Chapter 54 Intrigue and Deception (Please read on, please vote!)

The frost spreading in the air became more and more obvious, and some people couldn't help but shiver. Only after raising their spiritual light shield did they feel a little better.

Upon seeing this, Liu Jinxian frowned deeply. The blood-red mosquito beast that Wang Yu had seen before emerged from her shoulder, instantly emitting a mist that enveloped her. She stepped onto the steps and swiftly swept past!

As the group traveled together, Wang Yu deliberately lagged behind.

He cultivated the "Cold Blood Technique" and underwent physical transformation through the "Corpse Demon Secret Method," specializing in the Yin and Cold attributes, making him extremely adaptable to cold.

He could walk freely without using spiritual power to protect himself, and even felt that the spiritual power in his body was more active. However, as he climbed higher, he felt the temperature drop sharply, and a crescent moon was rising above the palace in the dark.

The scattered essence of the moon turned into frost, freezing the earth.

Even he was severely affected, let alone the others. Liu Jinxian noticed this situation and turned around to see the group shivering from the cold.

"Those who cannot hold on do not necessarily have to go forward and enter the main hall. There are also treasures left in the surrounding side halls and auxiliary halls. You can go and get them yourself."

"There is only one condition: upon your return, I will inspect your storage bag, make a copy of your cultivation techniques and secret arts, and hand over half of your treasures and magical artifacts."

"Those who disobey—will be executed!"

These terms caused Su Qingshan and the others to change their expressions, becoming somewhat solemn and uneasy. The disciples of Gu Du Peak, however, seemed to have received a tremendous benefit, showing heartfelt gratitude.

"Thank you for the gift, Senior Sister Liu!"

They were extremely obedient. Wang Yu narrowed his eyes, wondering if these people were being controlled or manipulated by Gu worms, otherwise they were just too obedient sons.

The two exchanged a glance, and Liu Jinxian gave them a special instruction.

"the same as you."

Wang Yu abruptly stopped climbing. He was now one-third of the way up the steps. The journey of the man surnamed Liu was already halfway over. From here, he could vaguely see the name of the main hall.

———【The Palace of Condensed Moon】!

This behavior displeased Wang Yu, but he couldn't figure out what she was thinking. Speaking of which, where was Gu Zhengshun? If he knew about the underground passage of Xuan Gu Mountain, why hadn't he seen him yet?

…………

…………

At the bottom of the Third Xuan Bone Mountain, a large crack appeared in the area that should have been protected by the [Earth Yin Corpse Puppet Array]. Situ Hong led ten of his late-stage Qi Refining subordinates inside.

Just then, they saw Gu Zhengshun standing in front of a crack in the earth about ten feet wide. The crack emitted a ghostly green light, and endless cold currents and thick corpse energy wafted out from it.

Many armored corpses stood around, stretching their heads and inhaling deeply. The light yellow, mountain-ridged bronze armor covering their bodies was turning dark yellow, a sign that the bronze-armored corpses were breaking through to the late stage of the first tier.

Looking at Gu Zhengshun again, his breathing was slightly unstable, but he had already broken through the bottlenecks of the middle and late stages and reached the seventh level of Qi Refining!

Situ Hong stepped forward and offered his congratulations:

"Congratulations, Junior Brother Gu, on successfully breaking through to the late stage of Qi Refining. It seems the Xuanjing Flower is quite effective."

Gu Zhengshun nodded.

"The effect is indeed good, but this thing is difficult to preserve for a long time. Even with the method of sealing the pill, it can only be kept fresh for three years. Otherwise, it would not be our turn here."

Upon hearing this, Situ Hong's expression changed, and he said seriously:

"Liu Jinxian is the daughter of Bi She Zhenren. The resources she can mobilize are far beyond what you and I can access. Before coming to Xuan Gu Mountain this time, she arranged for a Foundation Establishment cultivator surnamed Liu to apply to the sect for a long-term mission to guard Xuan Gu Mountain."

"I begged Peach Blossom's mother to stop it for now. If we're lucky, we might be able to survive the five-year cycle, but you and I need to hurry."

Upon hearing this, Gu Zhengshun looked at Situ Hong's handsome face with some surprise. He was a disciple of Di Yinzi and was able to join this lineage through the connections of his ancestors.

Situ Hong is the adopted son of Peach Blossom Ghost Mother. He relies on his face, and is a first-class handsome man. It is said that he devotes his energy to the bed every night.

Otherwise, with the resources of the Peach Blossom Ghost Mother, she wouldn't have only cultivated to the seventh level of Qi Refining with a superior spiritual root aptitude (dual spiritual roots). To put it bluntly, she was more like a male concubine of considerable status.

Therefore, the two secretly contacted each other before coming to Xuan Gu Mountain. After a brief pause, Gu Zhengshun continued:

"Wang Yu is extremely powerful, comparable to an inner sect Qi Refining level 8 cultivator. After receiving the second-tier divine power corpse arm from me, his strength has probably reached the peak of Qi Refining."

"Without revealing his trump cards, it would be difficult for Liu Jinxian to contend with him."

"oh---

Is this person really that capable?

"nature."

Gu Zhengshun sighed: "Before coming to Xuan Gu Mountain, I had some friction with him. I only managed to reach a cooperation agreement by enticing him with benefits. It would be better for the two of us to compete for the underground palace treasures after he and Liu Jinxian are both severely injured."

Situ Hong nodded and smiled:

"Liu Jinxian probably thought she had gone the wrong way and that the underground palace ruins were under the endless ice plain. In fact, the magnetic field here is chaotic and the direction is difficult to determine. Coupled with the temperature changes, she must have been convinced of this."

"We only need to sit back and wait for the battle to begin, and we can repeat the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. But... will Wang Yu really make a move?"

“He will.” Gu Zhengshun took out a secret letter from his sleeve and handed it to Situ Hong to read: “Besides Wang Yu, there are also Su Qingshan and other disciples from outside Gu Poison Peak who will definitely make a move.”

After reading the secret letter, Situ Hong's gaze lingered on the signature.

"—Zhao Shang!"

"Interesting. What a clever trick to kill someone with a borrowed knife. Su Zhen's trusted lieutenant... tsk tsk."

at the same time.

On the steps leading to the [Ningyue Palace], the disciples of Gudu Peak left the steps in twos and threes.

It could be seen that since they gave up advancing, the temperature had not dropped any further, remaining at a constant low temperature. Each of them raised their spiritual light to protect themselves, or used magical artifacts to resist the low temperature, and walked towards the side halls on both sides.

Wang Yu glanced at Su Qingshan, beckoned with a slightly provocative gesture, and then darted to the side.

Honestly, he wanted to explore the main hall, but Liu Jinxian was determined to exploit him, and Gu Zhengshun and Situ Hong were nowhere to be found. If he wanted to resist, the timing was not right.

Therefore, eliminating Su Qingshan, who harbors ill intentions towards him, is the best course of action, as it can further clarify the complex and confusing situation.

Faced with Wang Yu's provocation, Su Qingshan looked at the three late-stage Qi Refining cultivators he had become acquainted with during this period and whispered.

"Liu Jinxian is too powerful for us to contend with. Why don't we kill Wang Yu first, take a share of the Xuanjing Flower from him, and then go to the side hall to seek opportunities? What do you think?"

The three pondered for a moment and then said, "Alright, let's settle this with strength. Whoever kills Wang Yu will get 50% of his Xuanjing Flower, how about that?"

This suggestion was exactly what Su Qingshan wanted to do; only when interests are at stake can one become more courageous and decisive.

"Then let's do as Brother Li says, and follow him."

The four of them moved at the same time, hanging far behind Wang Yu, so he naturally noticed them.

Since the underground palace ruins were the site of an ancient sect, he was interested in finding buildings like a scripture pavilion to see if there were any ancient alchemical formulas passed down.

(End of this chapter)