82: Chapter 82 Like attracts like, encountering the energy of heaven and earth again!

"Let's go once we've finished packing up."

Shi Jian pushed himself up from the ground, his bones emitting a dense series of cracks, yet his tone was as if nothing had happened.

"The Spiritual Qi in this place has been exhausted; there's no point in staying any longer. It will be impossible to return to its previous state without at least a hundred years."

Seeing this, Sun Yao and Yun Che nodded slightly and each began to collect their spoils of war.

Shi Pan also busied himself, helping Sun Yao collect the remains of the Wood Demon.

Shi Jian wrapped the Spirit-Nurturing Stones in animal hide, sealed the Thick Earth Essence with Spiritual Qi, stuffed them one by one into his Storage Pouch, and then swallowed it into his belly.

After doing all this, Shi Jian swept his peripheral vision over Sun Yao's back, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

This little girl is quite smart; she hasn't been doted on in vain!

From beginning to end, she never asked where the heaven and earth qi had gone, didn't even glance at it, and didn't reveal the slightest clue.

Even when recounting the battle, she avoided the wording, leaving no flaws in any of the terms that might trigger associations.

It wasn't an act; she truly understands the rules.

For some things, the fewer people who know, the better.

Once wind of a treasure at the level of heaven and earth qi leaks out, let alone Yun Che, even that old Daoist Daoist Yun Du would be tempted.

When that time comes, should he hand it over or not?

If he hands it over, his path to the Golden Core might be half severed.

If he doesn't, he would have to fall out with the entire White Cloud Temple.

Therefore, the best method is for the heaven and earth qi not to exist.

Even if this wisp of wood-attribute heaven and earth qi is not compatible with Shi Jian, it does not hinder its value, which is incomparable.

Even if he just leaves it there to nourish it, it could artificially create a blessed land, strengthening the local energy and foundation; Shi Jian is a demon!

He can integrate into the society of the Human Race for the sake of his plan...

But in essence, everything must serve himself!

It is impossible for him to let go of this Opportunity; even if it rots in his hands, he cannot let it be revealed, and even less can he let it go.

In the future, he could also use this to exchange for heaven and earth qi of the Way of Thunder; holding it in his hand without using it versus not having it at all are two completely different concepts.

From beginning to end, there was no heaven and earth qi in Youyun Valley.

There was only a Wood Demon about to reach Core Formation, which he killed by risking half his life, and no third person was present.

This explanation is simply perfect.

...

An incense stick of time later, the three of them finished packing up and left Youyun Valley.

When passing through the water curtain, Shi Jian looked back.

The withered valley, the grey-white remains of trees, the dried-up riverbed.

A hundred years later, this place will regain its vitality, but by then, it will have nothing to do with him; he only took what he should have taken.

They left Youyun Valley.

The three of them traveled eastward along the mountain ridge, their goal very clear.

Pointing straight to the core area of the Secret Realm!

That huge blank area on the map is the main event of this trip.

Yun Che walked in the front, his pace extremely fast; with the movement techniques of a Sword Cultivator, even if he could not fly with his sword, his speed was still extremely fast.

Sun Yao rode on Shi Pan's back; Shi Pan's stamina had recovered more than half, his limbs were steady, and he ran no slower than the escape speed of an ordinary Cultivator.

Shi Jian brought up the rear, unhurried and steady.

His injuries had not yet fully healed; the shattered bones in his right palm were still slowly mending, and the penetrating wound on his back had improved slightly, forming a layer of blood scab.

The right arm part of the thunder-covering mysterious armor was completely ruined, leaving only the left arm and the chest and back armor intact, its power greatly reduced...

Along the way, the group encountered many other Cultivators.

There were those traveling in groups, those traveling alone, and those who had already turned into corpses; who knows how many Prodigies have been buried here...

When passing by a gravel beach, Shi Jian saw seven corpses lying helter-skelter on the ground, the Storage Pouches on their bodies having long been looted clean.

Three Cultivators from Wei State and four demonic Cultivators from Jin State.

Looking at the traces of the wounds, both sides must have perished together after engaging in close-quarters combat.

The Secret Realm had been open for less than half a month, and the slaughter was already blossoming everywhere.

Yun Che glanced at it without even stopping his pace.

Sun Yao also frowned slightly, then looked away.

Shi Jian couldn't even be bothered to look; the corpses of such minor characters weren't even worth looting.

They traveled for another half day.

The terrain ahead rose abruptly, and a black mountain ridge lay across their path; the mountain was pitch black, and the rock surface shone with a metallic luster.

The concentration of Spiritual Qi in the air rose sharply as they approached this mountain ridge.

At this moment, Shi Jian's nose twitched.

He smelled a familiar scent; it was the scent of thunder...

In the air, there was also a trace of extremely faint thunder-spirit qi, so thin it could almost be ignored, which ordinary Cultivators would naturally not be able to sense.

But for Shi Jian, this subtle fluctuation of aura was extremely clear!

Even the silver electric arc on his demon core accelerated by half a circle unconsciously, gradually starting to become active...

"Wait."

Shi Jian spoke; Yun Che stopped upon hearing this and turned to look at him.

Sun Yao also reined in Shi Pan.

Shi Jian raised his head, his vertical pupils staring at the black mountain ridge, his nostrils twitching several times to confirm he hadn't smelled wrong.

"There is residual thunder qi in this mountain."

Upon hearing this, Yun Che took out the map and unfolded it, compared it with the landmarks for a few moments, and his brows moved slightly.

"This is already close to the outer periphery of the Secret Realm's core, and it is not marked on the map."

Not marked.

Either predecessors hadn't been here, or those who had been here couldn't return alive to make a mark, signaling danger!

Shi Jian was silent for three breaths before making a decision.

"You go ahead first; I will go take a look."

Yun Che glanced at him: "Your injuries haven't healed yet."

"I won't die."

Shi Jian flicked his bear paw and said in a casual tone: "This seat smelled something good; if I don't go check it out, I won't be able to sleep soundly."

Seeing this situation, Yun Che did not try to persuade him again; he understood this feeling.

When a Sword Cultivator encounters a good sword, they also cannot help but observe it; this is essentially the same thing, both for the sake of pursuing their respective Daos.

"Alright, Fellow Daoist Shi, please be careful."

"Keep the induction disk well; we will meet at that three-pronged peak ahead in three days."

Shi Jian gave an affirmative grunt.

Sun Yao wanted to say something but stopped, finally only saying four words:

"Old Ancestor, take care."

Shi Jian didn't look back; he dropped to all fours and crept toward the black mountain ridge.

Soon, his figure disappeared at the mountain ridge line, then vanished into the darkness, nowhere to be seen; this separation lasted half a day...

When Shi Jian crossed layers of mountain ridges, the concentration of thunder qi had significantly increased!

It was not a Formation set up by humans, nor was it an aura emitted by spiritual plants.

It was natural thunder-spirit qi, seeping out from the depths of the mountain in the distance, spreading into the air along the cracks in the rocks.

The deeper Shi Jian went, the faster the silver electric arc on his demon core spun.

This feeling was very similar to what he felt in the Stone Forest of Qingfeng Mountain, but it was richer, purer, and made him even more fascinated!

After passing through a narrow rift valley, Shi Jian stopped his steps.

Ahead was an open mountain basin; in the center of the basin stood a pitch-black stone tower, appearing quite ancient...

The stone tower was about thirty zhang high, the tower body carved with ancient runes; the runes had dimmed, but one could vaguely see the trend of the thunder patterns.

And at the top of the stone tower—

A fist-sized purple-gold qi mass was slowly rotating.

Electric arcs leaped on the surface of the qi mass, and every jump caused a subtle tremor in the surrounding space; that Dao rhyme was thick, fierce, and domineering.

Shi Jian's breathing stopped for a full three breaths, then turned into wild joy!

Thunder-attribute: Purple Cloud Golden Lightning Qi!