The First Immortal of Destiny

Chapter 496: Chapter 496: Chen Mengze and the Spirit Sword_1

These past two years, members of the Riverside Sect have been arriving at Chong’a Mountain.

To Shen Mo’s delight, Chen Mengze was among them. It turned out that when the Soaring Serpent and the Bizarre Dragon descended, she wasn’t within the sect grounds but was cultivating in the northern part of the Void Sky Mountain Range!

In her conversations, Chen Mengze did not shy away from the topic with him, openly stating that her current main cultivation method was the ”Pure Jade Mantra,” which she had obtained from the Death Jaw Dungeon.

She cultivated this method in the Extreme Northern Zone, where its effectiveness was enhanced, quickening her cultivation speed by approximately forty percent. Now, she had successfully advanced to Layer III of the Spirit Sea Realm, displaying a rapid progression comparable to that of a Spiritual Body!

After spending half a year in the subsidiary courtyard with Shen Mo, Chen Mengze bid him farewell and returned to the northern region.

The Void Sky Mountain Range, both inside and out, had completely transformed.

In the extremely cold northern lands, a large number of unique creatures, their flesh and blood transparent like Dark Ice, had emerged. They often came south to trade with human cultivators who were exploring the mountain range for treasures.

The items they offered were all high-grade Ice-type spiritual items. Some could be directly consumed to enhance cultivation, some could be worn to augment the power of Ice-type Immortal Law, and many more could be used in Alchemy or the Forging of magic artifacts.

As a result, a multitude of cultivators flocked to the northern part of the Void Sky Mountain Range, making this perilous area several times busier than in previous years. Several temporary markets of various sizes had even formed!

Of course, cultivators, having originated from mortals, could not completely rid themselves of human greed.

There were indeed some who harbored devious intentions, attempting to swindle, rob, or forcibly seize these dark ice creatures, or lure them away to be sold as ”exotic pets.”

A very small number succeeded, but the vast majority ended up as frozen corpses on the ice plains!

Chen Mengze, possessing the Yin-Yang jade disk, could absorb the essence of sun and moon daily, condensing ten drops of Spiritual Liquid. She could consume it herself or exchange it for other resources in the markets.

Therefore, even within the Void Sky Mountain Range, she was not particularly lacking in cultivation resources.

Notably, the Spiritual Liquid condensed by the jade disk was very popular among the dark ice creatures. Furthermore, Chen Mengze cultivated the ”Pure Jade Mantra” and possessed an aura similar to that of an Ice Spirit Body. These factors made it easier for her to gain the trust of the dark ice creatures compared to others.

Due to these two factors, Chen Mengze had established good relations with many dark ice creatures. She obtained many valuable items and also carefully prepared a high-value gift for Shen Mo, composed of Ice-type spiritual materials!

However, within the Void Sky Mountain Range, she couldn’t find a trustworthy and highly skilled Forgemaster to forge higher-grade magic treasures.

Her return to the Riverside Sect was also partly to replace her magic artifacts.

Who could have expected that the sect, along with half of Qing State, would be swallowed by the Soaring Serpent and the Bizarre Dragon? At that moment, she was utterly horrified. Eventually, following the clues left by Patriarch Zhou, she found her way to the subsidiary courtyard on Chong’a Mountain!

Upon seeing Shen Mo, Chen Mengze could no longer conceal her emotions and gave him an embrace that was both icy cold and passionately warm.

The iciness was due to her skin temperature, as cold as ancient Dark Ice.

Even Shen Mo, with his incredibly strong physique and immunity to cold and heat, was momentarily frozen by her, making him shiver!

The warmth referred to Chen Mengze’s expression, her emotions, and the intensity of her embrace. Although Shen Mo had a slight inkling, he had no idea how much he truly meant to her.

It was precisely because of her greatly fluctuating emotions that Chen Mengze’s Pure Ice True Yuan became somewhat unstable. This caused her to inadvertently release an icy aura that chilled Shen Mo to the bone.

Once she calmed her emotions and retracted her True Yuan, her delicate body immediately returned to its normal state of soft warmth!

After regaining her composure, Chen Mengze’s body temperature was even higher than usual, and her cheeks were slightly flushed, making her appear exceedingly charming and captivating.

Afterwards, Shen Mo used the Ice-type spiritual materials she had gathered to forge a crystal-clear Flying Sword for her. Perhaps it was due to the excellent quality of the raw materials, or maybe a stroke of auspicious luck. This Dark Ice magic sword, as soon as it was forged, gave birth to a Sword Spirit, becoming a low-grade spiritual magic treasure!

With Shen Mo’s current Forging proficiency, although there was a certain chance he could forge a low-grade Spiritual Artifact, this sword was the first Spiritual Artifact he had directly forged, making it extraordinarily significant.

Chen Mengze adored this sword and named it ”Returning Snow.”

Missing you is like the returning snow, my thoughts in turmoil, endless and chaotic!

「...」

Apart from the Returning Snow Spirit Sword, Shen Mo re-forged all of Chen Mengze’s robe armor and other magic artifacts.

As for her other set, the Big Dipper Sword, Shen Mo didn’t need to worry about it. The technique of fusing extreme meanings wasn’t very difficult; Chen Mengze could find a place to rent a Forge Room equipped with an Earth Fire Spirit Flame and enhance the quality of the seven small swords herself!

Before bidding Shen Mo farewell, Chen Mengze specifically left him the location of her temporary cave mansion in the Void Sky Mountain Range.

Currently, Sound Transmission Talismans and Teleportation Arrays were still not functioning normally. If Shen Mo were to go to the Void Sky Mountain Range in the future, finding Chen Mengze in the vast northern region, spanning tens of thousands of miles, would undoubtedly be like searching for a needle in a haystack!

By leaving her cave mansion’s address, if Chen Mengze was still in the northern region, it would be much easier to find her.

”Little Sister Lingyin has also opened up her Spirit Sea. Her strength isn’t weak, and she has her Master, Alien Minister Wu, looking after her... In the Mountain River Dungeon, there shouldn’t be any accidents.”

”You... don’t be too worried!”

After saying this, Chen Mengze transformed into a clear, cold ray of light and disappeared into the northern sky.

Shen Mo watched her depart, then stood on Chong’a Mountain for a long while before returning to his residence in the subsidiary courtyard. He closed his doors to visitors, resuming his simple and secluded daily life.

「...」

[Destinied Lord: Shen Mo]

[Cultivation Level: Spirit Sea Realm Layer IX]

[Talisman Path: Grade IV (1,022/9,000)]

[Alchemy Path: Grade IV (5,530/9,000)]

[Forging: Grade IV (6,905/9,000)]

[Array Path: Grade I (680/1,000)]

His proficiency in the Talisman Path had also successfully reached Grade IV, but, similar to his Alchemy Path, it had not progressed for a long time!

The reason was simple: Shen Mo was severely lacking Grade IV and higher talisman scrolls and elixir recipes.

The proficiency for the Grade IV talismans and elixirs he had already mastered was maxed out. Even if he put more effort into refining them, the progress bars for these two secondary professions would not advance.

Conversely, his Forging Path, limited only by the profound artifacts and Spiritual Artifacts he had seen and forged, had surpassed his alchemy level for the first time in many years.

However, Shen Mo wasn’t overly anxious about the stagnation of the first two skills.

His current level of proficiency was sufficient for his needs. Whether it was earning Spirit Stones and resources or refining elixirs and talismans for his own use, his current abilities could meet his demands!

Moreover, worrying was useless. High-grade talisman scrolls and elixir recipes were rare and required significant fortuitous encounters to collect.

As for talisman scrolls, those were less of an issue. Zhao Lingyin possessed many top-grade elixir recipes. She had originally planned to give them, along with herself, to Shen Mo as her dowry. Who could have predicted the world-shaking changes that occurred before their bonding ceremony? One could only sigh; it was a matter of fate and timing!

As for the Array Path, Shen Mo had been diligently studying it since he began. However, the Array Path was extremely vast and complex. Without a legacy or ample opportunities for practice, rapid improvement was impossible.

Anyway, Shen Mo never intended to profit by setting up Formations for others. It was time-consuming and laborious. Improvement would naturally be good, but if not, he wouldn’t force it!