The road is vague

Chapter 434 Five Elements Spirit Communication Array

"How have you been, Fairy Xing?"

Upon hearing this, Xing Meiyan was struck dumb, staring blankly at Li Mo. She seemed to have realized something, her face filled with disbelief.

"Senior is..."

Li Mo smiled gently.

"Could you take me to the place where the Yin Marrow Worm was discovered?"

"Ah good!"

Xing Meiyan was in a state of turmoil, constantly glancing at Li Mo, wondering about his identity but unable to believe it.

The place where the worm was found was not too far away.

The two soon arrived at a decaying place, filled with miasma and teeming with various poisonous insects. Then, led by Xing Meiyan, they entered a hidden cave.

"It was here that I discovered the Yin Marrow Worm."

The cave wasn't very deep, and it contained some animal skeletons.

Li Mo stood inside the dark cave. With his current cultivation level, his True Spirit Eye could see through the darkness and had a clear view of the cave. Soon, he chuckled and pointed his right hand at a certain area. A wisp of spiritual light surged out, and the stone wall shattered with a crash.

"what!"

Xing Meiyan exclaimed in astonishment, "There's even a hidden room!"

She had barely finished speaking when she suddenly noticed something, let out a gasp, and frantically backed away.

A wisp of dark gray eerie fire flashed by, leaving a ghostly aura in its wake. Xing Meiyan, protected by her supreme yang spiritual light, stared in shock at the giant, strange insect that spewed out eerie fire.

This strange insect is about three feet long, resembling a worm, and covered with purplish-black scales. It moves like the wind and is extremely dangerous.

"What kind of strange insect is this?!"

As soon as she finished speaking, with the help of the dim spiritual light, she discovered that there were other strange insects moving like the wind and crawling constantly deep in the cave. She immediately turned pale and got goosebumps.

However, Li Mo's gaze fell upon the rows of coffins deep within the dark room.

This was actually a hidden underground palace, not very large in scale, containing thousands of coffins, from which Yin Marrow Worms constantly flowed out and were then preyed upon by Yang-Avoiding Worms.

"Zombies."

Li Mo noticed that inside the coffins from which Yin Marrow Worms were flowing were one zombie after another.

However, these zombies seemed to have been disposed of after their transformation, which caused the coffin to crack and a large number of Yin Marrow Worms to spawn from it.

He was not interested in the yin marrow worm.

Seeing that these Sun-Avoiding Insects were quite ferocious and numerous enough to allow him to forge a set of protective robes, he immediately let out a low shout. Under Xing Meiyan's astonished gaze, he transformed into a bolt of lightning and swiftly darted through the underground palace, continuously capturing these terrifying Sun-Avoiding Insects and putting them into his spirit beast pouch.

These seemingly powerful insects were utterly helpless against the opponent's overwhelming spiritual light.

Compared to that, the intensity of my own spiritual light was worlds apart.

In just a short while, Li Mo had collected the sun-avoiding insects he needed. The other sun-avoiding insects sensed the danger and burrowed into the ground to escape.

"Who exactly disposed of these zombies in secret?"

After confirming that all the coffins had been damaged, Li Mo couldn't help but show a thoughtful expression.

If the zombies here hadn't been dealt with, even if it couldn't compare to the Corpse King Mountain Palace in the Southern Barbarian Lands, it would never have become a place for low- to mid-level cultivators to explore.

Could it be some sage or wise man hiding in this area?

From the words of the Heavenly Sword Saint, Li Mo learned that there must be other humans above the Nascent Soul stage hidden within the Mountain and Sea Realm. These were all saints and sages left behind during the fall of the Great Zhou Dynasty. However, they were like evil grass witches, hiding in secret places in the corners and edges of the Mountain and Sea Realm.

Having thought things through, and having already achieved his goal, he decided not to delve any further.

After all, for these sages and wise men, maintaining secrecy within the realm of mountains and seas was a fundamental element of survival.

After a while.

Li Mo led Xing Meiyan back to the surface, when suddenly a hearty laugh came from afar.

"Hahaha! Junior sister! I'm so glad you're alright!"

Two people flew in from a distance. One of them had unusually high cheekbones, a sharp and angular face, a large beard, vigorous blood and energy, and bright and piercing eyes. He was Yang Gang from the Wind and Fire Sect.

"Brother!"

Xing Meiyan couldn't help but be delighted and immediately flew over.

"Hahaha, junior sister, let me introduce you. This is Liang Geng from the Puppet Sect. We participated in the Zhongshan Kingdom exchange meeting together back then, do you remember?"

At this point, Yang Gang couldn't help but reveal a hint of admiration.

"I just had a fierce fight with Ding Xu, but fortunately Fellow Daoist Liang intervened and I was able to arrive in time. Where are those three disciples of the Holy Cauldron Sect? And who is this one?"

Just as Xing Meiyan was about to speak, Liang Geng, who was standing to the side, responded with a smile.

"Brother Yang is truly a role model for us all. In my opinion, among the disciples of our generation in the Great Qian Kingdom, apart from that person from the Ten Thousand Swords Sect, we should probably regard Brother Yang as the most respected."

"Hahahaha! Fellow Daoist Liang's cultivation speed is no less than mine!"

Upon hearing the praise, Yang Gang first laughed heartily.

But when the other party mentioned the people of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect, his expression darkened again.

He knew, though others didn't.

Among the many disciples who represented the Great Qian Kingdom at the exchange meeting, one has already advanced to the Golden Core stage.

Unexpectedly, the mere Ten Thousand Swords Sect actually came out on top.

However, advancing to the Golden Core stage is no small matter. If one fails to advance, the difficulty of advancing a second time increases almost exponentially. Therefore, even he must make thorough preparations. Fortunately, he has gained something from this trip, and it is about time to begin his journey back to his sect.

"Hehe, gentlemen, I have other matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."

Listening to their mutual flattery, Li Mo suddenly found it somewhat amusing. Unable to suppress a laugh, he took his leave, not wanting to shatter their illusions. Yang Gang and Liang Geng were about to say something when they saw Li Mo vanish in a flash of light, disappearing into the horizon in a few blinks. They were immediately dumbfounded, utterly incredulous.

"Hiss, junior sister, who is this senior? Why are you following him?"

Upon hearing this, Xing Meiyan looked at Yang Gang with a serious expression.

"Senior brother, don't you think he looks familiar?"

look familiar?

Yang Gang paused for a moment, then said thoughtfully, "Now that you mention it, this person does look somewhat familiar. Have we met before?"

"Of course I've seen it."

Xing Meiyan showed a slightly strange expression.

"If I remember correctly, this senior should be the senior disciple of Lingmu Sect who participated in the Zhongshan Kingdom Exchange Conference with us, and also the one who was the first to rebel against Shengding Sect."

"Li Mo, the one who killed Dongfang Gouyu!!"

Liang Geng suddenly remembered something and exclaimed in alarm.

At the time, the Lingmu Sect had almost no status in the Great Qian Kingdom, so the three disciples of the Lingmu Sect became the least noticed and no one paid any attention to them. It wasn't until later, because of the Dongfang Gouyu incident, that people were shocked to realize this.

"He...he actually advanced to the Golden Core stage?"

"Do not."

Xing Meiyan said something that left Yang Gang and Liang Geng speechless, as if they were looking at a monster.

"He is already a Nascent Soul cultivator."

"Junior sister, are you joking? You said he advanced to the Nascent Soul stage? How is that possible? Even if he is a genius, it is impossible for him to advance to the Nascent Soul stage in less than a hundred years. That's impossible!"

Liang Geng, who was standing to the side, had come here to travel after participating in the Lingwei Eternal Puppet Tournament in Yuancheng three years ago.

Suddenly, something occurred to him, and he blurted out, "Black Dog Monster, could it be him!?"

"You mean that the mysterious cultivator who's famous throughout Yuan City is actually him?"

Yang Gang recalled his boastful words in front of the other party and felt extremely ashamed and embarrassed. His face turned red and white in turns.

A month later.

Li Mo finally returned to Lingmu Sect.

He first went to the Ancestral Hall, where he happened to meet the sect leader, Master Danqing.

"Junior Brother Li, in just a few short years, you have become a household name in Yuan City. Now that you've returned, isn't it time to reveal your identity and officially hold a grand Nascent Soul Ceremony?"

As the leader of the Lingmu Sect, the more Nascent Soul cultivators there are within the sect, the greater his achievements will be, and the higher his status will be.

Think back to the beginning.

He turned the tide and saved Lingmu Sect from peril. Now, in just a few decades, four Nascent Soul cultivators have emerged from the sect, completely shedding its reputation as a declining sect. How could he not be overjoyed? Naturally, he was extremely enthusiastic about holding the grand ceremony.

Even if he fails to achieve his cultivation goals in the future, he will still leave behind a beautiful story of a restorer of the Lingmu Sect in its history.

Li Mo was speechless.

He had come back intending to form a nascent soul within the gate.

Seeing how enthusiastic Master Danqing was, he couldn't help but wonder if his master hadn't told him the truth about himself.
"Sect Leader, didn't Master tell you the truth about me?"

Upon hearing this, Master Danqing immediately smiled and waved his hand, saying, "Of course I have informed you, but with your current reputation as the Black Dog Monster, who would doubt it?"

Li Mo looked speechless and immediately rejected Danqing Zhenren's suggestion.

"To hold a Nascent Soul Formation Ceremony without having advanced to the Nascent Soul stage is something I don't want to become a laughing stock in the future. To be honest, the reason I've returned is precisely for the Nascent Soul Formation ceremony."

"Oh?"

Upon hearing this, Master Danqing revealed a hint of joy.

"How confident are you, junior brother?"

"I'm about 70% sure."

Li Mo's words left Danqing Zhenren speechless. Even though he had gathered the sect's resources, he only had a 70% chance of advancing. In fact, most late-stage Golden Core cultivators only had a 20% to 30% chance of advancing when they tried.

Now the other party claims to be 70% certain, it seems they've had quite a few strokes of luck over the past few decades.

In fact, Li Mo's chances of advancing are even greater. With his current understanding of order, especially after the battle of Jimu Mountain, he has a slight chance of advancing to the Nascent Soul stage, let alone advancing to the Spirit Transformation stage.

"Heh heh heh heh, senior brother has another secret technique here that can give you an even greater chance of advancing!"

Then Danqing Zhenren handed Li Mo a scroll.

"The Five Elements Spirit Communication Array?"

This is actually an auxiliary advancement formation that consumes five high-grade spirit stones of gold, wood, water, fire, and earth, and it has a similar effect to the Ghostly Body Forging Secret Technique that he collected.

However, compared to other methods, this auxiliary technique is clearly more orthodox, and there is no need to worry about any side effects.

"Thank you, Master!"

Li Mo happily accepted it.

"The materials needed to set up the formation aren't particularly precious. The key is these five high-grade spirit stones. This... the sect should have strongly supported my junior brother, but unfortunately, the sect's financial situation is truly worrying, I'm afraid..."

Seeing the troubled look on Danqing Zhenren's face, Li Mo knew that Lingmu Sect's annual budget was less than one million spirit stones before. Even though it had been increased now, the number of high-level cultivators in the sect had also increased significantly, so the economic situation was definitely not very good. He immediately showed his understanding.

"I am quite wealthy, and tens of thousands of spirit stones are no problem for me. However, high-grade spirit stones are hard to find. I wonder if your sect can provide an exchange service?"

"No problem at all!"

Master Danqing breathed a sigh of relief and revealed a joyful smile.

(End of this chapter)