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Heavenly Pill Hall was in chaos, and Elder Yao personally treated Ling Xiangzi's injuries. Afterward, Yun Jiuzi took out a Cosmic Vitality Pill, which finally preserved Ling Xiangzi's cultivation.
Ling Xiangzi entered seclusion once again.
The situation for Spirit Stone was not much better; the corpse poison had invaded his meridians, and after taking the Antidote Pill, it would take at least ten days to half a month to expel it. He was not without relief, knowing that if Yun Jiuzi had arrived just a moment later, both he and Ling Xiangzi would have faced Mutual Destruction.
He privately asked Yun Jiuzi if the warning to the Demon Sect Monster would be effective.
Yun Jiuzi rolled his eyes and replied irritably, "What do you think?" With a flick of his sleeve, he left immediately.
Spirit Stone felt awkward, realizing that it was merely Yun Jiuzi's show of words. At that moment, time was pressing; to heal himself and Ling Xiangzi, Yun Jiuzi did not have the time to deal with the Demon. In the late stages of Transmutation, with four Demons only a step away from the Nascent Soul Stage, while he certainly had a chance to deal with them, there was no time to spare. Even delaying for half a stick of incense would mean that Ling Xiangzi would be beyond saving.
Returning to the Nine Vermilion Peaks, Spirit Stone began his seclusion. Before closing himself off, he heard good news: Old Six Chu Hong was also entering seclusion for his Golden Core. This brought him some comfort, but as he thought about it, a shadow crossed his mind.
Yun Jiuzi's words were just for show, which meant that the Demon Sect Monster would not give up easily. They would continue to roam around Luliang with a large number of Walking Corpses, preparing to break into the entrance of the Li Fire Formation.
At the foot of the mountain lay a Farmstead! A sudden flash of insight struck Spirit Stone, and he jumped up, but his Dantian felt empty and darkened his vision. He plopped back down onto the ground.
He truly felt powerless. Should he notify Ling Xuzi? After a long while, he shook his head. Old Six… and his sister-in-law… no way!
Old Six was a good kid; he had nothing going on with his sister-in-law—he knew this well. However, that person remained as Old Six's Heart Demon. With this concern lingering, it was likely that one day, Old Six would fall because of that woman. She was ultimately an unclean and ominous person; it was best to leave it to fate.
With great difficulty, Spirit Stone made his decision and repeatedly told himself that this was for the good of Old Six. Moreover, the Demon Sect usually ignored mortals; perhaps the foot of the mountain near the Farmstead was temporarily safe. He could set things up after emerging from seclusion.
The doors of the Three-Story Pavilion closed, activating the restrictions as Spirit Stone began his healing meditation.
Meanwhile, Li Hong was crossing through the fourth Heart Demon Barrier. This time he saw his elder brother, mother, father, sister-in-law, and Aunt, almost identical to what he experienced last time in the Golden Lantern Gorge. This was a familial tribulation. He passed through safely.
Then came the fifth Heart Demon Barrier.
He saw himself being killed over and over again. Burned alive by raging flames, drowned in torrential waters, beheaded, dismembered by the Demon Sect Monster... The last moments of losing his life felt so real, the suffocation and pain, along with the inescapable fear of death, were truly palpable. Several times he nearly lost himself; if it weren't for repeatedly reminding himself that it was all fake, he would have almost fallen into madness. It was precisely because of this fear that the Heart Demon continued to haunt him.
In the end, Li Hong finally felt a sense of clarity and was no longer afraid of death.
He passed through the fifth trial of the Heart Demon once again.
Five Fake Dans had already become true Golden Cores, but as long as he hadn't formed all ten Golden Cores, it still couldn't be counted. Li Hong smiled bitterly; throughout history, he had never heard of anyone forming ten Golden Cores simultaneously. Perhaps he really was a freak, quite an oddity!
The scene changed again. By this point, Li Hong could be considered quite experienced. Although everything before him looked very real, he knew that it was all an illusion, all fake. As long as he maintained clarity in his heart and detached his mind to observe coldly, the Heart Demon Barrier would crumble without any attack.
He once again broke through the Jealousy Demon and Greed Demon trials.
These two trials were quite interesting; it seemed that a tiny bit of jealousy and greed deep within his subconscious was magnified infinitely. However, Li Hong asked himself if he had ever been a particularly jealous or greedy person. He laughed it off, finding it somewhat amusing, and thus easily passed through these two trials.
He had lost track of how much time had passed. Time had lost all meaning; he was now in an irreversible process toward becoming a Golden Core. Li Hong awaited the arrival of the next Heart Demon Barrier.
Suddenly, the dim Underground Cave lit up, and a layer of pink gauze floated gently before him. He widened his eyes—who had come?!
Then he realized that his eyes were closed. Could it be that this Heart Demon Barrier's scene overlapped with reality? His heart began to race; this meant that this Heart Demon was quite formidable.
A faint fragrance wafted by his nose, indescribably pleasant; it seemed... it seemed like he had smelled this scent on Wanyi before! It was like a mix of floral perfume with a fresh aroma. The thought of "fresh" made his heart skip a beat.
He understood what this Heart Demon was.
Sure enough, two delicate arms wrapped around him like agile serpents. He found himself leaning against someone’s embrace, with two soft and slightly trembling mounds pressing against his back. His face instantly flushed, and an indescribable heat surged through him.
The person behind him exuded a captivating fragrance but remained still, continuing to press closely against him while beginning to move strangely up and down in a rubbing motion. The sensation from behind felt oddly slippery, as if there were soft dough quivering continuously. This dough was vibrant and warm, sending warmth straight to his heart.
Li Hong's face turned red as he gritted his teeth and thought to himself: It's fake! You're fake!
The enchanting figure let out a soft sigh, and to Li Hong, it sounded like thunder striking his ears.
Wanyi! It was Wanyi's voice!
He dared not turn his head, his body trembling violently. He forced himself to calm down, silently telling himself, "Don't look, don't turn your head; it's all fake, everything is fake!"
The enchanting figure sighed again, her snake-like bare body suddenly sliding into his embrace. He could feel the heat beneath her skin, yet her skin was cool and incredibly soft. Two delicate arms wrapped tightly around his neck, and with a breath as fragrant as orchids, she seductively whispered near his lips, "Open your eyes and see if I am really fake. I am Wanyi; it’s truly me!"
The scent of musk filled the air. His lips felt hot, but Li Hong trembled all over, suddenly filled with intense anger.
He stood up and shouted, "How dare you impersonate her and desecrate her! I will cut you down!" He raised Lingyi and without hesitation swung his sword down.
With a loud crash, the entire Underground Cave shook. When the dust settled, Li Hong found nothing before him.
He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, feeling absurd. If it were someone else and not Wanyi, he might have struggled to overcome this Lustful Temptation. But the Heart Demon actually used Wanyi! Li Hong's gaze turned icy; it was too sacrilegious!
In his heart, Wanyi was the most beautiful; how could she be treated like this! Although… he recalled a long time ago when he was still young and accidentally witnessed a beautiful scene. At that moment, he truly felt it was wonderful. Even now, he still felt that way, despite having subconsciously tried to forget it. Growing up made him realize that some sights are best left unseen.
He steadied himself and sat back down on the ground. He quickly pushed aside the previous scene from his mind.
The eighth golden pill floated out. Now there should only be two tribulations left. These two tribulations would surely be the most formidable.
********
Spirit Stone emerged from seclusion. He had finally expelled all the corpse poison and immediately set about reassembling the Patrol Team.
Last time they encountered an ambush, all Patrol Team members except for him and Ling Xiangzi had suffered heavy casualties. This incident made Ling Xuzi determined to allocate some of the elite guards from the Li Fire Formation to Spirit Stone. He realized that waiting for the enemy to attack was not a good strategy; it was better to control the battlefield as much as possible outside the entrance of the Li Fire Formation.
Strike first to gain the upper hand.
Spirit Stone wholeheartedly approved of this move. The Patrol Team had gained forty new recruits, all authentic elders with cultivation levels above Golden Core Stage. He felt quite pleased about it.
The first thing to do was to prepare to lead them down the mountain to set up the Farmstead.
This Farmstead had existed since the establishment of the Nine Li Sect. Initially, it was just some disciples' relatives who spontaneously cleared land at the foot of the mountain to wait for their kin in the Mountain Gate. Seeing that this Gorge had fertile land, they eventually moved here, and over time, a small village formed.
Seeing this, the Nine Li Sect decided to unify the construction here, building high walls to enclose all the houses and laying down many Restrictions around the perimeter. As a result, outsiders could not enter, but those inside could only leave if they knew the way. However, with fertile farmland inside and all necessary facilities like blacksmith shops, oil mills, and flour mills, they were self-sufficient and did not need to go outside, resembling a paradise. Consequently, the population thrived. The Nine Li Sect appointed a steward for the Farmstead, belonging to the outer sect as a Steward Disciple, who taught basic breathing techniques and was responsible for purchases and communication with the inner sect. Thus, its scale gradually grew.
The entire Farmstead had nearly three thousand inhabitants. Many people, due to their proximity, would have their children accepted into the inner sect if they qualified, thus having connections with some inner disciples.
Before entering seclusion, Spirit Stone harbored certain selfish thoughts, but he could not ignore three thousand lives. Therefore, the first thing he did after coming out was to lead the Patrol Team down to arrange matters at the Farmstead.
The exit from Azure Oil Temple Heaven and Earth Platform was already closed; they took the exit through the Li Fire Formation, which was not far from the Farmstead.
It was already past dusk, and darkness had fallen. The Patrol Team circled around Mount Lüliang; just around the next peak lay both the Azure Oil Temple and the Farmstead in the Gorge. At that moment, a strange smell wafted by his nose, reminiscent of something burning. Looking closely at the sky ahead, he noticed a faint red glow.
Spirit Stone was alarmed; he halted on his toes, and with a swift motion of his Gale Fire Sword, he flew around the mountain peak. Looking down made him speechless with shock.
What he feared had come true!
The entire Gorge was engulfed in raging flames, fire shooting into the sky; below at the Farmstead, it was already a sea of red flames. No sounds came from there; it was eerily silent in the midst of the Fire Sea, seemingly only filled with crackling flames and howling winds.
“Farmstead!” someone in the Patrol Team exclaimed in shock and immediately wanted to fly over.
Someone quickly stopped him; another voice in the team said solemnly: “Look at Azure Oil Temple! The Demon is attacking Azure Oil Temple!”
As if to verify his words, a loud rumble echoed as the entire Azure Oil Temple shook violently. The outer walls and sky erupted with thick red light; flashes of light flickered before plunging everything back into darkness. But soon after came another explosion as intense red light burst forth from the Azure Oil Temple once more.
The Demon was attacking the Restrictions! Finally shifting his gaze from the burning Farmstead, Spirit Stone focused on the mid-mountain location of the Azure Oil Temple. In that darkness were countless shadowy figures; an uncountable number of Demon, layered three deep outside and inside, were desperately pounding against the Restrictions. The entire structure of the Azure Oil Temple trembled as strong red light erupted from the Restrictions, each wave more intense than before.
The Azure Oil Temple, which has stood for ten thousand years, must not be destroyed by our generation! Spirit Stone made a decision in an instant. The Heaven and Earth Platform has six exits. One of them is a secret exit known only to the successive leaders. The remaining five exits include the Western Region Exit, which has already been destroyed. If this place is lost as well, how will we face our Ancestor in the future!
Spirit Stone said in a deep voice, "Protect the temple!"
Someone shouted, "What about the Farmstead down the mountain? My brother's family is still there!"
Another person replied in a low voice, "Do you think they are still alive?"
"No," came a heart-wrenching scream.
"Enough!" Spirit Stone turned and shouted, "Protect the temple! The Demon has already been alerted!"
A large number of foul-smelling Walking Corpses surged forward. Spirit Stone was the first to leap into action, swinging the Gale Fire Sword and unleashing a brilliant red light. He dared not look at the Farmstead below, now engulfed in a fiery sea, yet he felt a strange sense of relief; Old Six would no longer have a Heart Demon... but with it came a deep sense of guilt.
He couldn't help but ask himself, can I blame myself for this? Everything is fate.
Fueled by hatred, he let out a roar and charged into the horde of Walking Corpses like a whirlwind. Those who stood in his way fell before him, and the intense stench spread once more.
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