A Mortal's Journey to Immortality: Starting as a Rogue Cultivator

The leaders of the seven factions speculated that this floor was deliberately designed this way by the owner of the forbidden area, who intended it to be a garden. The brightly colored, bizarre, and eye-catching flowers and plants were actually just for the owner's own enjoyment.

Wang Li's destination was the second floor.

There you will find the three main ingredients of Foundation Establishment Pill that cannot be found outside, as well as many high-grade spiritual medicines that are of great use to cultivators, some of which are even effective for Core Formation stage cultivators.

What he wanted were seedlings.

However, opportunities and crises coexist.

This area is home to the vast majority of the demonic beasts within the forbidden zone, ranging from the lower rank of Level 1 to the upper rank of Level 1. Therefore, in addition to guarding against cultivators from other sects and even one's own sect, one must also consider the demonic beasts within. Many particularly precious spiritual herbs are often guarded by powerful demonic beasts, making a major battle almost inevitable.

In addition, this place is shrouded in thick fog all year round, and it is easy to get lost if you go deep into it. Every time you go to the forbidden area, you have to use the magic treasure "Moon Sun Pearl" to dispel most of the fog, so that disciples from various sects can try to go deep.

Otherwise, with the fog and monsters, even if the sect's elites formed a team to force their way in, they would not be able to get out.

Back then, among the first batches of disciples from the seven sects participating in the trial were many at the peak of Qi Refining, who attempted to force their way through this layer of mist. The result was, of course, heavy losses, and afterwards the seven sects became much more cautious. Several times in a row, everyone competed in other outer areas, rationally choosing to retreat from the mist in the central area.

The reason why we can now go deeper is thanks to the birth of the Moon Sun Pearl.

This is thanks to a cultivator from the Hidden Moon Sect.

This person went to great lengths for the sect. Secretly, based on the characteristics of the mist within the forbidden area, he crafted a special magical artifact capable of emitting a strange light and counteracting various mist and poisonous barriers.

It is indeed the "Moonlight Pearl"!

On that occasion, the Hidden Moon Sect used this treasure to secretly enter the second layer of the misty area behind the backs of the other six sects. After dispelling most of the mist, they reaped a great harvest in the central second layer.

While the disciples of the six sects fought to the death on the outskirts, the people of the Hidden Moon Sect quietly ate all the spoils.

And it was precisely because of this that the Hidden Moon Sect, with its gains far exceeding those of the six other sects, refined a large number of Foundation Establishment Pills and recruited many disciples, allowing the sect's strength to soar to new heights in the following decades, thus establishing its position as the number one cultivation sect in the Yue Kingdom.

This laid a solid foundation for the later flourishing of "a diverse range of infants".

Unfortunately, with more people, treacherous bastards within the sect also began to emerge.

News of the Hidden Moon Sect obtaining rare and precious treasures in the forbidden area using the Moon Sun Pearl spread like wildfire.

Without further ado, the six factions blocked the gate, wielding considerable power to coerce the enemy.

Helpless, the Hidden Moon Sect, which was not yet fully developed and at least not capable of fighting six opponents at once, was unwilling to incur the wrath of the masses and bring about the annihilation of the entire sect, nor was it willing to hand over the precious pearl.

Therefore:

Then they engaged in some haggling and bargaining with the six factions!

Finally, it was decided that this precious pearl would become a shared possession of the seven sects, with each sect taking turns holding it. After each expedition to the forbidden area, the sect that originally held it would hand it over, and another sect would take over its safekeeping.

However, regardless of which sect possesses the treasure, once inside the forbidden area, the disciple currently holding the treasure must use it to dispel the fog within a predetermined time, under the supervision of disciples from other sects.

Furthermore, we cannot act first, nor can we delay the opportunity.

In this way, all disciples from different factions who arrive at the central area can enter the second level at the same time to collect more precious spiritual herbs, thus ensuring fairness.

Furthermore, the disciple who wields the precious pearl also gains an invisible layer of protection.

If someone were to kill him, wouldn't that mean the pearl would be lost forever? After all, how could the murderer honestly leave the forbidden area with the Moon Sun Pearl?

Even if no one steps forward to take responsibility, the seven major sects will definitely not let go of the disciples who participated in the trial.

Cultivators have plenty of ways to achieve the results they want.

Therefore, the person who usually gets this thing usually gets a huge advantage.

This leads to another strange phenomenon, or rather, a tacit rule among the seven major sects:

Disciples who possess the precious orb generally do not venture deep into the second level of the central area, and are usually the weakest members of the team;

After he activated the precious pearl, he was able to find the exit and return.

The disciples of the other six sects would often stay away from this person as if avoiding a snake or scorpion after he used the precious pearl to dispel the fog.

Closer to home.

The location Wang Li was teleported to this time was due south, a place with a radius of several miles.

These are all barren sandy lands where no spiritual herbs could possibly grow.

However, there is some good news: no powerful monsters will appear.

Starting from this place, no matter how you head towards the central area, you will have to travel a quarter longer than the lucky ones who land directly in the northeast, southeast, southwest, or northwest, facing the four major entrances.

If you don't control the pace well, you'll suffer a great loss.

He was well-prepared for this, having prepared eight contingency plans in advance, just in case.

It's a small consolation left to this life by that ambitious young man from a modern society in his past life.

The eight contingency plans were tailored to the eight directions of east, south, west, north, southeast, southwest, northeast, and northwest, as well as the nearest area.

The sandy lands in the south perfectly fit the second plan.

Having determined his approximate location and locked his collection target in the second-level area, he didn't hesitate at all. After selecting a direction, he quickly headed towards the southwest entrance of the high wall "flying close to the ground".

They once ignored the biggest taboo within the forbidden area: flying was forbidden!

You won't let me fly high in the sky? Fine, then we'll fly close to the ground!

To this end, he practiced the skill of "flying close to the ground and over grass" for several months!

Chapter 28 First Entry into the Crimson Forbidden Land

Flying over restricted areas is not only extremely dangerous.

On the one hand, flying in the air would easily make one a sitting duck, attracting the combined attacks of other cultivators from various sects who had entered the forbidden area. On the other hand, it could also provoke an attack from the avian demonic beasts within the forbidden area, and this possibility was quite high.

In addition, there are spatial rifts left by wind-attribute restrictions in the air above the forbidden area.

Not to mention the Qi Refining stage, it's forbidden to touch it, even the Core Formation stage or the Nascent Soul stage.

Furthermore, flying on a magical artifact consumes mana; although not much, it's not insignificant either.

During the Qi Refining stage, one's magical power is quite limited.

If the flyer's cultivation level is only at the eleventh or twelfth level of Qi Refining, and flying with a magical artifact consumes even more mana, then the remaining mana might only be enough to sustain a single battle between equals. It would be difficult to have any strength left to deal with other unforeseen events.

In summary, flying over restricted areas becomes one of the taboos.

But that was flying in the air.

Flying in the air involves exposing oneself, which is an act of self-exposure.

Wang Li, on the other hand, is flying close to the ground.

Flying close to the ground is more like running on the ground; it's an act of concealing oneself.

To master this skill, Wang Li was scratched by grass and trees countless times, and knocked over by rocks that suddenly blocked his path countless times! But he always firmly believed that his efforts would be rewarded.

As for mana consumption, it can be said that with mid-grade spirit stones as a safety net, it can afford to consume it.

Consumption and recovery are almost equal.

Flying on a sword while simultaneously using spirit stones to replenish one's magical power is also a required course.

He's not the kind of simpleton who just burys his head in his work and does nothing but study diligently.

In addition, he deliberately changed out of his Huangfeng Valley clothes and into various styles of camouflage clothing specially prepared for different environments, making it difficult for the naked eye to spot him.

This is an experience from a past life.

Camouflage clothing is a type of garment consisting of irregular patterns of green, yellow, brown, and black used for disguise. Its reflected light waves are roughly the same as those reflected by the surrounding environment, greatly deceiving the naked eye of other cultivators and demonic beasts, making it difficult for them to detect the target.

Wang Li prepared three different kinds of dishes here.

There are four colors: green, brown, black, and gray, which are often used in summer environments as jungle camouflage; there are also yellowish colors, which are often used in winter training and desert warfare as desert camouflage; and there are also highland desert camouflage with green, brown, and black spots.

In addition, there were his own concealment and stealth techniques, as well as the noise he intentionally controlled while flying on his sword.

Whether it's a cultivator's divine sense or their physical eyes, among those of the same level, apart from the group from Spirit Beast Mountain who can rely on spirit beasts, it's very difficult for any disciple from the other six sects to detect their presence from thirty feet away.

For example, the current sand dune areas:

If he chooses to run on the ground, not only will he expend energy, but the noise he makes while running could easily cause some unnecessary trouble.

However, if one releases the three spirit pets, having the sharp-eyed lark keep an eye on the sky while the timid mouse in one's arms senses the sand beneath, and then flies swiftly close to the ground, one can ensure sufficient stamina, maintain speed, and buy time to protect oneself.

Of course, this doesn't mean that every place is suitable for flying close to the ground.

For example, the complex and varied lush woodlands.

The forest is not suitable for flying close to the ground; it is more suitable for skillful climbing and repeated maneuvering using both hands and feet.

So the lark flew slowly ahead, the chameleon scouted from the side, and the timid mouse sat in the center to sense danger, while it obediently spread its divine sense to traverse the forest.

In this way, speed is achieved where it is needed, and stability is maintained where it is needed.

Even if he encountered some spiritual herbs along the way that looked good and were not short in age, as long as they could be found in the outside world, they were not rare to him, so he had no intention of stopping to pick them.

He ignores low- to mid-level monsters that don't attack him first.

Those who are hostile to him will be given the Vermilion Bird Ring and empowered with fire magic to be hurled at him, to kill him first; after all, it won't cost much mana, and the little mana wasted can be quickly recovered by taking pills and mid-grade spirit stones.

What if we run into a high-level demonic beast...?

Well, good luck: although there are some high-tier or even top-tier level one demonic beasts in the outer area, they are very few and far between, and they usually guard the places where spiritual herbs are produced. As for these places, Wang Li usually avoids them.

Therefore, so far, he has not encountered any high-level or top-level monsters.

Of course, considering the numerous dangers in the forbidden area, in order to maintain his best condition at all times and deal with unexpected battles, he always kept a pill wrapped in specially treated paper in his mouth! He could bite through the paper at any time to squeeze out the pill and swallow it.

He even practiced this little trick!

And so, several hours passed quickly.

Just as he was about to reach the landmark "Five Finger Lake", his previous good luck seemed to have run out, and he finally ran into the first group of cultivators who were killing and robbing treasures.

On the open ground ahead, four figures were locked in a fierce struggle, each fighting the other.

Judging from their clothing, the two groups are from Qingxu Sect and Huadaowu, respectively.

Currently, the two Taoists from Qingxu Sect are noticeably weaker in cultivation. One has just entered the twelfth level of Qi Refining, and the other seems to have only reached the twelfth level a few years ago, with relatively weak magical power. On the other hand, the two burly men from Huadaowu, the one with one eye blind, is at the twelfth level of Qi Refining; the other, tall and strong, has even vaguely reached the thirteenth level, making their magical power significantly stronger than the two Taoists in front of them.

If the two from Qingxu Sect hadn't been restrained by higher-quality magical artifacts and protected by mid- to high-level talismans, they would probably have been dealt with by the two from Huadaowu long ago.

"Something's not right, there's something fishy about that Taoist priest!"

Through the light screen formed by several layers of talismans, I hadn't sensed any unusual fluctuations in magical power before; but after being reminded by the timid little mouse in my arms, I finally noticed the older Taoist priest sitting cross-legged on the ground, with wisps of golden light emanating from between his clasped hands.