Entering the Valley

"What?"

"Someone dared to attack disciples of the Divine Firmament Dao Sect?"

The two Outer Disciples' expressions changed drastically at his words. They could hardly believe it.

"That's exactly what happened!"

Li Yunjing wiped his tears and choked out, "If I hadn't had my supreme-grade magic artifact, the Gale Boots, I'm afraid I wouldn't have escaped with my life."

By the time he finished, Li Yunjing was nearly sobbing.

"Damn it! This is serious! Come with me at once to see Deacon Wang!"

The previously cold-faced Outer Disciple was flustered and furious. Without another word, he took Li Yunjing and headed into the valley.

Seeing Li Yunjing still standing there in a daze, the other man barked, "Hurry up and follow!"

"Yes, Senior Brother!"

Li Yunjing sighed and followed the man ahead of him into the valley.

The valley was somewhat scorching, noticeably hotter than outside, as if they were two different worlds.

It was barren here. Aside from rocks, there was nothing but rocks.

Of course, in the distance, Li Yunjing saw rows of houses, all built from stone.

He guessed they were the miners' quarters.

On the other side stood several houses that had been built quite well.

They were probably where the Divine Firmament Dao Sect's Outer Disciples lived.

Besides that, many caves seemed to have been dug into the valley's cliffs.

Li Yunjing had no idea what lay inside them, but they didn't look like mine shafts.

He had already spotted a huge opening far in the depths of the valley. The cave was pitch-black, and he couldn't make out what lay within.

Outside the opening, some raggedly dressed commoners went in and out.

They carried baskets and shoulder poles, hauling something.

The place was too far away for Li Yunjing to see clearly, but since this was a Spirit Stone mine, he could guess what the baskets held without looking.

They made their way along a bumpy road.

Li Yunjing sensed countless gazes sweeping over him.

He didn't know how many people were lurking in the shadows. Such tight security made his heart pound.

After following the Outer Disciple for three li, Li Yunjing arrived in front of a stone cave built into the cliff.

The Outer Disciple stopped there.

As Li Yunjing watched, the Outer Disciple quietly recited a few words of an incantation, then raised his hand. A streak of azure light flew from his palm and vanished into the unfathomably deep cave.

After a while, something inside seemed to respond.

Ripples spread across the cave entrance. A dazzling red light appeared in the air, twisted for a moment, then vanished, leaving everything calm again.

Right after that, two Inner Disciples dressed in green robes walked out of the cave.

"There's a restriction here! The defenses are incredibly tight."

Li Yunjing was taken aback. He hadn't expected such formidable defenses at the entrance to a cave. It seemed that without knowing the lay of the land, one wrong step could cost him his life.

The thought made Li Yunjing even more cautious.

He had to keep up with the Outer Disciple and make sure not to let his guard down. One wrong step, and he'd be finished.

"Chen Zongfu, what brings you here?"

One of the Inner Disciples asked coldly.

"Reporting to you, Senior Brother Ma. This is a fellow disciple who was transporting provisions. Something happened along the way."

Outer Disciple Chen Zongfu tensed and hurriedly pointed to Li Yunjing as he spoke.

"Hm? Tell me everything."

The Inner Disciple called Senior Brother Ma paused in surprise, then asked in a low voice.

"It happened like this..."

Chen Zongfu quickly repeated Li Yunjing's account.

"Heh, interesting! Someone actually dared to target our Divine Firmament Dao Sect? They must have a death wish!"

The two Inner Disciples sneered repeatedly.

They showed no reaction to the deaths of the four Outer Disciples. They were simply angry that anyone would dare show such disrespect to the Divine Firmament Dao Sect!

Within the Divine Firmament Dao Sect, neither Servant Disciples nor Outer Disciples counted as "one of their own."

Only after reaching the Inner Sect did a disciple count as one of the sect's own.

The difference in cultivation between Inner and Outer Disciples didn't seem all that great, but in terms of combat strength, the gap was enormous.

Inner Disciples could truly learn the sect's True Disciple cultivation arts and divine abilities. They also possessed a full set of supreme-grade magic artifacts. Some Inner Disciples were even so powerful that they could obtain spirit artifacts for protection.

Above low-grade, mid-grade, high-grade, and supreme-grade magic artifacts came spirit artifacts.

Spirit artifacts were also divided into four grades.

Spirit artifacts were generally used by Foundation Establishment cultivators. With treasures of that level protecting them, these Inner Disciples were all incredibly arrogant.

Of course, they had every right to be.

There had been many instances in the Divine Firmament Dao Sect of Inner Disciples encountering Foundation Establishment cultivators who hunted them down while they were out training.

Escaping such pursuit was commonplace. Turning the tables wasn't unheard of, either. There had even been several cases of the weaker defeating the stronger and killing Foundation Establishment cultivators.

These tales had spread throughout the Divine Firmament Dao Sect and were eagerly discussed by every generation of Qi Refining Realm disciples.

Every one of them dreamed of achieving the same feat one day.

The Divine Firmament Dao Sect's inheritance far surpassed that of ordinary Rogue Cultivators, small Lineages, and minor sects. The gap in combat strength was obvious, and its disciples could never be treated like ordinary cultivators of the same rank!

So the two Inner Disciples naturally looked down on Outer Disciples. They seemed unmoved by their deaths.

"In that case, the two of you, come inside with us."

Senior Brother Ma nodded, then turned and headed into the cave with the other disciple.

Chen Zongfu and Li Yunjing followed them inside, one after the other.

The cave wasn't hot at all. It even felt cool, and its temperature was similar to that outside Red Sun Valley.

Fist-sized luminous pearls were embedded all along the cave walls.

They illuminated the path clearly.

Li Yunjing followed the three men without trouble. The cave was three zhang high and one zhang wide. It wound and twisted, and its floor was covered in black, unfamiliar gravel. There wasn't a trace of life anywhere—not even moss.

They kept going forward. After walking a full three li, Li Yunjing realized that they seemed to be heading downward!

By now, they were deep underground.

After another two li, a vast cavern opened up ahead, filled with light and no different from the outside world.

Before long, the four of them were inside the stone chamber.

It was a square space, ten zhang across, with a ceiling three zhang high. Glass lamps hung along every black wall.

The floor was paved with stone slabs. The place was laid out like a study, neat and tidy.

Behind the desk stood a bookshelf against the wall, packed with all kinds of books. A few shelves beside it held various objects.