The Eternal Saint of Alchemy

Three days later, the group finally emerged from the miasma-ridden forests of southern Xinjiang.

The official road was flanked by vast rice paddies, and it was the season when the fragrance of rice filled the air.

Compared to the hot and humid jungles of southern Xinjiang, the wind here is dry and warm.

Master Gu Yuan, riding his donkey, stretched and yawned, his bones cracking and popping, and said, "Finally, we're out of that cannibalistic forest. I haven't had a proper night's sleep in the Southern Frontier these past few days."

Han Fei said, "Elder, you're most afraid of insects. I've seen you get up to check on them three times in the middle of the night."

"Bullshit!" Master Gu Yuan glared at him. "How could a snake be an insect?"

Xiao Fan shook his head, ignoring their argument, and continued to look at the bronze ball in his hand.

The entire map of the Nine Towers gleamed faintly in the sunlight, while the tall tower in the Thousand Mist Mountains was located in the southeast, about seven or eight days away.

The patterns on the bronze spheres indicate that the terrain around the tower is quite undulating, seemingly situated between a mountain range.

Yun Ruoxi rode up to his side, tilted her head and looked at the bronze ball, saying, "I've heard of Thousand Mist Ridge. It's shrouded in fog all year round, with extremely heavy miasma, even worse than the Southern Frontier. The locals say it's easy to go up the mountain but difficult to get out."

"Then we need to prepare early." Xiao Fan put away the copper ball, then took out a prescription and said, "I've already had A Cai prepare the miasma-avoiding pill, along with some invigorating herbs, and that should be enough."

"We'll rest in Baisha Town for a day first, and then head up the mountain."

In the evening, the team arrived at Baisha Town.

This is the largest market town on the northern slope of southern Xinjiang, with a constant stream of merchants and travelers. The streets are lined with shops selling mountain products and medicinal herbs.

Xiao Fan went to the town's pharmacy to buy a batch of spiritual materials, then found a clean inn to stay in before leaving.

As night fell, Xiao Fan sat alone by the window, once again channeling his divine sense into the bronze sphere.

Inside the sphere, the outline of the Thousand Mist Mountains could be vaguely seen. Unlike the previous five towers, this tower seemed to be surrounded by a thin layer of black mist.

This fog wasn't some kind of yin energy, but something much denser, with a faint smell of burning.

Xiao Fan murmured, "The Blackfire Sect people have already arrived there."

He opened his eyes, looked at the outline of the black mountain outside the car window, and frowned slightly.

After the tower in the southern border was repaired, the woman from the Blackfire Sect was still not satisfied and immediately set her sights on another tower.

In other words, the person behind this knows where the Nine Towers are, and may even have a similar map.

The next morning, Xiao Fan gathered everyone together and briefly explained the situation.

"It's possible that someone tampered with the tower in the Thousand Mist Mountains. This time, it probably won't be as smooth as the previous towers."

He paused for a moment, glanced at everyone, and said, "What follows may be a tough battle."

Master Gu Yuan put down his wine jug and said calmly, "What's there to fear in war? I crushed demon bones in the icy sea and endured the scorching heat of the Black Sand Sea. The insect swarms of the Southern Frontier couldn't harm me. Why should I fear some cowardly rats hiding in fear?"

Han Fei patted his chest and said, "Yes, yes, yes! Brother Xiao, just say the word, I, Han Fei, will be the first to step forward!"

Xiao Fan smiled slightly and turned to look at Yun Ruoxi. She didn't speak, but simply nodded.

Xiao Fan composed himself and distributed the pills: "Before entering the mountain, each person should take one Miasma-Avoiding Pill. The effects will last for two hours. After leaving the miasma area, take another one. Also, the mountain path is difficult to traverse, and horses cannot enter. Tomorrow, we will proceed on foot."

After a night's rest, the group set off from Baisha Town early the next morning, heading towards the Thousand Mist Mountains along the winding path.

It truly lives up to its name as the Thousand Mist Mountain Range.

In just two hours, a thick white fog suddenly appeared ahead.

The mist carried a strange coolness that seeped into my clothes, feeling as if countless fine needles were gently pricking my skin.

Xiao Fan put a miasma-avoiding pill into his mouth, and a scorching medicinal power instantly rushed into his mind, making his drowsy head much clearer.

The mountain path beneath our feet grew narrower and narrower, with dense bushes on both sides. From time to time, we heard the calls of birds whose names we didn't know, and we had no idea how far away they were.

Master Gu Yuan walked in the middle, holding a guiding talisman in his hand. The cinnabar pattern on the talisman emitted a faint red light, which could barely illuminate the road ahead.

"What a strange mist," Master Gu Yuan said in a deep voice. "After I placed my talisman inside, its light dimmed by a third, as if it had been absorbed by something."

Xiao Fan stopped and spread his divine sense in all directions. He activated the Qiankun Refining God Technique and, through the layers of mist, faintly sensed a faint fluctuation of spiritual energy in the valley ahead.

This fluctuation was different from that of spirit beasts and demon beasts; it was more obscure and profound, as if something deep underground was breathing faintly.

Xiao Fan pointed into the depths of the mist and said, "About three miles to the northwest, that should be where the tower is."

The group adjusted their direction and walked forward along a path overgrown with weeds.

After walking for about half an hour, the view suddenly opened up ahead. Here, the thick fog thinned, revealing a stone tower covered with vines and moss.

This tower is slightly smaller than the one in the southern border region, only seven or eight zhang tall, and is entirely bluish-gray in color, covered with dense cracks.

The tower gate was tightly closed, and it was carved with spiral runes in circles, but most of them had been chiseled away, and only some of the engravings could still be barely made out.

The most striking feature is the land surrounding the base of the tower.

The ground was covered in charred ash, as if something had burned it to ashes, leaving behind streaks of blackened residue. Among the ash were several twisted copper nails and a broken knife.

Xiao Fan squatted down and pinched a handful of ash. The ash was crushed into powder by his fingers, and a faint smell of burnt wafted from it.

"Like that pile of ashes outside the Black Sand Sea Tower."

Yun Ruoxi walked to the tower gate, examined it carefully for a while, and then turned to Yun Ruoxi and said, "The array patterns on this gate have been almost completely destroyed, and the original patterns are no longer visible. If it were merely eroded, the break wouldn't be so clean."

Xiao Fan stepped forward and glanced at the carved runes. The edges were extremely smooth, as if they had been cut with a sharp tool. The precision of the technique was clearly not hasty.

"It should take at least three to five days." Xiao Fan narrowed his eyes slightly. "The people from the Blackfire Sect arrived a while ago and have been studying the structure of this seal."