The big-headed freak didn’t stand on ceremony either. He immediately led the three ancient demons toward the stone steps marked with the “Demon-Suppressing Tower.”
The square-faced cultivator also cupped his fists toward the scholar, gripping the Sky-Encompassing Bracelet in his hand. After a few swift movements, his figure gradually faded into the distance along the central stone steps.
The scholar didn’t immediately lead the remaining group away. Instead, he watched until the freak and the square-faced cultivator disappeared into the white mist at the end of the steps before withdrawing his gaze. Turning to an elderly man beside him, he said indifferently, “Nephew Feng, how many sets of formation flags and disks do we have left?”
“Reporting to the Grand Elder. As per your instructions, we left temporary formations behind after breaking each restriction. Aside from the Purple Star Grand Formation, which cost hundreds of thousands of spirit stones, we have no other formation tools left,” the old man replied respectfully.
“Hmm, then deploy the Purple Star Formation here. Also, release the swarm of tiger-headed wasps and the two blood-sucking bats into the formation,” the scholar commanded without hesitation.
“Yes!” The old man immediately complied, patting his waist to produce a stack of purple-hued formation flags before striding toward one side of the plaza.
Only then did the scholar glance back toward the foot of the mountain, his expression shifting uncertainly as he silently pondered something.
An hour later, the scholar and his group also vanished along another set of stone steps.
Meanwhile, far below at the mountain’s waist, Han Li and his party had just passed through the massive archway of the “Gate of Ten Thousand Cultivators.” The Ye Family had set up a relatively sophisticated illusion formation there, which could have trapped a Core Formation cultivator for days. But against so many Nascent Soul cultivators, it was dismantled almost instantly by figures like Elder Qian and Hua Tianqi, failing to delay them even slightly.
Upon seeing the grand archway of the Gate of Ten Thousand Cultivators, Elder Qian and the others no longer doubted that this was indeed Mount Kunwu. Except for Han Li and his two companions, the rest were visibly excited.
They immediately hurried up the mountain.
As they ascended the stone steps, they inevitably encountered the other restrictions set by the Ye Family. Far from deterring the old demons, these obstacles only fueled their impatience.
However, the Ye Family’s restrictions grew increasingly formidable. Though the old demons relied on brute force to break through each one, they were still delayed significantly.
After a full day and night, they finally arrived before the massive stone hall filled with stone puppets.
“Be cautious, fellow Daoists. If there’s a restriction here, it might be even more troublesome. The group ahead must have considerable resources to carry so many formation tools. Even if they aren’t from one of the Ten Great Sects, they must belong to some powerful faction,” Hua Tianqi said gravely, eyeing the ancient hall ahead.
“Humph! To refine even the Ice-Flame Bipolar Formation into portable flags and disks—such extravagance isn’t something every one of the Ten Great Sects can afford. I’m quite curious about their true identities,” Elder Qian remarked coldly.
“Still, by chasing them, they’ve essentially cleared the path for us. Even if their temporary restrictions slow us down, we’ll catch up eventually,” Hua Tianqi said confidently.
“Let’s hope so,” Elder Qian replied flatly.
As they spoke, the group of over a dozen entered the hall.
The sight of shattered stone puppet remnants strewn across the floor startled everyone, prompting them to pause and survey their surroundings.
“No traces of restrictions—surprisingly, they didn’t set anything up here,” Hua Tianqi muttered after scanning the hall with his spiritual sense.
“That’s normal. They must have exhausted their formation tools by now,” the old man surnamed Fu chuckled.
“But what are these things? I’ve never heard of stone puppets,” the burly man among the five Nascent Soul cultivators frowned, scanning the debris.
“These aren’t stone puppets—they’re stone spirits. A secret technique from ancient times that forcibly sealed beast souls into specially crafted stone statues. It was once widespread but mysteriously vanished later,” Han Li calmly explained, picking up a piece of rubble for inspection.
“Oh? Fellow Daoist Han knows about such ancient techniques?” Hua Tianqi looked at Han Li in surprise.
“Just a passing interest in puppetry. Pity these are all damaged—otherwise, I’d have liked to study them further,” Han Li said, tossing the stone aside with a clatter.
He had noticed that while the remnants appeared ordinary, their surfaces bore strange runes and formations—key to their function. Unfortunately, the fragments revealed nothing useful.
“If you want an intact stone spirit, Fellow Daoist Han, there might still be some in those collapsed corridors,” one of the other cultivators—a middle-aged man with a deceptively honest face—suggested with a grin. It was Zheng Wei, the “Scattered Truthsayer.”
Han Li, unfamiliar with the man’s notorious reputation in the Great Jin, merely smiled. Before he could respond, Elder Qian suddenly roared, “You vile beast, seeking death?”
Five white shadows simultaneously raised their hands, unleashing ten gray beams that struck an empty spot nearby. With a thunderous crash, purple light flashed, revealing a monstrous lion-headed, eagle-bodied, four-winged beast glaring viciously at them—the same creature that had attacked the Ye Family earlier.
The beast, having somehow sneaked up on them, had been attempting to ambush Elder Qian’s Five Ghosts. Strangely, the claw injured by the Ye Family Grand Elder had fully healed, showing no signs of prior damage.
Having learned its lesson, the beast immediately flapped its wings and fled as a purple streak the moment it was exposed. Elder Qian didn’t pursue, and the others, startled by its ferocity, hesitated just long enough for it to escape.
“A lion-hawk! Such a monster here?” Hua Tianqi exhaled sharply, his expression darkening. He knew facing such a creature alone would be perilous.
Old Man Fu and Bai Yaoyi exchanged uneasy glances, both thinking of the even deadlier Silver-Winged Corpse roaming the mountain. For their own reasons, neither Han Li nor they mentioned it, leaving the others unaware.
The remaining cultivators paled. Such ancient beasts, comparable to late-Nascent Soul cultivators, were not to be trifled with.
After this encounter, Han Li abandoned any thought of exploring the corridors. With multiple such creatures lurking, sticking with the group seemed wiser.
Unbeknownst to them, the beast flew straight to an unusually verdant giant tree after escaping. Landing, it emitted a shrill, ghostly cry.
“Enough of your screeching! I know you want revenge, but I’ve no interest. After being trapped underwater for so long, I’m not looking for trouble. Besides, those human cultivators are all Nascent Soul experts—no pushovers,” a grating voice retorted from the tree.
A green flash revealed a tree hollow, from which emerged a black-robed woman—thick-waisted, dark-skinned, with jet-black hair coiled atop her head, save for two white horns protruding several inches. Her appearance was grotesque.
The lion-hawk, enraged, screeched even more fiercely.
“Dream on! You lost half a claw to your own carelessness. Why should I avenge you? The Kunwu Three’s descendants imprisoned us here to guard this mountain—I won’t play their game,” the woman spat, hands on hips.
“But if those cultivators breach Kunwu Hall and take the Four Spirit Plaque controlling us, we’ll be enslaved again,” a male voice interjected as silver light flashed—the Silver-Winged Corpse appearing midair.
“Humph! As if they could breach Kunwu Hall. The restrictions there, especially the Northern Polar Light, are impenetrable. They’d die trying,” the ugly woman scoffed, unsurprised by his arrival.
“Fellow Daoist Gui, don’t be so sure. Late-Nascent Soul cultivators might have artifacts to counter the Northern Light. And don’t you want to reclaim our soul plaques? Without them, we’re still bound to this mountain,” the corpse said calmly.
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