91: Return to the Sect

The small snake had grown from its original finger-width thickness to the size of a bowl, nearly two zhang in length.

Its entire body was covered in dense, dark gray scales, and its movements now carried a trace of pressure no weaker than that of a low-grade Spirit Beast.

One day, Lin Feng was directing the Shadow Scale Snake to cruise along the edge of the fog, attempting to familiarize it with a wider environment.

He suddenly discovered that the small snake moved freely through the thick fog, its pair of pale golden pupils shimmering with a faint light, seemingly completely unaffected by the fog.

A bold idea instantly flashed through Lin Feng's mind.

He immediately informed Fang Lingyao of this discovery.

After discussing it, the two decided to take the risk and try.

Lin Feng communicated with the Shadow Scale Snake using his mind, and the Shadow Scale Snake obediently lowered its body, pressing close to the ink-colored sea surface.

He stepped onto the middle of the snake's body first, and after steadying himself, he reached out his hand toward Fang Lingyao.

Fang Lingyao looked at the smooth snake body, hesitated slightly, but still reached out, using his strength to step up as well.

The two stood one behind the other on the snake's back, their distance inevitably drawn much closer, and both could feel the warmth of the other's body and the slight swaying.

The Shadow Scale Snake's body sank slightly, but it was clearly enough to bear the weight of the two.

Receiving the command, the Shadow Scale Snake began to swim forward.

It glided along the water in a peculiar way, and as its snake body twisted, breaking through the ink-colored seawater, its speed was actually not slow.

After traveling like this for about half a day, the surrounding fog finally began to gradually thin out.

When the view suddenly opened up before them, revealing the blue sky and the normal sea surface once again, both felt as if they had returned from a different lifetime.

Lin Feng tried to circulate his spiritual power, his figure slowly rising into the air, and the long-lost sensation of flight returned, causing him to heave a long sigh of relief.

Fang Lingyao also flew up at the same time, her cold, clear eyes reflecting the vast sea and sky, a trace of uncontrollable excitement flashing through them.

Lin Feng recalled the Shadow Scale Snake, and the Shadow Scale Snake obediently shrank its size and returned to the spirit beast pouch.

The two identified their direction and discovered that this place was actually located at the end of a distant sea area north of the Tianxuan Sect, known as the "North Nether Sea," more than ten thousand li away from the Sect.

Without the slightest hesitation, the two suppressed their excitement at escaping and transformed into two streaks of Escaping Light, speeding south with all their might.

Several days later, when the familiar silhouette of the Tianxuan Sect's mountains finally appeared on the distant horizon, their hearts were filled with a complex mix of emotions.

Lin Feng and Fang Lingyao landed one after the other outside the mountain gate of the Tianxuan Sect.

The two looked at each other; after more than two years of being trapped on an isolated island, depending on each other for survival, they had finally… returned.

"I am returning to Yunni Peak." Fang Lingyao spoke first, her gaze sweeping over Lin Feng before quickly moving away.

"Mn." Lin Feng nodded. "Take care, Senior Sister."

Fang Lingyao nodded slightly, turned, and transformed into a streak of cyan light, heading toward the direction of Yunni Peak, her figure quickly disappearing into the swirling clouds and mist.

Lin Feng stood in place, watching her leave until that speck of cyan shadow completely vanished, before turning and flying back to his own Immortal Cave on Baoyue Peak.

Pushing open the stone door of the Immortal Cave, a familiar aura rushed to meet him.

Having been away from the mountain for two years, the Immortal Cave was still spotless, and everything remained as it was.

In the spiritual spring, that ice fire lotus had actually grown and was quietly blooming; half of its petals were fiery red, while the other half were crystal clear ice blue, and strands of alternating cold and heat aura permeated the air.

In another room, the vine of the wine immortal gourd had grown much thicker, and the dark golden gourd hanging on it had already matured; its surface was smooth and lustrous, with faint flowing light moving within it.

Looking at all this, the mind that Lin Feng had kept tightly coiled for two years finally truly relaxed.

This medicine boy puppet was very diligent and had taken good care of things.

In the future, if there was an opportunity, he should really study the art of Puppets.

He walked up to the wine immortal gourd and gently stroked the warm, smooth surface of the gourd.

The experience of fleeing for ten thousand li over these past two years had made him deeply realize the importance of a high-quality flying Magical Artifact.

"Perhaps… I should refine you into a flying Magic Treasure." He whispered to himself.

With the Foundation of this gourd, if it could be refined, its escaping speed would definitely not be slow.

Afterward, he took out that bodhi seed obtained from the Secret Realm, its green light flowing, brimming with vitality.

He was currently only at the Early Foundation Establishment Stage, and Core Formation was still a distant prospect.

However, the second layer of the Nine Profound Sword Heart Art required melting Five Elements spiritual items into the Sword Heart to forge an elemental Sword Foundation.

Why not use this bodhi seed directly to forge a Wood Attribute Sword Essence Foundation?

Having made up his mind, Lin Feng sat cross-legged and held the bodhi seed in his palm.

Closing his eyes and focusing his mind, his Sword Heart moved slightly, and he carefully peeled away and guided the Wood-type Origin marrow liquid within the bodhi seed.

This was an extremely slow process that required patience.

Any slight mistake would not only destroy the spiritual item but could also damage the root of his Sword Heart.

Days passed one by one.

Within the Immortal Cave, there was only the subtle change of the bodhi seed's green light growing increasingly intense.

It was unknown how much time had passed, but that wisp of the purest cyan wood marrow was finally completely extracted and slowly merged into the Sword Heart in Lin Feng's chest.

Hum!

Lin Feng's body trembled slightly, feeling as if a seed had broken through the soil and sprouted within his Sword Heart.

As his thoughts moved slightly, the Sword Qi flowing in his hand could carry a rich Wood Attribute, vibrant with life, or he could hide the sharpness within, revealing nothing at all.

He opened his eyes, and a flash of cyan light vanished from the depths of his pupils.

Success.

He had not only forged a Wood-type Foundation but also realized the true meaning of the second layer of the sword art.

It seemed that in the future, he could look for more spiritual items of various attributes to enhance his Sword Essence Foundation.

In the following days, Lin Feng began to frequently visit the Myriad Laws Pavilion to consult a vast number of ancient texts on Artifact Refining.

He needed to make thorough preparations for refining the wine immortal gourd.

He exhausted nearly half of the Spirit Stones he had accumulated in the past to purchase a large quantity of auxiliary Materials, and time and again, he attempted to refine simple Magical Artifacts in his Immortal Cave to practice—failing, summarizing, and trying again.

During this period, he frequently went to Yunshu Peak to seek guidance from Zhao Li.

Half a year later, Lin Feng felt that his preparations were sufficient.

He sat quietly for three days, adjusting his mind to its optimal state.

Afterward, he drew upon the Earth Fire, unleashed his own True Essence, and placed the dark golden wine immortal gourd into the Formation.

Various rare Materials were added one after another, and under the tempering of the True Fire and incantations, they transformed into liquid and slowly merged into the main body of the gourd.

At the most critical moment, he took out the branches and leaves of the bodhi tree obtained from the Secret Realm, refined them, and used them as the final spiritual guide, merging them into the escaping Formation at the core of the gourd.

Boom!

A great light erupted within the Immortal Cave, and the dark golden wine immortal gourd floated quietly in mid-air, the patterns flowing on its surface gradually fading away.

Lin Feng's thoughts moved slightly, and the wine immortal gourd flew lightly to his side.

Following his will, the size of the gourd began to change, eventually stabilizing at a dimension just right for one person to sit cross-legged.

He turned and sat on the gourd, his thoughts moving again.

The wine immortal gourd transformed into a streak of dark golden light, rushing out of the Immortal Cave and straight up into the clouds.

Just as he ascended into the sky, Lin Feng noticed the difference.

A ripple appeared on the surface of the gourd, pushing away all the incoming gale winds.

Sitting on it was exceptionally stable, completely unlike when riding a Flying Sword, where he had to constantly protect his body with spiritual power.

He shifted his thoughts slightly, attempting to increase his speed.

In an instant, the surrounding scenery retreated rapidly, and the clouds and mist flowed like a shuttle.

This escaping speed was far beyond when he was riding his Flying Sword at full power, likely even a few points faster than the Escaping Light of an ordinary Late Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator.

Just as he was speeding along on the gourd, a few Inner Sect Disciples happened to be passing by on their Flying Swords below.

They only felt a blurry dark golden light shadow flash overhead, and the fierce wind it kicked up almost caused them to lose their balance, making their Flying Swords shake.

"Just now… what was that?" One person hurriedly steadied his Flying Sword, looking with suspicion and uncertainty at the sky, which was already empty, his face full of astonishment.

"So… so fast. This speed… is it some Junior Martial Uncle?"

"It doesn't look like it… The aura fluctuation seems to be at the Foundation Establishment Stage, but this speed…"

Several people looked at each other, their faces full of shock and envy.

They hadn't even had time to see clearly what it was, let alone who was on it.