Before the Pill Cauldron Sect.
Something stirred in Ji Yuan's heart, but his expression gave nothing away.
He did not break stride, walking slowly toward the mountain as he asked grimly within his Sea of Consciousness, "What is it?"
"Something's wrong with the rear mountain of the Pill Cauldron Sect."
The Ghost Envoy's voice was grave.
"I know. It's the Heavenly Origin Tree."
Ji Yuan replied within his Sea of Consciousness, "I came here years ago to collect Heavenly Origin Resin. The Pill Cauldron Sect does have some foundation, after all. That tree has reached the Fourth-Tier Late Stage."
The Ghost Envoy ignored that and pressed on. "Do you remember what Zhao Fuguang and Huang Bingzhu said about the two Fifth-Order Great Demons in the Cinnabar Sea Secret Realm?"
"One was the Mountain-Suppressing Black Tortoise, and the other was the Ten-Thousand-Year Ancient Banyan King. Why?"
Ji Yuan's steps remained steady.
"The Ten-Thousand-Year Ancient Banyan King is inside the Pill Cauldron Sect right now, hiding within that Heavenly Origin Tree."
The Ghost Envoy spoke slowly.
Ji Yuan's step faltered. He nearly turned and left.
A Fifth-Order Great Demon was the equal of a human powerhouse in the Spirit Transformation Realm.
Even though he had devised the first four stages of "Sword Nine" and could kill Nascent Soul Peak cultivators above his own level, a gulf as vast as heaven and earth still separated him from a true Spirit Transformation powerhouse.
What was more, this was a wood-aligned great demon that had lived for tens of thousands of years. Its reserves were unfathomable.
If they truly fought, he would be lucky to escape in one piece.
Ji Yuan forced down the storm raging in his heart. His face remained impassive as he asked the Ghost Envoy within his Sea of Consciousness, "What