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In fact, Su Ning's Nascent Soul formation was not a particularly remarkable event in the Taiyi Sect, given the sect's immense strength.

There are three Nascent Soul stage cultivators alone, and fifty or sixty Nascent Soul stage cultivators. As for Core Formation stage cultivators, the number is even more terrifying.

However, Bai Laogui still kept his promise and accepted Su Ning as a disciple, and even held a simple small-scale disciple-acceptance ceremony.

After the morning bell at the summit of Taiyi Peak rang seven times, the seventy-two peak elders gathered at the Ancestral Hall.

This is the first time in a century that a Nascent Soul Ancestor has publicly accepted disciples. Even if they are only nominal disciples, it is enough to shake the entire Taiyi Sect.

Wearing a brand-new star-patterned Taoist robe and with a jade pendant bestowed by the White Ancestor hanging at his waist, Su Ning slowly walked towards the center of the main hall.

With every step I took, I could feel the scorching gazes coming from all directions...

There was envy, there was jealousy, but more than anything, there was an unfathomable scrutiny.

"Disciple Su Ning greets Master."

Today, Old Ancestor Bai changed into a plain white Taoist robe, and his hair was casually tied up with a star-shaped wooden hairpin.

He lightly tapped his fingertip, and a ray of starlight fell into Su Ning's brow: "From this day forward, I bestow upon you the Daoist name 'Stardust.' May you be as enduring as a star, and as humble as dust."

A murmur of discussion immediately arose in the hall.

Having a Taoist name containing the character "星" (star) is a special honor reserved only for direct descendants of the Bai Laozu lineage.

Suddenly, a fine crack appeared on the jade ruyi in Xuan Tianzi's hand, and the crisp "click" sound was particularly jarring in the silence.

"Thank you for bestowing this title upon me, Master." As Su Ning kowtowed, he caught a glimpse of Venerable Burning Heaven exchanging glances with a black-robed elder.

The man's cuffs were embroidered with blood-red lightning patterns; he must be Xiao Jinghong's grandfather...

Lei Yufeng Master Xiao Wanshan.

The ceremony was so simple it was almost haphazard.

Old Ancestor Bai tossed out a token shimmering with starlight: "With this token, you may enter the Starry Heaven Grotto, choose a cultivation technique and a magic weapon. Come to the back mountain for a lecture in three days."

"Thank you, Master."

……

The Starry Sky Cave is located in the belly of Taiyi Peak. The seemingly ordinary bluestone path at the entrance actually hides a spatial restriction.

As soon as Su Ning stepped onto the mountain path, the scene before him suddenly spun around him.

When I regained my senses, I found myself under a vast starry sky.

"This is the magical treasure of a Nascent Soul cultivator's cave heaven..." Su Ning stared in awe at the flowing starry river above his head.

Each "star" is a floating treasure, and there are at least tens of thousands of them at a rough glance.

However, in Su Ning's eyes, it seemed particularly hasty, after all, his Taixu Realm was a real and tangible world.

"Boy, what are you daydreaming about?" An old man with white hair and a youthful face suddenly appeared beside him, lightly tapping the air with his whisk. "The ancestor instructed that you can only choose those below the Yellow Rank."

Suning was startled.

This old man was able to get close to me silently; he must be at least at the late Nascent Soul stage!
Even more astonishingly, the old man's figure was slightly transparent, clearly a manifestation of the spirit of a magical artifact.

"This junior wishes to seek cultivation techniques related to the soul and spirit," Su Ning said respectfully.

The old man flicked his whisk, and hundreds of stars suddenly lit up.

Three of them broke free from their orbits and flew to Su Ning, transforming into jade slips: "Nine Luminaries Soul Body Technique", "Star Shift and Dipper Reversal Technique", and "Zhou Tian Refining God Technique (Fragment)".

Upon seeing the third part of the cultivation technique, Su Ning's nascent soul in his dantian suddenly opened its eyes.

The fragmented jade slip was clearly engraved with the feeling that could make one's soul go haywire!

"Senior, I choose the Zhou Tian Refining Spirit Technique."

The old man squinted: "You even choose a fragment? This technique is missing the Nascent Soul stage; at most, you can only cultivate it to the Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul stage."

"This junior feels... destined for this achievement." Su Ningqiang suppressed his excitement.

The Dao patterns on this jade slip clearly match his own "Great Wilderness Technique," indicating that it is definitely a cultivation method from the same era as the "Great Wilderness Technique"!
The selection of magical artifacts was fraught with unexpected encounters.

As Su Ning walked past a damaged starship, the Star Origin Scripture within his body suddenly began to operate on its own.

The mottled "Starship" boat actually emitted a faint resonance!

"Strange." The old man circled the starship. "This piece of junk has been lying in the treasure pavilion for thousands of years, what happened today..."

Before he could finish speaking, the starship suddenly shot out a beam of starlight, slicing through Su Ning's palm.

A drop of blood fell on the bow of the ship, instantly activating a dense array of star patterns.

"Automatic recognition of ownership?!" The old man's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. "This is from an ancient spirit realm sect..."

He suddenly fell silent halfway through his sentence, glancing warily at the empty space.

However, Suning didn't care about any of that; he only knew that he had struck gold this time.

Both the "Zhou Tian Refining God Technique" and this Star Escape Boat were his own opportunities, which shows that joining the Taiyi Sect was definitely the right choice for him.

……

Three days later, in the purple bamboo forest on the back mountain of Taiyi Peak.

Old Master Bai sat cross-legged on an ordinary blue stone, with a simple tea set in front of him.

If it weren't for that suffocating pressure from a Nascent Soul cultivator, he would look like an old farmer from the countryside.

"The 'Zhou Tian Refining Spirit Technique' and the 'Star Origin Scripture' originate from the same source." Old Ancestor Bai's first words startled Su Ning so much that he almost spilled his teacup. "Didn't Jin Kui tell you?"

Seeing Su Ning's sudden change in expression, Old Ancestor Bai chuckled, "No need to be nervous! A thousand years ago, when I was still at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage, I traveled the world with Hu Laomo of the Heavenly Demon Sect. At the same time, we discovered the ruins of an ancient star palace in Kunwu Mountain. Hu Laomo obtained the 'Extreme Desire Union Technique,' and I obtained this 'Star Origin Scripture,' which I then incorporated into the 'Taiyi True Explanation.'"

Amidst the rising steam of tea, a secret story slowly unfolds.

It turns out that Bai Laogui and Hu Laomo were once close friends, but they turned against each other after exploring the ruins together due to a dispute over the spoils.

Old Master Bai was severely injured by the crazed Old Demon Hu and only recovered after a hundred years of seclusion.

Old Ancestor Bai suddenly lowered his voice, "The Taiyi Sect has decided to attack the cultivation world of the Chaotic Star Sea, and I am preparing to send you there with them."

Suning was deeply shaken.

In fact, this was something Su Ning had already anticipated. Now that he had reached the Nascent Soul stage, he naturally wanted to contribute to the Taiyi Sect.

"Disciple understands." Su Ning lowered his head to hide the surprise in his eyes, "But why was I chosen..."

Old Ancestor Bai's gaze was like lightning. "You originally came from the Chaotic Star Sea, and you also have a grudge against the Star Palace. There is nothing in this world more satisfying than taking revenge with your own hands."

"Thank you, Master, for helping me."

A bamboo leaf drifted down and silently turned into dust when it touched Old Master Bai's body about a foot away.

Su Ning suddenly realized that this expedition was far from a simple expansion of the sect; it was about the survival space of the Taiyi Sect for the next tens of thousands of years!

……

For the next month, the entire Taiyi Sect was like a tightly wound war machine.

The disciples of the Battle Hall practiced the "Taiyi Immortal Slaying Formation" day and night, the swords of the Sword Pavilion resounded in unison, and the firelight of the medicine furnace on Danding Peak illuminated half the sky.

Su Ning stood atop Qingming Peak, gazing at the endless stream of flying boats below.

Each airship was fully loaded with war supplies and headed towards the newly opened teleportation array in the north.

There were thirty Nascent Soul cultivators, five hundred Core Formation cultivators, and tens of thousands of Foundation Establishment elites gathered there, all led by Nascent Soul Grand Perfection cultivators.

“Grandmaster Xingchen.” Liu Qing, a pseudo-core cultivator, walked over holding a jade slip. “This is the expedition list sent by the Grandmaster’s disciples.”

The jade slip contains a detailed record of the organization of the first expeditionary force.

Suning quickly found his name in the "Pioneer Camp," where he was joined by Zhou Zhiruo and...

Xiao Jinghong!
“Grandmaster, be careful.” Liu Qing suddenly transmitted his voice, “I heard that Grandmaster Xiao was in seclusion on Thunder Prison Peak for a month, and when he came out, he was already a Nascent Soul cultivator in the early stage.”

Where is Zhou Zhiruo?

"Grandmaster Zhou has also completed the Foundation Establishment."

"Wow! It seems our Taiyi Sect is truly powerful beyond measure."

As night fell, Su Ning was refining the Star Escape Boat in his cave.

Although this damaged magical artifact can only unleash 30% of its power, its speed far exceeds that of an ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator's escape light.

Just as he was trying to infuse star power into the ship's hull, the protective array suddenly rippled.

"Senior Sister Zhou?" Su Ning put away the Star Escape Boat and looked at the uninvited woman in red.

Zhou Zhiruo lit a spark of spiritual fire at her fingertips and wrote the four characters "Walls have ears" in the air. Then she took out a jade slip for recording images.

In the interplay of light and shadow, Xuan Tianzi was instructing a black-robed cultivator: "...You must find a way to deal with him in the Chaotic Star Sea."

“There are three assassins in the vanguard camp,” Zhou Zhiruo said in a voice barely audible. “They are shadow guards secretly trained by the Emperor Xuan.”

After saying that, he turned into flames and disappeared, leaving only a crimson pill on the table—the Nine-Turn Resurrection Pill, a life-saving divine medicine that can heal flesh and bones and revive the dead!

"Senior sister, why have you been helping me all this time?"

"Don't overthink it! I just find you pleasing to the eye and don't want you to be killed by those ambitious people."

"..."

Meanwhile, the Burning Heaven Immortal was having a secret conversation with the old spirit of the artifact in the treasure pavilion.

"That kid really chose the Star Escape Boat?" A glint of greed flashed in the eyes of the Burning Heaven Venerable. "Did he discover anything hidden inside the boat?"

The old man shook his head: "The spirit of the artifact is asleep, and even I cannot investigate it. However..."

He lowered his voice, "The Dao patterns on the bottom of that boat are definitely not simple in my opinion."

"Damn it! Could it be that this Su Ning really has some great opportunity within him?"

"Fen Tian, ​​I can't stay here too long! Otherwise, I'll anger the Ancestor."

"Then do you know why the ancestor favors this Su Ning so much?"

"I don't know! I just suspect it might be because of Jin Kui."

"Jin Kui?"

……

Deep within the Ten Thousand Bones Cave of the Yinluo Sect in the Great Jin Dynasty, Zhang Tie sat cross-legged on an altar made of the skulls of nine hundred and ninety-nine cultivators.

For three years, he endured the backlash of the Blood Fiend Demon Art every day, all for this moment of Nascent Soul formation.

"Ahhhh——!"

As the final incantation was cast, the skull on the altar simultaneously sprayed out a mist of blood.

Countless hideous ghost faces emerged from the blood mist, frantically tearing at Zhang Tie's flesh.

This is the most cruel method of Nascent Soul formation in the Yinluo Sect—to temper one's Dao heart through the suffering of being devoured by a thousand ghosts.

"Hold on!" The voice of Yinluo Sect Master Fang Kun came from outside the cave, "Let these vengeful spirits become nourishment for your nascent soul!"

Zhang Tie's body was covered in blood and gore, and the old scar on his left cheek had long since festered to the bone.

But those eyes were frighteningly bright, as if two will-o'-the-wisps were burning within them.

When the 999th vengeful spirit bit into his heart, he suddenly burst into maniacal laughter.

"Swallow them! Eat them! Once I successfully form my Nascent Soul, I'll refine you all into Blood Fiends!"

Inside his dantian, the crimson golden core suddenly exploded.

Unlike the peaceful golden light of righteous cultivators, Zhang Tie's nascent soul was born amidst towering waves of blood.

The three-inch-tall figure was entirely crimson, with a third vertical eye between its brows, and held a chain formed from resentment in its hand.

"boom!"

The dome of the Cave of Ten Thousand Bones was pierced by a blood-red beam of light, turning the sky for miles around crimson.

The three Nascent Soul elders of the Yinluo Sect opened their eyes simultaneously: "Blood Fiend Demon Infant? It's been so many years since we've seen one..."

……

Three days later, in the main hall of the Yinluo Sect.

Zhang Tie knelt on one knee, his brand-new black robe unable to conceal the unhealed wounds on his body.

The sect leader tossed over a jet-black chain, its links covered with twisted runes.

"The Nine Nether Soul-Locking Chains are bestowed upon the holder of the Blood Fiend Nascent Soul." The sect leader licked his lips with his scarlet tongue. "Zhang Tie, do you know why we're focusing on training you?"

Zhang Tie gripped the chains tightly and immediately felt countless vengeful spirits howling in his ears.

This magical artifact was actually made from the souls of living people!
"Disciple doesn't know."

"For thousands of years, I have fought against the White Ghost of the Taiyi Sect and the Hu Old Demon of the Heavenly Demon Sect." The sect leader suddenly lifted his robe, revealing a terrible and hideous scar on his chest. "This wound was given to me by the White Ghost. And you... will be the new hope of our Yinluo Sect."

Zhang Tie's pupils suddenly contracted.

Unexpectedly, the cultivation world of the Great Jin Dynasty was also far from peaceful, with the struggles and infighting among them even more intense than those in Tiannan and the Chaotic Star Sea.

"Furthermore, according to our spies, the Taiyi Sect is about to launch an expedition to the Chaotic Star Sea." The sect leader tossed over a blood-red jade slip. "I want you to contact the forces of the Extreme Yin Island in the Chaotic Star Sea before they do."

"Sect Master, do you intend to subdue Extreme Yin Island?"

“That’s right! Jiyin Island will be our Yinluo Sect’s outpost in the Chaotic Star Sea. Taiyi Sect can’t monopolize the cultivation resources of the Chaotic Star Sea.”

"Yes, Sect Master."

As he left the main hall, Zhang Tie touched the scar on his cheek.

But in his mind, he thought of Su Ning, who was at the Taiyi Sect. However, now that both of them were heading to the Chaotic Star Sea, they were standing on opposing sides...

……

Beyond the chaotic sea, a streak of blue rainbow pierces the sky.

Han Li stood on the Divine Wind Boat, and the newly acquired Wind and Thunder Wings on his back flashed with silver-white lightning from time to time.

He kept looking back, his face extremely solemn.

"The ghost lingers!"

A hundred miles behind, dark clouds loomed overhead.

Feng Xi revealed his true form as a level nine demon beast...

A wind-blown beast with a wingspan of nearly a hundred feet wreaked havoc wherever it passed.

What's even more terrifying is that he also had three level-eight transformed demon cultivators assisting him.

"You little thief! Give me back my Wind and Thunder Wings!" Feng Xi's roar shook the sea and caused huge waves to rise.

Han Li gritted his teeth and activated the Wind and Thunder Wings. This Heaven-Reaching Treasure, which was not yet fully refined, drained 30% of his mana every time he used it.

Just as he was about to risk using his lightning technique, a purple light curtain suddenly rose from the sea ahead.

"Fellow Daoist, please wait!" A magnificent painted boat emerged from the waves, and on the deck stood a stunningly beautiful woman in flowing purple robes.

The mysterious and unpredictable Wen Tianren sitting to the side gave Han Li a feeling of being in a desperate situation, surrounded by wolves in front and tigers behind.

Han Li's pupils contracted: "Fairy Zi Ling?"

"Get on the ship!" Zi Ling activated the protective shield with a hand seal, while Wen Tianren made no attempt to stop her. "I have a way to shake them off!"

The two had just entered the painted boat when Feng Xi's lightning arrived.

At the critical moment, Zi Ling summoned a silver talisman.

Space suddenly distorted, the pleasure boat vanished into thin air, and reappeared thousands of miles away.

"Teleportation?" Han Li stared in shock as the talisman turned to ashes.

Before Zi Ling could answer, the ship suddenly trembled violently.

A huge whirlpool appeared on the distant sea, and spatial rifts spread out like a spider web!
"Oh no! It's a spatial storm!"

When Han Li woke up again, he found himself lying on a cold stone platform.

The surroundings were dark and gloomy, and the air was filled with the smell of decay.

The strangest thing is that he couldn't mobilize any of his internal magical power!

"This is the Netherworld," Zi Ling's voice came from the darkness. "All spells and magical artifacts will be rendered ineffective."

At this moment, Wen Tianren, who was standing to the side, was completely dumbfounded and could no longer maintain his usual calm and composed demeanor.

"Damn it! How did I end up in this deadly place?"

"Young Master, I'm sorry!"

"Hmph! Let's figure out how to get out of here first."

"Yes! Young Master."

Han Li did not ask about Zi Ling's specific situation. Instead, he fumbled to light a tinderbox, and the flame illuminated an ancient bronze stele covered with runes.

Next to the star palace markings on the monument, there is a line of small characters: "The Netherworld is a place where the living cannot return."

Suddenly, the ground began to shake.

A deafening roar, like the earth itself, echoed from afar, as if some colossal creature was awakening.

Zi Ling stared at the darkness in the distance, her face deathly pale: "What is that...?"

...(End of chapter)