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

Several hours later.

A lonely island thousands of miles away.

Qingyouzi stumbled down the escape light and landed on a reef by the sea. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he staggered and quickly grabbed the slippery rock wall next to him to barely keep his balance.

The malevolent energy within his body was still surging wildly, like countless fine needles wandering and piercing through his meridians.

Every time he circulated a trace of magic power, he felt a tearing pain, and the nascent soul in his dantian appeared weak and dim.

"Cough cough..."

He bent over and spat out another mouthful of black blood. The blood fell onto the reef and made a soft hissing sound. The surface was shrouded in demonic energy that did not dissipate, and it eroded shallow pits into the rocks.

Since entering the Nascent Soul stage, when have I ever been so humiliated? Severely injured in a single blow, I had to bow and express my gratitude before fleeing in panic. This sense of frustration and powerlessness gnawed at my soul like a venomous snake.

He took a deep breath, suppressing his surging emotions.

"Heal your wounds first."

He mustered his strength, and his consciousness spread out like a tide, sweeping across the entire island.

The island is not large, only about ten miles in circumference. In the center is a low mountain about a hundred feet high, with sparse trees and little spiritual energy.

There were no powerful demonic beasts on the island; only some first-tier demons were rustling around in the forest, posing no threat to him.

Finding a shady spot on the low hill, there was a natural cave. The entrance was narrow and hidden, and the inside was about ten feet square. Although simple, it was enough to accommodate one.

"This is it."

Qingyouzi flashed into the cave, and countless blue threads surged from his sleeves, drilling into the crevices of the rock wall like living things, intertwining layer by layer to seal the cave entrance from the inside.

Just in case, he took out the hidden array he had obtained from Mo Zhou Mountain and intended to set it up around him.

With a thought, the black boulder flew out of the storage bag and hovered in front of him.

He channeled his magic power and slammed his palm onto the stone surface.

The boulder remained completely still.

No response.

Qingyouzi frowned slightly: "What's going on?"

"System, identify this item."

"Ding, three hundred spirit stones consumed, identification successful."

Item Name: Heavenly Demon Annihilation Array (Battle Damaged Version)

"Item Function: When in its complete state, it can conceal the divine sense probing of a late-stage Void Refinement cultivator. Current Status: The array base is damaged, and the magic spirit stones are exhausted. It can only barely withstand the divine sense scanning of a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator. It needs to be replenished with magic spirit stones to activate."

Magic Spirit Stone?

Qingyouzi's heart sank.

He had heard rumors about this item.

Demonic spirit stones are only born in places where demonic energy is extremely concentrated, after hundreds or even thousands of years of erosion and nurturing. They are so rare that even Nascent Soul cultivators find them difficult to obtain.

"That's enough."

He put the boulder back into his bag.

"If we can find a Demon Spirit Stone in the future, this formation will be our trump card for survival. Even if it's just a battle-damaged version, it's enough to block the divine sense of a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator."

Sit cross-legged, close your eyes and concentrate.

The ancient azure demonic fire surged from his dantian, traveling along his meridians, gradually burning away and dispelling the yin and demonic energy. Each refinement of a wisp felt like scraping bone to remove poison, causing cold sweat to pour down his forehead.

He only sent a wisp of his divine consciousness to hang outside the cave, keeping watch over the surroundings.

Then, I completely immersed myself in healing.

Four months passed in the blink of an eye.

Inside the cave, Qingyouzi slowly opened her eyes.

A blue light flowed in his eyes, and his breathing was steady and long. The demonic energy within his body had been completely dispelled, his injuries had almost fully recovered, and his nascent soul had regained its radiance. In fact, due to the tempering of this ordeal, his magical power was even more condensed and pure than before.

He stood up, stretched his limbs, and his joints cracked slightly.

Although his injuries have healed, the road ahead remains uncertain.

He still had the map given to him by the dragon clan, but it was marked with ancient demonic script. He could only barely make out the outlines of mountains and seas, and had no idea where the human race gathered.

Wandering blindly is fraught with unpredictable danger.

"Instead of taking risks, I should go into seclusion for a while longer to improve my cultivation."

While I was pondering this.

A hundred miles outside the cave, a strange disturbance suddenly occurred!

"Father! Abandon me... I've dragged you down with me!"

The girl's voice, trembling with sobs, broke and quivered in the howling sea wind.

A broad flying sword swayed across the sea, and on the sword, a middle-aged man in gray robes, who was in the early stage of Foundation Establishment, was trying his best to control the sword. His face was pale and his forehead was covered with cold sweat.

Behind him, a young girl in green robes, who was at the Qi Refining stage, clutched his robes tightly, her face pale and her eyes filled with tears.

"I shouldn't have pestered you to take me out to hunt demons... Leave me behind, hurry up, that way, at least you can survive..."

"What nonsense are you spouting!" the middle-aged man, Chen Ziche, hissed through gritted teeth, shoving another Qi-restoring pill into his mouth. "Even if your father dies, you can't die! Bah! What rubbish am I spouting! Neither of us can die! Just wait until we get back, your father will teach you a lesson!"

He unleashed his magical power, increasing the speed of his flying sword by another third.

But the dark figure behind him was getting closer and closer.

It was a late-stage second-tier sea crocodile, three zhang long, with black scales all over its body like iron, and scarlet demonic eyes locked on the flying sword in front of it.

Although it is not good at flying, it can run on the sea waves at a speed that is not much slower than flying on a sword!

"Damn it...this beast has its eye on us!" Chen Ziche felt a chill run down his spine.

He was only at the early stage of Foundation Establishment, and his daughter Chen Wenjing was only at the fifth level of Qi Refining. They had no chance of winning against a late-stage second-tier demon beast.

"Father... there's an island ahead!"

Chen Wenjing suddenly pointed into the distance.

The outline of a solitary island is faintly visible in the sea fog.

Chen Ziche's eyes hardened:

"Let's take a gamble! Let's go to the island and see if we can use the terrain to shake it off!"

The flying sword traced an arc, heading straight for the island's shore!

The Ironscaled Sea Crocodile roared and stomped its four legs on the sea surface, stirring up waves several feet high, and its speed increased even more!

Thirty zhang, twenty zhang, ten zhang...

A bloody storm is brewing behind us!

"Wenjing, hurry up!"

Chen Ziche screamed and plummeted down on his sword, trying to skim the ground into the forest.

But the crocodile's huge mouth was already open, its fangs were like blades, and its stench was almost blowing onto its back.

Just now.

A streak of azure light shot through the air from somewhere on the island!

Faster than sight can see!

"Pfft—!"

A slight muffled sound.

The crocodile's forward momentum suddenly froze.

In the center of its enormous head, a hole the size of a thumb had appeared sometime during the night. There was no spurting of blood, no screams or howls; instead, a faint blue flame flickered at the edge of the hole, instantly spreading throughout its entire body.

The next moment, the three-zhang-tall demon body collapsed silently, turning into a pile of black ash, which was swept away by the sea breeze.

The flying sword wobbled and landed.

Chen Ziche helped his daughter to her feet, staggering, and looked back to see that the monster had vanished without a trace.

He paused for a moment, then suddenly looked up.

A blue figure was standing on the reef ahead, seemingly out of nowhere.

The newcomer looked to be no more than twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with a handsome face and a spotless blue robe.

He stood there, his breath calm and even, as if the stunning attack just now had nothing to do with him.

But Chen Ziche knew in his heart that this person was at least a Golden Core cultivator who could instantly kill a late-stage second-tier demonic beast!

He bowed deeply, his voice trembling:

"This junior, Chen Ziche, along with my daughter Chen Wenjing, express our deepest gratitude to you, senior, for saving our lives!"

He gently tugged at his daughter's sleeve again:

"Wenjing, quickly thank the senior."

Chen Wenjing finally snapped out of her shock, her eyes filled with awe and admiration as she looked at Qing Youzi, and she hurriedly bowed.

"This junior, Chen Wenjing, greets senior... Thank you for saving me."

Qingyouzi nodded slightly, feeling genuinely excited.

After four months of seclusion, he finally encountered a human cultivator. His mind calmed somewhat, and his tone became more composed:

"Where do you come from?"

Chen Ziche quickly replied:

"Reporting to Senior, my daughter and I are from Zhongqing Island, and we are both independent cultivators on the island. We were originally out hunting some first-tier demonic beasts when we encountered this late-stage second-tier sea crocodile and were forced to flee here... We have inadvertently disturbed your cultivation, and we hope you will forgive us."

Qingyouzi waved his hand:

"It's nothing, just a small favor."

He looked at Chen Ziche and asked:

"You just said you came from Zhongqing Island? That's a place where humans gather?"

"That's right." Chen Ziche nodded. "Zhongqing Island is located on the edge of the West Sea. Although it is not large, it is home to tens of thousands of human cultivators, and has all kinds of markets and shops."

A thought struck Qingyouzi.

"I'm not familiar with the Western Sea and am looking for a place for humans to settle down." He looked at Chen Ziche, "Could you take me to Zhongqing Island?"

Chen Ziche was taken aback at first, then overjoyed:

"If you wish to go, senior, I will naturally be happy to guide you! However..."

He looked troubled.

"My sword-flying speed is limited, and I'm afraid it will delay your journey, senior."

Qingyouzi smiled faintly.

Her dark hair flowed out from her sleeves, weaving into a three-zhang-square-meter patch of blue cloud in the air.

"Come on up, I'll give you a ride."

Chen Ziche and Chen Wenjing exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with surprise. The two carefully stepped onto the cloud, feeling that their feet were soft yet stable, as if walking on solid ground.

With a thought, Qing Youzi sent a cloud of azure sky into the air, which transformed into a streak of azure light and sped off in the direction Chen Ziche had indicated.

Its speed is more than ten times that of flying on a sword!

Above the clouds, Chen Wenjing secretly raised her eyes to look at the tall, straight figure in front of her, her eyes filled with curiosity and respect.

A sea breeze caresses your face, and clouds and mist sweep over you.

Ahead lies an unknown island inhabited by humans.

Fellow Daoists, could you please give me a positive review? After that, I'll update three times a day.

[Readers from all realms of immortals who are handsome, dashing, elegant, imposing, with striking features, extraordinary bearing, resembling Pan An in appearance, with a face like jade, radiating heroic spirit, outstanding, and exceptionally handsome are welcome to leave their comments.]