I am in Yellow Maple Valley, and I have a demonic beast clone!

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Huge Gains! The Forbidden Zone is Over!

The earthquake trembled.

The dust has settled.

Zhou Ding stood there, panting heavily.

The consumption of that drop of liquid magic power far exceeded his expectations; his internal magic power was almost completely drained, and his meridians ached faintly.

But he couldn't care less about any of that.

His gaze was fixed on the massive corpse of the black dragon.

Dragon skin, dragon tendons, dragon bones, dragon blood, dragon eyes, dragon horns, dragon claws...

This level-two black dragon is a treasure trove!

Each of these items could fetch an astronomical price!

Zhou Ding took a deep breath, swallowed a Qi-restoring pill, and after his magical power recovered slightly, he began to dispose of the corpse.

He took out several jade bottles that he had prepared beforehand and filled them one by one with the still-flowing dragon blood.

This dragon blood is enough for him to cultivate the "Hundred Beasts Body Forging Technique" for several months.

Next up is the dragon skin.

The skin of the black dragon is incredibly tough and has amazing defensive capabilities, making it an excellent material for crafting inner armor and shields.

Zhou Ding carefully cut open along the abdomen and peeled off the entire dragon skin intact.

Dragon tendons are long and tough, and can be refined into magical artifacts such as the Immortal Binding Rope.

Dragon bones can be refined into flying swords and throwing knives.

The eyes of a dragon can be refined into magical artifacts that involve illusion.

Dragon horns can be used to craft offensive magical weapons.

Dragon Claws can be refined into claw-type attack magic weapons.

Zhou Ding's movements were skilled and swift. In no time, the massive body of the black dragon was broken down into pieces and stored in different storage bags.

Fortunately, he had killed and robbed people on this trip, and had seized more than a dozen storage bags; otherwise, he really wouldn't have been able to fit all these piles of materials.

After dealing with the black dragon, Zhou Ding turned his gaze to the center of the swamp.

There, a hexagonal pavilion surrounded by white jade railings stands quietly on a relatively dry high ground.

Inside the pavilion, a huge golden box floats in mid-air.

The box is twelve feet long and half a foot wide. The lid is tightly closed, and there is a faint golden light flowing through the box. It is obvious at a glance that it is no ordinary item.

The surface of the box was covered with blurry patterns, emanating a faint aura of restriction.

Zhou Ding approached and tried to gently pry it open with the golden blade.

The moment the sword tip touched the lid of the box, a pale blue light screen appeared instantly, gently but firmly pushing the sword's edge away.

Above the light screen, runes flowed, faintly forming a small protective array.

"As expected, there are restrictions."

Zhou Ding frowned slightly.

With his Qi Refining Perfection cultivation level, it would be quite difficult for him to forcibly break through this obviously extraordinary restriction, and it was unknown whether it would cause unpredictable consequences.

After a moment's thought.

He abandoned his plan to forcibly break the ban.

The most urgent thing is to get out of here!

Zhou Ding waved his hand and put the entire golden treasure chest into his storage bag.

As for the restrictions mentioned above, we can deal with them after we get out, when our cultivation level improves or we have more methods.

After doing all this, Zhou Ding took one last look at this underground world.

Then, he took Xiao Jin and, without looking back, stepped into the tunnel and left the place.

……

Leaving the stone hall, Zhou Ding looked up at the dark sky over the forbidden area.

"It's already the fourth night."

He silently calculated the time.

The Crimson Forbidden Land will be open for a total of five days. On the afternoon of the fifth day, the seven sects of Core Formation cultivators from the outside world will once again join forces to open a gap in the restriction and guide the surviving disciples.

If you miss that time, you'll be trapped here.

Zhou Ding would never make such a mistake.

His gains at this moment have far exceeded his expectations.

Regarding medicinal herbs, not counting what we obtained before, the herbs harvested this time from the Ink Dragon's Nest alone include three Jade Marrow Fungus plants, four Purple Monkey Flowers, two Heavenly Spirit Fruit plants, and seven or eight rare auxiliary herbs that are three or four hundred years old.

Including the dozens of spiritual herbs he had previously cultivated, he now has nearly a hundred spiritual herbs in total!

This achievement is more than enough to secure first place in this contribution category.

As for the golden treasure chest, it was an unexpected delight.

There is no need to search for the elixir at this point.

Zhou Ding found a secluded cave, set up a simple early warning system, and released Xiao Jin to keep watch nearby underground.

He sat down cross-legged and carefully selected several medicinal herbs from the pile of herbs that were not old and had mild medicinal effects—a 400-year-old purple ginseng, a 350-year-old jade lingzhi, and a 400-year-old he shou wu—and fed them all to Xiao Jin.

Little Jin accepted everything offered, chewing happily with gusto, its body radiating vitality and full of energy.

After doing all this, Zhou Ding swallowed a pill, closed his eyes to regulate his breathing, and quietly waited for the forbidden area to close.

……

Beyond the forbidden area, on that desolate plain.

Seven Core Formation cultivators hovered in mid-air, each forming hand seals, and beams of precious light bombarded a certain point in the void.

Compared to five days ago, opening the passage this time was much easier. In less than half an hour, a stable, dark passage entrance reappeared, without the need for continuous input of mana to maintain it as before.

Once the passage was secured, the seven people retrieved their magical artifacts and waited quietly.

Behind them, the Foundation Establishment stage leaders from various factions looked tense, their eyes fixed intently on the entrance to the passage.

The outcome of this forbidden area expedition will directly affect the distribution of Foundation Establishment Pills over the next few years. It is closely related to them.

The old monster from the Hidden Moon Sect reappeared on a nearby boulder, legs crossed, looking like he was leisurely watching a show, but his eyes kept glancing at the passage, clearly very interested in the outcome of the bet.

Time passed by, second by second.

About half an hour after the passage opened, the first survivor emerged.

He was a cultivator from the Qingxu Sect, looking disheveled and weak. He bowed to Fuyunzi and then returned to his group.

Subsequently, disciples from the various sects emerged one after another, their expressions varying—some excited, some relieved, and some sorrowful.

Chen Qiaoqian and Chen Qiaotian, brother and sister, walked out supporting each other. Although they were dressed in rags and their faces were pale, their eyes were filled with undisguised joy, clearly indicating that they had gained a lot.

As time went on, more and more disciples emerged from the passage, and they began to walk in twos and threes.

As the various factions gradually gathered, a count revealed that more than twenty people had emerged.

however--

Not a single disciple of the Hidden Moon Sect was seen!

Li Huayuan and Fuyunzi exchanged a glance, both seeing surprise and a hint of expectation in each other's eyes.

The Hidden Moon Sect is the strongest of the seven sects, and it is absolutely impossible for them to be completely wiped out!

But why haven't they shown up yet? Could it be that they've encountered some serious trouble or haven't achieved their goal?

The two glanced at the old monster on the boulder at the same time.

Old Monster Qiong was still smiling, but if you looked closely, you could see that the frequency of his fingers twirling his beard had increased slightly.

The Fairy of Rainbow Robes stood in front of the Hidden Moon Sect's procession, outwardly calm, but her jade-like hand clenched quietly within her sleeve.

Time continued to pass.

There is only half an hour left before the passage closes.

Two more disciples from other sects staggered out of the passage, but there was still no sign of the Hidden Moon Sect.

Old Monster Qiong's smile faded slightly, and Fairy Ni Chang couldn't help but take a few steps forward, staring intently at the entrance of the passage.

Just then—

A flash of light appeared at the entrance to the forbidden area, and a figure in cyan staggered out.

It was Zhou Ding.

His robes were torn in several places, making him look quite disheveled, but his breathing was still relatively steady, his eyes were bright, and although his steps were somewhat unsteady, they remained firm.

As soon as he left the forbidden area, he quickly scanned his surroundings and, upon seeing the Yellow Maple Valley group, immediately lowered his head and hurried over.

Li Huayuan glanced at him, saw that he was still breathing well, nodded slightly, and said nothing.

A moment later.

The light at the entrance of the passage flashed again.

A gray figure stepped out.

It was Han Li.

He only had the cultivation level of the eleventh level of Qi Refining, and his clothes were also somewhat disheveled, but his expression was calm and his gaze was steady.

He glanced around silently, then walked towards the Yellow Maple Valley team and stood not far from Zhou Ding.

Han Li's appearance caused many people to glance at him.

How could someone at the eleventh level of Qi Refining actually survive and emerge alive from the Crimson Forbidden Land?

This is quite rare in all previous trials.

But what's even more surprising is what's coming next.

The light at the entrance of the passage flashed again.

An old man with white hair staggered out from inside.

His face was filled with terror, his expression as pale as paper, as if he had encountered some indescribable horror. His whole body trembled slightly, and he seemed to still feel lingering fear.

His Yellow Maple Valley attire was tattered, and his aura was only at the eleventh level of Qi Refining.

"Pfft—"

I don't know who laughed first.

Immediately afterwards, bursts of laughter erupted.

"Eleventh level of Qi Refining? This kind of trash dares to enter the Crimson Forbidden Zone?"

"They probably hid somewhere for five days before daring to come out now, right?"

"Haha, Huangfeng Valley is truly brimming with talent this year! Two Qi Refining Stage 11 cultivators have survived! Their survival skills are remarkable!"

Fu Yunzi stroked his beard and chuckled, saying to Li Huayuan, "Fellow Daoist Li, your Huangfeng Valley certainly has quite a few talented people. These two junior disciples at the eleventh level of Qi Refining must have cultivated some kind of escape technique or concealment skill to survive in the forbidden area until now? That's quite an impressive ability."

The implication is that these two didn't dare to fight for the elixir at all; they simply hid and survived until now.

Upon hearing this, the laughter of the disciples from various factions grew even louder.

Li Huayuan's face instantly darkened, and he glared fiercely at the white-haired old man and Han Li.

He took a deep breath and refrained from losing his temper on the spot.

Zhou Ding stood in the crowd and laughed along with everyone else.

His smile was natural and easygoing, even carrying a hint of relief at surviving a close call.

But his back was already soaked with cold sweat.

That white-haired old man, whose aura was only at the eleventh level of Qi Refining, was being ridiculed by everyone at the moment.

This is the courtesy shown to him.

A Nascent Soul stage cultivator.

A being at the pinnacle of the human realm.

Zhou Ding caught a glimpse of the old man's "terrified" face out of the corner of his eye, and seemed to see a hint of mockery in his eyes.

That was a detached, condescending view of the ants.

It was the fascinating sight of a group of ants hopping around at my feet.

Zhou Ding's smile became increasingly natural.

He even deliberately took two steps forward and stood next to several monks who were laughing the loudest, completely merging himself into the ranks of the "mockers".

His heart was pounding like a drum.

But on his face, he was smiling more happily than anyone else.

They were afraid that this big shot would see through their scheme.