Courtyard Check-in: Starting with a Small World of Cultivation

December 25th, early morning.

Eagle Mountain, deep within a cave.

Chen Yu stood in the core hall, the Five Elements Spirit Pearls still floating in the air, emitting a soft light. But this time, he could sense that the energy contained in the spirit pearls was much less than before—the sealing had consumed a large amount of the spirit pearls' power after he and Xuan Ming left last time.

"I'm sorry to trouble you again," he said softly, reaching out to touch the spirit pearl.

The spirit pearl vibrated slightly, as if in response.

Chen Yu took a deep breath and, following the same method as before, activated the spirit pearl to open the rift leading to the battlefield.

The pitch-black crack reappeared before my eyes, so deep it seemed capable of swallowing everything.

Without hesitation, he stepped inside.

Everything went black, and then the world spun around me.

When he opened his eyes again, he was already standing on that familiar wasteland.

The gray sky, the scorched earth, the jagged rocks, the twisted, withered trees—nothing had changed. The air still reeked of decay, and the roars of ferocious creatures still echoed in the distance.

Chen Yu unleashed his spiritual sense to its fullest extent, covering an area of ​​two hundred feet in radius. His cultivation at the fifth level of the Golden Core stage made his spiritual sense much stronger than before.

"Someone's been here." He quickly discovered the traces—the footprints on the ground weren't left by a ferocious creature, but by humans. And not just one person, but at least five or six.

He followed the footprints. The footprints stretched towards the center of the battlefield, the direction of which was the massive mountain—the location of the sealed core.

"As expected, they're after the seal." Chen Yu's heart tightened, and he quickened his pace.

After walking for about half an hour, they heard the sounds of fierce fighting ahead. Chen Yu concealed his presence and quietly approached.

In the ruins, six men in black were engaged in a fierce battle with a group of ferocious beasts. The men in black were all at around the seventh or eighth level of the Foundation Establishment stage, while the leader possessed an unfathomable aura—the Golden Core stage!

Moreover, Chen Yu found the man's aura somewhat familiar—

It's a technique from the Vulcan Temple!

"It really was them!"

Although the six men in black were not weak, there were too many ferocious beasts, and a three-headed dragon at the Golden Core stage was commanding them. They gradually lost ground, and two of them were already injured.

"Lord, let's retreat!" a man in black shouted.

"No!" the leader gritted his teeth. "We must reach the core of the seal!"

Chen Yu watched coldly from the sidelines.

Letting them fight the ferocious beast to the death, and then he can clean up the mess, is the best option.

But the next moment, his expression changed—

The three-headed dragon suddenly turned its head and glanced in his direction.

It was discovered!

Chen Yu no longer concealed himself and retreated rapidly. But the three-headed dragon was even faster, its three heads simultaneously spewing venom to block his escape route.

"Damn it!"

Chen Yu summoned the Four Symbols Ritual Artifacts, with the Azure Dragon Cauldron protecting him, and withstood the venom. The venom splashed onto the light shield, hissing, but it couldn't harm him for the time being.

The six men in black were all taken aback when they saw him.

"Chen Yu!" the leader exclaimed.

Chen Yu recognized him too—Hua Tianxiong!

"You're not dead?"

"You didn't die either?"

They both spoke in unison, and then fell silent.

Now is not the time for reminiscing. The three-headed dragon and its minions are watching us closely, ready to pounce at any moment.

"Join forces?" Hua Tianxiong asked.

Chen Yu glanced at him and nodded: "Join forces."

Although they were enemies before, they now face a common threat. Survival comes first, then everything else.

Chen Yu joined the battle, unleashing the full power of his Four Symbols Ritual Artifacts. With his fifth-level Golden Core cultivation and the power of the Four Symbols, his combat strength was comparable to that of a sixth-level Golden Core cultivator. With a single strike, he killed two ferocious beasts at the Foundation Establishment stage.

Hua Tianxiong was also at the fifth level of the Golden Core stage. His Fire God Palace techniques were ruthless and vicious, targeting vital points. The two, one on the left and one on the right, cooperated perfectly and gradually stabilized their position.

"roar!"

Enraged, the three-headed dragon pounced forward. Its three heads attacked simultaneously, moving with lightning speed.

Chen Yu unleashed the Vermilion Bird Lantern Mirror, its flames shooting straight at one of the heads; Hua Tianxiong formed hand seals, his black flames burning towards the other head. The two, working with all their might, forcefully repelled the three-headed dragon.

But behind the three-headed dragon, even more ferocious creatures are surging forth.

"No, we'll all die if this continues!" Hua Tianxiong shouted.

Chen Yu gritted his teeth and looked at the mountain in the distance—the core of the seal was there.

"Charge!" he shouted, and charged towards the mountainside first.

Hua Tianxiong hesitated for a moment, then followed.

The two fought with all their might, carving a bloody path through the horde of ferocious beasts. Chen Yu's Azure Dragon Cauldron shield was shattered three times, but he rebuilt it three times despite being severely injured; Hua Tianxiong was also splashed with poison, half of his body turning black, but he gritted his teeth and persevered.

Finally, they rushed into a hole in the mountain.

The three-headed dragon chased to the cave entrance, but its enormous body couldn't fit inside, so it could only roar angrily from outside.

The two collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

Chen Yu looked down at his injuries—his left arm had turned black from the venom splashed on it; and two ribs had been broken from being struck in the chest by the python's tail.

He took out an antidote pill and swallowed it, then applied a hemostatic and tissue-regenerating powder to the wound. Hua Tianxiong was also tending to his own injury, his movements practiced, clearly not the first time he had experienced something like this.

Half an hour later, their injuries stabilized.

Chen Yu looked at Hua Tianxiong: "Why did you come?"

Hua Tianxiong remained silent for a moment, then slowly said, "For the sake of the Fire God Temple's legacy."

"Inheritance?"

"Among the things left behind by Huo Lingzi is the treasure of the Fire God Temple—the Fire-Separating Pearl," Hua Tianxiong said. "Back then, the founder of the Fire God Temple had a past relationship with Huo Lingzi, and the Fire-Separating Pearl should have belonged to the Fire God Temple. But Huo Lingzi took it to the battlefield, and it was lost ever since."

"So you rebuilt the Temple of Fire just for the sake of the Fire Pearl?"

"Yes." Hua Tianxiong looked at him. "And you? Why are you here again?"

"Someone broke into the battlefield, and I was afraid they would break the seal," Chen Yu said. "Now it seems that person is you."

Hua Tianxiong shook his head: "I only want to retrieve the Fire Pearl; I won't break the seal."

Chen Yu stared at him for a long time before slowly saying, "Why should I believe you?"

Hua Tianxiong met his gaze and suddenly smiled: "You may not believe me. But we must join forces now to survive."

Chen Yu remained silent.

He's right. Regardless of past grievances, they need each other now.

"Alright, let's join forces for now." Chen Yu stood up. "Let's find the Fire Pearl first, then leave together. But if you dare to touch the seal, I will kill you."

Hua Tianxiong nodded: "Deal."

The two continued to explore deeper into the mountain.

This time, with Hua Tianxiong leading the way, they avoided many detours. The records of the battlefield in the Fire God Temple's heritage are more detailed than those in the Xuanming Temple.

An hour later, they arrived at a huge stone gate.

The stone gate was covered with runes, identical to those on the Five Elements Spirit Pearl. In the center of the stone gate was a fist-sized groove, perfectly shaped to hold a pearl.

"The Fire Pearl is inside," Hua Tianxiong said excitedly.

"How do I open it?"

Hua Tianxiong took out a red bead from his pocket. The bead was about the size of an egg, and its entire body was crimson with flames flowing inside.

"Is this the Fire Pearl?"

"No," Hua Tianxiong shook his head. "This is the key. The real Fire Pearl is inside."

He placed the red bead into the groove.

As soon as the bead was placed inside, the runes on the stone door lit up. With a rumbling sound, the stone door slowly opened.

Behind the door was a small stone chamber with a stone platform in the center. On the platform was a fist-sized, crimson bead—the Fire Pearl!

Hua Tianxiong stepped forward and carefully picked up the Fire Pearl. Upon holding the pearl, he trembled with excitement.

"Finally...finally found it..."

Chen Yu watched from the side without stopping him. As long as he didn't touch the seal, he could take whatever he wanted.

Just then, the entire mountain suddenly began to shake violently!

"What happened?"

Chen Yu's expression changed drastically, and he rushed out of the stone chamber.

In the distance, from the direction of the sealed core, came a series of booming sounds. The roars of countless ferocious creatures rose and fell, filled with terror and rage.

"Someone is attacking the seal!"

Without hesitation, he rushed in that direction.

Hua Tianxiong hesitated for a moment, then put away the Fire Pearl and followed.

Five people stood before the enormous altar at the core of the seal.

The leader was an old man with white hair, whose aura was unfathomable—the ninth level of the Golden Core stage!

He was attacking the crystal pillar on the altar, and with each strike, the crystal pillar dimmed a little.

"Stop!" Chen Yu shouted.

The white-haired old man turned around, glanced at him, and sneered, "Another one coming to die."

He waved his hand, and the four men in black behind him pounced on Chen Yu and Hua Tianxiong at the same time.

Chen Yu gritted his teeth and charged forward, activating the Four Symbols Ritual Artifacts at full power. However, the four men in black were all at the Golden Core stage: one at the third level, two at the second level, and one at the first level.

He alone is no match for them.

Hua Tianxiong also joined the battle. The Fire Pearl in his hand emitted scorching flames, forcing back a Golden Core Stage 2 cultivator.

However, both men were still at a disadvantage and suffered repeated defeats.

The white-haired old man ignored them and continued attacking the crystal pillar.

"boom!"

A crack appeared on the crystal pillar.

"No!" Chen Yu's eyes widened in horror.

But just then, a familiar voice rang in my mind—

"Chen Yu, I'm here to help you!"

It was an old man in a gray robe!

He led three Foundation Establishment stage experts from the Xuanming Palace and charged in from another direction!

It turned out that he was worried about Chen Yu, so he followed him in!

Although their cultivation levels were not high, the pressure on Chen Yu and Hua Tianxiong was immediately reduced after they joined the battle.

"Elder!"

"The Palace Master ordered us to protect you!" the gray-robed elder shouted. "Let's fight!"

Everyone went all out and fought against the four men in black.

The white-haired old man frowned slightly and quickened his attack speed.

"boom!"

Another crack appeared.

"boom!"

The third crack.

The crystal pillar's light grew dimmer and dimmer, and it looked like it was about to shatter—

Chen Yu exerted all his strength, forcing back the man in black in front of him with a punch, and then turned and rushed towards the white-haired old man.

"You're courting death!" The white-haired old man struck out with a palm, the wind from his palm as strong as a mountain.

Chen Yu withstood the blow, spitting out a mouthful of blood, but still managed to reach the crystal pillar.

He took out the Five Elements Spirit Pearl and poured all his true essence into it.

The spirit pearl shone brightly, transforming into a five-colored light shield that protected the crystal pillar.

The white-haired old man's next palm strike hit the light barrier, causing it to flicker violently, but it withstood the attack.

"The Five Elements Spirit Pearls?!" The white-haired old man's expression changed.

"With me here, you won't break the seal!" Chen Yu said through gritted teeth.

The white-haired old man stared at him, then suddenly laughed: "Good, very good. Kid, I'll remember you."

He turned to the four men in black and said, "Withdraw!"

The five people quickly left and disappeared into the darkness.

Chen Yu knelt on the ground, panting heavily. The light of the Five Elements Spirit Pearl gradually dimmed and fell back into his hand.

The crystal pillar was saved, but the crack remains.

The seal was damaged again.

Looking at the three cracks, Chen Yu felt a deep sense of powerlessness.

Hua Tianxiong walked over, paused for a moment, and said softly, "How long can the seal last?"

Chen Yu shook his head: "I don't know. Maybe a few years, maybe... a few months."

Hua Tianxiong looked at him and suddenly handed over the Fire Pearl: "Here, take this."

Chen Yu was taken aback: "What do you mean?"

"The Fire Pearl can strengthen the fire element seal," Hua Tianxiong said. "You need it more than I do."

Chen Yu stared at him blankly.

Hua Tianxiong smiled and said, "We can talk about our business later. For now, let's protect the seal."

Chen Yu accepted the Fire Pearl and said solemnly, "Thank you."

The two men, along with the gray-robed old man and the others, withdrew from the battlefield.

Behind them, the three cracks on the crystal pillar shimmered faintly in the darkness.

It was as if reminding them that time was running out.