Steady Mortal Path: Starting from Obtaining the Golden Core Inheritance

Chapter 294 Sea Ruins

Above the vast expanse of water, a fierce wind and torrential rain raged, and the sky was shrouded in a gray haze, making it impossible to distinguish between day and night.

A slight ripple suddenly appeared in the pitch-black space, followed by a distortion.

Cracks of varying sizes appeared, and disheveled figures flew out from them.

But these people reacted quickly. After a slight stumble, they steadied themselves and activated their flying artifacts to stay in the air.

Upon arriving in a completely unfamiliar space, Lin Changsheng stabilized the Water Cloud Boat and immediately used his divine sense to explore the surroundings.

"An unfamiliar body of water, its exact location unknown, but the concentration of spiritual energy here far surpasses that of the Netherworld Spirit Peak Dojo. Could there be a fourth-order spiritual vein nearby?"

After exploring for a while, Lin Changsheng made an astonishing discovery while surveying the surrounding environment.

Not only Lin Changsheng, but all the other Golden Core cultivators, except for Guigu Zhenjun, were astonished when they sensed such rich spiritual energy.

At the same time, each Golden Core cultivator secretly remained on guard.

A fourth-order spiritual vein is extremely rare in the cultivation world.

There are almost no cases of items being unclaimed.

Most of them are occupied by Nascent Soul level sects or fourth-order demon kings.

Even if a force of this caliber has a large number of members, it may not necessarily gain the upper hand.

For a moment, all the Golden Core cultivators turned their gazes toward Ghost Valley True Lord, who was suspended in mid-air, awaiting further instructions.

At the same time, Lin Changsheng took a light sniff and felt a damp, salty smell emanating from the water below.

"It seems that Fellow Daoist Zhang Meng has also discovered that the area below is not an ordinary body of water, but... seawater."

Shen Wenyao flew to Lin Changsheng's side, her clear eyes looking around with a hint of curiosity.

"The cultivation world of Gunzhou is notoriously dry, and even oases are extremely rare, so it shouldn't be possible for seawater to exist there."

Lin Changsheng looked curious, pondering to himself.

"Elders, please be patient. This place is a secret realm. Although there are powerful demons and even demon kings inhabiting it, with me here, I can naturally guarantee your safety."

Even at this point, Golden Core cultivators including Lin Changsheng still did not know the purpose of Guigu Zhenjun's trip, which shows their caution in dealing with this matter.

After a short rest, the group continued their flight across the sea under the guidance of Guigu Zhenjun.

To be honest, this was the first time Lin Changsheng had ever been in contact with the sea. It looked similar to the waters of Jiuzezhou, but he had a different feeling about it.

A few days ago, my journey was smooth sailing.

There are abundant low-level monster resources in the sea.

The aura of a third-tier great demon could be seen from time to time.

However, these great demons in the sea are very sensitive to human presence. They sensed the Nascent Soul power emanating from Ghost Valley True Monarch and the auras of several Golden Core cultivators behind him from afar, and fled in terror.

On the fourth day, a fourth-tier demon king blocked their path.

Within the deep sea, the fourth-tier demon king did not appear; only a powerful demonic aura shot straight into the sky, causing Lin Changsheng and other Golden Core cultivators to feel uneasy and anxious.

This is the oppressive aura emanating from a high-level cultivator, which has a significant impact on low-level cultivators.

Even the Ghost Valley True Lord put aside his contempt and looked around, seemingly unwilling to provoke this demon king.

However, this demon king had no intention of letting the humans who had trespassed on his territory go unpunished.

A deep, resonant cry pierced through the sea, and in an instant, the entire sea seemed to boil.

Even if one's divine sense were to probe into it, it would be repelled by a powerful aura.

At the summoning of the fourth-tier demon king, the auras of more than a dozen third-tier great demons surrounded them from all directions.

"Hmph, you audacious beast, how dare you waste my time! Do you really think I'm afraid of you?!"

Seeing that there was no way to avoid it, Guigu Zhenjun's face turned furious, and his whole body erupted with a chilling aura. He plunged headfirst into the water to confront the fourth-level demon king head-on.

The next moment, a huge roar erupted in the sea, splashing up waves tens of meters high.

An immense force erupted, and Lin Changsheng and the other Golden Core cultivators retreated to avoid being caught in the blast.

At the same time, Lin Changsheng's gaze swept over the two True Immortals, Yu Huai and Green Snake.

Both of them have been placed under a restriction by the Ghost Valley True Lord, and their lives are not in immediate danger, but it is unknown how they will be dealt with in the future.

The two seemed to sense something and glanced back at Lin Changsheng.

After their eyes met for a moment, they looked away, tacitly agreeing not to say anything more.

Before long, a huge creature suddenly flew out of the sea below, leaping out of the water like a small hill, allowing Lin Changsheng and the others to see its full appearance.

It was actually a gigantic fourth-tier whale demon king!

After confronting Guigu Zhenjun for a moment, the Whale Demon King sensed that the human Nascent Soul cultivator before him was not to be trifled with and immediately decided to retreat.

The massive body submerged back into the sea.

Guigu Zhenjun seemed unwilling to get entangled any further.

Everyone continued on their way.

After traveling for half a month across the vast ocean, Guigu Zhenjun and his group arrived at a certain sea area and dived into it.

In the mud and sand beneath the sea, some strangely styled buildings can be vaguely seen, but now they are dilapidated and only ruins remain.

Continuing along the underwater ruins, a deep underwater trench lay before them.

Without waiting for a closer look, Guigu Zhenjun leaped into the air without hesitation.

Seeing this, everyone had no choice but to follow and leap into the endless darkness.

In an instant, Lin Changsheng felt his body sink slightly, the surrounding temperature dropped instantly, and a bone-chilling cold emanated from the pitch-black abyss below, as if it were constantly dragging him downwards.

Mysterious and oppressive.

……

Half a day later.

Bottom of the underwater trench.

It resembles a forest of bones, with the remains of various enormous creatures covered in the marks of time eroded by the sea.

But the surroundings were completely silent, without the slightest trace of large demonic beasts.

Nestled among the bones, a ten-foot-long ancient well sits, from which a stream of cool water flows continuously, exuding a rich spiritual energy.

Everyone's attention was immediately drawn to the dry well.

In such a strange environment, the sudden appearance of an ancient well seems quite eerie.

"Elders, prepare to set up the formation!"

Guigu Zhenjun stared intently at the ancient well, a fiery glint in his eyes, and immediately gave orders.

After speaking, Guigu Zhenjun took the lead in using his methods, and his body surged with magical power.

The next moment, Senior Brother Tan, True Person Demon Light, True Person Purple Nether, Ten Thousand Skeletons, Yin Corpse and other Golden Core True Persons all made their move together, and the group scattered in all directions, each of them surging with the power of the formation.

Such a huge commotion stirred up the surrounding seawater, and the magical aura spread outwards.

Before long, a phantom-like, ethereal white light suddenly flashed out from the ancient well.

It moved around with incredible agility, its speed so fast that it was almost impossible for the naked eye to keep up.

A powerful aura also spread out along with the white light.

Soon, the white light settled beside the dry well not far away, revealing its true form as a white deer that was over ten feet long!

This white deer is pure white, with antlers like delicate coral, and its fur is soft and smooth. It is surrounded by a soft, milky-white halo, making it holy and pure.

On its head, a pair of dark, deep eyes, like a deep, cold pool, added to its mysterious aura.

The white deer moved slightly, its movements light and elegant, as if strolling leisurely, and gracefully leaped up and landed in front of everyone.

Just as Lin Changsheng and the other Golden Core cultivators were marveling at the elegance and nobility of the white deer, it suddenly raised its head slightly, and a chilling white light shot out from its antlers, attacking Ghost Valley True Lord!

However, Guigu Zhenjun anticipated this and transformed into a chilling ghostly aura to dodge the attack.

'boom! ’

But at the same time, the forest of bones behind them suffered greatly.

A beam of white light flashed by in the blink of an eye, and any bones that came into contact with it instantly turned into dust and vanished.

The white light continued its momentum and disappeared into the darkness in the distance in the blink of an eye.

The sudden turn of events shocked everyone!

It should be noted that these forests of white bones are the product of the decaying bodies of various demonic beasts, including some third-tier great demons and even fourth-tier demon kings.

The bones remained sturdy despite years of seawater erosion, but unexpectedly, they were instantly reduced to powder upon being lightly touched by the white light emitted from the antlers.

In that case, if it were these Golden Core cultivators who were hit by the mysterious white light, wouldn't they also perish instantly?

"This white deer is at least a mid-stage fourth-order demon king, with strength even surpassing that of Ghost Valley True Monarch. No wonder, with his methods, it took him so long to gather nine Golden Core cultivators and comprehend the formation."

Seeing the Ghost Valley True Lord transformed into a chilling black aura, locked in battle with the white deer, Lin Changsheng suddenly understood.

In a short time, the two auras, one black and one white, had collided dozens of times.

However, the white deer was exceptionally agile, and its speed was much faster than the black mist transformed from Guigu Zhenjun.

Despite his speed advantage, Guigu Zhenjun was clearly outmatched and fell into a disadvantageous position.

"Prepare yourselves. Once I have trapped this deer, I will seize the opportunity to strike!"

Faced with this seemingly harmless white deer, Guigu Zhenjun lost his usual calm demeanor and immediately extended several thin black chains, exuding a sinister aura, from its belly.

This is the 'Immortal-Locking Chain', a natal magic weapon that Guigu Zhenjun has nurtured for many years.

As soon as the thin black chains appeared, they moved like serpents, several of them advancing in unison towards the direction of the white deer.

The white deer seemed to sense that these thin chains were not to be trifled with, and it moved nimbly to evade them.

But these thin black chains seemed endless, continuously extending from the belly of Guigu Zhenjun.

In no time, it gradually condensed into a fine black net, covering the white deer and restricting its movements.

"Now's the time to activate the formation and trap it!"

While Guigu Zhenjun activated his natal magic weapon to imprison the white deer, his own array power surged.

The magical power of the nine Golden Core cultivators around him transformed into the power of an array, converging on Ghost Valley True Monarch and generating countless fine threads to bind the white deer, further imprisoning it.

In the blink of an eye, Guigu Zhenjun activated his natal magic weapon, the "Immortal Locking Chain," to wrap the entire white deer up like a black rice dumpling, not even sparing its two antlers.

With the combined power of the nine Golden Core cultivators forming a trapping array, it became an invisible net that suppressed him, making it difficult for him to move.

Whenever the white deer struggled, most of the trembling force was dissipated by the 'Immortal-Locking Chains,' and the remaining force was shared by the nine Golden Core cultivators, so the pressure was not too great.

However, Lin Changsheng sensed that Guigu Zhenjun did not seem to have any intention of continuing to attack and completely annihilate the white deer.

Feeling the force of the trapped white deer's constant struggle, he felt that only a tenth of the power was being transferred to him, which he could temporarily withstand.

But keeping them tied up like this is clearly not a long-term solution.

"The craftsmanship of this fourth-order spirit puppet is extremely exquisite. Even if I, True Monarch, wanted to destroy it, it would be very difficult. Moreover, it would be a waste to easily damage such a treasure."

Perhaps it was the successful subjugation of the white deer that put Guigu Zhenjun in a good mood, and he saw the doubts in everyone's hearts and spoke up to explain.

He then cast several sealing spells on the white deer before he was finally at ease.

Finally, Guigu Zhenjun instructed the nine Golden Core cultivators to continue maintaining the trapping formation and watching over the white deer, while he himself leaped into the ancient well and disappeared.

……

"A fourth-tier spirit puppet..."

Like the other Golden Core cultivators, Lin Changsheng also curiously examined the imprisoned white deer, his heart filled with extreme curiosity.

Such a lifelike and vivid white deer was actually a puppet. Lin Changsheng couldn't help but admire the fourth-order puppetry skills.

To this day, he has not yet come into contact with any fourth-order inheritance.

However, it is said that whether it is mainstream skills such as alchemy, weapon crafting, talisman making, and array formation, or other branches, once they reach the fourth level, there will be great changes.

"If I could observe this white deer closely, it might greatly help improve my puppetry skills."

Lin Changsheng immediately became extremely interested in the white deer.

Suddenly, Lin Changsheng felt a jolt in his heart and vaguely sensed several unfamiliar auras approaching from above. His expression immediately changed in surprise.

Soon, two figures exuding the majesty of True Monarchs descended from the sky.

An elderly man in a silver robe with an air of otherworldly wisdom, and a young man with a thin build and gloomy eyes.

Behind the two True Lords were about ten Golden Core True Persons.

"True Lord Huangsha!"

Lin Changsheng was surprised and immediately recognized the old man as one of the two True Lords who had attacked the Ghost Valley Sect with True Lord Ziyang back then.

However, after the death of True Lord Ziyang, this person managed to escape unscathed using his superb escape techniques.

As for the other person, Lin Changsheng vaguely felt that he was somewhat familiar with him, but he couldn't remember him for a moment.

"Senior is... the Supreme Elder of the Blood Demon Palace, the only Nascent Soul mid-stage cultivator in the Gunzhou cultivation world, True Monarch Blood Shadow?!"

Among the crowd below, the usually taciturn Master Moguang stared at the thin young man for a long time before speaking in a heavy tone.

"Hehehe, I didn't expect that you, a junior from the Ghost Valley Sect, would recognize me. In that case, I, the True Lord, will save you for last."

Blood Shadow True Monarch gave a sinister smile, his voice hoarse and dry, as if he were a demon from the deepest hell.

"Blood Shadow True Monarch!"

Lin Changsheng suddenly realized why the man looked familiar.

In my memory, when 'True Man of Heavenly Poison' came to Gunzhou, it just so happened to coincide with the Nascent Soul Ceremony of Blood Shadow True Monarch, a newly promoted Nascent Soul cultivator of Blood Extreme Demon Palace.

So, filled with envy, he glanced at the Blood Shadow True Monarch from afar in the crowd.

Unexpectedly, this person has now advanced to the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm!

However, what Lin Changsheng couldn't understand the most was why these two True Monarchs would appear here.

He seemed to have thought of something, and his gaze swept over the other eight people who were maintaining the trapped formation without leaving a trace.

……

"Senior Blood Shadow, our Ghost Valley Sect is quite far from your esteemed palace, and we have always kept to ourselves. We were unaware of your presence today..."

As the sect leader, Senior Brother Tan braced himself and respectfully stepped forward to pay his respects.

Before Blood Shadow True Monarch could speak, Yellow Sand True Monarch, dressed in silver robes, excitedly said:

"Hmph, I have already investigated and found that in recent years, True Monarch Guigu has been using the guise of cultivating spiritual veins to secretly plunder many spiritual veins and springs, and their whereabouts are unknown."

"Under my surveillance, a few years ago, when the True Monarch of Guigu was missing from the Ziyang Sect, he secretly infiltrated the sect to collect the Eye of the Spirit Spring. However, he did not use it to replenish any of the sect's spiritual lands, but instead devoured it to increase his cultivation."

"In other words, True Monarch Guigu possesses a method that can devour spiritual veins."

At this point, Huang Sha couldn't help but recall the situation back then.

He intended to secretly monitor the return of Ziyang Zhenjun's nascent soul, but unexpectedly stumbled upon Guigu Zhenjun's secret!

An unbelievable and astonishing method!