With the magical treasure in hand, Li Yan, given his character, was naturally unwilling to linger. He was worried about every extra breath he spent there; after all, there were too many masters in this place, and he was all alone.
Taking advantage of Zhuo Lingfeng's farewell words, Li Yan promptly took his leave, and Zhuo Lingfeng escorted him to the entrance of the Sand Gate Temple.
He told Li Yan that if he needed anything in the future, he could come and find him directly. Li Yan smiled and agreed, promising to visit him again before returning to the Desolate Moon Continent.
Just as Li Yan was about to depart, Zhuo Lingfeng hurriedly spoke again.
"By the way, please accept this jade slip, Fellow Daoist Li. It contains the matching Buddhist art for activating these prayer beads. When used with this art, its power will be more than doubled compared to the technique you've been using."
As Zhuo Lingfeng spoke, another jade slip flew toward Li Yan. Hearing this, a sharp glint flashed in Li Yan's eyes.
'They even deduced the activation art? More than double the power?'
Every magical treasure had its own unique, matching technique for activation, which could maximize its power. However, some magical treasures might have been stolen or found in ancient ruins, missing their corresponding arts.
Thus, in the Cultivation World, there were some generic arts for activating magical treasures. After entering the Nascent Soul stage, Li Yan had found a cultivation method called the "Myriad Arts Spirit-Communicating Art" in the Treasure-Hiding Pavilion of the Malevolent Spirit Sect.
It allowed one to activate some unknown magical treasures after erasing the enemy's Divine Sense from them. This art was of a very high level in the Malevolent Spirit Sect; even elite core disciples needed the approval of a certain elder to cultivate it.
Li Yan had thought it was impressive enough that Zhuo Lingfeng could deduce the refinement art for "Secret Traces Vajra Suppresses the Sacred Mountain." As for activating it, he figured the biggest difference would be that the generic art Zhuo Lingfeng used would be more compatible with this particular treasure.
After all, the other party cultivated an orthodox Buddhist cultivation method. But Li Yan hadn't asked for it. A sect's cultivation method, especially a Buddhist art for activating a Nascent Soul-level magical treasure, would surely not be shared with outsiders.
And all he needed was to be able to activate the treasure anyway. He hadn't expected to hear from Zhuo Lingfeng's words that this set of techniques was not from the Sand Gate Temple's own collection but had also been deduced along with the refinement art.
Especially when Zhuo Lingfeng mentioned the degree of compatibility, which could actually increase its power by more than double, Li Yan was overjoyed. This was an unexpected delight.
"Thank you so much, Fellow Daoist!"
Li Yan gave a formal Daoist salute. Zhuo Lingfeng just waved his hand and said no more.
But just as Zhuo Lingfeng was about to turn and go back, Li Yan called out to him again. Li Yan took out a storage pouch and handed it to him.
"Keep this for your own use!"
With that, Li Yan had already risen quickly into the air and gracefully departed.
Inside the storage pouch were seven "Sand Star King Stones." Zhuo Lingfeng's righteousness had touched Li Yan, and for a moment, he seemed to see the desolate figures of a righteous, hunchbacked old man and a youth from long ago.
However, even when gifting the treasure again, Li Yan remained extremely cautious.
He didn't give a round number, as that would make it too easy for others to guess he had plenty more. By giving an odd number, it would seem to the other party that he was expressing his sincere gratitude.
Watching Li Yan leave, Zhuo Lingfeng curiously opened the storage pouch. When his Divine Sense entered it, his face first showed a look of stunned disbelief, and then he raised a single hand to his chest, facing the sky.
"Amitabha. Fellow Daoist Li, the benefactor of all beings, has been so since the beginningless past!"...
It wasn't until three days after leaving the Sand Gate Temple that Li Yan finally began to relax. After leaving the temple, he had changed directions several times along the way and finally confirmed that no one was following him.
He trusted Zhuo Lingfeng, and with Zhuo Lingfeng's steady character, he wouldn't casually tell others about his relationship with the Tianli Clan.
Even if he had, in the eyes of others, he was just a guest of the Tianli Clan. Since he had already visited once, it didn't necessarily mean he would go back again this time.
If Kong Hai and the others truly intended to kill him for his treasure, they would either have to catch up to him quickly or ambush him on the way to the Tianli Clan's territory. And there was more than one way to get there.
Li Yan trusted his Divine Sense. If he sensed anything amiss, he would simply veer off in another direction.
Sometimes, the things Li Yan did might seem completely meaningless, but he had always been this way. If something made him uneasy, he would painstakingly and meticulously see to it.
"To have succeeded this time is the result of various opportunities and coincidences, but the greatest opportunity was encountering that little demon, the Spirit Moth!"
Li Yan, standing with his hands behind his back at the front of the "Cloud-Piercing Willow," withdrew the Divine Sense he had been sending out to his surroundings. The current outcome was truly the sum of all kinds of fortunes.
If he hadn't killed Great Master Dajing, hadn't met the Spirit Moth, hadn't met Zhuo Lingfeng, hadn't met Hong Yin—if even one link in this chain had been missing, he would never have thought of this method.
And here, the greatest fortune was that little Foundation Establishment demon, the Spirit Moth who had thrown herself into the fire for love. The most inconspicuous existence had played the biggest role.
The "Golden Pearl Dragon-Subduing Art" was the key. Without this secret manual, even with the help of several high monks from the Sand Gate Temple, there was no telling how many years it would have taken to deduce the refinement art.
And the Spirit Moth had not only gifted him the manual but had also included two pieces of the exceptionally precious "Sinking True Dragon" bone.
According to Zhuo Lingfeng, these two bones were even older than the one Great Master Dajing had possessed, and the power they contained was purer.
"Indeed, karma exists. My actions have brought about an unexpected result. I hope that you and Zhao Fenglou will never be parted through all your lifetimes of reincarnation! Perhaps we will have a chance to meet again one day!"
Li Yan recited this silently in his heart.
In the void before him, it was as if he could see a man and a woman, holding hands, ascending through the air. As they turned, they waved at him. The eyes of the voluptuous woman were filled with happiness and joy...
Seven days later, Li Yan's figure quietly appeared in the sky above the Tianli Clan's territory. Only when he was directly above their grand formation did he reveal himself.
Almost simultaneously, more than a dozen strands of Divine Sense, some strong, some weak, instantly fell upon him.
Most belonged to the patrolling cultivators nearby. When they saw clearly that it was Li Yan, many of them bowed to him from afar, their attitude very respectful.
"We greet Senior Li!"
But there were also some cultivators whose eyes flickered. Though they seemed to wear respectful expressions, they feigned having business to attend to and immediately moved away.
Li Yan just smiled and waved at them.
The patrolling cultivators were, of course, not afraid of someone disguising themselves as Li Yan. A forced entry into the grand formation would trigger an alarm. At the same time, due to the Wind Beasts, the clan-protecting grand formation was guarded by at least one Nascent Soul elder every day.
Following this came the Great Elder's aged voice.
"Fellow Daoist Li, have you finished your business?"
"I suppose so. Thank you for your concern, Great Elder!" Li Yan replied with a slight smile and a soft voice.
As the two spoke, the other strands of Divine Sense were all withdrawn. After speaking, Li Yan stepped into the grand formation. He also carried a token for entering and exiting the Tianli Clan's formation.
As he entered, Li Yan cupped his hands toward an area behind him, the very spot from which the Great Elder's voice had come.
Inside the grand formation, Li Yan swept his Divine Sense around and then flew toward his former residence, because there, he had discovered the aura of Gong Chenying.
'It seems Sixth Senior Sister has been waiting for me all this time!'
Gong Chenying was not in her own residence, nor was she with Hong Yin. She was cultivating in Li Yan's pavilion.
Li Yan did not go to find the Great Elder and the others first. Instead, he went directly to find Gong Chenying. There were some matters he naturally had to discuss with her first.
Inside a cultivation chamber, Gong Chenying was dressed in a tight-fitting green outfit. She was resting on one elbow, her long legs bent behind her, resembling a resting cheetah.
Her beautiful eyes were slightly closed, and the rounded muscles of her body undulated in a rhythmic, wave-like motion, like flowing water. Her full hips were raised, forming a deep "concave" shape.
The oblique muscles of her waist were slightly tensed, creating a slanted ridge in the green-purple fabric and demonstrating the immense strength required to maintain such a training posture.
Even as she lay on her side, the peaks of her chest remained pert and high. The contrast between their roundness and her flat, taut abdomen created a steep drop, outlining a perfect, pulse-pounding curve.
Just then, the long lashes above Gong Chenying's closed eyes trembled slightly, and she opened them.
"Little Junior Brother is back!"
Li Yan had not hidden his aura when he entered the pavilion. Gong Chenying, in the midst of cultivating the "Qiongqi Purgatory Art," had exceptionally keen senses. Even without releasing her Divine Sense, she could easily sense someone entering the pavilion.
As she cultivated the "Red Lotus Incinerating Fire Scripture," her realm had risen rapidly, and in turn, her progress in the "Qiongqi Purgatory Art" had begun to accelerate once more.
Gong Chenying spent her nights in seated meditation and her days in body tempering. By cultivating both alternately, not only had her Pseudo-Nascent Soul Realm become more consolidated, but she was also beginning to break through to the mid-stage of the fifth layer of the "Qiongqi Purgatory Art."
Although she had not yet fully broken through, the bottleneck that had held her back for so long had already loosened. This rate of cultivation was nearly twice as fast as before.
A dozen breaths later, Gong Chenying, dressed in a blue, arrow-sleeved outfit, appeared in the pavilion's hall. Li Yan was looking at her with a wide smile.
The beauty before him was like jade, radiating boundless youth. Yet, with her prominent, rounded curves, she also resembled a ripe June peach.
These two completely different auras appeared on the same person, yet they were so perfectly fused.
Perhaps because she had just been cultivating, Gong Chenying's face had a porcelain-like sheen, and her eyes were like autumn water.
Standing almost as tall as Li Yan, one could easily distinguish the position of her long legs from her full hips, which seemed to take up the greater part of her body.
"What was the result of your trip?"
Gong Chenying looked at Li Yan's smiling face. She already had some guesses in her heart, but she preferred to ask directly.
"I have basically achieved my goal. Will the Clan Head be able to come out of seclusion for a bit? I wish to discuss the follow-up matters with him and you. If it's feasible, then I can begin preparing for the other matters."
Upon hearing this, a stunning light flashed in Gong Chenying's autumn-water eyes. She already knew the purpose of Li Yan's trip. Now, hearing him personally confirm such a result, great waves were already churning in her heart.
She had heard Li Yan's plan several years ago. Although she had hopes, it was just a plan. She was grateful that Li Yan was helping her with all his heart, but in her own heart, she had long been prepared for failure!
"A'die is not in closed-door death seclusion. He can come out at any time!"
In just the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, Gong Shanhe's figure appeared in Li Yan's pavilion. Gong Chenying had used a special contact method, a specific voice transmission talisman that only she and her father possessed.
Gong Shanhe arrived like a gust of wind. At this moment, though he was still somewhat gaunt, his muscles were already beginning to bulge again, and his previously unstable aura had begun to turn inward.
The moment he saw Li Yan and Gong Chenying, he asked hurriedly.
"A Ying, you said he has a way to prolong the time before that 'Yin Mountain Beast' breaks its seal, and by at least ten more years. Is it true?"
His expression was tinged with excitement. Although he had been in seclusion, his heart had not been at ease. He had requested that the Great Elder send him updates on the outside world periodically.
Just three days ago, Gong Shanhe had received another message from the Great Elder. The Third Elder had also returned, and the result was the same as the news the Fifth Elder had brought back last time: they had not found a suitable place for migration.
Moreover, the Third Elder's investigation, due to its proximity, had provoked the hostility of a sect. She had ended up being besieged by two of their Nascent Soul cultivators.
After a fierce battle, the Third Elder had managed to escape only after sacrificing two of her "Black-Spotted Seven-Step Rock Snakes" and injuring one of her opponents.
This had cost her half of the four Companion Spirit Beasts that had been with her for centuries. The pain was so great that she had nearly wanted to go back and fight those two to the death.
As for the Fifth Elder, there had been no news from him since he had set out again. And the time left for the Tianli Clan was rapidly running out.
To make matters worse, Yan San and his allies now instigated fierce battles with the Tianli Clan every few days, deploying their mid- to high-rank cultivators.
For the past year or so, Yan San had often taken to the field himself. The Great Elder had fought him several major battles, and both had been injured. As for the Tianli Clan's Golden Core cultivators, seven had fallen in just the last three years.
Their opponents fought as if their lives depended on it, and Yan San himself had become incredibly frenzied. In fact, even Gong Shanhe and the Fourth Elder, with their injuries not yet healed, were now only taking breaks to go into seclusion and recover.
They had also fought the enemy several times. Although not as frenzied as Yan San, both sides had suffered losses.
Even under such circumstances, they had still decided that after a few days of rest, the Third Elder would once again embark on a journey south.
But the Wind Beasts had been rampaging across the Wind God Continent for who knows how many years. Any place with decent cultivation resources had long been occupied by others.
Based on the current situation, the plan to migrate elsewhere would likely end in a brutal, bloody battle with another sect or clan.
The outcome might not be any better than staying here. If they were defeated, it would still mean the annihilation of their clan.
And the earliest warning time given to them by Hong Yin was only five or six years away. If the Third Elder's search this time proved fruitless, the Great Elder and the others would prepare to set off at any time.
Over the past three years, the Tianli Clan had not been idle. The Great Elder and the others had been secretly partitioning the various resources here. Most of what was left untouched now was the portion of cultivation resources that were easily damaged.
They were just waiting until the final ten-year deadline was near to partition all the resources like spirit stone veins and take them away.
Today, Gong Shanhe, who had been cultivating, suddenly received a voice transmission talisman from his daughter. At first, it had given him a fright. Gong Chenying had actually used the special voice transmission talisman that only the two of them shared.