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Black Wind Ravine.

The name alone conjured images of barren mountains, treacherous waters, grotesque rock formations, and howling Yin Winds.

But when Qi Yun followed the directions in the manual and finally reached his destination, the sight before him was completely different from what he had imagined.

What greeted him was a place of breathtaking beauty, with clear mountains and lucid waters.

Dark green mountains flanked a deep, clear pond. Its azure waters were so transparent you could see right to the bottom.

The surface was as smooth as a mirror, reflecting the blue sky, white clouds, and surrounding greenery. The occasional bird skimming across the water created ripples, adding to the tranquility and spiritual charm of the place.

A gentle breeze carried the refreshing fragrance of grass and trees.

’It doesn’t live up to its name,’ Qi Yun chuckled softly.

He had already learned from the manual’s annotations that this place originally had a different name. A century ago, a band of brigands called the "Black Wind Stronghold" had occupied the area. They changed the name to warn off traveling merchants.

Later, the brigands were wiped out by the Government.

But over the long years, the name had stuck and remained in use, having no connection to the beautiful scenery of today.

After admiring the scenery for a while, Qi Yun flicked his sleeve. With a flow of True Essence, he shook off the fine dust he had accumulated on his long journey, feeling refreshed.

First, he took out the Jade Scroll of the *Secret Manual of the Northwest Celestial Spirits and Earthly Fiends*. He double-checked the markings for Black Wind Ravine and the features of the surrounding terrain, confirming everything was correct.

Then, he formed a hand seal and began to calculate, sensing the unique aura of the local Earth Vein and the flow of Evil Qi.

A moment later, his fingers paused. He lifted his gaze and looked toward the center of the rippling pond before him.

’This is it. The entrance to the acupoint of the Earth Guardian Evil Qi is beneath this pond.’

Having confirmed the target’s location, Qi Yun’s expression relaxed slightly, but he didn’t rush into the water.

Instead, he formed a spell with one hand. His wide sleeve billowed without any wind, and over a hundred small, white paper cranes majestically flew out.

These Thousand Crane Talismans spread out like an invisible net, bringing an area of several dozen miles under Qi Yun’s surveillance.

The slightest disturbance would not escape his notice.

Only after all the Thousand Crane Talismans were in position and reported back that the surroundings were quiet and free of threats did Qi Yun feel at ease.

Absorbing Earth Evil Qi was no small matter.

With everything ready, the True Essence in his body slowly circulated, forming an invisible layer of Protective Gang Qi around him.

He then leaped, like an agile fish, and plunged silently into the azure waters of Bibo Pond.

PLOP.

The sound of him entering the water was faint, and the ripples quickly subsided.

His Protective True Essence kept the water at bay as he sank, heading for the acupoint entrance he had calculated earlier.

The pond was deeper than he had imagined. The deeper he went, the dimmer the light became, and the water pressure gradually increased.

But the Protective True Essence of a Qi Refining Seventh Layer cultivator was resilient enough that mere water pressure was not a concern.

As he descended, his Divine Sense spread out like underwater sonar, carefully sensing the fluctuations of the Earth Vein at the bottom.

After descending for several dozen zhang, the bottom of the pond came into view.

It wasn’t covered in silt, but with smooth, hard, dark-green rocks.

And at the base of a rock wall, Qi Yun’s Divine Sense detected something unusual.

There was an inconspicuous crack, about the width of a person, from which a unique aura faintly emanated—condensed, heavy, and carrying a sense of the earth’s protection.

This aura was pure and gentle, not violent at all. In fact, it was reassuring. It was exactly the Earth Guardian Evil Qi described in the manual!

’I found it!’ A glint of joy flashed in Qi Yun’s eyes. He quickly approached the crack and slipped inside without hesitation.

The inside of the crack was narrow at first, but after moving a few zhang, it suddenly opened up.

It was a natural cave hidden beneath the rock layer at the bottom of the pond.

The cave wasn’t large, and in the center was a small spring.

But what flowed from it wasn’t clear water, but streams of a strange, shimmering airflow that was so condensed it seemed solid, and was an earthy yellow color!

This airflow flowed slowly, filling the entire cave and giving the air within a heavy, substantial quality.

’Such pure Earth Guardian Evil Qi!’ Qi Yun exclaimed in admiration.

Now that he had found this Earth Evil Qi, he wasted no more time. He immediately sat cross-legged in the center of the cave and cleared his mind of all distractions.

He began to circulate the *Innate Qi Heart Method*.

As the cultivation skill activated, the pores all over his body seemed to turn into countless tiny whirlpools, generating a powerful suction force.

The earthy yellow Earth Guardian Evil Qi filling the cave was drawn in, converging on Qi Yun like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea. It poured into his body endlessly through his pores, mouth, and nose.

The Evil Qi did not cause any discomfort upon entering his body. Instead, it felt like a gentle, warm current washing through his meridians, gathering at an acupoint corresponding to the Earth Demon Position.

BOOM!

When the Earth Guardian Evil Qi had accumulated to a certain point...

...Qi Yun guided it with a Heart Thought, using his True Essence as a hammer and the Evil Qi as a chisel to strike at the tough, blocked acupoint.

Once, twice...

Each impact was accompanied by a slight tremor and a tingling numbness.

After an unknown amount of time, it felt as if some kind of barrier had been completely broken through!

HUMMM—

The acupoint was opened!

In that instant, Qi Yun felt an incredibly profound and mysterious sensation wash over him.

It was as if a hole had been opened in a completely sealed space, allowing a fresh, clear breeze to blow in.

Countless echoes and soft murmurs of Daoist Intent flickered before him, faint yet present.

’Is this the realm of Hundred Acupoints Spirit Communication?’

Lost in this wondrous sensation, Qi Yun continued to guide the Earth Guardian Evil Qi to stabilize the newly opened acupoint.

...

Unwittingly, more than a month had passed while Qi Yun was immersed in the profound process of absorbing and refining the Earth Guardian Evil Qi and stabilizing his newly opened acupoint.

When he slowly emerged from his deep state of cultivation and opened his eyes again, he moved slightly, shaking off a thin layer of dust.

He performed a quick calculation with his fingers and was shocked at how quickly time had passed.

"Indeed, in cultivation, there is no sense of time. A single day in the mountains can be a thousand years in the world."

"For us cultivators, time passes far too quickly," Qi Yun sighed softly, his tone filled with the unique sentiment of a cultivator.

A short period of seclusion could be a full year in the mortal world.

He slowly stood up, his bones emitting a series of soft cracks as a sense of abundant power flowed through his limbs.

He carefully sensed the Earth Gate Acupoint that he had opened within his body.

As expected, his speed of absorbing Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi was more than a little faster than before, and his connection to the earth was much clearer.

This Hundred Acupoints Spirit Communication was truly extraordinary.

With a leap like a fish jumping from the water, Qi Yun lightly returned to the shore of Bibo Pond in Black Wind Ravine.

Sunlight streamed down and a Clear Wind brushed his face. It was time to leave.

But just as he was about to move, an intense and baseless chill suddenly shot up his spine.

It was as if a pair of invisible, icy eyes were piercing through the void, watching him intently from some unknown direction.

This feeling wasn’t a physical gaze.

It was a lock involving karma and fate!

"Hm?" Qi Yun’s expression changed, his Heart and Spirit instantly tensing.

’Someone is using divination to pinpoint my location?!’

He was no stranger to this feeling of being locked onto by some unseen force.

It was just that this time, it was particularly clear and intense.

Without any hesitation, he quickly took out the Silver Ring, which was wrapped in layers of Talismans, from his Storage Magic Bracelet.

He ripped off the Talismans, put it directly on his hand, and simultaneously channeled a stream of True Essence into it.

The next instant—

BUZZ!

The Silver Ring on his finger suddenly grew hot.

The fine, cloud-like patterns on the ring, which had been dormant, seemed to be activated. They began to flow rapidly again, emitting a faint yet strange fluctuation.

Almost at the same moment, that chilling, heart-pounding sense of being watched vanished.

Qi Yun frowned, his fingers tightly gripping the still-warm Storage Ring. His eyes were as sharp as a falcon’s as thoughts raced through his mind.

’Who is divining my location?’

’The Yellow Springs Netherworld?’

’Or someone else?’

Realizing he had likely been targeted by an expert from the Yellow Springs Netherworld, Qi Yun didn’t hesitate for a moment.

He turned and cast Gathering Form and Scattering Qi. His body transformed into a wisp of almost transparent, ethereal Pure Qi that clung to the ground as he sped away at full tilt in the general direction of the Wuji Holy Sect’s territory.

’This is no longer the Holy Sect’s territory, and the situation is tense.’

’If the Yellow Springs Netherworld really decides to drop all pretense and sends a Qi Refining Late Stage expert, or even... a Qi Refining Great Perfection master to hunt me down... ’

’...that would be disastrous.’

Even though he had reached the Qi Refining Seventh Layer and his strength had greatly increased, Qi Yun, who had witnessed Wu Yushan’s power at his peak, remained extremely cautious.

He knew full well that in front of a true Qi Refining Late Stage Cultivator...

...his own cultivation was not yet enough to contend with them.

He sped along like the wind, not daring to stop for a moment, and fled for several hundred miles.

Only when he felt relatively safe did Qi Yun land outside a seemingly peaceful mortal town and conceal his aura.

Like an ordinary traveler, he walked into the town.

He randomly found an inconspicuous, simple tea stall on a street corner, ordered a bowl of coarse tea, and prepared to rest for a moment to clear his thoughts.

However, he had been seated for less than a quarter of an hour and hadn’t even taken a sip of his tea...

...when a seemingly ordinary, plainly dressed child came skipping past the tea stall.

In the instant the child passed by Qi Yun, the innocent expression on their face abruptly turned cold and vicious.

With a flick of their arm, a cloud of multicolored toxic powder with a cloyingly sweet smell was thrown right at Qi Yun’s face.

The attack was sudden and at extremely close range!

But Qi Yun reacted even faster.

Or rather, the White Bone Skeleton inside his body reacted faster!

"KA!"

With a strange cry, a White Bone Skeleton head shot out on its own. The Glowing Green Ghost Fire in its eye sockets flared, and it opened its mouth to spew a glob of viscous Corpse Poisoning Yin Fire, which precisely collided with the cloud of toxic powder!

TSSSSS—!

When the toxic powder met the Yin Fire, it was instantly ignited and dissolved, emitting a pungent, burnt smell before dissipating into a puff of green smoke.

But this seemed to be a signal!

All around the tea stall, the seemingly ordinary passersby, the street vendors, and even the stall’s owner... at that very moment, a cold killing intent erupted in their eyes! 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

They violently ripped off their disguises, drawing poisoned weapons from their sleeves, from beneath their stalls, and from their waists. Some formed spells, unleashing all sorts of sinister and vicious attacks like a pre-woven net of death.

It closed in on Qi Yun from all directions.

Flashes of blades, poison needles, Curses, Yin Thunder... Their methods were endless and their coordination seamless. They had clearly come prepared and were no mere mob.

Qi Yun’s face darkened. Black Abyssal Iron Sand instantly surged from his body, flowing and churning like a living creature to form an impenetrable shield around him.

It blocked the first wave of dense attacks, producing a barrage of metallic CLANGS!

"Who are you?!" Qi Yun barked, his gaze sweeping over his attackers like lightning.

But he found their eyes were numb, filled only with pure killing intent.

They were clearly Death Warriors or people controlled by a Secret Skill.

Frowning slightly, Qi Yun maintained his Abyssal Iron Sand defense against the tide of attacks while freeing his left hand to quickly perform a calculation in front of his chest.

The art of *Blood-Drawn Profound Mechanism* activated, directly sacrificing a large amount of his flesh and blood Essence Qi!

The next instant!

The mist of karma dispersed.

A line of bloody small words appeared—Seven Kills Sect...

"Hm?"

Seeing the result of the divination, the confusion on Qi Yun’s face deepened.

The divination indicated that this group from the Seven Kills Sect was not hired by the Yellow Springs Netherworld. This was the Seven Kills Sect’s own doing.

’I haven’t offended the Seven Kills Sect. Why would they go to such lengths to kill me?’

’Could it be...?’

A flash of inspiration struck his mind, and Qi Yun suddenly remembered the reason.

’I know...’

’That ring!’

...