For some reason, his connection to his sea of consciousness had been completely severed.
"Dao You..." a voice suddenly called out from the blue-lit shadows.
Lingtian quickly turned around, his eyes locking onto the direction the voice had come from.
"Lu Yang, what is the meaning of all this?" Mo Lingtian said as void energy from the devil half of his hybrid core flashed across the entire hall.
"Do you think you have erased my trump card by blocking access to my master?" Mo Lingtian said as the void energy continued to increase in intensity and aura.
"Dao You, calm down. I mean no harm," Lu Yang said, immediately easing the tension growing between them.
Upon hearing this, Mo Lingtian immediately stopped releasing the aura of the void energy as his hybrid core halted its spin.
"I'm just heeding your caution. What we are about to do is a very risky process that can't afford to be interrupted. The only reason I trust you to dig out my spine meridian is because even if you wanted to, you can't kill me but your master can. So I had no choice but to divert your attention with my disciples outside so I could successfully set up the telepathy sealing formation over the main hall," the Patriarch continued.
Mo Lingtian didn't reply; he continued to stare at him, carefully observing his body language.
"Dao You, this is just a necessary cautionary procedure. Everyone at the table must have their trump cards," the Patriarch said, repeating the exact words Mo Lingtian had told him during their visit to the founder of the Lunar region.
With a gentle move of his hand, he shifted one of the lamps burning with the blue flame and immediately activated a mechanism. The wall on which the lamp was hung suddenly shifted, opening into a downward alley leading to a cave underneath the main hall.
"Senior, after you...." Mo Lingtian said, not wanting to turn his back to the Patriarch. Lu Yang simply chuckled, entering into the alley which was also lit with lamps burning with a blue flame.
Mo Lingtian immediately followed after him, scanning the alley from the beginning to the end with his spiritual sense.
"Senior, you've really put a lot of effort into this....." Mo Lingtian said, walking down the alley as the layers upon layers of restrictive and killing formations glowed under his spiritual probe.
"I have lived for more than forty millennia. I have seen countless cultivators ruined by mistakes they could have avoided. Forty millennia of cultivation is at risk here," the Patriarch replied as they continued to walk down the alley.
"It seems like I have yet to gain your trust," Mo Lingtian replied as they finally reached the end of the alley.
"In the demon continent, no one can have your absolute trust; there can only be partnerships," the Patriarch said as the forefinger of his left hand began to burn with an intense blue flame. Mo Lingtian instinctively took a step back, ready to escape at any moment.
With a swift cut through the clouded air in front of them with the forefinger, he created a slash that rose with a roaring blue flame, cutting through the fog with a burning intensity.
"Senior, I have a question that has puzzled me for some time," Mo Lingtian said as the path in front of them cleared, with fragments of the blue flame scattered across the place.
The end of the alley was at the very edge of a mountain deep in the underground of the Eclipsed Sun Sect. There was no light from the auroras of the sky; there was no sky at all, only pitch darkness.
At the other end was also an edge of a mountain thousands of meters away from them. Ordinarily, this would not have been an issue for Mo Lingtian, but for some reason, his ability to ride on the air was also sealed by some kind of formation Lu Yang had set up.
"Oh....what could that be?" Lu Yang said, turning towards Mo Lingtian whose face was distorted when he found out his flight ability had also been sealed.
"I have watched the cultivation techniques of your sect members and seeing the slash you just did further proved my deductions. Why do you practice flame techniques?" Mo Lingtian asked as he looked down at the bottomless pit separating the mountain edge they were standing on from the one at the other side by several meters.
The only source of light in this underground space they were in was from the bottomless pit, and with the light came a faint sense of burning heat.
"Fire is extremely Yang. The demon core is extremely yin; in fact, according to the books I have read, it is one of the most extremely yin creations in the entire three realms. How is it that your sect is able to cultivate flame techniques despite the nature of the demon core?" Mo Lingtian said, now turning away from the light coming from the bottomless pit to face the Patriarch.
A knowing smile touched Lu Yang's lips when he heard Mo Lingtian. He knew he had probably been long curious about this.
"Let's finish what we came here to do..." the Patriarch said in reply as he turned to face the bottomless pit in front of them...."After you've successfully corrected my qi deviation, I'll answer your question," he continued as he walked even closer to the edge of the mountain they were standing on.
The Patriarch raised his hands, and the intense blue flame on his forefinger suddenly burst outward. He pushed his palms forward, sending a magnificent torrent of serene blue fire surging across the vast, pitch-black chasm.
The flames did not blaze wildly; instead, they wove together intricately in the empty space, rapidly solidifying into a glowing, translucent bridge of solid blue fire that anchored itself perfectly to the distant mountain edge.
"The heat radiating from the abyss below is fatal," the Patriarch explained, casually stepping onto the bridge of fire...."You must have noticed it already. I set up a formation that restricts all flights down here to ensure absolutely no variables interrupt our session. This bridge is the only path across. It will shield us from the heat rising from the pit."
Mo Lingtian stepped onto the bridge, his eyes narrowing slightly. Surprisingly, the blue flames did not burn him. Instead, they emitted a cool, soothing aura that acted as a barrier, completely repelling the faint sense of scorching heat radiating from the bottomless pit beneath their feet.
As they crossed the massive chasm and stepped onto the opposite edge, the pitch darkness fully receded, revealing the Patriarch's private cultivation domain.
It was a breathtaking expanse of ethereal fire. Massive, crystalline lotus flowers woven entirely from calm blue flames bloomed across the cavern floor. Rivers of liquid azure fire flowed gently through carved stone channels, emitting a soft, majestic luminescence that bathed the entire underground space in a divine, otherworldly glow.
It was not a place of chaos and destruction, but a sanctuary of tranquility. The blue flames did not devour; they lacked the burning nature flames were supposed to have. They danced with a majestic elegance, exuding an ancient vibe of a supreme fire lord's domain. It felt distant, beautiful, and completely untouched by the cruel reality of the demon continent above.
At the center of this ethereal fire plane sat a wide, circular platform carved from a single piece of dark, heat-resistant jade, surrounded by gently floating orbs of blue light.
"This is my personal cultivation ground," the Patriarch said, walking towards the jade platform. "We will begin the meridian extraction here."
"What a beautiful place," Mo Lingtian said to himself as he followed the Patriarch towards the jade platform.
"You are really a stingy Patriarch," Mo Lingtian said aloud as he continued to observe the intricate beauty of the cultivation ground.
The Patriarch didn't reply to him. He simply smiled, knowing what he meant, as he sat cross-legged at the center of the jade platform.
"Look at the old buildings and materials you left for your sect members to use up there," Mo Lingtian said again, pointing up...."And look at how beautiful and elegant your cultivation ground is. You really know how to spoil yourself," Mo Lingtian continued as he too sat cross-legged directly opposite the Patriarch.