Chapter 48 Celestial Ruins Mountain (Location), The Great Battle Approaches

The Profound Abyss Dao Marsh Art was a water-attributed cultivation technique that also contained the refinement method for the Ethereal Spirit Sword of the Abyss. This served to fill the gaps in the clan's collection of techniques. With this art available to them, the water-attributed cultivators of the clan would find their future cultivation paths significantly smoother.

If we could obtain an earth-attribute Foundation Establishment cultivation method in the future, the Chen Clan would then possess a complete set of 5 Elements techniques for the Foundation Establishment stage.

Zuo Mingxu had dared to venture out with this cultivation technique to settle a vendetta, never anticipating that even with 5 Foundation Establishment cultivators joining forces—2 of them wielding 3 second-tier superior-grade magical artifacts and spirit talismans—they would still meet their end in this battle.

It was no wonder they were caught off guard. The old clan leader had obtained the Li Fire Sword of the Returning Abyss, while Eldrin had spontaneously broken through to Foundation Establishment. These 2 unforeseen variables converging at once had completely defied their expectations.

Getting back to the story, this battle yielded several sets of magical artifacts and over 5,000 spirit stones. The cultivators of the Chen family cast aside years of sorrow, their faces beaming with joy.

They knew that after this journey to the Celestial Ruins Mountain, the days of the Chen Clan cultivators would finally take a turn for the better.

Now that Celestial Ruins Mountain (Location) was nearly in sight, he breathed a sigh of relief and quickened his pace.

"What's going on?"

Chapter 1 Upon arriving at the market in Celestial Ruins Mountain, Eldrin sensed something was amiss.

He noticed that all the cultivators in the market district were hurrying about their business. Most of them wore expressions of either alarm or delight, yet each face carried a trace of solemn gravity.

The 2 exchanged a glance. The old clan leader shook his head and transmitted his voice in secret, saying,

"First, I'll head to the Celestial Ruins Pavilion to conclude this trip's business regarding the 5 Elements Essence and gather some information while I'm at it."

"Good."

Eldrin nodded. The Celestial Ruins Pavilion was an enterprise of Patriarch Jiang, so the information it disseminated was undoubtedly the most accurate.

The group hauled their cargo forward and soon arrived at the Celestial Ruins Pavilion. The cultivators of the pavilion spotted them from afar, and a woman promptly emerged to greet them.

The woman was clad in crimson robes, her features sharp and handsome, appearing to be 20-some years of age. From afar, she laughed.

"I've been counting the days. The 5 Elements essence from Yu County should be arriving soon."

"I was wondering which fellow cultivator would be delivering the goods this time, but I never expected it to be Fellow Daoist Chen."

"I had heard earlier that Fellow Daoist Chen was injured, and I wished to pay you a visit, but unfortunately, I was tied up with matters," the woman said, smiling at Chen Changxuan. "Now that you've come to Celestial Ruins Mountain (Location), it seems your injuries have healed."

The old clan leader smiled faintly and said courteously, "I appreciate your concern, Fairy Liu."

The woman smiled faintly, her gaze sweeping over Eldrin as a flicker of surprise crossed her pupils. "And who might this be?" she inquired.

"This is my grandnephew, Eldrin." The old clan leader beckoned Eldrin forward. "This is the esteemed disciple of Patriarch Jiang - Fairy Liu Rumeng."

Eldrin looked up and saw that the woman’s cultivation was at the Foundation Establishment, Mid Stage. Realizing she was not the same Elara he had met a few years ago, he quickly stepped forward and bowed respectfully, saying, “Greetings, Senior Liu.”

"You're also a Foundation Establishment cultivator, I truly don't deserve to be addressed as 'senior'." Liu Rumeng swiftly sidestepped the gesture, then teased with a playful tone: "Judging by your bone age, you shouldn't be over 30. A Foundation Establishment cultivator of such youth—I suspect you're destined to become a towering figure in the Chu Kingdom someday."

"With such extraordinary talent, I might well be calling you 'senior' in the future."

The old clan leader couldn't help but crack a smile at this, yet he promptly added, "This reckless lad knows no better, rushing headlong into Foundation Establishment without proper preparation."

"Yet he merely had good fortune, managing to beat the 10-1000-to-1 odds. How could he compare to the boundless prospects ahead of Fellow Cultivator Liu?"

After exchanging a few pleasantries, the group set about their proper business.

The trade of 5 Elements Essence was vital to the cultivation of Patriarch Jiang Dao, and Celestial Ruins Mountain (Location) placed immense importance on it. Each year, they spared no expense, investing 20,000 spirit stones to procure the 5 Elements Essence from the 2 prefectures of Yu and Feng.

After a thorough check by both parties, the final transaction price was set at over 9,500 spirit stones. This was due to the refinement of the Crimson Flame Qi (Spiritual Root) spirit blade, which had consumed over 2,000 strands of Gengjin Qi and Lihuo Qi. Otherwise, the transaction price would have been slightly over 10,000 spirit stones.

Money for goods, hand in hand. After receiving the 32,000 spirit stones, Liu Rumeng invited the 2 to enter the Tianxu Pavilion for tea.

In the loft, Chen Changxuan (Person Name) gave a faint smile and finally couldn’t resist asking, “After I entered the market today, why did I see everyone rushing about with hurried steps?”

"Could it be that something has happened at the Celestial Ruins Mountain (Location)?"

Liu Rumeng revealed a faint smile upon hearing this. "That is precisely what I wished to discuss with you."

She spoke with a grave expression, "By careful calculation, there are still 30-1 or 30-2 years until the century-spanning Beast Tide erupts once again."

As she spoke, Eldrin's pupils contracted slightly, and he quickly understood the reason for the growing unrest among the people of Celestial Ruins Mountain.

To the north of Celestial Ruins Mountain (Location), a boundless expanse of misty marshes stretched across hundreds of millions of miles within the Eastern Wastelands (Location).

As 1 of the most terrifying domains within the Eastern Wastelands (Location), the Vast Marsh teems with countless demon tribes thriving across its expanse, harboring dreadful existences such as Golden Core Demon Kings and Nascent Soul Demon Emperors.

Legend has it that deep within the vast misty marshes, an ancient Black Dragon Demon Ancestor has resided for eons. This black dragon possesses an earth-shattering bloodline and has cultivated to a realm bordering on divinity—so profound that even a Nascent Soul Dao Lord on the verge of ascension could do nothing against it.

Of course, all these seemed far too distant for everyone, even for the Chu Kingdom.

Yet right before their eyes, there existed a grave threat to Celestial Ruins Mountain (Location)—the Celestial Python Lake (Location), situated 400,000 li to its north.

Celestial Python Lake (Location) was the domain of the Celestial Python Demon King (Demon Beast). Within its territory dwelled a vast number of demon tribes, who continuously multiplied and thrived, giving rise to countless descendants.

Whenever the demon tribes across the dozens of 10-1000-mile territories surrounding Celestial Python Lake (Location) approached unsustainable numbers, the Celestial Python Demon King (Demon Beast) would summon all demonic beings within its domain to launch an assault against the Chu Kingdom (Location).

In this way, if successful, they would be able to seize vast territories of the human race and expand their own domain.

If they failed, it would still significantly deplete the numbers of low-level demons, thereby avoiding the predicament of ecological collapse and the demons turning on each other.

The reason it occurred once every 100 years was an unspoken rule tacitly agreed upon through the stalemate between the Great Wilderness’s human Nascent Soul clans—notably the Ji Clan—and the Demon Emperor.

For now, there were roughly 30 years before the beast tide would erupt once more. As 1 of the 3 defensive fronts of the Chu Kingdom against the demon tribes, Celestial Ruins Mountain would naturally bear the brunt of the assault.

In order to alleviate the pressure from the beast tide, Patriarch Jiang decided to take the initiative, aiming to slay several Purple Mansion beasts first to weaken the demonic forces.

This time, the master intended to assault the Demon Wolf Mountain and resolved to summon all cultivators within Celestial Ruins Mountain (Location) to join the campaign.

"As Foundation Establishment cultivators, you 2 must also answer the call and join the assault on the Demon Wolf Mountain."

Liu Rumeng spoke, her gaze falling upon the 2 of them.

Chen Changxuan let out a bitter laugh, yet declared resolutely, "Better to confront the demonic tribes now than be besieged by them 30 years later."

"This battle has my support. The 2 of us will join the fray with our full strength."

He paused briefly, then continued, "It's just that we were ambushed by demonic cultivators on our way here. Several of our Qi Refining juniors were severely injured and I'm afraid they won't be able to participate in this battle."

"The 2 of you will suffice." Liu Rumeng (Person Name) smiled faintly, for she had set her sights solely on the pair before her. "Let those 6 Qi Refining cultivators remain stationed at Celestial Ruins Mountain (Location)."