524: Chapter 525 Buffet~

Having had enough fun, Lu Ming could not be bothered to waste any more time here.

With a wave of his large sleeves, everyone in the hall felt a gentle yet irresistible force surge toward them, and their bodies were involuntarily pushed out of the hall doors.

Immediately, the hall doors slammed shut, sealing off all the clamor outside.

The crowd looked at each other, but dared not speak, and soon dispersed.

Inside the hall, after clearing everyone away, Lu Ming sat upright on the cloud throne.

A moment later, Lu Ming slowly rose and walked out of the great hall with his hands behind his back.

Looking at the scene of rising clouds and rosy mists outside, Lu Ming had a sudden thought and decided to tour around this Grotto-Heaven he had just arrived in.

There was no destination; he was just walking as he pleased, nothing more.

It must be said that although the Grotto-Heaven was not as vast and boundless as the outside world, it was still worthy of the word "vast."

As Lu Ming strolled through the clouds, looking down at the mountains and rivers below.

He saw ranges of mountains rolling and undulating like coiled Dragons, and rivers winding like silver snakes slithering along.

Above the mountain Peaks, clouds and mist swirled, and one could vaguely see palaces and pavilions, with flying eaves and arched brackets, hidden among the green pines and cypresses.

In the valleys, spiritual springs gurgled, and waterfalls cascaded down, gathering into pools of shimmering spiritual lakes.

In the lakes, spiritual cranes danced, and on the banks, spiritual deer grazed leisurely.

Spiritual Qi was dense, and dao rhyme flowed, creating an atmosphere of an immortal's abode.

And Lu Ming, who was familiar with the Yin-Yang Law, could see even more clearly.

The direction of those mountains and rivers, the distribution of the Spiritual Veins, and the flow of the dao rhyme, all secretly conformed to the Dao of Yin and Yang.

Even the orientation of those palaces, the layout of the Formations, and the planting of the Spirit Medicine all followed the ultimate principle of Yin and Yang balance.

Lu Ming walked to a mountain Peak and stopped to gaze into the distance.

Before his eyes, the sea of clouds surged; behind him, the pine waves rustled; above his head, the sky light and cloud shadows drifted; and beneath his feet, spiritual light flickered.

In this Grotto-Heaven, every inch of land was imbued with the dao rhyme of the Yin-Yang Law.

This was clearly not naturally formed, but had been molded bit by bit by Taishu Yichen using his own dao attainment.

Lu Ming felt quite moved; to achieve this step was truly a massive project.

Even for a Nascent Soul True Monarch, it could not be completed overnight; it required a long period of time to refine.

If he relied solely on himself, without considering the interference and exclusion of other True Monarchs, he probably wouldn't be able to craft such a Grotto-Heaven domain without a millennium.

"So, getting something for nothing is always faster."

Lu Ming sighed with genuine emotion.

This saved him too much time; he didn't need to waste his time on this matter.

Taishu Yichen, what a good person!

While thinking about these things, Lu Ming wandered through the Grotto-Heaven.

Unknowingly, Lu Ming arrived at a certain area.

This place was completely different from all the scenery he had seen before.

Here, mountains surrounded the area, the terrain steep as if carved by knives and axes, with not a blade of grass growing.

Sunlight seemed unable to shine into this valley, and even the light became dim and obscure upon reaching here.

At the entrance of the valley stood a huge stone tablet, with two large words carved in ancient Seal script — Prison Peak.

The brushstrokes were chilling, as if written by ghosts or gods, emitting an aura of killing intent.

Compared to the tranquility and peace of the outside, the atmosphere here was completely different.

Oppressive, heavy, and dead silent, as if even the wind was unwilling to pass through here.

Lu Ming stood at the valley entrance with his hands behind his back and looked up.

This Prison Peak did not refer to a single mountain Peak, but a range of mountains.

Nine black mountain Peaks, like nine giant pillars, were arranged in the shape of a Nine-Palace grid, enclosing a valley in the center.

Each mountain Peak was engraved with dense Restriction runes. As the runes flowed, invisible chains extended from the Peaks, weaving into a huge net in the Void Realm, shrouding the entire valley within.

Because of this, within Prison Peak, Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi was cut off, and the Law and dao rhyme could not enter.

Those trapped inside could not mobilize their magic power or communicate with Heaven and Earth, and could only linger on like Mortals.

"Great Elder Lu Chenyuan just escorts people here?"

Lu Ming muttered to himself, then extended his Divine Sense, which sank into the depths of Prison Peak without any obstruction.

The interior of Prison Peak was far more complex than it appeared from the outside.

The underground of the nine mountain Peaks was connected, having been excavated into layers of deep prisons.

The stone walls of the prison were engraved with dense Restriction runes, sealing every inch of space tightly.

The top layer held Foundation Establishment Cultivators, numbering over a thousand.

At this moment, they were in rags, curled up in their respective cells, hugging their knees in silence, their eyes hollow and their faces ashen.

The middle layer held Golden Core Cultivators, fewer in number, only about a hundred.

Their treatment was no better than that of the Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

There was no nourishment from Spiritual Qi in the cells, and their magic power was sealed by the Restriction, unable to recover, so they could only endure hunger and fatigue like Mortals.

Some leaned against the walls to rest their eyes, some stared blankly at the ceiling, and some paced back and forth on the ground, agitated and restless.

Lu Ming's Divine Sense swept past these cells without stopping.

His target was not these small fry.

And as his Divine Sense continued to probe downward, deep into the deepest part of Prison Peak.

After seeing clearly what was inside, a smile gradually curled at the corner of Lu Ming's mouth.

"I didn't expect there to be a surprise waiting here."

There, the most powerful felons were imprisoned.

The weakest among them were at the Great True Person level, and there was even no lack of Golden Core Perfection Cultivators.

Among them, there was even a False Nascent Soul Cultivator who had vaguely touched the threshold of the Nascent Soul.

It was precisely because of this that they received special attention.

Countless Restriction runes were layered, firmly sealing this prison, making it airtight.

These guys, who knows how many years they had been suppressed in this Prison Peak.

Their clothes had long lost their original color; they were disheveled, gaunt, and looked nothing like the Cultivators they once were.

At this moment, they sat cross-legged in silence, their eyes hollow, not knowing what they were thinking.

After all, in this prison where Spiritual Qi was drained and magic power was sealed, they could only watch their Lifespan slip away bit by bit, with nothing to do but wait for death.

However, Lu Ming did not care about this.

The reason he was so interested was simply because of the current state of these guys.

"I said it, the Grotto-Heaven is full of talents; a single Prison Peak has gathered so many capable people."

Lu Ming's Divine Sense swept over the Dantians of those suppressed guys, sensing the diverse Law dao rhymes within, and a brazen smile gradually spread across his mouth.

"Damn, this is practically a buffet!"

Lu Ming's path of cultivation had been different from the start.

If it were said that other Laws required one to walk to the extreme on one path to sublimate the dao flower into the Primordial Spirit dao fruit.

Then the Primordial Great Dao had no boring, dull closed-door meditation, nor any tedious cultivation process.

From beginning to end, Lu Ming only needed to practice one thing, and that was to keep plundering, keep devouring.

To make others' Laws his own, and turn others' dao attainment into his own resources.

And these Golden Core Perfection Cultivators who were suppressed in Prison Peak, with no strength to truss a chicken, just like fish on a chopping block waiting to be slaughtered, were they not a great gift delivered to his door?

If he devoured them all, his dao attainment would likely soar by a large margin.

Although it was impossible to directly cross the Nascent Soul Middle Stage Bottleneck, it could at least save a hundred years of hard work.

And most of the credit for this had to go to that False Nascent Soul Cultivator.

"It came for free anyway, so be content."

Lu Ming thought happily, then took a step, and his figure disappeared from the spot.

And the layers of air-Restriction runes on the periphery of Prison Peak did not react at all.

They did not even perceive that someone had walked past them.

...

Inside Prison Peak.

Lu Ming strolled leisurely inside, passing through layers of prisons and walking through layer after layer of Restrictions.

As for those imprisoned Cultivators, he didn't even glance at them, heading straight for the bottom layer.

The bottom layer.

The underground of the nine mountain Peaks converged here, forming a huge underground space.

This place held the most important figures in Prison Peak—eight Golden Core Perfection Cultivators and one False Nascent Soul Cultivator.

Their cells were much more spacious than those above, but the Restrictions were also tighter.

The runes on the walls were dense, layered and nested, locking every inch of space tightly.

Lu Ming stood still in front of the cell door and waved his hand.

Those Restriction runes that had suppressed this place for who knows how many years vanished silently, like dust blown away by the wind.

There was no explosion or roar, just a return to nothingness.

Immediately, the cell door swung wide open, and Lu Ming stepped inside.

Inside the cell, several figures looked up at the same time.

Their eyes were hollow and indifferent; there was no fear, no anger, not even curiosity.

They had experienced such scenes countless times.

Just because every once in a while, someone would come in to "interrogate" them.

After all, as Golden Core Perfection Cultivators, they naturally had many secrets in their minds, whether it was Cultivation Techniques, Divine Abilities, or secret arts, or knowledge of some hidden matters, all of which were a significant fortune.

Therefore, someone would come in from time to time to interrogate them, either to extract Cultivation Techniques and Divine Abilities, or to pry out some unknown secrets from their mouths.

Every time it was the same face, the same rhetoric, the same coercion and inducement.

They were already numb and had long since gotten used to it.

So, only someone glanced at Lu Ming, then withdrew their gaze and continued to rest their eyes.

Some didn't even raise their eyes, as if the person who entered was air, ignoring him directly.

Some even curled their lips in a mocking arc, as if laughing at Lu Ming's overestimation of his own capabilities.

Clearly, they didn't recognize this face.

Nascent Soul Cultivators were too mysterious; even these people who once stood at the Peak of Golden Core had never seen the true face of True Lord Qingxu.

Therefore, even though Lu Ming still wore the face of True Lord Qingxu, this group of people just took him for an ignorant "jailer."

However, the next moment, everyone froze.

Just because at this moment, in their long-dried Meridians, a warm current was suddenly flowing.

Warm, gentle... they hadn't felt this sensation for nearly a hundred years.

"This... this is Spiritual Qi!"

The moment this thought appeared in everyone's minds, everyone's eyes widened.

This was not an illusion, and certainly not a hallucination; it was truly Spiritual Qi surging into their bodies!

They thought they would never be able to feel Spiritual Qi again in their lives, thought they could only wait for death in this cage, and thought this was their ending.

As a result, those Dantians that had been sealed by Restrictions for who knows how many years were now rekindling with vitality.

Spiritual Qi surged in the Meridians, and magic power recovered in the Dantian!

But, how could this be possible?

This is Prison Peak, didn't you see that even a False Nascent Soul Cultivator could only be a prisoner!

Doubts arose in everyone's hearts, but they were soon replaced by excitement.

No matter what, this was a heaven-sent opportunity!

As the saying goes, having a Sharp Weapon in hand, murderous intent arises on its own.

Now that Spiritual Qi had recovered, they were no longer without the strength to resist.

As long as they escaped from here, as long as they left this Prison Peak, even if they couldn't leave the Grotto-Heaven, even if they could only linger on outside, it would be a hundred or a thousand times better than being trapped here until their Lifespan was exhausted.

Fight for it, at least they could still fight for a glimmer of hope.

Thus, the first Cultivator moved.

It was that False Nascent Soul Cultivator, whose name even he himself could barely remember.

He only remembered that he was once extremely gifted, and was once the Genius of the Qingwei Dao Sect who had the most hope of breaking through to the Nascent Soul True Monarch Realm.

However, it was precisely because of this that he offended Taishu Yichen's taboo.

So when he was forcibly breaking through to the Nascent Soul, he was ambushed by a palm strike that knocked him down from his Realm, and subsequently, he was suppressed in this dark, sunless underground for nearly a thousand years.

He had sat silently in the darkness for nearly a thousand years!

Do you know how these thousand years were spent, do you know!

At this moment, hatred had already filled his heart, and resentment had already eroded his soul.

He had thought that he would never be able to wait for a chance for revenge in his life.

But now, the Spiritual Qi was back!

No matter how it was done, now everything was unimportant; he only needed power.

The False Nascent Soul Cultivator stood up from his silent sitting.

His body was trembling; that was the killing intent that had been suppressed for too long finally finding an outlet.

His eyes were burning with crazy flames; he wanted to smash this Prison Peak to pieces, release all the imprisoned Cultivators, and turn this Grotto-Heaven upside down.

Even if he couldn't hurt the Nascent Soul True Monarch in the slightest, he could at least make the other party disgusted for a while.

Then he would escape in the chaos, escape the Grotto-Heaven, and escape to the outside world.

With his False Nascent Soul strength, perhaps he would never be able to break through to the Nascent Soul again in this life.

But he was still alive, and as long as he was alive, there was a chance for revenge.

One day...

Suddenly, his gaze fell on Lu Ming, and a ferocious smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

"Although I don't know why you want to let us go, you can only blame your bad luck."

Before his words fell, the False Nascent Soul Cultivator raised his hand, and in that withered palm, a mass of Divine Ability light was condensing.

The False Nascent Soul magic power, suppressed for a thousand years, slapped crazily in the space, shaking the surroundings until they trembled.

However, this commotion came quickly and went quickly.

Before the other Golden Core Cultivators around had time to show their panicked gazes, everything suddenly stopped.

As if gently brushed by a large hand, the Divine Ability light in the False Nascent Soul Cultivator's hand instantly extinguished, as if it had never happened.

In an instant, the expression on the False Nascent Soul Cultivator's face froze.

Even the ferocious smile had not yet had time to fade, and his eyes were already full of astonishment.

He just stood there stiffly, like a wax statue.

His eyes turned from astonishment to dullness, and finally from dullness to terror.

"Nascent... Nascent Soul old monster... you..."

His voice began to tremble, and a fear born from instinct grew in his heart.

Then he seemed to think of something, and his whole body trembled even more violently.

That's right, if it weren't a Nascent Soul True Monarch, how could he be suppressed so easily.

And in the Grotto-Heaven, besides that one, is there a second True Monarch?

Therefore, this person's identity was self-evident.