Chapter 926: Chapter 926

After a night of sand and dust, the sky had completely cleared. With the sun emerging, the entire world was now a scorching expanse.

The place had transformed into a different world entirely, vastly different from the apocalyptic-like scene of yesterday.

The surrounding terrain had undergone significant changes. The slope where Ding Fan had avoided the sandstorm was originally surrounded by flat land.

But now, looking around, there were over a dozen large sand dunes that were similar in size to the ones Ding Fan had used for refuge.

Taking in the surrounding scene, Ding Fan marvelled at the wonders of nature, but soon remembered something: the Stone Mountain mentioned by the woman from East City.

The climate here was incredibly harsh, and based on the tornado from last night, altering the terrain seemed far from impossible.

For a moment, Ding Fan wondered if the sandstorm had completely buried that Stone Mountain.

While Ding Fan was lost in idle thoughts, a silver-white shadow suddenly darted past him.

As the white shadow passed by, Ding Fan quickly sent out his Divine Sense to investigate.

When Ding Fan's Divine Sense caught sight of the white shadow, he couldn't help but doubt his own eyes.

The white shadow was actually a spiritual beast known as the Spirit Probe Beast in the Cultivation World.

The so-called Spirit Probe Beast was known for its extraordinary sensitivity to spiritual energy, making it highly sought after by powerful cultivators in the Cultivation World. These beasts were often raised to help locate Spirit Stone Veins using their keen spiritual senses.

However, while these beasts were valuable, they were exceptionally difficult to capture and raise.

Just their movement technique alone was so advanced that even Emergence Stage cultivators struggled to catch them. Ding Fan, who was still far from reaching the Emergence Stage—two to three major ranks away—had no chance of capturing the beast. This was testament to the Spirit Probe Beast's elusiveness.

The Spirit Probe Beast was not only hard to catch but even harder to nurture.

Its consumption of spiritual materials was astonishing—reportedly even surpassing the daily intake of an Emergence Stage cultivator. Simply put, anyone who could afford to raise such a beast would likely belong to one of the Great Gate Sects.

What surprised Ding Fan even more was that, despite Earth being so barren of spiritual energy and cultivation resources, this beast—known for surviving solely on spiritual materials—could exist here.

Having confirmed that the beast before him was a Spirit Probe Beast, Ding Fan became increasingly certain that the desert held secrets. By his estimation, this desert might conceal a Spirit Stone Vein.

Without such a vein, how could the beast possibly survive here?

Though Ding Fan had no method to capture the Spirit Probe Beast, tracking it with his Divine Sense posed no challenges. Ding Fan's Divine Sense had a reach of twenty kilometers, so no matter how agile the beast was, it couldn't outrun him for such a distance.

With that, Ding Fan rose to his feet, maintaining a comfortable distance that ensured the beast wouldn't feel threatened. Quietly, he followed behind.

The Spirit Probe Beast was highly alert and only relaxed when Ding Fan maintained a distance of five to six kilometers.

Although Ding Fan currently possessed ample cultivation resources, the temptation of discovering a Spirit Stone Vein was overwhelming. Even in the Cultivation World, obtaining a vein was a joy capable of elating anyone.

While trailing the Spirit Probe Beast, Ding Fan realized someone else was also following it.

Using his Divine Sense, Ding Fan quickly identified the other person trailing the beast—it was the same individual who had slashed at him with Wind Blade the previous night. Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵⟡𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮⟡𝓷𝓮𝓽

From the figure's movements, Ding Fan surmised it was a woman, around the same age as him.

Although the woman wielded a magic artifact to conceal her cultivation, Ding Fan deduced from her stature that her cultivation level was at least at the Heavenly Level.

A young woman at the Heavenly Level in the heart of the desert...

While Ding Fan didn't concern himself with her identity, her presence here nonetheless intrigued him.

The woman's goal was evidently different from Ding Fan's, as her focus was clearly on capturing the Spirit Probe Beast.

With his current Golden Core Stage cultivation, Ding Fan had no chance of capturing the beast, so it was even more improbable for a Heavenly-Level cultivator to succeed.

As Ding Fan followed, the Spirit Probe Beast repeatedly evaded the woman's attempts to catch it.

However, it was unclear what technique the woman used, as despite the beast outpacing her, she was always able to pinpoint its direction again with surprising accuracy.

The chase between Ding Fan, the Spirit Probe Beast, and the woman lasted the entire day. It was evident the beast was aware of being pursued by the woman, purposefully leading her in circles to shake her off.

While contemplating whether to drive the woman away to better track the beast, Ding Fan noticed the Spirit Probe Beast led her into a quicksand area.

Once inside the quicksand area, the woman was quickly trapped there.

Using his Divine Sense, Ding Fan scanned the quicksand zone. Its magnetic field seemed unnatural, as if something lay underground.

Even so, Ding Fan's Divine Sense failed to penetrate the mysterious obstruction below the quicksand—it was as if something was actively concealing it.

While probing the quicksand area, Ding Fan suddenly sensed an unusual aura.

The aura emanated from the woman.

Ding Fan immediately focused his Divine Sense on her and, upon piecing the situation together, was left astonished; the woman held an Immortal Talisman.

The Immortal Talisman in her hands was vastly different from the three talismans rumored to have fallen into the Mortal Realm.

Ding Fan had once accidentally entered the Immortal Realm and thus held knowledge about Immortal Talismans. The ones in the Mortal Realm were blank, while the talisman that Gusu Qingwen had once held bore inscriptions.

Ding Fan's Divine Sense revealed that the woman's talisman also was inscribed.

From this observation alone, Ding Fan could ascertain that the woman was a disciple of the Immortal Sect. Seeing her trapped in quicksand and likely facing mortal danger, she had likely revealed the talisman as a signal for the Immortal Sect to understand an Immortal disciple had perished here.

Now aware that she was from the Immortal Sect, Ding Fan prepared to help.

After all, Ding Fan had deep ties with the Immortal Sect. Setting aside everything else, he owed a promise to Gusu Qingwen. Additionally, as the Sect Master of the Spirit Sect, future alliances between his sect and the Immortal Sect in combating the Ghost Sect were inevitable.

From every angle, it was his duty to assist an Immortal Sect disciple in distress.

With that, Ding Fan immediately activated his Sword Control technique.

Flying at incredible speed, Ding Fan closed the two-to-three-kilometer distance between them in less than a minute.

Arriving at the edge of the quicksand, the woman noticed Ding Fan's presence.

This allowed Ding Fan to get a clear look at her appearance—she looked rather plain. However, upon seeing him, she frowned deeply.

Ding Fan didn't even need to use Divine Sense to deduce that the woman was using a disguise artifact. Her current appearance was not her true face, and the artifact's quality was so high that Ding Fan couldn't discern her actual features.

Upon recognizing Ding Fan, the woman hesitated briefly, clearly surprised to see him.

This woman undoubtedly knew Ding Fan. Using disguise techniques, she had concealed her identity.

In truth, the woman was none other than Gusu Qingwen.

Since the Immortal Sect portal was sealed, Gusu Qingwen had been melancholic, often pondering why she cared so much about the closure of the portal.

Even when the portal had been open, she had never ventured into the Mortal Realm.

During a period of self-reflection, Gusu Qingwen realized the source of her unease—Ding Fan's words still lingered in her mind.

He had vowed to one day become a great hero admired by all, promising to personally come for her as his bride.

Each time Gusu Qingwen recalled this, she would chuckle in disbelief, convinced that a mortal like Ding Fan could never surpass the achievements of Immortal Sect disciples.

Nonetheless, Ding Fan's shadow continued to haunt her thoughts. When Ruan Yuan was eventually allowed to enter the Mortal Realm with the help of both sect elders and the Sect Master, she found herself wishing to follow as well.

Gusu Qingwen told herself it was merely curiosity, that she wanted to see how far Ding Fan had progressed. She wished to witness his mediocrity firsthand to bury her lingering hopes.

She had never expected Ding Fan to fulfill his bold declarations.

Later, when the Immortal Sect decided to send another disciple to accompany Ruan Yuan, fearing one person's strength might not suffice, Gusu Qingwen volunteered.

Due to the severed connection between the Immortal Sect and the Mortal Realm, the designated arrival point had deviated significantly, landing Gusu Qingwen in the middle of the ocean.

It was coincidental that she learned of the Seal Stone and thus ventured into the desert.

While in the desert, she was pursued by Ghost Sect cultivators. The previous night, she hid behind a sand dune, prepared to confront them, only for Ding Fan to appear. Mistaking him for a Ghost Sect attacker, she decisively attacked.

After Ding Fan dodged her assault, she fled, no longer able to fight due to injuries sustained.

And now, she unexpectedly encountered Ding Fan once again…

Everything seemed like a joke played by fate—even Gusu Qingwen hadn't anticipated meeting him here.

At that moment, Ding Fan drew out the long whip of Wu Qiankun, Sect Leader of the Myriad Demon Sect.

"Grab the whip," Ding Fan said, tossing the whip far towards her.

The quicksand was highly dangerous. If Ding Fan himself were trapped, he'd be consumed entirely by the sand, leaving him no choice but to use this method to rescue her.

Gusu Qingwen glanced at the whip Ding Fan had thrown but didn't immediately grab it.

"If you don't want to die, grab the whip," Ding Fan said sternly, impatient with her hesitation.

Given the peculiar magnetic field surrounding the area, any further delay could lead to unforeseen consequences.

The quicksand was nearing Gusu Qingwen's mouth, and although she detested being saved by Ding Fan, she ultimately had no choice. Summoning her strength, she grabbed onto the long whip.

With Ding Fan's effort, Gusu Qingwen felt her body lighten, and soon, she was pulled free.

As she soared into the air, Ding Fan caught her and quickly set her down, careful to avoid any accusations of taking advantage.

"My Immortal Talisman…" Gusu Qingwen exclaimed anxiously as soon as she was brought up.

Glancing at the quicksand, Ding Fan replied, "Being alive is enough. Forget the rest..."