out and fight me!"

The voice immediately let out a sinister laugh: "I've long heard that Fellow Daoist Tianhuo has a fiery temper, and seeing it today, it's certainly true. However, you won't be able to keep this up for many more years. Don't worry, when you three old geezers are too old to walk, I'll definitely come and send you on your way!"

After saying that, the voice stopped abruptly.

"You old thief, Blood Longevity! You're courting death!" Heavenly Fire True Monarch was instantly enraged, rising from the ground and transforming into a crimson sun as he fled into the distance.

"You can't catch up with him anyway, why bother getting angry!" Jing Chuan looked helplessly at Tianhuo Zhenjun as he fled.

Although no one coveted their Xuan Yang Sword Sect's blessed land and grotto-heaven due to the curse, it didn't mean that no one coveted their four Nascent Soul ancestors.

After all, those who reach the Nascent Soul level all have fortuitous opportunities. Their storage bags contain countless ancient treasures, magical artifacts, and rare and precious materials. Once they pass away, and their sect has no successor, their fate will be very tragic.

Because the three Nascent Soul elders who are about to pass away have no deterrent power, and the sect has no newly promoted Nascent Soul elders to protect them, once that time comes, someone will inevitably come to seize their legacy.

Even a peaceful death is impossible. Not only will the treasures accumulated over thousands of years be stolen, but the body and soul of a Nascent Soul cultivator are also top-quality materials for crafting puppet magic weapons.

Some might think that he should leave the sect and go to a desolate place to pass away peacefully, but that would be too naive.

When a Nascent Soul cultivator passes away and disperses their power, it can be clearly seen from thousands of miles away. Who can guarantee that the safe place they choose is free of other cultivators?

It can be said that the fate of dying in a sect without a successor in the Nascent Soul stage is very tragic.

This Ancestor Cheng Yun was considered lucky, because although he had passed away, he was still protected by three Nascent Soul Ancestors, which prevented him from ending up with no remains.