Chapter 4185: Leaving

"That was it!" Fang Mu exclaimed in surprise. According to the ancient cultivator's records, only one of eight Golden Immortals who traversed this area survived. He wondered if they had extraordinary escape speed or a special treasure.

"Let's go! Let's get what we need and leave this place as quickly as possible," Wang Changsheng urged.Master Miaode nodded and headed towards the peak.

After crossing the peak, a long, narrow canyon appeared before them, where they could hear the sound of flowing water. Fang Mu released two rhinoceros-like monochrome Chaos Beasts, sending them into the valley. When no anomalies were detected, they followed.

They soon reached the end, where a blue waterfall cascaded into a pool below. Wang Changsheng flicked his finger, sending a white light into the pool. The water instantly froze, and the ice quickly spread, even freezing the waterfall.

A giant golden palm flew over, striking the frozen rock wall. With a loud crash, the ice shattered, and the rock wall shook violently, revealing thick, long cracks. Through them, a light-blue energy barrier became visible, its surface covered with profound runes.

A massive "卍" symbol flew towards the light-blue energy barrier, striking it and causing it to dent and flicker indistinctly. Two long blue streaks then shot forth, precisely hitting the barrier. The light-blue barrier burst like a bubble, revealing a cave entrance about a *zhang* wide.

Wang Ruyan activated her Blazing Fire True Sight to scan for anomalies. Finding none, but still cautious, she conjured a True Immortal-stage Talisman Soldier and sent it into the cave first. When no restrictions were triggered, they entered the cave.

Soon, they found themselves in a cavern about an *mu* in size, furnished with a green stone table and several green stone stools. A set of exquisite tea ware rested on the table. To their left was a bluestone passage. They walked through it and quickly reached its end, where three closed stone chambers came into view.

Wang Changsheng punched open the door of one chamber, revealing a spacious and bright stone room. Inside was a blue formation array with numerous grooves, all filled with depleted Immortal Essence Stones. At the center of the array was a Gathering Immortal Jade. Wang Ruyan collected the Gathering Immortal Jade, which caused the formation to completely cease operation, eliminating any worry of triggering restrictions.

They opened the door to the second chamber, which was also a spacious and bright stone room. It contained a green stone table and stool, and to the left, a stone shelf held various items: jade slips, jade boxes, and talisman-making materials. Wang Changsheng's gaze fell upon a golden jade box sealed with a silver talisman. He walked over, picked up the box, and removed the silver talisman. Inside was a silver-glowing talisman radiating an astonishing aura of immortal energy.

"This is the Myriad Wisdom Immortal Talisman!" Master Miaode exclaimed. The Myriad Wisdom Immortal Talisman could enhance an immortal's comprehension in a short period, greatly aiding in the cultivation of laws. Since Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan had already consumed Enlightenment Fruits, they had no need for the Myriad Wisdom Immortal Talisman.

"Fellow Daoist Wang, Madam Wang, Fellow Daoist Fang, this humble monk only requires this talisman; the other items can be yours," Master Miaode sincerely stated. The Myriad Wisdom Immortal Talisman could be used many times until its power was exhausted.

"Let's see what other good things there are first!" Fang Mu suggested, also desiring the talisman.

Wang Changsheng picked up a green jade slip and probed it with his divine sense. After reviewing all the jade slips, they discovered that most of the content was related to talisman arts, including methods for refining various third-tier immortal talismans. These included the Myriad Wisdom Immortal Talisman and the Universe True Spirit Talisman, which could assist top-tier True Spirits in cultivating into peak True Spirits. There was also an advanced awakening secret technique, the "Immortal Aperture Opening Scripture," which allowed for opening up to eight apertures.

Wang Changsheng's gaze fell upon an exquisite green jade box. Upon opening the lid, he saw a round token, a golden jade pendant, and two golden spherical beads inside. The token was inscribed with the characters "Tian Wu" on its front, and the golden jade pendant with "Jin Long." The round token resembled an identity plaque or possibly a token of trust, while the jade pendant was a high-grade immortal artifact of unknown function.

"These are Corpse Orbs!" Fang Mu recognized the origin of the two golden spherical beads. Corpse Orbs only appeared inside high-level corpse puppets. After a careful examination, he determined they were Corpse Orbs from a Grand Unity Golden Immortal-stage corpse puppet.

After a brief discussion, Master Miaode took the Myriad Wisdom Immortal Talisman, Fang Mu took the two Corpse Orbs, and the remaining items went to Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan.

Upon opening the door to the third stone chamber, a Dao Soldier Tree appeared before them. The tree bore over thirty golden, shimmering spirit beans; most had three spiritual patterns, while five had six. "A Dao Soldier Tree!" Wang Changsheng's eyes gleamed with fervor. The spirit beans from a Dao Soldier Tree varied in grade: those with three spiritual patterns were low-grade spirit beans, capable of refining True Immortal-stage bean soldiers at most, while those with six spiritual patterns were mid-grade spirit beans, capable of refining Golden Immortal-stage bean soldiers at most.

Fang Mu had little interest in the Dao Soldier Tree, and neither did Master Miaode. They divided the spirit beans, with Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan taking the larger share. The Dao Soldier Tree also went to them, as Master Miaode and Fang Mu might not have reached this place without their assistance.

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan set up a formation and used a treasure to transplant the Dao Soldier Tree. With the one on Qinglian Island, the Wang family now possessed two Dao Soldier Trees. After a thorough check to ensure nothing was left behind, they exited.

"Fellow Daoist Wang, Madam Wang, what are your plans now?" Fang Mu asked."We intend to leave this place. The core area is not somewhere we should linger. It was good fortune that we didn't encounter a Grand Unity Golden Immortal, but we can't always rely on luck," Wang Changsheng replied. Their treasure hunt had yielded significant gains. Their previous escape from a Grand Unity Golden Immortal, besides their mastery of the Sky-Treading Dao Technique, was also largely due to the black-robed elder's limited strength. The elder was merely at the early Grand Unity Golden Immortal stage, with only minor attainment in laws and no high-grade immortal artifacts, which allowed them a chance to escape. If they had encountered a Grand Unity Golden Immortal with major attainment in laws or a high-grade immortal artifact, they might not have been able to flee.

"This humble monk thinks the same," Master Miaode agreed wholeheartedly. With the Myriad Wisdom Immortal Talisman, he was eager to return to his residence immediately and cultivate laws in seclusion.

"I plan to do the same. Shall we return the way we came?" Fang Mu asked.Wang Changsheng nodded, then had them enter the Azure Lotus Jade Pendant for concealment. Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan then flew back along their original path. Wang Ruyan activated her Blazing Fire True Sight to scout for restrictions, and together with Wang Changsheng, they used the Sky-Treading technique to bypass the restrictions and departed the area.

In a sprawling, verdant mountain range, a massive golden light flared, shaking the earth. As the golden light faded, the ground was left pockmarked. Cobalt stood in a giant crater, his body covered in blood and his aura weakened. Nearby, three bloodied bodies of immortals lay on the ground.

Cobalt seemed to sense something and was about to speak when a shadowy figure materialized out of thin air, heading straight for him. The event was sudden, and Cobalt couldn't evade it. The spiritual light around his body flared brightly but was useless as the shadowy figure burrowed into him. "An Outer Realm Fiend, no..." Cobalt's voice was filled with despair. His body began to tremble. Soon after, he stopped shaking, and the spiritual light around him flared intensely, transforming him into a burly man. "After all these years, I've finally waited for you. If you weren't severely injured, taking over your body wouldn't have been easy," the burly man muttered to himself. He retrieved three storage bracelets from the immortal corpses, put on a set of clothes, collected the treasures that had fallen to the ground, and then departed.