Immortal Refiner

”The barriers at the spatial nodes are still quite weak,” he mused. ”Some divine transformation stage cultivators might risk a desperate attempt to force their ascension.”

”Letting even a single cultivator ascend would surely be the last thing the Formless Saint Ancestor wants.”

Li Qing murmured to himself, then accelerated his flight across the sea. Though he didn’t use a spirit treasure, his escape speed was still among the fastest in this realm.

As Li Qing had predicted, the Formless Saint Ancestor’s dao body, which had clashed with Wan Shengtian earlier, now appeared in the Great Wilderness Domain!

In the Far North Ice Plains, a figure clad in gray robes glided through the air with ethereal grace.

The figure’s face shifted intermittently, cycling through different visages—each one the face of a Nascent Soul cultivator from the Human Realm. The sight was unsettlingly bizarre.

Clearly, the Formless Saint Ancestor had claimed several more lives.

”I’ve confirmed that four Divine Transformation cultivators aren’t the ones I seek,” the Saint Ancestor murmured. ”Let them ascend to the Spirit Realm; it matters little.”

”If the person I’m searching for isn’t at the Divine Transformation stage, this game becomes all the more intriguing.”

With a hint of amusement, the Saint Ancestor’s gaze drifted toward a fissure beneath the thick ice.

The temperature here was bone-chillingly cold, nearly freezing marrow. Across the vast ice plains, numerous ancient demon corpses lay frozen into icy sculptures, their forms stark against the frozen landscape.

Without a doubt, these were the demonic race who had invaded the Great Wilderness Domain long ago, now swiftly and decisively slain, their corpses left untouched, transformed into eternal ice sculptures.

For thousands of miles in every direction, there was no sign of human habitation. Even with the great yang hanging high in the sky, no warmth could be felt.

The Formless Saint Ancestor’s gaze swept across the ice-sculpted corpses of the ancient demons, his expression utterly impassive, as if he were merely observing ants.

But in the next instant, hundreds of razor-sharp arrows formed from Extreme Ice materialized from thin air, piercing toward the Formless Saint Ancestor’s dao body at speeds imperceptible to the naked eye.

The entire process unfolded in a flash, without the slightest fluctuation of spiritual energy, making it nearly impossible to react in time.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

As the sound of air being torn apart echoed through the frozen wasteland, the Formless Saint Ancestor’s dao body was already riddled with Extreme Ice arrows, resembling a frozen hedgehog.

”Heh heh heh... how intriguing. This Minor World actually harbors someone like you.”

”Mid-stage Divine Transformation... your strength is barely sufficient to attempt ascension to the spirit realm. Why remain in the lower realm?”

The Formless Saint Ancestor chuckled, his voice devoid of emotion. As he spoke, the Extreme Ice arrows embedded in his body shattered with a series of crisp cracks.

Crack! Crack!

As his words faded, the Formless Saint Ancestor raised both hands, unleashing a surge of dense and pure wood attribute spiritual energy.

Instantly, countless trees erupted from the frozen earth, transforming the desolate ice plains into a vibrant, verdant landscape.

It was astonishing that a demon ancestor’s dao body would wield spells and divine abilities commonly used by human cultivators, rather than the formidable techniques of ancient demons.

In truth, these abilities had been plundered from a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator specializing in the Wood dao, whom he had slain. Ultimately, they were merely another tool in his arsenal.

”Slash!”

A clear, sharp cry rang out, freezing the very air of heaven and earth.

In an instant, an Extreme Ice Blade streaked across the sky, cleaving through the towering trees that had sprung from the ground. Each trunk was severed with a smooth, frost-tinged cut.

The blade continued its trajectory, slashing toward the Formless Saint Ancestor himself, as if to sever him as easily as the trees.

But before the blade could strike, the Saint Ancestor’s face shifted again, morphing into another human visage.

Flames now swirled around him, not as potent as heavenly spirit fire, but still possessing formidable power.

”Wood fuels fire!”

In the next instant, the severed towering trees ignited spontaneously, transforming into a raging wildfire that swept across the land.

His true form flickered, leaving only a trail of fire in its wake, narrowly evading the Extreme Ice Blade.

But this was far from over. Having dodged the attack, the Formless Saint Ancestor’s face shifted again, morphing into a new human visage.

A hurricane erupted, carrying the wildfire toward the ice fissure that split the great earth.

Boom!

Remarkably, he had yet to employ any of his own innate abilities, relying solely on techniques stolen from three human Nascent Soul cultivators to counter the assault.

The raging flames surged toward the ice fissure, but before they could penetrate far, an icy chill swept through the air, capable of freezing all creation.

The intensely hot flames were abruptly extinguished.

From within the fissure, an Ice Palace emerged, expanding rapidly as it rose.

Perched atop the Extreme Ice Palace stood a slender, ethereal figure, her cold beauty radiating an aura of aloofness. She resembled a solitary Ice Lotus, her entire being exuding an icy detachment that repelled all warmth.

The Formless Saint Ancestor’s dao body met her frigid gaze for a moment before sighing softly. ”Impressive strength, but you’re not the one I’m looking for.”

With that, he turned to leave.

But the Palace Master of the Ice Extremity Palace had no intention of letting him go so easily. A cold glint flashed in her icy, beautiful eyes as she raised her slender hand. An ice sword, seemingly forged from ten thousand years of profound ice, materialized in her grasp.

The Palace Master of the Ice Extremity Palace slashed the ice sword toward the Formless Saint Ancestor’s retreating figure.

A tiny spatial fissure appeared in the air ahead, a testament to the sword’s terrifying power.

Yet the Formless Saint Ancestor still departed, leaving only a casual remark hanging in the air above the ice plains:

”If you wish to fight me to the death, show some sincerity first. Such petty tricks won’t hold me back.”

As his words faded, only a wisp of pure primordial demonic qi remained where the Formless Saint Ancestor had stood, dissipating into the air.

The Palace Master of the Ice Extremity Palace’s expression remained unchanged. After gazing briefly in the direction of his departure, she activated the Extreme Ice Palace, causing it to descend back into the icy fissure in the great earth.

”Let those fools at Moonlit Ridge deal with him.”

Indeed, the Formless Saint Ancestor’s dao body hadn’t left the Great Wilderness Domain. Instead, it had headed straight for the far western region, the Great Wilderness Domain’s infamous forbidden land: Moonlit Ridge!

The silent mountain range, bathed in moonlight, seemed to sense an extraordinary qi mechanism approaching.

”He’s here—a dao body of a saint ancestor.”

”His intentions are unclear. We’ve maintained an extremely low profile during this demonic cataclysm. Why would a demon ancestor’s dao body target us?”

”We don’t know, but it’s just a dao body with the strength of a Nascent Soul cultivator. What’s there to fear?”

”...”

As if hearing the hushed conversation within Moonlit Ridge, the Formless Saint Ancestor, still some distance away, revealed a cunning smile on his merchant-like face.

He accelerated his flight, arriving above Moonlit Ridge in moments, the full moon hanging overhead.

”So, just a few lingering insects. I’ve overestimated this.”

The Formless Saint Ancestor’s face showed clear disappointment, his tone equally deflated.

The moment these words left his lips, a powerful qi mechanism erupted from within Moonlit Ridge, as if a peerless ferocious beast were awakening.

”Insects huddling together to survive are still just insects,” the Formless Saint Ancestor said, shaking his head, his eyes already losing interest.

(End of the Chapter)

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