68: Chapter 68: Infiltrating the Forbidden Area of ​​the Prince's Palace

His thoughts stirred slightly, and as the Great Turtle Breathing Technique circulated, his bones clicked and his facial muscles slowly shifted.

A moment later, the face in the mirror had transformed into Wang Sanpang.

With big ears, a fat head, and a face full of flesh, even that rogueish air was mimicked to perfection.

Xiao Yuan made faces at the air a few times, confirmed there were no issues, picked up the bag of wages from the ground, and strode toward Prince Rongs Mansion.

At the entrance of Prince Rongs Mansion, eight guards stood like door gods.

Xiao Yuan puffed out his belly and swaggered over.

"Yo, Fatty Brother is back!" a guard greeted with a smile, "A good haul today?"

Mimicking Wang Sanpang's tone, Xiao Yuan chuckled, "Not bad, not bad. See you at the casino tonight!"

The guard did not stop him, waving his hand, "Take care, Fatty Brother!"

Xiao Yuan breathed a sigh of relief inwardly, keeping a calm expression on his face as he strode through the gates of Prince Rongs Mansion.

Passing through the front courtyard and bypassing the shadow wall, the view suddenly opened up before him.

Pavilions, towers, carved beams, painted rafters, rockeries, and flowing water were as beautiful as a painting.

As he walked, Xiao Yuan absorbed the memories obtained from Soul Searching.

The garden was in the east side courtyard, and Wang Sanpang's residence was also over there.

Following the route in his memories, he passed through a moon gate, and an exquisite garden appeared before him.

Various exotic flowers and rare herbs vied for beauty, and a few gardeners were trimming the branches and leaves.

"Fatty Brother is back!" a gardener quickly bowed.

Xiao Yuan waved his hand, "Carry on with your work."

He walked straight into the small courtyard beside the garden—that was Wang Sanpang's residence.

Closing the door, Xiao Yuan breathed a sigh of relief.

He had finally managed to sneak in.

Sitting on a chair, he began to plot his next step.

Although Fatty Wang's identity wasn't much, having a Prince Rongs Mansion steward as a backing would make acting within the mansion much more convenient.

When night fell, Prince Rongs Mansion was silent.

Xiao Yuan sat cross-legged in Wang Sanpang's small courtyard, waiting for the night to deepen completely.

The hour of Zi had just passed.

He opened his eyes, his figure flashing as he melted into the darkness.

With the Great Turtle Breathing Technique operating at full force, his entire person became like a part of the night, silent and traceless, with even his Qi completely vanishing.

Following the route in Wang Sanpang's memories, he groped toward the eastern side of Prince Rongs Mansion.

That was his target for tonight.

From Fatty Wang's memories, that was the only place in the entire Prince Rongs Mansion where no one was allowed to go, not even the guards of the mansion. It was the absolute Forbidden Ground of the mansion.

If Prince Rongs Mansion had any secrets, they would only be there.

Along the way, he encountered a few waves of patrolling guards—at the third or fourth layers of Qi Condensation, with the strongest being only at the fifth layer.

These people walked past the place where he was concealed without even blinking their eyelids, utterly unable to discover that a living person was right beside them.

Xiao Yuan's Late Foundation Establishment Stage Divine Sense coupled with the Great Turtle Breathing Technique was practically an invisibility cheat.

Unless a Golden Core Cultivator came over, otherwise, even if a Peak Foundation Establishment Cultivator was by his side, as long as Xiao Yuan did not reveal a sliver of Qi, it would be very difficult for him to be discovered.

Bypassing a bamboo grove, a huge group of rockeries appeared before him.

The rockeries were stacked layer upon layer, with jagged stones casting eerie shadows under the moonlight.

Xiao Yuan narrowed his eyes.

His perceptive power quietly probed out—around the rockeries, there were faint fluctuations of a Formation.

A Tier 2 Low Grade Formation, and there was more than one.

"No wonder no one is guarding it," he understood in his heart, "With this kind of Formation, even if someone in the early or middle Foundation Establishment Stage came, they would be trapped and would also trigger an alarm."

However...

The corners of his mouth hooked slightly.

After being enhanced by the creation cauldron, his attainment in Formations was now approaching Tier 2 High Grade.

Breaking a Formation of this level might take some time, but finding a safe passage was still not a problem.

Xiao Yuan reined in his Qi and shuttled among the rockeries.

Every step landed on the gaps between the Formation nodes, as thrilling as walking a tightrope, yet terrifyingly precise.

A quarter of an hour later.

He stood in the center of the rockery group, before a seemingly ordinary giant boulder.

But when Xiao Yuan's perceptive power swept across it, he discovered a clue—behind the giant boulder, there was a mechanism.

He reached out and groped around the stone crevices for a few moments, found a protruding stone, and pressed down hard.

Rumble!

The giant boulder slowly moved aside, revealing a flight of stone steps extending downwards.

Xiao Yuan did not hesitate, flashing inside.

The stone door closed automatically behind him.

The passage was deep and secluded, the stone walls on both sides damp, with a faint smell of blood drifting up.

Xiao Yuan walked down the steps, counting his steps as he went.

One hundred steps... two hundred steps... three hundred steps...

When he counted past eight hundred steps, the passage suddenly widened.

Dim yellow light came from ahead.

Xiao Yuan held his breath, cautiously poking his head out.

The sight before him made his pupils shrink.

This was a huge underground space!

About forty to fifty zhang high and about a thousand zhang wide, the dome was embedded with glowing Ore, illuminating the entire subterranean world.

The middle was empty, and densely packed prison cells were carved out of the surrounding rock walls!

People were locked in every prison cell; some were unconscious, some were awake, and some... had already become dried corpses. A rough count showed at least three to four hundred bodies.

What was even more alarming was that dozens of people in black were patrolling, with cultivation bases all around the fifth or sixth layers of Qi Condensation. Holding lanterns, they shuttled between the prison cells expressionlessly.

And right in the center of the space—

A huge altar!

On the altar was a Blood Pool, where blood-red liquid churned and surged, emitting a thick smell of blood.

Around the Blood Pool were carved eerie runes, and under the dim light, those runes seemed to come alive, twisting and shifting.

Beside the altar stood a huge black cauldron, identical to the one used by the fake sect leader earlier, but larger and more sinister.

Screams occasionally came from the prison cells, echoing in the empty underground space and making one's scalp tingle.

Xiao Yuan took a deep breath, suppressing the shock and murderous intent in his heart.

He did not rashly go in, instead retreating back into the passage to wait quietly.

Half a cup of tea later, a person in black walked toward this side—probably tired from patrolling and wanting to find a corner to slack off.

Just as he turned into the passage, a large hand covered his mouth.

"Mmm—!"

The person in black widened their eyes, and before they could react, a palm was already pressed against their forehead.

Soul Searching technique, activate!

Countless memory fragments poured into Xiao Yuan's mind:

Chen Qi, a Loose Cultivator, was absorbed by the Yinsha Cult three years ago, becoming a low-level cult member. Mainly responsible for guarding the prison cells, occasionally helping to transport "Materials."

Immediately after, from this person's memories, Xiao Yuan discovered something he had guessed.

That Yinsha Sect Leader swaggering outside and swindling was merely a Puppet! The true core of the Yinsha Cult was right here!

The true sect leader had a cultivation base of Peak Foundation Establishment, a mysterious identity, and never showed their true face in front of the cult members.

Within the cult, there were six Protectors, all in the Foundation Establishment Stage!

Among them, the strongest Protector was already in the Late Foundation Establishment Stage! These six people, along with the fake Yinsha Sect Leader making seven, could all refine earth-grade foundation establishment pills!

As for those "Protectors" on the surface: like Zhou Yuansheng, they were all scapegoats!

Once the Yinsha Cult was exposed, they would be pushed out to take the fall!

As for the earth-grade foundation establishment pill!

In Chen Qi's memories, there was a scene he had witnessed with his own eyes: a single Medicinal Pill allowed a Loose Cultivator with a Low Grade Spiritual Root to successfully achieve Foundation Establishment in one go! Furthermore, the quality of the Spiritual Root truly improved!

But the price was!

That Medicinal Pill used the Spiritual Roots of seventeen Cultivators with Medium Grade Spiritual Roots!