Chapter 337: Treasures Abound

Chapter 337: Treasures Abound

"This..."

As the formation was broken, Chu Ning expected the little turtle to flee outside.

Chu Ning was just about to ask the giant turtle how to proceed.

But unexpectedly, the little turtle merely opened its eyes slightly and glanced at Chu Ning.

Then, it nonchalantly closed its eyes and continued sleeping.

Chu Ning's thoughts turned to the giant turtle within his spirit beast bag.

This wisp of its spirit indeed had nowhere to run.

As these thoughts crossed Chu Ning's mind, the giant turtle's gentle and leisurely voice resounded.

"Unexpectedly, after tens of thousands of years, this wisp of my spirit has developed its own consciousness.

However, it truly inherited my nature, as it is so averse to movement."

Hearing the giant turtle's voice, the little turtle opened its eyes once more, revealing a hint of curiosity in its gaze.

At that moment, a ray of rosy light suddenly burst forth from within Chu Ning's spirit beast bag, enveloping the little turtle.

Before the little turtle could react, it was wrapped in the rosy light and pulled into the spirit beast bag.

"To be able to cast spells through the spirit beast bag..."

Although Chu Ning had anticipated the turtle's power, he was still astonished by this peculiar occurrence.

He couldn't help but feel amazed.

As the rosy light faded, the giant turtle's voice echoed again.

"Little one, let's go. There's nothing else of value in this cave.

Soon, I will enter a deep slumber to assimilate with this wisp of my spirit.

But rest assured, this will only happen after you leave the Great Abyss. After staying in this wretched place for so long, I have no intention of lingering any further."

Hearing the giant turtle's words, Chu Ning used his divine sense to scan the cave once more.

Indeed, there was nothing worth noting.

Without hesitation, he had Bai Ling guide him out of the formation, returning to the Divine Spring Pool.

At this moment, Chu Ning finally understood why the giant turtle hadn't bothered to stop others from entering to seek treasures, despite knowing their intentions.

Turns out, the turtle had been forced to remain here against its will, just like them.

Back then, the giant turtle probably didn't possess the strength it has now; otherwise, with its level of power, it could have easily forced out the wisp of its spirit trapped here.

Chu Ning couldn't fathom the might of the people from the Great Void Sect.

"After exiting the Divine Spring Pool, continue inward, and you will reach the inner hall of the Grand Void Temple."

Following the giant turtle's guidance, Chu Ning utilized Bai Ling's innate ability to pass through the formation behind the Divine Spring Pool and proceeded on his journey.

Not long after Chu Ning left, several figures appeared at the formation outside the Divine Spring Pool.

Leading the group was one of the three palace masters of the Chang Kong Palace, Lu Xue Dao

He stopped at the edge of the formation, and the rest naturally followed suit.

Behind him were Shang Song, Shen Yu, several Golden Core cultivators, and another group dressed in the attire of the Shen Yin Sect.

"We haven't encountered Chu Ning along the way. He probably didn't take this path." Shang Song spoke up.

Lu Xue Dao replied indifferently, "Then he's lucky. Of the three paths, the main dangers on the other two lie in the array formations.

Even if he had the ability to reach this Divine Spring Pool, encountering that old turtle would mean certain death."

As Lu Xue Dao spoke, his gaze swept over the Golden Core cultivators.

"However, I doubt he made it this far. Just the backlash from the formations cost us two Golden Core cultivators.

It's unlikely that he could have gotten past them on his own."

As he spoke, Lu Xue Dao's gaze also turned to the group from the Shen Yin Valley.

"Fellow daoists, let's study this formation together. It's far more intricate than the ones outside."

Lu Xue Dao's eyes sparkled with excitement as he added, "The array formations in the Great Firmament Abyss are never the same each time they are activated.

I did manage to decipher this formation three hundred years ago, but that method won't work now."

Immediately, the group began their investigation of the array formation, searching for a way to break through.

After a while, with the combined efforts of both factions, they managed to open a passage through the formation.

Lu Xue Dao quickly spoke up, "Golden Core cultivators, stay outside.

Fellow daoists, once you enter, be sure to prepare your defenses immediately. We don't know how long this turtle has been in the Great Abyss, but it's incredibly troublesome.

The other Nascent Soul cultivators, some of whom had been to the Great Abyss before, and those who hadn't, all looked serious upon hearing Lu Xue Dao's solemn warning.

At that moment, Lu Xue Dao took the lead and stepped through the passage into the formation.

Close behind him were Shang Song, Shen Yu, and two Nascent Soul cultivators from Shen Yin Valley.

The five Nascent Soul cultivators entered the formation and flew towards the giant pool.

One of the elders from the Divine Valley furrowed his brows, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Lu daoist friend, I've also heard some information about that giant turtle.

It's said that whenever someone approaches this pool, the turtle will appear.

If they don't leave, it will attack. Why haven't we seen any sign of it this time?"

"I find it strange as well." Lu Xue Dao's face also showed a hint of confusion.

"Three hundred years ago, when I entered this place, the turtle was lying on the surface of this very pool.

Why is it not here now? Could it be hiding at the bottom?"

As he spoke, Lu Xue Dao extended his spiritual sense towards the bottom of the pool.

The pool water and mud had a weakening effect on spiritual sense, and even with Lu Xue Dao's powerful spiritual sense, he couldn't directly probe the depths.

After searching downward for a while without any findings, Lu Xue Dao took out several demon beasts from his waist-mounted spirit beast bag and threw them into the pool.

The demon beasts quickly sank towards the bottom of the pool.

Witnessing this, both Lu Xue Dao and the four Nascent Soul cultivators turned solemn, their faces grim as they circulated their magic power.

Lu Xue Dao immediately used a secret technique to ask the demon beasts about the situation at the bottom of the pool, and his expression turned from astonishment to confusion.

The four others, seeing Lu Xue Dao's expression, also looked puzzled.

"What is it, Brother Lu?" asked the Nascent Soul elder from Shen Yin Valley.

Lu Xue Dao's face showed confusion, and his expression turned slightly unpleasant.

"The giant turtle is not at the bottom of the pool!"

"The giant turtle is not there?"

The Nascent Soul elder from Shen Yin Valley was also taken aback.

"Hasn't this turtle been here in this Divine Spring Pool for tens of thousands of years? It is said that it was already here tens of thousands of years ago."

Lu Xue Dao shook his head, his gaze moving past the deep pool and landing on the opposite shore.

After a slight hesitation, he finally spoke, "Fellow daoists, let's take a look at the opposite shore."

Shang Song and Shen Yu from Chang Kong Palace had no objections, and the two Nascent Soul elders from Shen Yin Valley glanced at each other, looking hesitant.

"Won't that be too risky? What if the giant turtle is still hiding at the bottom of the pool?"

"Impossible," Lu Xue Dao replied. "If it was really at the bottom of this pool, the demon beasts I released earlier would never have been able to return.

Fellow daoists should also know about the protective instincts of high-level demon beasts towards their territories."

Hearing Lu Xue Dao's words, the two Nascent Soul elders from Shen Yin Valley nodded.

However, their faces still showed a hint of doubt.

At this moment, Lu Xue Dao took the lead and flew straight towards the opposite side of the Divine Spring Pool.

The Nascent Soul elders watched him closely and were prepared to assist at any sign of trouble.

Of course, nothing happened, and they arrived safely.

But then, Lu Xue Dao couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

"Someone has been here recently!"

Hearing Lu Xue Dao's exclamation, Shang Song, Shen Yu, and the two Shen Yin Valley elders immediately flew over.

They landed next to Lu Xue Dao and saw the traces of spiritual herbs that had been picked recently.

These were left by Chu Ning, who had hurriedly left without thinking of restoring the area.

So, the group immediately realized what had happened.

Lu Xue Dao's eyes were filled with surprise and suspicion.

"Looking at these traces, it's clear that these spiritual herbs were picked not long ago.

We are the first group to enter, so how could someone have gotten here before us?"

Shang Song hesitated and said, "Could it be Chu Ning?"

"Chu Ning?" Lu Xue Dao raised an eyebrow.

Shang Song nodded and then said uncertainly, "I learned that he seems to have some expertise in formations and restrictions.

And, it seems only he could have gotten here before us."

"Could it really be him?"

Lu Xue Dao's eyes narrowed slightly.

"A late-stage Golden Core cultivator like him was able to break the formation and come to this Divine Spring Pool? And the giant turtle just happened to be absent? That's a bit too much of a coincidence."

After speaking, Lu Xue Dao examined the area again, trying to find more traces of Chu Ning, but to no avail.

At this moment, his gaze turned towards the direction Chu Ning had left earlier.

"It seems there's another restriction leading further in."

Lu Xue Dao's tone was strange as he said, "Because of the giant turtle, this Divine Spring Pool has probably never been explored by cultivators before."

Hearing Lu Xue Dao's words, the four Nascent Soul elders' eyes lit up.

They naturally understood what this meant.

The mid-stage Nascent Soul elder from Shen Yin Valley immediately suggested, "Why don't we go and take a look?"

"That's exactly what I intend to do!"

As he spoke, Lu Xue Dao and the others flew towards the restriction.

Indeed, they found a restriction barrier emitting strong spiritual power fluctuations.

"This restriction seems different from the ones outside." Lu Xue Dao frowned.

At this moment, the familiar figure of a Golden Core cultivator was missing from their group.

However, the Nascent Soul elders were all well-versed in the art of formations.

Shen Yu, being the weakest among them with only an early-stage Nascent Soul cultivation, took the initiative to speak up. "I'll give it a try first!"

Saying so, he stepped forward, performed a series of hand seals, and cast several spells towards the restriction barrier.

However, the spells seemed to have no effect, as if they were drops of water falling into the ocean.

Shen Yu tried again, and this time, there was a response.

"Yes, it's working!"

The group was delighted to see the restriction barrier reacting to Shen Yu's spells.

However, Shen Yu, who was at the forefront, sensed something amiss.

"Not good!"

Before Shen Yu could finish his sentence, a powerful force erupted from the restriction.

In the next moment, a dazzling blue light burst forth.

The temperature around them dropped to freezing, and a chilling icy aura assaulted the group.

They quickly activated their defensive barriers.

But the icy aura was too powerful.

While Lu Xue Dao, a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, was relatively unharmed, Shang Song and the two Shen Yin Valley elders had pale faces, indicating they had suffered significant injuries from the attack.

"Shen Yu!"

At that moment, they remembered Shen Yu, who had been at the forefront. They looked intently and couldn't help but exclaim in shock.

Shen Yu had turned into a blue ice sculpture.

"Shen Yu!" Lu Xue Dao called out again.

The Nascent Soul elder from Chang Kong Palace did not respond.

"Master, we need to rescue Brother Shen quickly, or his cultivation might be severely damaged," Shang Song said, his usually smiling face now filled with worry.

Lu Xue Dao nodded slightly and, after a moment's thought, slowly reached out his hand.

It was already too late. With this slight touch, the blue ice sculpture instantly shattered into countless fragments that scattered on the ground.

"This..."

Witnessing this, the four Nascent Soul cultivators couldn't help but reveal astonished looks on their faces.

This icy-blue qi had actually caused Shen Yu, a Nascent Soul cultivator in the early stage, to completely disappear without a trace in an instant.

"What a domineering icy aura!"

The Nascent Soul cultivator from the Divine Sound Valley couldn't help but gasp, secretly amazed.

Lu Xue Dao's face, at this moment, was exceptionally ugly.

"It's not just an icy aura, but an extremely rare ice-fire power."

"Ice-fire power?" Hearing Lu Xue Dao's words, the few Nascent Soul cultivators looked at each other in bewilderment.

However, Lu Xue Dao didn't seem inclined to explain further.

"Let's go. There's no way we can get through this barrier. We'll turn back and head to the inner hall of the Grand Void Temple."

Their visit to the Divine Spring Pool had not only yielded no gains, but they had also inexplicably lost a Nascent Soul cultivator.

This palace master of the Chang Kong Palace was naturally in a slightly depressed mood.

At this moment, behind the formation...

"Why is it so cold here?"

As he continued to move forward, Chu Ning couldn't help but exclaim.

Passing through the restriction formation felt like entering two completely different worlds.

The intensity of the icy aura here was even stronger than in the Snow Mist Valley, by a few degrees.

It was just that there was no spatial power here.

Fortunately, Chu Ning had been wearing his Ice-Fire Silk Armor, and his physical strength was sufficient to withstand the cold.

"I didn't expect you to have quite a few treasures on you; otherwise, Old Turtle here would have had to work harder to ensure your safety."

The giant turtle's words carried a hint of surprise.

Chu Ning explained, "I was fortunate to obtain a set of Ice-Fire Silk Armor in my early years."

"Ice-Fire Silk Armor?"

The giant turtle sounded surprised at Chu Ning's words.

"That's indeed a valuable item. Since you have it, you should be fine in this area.

This mountain is called the Ice-Fire Mountain.

It contains ice-fire power. The path you're on now leads through the ice mountain, and ahead lies the volcano."

After hearing this, Chu Ning didn't find it too strange.

At this moment, he was more inclined to believe the information he had received earlier about the connection between the Snow Mist Valley and the Great Void Abyss.

After all, in the Snow Mist Valley, there was the strange terrain of raging blizzards outside and underground lava inside.

As he endured the icy aura and flew forward, Chu Ning asked the giant turtle, "Senior Turtle, has anyone ever entered this mountain before?"

"I don't think so. Those daring enough to fly over the Divine Spring Pool were mostly thrown into the pool by me.

As for whether any cultivators came from another direction, I'm not sure.

But I think it's unlikely. Passing through the Ice-Fire Mountain leads to the inner hall of the Grand Void Temple, and from there, one can exit the Great Void Abyss."

Hearing the giant turtle's words, Chu Ning's eyes lit up.

If no cultivator had ever entered this mountain before, didn't that mean that all the treasures within were still untouched?

With this thought, Chu Ning immediately summoned Bai Ling and released his spiritual sense, carefully scanning the surroundings.

After flying forward for about two thousand feet,

"Hey, that's... Snow Crystal Herb!"

At this moment, Chu Ning's eyes flickered, and he suddenly looked towards a spiritual herb a hundred feet away.

"This Snow Crystal Herb must be at least ten thousand years old!"

Chu Ning's eyes shone with excitement, and his figure flashed as he flew straight towards the Snow Crystal Herb.

Perhaps because no one had disturbed them in a long time, the Snow Crystal Herbs here didn't seem very alert.

When Chu Ning approached within ten feet, the Snow Crystal Herb suddenly transformed into a small white figure and tried to burrow into the icy ground.

But it was too late.

Chu Ning's figure flashed, and he appeared behind the small white figure.

Before it could dive into the ice, Chu Ning's large hand had already grabbed it.

"Yaya!"

What surprised Chu Ning was that this Snow Crystal Herb seemed to have more sentience than the three-thousand-year-old one he had obtained before.

On its small white face, there was a clear look of fear.

Its little hands and feet were also struggling constantly.

"This Snow Crystal Herb must be at least ten thousand years old!"

The liquid of a three-thousand-year-old Snow Crystal Herb was already extremely effective, but now he had one that was ten thousand years old or more!

It might even be priceless.

With this thought, Chu Ning asked, "Senior Turtle, when did the Great Void Abyss first appear in its current form?"

"Two or three thousand years ago? I can't remember. I've been stuck here for so long that I've lost track of time."

Chu Ning fell silent for a moment after hearing this, then took out a jade box from his storage bag.

He carefully placed the Snow Crystal Herb, which was at least ten thousand years old, into the jade box and sealed it.

Then, he continued to fly forward, and along the way, Chu Ning occasionally came across some spiritual herbs or refining materials.

Each one was a rare find in the world, and they all ended up in Chu Ning's possession.

After some time, Chu Ning had acquired seven or eight types of spiritual herbs, all of which were at least ten thousand years old.

He also found two or three special ice-attribute refining materials.

At this moment, Chu Ning finally reached the end of the ice mountain, and at his feet was a narrow path.

Surrounding this narrow path were crimson fire rocks.

One side was an ice mountain, and the other was a sea of fire, creating a very peculiar scene.

"Hey, what's that?"

At this moment, Chu Ning's attention was drawn to something between the ice mountain and the sea of fire.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end