Hidden Moth

With Sikong Muyue at the center, they were joining forces to breach the restrictions on each peak. The restriction atop this summit had evidently endured a long barrage of attacks and had only just shattered. The moment the restriction broke, everyone on the Eight Trigrams formation let out a heavy breath of relief. Feeling drained of energy, they were secretly shocked. Even with so many of them joining hands under Sikong Muyue's command, they had nearly failed to break it. It was evident just how powerful the surviving ancient restrictions were. Fortunately, Sikong Muyue had stepped forward to rally everyone and breach the barriers together; otherwise, they would likely have returned empty-handed. Once the restriction shattered, a magnificent palace of carved railings and jade masonry was revealed within. Treasures lay inside the palace. A few gazes grew burning hot, yet not a single person rushed inside to loot them. Instead, they all sat down cross-legged, seizing every moment to recover their spiritual power. Only Sikong Muyue tapped a finger onto the Eight Trigrams formation, whereupon the remaining black-and-white qi condensed into a massive hand that plundered the magnificent palace with unrestrained momentum. Anything blocking its path was shattered by sheer brute force, reducing the palace to ruins in the blink of an eye. When the giant hand returned, it gripped dozens of items: weapons such as sabers and swords, various magic tools like mirrors, flutes, and pagodas, several kinds of spiritual materials, and even jade bottles containing pills—though, regrettably, their spiritual light was dim and their spirituality long lost. The crowd broke from meditation together, staring with burning eyes at the treasures clutched in the giant hand, yet everyone suppressed their greed and quietly waited for Sikong Muyue to distribute them. Sweeping her gaze across them, Sikong Muyue waved a sleeve to toss aside the items that had lost their spirituality. Her spiritual power swept up a spirit sword as she announced, "Flame Radiance Sword, a top-grade spirit tool. Make your bids." "One thousand low-grade spirit stones!" "One thousand three hundred..." "I don't have enough spirit stones. Would any Daoist friend be willing to trade one thousand spirit stones for my Ocean Rock Gold?..." ... Sikong Muyue auctioned off each acquired treasure one by one, then divided the resulting spirit stones equally among everyone, including herself. No one raised any objection, and the atmosphere remained remarkably harmonious. Only a Core Formation master like her possessed the prestige to keep such unruly cultivators under control. It seemed this was not their first time doing so; with scarcely any disputes, the spoils were distributed with extreme efficiency, and they then maneuvered the Eight Trigrams to fly toward the next restriction. Qin Sang and Old Man Dique looked up, watching the entire scene unfold. Before Qin Sang had entered the courtyard, Sikong Muyue had yet to appear. Old Man Dique had lingered outside instead of entering the Four Heavenly Peaks, which had surprised Qin Sang, but he had not expected Sikong Muyue to have stayed away as well. Now it appeared that almost everyone who had entered this ancient cultivator's abandoned abode had flocked under Sikong Muyue's banner. After all, with a Core Formation expert presiding over them, they could obtain treasures peacefully and safely—why wouldn't they? Qin Sang noticed Mu Yifeng and Yu Daiyue among the crowd, but strangely, Yunyouzi was nowhere to be seen. Old Man Dique's expression grew increasingly ugly. Finally, he gave an angry snort and snapped coldly, "Keep up!" Qin Sang did not know why Old Man Dique was so furious, but knowing better than to incur his wrath, he quickly leapt up to follow, only to see Dique flying straight into the depths of the mountain range toward the Four Heavenly Peaks. "Gazing at a mountain can run a horse to death." This worldly idiom held true here as well. The Four Heavenly Peaks expanded rapidly in their vision, and even before reaching them, Qin Sang could already feel their magnificent, imposing aura. Qin Sang exerted all his strength, barely keeping pace with Old Man Dique. Just as they neared the foot of the Heavenly Peaks, Dique's figure paused. His gaze turned hawk-like and sharp as he scanned several peaks below. Then, Old Man Dique pressed his palm down through the air. A burst of Thousand Illusions Divine Sound power erupted from his palm, silently cloaking the area. Only then did he emerge from the void, stepping onto one of the mountaintops as he barked, "Come out!" The mountains remained in dead silence. A flicker of impatience crossed Old Man Dique's eyes. Staring at a cliffside on the mountain, he said coldly, "Must this old man drag you out himself?" No sooner had his voice fallen than a layer of dark light surged across the cliff face, and a figure stepped out from it. Qin Sang recognized this man. His name was Ren Hong, a cultivator at the middle Foundation Establishment stage from the Wind Thunder Sect. The Wind Thunder Sect was on par with the Medicine King Sect in strength, holding considerable influence at Xuanlu Pass. After Ren Hong stepped out from the cliff, the dark light withdrew inward of its own accord. Only then did Qin Sang realize a restriction existed upon the cliff, and Ren Hong had already partially broken it. "Ren Hong pays his respects to Senior!" Ren Hong's expression shifted uncertainly, yet he dared not show the slightest disrespect toward Old Man Dique. Puzzled, he asked, "May I ask why Senior has summoned this junior?" Old Man Dique gave him a glance and said indifferently, "You have already breached two of the three layers of the restriction here. It seems you have some attainment in the dao of restrictions. However, the third layer is not so simple. Without the cultivation of the Core Formation stage, no matter how profound your attainment, breaking it is out of the question." Hearing this, Ren Hong forced a bitter smile. "Senior's eyes are keen as lightning. This junior has indeed attempted it multiple times without shaking it in the slightest and was just about to give up. I wonder if Senior has the time? This junior is willing to assist Senior in breaking the restriction and offer all the treasures inside to Senior..." "This old man would hardly stoop to robbing a junior like you!" Old Man Dique snorted, his tone softening slightly. "However, I happen to have a matter that urgently requires an extra hand. If you agree to work for me, I can help you breach the restriction, and every treasure inside will be yours. Are you willing?" Ren Hong was taken aback. He glanced at Qin Sang, who stood silently to the side, and hesitated. "May I ask what Senior requires of this junior? Is it within the abandoned abode or outside? It shouldn't take too long, should it?" Old Man Dique replied impatiently, "Naturally inside the abandoned abode! Once we leave the abode, this old man couldn't be bothered with you!" "This..." Ren Hong hesitated for a moment. Sensing Old Man Dique's gaze turning ominous, he gritted his teeth and made his decision. "This junior will certainly assist Senior with all his might. I must trouble Senior to take action!" Ren Hong had already figured out the inner workings of the restriction on the cliff; he had merely lacked the strength to breach it. With Old Man Dique intervening, it was naturally effortless. Even while acting, Old Man Dique did not forget to shield the surrounding space, unwilling to let anyone detect his tracks. Before long, the restriction on the cliff silently dissolved, revealing a cave dwelling within. Old Man Dique retracted his magic treasure and stood with his hands behind his back, seemingly genuinely uninterested in the treasures inside the cave dwelling. Only then did Ren Hong breathe a long sigh of relief. He bowed to Old Man Dique, ducked into the cave dwelling for quite some time, and only then re-emerged. Afterward, flanked by Qin Sang and Ren Hong on either side, Old Man Dique continued flying toward the Heavenly Peaks. Before long, the three figures arrived before one of the Heavenly Peaks. Old Man Dique landed at the foot of the mountain and glanced around. Suddenly, he darted in front of an inconspicuous rock, from beneath which a gray streak shot out. It was an unremarkable moth! A Hidden Moth! At the sight of this moth, Qin Sang's heart stirred. He had seen it in the illustrated compendiums of the Yuling Sect. The Hidden Moth was also a type of rare insect. While not as rare as the Fire Jade Centipede, it was still exceptionally scarce. Hidden Moths possessed no great might, and their lifespans were very short, just like ordinary insects. They had only a single ability: they could blend seamlessly into mountain rocks to conceal themselves, like inanimate stone. Even cultivators found them exceedingly difficult to detect.