Chapter 182: Golden Core's Move – Cracking the Storage Bag

Chapter 182: Golden Core's Move – Cracking the Storage Bag

Under normal circumstances, the Yellow Spring Palace boasted an intricate Decree Talisman and a complete Sealing Formation. Only Foundation Building cultivators could enter, and the palace would remain open for a full month before sealing shut again. Through this rigorous trial, new legacy-bearers would be chosen to revitalize the Yellow Spring Path.

However, due to the betrayal of the Artifact Spirit and the relentless efforts of over a dozen Golden Core Zhenren from both orthodox and demonic sects working day and night to dismantle the defenses, the original Sealing Formation had largely failed. The palace itself had suffered severe damage. Now, the Yellow Spring Palace had become a battlefield for Golden Core Zhenren. No one had time to exploit the forbidden realm—everyone’s sole goal was seizing the Yellow Spring Path’s legacy.

The Demonic Dao Golden Core cultivators needed no explanation; they understood the power of the Yellow Spring Secret Technique better than anyone. The orthodox Golden Core Zhenren, unwilling to let the demonic sects profit, also aimed to claim the legacy first and eliminate the threat at its root.

For outsiders like Yao Hua Zhenren and Mingyan Zhenren, their priorities included searching for third-tier Spirit Herbs or spiritual artifacts left behind by the Yellow Spring Path. After all, as the saying went: "Even a dead camel is bigger than a horse." The Yellow Spring Path had once nearly dominated the Southern Domain, and everyone believed the palace still held countless third-tier Spirit Herbs and multiple spiritual artifacts.

Since the Random Teleportation Formation had caused minimal disturbance and self-destructed without a trace, no one yet knew Xiao Chen had already taken the legacy and all the treasures. Everyone assumed the exit had just opened, the trial still ongoing, with Spirit Herbs and artifacts waiting to be unearthed.

Thus, the Demonic Dao cultivators had prepared thoroughly. They were willing to pay the price of Vital Blood and lifespan to secure the legacy.

In terms of timing, the orthodox Golden Core Zhenren had initially opened the palace exit first. However, their original goal had been rescuing disciples trapped inside, so they hadn’t immediately destroyed the Sealing Formation. Instead, they used spiritual sense to transmit instructions, guiding the Foundation Building cultivators to evacuate orderly.

In contrast, the Divine Flame Cult cared nothing for casualties. The moment the Sealing Formation was destroyed, the Demonic Dao Golden Core Zhenren rushed in one after another, seizing advantageous positions and deploying spiritual artifacts to block the orthodox cultivators’ advance, gaining an early advantage.

Of course, this came at a cost: most Demonic Dao Foundation Building cultivators hadn’t even begun evacuating when they were caught in the crossfire of the Golden Core Zhenren’s battle. Many slower-moving orthodox cultivators were also dragged into the chaos.

"Bright Flame Fellow Cultivator, hold on! There are still juniors inside!" Yao Hua Zhenren urgently warned as Mingyan Zhenren’s endless stream of spirit flames surged forward.

Before Mingyan Zhenren could respond, the Yu Sha Cultivator on the other side shouted while unleashing a spell: "Yao Hua Fellow Cultivator, don’t hesitate! If we don’t act now, the demonic sects will seize the legacy!"

While the three still had time for conversation, Lei Yin Zhenren from the Spirit Origin Sect, the Sword-Bearer Zhenren, and Jin Jian Zhenren from the Cangyan Sect had already charged into the Yellow Spring Palace under the protection of their spiritual artifacts. They cared nothing for the presence of Foundation Building cultivators or their identities, attacking without restraint.

Yao Hua Zhenren waved her hand, unfurling a colorful sash to assist her allies from the flank while secretly advancing toward the Golden Coffin’s underground chamber.

But soon, a billowing blood mist blocked her path. "Hehehe, Yao Hua Fellow Cultivator, if you want to enter the main tomb, you’ll have to get through me first!" Poison Sha Zhenren’s voice emerged from the crimson mist.

Having come prepared, the demonic sects had coordinated their roles before entering the palace. Poison Sha Zhenren’s task was to intercept Yao Hua Zhenren. His blood mist, specially refined, could block spiritual senses and most divination techniques, making it hard to pinpoint his location. This countered Wan Hua Valley’s famed Flying Flower Secret Technique.

Right now, eighty-one blossoms swirled around Yao Hua Zhenren, making her appear as ethereal as a celestial being. However, without spiritual sense to lock onto targets, the flowers’ sharp edge remained dormant.

This counter worked both ways. One could also say Yao Hua Zhenren’s Flying Flower Secret Technique had trapped Poison Sha Zhenren in the blood mist, preventing him from escaping. However, since Poison Sha had entered the palace first, his position within the mist was more advantageous.

"Spring blooms myriad flowers—meet the Narcissus!" Yao Hua Zhenren’s jade-like finger flicked, and six elegant white umbrella-shaped flowers bloomed within the mist. Each flower had six petals, slicing through the surrounding fog.

At the same time, a rich floral fragrance spread—not overpowering, but fresh and refined.

"Haha! Hidden toxins in the flower scent?" Poison Sha Zhenren’s voice carried mockery. "Wan Hua Valley claims orthodoxy, yet stoops to esoteric path techniques?"

Of course, while speaking, he was secretly poisoning the air. His words were merely a distraction. His colorless, odorless, invisible poison mist would drain a cultivator’s mana the moment it touched their skin.

But alas, Yao Hua Zhenren was no naive girl. She had set up early warning measures. The moment the poison approached, one of her flowers changed color, signaling the danger. With a flick of her sleeve, a fragrant breeze blew back the invisible toxins.

The exchange took only three breaths. The two then clashed seven or eight more times, neither gaining an advantage.

Similar stalemates played out elsewhere. Though the Golden Core Zhenren appeared to unleash their full power, mana surging across hundreds of meters, they weren’t reckless. They tested each other cautiously, holding back their ultimate techniques.

This wasn’t deliberate restraint—rather, they started with standard moves, saving their trump cards. Most duels between same-tier cultivators rarely ended quickly. The higher the cultivation realm, the more critical survival techniques became, prolonging battles.

Xiao Chen often defeated opponents in a few moves because his multi-faceted advantages completely overwhelmed them. But among the Golden Core Zhenren in the Yellow Spring Palace, no such disparity existed. The battle inevitably became a stalemate, intensifying gradually.

The chaos wasn’t confined to the palace. Even cultivators who escaped found themselves in new fights. Those from sects stayed together, their numbers offering protection and orderly retreats. But solitary cultivators weren’t so lucky. Some tried fleeing danger, only to be ambushed mid-journey.

Initially, suspicions arose that others had obtained treasures in the Yellow Spring Palace, prompting opportunistic attacks. Later, seeing injured cultivators, others grew malicious. Whether or not their targets had treasures, killing them guaranteed loot.

At this point, order had collapsed. Some even used the chaos to settle old grudges, expanding the violence until nearly all solitary cultivators turned on each other. The entire Hezhou region descended into turmoil.

Yet, while everyone fought bitterly over the Yellow Spring Palace’s legacy, Xiao Chen had quietly escaped with all the treasures. Using a teleportation formation, he landed in a remote mountain range ten thousand miles away.

The only flaw? He landed directly inside the mountain, buried head-to-toe in thick layers of loess. Any ordinary cultivator would’ve perished or lost half their life force. Random teleportation had its pros and cons—its defining feature was complete unpredictability. Not only could enemies not track the destination, but even the user couldn’t guess where they’d end up.

But the teleportation was necessary. After all, within a ten-thousand-mile radius of the Yellow Spring Palace, the palace itself was the most dangerous place, swarming with Golden Core Zhenren.

Half a shi-chen later…

Boom!

An arm suddenly burst from a hillside cave. Xiao Chen pulled himself out of the earth. "Phew! Finally out! Almost suffocated in there!"

The mountain’s core was granite mixed with solid spiritual soil. Fortunately, his Body Cultivation had reached a high level—otherwise, escaping so quickly would’ve been impossible.

Looking around, he saw a black bear waking from sleep behind him, its mouth agape, black eyes staring blankly.

"Oh, you’re here too?" Xiao Chen recognized the bear immediately—it was the same one he’d encountered in a cave years ago when breaking through at Yuan Ci Peak’s western side.

"What a coincidence! We meet again so soon. Is this your new home?"

The bear recognized Xiao Chen too. It scrambled up and bolted out on all fours. A distant roar echoed minutes later.

Since the bear had abandoned the cave, Xiao Chen settled down cross-legged to rest. Seeing the bear confirmed his location, easing his worries.

Remote was fine—so long as he hadn’t been teleported into the Wanyao Mountain Range or east to Quanzhou, he’d be safe.

After a brief rest to replenish mana and energy, Xiao Chen leisurely pulled out his collection of storage bags and began cracking them open.

Indeed, he now possessed a pile of storage bags. Most came from the six brothers guarding the bronze gate in the underground chamber—thirteen alone from them. A few others came from reckless demonic cultivators in the labyrinth and Zhou Xingyuan, who’d appeared suddenly in the underground chamber wielding Metal Spirit Thunder. Zhou had three storage bags himself, totaling twenty-three.

This was the largest haul of storage bags he’d ever collected, second only to his demon-hunting spoils near Qingyang Mountain.

Now, cracking storage bags was second nature to Xiao Chen—hardly an expert, but certainly skilled through practice.

Under normal circumstances, refining a single storage bag required at least one full cycle of two hours.

Yet he'd finished refining all the storage bags in just eight hours.

Nearly three times faster than an average cultivator.

"Are they all this poor? Not even a single spiritual artifact among them."

Xiao Chen shook his head slightly as he examined the items inside the storage bags.

Objectively speaking, these storage bags were much better than the ones he'd acquired last time.

The demonic cultivators from back then had mostly relied on rapid advancement techniques, leaving them with practically no resources—utterly destitute.

This time, the demonic cultivators were elite troops, comparatively wealthier.

But compared to three months ago, Xiao Chen's standards had risen significantly.

Compared to his time at Li Zhou, the difference was night and day.

Now, even when he saw top-grade magic artifacts, he no longer felt the same excitement he'd experienced when obtaining the Treasure Gourd of Hidden Flame.

What replaced that excitement was a sense of routine.

"This cloud-patterned embroidered robe is hideous. Might as well sell it later for spirit stones."

"There's also a brand-new Secret-Forged Round Scale Shield. Defense magic artifacts are in good demand lately—I can sell this too."

"Another White Bone Staff? This orthodox design isn't even popular among Dao cultivators. Hard to resell."

"But this Returning Yang Vajra Bracelet has a decent design. I'll keep it for myself."

After finishing his appraisal of the top-grade magic artifacts, Xiao Chen couldn't even be bothered to examine the remaining eleven superior-grade ones in detail.

However, one particular mid-grade magic artifact caught his attention.

It was a custom-made inkstone, looking brand new as if it had never been used.

"This might be worth keeping. Maybe I can use it as a decorative piece someday."

Xiao Chen mused. Once he had his own study in the future, he could display a complete set of magic artifact versions of the "Four Treasures of the Study."

The rest of the items were lumped together as clutter—various pills, spirit herbs, and cultivation manuals included.

Now that he'd reached the peak of Foundation Building, these second-tier cultivation manuals, regardless of their level, had become irrelevant.

"Huh, what just passed by?"

Holding a single storage bag, he was about to organize the useless cultivation manuals separately when he suddenly noticed the bold characters Introduction to Formation Dao.

He flipped it open again. Sure enough, it detailed the basics of formation crafting and instructions for setting up several simple first-tier formations.

Including the classic Spirit Gathering Formation, divided into Minor and Major variants.

"Formation Dao?"

Xiao Chen flipped through the manual. "Maybe I should keep this and learn a bit?"

The idea stemmed from long-term planning.

After forming a Golden Core, cultivators gained at least three centuries of life, sometimes up to five.

Thus, many Golden Core cultivators studied secondary skills to pass the time.

With their extended lifespans and powerful spiritual senses, even brute-force cultivation could yield progress.

Most cultivators didn't limit themselves to a single path, branching into other disciplines.

Formations made an excellent choice.

Even if he couldn't become a master formationist, basic knowledge would help him escape enemy formations.

From his observations, at least in the Southern Domain, many Golden Core cultivators learned formation basics.

Like the massive defense formations set up by Spirit Origin Sect at Xunmei Mountain and Luoyan Mountain.

Or the six formation disks embedded with mid-grade spirit stones carried by the Four Great Wanderers during Divine Flame Cult's invasion.

Or recently, outside Yellow Spring Palace, several Golden Core Zhenren had collaborated to dismantle a sealing formation.

After seeing so many examples, he'd developed an interest in learning formations himself.

"Hmm, this needs careful planning."

Xiao Chen pondered. "I'll keep this Introduction to Formation Dao for now, but actual study can wait until after my Golden Core formation."

"For now, I should focus on getting to Qingxiao Sect to search their spirit vein for malevolent qi."

With that decision, he carefully stored the Introduction to Formation Dao.

He checked the remaining cultivation manuals but found no further surprises.

One demonic cultivator had carried the Yellow Spring Path Secret Technique, but Xiao Chen had already seen the complete version—including third-tier cultivation methods—on the Legacy Jade Slip.

Combined, the twenty-three storage bags contained a staggering 137,700 spirit stones.

Another massive influx of wealth forced him to dedicate a separate storage bag solely for spirit stones.

Looking at his collection of storage bags, Xiao Chen couldn't help but mutter, "Well, look at me now—I'm practically becoming a four-bag disciple of the Beggar Sect."

Even excluding the empty ones, four storage bags hung in a row from his right waist, two of them completely full.

This was partly due to his growing resources, far exceeding those of ordinary cultivators.

It also stemmed from his habit of carrying all his assets with him.

Noble families might have vast reserves, but they stored most in clan vaults rather than carrying them personally.

"I should visit the Eastern Territory someday to get a Storage Ring like the books describe."

While reading The Eastern Journey, he'd noted mentions of the Storage Ring—a special spiritual artifact with far greater capacity than storage bags, easily holding massive quantities of basic supplies.

They were also safer, immune to prying eyes.

Some even had self-destruction traps that would destroy the ring permanently if tampered with incorrectly.

This feature deterred bandit cultivators effectively.

Since acquiring a Storage Ring didn't guarantee access to its contents, many cultivators avoided the hassle altogether.

"Pity the good stuff's all in the Eastern Territory. Can't think about that now."

Securing his waist pouches tightly, Xiao Chen exited the cave and flew toward Xianghe Bazaar.

He planned to wait there for news and gather updates.

As for Yuan Ci Peak, though its spiritual energy was abundant and comfortable, he'd avoid returning until after his Golden Core breakthrough.

With so many treasures on him, he couldn't risk attracting the envy of a Golden Core Zhenren.

Though the risk was low, Xiao Chen decided caution was warranted.

To obscure his trail—especially preventing anyone from suspecting a teleportation array—he donned the Cloak of Hidden Tracks for the first time in ages and deliberately avoided towns, flying through remote wilderness instead.

Yet despite his precautions, he encountered an ambush midway.

A Foundation Building female cultivator in a crimson robe, strikingly beautiful, was chasing a white-robed youth.

"Fellow cultivator, save me!"

The fleeing youth spotted Xiao Chen approaching leisurely and brightened.

"Esteemed fellow cultivator, I'm Hu Feipeng of Hu Yang Ridge! Please help me, and I'll reward you handsomely!"

Hu Yang Ridge lay six hundred li northwest—close for Foundation Building cultivators.

Though not a major clan, the Hu family was well-known locally.

Hu Feipeng invoked his clan's name, hoping to gain assistance through reputation.

Unseen beneath his hood, Xiao Chen's gaze held a cold edge as he observed the pair.

Since he'd encountered them, should he eliminate both to cover his tracks?

It would be effortless to kill these two—a Fifth Layer and a Seventh Floor cultivator.

But as the thought arose, he immediately snapped to alertness.

No, something was wrong. Why would he think this?

Hu Feipeng had no grudge against him, had committed no crimes, and wasn't even a demonic cultivator. Killing him was unjustifiable.

He'd become too ruthless after killing so many demonic cultivators lately.

This wasn't good. Even cultivators should have conscience and principles.

Better to do two good deeds to balance things out.

Normally, Xiao Chen would have left discreetly, but he decided to help.

Call it a daily act of virtue.

He halted his sword beam, blocking the female cultivator's path between her and Hu Feipeng.

Using the Cloak of Hidden Tracks to disguise his voice, he said, "Ahem, since I've encountered this situation, I ask both cultivators to pause and explain the matter."

"Why are you pursuing this fellow cultivator?"

Hu Feipeng quickly took cover behind Xiao Chen, catching his breath and restoring his mana.

The female cultivator also halted her sword beam, frowning as she sized him up.

Then she flicked a talisman between her fingers, threatening, "Old man, this isn't your business. Don't interfere."

"Step aside, or don't blame me for my talisman's power."

Xiao Chen silently retrieved the newly acquired White Bone Staff from his storage bag.

This artifact was unused, so it wouldn't reveal his identity.

Channeling mana, the staff glowed with a pale light. "Perhaps we should all calm down. What do you think?"

If they weren't blind, they'd recognize this as a top-grade magic artifact.

Sure enough, Hu Feipeng's eyes widened, forgetting to catch his breath.

His face quickly turned pale, a chill running down his spine.

"Out of the frying pan, into the fire."

Judging by the artifact's design, this was a Dharma Foundation Building cultivator from the Demonic Dao who'd infiltrated Spirit Origin Sect's rear.

Seeing the Cloak of Hidden Tracks, his face paled further.

Who travels in a black robe in broad daylight?

Definitely no good person!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end