Chapter 154

Ling Xiao's arrival was like injecting a divine stabilizing needle into a vessel about to capsize. His pure, vast spiritual power far surpassed that of ordinary Hundred Flowers Valley elders; once poured into the formation's nodes, the originally violent flickering barrier, on the verge of shattering, instantly steadied and solidified considerably, firmly binding the frenzied rampaging soul-devouring demonic vine's main body and its terrifying devouring aura within the vicinity of the Withered Glory Cave, preventing its energy from spreading further throughout the valley.

Inside the cave, Mo Ji's figure darted through the sky-filling, wildly dancing dark-purple vines like a ghost. His palms continuously cast profound spell formulas; each strike precisely hit the key nodes where the vines' energy flowed, temporarily checking part of their offense and even briefly severing the activity of a small patch of the demonic vine, causing it to wither.

But he seemed intent on seizing something rather than merely destroying the demonic vine; his moves were restrained, and the corrosive, devouring power emanating from the shattered light at the vine's core—evidently the residual source turmoil after losing the Withered Glory Crystal Core—was terrifyingly strong, steadily eroding his protective spiritual light and even attempting to back‑infiltrate his body along the spell formulas he cast, making his movements increasingly sluggish and causing ever more tears in his blue‑gray robe.

"Mo Ji! Return the crystal core at once, or the demonic vine will run completely out of control and neither of us will escape disaster!" the Hundred Flowers Valley Master shouted toward the cave while straining to maintain the grand formation, her voice hoarse from anxiety and spiritual exhaustion.

Mo Ji seemed oblivious, his gaze locked on a certain point deep within the demonic vine's core, as if something there attracted him more than the Withered Glory Crystal Core. He bore several lashes from the vines, staggered, yet used the momentum to draw closer to the core, forming hand seals faster and chanting softly; an ancient, obscure aura began to emanate from his body.

"What is he trying to do?!" exclaimed a Hundred Flowers Valley elder in bewilderment.

Ling Xiao frowned, sensing that Mo Ji was performing an extremely overbearing ancient secret art aimed at the very depths of the demonic vine's source—not a simple seizure but rather a kind of… severing or refining. This undoubtedly enraged the soul-devouring demonic vine further; its howl turned sharper and more ferocious, countless vines no longer blindly lashing but began to bizarrely merge and transform into tendrils covered with suckers and fangs, sweeping across the sky toward Mo Ji, their soul‑devouring power suddenly multiplying severalfold.

Boom—

The entire Withered Glory Cave shuddered violently; the sealing light curtain at the entrance flashed wildly again, several elders spat out a mouthful of blood each, and the formation instantly became perilous.

"Not good!" the Hundred Flowers Valley Master's face turned deathly pale.

Ling Xiao's eyes narrowed; he knew he could no longer hesitate. He gave a low shout, his cultivation technique operating at full capacity—not merely pouring spiritual power into the formation, but projecting a portion of his divine sense to press down from afar on the several most violent main vines inside the cave!

"Seal!"

This was not a direct attack on the demonic vine's body (which would instantly provoke its fiercest backlash), but rather a forcible stabilization of that region's space using his immense divine sense combined with spiritual power, briefly hindering and immobilizing the main vines. Executing this required exquisite timing and power control, and it consumed a tremendous amount of divine sense.

It was precisely this momentary hindrance that gave Mo Ji a precious opportunity!

Only then did his eyes blaze with light; he slammed the final spell formula deep into the core, uttering a short, ancient syllable. The cluster of shattered light at the vine's core jerked to a halt, and then an extremely fine, supremely condensed dark‑golden stream of light was forcibly wrenched out of it and instantly sucked into his sleeve!

At the same instant, losing that peculiar core's support (though most of the violent source remained), the demonic vine's assault showed an extremely brief hint of dispersion and weakening.

"Now!" Ling Xiao bellowed at the Hundred Flowers Valley Master.

The Hundred Flowers Valley Master was equally decisive; although she did not know what Mo Ji had taken, this was indeed a good chance to reseal. She bit her tongue, sprayed a mouthful of essence blood onto the formation's eye artifact, and cried loudly: "Hundred Flowers Seal, seal!"

All the elders desperately channeled spiritual power; the formation's light blazed forth, layer upon layer of sealing sigils seeming to come alive, transforming into countless light‑vines radiating pure vitality and sealing power that streamed in along the space Ling Xiao had temporarily stabilized, swarming to entwine the demonic vine's main body, especially its core region.

The soul‑devouring demonic vine unleashed a earth‑shaking pained howl, frantically struggling, but its core had been briefly weakened, then disturbed by Ling Xiao's divine sense and fully sealed by the Hundred Flowers Grand Formation; although its struggling force remained terrifying, it was gradually subdued, and the spewing emerald demonic light began to recede bit by bit back into the cave.

Taking advantage of this opening, Mo Ji turned his body into a barely visible faint shadow, slipping through the gaps between countless vines with a hair's breadth; in the blink of an eye he escaped the main area of the Withered Glory Cave, landing at the cave's edge, his breath somewhat disordered, his sleeves stained with strange fluid, his face slightly pallid, yet deep in his eyes lay an unmistakable hint of satisfaction.

He glanced at the Hundred Flowers Valley populace and Ling Xiao, who were exerting all their effort to seal, showed no expression, then swayed his form once more and prepared to depart.

"Stop!" the Baihu Valley Master shouted while maintaining the formation, "Mo Ji! You have caused a great disaster, stealing our valley's forbidden object, and you think you can just walk away like that?!"

Mo Ji's steps paused slightly, he turned half his face, his voice remained calm yet with a hint of coldness: "The Withered Glory Crystal Core is shattered, the demonic vine's origin is wounded; even if resealed, its strength is less than one-tenth. For your Baihu Valley, this may be a blessing rather than a calamity. As for what I took, it never belonged to your Baihu Valley; to keep it here would only breed disaster. Today's events leave us owing nothing to each other."

Having said that, he did not linger; his form completely merged into the night, vanishing from sight, moving so fast that Ling Xiao couldn't even react in time to stop him—or rather, Ling Xiao was presently unable to divert his attention to stop him.

The Baihu Valley Master trembled with rage, yet could not pursue; at present, suppressing the demonic vine is the utmost priority.

With Ling Xiao's aid, and furthermore benefiting from Mo Ji's final unnamed action that unexpectedly weakened the demonic vine's core, plus the Baihu Valley disciples exerting themselves to the death, the frenzied Soul-devouring Demonic Vine was finally driven back deep into the Withered Glory Cave; layers of sealing light once again firmly sealed the cave mouth, although the light was much dimmer than before, at least it stabilized.

When the final seal fell, the Withered Glory Cave returned to complete calm (at least on the surface), and the heart-pounding devouring aura was completely locked inside the cave; all the elders who participated in the suppression were nearly exhausted, they sat cross-legged to adjust their breath, their faces showing lingering fear and fatigue.

The Baihu Valley Master also breathed a sigh of relief, her body swayed, and Qing Hui beside her hurriedly supported her. After steadying her breath, she walked up to Ling Xiao and gave a deep bow: "Thank you, Daoist Ling, for your righteous aid; without you, Baihu Valley would surely have faced a great calamity today. This kindness, Baihu Valley will surely remember."

Ling Xiao gathered his breath, his face slightly pale; the expenditure of his divine sense just now had indeed been considerable. He returned the salute: "Master, your words are weighty; when facing danger together, we naturally aid each other. But… what exactly caused today's incident? And what precisely did Mo Ji take?"

A flicker of complexity and obscurity crossed the Baihu Valley Master's face; she sighed, waved her hand to let the other elders withdraw first to tend their wounds, leaving only Suwen Granny and the two other core elders, then she gave Ling Xiao a wry smile: "Please excuse my embarrassment, Daoist. This is a secret guarded by Baihu Valley through the generations, and also a hidden danger."

She glanced at the Withered Glory Cave, now calm again but with dim seals, and said slowly: "That Soul-devouring Demonic Vine is no ordinary thing; it is said to be the transformation of a remnant of an ancient demonic plant, greedy in nature, capable of devouring the spirituality of all things, and extremely hard to destroy. Our Baihu Valley ancestors chanced upon this place, using some of its traits to nourish the valley's spiritual plants, yet we must continually draw upon its excess power with the precious treasure 'Withered Glory Crystal Core' to suppress it, forming a delicate balance. Every generation of valley masters must devote part of their attention to monitoring this cave; it is truly like walking on thin ice."

"Mo Ji somehow learned of this; earlier he negotiated with me, seeking to take something from the cave, but I firmly refused. I never expected him to be so audacious as to forcibly break the seal, and moreover to take away the Withered Glory Crystal Core that is key to maintaining the balance, causing the demonic vine to instantly lose control and backlash… As for the final thing he took, that strand of Nightflow Fire," the Baihu Valley Master shook her head, her face showing doubt, "I also do not know what it is; the inheritance of past valley masters never mentions anything else hidden at the core. Yet that this object could provoke Mo Ji into such a risky venture shows it is certainly no trivial matter."

Upon hearing this, Ling Xiao's thoughts raced. Mo Ji's goal was certainly not merely to cause chaos; from the start he was aiming for that Nightflow Fire! He even did not hesitate to destroy the Withered Glory Crystal Core, provoke the demonic vine's riot to create an opportunity. This thing must be related to his phrase "each takes what they need," and possibly even connected to the Five Elements Immortal Treasures or the secret of the Realm Source!

The Baihu Valley Master continued: "Now the Withered Glory Crystal Core is shattered; although we have temporarily resealed it, the demonic vine's origin is wounded, the balance is broken, and how to deal with the aftermath is truly a headache… sigh." Her brows were full of worry; this hidden danger has not been eliminated, merely changed into a more complicated form.

"Master, Senior Ling, his disciples are still in the Qinfang Pavilion," Qing Hui whispered a reminder; the situation had just been urgent, so she had directly summoned Ling Xiao, leaving Luo Changfeng and the three others behind.

The Baihu Valley Master immediately said: "Daoist Ling, please return quickly, lest your disciples worry. Today's favor, I will thank you later. After this incident, Baihu Valley must immediately close its gates for rectification, strictly inspect defensive loopholes; we may not be able to entertain you further." Her meaning was clear: she hoped Ling Xiao and his party would leave as soon as possible, both to avoid further trouble and because Baihu Valley indeed needs to handle the aftermath and has no leisure to receive outsiders.

This exactly suited Ling Xiao's intention. He immediately clasped his hands: "If that is the case, we will not disturb you further. Valley Master, please take care; if needed, you may send word at any time."

After brief farewells, Ling Xiao transformed into a stream of light and swiftly returned to the Qinfang Pavilion.

Within the pavilion, Luo Changfeng and Wei Yuzhu were fully on guard; seeing Ling Xiao return unharmed, they finally let out a great sigh of relief.

"Master, are you alright?" the two asked anxiously.

"All right." Ling Xiao shook his head, glanced at Shi Ran on the bed—though startled, she was still fine—"Pack up at once; we will leave Baihu Valley immediately!"

The two hesitated not, and immediately set to work. Soon, Wei Yuzhu carefully hoisted Shi Ran onto her back, Luo Changfeng guarded at her side, Ling Xiao flicked his sleeve, sweeping up the three of them, turning into a swift yet hard-to-detect stream of light that headed straight for the transmission array outside the valley.

Along the way, one could see the Baihu Valley lit with lights, disciple patrol squads more densely packed, the atmosphere stern, all formations activated—clearly the valley had entered a high state of alert. Yet no one stopped Ling Xiao's party, evidently having received the valley master's order.

Smoothly reaching the transmission array, the guarding elder seemed also to have been notified, asked no further questions, and quickly activated the directed transmission for them.

Light flashed, and the four figures vanished within the Baihu Valley.

After a slight discomfort from the short-distance transmission, they appeared in the transmission array of another relay town tens of thousands of li away from Baihu Valley.

Having found a secluded inn for temporary rest and set up isolating seals, the four finally relaxed.

"Master, what exactly happened in Baihu Valley? That Mo Ji..." Luo Changfeng could not wait to ask.

Ling Xiao gave a rough account of tonight's upheaval, emphasizing the Soul-devouring Demonic Vine, the Withered Glory Crystal Core, and the Nightflow Fire that Mo Ji ultimately took.

"Nightflow Fire?" Wei Yuzhu wondered, "What could that be? Even the Baihu Valley Master doesn't know."

"This object is certainly extraordinary." Ling Xiao said solemnly, "Mo Ji has been scheming painstakingly, even unwilling to spare causing a great disturbance; his target is clearly this object. This may very well be his true purpose for appearing in Baihu Valley—the so-called 'each takes what they need,' what he needs is precisely this!"

He paused, then continued: "Moreover, do you still recall his earlier words? 'After Geng Metal, follow Water to generate Wood, or trace back Fire to overcome Metal'—he indicated the sequence for seeking the Five Elements Immortal Treasures. And the Nightflow Fire he seized this time, its aura… faintly carries a trace of extremely pure fire-source residue; perhaps… this object is related to the Five Elements Immortal Treasures we seek, or even to the 'Realm Source' itself!"

This speculation startled both Luo Changfeng and Wei Yuzhu.

"Master, do you mean that the thing Mo Ji seized might help us find the next immortal treasure?" Luo Changfeng reacted quickly.

"Quite likely." Ling Xiao nodded, "He might even be 'opening the way' for us? Or perhaps he himself needs these items to complete some ritual or cultivation? His true purpose remains hard to fathom. But we can be certain that he is very knowledgeable about the Five Elements Immortal Treasures and the Realm Source secret, and is also gathering related items."

The clues seemed to increase, yet also become more perplexing. Whether Mo Ji is friend or foe grows ever harder to judge.

"So what should we do now?" Wei Yuzhu asked.

Ling Xiao's eyes were firm: "According to the original plan, our target is the Qingmu Ancestral Land! Mo Ji pointed out the direction, and the object he seized this time is possibly related to the fire element, perhaps even tacitly matching the hint 'after Geng Metal, or trace back Fire to overcome Metal.' We must go there to seek clues for the next immortal treasure, to cure Ranran."

He gazed out the window at the faintly brightening sky; a new day had begun, and their journey would continue southward, crossing the vast Chenxing Sea, to seek that elusive and peril-ridden Qingmu Ancestral Land.

The night of terror in Hundred Flowers Valley, like an interlude, only strengthened their resolve and gave them a deeper understanding of the hardships and unknowns ahead. The figure of Mr. Mo Ji, like a mysterious guide and troublemaker, has already been deeply etched into their journey.

After resting half a day, the four set out again, passing through the town's teleportation array, repeatedly heading south, gradually approaching the boundless, chaotic-star-power Sinking Star Sea heard of in rumors. As for the specific information about the Ancestral Land of Qingmu, they will need to inquire further upon reaching the coastal metropolis. A new adventure is about to begin.