Mortal: I have a Spirit Gathering Cauldron

After resting for a few days, Lin Xingjian and his group left the market separately.

Huang Long was the first to leave, swaggering out of the main gate of the market like a wandering monk on his way out. Lin Bingcheng was the second, having changed into a gray short robe, and mingled with a caravan heading west.

Old Hu followed behind Lin Xingjian and was the last to leave. He walked out of the market at a leisurely pace and flew towards the Hurricane Desert.

Lin Feng watched all this from the market, a slight smile playing on his lips.

"Quite cautious."

He retrieved the Spirit-Seeking Butterfly, donned the Spirit-Concealing Veil, unfurled the Breeze Banner, and followed after them from a distance.

Hurricane Desert.

The endless yellow sand stretches for thousands of miles, like a boundless yellow ocean. The sand dunes rise and fall, some low and gentle, others towering like mountains, moving slowly in the wind like living things.

The air was dry and scorching, each breath feeling like sandpaper rubbing against the throat. The spiritual energy was pitifully thin, almost imperceptible. The spiritual power expended here was difficult to replenish, relying entirely on pills and spirit stones to sustain the body.

Lin Feng conjured a spiritual energy shield, enveloping himself within it. Sand and stones pelted the shield, crackling and popping like hail.

"This godforsaken place," he muttered, taking out a Qi-union pill from his storage bag and popping it into his mouth to replenish his depleted spiritual energy.

The scent trail ahead continued to extend into the depths of the desert. Lin Feng dared not get too close, maintaining a distance of thirty or forty miles, flying close to the leeward side of the sand dunes.

Sometimes when a hurricane comes, the yellow sand that blots out the sky turns the world a dark yellow, completely obscuring sight and consciousness.

Faced with this situation, Lin Feng had no choice but to land on the ground and hide in a depression in the sand dune, waiting for the wind to stop before continuing the chase, in order to avoid any potential danger.

For three whole days, Lin Feng traversed the desert.

On the evening of the third day, the olfactory clues ahead suddenly stopped.

Lin Feng's heart tightened. He landed behind a tall sand dune and put away the Qingfeng Banner. He put on the Hidden Spirit Veil, concealed his aura to the extreme, and moved slowly forward, close to the sand surface.

He stopped about a mile from the source of the smell and hid in the shadow of a wind-eroded rock.

The Spirit Concealing Veil can hide one's figure and aura. As long as he doesn't recklessly reveal his aura or probe out with his divine sense, no one in the Foundation Establishment stage can detect him.

Lin Feng peeked half his head out from behind the rock and looked ahead.

Ahead lay a relatively flat Gobi desert, the ground covered with fine gravel and dotted with a few clumps of withered camel thorns.

On the distant horizon, the setting sun dyed the entire desert a dark red, like congealed blood.

In the middle of the Gobi Desert, four figures are busy at work.

Lin Xingjian stood to one side, hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping around. Old Hu squatted on the ground, taking out an array plate and several array flags from his storage bag, and was setting up a magic array.

The array plate was black, palm-sized, and its surface was covered with dense array patterns. Old Hu placed the array plate on the ground, poured spiritual energy into it, and the array plate slowly sank into the sand and disappeared.

Then he planted several array flags in the ground in specific positions. With each flag planted, a faint spiritual light flashed and then disappeared.

Huang Long and Lin Bingcheng stood on either side, one holding a large, ghost-headed dagger and the other clutching a jade pendant, their eyes scanning the surrounding sand dunes warily.

After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Old Hu stood up and patted the sand off his hands.

"Alright, the 'Earthly Fiend Locking Yuan Formation' is complete."

His voice wasn't loud, but Lin Feng's hearing was excellent after he reached the Foundation Establishment stage. Even from a distance of about a mile, with the help of the sandstorm, he could barely hear him clearly.

"Let's use the formation to hide now. When Jin Ni and his group arrive, if they enter the formation, we'll activate it immediately. If they're not inside, we'll need to lure them in."

Huang Long nodded and said in a deep voice, "Leave this to me. I'll lure them into the formation later."

Immediately, Old Hu took out several talismans from his sleeve and distributed them to the three men. The four men affixed the talismans to their bodies, and with a flash of spiritual light, their figures gradually blurred and finally disappeared completely from the Gobi Desert.

The Earthly Fiend Locking Yuan Formation itself provides concealment, and with the double protection of the Concealment Talisman, from the outside, this place appears to be just an ordinary Gobi Desert, without any abnormalities.

Lin Feng narrowed his eyes and carefully observed the location where the four people disappeared.

"Earthly Fiend Locking Yuan Formation." Lin Feng murmured to himself, "I don't know what level of formation it is, but since it's used to deal with peak Foundation Establishment cultivators, it shouldn't be bad."

He didn't move and continued to hide behind the rock.

Lin Feng crouched behind the rock for three whole days without moving, his divine sense maintaining a minimum level of vigilance.

Three days in the desert are harder to endure than a month outside.

During the day, the sun blazes down, and the sand is hot enough to bake an egg. At night, the temperature plummets, and a biting wind sweeps across the Gobi Desert, cutting like a knife into your face. Fortunately, Lin Feng is covered by the Invisible Spirit Veil, so he doesn't feel too uncomfortable.

Noon on the third day.

Lin Feng suddenly sensed a fluctuation of spiritual energy in the distance.

He suddenly opened his eyes and looked into the distance.

Three figures flew low through the swirling yellow sand. Their escape lights were particularly conspicuous in the dim sky: one was gold, one was crimson, and one was dark green.

Lin Feng shrank back behind the rock, leaving only his eyes exposed.

coming.

The three figures drew closer, their outlines gradually becoming clearer.

The leader was a man in his thirties, with a square face, thick eyebrows, and large eyes. He had a dignified appearance and an imposing presence. He wore a golden brocade robe, a jade belt around his waist, and a purple-gold crown.

Cultivation level: Peak Foundation Establishment.

You could feel that aura from a great distance.

Jin Nantian.

The current leader of the Thousand Bamboo Sect is a usurper and a pseudo-Core Formation expert at the peak of Foundation Establishment.

Jin Nantian was followed by two people.

On the left is a woman, a beautiful young woman around thirty years old, at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment.

Her bare feet and legs were exquisite, her breasts half-exposed, and a long, sheer red dress billowed in the wind, appearing and disappearing in the breeze. Her features were delicate and beautiful, and a faint, enigmatic smile played at the corners of her lips, making her even more alluring than a demoness from the Hehuan Sect.

On the right was a burly man, a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator, around forty years old, with a fierce face and a broad back and thick waist.

He wore a leather vest that revealed his two thick arms, which were tattooed with ferocious beast totems. His face was rough and his expression fierce, as if he might suddenly turn on someone and kill them at any moment.

The three flew very fast, and in less than the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, they were over the Gobi Desert.

"Master, the exit of the Yellow Sand Corridor is just ahead," the alluring woman said, her voice soft and languid. "I've been traveling for a month, and I'm starting to smell."

The burly man said in a rough voice, "Su Mei, stop flaunting your charms in front of the sect leader..."

Jin Nantian remained expressionless and said calmly, "Alright, we only need one more day to get out of the Yellow Sand Corridor. Let's rest here tonight and continue our journey early tomorrow morning."

His voice was deep and resonant, carrying an undeniable air of authority.

The alluring woman and the fierce man responded and landed on the Gobi Desert.

The place where they landed was no more than a hundred feet away from the edge of the Earthly Fiend Locking Yuan Formation.

Jin Nantian stood in the middle of the Gobi Desert, hands behind his back, gazing at the distant horizon. The setting sun cast a long shadow of him on the sandy ground, making him look like a silent sculpture.