This time, Zhong Mengyin shook her head directly. "No, definitely not. Although that person's style was also fierce and powerful, his Spirit Power had not a trace of the Buddhist Sect in it." Zhong Mengyin had considered this possibility before, but the Spirit Power of the Buddhist Sect and that of sword cultivators were the easiest to recognize. One was majestic and purely yang, while the other was sharp and piercing. This was intrinsically linked to the Immortal Arts they had to cast and could not be changed.
"Then perhaps it's a cultivator from elsewhere. That would be troublesome. This person might have saved Su Hong, or he might have already killed her and taken everything on her. If this mission fails, the four of us will surely face severe punishment when we return. Without the Crystal Bone Water, we have no confidence in removing the seal on that item. This was a direct order from above." Elder Feng's expression was truly grim. The other three, including Zhong Mengyin, also felt apprehensive. Although they had obtained two other items, one of which Zhong Mengyin had taken from Yi Guang, which could be considered a great merit, that force showed no mercy. At that time, it was possible that even Fairy Red Candle would not be able to protect her.
After a long while, Zhong Mengyin grit her silver teeth and said, "I have a feeling that the person who ambushed me was also after the things on Su Hong. Otherwise, why would he only attack me and not finish off Su Hong first? He was closest to Su Hong at the time, and given her state, a single casual strike would have been enough. As for lust, I flatter myself to think I am more likely to make someone fall into endless desire than that girl, yet he attacked me without a shred of pity.
"Therefore, I suggest we gather more information here first, starting with the Chant-Garment Assembly. We should investigate the cultivators who paid Spirit Stones to enter that day. Furthermore, I suspect that person is also a poison cultivator, because when Su Hong's aura came into contact with the area where that person was, her Spirit Power and aura vanished instantly."
"You're saying a poison cultivator who also practices body refinement? Are you certain?" Elder Feng's eyes lit up.
"I am fifty percent certain he is a poison cultivator. I can still distinguish whether Su Hong was poisoned or simply exhausted. There was no prior sign of poison in that area; my Divine Sense couldn't detect a thing. If it were just an ordinary cultivator using poison pills or powder, they wouldn't have such a sophisticated method," Zhong Mengyin said unhappily. She was confident in her judgment. Besides, she had gone back to search the area carefully afterward and found not a single trace of poison. This was beyond the means of an ordinary cultivator.
"Good. This narrows down the scope considerably. In that case, we will focus all our efforts on gathering information nearby and then investigate one by one. But we must be quick. If the Crystal Bone Water is used by someone, it will be too late for everything." Elder Feng looked at the two cultivators by his side and said in a low voice. They also nodded.
"Let's discuss how to split up. Remember to keep your appearances altered." It turned out that the four of them were not in their original forms. Hearing Elder Feng's words, Zhong Mengyin let out a light laugh. A watery mist distorted her face, and in the next moment, she had transformed into a sallow-faced girl of sixteen, looking extremely naive.
"I think asking for information with this appearance will make more people pity a little girl like me!" Zhong Mengyin's voice also became tender and young.
"Truly worthy of the 'Thousand-Faced Spider.' Elder Zhong's transformation skills are beyond what we can compare to." Elder Feng had now transformed into a burly man. He praised Zhong Mengyin, while the two men beside him also blurred and transformed into two unfamiliar figures.
After some more secret discussion, the four of them split up and went their separate ways. Little did Huchen Jianghai, hundreds of thousands of li away, know that a disaster was eventually coming for him. Not long after, Zhong Mengyin and her group would slowly uncover the identities of those who had entered the Chant-Garment Assembly. They quickly traced it back to Ouyang Jinfei. How could Ouyang Jinfei escape the clutches of Golden Core cultivators? After being captured, he was subjected to a soul search, which revealed that he had met a poison cultivator named Huchen Jianghai outside Yuguan City. Even if Li Yan had shown his true face at that time, no one would have believed him. Out of suspicion, they came to believe he had hidden his true identity. Otherwise, how could a disciple who had fallen out of favor in his family travel so openly without any precautions?
Not long after Li Yan and Zhuo Lingfeng left, the Huchen Ancestor launched an attack on the Ye and Xie Families, triggering a bloody slaughter. The Ye Family, in particular, without a Nascent Soul Ancestor, was crushed overnight. Ye Luoyan of the family was placed under house arrest. Huchen Jianghai, as Huchen Wandong's biological son, was not implicated but was grounded along with Huchen Wanli. However, a few months later, not long after the Huchen Ancestor went into seclusion with Huchen Wuding, Huchen Wandong relaxed his watch over his two sons. Huchen Jianghai took the opportunity to sneak out of the family and then vanished without a trace, never to be seen again.
This was a mountain range of endless black. Dense vegetation, like layers of black armor, draped over the lofty peaks and precipitous ridges. Amidst the howling wind and snow, the black and white foliage showed no sign of desolation or decay, but rather a hidden, thick, and solid vitality. At a glance, it felt like facing an army of thousands of iron-blooded warriors clad in dark, cold armor, standing tall between heaven and earth. The shrubs here had thick leaves, and giant trees reached for the sky. No matter how the seasons changed, the leaves mostly just turned from a verdant black to a deeper, heavier color, like giant halberds piercing the heavens.
This was a land where demonic beasts roamed freely, a forbidden zone for mortals. Even cultivators were unwilling to set foot here lightly, for this was the domain of a colossus, the location of one of the Desolate Moon Continent's giants—the Jingtu Sect.
Every day, the morning bells would chime, their sound drifting a thousand miles, drifting over the mountains and valleys, startling flocks of birds. Then, a golden light would rise from the mountains, illuminating half the sky as if plated in gold, echoing the sunrise in the east. For a moment, it was difficult to tell if it was the golden light of the early sun or the universal light of the Buddha.
Amidst the mountain ranges rose one majestic hall after another, stretching for thousands of li. The Hall of the Heavenly Kings, the Hall of Great Compassion, the Hall of Mahavira, the Hall of Ksitigarbha, the Hall of Vairocana, the Hall of Sangharama, the Hall of Arhats, the Hall of Precepts, the Sutra Depository—tens of thousands of monks moved among them, creating the picture of a peerless, otherworldly paradise.
Fifty thousand li north of the Jingtu Sect was a range of precipitous mountains. Atop its highest peak, a pagoda soared into the sky, piercing the clouds like a giant, world-defying cauldron for suppressing demons. This pagoda was named the "Northern Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda." Along with the Ten-Pace Courtyard's "The Ashen Veil," the Supreme Mystery Teachings' "The Azure Sea of Countless Sands," and the Malevolent Spirit Sect's "Malevolent Spirit Bewildering Maze," it was collectively known by the cultivators of the Desolate Moon Continent as the "Four Great Forbidden Zones." These four places were the most mysterious and terrifying legacies left by ancient cultivators. They were filled with restrictions and crises. Even Nascent Soul cultivators had only explored less than thirty percent of their interiors. They bore some similarity to the "Flying Sand Grotto-Caves," but it was common knowledge that only Nascent Soul cultivators could enter the "Flying Sand Grotto-Caves," so very few cultivators dared to venture in.
However, these "Four Great Forbidden Zones" were accessible even to Qi Condensation cultivators. And if one's fortune was deep enough, not only might they avoid death, but they might even find a great fortune awaiting them. But this only meant that low-level cultivators could enter; whether they had the life to enjoy any fortune they found was another matter entirely. Killing for treasure was all too common in the cultivation world.
But a forbidden zone was a forbidden zone. The areas where low-level cultivators could operate within these Four Great Forbidden Zones were all places that had been explored by Nascent Soul cultivators. The best treasures had likely already been taken, leaving only some items that Nascent Soul cultivators looked down on and herbs that had since regrown. Even so, these were places that ordinary cultivators dreamed of going. They held Magical Treasures, cultivation methods, and materials for alchemy and artifact refining that they might never be able to touch in their entire lives. Of course, there were also places that Nascent Soul cultivators had missed. If one could find a treasure there, it would be enough to last a lifetime.
Cultivation was about cultivating oneself and refining things. The most precious thing in cultivation was, of course, cultivation resources. When such important places were first discovered, it led to a protracted war between sects. Countless cultivators, from Qi Condensation to Nascent Soul, and even Spirit Transformation, fell in the fight for resources.
With the intervention of several behemoth powers on the continent, these Four Great Forbidden Zones were eventually carved up and ruled by the Four Great Sects, forbidding other cultivators from entering. This was only because there were enough forbidden zones to go around for the Four Great Sects. Otherwise, who knows how many years that war would have lasted. Like the "Flying Sand Grotto-Caves," which the Malevolent Spirit Sect had initially wanted to monopolize, how could the other three sects agree? After several rounds of fighting and negotiation, it eventually became a place where anyone could enter. Of course, this was also due to the special nature of the "Flying Sand Grotto-Caves," where only high-level cultivators could enter. But even so, if it had been occupied by the Malevolent Spirit Sect alone, for their successive generations of Nascent Soul and Spirit Transformation cultivators to slowly explore, it would have been an immense fortune.
When the Four Great Forbidden Zones were first occupied by the four sects, they absolutely forbade cultivators from other sects from entering. Under their absolute rule, although outside cultivators dared not speak out due to the four sects' power, resentment would slowly build. This would become a potential threat even to the territories under the four sects' jurisdiction. So, slowly, the four sects began to release some resources to the sects and families within their own territories. When these sects paid a huge amount of Spirit Stones or made great contributions to the four sects, they would be given a certain number of spots, allowing them to send a very small number of cultivators to explore. This finally resolved the problem.
As the years passed, the Four Great Sects no longer completely sealed off the forbidden zones from each other. They would also allow each other's cultivators to enter their respective forbidden zones to search for treasures and explore under permitted conditions. For example, the Huchen Family, through their trade of precious medicinal pills with the Jingtu Sect, would receive a "Netherworld Order" every year. This "Netherworld Order" was the token of passage into the "Northern Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda." One token could only be used by one person.
For cultivators who entered the Four Great Forbidden Zones, life and death were their own concern. Fights between cultivators within were determined by fate, and the four sects did not interfere with any treasures obtained. Otherwise, if cultivators had to hand over the treasures they fought and died for upon exiting, wouldn't it all be for nothing?
On this day, at noon, a long streak of light was speeding towards the "Northern Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda" from the distant sky. When it was still a thousand li away from the pagoda, the streak of light paused and stopped in mid-air. The light dissipated, revealing an ordinary young face. A black robe fluttered in the wind, and a head of long black hair was casually tied in a bun at the back of his head, scattering in the wind. Beneath his feet, a sharp, slender willow leaf bobbed up and down, causing his figure to fluctuate slightly with it. It was Li Yan.
Looking up at the towering pagoda that reached the clouds on the horizon, a slight smile appeared on Li Yan's face. The pagoda was magnificent; he had seen it from three thousand li away. Now, at a distance of a thousand li, it looked even more majestic.
"The Northern Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda. I've finally arrived. This pagoda is fifty thousand li away from the Jingtu Sect's temples, which is a good thing. Otherwise, entering this pagoda under the gaze of a terrifyingly powerful sect would be quite unsettling. Among the Four Great Sects, low-level cultivators are like ants. With my current cultivation, I could be casually wiped out, and no one would even ask about it afterward. I must be even more careful now."