To maximize their benefits, the Ye family split into two teams: one led by the Scholar, heading to the Spirit Treasure Pavilion, and the other also going to Kunwu Hall.
Just as Li Feiyu said, now was a race against time, and going to the most important places in Kunwu Mountain could maximize their benefits.
As for some Materials, Spirit Medicine, and ancient texts, they no longer seemed as important.
Li Feiyu knew that Kunwu Mountain was fraught with danger, not only from Ancient Devils but also from the Four Spirits sealed by ancient Cultivators, plus the human Cultivators who had gathered, each with their own ulterior motives.
Some things were not so easy to snatch.
Of course, Li was not afraid; he just felt that this was the only way he could truly maximize his benefits.
If he encountered anyone later, he would simply kill them and plunder their possessions.
This time, Kunwu Mountain was destined to run with blood, and whether they were killed by him or by others, it was all the same, with no difference.
"Since that's the case, let's part ways here."
Li Feiyu cupped his fists, stepped onto the path leading to the Jin Shi Pavilion, and vanished into the white mist in the blink of an eye.
The others also didn't hesitate, quickly moving forward.
Han Li hesitated for a moment, ultimately choosing the Spirit Forging Hall.
There were anti-flight Restrictions in the white mist, so one could only proceed on foot, though this did not apply to spirit birds.
Li Feiyu felt the speed was a bit slow, so he spread his spirit wings behind him, and with a flap, he transformed into a streak of lightning, moving at an astonishing speed.
In less than half a day, Li Feiyu arrived in front of a pavilion.
The pavilion was several tens of feet high, and its length and width were also nearly several tens of feet. On the plaque in the middle of the pavilion, three large golden characters, written in dragon and phoenix script, were inscribed.
The entire Jin Shi Pavilion was enveloped by a faint golden light cover.
Li Feiyu patted one of his Spirit Beast pouches, and thousands of golden Spirit Devouring Golden Cicadas flew out.
Besides the initial two that were comparable to the Peak of the late stage Core Formation, dozens of subsequent ones had also reached the level of a fifth-grade Demon Beast.
It was very slow for spirit insects to reach maturity, and their cultivation methods were all different. Li Feiyu had no choice but to search for such methods while letting nature take its course.
"Go~"
As Li Feiyu pointed at the Restriction, all the Spirit Devouring Golden Cicadas pounced on the Restriction's protective cover, biting frantically.
This Restriction was not weak; it took even this many Spirit Devouring Golden Cicadas a stick of incense's time to break through.
Li Feiyu smiled slightly, put away the golden cicadas, and stepped through the gap.
Upon entering the main hall of the Jin Shi Pavilion, it was extremely spacious, with a three-zhang-tall stone statue standing in each corner of the hall.
Besides this, there were also more than ten huge pillars in here, with dragons carved and phoenixes engraved on them, looking lifelike.
"It seems the Materials are all stored in hidden rooms."
Li Feiyu muttered to himself.
He had not walked many steps when suddenly a yellow glow lit up on the ground, and a huge Formation appeared in the hall.
Li Feiyu's body sank, and a huge gravitational force descended.
"Interesting."
"Earth's Magnetic Polarity, Open!"
"Reverse Repulsion!"
In just an instant, the gravity within a three-zhang radius around Li Feiyu returned to normal.
At this moment, a red glow lit up in the eyes of the stone statues around the hall.
Rumble~
Stone chips shook off their bodies, and their massive forms began to move, brandishing stone swords as they stepped down from the stone platforms.
Each stone statue had a hidden Formation pattern inside its body, unaffected by gravity in the main hall.
Li Feiyu seemed to want to end the battle quickly; a Formation diagram appeared above his head, and a small, inch-tall Five Elements mountain flew out.
In the blink of an eye, it expanded to a several-zhang-tall Five Elements stone mountain.
He manipulated the Sumeru Five Elements Mountain to smash fiercely into one of the statues.
A burst of five-colored Aura lit up, followed by several "thumps," and the stone statue in the southeast corner was directly smashed into fragments.
Li Feiyu moved like a ghost, dodging the attacks of two of the stone statues, and continued to urge the Sumeru Five Elements Mountain to attack.
Before long, all the stone statues had turned into scattered debris on the ground.
And as soon as all the stone statues were shattered, the Restrictions in the main hall also disappeared.
Li Feiyu took a few glances and began searching everywhere in the Jin Shi Pavilion.
Some rooms also had Restrictions, but the more Restrictions there were, the happier Li Feiyu became, because it meant the greater the chance of Materials being inside.
After spending more than half a day here, Li Feiyu, with a smile on his Face, returned the way he came from the Jin Shi Pavilion.
Then he went to the Hundred Grass Garden.
Since he was alone, Li Feiyu acted without scruples, employing all sorts of methods.
The Restrictions in the Hundred Grass Garden were much stronger than those in the Jin Shi Pavilion, but they still couldn't stop him. Li Feiyu entered with high hopes, but the result was a great disappointment.
There were Spirit Medicines inside, but only a scattered dozen or so plants.
Of course, each plant was quite old.
"It seems that during the great war, most of the Spirit Medicines were harvested clean."
"Eh, that spirit vine..."
Li Feiyu saw a spirit vine growing in the distance of the medicine garden, winding upwards, over ten zhang high.
Seven fist-sized gourds, each of a different color, hung from it.
He immediately stepped forward, and after careful inspection, he couldn't help but exclaim: "Seven-colored Spirit Vine?!"
"I didn't expect such a top-grade Spirit Tree to still be left!"
"The gourds haven't matured yet, perhaps they were only recently planted during the great war."
The Seven-colored Spirit Vine, a single vine that can bear seven-colored gourds, with each color representing a unique attribute.
Once matured, even with simple refining, the gourds can unleash power not inferior to a late stage Core Formation Lifebound Treasure.
Refined into a Lifebound Treasure, their potential is astonishing.
Each gourd, depending on the refining method, will produce special effects.
Such as wine gourds, fire gourds, sea-swallowing gourds, Flying Sword gourds, and so on.
Many ancient treasures in the form of gourds used by ancient Cultivators were refined from gourds grown on the Seven-colored Spirit Vine, and almost every single one was a top-grade ancient treasure.
"Having this one Spirit Tree makes this trip worthwhile."
Li Feiyu smiled, transferring all the remaining Spirit Medicine into the Void Garden Pearl.
He planted the Seven-colored Spirit Vine next to the profound heaven immortal tree, hoping it could absorb Profound Heaven Spiritual Qi and undergo some transformation, nurturing even stronger gourds.
After finishing, Li Feiyu left the Hundred Grass Garden and headed to the Dharma Transmission Tower.
...
Not long after Li Feiyu and the others separated, Gan Old Devil and his group entered Kunwu Mountain one after another.
They were considered the third batch of Cultivators to enter this place.
Because they took the entrance that the Ye family members had used, they appeared at the stone pavilion on the mountainside.
They encountered no Restrictions along the way, and their progress was quite fast, reaching the White Jade Plaza after only one or two days.
After looking at where each path led, Gan Old Devil and his group also had disagreements and thus parted ways.
Soon after, the Silver-Winged Yaksha, the Lion-Headed Eagle Beast, and an ugly woman emerged from the ground.
The Silver-Winged Yaksha originally wanted to find the Four Spirits and act together, but the last spirit was never found, and it was unknown whether it was a demon or a ghost.
Having no other choice, the three of them had to act together.
The ugly woman's true form was a tenth-level turtle-type Demon Beast, skilled in earth-escape techniques.
The three of them working together could be said to be the strongest group in terms of power currently.
Their only concern was Kunwu Hall, because Kunwu Hall contained their Lifebound Cards, left by ancient Cultivators.
Once these fell into human hands, they would be controlled by them for the rest of their lives.
Their lives and deaths would be at their whim.
"We will hide carefully. The path to Kunwu Hall is full of Restrictions, and outside the main hall, there is the Arctic Primordial Light guarding it. Let those human Cultivators clear the way for us and break the Restrictions."
"At the critical moment, we will then reveal ourselves and snatch it."
"No problem."
The three demons did not hesitate and chose the path to Kunwu Hall.
Many days passed in the outside world, and Cultivators began to arrive at the entrance of the great Formation in a continuous stream.
However, at this time, due to some tricks played by the Ye family, even a Great Cultivator could not force their way into the great Formation.
At the entrance, Xuan Qingzi of the Taiyi Sect was stationed, persuading and blocking Cultivators from entering.
But most of them did not listen to his advice. Among the arrivals were people from the Huaxian Sect and the Tianlan Holy Palace, who had means to enter.
They entered Kunwu Mountain a step ahead.
Xuan Qingzi was also helpless; he had his own duties and was waiting here for Seven Wonders True Man of the Tianmo Sect to enter together.
Few people knew about the matters of Kunwu Mountain.
But as the leading Sects of the Demonic Paths in the Great Jin, with Deity Transformation Cultivators within their gates, they all knew something about the matters of Kunwu Mountain.
If not handled well, it would be a monstrous disaster.
...
Han Li went to the Spirit Forging Hall and also obtained many good things there.
After staying there for a few days, he finally returned to the plaza, preparing to explore other places, but he ended up encountering the combination of the young man surnamed Xu, the Silver-Robed Holy Maiden, and Elder Ge of the Yin Luo Sect.
Han Li had grievances with all of them, and upon encountering them now, his expression turned somewhat grim.
A Great Cultivator, and two Nascent Soul Middle Stage Cultivators with formidable Divine Abilities; if he were to confront them head-on, Han Li felt his chances of winning were not great.
At this moment, Li Feiyu was returning from the fifth location.
Not every palace on every path still had things left behind; the fourth location had nothing, and he didn't get anything substantial from the fifth either.
Li Feiyu had Restriction-breaking methods, and his speed was unknown how much faster than Han Li's, and he was also more decisive.
Every time he entered a place, he would directly sweep it clean, then leave and go to the next location.
"Han Li, hand over my Yin Luo Sect's Ghost Banner, and this Elder can spare your life."
Elder Ge flew a bone-melting blade from his sleeve, emanating a chilling Devilish Qi.
The Silver-Robed Holy Maiden also chuckled, "Fellow Daoist Han, the cultivation method for your Gold Devouring Insects, and that small cauldron from back then, I wonder if you would be willing to hand them over."
Han Li's expression was solemn, and a four-colored strange fan appeared in his hand at some unknown point.
The Four Flame Fan's power was terrifying; even facing the three of them, he was confident that one fan strike could severely injure them.
However, the magical power it consumed was truly terrifying; even with his abundant and pure magical power, nearly fifty percent would be drained.
Severe injury did not mean killing.
If, by chance, they used some special Magic Treasure to offset part of the Four Flame Fan's power, then with a large amount of magical power lost, his situation facing them would become even more dangerous.
Just as Elder Ge and the others were about to make a move, a streak of escape light rushed out from a certain stone staircase path.
In the light, a figure appeared.
It was Li Feiyu.
Han Li's Face lit up with joy.
However, the Silver-Robed Holy Maiden and the young man surnamed Xu's expressions changed drastically, even showing panic.
"Who are you?!" Elder Ge asked arrogantly.
"Fellow Daoist Ge, you mustn't be so..." The Silver-Robed Holy Maiden's words were cut short.
Li Feiyu raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth, spitting out an extremely fierce Sun True Fire. Elder Ge used his bone-melting blade to block, but all his Devilish Qi was incinerated, and even the Magic Treasure's body was partially melted.
The Magic Treasure had a spiritual connection with him, and now that it was destroyed, his Face turned pale, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
Afterward, Li Feiyu raised his hand, and dozens of golden Divine Devilbane Lightnings fell towards him.
Elder Ge felt the power of the Divine Thunders and immediately shouted to the young man surnamed Xu and the others, "You two, quickly help me."
Li Feiyu smiled coldly.
Senior Master Xu and the Silver-Robed Holy Maiden remained motionless, and Elder Ge was full of confusion.
Then, the lightning struck, and he screamed incessantly amidst the thunder.
A five-colored hand appeared out of thin air, passing through his body like lightning, and when it reappeared, the five-colored hand was holding a Nascent Soul.
Li Feiyu made hand seals, heavily sealing it, then put it into his sleeve and threw it into the Void Garden Pearl.
The Silver-Robed Holy Maiden gave an awkward smile, "Fellow Daoist Li, what a coincidence, so you're here too."
Han Li, seeing the crisis averted, put away his Four Flame Fan.
"Isn't this Fellow Daoist Lin and Fellow Daoist Xu? How did you travel all the way from the Heavenly Azure Grassland to the Great Jin? Could it be to ask Li to return something?"
"Of course not, we just have a transaction we'd like to make with Fellow Daoist Han."
Han Li gave a cold smile, not giving them a good look.
"Since we've met by chance, then..."
Li Feiyu woke up the Tianlan Holy Beast, who was sleeping in the Spirit Beast pouch. With a flash of green light, the child-like Tianlan Holy Beast appeared outside.
"Why are you disturbing this Old Ancestor's sleep!"
"Your followers are here; I wanted you to meet them."
The Silver-Robed Holy Maiden, seeing that the Saintess had actually successfully transformed, was pleasantly surprised and bowed, saying, "Greetings, adult."
The young man surnamed Xu did the same.
The child nodded.
Li Feiyu smiled and said, "Do you want to go with them?"
The child swept another glance at the two of them, and amidst their expectant Faces, said, "Forget it, we'll talk about it later."
"However, your cultivation seems to have advanced quite a bit again, truly abnormal."
"You two, do not provoke him. After my agreement with him ends, I will naturally return to Tianlan. There is no need to worry about this Venerable One."
"Yes, adult."
The Silver-Robed Holy Maiden and the young man surnamed Xu said no more. The child glanced at Han Li, then transformed into a streak of green light and entered the Spirit Beast pouch.
"Alright, the Opportunity in Kunwu Mountain is not small. Don't just stand there. Give me some Face; let's not fight here."
Han Li looked at them, nodded and said, "Understood, Senior Brother Li."
The young man surnamed Xu said, "Since Fellow Daoist Li has spoken, we will naturally give him this Face. We guarantee that we will not attack Fellow Daoist Han in Kunwu Mountain."
Li Feiyu smiled slightly, looked at Han Li, "Junior Brother Han, which path did you take?"
Han Li pointed to the Spirit Forging Hall.
"Then you must have gained a lot."
"It's alright."
"I've explored several paths, and only some palaces still have things left. I don't think there's much left in the remaining ones. How about we go to Kunwu Hall together and take a look?"
Han Li hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
Li Feiyu invited him along, and although he didn't know the intention, he couldn't refuse.
Moreover, even if they encountered some treasure, Li Feiyu would split it with him.
This had been their unspoken understanding for many years.
After Li Feiyu collected Elder Ge's corpse, he and Han Li flew together towards Kunwu Hall.
"Brother Xu, what should we do?"
The young man surnamed Xu thought for a moment, "Although Li Feiyu is powerful, there are many Nascent Soul Cultivators here this time, and there should be no lack of Great Cultivators."
"Kunwu Hall is the main hall, so the chances of there being great treasures are not small. We can act according to the situation and fish in troubled waters."
"Then so be it."
The Silver-Robed Holy Maiden and the young man surnamed Xu then also stepped onto the stone staircase leading to Kunwu Hall.
Soon after, Li Feiyu and the others arrived at a plaza.
This plaza was several times wider than the White Jade Plaza below. Within a super-large light screen, five white figures, one yellow figure, and two green figures were fighting fiercely.
The five white figures were the five demon Incarnations of the Old Devil, the yellow figure was the middle-aged Cultivator of the Ye family, whose cultivation was second only to the Scholar and the big-headed strange person, and the two green figures were two bronze giant Lion-Headed Eagle Beasts.
The light screen covered the entire plaza, and on both sides of the plaza, there were flashes of colorful light, indicating powerful Restrictions that prohibited passage.