Soul-Chasing Magpie
Within this Icefield Mystic Realm, there were also a dozen or so cultivators who looked quite ordinary and had very little presence. They were in groups of three or four, searching for something throughout the wilderness.
They paid no attention to the resources around them, passing by many resource-rich places without even glancing at them, instead searching everywhere with their own sophisticated compasses.
These people were staff members dispatched by the Myriad Connections Yuanling City branch to explore various secret realms near Yuanling City and create maps.
Basically, cultivators who have been in the Immortal Cultivation Realm for a long time, regardless of their cultivation level, know of their existence as long as they have been to the secret realm. Moreover, because they do not compete for resources, cultivators will not go up to cause trouble for them when they see them.
After all, there's no conflict of interest, and everyone will still need to buy map information from them in the future.
At this moment, one of the several teams of Myriad Connections cultivators arrived near a towering snow-capped mountain. They stopped at the foot of the mountain, solemnly raising their compasses to survey the mountain.
The team consisted of three people, all dressed and looking very ordinary; they were the kind of people who would be completely overlooked in a crowd.
"This is it. This should be the entrance to this gray dot." Liang Zhonghuai put away his compass, pointed to a patch of empty space in front of him, and nodded to the other two.
Upon hearing this, one of them nodded and said:
"Then let's not delay any longer and get ready to go in. I don't know if the remaining ten days or so will be enough for us to open this gray point."
In their map exploration team, areas that haven't been clearly explored are generally referred to as gray spots.
So the three of them set up some formations with specific functions designed for their map group near the snow mountain, and then decided to leave one person outside to guard the area while the other two went in to investigate.
After all, gray dots are full of unknowns, so it is a dangerous mission. Although the rewards are generous if you can find a gray dot, you have to be alive to enjoy them. So generally speaking, if you really find a gray dot, people are not very willing to go in.
However, Myriad Connections's map exploration team also has regulations on this matter. If a member fails to explore a single gray dot after ten consecutive attempts in the secret realm, or fails to enter a single gray dot after twenty consecutive attempts, it will be considered as passive resistance and the member will be dismissed.
In addition, 80% of previous remuneration and various bonuses will be recovered.
The trio at the foot of the snow-capped mountain discovered a gray dot. Their compass would record it, and they could use it to earn a reward upon returning. All three were quite happy, but the thought that discovering the gray dot meant they had to go inside...
Rock-paper-scissors was Liang Zhonghuai's weak point, and unsurprisingly, he lost.
Another man named Yu Guang also lost.
The only teammate who won was named Tong Hua.
Tong Hua contentedly took out a tent from his Storage Bag and set it up on the ground. He then lit a fire in front of the tent. And then, under the watchful eyes of Liang Zhonghuai and Yu Guang, he actually took out a pot of the Immortal Fragrance Pavilion's Pinhui Spirit Wine from his Storage Bag and put it on the fire to warm it up!
"Ah~ In this heavy snow, I am all alone, warming a pot of wine in this vast white world. How wonderful, how wonderful--" He seemed not to see the two people sitting at the tent entrance, his eyes slightly closed in admiration, before turning to the two resentful figures and feigning surprise:
"Oh? You haven't left yet? Go on, go on, I'll save a cup of wine for each of you, don't be shy."
Seeing his smugness, the two of them really wanted to pin him to the ground and give him a good beating.
After joking around, Tong Hua's playful expression vanished, and he said seriously to Liang Zhonghuai and Yu Guang:
"Please take note: if anything happens, your own safety must be your top priority. I await your good news."
The three have worked together for many years and share similar personalities, so they have a very good relationship.
Joking aside, they all genuinely hoped to successfully complete their mission and return home.
The two agreed.
He then turned around and walked to the entrance point that the compass had detected, and stepped inside.
Unexpectedly, as soon as they took one step, they suddenly felt a tremendous suction force pull them both in.
Seeing this, Tong Hua, who was watching from behind, frowned deeply.
He glanced at the formation that the three of them had just set up, and felt a little worried.
This is a formation issued by headquarters. It is said to be Transposition Formation personally made by the eldest disciple of the Eighth Spirit Lord. It has always worked very well, so there shouldn't be any problems this time either.
I hope this mission goes smoothly...
--
Meanwhile, Lin Xiao was braving the heavy snow, struggling to find a way across the snow-covered mountain.
Why is it considered difficult?
Because when they reached a small, flat area halfway up the snow-capped mountain, Liao Pantu would stop him immediately after he had walked only a few dozen meters, saying that he had gone the wrong way.
Then have him change direction.
As a result, after he changed direction and walked a few dozen meters, Liao Pantu would say that he had gone the wrong way again.
After going through this seven or eight times, Lin Xiao couldn't help but ask:
"Senior, what exactly happened?"
Liao Pantu, inside the Soul-Nourishing Pendant, frowned. He could feel that he was not far from his own soul body, but there was indeed nowhere to enter. Moreover, Lin Xiao had been wandering around here for a long time without seeing where he had stumbled into any entrance.
He thought for a moment before speaking:
"It seems there might be a hidden space within this secret realm. My soul should be inside, and this hidden space isn't far from us, but it didn't open an entrance here."
"So what do we do now?"
As soon as Lin Xiao asked the question, a semi-transparent hand reached out from his arms, holding a delicate jade magpie made entirely of emerald green and handing it to him.
"Try this."
"What is this?" Lin Xiao took it and examined it curiously in his hand.
"This creature is called the Soul-Chasing Magpie. It can track the whereabouts of a soul. If the entrance to that hidden space is open right now, it can find its way there based on my soul imprint."
"If you have this thing, why don't you just use it to find your soul's location? Why do you have to wait to hear the name of the secret realm to remember it?"
Liao Pantu said irritably:
"If that were truly possible, do you think I wouldn't want to? Do you even need to tell me? This Soul-Chasing Magpie cannot pursue souls across spatial barriers of different rules; it can only be used within the same spatial barrier."
Upon hearing this, Lin Xiao thought for a moment and then said:
"You think that even though the hidden spaces within this secret realm are separated, they are still within the same spatial barrier, so this Soul-Chasing Magpie is worth a try?"
Seeing that he had figured it out himself, Liao Pantu, who was exempted from the explanation, replied with satisfaction:
"That's right. I've already placed a wisp of my soul imprint in this Soul-Chasing Magpie. You just need to infuse it with Spiritual Power and then release it."
"Okay, I'll give it a try."