Chapter 585: Chapter 585

Travel a thousand miles to assassinate someone, conceal your achievements and reputation.

Zhouyang found that he still somewhat enjoyed this feeling.

That Qi Family cultivator was indeed a treacherous and evil character!

While inspecting his storage ring, Zhouyang discovered dozens of human skin masks inside, each made from the real skin of living people.

The methods of cultivators make these masks look lifelike, just like when the person was alive, except the hollow eyes reveal they are merely masks, not real living people.

And the owners of these masks, without a doubt, were female cultivators of various ages and appearances.

From this, it was evident that this Qi Family cultivator not only practiced the evil Absorption Skill but also indulged in a perverted hobby of killing women after absorption and making masks from their faces.

Unfortunately, no evidence of his cultivation in the evil Absorption Technique was found in his storage ring; otherwise, there would be one more piece of evidence.

Even so, Zhouyang believed that once he handed those dozens of human skin masks over to the Profound Sun Immortal Sect, they would surely find a way to use this matter to create some trouble for the Qi Family.

Of course, the Qi Family cultivator’s storage ring contained more than just the incriminating evidence of human skin masks; there were quite a few treasures as well.

He was initially heading to the "Valley of Ten Thousand Flowers" to celebrate a Golden Core Female Cultivator’s birthday, and the life-extending treasure he prepared for the celebration was rather extraordinary—a Tier Five Spirit Elixir "Jade Marrow Golden Reishi."

This item can be refined into a spirit pill that enhances cultivation, taking a thousand years to mature for medicinal use and having extremely broad applications, usually only grown in the medicinal gardens of major powers.

Additionally, in this person’s storage ring, Zhouyang also obtained a bottle of Tier Five Spirit Pills that can enhance the cultivation of a Mid-Stage Golden Core Cultivator, over 200,000 Spirit Stones, more than ten top-grade Spirit Stones, and several other spirit pills and talismans.

All these items were his spoils of war and entirely at his discretion.

With these items, Zhouyang did not return to Chongxuan Mountain but went directly to Immortal Sun City.

Upon reaching Immortal Sun City, Zhouyang first visited the Profound Sun Pavilion to inquire about the purchase situation of "Cloud Breath Grass."

He had entrusted the Profound Sun Pavilion to purchase "Cloud Breath Grass" for nearly twenty years, yet there had been no news, which made him very curious.

"Please excuse me, Fellow Daoist Zhou, the [Cloud Breath Grass] is too niche in its application, and nearly no one cultivates it. We’ve been collecting for nearly twenty years and only gathered these fifteen plants. In my opinion, if you are not in urgent need of it, perhaps you could consider growing it yourself."

Inside the Profound Sun Pavilion, facing Zhouyang’s visit, the current Head Shopkeeper, Sun Zhengbin, warmly received him.

However, when he heard Zhouyang inquire about the purchase situation of "Cloud Breath Grass," Sun Zhengbin shook his head with a wry smile and explained the inside story to him.

"Fellow Daoist Sun, you’re joking. If I weren’t in urgent need of this item, I wouldn’t have entrusted your Profound Sun Pavilion to purchase it."

Zhouyang shook his head, not considering Sun Zhengbin’s latter remarks at all.

The "Cloud Breath Grass" is not a high-tier spirit elixir, but as a Tier Three Spirit Grass, its maturity cycle takes two to three hundred years. How could Zhouyang wait that long?

Thus, after a brief contemplation, he nodded and said, "Alright then, Fellow Daoist, please continue helping me purchase it. I’m willing to offer a higher price. Isn’t your current purchase price 2,000 low-grade Spirit Stones per plant? I’m willing to increase it to 4,000 low-grade Spirit Stones per plant—the more, the better!"

Four thousand low-grade Spirit Stones is nearly the top-tier price for a Tier Three Spirit Elixir. Under normal circumstances, selling such a Tier Three Spirit Elixir like "Cloud Breath Grass" might not even fetch 1,500 Spirit Stones.

Hearing this, Sun Zhengbin’s eyes flashed with surprise, and he couldn’t help but wonder why Zhouyang valued "Cloud Breath Grass" so highly.

But he immediately said, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, you are indeed magnanimous. I admire you. Please rest assured, I will immediately have the news spread out, and I believe with such a generous reward, the purchasing situation will surely change significantly."

Zhouyang nodded slightly, then left the Profound Sun Pavilion and headed towards the Profound Sun Mountain Range.

He had already communicated via Flying Sword with Master Cyan Yang, and upon reaching the gate of the Profound Sun Immortal Sect, his old acquaintance Xu Zhengyang was waiting for him there.

When the two met, after exchanging a few greetings, Xu Zhengyang said seriously, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, Junior Martial Uncle Qingyang is still waiting for you, so I won’t delay you any longer. After you meet with Junior Martial Uncle Qingyang, please come to Zhengyang Peak. I have something to ask for your assistance with!"

Upon hearing this, Zhouyang was momentarily taken aback, then immediately nodded and replied, "I understand, Elder Xu. Rest assured, Elder, I will visit you after meeting with Elder Qingyang."

After that, without saying much, Xu Zhengyang led Zhouyang all the way to the Profound Sun Peak and into the abode of Master Cyan Yang.

Zhou Yang entered the "Cyan Yang Cave" alone, and after greeting Master Cyan Yang, he recounted the process of killing the Qi family cultivator, handing over the human skin masks and some female cultivator’s magical artifacts from the storage ring as evidence to the latter.

"Very good, you did well in this matter. With these pieces of evidence, let’s see how Qi Fengyun can brag!"

After checking the items Zhou Yang presented, Master Cyan Yang smiled and repeatedly praised him, clearly satisfied with the completion of this task.

He then nodded slightly and said to Zhou Yang, "According to the initial agreement, every time you complete a task, there will be corresponding rewards granted by the sect. This time the task reward is two hundred thousand sect merit points. Do you want to exchange them for physical rewards now, or should I record them as accumulation here?"

Zhou Yang had been waiting for this, and upon hearing it, he immediately said, "Elder, thank you for your insight. My Dao companion has already formed the Core, and is now troubled by the refinement of a lifebound spiritual artifact. I wonder if your esteemed sect has any reserves of a Tier Five Tree Demon’s [Heart of the Tree Demon]? I’m willing to use this task reward plus some items of equal value to exchange for this as the reward!"

"A Tier Five [Heart of the Tree Demon] is rare and difficult to obtain. Our sect has many Golden Core Stage cultivators, so even if this item is occasionally acquired externally, it is quickly exchanged by someone. It isn’t available to you."

Master Cyan Yang gently shook his head, helpless in this regard.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yang was not particularly disappointed, as he had somewhat anticipated this result and had not held out much hope.

Thus, he promptly said, "Then I would like to request the elder to help post a bounty message seeking the Tier Five Tree Demon. Could this be done?"

In great forces like the Profound Purity Dao Alliance and the Profound Sun Immortal Sect, it is a common practice for high-level cultivators to post bounty messages seeking certain items through various bounty lists, and it usually works well.

After all, there are many cultivators within these forces, dispersed throughout the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm, who know countless bits of information. If providing just one piece of information can earn substantial rewards, even Golden Core Stage cultivators are happy to make some extra income.

Knowing this, Zhou Yang made this request.

However, after listening to him, Master Cyan Yang looked at him with a smile and said, "For posting a bounty message, at least fifty thousand sect merit points are required per post. Are you sure you want me to help with this?"

Fifty thousand sect merit points in the Profound Sun Immortal Sect, when translated to spirit stones, is at least eighty thousand, if not one hundred thousand.

And Zhou Yang, risking offending a top force to kill a Sixth-Layer Golden Core cultivator, only earned two hundred thousand merit points.

This made him feel quite pained.

But regarding the refinement of his Dao companion’s lifebound spiritual artifact, despite the pain, he could not delay this matter, so he had to endure the pain and nodded, "I am certain."

"Since that’s the case, I’ll get the message posted on the Wind Media List in both the sect and the alliance for you, and you will be notified once there’s news."

After speaking, Master Cyan Yang waved his hand saying, "If you have no other business, you may leave now."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yang hurriedly cupped his hand in salute, "Elder, if I may, I have another matter I wish to consult the elder."

He then explained the issue he encountered in cultivating the "Azure Dragon Body Refining Technique."

"From what you said, the problem shouldn’t lie with the cultivation method itself but is due to other reasons."

Master Cyan Yang, after briefly pondering Zhou Yang’s words, expressed his opinion.

"I have also felt this way but couldn’t figure out why this happens. This divine technique’s cultivation method was acquired from a magical artifact. Reasonably, since the elder inscribed this divine technique on the artifact, it wouldn’t make sense to leave a hidden mechanism to trouble future generations!"

Agreeing continuously, Zhou Yang expressed his confusion.

Master Cyan Yang’s eyes flickered upon hearing this, as if he had thought of something, and said, "I may understand what the problem is, show the artifact to me."

If other Nascent Soul Stage cultivators had made such a request, Zhou Yang might hesitate, especially since this Beast-Faced Dragon Cauldron artifact, assessed by Lu Xuanji, is a Tier Six middle-grade spiritual artifact.

But with Master Cyan Yang making this request, Zhou Yang felt assured, and promptly retrieved the Beast-Faced Dragon Cauldron artifact.

After inspecting the artifact in his hand, Master Cyan Yang put it down, nodded at him with a ’as expected’ expression, and said:

"Just as I suspected, the reason your body refining divine technique’s progress has slowed down suddenly is due to the lack of another auxiliary artifact, which is precisely this treasure cauldron. Using artifacts to aid in the cultivation of divine techniques was indeed a common practice among those top ancient body cultivators!"

Now everything makes sense!

Since cultivating the "Azure Dragon Body Refining Technique" beyond the fourth layer requires using the Beast-Faced Dragon Cauldron artifact, the cultivator who left this divine technique must have inscribed it inside the treasure cauldron.

Any cultivator who obtains this Treasure Cauldron will certainly not let go of such a Tier Six Middle-grade Spiritual Artifact without refining it.

Once someone refines this Treasure Cauldron, they naturally will be able to understand its inner secrets.

However, the cultivator who left the "Azure Dragon Body Refining Technique" probably never expected that Zhouyang, due to insufficient cultivation, has not refined this Tier Six Middle-grade Spiritual Artifact.

By chance and coincidence, he acquired a large amount of high-quality Tier Six Flood Dragon Spirit Blood at the Middle Stage of Golden Core cultivation, easily advancing the "Azure Dragon Body Refining Technique" to the Third Layer and starting to charge towards the Fourth Layer.

Thinking of this, Zhouyang felt a mix of amusement and helplessness, realizing that cultivating too quickly might also be a mistake.

He shook his head, dismissing such a fortunate dilemma, then directly asked Master Cyan Yang, "Elder Qingyang, I know the cultivation techniques and secret techniques stored within the Profound Sun Immortal Sect are vast and abundant as a sea of stars. Is there any secret technique that can allow me to refine this treasure now?"

"There is such a secret technique, but I suspect it is not suitable for you. These kinds of secret techniques can allow you to refine this Treasure Cauldron, yet with your current magical power, you probably cannot utilize the cauldron to aid your cultivation. It would be better to focus on improving your cultivation and consider this matter after advancing to the Late Stage of Golden Core."

Master Cyan Yang first nodded his head, then shook it, expressing his thoughts and advice gravely.

Zhouyang, however, did not heed his advice and stated firmly, "Whether it works or not, I need to try it to find out. Even if I reach the Late Stage of Golden Core, I normally cannot refine and use this artifact unless I reach the Ninth-Layer Golden Core, which could take hundreds of years!"

"Since you insist, I won’t force you. Here are three treasure refining secret techniques recorded by our sect; choose one yourself."

As Master Cyan Yang spoke, he pointed his finger at Zhouyang, transmitting the information about the three treasure refining secret techniques into Zhouyang’s mind.

This method of Primordial Spirit Transmission is a technique exclusive to Nascent Soul Stage cultivators, saving time on copying and reading, making it very convenient.

"I’ve made my decision; I’ll choose the ’Blood Soul Sacrificial Artifact Technique.’"

After analyzing the pros and cons of the three treasure refining secret techniques in his mind, Zhouyang quickly voiced his choice.

"Good, then remember this."

Master Cyan Yang said, concentrating as he pointed at Zhouyang once more, continuing to use the Primordial Spirit Transmission method to convey the complete usage of the "Blood Soul Sacrificial Artifact Technique."

After memorizing the secret technique thoroughly, Zhouyang heard Master Cyan Yang say, "This secret technique costs you fifty thousand sect merit points. Now you have one hundred thousand sect merit points left; do you need anything else?"

"Then I’ll take another portion of ’Purple Heart Jade Marrow’."

After a brief contemplation, Zhouyang made his decision.

"Alright, one portion of ’Purple Heart Jade Marrow’ costs ten thousand merit points. You can collect it from Junior Sun at the Profound Sun Pavilion later; I’ll notify him."

Thus, the twenty thousand merit points Zhouyang earned from slaying Qi Family cultivators was completely spent just like that.

He soon left the "Cyan Yang Cave" and joined Xu Zhengyang, who was waiting outside Profound Sun Peak, heading to Zhengyang Peak where Xu cultivates.

By then, Xu Zhengyang’s Dao Companion, Li Yuhua, had already passed away, making Zhengyang Peak feel somewhat empty without its female master.

"I’ve taken twelve disciples in my lifetime, yet only four remain alive today. Apart from one who accidentally fell, the rest exhausted their lifespan and passed away."

"If my disciples’ deaths didn’t affect me much, then it’s Yuhua’s passing that deeply touched me and made me begin to fear death immensely."

"I’ve lived for over eight hundred years, lifespan that ordinary mortals and low-tier cultivators combined couldn’t reach, but I still feel I haven’t lived enough. I want to live longer!"

"For a Golden Core cultivator to live longer, there are two paths: One is refining a pill and forming an infant, extending lifespan to three thousand years, or taking life-extending treasures to borrow the transformative power to prolong life."

"I’m working on the first path, but I’ve just broken through to the Eighth-Layer Golden Core recently, making it uncertain whether I can reach Ninth-Layer Golden Core in the remaining less than two hundred years, not to mention forming an infant in that time."

"So I wish to pursue both paths simultaneously, first extending life with life-extending treasures, then planning for Nascent Soul Formation."

"Inviting Fellow Daoist Zhou here, I seek his assistance to deal with a Tier Five High-Grade Demon Beast ’Frost Wolf King’ and obtain the life-extending spiritual object ’Crystal Ice Orchid’ that it guards."

On Zhengyang Peak, after offering Zhouyang a cup of spirit tea, Xu Zhengyang slowly disclosed why he sought Zhouyang’s presence.

He had helped Zhouyang numerous times, and Zhouyang, when he hadn’t yet formed the core, had once promised eventual repayment.

Now Zhouyang has formed the Golden Core, beginning to rise in prominence, and as an investor, Xu naturally wished to reap returns on his investment.

Zhouyang didn’t find anything wrong with this. If he were Xu Zhengyang, he certainly wouldn’t waste the opportunity to use a resource like himself for free and then owe favors to others by seeking their help.

Therefore, after a brief consideration, he nodded and replied, "Of course, it’s no problem for the junior to assist, but I wonder when Elder Xu plans to set off?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Zhengyang immediately said, "If Fellow Daoist Zhou doesn’t have any urgent matters, we can set off now. If we go quickly and return quickly, it will take at most one or two years to come back."

"There’s no urgent matter, but the junior needs to notify the Dao companions and disciples first, so they don’t worry when they can’t contact the junior."

"That’s necessary. Fellow Daoist Zhou, go ahead and take care of it."

So Zhouyang immediately went to the Profound Sun Pavilion, first collected the "Purple Heart Jade Marrow" promised by Master Cyan Yang, and then used the information network of the Profound Sun Immortal Sect to inform his Dao companion Xiao Ying about going far away with Xu Zhengyang to handle matters and asked her to stay assuredly at Chongxuan Mountain waiting for his return.

After accomplishing all this, he left Daoxuan Country with Xu Zhengyang, heading north towards the northernmost part of the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm, the Endless Snowfield.

The Endless Snowfield, like the Broken Cloud Mountain Range, is a perilous place, and it is the territory of the Snowfield Demon Tribe. If one can traverse the Endless Snowfield, they can reach the Beiting Continent Cultivation Realm.

However, this is very difficult, even harder than crossing the Broken Cloud Mountain Range.

Although the Broken Cloud Mountain Range is dangerous, it is not difficult to cross for Nascent Soul Stage cultivators.

The Endless Snowfield is different.

In the depths of the Endless Snowfield, there are not only Tier Six Demon Kings, creatures of the same level as Nascent Soul Stage cultivators, but also an alien race known as the "Ice Tribe."

These "Ice Tribe" individuals appear similar to human cultivators, but their blood is cold, and they are naturally adept at performing small spells like the Ice Bomb Technique and Ice Arrow Skill, powers not possessed by ordinary human mortals.

The Ice Tribe is distributed in tribes throughout the vast Endless Snowfield and even has settlements in the extreme north icefield further north of the Beiting Continent Cultivation Realm.

In terms of overall strength, the Ice Tribe might be the strongest alien race in the Spirit Realm, not weaker than the entire Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm’s human cultivators.

Just like how the alien races of the Wilderness Jungle hinder human cultivators from establishing exchanges with the Celestial South Continent Cultivation Realm, the Ice Tribe attacks human cultivators who attempt to traverse the Endless Snowfield. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ novel fire.net

In the Endless Snowfield, the Ice Tribe has a significant geographical advantage, making it difficult for human cultivators of the same tier to defeat them.

Due to the obstruction from the Ice Tribe and the "Nine Heavens Gang Wind" over the Endless Snowfield being stronger and more violent than elsewhere, even typical Nascent Soul Stage cultivators find it difficult to cross the Endless Snowfield to the Beiting Continent Cultivation Realm.

Only those like Lu Xuanji, a Ninth-Layer Nascent Soul "Half-Step True Immortal," or some exceptionally powerful mid-stage and late-stage Nascent Soul cultivators can attempt to cross the Endless Snowfield to the Beiting Continent Cultivation Realm for travels.

Fortunately, the Ice Tribe only resides in the depths of the Endless Snowfield, near the outskirts of the Endless Snowfield close to the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm is the territory of the Snowfield Demon Tribe, with many Snowfield Demon Tribe members residing there.

The target of Xu Zhengyang and Zhouyang’s trip, the Tier Five High-Grade Demon Beast "Frost Wolf King," is the king of a Snowfield Demon Tribe "Frost Giant Wolf" pack.

As a Tier Five High-Grade Demon Beast and the king of a group, the "Frost Wolf King" is certainly much more difficult to deal with than those solitary demon beasts.

Its mate is a Tier Five Middle-Grade Demon Beast, along with twenty to thirty Tier Four Demon Beast subordinates, many of whom are its offspring, and several hundred Tier Three "Frost Giant Wolf" followers.

Such a "Frost Wolf King" would even make a Ninth-Layer Golden Core cultivator hesitant to claim victory, so it’s no wonder Xu Zhengyang sought Zhouyang’s help.

The two of them took off from the Profound Sun Immortal Sect, and after flying nearly two million miles and spending nearly three months, they finally reached the northernmost part of the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm, the Endless Snowfield.

Zhouyang, during his time in the Kunxu Realm, had also visited the Cold Wind Plain, which is similar in environment to the Endless Snowfield but even more harsh.

However, the Endless Snowfield has its unique aspects, such as forests of snow pines, snow firs, and various cold-resistant trees, inhabited by creatures like ice bears, reindeers, snow foxes, snow rabbits, and snow weasels.

The "Frost Giant Wolf" pack preys on these forest-dwelling animals, and their lairs are usually located in ice caves at the forest’s edge.

"From here, heading north, after delving into the snowfield for 170,000 miles, we’ll reach the habitat of that pack of [Frost Giant Wolves]. For the page ahead, Fellow Daoist Zhou has to closely follow Xu, whether flying or walking, and must not fly erratically to avoid provoking those territorial Tier Five Demon Beasts along the way."

In the vast snowfield sky, after months of continuous traveling, Zhouyang and Xu Zhengyang stopped mid-air. Xu Zhengyang pointed ahead at the vast white snowfield, solemnly instructing Zhouyang about the precautions for the journey.

Their target is only the "Frost Wolf King." If they provoke other Tier Five Demon Beasts along the way, not only would it waste time by causing unnecessary complications, but it might also invite attacks from the numerous Tier Five Demon Beasts inhabiting the snowfield.

Though the snowfield demon tribes are not as cohesive as those in the Broken Cloud Mountain Range, they can easily reach consensus when dealing with human cultivators.

"Rest assured, Elder Xu, the junior knows what to do."