Spirit Rhinoceros Horn, Phoenix Luan Stone Beast.
After arriving at a secluded, uninhabited place, Chen Sanshi quietly examined his gains.
The Spirit Rhinoceros Horn was fully matured and could add one True Force Realm martial artist.
The Phoenix Luan Stone Beast had 500 years of age. After returning, he would still need to borrow the Bai family's Divine Wood Spirit Liquid to hasten it to 1,000 years of medicinal age.
In any case, both items had been successfully obtained.
Next—
Among his objectives, only the Earth Spirit Purple Vine remained.
Of course, if he could find more precious resources, that would naturally be even better—for example, materials for refining pills that increase cultivation, including heavenly treasures needed for Foundation Establishment Pills.
After all, in just a few years, many people in Tianyong City would likely be waiting to attempt Foundation Establishment. At that time, Foundation Establishment Pills would also become a major problem.
If one wished to contend against Heavenly Water Isle, it could not be done alone.
"Seven Kill Sect…"
Chen Sanshi recalled the conversation he had overheard earlier.
Those demonic cultivators seemed to be planning to make a move against the Bai family's ancestor.
However, as far as he knew, Bai Xifeng had entered long-term seclusion many years ago and had not stepped out of Dusk Valley since. The reason was precisely to avoid encountering mishaps outside and leaving the Bai family without protection.
No matter what was hidden within Dusk Valley, as long as Bai Xifeng was there, it would require a Golden Core cultivator to resolve it.
Once a Golden Core cultivator took action, it would cause a massive commotion—soon known throughout the entire region.
By then, who obtained the treasure would no longer be up to the Demon-Suppression Bureau or the Seven Kill Sect.
Therefore—
They intended to lure Bai Xifeng here and eliminate him.
But what could they use as bait?
Golden Essence Clay Embryo!
Chen Sanshi suddenly recalled.
Not long after the forbidden land opened, news had spread that within the second-layer secret realm had appeared the Demon Locust Tree Heart and the Golden Essence Clay Embryo.
The former could help Foundation Establishment cultivators condense a False Core.
The latter, however, could help a True Force Realm martial artist forge a "Clay-Molded Golden Body."
In other words, a pseudo–Golden Body Realm!
That was it.
Only the Golden Essence Clay Embryo could possibly lure Bai Xifeng inside.
If the Bai family could produce a Golden Body Realm martial artist, they would gain bargaining power. The Demon-Suppression Bureau and other forces would no longer dare to act rashly.
"I need to find a way to notify the Bai family."
Chen Sanshi pondered inwardly.
Under the current circumstances, the Bai family counted as allies. Naturally, he could not simply stand by. He immediately summoned the Bluebird and ordered her to send someone out of the secret realm to deliver news to Dusk Valley.
But if Bai Xifeng had already entered the forbidden land—
Then there would be little he could do. And judging from the earlier conversation, it was likely already too late.
Night Spring Pool.
That was the place where the demonic sect had set their ambush.
Chen Sanshi did not possess a map of the second layer of the forbidden land and had no idea where Night Spring Pool was located. He could only search around.
Fortunately, while rivers were plentiful in the second layer, pools were rare. Rising into the air to look down, he saw that there were only 3 to 5 regions containing pools. He immediately began searching from east to west.
It did not take much effort. By dawn the next day, Chen Sanshi confirmed he had found the right place, because—
The number of high-realm cultivators nearby had clearly increased.
Foundation Establishment cultivators of early and middle stage, as well as True Force Realm martial artists of middle and late stage, moved in small groups around the area, searching while remaining wary of one another. Clearly, they were hunting for some kind of treasure.
Most of these cultivators came from outside Northern Yang Dao. Some were sect disciples, but even more were family cultivators and wandering cultivators from elsewhere.
"I heard quite a few third-tier treasures have appeared around here. Everyone, keep your eyes sharp!"
"That's right. The Xu family head from Kuoshi Dao successfully seized the Demon Locust Tree Heart. He's already rushed back to condense a False Core under the protection of Lingji Cavern. Looks like the Xu family will enjoy several hundred more years of prosperity!"
"Nine Nether Blood Orchid!"
One cultivator spotted a tiny blood-colored orchid beside a puddle ahead and was overjoyed. But before he could approach, another figure arrived first and directly pocketed the orchid.
"Fellow Daoist, I found that first. Isn't this a bit improper?"
"Cut the crap! Last time, I found the Demon Locust Tree Heart first—why wasn't it mine?"
"That's because you lacked the ability!"
"Oh? So you have ability?"
Before their quarrel could escalate further, a third cultivator launched a sneak attack at the one who had taken the orchid. In the blink of an eye, more people joined in, and a chaotic melee erupted without warning.
Chen Sanshi did not join in. Instead, he continued searching nearby, hoping to encounter Bai Xifeng in advance and warn him to leave this place as soon as possible. Unfortunately, he failed to do so.
Since the Bai family's ancestor had dared to risk entering the second-layer forbidden land, it meant he must have made preparations beforehand. How could he possibly expose his identity so easily?
Only after the melee ended did the cultivators finally disperse, leaving countless dead behind.
The final owner of the Nine Nether Blood Orchid was a rotund middle-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. He too was heavily injured. After glancing around, he quickly chose what he believed to be a safe route and executed an escape technique to depart.
"His chances are slim…"
Chen Sanshi shook his head slightly.
Through the Qi Observation Technique, he saw that someone had long been hiding in the shadows, waiting to play the role of the oriole stalking the mantis. That person had already given chase.
What remained at the scene were only a few corpses and shattered mystic weapons. The place fell into deathly silence.
Chen Sanshi continued forward. In the distance ahead, on the surface of a broken stone stele, there was a large character for "Night" and half of the character for "Pool," with a missing character in between.
This must be Night Spring Pool.
However, the distant pool itself held no water; it lay completely dry. Instead, the surrounding ground was entirely damp marshland. One had to circulate internal force while walking across it, or risk sinking in with a single careless step.
This terrain happened to be the favored habitat of the Earth Spirit Purple Vine.
Chen Sanshi could not help but become alert. While searching for people, he also searched for the plant.
As time passed, the yellow-sand-colored sun within the forbidden land gradually sank. The surrounding light dimmed. Being a secret realm that was once an ancient battlefield, it inevitably appeared even more sinister under the encroaching darkness.
At the same time, Chen Sanshi noticed that the marshy ground was rapidly solidifying, as though some mysterious force were draining all the moisture from the soil.
Meanwhile, water began to trickle and well up from the previously dried-up bottom of the pool.
"Night Spring Pool… so it refers to the transformation of the pool's water at the transition between day and night."
Chen Sanshi came to a sudden realization.
At the same time, he finally found what he was looking for.
Roughly 100 steps away, coiled around the surface of a massive boulder like a soaring serpent, was a purple spiritual plant. Its surface was covered with maple-like leaves and lined with sharp thorns.
Earth Spirit Purple Vine.
Its location was not particularly concealed. In the past few days, someone must have found it. The footprints not far away proved as much.
It was simply too useless for the vast majority of people, which was why no one had bothered to harvest it.
Chen Sanshi did not delay. With a light tap of his foot, he drifted to the front of the boulder and dug out the main root of the Earth Spirit Purple Vine, placing it into a separate Storage Bag.
Mission accomplished.
On this trip into the forbidden land, he had met the minimum requirements for the resources he sought. Any further gains would count as a pleasant surprise.
Moreover, he had already ordered people to search for the disciples of Guiyuan Sect. Before leaving, he would ensure that none of them escaped.
However…
From daytime until nightfall at Night Spring Pool, he had yet to see any trace of demonic cultivators. Occasionally, one or two cultivators would pass overhead.
A subordinate from Tianyong City sent back news that Dusk Valley had been notified. But just as he had anticipated, it was already too late. The Bai family's ancestor had long since entered the forbidden land alone.
After much consideration, Chen Sanshi decided to wait a while longer.
He activated his Breath Concealment state and affixed several concealment-type talismans he had purchased from old Mo Zhu onto his body. His entire presence vanished, like that of a corpse.
"If the Golden Essence Clay Embryo appears first, I'll create a disturbance as a warning."
"If Bai Xifeng shows himself first, I'll warn him in person."
"Even if the Seven Kill Sect arrives first, as long as it's within my ability, I should lend a hand…"
Having made up his mind, Chen Sanshi lay in quiet ambush.
At night, the number of wandering souls in the forbidden land multiplied severalfold. Almost every half incense stick of time, groups of wandering souls would pass before him.
Moreover, these wandering souls seemed to have factions of their own. When they encountered one another, they would break into fierce combat.
"Demon fiends, return our Dao lineage!"
"Fight them to the end!"
…
Even with such "mutual slaughter," there were still so many wandering souls remaining within the forbidden land. This alone showed how many had participated in the great battle of ancient times.
Through observation, Chen Sanshi discovered that these wandering souls basically had no true consciousness. They were not the rare ghost cultivators of Heavenly Water Isle, but rather remnants of lingering obsession. Even their "speech" and "movements" were constantly repeating.
He just did not know…
What had caused the ancient great war within the Nine Nether Forbidden Land? Which factions had taken part? And why was there no related record whatsoever in the cultivation world?
"They're here!"
A faint fluctuation of mana pulled Chen Sanshi back to attention.
More than 100 zhang away, approximately 7 to 8 black-robed cultivators slowly descended to the ground. They appeared to have rehearsed this many times before—their movements were skilled and coordinated as they spread out to different positions, planting formation discs and formation flags into the earth.
Among them were even late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators.
"I'm afraid I won't be able to help much."
If Chen Sanshi could not kill them, he did not dare to act rashly. This forbidden land had only a single exit. If someone blocked it, even the fastest escape technique would be useless.
He could only continue observing in secret.
After setting up the formation, the leading cultivator tossed a black seed onto the ground. Then, with practiced coordination, they dispersed in all directions and vanished in an instant.
Once the trap was laid, the black seed serving as bait began emitting a blood-red mist in the night. Within it was a faint, ghostly fragrance that quickly spread across a radius of dozens of zhang.
"Gulu gulu—"
At the very center of Night Spring Pool, bubbles began to surge as if the water were boiling. Immediately after, a swift black shadow shot out from within, lightly leaping onto the shore. In the blink of an eye, it reached the core of the formation.
Only then did Chen Sanshi finally see the shadow's true form.
It was a clay doll!
That's right.
From appearance alone, it was nothing more than a naked clay doll, no larger than a forearm. As it ran, its round little belly jutted forward.
But through the Qi Observation Technique, one could see that within its body lurked a dense and nearly tangible special spiritual power.
Golden Essence Clay Embryo!
An extremely rare and precious spirit creature, naturally born from absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth along with subterranean gold essence. If refined, it could help a martial artist achieve a Clay-Molded Golden Body.
For such a tiny creature to form, it required at least more than 2,000 years of growth.
Moreover, due to its unique nature, it could not be artificially matured by any means.
The Golden Essence Clay Embryo stood on the ground and looked around. After confirming there was no danger, it bent down, picked up the black seed, and swallowed it whole in one gulp. It patted its belly with a satisfied gesture and began frolicking about nearby.
Its earth-escape technique was astonishing. In a single blink, it appeared 100 steps away. With its slender arm, it flipped over a massive boulder, revealing several supreme-grade mystic weapons hidden beneath.
Grabbing a flying sword at random, the Golden Essence Clay Embryo sat down on the ground and began crunching it apart with cracking sounds, stuffing the fragments into its belly.
This spirit creature not only absorbed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth in its daily life; it also devoured heavenly treasures and high-grade metals alike, sparing nothing.
After darting back and forth several times and consuming all sorts of miscellaneous items, the Golden Essence Clay Embryo finally grew tired. Its movements slowed. Swaying slightly, it headed toward the pool, intending to return to the bottom to rest.
But at that very moment—
A sudden burst of golden light tore through the night sky. A cracked begging bowl descended from above, about to clamp down over the clay doll.
The Golden Essence Clay Embryo was greatly alarmed. It dove headfirst into the ground, attempting to escape via earth-escape. But with a loud "dong," it seemed to collide with something hard, only to be bounced back and fall onto the ground. Sitting there, it rubbed its head with both hands and wailed loudly.
That brief delay was enough. The begging bowl landed successfully, trapping it within—no path upward to the sky, no way downward into the earth.
"Hehe~"
A gratified chuckle sounded. A one-armed elder emerged lightly from the darkness and picked up the begging bowl. "After wearing out iron shoes in fruitless search, I find it without any effort at all!
"You little brat, just to catch you, I spent who knows how many spirit stones and how much effort on the Earth-Sealing Talismans and the Heaven-Filling Bowl!"
Bai Xifeng!
Chen Sanshi's mind raced, calculating how to warn the Bai family's ancestor while ensuring he could retreat unscathed.
In the end, he could only entrust the task to the Bluebird.
"Kreeee—!"
In the silent night, a series of shrill cries suddenly rang out, growing increasingly urgent. Everyone's heart jolted.
Bai Xifeng frowned deeply, sensing something amiss. He immediately attempted to leave, but unfortunately, it was already too late.
"Activate the formation!"
A sharp shout rang out. Blood-red beams of light flared up one after another, forming a net like heaven's snare, directly enveloping the entire Night Spring Pool region.
At the same time, the long-hidden cultivators of the Seven Kill Sect all revealed themselves.
"You old fossil, we finally lured you out!"
"Heh~"
Bai Xifeng gave a bitter smile. "I knew it. The news about the Golden Essence Clay Embryo was most likely spread by you."
"Since you know, why waste words?"
The leading demonic cultivator stood suspended in the air. "Bai Xifeng, you won't escape today. Hand over the item obediently, and we'll ensure your Bai family's lineage continues unbroken."