Lin Feng stared.
At the cavern's far end, centered perfectly, lay a pool.
Eight meters across.
Its contents were not water.
It shimmered—a viscous, luminous white, almost translucent liquid light.
Above it, thick, roiling white mist churned, rising like steam.
This mist diffused outward… merging seamlessly with the radiant white light saturating the entire cavern.
The source.
The Phenomenon's heart.
Even a hundred meters away, Lin Feng felt it.
Spiritual energy slammed into him—tangible, suffocating.
The air thickened like syrup.
Pores drank greedily. Pure power flooded his meridians without effort. A sensation beyond any cultivation chamber or spirit stone.
Recognition struck like lightning.
A passage from a crumbling, ancient tome flashed in his mind.
Impossible…
His breath hitched. Eyes widened in disbelief.
"That… that is… a Spirit Spring!! A Spirit Spring!!"
The violet-robed elder's voice, sharp with raw shock and ecstasy, echoed from behind.
His Golden Core composure shattered. Eyes bulged. A flush of manic excitement spread across his face.
Lin Feng's suspicion confirmed.
Spirit Spring.
Liquid condensed Heaven and Earth spiritual energy. Spirit Liquid.
Rarer, purer, infinitely more precious than even peak-grade spirit stones.
A spirit stone was still stone. Mineral impurities. Energy locked within, requiring effort to extract.
Spirit Liquid had no vessel. No impurities. Pure, concentrated power.
Liquid.
Drinkable. Absorbed instantly. No waste. No backlash.
Ten drops held the power of one peak-grade spirit stone.
But its true value lay in breakthroughs.
Advancing a stage—any stage—demanded a torrent of ambient spiritual energy.
Piles of spirit stones paled beside a single sip of Spirit Liquid.
In the cultivation world, it was a myth. A legend. Unobtainable.
And here… an entire pool. Eight meters wide.
Deep.
The group behind Lin Feng erupted in gasps, tremors of greed shaking them.
Then—
"Chiuu!!"
A terrified shriek ripped from Lin Feng's chest.
Xiaoqiu's warning.
Instinct screamed. Lin Feng threw himself forward, diving onto the rough stone floor.
"BOOM!!!"
The cavern wall to his left exploded.
A blur of ice-blue—five, six meters thick—erupted from the stone.
A cavernous maw, lined with crystalline fangs, snapped shut on the empty space where he'd stood. Stone shattered beneath its jaws.
Simultaneously, the violet-robed elder's face turned ashen. He sensed the danger a fraction late.
His eyes locked onto the colossal serpent coiling from the shattered wall. Its aura—an avalanche of primal ice and malice—washed over him.
"Tier-4… Tier-4 Ice-Eye Serpent!!"
Terror-stricken despair replaced his earlier elation.
The serpent's massive head swiveled. Twin lanterns of glacial blue fixed on the clustered group behind Lin Feng. Pure predatory fury burned within.
"HISSSSSS!!!"
An ear-splitting shriek tore through the cavern.
The serpent's maw gaped. A beam of concentrated ice-blue energy, thick as a tree trunk, lanced out—a glacial comet aimed at the elder.
"FALL BACK!!"
The elder roared, true essence erupting from him in a violet-gold torrent.
His right hand flashed. A golden artifact appeared—a long umbrella, over a meter in length.
"Snap!"
He flicked his wrist. The umbrella sprang open, canopy spreading two meters wide, shielding himself and the middle-aged Golden Core cultivator beside him.
Golden light flared from its surface, projecting a larger, shimmering barrier—a solid wall of light blocking the entire tunnel mouth.
"KRA-KOOM!!!"
The serpent's icy beam smashed into the golden barrier.
Light detonated. The cavern convulsed. Shattered rock rained down.
The golden shield held… barely. Scorching cold and concussive force splashed violently against it, contained from the five Foundation Establishment cultivators cowering behind.
The elder staggered, face draining further of color. Rage warred with primal fear.
"RETREAT!! NOW!!"
His calculations lay in ruins. He'd anticipated a Tier-3 guardian, perhaps late stage. Manageable.
A Tier-4 beast? A death sentence. Flight was the only option.
The Ice-Eye Serpent, however, saw only invaders violating its sanctum.
"HISSSS!!"
Its colossal body surged forward, a glacier given life, crushing stone beneath its scales as it charged the golden barrier.
Lin Feng scrambled to his knees.
Dust choked the air. The impact site was barely ten meters away.
He watched, heart hammering, as the serpent's immense body—still emerging from the hole it had made—flowed past him, focused entirely on the larger threat of the Loong cultivators.
It ignored me!
Elation surged. This is the chance! Slip away!
He tensed, ready to dart for the shattered wall, to vanish into the maze of tunnels.
"WHOOOOOSH!!"
A deafening whistle cut the air.
From the serpent's lashing tail—a blur of motion Lin Feng barely registered—came a secondary attack.
Like a titanic whip forged of ice and muscle, thicker than a barrel, it snapped sideways with impossible speed.
Not aimed at the golden barrier.
Aimed directly at the small figure trying to flee.