Starting at the Nascent Soul stage, a rogue cultivator is incredibly poor.

Qingyouzi stood in mid-air, looking down at the valley now a ruin. The Blood Fiend Sect was destroyed, but there was one last thing to do.

With a flicker, he transformed into a blue rainbow and flew towards the depths of the valley.

According to the memories obtained from the soul search, the Blood Fiend Sect's treasure vault was hidden deep within a mountain. A moment later, he stopped before a cliff. The stone wall appeared ordinary, but it was covered with array formations.

Qingyouzi raised his hand and waved it.

Countless cyan threads emerged as if alive, silently adhering to the stone wall. The threads moved, finding the nodes of the formation, and gently twisted them.

"Click."

A faint cracking sound rang out. A flash of light appeared on the stone wall, and the formation was broken.

The stone gate slowly opened.

Qingyouzi walked in.

The treasure vault wasn't large, about three zhang square. But it was packed full.

Spirit stones, magical artifacts, elixirs, and cultivation techniques are all available.

Among them, there are at least 10 spirit stones.

Qingyouzi glanced at it, then quickly took out seven or eight empty bags and began collecting them.

He collected all the spirit stones, selected only the pills usable by those at the Foundation Establishment stage and above, and took only three decent-quality magic artifacts, leaving the rest untouched. As for the cultivation technique jade slips, he scanned them briefly with his divine sense and found that the highest level was only the Golden Core stage, and most of them were demonic techniques, useless to him.

Even so, it still filled four storage bags.

"A mid-level sect actually has such wealth."

Qingyouzi weighed the storage bag in his hand, seemingly lost in thought.

The Blood Fiend Sect openly only has five Golden Core cultivators, which shouldn't make them so wealthy. Unless... the secret report is true, and they are indeed a force secretly supported by the Heavenly Fiend Sect of the Northern Pavilion Continent.

He tied the storage bag around his waist, his brows furrowed slightly.

If the Blood Fiend Sect is just the tip of the iceberg, how many other such infiltrative sects are there in the Southern Profound Continent? If the two continents truly go to war, it will be another bloody battle. At that time, Nascent Soul cultivators will not necessarily perish easily, but they will also find it difficult to remain unscathed.

"That's enough."

Qingyouzi shook his head and walked out of the treasure vault.

If the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up. Which of those great sects in the Southern Xuan Continent, with their millennia-long lineages, doesn't have a Nascent Soul stage patriarch overseeing things? It's not his place to worry about it, a mere rogue cultivator.

but……

He stood above the valley, raising his hand to form a hand seal.

A burst of azure flame erupted from his palm, landing on the ruins of the Blood Fiend Sect. The flame spread rapidly, engulfing the rubble, corpses, and bloodstains.

Under the firelight, Qingyouzi's eyes remained calm.

"The message still needs to be sent out."

He muttered to himself.

"It's better to let the Southern Xuan Continent prepare early than to be attacked by a sneak attack."

one year later.

In a teahouse in an inconspicuous little town in the northwest of the Southern Xuan Continent.

Several lay practitioners were chatting idly.

"Have you heard? It seems like something's going to happen on the Northern Continent."

"How come I haven't heard about it! The Blood Fiend Sect was wiped out recently, supposedly because they were spies for the Heavenly Fiend Sect!"

"Not only the Blood Fiend Sect, but there was also the Black Water Sect to the south, which was also discovered, and the entire sect was wiped out."

"Tsk tsk, it seems the two continents are about to fight again. The last time was a thousand years ago..."

Similar news spread like wildfire throughout the Southern Xuan Continent over the past year. At first, no one believed it, but as several small and medium-sized sects were successively found to have ties with the Northern Pavilion Continent, the major powers finally became alert.

Qingyouzi was very satisfied.

He changed his identity seven or eight times that year, "inadvertently" revealing information in different markets, teahouses, and restaurants, and the results were quite good.

At this moment, he sat in a corner of the teahouse, drinking the cheapest spiritual tea and listening to the discussions of the crowd.

"If you ask me, let's fight! Those bastards from both the righteous and demonic paths in Beiting should have been dealt with long ago!"

"What do you know? If a fight really breaks out, we rogue cultivators will be the ones who suffer..."

Qingyouzi put down his teacup, tossed down two spirit stones, and got up to leave.

The news has spread, and he has achieved his goal.

Next, it's time to prepare for the Heavenly Immortal Cave.

He must go to the Celestial Immortal Cave this time. Such a great opportunity will only last for a hundred years. Moreover, his current strength is too weak among Nascent Soul cultivators and is far from sufficient. He must enhance his strength and methods.

This is capital; without sufficient strength and means, one is merely a fleeting existence in this mortal world, merely a little more powerful.

Meanwhile, on the Northern Continent, at the headquarters of the Heavenly Fiend Sect.

On a towering, blood-red mountain peak, the atmosphere inside the main hall was solemn.

More than ten Nascent Soul cultivators sat on either side, each exuding a profound aura. In the main seat sat an old man with a white beard, his eyes slightly closed, toying with a string of blood-red bone beads in his hand.

"The Blood Fiend Sect has been destroyed, and the news has been leaked. The Southern Xuan Continent is already on guard."

An elderly man in a gray robe, sitting at the head of the left seat, spoke in a deep voice. He was the Grand Elder of the Heavenly Fiend Sect, with a cultivation level of late Nascent Soul stage.

"Xue Wuyai, your men are incompetent."

The middle-aged man whose name was mentioned frowned. He was the direct controller behind the Blood Fiend Sect and had a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivation.

"Elder, there must be a traitor within our ranks. The Blood Fiend Sect operates with extreme secrecy; how could the Southern Profound Continent have discovered this unless someone leaked their secrets?"

"A traitor?"

The gray-robed old man sneered, "Then tell me, who is the traitor?"

Blood has no edge, words fail me.

Silence fell over the main hall.

After a long while, the white-bearded old man in the main seat slowly opened his eyes.

That's enough.

The voice wasn't loud, but it sent a chill down everyone's spine.

"Let's put the matter of the Blood Fiend Sect aside for now. The key issue right now is Demon Zhou Mountain."

Upon hearing the words "Mo Zhou Mountain," all the Nascent Soul cultivators present tensed up.

"According to astrological calculations, Demon Zhou Mountain will emerge in ten years, its location... near the East Sea of ​​the Southern Xuan Continent," the white-bearded elder said slowly. "The Southern Xuan Continent must have already calculated this as well. At that time, cultivators from both continents will surely gather to compete for it."

"What does the sect leader mean...?" the gray-robed elder asked tentatively.

"The original plan remains unchanged."

The white-bearded old man stood up, walked to the window, and looked down at the sea of ​​clouds below.

"Mount Mozhou is an ancient relic, containing the opportunity to transform into a Nascent Soul cultivator. Our Northern Pavilion Continent is determined to possess it. As for the Southern Profound Continent…"

He turned around, a bloodthirsty glint flashing in his eyes.

"Now that they are on guard, there is no need to hide any longer. Pass down the order to all hidden forces to prepare. The day Demon Zhou Mountain emerges will be the day the two continents go to war. I will inform the righteous path later."

"yes!"

All the Nascent Soul cultivators responded in unison.

A month later.

In a deserted island cave, Qingyouzi took out the Blood Shadow Sect communication jade tablet.

As the magic power was infused, the jade pendant emitted a faint glow.

A moment later, the voice of the Seven Fiends Master echoed in his mind:

"Fellow Daoist Qingyou, the Celestial Immortal Cave will be opening soon. Meet me at the Tide-Watching Platform in the East Sea in three days. Two other fellow Daoists will be joining us."

Qingyouzi withdrew his magic power, his eyes narrowing slightly.

With three Nascent Soul cultivators traveling with him, there were four of them. According to the information he had gathered, the righteous path would send at least four Nascent Soul cultivators.

This Celestial Cave is unlikely to be peaceful.

Three days later, Qingyouzi set off.

The Celestial Cave is located deep within the Boundless Sea, approximately three thousand miles from the coast of the Southern Profound Continent. He transformed into a beam of azure light, traversing the sea, and half a day later, a massive platform appeared on the distant sea surface.

The platform is suspended hundreds of feet above the sea, covering an area of ​​several miles, and is made entirely of white jade, gleaming in the sunlight.

The tide-watching platform.

Qingyouzi concealed his aura and slowly descended.

There were already dozens of people on the platform, the lowest cultivation level being the early Foundation Establishment stage. Seeing him land, many people turned their gazes towards him, but after sensing the faint pressure of the Nascent Soul stage emanating from him, they all looked away.

Qingyouzi did not release his divine sense.

This area falls under the jurisdiction of Tianxian City, and Elder Zhao of Tianxian City is a peak mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator with a formidable reputation. It's best to keep a low profile on their territory.

He found an open space at the edge of the platform, sat down cross-legged, and closed his eyes to regulate his breathing.

In the distance, the sea and sky blend into one, with surging waves.

Further away, a colossal spatial rift can be faintly seen, stretching between the sea and the sky, its surface shimmering with light—the very entrance to the Celestial Cave.

Qingyouzi opened her eyes and looked at the crack.