With the spirit item in hand, Chen Xuan soon left the lake.
Back in the air, the White Cloud Artifact appeared beneath Chen Xuan's feet once more.
Chen Xuan then headed toward the second pillar of light.
On the way, Chen Xuan also spotted disciples from the Green Spirit Sect, as well as several disciples from the Cloud Sea Sect.
Chen Xuan paid them little mind and simply continued on his way. Finding spirit items and Heavenly Dao Qi was what mattered.
Chen Xuan soon arrived above a dense forest.
The terrain here was extremely complex, with all kinds of trees and flowers growing thickly.
The forest's dense canopy blocked out most of the light, leaving the woods dim.
Like the previous one, this spirit item had hidden itself away.
But hiding was useless in Chen Xuan's eyes.
Chen Xuan concealed his aura and quietly descended into the forest.
He had planned to use the same trick as before, catching it off guard with Flowing Cloud Myriad Forms and binding it.
But the moment he landed among the trees, the spirit item seemed to sense the disturbance. It shuddered violently, then turned into a streak of light and fled deeper into the forest.
"Trying to run?"
Seeing this, Chen Xuan immediately used Flowing Cloud Moon-Chasing.
He hadn't expected the spirit item to bolt as soon as someone approached. It was completely different from the last one.
Still, it didn't matter. Chen Xuan wasn't worried that it could get away.
With Flowing Cloud Moon-Chasing at the perfect level, Chen Xuan's figure instantly became a flickering, elusive afterimage. His speed was astonishing, and he moved across the complex terrain as if it were flat ground. After just a few flashes, he had already closed the distance.
Relying on his perfect-level Flowing Cloud Moon-Chasing, Chen Xuan soon caught up with the fleeing streak of light.
With a thought, he used Flowing Cloud Myriad Forms. Several sturdy cloud-ropes shot out at once, accurately binding the mass of light tight before dragging it back to him.
The spirit item he had obtained this time resembled a smooth, lustrous piece of green jade. A soft glow flowed over its surface, where two parallel golden lines were clearly visible.
A Two-Pattern Spirit Item!
A smile appeared on Chen Xuan's face.
"Not bad, not bad. The spirit items are taken care of. Next comes the Heavenly Dao Qi."
As he spoke, he put it into his Storage Bag.
Instead of immediately searching for Heavenly Dao Qi, Chen Xuan went and retrieved the third spirit item located by the Cloud Sea Heaven-Observing Technique.
Another One-Pattern Spirit Item.
There were probably more than just these three spirit items throughout the Green Spirit Secret Realm.
It was simply that these three had been wandering outside, which was why the Cloud Sea Heaven-Observing Technique had locked onto them directly.
If he explored more carefully with the Cloud Sea Heaven-Observing Technique, perhaps he could find other spirit items.
But he hadn't come here to sweep up every spirit item.
No matter how many spirit items there were, they couldn't help him achieve Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment.
Chen Xuan now had the Cloud Sea Heaven-Observing Technique search for Heavenly Dao Qi with all its might.
He himself flew around the Green Spirit Secret Realm.
Moving around would help the Cloud Sea Heaven-Observing Technique find traces of Heavenly Dao Qi.
For three straight days, Chen Xuan kept moving around, but neither he nor the Cloud Sea Heaven-Observing Technique found any Heavenly Dao Qi.
"Could it be that no Heavenly Dao Qi has formed in this secret realm lately? Should I go check the other two Heavenly Dao Secret Realms?"
Chen Xuan couldn't help feeling a little helpless.
Heavenly Dao Qi only formed in Heavenly Dao Secret Realms, but the place and time when each strand appeared were unpredictable.
So finding Heavenly Dao Qi on one's own required a certain amount of luck.
If no Heavenly Dao Qi had formed in the Green Spirit Secret Realm recently, he could only go check the other secret realms. At the very least, he would have to visit all three of Jing Province's Heavenly Dao Secret Realms.
"I'll look around for a few more days."
After thinking for a moment, Chen Xuan decided to keep searching.
He couldn't give up too soon. After all, he had plenty of time.
For the next seven days, Chen Xuan continued searching the Green Spirit Secret Realm.
Still, he found nothing.
He had already made his way through the entire Green Spirit Secret Realm.
Now he really had to give up and head to the next Heavenly Dao Secret Realm.
Just as Chen Xuan was about to leave,
the Cloud Sea Heaven-Observing Technique reacted.
[Southeast, three hundred miles!]
[The aura of Heavenly Dao Qi has been detected!]
Chen Xuan paused, then his eyes lit up.
He rode the White Cloud Artifact, turning into a streak of light as he rushed southeast.
Before long, Chen Xuan reached the location indicated by the Cloud Sea Heaven-Observing Technique.
He also saw the precise location of the Heavenly Dao Qi it had indicated.
A short distance ahead stood a lone peak, its steep slopes reaching straight into the clouds.
The thing was at the summit.
Chen Xuan's figure flashed, and in the blink of an eye, he landed at the top.
[The Heavenly Dao Qi is concealed and has yet to emerge. It requires the right moment, when spiritual energy gathers and a mystery takes shape, before it will manifest.]
[Three months required.]
The Cloud Sea Heaven-Observing Technique appeared again.
Chen Xuan smiled and sat cross-legged. "As long as it's here, three months it is."
Heavenly Dao Qi was so important that he didn't even want to leave. He planned to stay here and guard it for three months.
After sitting down to rest, Chen Xuan took a book from his Storage Bag and began to read.
He had a dedicated Storage Bag filled entirely with books.
He had prepared them mainly because his cultivation techniques and Dao Techniques could cultivate on their own. Sometimes, when he secluded himself in cultivation, he got bored, so he had made these arrangements.
For an ordinary Spirit Sea cultivator, three months could pass quickly in seclusion. For him, though, they would be a little hard to endure.
He might as well read to pass the time.
[Your Dao Technique, "Purple Imperial Dragon Flame," wants to go out and gain experience!]
Suddenly, a light screen appeared.
Chen Xuan stared at it blankly. "Go out and gain experience?"
[The world is so vast. I want to go see it.]
Chen Xuan: "What, are you quitting? Even if you wanted to, you couldn't."
[I want to go out and find flames I can devour to strengthen my source.]
[Since you're not going to look for them and are waiting for Heavenly Dao Qi, I can only make the effort myself.]
Chen Xuan: "..."
After a moment of silence, Chen Xuan nodded. "Go ahead."
He had known for a while that the Purple Imperial Dragon Flame could act independently outside his body.
He hadn't tried it before because his cultivation had been too low. This was the perfect chance to give it a try.
After the Purple Imperial Dragon Flame left his body, he wouldn't be able to use Mystic Fire, but with a single thought, it could return to him.
So he wasn't worried about being caught without fire if something unexpected happened.
[I'm heading out!]
The next second, the Purple Imperial Dragon Flame left Chen Xuan's body.
As soon as it was out, it gave itself a pat and shot straight into the sky.
Chen Xuan watched as the Purple Imperial Dragon Flame flew farther and farther away, but did nothing to stop it.
Then he suddenly noticed something.
"The farther the Purple Imperial Dragon Flame gets, the more I'd expect my spiritual energy consumption to increase. Why doesn't it feel like it's gone up at all?"
A hint of doubt suddenly rose in Chen Xuan's heart.
Normally, the farther the Purple Imperial Dragon Flame went from his body, the more spiritual energy Chen Xuan would have to expend.
But now, it didn't seem to be working that way.
After thinking for a moment, Chen Xuan quickly figured out why.
A Dao Seal of the Purple Imperial Dragon Flame appeared in Chen Xuan's hand.
Dao Seals had many wonderful uses, as had been mentioned before.
Before you continue