What does my ancestor's pregnancy have to do with me, a mere servant?

Lin Yuan stood up from the dark blue stone slab and straightened the hem of his long robe.

The liquefied magical power within the body moves with the mind, flowing smoothly through the meridians.

Jiang Huaiyue immediately stood up, falling half a step behind him.

The tradition has ended; staying here is a waste of time.

"Let's go," Lin Yuan said, turning and walking towards the entrance of the main hall.

The two passed through the gap in the dark red light curtain and stepped back into the outside world.

A cloud of yellow sand, carrying the stench of dried blood, rushed towards him. Lin Yuan stopped and looked up at the dark red sky.

"There is one month left until the Crimson Forbidden Land closes."

"The only ingredient missing from the refining of the Foundation Establishment Pill is the Soul-Gathering Flower."

Jiang Huaiyue recalled the map and pointed to the ruins of the buildings to the left rear of the main hall: "Eighty miles to the northwest, there is an ancient abandoned medicinal field. According to the records of the disciples who have been training there, the environment there is cold and gloomy, and there are many spiritual plants with yin energy, so the probability of producing Soul-Gathering Flowers is extremely high. We can go and try our luck."

Lin Yuan nodded. The Wind and Thunder Illusion Boots' array patterns lit up, and he propelled himself forward, skimming the ground. Jiang Huaiyue activated her escape light, following closely behind.

The eighty-mile journey is only an hour for the two of them now.

The terrain gradually descends, and the number of boulders around increases. Patches of dark red moss grow on the severely weathered stone pillars. The air temperature has dropped below freezing.

Just as the two were about to step into the core area of ​​the medicinal field.

Lin Yuan suddenly raised his hand.

His immense divine sense detected an extremely violent fluctuation of spiritual energy two miles ahead.

Lin Yuan immediately cut off his own breath, and at the same time grabbed Jiang Huaiyue's shoulder, pulling her to hide behind a huge black rock that was two people tall.

The two concealed their breathing and traveled forward for another ten miles or so.

Ahead lay a sunken basin, its surface covered with crisscrossing sword marks and charred battle pits.

Four figures were rapidly moving and fighting in the arena.

To be precise, it was one against three.

Surrounded in the center was a female cultivator dressed in a moon-white long dress. Her face was covered by a white veil, and she wore a pair of blue cloud-patterned boots, her hands constantly changing hand seals.

A three-foot-long azure flying sword trailed a sword beam several feet long in mid-air, each slash producing a sharp, piercing explosion.

A small, palm-sized silver shield, engraved with tortoise shell patterns, circled rapidly around her within a ten-foot radius, blocking all attacks coming from all directions.

She was surrounded by three male cultivators dressed in black robes. Judging from the blood-red cloud patterns on their clothing, they were all inner disciples of the Xuan Yin Sect.

All three were at the mid-Foundation Establishment stage.

Lin Yuan's gaze lingered on the white-robed female cultivator's aura for a moment.

"Who is this woman?" Lin Yuan asked in a low voice. "I checked all fifty people at the rendezvous point before entering the Crimson Forbidden Land, and this person is definitely not among them."

Jiang Huaiyue stared at the azure sword light, her face darkening: "This person's cultivation method is not from our Xuan Yin Sect at all."

She pointed to the female cultivator's small silver shield: "The Xuan Yin Sect cultivates cold and bloodthirsty energy, and their magical artifacts are often tainted with filth and malevolence. Her flying sword and magical shield have balanced and peaceful spiritual energy, and her sword techniques emphasize lightness and fluidity. Judging from her Tai Xu Sword Control Technique, she should be a cultivator from the Tai Xuan Immortal Sect."

A strange light flashed in Lin Yuan's eyes: "Tai Xuan Immortal Sect? This is a sacred place for sects, how could disciples from other sects have infiltrated here!"

In the cultivation world of the Chu Kingdom, three major sects stand in a tripartite balance: the Xuan Yin Sect, the Tai Xuan Immortal Sect, and the He Huan Sect. The three sects control adjacent areas of resources and are roughly equal in strength.

To avoid high-level cultivators risking their lives and damaging their foundations, they usually keep to themselves.

"Only the most outstanding young disciples of the sect can enter the Crimson Forbidden Land. I don't know how she managed to sneak in." Jiang Huaiyue's brows furrowed more and more as she spoke.

Lin Yuan continued to observe the situation.

The battle on the field has reached a fever pitch.

The three Xuan Yin Sect disciples, unable to break through after a prolonged attack, were severely depleted of their magical power, and their attack frequency noticeably slowed down.

"Senior Brother Zhang, this woman's magic weapon is strange. Use the Blood Fiend Array directly!" A male cultivator with a sinister face shouted angrily.

The three quickly created distance between themselves, occupying three different positions. Simultaneously, they bit their tongues, spitting a mouthful of blood onto the array flags in their hands. A large plume of foul-smelling blood mist surged from the flags, transforming into three thick, blood-red chains that blocked all of the female cultivator's escape routes.

The white-clad female cultivator's eyes were icy cold, showing no sign of panic.

She formed a complex sword incantation with one hand, splitting the azure flying sword into three, forcefully resisting the three blood-red chains.

Immediately afterwards, she patted the storage bag at her waist with her left hand.

A round bead, the size of a longan and entirely purplish-red, appeared in her fair palm. Tiny golden arcs of electricity crackled across the surface of the bead, and an extremely violent aura of destruction suddenly erupted from it.

Jiang Huaiyue's pupils contracted: "Destroying Law Divine Thunder!"

The female cultivator in white didn't waste any words; she flicked her wrist.

The purplish-red bead transformed into a stream of light, heading straight for the Xuan Yin Sect disciple known as Senior Brother Zhang.

"Retreat!" Senior Brother Zhang roared, desperately activating his protective magic artifact.

"Boom!"

A deafening explosion resounded in the center of the basin. Blinding purple-gold lightning illuminated most of the medicinal field as if it were daytime. The violent shockwave ripped the ground apart, uprooting abandoned buildings within a radius of several dozen feet.

The lightning dissipated.

Senior Brother Zhang, along with his protective magic weapon, was blasted into charred fragments scattered all over the ground.

The other two Xuan Yin Sect disciples, though further away, were also struck by the shockwave, their protective blood aura shattering instantly. Both coughed up a mouthful of blood, clearly suffering severe injuries.

The two exchanged a glance, not daring to utter a single harsh word, and crushed the Blood Escape Talisman in their hands.

With a flash of blood, the two forcibly exhausted their life essence, their figures instantly disappearing from the spot as they fled.

The white-clad female cultivator hovered in mid-air, retrieving her flying sword and small shield.

She didn't chase after the two who had escaped, nor did she even glance at the mangled corpses on the ground. Instead, she landed directly in front of a broken stone platform.

She took out an old, cracked compass from her bosom and squeezed a drop of blood from her fingertip into it.

He was muttering to himself.

A few breaths later, the compass emitted a faint blue light, illuminating an open area below the stone platform.

A low, grinding sound came from the ground as two heavy stone slabs slid apart, revealing a dark, downward-sloping passage.

Without hesitation, the female cultivator in white put away her compass, and with a flash, she directly entered the passage.

The stone slab then slowly closed, sealing perfectly, as if nothing had happened except for the traces of battle on the ground.

Lin Yuan straightened up from behind the rock.

"The people of the Tai Xuan Immortal Sect risked so much to infiltrate the Crimson Forbidden Land." Lin Yuan stared at the newly closed ground. "There must be a great opportunity hidden beneath."

Jiang Huaiyue turned to look at him: "What do we do now?"

"The saying 'the oriole unaware of the mantis behind' applies everywhere." Lin Yuan flexed his wrists. "She must be expending a great deal of energy retrieving the treasure down there. Once she comes out, we'll make our move. It's a pity I left my Six Yin Soul-Locking Array with Lin Feilu for self-defense; we're missing a way to trap her. If we rely solely on magic to fight head-on, that woman probably has quite a few trump cards up her sleeve."

Jiang Huaiyue directly took out four white jade array plates and eight array flags from her storage bag.

"I also have a Thousand Illusions Bewitching Array on me." Jiang Huaiyue handed the array plate to Lin Yuan. "This array has no offensive power. Although it is not as sturdy as the Six Yin Soul Locking Array, its greatest function is to obscure the five senses. It should be enough to trap this woman for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn."