Xu Yang was embedded in the cave wall. The dark bluish-black color quickly faded from his body, and he spat out two mouthfuls of blood in succession. Struggling, he fell from the wall to the ground. A cultivator's self-detonation was far too terrifying. Even one at the Qi Refining Realm had such power; if a cultivator above the Foundation Establishment Realm blew themselves up, the might would be unimaginable.
Xu Yang glanced around. The cave ceiling was gradually collapsing, and the whole place was on the verge of caving in. He didn't dare delay. He quickly took out the Lesser Return-to-Origin Talisman he had obtained from the mysterious woman, and a green light enveloped him.
Xu Yang immediately felt a vibrant force surround his body. The broken bones and damaged organs inside him rapidly recovered. By the time the Lesser Return-to-Origin Talisman had used up its power, Xu Yang had recovered almost completely. Its effectiveness astonished him.
But with the situation so urgent, Xu Yang had no time to dwell on it. He immediately rushed toward Senior Brother Xu and the others, removing their Qiankun Bags. Since Junior Sister Zhao had self-detonated, all he found of hers was her Indeterminate Ring.
Then Xu Yang swiftly turned back and ran along the way he had come. As for the Mystic Ice Turtles, he no longer had time to worry about them. Soon, he reached the cave's exit. A continuous rumble came from behind him. Not daring to be careless, Xu Yang immediately took out his Flying Sword, rose into the air on it, and flew out of the cave.
He had barely flown out of the pit when it shook and collapsed. Standing on his Flying Sword, Xu Yang looked down. Before his eyes, the previously flat beach suddenly caved in, dust billowing in every direction until it blotted out the sky and sun.
Xu Yang breathed a quiet sigh of relief. The commotion here was too great, and he couldn't stay long. He immediately flew away on his sword. After getting far from the beach, he brought the Flying Sword down and landed. Finding a secluded spot, he circulated his energy and regulated his breathing, recovering his strength.
When he finished, Xu Yang was secretly astonished. He hadn't expected the Lesser Return-to-Origin Talisman to be so powerful. It had healed most of his injuries, and the rest were nothing serious; he would recover in a day or two.
He had still been too careless this time. He hadn't expected that woman to be so ruthless as to blow herself up. Thinking of the force of the blast, Xu Yang felt a fresh wave of fear.
Since his injuries were no longer serious, Xu Yang immediately set off for the sect. This mission had been far too harrowing; he needed to return and carefully consider the gains and losses of the operation.
After a long journey, Xu Yang returned to the sect. He first went to the External Affairs Hall to complete the mission and collect a Peiyuan Pill, then hurried back to his pavilion. Inside the Lesser Spirit Gathering Array on the second floor, Xu Yang activated the restrictions outside the pavilion to their fullest.
Only then did he take out his spoils. Four Qiankun Bags lay in a row before him. Excited, Xu Yang picked them up and examined them one by one, but his expression turned a little helpless. There was nothing particularly valuable inside—just some Spirit Stones. The powerful treasures had all been used up in the fight.
Fortunately, the Spirit Stones and Peiyuan Pills together amounted to quite a lot, enough to last him through a period of cultivation. His cultivation was still too low. He'd better train for a while before taking another mission from the External Affairs Hall!
Thinking this, Xu Yang put the Spirit Stones and pills into his own Qiankun Bag. Then he took out the Dharma Artifacts belonging to Senior Brother Xu and the others and inspected them carefully.
These Dharma Artifacts had belonged to the five of them. There were four mid-grade artifacts: two Flying Swords, an Indeterminate Ring, and a small seal. One Flying Sword belonged to Senior Brother Xu, while the small seal had belonged to Junior Brother Yin. The other Flying Sword and the Indeterminate Ring belonged to Junior Sister Zhao.
The remaining two Dharma Artifacts were a Red Silk sash and a Flying Knife. Both were low-grade artifacts, and their power was too weak to interest Xu Yang. He casually put them into his Qiankun Bag, then focused on the Indeterminate Ring and the small seal.
The Indeterminate Ring was a defensive mid-grade Dharma Artifact, a relatively rare type. Its value was nearly equal to that of a high-grade offensive artifact. In the world of cultivation, defensive Dharma Artifacts were always scarce, so they were generally more valuable than offensive ones.
Xu Yang naturally prized the Indeterminate Ring. He was short of defensive artifacts, and this ring could make up for that weakness. He raised it and examined it closely. The entire ring was silver-white, with rows of runes engraved along its surface.
Xu Yang sent his spiritual sense into the ring and easily removed the imprint inside, replacing it with his own. Then, with a thought, the Indeterminate Ring rose above his head, and a transparent curtain of light descended, shielding him within.
Xu Yang had an idea and sent out his Flying Sword, trying to stab the light curtain. It was immediately blocked. Then Xu Yang increased its force and drove it down with all its might, but the curtain remained utterly unmoved. Its defensive power was astonishing. Overjoyed, Xu Yang recalled the Indeterminate Ring and fondled it, unable to bear putting it down.
After admiring it for a while, Xu Yang put the Indeterminate Ring away and turned his gaze to the small seal. It was pitch-black and square, with a demonic beast carved into its upper half and a smooth, flat surface below. After removing the imprint inside, Xu Yang poured Gang Qi into it. The seal immediately began to grow, eventually becoming the size of a square table.
The pavilion wasn't a suitable place to test the seal's power, so Xu Yang could only regretfully withdraw his Gang Qi. The seal slowly returned to its original size. He examined the two Flying Swords as well, one after the other. He found that neither could compare to the red Flying Sword his master, Qing Yuanzi, had given him, so he simply put both swords and the small seal away in his Qiankun Bag.
At last, Xu Yang took out the deep-blue pearl, his face full of anticipation. The pearl had originally been enormous, but after it was collected, it had automatically shrunk. Now it was only about the size of a fist. As soon as it was taken out, a rich, fragrant scent filled the air, and Xu Yang immediately felt invigorated.
After examining the pearl closely, Xu Yang could only smile helplessly. His knowledge was too limited; he knew nothing about it. He had no choice but to put it away and take out the Treasure Appraisal Catalog to search through it.
A moment later, Xu Yang stopped turning the pages, his gaze settling on an entry. Then his face cleared with understanding. At last, he knew the origins of the deep-blue pearl.
An Ice Soul Root was originally the root of an ordinary plant. It was a mutation, and even after the plant withered, the Ice Soul Root would not die. Instead, it would keep growing, absorbing large amounts of spiritual energy until it grew thicker and thicker. If it could grow for a thousand years, it would give birth to a treasure of heaven and earth—the Millennial Ice Soul Pearl. That was the deep-blue pearl.
The Ice Soul Pearl had powerful effects. If obtained by an ice-spirit-root cultivator at the Golden Core Realm or above, it would not only accelerate their cultivation but could also become a powerful, evolvable magical treasure with only a little refinement, advancing to higher levels in the future. It was truly a treasure of immense value.
Reading this, Xu Yang finally understood what the blue pearl was for. But he looked deeply frustrated. He had a Void Spirit Root, so no matter how good the Ice Soul Pearl was, it was of little use to him! Selling it at auction would be too risky. With his current strength, one wrong move and he could be killed for his treasure.
Suddenly, a flash of inspiration crossed Xu Yang's mind, and he caught hold of it at once. A glint flashed in his eyes as he took out the Millennial Ice Soul Pearl again. Holding it in his hand, Xu Yang carefully activated the Indestructible Golden Body Art. Immediately, a wisp of deep-blue cold energy entered his arm from within the pearl.
A thick layer of ice instantly formed over Xu Yang's arm and rapidly spread across his body. In the blink of an eye, he was sealed inside the ice.
A moment later, a series of cracking sounds rang out. Cracks appeared across the ice surrounding Xu Yang, and it shattered with a crash. Xu Yang, his face blue and purple, thought, That cold energy is so powerful! Just one tiny wisp nearly froze me to death. It's terrifying. Luckily, I was cautious and absorbed only a single wisp.
Shivering, Xu Yang stood up and quickly ran through a set of fist exercises to get his body moving. After driving out the remaining cold energy, he excitedly picked up the Ice Soul Pearl and said, "With you, my Indestructible Golden Body Art can finally break through again!"
Xu Yang had suddenly realized that the Indestructible Golden Body Art had no elemental restrictions. He should be able to refine the cold energy within the Ice Soul Pearl and use it to strengthen his body.
That was what Xu Yang had just been testing: refining the cold energy within the Ice Soul Pearl. He hadn't expected it to be so terrifying that it nearly froze him to death. But he had indeed refined that wisp of cold energy, which proved his idea could work. He just had to be careful not to absorb too much at once.
After putting away the Ice Soul Pearl, Xu Yang returned to the Lesser Spirit Gathering Array and sat cross-legged, recovering from the minor frost injuries within his body. The night passed. Dawn broke, and the first light of morning appeared. Xu Yang finally opened his eyes, a flash of light passing through them. He looked vibrant, and his injuries had healed completely.
In the days that followed, Xu Yang went to the Internal Affairs Hall and bought a large amount of food. Returning to his pavilion, he devoted himself to cultivation, making rapid progress with the help of Spirit Stones and pills. At the same time, the cold energy within the Ice Soul Pearl tempered his body, bringing even more astonishing improvements. His strength grew rapidly.
After cultivating like this for about half a year, Xu Yang had used up all his Spirit Stones and pills. His cultivation had reached the peak of the fifth layer of the Qi Refining Realm, advancing by two full levels. As for his physical strength, it had reached the equivalent of the early seventh layer of the Qi Refining Realm, far surpassing his level of Gang Qi cultivation.
Of course, he owed this to the help of the cold energy within the Ice Soul Pearl. Without it, Xu Yang's body could never have improved so quickly. Fortunately, his body's aura was very ordinary, so there was no fear of anyone noticing anything unusual. Even after absorbing a large amount of its cold energy, the Ice Soul Pearl remained undamaged, its power still seemingly bottomless. This showed that the Ice Soul Pearl truly deserved its reputation as a treasure of heaven and earth.
With his resources exhausted, Xu Yang's cultivation speed immediately slowed to a crawl. With no other choice, he stopped cultivating and left his pavilion. He planned to see what missions were available at the External Affairs Hall. If there was a good one, he would take it and earn some Spirit Stones and pills to keep up his cultivation.
Xu Yang entered the External Affairs Hall at a leisurely pace. At once, he saw a group of Qi Refining Realm disciples gathered beneath the mission board, discussing something animatedly. Seeing this, Xu Yang immediately went over to the board and looked up at the missions.
Before you continue