One wave subsides only for another to rise.
Inside Chen Yuan's Immortal Cave on Ziqing Peak.
He was sitting cross-legged, with dozens of Yao Beast inner cores of varying luminescence floating before him.
Just as he was about to hand them to Little Phoenix, the Restriction of the Immortal Cave fluctuated, and Leng Youmeng's clear yet anxious voice sounded directly in his mind:
"Something has happened to Qin Shuhan."
Leng Youmeng did not elaborate, stating directly,
"She accepted a Sect mission, leading a team to patrol Liuyun City, which is subordinate to our Sect. However, on the way back, she encountered a Yao Beast ambush and was chased all the way until she was finally... forced into Demon King Mountain!"
"Demon King Mountain?" Chen Yuan's eyes narrowed.
Familiar with the Sect's ancient records, he naturally knew of this place.
It was an extremely strange Forbidden Ground, rumored to have remnants of Ancient Restrictions; Cultivators at the Body Integration Stage and above simply could not enter.
Therefore, many powerful Yao Beasts surviving from ancient times, as well as desperate fugitives chased by various races, hid inside.
Relying on the complex terrain and the protection of the Restrictions, countless separatist forces formed, making eradication extremely difficult.
Elders of the Sect have led teams inside to clear them out throughout the generations, but due to their inability to use full strength and unfamiliarity with the terrain, eradication was difficult, resulting only in losses.
"How could she have been forced in there?" Chen Yuan's voice deepened.
With Qin Shuhan's Mid-stage Spirit Transformation cultivation, the patrol team she led was not weak, and ordinary forces would never dare provoke the Xuantian Sect.
"According to the Disciple who fortunately escaped back to Liuyun City, their route home seemed to have been leaked, and the ambush they encountered was led by a Late Stage Soul Transformation Demon Venerable!"
Leng Youmeng's tone was icy, "They fought and retreated, but were ultimately defeated. Shuhan personally covered their retreat to protect the Disciples, was heavily injured by a single blow from that Late Stage Soul Transformation Demon Venerable, and finally fell into the boundaries of Demon King Mountain?"
Leak! Demon Venerable!
These two words instantly filled Chen Yuan's eyes with frost.
The Sect had just finished internal investigations, and now external affiliated forces were having problems so quickly.
"The Restrictions on Demon King Mountain are special; those above the Body Integration Stage cannot enter. My strength is limited, so I cannot go in.
I called you because even in the Early Soul Transformation Stage, you could defeat Luo Feng, who was at Nascent Soul Perfection Stage. Now that you are in the Mid-stage Spirit Transformation, Yao Beasts below the Void Return Stage shouldn't be able to harm you. You are the most suitable person to go, and you can also treat this as a Trial."
"I understand." Chen Yuan didn't hesitate. "Revered Master, tell me the specific location of Demon King Mountain. I will definitely bring Senior Sister back safely."
Leng Youmeng looked at him, flicked her finger, and a flash of Spiritual Light sank into Chen Yuan's glabella. All the information became instantly clear.
"The situation inside Demon King Mountain is unclear. Besides Yao Beasts, there may be various desperate fugitives. You must be careful."
Leng Youmeng cautioned him. Chen Yuan's strength far surpassed those of the same stage, but Demon King Mountain was, after all, a Dragon's Pool and Tiger's Den that even the Sect found troublesome.
She was afraid that Void Return Stage Yao Beasts might appear there.
However, Chen Yuan held a Trump Card she had given him: a Spiritual Jade that could block three Body Integration attacks, or, against a Void Return, could withstand their assault for a quarter of an hour.
Chen Yuan put away the Yao Beast inner cores and left his residence. He did not go directly to Demon King Mountain but first went to Qin Shuhan's Cultivation residence.
Her cool Qi still lingered within the residence.
Chen Yuan swept it with his Divine Sense, and quickly found a wisp of Qin Shuhan's Origin Qi that had unintentionally dissipated during her usual Cultivation practice beneath the Meditation Cushion in the Quiet Room.
He did not perversely lie on the Meditation Cushion for an Epic Inhale, but carefully extracted this wisp of Qi.
Then, with a thought, he retrieved an item from the System Space.
This was a Compass, dark gold in color, with Zhou Tian Star Runes inscribed on its surface. There was a groove in the center, emitting a faint glow.
It was the Emperor Rank Tracking Secret Treasure returned by the System: the Zhou Tian Star Chasing Compass.
This treasure could not only track Qi but also, to a certain extent, ignore the interference of Restrictions and Formations to lock onto the target's location, making it a supreme grade among Emperor Rank treasures.
Chen Yuan injected that wisp of Qin Shuhan's Origin Qi into the groove at the center of the Compass.
"Buzz!"
The Compass vibrated slightly, the Star Formation Scripts on its surface lit up one by one, and the pointer began to spin rapidly, finally settling on a direction—the location of Demon King Mountain!
"Found it."
Chen Yuan's gaze turned cold. He put away the Compass, and his figure transformed into starlight once more, fleeing.
Relying on the Star Evasion Art, plus two uses of Divine Ability, in just one day, a vast, continuous mountain range, shrouded in grayish-black Miasma and the light of ancient Restrictions, appeared before Chen Yuan.
Demon King Mountain!
The mountain range stretched for tens of thousands of miles; the peaks were like swords piercing the clouds, and many mountainsides showed a strange dark red color, as if stained by countless amounts of blood.
The air was filled with dense Demonic Qi, Devilish Qi, and a Sense of Desolation and Deathly Silence from antiquity.
Chen Yuan did not hesitate. He restrained his Qi, blending into the shadows, and silently infiltrated the area.
After entering Demon King Mountain, Chen Yuan immediately consumed several Medicinal Pills to restore his Spiritual Power.
Divine Sense was greatly suppressed here, compounded by twisted terrain and Spatial Cracks visible everywhere.
Various dangerous auras lurking in the dark made it difficult for ordinary Cultivators to move even an inch.
Chen Yuan took out the Zhou Tian Star Chasing Compass again. The compass pointer was slightly shaky here, but the general direction remained clear.
Without hesitation, he directly used a Rank Three Short-Distance Directional Teleportation Talisman.
With a flash of light, his figure vanished from the spot.
At the same time, deep within Demon King Mountain, inside a Gloomy Canyon filled with jagged, strange rocks.
Qin Shuhan leaned against a cold stone wall, her face pale as paper, with traces of fresh blood still clinging to the corners of her mouth.
Her Xuantian Sect Personal Disciple Robes were torn in several places, her snow-white collarbone was exposed, and her Qi was extremely weak.
She exhausted all her strength, even using several Life-Saving Trump Cards, to barely shake off that Late Stage Soul Transformation Demon Venerable.
In her panicked flight, she escaped into this hidden Valley.
Hoping to catch her breath temporarily and suppress her injuries.
However, she had just consumed a Medicinal Pill and hadn't had time to refine it when rustling footsteps came from the depths of the canyon, along with strange laughter filled with lewdness and greed.
"Hehehe, I never expected to run into such a luscious Young Woman in this godforsaken place!"
"Look at these robes... is she a True Disciple of the Xuantian Sect? What a Fat Sheep delivered right to our door!"
"So heavily injured, she truly evokes pity... Submit obediently to Us Brothers, and maybe we can spare you some suffering!"
Three Cultivators wearing tattered Black Robes and wreathed in Devilish Qi walked out from the darkness.
Their eyes were fierce, their Qi gloomy, and they were all, surprisingly, Mid-stage Spirit Transformation Devil Cultivators!
They are Devil Cultivators! Misfortunes never come singly.
Qin Shuhan's eyes became extremely solemn, and her heart was filled with coldness and despair.
Just out of the Wolf's Den, only to enter the Tiger's Lair!
In her current state, dealing with one was difficult enough, let alone three Devil Cultivators of the same stage?
It seems she can only use her trump cards!
She forced herself to stand up, tightly gripping her Dharma Sword, her eyes filled with Battle Intent: "You want to insult me? You are not worthy!"
"Hmph! You refuse the toast only to drink the forfeit!"
The Devil Cultivator leading them, whose face was marked with Red Devilish Patterns, sneered. With a sweep of his large hand, a pitch-black Devilish Claw reached for Qin Shuhan. The other two also attacked simultaneously, sealing off all her retreat paths.