I gain ten years' worth of cultivation every day, and even geniuses will only see my doorstep!

Of the eleven members of the Crimson Flame Sect, besides Yan Lie who is at the late Nascent Soul stage, there are three at the mid-Nascent Soul stage and seven at the early Nascent Soul stage. On their side, there are four at the mid-Nascent Soul stage and themselves at the early Nascent Soul stage.

On the surface, the disparity in strength is enormous.

but……

Seeing Qin Yuan standing still, a disciple of the Crimson Flame Sect assumed he was paralyzed with fear and lunged at him with a sinister grin: "Boy, prepare to die!"

He thrust his long sword toward Qin Yuan's throat.

Qin Yuan raised his hand and flicked his index finger lightly.

"clang--!!"

The longsword flew out of his hand, and the disciple was struck as if by a heavy blow. He was sent flying backward, crashing into the ice wall, and slid down softly, lifeless.

One strike, instantly killing a Nascent Soul cultivator in the early stages.

The surroundings fell silent instantly.

Even Yan Lie and Li Qingfeng, who were fighting, stopped and looked over in shock.

Qin Yuan slowly walked towards another disciple of the Crimson Flame Sect.

The disciple's face turned deathly pale, and he retreated repeatedly, crying, "You...you stay away!"

Qin Yuan did not stop walking.

"Attack together!" Yan Lie roared. "Kill him first!"

Three Nascent Soul stage disciples of the Crimson Flame Sect simultaneously lunged at Qin Yuan!

One wielded a knife, another a gun, and the third unleashed fire magic. The three combined their power with astonishing force, raising the temperature within the icy canyon several degrees.

Qin Yuan didn't stop.

He raised his right hand, spread his five fingers, and gently clenched them in the air.

"凝".

The air within a ten-zhang radius suddenly froze! The three figures that were rushing forward came to an abrupt halt, as if they were tightly bound by invisible shackles!

"break."

Qin Yuan clenched his right hand.

"Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!"

Three bursts of blood erupted!

The three mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivators didn't even have time to scream before turning into three headless corpses.

The entire room fell silent.

Yan Lie's face was ashen, and his hand holding the flame trembled.

The disciples of the Crimson Flame Sect behind him turned pale and retreated repeatedly.

Qin Yuan looked at Yan Lie: "Do you still want to fight?"

Yan Lie's throat bobbed, and after a long while, he squeezed out three words through gritted teeth: "...Let's go."

He led the remaining disciples and fled the icy canyon without looking back.

Li Qingfeng and the others looked at Qin Yuan with complicated expressions.

Especially Tuoba Shan, Su Meier, and Yin Jiuyou—they had previously doubted Qin Yuan's strength, but now... they only felt awe.

"Fellow Daoist Qin..." Li Qingfeng smiled wryly, "With your strength, you could probably fight even a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, right?"

Qin Yuan didn't answer, but turned and walked towards the corpses, beginning to loot the spoils.

The disciples of the Crimson Flame Sect were quite wealthy, especially the three mid-Nascent Soul cultivators, whose storage bags contained many valuable items. Qin Yuan collected everything, intending to offer it as a sacrifice to the system after leaving.

"Let's go," he said calmly.

The five continued onward.

After traversing Icewind Valley, Frozen Pool, and Ice Soul Forest, the five finally arrived at the Land of Inheritance five days later.

It was a colossal ice palace, suspended in mid-air. Below the ice palace lay an endless abyss. Only a single ice crystal staircase led from the ground to the entrance of the ice palace.

There were already people in front of the steps.

They were the other two members of the Book and Sword Sect—a refined middle-aged scholar and a cold, aloof young man in blue. Both were in the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm, and their auras were similar to Li Qingfeng's.

"Senior Brother Li!" The middle-aged scholar greeted him. "You've finally arrived."

He glanced at Qin Yuan and the other two, a hint of doubt flashing in his eyes, but he didn't ask any further questions.

Li Qingfeng introduced them: "These two are my fellow disciples, Junior Brother Wen Ruohai and Junior Brother Lin Qingfeng. These two are Fellow Daoist Tuoba Shan from the Barbarian King Sect, Fellow Daoist Su Meier from the Hundred Flowers Valley, and Fellow Daoist Yin Jiuyou from the Corpse Yin Sect. This is Fellow Daoist Qin Yuan from the Xuan Yuan Sect."

Wen Ruohai and Lin Qingfeng nodded to the crowd, their gazes lingering on Qin Yuan for a moment longer, noting that he seemed to be of average strength.

But Li Qingfeng didn't explain, and went straight to the point: "Now we only need one more person. Once the last person arrives, we can begin the inheritance."

"Who was the last person?" Tuoba Shan asked.

"It's me." A cool female voice came from behind.

Everyone turned around and saw a woman in white walking slowly towards them.

Her face was stunningly beautiful, yet cold as ice. A pale blue aura surrounded her, and with each step she took, a layer of ice crystals condensed beneath her feet. Her aura was clearly that of a peak mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, and extremely solid.

"Ice Soul Sect, Cold Moon," the woman said calmly.

The Ice Soul Sect, ranked twelfth among the hundred sects, specializes in ice-based cultivation techniques. This woman's presence here couldn't be more fitting.

"Now everyone is here." Li Qingfeng looked at the Ice Palace. "According to ancient records, it takes eight cultivators at the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm or above to attack the eight ice pillars beneath the Ice Palace simultaneously to open the entrance."

Eight people, just right.

"Let's do it!"

The eight people attacked simultaneously, unleashing their various spiritual energies at the eight ice pillars.

"boom--!!!"

The ice pillars trembled violently, and the entrance to the ice palace slowly opened.

A terrifying chill emanated from it, causing even Nascent Soul cultivators to shiver.

"Go!" Li Qingfeng was the first to rush in.

The crowd followed closely behind.

Inside the Ice Palace was a vast hall.

In the center of the hall, a crystal-clear ice coffin floated. Inside the ice coffin lay a complete skeleton—an old man with a gaunt face, dressed in a blue Taoist robe, his eyes closed, as if he were simply asleep.

The remains emitted a faint blue light, which was the Daoist aura left behind after the fall of a Dao Integration stage cultivator!

"Remains of a Dao-Merging being!" Wen Ruohai exclaimed excitedly. "If we can refine the Dao essence within, our chances of breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage will greatly increase!"

A fiery glint flashed in Leng Yue's eyes.

But just then, another group of people rushed in through the entrance to the Ice Palace.

It's Yan Lie!

Behind him, besides the disciples of the Crimson Flame Sect, there was another person—an old man dressed in black robes with a sinister face. The old man's aura was as deep as an abyss; he was clearly at the peak of the mid-stage Nascent Soul realm, and even stronger than Leng Yue!

"Li Qingfeng, you think you've shaken me off?" Yan Lie sneered. "This is Elder Yin Sha of the Black Fiend Sect. Now, let's talk about the ownership of the remains."

Li Qingfeng's face darkened.

The Black Fiend Sect, ranked twentieth among the hundred sects, is renowned for its insidious and vicious techniques. The Elder of the Black Fiend Sect is a notorious and ruthless figure, said to have once killed a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator.

Eight against more than a dozen, and the opposing side even had a master like Elder Yin Sha.

The situation reversed in an instant.

The narrow ice canyon resembled a wound cleaved open by a giant axe, with ice walls on both sides rising over a hundred feet high, smooth as a mirror, allowing only four or five people to walk side by side. The cold wind howled through the canyon, whipping up fine ice crystals that stung the face.

Qin Yuan and his group of five occupied one end of the canyon, while Yan Lie and his eleven blocked the other end. The two sides were only thirty feet apart, and in this cramped space, the fluctuations of spiritual energy collided with each other, stirring up bursts of ice shards.

"Li Qingfeng, hand over what you obtained in the Ice Palace." Yan Lie's voice echoed through the Ice Canyon, carrying an undeniable force. "This area was first discovered by my Crimson Flame Sect. According to the rules, the opportunity belongs to my Crimson Flame Sect."

Li Qingfeng's expression remained unchanged as he closed the scroll in his hand: "Fellow Daoist Yanlie, you are mistaken. The secret realm is unclaimed; first come, first served. We opened the cave dwelling through our own abilities, and what we obtained naturally belongs to us. How can you speak of 'handing it over'?"