Chapter 225

"Sect Leader..." Qin Qingshan, who had been patrolling the sect, immediately stepped forward to greet Ding Huan upon his return.

Liu Yinzhu also arrived at once.

"Master!" Mo Huaping cried out excitedly.

Liu Yinzhu was greatly surprised to see that Ding Huan had not only brought back Guan Cuan but also his own disciple.

After introducing Sang Yuhe, Ding Huan said:

"Sister Yinzhu, take me to see where Elder He is in seclusion."

Hearing Ding Huan's words, Liu Yinzhu froze, and after several breaths passed, she asked:

"Ding Huan, you want to… now?"

Ding Huan nodded—he simply had no time to waste.

"But, but…"

Even though Liu Yinzhu had always known Ding Huan's intentions, hearing that he intended to act against Elder He still made her hesitate.

It wasn't out of concern for Elder He—it was concern for Ding Huan.

Ding Huan said to Qin Qingshan:

"Qin Qingshan, take Guan Cuan and Mo Huaping to rest first. I'll discuss some matters with Elder Liu and Elder Sang here."

"Yes." Qin Qingshan replied and quickly led Guan Cuan and Mo Huaping away.

"Ding Huan, Elder He is at the peak of the Primordial Soul realm, even half a step into the Void God realm—how can you possibly confront him? This, this…"

Liu Yinzhu didn't know how to finish her sentence.

Deep inside, she knew clearly: if Ding Huan failed to kill Elder He, staying here would be meaningless.

Sang Yuhe finally understood: the precondition Ding Huan had mentioned for establishing a sect in Zixia Valley was to kill a Primordial Soul peak cultivator.

She stared at Ding Huan in silence, wondering what curse had befallen her—how had she been tricked into coming to Zixia Valley?

Ding Huan offered no explanation; he knew Liu Yinzhu would eventually understand the reason.

"I'll take you there," Liu Yinzhu finally sighed. "What can I do to help you?"

Her life had been saved by Ding Huan—not once, but multiple times. At this moment, she simply could not speak of leaving.

Sang Yuhe remained silent as well—her life had also been saved by Ding Huan.

Ding Huan shook his head:

"Your strength can't help me. Just take me to the peak where Elder He is in seclusion."

Liu Yinzhu led Ding Huan to Zixi Peak, the most remote peak in the entire Zixia Valley.

As soon as Ding Huan arrived, he knew the heavenly qi here was no weaker than that of Zhaoxia Peak.

"This is where Elder He is in seclusion," Liu Yinzhu said, somewhat worried.

"Sister Yinzhu, go back first. If anything happens to me, say you were powerless to stop me—completely unable to control me."

Ding Huan himself had no confidence in defeating Elder He.

He had encountered Primordial Soul cultivators before, but how strong was Hao Wudao? Compared to Elder He, he was worlds apart.

Besides, Hao Wudao had been barely alive—only one-tenth of his life left—and his strength was even below that of an ordinary Golden Core cultivator.

Precisely because he had no confidence, he had become a fool and bought the seeds of Diyu Vine.

Once Liu Yinzhu left, Ding Huan carefully suppressed his aura and began surveying the terrain.

Because Zixi Peak was so remote, none of the surrounding peaks were occupied by disciples or elders.

Two sides were sheer cliffs, one side at the base was a small stream that appeared to flow year-round,

and the remaining side was a gentle slope leading up—the most normal approach.

Ding Huan guessed this stream must be the origin of Zixi Peak's name.

The terrain here was ideal for setting up a trapping and killing array.

Ding Huan did not immediately set up the trapping array; instead, he concealed his aura and carefully observed the surroundings from the perimeter.

He had only one chance—he could not afford failure. If he failed, death was his only path.

Ding Huan spent three full days wandering around the perimeter of Zixi Peak.

During this time, to avoid drawing attention, he carefully concealed his form and used Ji Ying Dunshu.

Elder He clearly trusted the safety of Zixi Peak and had full confidence in his own arrays. Moreover, with his imminent attempt to break into the Void God realm, he never extended his spiritual sense outward.

After all, his cave was in Zixia Valley, and he was the highest-ranked, most powerful elder in the entire valley.

Who in their right mind would dare come here to cause trouble?

Elder He's array skills were indeed impressive—he had fully fortified both cliff faces with fourth-grade defensive arrays, and even installed a teleportation array.

The teleportation array was slightly weaker—only third-grade.

Clearly, this was Elder He's contingency plan: if anything went wrong, he could immediately escape through it.

Although Elder He's arrays were all fourth-grade and third-grade, Ding Huan believed Elder He's array mastery was no lower than his own.

At least, Ding Huan could not construct a teleportation array.

On the fourth day, Ding Huan began setting up various arrays.

First, he laid out trapping and killing arrays around Zixi Peak, adding locking array flags.

Once his trapping arrays activated, they would completely lock down Elder He's teleportation array.

One trapping array wasn't enough—he set up five trapping arrays in total. He had plenty of array flags; adding more arrays meant only wasting a bit more material and time.

After completing the trapping arrays, he set up illusion arrays and poison arrays.

The poison used in these arrays was entirely taken from Ji Xinting's body during his time at Cangjian Mountain—now it was being used against Elder He.

Elder He was at Primordial Soul peak, yes—but in cultivation, he was far inferior to Ji Xinting, even by several tiers.

Finally, Ding Huan concealed the Dayu Pearl at the base of the spirit gathering array—so that whenever Elder He cultivated using the spirit gathering array, the poison mist would be drawn into him.

This way, it wouldn't seem out of place, yet still put the poison mist to use.

As soon as Elder He appears, he will fully activate the poison mist within the Dayu Pearl.

As for whether the poison mist might spread outward, Ding Huan couldn't care less. Outside Zixi Peak, he had already set up binding arrays everywhere.

After finishing these tasks, it had already been the eleventh day since Ding Huan had remained outside Zixi Peak.

According to Ding Huan's plan, all he needed to do now was lie low outside Zixi Peak and wait for Elder He to emerge.

Given Elder He's cultivation, it shouldn't take long for him to realize he had been poisoned by the absorbed Qi.

Ding Huan didn't stay put; he calculated the matter, but the result was vague, and he felt something strange about it.

If his future appeared as complete emptiness in the calculation, Ding Huan would leave immediately. This was no joke—it concerned his life.

Ding Huan carefully examined both cliff sides; they seemed ordinary, entirely covered by his trapping and killing array.

Could it be that small stream?

But the stream was crystal clear to the bottom; a divine sense sweep revealed everything plainly—what could possibly be wrong?

Knowing the chance of trouble from the stream was minimal, Ding Huan still approached it and used his divine sense to observe again in detail.

A day later, his divine sense detected nothing, but his eyes saw something different.

Along the stream's edge, some stones appeared arranged differently—his divine sense found nothing amiss, yet his eyes discerned faint, blurred patterns.

For such a situation, Ding Huan dared not be careless in the slightest.

His eyes were nothing like those of ordinary cultivators; they had been fused with the Great Wilderness Eye.

Though not yet perfected, they already allowed him to see things others could not—in the Great Gorge, they had proven immensely useful.

Ding Huan directed his divine sense again to the suspicious spot he had observed with his eyes, and soon understood what it was.

It was a teleportation array—and a natural one.

Natural teleportation arrays were exceedingly rare; this one wasn't just natural, its array patterns were crystal clear, layered, and perfect for beginners to study.

Even the slowest-witted would now understand why Elder He could set up a teleportation array at all.

He learned it right here—no wonder Elder He refused to leave Zixi Peak; perhaps he feared someone else would learn the array.

In both the Dao-cultivation realm and the Ascension Realm, every teleportation array was incredibly hard to obtain.

They were constructed by the top-tier array masters of the Ascension Realm, using piles of top-grade materials.

Now that Ding Huan had discovered a natural teleportation array, how could he let it slip away?

Yet before comprehending this teleportation array, Ding Huan surrounded it with a cluster of trapping arrays and anti-teleportation prohibitions.

Not content with that, he implanted the fifth-grade Hell Vine he had purchased at great cost directly into the array's core.

After discovering this teleportation array, Ding Huan was nearly one hundred percent certain.

Elder He's true escape route was not the cluster of arrays set up along the cliff edge—but this most unassuming array hidden in the stream before him.

Indeed, this natural teleportation array was the perfect textbook for learning array layout; Ding Huan spent only half a month studying its patterns and grasped the method of setting up teleportation arrays.

After mastering the array patterns and array flags, Ding Huan quickly left the teleportation array and hid within his own concealment array.

If Elder He escaped and found Ding Huan right beside the teleportation array, he would surely grow suspicious of it.

Ding Huan once again lay hidden outside Zixi Peak, focusing entirely on studying the teleportation array.

Ding Huan was already a fifth-grade peak array master, with a wealth of theoretical knowledge on arrays—he needed only one key to unlock the next level.

Guided by the natural teleportation array's patterns, he raised his teleportation array skill to fourth-grade in just one month.

Just as Ding Huan planned to further elevate his teleportation array skill to fifth-grade, the Qi of Zixi Peak suddenly churned.

Ding Huan immediately halted his calculation of the array and seized his Parting Spear.

Elder He had begun his cultivation; if he had begun, the next step would be to notice the poison mist hidden within the swirling Qi.

Time passed slowly, and to Ding Huan's surprise, the scale of Elder He's Qi manipulation grew larger and larger.

Eventually, a vortex formed atop Zixi Peak.

Ding Huan stared in awe—had this fellow already obtained the Three-Tone Purple Rain Flower and refined the Xu Luo Pill? Was he preparing to ascend to the Void God Realm?