Journey to the Forbidden Land

"Only now can it be considered a finished magical treasure," Lin Yun said softly.

Then he opened his mouth and inhaled. The Clearvoid Invisible Sword turned back into a strand of sword qi, which he drew into his lungs to nurture.

"Thank you, Junior Brother Han." Only after finishing all this did Lin Yun thank Han Li.

That bottle of diluted green liquid from Han Li had saved him over a hundred years of painstaking work!

After being refined with Cosmic Light True Water and Three Lights Divine Water, the Clearvoid Invisible Sword's foundation had become vastly different from Kuxing Toutuo's. Lin Yun could be said to have forged his own path within the Clearvoid Daoist Orthodox School's Invisible Sword Art.

In the future, he only needed to keep incorporating five metals essence, find some geng essence to incorporate as well, and continue refining the sword and nurturing its spirituality. That would take the Clearvoid Invisible Sword to greater heights.

"There's no need to thank me, Senior Brother. You've already helped me so much. It was only a bottle of water," Han Li said hastily.

This was his first time watching someone refine a treasure, and the experience had truly broadened his horizons.

Lin Yun shook his head with a soft chuckle, then handed the Clearvoid Invisible Sword Talisman Treasure to Han Li. "Consider this my thanks to you, Junior Brother Han."

The Talisman Treasure was of no use to him. He might as well give it to Han Li as thanks for that bottle of diluted green liquid.

"This is a Talisman Treasure of my Clearvoid Invisible Sword. Although I made it from just a single strand of sword qi, and it has less than a tenth of the Invisible Sword's power, its abilities are quite good. It can turn into a strand of invisible sword qi, appearing and disappearing at will, making it a fine weapon for catching people off guard. Not only that, you can also use it to perform Formless Sword Escape, concealing its bearer in the void and moving between existence and nonexistence. If you encounter an opponent you can't defeat, you can use it to retreat safely."

"A Talisman Treasure? Retreat safely?" Han Li's eyes lit up as he listened to Lin Yun describe the Invisible Sword Talisman Treasure's abilities, and he could not help tightening his grip on the talisman.

Although he already had a Talisman Treasure in the form of a small gray sword, how could that secondhand treasure, with who knew how many uses left, compare to one that could perform Formless Sword Escape?

Time passed. Not long after Lin Yun delivered another batch of pills to Xin Ruoyin, the day when the Blood-Colored Forbidden Land would open was drawing near.

One night, while Lin Yun was collecting Yin-Yang Dew, he saw Han Li suddenly return from outside, carrying a faint scent of rouge and powder.

Had Lin Yun not already all but mastered the White Yang Diagram, greatly enhancing his five senses, he might not have smelled it from so far away.

Lin Yun gave an amused smile and teased, "Where have you been enjoying yourself, Junior Brother Han? That's quite a scent of rouge and powder."

Han Li's expression changed. He hurriedly sniffed himself, then cast several cleansing spells on his body. Embarrassment showed on his dark face. "Senior Brother, ah... I'll go get some rest."

With that, Han Li hurried back to his room.

Watching Han Li's retreating figure, Lin Yun narrowed his eyes. A few days ago, Han Li had said he was going to buy some magical artifacts for protection. Who knew what he had encountered on the way back? Could he still have run into Chen Qiaoqian?

But Han Li isn't even going to the Blood-Colored Forbidden Land anymore. What kind of plot inertia is this? Lin Yun could not help muttering inwardly.

Early the next morning, before Han Li came out, Martial Uncle Ma suddenly appeared in the Herb Garden.

"Don't you already have a Foundation Establishment Pill, boy? Why are you still going to the Blood-Colored Forbidden Land? That place is no laughing matter!" Martial Uncle Ma blurted out as soon as they met.

He had been cultivating in seclusion for the past few months. The moment he emerged, he heard that Lin Yun had signed up for the Blood-Colored Trial.

"I felt that one Foundation Establishment Pill might not be enough, so I signed up for the Blood-Colored Trial to prepare a few more," Lin Yun said, offering the explanation he had prepared long ago.

Martial Uncle Ma sighed, then took out several bottles of pills and handed them to Lin Yun. "Take these healing pills. I hope you come back safely."

"By the way, where's that boy Han Li? He isn't planning to go to the Blood-Colored Forbidden Land, is he?" Martial Uncle Ma asked.

"Junior Brother Han plans to cultivate for a few more years. He'll go in five years, once he's thoroughly prepared." Lin Yun gave the explanation the two of them had agreed upon.

Unwilling to draw attention, Han Li had discussed it with Lin Yun and decided to wait until Lin Yun returned from the Blood-Colored Forbidden Land before attempting Foundation Establishment. Their explanation would be that he had bought Lin Yun's leftover Foundation Establishment Pill and, after taking it, succeeded in reaching Foundation Establishment through a stroke of luck.

Martial Uncle Ma's expression shifted at this. He recalled that, five years from now, the Blood-Colored Forbidden Land would close for sixty years. The Blood-Colored Trial held five years later was bound to be exceptionally bloody.

After a long silence, he sighed. "Well... forget it. He'll have to look out for himself."

A few days later, it was finally time to depart.

When Lin Yun arrived at the assembly hall, most of the disciples participating in the Blood-Colored Trial were already there.

He glanced casually around, and only one person in the crowd caught his attention: an elderly man with a head of white hair.

Lin Yun did not dare look at him for long, however. This old fellow was a genuine Deity Transformation old monster.

He could only mutter inwardly, When did that old monster Xiang Zhili join Yellow Maple Valley? How come I never noticed him before?

A little while later, once all the disciples participating in the Blood-Colored Trial had arrived, Sect Master Zhong Daoling began addressing them with words of encouragement.

Afterward, attendant disciples brought over storage bags containing high-grade magical artifacts, along with a pile of mid-grade spirit stones.

Following everyone else's lead, Lin Yun casually picked out a magical artifact and a wood spirit stone.

Then Li Huayuan, Yellow Maple Valley's Core Formation patriarch, walked in. He would be leading this expedition to the forbidden land.

By the time everyone reached a barren mountain aboard Li Huayuan's silver-armored horned python, two days and two nights had passed.

This was not the Blood-Colored Forbidden Land, however, but the gathering place agreed upon by the Seven Sects. Only after all Seven Sects had assembled would they set out together for the actual Blood-Colored Forbidden Land.

While waiting, Lin Yun noticed Xiang Zhili acting like a slippery old fox, leading people around to seek alliances with disciples at the eleventh level of Qi Refinement. Although he did not know what this old monster was after, Lin Yun revealed his twelfth-level Qi Refinement cultivation to avoid trouble, then sat to one side with his eyes closed, resting his mind so the old monster would not approach him.

Time flew by, and after a stir in the crowd, the people from the Qingxu Sect arrived.

Standing among the crowd, Lin Yun watched Li Huayuan and the Qingxu Sect's old Daoist Fuyunzi make a wager over a piece of iron essence. Suddenly, his expression shifted, and his gaze turned toward a spot behind the two men.

That escape technique is rather interesting. It really does capture something of the essence of Formless Sword Escape, Lin Yun thought, quietly averting his gaze.

A moment later, just as Li Huayuan and Fuyunzi were about to clap hands to seal their wager, an old man appeared between them and joined their bet. He wore a blue robe covered in patches, had short hair a few inches long, and carried a blue cloth bundle washed nearly white at his waist. His face was smeared with dark, greasy grime.

This man was none other than Old Monster Qiong of the Covering Moon Sect.

Shortly after Old Monster Qiong arrived, the people from the Covering Moon Sect reached the gathering place aboard an enormous green jade ship.

Standing among Yellow Maple Valley's disciples, Lin Yun merely glanced at the beautiful female cultivators of this sect renowned for its dual cultivation arts before looking away.

After the Covering Moon Sect arrived, the remaining four sects also arrived one after another as time passed.

Each sect had its own distinctive features: the Qingxu Sect's Daoists of all ages, the Covering Moon Sect's pairs of male and female cultivators, Spirit Beast Mountain's cultivators in colorful attire carrying numerous Spirit Beast Bags, and the Giant Sword Sect's cultivators with enormous swords on their backs...

The cultivators of these different schools truly opened Lin Yun's eyes. Although he often went down the mountain, he had never interacted with cultivators from the other six sects before.