Chapter 231: with translation of chapter title

The restriction opened.

It must be said that there are indeed many spiritual herbs and fruits inside this restriction, but most of them are protected by a slightly weaker restriction, and without spending some time, one cannot pluck what is inside.

Moreover, the most valuable ones, without a doubt, are those at the very center of the restriction.

Not only does it have the 'Thousand‑Thread Zen Heart Seed' spiritual fruit, but also bitter-heart grass, scarlet fruit, purple‑spotted lotus, and other spiritual plants that can raise the cultivation base of Golden Core cultivators.

A large amount of divine sense swept over.

The cultivators present initially maintained a certain tacit understanding, each fixing on different things; obviously they all held the same thought—first obtain what they could obtain, then try to seize other treasures.

At the same time, most of these Golden Core cultivators had a sufficient understanding and positioning of their own strength.

Late Jie Dan Stage cultivators first went to seize the spiritual plants at the center, which are relatively the most valuable; mid‑stage Jie Dan cultivators followed, while Li Yuanfan, an early‑stage Jie Dan cultivator, sensibly began collecting from the outermost edges.

However, there is one exception.

That is Yunhe.

He directly rushed toward the 'Thousand‑Thread Zen Heart Seed' fruit tree.

At this point, the Crimson Shadow Golden‑Winged Bee could no longer hide; a sweep of divine sense revealed everything. If at this moment no one had realized that Yunhe had already tampered with the restriction, with what was inside it, then they would not be Golden Core cultivators.

But in fact, even if they discovered it, it would no longer matter much to Yunhe.

He turned into a streak of light, drew in his sleeves, and swept up a dozen or so Crimson Shadow Golden‑Winged Bees along with the spiritual plants they were carrying.

'Kid!'

'You'

'Stop!'

As for these, Yunhe would not pay attention; he now had only one thought.

'Flee!'

Immediately he pulled out a 'Cloud Escape Talisman' from his storage bag, stuck it on his body, and his escape speed suddenly surged, to the point that even Late Jie Dan Stage cultivators could only stare at his dust.

Watching the extremely fast streak of light, the assembly of Late Jie Dan Stage cultivators had no choice but to halt their actions.

They were both astonished that a mid‑stage Jie Dan cultivator could run so fast, and helpless that they had not noticed the situation earlier.

Although Yunhe had taken the precious 'Thousand‑Thread Zen Heart Seed' and a few other precious spiritual plants, there were obviously many more left here; they glared resentfully at the direction Yunhe had fled, then turned toward the remaining spiritual plants.

Han Yongzhuo also felt somewhat surprised at this moment.

He had been wondering why Yunhe was so fearless; it turned out his escape speed was really that fast.

But he couldn't worry about how far Yunhe had run; although his main goal was the 'Nascent Soul Supreme Treasure', whether that treasure could actually be obtained was still uncertain, while the spiritual plants here were easily obtainable, so he naturally would not give up.

And in fact, the most astonished at this moment were undoubtedly Li Yuanfan and Ning Sisi.

Although he had already sent them a voice transmission earlier, telling them to flee quickly when Yunhe was running.

But when they saw Yunhe swiftly disappearing, their expressions almost simultaneously went blank.

Is this what they call 'each relying on their own abilities'?

Fellow Daoist Yun truly has remarkable skill.

Thinking this to themselves, the two unconsciously sped up.

The two of them had come together with Yunhe; although the cultivators present were now busy gathering spiritual plants, once the plants here are all harvested, it is uncertain whether they will take out their anger on the two.

So, after the two hastily collected a considerable amount of precious spiritual plants, they immediately fled in different directions.

Fortunately, the spiritual plants here have not yet been completely harvested, so no one deliberately tried to chase them.

And the two also bore no grudge against Yunhe.

If it weren't for his protection, it would be questionable whether the two could have reached this place at all; moreover, he had already greeted them earlier, so being able to remind them with a sentence now is already quite good—if it were someone with malicious intent, they might very well use the two as a stepping stone.

In short.

Because over the past five hundred years, a considerable amount of precious spiritual plants has accumulated; the assembled Golden Core cultivators all reaped a bountiful harvest, so no one really remembered Yunhe's existence too much.

After all, for most cultivators, although the 'Thousand‑Thread Zen Heart Seed' is precious, they also do not know how to use it; it is more reliable to take some spiritual plants that can be refined into Elixir that raise cultivation base.

And Yunhe also obtained what he most wanted.

The remaining spiritual plants that could raise cultivation base, while not bad, are unnecessary for him because he possesses the 'Ling Sui Dan' and now has a relatively stable supply of ingredients.

After all, in terms of Elixir efficacy, what could compare to the 'Ling Sui Dan' made directly from a third‑rank demon beast's inner core as the main ingredient?

'One "Earth Essence Fruit", three "Thousand‑Thread Zen Heart Seeds", plus the spawn of the Three‑Eyed Earth Toad and several spiritual plants that aid cultivation base'

After leaving the oasis, Yunhe simply tallied his current harvest.

This is already quite considerable; just these alone actually make the trip worthwhile and not waste the 'Luo Tian Order'.

Of course.

What he most wants is undoubtedly the 'Nascent Soul Supreme Treasure'; if he misses the 'Luo Tian Secret Realm', he really cannot think of where else he could obtain a treasure of such a level.

Perhaps only some sects or forces with deep foundations could have such treasures.

After making sure no one was pursuing him, Yunhe found a relatively calm patch of sand and landed there.

Upon touching the ground, he did not pause even a moment, but sank directly into the sand layer.

After quickly laying out a few formations, he then took out the 'Lard Ice‑Clear Lotus' and sat upon it, mainly to calm his mind.

About half an hour later.

In this relatively calm environment, he took out the Thick Earth Cauldron and the living soul of the Three‑Eyed Earth Toad.

Because he had the Corpse‑Soul Gu and the Beast‑Soul Banner, the preservation of this living soul was still relatively intact.

But if it were to remain in the state of a living soul, it would gradually lose its spirituality, eventually possibly becoming inferior to the beast soul of an ordinary demon beast.

Therefore, he wanted to take advantage of the current relative calm to refine this living soul into the Thick Earth Cauldron.

This is not an easy task, and Yunhe had never before infused a magical treasure with an artifact spirit.

But on the one hand, the longer the delay, the more the living soul of the Three‑Eyed Earth Toad loses its spirituality, and the lower the chance of future success.

On the other hand, the time he had agreed upon with Han Yongzhuo is three days from now.

Three days' time — neither too little nor too much.

But if only the soul is refined in, with no other materials added, and everything goes smoothly, it should be sufficient.

Now Yunhe's thinking is that any improvement is good.

The Earthen Cauldron is of little use to him now, especially after his 'Supporting Demon Armor' was completed; it would be better to try now.

If successful, he gains another method; if it fails, he won't regret it much, and it won't affect his strength significantly.

This was something he had planned beforehand, so Yunhe hesitated not at all.

He made a hand seal, causing the Earthen Cauldron to hover.

Then he spat out cinnabar fire, offered the three-eyed earth toad's soul, erased its consciousness, and tried to refine it in.

Accompanied by the painful cries of the three-eyed earth toad's soul, under the cinnabar fire, a mysterious light appeared on the Earthen Cauldron, and the soul was gradually 'squeezed' into the cauldron.

This process was actually much faster than Yunhe had imagined, probably because he had no reservations, so his actions were rather 'crude,' and their attributes matched.

Of course, the difficulty was also much higher than Yunhe had expected.

If he did not possess the Corpse Soul Gu, the three-eyed earth toad's soul would not have caused much trouble in his hands; perhaps the difficulty would have been at least 20–30% higher.

Three days later.

Yunhe headed toward the secret realm's center while observing the small cauldron in his hand.

One could see.

On the cauldron circulated a misty earth-colored halo; besides the original Spiritual Power fluctuations, there were also some spiritual rhythms, faintly revealing a remarkable aura.

This is the Earthen Cauldron, which has been refined with the three-eyed earth toad's soul and now possesses an artifact spirit.

However.

If one looks closely, one can find two extremely fine crack marks on each side of the cauldron's ear and foot.

Although repaired with some earth-attribute materials, the traces are still relatively obvious.

All that can be said is.

In the short three days, Yunhe's act and means of instilling an artifact spirit into it were indeed somewhat crude.

Fortunately, his skill in artifact crafting was passable, so he managed to make up for it, but the cauldron now has no chance of further improvement.

Moreover, if it suffers a heavy blow, it could possibly fall apart.

'Consider it half a success, at least as long as it remains intact.'

Because the three-eyed earth toad's soul was indeed successfully refined in, the cauldron feels markedly different to Yunhe.

The most obvious point is that, without his explicit control or urging, the cauldron possesses a certain ability to act on its own.

'If he refines souls into artifacts in the future, he will have some experience and won't be as rushed and crude as this time.'

He silently comforted himself with a sentence.

He flipped his palm and put the Earthen Cauldron away.

He raised his gaze and saw, on what seemed an endless desert, a platform several zhang high standing, with a 'gate' on it.

Perhaps calling it a 'teleportation array' would be more fitting.

On this platform, a youth in a dark robe sat cross-legged.

The distance quickly closed.

It seemed he noticed someone approaching; Han Yongzhuo opened his eyes.

Seeing Yunhe flying from afar, his face instantly broke into a smile; he rose, clasped his hands, and shouted:

"Brother Yun, you've kept me waiting well."

Yunhe landed on the platform, also showing his standard gentle smile, with a hint of apology, and said:

"I, Yun, was delayed by some matters, making Brother Han wait a long time."

"No problem, no problem." Han Yongzhuo waved his hands repeatedly, appearing very easygoing.

The two didn't exchange many pleasantries, nor mention what happened earlier on the oasis, but went straight to the main topic.

"How have you considered it, Brother? Do you want to venture together with me?"

Yunhe pressed his lips together.

His coming here naturally shows his yearning for the Nascent Soul treasure.

As for the Nascent Soul treasure likely being only one piece, the question of how to split it later is actually simple: each will rely on their own ability.

First, we must find the Nascent Soul treasure.

So he must first verify the reliability of Han Yongzhuo's information.

Otherwise, he couldn't just follow him into the perilous central area of the secret realm on a single word.

Han Yongzhuo had obviously thought of this as well; seeing Yunhe's expression, he was not surprised, merely smiling as he took out a Jade Slip and tossed it to Yunhe.

"Your doubts, Brother, can be answered in this Jade Slip."

Having taken the Jade Slip, Yunhe did not hesitate; he infused his divine sense and began to browse it.

As he examined the Jade Slip's contents, he gradually came to a realization.

Ultimately, it all stems from the 'array ear' that Han Yongzhuo possesses.

This 'array ear' is a spirit beast passed down in Han Yongzhuo's family; his ancestors once entered the 'Luo Tian Secret Realm,' even ventured into its central area, bringing back much useful information, including the array restriction discovered at a certain spot in the realm's center.

However, for some reason, Han Yongzhuo's ancestors were unable to successfully obtain what lay inside that restriction.

The only thing that can be certain is that the restriction has never been opened; there is a considerable chance that a Nascent Soul treasure exists inside!

Based on this, several reasons for such speculation were listed.

Of course, all this is merely speculation; no definitive answer can be given.

"You know, if it were absolutely certain to exist, we wouldn't get a chance to take it." Han Yongzhuo said.

Yunhe nodded thoughtfully.

The Jade Slip does not contain a map or information about the restrictions; Han Yongzhuo obviously kept a backhand.

But he already believed it six or seven tenths.

Because he and Han Yongzhuo had no grudge against each other, they had merely met by chance, and the other party had absolutely no need to deceive him.

Moreover, entering the core area of the secret realm, the one who needs to face danger is not only him; Han Yongzhuo is the same. Without a certain degree of confidence, he would not dare to take this risk.

These matters, he had actually considered them long ago; the reason he repeatedly shows hesitation is merely to hope to obtain more information from Han Yongzhuo.

Now it seems, producing this Jade Slip is already his limit.

He drew a slight breath.

Yunhe tossed the Jade Slip back to him, and in a deep voice said: "Alright, it seems that I, Yunhe, will have to make a trip to the core of this secret realm."

Upon hearing this, Han Yongzhuo showed delight, carefully put away the Jade Slip, and said:

"This is excellent, this is excellent!"

The two exchanged a glance, understanding each other without words.

Although the two are now considered to have joined forces, it is easy to imagine how fragile their alliance is.

The moment they find the Nascent Soul Supreme Treasure, that will be when they are bound to oppose each other.

By then, it will truly be a matter of seeing whose abilities are greater.

Of course, the precondition for all of this is that they can find the Nascent Soul Supreme Treasure.

(End of chapter)