Chapter 295: Cloud-Hidden Island, the Thunderous Art

Chapter 295: Cloud-Hidden Island, the Thunderous Art

Upon hearing Wu Rongfeng's words, Chu Ning's eyes lit up with joy.

Before he could ask, Wu Rongfeng continued:

"These two materials are not commonly found in the Northern Cold Lands. We inquired about them in the Ice Fairy City but didn't gain much information.

So, we went to inquire in other places like the Divine Sound Valley.

It was there that we obtained some more accurate information, but acquiring them won't be easy."

"Do you know where these materials can be found?" Chu Ning asked, unable to contain his curiosity any longer.

Wu Rongfeng took out two jade slips and handed them to Chu Ning.

"Fellow Daoist Chu, we've recorded the information we gathered about the two materials in these jade slips. You can take a look."

Chu Ning took the jade slips and examined the first one, only to find a map inscribed on it.

"Snow Mist Valley?" he murmured.

Wu Rongfeng explained, "Indeed, we obtained this information from a senior in the Divine Sound Valley. Sixty years ago, a cultivator was seen obtaining a piece of Nine Ritual Gold in the depths of the Snow Mist Valley. However, the senior wasn't sure if the valley still contains this material after so many years. The location marked on the map is where it was seen all those years ago."

"Senior?" Chu Ning was surprised to hear this term of address.

It was unusual for a Nascent Soul cultivator to venture into the Snow Mist Valley.

Wu Rongfeng smiled and clarified, "Yes, this information comes from a Nascent Soul senior in the Divine Sound Valley. This senior entered the Snow Mist Valley sixty years ago as a late Golden Core cultivator and broke through to the Nascent Soul stage thirty years ago."

Only then did Chu Ning understand.

Wu Rongfeng continued in a solemn tone, "However, the senior's cultivation was extremely high back then, almost at the cusp of entering the Nascent Soul stage. That's why they ventured so deep into the valley—a place rarely visited by ordinary Golden Core cultivators. This might also be the reason why this material hasn't been widely circulated. Even though the Snow Mist Valley experiences a lull in its raging blizzards every decade, if you venture deep into the valley, the chances of encountering those blizzards are still high. And even without them, the extreme cold is beyond what ordinary cultivators can withstand. Fellow Daoist Chu, despite your impressive cultivation, you should still exercise caution if you decide to enter the valley."

Chu Ning nodded as he listened to Wu Rongfeng's words, carefully studying the contents of the jade slip before slowly setting it down.

Just as Wu Rongfeng had said, the marked location on the map was deep within the Snow Mist Valley, a place he knew was not easily accessible to ordinary cultivators, despite never having been there himself.

"The Snow Mist Valley will only open in nine months. Let's see if we can find these materials elsewhere first, and then decide if we need to go there," Chu Ning thought to himself. He then picked up the other jade slip to learn about the Star Core Sand.

As he perused the information on the jade slip, Chu Ning fell into a thoughtful silence.

"Cloud-Hidden Island, Di Yan!" he muttered to himself.

He looked at Wu Rongfeng and asked, "I wonder if the senior from the Divine Sound Valley knows this Di fellow. Given his reclusive nature, I'm worried that even if I go there, I might not be able to obtain the Star Core Sand."

According to the information provided by Wu Rongfeng on the jade slip, the Star Core Sand was located on an island called Cloud-Hidden Island, which was inhabited by a late Golden Core cultivator named Di Feng. He had been stuck at this stage for a long time—according to the jade slip, he was already 780 years old. With his lifespan almost at its limit, he had become even more reclusive and unpredictable due to his failed attempts at breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage. This was why Chu Ning was concerned about approaching him.

Hearing Chu Ning's question, Wu Rongfeng let out a bitter laugh. "The senior I know from the Divine Sound Valley is indeed a contemporary of this Di fellow. However, they are not on good terms and even had some conflicts in the past. If not for that, given your kindness to us, Fellow Daoist Chu, we would have asked that senior for help."

Wu Rongfeng continued, a hint of apology in his voice, "Moreover, this Di Yan fellow is quite skilled in the art of formations. The Cloud-Hidden Island is protected by his formations, and even a Nascent Soul cultivator might find it difficult to enter. That's why we didn't dare to make the request. But if you plan to go to Cloud-Hidden Island, my wife and I would be happy to accompany and assist you."

Chu Ning smiled and cupped his hands in gratitude. "Thank you for your kindness, Fellow Daoists. I'm already deeply grateful for the effort you've put into finding this information. While these two materials are important to me, I don't urgently need them right now. Rest assured, Fellow Daoists, that if I require your assistance, I won't hesitate to ask."

After concluding his words, Chu Ning steered the conversation toward other topics. They chatted for a while longer before the couple took their leave.

After they left, Chu Ning retrieved the two jade slips and fell into deep thought.

His words to Wu Rongfeng earlier had been mere courtesy. The Nine Ritual Gold and Star Core Sand were crucial to his refinement of the Golden Spirit Sword. Without them, the sword's power might be diminished. The Five Elements Chaos Manual's refinement technique also didn't include the use of rare materials like the Black Xuan Gold.

"It's a pity that Xiao Bai is still asleep. If it weren't for its slumber, those formations wouldn't be much of a restriction for me."

Chu Ning muttered to himself, his tone laced with a hint of helplessness.

Nevertheless, early the next morning, he made his way to the lower city and used a teleportation array to leave Ice Fairy City.

There were three relatively large landmasses in the Northern Cold Lands. One was the Snowpeak Mountain Range, where Ice Fairy City was located.

To its south lay the boundless Infinity Sea.

And to the west, across a strait, was the larger of the three, the Sea Cloud Basin, which was even more expansive than the Snowpeak Mountains and housed several powers.

The largest among them was the Illusion Spirit Sect.

The sect boasted several Nascent Soul cultivators within its ranks.

There were teleportation arrays connecting the three lands of the Northern Cold Lands, including one between the Sea Cloud Basin and Ice Fairy City.

The teleportation arrays were under the control of the three major forces, and the one in the Sea Cloud Basin was located in Haiyan City, five hundred miles away from the Illusion Spirit Sect.

Chu Ning used the teleportation array to reach Haiyan City, where he stayed for three days to gather information about the surrounding area and purchase local maps before flying south.

The Sea Cloud Basin was also connected to the Infinity Sea, and its inner sea region was significantly larger than that of Ice Fairy City.

It was dotted with numerous islands, big and small, offering abundant opportunities for cultivators to train, more so than in the region around Ice Fairy City.

Among them, the larger islands were occupied by various sects.

Smaller islands were inhabited by loose cultivators.

And there were a handful of tiny isles that, while lacking sufficient spirit veins to support the establishment of a sect, were still of decent quality and thus claimed by powerful Golden Core cultivators.

Cloud-Hidden Island was one such isle.

Unlike most islands, where Golden Core cultivators occupied the most important cultivation sites while allowing lower-ranked cultivators to reside elsewhere, Cloud-Hidden Island was inhabited solely by a single cultivator, Di Yan, who had reached the late Golden Core stage.

He had no disciples, which lent the island an air of mystery. But due to Di Yan's formidable strength and expertise in formations, few cultivators dared to provoke him.

Chu Ning flew out from Haiyan City and traveled a distance of fifteen thousand miles before arriving near an island shrouded in thick fog.

"This must be Cloud-Hidden Island. The white mist doesn't seem natural; it's likely a result of long-term array formations.

It seems the entire island is enveloped in arrays."

Muttering to himself, Chu Ning circled the fifty-li-long and roughly thirty-li-wide island, which had an irregular shape, maintaining a hundred-zhang distance from its perimeter.

After confirming that there were no dead angles in any direction, he called out loudly, "Greetings, Fellow Daoist Di of Cloud-Hidden Island. I am Chu Ning, a loose cultivator, and I have come to visit.

Please show yourself, Fellow Daoist Di."

Chu Ning infused his voice with spiritual power, ensuring that it reached every corner of the island.

However, there was no response from within.

Chu Ning remained patient and continued, "Greetings, Fellow Daoist Di of Cloud-Hidden Island. I am Chu Ning, and I have come to visit. Please show yourself."

He repeated the greeting three times, but still, there was no reaction from the island.

Undeterred, Chu Ning reached into his spirit beast bag and released a golden thunder eagle.

He sat cross-legged on the eagle and began cultivating.

After all, the Snow Mist Valley wouldn't open for a few months, so he had plenty of time and saw no need to rush.

Half a day later, after cultivating atop the golden thunder eagle, Chu Ning recalled it and released another one.

Another half-day passed, and Chu Ning had been there for a full day.

Once more, he shouted toward the island three times in succession.

Still, there was no answer.

Chu Ning maintained his calm and did the same on the third day.

After repeating this routine for five days, on the sixth day, when Chu Ning called out again, a hoarse and aged voice suddenly sounded from the island.

"Hmph, you're a nagging little brat!"

The voice was filled with impatience.

Hearing this, Chu Ning was pleased rather than angry.

As long as the person spoke, there was a chance for dialogue.

Without hesitation, Chu Ning called out again, "Fellow Daoist Di, I've heard that your island has Star Core Sand, and I wish to obtain some. I hope you can accommodate me."

"Star Core Sand? You've been here for six days just for this?

Indeed, there is Star Core Sand on this island.

But I don't know you, so why should I give it to you? I don't have time for nonsense. Scram if you know what's good for you."

The aged voice grew increasingly impatient.

Chu Ning's eyes lit up at the mention of Star Core Sand.

"Indeed, Fellow Daoist Di, we are strangers, but I have some items of value.

If you're willing to trade, I assure you that I can offer something to your satisfaction."

"Something to my satisfaction?" Di Yan let out a cold laugh.

"I don't have many years left, so unless you have a treasure that can extend my lifespan, I'm not interested."

Upon hearing this, Chu Ning's expression froze momentarily.

While he did possess a method to extend his lifespan, it was the Nine Transformations Refining Body Technique's second volume, which increased his lifespan with each transformation.

However, even if Di Yan started cultivating it now, it might be too late.

As for other treasures that could extend one's lifespan, he had none.

Sensing Chu Ning's hesitation, the hoarse voice echoed with a hint of anger.

"If you don't have it, scram!"

Seeing that a gentle approach wasn't working, and recalling the information about Di Yan's temperament from the jade slip, Chu Ning's eyes flickered as he spoke, "Fellow Daoist Di, I've heard that you're quite accomplished in the art of formations.

"Indeed," replied Chu Ning nonchalantly. "I, Chu, would like to give it a try."

"Hmph!" Di Yan was so angry that he laughed out loud.

"If you can truly break through my formation and enter the island, then I'll give you the Star Core Sand. It's a deal!"

"Good, then it's settled," said Chu Ning, who had been waiting for these words from Di Yan.

As he finished speaking, he recalled the golden thunder eagle and stored it in his spirit beast bag.

Then, without hesitation, he flew straight toward the island.

"Hmph!"

A cold snort emanated from the island once more, but there were no further signs of activity.

As Chu Ning flew into the island, he felt himself entering a layer of white mist, obscuring his vision and making it difficult to discern his surroundings.

However, after a brief assessment, he realized that this was merely an outer layer of the formation, primarily used for isolation and blocking sight, without any offensive capabilities.

At this point, Chu Ning didn't rush to forcefully break through the formation but instead began to walk within the white mist, releasing his spiritual sense to its fullest extent and utilizing his innate talent for formations to analyze the mechanism before him.

This outer layer of restriction was not overly complex. With Chu Ning's current proficiency in formations, coupled with his innate talent, it didn't take long for him to grasp the general structure of the formation.

Chu Ning moved to a particular spot, stood still, and carefully felt the restrictions. Soon after, he executed a series of intricate hand seals, causing a gap to appear in the restrictions.

Without hesitation, he stepped through the gap.

As soon as he entered the second layer of the formation, he sensed multiple attacks rushing toward him.

His body stirred with spiritual power, and he immediately activated the Earth Spirit Rock Armor Technique, creating a protective barrier.

The incoming attacks, imbued with the power of the five elements, struck the armor but were quickly dissipated.

However, through this exchange, Chu Ning detected something intriguing.

"It actually transformed the attacks of different attributes into wood-attribute assaults..." he muttered to himself, intrigued by the shift from the initial five elements to a unified wood attribute.

"Could it be that the formation failed to identify my Earth-attribute defensive technique, and thus it utilized the principle of wood overcoming earth, switching to wood-attribute attacks? But is this transformation automatic, or is Fellow Daoist Di manipulating it?" he wondered, his curiosity piqued.

Even as these thoughts raced through his mind, Chu Ning didn't hesitate in his actions. With a casual wave of his hand, a Blazing Sun Spirit Bird took form and effortlessly shattered the incoming barrage of green light.

Then, he continued to move within the formation, sensing and analyzing it.

As time passed, the attacks became more frequent and intense, but Chu Ning was able to counter each one.

Meanwhile, his understanding of the formation deepened, and he began to grasp its underlying principles.

At this point, Chu Ning wasn't aiming to completely decipher the formation and unravel all its secrets. He merely needed to find its weak points.

This was far easier than trying to comprehend the entire formation.

"This layer of restrictions imitates the power of the five elements and their interrelations. But achieving a harmonious fusion of the five elements is no easy task," he mused to himself as he stood before the restrictions, his fingers moving swiftly to execute a series of intricate hand seals.

This time, it was significantly more challenging than breaking through the outer layer, but after some effort, Chu Ning succeeded in breaching the restrictions.

"The power of wind and thunder!"

As he entered the next layer, he immediately sensed a distinct change in the environment.

His eyes narrowed slightly as he took in this new development.

He took a step to the left, and suddenly, violent winds buffeted him, as if seeking to tear his body apart.

"This wind power is still inferior to the storms created by spatial forces," he mused, his expression calm. He retreated a step and then took a step to the right.

Instantly, arcs of electricity descended from the sky, crackling with power.

Chu Ning's eyes lit up at the sight, and instead of retreating, he boldly stepped forward once more.

An electric arc streaked down, aiming directly at him.

Chu Ning activated his Earth Rock Spirit Armor Technique to gauge its strength, and then, in the next moment, he retracted the armor and switched to the Nine Transformations Refining Body Technique.

Soon, he felt the thunderous power entering his body and being swiftly refined by the technique.

"As expected, the power of thunder can be refined and utilized by the Nine Transformations Refining Body Technique for tempering the body. However, the thunderous power here is still rather weak," he observed, his eyes shining with keen interest. With that, he continued his advance.

As he ventured deeper, the thunderous power intensified, and when he had progressed about a hundred meters, he paused to acclimate himself to the increasing intensity.

He allowed the thunderous power to strike his body as he continuously operated the Nine Transformations Refining Body Technique.

Even with the technique, he found that it couldn't immediately refine all the thunderous power, and a small portion of it remained in his body.

Chu Ning's eyebrows furrowed slightly, and although he had been cultivating the Nine Transformations Refining Body Technique, he didn't neglect his analysis of the formation.

He could clearly sense that as he went deeper, the thunderous power grew stronger, and the formation's weak points became more apparent.

"It seems that to break through this restriction, I'll need to venture further. This is a good opportunity to test the limits of my physical body and see how much thunderous power it can withstand!" he thought to himself.

With determination, he took another step forward.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end