Chapter 258 Golden Cores Gather

The mortality rate suddenly jumped to 50%, and Ye Changqing's face turned deathly pale. A terrible disaster had occurred!

He immediately rushed out of the Soul Palace and ran wildly to the Palace Master's room.

Ignoring etiquette, he pushed the door open and entered.

"Palace Master, the situation in the secret realm has worsened again!"

He had already reported on the unexpected casualties in the secret realm several times.

'Has it gotten worse again?'

Zhang Zizhao felt a few veins throb on his forehead. He stood up from the prayer mat and rushed to the door in one stride.

"Let's go take a look."

When the two rushed into the Soul Palace, they found that more than a dozen Soul Lamps had gone out, and Ye Changqing's forehead was covered in cold sweat.

The disciples who went to the secret realm were all the best of this generation.

It is no exaggeration to say that seven or eight out of ten of the next generation of cultivators at the Chaoyuan stage will be born from them.

With a soft "crack," the soul lamp went out.

Ye Changqing's eyelids twitched incessantly:

"Uncle-Master, what exactly is going to happen?"

He felt his voice tremble; the near 70% casualty rate had already impacted the inheritance of the tradition.

I have absolutely no idea what happened in the secret realm that could have caused such a terrible outcome.

Zhang Zizhao's face turned ashen, and an unnamed rage burned within him, growing ever stronger.

He had entered the secret realm twice and was quite familiar with the situation inside.

As long as the sect's 'manual' is followed, the possibility of encountering insurmountable danger is not high, and the Azure Mist Secret Realm has become a resource secret realm for the three sects.

Unless they entered some forbidden areas, there would never have been such a large number of casualties.

There are indeed Chaoyuan-stage demonic beasts in the forbidden area, but due to the restrictions of the world's laws, these demonic beasts are trapped at the Chaoyuan stage for their entire lives and cannot make any further progress.

Even if some disciples risked entering the forbidden area and died, it would only be an isolated case, and it was impossible for a large number of people to die.

At this time, the sect disciples had gathered to prepare to return, but they encountered an attack from an unknown and powerful force.

'Could it be that other sects and rogue cultivators have joined forces to exterminate us?'

Zhang Zizhao shook his head violently. This was absolutely impossible. With the demonic calamity upon them, unless all other forces had gone mad, they would not do something so unwise.

"I will go and report to the ancestor."

He uttered a single sentence, and his robes shone with spiritual light. A cloud of fire appeared beneath his feet, and he instantly swept out of the main hall.

A strong wind blew, and the spirit lamps in the hall flickered like candles in the wind.

The flames flickered, casting shifting light and shadow on Ye Changqing's face, making it appear somewhat distorted.

Chaoyang Peak, Ganyun Cave.

Zhang Zizhao recounted the situation at the Soul Palace, then lowered his head, awaiting the ancestor's instructions.

The cave was so quiet you could hear a pin drop; the air seemed thick and still.

Master Zhengyang's face was like a stone sculpture, expressionless, but the flames rising in his eyes revealed that his heart was not at peace.

"When will the Azure Mist Secret Realm open? Who was originally assigned to retrieve the disciples?"

"Reporting to the Ancestor, the opening of this secret realm was overseen by Junior Brothers Lin Jiuxiao and Zhu Xiangrong."

The secret realm will reopen tomorrow at noon.

As usual, they will depart tonight to reach their target area.

"Inform them that I will go with them."

When I leave, I will activate the mountain-protecting formation.

Before my return, disciples are strictly forbidden from entering or leaving.

Zhang Zizhao immediately cupped his hands in greeting:

"Follow the law!"

The cold moon hangs like a hook, and the wind whispers across the desolate mountains.

In the area where the Azure Mist Secret Realm is located, three spirit boats are suspended in the air, only a dozen feet apart from each other.

A large number of independent cultivators gathered at the foot of the desolate mountain, waiting for their relatives and friends to emerge from the secret realm.

Master Zhengyang stepped out of the spirit boat's cabin and said in a deep voice:

"Which fellow Daoist has come today? Why don't you come out and have a chat?"

His voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached the ears of everyone on the spirit boat.

Just now, he felt the spiritual energy fluctuations belonging to a Golden Core cultivator sweep across the spirit boat, which made him even more vigilant.

The task of transporting disciples from secret realms has always been handled by cultivators in the Chaoyuan stage.

He came because the sect's disciples had suffered heavy casualties.

When this group of disciples set off from the sect, eighty-one of their soul lamps went out, which had already affected the sect's inheritance.

"Master Zhengyang, it's been a long time."

A rough, booming voice rang out, and a tall, imposing figure appeared on the deck of the spirit boat belonging to Yuanhe Mountain.

The cultivator was eight feet tall, with thick eyebrows and leopard-like eyes. His skin shimmered with a metallic sheen, and his entire being seemed to be cast from bronze and iron.

His thick arms were thicker than the thighs of an ordinary cultivator, and his legs were like elephant legs. With each step he took, the spirit boat swayed slightly.

Master Zhengyang's lips moved slightly as he transmitted his voice:

"My sect suffered heavy casualties in the secret realm, so I had no choice but to come."

Fellow Daoist of Nanshan, what brings you here?

"For the same reason as you, fellow Daoist, the casualties among the disciples in the secret realm have reached 70%, so I had to come and find out the situation as soon as possible."

Qingxu from Fallen Maple Valley has also arrived; it is said that the disciples of Fallen Maple Valley have also suffered heavy casualties.

As the two were communicating telepathically, a gaunt figure dressed in a blue Daoist robe appeared on another spirit boat. It was none other than Qingxu Zhenren, a Golden Core cultivator from Luofeng Valley.

This immortal was nine hundred years old and had reached his twilight years.

The three real people whispered to each other, discussing something in hushed tones.

Master Zhengyang turned his head to look into the mountains, and he vaguely felt that something was spying on him from the shadows.

Xiong Ba stood respectfully behind the blue-robed cultivator, his eyes darting around.

He didn't understand why Lord Qinglong had come to this desolate forest in the dead of night, but as a subordinate, he had no choice. His lord couldn't tolerate his subordinates disobeying him.

His eyes glanced at the black eagle beside him, silently asking a question.

Black Hawk noticed the questioning gaze and shook his head almost imperceptibly; he knew even less about the adults' thoughts.

A mocking smile played on Qinglong's lips as he muttered under his breath, "Is it too late to realize this now? Hahahaha."

He let out a wild, light laugh, the sound quickly drowned out by the whistling wind.

"You can go back now. Black Hawk, you continue to maintain contact with the Demon King and confirm the time for the general offensive."

As Qinglong spoke, his body transformed into black light and disappeared.

He was rushing to a place to deliver a grand gift to these human cultivators.

Xiong Ba scratched his head and said:

"It's so tiring to hide in a place like this every day. When can I kill all these humans and make rivers of blood flow?"

"Rivers of blood? Give me a break!"

The shadowy figure curled its lip, thinking to itself, "You're just a demon cultivator at the Chaoyuan level, what gives you the right to spout such nonsense!"

These major human powers all have Golden Core cultivators in charge.

With a light leap, he soared into the air, his body transforming into a hawk as he flew away.

Xiong Ba muttered:

"There are many Foundation Establishment stage human forces nearby. So what if the blood flowed like rivers during the slaughter!"

Wei Songnian was carried to the courtyard, groaning in pain. Two Qi Refining stage disciples gently placed him on the ground, then rode away on their talisman birds. There were many other wounded people waiting for them to be carried over.

Ji An's eyes swept over the fat man, and he was startled. He immediately rushed over.

The other person was seen covering their abdomen with both hands, revealing a significant amount of their yellowish-white intestines.

Where are you injured?

Cold sweat streamed down Wei Songnian's forehead as he looked with difficulty at the newcomer, his voice trembling with tears:

"Dantian".

Ji An's heart sank suddenly. The dantian is not a real human organ, but can be understood as a "lake" where essence is stored. It can be large or small, and can gather or disperse.

If the dantian (lower abdomen) or ancestral aperture is injured, ordinary elixirs can have little effect, and there is no clue how to treat it.

The spiritual herbs needed to repair injuries to the dantian are often eight or nine hundred years old, and are only accessible to cultivators in the Chaoyuan stage.

For a low-level disciple, an injury to the dantian is almost equivalent to having their cultivation destroyed.

He quickly squatted down, carefully stuffed the other person's intestines back in, and then performed the Rejuvenation Technique.

Emerald light fell like rain, spreading throughout Wei Songnian's abdominal cavity. His external injuries healed rapidly, but the wounded man's expression remained pained.

No need to guess, things definitely won't get better.

Tears welled up in Wei Songnian's eyes, and he shook his head with a sorrowful expression.

For cultivators, losing their cultivation is no different from losing everything.

Ji An pursed his lips, hesitated for a moment, then took out a pale blue jade bottle from his storage bag and poured out a green pill.

Three red lines emanated from the elixir, shimmering with spiritual light.

"That's all I can do for you with the Premium Profound Origin Regeneration Pill."

Let's try anything, even if it seems hopeless!

Ji An sighed inwardly, then, without further hesitation, said:

"Open your mouth!"

He put the pill into the other person's mouth and stared intently at their face.

When Wei Songnian was fed the pill, he immediately felt a cool sensation spreading down his mouth.

The coolness entered my abdomen, and the previously burning sensation in my lower abdomen immediately felt a slight coolness.

After a short while, the coolness gradually dissipated, and a warm feeling rose up.

He focused his mind on his dantian, carefully sensing his injuries, and opened his eyes after a moment.

Ji An asked with concern:

"How is it? Is it working?"

"Much better. The damaged area in my dantian has been largely repaired and is no longer leaking mana."

There is some lag when channeling magical power, but casting spells should be worry-free.

Wei Songnian felt a sense of relief at surviving such a calamity. If he hadn't met his senior brother, he might have had no future.

No, it's not a possibility, it's a certainty that there's no future for it.

He was certain that the sect wouldn't waste its pills on him, which could heal a damaged dantian.

Because if he were the decision-maker, he would do the same.

Ji An nodded slightly and let out a long breath. The injury to the other party's dantian should be very minor and not in a critical location; otherwise, even the Xuan Yuan Rejuvenation Pill would not have been effective.

"That's good. After a period of rest, the symptoms should disappear."

Wei Songnian carefully got up, bowed deeply, and said:

"My senior brother's kindness is like giving me a second chance at life, and I will always remember it."

If there is ever a need for my service, I will gladly face it, even if it means being crushed to pieces!

If he loses his cultivation, he can only live like an ordinary person, his lifespan will be greatly shortened, and his body will age rapidly.

Whether his Daoist partner will change her mind, and how his sect and family will arrange things for him—these will all become very real questions.

Unfortunately, at that time, he had no choice.

I felt a pang of gratitude once again; that gift of the Soul-Nourishing Wood was truly worthwhile!

Whether the precious plant can survive in the family is a question, and even if it is successfully planted, it is unknown how long it will take to enjoy the benefits.

More importantly, if he hadn't given the precious plant to his senior brother, it's uncertain whether he would have been able to enjoy this elixir today.

Ji An slightly turned his body to the side to accept the half-bow, and then helped him up:

"We met when we were both humble, and in these chaotic times we should help and support each other even more."

(End of this chapter)