I'm in Yellow Maple Valley, and I have one equipment slot!

The fifth floor of the Void Heaven Palace.

Here, a magnificent and towering stone platform stands majestically.

This platform is over a hundred feet long and wide, and about thirty feet high. In front of it, there is a stone staircase with hundreds of steps leading directly to the top of the platform.

The entire platform was constructed from seemingly ordinary gray rock, and was encased in a white light shield that included the steps.

Strangely, the light shield was filled with blue light, and the closer to the center of the platform, the stronger the blue light became, with a continuous flow of shimmering light.

It's so bad that it's impossible to look directly at it, making it impossible to see what's wrong with it.

Thick frost had formed at the edge of the stone platform.

Under the faint light within the light shield, the ice crystals shimmered and translucent, making the platform exceptionally beautiful.

At this moment, Manhuzi and Qingyi Jushi sat cross-legged on the steps in front of the high platform, seemingly closing their eyes to regulate their breathing and recover from the exhaustion of their previous journey.

On the other side of the platform, Han Li was quietly restoring one of the walls.

He had just taken advantage of the bearded man's inattention to secretly check the secret behind that wall; there was a hidden compartment there, concealing a scroll.

We don't know what it is yet, but now is not the time to investigate.

"Han Li! Come here quickly!"

The bearded man suddenly opened his eyes and shouted.

Han Li felt a chill run down his spine and quickly put aside his distracting thoughts. He hurriedly went to the front of the platform and stood beside the bearded man.

The three stood on the steps, looking towards the center of the platform.

The blue light there was flashing incessantly and dazzlingly, with a few strands of golden light reflecting off it amidst the swaying, making it appear exceptionally eerie.

Around the stone platform, the ice layer had thickened by several inches in just a short time.

Because of the white light barrier, Han Li did not sense anything unusual.

"Brother Man..."

Qingyi Jushi stared at the flickering blue light and slowly spoke, "I never expected that the golden silkworms raised by Wan Tianming could actually shake the Void Heaven Cauldron in the Cold Li Terrace. Although I don't know how it happened, I'd better go and take a look."

"good!"

The bearded man nodded, stood up, and prepared to step into the white light barrier.

however--

Just as he lifted his foot, his expression suddenly changed, and he turned around sharply, his gaze sweeping behind him like lightning.

There, a chilling aura was slowly approaching.

The bearded man's pupils suddenly contracted!

"Extreme Yin?!"

His face showed an expression of disbelief, as if he had seen a ghost!

Upon hearing this, both Qingyi Jushi and Han Li turned around at the same time, their gazes falling on that figure.

It was an ugly old man with a pale face and narrow eyes, surrounded by a cold and sinister demonic aura. He was none other than the Extreme Yin Ancestor!

To be precise, it was Zhou Yuan's disguise as extreme Yin.

Han Li's expression changed several times, from astonishment to confusion, and then to a barely perceptible understanding.

He lowered his head and didn't say much, but he already knew in his heart that this must be Senior Brother Zhou.

"Master, you're alright...that's so wonderful!"

He feigned surprise, his voice carrying just the right amount of relief.

Zhou Yuan glanced at Han Li, nodded slightly, then turned to the bearded man and Qingyi Jushi, a sinister smile on his face.

"Hehe, Brother Man, Fellow Daoist Qing. I had another opportunity in Xuanjing Dao, so I was delayed for a while."

"Another opportunity?" The bearded man frowned, wanting to ask further.

Just then—

Suddenly, a violent commotion came from the center of the platform, and the golden light intensified!

Zhou Yuan's gaze shifted to the flickering blue light, and he deliberately feigned surprise:

"This...could it be that the Void Heaven Cauldron was pulled up by Wan Tianming's Golden Silkworm?"

The bearded man's expression changed, realizing that now was not the time to press for answers.

Without saying a word, he strode toward the light shield at the top of the steps.

"boom!"

Upon reaching the light barrier, the bearded man, without saying a word, slammed his fist, which was enveloped in demonic power, down hard!

The seemingly solid white light shield was immediately smashed open, creating a huge crack several meters wide!

The bearded man, head held high and chest puffed out, strode inside.

Zhou Yuan and Qingyi Jushi exchanged a glance, then with a swift movement, they sandwiched Han Li between them and followed closely behind without a word.

……

As soon as you enter the light barrier, a bone-chilling cold hits you!

The chill was so intense that it felt as if even the soul was being frozen!

However, for the three Nascent Soul cultivators, Manhuzi, Zhou Yuan, and Qingyi Jushi, they could easily resist the cold air simply by activating their protective spiritual light.

Han Li quickly activated a cold-resistant treasure, and a faint red light appeared around his body, which barely helped him resist the cold.

The four of them climbed the steps and soon saw the center of the platform.

There was a small, raised altar there.

On the altar, seven or eight golden lights were dancing.

In the center of the golden light was a large, unfathomable hole emitting a blinding blue light, its destination unknown.

Within each of those golden orbs of light was a giant, emerald-green silkworm, several feet long!

They spat out golden threads as thick as a thumb, stretching them straight into the large blue hole, their bodies swaying as they desperately tore backward.

Each shake caused the blue light in the cave to flash wildly, producing bursts of roaring sounds!

Beside the altar stood three figures, namely Wan Tianming, Tian Wuzi, and Mu Tengzi.

They were clearly at a crucial moment in retrieving the cauldron, their eyes glued to the movements of the golden silkworms, their faces filled with tension.

Originally, he didn't want to pay attention to Manhuzi and the others, but when Wan Tianming's gaze swept over the four newcomers, he suddenly stopped!

"Extreme Yin?!"

An expression of disbelief crossed his face!

Tengoko and Mutengzi were also greatly surprised, their gazes falling on Zhou Yuan.

The Yin Ancestor clearly disappeared in the Ice and Fire Path, so how did he suddenly appear here?

Could it be as Elder Xinggong said, that he obtained some kind of fortuitous opportunity and directly entered the inner hall?

"This Void Heaven Cauldron is not something your righteous path can afford to covet..."

A cold glint flashed in the bearded man's eyes, and without saying a word, he raised his hand!

The two golden beams immediately transformed into long rainbows and shot towards Wan Tianming and the other two!

The golden light was incredibly sharp, tearing the air apart wherever it passed and producing a piercing sound!

Wan Tianming and Tian Wuzi remained completely calm.

"Han Jiao!"

"Leave the tortoise!"

The two of them shouted coldly.

No sooner had the words been spoken than a strange noise came from above the altar!

A streak of cyan light and a streak of blue light shot down from above, intercepting the two golden lights like lightning!

"Boom! Boom!"

Two loud explosions rang out almost simultaneously as the azure and golden lights collided, unleashing dazzling light and violent fluctuations of spiritual energy!

Several beams of light intertwined for a moment.

They then flew away.

"Go back!"

Upon seeing this, the bearded man was slightly taken aback, then waved his hand in front of him.

The two golden beams flew back and landed in his hands, transforming back into two small golden knives.

The azure light did not pursue, but instead circled in place before revealing its true form.

It turned out to be a small white dragon several meters in size and a strange, semi-transparent giant tortoise!

The small white dragon was crystal clear, its scales shimmering with a cold light, and its pair of dragon eyes stared coldly at the barbarian.

The translucent giant tortoise floated in the air, with runes faintly flowing on its shell, emitting an eerie fluctuation.