Chapter 36. Bell of 9 Echoes (Magic Treasure), Foundation Establishment Ape

The Grand Elder was tasked with guarding the strategic stronghold of Pingyang County. To prevent being ambushed and decapitated before the City Defense Array could be activated, he had kept this magical instrument on his person for years without ever parting with it.

To bolster their confidence for this journey, the party not only retrieved the Blazing Sun Heavenly Fire Banner, but even resolved to bring forth the Bell of 9 Echoes (Magic Treasure).

Early the next morning, the party of 5 departed Verdant Chariot Mountain (Location). After stopping by Pingyang County to retrieve the Bell of 9 Echoes (Magic Treasure), they finally set out toward the Azure Sun Sect.

The Qing Province, home to the Green Sun Sect's mountain gate, lay deep within the heart of the Chu Kingdom, a staggering 200,000 li from Yu County.

The group pressed on without rest, traveling for nearly half a year before finally arriving at the gate of the Qingyang Sect.

At the Green Sun Sect, they met Chen Qingyuan. Having been away from his clan for over 20 years, Chen Qingyuan initially seemed somewhat distant. Noticing their exhaustion, he promptly invited them inside to sit down.

Observing the travel-worn state of the 5 visitors, the youngest elder of the Qing generation smiled bitterly. "I am truly ashamed that Elder Qingyuan's affairs have compelled several elders to journey 10 1000 li to offer assistance."

"No need to say that." Third Elder shook his head and said, "You emerged from this family, and the clan will always be your roots, your most steadfast support."

The Second Elder, who had watched Chen Qingyuan grow up, asked with concern, "How have you been all these years at the Qingyang Sect?"

Listening to their words of concern, Chen Qingyuan felt a lump form in his throat, but in the end, he swallowed his emotions.

Witnessing this scene, everyone exchanged glances and promptly refrained from further inquiries.

They all knew full well how the Qingyang Sect had changed over the years—ever since the former sect leader of Qingyang had passed away a century ago.

The current sect master of the Azure Sun Sect, Elder Xu (Person Name), seized power by scheming against his own senior apprentice brother. This naturally set the tone for the entire sect—when those above behave unworthily, those below will follow suit.

However, after Patriarch Xu took control of the sect, he exhausted the clan’s treasury to purchase a Golden Core Formation Pill (Spiritual Object) and successfully broke through to the Golden Core Realm. In the end, he managed to preserve the foundation of the Qingyang Sect, though whether this outcome was for better or worse remains uncertain.

In a sect like Qingyang Sect, a cultivator like Chen Qingyuan with no backing surely had a difficult time.

At this thought, the Second Elder had no choice but to console him, "Endure it a little longer. Once you break through to the Foundation Establishment stage, everything will fall into place."

After chatting for a while and exchanging stories about the major events that had occurred in the family over the years, they realized 1 shichen (2 hours) (Time & Distance) had slipped by unnoticed.

Seeing the opportune moment, Eldrin said in a timely manner, "For this mission to slay the demonic beasts, which 1 have you decided to eliminate?"

Chen Qingyuan, however, shook his head with a bitter smile. "In previous years, we were allowed to choose which demon to slay ourselves. But this year, Elder Wei (Person Name), who oversees the distribution of Foundation Establishment Pills (Spiritual Object) for the sect, has altered the rules—he now assigns the tasks directly to us."

The reason given was that only 3 batches of Foundation Establishment Pill (Spiritual Object) had been refined this year, yielding fewer pills than in previous years, hence the increased difficulty.

After saying this, he handed over a bamboo scroll with a bitter smile. When the others took it and looked, their expressions all turned somewhat grim.

This time, the demon beast Chen Qingyuan was tasked to slay was a Second-Order Cyan-Striped Ape. Though its strength ranked modestly among Second-Order demon beasts, the Cyan-Striped Ape was by no means an easy foe to subdue.

Since they were pack-dwelling demonic beasts, a clan capable of producing a Second-Order Cyan-Striped Ape would typically have over a 100 Qi Refining Stage Cyan Apes.

Chen Qingyuan needed to slay a Foundation Establishment stage Verdant-Striped Ape, yet he would likely face the siege of over a 100 Green Apes—a truly troublesome affair.

"It seems someone within the Qingyang Sect has taken a liking to Qingyuan's Foundation Establishment Pill (Spiritual Object)." The Fourth Elder's expression shifted as he murmured, "Perhaps we should wait another decade. By then, there might be more Foundation Establishment Pills (Spiritual Object) available, and the competition wouldn't be so fierce."

"Every struggle for the Foundation Establishment Pill (Spiritual Object) is fraught with hardship." Second Elder Chen Qinghe (Person Name) countered, "Moreover, how many decades does a cultivator truly possess? If we refrain from contending now, we may well regret it for the rest of our lives."

Chen Qingyuan pondered for a moment before speaking involuntarily, "The Verdant-Striped Ape is truly too perilous. Perhaps we should wait another decade—in 10 years, it might become easier."

Eldrin glanced at the assembly and declared, "There's no need for hesitation. Though the Verdant-Patterned Ape is formidable, we are not without our chances. Should the situation turn dire, I still possess the Blazing Sun Divine Fire Talisman."

Hearing this, everyone breathed a slight sigh of relief. With the Solar Flame Talisman as their safeguard, they now dared to confront even a mid Second Order demonic beast, let alone a low Second Order Green-Striped Ape.

After making up their minds, the group set out together to slay the monstrous beast.

The Green Sun Sect was located deep within the heart of the Chu Kingdom, where second-order demonic beasts had become relatively scarce. Finding a specific Foundation Establishment demonic beast in Qingzhou was no easy task.

However, since it was a mission, the Qingyang Sect had naturally scouted the location in advance. The 6 of them journeyed onward and, after 2 months, finally found the hiding place of the Green-Tattooed Ape.

The Verdant-Striped Ape had concealed itself deep within a remote mountain range, where it occupied a spiritual vein and had clearly thrived for many years.

The group first surveyed the situation upon arriving before the mountain range, then gathered to discuss their approach.

The Third Elder was the first to speak. "I've tallied them up. There are exactly 113 Green-Patterned Apes here."

Apart from a Foundation Establishment leader, there were also 9 Qi Refinement, Late Stage (Cultivation Realm) cultivators. The rest posed little threat.

Eldrin closed his eyes, recalling the terrain, and used a branch to sketch a map of the surrounding area on the ground.

"The Green-Tattooed Apes are numerous and possess considerable strength. A head-on confrontation would be unwise."

"However, their intelligence is limited. We can attempt to eliminate them 1 by 1."

He said, using a branch to circle a valley on the map before smiling faintly.

"The terrain here is treacherous. As long as we lure them over, block the escape route, and deploy the Solar Flare Heavenfire Formation here, we'll have them trapped like turtles in a jar."

"Excellent idea." Everyone agreed in unison. The Third Elder declared, "Let the preparations begin."

To increase their chances of victory, the group began reshaping the terrain.

They arrived at the valley, summoned their flying swords and magical tools to reshape the terrain, then deployed the formation flags. Only when utterly exhausted did they finally cease their efforts.

After completing all these preparations, they did not rush into action. Instead, they rested overnight to replenish their spiritual energy, only commencing their operation the following day.

The group ventured into the territory of the Verdant-Striped Apes and began covertly eliminating isolated individuals.

The Verdant-Patterned Apes were, after all, pack-dwelling demonic beasts. The group had only managed to slay 3 or 4 of them before the apes caught on and gave chase.

The group hastily retreated, running over a dozen li before Eldrin noticed only a dozen or so demonic apes were still in pursuit. He immediately wheeled around to counterattack.

"Kill first, talk later."

No sooner had he spoken than he summoned the Verdant Leaf Sword, soaring into the air and cleaving a Green-Striped Ape clean in 2.

Several Qi Refinement, Peak Stage (Cultivation Realm) cultivators joined forces, and within a dozen or so moves, they had hacked over a dozen Verdant-Striped Apes to pieces, leaving none alive.

"Not bad."

Victory in the first battle brought a smile to Eldrin's face. "Continue."

The group employed the same tactic once more, returning to the territory of the Verdant-Striped Apes to lure them out for slaughter.