Mortal: I'm in Tianxing City, intelligence updates daily.

Liuyun Island is not large, shaped like a yellowed withered leaf, and its widest point is no more than twenty miles.

The vegetation is sparse, with many caves and grottoes, and many places are shrouded in mist. Countless seabirds nest and breed there.

Li Shizhou used his divine sense to control the flying chariot to fly in mid-air, while his eyes slowly scanned the ground.

Less than half an hour later, he found a yellowish-green pool about an acre in size in the southwest corner of the island, with white mist swirling around it.

According to the map on the animal skin, the Water Spirit Mushroom is located in a cave near this pool.

Li Shizhou slowly lowered his flight altitude, not rushing to land, but instead channeling his magical power into his eyes, casting the Spirit-Gazing Technique.

After observing for a while and confirming that there were no cultivators around, they flew down to the ground.

There is only one cave near the pool, with an entrance less than two zhang high and about three zhang one or two zhang wide.

With a thought, Li Shizhou's silver armor protected his entire body, while the intermediate-level defensive talisman was already hidden in his sleeve, ready to be activated at any time.

After setting up his defenses, he headed towards the cave.

After walking for more than ten zhang inside, it was pitch black all around.

Li Shizhou's soul had been tempered by the Pure Yang Technique for a long time, and with his current Qi Refining thirteenth level cultivation, his spiritual sense range was close to fifty feet, so there was nothing to worry about.

After walking another hundred paces, the road split into two. He had looked at the map countless times and knew its contents by heart. Without hesitation, he continued walking slowly along the left path.

After walking for the time it takes to burn two incense sticks in the darkness, passing seven or eight intersections, the surrounding air began to feel chilly.

"This should be it."

At the end of his consciousness, a clear spring was flowing quietly. At the bottom of the spring, more than a dozen seaweeds of different sizes were scattered haphazardly, swaying with the current from time to time. They were undoubtedly the Water Essence Mushroom.

"These forty spirit stones weren't wasted after all."

Li Shizhou strode over, took out a defensive formation that cost two hundred spirit stones, and began to set it up.

A moment later, a transparent light curtain enveloped the spring where the water lily was growing.

He still felt uneasy with just one set of formations, so he also brought the set of formations he obtained from the secret chamber of Qi Boyuan's ancestral home. Although it had no defensive power, it could conceal his presence.

Once both formations were in place, Li Shizhou stepped into the spring and sat down in front of the thickest water spirit mushroom.

The biting coldness came over him, but he didn't feel uncomfortable; instead, he felt a sense of comfort.

The spring water wasn't deep; when Li Shizhou sat down, the water level was just up to his chest.

The essence of the water lily is located in the leaves. It loses its medicinal power after being picked and left for a few breaths. He picked a leaf, quickly put it in his mouth, chewed it twice, and swallowed it immediately.

The icy liquid flowed down his throat and into his stomach, and Li Shizhou quickly closed his eyes and circulated his internal energy to absorb it.

Soon, a chill traveled along the meridians and finally entered the dantian, as if the places where the chill passed through were purified.

About half an hour later, the medicinal effects were completely absorbed, and Li Shizhou picked off another leaf and swallowed it.

Half a day later, the water lily in front of them had been harvested until only a bare stem remained.

He stood up, moved to a different position, and continued what he had been doing.

Three days later.

Li Shizhou stepped out of the spring, changed out of his soaking wet clothes, and stretched, feeling refreshed and invigorated.

Just as I put away the array-setting equipment, I heard hurried but light footsteps.

Li Shizhou's heart tightened, and he released his divine sense to the fullest extent, detecting a woman in blue running breathlessly inside the cave, seemingly being chased.

"How could it be her?"

The woman in blue was none other than Zhuo Ruting, whom we hadn't seen for some time. She was now at the eleventh level of Qi Refining.

Although Li Shizhou was interested in Zhuo Ruting, the fact that she happened to be nearby made him somewhat suspicious.

Therefore, instead of immediately revealing himself, he channeled his magic power into his spiritual boots while simultaneously donning a black cloak and hiding to observe from the side.

Zhuo Ruting ran inside the cave for a while and entered a dead end. The way forward was blocked, so she hurriedly turned around to find another way out.

A flippant voice rang out: "Fairy, you can't escape. Why struggle anymore? Let me place a restriction on you to ensure your safety."

The voice belonged to a middle-aged man in a red robe, dressed as a rogue cultivator with a Qi Refining level of 12. A lake-blue shield slowly rotated around his body, and he was only about ten feet away from Zhuo Ruting.

With her path blocked, Zhuo Ruting's face turned deathly pale. She took a few deep breaths and said hatefully, "Don't even think about it. You killed my grandmother. This is an irreconcilable feud."

"That's not right, fairy. If you had agreed earlier, your grandmother wouldn't have died in vain trying to save you. Only by living well can you make your grandmother's efforts worthwhile."

While the middle-aged man in the red robe was giving advice, a rope-like ritual implement was being inserted into the ground from beneath his wide robe.

"You're utterly shameless! I'll fight you to the death!"

With no way out, Zhuo Ruting adopted a desperate stance, mobilizing her already dwindling magical power and channeling it towards a round mirror in her hand.

The middle-aged man in red robes continued to persuade her: "Fairy, do not act rashly. Your grandmother's soul is still alive and can be reborn by possessing another body. If you agree, I guarantee I will find a suitable body for your grandmother."

Upon hearing this, Zhuo Ruting hesitated for a moment, completely unaware that a rope-like magical artifact had emerged from the ground beneath her feet.

By the time she realized what was happening, the ropes had already snaked along her body like venomous snakes, binding her tightly in the blink of an eye, rendering her unable to use her magic.

Zhuo Ruting was both angry and afraid, and said unwillingly, "Despicable and shameless."

"Thank you for the compliment." The middle-aged man in the red robe smiled smugly and with a wave of his hand, he took the round mirror into his hand.

Just as he was examining the round mirror with his divine sense, a cold light flashed past behind him.

The middle-aged man in the red robe had his head slid off his neck and fell to the ground with a thud.

"噗噗"

The headless corpse continued to gush blood.

The one who made the move was naturally Li Shizhou. He observed from the side for a while and realized that the attack was not aimed at him.

Judging from the situation, Zhuo Ruting had encountered an evil cultivator, so he decisively took action.

Zhuo Ruting, who was not far away, screamed in fright at the sudden turn of events.

Shh, it's me, don't shout.

Unsure if there were other pursuers nearby, Li Shizhou quickly used telepathy to stop them.

"Brother Shizhou, what are you doing here?" Zhuo Ruting's sorrow turned to joy.

"Let's find a safe place first."

After Li Shizhou finished speaking, he put away the spoils of war and untied the ropes binding Zhuo Ruting.

The two then walked hand in hand in the darkness.

After a short while, Li Shizhou finally spoke, "I got a clue and am looking for treasure in this cave. Ting'er, what are you doing here, and being chased?"

Zhuo Ruting wiped away the remaining tears from the corners of her eyes and recounted the whole story.

It turned out that her grandmother and her friend had gone out to sea to hunt demons, while Zhuo Ruting herself was cultivating in Tianxing City.

She received a letter a few days ago saying that her grandmother had been captured and that she was to come to Liuyun Island alone to meet her.

When Zhuo Ruting arrived, she was surrounded by three unfamiliar Qi Refining cultivators. The three threatened her with her grandmother's life, intending to place a restriction on her.

Zhuo Ruting's grandmother used a secret technique that burned her lifespan to forcibly break free from the restraints and risked her life to block the three unfamiliar cultivators.

This gave her a chance to escape, and in her panic, she stumbled into the cave she was in.

After listening, Li Shizhou said, "So there are two other cultivators looking for you."

"Yes, there should only be one person left inside the cave. I heard them say earlier that they left one person to guard the entrance."

Although the origins of these three individuals are unknown, since one has already been killed, it is natural not to leave any future troubles.

Li Shizhou's eyes turned cold as he said, "Then let's quickly deal with these two and return to Tianxing City."