Immortal Refiner

South of the Azure Ridge Domain lay the Forbidden Speech Snow Mountains, a forbidden land named for its perilous nature. Speaking loudly here could trigger devastating avalanches.

When an avalanche struck the Forbidden Speech Snow Mountains, it was a world-ending spectacle. Vast, overwhelming masses of snow swept across the land, capable of obliterating all living things in their path.

While cultivators could levitate and fly, even that offered no absolute safety. Bitterly cold gales frequently tore through the skies above the mountains, posing an even greater threat than the avalanches themselves.

Whether on the ground or in the air, the Forbidden Speech Snow Mountains were a forbidden land. Even a cultivator in the foundation establishment realm would struggle to survive an avalanche here.

The boundless, snow-covered plains stretching across the horizon were the result of countless avalanches over the years.

Yet in this desolate, rarely trodden expanse, two figures now advanced toward the heart of the snow plains, toward the base of the Forbidden Speech Snow Mountains.

”Truly one of the Azure Ridge Domain’s four great forbidden lands,” Liu Hongyuan murmured, his voice barely audible. ”The deeper we go, the more bone-chilling the cold becomes. I can almost feel my spiritual energy freezing and stagnating within me.”

”Shh, keep your voice down. We’re almost there,” Ling Ying whispered, his gaze fixed on the majestic snow-capped mountain looming ahead.

The two continued their trek through the icy wilderness. Upon reaching the foot of the mountain, they simultaneously soared into the air.

With each ten-foot ascent, the temperature plummeted further. Before long, Liu Hongyuan was already shivering uncontrollably from the bone-chilling cold.

Ling Ying fared only slightly better. He carried a trove of fire attribute treasures, and without their heat-generating properties, he too would likely have been trembling from the cold.

”Ancestor Ling Long instructed me to carry this Water Condensing Mirror. It should lead us to the Crocodile Venerable,” Ling Ying said, retrieving a water-blue, ancient bronze mirror. Droplets of water continuously condensed on its surface, then drifted slowly toward a specific direction deep within the snow-covered peaks.

Remarkably, these water droplets defied the extreme cold, refusing to freeze into ice crystals—a truly miraculous phenomenon.

Following the trail of water droplets, Ling Ying and Liu Hongyuan pressed onward.

As they ventured deeper into the Forbidden Speech Snow Mountains, the temperature plummeted to unimaginable depths. Even the flow of spiritual energy within their bodies began to stagnate, as if frozen in place.

If a fire attribute spell were cast here, its power would be suppressed to the absolute minimum, rendering it virtually harmless.

For instance, outside this environment, a foundation establishment realm cultivator could casually conjure a Fireball Technique, easily creating a fireball the size of a human head.

But in this environment, even a foundation establishment realm cultivator would struggle to condense a fireball larger than a fist.

Having ventured deep into the snow mountains, Ling Ying and Liu Hongyuan eventually chose to proceed on foot as the temperature plummeted further.

Their spiritual energy flowed with increasing sluggishness, and the mana required for each flight multiplied exponentially. In this perilous environment, both instinctively opted to conserve their internal mana.

Finally, after an indeterminate amount of time, they reached a massive, sunken chasm ahead—a deep ice pit.

At the bottom of the pit, a stone egg lay quietly at the center.

Ling Ying and Liu Hongyuan’s faces lit up with joy as they spotted the egg, and they quickly moved closer.

But in the next instant, an overwhelming pressure erupted from the stone egg, abruptly halting their advance.

Thump! Thump!

A terrifying pressure descended upon them, forcing Liu Hongyuan and Ling Ying to kneel on one knee, one behind the other.

”Senior Crocodile Venerable,” Ling Ying said with difficulty, ”we are from the Shangqing Sect, bearing a token from Ancestor Ling Long!” He extended the ancient bronze mirror in his hand.

As the azure bronze mirror floated forward, the oppressive aura slowly dissipated.

Unnoticed, both men found their backs drenched in cold sweat despite the freezing weather.

Too terrifying!

Ling Ying’s heart churned like a stormy sea. He was already at the mid-foundation establishment stage, yet this unborn stone egg had crushed him with mere pressure.

And this is just a stone egg! he thought. If it were to hatch, how terrifying would its power be?

When the Water Condensing Treasure Mirror approached the stone egg, a divine sense transmitted forth:

”Why has Ling Long sent you here?”

The divine sense carried an unimaginable sense of majesty, as if its owner were born to rule the world.

”Our sect plans to attack the Heavenly River Sect, but the Lingyun Sect remains a wildcard.”

”Exquisite True Lord wishes for you to open the ancient seal at the Snow Mountain Peak, plunging the Lingyun Sect into chaos and forcing them to focus on their own survival,” Ling Ying said solemnly, his eyes betraying a flicker of fear and unease.

The stone egg remained silent for a long moment, as if weighing the pros and cons. Finally, it responded:

”I have yet to fully emerge into this world. To accomplish this task would require a significant expenditure of my remaining power.”

”Ultimately, my escape from the Black Sand River was merely a mutually beneficial arrangement with your Shangqing Sect. Why should I do you this favor?”

During the escape from the Black Sand River, the Shangqing Sect and several other core formation ancestors had intervened, briefly obstructing the core formation true lords of the Heavenly River Sect and allowing the stone egg to break free from its confinement.

From that moment onward, the two parties had maintained a cooperative relationship.

Hearing this, Ling Ying felt a slight relief. The absence of an outright refusal meant there was still hope!

”Crocodile Venerable, legend has it that the Heavenly River Sect possesses the Water Spirit Pearl, a Supreme Treasure of the water attribute. You must be familiar with it.”

”Once our sect conquers the Heavenly River Sect, Ancestor Ling Long has promised to offer both the Water Spirit Pearl and the Heavenly River Sect’s inheritance cultivation manual as tribute!”

The Demon Venerable’s divine sense suddenly intensified:

”What a joke! Does Ling Long think I’m a fool? The five elements spirit pearls are the most precious treasures in this realm. How could a mere Heavenly River Sect possibly possess one?”

”Besides, the five elements spirit pearls vanished long before my time. How could a sect with only core formation realm cultivators ever hope to find them?”

”If this rumor were true, the Heavenly River Sect would have been annihilated long ago.”

This Demon Venerable was truly an ancient monster who had survived since ancient times, yet for some unknown reason, it had reverted to the form of a stone egg.

Ling Ying sighed inwardly, his apprehension toward the stone egg at the bottom of the pit growing stronger.

”Demon Venerable, the Heavenly River Sect would naturally be unworthy of possessing a complete Water Spirit Pearl. But what if it were merely a fragment?”

As his words faded, the stone egg fell silent once more, as if pondering the possibility.

”If it’s just fragments, then there might be a sliver of possibility. But this is just an empty promise. If your Shangqing Sect fails to conquer the Heavenly River Sect, wouldn’t my efforts be wasted?”

Finally, a hint of reluctance crossed Ling Ying’s face. He withdrew a crimson Crystal Core from his robes.

”Senior, this is the sincerity of my sect. I obtained this mysterious Crystal Core long ago, and its origins remain unknown. Do you recognize it?”

As he spoke, Ling Ying reluctantly tossed the crimson Crystal Core toward the stone egg.

If Li Qing were present, he would have immediately recognized it as a Crimson Crystal!

He had released two strange beasts from the World of Eternal Night, but both had been slain by the Flying Eagle Bandits.

The two Crimson Crystals had fallen into Ling Ying’s hands.

Ling Ying was genuinely reluctant to part with it. Though he didn’t know its origins, he understood that Crimson Crystals could trigger metamorphosis in Demon beasts, causing their strength to skyrocket.

The Sky-Rending Eagle had only consumed a single Crimson Crystal and rapidly ascended to the Second-Tier, its power far surpassing that of other Demon beasts at the same rank. This was precisely why the Sky-Rending Eagle could contend evenly with the ancient variant, the Frost Jade Ice Butterfly.

The Crimson Crystal’s allure to Demon beasts was self-evident.

As expected, the Crocodile Venerable, now transformed into a stone egg, initially remained indifferent.

But as the Crimson Crystal drew closer, the entire stone egg visibly trembled, as if overwhelmed by an irresistible temptation.

”Such dense malevolent energy... What exactly is this thing?”

As the words faded, a sharp qi mechanism locked onto the Crimson Crystal.

”Unheard of, unseen before. Even I cannot fathom what this object truly is.”

After a long silence, the Crocodile Venerable rolled its egg-like form, burying the Crimson Crystal beneath the snow. Then it spoke:

”Very well. Since you’ve shown such sincerity, I agree to your request.”

”However, let me make it clear: directly breaking the ancient seal is impossible. Even I can only loosen it.”

(End of the Chapter)

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