Spirit light shot up.

Lei Jun wrapped it with the Breathing Soil Banner, then soared upward.

Given how the Gao Family and Dexiang Monk had ambushed him last time, Lei Jun had become even more cautious when traveling in the deep valley terrain.

Although he tried hard not to draw attention while carrying out his plans, now that his cultivation strength had grown, he found it harder to avoid stirring up trouble.

Before leaving the valley, he first scouted the area thoroughly, then activated the Wind-Thunder Talisman to turn night wind, quietly sneaking out.

Luckily, this time no one tried to block his way.

"Seems fine as long as no one leaks my whereabouts," Lei Jun nodded slightly.

He did not linger, leaving the region around Guyuan Peak right away.

Based on his guess, not only the Cangling River, but Jiuxi Valley likely had terrain and geography similar to Guyuan Peak.

So the related opportunities, all drifted beneath the cracks and deep valleys, stirring with the earth vein Spiritual Energy.

With the river of Spiritual Energy constantly washing over, any chance to seize something flashed past in just a few heartbeats.

Heading over to Cangling River now probably would not yield anything more.

It was a bit of a shame, but Lei Jun quickly put it out of his mind.

He began to examine what he had obtained from Guyuan Peak.

Finding a safe spot, Lei Jun took out the Breathing Soil Banner.

The dim yellow spirit light generated layers of spirit soil, burying Lei Jun underground, creating a hidden and safe space, barely noticeable from outside.

The Breathing Soil Banner unfurled, revealing a piece of spiritual stone that looked rather peculiar.

The stone's surface was deathly pale, covered in dense green stripes.

Just by appearance, Lei Jun could not sense any particular amount of Spiritual Power within it.

But as he experimented, probing the stone with his own mana, his eyes suddenly widened.

He felt his mana, after circulating twice through the stone, returning to his body much more refined.

The effect was instantaneous.

Except, one of the fine green stripes on the pale stone's surface had disappeared.

With Lei Jun's current cultivation, his insight far surpassed any ordinary person.

While the green stripes were still densely-packed, he could confirm they had decreased.

[Pure Spirit Rock]

Lei Jun's mind flashed, the name surfacing by intuition.

He was grateful the Dragon Tiger Mountain Celestial Master Mansion, as the Taoist Holy Land, possessed vast resources and a richly-stocked library.

Lei Jun had seen the name Pure Spirit Rock in his Sect's records before.

As the name implied, its main use was to further purify Spiritual Power.

Not only could it cleanse other Spiritual Energy, but also refine a cultivator's mana, making it even more pure and concentrated.

That way, it would speed up a cultivator's progress, boosting one's cultivation at a faster rate.

*This treasure is exactly what I need right now.* Lei Jun nodded in satisfaction, putting the Pure Spirit Rock away for now.

Once he returned to Dragon Tiger Mountain and refined the Qingxiao Divine Thunder Evil, he would use the Pure Spirit Rock's power to solidify a second, maybe even a third Original Talisman even faster.

*Just don't know when I'll get my hands on the True Yin Spiritual Object to pair with the Vermilion Sun Blossom.*

Lei Jun shook out his hand.

The flower stalk, still held by spirit soil, emerged again.

At the tip, a white spirit flower bloomed, flawless and never wilting, shining with warm, gentle light.

After nurturing it with Nine Sacred Frost Dew, the Vermilion Sun Blossom had finally met Lei Jun's required standard.

True One Altar.

Vermilion Sun Blossom.

Now two conditions had been met.

He just needed to acquire the last True Yin Spiritual Object. Once all three were united, he could try once more to enhance his root bone.

If he managed to grow it into the Saintly Physique Root Bone, plus comprehension at the Clear Insight level, his cultivation strength should rise much swifter... Lei Jun nodded slightly.

The stones and dirt shaped by the spirit soil quietly cracked open.

Lei Jun gazed out at the mountain forest, dimly lit after nightfall, and started moving again.

With sunset just past and some time left until he normally rested, he decided to keep traveling a while longer.

Though the woods were now silent and late, Lei Jun did not soar on clouds or fly overhead; instead, he preferred weaving between trees.

He liked to seize every moment and make good use of his time.

So now, as he pressed ahead, Lei Jun practiced honing his Wind-Thunder Talisman.

Through constant practical use, he summarized further, always aiming for more improvement.

But…

"Hm?"

Halfway down the path, Lei Jun paused ever so slightly.

Hidden in the dark, he gazed carefully toward the distant mountains up ahead to the side.

There appeared to be a fireglow over there.

If it were just someone making a bonfire, Lei Jun would not care.

But he faintly heard voices—voices that sounded familiar.

*Was that Zhang Yuan and his group?* Lei Jun wondered.

He did not approach rashly.

He sensed there were others there as well.

The groups were not friendly toward each other.

In fact, they were right in the middle of a brawl!

Lei Jun frowned a little.

*If it were just two unrelated groups fighting, I'd likely walk on without ever looking back.*

Since Zhang Yuan and the others were fellow disciples, Lei Jun slowed down, deciding to at least check out the situation.

The overall scene was unfavorable.

A dozen Celestial Master Mansion disciples were boxed in at the base of a mountain hollow, beset by even more opponents.

The good news, as true inheritors of the Celestial Master Mansion, even the newly entered Zhang Yuan group managed to hold their own for now, calmly sparring with the enemy.

The bad news, neither Zuo Li nor Li Yucheng—the two talisman-bestowed Taoists leading the team—were anywhere to be seen.

And those assaulting the Mansion disciples, more than one strong fighter was present.

So Zhang Yuan's group was forced onto the defensive, struggling from both sides with the situation growing perilous.

The dress and style of the enemy looked familiar. Lei Jun recognized them as disciples of the Mansion's old foes: the Jiangzhou Lin Clan.

Though the two sides were not at open war for now, the Mansion had no reason to stir up trouble with Jiangzhou, its long-standing rivals.

But with a thousand years of tangled grudges, the bitterness ran much deeper than ordinary rivalry.

Now, deep in deserted forest mountains, and with the earth veins shifting so Spiritual Energy was scrambled and hard to connect with the outside world…

In such conditions, if Jiangzhou Lin Clan members and Celestial Master Mansion true inheritors crossed paths, there could only ever be one result.

"Can't tell if this trip has turned out lucky or unlucky."

The Lin Clan youth leader said, "Anyway, let's dispatch these ox-noses fast, so we can meet up with Zhen."

Already running late, if they delayed much longer… recalling Lin Zhen's stern face sent a chill through this youth's heart.

The boy beside him laughed, "Honestly, it's all good luck—not only did we snag an excellent treasure, we get to kill these ox-noses too, venting years of frustration."

The youth pulled out something from his chest.

The object flickered with spirit light, part mirror, part not.

It looked like a carefully polished stone surface.

With one hand gripping this stone-mirror treasure, he waved the other through the air, painting out invisible characters.

He raised his hand, and the stone mirror shot out a beam of light, scanning the distance.

Even his own eyes started to glow faintly.

It seemed the artifact extended his eyesight and sensing far beyond normal range.

Lei Jun silently slipped behind the crowd.

But after seeing that stone mirror, his heart tensed, wary that the beam might reveal his night wind form.

Thankfully, the opponent just experimented a bit before putting it away again.

"It's a fine piece—good for Divine Archery and chanting alike, or for those pursuing Scriptures Studies," the youth sighed, "Since we're late, let's give this toy to Zhen. Hope it's worthy of him."

The Lin Clan boy next to him said, "Can never tell—Zhen's probably seen every kind of treasure, and if there's blood on it, he might not want it even more."

The youth snorted, "No shit, who'd guess that under the Cangling River valley, with all that danger, we'd lose three lives for this artifact!"

Cangling River… Lei Jun's eyes glinted at that.

*Were they talking about that Fifth Grade Opportunity from Cangling River?* Lei Jun wondered.

For Lei Jun, there had been winds and waves but nothing too dangerous.

For some though, those waves could be deadly.

Still, three people died—did these Lin Clan guys actually succeed in getting the Fifth Grade Opportunity mentioned in the second moderately good lot?... *Lei Jun speculated.*

The Lin Clan boy told the youth, "Liao, they were all outsiders anyway. If they die, just hire new ones."

Everyone here was a Lin, so he felt no need to hold back, "Just toss them some bones—there'll always be more dogs."

"I'd rather none existed."

The person beside him disagreed, "Best if none existed anywhere in the world."

The boy eyed Zhang Yuan's group, still resisting, and said, "So these ox-noses, and those bald donkeys too, are a royal pain, aren't they? If it weren't for them, would all those scummy shepherds have risen up?"

Lei Jun stood behind an ancient tree, quietly listening.

*This was why he did not like certain noble family heirs.*

Fang Lu and Fang Mingyuan were like this.

The Gao Family people, same.

Now these Lin Clan members too.

Even some of the Li Clan within the Mansion had the same mindset.

*To be fair, Lei Jun could accept a world where people's starting point was set before birth.*

*But he would not accept one where their ending point had to be fixed by others before birth too.*

*If anyone tried to create such a world, then…*

*Lei Jun was not that extreme; he did not want to see the world burn.*

*But he definitely wanted to see those people burn.*

"Hang in there, Uncle Zuo went to get Brother Yucheng, he'll be back soon."

Zhang Yuan and the Celestial Master Mansion disciples, facing siege, still cheered each other on, "Even if he can't find Brother Yucheng, Uncle Zuo will return very soon!"

The youth leader, Lin Liao, suddenly looked serious, "Hm? Sounds like there are more Mansion people nearby—already talisman-bestowed ox-noses?"

He eyed the other Lin Clan members holding back from the attack, "Finish it fast, no stalling, and don't leave any survivors…"

"Bang!"

Before he finished, Lin Liao's skull rang out.

Then his eyes rolled up—he collapsed face-first onto the ground.

The other Lin Clan disciples stared, dumbfounded, as their Liao hit the dirt. Behind him stood a towering Taoist.

Lei Jun held up what looked like a short club made of Supreme Pure Golden Bamboo, his gaze calmly sweeping across every head in front of him.

He wielded a hammer.

Everyone looked like a walnut.

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