After a while, he felt someone calling him, and a pill was fed into his mouth. "Brother Lu, Brother Lu, what happened to you?!" "Brother Lu, where's the Yingxin Grass?!" The four of them kept shouting at him, their eyes filled with urgency. Even his storage bag was missing; what on earth had happened? "Where's the Yingxin Grass?" Brother Lu's eyes flashed with confusion as he murmured. A flash of insight crossed his mind, and suddenly he remembered. Brother Lu's eyes turned bloodshot as he rose in fury, shouting, "Someone ambushed me!" "Who ambushed you, Brother Lu?" The four quickly asked, united in their anger. That talisman was precious, and they never expected the Yingxin Grass to be intercepted! This was intolerable; their faces were filled with murderous intent. Even if it were disciples from the ten great sects, they had the ability to join forces and kill. Brother Lu looked at the four, his expression grim, stammering, "I don't know..." The four gaped in shock, frozen. Brother Lu had always been cautious and well-versed in the art of ambush; could there really be someone more ruthless than him?!
Meanwhile, Chen Xun was in the valley with the Great Black Bull, dealing with a giant python. The python kept hissing lowly, its pinhole pupils revealing extreme fear! "How are you so amazing, pulling off ambushes? You're at the tenth level of Qi Refinement; do you want to ascend to heaven?!" "Moo!" "There are so many Kongming Vines here; are we going to take just a few? Is your life worth that? You raised it, after all!" "Moo!!" Chen Xun had the python's head pinned down, while the Great Black Bull held its tail tightly. They cursed as they swung it through the air and slammed it down hard; the python's insides were nearly shattered. Hiss! Hiss! Hiss! The python's mouth was filled with pleas for mercy; it had never encountered such a fierce human at the Qi Refinement stage. One punch nearly sent it back home, and in a spell duel, it was completely crushed. "Old Bull, grab the goods." Boom! A thunderous sound erupted, cracking the ground beneath them. Chen Xun pressed the python into the earth with one hand, dust swirling, the ground soaked in blood; it truly did not want to resist anymore. "Moo!" The Great Black Bull released its hooves and hurried to pick the Kongming Vines. Chen Xun snorted, clapped his hands, and he and the Great Black Bull headed out of the valley. They had already collected the spiritual herbs within Hanyan Valley and were moving on to their next destination.
A day later, many people arrived at the scene, and upon seeing it, they were overjoyed: "The Silver Shadow Python has been injured; hurry and collect the Kongming Vines." "Who could have injured it?! How could it be so severely hurt?" A few others were visibly shocked, clearly more composed. Could there be an existence stronger than the Silver Shadow Python nearby? They had been warned in their sect that this python was fierce; during the last trip to Nanshan, many cultivators had perished in its jaws. Hiss! Hiss! The Silver Shadow Python was enraged, its head suddenly bursting from the ground. It was convinced of its superiority; what were these humans to dare provoke it? "Be careful!" "It's pretending to be dead!" "Junior sister, quickly hide behind me!" Chaos erupted among the crowd as they summoned their magical artifacts and hurriedly retreated, their faces pale. Hiss!! The Silver Shadow Python slithered forward with incredible speed, roaring towards them. The crowd unleashed their spells, refusing to back down, and a fierce battle erupted in the valley.
A month later, Chen Xun and the Great Black Bull had been in the secret realm of Nandou Mountain for two months. They seemed to be getting more adept, fully unleashing the essence of the sixth brother. Countless disciples from various sects suffered misfortunes; what spiritual herbs were right before their eyes had vanished without a trace. When they attempted ambushes, they suddenly slipped and fell unconscious, waking up in confusion. What beasts and spirit creatures trembled at night, crying out in despair at the sight of a pile of dead leaves or a clump of green leaves, constantly repenting. Was this the decline of morality or the distortion of humanity? "This must be the ultimate sixth brother." "Moo!" Two clumps of green leaves stood at the center of an ancient tree, almost merging into one, from which a faint sigh could be heard. The Great Black Bull was filled with joy, rubbing against Chen Xun. They had harvested many spiritual herbs, all of which were unseen in the herb valley. Truly, a cow without unexpected wealth does not prosper, and a horse without night grass does not grow fat. "Old Bull, calm down; look at you, acting like you've never seen the world." Chen Xun's eyes had turned into the shape of spiritual herbs as he took out his treasure book, jotting down his observations and experiences—valuable lessons from his adventures with the Great Black Bull. "Moo~" The Great Black Bull grinned widely; the journey to Nandou Mountain had been exhilarating. "Next, we are heading to the real battlefield, the three ancient palaces, where a few auxiliary spiritual herbs are also located." Chen Xun said solemnly, pulling out a map and pointing to three large red dots. "The three most precious main flavor spiritual herbs are among them." "Moo!" The Great Black Bull listened attentively; there were beasts and spirit creatures within that surpassed the tenth level of Qi Refinement. "Though we haven't seen them, they likely possess some characteristics of the Foundation Establishment stage; we must not be careless." Chen Xun took a deep breath. The Foundation Establishment stage represented a leap in the level of life, existing in a different dimension compared to the Qi Refinement stage. "Moo~ Moo!" The Great Black Bull nodded seriously, continually rubbing against Chen Xun. "Let's go!" Chen Xun smiled, patting its head. Their figures vanished from the ancient tree in an instant, heading towards one of the three ancient palaces, the Wangyue Palace, where the Yangshen Lotus grew.
The Wangyue Ancient Palace exuded an ancient aura, standing in the center of a desolate mountain. Its origins were unknown, but most of the Yangshen Lotus, which had become extinct in the Qian Kingdom, could only be found here. The ancient palace was grand and archaic, resembling a dilapidated sect hall from afar, imbued with the helplessness of time. Although the ten great sects had methods to cultivate Foundation Establishment spiritual herbs, it was still a drop in the bucket, especially for main flavor spiritual herbs, which had excessively stringent environmental requirements; even they had not cultivated many. The area outside the palace was filled with pools of blood, with severed limbs scattered everywhere, and even fellow disciples had turned against each other, their bodies entwined in death, eyes wide open in disbelief. Inside the palace, the sounds of battle echoed, spells clashing chaotically. On a high ground, Chen Xun and the Great Black Bull observed from a distance, both frowning slightly. "Damn it, Old Bull, this situation makes it hard for us to fish in troubled waters." Chen Xun said quietly, "So many disciples from the ten great sects have turned this into a bloody path." "Moo!" The Great Black Bull nodded; people from all sides continued to arrive, and the fighting was fierce, with some cultivators like them still observing from afar. "Old Bull, let's not rush; let's assess the situation." "Moo~" The man and the bull crouched in the distance, motionless, watching the Wangyue Palace. They hadn't even begun to harvest the spiritual herbs, and already a large number of people had died; truly, human greed knows no bounds. Three days later, a sudden roar erupted from within the ancient palace. Roar! Roar! This voice was powerful, like a mountain flood bursting forth, shaking the ground for miles around. Even Chen Xun and the Great Black Bull, far away, were left with ringing ears, their eyes wide with shock.