14: Another top-tier magical artifact! Thousand-year-old mystic ice!

Time flew by, and three days passed.

Yellow Maple Valley, Wind Sand Valley.

This place was named because it was covered year-round by an unknown astral wind. The wind was so fierce that it was enough to tear apart ordinary spiritual energy shields; ordinary Qi Refining Stage Cultivators simply could not set foot here.

Lu Qiu's figure appeared at the valley entrance.

He stared at the world of flying sand and stones ahead, a world of dim yellow, and a clear piece of information emerged in his mind.

[silver information: Deep within Wind Sand Valley, there is hidden a fallen Foundation Establishment Cultivator's Immortal Cave. Due to year-round erosion by the astral wind, the protective Restriction outside the cave has been completely destroyed.]

Without the slightest hesitation, Lu Qiu took out a Talisman from his Storage Pouch.

The Talisman paper was pale yellow, with complex and profound cinnabar runes upon it, spiritual light flowing; it was an Elementary High Grade Wind-Settling Talisman.

Mana was injected, and the Talisman spontaneously ignited without fire.

A visible green barrier instantly spread out with him as the center, forming an absolutely still area three feet in diameter.

Those violent astral winds blew against the barrier, only stirring up layers of ripples, but were unable to penetrate in the slightest.

Ready, Lu Qiu stepped into Wind Sand Valley.

The deeper he went, the more terrifying the wind became, making the green barrier buzz and its light flicker, as if it would shatter at any moment.

Lu Qiu's expression remained unchanged as the mana within his body was continuously channeled into the barrier, maintaining its stability.

After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, under immense pressure, he finally reached the core area of the valley indicated by the information.

This was a relatively flat area of scattered rocks where the astral wind swirled, its power several times stronger than at the valley entrance.

A flash of spiritual light appeared in Lu Qiu's eyes.

Heavenly Eye Technique!

Everything around him instantly became different in his eyes; the flow of Spiritual Qi and the remnants of Formations were all laid bare.

Soon, he discovered a faint spiritual energy fluctuation under an unremarkable cliff face.

It was a cave entrance half-hidden by scattered rocks. On the stone walls around the entrance, some Formation engravings that had long lost their spirituality could still be seen.

Clearly, this Immortal Cave had remained in this place for a very long time.

Lu Qiu restrained his aura and approached cautiously.

After confirming that the Immortal Cave's Restriction had indeed completely failed, he slipped inside.

Inside the Immortal Cave, there was a whole other world.

A stale scent wafted towards him.

The Immortal Cave was not large and the furnishings were simple, with only a stone bed and a stone table.

Most eye-catching was a small patch of spiritual field carved out in a corner of the Immortal Cave.

Over a dozen types of Spirit Medicine were planted in the field. Although it looked somewhat messy due to lack of care, every plant was full of Spiritual Qi and of impressive age.

"Blood Vein Grass, at least three hundred years old!"

"Red Flame Fruit, looking at this color, it's probably close to five hundred years!"

"And this... Spirit Concentration Flower!"

Lu Qiu's heartbeat quickened a bit.

Almost every one of these Spirit Medicines started at several hundred years of age. Placed in a market, any one of them could be sold for a high price.

Just based on this small medicinal field, its value was no less than several thousand Spirit Stones.

I've struck it rich.

He suppressed the excitement in his heart and turned his gaze toward the stone bed.

On the stone bed sat a dried-up skeleton, wearing the tattered robes of a Yellow Maple Valley Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator, still clutching a dusty grey Storage Pouch in its hand.

Lu Qiu stepped forward and respectfully bowed to the skeleton.

"Rest in peace, Senior. This Junior has no intention of disturbing you, only seeking an Opportunity. Your belongings will be put to good use by this Junior."

Having said that, he carefully took the Storage Pouch.

Then, with a wave of his hand, a ball of flame flew out and landed on the skeleton, cremating it.

Having done all this, he did not stay for another moment. He carefully dug out all the Spirit Medicine from the medicinal field, roots and soil included, put them into his Storage Pouch, and then quickly left the Immortal Cave... Inside the Immortal Cave on Xuan Kun Mountain.

The stone door closed heavily, and several layers of Formation light screens lit up one after another, completely isolating the inside from the outside.

Lu Qiu sat on the stone bed, his heart still somewhat excited.

He couldn't wait to take out the Storage Pouch he had obtained from Wind Sand Valley.

His Divine Sense probed inside, and the sight within made his breath hitch.

A small mountain of Low-Grade Spirit Stones; a rough count showed at least three or four thousand.

Over a dozen bottles of labeled Medicinal Pills, ranging from healing to mana recovery, everything was there.

There were also several shimmering Magical Artifacts and a thick stack of Talismans.

This fallen Senior was likely a Late Stage Foundation Establishment Great Cultivator during their life, and their net worth was extremely substantial.

Lu Qiu let out a long breath of turbid air and began to organize his gains from this period.

It was time to conduct a thorough inventory of all his assets.

He wanted to sell off some things that weren't very useful to him and exchange them for resources better suited for himself, making the most complete preparations for the upcoming Blood Colored Trial.

With a thought, treasure after treasure was taken out of the Storage Pouch and placed on the stone bed.

First, regarding Magical Artifacts.

Two Top-Grade Magical Artifacts.

One was the qingming sword obtained from the Storage Pouch in Maple Leaf Forest, a top-grade offensive Magical Artifact, peerlessly sharp.

The other was a small golden bell just obtained from the Wind Sand Valley Immortal Cave, named the golden origin bell; it was a top-grade gold-attribute defensive Magical Artifact, exceptionally sturdy.

One for offense and one for defense, a perfect combination.

Additionally, there were three High-Grade Magical Artifacts and four Intermediate Magical Artifacts, basically all obtained from the Storage Pouches of the two Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivators.

Next were the Talismans.

This was currently his strongest conventional means of facing enemies.

Twelve Intermediate Talismans, each worth a lot, enough to pose a threat to an Early Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator.

Over a hundred Elementary High Grade Talismans, many of which were the results of his own refinement.

As for Elementary Middle Grade and Low Grade Talismans, there were even hundreds of them, practically a mobile Talisman treasury.

Then there were the Spirit Medicines and Medicinal Pills.

Over a dozen rare primary medicines of more than five hundred years.

Thirty-some various Spiritual Plants of over a hundred years.

The Medicinal Pills were even more varied, totaling dozens of bottles, enough for his cultivation and combat consumption for a long time.

Besides these conventional resources, several truly heart-stirring heavy treasures lay quietly on the stone bed.

A bead as red as fire, emitting a scorching aura, was exactly the magic treasure fragment, the yang pearl.

An ancient wooden box heavily restricted, hiding an unknown talisman treasure inside.

Spirit Stones, adding up all the Storage Pouches, already exceeded five thousand.

In addition, there were three newly acquired treasures.

A piece of ice the size of a human head, crystal clear all over, emitting extreme cold.

millennium profound ice!

This was a piece of gold intelligence reorganized from the daily information three days ago.

Following the guidance, Lu Qiu found this treasure at the bottom of an extremely deep cold pond in the back mountain of Yellow Maple Valley.

The water of that cold pond was bone-chillingly cold, capable of freezing even a Foundation Establishment Cultivator's Divine Sense. If he hadn't used the yang pearl to protect his body, it would have been impossible to dive to the bottom.

This millennium profound ice is a treasure for Cultivators of water-attribute Cultivation Techniques and a core material for refining certain powerful Magic Treasures and Medicinal Pills. Its value is so high that it is an extremely rare treasure even for Golden Core Stage Immortal Masters.

Beside the millennium profound ice also lay a strange metal weighing about five catties, shimmering with seven-colored light, as well as several stones covered in strange dragon-shaped patterns.

Glazed Iron, Dragon Pattern Stone.

These were also the products of two pieces of silver information provided by the System over these three days. Both were top-grade rare Materials for refining Magical Artifacts, highly sought after but hard to find.

Unknowingly, as Lu Qiu inventoried his assets, even he was startled.

Not counting the talisman treasure and yang pearl, those two priceless trump cards, the total value of these Magical Artifacts, Spirit Stones, Spirit Medicines, and Materials had already far exceeded the entire net worth of a Late Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

Perhaps even some who had just entered the Golden Core Stage as Immortal Masters might not be as wealthy as he was now.

He, a small Twelfth Layer of Qi Refining Cultivator, possessed wealth enough to drive countless Foundation Establishment Cultivators mad.

If this news were to spread, the entire Yellow Maple Valley would be shaken.