Fierce Battle Against the Mountain-Guarding Exotic Beasts

Sure enough, after only two breaths, the mountains and rivers shifted once more, and space-time fell into chaos again.

The Exotic Beast condensed its form anew.

This time, its aura was even more powerful, faintly reaching the Golden Immortal Mid-stage realm. Dao resonance around its body had condensed almost into substance.

"This beast's body seems to be connected to these mountain ranges... As long as the mountains remain unbroken, it will not perish... A prolonged battle will certainly be disadvantageous..." Haotian's gaze turned grave.

Just then, the Exotic Beast pounced to kill once more. This attack carried three parts more savagery, with Dao laws faintly appearing amid its claws and fangs.

Haotian no longer met it head-on. His body drifted like mist and clouds as he calmly used an escape technique to evade.

After missing several times in succession... the Exotic Beast flew into a rage. Crimson Blood Light spread across its body, and its attacks became ever more frenzied.

Rather than being alarmed, Haotian was delighted by the sight.

After repeated probing, he had finally seen through the true situation.

Just as he had expected, this beast was not a true Living Being, but the condensed manifestation of the "mountain and river geomantic momentum" within this valley.

As long as the momentum of the Mountains and Earth Veins remained unbroken, it could be reborn without end, nearly immortal.

There were three conventional methods for breaking the mountain-and-river geomantic momentum.

The first was to forcibly destroy the mountain's momentum and Earth Veins... but doing so would inevitably incur immense Karma.

The second was to alter the course of the terrain... but that, too, would invite karmic retribution to coil around one's body.

The third was to directly alter the Heaven-and-Earth Dao laws of this place... but that required cultivation above the Da Luo realm.

None of the three were things Haotian, who possessed only Golden Immortal cultivation, could easily carry out at present.

Had it been anyone else, they ought to have turned back at this point and abandoned this exploration.

But Haotian was different.

For the Imperial Great Dao he cultivated inherently contained the authority to bear the will of all living things and set Heaven and Earth's order in order.

Though he had only just entered its threshold and had yet to accumulate sufficient Heaven and Earth Great Momentum, the Exotic Beast before him was no peerless fiend, and the mountain-and-river momentum here was not without flaws.

"All I need is to pry open the slightest crack in these tightly woven Dao laws, and this formation will break on its own..."

Having found the solution, Haotian no longer held back.

The Imperial Great Dao circulated at full force. Vast Dao resonance surged like a tide through the entire valley, while its supreme intent to command all laws firmly suppressed the momentum of the mountains and rivers.

The Exotic Beast's body froze, as though mired in a swamp.

Seizing the chance, Haotian joined two fingers like a sword and tapped lightly through the air.

Dao resonance flowed at his fingertips. Like an embroideress threading a needle, he gently moved a single strand among the countless Dao laws that formed this place's mountain-and-river momentum.

Move one hair, and the whole body followed.

The instant that strand of Dao law was altered, the entire great formation began to shake violently, like a towering building stripped of its foundation.

The Exotic Beast let out an unwilling, shrill roar. Its body cracked inch by inch before finally turning into spiritual light that filled the sky, completely dispersing between Heaven and Earth.

Haotian let out a long breath, fine sweat beading on his brow.

This act had seemed effortless, but in truth, it had depleted more than half of his mental energy and mana.

As the Exotic Beast dissipated, the Mountain Protecting Formation finally revealed its true form.

A transparent Light Screen, like an inverted jade bowl, enveloped the surroundings. Innate Dao Patterns flowed within it, faintly revealing profound rhythms.

Only then did Haotian realize that he had long since been standing at the core of the great formation.

And once the concealment was gone, this mountain's true name naturally surfaced in his mind.

Dao resonances intertwined, and Heaven and Earth conveyed their message.

Mount Wuyi!

"So it was this place. My hard-fought battle was not in vain!" Brilliant light shone in Haotian's eyes, joy surging through his heart like a tide.

The reason he had deliberately traveled southeast after entering the Primordial Wilderness was to find this Mount Wuyi, a place painted in rich, vivid strokes throughout the legends of later generations.

For two opportunities lay hidden within this mountain.

First, the High-Grade Innate Spiritual Root, the Great Red Robe Mother Tree.

Second, the Supreme Grade Innate Spiritual Treasure, the Treasure Dropping Gold Coin.

Though the Great Red Robe Mother Tree was remarkable as well, it could not be considered top-tier across the entire Primordial Wilderness.

What truly stirred Haotian's heart was the Treasure Dropping Gold Coin.

This Treasure was the first Copper Coin between Heaven and Earth, containing profound and mysterious Dao laws.

So long as an item was a spiritual treasure and ranked below an Innate Supreme Treasure, upon encountering it, it would be struck down.

Moreover, This Treasure also contained the laws of the Way of Wealth. By controlling it, one could comprehend and command the Way of Wealth.

At this thought, Haotian's heart could no longer remain calm.

He immediately swept his divine sense carefully across Wuyi Immortal Mountain, which had already revealed its true form.

Before long, he found two distinct Innate Dao auras.

Haotian stepped into the void and used Shrink Ground into Inches, arriving at the mountain's heart in an instant.

Focusing his gaze, he saw a Treasure Tea Tree, crimson from trunk to crown, rooted atop the spiritual veins.

Dao patterns flickered faintly amid its branches and leaves, emanating an aura of tranquil clarity that soothed the spirit.

At the very top of its canopy, a round copper coin with a square hole hovered silently.

Pale Gold Wings grew from either side of the coin, and Heavenly Dao Divine Script was engraved upon its surface.

They were none other than the Great Red Robe Mother Tree and the Treasure Dropping Gold Coin.

Haotian's heartbeat abruptly stalled. He immediately held his breath, focused his mind, and fully activated the Imperial Great Dao.

In an instant, the space for ten thousand li around the treasure tree was sealed and suppressed by invisible Dao laws, airtight as an iron barrel.

The Great Red Robe Mother Tree was rooted in the earth veins and could not move. Its branches and leaves could only tremble gently as they released waves of clear light in resistance.

The Treasure Dropping Gold Coin, meanwhile, beat its wings, seeking to tear through space and flee.

Unfortunately, the surrounding space had already been sealed by Haotian's Great Dao. Moreover, This Treasure was not an offensive treasure and had yet to fully awaken. After struggling for a while, it ultimately failed to break free.

Boom!

The two Dao auras collided, stirring up surging airwaves that swept in every direction. The Great Red Robe's branches and leaves rustled loudly, as though weeping and pleading.

Thus, the stalemate lasted nearly a hundred years.

The Treasure Dropping Gold Coin's resistance gradually weakened. In the end, its Dao aura drew inward, returning to silence.

Haotian secretly breathed a sigh of relief, fine beads of sweat already covering his brow.

"I never expected even an auxiliary spiritual treasure like the Treasure Dropping Gold Coin to be so difficult to handle. If not for the uniqueness of my Great Dao, I fear I would not have been able to subdue it today."

Still shaken, he silently warned himself, "In the future, I must always remember the dangers of the Primordial World."

As a Primordial Chaotic Stone that had undergone Form Transformation, Haotian possessed none of the inherited memories of the Primordial World. He had no choice but to explore and piece together much common knowledge of cultivation on his own.

"To have to personally experience everything before learning its depths is not a long-term solution."

"It seems I must find an opportunity to obtain a complete cultivation inheritance of the Primordial World," he mused inwardly.

If he merely wished to seize memories and knowledge, a soul-searching technique would suffice.

But if he wanted to obtain an inheritance, the other party had to be willing to pass it on.

Otherwise, even if he seized it, it would inevitably be incomplete.

Furthermore, he would incur Karma and bear karmic sin.

Gathering his thoughts, Haotian reached out with a grasping hand, and the Treasure Dropping Gold Coin fell into his palm.

As for the Great Red Robe Mother Tree beside it, he was in no hurry to deal with it.

For an Innate Spirit Root was rooted in the earth veins and could not be moved easily.

But the Treasure Dropping Gold Coin was different.

It ranked among the Supreme Grade Innate Spiritual Treasures and possessed an extraordinarily lofty status.

If he was even slightly careless and allowed it to escape, he might never have another chance to encounter it in this lifetime.

Holding the Treasure Dropping Gold Coin in his hand, he found it light as though weightless, its texture warm and lustrous—like jade, yet not jade.

Haotian immediately sat cross-legged in midair and began refining the Treasure Dropping Gold Coin.

He knew his own limits. With his Golden Immortal Early-stage cultivation, fully refining a Supreme Grade Innate Spiritual Treasure was no different from a fool's dream.

Therefore, his current goal was only to leave his own mark within it and ensure that it could no longer flee.

Buzz!

As Haotian's mana poured into it, the Treasure Dropping Gold Coin abruptly burst forth with Seven-Colored Rosy Light.