49: Chapter 49 Baocheng Mountain

"Though this furnace is massive, it is not a true Great Furnace of Heaven and Earth. It should be the work of a Nascent Soul cultivator!"

Yue Shanhe shook his head, his eyes also filled with shock as he said emotionally, "A true Great Furnace of Heaven and Earth must be the work of a Soul Transformation cultivator!!"

He was well-informed, having seen records of the Shanhai Sect's past glory in the sect's secret grounds.

Among them was a description of the Great Furnace of Heaven and Earth!

Thousands of meters in height and width, it connected to Earth Fire below and Heaven Wind above. Every time the furnace opened to refine treasures, the world would shake, and the winds and clouds would shift as if a calamity were descending!

On the day the treasure was completed, spiritual light would shine for ten thousand miles, visible from afar!!

After their expressions of wonder, the group glanced at the three words "Baocheng Mountain" on the stone tablet and headed toward the palace complex on the mountain.

On Baocheng Mountain.

Two figures were fighting in mid-air.

One had hair that was entirely white, a withered and aged face, and his entire body's magical power was mottled and unstable.

He was being forced into a purely defensive position by the attacks of another middle-aged cultivator who was stout and built like a bear.

The middle-aged cultivator summoned a large axe, gripped the handle with both hands, and hacked downward, snorting coldly, "A mere rogue cultivator dares to try and take a share?"

The axe's light surged over a dozen zhang, its power so fierce that even the nearby air was distorted.

The elderly cultivator summoned a round shield to resist. The shield's spiritual light condensed into a barrier that looked like crystal.

However, when it met the axe blade, it failed to block it for even a moment and shattered instantly!

The elderly cultivator was split in half by the axe, his flesh and blood pierced into a bloody mist by the power radiating from the axe light.

"Elder Lei's Divine Axe Technique has improved once again!"

A nearby cultivator with thick hair and a snow-white beard commented.

His physique was even more burly and strong than the middle-aged cultivator holding the giant axe. His eyes were bright, and his skin was full of vitality.

Though that Elder Lei was arrogant, he replied modestly at this moment, "It still cannot compare to Elder Long's Heaven-Shaking Hammer!"

Both were cultivators from the Juling Mountain Sect. Their cultivation methods specialized in physical strength combined with spiritual power, making their bodies as hard as iron.

The weapons they forged were all of the bold and heavy variety: axes, hammers, shields, heavy swords, heavy spears, great halberds, and crescent blades.

There were seven true inheritance techniques within the sect, each using one of the seven weapons mentioned above, collectively known as the 'Seven Saint Techniques'!

"Elder Lei, do not be overly modest. You are nearly a hundred years younger than I am. Surpassing this old man in future achievements is only a matter of time!"

Elder Long said.

Before the two could continue their mutual flattery and bonding, seven people were seen walking up from the foot of the mountain.

Among the group from Juling Mountain Sect, a young, muscular cultivator stepped forward and said, "More people are coming. This disciple will go and warn them!"

"Mm."

Elder Long briefly scanned the cultivation levels of the people below. Finding they were all at the Qi Refining stage, he nodded slightly in agreement.

The muscular cultivator walked down from above and asked loudly, "Who are you?"

Yue Shanhe looked up, smiling without a word.

Fei Youqing beside him naturally understood. It was not the place of the Mountain and River Sect's Sect Master to answer a mere disciple, so he stepped forward and said, "We are cultivators of the Mountain and River Sect!"

The muscular cultivator frowned upon hearing this. He thought carefully for a moment but found he had no impression of the name.

He then turned to look at Elders Long and Lei behind him. Seeing they showed no reaction, he understood immediately.

He scolded, "This place has already been occupied by my Juling Mountain Sect. I advise you not to make a mistake. Withdraw quickly, and you may still preserve your lives!"

The rest of the Juling Mountain group nodded one after another, no longer paying attention to Yue Shanhe and the others below.

A group of minor Qi Refining cultivators, when encountering Foundation Establishment cultivators, could only withdraw!

Did they not see a Foundation Establishment rogue cultivator split apart here just now?

There were still several places left to visit, and Bai Cang did not want to waste time lest others take everything.

At this moment, he revealed his true form. Heavy demonic power shrouded the sky as he said, "I have taken a liking to this place. Are you all willing to part with it?"

"A Peak Second-Rank Great Demon?!!"

Elders Long and Lei turned pale with fright. They scanned Yue Shanhe and the others, thinking hard about the origin of this sect.

Yet, they could find no information at all.

"The two elders who came with me this time are both at the third level of Foundation Establishment, and I alone am at the sixth level. To contend with the tiger demon before us is nothing but a pipe dream..."

Elder Long, the one with the highest cultivation among the three Juling Mountain elders, thought silently. He gritted his teeth and said with difficulty, "This is a bit too much..."

"In the struggle for the Great Dao, the weak are prey to the strong. How can you call it 'too much'? I advise you not to make a mistake and throw your lives away for nothing!"

Bai Cang's tiger eyes swept over the Juling Mountain group, throwing their own words back at them as killing intent surfaced.

Everyone he looked at trembled, dripping with sweat and not daring to raise their heads.

Elder Long finally let out a long sigh and said, "Withdraw!" He then led his people down the mountain, fleeing in haste.

After descending the mountain, he said:

"With such a massive furnace present, this Huihai Sect must have been a sect presided over by a Nascent Soul cultivator in the past. Yet, the strongest in my Ming Kingdom for a thousand years has been no more than a Core Formation cultivator..."

"Today, there is only Ancestor Qingyang of the Mingxuan Sect, and he is only at the weakest False Core stage. This opportunity must not be missed!

"We can send a message to the sect and have them send reinforcements!!"

What he said was correct.

The thousand-year balance between the three kingdoms of Ming, Xue, and Lin was maintained because the strongest cultivators were only at the Golden Core stage.

Ancestor Qingyang of the Mingxuan Sect, as a False Core cultivator, relied entirely on the sect's foundation to maintain the Ming Kingdom's equal status with the other two nations.

The so-called False Core cultivators...

...was the title for those who advanced to the Golden Core realm by stealing the inner core of a third-rank demonic beast or by using an 'Instrument Core' refined from the Golden Core of a cultivator who did not die of old age.

Once one formed a core using a False Core, they would never be able to advance another step in their life.

This method was only chosen by cultivators with little hope of forming a true core, in order to enjoy the extra three hundred years of lifespan.

The fact that Ancestor Qingyang of the Mingxuan Sect could be ambushed and heavily injured by the Luanjian Sect was likely due to the weaker magical power of a False Core.

After Bai Cang scared off the Juling Mountain group, he said to Yue Shanhe and Fei Youqing, "You all go and find your own opportunities."

"Yes, Ancestor Bai!"

Everyone bowed in salute, then excitedly rushed toward the palace complex on the mountain.

After watching them leave, Bai Cang looked toward a golden palace at the highest point of Baocheng Mountain, where several spiritual auras stood faintly.

It was time for his recently favorite treasure-collecting segment. He turned into a streak of golden light and charged toward that golden palace.

Landing inside the hall, his gaze swept over the surroundings.

Many artifacts, like the pills before, had rotted away under the erosion of time, their spirituality lost, appearing as useless scrap metal at a glance.

However, six artifacts still held their treasure light, floating within the protection of restrictions.

Bai Cang walked to the first one, which was a spiritual sword.

The edges of the blade were silver-white, and in the center was a wave-like azure dragon body extending to the hilt.

The hilt was where the dragon's head was located, with a dragon eye as red as blood crystal.

Dragon Tide Sword, a peak second-rank artifact. Swinging it can easily trigger ocean tides, and it can exert its greatest power on water!

Bai Cang clicked his tongue in admiration and couldn't help but play with it for a moment.

Unfortunately, he was a tiger after all; he couldn't exactly wear white robes and roam the world with a sword!

Bai Cang thought to himself, "If Miao Miao truly has talent for cultivation, I can give this sword to her in the future!"

He still remembered that she practiced a set of Green Wave Sword Techniques and had danced with her sword to entertain him many times.

Looking at the second item, it was a small rhomboid shield, completely transparent as if made entirely of water, named the Water Curtain Shield.

It was a defensive artifact, also of peak second-rank quality!