Chapter 5: The Void Sword Array

Qingfeng Cliff and Fufeng Ridge are both low-grade first-tier spirit veins, with a smaller overall area. There is about ten acres of flat land at the base of the cliff.

A three-compound courtyard has been built, with five acres of leveled spirit fields, a deep spirit pond, and several ancient trees as thick as a person's arms. Overall, it looks much more refined than Fufeng Ridge.

Indeed, the lifestyle of a family of three is vastly different from that of a single man like Bai Jiuan. Bai Ying's three-compound courtyard has four bedrooms, and a row of rooms for future human servants.

After entering, a long corridor leads to an inner courtyard with a shallow pond covered in lotus leaves, where silver fish can be seen darting through the water.

"This is called the Bitterheart Lotus. It bears bitter lotus seeds every summer, which are said to be auxiliary ingredients for refining a Clear Heart and Fire-Dispelling Elixir. My mother dries them and can sell a batch for over a dozen spirit stones," Bai Zichen explained.

"And the silver dragon fish in the pond are the same as those in the spirit pond outside, brought back as fry by my father from the market. A two-foot-long fish is worth three spirit stones. I've tasted it once, and it's delicious, making you feel warm all over."

Bai Zichen's move to Qingfeng Cliff made Bai Pofat the happiest. He ran in and out, introducing his home to everyone.

Clearly, the Bai Ying family had many more ways to make money than his uncle Bai Jiuan.

After dinner, Bai Zichen returned to his room in the west wing, lying on the bed and quietly reflecting on the events of the past two days. Suddenly, he sat up, opened his waist pouch, and poured everything out.

Two spirit stones, a dozen blank talismans, and the fifteen low-grade first-tier talismans given by Bai Jiuan.

The Vajra Talisman is earth yellow, and once activated, it can make the user impervious to blades and bullets, increasing arm strength by several hundred pounds. Five of them are worth ten spirit stones.

The Fireball Talisman is bright red, and holding it for a long time gives a burning sensation. Once used, it can summon a fireball that can melt gold and iron. Five of them are worth twelve spirit stones.

The Swift Talisman is light blue, and once activated, it makes the user as light as a swallow and as swift as the wind. Five of them are worth eight spirit stones.

These talismans are Bai Zichen's only reliance in times of danger. He gently touched each talisman, arranged them in order, and put them back in the brocade pouch, hanging it on his waist again. After some thought, he took out a few and carefully tucked them into his chest.

After moving to Qingfeng Cliff, he brought several books, including a guide titled "Talisman Usage for Qi Condensation Cultivators." He held it in his hands and read it carefully, completely forgetting about the Yiwood Green Spirit Technique.

"Combining the Swift Talisman with the Vajra Talisman and practicing a few mundane martial arts can have unexpected effects in the early stages of Qi Condensation, similar to Body Tempering cultivators..."

"The Frost Talisman has limited killing power, but if three or more hit the target, it can immobilize the target, making them unable to move for ten breaths for cultivators below the late Qi Condensation stage..."

"The Lightning Strike Talisman, when used during a thunderstorm, has a certain probability of summoning heavenly lightning, with power comparable to a second-tier talisman. However, the casting distance must be maintained, or it will harm both the user and the enemy..."

Bai Zichen unknowingly read for over an hour. The author of this "Talisman Usage for Qi Condensation Cultivators" might not have high cultivation, but their understanding and use of low-tier talismans were undoubtedly at a master level.

In the following days, Bai Zichen would finish his cultivation and wander around Qingfeng Cliff with Bai Pofat, mainly to prevent him from running around. They would either catch mountain chickens in the bamboo forest or catch blue fish in the water, recapturing some of the joys of childhood.

...

"The Void Sword Array! Fortunately, after several hundred years, the sword qi has diminished, and its power is now less than a third of what it was!"

Several sword qi streaks cut through the air, leveling two distant mountain peaks. A few unlucky cultivators who happened to be in the path of the sword qi were cut into pieces, their blood splattering the ground.

The lean Taoist drew a sharp breath, secretly relieved. Even a Foundation Establishment cultivator would find it difficult to face this sword qi head-on.

"It seems the decision to only drive away the itinerant cultivators and leave the family cultivators was correct. Otherwise, it would take a lot of effort and many sect disciples to wear down the Void Sword Array."

"Order the ten families to guard the four sides and drive away any idle people. The remaining family members will be divided into five teams to take turns using spells to attack the array eye of the Void Sword Array. I want to enter the third level of the Wuyue Temple within a week!"

"Understood!"

A group of Qingfeng Sect cultivators stood behind the lean Taoist, respectfully acknowledging the order. The three leaders wore purple robes with two crossed small swords embroidered on the chest, clearly the mark of Qingfeng Sect elders.

Beneath their feet was a plaque made of century-old golden silk black wood, with three gilded characters "Wuyue Temple" inscribed on it. It had hung in the mountain cave for hundreds of years but was now lying in the mud.

The two itinerant cultivators who discovered the Wuyue Temple were herbalists who often worked in the Black Mountain Range. While digging for a mountain ginseng, they accidentally triggered a mechanism, causing a landslide that exposed the first level of the cave.

The restrictions and arrays on the first level had lost their effectiveness over time, allowing the two itinerant cultivators to successfully enter the cave and occasionally take out a few treasures to sell.

After doing this multiple times, they were noticed by someone with ulterior motives. Soon after leaving the market, they were intercepted by a group of raiders, who extracted all the information through soul searching and torture. These raiders, who had gathered for wealth, could not keep such a significant secret, and it quickly spread to the Qingfeng Sect and other major cultivation families.

Thousands of cultivators swarmed in, searching for anything of value like ants moving their nest.

The first level of the Wuyue Temple was filled with a large amount of basic alchemy materials, such as iron essence, gold essence, and meteorite ore, all weighing over a thousand pounds. It was unclear what the original Wuyue Zhenren intended to do with so much basic material.

These materials, which could only be used to refine ordinary magical tools, were of no use to him.

The second level of the Wuyue Temple was protected by a Five Elements Restriction, which was broken by several Foundation Establishment cultivators working together, revealing the true appearance of the second level, with over ten meditation rooms.

Many cultivators fought fiercely on this level, with corpses littering the paths to each meditation room. It wasn't until the Qingfeng Sect arrived that they quickly restored order.

However, when the meditation rooms were opened, the contents inside disappointed everyone. There was only a meditation cushion and a warm jade bed, with nothing else.

The meditation cushion had a calming effect and could be considered a mid-grade magical tool. The warm jade bed was notable only for its size, which could be cut into hundreds of warm jade pendants for exorcism and warding off evil.

These items were far from matching the great reputation of Wuyue Zhenren Chen Taige, clearly indicating that the best treasures were in the third level of the cave.

"Clan leader, the Qingfeng Sect is using us as cannon fodder. They are unwilling to have their own disciples charge forward and are making us do it. The power of this sword array is not something ordinary magical tools can withstand."

Hong Gu's face was pale, and the joy of the Qingfeng Sect's offer of cooperation had long vanished. She had seen a Huang family elder use a bronze bell magical tool, only to be split in half by a sword qi along with the bell.

"Lead the clan members behind me, and be on high alert. If the situation turns bad, retreat from the Wuyue Temple immediately."

Bai Xianzhong's expression was serious, with five golden rings spinning in front of him. "Even if we offend the Qingfeng Sect, we must protect our lives. If we are all killed here, the Bai family's foundation will be taken away!"

A Foundation Establishment clan leader, two elders, and twelve elite clan members—such a lineup, if completely wiped out in the Wuyue Temple, would be a catastrophic disaster for the Bai family.

Losing both the present and the future.

(End of Chapter)