Longevity starts with choosing Hextech enhancement

Chapter 317 The Dilemma of the Tiangang Sect (4K)

In the end, there weren't many things left.

The most eye-catching item is a stack of portable array plates.

These array plates are only the size of a palm, but there are a total of forty-nine of them, clearly belonging to a complete set.

Since there are no accompanying formation diagrams and flags, it is not easy to distinguish their functions.

For Xiao Chen, he could only put it away for now and have it appraised when he had time.

In addition, there were two small booklets with completely black covers, and five Spirit-Gathering Treasure Boxes.

The first booklet came from the Fusheng Sect, a relatively well-known demonic sect in ancient times.

It records several demonic secret techniques, including the fourth-order Blood Escape Technique.

To be fair, these demonic arts are not very good; at least Xiao Chen felt they were inferior to the Yellow Springs Path.

It can only be said that the demise of the Fusheng Sect was entirely justified.

The second booklet also came from the Fusheng Sect, but it only recorded the specific method for refining one kind of magic pill.

Its name is Fushou Yangsheng Wan (福寿养生丸).

As the name suggests, this is a fourth-tier magic pill that can prolong the life of cultivators.

Its main raw materials are the bone marrow and heart blood of cultivators, and it can be divided into nine grades according to different life-extending effects.

Its advantage lies in its low refining cost and relatively low requirements for essence and blood; at the very least, a cultivator in the early Golden Core stage can meet the requirements for the lowest grade.

However, even demonic arts inevitably encounter the problem of diminished efficacy with repeated use.

At this point, it is necessary to capture those cultivators with vigorous blood and energy to use as raw materials to refine a higher-grade Longevity and Health-Preserving Pill.

"Finally solved the case!"

Xiao Chen suddenly realized: "I knew it was for no reason. Why were you looking at me like I was prey? So that's why."

"And all those missing persons cases I saw on the 'Fortune Wall' before, they must be involved too!"

From this perspective, killing that old dog Yi can be considered as ridding the people of a scourge.

There are five Spirit-Nourishing Treasure Boxes left.

In most cases, this contains the best items in the entire storage ring.

"Let me see, which one should we open first?"

Xiao Chen picked up the different treasure boxes one by one, feeling their weight with anticipation.

Then he chose the heaviest one: "I've decided on the one, open!"

The box contained large, rectangular dividers, forming five distinct areas.

Each area contains a fourth-tier spiritual item, each possessing a different elemental attribute.

In other words, this Spirit-Nourishing Treasure Box contains five fourth-tier spiritual items!
Xiao Chen spotted the green leaf brimming with wood elemental power at a glance.

Its vitality is so strong that it is pleasing to the eye, and when you get close, you can smell the fresh fragrance of grass and trees.

"Great, we should have more of this kind."

Xiao Chen was very satisfied with this; he needed such a spiritual object right now.

It would be great if the other Spirit-Gathering Boxes also contained wood-type spiritual items.

Unfortunately, they are all completely different in weight, and the contents inside should also be different.

"Next, let's start with the lightest one."

Xiao Chen picked up the Spirit-Nourishing Treasure Box on the far left and opened it to take a look.

Inside, there was a bright yellow brocade lining, with a small indentation in the very center.

Inside was a single spiritual seed, about the size of a soybean.

"what?"

Xiao Chen was a little surprised: "Would this be considered a wood-type spiritual object?"

He picked it up and examined it closely, but unsurprisingly, he couldn't tell what kind of seed it was.

At the same time, this spiritual seed did not react to divine sense or true essence, making it difficult to deduce what kind of seed it was.

"Well... I'll keep this for now."

Xiao Chen put the spirit seed back and then opened the third treasure box.

Immediately, I saw two rather familiar Dao-infused crystals.

Unfortunately, judging from the runes, one of them belongs to the metal element, and the other belongs to the fire element.

The wood element he needed most was not there.

Continue by opening the fourth treasure box, which contains a blue and white porcelain vase.

Xiao Chen pulled out the stopper and saw that the bottle was half full of clear spring water.

"This looks familiar... Is it the Gentle Breeze Cleansing Dew?"

He examined it carefully: "No, the spiritual energy reaction is clearly much stronger than that."

"That's the fourth-tier Cleansing Dew?"

The "Clear Breeze Washing Away Dust Dew" was the bottle of spiritual liquid that Xiao Chen had picked up from the storage ring of a true disciple of the Cloud Wave Sword Pavilion. It could counter most tracking methods.

Of course, logically speaking, its name would likely change after the fourth level.

But what it's called isn't really important, as long as you can understand its function.

This thing might actually come in handy for Xiao Chen.

Whether it's to prevent being tracked by sea creatures or to avoid being targeted by local Nascent Soul cultivators when exploring new cultivation realms.

All of them can use the fourth-level Cleansing Dew to remove any tracking marks that may exist on their bodies.

Although there isn't much spirit liquid left in the bottle, if you use it sparingly, you can at least use it three more times.

"That's good too, it gives us more options."

Xiao Chen carefully put away the spiritual liquid and looked at the last Spirit-Nourishing Treasure Box.

Upon opening the lid, one could see an octagonal glass bottle inside.

The bottle contains three round Xuanwu Guardian Pills, each with two rings of pill patterns on it.

Xiao Chen actually recognized this thing; he had seen a related introduction in the Black Abyss Demon Sect's inherited memories.

Its main function is to form a protective film on the surface of a cultivator's sea of ​​consciousness within three hours after consumption, resisting attacks from spiritual means.

For example, the Soul-Capturing Bell, the signature demonic artifact of the Black Abyss Demonic Sect, is severely countered by it.

"This is good stuff!"

Xiao Chen is currently lacking any means of protection related to spiritual sense.

Although he was not afraid of illusions like bewitching spells, the Divine Veil was ineffective against attacks like the Soul-Capturing Bell that directly targeted the sea of ​​consciousness.

Now that we have obtained the Xuanwu Guardian Pill, it can be said that we have temporarily filled this gap.

"However, the number of elixirs is limited, and they can only be used a maximum of three times."

Xiao Chen closed the glass octagonal bottle again: "It would be best to cultivate a defensive divine sense technique."

"Only in this way can this problem be solved once and for all."

Unfortunately, he doesn't know where to go to obtain a suitable divine sense technique.

This kind of thing is most likely not available on the market, and it's probably difficult to obtain it from ruins or secret realms.

We might have to find a solution from the new cultivation world.

"Since we already have the Xuanwu Guardian Pill for emergencies, there's no need to rush into thinking about these things. Let's go to the Tiangang Sect to check on the situation first."

Xiao Chen determined the direction and quickly headed north.

Although he had already learned about the general situation there from the rogue cultivators.

However, considering that rumors are bound to be inaccurate, it's best to see things for yourself to gain a clearer understanding. Anyway, the distance isn't far, only a four-day journey.

Due to the impact of the war, they encountered neither wandering cultivators nor sea fish along the way, making their journey quite smooth.

Therefore, Xiao Chen entered the territory of the Tiangang Sect four hours in advance.

Then finally, they saw signs of human habitation on a small island.

It was an island used to cultivate spiritual herbs, with a large spiritual herb garden built in the center.

The surrounding area consisted of many houses left behind by independent cultivators, as well as a few shops.

However, the place has lost its former tranquility; almost all the houses are locked, and the shops have their doors and windows closed.

It is obvious that most of the independent cultivators have already fled this place.

Only a portion of the Tiangang Sect disciples responsible for guarding the Spirit Medicine Garden remained on the island.

Xiao Chen also saw that even in broad daylight, the formation on the island was already in a semi-activated state.

Especially the semi-transparent barrier above the herb garden and the surveillance array hidden on the edge of the island.

The formation arranged in this place is naturally a third-order formation.

Therefore, Xiao Chen could clearly sense that the monitoring array below was secretly spying on him.

However, he didn't mind this, since it wasn't a malicious probe, but just a normal defensive measure.

The surveillance arrays scattered across various strongholds are like pairs of eyes set up by the Tiangang Sect.

These monitoring arrays are usually kept closed.

This is both to save resources and to avoid startling the independent cultivators who are engaged in normal activities.

They are only used on a large scale during wartime, responsible for monitoring the large-scale movements of enemies within the territory and transmitting all abnormal information back to the sect for early warning.

"We've only just stepped onto the border and we've already encountered a surveillance array. It seems the situation is indeed unfavorable."

It should be noted that the information Xiao Chen had previously obtained indicated that the Tiangang Sect still controlled half of the territory.

If that's the case, there's no need to activate the surveillance array near the south side, that is, near the Cangming Immortal Sect.

Unless they already sensed the impending doom of the battle and were consciously preventing the sea creatures from cutting off their retreat.

Xiao Chen's judgment was somewhat imprecise.

But in fact, he was right.

On Qingcang Peak, the core of the Tiangang Sect, True Monarch Gangyuan sat alone in the sect's rear hall, seriously considering the matter of a large-scale retreat.

In fact, this wasn't the first time he'd had this idea; he'd thought about it several times already.

However, due to various reasons, I chose to wait and see how things developed.

However, as the overall situation gradually deteriorated, there was little hope in other directions as well.

The worries in Gangyuan Zhenjun's heart changed from the fact that the ancestral legacy should not be easily abandoned to how to seize the best opportunity to retreat.

Faced with the aggressive offensive from the Wang and Fan families, evacuation was not an option.

If there are any oversights in the arrangements, the large-scale evacuation could easily turn into a major defeat.

Of course, as a Nascent Soul True Monarch, he doesn't need to worry about not being able to leave.

However, for the remaining disciples, it was necessary to prioritize them, leaving some to cover the rear or even sacrifice themselves to delay the pursuit in order to save more people.

In a sense.

The disciples under the sect, especially those who are loyal to the sect, are also part of the sect's assets.

This sounds a bit strange, but it's true from a certain perspective.

Especially after the ancestral spiritual veins and mineral deposits are lost in the future.

Preserving as many disciples as possible is equivalent to preserving more wealth for True Lord Gangyuan and True Lord Hanchuan.

This will also preserve more seeds for the future resurgence of the Tiangang Sect.

"Senior brother, how is the situation?"

Han Chuan Zhenjun suddenly pushed open the door to the back hall and walked over with concern: "There was quite a commotion this morning. How many mid-grade spirit stones were consumed?"

However, True Lord Gangyuan did not answer his question.

Instead, he frowned and asked, "Junior brother, why are you out here again instead of focusing on your seclusion to heal your injuries?"

"Could it be that the Spirit Returning Jade Elixir isn't working properly?"

"I remember there's a Liyun Canling Flower in the warehouse; taking it directly can also help heal injuries."

Upon hearing this, True Lord Hanchuan quickly waved his hand and said, "It has nothing to do with these things. I was just too careless back then."

"Besides, it would be too wasteful to use the Liyun Canling Flower directly. Let's save it for future alchemy."

He sighed as he spoke, "Besides, you've already checked. The demonic energy remaining in my body is too domineering; it's not a problem that can be solved by healing alone."

"If we can't get rid of these demonic energies, I'm afraid no matter how many spiritual items we consume, it won't be of any use."

"It's just treating the symptoms, not the root cause, and only increases the burden."

"It would be better to keep them as reserves for the sect, since these things in the sect will probably become less and less in the future."

His attitude was clearly somewhat pessimistic.

But after looking at the situation over the past two years, no one can be optimistic.

Not to mention the traditionally conservative True Lord Hanchuan.

Even when Gangyuan Zhenjun heard this, he no longer had the spirit to refute it when he first rushed back to take charge of the situation.

Instead, they sat down again, which can be seen as an acceptance of this statement.

"Junior brother, now that you're here, there's something I'd like to discuss with you."

Gangyuan Zhenjun pushed aside the messy intelligence reports on the table, revealing the map underneath: "Starting this month, many Wang family cultivators on the left wing have been at the forefront."

“A few people have even bypassed the sect’s formation and are heading straight for the rear.”

"It looks like they're planning to attack our rear, just like they did with the Mozhang Sect, and put us under siege."

"I feel... it's time to plan our evacuation."

Han Chuan Zhenjun glanced at the map and saw that the situation on the left wing seemed to be quite good.

Since his last visit, only one spiritual vein had been lost.

The problem is that there was originally a fourth-order array there, guarded by three elders at the late Golden Core stage and two Golden Core guest elders.

Once these important nodes are lost, they will naturally be used by the other side to repair or set up a new fourth-order formation.

It will undoubtedly be extremely difficult to take it back in the future.

The reason it's "later" is because, given the current state of the Tiangang Sect, a counterattack is out of the question; it's definitely not going to happen.

With such an important barrier gone, a gap has actually appeared on the left side.

At any moment, a large number of Golden Core Sea Fish may break through the remaining third-order formation and rush through that opening.

Although they haven't been hit yet, it's estimated that they are just preparing for the follow-up plans or accumulating more sea fish in order to complete the encirclement in one fell swoop.

"Boom~!"

A loud bang suddenly came from outside, and the protective array of the mountain shook three times.

"I'll go out and check the situation first."

Gangyuan Zhenjun took out two intelligence reports and put them down: "This is the latest report, the rest are on the table."

"It's probably just a harassment and probing attack; it's not a big problem."

Han Chuan Zhenjun nodded and added, "Be extra careful and keep your distance."

He is currently injured and cannot take action unless it is absolutely necessary.

(End of this chapter)