Even for a top-tier sect as colossal as the Malevolent Spirit Sect, Soul Cultivator methods were incredibly rare, with only a few introductory cultivation methods available. Even so, the Malevolent Spirit Sect regarded them as priceless treasures.
They were never taught to any disciple below the Nascent Soul stage. Even if a Nascent Soul cultivator or higher wished to study them, it would require an immense price—a price that, it was said, only a Spirit Transformation Old Monster could afford.
In this world, cultivation methods for strengthening Divine Sense and the arts of Soul Cultivators were so scarce as to be nearly extinct. Whenever one appeared, it would trigger a boundless struggle, stirring up a sky full of blood and carnage.
These were treasures everyone dreamed of, and Nascent Soul and Spirit Transformation cultivators would not hesitate to make a move for them.
However, Soul Cultivators were not invincible. Their greatest weakness stemmed from the unique nature of their cultivation methods, which required long periods of meditation to continuously advance the soul.
For this reason, a Soul Cultivator's body was much weaker than that of other cultivators at the same rank. If an opponent got close, their chances of perishing were far greater than any other type of cultivator.
Just now, Li Yan had survived a severe blow for two reasons: first, his Divine Sense was powerful, and second, he had been on guard beforehand. The moment he sensed something was wrong, he had stopped immediately and not continued to approach the sky above.
Even so, the pain had been excruciating.
He now wanted to try using the broken earthen jar to teleport back, but he was not successful.
"What in the world is this damn place!"
Li Yan could only put away the broken jar in disappointment. He looked up at the sky, his Divine Sense once again cautiously probing outwards.
After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Li Yan helplessly withdrew his Divine Sense.
When his Divine Sense reached fifty zhang into the air, it was met with that same sense of nothingness. He couldn't find the source of the previous attack, nor could he get a clear view of his surroundings.
Unable to find the source of the attack, Li Yan no longer dared to fly into the sky. He had no particularly good methods for defending against soul attacks.
However, Li Yan also noticed that he had been standing on the ground for a long time without any further attacks. This indicated that as long as he stayed on the ground, he was temporarily safe.
Li Yan stood in place, deep in thought. Suddenly, his figure moved. In a single sideways step, he was in front of one of the grey walls.
An abyssal light flowed over his body as he slammed a fist into the grey wall.
Thud!
After a muffled sound, not even a speck of dust was shaken from the grey wall.
Li Yan slowly retracted his fist, his brow furrowed even tighter. He had no idea what kind of material these grey walls were made of.
He had used ninety percent of his strength in that punch. Even a giant mountain peak would have been shattered into countless fragments under such a blow.
Even if an ordinary magical treasure were struck, it would likely lose a great deal of its spirituality or even be completely destroyed by that punch.
"I can't get out from any side. Are they trying to force me to move forward?"
Li Yan's gaze couldn't help but turn to the only exit ahead—the endless long alley stretching into the darkness...
Li Yan didn't know why the Hellsoul Clan had set up such a teleportation formation to specifically send people here.
If you said it was to kill enemies, he had been here for a long time, and aside from being attacked when he tried to fly, he hadn't suffered any other attacks.
But now, he had no other choice. Li Yan began to walk forward into the long alley, step by step. He moved with extreme caution and slowness.
In the long alley, only Li Yan's lonely figure moved slowly forward. The grey walls, the boundless solitude—it was an incredibly oppressive atmosphere.
Li Yan's footsteps were silent, making him look more like a phantom drifting forward.
As he advanced, Li Yan's Divine Sense continuously extended forward, but it was still limited to a range of fifty zhang.
In his Divine Sense, the long alley ahead didn't change much. At most, there were occasional bends in the path. There was still no sign of any living beings.
Li Yan felt as if he were walking in a boundless netherworld. Just as he cautiously advanced thirty zhang, a figure suddenly drifted out in front of him without any warning.
Li Yan was greatly alarmed. His Divine Sense hadn't detected a thing, nor had his mind given him any prior warning.
The moment the figure appeared, it lunged at Li Yan without any intention of speaking. Li Yan swept his hands forward and pushed. The surrounding temperature rose sharply. In an instant, this small patch of the world seemed to have been plunged into the raging flames of an alchemy furnace.
From Li Yan's wide sleeves, countless fireballs shot out, illuminating the space before him in a brilliant display of dark gold and fiery red.
The light cast Li Yan's face in flickering shadows, while behind him, layers of dimness and black stretched out, making his entire figure look rather eerie.
With Li Yan's powerful magical power now, coupled with his mastery of basic immortal arts which had reached a state of perfection, the power of his Fireball Art was not necessarily much weaker than mid-level arts like the "Dragon-Subduing Art," "Scattering Beans to Create Soldiers," or "Freezing a Thousand Li."
What's more, Li Yan had been on high alert, ready to strike at any moment. He had already held two potent poisons in his palms. The moment he launched the Fireball Art, the poisons were instantly infused into them.
Now, every one of the fireballs filling the sky was a deadly poison. If the opponent was touched by even a speck, there was a greater than fifty percent chance they would die instantly.
If the opponent shattered the fireballs, they would be met with a sky full of scattered, poisonous sparks.
Although Li Yan couldn't tell how long the alley was, it was only seven or eight zhang wide. He easily turned the entire alley ahead into a sea of fire.
At the same time, his Divine Sense had instantly locked onto the opponent's figure. The opponent's aura was surprisingly only at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment.
'Courting death!'
Li Yan snorted coldly in his mind. A cultivator of this level dared to launch a sneak attack on him? He could crush them with a single finger.
But Li Yan did not underestimate his opponent just because of their low cultivation.
The appearance of this person was too bizarre. Li Yan had only sensed the threat when it was close. Everything here was imbued with an incomprehensible strangeness.
The towering flames swept through the long alley. Both sides moved with extreme speed. The figure, faced with a sky full of fireballs, had no way to dodge.
With a whoosh, it was submerged in the sea of fire, and its aura vanished almost instantly.
Li Yan couldn't help but let out a soft breath. Both sides had moved at incredible speed, and they had been too close. He hadn't even had time to tell if the opponent was human or demon.
But just as he began to relax, the spirit power shield around him suddenly shone brightly.
Immediately after, the shield near his temple silently caved in slightly before quickly returning to normal.
Li Yan stood motionless. It wasn't until a breath had passed that he let out a low exhale.
'A Soul Cultivator!'
The one who had attacked him just now was also a Soul Cultivator. The opponent had fallen so quickly that Li Yan hadn't even been able to identify them.
But even as they perished, they had launched one final strike.
A Soul Cultivator's attack was traceless. Even though Li Yan had a dense sea of fire in front of him, it had failed to block this strike, which passed right through it.
This time, perhaps because the opponent's cultivation was too low, Li Yan had sensed the attack a moment before it hit, but his protective shield had already instinctively activated its strongest defense.
Although the opponent was only a Foundation Establishment cultivator, Li Yan had still almost let the attack enter his body.
"I have merely stumbled into this place by mistake and have no malicious intent. We can discuss matters if there are any!"
Li Yan's voice rang out, reverberating through the surroundings. At the same time, the qi in his body surged. At this moment, he held nothing back, unleashing the full, mighty pressure of his late-stage Golden Core realm.
Li Yan's voice shook the area, echoing further and further down the dim alley, lingering for a long time... Li Yan stood motionless, but even after waiting for ten breaths, the alley remained silent and dim, with no response whatsoever.
"This is something I obtained by chance, which is how I mistakenly entered this place. I can leave this item behind, and you can just teleport me out. That way, outsiders still won't be able to enter here. The harm I caused just now was done out of desperation to protect myself. I can offer appropriate compensation."
After some thought, Li Yan took out the broken earthen jar and waved it at the empty space in front of him.
Then, he took out a Storage Pouch, and using his magical power, he levitated it along with the broken jar, sending them slowly flying forward into the void.
"Here is a bottle of fourth-rank healing pills, and one hundred thousand Spirit Stones!" Li Yan announced loudly once more.
He had killed many Golden Core cultivators in the underground grotto this time, and his wealth had grown dramatically. Although he couldn't compare to Nascent Soul cultivators, one hundred thousand Spirit Stones was nothing to him.
Li Yan knew he had killed one of their cultivators, but as long as it wasn't some core disciple, offering these things would make them feel that negotiation was possible.
However, Li Yan didn't offer more Spirit Stones. That would only let them know he was wealthy, inciting their greed. It would more likely lead them to kill him and take all his wealth for themselves.
Li Yan sensed his surroundings while keeping a close eye on the flying Storage Pouch and broken jar...
But to Li Yan's frustration, the two items had already flown nearly twenty zhang, and the surroundings were still deathly silent. They were completely ignoring his words.
But they also didn't launch another attack. They just remained in silent standoff.
Li Yan couldn't help but frown at this. This was the most feared type of enemy—one who gave you no feedback, leaving you with no idea what they were thinking.
As a result, you couldn't judge how to respond next.
"I know you are Soul Cultivators and do not like to interact with outsiders. But if you think you can just kill me like this, it will not be an easy task. I have already said that I acted in self-defense, and I have agreed to provide compensation. Can we not come out and talk?"
As Li Yan spoke, he slowly drew the broken jar and the Storage Pouch back towards him.
Dead silence. The emptiness was like that of the nine serenities of the netherworld. Li Yan felt his own voice was deafeningly loud, giving him the feeling of being fierce in appearance but timid inside.
Several more breaths passed. By the time Li Yan had completely retrieved the two items, everything was as before, deathly still.
Li Yan simply put the two items away and once again strode forward!
But just as he had taken two steps, with a swoosh, he flung his two large sleeves upwards towards the hazy grey sky. A gust of wind carrying a muffled whistle tore through the air.
And just as Li Yan made his move, two figures suddenly appeared in the sky above. From the left and right, they let out silent roars at Li Yan below.
This time, Li Yan saw them clearly. They were two somewhat illusory figures—one was a tiger-shaped demonic beast, the other a woman in white.
The tiger-shaped demonic beast opened its great maw. In the empty space diagonally below its huge mouth, the spiritual energy trembled slightly, the tremor aimed directly at Li Yan's body.
As for the woman in white, her face was stained with blood. In her eye sockets, two small, ghastly green hands had grown.
At this moment, each extended a ghastly green finger and pointed at Li Yan. Two streaks of faint green light flashed and disappeared.
The cultivation of this human and beast was still at the Foundation Establishment stage. The demonic beast's strength was even only at the initial-stage of the second rank. Their figures had not even fully materialized before they launched their attacks.
Just as their attacks began, Li Yan's massive barrage of "Wind Blade Art" had already reached them, easily shredding them into nothingness.
And at the same time, a change occurred on the spirit power shield around Li Yan's body!