With two Nascent Soul True Monarchs, Qingmu and Ling Meng, holding the line, everyone felt noticeably more at ease along the journey.
They chatted and laughed along the way, discussing various anecdotes and secrets.
Li Fan merely listened with a faint smile, never joining in.
As they traveled, they occasionally encountered cultivators from other provinces.
While exchanging news and experiences, Li Fan learned by chance that prophecies claiming the Medicine King Sect's Medicine King Cauldron was about to return had already begun circulating across various regions.
At this point, however, people only treated it as an amusing rumor and did not take it seriously.
It seemed Jiao Xiuyuan had already begun executing his scheme, though it would still take considerable time before public sentiment truly gathered momentum.
Time slipped quickly by.
After more than half a year of travel, the group finally returned to the Congyun Sea.
By now, it was already Anchor Year 13.
Most had already exchanged contact details through the mirror, and after bidding one another farewell, they departed to rest.
Through the Heavenly Profound Mirror, Li Fan's clone initiated the ritual and entered the White Bone Vanguard Realm.
...
On an unnamed deserted island.
Xiao Heng, who had already reached the late Qi Condensation stage and was meditating in bitter cultivation, suddenly stirred.
Activating the pendant on his chest, his consciousness likewise projected into the White Bone Vanguard Realm.
"Senior? You're awake?" he asked in pleasant surprise, looking at the skull, which appeared somewhat more spirited.
"Cough, cough... I have merely recovered slightly, barely staving off the fate of fading away completely. I have awakened this time to entrust you with a task. Afterward, I must return to slumber to heal my injuries," the skull said in a weak tone.
"While slumbering, I seemed to sense that another youngster of decent talent has appeared around you..."
Xiao Heng hastened to say, "He's a companion who came with me from my homeland, named Ye Feipeng. His cultivation speed is equally fast, and he's very reliable."
The skull pondered for a moment, seemingly sensing something. "Mm. That little fatty's talent truly isn't much inferior to yours.
"Regrettably, he does not seem to be the one I sensed in my slumber."
Xiao Heng froze, then immediately answered, "Could it be my little sister? Even though she's still just a toddler, she can already run and jump, and her strength is terrifyingly immense!"
"Hiss... Such a young girl, yet her latent talent is terrifyingly formidable. But why hasn't she begun cultivating yet? How has a genius like her not been recruited into our Immortal Restoration? Boy Xiao, why are you being so negligent?
"Like this, how can I be at ease entrusting the foundation of Immortal Restoration entirely to you?" the skull reprimanded in a muffled voice.
"Ah?" Xiao Heng blushed and explained in a fluster, "Senior, please don't misunderstand. I only thought she was still too young, which is why I didn't rush her into cultivation..."
The skull cut him off. "Peerless geniuses cannot be measured by common sense. Doing that has only held her back.
"Mm, you are still too young after all. It seems rashly deciding to heap such a heavy burden onto you all at once was somewhat improper..." the skull muttered to itself.
"Senior..." Hearing this, Xiao Heng was momentarily at a loss.
After a long while, the skull seemed to make up its mind.
"As the saying goes, a single log cannot support a roof. It is indeed too difficult for you alone.
"How about this: I shall lend you a helping hand once more."
Saying so, the skull floated into the air, and a beam of eerie light shot from its hollow eye sockets.
Within the light, countless images flickered in rapid succession.
Xiao Heng could faintly make out the depictions of many islands, each with different landscapes.
After a moment, the flickering images halted abruptly.
The skull dropped back to the ground, appearing utterly depleted.
Xiao Heng rushed forward, only to be stopped.
As the light from the skull struck him, details regarding several individuals instantly surfaced in Xiao Heng's mind.
"Liuli Island, Zhang Haobo..."
"Yelan Island, Yin Yueting, Yin Yuzhen..."
"Senior, this is...?" Xiao Heng could not help looking bewildered.
"These are the Children of Fortune across the Congyun Sea that I uncovered by scouring heaven and earth with a secret technique.
"These people either possess remarkable cultivation talent or carry extraordinary abilities.
"They will be of immense help in reviving Immortal Restoration.
"Alas, my injuries are too severe, and the secret technique was interrupted, so I was only able to find these few..."
The skull sighed.
"Boy, my strength is exhausted once more. What follows will depend on your own fortune.
"Remember: focus primarily on developing and increasing your own strength. The Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals is immensely powerful; even with a Nascent Soul cultivation, one can hardly make any waves.
"Thus, your primary duty is to cultivate.
"As for these new additions, do not directly reveal the background of Immortal Restoration to them either.
"Simply describe it as a rogue cultivator organization, lest you frighten them.
"As for the specifics, decide for yourself..."
The skull's voice grew fainter and fainter until it gradually became illusory and faded into the darkness.
"Senior..."
Seeing this, Xiao Heng clenched his fists tightly.
After a long while, determination slowly returned to his eyes.
Waking from the Vanguard Realm, Xiao Heng was just about to look for Ye Feipeng to discuss searching for these Children of Fortune with him.
To his surprise, Ye Feipeng showed up at his door first.
Sneaky and secretive.
Only after pulling Xiao Heng to a secluded spot did he slowly lay everything out.
"Master Tianyang's cave abode? A few Foundation Establishment cultivators led by a Golden Core cultivator went inside to explore, only to suffer heavy casualties, with only the Golden Core cultivator escaping?" Xiao Heng looked at Ye Feipeng, finding it completely baffling. "Why are you telling me this?"
Ye Feipeng said solemnly, "The Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals is preparing a second expedition. This exploration team will likely be led by a Nascent Soul cultivator, along with numerous Golden Core cultivators.
"However, it's useless!
"Those fated to die cannot escape death! I boldly wager that the second expedition team will still be wiped out!"
Xiao Heng froze. "That can't be right. Didn't you say it's a Golden Core cave abode? How could even a mighty Nascent Soul cultivator die inside?"
Ye Feipeng snorted coldly. "That's because the seventeen mechanism puppets inside Master Tianyang's cave abode possess a bizarre trait!
"'Weaker against the weak, stronger against the strong!'" he enunciated slowly in a deep voice.
Xiao Heng narrowed his eyes, carefully pondering the meaning behind those words.
Suddenly, he sized up Ye Feipeng and asked suspiciously, "How do you know this so clearly?"
Ye Feipeng waved a hand. "Inborn knowledge, inborn knowledge! Have you forgotten?
"That's not the point! The point is that we must sneak into the cave abode before the second expedition team is formed and snatch away the opportunities inside!" Ye Feipeng said resolutely. "Otherwise, once the Alliance's team is wiped out again and causes an uproar, it will be impossible for us to seize the opportunities unnoticed!"
Seeing Xiao Heng's skeptical look, Ye Feipeng grew anxious and blurted, "You don't believe me?
"Would I ever harm you?!
"We're both from the Li Realm, we're both members of Immortal Restoration, and we even signed a covenant.
"We share the same breath and branch; we rise together and fall together.
"How could I ever do you harm?!"
...
In the end, Xiao Heng was persuaded.
The two quietly arrived near Master Tianyang's cave abode and the underwater volcano.
At this time, news of Master Tianyang's cave abode had not yet spread widely; the surroundings were quiet, with no cultivators staking it out.
"You go in first in a moment to test those puppets and see how long you can hold out.
"Puppets at the Qi Condensation stage have very weak attack power. Even if you get hit, it won't amount to much.
"I'll keep watch outside," Ye Feipeng instructed.
Xiao Heng nodded slowly, his expression solemn as he soared into Master Tianyang's cave abode.
After twenty-some breaths, Xiao Heng rushed out looking somewhat disheveled.
He said nothing, merely closing his eyes to reflect in silence.
After a while, he soared back inside.
This time, Xiao Heng held out twice as long.
The third time...
Half a day later, an exhausted Xiao Heng said to Ye Feipeng, "I've pretty much figured out these puppets' attack patterns.
"But the spiritual energy in my body is limited. Even like this, I can't hold out for long."
Looking completely confident, Ye Feipeng handed a storage ring to Xiao Heng.
Xiao Heng checked inside; the ring was filled with spirit stones.
"Where did you get all this?" he could not help asking.
Ye Feipeng said smugly, "Your lord certainly has his ways—don't you worry about that.
"Well? With these spirit stones, roughly how long can you hold out?"
Xiao Heng took out a spirit stone and sensed the concentration of spiritual energy within.
After a moment, he replied with certainty, "With enough spiritual energy to sustain me, even though there are quite a few puppets, they shouldn't be able to do anything to me."
Ye Feipeng hastened to say, "No, no, that won't do! You must look like you're at a disadvantage while avoiding actual defeat. Hold out like that for as long as possible until I come out from inside."
Xiao Heng frowned. "Fatty, are you making fun of me? What kind of bizarre demand is that?"
He then scrutinized Ye Feipeng closely. "Are you hiding something from me?"
"Don't be so suspicious! I'm only not telling you because I was afraid it would affect your mindset and hurt your combat effectiveness," Ye Feipeng said rather helplessly. "If we're talking danger, isn't being deeper inside the cave abode far more dangerous for me?
"If something really goes wrong, you still have a chance to flee through the exit. I wouldn't even be able to slip away."
Hearing this, Xiao Heng nodded slowly.
"Alright, there's no time to lose. Let's make some quick preparations and act immediately. My life is in your hands!"
Ye Feipeng was somewhat nervous, but he took a deep breath, a glint of ruthlessness flashing in his eyes.
"Let's go!"
A moment later, the two charged into Master Tianyang's cave abode one after the other.
Seventeen puppets barred their way.
Light gathered beneath Ye Feipeng's feet, and with a flicker, he bypassed them and appeared behind the puppets.
The furious puppets were about to pursue him when they were intercepted by azure water swords.
Water swords filled the air like flying dragons, bursting forth in unison.
Xiao Heng instantly clashed with the seventeen puppets in a frantic melee.
Surrounded and assaulted, Xiao Heng appeared exceedingly battered.
The puppets' strikes grazed past his body almost every time.
A single misstep risked severe injury.
Yet somehow his luck seemed extraordinary, allowing him to evade every blow just in the nick of time.
Though perils appeared on every side, everything was actually well in hand.
The battle continued for a time.
Unable to overcome him after prolonged attacks, the puppets seemed to undergo some sort of metamorphosis.
The power of each move began gradually exceeding the bounds of the Qi Condensation stage.
Across the crimson filaments of their bodies, a faint black light began to gleam.
A faint sense of foreboding suddenly rose in Xiao Heng's heart.
He pulled out another spirit stone to replenish his internal spiritual energy.
He shouted toward the depths of the cave abode, "Fatty, are you done yet?!"
Echoes reverberated throughout, but there was no reply.
Xiao Heng had no choice but to grit his teeth and hold out.
The puppets' attacks grew increasingly fierce, and Xiao Heng gradually found it impossible to keep up the act.
Just as he was about to be struck by a puppet, he roared,
"Water Dragon's Chant!"
Double the number of water swords currently on the field surged into being.
The dense cluster of Sea-Calming Divine Swords instantly swept the puppets aside.
The seventeen puppets paused for a fraction of an instant.
Then, cracks began gradually spreading across their bodies.
"Fatty! Something's wrong!" Xiao Heng cried out.
"Tian..."
An ancient, mechanical voice suddenly rang out within the cave abode.
"Fuck! How is there nothing at all?!" Ye Feipeng's thoroughly frustrated voice rang out at the same time.
Transforming into a thin streak of light, he rushed out from the depths of the cave abode without once looking back.
"Run!" he shouted at the top of his lungs as he fled.
Xiao Heng had never seen the fatty this terrified before.
His heart shuddered, and without hesitation, he unleashed the spiritual energy in his body without holding back.
The Sea-Calming Divine Swords lashed out like pear blossoms in a tempest, forcing back the seventeen puppets.
Xiao Heng followed close behind Ye Feipeng, making a clean escape from Master Tianyang's cave abode.
"...yang..."
Before fleeing, Xiao Heng heard the sound of something shattering into pieces on the ground.
"Keep running! Run as far as you can!" Ye Feipeng's panicked voice came beside his ear.
Xiao Heng's heart tightened, and he fled pell-mell behind that plump yet impossibly nimble figure.
Not long after Xiao Heng and Ye Feipeng left, a party of over a dozen cultivators happened to arrive before Master Tianyang's cave abode.
"With True Monarch Gouxuan leading us this time, exploring a mere Golden Core cave abode will surely be an effortless triumph," a Golden Core cultivator in the group flattered.
"Hahaha! Let's go! I would like to see whether the puppets in this cave abode are truly as miraculous as claimed!" True Monarch Gouxuan laughed heartily, stepping inside first.
What greeted him was an enormous, cracked black palm.
...
"In all my life, Tianyang..."
"...was never inferior to anyone!"
Billowing smoke soared into the sky as undersea volcanoes erupted one after another.
Before this terrifying power of heaven and earth, the Golden Core cultivators had no strength to resist in the slightest.
This expedition team had smiles brimming on their faces just one second ago.
The next second, they vanished from this world in utter confusion and incomprehension.
The colossus of a Tianyang puppet, towering between heaven and earth, stood with head held high and let out a furious roar.
Disoriented, it took a moment to discern its bearings, then strode with giant steps toward Wanxian Island.
Chapter 226