Nine-Leaf Star Herb

Deep within the Blood Reef Sea, thirty thousand zhang beneath the surface.

This was an absolute forbidden zone where even sunlight could not penetrate. Bone-chilling undercurrents churned through the seawater like countless steel blades, and the terrifying pressure could instantly crush an ordinary supreme-grade spirit artifact into a lump of scrap iron.

Everything was pitch-black. Only the occasional passing deep-sea beast gave off a faint, cold glow.

Qin Chen was enveloped in a faint dark-gold barrier of true essence. Like a meteor falling through the deep sea, he descended straight toward the great rift on the seabed, which resembled the gaping maw of an abyss.

"This is it."

Qin Chen hovered above the rift, faint starlight flickering in his eyes. Through the pitch-black seawater, he clearly saw a dark-red curtain of light slowly circulating in the depths of the rift. Countless savage blood-colored runes writhed across it like living creatures, radiating a terrifying fiendish aura that made the heart tremble.

This was the Nine Nether Blood Fiend Grand Formation recorded in the jade slip.

"What a vicious formation. Even after eight hundred years of erosion, it still retains such power. Without the token and the method for breaking the formation, even a mid Nascent Soul stage cultivator who forced their way in would have their nascent soul tainted by this endless blood fiend energy, dying with their cultivation extinguished."

Qin Chen snorted coldly. Without the slightest hesitation, his hands formed seals before his chest like butterflies flitting among flowers.

"Go!"

Thirty-six pitch-black Heavenly Dipper Restriction-Breaking Banners transformed into thirty-six streaks of black light, driving into the dark-red curtain's thirty-six formation nodes with unerring precision.

Immediately afterward, Qin Chen took the Bronze Fragment from his Storage Ring and tossed it toward the center of the formation.

Humm-

The instant the Bronze Fragment touched the curtain of light, it erupted with dazzling azure radiance.

Under the suppression of the azure light and the thirty-six formation banners, the wildly violent blood fiend formation slowly receded to either side like boiling water meeting ice, revealing a dark passage just wide enough for one person.

Qin Chen flickered, becoming a blur as he darted into the passage.

The instant he entered, he casually retrieved the formation banners. The blood-colored curtain closed behind him again, as though nothing had happened.

After he passed through the passage, the view before him suddenly opened up.

This was actually an undersea grotto enclosed within an enormous water-repelling barrier.

Freed from the pressure of the seawater, the air was filled with an ancient, timeworn presence. The spiritual energy was so dense it nearly condensed into tangible mist.

Qin Chen looked out and saw a magnificent cave abode built against a mountain ahead. Its entrance consisted of two enormous bronze doors, each ten zhang tall, carved with countless intricate formation patterns. Outside the bronze doors lay a vast, open spirit herb garden.

Unfortunately, eight hundred years was simply too long. Most of the spirit herbs in the garden had already withered and turned to drifting ash.

Yet Qin Chen's gaze was fixed firmly on a stone platform in the deepest part of the garden, protected by a damaged miniature Spirit Gathering Array.

Upon the platform grew a strange spirit herb, purple-gold throughout, with nine leaves, each bearing naturally formed patterns of stars.

It swayed quietly, giving off an unusual fragrance that refreshed the mind and spirit.

"The Nine-Leaf Star Herb! And judging by its age, it's definitely over thirty thousand years old!"

At last, a trace of joy appeared on Qin Chen's face, which had been as unruffled as an ancient well.

With this thirty-thousand-year-old Nine-Leaf Star Herb, he was completely confident he could ignite at least three more motes of micro star-dust within his body, bringing an earth-shattering qualitative change to his physical strength!

Qin Chen strode forward, just about to break the damaged Spirit Gathering Array and harvest the herb.

Just then-

Boom!

A deafening crash suddenly rang out from the water-repelling barrier above the cave abode.

Immediately afterward, an extraordinarily violent force tore a gash dozens of zhang long through the barrier. Raging seawater, mixed with several streaks of flight light, crashed into the herb garden like falling meteorites.

The light faded, revealing two groups.

Those on the left all wore sumptuous robes embroidered with black wave patterns. Their leader was a sinister-faced young man holding a folding fan, his cultivation already at the late Golden Core stage. Behind him stood two old men whose auras were as deep as abysses-both were actually half-step Nascent Soul experts!

Those on the right were all white-robed sword cultivators, carrying longswords on their backs, their sword energy soaring into the sky. Leading them was a young swordsman with an arrogant expression, likewise at the late Golden Core stage. Beside him stood a one-armed old man carrying an enormous sword case. The sword intent radiating from that old man was even a little sharper than that of a half-step Nascent Soul expert.

"Hahaha! The World-Breaking Shuttle really works! In the end, I still made it into Blood Sea Mad Saber's cave abode!" The sinister young man put away a silver shuttle covered in cracks and laughed without restraint.

"Yin Wuque, don't let your Blackwater Palace celebrate too soon. Our Heavenly Sword Sect will take the lion's share of the treasures here!" the white-robed swordsman snorted, refusing to yield an inch.

These two forces were none other than the Blackwater Palace and the Heavenly Sword Sect, renowned top sects of the inner Chaotic Star Sea.

Somehow, they too had obtained clues to the cave abode, and had actually used their sects' precious World-Breaking Shuttles to forcibly tear through the outer formation and break in.

The moment the two groups landed, their gazes instantly locked onto Qin Chen deep in the herb garden, along with the Nine-Leaf Star Herb radiating purple-gold light before him.

"A thirty-thousand-year-old supreme-grade spirit herb?!"

Yin Wuque's and the white-robed swordsman's eyes lit up at the same time, their greed plain on their faces.

Only then did their gazes fall on Qin Chen.

"A thirteen- or fourteen-year-old brat? At the early Golden Core stage?" Yin Wuque froze for a moment, then looked at Qin Chen as though he were an ant. A cruel sneer curled his lips. "Boy, no matter how you sneaked in, kneel down right now and present that spirit herb with both hands. Then cripple your own cultivation. Perhaps I'll show you great mercy and leave your corpse intact."

The white-robed swordsman also spoke coldly. "Hand over the herb and get out of the cave abode. Otherwise, die."

In their eyes, a mere early Golden Core stage youth facing such a formidable lineup from their two top powers had no path left but to kneel and beg for mercy.

Yet Qin Chen did not even glance at them.

With a calm expression, he extended his right hand, forced a drop of dark-gold blood essence from his fingertip, and gently touched it to the damaged Spirit Gathering Array. The formation instantly collapsed. He carefully pulled up the Nine-Leaf Star Herb, roots and all, placed it in a specially made cold jade case, and put it into his Storage Ring.

Only after finishing all this did Qin Chen slowly turn around, his indifferent gaze sweeping over the people before him.

"You've disturbed me."

His calm voice echoed through the spacious cave abode, yet carried a chill that seeped into the marrow.

"You're courting death!"

Yin Wuque flew into a rage. As the exalted young master of the Blackwater Palace, when had he ever been so utterly ignored by an early Golden Core stage ant?

"Elder Li, break this little bastard's limbs! I'll search his soul and squeeze every last secret out of him!"

"Yes, young master!"