Chapter 340: One Versus Three, the Mystical Treasure Xuan Xiao Mirror

Chapter 340: One Versus Three, the Mystical Treasure Xuan Xiao Mirror

Chu Ning was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, but he quickly and decisively shook his head. "I'm afraid I'm not capable enough. Thank you for your kindness, senior."

As he spoke, Chu Ning's gaze fell on the dozen or so arched doorways.

At this moment, the crowd of cultivators had already broken through the restrictions and entered the doorways.

Chu Ning wondered what lay beyond those arches.

Just then, Lu Xuedao's domineering voice rang out. "Not capable enough? Young friend Chu, you'd better remember what you just said. If you try to break the restriction after we've claimed the treasure, don't blame me for taking your life."

Without waiting for Chu Ning's response, Lu Xuedao turned to Qiu Qijun. "Fellow Daoist Qiu, surely you're not going to pass on this opportunity as well?"

Qiu Qijun smiled slightly and took a step forward. "How could I not appreciate Fellow Daoist Lu's kind intentions?"

As he spoke, he flew forward.

Chu Ning now understood why Lu Xuedao had asked him that question. It seemed that he was concerned that their energy would be depleted after claiming the treasure, leaving them vulnerable to others.

"Everyone here is so cautious," Chu Ning thought to himself, his gaze falling on Qiu Qijun.

Like Shang Song and the others before him, Qiu Qijun conjured a giant hand made of energy and reached toward the restriction.

"As expected, he cultivates wind-based techniques and spells, which explains his exceptional speed," Chu Ning mused as he watched Qiu Qijun cast his spell.

After a while, having expended a significant amount of energy, Qiu Qijun managed to push his hand halfway into the restriction.

Just then, the entire divine altar began to tremble slightly.

This was the first time such a thing had happened since they started retrieving the treasures.

The crowd was initially taken aback, but the next moment, Lu Xuedao let out a soft hum and suddenly leaped forward.

Paying no heed to Qiu Qijun's unsightly expression, he conjured a giant palm and reached into the restriction.

On the other side, the leader of the Huanling Sect, Dantai Ze, acted just as swiftly. Almost simultaneously, he flew forward from the other side.

He extended his hand and reached into the restriction.

In an instant, three giant hands made of energy reached into the restriction.

It was evident that Lu Xuedao and Dantai Ze were more powerful than Qiu Qijun, as they broke through the restriction much faster.

Just as Qiu Qijun's energy hand was about to break through the restriction, the other two hands also reached into it.

At this moment, Chu Ning, who was leaning against the jade pillar, felt the trembling of the divine altar intensify.

It even caused the entire hall to shake slightly.

Chu Ning's expression changed slightly, and he couldn't help but worry about his safety inside the hall.

However, his gaze was now completely drawn to the divine altar.

He wanted to see which of the three Nascent Soul cultivators would obtain the treasure.

Just then, a brilliant ray of light erupted from the violently shaking divine altar, engulfing the giant hands conjured by Lu Xuedao, Dantai Ze, and Qiu Qijun.

The three men's faces changed drastically, and the next moment, they involuntarily unleashed their protective energy shields.

"Retreat!"

With two startled shouts, the cultivators on both sides quickly flew backward.

Although Chu Ning was standing far away, he immediately released the protective divine light of the Five Elements Chaos Formula.

At the same time, the increasingly intense light on the divine altar suddenly exploded!

"Boom!"

Accompanied by a loud bang, the entire divine altar was blown into pieces.

Immediately afterward, more than a dozen light balls shot out from within, speeding toward the dozen or so arched doorways in front of them.

"So many treasures!"

The eyes of the Nascent Soul cultivators in the hall lit up, and they immediately pursued the light balls toward the arched doorways.

In the blink of an eye, only three Golden Core cultivators—Chu Ning, Dantai Song, and Li Bailin—remained in the hall.

"Hmm?"

Dantai Song and Li Bailin had intended to follow their elders, but as soon as they took a step, they suddenly stopped and flew toward Chu Ning instead.

Just then, one of the light balls that had flown out did not leave the hall but instead headed toward Chu Ning.

Chu Ning, quick as a flash, leaped forward and grabbed the light ball.

"Chu! Hand over the treasure!"

When Dantai Song saw the light ball in Chu Ning's hand quickly dimming and noticed that Chu Ning had stored a jade slip inside his storage bag, he roared in fury.

Li Bailin, who had also witnessed this, shouted, "No need for words! Let's join forces and kill him!"

As they spoke, they both summoned their magical treasures. Dantai Ze wielded the giant drum he had used when fighting Chu Ning near Cloud Hidden Island, while Li Bailin held the flute-like magical treasure that had once taken a blow from Chu Ning's sword.

They were fast, but Chu Ning was faster.

As he stored the item from the light ball into his storage bag, he raised his right hand and activated five Ice Shadow Sword Talismans that he had already placed on his talisman ring.

Five blue sword auras flashed and disappeared in the air, each attacking one of the two men.

Chu Ning then opened his mouth and spat out five flying swords.

The five swords merged into one giant sword, which slashed toward Li Bailin.

At the same time, Chu Ning lightly raised his right hand, and a black dagger appeared.

He had already stored his essence blood in it, and now he quickly infused it with his energy. A powerful aura immediately filled the hall.

"Nascent Soul cultivator!"

"Ancient treasure!"

At that moment, Dantai Song and Li Bailin exclaimed in shock.

The sword auras that Chu Ning had casually released were comparable in power to those of a Nascent Soul cultivator, and he had used an ancient treasure as soon as he made his move.

How could this not shock the two sect heirs?

They realized something was amiss, but it was already too late to escape.

The Ice Shadow Sword Talismans, transformed into blue sword auras, were already upon them.

The two men hastily manipulated their magical treasures to barely withstand Chu Ning's attack.

The next moment, their brilliant lights dimmed slightly.

Both cultivators' treasures were extraordinary, managing to withstand the Ice Shadow Sword Talismans.

However, they had also sustained considerable damage.

But at this moment, they had no time to think.

As they struggled, Chu Ning's giant sword and the ancient treasure dagger were already upon them.

Dantai Song's face paled as he sensed the power emanating from the dagger.

Having owned an ancient treasure before, he was all too aware of their might.

Gritting his teeth, he activated his giant drum to meet the attack, while simultaneously casting several top-grade talismans with his free hand and retreating towards an arched doorway.

On the other side, Li Bailin was also in a dire situation.

After barely withstanding the initial blow from Chu Ning's Ice Shadow Sword Talismans, he felt a slight relief upon seeing Chu Ning's giant sword descending.

After all, he had once taken a blow from Chu Ning's sword outside his cave abode on the nameless island.

However, he soon realized that he had underestimated the sword's power.

The sword's might and the immense pressure it exuded far surpassed that of Chu Ning's previous strike.

Li Bailin was unaware that Chu Ning had previously wielded only the Four Attributes Spirit Sword and hadn't used its full power.

But now, it was the true Five Elements Spirit Sword!

As Li Bailin wielded his flute treasure to counter, he also reached for his waist and released a giant bird from his spirit beast bag.

Both proud geniuses of Beihan were using their most powerful moves, but they soon realized that their defenses were futile.

The ancient treasure dagger easily shattered Dantai Song's giant drum.

The top-grade talismans he had cast only slightly slowed down the dagger's speed.

Nonetheless, it continued to shoot towards Dantai Song.

A flash of dark light, and the dagger arrived beside Dantai Song, who was now close to the arched doorway.

"No!"

With a terrified roar, the dagger pierced through the protective energy shield Dantai Song had desperately summoned, embedding itself into his forehead.

The young master of Huanling Sect didn't even have time to expel his Golden Core, perishing instantly!

On the other side, Li Bailin fared slightly better.

His flute treasure shattered under the strike of Chu Ning's Five Elements Spirit Sword.

However, the beast he released from his spirit beast bag turned out to be a Peak Seventh-Rank demon beast.

As soon as it appeared, the demon beast offered its demon core to block Chu Ning's Five Elements Spirit Sword.

It seemed that Li Bailin was commanding it to sacrifice its life to buy him some time.

Indeed, this move proved to be somewhat effective.

"Bang!"

With a soft sound, Chu Ning's Five Elements Spirit Sword struck the Seventh-Rank demon beast's demon core.

The core was instantly pulverized.

The demon beast's body stiffened in mid-air before falling towards the ground.

Although the demon beast had managed to block the sword, Chu Ning's giant sword was successfully stopped.

At this moment, Li Bailin had already flown to within ten meters of the arched doorway.

Simultaneously, he sensed Chu Ning waving his hand in his direction.

Li Bailin vaguely perceived a transparent and almost invisible blade of energy slicing towards him.

Gritting his teeth, Li Bailin ignored the blade and activated a defensive shield, continuing to shoot forward.

He had another defensive treasure on him, and although it wasn't his primary treasure, he believed it could withstand Chu Ning's attack, which clearly wasn't aided by a treasure.

As Li Bailin was thinking this, the transparent blade of energy reached him and swiftly sliced down!

To his astonishment, his defensive shield, which he believed to be quite formidable, had no effect on the blade of energy.

The blade easily penetrated, striking his head.

"Mental attack!"

Li Bailin vaguely sensed something, but it was too late.

The blade of energy condensed by the Chop God Technique directly shattered his sea of consciousness, destroying his mental faculties.

Li Bailin's body, which had been flying forward, suddenly stiffened before crashing heavily to the ground!

Chu Ning pointed, and the Five Elements Spirit Sword in the air divided into five, transforming into five flying swords.

Four of them slashed towards Dantai Song and Li Bailin, while the remaining one targeted the Seventh-Rank demon beast lying on the ground, now devoid of its demon core.

In the blink of an eye, the two renowned late-stage Golden Core cultivators from Beihan and the Peak Seventh-Rank demon beast comparable to a late-stage Golden Core cultivator, all perished!

After consuming a drop of Ten Thousand Year Spirit Elixir to swiftly restore his spiritual energy, Chu Ning retrieved his treasures and the ancient treasure.

His figure flashed, and he stored the demon beast's corpse into his storage bag.

Then, he approached the two young masters, took their storage bags, and incinerated their bodies with two fireball spells, turning them into ashes.

After finishing, Chu Ning was about to find an arched doorway to pass through when he instinctively turned back to look at the now shattered divine altar.

At this moment, there were no restrictions left on the altar.

However, when he swept the area with his spiritual sense, he detected something beneath the scattered fragments of jade.

Intrigued, Chu Ning quickly flew to the altar, waved his hand, and cast a spell to sweep away the broken jade fragments.

In the now-cleared space, a simple and rustic small mirror appeared.

Chu Ning's eyes lit up, and he reached out, grabbing the mirror.

"Turtle elder, is this the Xuan Xiao Mirror?"

"Little brat, you've got quite the luck."

The giant turtle's voice echoed, and for the first time, Chu Ning detected a hint of surprise in the turtle's tone.

"Xuan Xiao Mirror, a spiritual treasure!"

Chu Ning murmured to himself, immediately storing the mirror into his storage bag without hesitation.

Although Chu Ning knew that these two unaffiliated cultivators must also have some tricks up their sleeves, he still felt it was a better option than facing Nascent Soul cultivators like Lu Xuedao, Dantai Ze, and Elder Qiu.

Upon entering the archway, he found himself in a long corridor.

The walls on either side seemed to be made of a naturally luminous material, allowing Chu Ning to see the entirety of the corridor with a single glance.

However, the corridor was exceptionally long, and there seemed to be a disturbance that hindered his spiritual sense, preventing him from probing beyond thirty-three meters.

"Turtle Elder, where is this place?" Chu Ning asked as he walked forward, addressing the giant turtle in his spirit beast bag.

To his disappointment, the giant turtle, who had always been omniscient within the Great Void, replied, "I don't know. I've never ventured into this inner hall before.

I've only heard cultivators mention that these archways lead to passages out.

But as for where they lead and what lies beyond, I have no idea."

Hearing this, Chu Ning furrowed his brows slightly. He summoned Bailing out of his sleeve, not wanting to take any chances as he wasn't sure if there were any restrictions ahead.

Through the spiritual beast contract, Chu Ning briefly explained what had transpired in the hall to Bailing.

Then, he quickened his pace and continued down the corridor.

After walking for a while, he noticed a small recessed door on the corridor wall.

The door had flickering restrictions, so he asked Bailing to investigate with him.

They discovered a small stone chamber beyond the door.

However, it was empty, devoid of anything.

Considering that countless Nascent Soul cultivators had likely passed through this corridor over the millennia, Chu Ning wasn't surprised to find it barren.

After making a quick decision to leave, he continued down the corridor.

As he progressed, he encountered numerous stone chambers of varying sizes.

But just like the first one, they were all empty, containing nothing of interest.

Chu Ning didn't waste much time, merely glancing inside each one before moving on.

At that moment, Chu Ning had entered yet another stone chamber.

He scanned the room but found nothing unusual.

Just as he was about to leave, the giant turtle's voice suddenly rang out.

"Little brat, didn't you notice the good stuff on the walls?"

Hearing the turtle's words, Chu Ning paused in his tracks.

He swept his spiritual sense over the chamber walls but found nothing amiss.

A hint of doubt appeared on his face, as he knew the turtle wouldn't have brought it up without reason.

So he began to carefully examine the entire wall with his spiritual sense.

Finally, he sensed something unusual.

"Hmm? The material of this wall..."

Chu Ning took a few quick steps towards the left wall.

He reached out and placed his hand on a brick that looked identical to the others.

Just like the corridor walls, his spiritual sense couldn't penetrate this wall.

However, when he swept his spiritual sense over this particular brick, he felt it being slightly devoured.

Chu Ning probed again and confirmed that his spiritual sense was indeed being consumed.

He said uncertainly, "Could this be one of the top ten ancient refining materials, the Moon God Stone?"

"You do have some knowledge, little brat," the giant turtle commented, and then fell silent.

Chu Ning immediately summoned a spirit sword and began chipping away at the wall to extract the brick.

The Moon God Stone was one of the top ten ancient refining materials, and it was a crucial component in refining spiritual sense-type artifacts.

If it were incorporated into ordinary artifacts along with certain inscribed patterns, it could even prevent those artifacts from being detected by an opponent's spiritual sense.

This meant that during battle, the artifacts could launch surprise attacks.

Chu Ning had first learned about this material when he was perusing refining manuals in the Nine Splendor Sect.

However, as he had never seen it before, he couldn't be sure until now.

After some effort, he finally extracted the Moon God Stone brick and stored it in his bag.

Chu Ning then left the stone chamber and continued down the corridor.

After walking another three hundred meters, he came across another stone door.

However, the restrictions on this door had already been broken, likely by the two unaffiliated Nascent Soul cultivators who had passed through earlier.

Chu Ning tried to use his spiritual sense to probe beyond the door, but he quickly abandoned the idea as his spiritual sense couldn't penetrate it any more than it could the corridor walls.

Since the giant turtle had already mentioned that he didn't know what lay beyond, Chu Ning didn't bother asking again. He simply pushed open the stone door and stepped through.

What greeted him was a massive cave.

Chu Ning didn't even need to use his spiritual sense to see its entirety.

The hundred-meter-wide cave was filled with bizarrely shaped rocks, and on the other side was a passage several meters wide that spiraled upward, its destination unknown.

Chu Ning didn't spot the two unaffiliated Nascent Soul cultivators anywhere in the cave, and he had no idea if they had taken the passage or not.

Without hesitation, he stepped into the cave.

"Boom!"

Behind him, the stone door automatically closed, seamlessly merging with the cave walls as if it had never existed.

But this wasn't what surprised Chu Ning the most. What truly astonished him was...

His spiritual power had disappeared.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end