Qi Refining Great Perfection!

Following the guidance of "Detailed Explanation of the Secret Northwest Heavenly Gang and Earthly Sha Positions", Qi Yun transformed into a wisp of invisible pure energy and sped toward the nearest Earthly Fiend position, [Black Wind Ravine].

The catalog indicates that this place produces the "Earthly Protection Baleful Intent," one of the Seventy-Two Earthly Fiends.

Its aroma is pure and easily absorbed.

It's perfect for someone just starting out in this field.

As we continued our journey, we passed through a desolate and remote mountain valley.

A thick, nauseating stench of blood, mixed with the extreme fear and resentment of mortals on the verge of death, swept over us like a tangible, chilling wind.

Qi Yun frowned slightly, paused, and quietly lowered himself, landing on a secluded cliff overlooking the entire valley.

Everywhere you looked, there was a scene of utter devastation.

The once peaceful little mountain village has now become a desolate graveyard.

The dilapidated thatched hut was still emitting wisps of black smoke, and the charred beams and pillars were leaning precariously.

Corpses lay scattered everywhere on the dirt roads and in the courtyards of the village, including men, women, and children, all in gruesome circumstances.

Without exception, the corpses appeared unnaturally dry, with bite marks on their necks, and their blood and vital essence had been forcibly drained by some force.

All that remained were skeletons wrapped in pale skin, their faces frozen in the extreme terror of their impending death.

The air was filled not only with the stench of blood, but also with a pure yet chillingly malevolent aura that Qi Yun was familiar with.

It possesses unique fluctuations characteristic of the Yellow Springs Netherworld Cultivation Method, and...

Although the aura had weakened considerably, it still carried a quality that he remembered vividly.

"This is..." Qi Yun's eyes narrowed, and his Divine Sense spread out like threads, carefully sensing the traces of the remaining aura in this land of death.

Hmm? I remember now!

This chilling atmosphere carried with it a stubborn, stagnant sense of death.

Wasn't it the same person who soared into the sky in that small temple in Ghost-Crying Market and unleashed the Five Yin Bag to counter Situ Huaji's aura?

It's Wu Yushan!

That Yellow Springs Netherworld Situ Huaji Law Artifact and then fled with his wolf and fox spirit!

"I didn't expect him to have escaped here." Qi Yun's eyes narrowed slightly, a strange glint in them:

"It seems that Situ Huaji's punch wasn't easy to take."

Burning, stinging, emptiness.

These three feelings, like maggots gnawing at his bones, repeatedly gnawed at Wu Yushan's nerves, reminding him of the humiliating defeat he had suffered not long ago.

They huddled deep inside a makeshift, narrow, damp cave, its entrance concealed by crude camouflage.

The air was thick with the smell of earth and the putrid stench emanating from him.

"Cough cough cough-." The uncontrollable, violent coughing made Wu Yushan's curled-up body tremble.

A metallic taste rose in his throat, but he forced it back down.

Upon internal inspection, his Dantian and Purple Mansion were in complete disarray.

The Purple Mansion should have been like a deep, cold pool, filled with yin energy.

Now it is covered with spiderweb-like cracks.

At the center, a huge, shocking "cavity" that looks as if it had been blasted open by brute force.

That was the "mark" left by Situ Huaji's punch.

That punch not only shattered his natal magic Law Artifact, the Five Yin Bag, which he had painstakingly refined for hundreds of years.

Furthermore, through mental connection, a domineering, violent, and destructive intent was directly blasted into his Dao Foundation Core!

The Five Yin Bag is intertwined with his life; if the bag is damaged, the person will be harmed.

At this moment, he felt as if his Divine Soul had been torn open like a tattered sack, and his vital energy was leaking out uncontrollably.

Even more terrifying was the Situ Huaji, which resembled the most insidious flame.

It continues to burn and erode within his meridians and the cracks in his Purple Mansion, hindering any form of self-repair.

"Situ -Huaji--!" Wu Yushan practically spat out the name through gritted teeth, his pale face contorted with resentment.

He's at the Qi Refining Great Perfection.

He was only one step away from reaching the Foundation Establishment stage.

Even in the Yellow Springs Netherworld, he was a figure of considerable importance, wielding considerable power. How could he have ever suffered such humiliation and devastation?

He was nearly crippled by a single punch from a prisoner who had just escaped and was still recovering.

For several days, he had tried taking the healing pills he carried with him, but the effect was minimal.

How can an injury to the Dao Foundation be healed by ordinary elixirs?

What's needed is a massive amount of pure primordial energy to fill the deficit and nourish the damaged Purple Mansion and Divine Soul.

However, he can't even absorb the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi on a large scale right now, because that would expose his whereabouts and it would be too inefficient.

He couldn't wait; Situ Huaji likely still searching for him.

The sect is probably in chaos right now, and the journey is long; going back might not be a blessing.

Left with no other choice, he thought of the most primitive, and also the quickest, method.

But it is also the method most despised by the demonic path—blood sacrifice.

That's something only a bloodthirsty demon would do.

But in this situation, he had no choice but to turn his attention to the peaceful little mountain village outside the valley.

Those mortals, although their spiritual Spiritual Qi was almost non-existent.

However, if there are enough of them, the life essence and Blood Qi gathered together can temporarily stabilize his injuries.

So three days ago, he dragged his crippled body and sneaked into the mountain village like a ghost.

The process went smoothly, with almost no significant resistance encountered.

Looking at the bewilderment, fear, and despair on the faces of those mortals in their sleep or after being awakened, and feeling their Blood Qi and life essence flowing into his parched and broken body like a stream, bringing a trace of false "warmth" and comfort, Wu Yushan felt no ripples in his heart.

There is only a cold, predatory thrill in exploiting resources.

The law of the jungle, where the strong prey on the weak, is an inherent principle of nature.

It is an "honor" for these ants to be able to contribute to Wu Yushan's recovery.

Inside the cave at this moment.

Wu Yushan slowly opened his palm, and in his palm, a faint but pure wisp of blood-red essence was slowly rotating.

This was the last bit of essence he extracted from those villagers.

He opened his mouth and inhaled it.

A faint warmth spread out, temporarily suppressing the excruciating pain in his meridians.

The enormous "void" in the Purple Mansion seemed to have been filled with a negligible amount of fluid.

However, it's just a drop in the ocean.

This is just to quench thirst.

The Blood Qi of mortals are impure and mixed, far less nourishing than the primordial yang or essence of cultivators.

Moreover, this primitive and brutal plundering will exacerbate his own karma and inner demons.

This is extremely detrimental to long-term spiritual practice.

But now, he can't care about that anymore.

"We must find more cultivators' Essence Blood as soon as possible," Wu Yushan gasped, his eyes filled with malice as he plotted.

Perhaps, we could risk going to a smaller cultivation Lineage nearby or to a lone, independent Rogue Cultivator.

Just as he relaxed slightly and focused on the faint recovery within his body...

A subtle yet sharp and insightful fluctuation of Divine Sense swept past his crude illusion, like a gentle breeze.

Although the Divine Sense was withdrawn in an instant, so fast that it was almost an illusion, Wu Yushan was, after all, at the Qi Refining Great Perfection.

Even when severely injured, his perception still far surpasses that of ordinary cultivators!

His whole body stiffened abruptly, as if he had been doused with ice water, and all his thoughts froze instantly.

Someone's there!

Moreover, the newcomer possessed a refined Divine Sense, indicating he was no ordinary passerby!

Are they enemies?

Are they friends?

Forcibly suppressing his surging Qi and Blood, and gathering all his energy to the extreme, like a truly stubborn rock or withered tree, whose heartbeat almost stopped—who was this?

Has Situ Huaji caught up with us?

Or... some random Rogue Cultivator?

On the cliff, Qi Yun withdrew his probing Divine Sense, a playful smile slowly curving his lips.

"It really is you, Wu Yushan. You're a walking treasure trove!"

A cultivator at the Qi Refining Great Perfection!

Not to mention that the storage Law Artifact he carries with him must contain the secrets and accumulations of the Yellow Springs Netherworld.

His foundation alone lies in his Qi Refining Great Perfection cultivation.

If it could be completely devoured by the White Bone Skull [Essence Devouring]'s divine power.

The benefits it can bring are immeasurable.

Not to mention, as a deacon of the Ghost-Crying Market, one might be able to extract information from him about the Yellow Springs Netherworld and that "Foundation Establishment Item."

Its secrets.

A tremendous temptation, like a venomous snake, coiled around Qi Yun's heart.

But reason quickly prevailed over this greed.

Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse.

Wu Yushan was considered an opponent by Situ Huaji, which means his methods and scheming were far from ordinary.

Even severely injured, who can guarantee that a cultivator at the Qi Refining Great Perfection doesn't have a trump card up his sleeve, ready to fight to the death and perish together with his opponent?

I have just broken through to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, and my realm has not yet been completely stabilized.

To rashly confront such an old monster is extremely risky.

One wrong move and the roles of hunter and prey can be instantly reversed.

"A direct confrontation is the worst possible strategy." Qi Yun's eyes flickered, and thoughts raced through his mind.

"We should use their strength against them, let them test the waters first."

In this northwestern region.

They either hate the Yellow Springs Netherworld, or simply because of its wealth and power.

That's not a small number.

Thinking of this, Qi Yun's figure flickered, and he silently left the cliff. He did not go directly to Black Wind Ravine, but headed in the opposite direction.

He disappeared into an area he had previously detected using the Thousand Cranes Talisman, an area where there might be traces of cultivator activity.

Several hours later, outside a desolate valley filled with a faint smell of sulfur.

Qi Yun concealed himself and locked his gaze on a small group of cultivators who were preparing to enter the desolate valley to collect "Earth Fire Stones".

Their attire is neither that of the Yellow Springs Netherworld nor that of the Holy Sect.

Instead, it was a small cultivation Lineage that was affiliated with a certain unorthodox sect.

He waited patiently until one of the scouts broke away from the main group to relieve himself in a secluded spot, and then... whoosh!

A faint, almost imperceptible Southern Brightness Devil Fire Sword Qi carried with it a wisp of soil, imbued with its unique Yin Sha Qi, which had been extracted from outside the cave where Wu Yushan was hiding.

It shot towards the rock beside the scout like a ghost.

With a soft "poof," a small hole was pierced through the rock, and the Sha Qi belonging to Wu Yushan instantly spread out.

The scout was so startled that he almost collapsed to the ground. He hurriedly pulled up his pants and looked around warily, but found nothing.

But he keenly sensed the lingering, pure, and chilling Sha Qi in the air.

"This is—" The scout's expression changed.

Although his cultivation level was not high, he still had considerable knowledge.

This aura was far beyond what ordinary ghost cultivators could possess; it carried a chilling sense of majesty, yet it also seemed...

Somewhat weak and unstable?

His eyes darted around, and he dared not delay. He quickly ran back to the group and reported to the Lineage elder in charge. Qi Yun followed suit.

For the next day, he wandered like a ghost within a radius of hundreds of miles centered on Wu Yushan's hiding place.

Sometimes he would "accidentally" let a trace of Wu Yushan's aura mix with the Blood Qi released from the low-level Demon Beast he killed.

Sometimes, he would pretend to be a panicked Rogue Cultivator, mentioning, as if he had spoken out of turn while drunk, that he had sensed a powerful, injured ghostly energy fluctuation in a remote mountain valley.

Sometimes he would even use Sunken Abyss Iron Sand to leave rough marks in inconspicuous places, similar to the Formation Art set up by high-level cultivators in the Yellow Springs Netherworld when healing. His methods were skillful and his attention to detail was meticulous.

Each "leak" of information may seem accidental, but it is always logical and reasonable, so no one would suspect that someone deliberately orchestrated it.

Over the course of a few days, he packaged Wu Yushan's existence as a "fat sheep"—seriously injured, carrying valuable treasure, and attempting to conceal his whereabouts and recover his strength.

The news was like a pebble thrown into a still lake.

It began to spread silently.

The first to smell the scent were several small forces in the vicinity that had long-standing grudges against the Yellow Springs Netherworld, as well as some independent Rogue Cultivator groups that specialized in murder and robbery.

Wu Yushan's Qi Refining Great Perfection cultivation, even if it was just a remnant aura, was enough for these people to judge the target's "value." Greed quickly overwhelmed their caution.

Not to mention that many of them are desperate criminals who risk their lives.

Several days later, in the remote mountain ravine where Wu Yushan was hiding.

It started to get "lively".

One after another, figures, some in the light and some in the shadows, gathered silently from all directions, like hyenas drawn by the smell of rotting flesh.

They were wary of each other, yet they tacitly turned their gaze to the cave hidden by a crude illusion.

Inside the cave, Wu Yushan's face grew uglier day by day.

He clearly sensed that the number of probing Divine Sense around his hiding place was increasing, and becoming more and more brazen.

"Damn it! How could we have been exposed?!" He was both shocked and furious, a strong sense of unease welling up inside him.

He was confident that he had been discreet enough.

Unless a cultivator of the same realm personally searches for it, it is extremely difficult to be discovered.

Is it a coincidence?

Or was it deliberately designed?

There's no time to think about it!

"Boom!"

The first probing attack came crashing down.

A blazing fire talisman struck the illusion at the cave entrance.

This caused a violent ripple.

"Hey you inside, what kind of heroes are you, hiding your heads and tails? Come out and show yourselves!" A rough voice rang out from outside, filled with undisguised greed.

Wu Yushan's eyes instantly turned incredibly sinister.

Trouble has come knocking.

At this moment, however, it is dozens of miles away.

On a mountaintop shrouded in mist, Qi Yun sat cross-legged with ease.

Dozens of Thousand Cranes have already densely covered the area around the mountain valley, providing the clearest real-time footage.

A serene smile played on his lips, like a fisherman sitting calmly by a pond.

"Fight! Let's battle! Let me see how many trump cards this Qi Refining Great Perfection still has left to reveal."

1II