Mortal: I have a Spirit Gathering Cauldron

The day has finally arrived for the Bloodstained Forbidden Land to open.

At dawn, before the sky was even bright, the bells of Yellow Maple Valley rang.

A deep, resonant bell rang, echoing through the valley. This was the signal to summon the disciples; all disciples participating in the Crimson Forbidden Land must assemble at the main peak plaza before dawn.

Lin Feng got up early, changed into a clean disciple's robe, and looked much more energetic after putting it on.

Looking at himself in the bronze mirror, the young man reflected there had a handsome face and a calm gaze.

"Not bad, pretty handsome." Lin Feng nodded narcissistically, then turned and left.

Along the way, he encountered many fellow disciples.

More than thirty disciples participated in the Crimson Forbidden Land, with cultivation levels ranging from the tenth to the twelfth level of Qi Refining. They walked in twos and threes, some with solemn expressions, some with undisguised excitement, and others with expressionless faces that revealed no emotion.

One of the aloof and beautiful women attracted the attention of many young disciples of Huangfeng Valley. Her outstanding appearance and icy demeanor added to her mysterious and unapproachable aura.

It seems that Chen Qiaoqian was saved by Han Laomo just like in the original story. It's better to participate in the Blood Forbidden Land than to be ruined by Senior Brother Lu.

Lin Feng walked alone to the edge of the crowd.

A moment later, Lin Feng, who was standing in the corner of the council hall, noticed the familiar dark-skinned boy, who was slowly sizing up the cultivation levels of the participants in the square.

At this moment, Zhong Lingdao, the head of Huangfeng Valley, appeared, looking at the disciples who participated in the Crimson Forbidden Land this year with a hint of satisfaction.

Next comes the ancestral pre-battle morale boosting ceremony. Since we are going to enter this blood-red forbidden land to contribute to the sect, our morale must not be low.

After a long, rambling speech that had boosted everyone's morale...

Zhong Lingdao took out two trays. One tray held a specially made storage bag, and the other tray held a small pile of five-colored spirit stones, all of which were mid-grade spirit stones!

The next step was the actual pre-battle mobilization.

After everyone stepped forward to receive a mid-grade spirit stone, it was time for the next round of the storage bag and magic weapon lottery. All the disciples who participated in the Crimson Forbidden Land showed expressions of anticipation.

This gold-inlaid storage bag has been placed under a divine sense restriction, making it impossible to detect. Inside are miniaturized high-grade magical artifacts.

Each disciple can draw one item, depending entirely on what they can get.

For Lin Feng, there was really no reason to look forward to high-grade magic weapons.

When it was Lin Feng's turn to draw a prize, he touched the magical artifact in the storage bag. Although it was very small, after years of refining artifacts, he could still distinguish the different kinds of magical artifacts in the storage bag.

He doesn't lack ordinary attack weapons like swords and knives; he specifically targets oddly shaped ones.

They quickly found a magical artifact with a unique feel. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a small pagoda.

The Zhenyue Pagoda is engraved with Zhenxuan runes. When it is summoned, a mysterious yellow light hangs down from the pagoda, which can control and imprison opponents.

Great, this gives us another way to control things.

After the pre-battle rewards ceremony ended, a group of people arrived outside the hall. They surrounded an elderly man with a square face in the middle. He had gray hair but a ruddy complexion, and his imposing eyes made everyone afraid to say anything.

"Greetings, Uncle-Master Li!"

Upon his appearance, all the Foundation Establishment stage cultivators within the sect, including Sect Leader Zhong, bowed in greeting. The disciples in the plaza naturally followed suit, saying, "Greetings, Grandmaster Li."

This man was none other than Li Huayuan, one of the eight Core Formation elders of Yellow Maple Valley. "Hmm, these kids are all quite good."

There were as many as seven people at the thirteenth level of Qi Refining.

Most of the other disciples also had the Qi Refining Level 12.

"Let's go!" Li Huayuan waved his hand.

He then flicked his sleeve, and a silver light flew out from his sleeve, transforming into a giant silver python in the air.

Silver-armored horned python.

It was over ten zhang long, its entire body shimmering with silver light, with a single horn on its head, exuding a fierce aura. This was Li Huayuan's mount, a level two demonic beast, equivalent to the strength of a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

"Everyone, get on!" Li Huayuan was the first to leap onto the python's back.

The disciples of Huangfeng Valley leaped onto the python's back. Lin Feng followed the crowd and jumped up, finding a seat towards the back.

The silver-armored horned python soared into the air and flew away.

The wind howled, and clouds swept past him. It was Lin Feng's first time experiencing such high-speed flight, and he was quite excited. Flying in an airplane in his previous life was nothing special, but now, riding on the back of a giant snake, the feeling was incredibly exhilarating.

Lin Feng sat on the python's back, watching the mountains and rivers rush past below, his mind filled with countless thoughts.

Following the path between the Yuanwu Kingdom and the Yue Kingdom, the silver-armored horned python flew for two days and two nights, finally arriving at an unnamed desolate mountain at dusk.

Li Huayuan jumped off the python's back and stood with his hands behind his back.

"Rest here for one night. We will meet up with the other six factions tomorrow morning and head to the Crimson Forbidden Land together," Li Huayuan instructed.

The disciples of Huangfeng Valley quickly found places to sit. Lin Feng found a corner, sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and began to conserve his energy.

A voice came from behind.

"Senior brother, are you alone?"

Lin Feng turned his head.

An old man stood behind him, watching him with a smile.

He wore a gray cloth robe, had graying hair, and a face full of wrinkles, giving him the appearance of a cunning old man. His cultivation level was... Qi Refining, eleventh level.

Lin Feng was now truly drenched in sweat.

The courtesy shown to him.

The number one Nascent Soul cultivator in the human realm, a super big shot who hides his cultivation level.

"My goodness..." Lin Feng screamed inwardly, but his face remained expressionless.

A blank expression was the best expression he could make.

The old man's voice was hoarse, yet amiable. "I am Xiang Zhili, at the eleventh level of Qi Refining. I'd like to find a few senior brothers to team up with. The forbidden area is fraught with danger; more people means more opportunities."

As the old man got closer and closer, Lin Feng remained calm and thought through all the saddest and most painful things he had ever experienced.

"I'm sorry, but I'm used to working alone and don't plan to team up with anyone. Junior brother, you should find someone else!"

At this moment, the answer must be devoid of emotion; Lin Feng is very good at putting on an air of authority as a senior expert.

"What? Senior brother, you also like being alone? Okay then."

The old man's expression changed, a look of helplessness flashing across his face. It seemed he had chosen the wrong team again, so he continued searching for a team to team up with, looking dejected.

The night passed in the blink of an eye.

Originally, everyone thought they could set off for the forbidden area early in the morning, and they were quite looking forward to it. However, the nights in the desolate mountains were not comfortable at all, with a large temperature difference between day and night, and they also had to endure the baptism of wind and sand.

Elder Li Huayuan, who had just reached the Core Formation stage, stood with his hands behind his back, gazing up at the horizon.

It must be said that after achieving the Golden Core stage, one's body definitely experiences a significant improvement in all aspects.

Lin Feng looked at Li Huayuan, who remained motionless, with a puzzled expression. Hadn't his head gotten sore from tilting it back for so long?

A commotion broke out in the crowd shortly afterward.

A whooshing sound came from the sky.

A ray of starlight flew from the horizon, landed on the ground, and transformed into a group of Taoist priests in green robes.

That is the Snow Rainbow Silk, a flying magical artifact of the Qingxu Sect.

Following closely behind, the Core Formation elders from the Hidden Moon Sect, Spirit Beast Mountain, Blade Transformation Valley, and Giant Sword Sect also arrived one after another.

The Hidden Moon Sect, as the head of the seven sects, is the only sect that has appearance requirements for its disciples. Most of the disciples of the Hidden Moon Sect are couples, and they are given a Daoist partner upon entering the sect, which is truly enviable.

The disciples of the Giant Sword Sect were all muscular men dressed in black, proficient in swordsmanship and body-refining techniques, and each carried a giant sword on their back.

The disciples of Spirit Beast Mountain wore brightly colored Taoist robes, seemingly having no requirements for their attire, as this was a sect whose specialty was controlling beasts.

Huadaowu is said to be a sacred place for sword cultivators.

Lin Feng had heard that Tianque Fortress was a major sect renowned for its weapon crafting, and he wondered if he might have a better future by joining Tianque Fortress to learn weapon crafting.

Now all the disciples who participated in the Crimson Forbidden Land have arrived.

"Benefactor Li! How have you been? I didn't expect it would be you leading the team again. This humble Taoist, Fuyunzi, greets you!"

The Taoist priest with a gentle smile looked at Li Huayuan, a glint of shrewdness in his eyes.

They clearly came prepared.

After being tricked by Fu Yunzi's words, Li Huayuan finally couldn't resist and the two made a bet to see which of their disciples brought out more spiritual herbs.

Fu Yunzi wagered the inner core of the Blood Thread Dragon, while Li Huayuan wagered the extraction of two pieces of iron essence.

At this moment, a strange man in a blue shirt, covered in greasy dirt and patched up, intervened in their bet.

This strange man was none other than Qiong Laoguai of the Hidden Moon Sect, a peak Core Formation cultivator. His arrival completely suppressed the auras of Fuyunzi and Li Huayuan.

Another interlude occurred when Old Monster Qiong forcefully entered the game by betting three invisible needle talismans.

Lin Feng opened his eyes and looked at these Core Formation stage experts. Seeing them gambling with the lives of their disciples, he truly felt the cruelty of this cultivation world for the first time.

After the Nascent Soul Grandmasters of each sect finished their discussion, they led their disciples towards the entrance of the forbidden area.

After flying for several hours, the teams finally arrived at a vast, boundless loess slope.

Here, apart from piles of rubble, not even a blade of grass could be found; as far as the eye could see, it was utterly desolate. There was also a faintly visible wind wall—this was the outer wind-attribute array of the Crimson Forbidden Land.

Heading north along this route, towards the border of the Yuanwu Kingdom, several teams flew for several hours before finally arriving at a vast, boundless loess slope.

After resting there for more than an hour, as dawn broke, a burly man from the Giant Sword Sect, a Core Formation stage cultivator, suddenly stood up:

"It's almost time."

He then took a step forward.

Turn mud into stone, and gather stones into a sword.

Attack the wind wall of the formation.

After the Core Formation experts displayed their unique abilities, a passage was forcibly opened in the wind wall of the Wind Blade Formation.

This is the true power of a magical weapon!

"The Crimson Forbidden Zone has been opened! Disciples, enter immediately!" Li Huayuan shouted.

None of the disciples from the seven sects dared to be negligent, and they immediately entered the spatial passage in batches.

Lin Feng mingled at the back of the crowd and leaped into the entrance.