The Confucian and Taoist Sages of Mortal Cultivation

"What does Miss Yunzhi mean by this?" Yang Qingyuan turned around and frowned slightly when he saw that the other party insisted on following him.

Han Yunzhi clutched the hem of her skirt and said timidly, "Senior Brother Yang is highly skilled. Yunzhi wants to follow Senior Brother Yang and travel with him."

"Of course, all the medicinal herbs picked in between belong to Senior Brother Yang."

"I only need one Blazing Sun Flower; I don't want any other medicinal herbs."

"Moreover, my sister's two spirit pets can be put to good use. This little white one has exceptional eyesight. When it's in the sky, it can see everything happening within a three-mile radius. It can prevent other cultivators from launching sneak attacks and also detect if there are any spiritual herbs nearby."

"Little Red is a red-backed demon wolf with great endurance. It can travel a thousand miles a day without any problem. It can carry the two of us across the desert to the central area."

"After all, this Burial Desert is far from the center of the forbidden area. If Senior Brother Yang wants to run out of the desert on foot, he will have to expend a lot of energy."

"According to the rules, in one more day, a cultivator will use the Moon Sun Pearl to open the restriction in the central area. I suppose Senior Brother Yang doesn't want to miss the time."

Han Yunzhi was afraid that Yang Qingyuan would not agree, so she kept praising her usefulness.

Yang Qingyuan vaguely remembered that Han Yunzhi wanted to use the Lieyang Flower to save her brother's life, which could be considered a sign of deep affection and loyalty.

Thinking of this, he said, "If Miss Yunzhi is willing to teach me some beast-taming techniques, I will agree to team up with you and go to the central area to pick a Blazing Sun Flower."

"Is what Senior Brother Yang said true?!" Han Yunzhi was overjoyed, her heart filled with delight.

She had just witnessed Yang Qingyuan's strength firsthand, and if she could travel with him, the rest of the journey would be much safer.

Yang Qingyuan then instructed, "You wait on the shore now; these two-headed geese will protect you."

Leaving behind a message, he cast a beginner-intermediate level water shield spell, enveloping himself in a layer of azure light, before plunging into the lake.

Han Yunzhi didn't know what was underwater, but she knew what she should and shouldn't ask, and silently waited on the shore.

There were no monsters kept in the lake, so Yang Qingyuan found a stone house underwater with ease, took the more than ten 500-year-old medicinal plants inside, and then returned to the shore.

Seeing that it was getting late, Yang Qingyuan and Han Yunzhi rode the red demon wolf and headed towards the central area.

However, this demonic wolf was only at the mid-level of the first rank, and its size was not large, only two-thirds the size of a horse.

Therefore, it was a bit crowded for Yang Qingyuan and Han Yunzhi to ride on the demon wolf.

Han Yunzhi could even clearly feel Yang Qingyuan's warm breath behind her neck, and her cheeks flushed red as her mind wandered.

Just as Han Yunzhi described, this red wolf had extraordinary endurance, capable of traveling a thousand miles a day. It only took six hours to carry the two of them out of the desert.

During their time there, the two also encountered more than ten level-one mid-tier monsters called "Long-tailed Vultures".

Fortunately, Yang Qingyuan now had six flying swords, which easily slaughtered the vulture flock.

Han Yunzhi also taught Yang Qingyuan some beast-taming techniques during the journey and was greatly impressed by Yang Qingyuan's amazing comprehension.

With the blessing of the "Learning" mantra, Yang Qingyuan quickly mastered these basic beast-taming spells and successfully cast them.

In particular, the beginner-intermediate spell "Demon Eye Technique" allows Yang Qingyuan to share his vision with the Twin-Headed Goose.

The four demonic eyes of the Double-Headed Duck could see through basic illusions and concealment spells, greatly increasing its safety.

Following Wu Sangchong's map, Yang Qingyuan quickly plundered all the resource points along the way, and also killed two Tianque Fort disciples who were robbing him, obtaining a total of more than twenty spiritual herbs.

Six hours later, the two finally left the Burial Desert and arrived at the outskirts of the central area.

"Brother Yang, the stone wall ahead is the dividing line." Han Yunzhi, riding a red demon wolf, pointed to a tall stone wall that appeared on the horizon in front of the desert, her face showing excitement.

As they spent more time together, Han Yunzhi and Yang Qingyuan grew closer, and she started calling him "Brother Yang."

Upon hearing this, Yang Qingyuan glanced ahead.

A towering stone wall, seemingly endless, stood in the desert ahead.

The top of the stone wall emitted a hazy blue light, clearly part of the restrictions of the Eight Gates Wind Formation.

Any cultivator who dares to climb over the stone wall will perish under the wind blades.

The only way to get through the stone wall is through the large bronze gate in the middle.

There are four such bronze doors, each corresponding to one of the four directions.

The gate is now open, which means that cultivators have already gone in.

"We've finally made it! There are still a few hours until we activate the Moon Sun Pearl on the third day. We can rest for a bit." Han Yunzhi smiled knowingly and urged Red Wolf to enter the room.

Upon seeing this, Yang Qingyuan first sent his double-headed duck into the bronze gate to investigate carefully.

The two-headed duck swooped down and headed straight for the gate. Then, its four eyes gleamed with a gray light as it scanned its surroundings.

"Huh?" Through the shared vision, Yang Qingyuan actually sensed a faint fluctuation of spiritual energy next to the bronze door.

The two-headed duck immediately opened its mouth and spat out a wind blade, slashing towards an open space next to the bronze gate.

"Damn it! This hairy beast can actually see through my veil!"

The next moment, a small yellow umbrella appeared out of thin air on the open ground, easily blocking the wind blades.

"Brother Han, stop hiding. This time, a master has arrived. Let's attack together."

"The treasure will still be split 50/50!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the scene in front of the bronze gate distorted, and then the figures of two men appeared.

The man on the left is a middle-aged man with a face full of scars. He is dressed in the yellow robes of Tianque Fortress, has narrow eyes, a hooked nose, and a menacing aura that makes people shiver at first sight and wish to keep their distance. His cultivation level is also at the peak of the thirteenth level, which is even higher than Yang Qingyuan's.

The person on the right is a handsome young man with a delicate and feminine appearance. He is dressed in the blue robes of Huadaowu and has a sinister air about him. He is holding a hazy veil in his hand and has a cultivation level of thirteen levels of Qi Refining.

"broken!"

Han Yunzhi trembled slightly upon seeing the two unfamiliar cultivators.

"It's Feng Yue, the madman of Tianque Fortress!"

"And there's also Han Tianya, the demon from Huadaowu!"

"They are all renowned experts among the Qi Refining stage disciples of the seven major sects, yet they've formed an alliance!"

Han Yunzhi noticed that the two men had more than a dozen storage bags from different sects hanging on their waists, and she knew that they had killed a lot of people in the past two days.

Yang Qingyuan also glanced at the two men, his expression slightly solemn. He vaguely remembered that this madman Feng Yue was indeed quite powerful, and should have a talisman shaped like a small knife in his hand.

Feng Yue was originally supposed to be teleported to Wulongtan, Han Li's location, but due to Yang Qingyuan's appearance, the teleportation order changed, and he ended up in the Burial Desert.

Although Han Tianya, who was standing next to him, did not face Han Li in the original story, he was clearly a master since he was able to form an alliance with Feng Yue.

"Kid, take off your storage bag yourself, don't make me do it." When Feng Yue saw the bulging storage bag at Yang Qingyuan's waist, greed was already overflowing in his eyes.

"If we wait for you to make a move, you'll suffer a fate worse than death," Han Tianya urged from the side, his voice sounding neither male nor female.

Han Yunzhi was so frightened that her palms sweated. She swallowed hard and said, "Brother Yang, let's retreat back to the desert first."

"Anyway, there are still a few hours until the third day."

"They'll definitely have to climb the crater; they won't stay stuck here forever."

"Both of these two are elite disciples in the Qi Refining stage; let's avoid their sharp edge for now."

Yang Qingyuan dismounted and stood aside, saying, "It's alright, I'm only fighting the elite."