Demonic Dao Restriction: Cracking Storage Rings

"Pop!"

The protective barrier around the distant palace had just been breached.

Xiao Chen moved very quickly, taking less than three breaths in total.

So much so that the Huo Family Cultivator on all four sides were busy activating their palaces and didn't have time to intervene.

Hearing the Red Robe Female Cultivator's scream, they realized with shock that a drastic change had occurred on the other side.

They exchanged a glance and then surprisingly chose to turn around and leave.

Although doing so would undoubtedly put the blue-robed monk in danger, no one could care less about that at this moment.

As the saying goes, "Better to die a friend than a poor monk."

"Brother Huo, save me!"

The blue-robed monk realized this as well and immediately pointed out the connection between them. "The reason I set up the ambush was because I was following your orders."

He wasn't stupid; at this point, the only way to save himself was to drag the Huo Family down with him.

"What the hell are you spouting!"

Upon hearing this, Huo Mingcheng, who was trying to escape in the distance, had no choice but to stay. "I don't know you at all!"

As he spoke, he looked at Xiao Chen and said, "Fellow Daoist, I am Huo Family. Many rogue cultivators recognize my face. He is clearly making baseless accusations; please don't misunderstand."

Unfortunately, his tone was flustered at the time, and what he said was even less convincing.

Xiao Chen, of course, wouldn't fall for it. "Daoist Ding, I'll leave this person to you. I'll deal with the others in front."

He gave the order, then pulled out his golden mace and charged towards Huo Mingcheng.

The blue-robed monk was originally positioned between the two sides, and in theory, he could have intervened.

However, he showed absolutely no intention of making a move. Since the Huo Family wanted to abandon him, then they might as well all die together.

"Not good!"

Seeing this, Huo Mingcheng panicked and, no longer caring about maintaining the Lineage's reputation, turned and ran.

At the same time, he had a quick idea. "None of you should follow me, go your separate ways!"

Upon hearing this, the three people around immediately turned in different directions.

"Daoist Jinguang, I'm here to help you!"

Qiu Fanghui immediately spoke up, "I'll intercept the guy on the far right."

As he spoke, he jumped directly onto a Mystic Iron Puppet, and then all four puppets simultaneously began to run wildly.

Since they are Mechanical Creation, their running speed is far faster than that of ordinary Golden Core cultivator.

Especially in such a ruin with Anti-Air Restriction, she was only slightly slower than Xiao Chen.

However, Qiu Fanghui was also quite adept at self-preservation. Instead of taking out Offensive Spirit Tool, he took out two shields in advance.

Judging from their posture, they clearly intended to go over and engage in a prolonged fight to buy time.

Ma Wenbo spoke up to remind him, "Senior Brother, Daoist Jinguang can't handle this alone. Leave this guy in front to me and Third Junior Brother, you should go help too."

Yu Zhenyang shook his head. "No, these cultivators are powerful. You and your third junior brother might not be able to stop them."

"We just need to do what Daoist Jinguang instructed; there's no need to worry about the rest."

His choice may not be considered excellent, but it is certainly a safe one.

The blue-robed cultivator had concealed a Mountain Shattering Thunder Pearl, intending to use it to break through the encirclement.

But in the end, he was outnumbered and surrounded and killed by the well-coordinated trio.

"Senior Brother, thank goodness you stopped me, otherwise I'm afraid I would have given myself away just now."

Cao Mingjie's face turned red and then purple, because his blood and qi were surging upwards.

As a cultivator in the Early-stage Golden Core, he was used as a weak point in the confrontation.

"It's alright, you should rest first."

Yu Zhenyang patted him on the shoulder again, then looked into the distance.

Of the four cultivators from the Huo Family over there, two have already fallen, and Qiu Fanghui currently fighting one of them as they walk away into the distance.

Xiao Chen had already disappeared from sight.

However, Yu Zhenyang was no longer worried about his safety. Instead, he looked around and was wary of any hidden rogue cultivators trying to take advantage of the situation.

Across from the main road.

"I am Direct Lineage of the Huo Family, you cannot kill me!"

Huo Mingcheng leaned against a palace wall, trembling as he took out an Identity Token: "Many people saw what happened today; you absolutely can't hide it."

"Once we leave the Secret Realm, our Lineage will know it was you who did it, as soon as they inquire."

Indeed, many cultivators witnessed the battle from the very beginning, but they all chose to stand by and watch.

"Let's put their matter aside for now; there's no rush to discuss it."

Xiao Chen smiled and walked towards Huo Mingcheng: "I've heard that the Huo Family doesn't have Nascent Soul. Your background isn't going to scare anyone."

"Tell me, who's backing you?"

The blue-robed cultivator and the Green Robe Cultivator just now were almost at the pinnacle of the Golden Core Realm.

Objectively speaking, they could even be considered elites.

It's impossible for the Huo Family, a single Golden Core Lineage, to mobilize such a cultivator. Xiao Chen suspects that the so-called Huo Family is just White Glove, with other forces behind them.

In that case, he definitely needs to find out who the enemy is.

To avoid being caught in a trap after going out and not being able to distinguish friend from foe.

"Daoist Jinguang, I was just confused for a moment."

Huo Mingcheng's eyes flickered, then he began to beg for mercy, "It was mainly those few people who instigated me, please give me a chance!"

"If you let me go today, you'll be richly rewarded when you get out."

However, he deliberately pretended not to hear about the power behind the Huo Family and never mentioned it.

"You, sigh."

Xiao Chen shook his head. "Why make things difficult for yourself?"

He easily shattered Huo Mingcheng's last Defensive Talisman.

However, he intentionally controlled his strength and did not directly injure him.

Immediately afterwards, he used the long-unheard-of ' Blood Earthworm ' Secret Method.

"You've actually cultivated Devil Cultivation Method! You're a demonic cultivator!"

Huo Mingcheng's face turned deathly pale, and with no hope left in his heart, he immediately struck his own head with a palm, attempting suicide.

Unfortunately, Xiao Chen stopped him as soon as he reached out. "Oh, you even recognize this?"

"Very well, then you can enjoy yourself to the fullest."

Normally, there's no reason why cultivators from the Eastern Domain should be able to recognize this secret technique from the Yellow Springs Path.

Unless he'd seen it before!

Therefore, Xiao Chen not only did not continue his attack, but also thoughtfully performed a Water Healing Art.

Although the effect of this First-Order Spell was now negligible, it was still Hextech Buff and was just right for temporarily alleviating the injuries.

"Stop torturing me! I'll tell you everything!"

In just a quarter of an hour, Huo Mingcheng had already put his Lineage's warnings behind him. "Those cultivators all come from the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance, but they've only publicly claimed to be independent cultivators."

"The specifics were all arranged by the clan chief; I really don't know the hidden details."

Xiao Chen pressed further, "You really don't know? Fine, just tell me first, how did you recognize that the Blood Earthworm was Devil Cultivation Method? Don't keep saying you didn't know!"

Huo Mingcheng was already in a daze, and subconsciously answered, "I was in the Lineage before... Ah~!"

Suddenly his eyes widened as if they were about to bulge out, and a wisp of black smoke drifted from his body.

Immediately afterwards, a flame erupted from within, burning him completely to ashes.

.

"Huh? There's also Silencing Restriction?"

Xiao Chen was somewhat surprised upon seeing this.

Thanks to his previous inheritance of the Yellow Springs Secret Canon Manual, he had indeed seen similar methods within it.

That is to extract a hidden weapon from the cultivator's body using secret techniques.

If anyone tries to leak core information, a restriction will be triggered to silence them, making it an extremely vicious Demonic Dao Secret Technique.

Although the forms of expression are different, according to the Yellow Springs Secret Canon Manual, only Nascent Soul True Lord can perform such high-level secret techniques.

In other words, there are Nascent Soul True Lord secretly practicing Devil Cultivation Method in the Eastern Domain.

"That's true. The Eastern Domain is too vast; how could it possibly be completely eradicated?"

Xiao Chen sighed inwardly. Since there are Hidden Dao Heritage, it's actually quite normal for there to be hidden demonic cultivators as well.

Relatively speaking, the demonic cultivators here have become much more restrained, and they rarely venture out into the outside world.

Or rather, they might use pawns like the Huo Family to conceal their identities.

Currently, it appears that this may be related to the lack of order and the relatively chaotic environment in the Outer Sea.

The local Yin Corpse Sect is no good either, naturally making the area around the Lightless Sea a breeding ground for filth and evil.

"In that case, it seems the identity of Golden Light Rogue Cultivator is no longer viable."

Xiao Chen could already foresee that once the ruins ended and news of Huo Mingcheng's death spread, he would be targeted by that demonic Nascent Soul.

If I continue to act with this face, I'm afraid I'll encounter all sorts of trouble, both overt and covert.

The best solution is to discard this pseudonym.

"In that case, we can be a little more lenient in our actions from now on."

Xiao Chen's gaze shifted. "On the contrary, this disguise will also be lost, so I won't have to hold back in the ruins this time and can go all out."

"A multitude of lice won't bite, and a lot of debt won't cause worry."

"Who cares about the future? Let's get our hands on the benefits from the ruins first."

He glanced at the main road not far away. "Let's collect the orbs first, then we'll go to the Core Area to seize the treasures."

They turned back and dealt with the last Huo Family Cultivator as well.

Yu Zhenyang arrived with a precious pearl. "Daoist Jinguang, this was found in that palace with the Monkey Scooping the Moon motif."

Xiao Chen nodded and put away the pearl, then instructed, "Let's rest for a bit before exploring the palace again."

Because the independent cultivators were not as quick as the Huo Family, the other palaces had not yet been breached.

Meanwhile, having witnessed the fate of the Huo Family Cultivator in the previous battle, the rogue cultivators had already fled in a flash, fearing they would be killed to silence them later.

As spectators, they witnessed firsthand how Xiao Chen had just killed a Golden Core strike.

This combat power is absolutely terrifying!

In the Cultivation World, the ability to sense danger is equally important.

Rather than basing one's safety on the premise that Xiao Chen is a good person.

It's better to Thirty-Six Stratagems: Flee is Best; find a secluded corner to hide and deal with the rest.

After we get out, we can go to the Huo Family to collect a reward, and then go to the Morning Radiance Pavilion to sell information and earn a little extra money.

The sudden appearance of such a top-tier Sword Cultivator will surely pique the interest of many people regarding his appearance, Spirit Artifact, and combat techniques.

Xiao Chen himself didn't really need to rest, so he simply started studying the six newly acquired Storage Ring.

The reason there were six was because the Silencing Restriction had burned down the Storage Ring as well.

It's a little regrettable, but it's alright. We'll temporarily put this loss on the Huo Family's account and make up for it at their Lineage warehouse later when we have the chance.

However, the Huo Family was merely a facade; the real key was the Nascent Soul demonic cultivator behind them.

Therefore, this matter cannot be rushed. Xiao Chen plans to leave the ruins in a few days and then go far away to avoid trouble.

In case that Nascent Soul True Lord gets angry and rushes over to block him immediately.

Although, generally speaking, a conflict between one's subordinate Golden Core cultivator would certainly not directly alarm Nascent Soul True Lord.

But the real danger lies in matters of the demonic path; the opponent might act unpredictably, so we must be on guard.

About half a day later, Xiao Chen was still pondering his next move while simultaneously deciphering the Storage Ring.

Yu Zhenyang returned with the precious pearl and a sheet of Xuan Paper: "Daoist Jinguang, the remaining eight precious pearls and all the Ancient Spirit Script are here."

The drawing on that piece of paper was very detailed, and it also had notes.

"Very good, thank you for your hard work."

Xiao Chen reached out and took it, storing it in his Vast Sea Ring.

"It's no trouble at all, we're just offering a small helping hand."

Qiu Fanghui eagerly said, "Please instruct us on what to do next, fellow Daoist."

This is indeed a crucial question.

There are still about six days left, and it seems inappropriate to continue following this small team.

Xiao Chen didn't care, but they might be implicated in the situation.

With that in mind, he decided to be frank and see their reaction. "I'm planning to go to the Core Area later, hoping to compete for the Ruin Inheritance."

Upon hearing this, Yu Zhenyang and Ma Wenbo exchanged a glance.

They were never really interested in venturing into the Core Area, let alone vying for the inheritance.

Qiu Fanghui immediately declared, "Daoist Jinguang is highly skilled. In my opinion, as long as you make a move, the outcome will be a piece of cake."

After he said that, people quickly echoed his sentiments.

But this time, silence fell.

Cao Mingjie was still shaken and didn't really want to go to the Core Area.

Not hearing a reply is also a form of answer.

Xiao Chen immediately understood their thoughts. "If you don't really want to go, you can explore other places."

As he spoke, he took out sixteen Third-Order Spirit Fruit that he had obtained in the Hundred Herbs Secret Realm: "I have a few Spirit Fruit here. You can share them as a reward for helping me collect the treasure pearls."

After all, the other party had spent several hours opening the palace, so he planned to give them something in return.

"No, no, no, that won't be necessary."

Yu Zhenyang waved his hand. "We didn't actually do anything. In fact, we have to thank Daoist Jinguang for his help. Otherwise, we would probably have been killed by the Demon Beast long ago."

"What happened afterward was only right; how could I possibly have the face to accept your Spirit Fruit again?"

Even Qiu Fanghui refused this time. "Fellow Daoist Yu is right, that's what I think too."

After he finished speaking, everyone fell silent for a moment.

"Fine, if you don't want it, then forget it."

Xiao Chen put away the Spirit Fruit and waved his hand dismissively, "Then let's not waste any more time, let's hurry up and explore the side hall next door."

"Let's part ways here, and meet again if fate allows."

After saying that, he continued to focus on deciphering the Storage Ring.

Six Storage Ring, in total, would take approximately eighteen hours, or one and a half days.

Fortunately, the ruins were open for seven days, giving them ample time to check if the other Huo Family Cultivator were carrying any important clues.

Or did you bring any useful items that you might need later?

.

As was his usual practice, Xiao Chen first used his Divine Sense to count the Spirit Stone.

"Huh, why is everyone so poor?"

All six Storage Ring combined only contained a little over 327,000 Low-grade Spirit Stone.

As for Mid-Grade Spirit Stone, there wasn't a single one.

Some relatively wealthy Foundation Establishment Cultivator can have this kind of wealth.

"Where did all the money go? It couldn't have been spent on Talisman, could it?"

Xiao Chen spotted dozens of different Talisman at a glance.

Among them, there are three rare Glass Cleansing Fire Talisman and six Golden Seal Tortoise Shell Talisman, for a total of nine Defensive Talisman.

The main problem was that the battle ended too quickly, so these items weren't used up in time.

In order to better explore the ruins, not only were many Talisman prepared, but also a considerable amount of elixirs and array plates.

Moreover, it was different from the cultivation pills that Xiao Chen usually saw.

There were a total of nineteen bottles of elixirs, half of which were Essence Returning Pill, used to quickly restore one's true essence.

The rest were all pills like Wood Element Pill, Dragon Power Pill, and Azure Frost Pill, which temporarily increased a cultivator's combat power.

Those Temporary Formation Disks were actually quite good.

There is a defensive formation called the Returning Goose Formation, a formation called the Profound Yellow Inverse Flow Formation used to break the Ruins Restriction, and a killing formation called the Crimson Sky Law Breaker.

"These all seem pretty good; we might be able to use them later."

Xiao Chen nodded in satisfaction and put away the array plate and array diagram.

Judging from the array diagram, this Profound Yellow Inverse Flow Formation is in no way inferior to Yu Zhenyang's Yin-Yang Separation Restriction Formation.

Next, I will act alone, which will give me a quick way to deal with any restrictions I encounter.

"Hey, what's this?"

Xiao Chen picked up a Narrow Token. The front of it had the words "Gathering Treasures" written on it, and the back had a picture of a tall building.

Upon closer inspection, it was indeed the Treasure Gathering Pavilion in the West Market, which restricted entry to ordinary cultivators.

"So this is the Treasure Gathering Token."

Xiao Chen flipped through it. "It's a pity I arrived a little late. I don't know if there are any other branches of the Treasure Gathering Pavilion, or if the membership is valid."

He had already planned to lay low, so he definitely wouldn't have time to go to the West Market this time.

But we can leave it for next time; these little things don't take up much space anyway.

It still has to be the Vast Sea Ring; the larger space makes it so comfortable.

In addition, the Storage Ring contained a fragment, two small porcelain bottles, three Spirit Artifact, Three Spirit Accumulating Treasure Boxes.

The rest of the useless junk was burned to ashes by Xiao Chen.

First, I picked up the fragment. It was slightly cool to the touch, and I could see that the front still had fragments of Green Pine and Pavilion Painting. I guessed that when it was complete, it should have depicted a mountain peak.

There are a few more words on the inside, but unfortunately only four small characters are written here, "Suppress My Rivers and Mountains" (Zhen Wo He Shan).

It is also followed by the word "fire", which seems to be the way of writing the word "Lian", but I can't tell for sure.

Then Xiao Chen opened the two small porcelain bottles.

Inside were Earth Vein Essence Milk and Moonlight Condensed Frost.

The former is a milky white Spirit Liquid accumulated from the core of Underground Spirit Mine.

It can be used to nourish the Golden Core and accelerate cultivation, and it can also be used as one of the important raw materials for alchemy.

However, the most distinctive feature of Earth Vein Essence Milk is its ability to repair minor Golden Core Damage caused by accidents such as failed breakthroughs.

The reason it's considered a minor injury is that if the Golden Core is severely damaged, even if the person survives, there's no point in recuperating.

The latter refers to the dew collected from Spirit Flower Dew on the night of a full moon, before sunrise.

It needs to be stored in Extreme Yin Place and take thirty-six years to condense into frost.

Normally, one hundred catties of dew can only yield one slab of this frost.

In short, although they are all Third-Order Spiritual Object, they are all top-notch goods.

Then there are three brand-new Spirit Artifact.

However, Xiao Chen didn't care much about this, as he didn't lack Spirit Artifact at the moment.

Therefore, I only picked out one of the Hundred Feather Linked Silk Robe and studied it briefly.

This Spirit Robe is made from 999 feathers of third-tier spirit birds, strung together with special bright threads.

All the feathers are white, fitting together like a silken white robe, and can be spread out as a feather shield during combat.

"I'll sell those two for Spirit Stone, but I think I can keep this one for myself."

Xiao Chen tried it on and felt he needed a new Magic Robe.

He's been at the Golden Core stage for so long, yet he's still wandering around in his second-tier Magic Robe. It's about time he put on something better.

"Whew!"

Finally, Xiao Chen took a deep breath and prepared to open the Spirit Accumulating Treasure Box.

"May all the gods and Buddhas bless me and let me open some good items!"

He rubbed his hands together and picked up the first box. "Open!"

Inside the box was a Dao Comprehension Crystal, which, judging from the runes, should be of the Way of Gold.

Without a doubt, this has gone astray.

Um?

"I hope all the gods and Buddhas will give me, Xiao, some face and let me produce something good!"

Xiao Chen blew a puff of hot air into his palm and rubbed it together again. "Open!"

Suddenly, a golden light shone in front of them.

In the center of the box was a round jade bead, and it was from this bead that the dazzling Golden Light was emitted.

This is a Flowing Gold Mystic Jade Pearl, an excellent vessel for engraving Gold Element Array.

It is also a top-tier Tier 3 Artifact Refining Material, which can be used as the main material for many Spirit Artifact.

"Hiss~, not giving me any face."

Xiao Chen was speechless; why were all the items related to the metal element?

What is the Huo Family trying to do?

"For the last Spirit Accumulating Treasure Box, I don't have high expectations. How about something else?"

Xiao Chen opened the box directly, and a wonderful fragrance immediately wafted out.

"One, two... nine, Nine-Leaf Azure Light Grass?"

Before me was a blue Spirit Herb with nine leaves, about six inches long and two inches wide.

It is named Azure Light Grass because it is said that when cultivators refine this Spirit Herb, a blue aura will appear around their bodies.

It is said that it can only produce one leaf every hundred years, matures Zi Hour, and withers within ten years after all nine leaves have fully matured.

Without a doubt, this is a top-tier Tier 3 Wood Element Spirit Herb.

Moreover, it is one of the few spiritual objects suitable for direct use.

Ordinary Spirit Herb, when refined into elixirs, can either have their effects enhanced or their absorption efficiency increased.

However, there is almost no difference in effect between directly absorbing the Nine-Leaf Azure Light Grass and refining it into the Nine-Leaf Azure Light Pill.

The only difference is that the elixir is easier to preserve and can be stored for a longer period of time.

"It's alright, at least there's a safety net."

Xiao Chen immediately closed the lid to prevent the medicine from being lost.

He was already content to have found a Wood Element Spiritual Material.

After all, statistically speaking, there are eight elements in total, including the five elements plus ice, thunder, and wind, not to mention other rare materials.

Therefore, it is actually normal that there are no Wood Element Spiritual Material in the Three Spirit Accumulating Treasure Boxes.

"You few go check the left side, the rest of you follow me to the right!"

Xiao Chen had just finished tidying up his things when he saw a group of cultivators approaching on the main road.

And the middle-aged man with a square face who was leading the group was directing his men to explore the palace.

Judging from their attire, they appear to be cultivators from the Yin Corpse Sect.

Xiao Chen's eyes lit up; this was interesting.

They'd already gone to the Core Area, so why are they turning back to the palace area? What are they looking for?

There was nothing else in the palace except twelve precious pearls.