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

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"receive!"

Zhou Yuan raised his hand and summoned all the Soul-Crying Beasts and Gale Beasts beside him back into his spirit beast pouch.

At the same time, he reached out and embraced Mei Ning's slender waist.

"Walk!"

With a low shout, Zhou Yuan's body shone brightly, transforming into a streak of azure light that carried Mei Ning. With the terrifying speed of a Nascent Soul cultivator, they shot straight towards the spatial rift in the sky!

"call out--!"

A flash of blue light.

The two had already disappeared into the crevice.

The instant their figures disappeared, an incredibly powerful suction force emanated from the crack, as if countless invisible hands were trying to pull Zhou Yuan back to the Netherworld.

That was the suction force of the ghostly mist.

However, how fast was Zhou Yuan's escape speed?

Before the suction force could take hold, he had already shot out of the crack like an arrow.

It completely broke free from that pulling force.

The scene went dark for a moment, then suddenly became clear.

Before my eyes was a hazy gray sky, and beneath my feet was an unusually calm, murky sea that stretched to the horizon.

Looking back, hundreds of miles behind, a much smaller but still sky-covering sea of ​​black fog was slowly rotating and shrinking, eventually turning into a thin line and disappearing between the sea and the sky, as if it had never existed.

"They're out..."

Mei gazed at the sea and sky, so different from the Netherworld, still oppressive but full of vitality, and let out a long sigh, feeling as if she had been transported to another world.

Zhou Yuan hovered in the air, his divine sense flowing like mercury, instantly covering the sea area within a radius of hundreds of miles.

There was not a breath of sea breeze here, and the sea was as calm as a mirror, yet it had an eerie turbidity, unlike the azure or deep blue usually seen in the Chaotic Star Sea.

"Here... the spiritual energy is so thin and mixed, and the seawater too..."

Zhou Yuan frowned slightly; the environment was somewhat unfamiliar.

He moved swiftly and fell into the sea.

A moment later, he emerged from the water, his magic imprisoning a strange fish that resembled a barracuda but had a small bone plate on its forehead that emitted a faint white light and was entirely grayish-brown in color.

"It really is the 'Muddy Light Fish'..."

Zhou Yuan recognized the fish, a look of understanding flashing in his eyes. "This fish is a unique low-level sea beast recorded in ancient books, found only in the 'Boundless Sea' in the north and south of the world. It seems that the exit of the Netherworld is connected to this place."

"Boundless Sea?" Mei Ning repeated in confusion, having never heard of this name before in the Chaotic Star Sea.

"Yes, this is no longer the Chaotic Star Sea."

Zhou Yuan explained, his tone carrying a hint of barely perceptible emotion:

"This sea is called the Boundless Sea, which connects to a vast continent called 'Tiannan'. And Tiannan Continent... is my homeland."

"Your...hometown?"

Mei Ning's eyes widened in surprise.

She had always thought that Zhou Yuan was a native cultivator of the Chaotic Star Sea, or at most from some other place in the outer star sea.

Unexpectedly, his roots were on a completely unfamiliar continent.

She suddenly realized that her senior had taken the initiative to search for the ghost mist. Was his ultimate goal to return to his hometown through this method?

Zhou Yuan didn't offer any further explanation. Once he had determined the direction, he took Mei Ning with him, transformed into a beam of light, and sped off southward.

This sea area, known as the "Boundless Sea," is shockingly lacking in spiritual energy.

There were hardly any monks to be seen.

The two flew in silence for over a month. The monotonous journey made Mei Ning almost think they would fly forever when finally a long, undulating black outline appeared on the horizon.

land!

After flying for another half day, the outline became clearer and clearer, transforming into an endless coastline and, in the background, a hilly mountain range covered with lush vegetation.

Zhou Yuan led Mei Ning to land near the coast. After making a few inquiries, they learned that this place was the northernmost country in the south—Xi Kingdom.

The Xi Kingdom is not the largest in area, and it is divided into seven states. The Min State, where they landed, is the largest state, which is right next to the Boundless Sea.

Zhou Yuan did not rush on his way, but instead took Mei Ning to a remote small town called "Wanghai" on the coast of Minzhou.

We found the quietest and most elegant restaurant in the city and asked for a private room by the window.

Outside the window, one can see a few fishing boats returning to port, and pedestrians stroll leisurely through the streets.

This place is completely different from the tense and busy islands of the Chaotic Star Sea and the deathly oppressive place of the Underworld; it is full of the peaceful atmosphere of everyday life.

The waiter brought out a few delicate side dishes and a pot of local light wine, then respectfully withdrew.

Only Zhou Yuan and Mei Ning remained in the private room.

Mei Ning obediently poured Zhou Yuan a full glass of wine, then sat quietly to the side.

Mei Ning's cheeks flushed slightly, her heart filled with trepidation.

Zhou Yuan picked up his wine glass and took a small sip.

His gaze calmly fell on Mei Ning's delicate face, and he smiled, "Back in that Netherworld, you said you wanted to stay by my side..."

His tone was flat, revealing little emotion, yet it made Mei Ning's heart skip a beat.

She raised her head, met those deep eyes, and without the slightest hesitation, nodded firmly, her voice soft yet exceptionally resolute:

"Yes! Mei Ning's words come from the bottom of her heart, and I will never regret them!"

Although she knew that in the cultivation world, concubines often had a low status, perhaps only slightly better than those who were used as cauldrons for sexual exploitation.

If the owner has a bad heart, it is common for the child to be used as cultivation material, given away at will, or even killed.

But their time together, especially their shared life-and-death experiences in the Underworld, convinced her that Zhou Yuan was not that kind of person.

Following him not only guarantees safety, but also promises a bright future.

Achieving Core Formation? She never dared to dream of it before, but now, she felt a great sense of hope.

After saying that, her cheeks turned even redder, but she mustered her courage, stood up from her seat, and took a few light steps to get closer to Zhou Yuan.

A pair of beautiful, affectionate eyes gazed at him with shimmering light, the meaning of which was self-evident.

Since their minds are made up and their commitment has been made,

She didn't want to wait any longer.

Zhou Yuan put down his wine cup.

Seeing the woman's shy yet determined expression, he reached out and gently embraced her.

With his other hand, his fingertips brushed against the pale blue silk sash around her waist, and he gently tugged it...

The silk ribbon slipped off.

The outer garment also loosened.

Mei Ning let out a soft moan, her delicate body trembling slightly, but she did not resist. Instead, she buried her burning cheeks in Zhou Yuan's arms and let him do as he pleased.

Inside the private room, the candlelight flickered, illuminating a scene of springtime beauty, as her jade-like body gradually came into view, filling the room with warmth and fragrance.

Outside the window, the lights of the small town lit up one by one, and the sea breeze brought the salty and damp scent of the distant sea. Everything returned to peace and beauty.

……

A few days later.

The bustling atmosphere of Wanghai City is ultimately just mundane noise, and for Zhou Yuan, it's nothing more than a brief embellishment during a moment of respite.

He quickly pulled his mind away from his romantic feelings and the comforts of his home, and began to think about the important matters that would come up after his return to Tiannan.

Although Tiannan is his hometown, he knows the distribution of spiritual energy resources in this place better than anyone.

Slightly higher-grade spiritual veins have long been occupied and managed by major sects and immortal cultivation families for hundreds or even thousands of years.

Intricate and complex.

It's incredibly difficult for outsiders to get involved.

Unless it is seized by force, but that would inevitably disrupt the existing balance of power in Tiannan and bring countless troubles, which is not what Zhou Yuan wants.

However, this is not an insurmountable problem for Zhou Yuan.

His greatest reliance was not the spiritual veins in the outside world, but the giant spiritual eye spring in his equipment inventory that he obtained from the Void Heaven Palace!

As long as a place with beautiful mountains and clear waters and relatively peaceful earth energy is found, the spring of this spiritual eye spring can be placed there. With its continuously gushing pure spiritual energy, it is enough to transform an ordinary mountain range into a top-level blessed land in a short period of time!

Having successfully escaped the Netherworld, the most important goal of this trip, the inheritance of the "Spirit Summoning Talisman," has now been obtained.

However, back in the Chaotic Star Sea, he had collected and sealed several rare demon beast essences, including powerful beings such as the level eight Gale Beast and the level eight Poison Dragon.

These essences have been sealed for many years. Although they are subject to restrictions and nourishment, they are ultimately separate from the body, and their activity will slowly dissipate over time.

If it is not refined into a spirit-summoning talisman as soon as possible, once the essence is completely destroyed, not only will all the effort put in be wasted, but several powerful trump cards for saving lives and killing enemies will also be lost.

To craft a spirit-summoning talisman, one must calm the mind and concentrate the spirit.

"Follow me!"

Zhou Yuan took Mei Ning away from Wanghai City and found a secluded and quiet mountain forest on the outskirts of the city.

He randomly chose an unnamed mountain peak with mediocre spiritual energy but decent terrain, capable of gathering some earth energy. With a wave of his hand, sword light crisscrossed, and in no time, he carved out a simple cave dwelling in a secluded spot near the mountainside.

After setting up some barriers to isolate the aura and provide early warning and protection, they settled down temporarily.

The following days.

Zhou Yuan devoted most of his attention to the research on the method of refining "Spirit-Summoning Talismans".