Immortality Cultivation

Fang Hao happily finished counting his spoils in the cave, sorting and storing the body of that Fourth-Rank Thunder-Armored Fierce Beast, three thunder element fruits, and a section of purple lightning thunder bamboo. He felt incredibly satisfied. This trip to the Hundred Flowers Medicinal Garden was truly worth it; although he hadn’t found any Spirit Medicine to increase his cultivation at the Golden Core Stage, making such a huge haul was definitely worth it!

"I can’t be greedy; quit while I’m ahead!" Fang Hao suppressed the thought of continuing to sweep through the medicinal garden. Since he had caused such a big commotion earlier, the Thunder Sword Sect and those gray-clothed men were definitely searching the mountains like crazy. Staying any longer would be asking for trouble. He packed up neatly, quietly slipped out of the cave, and once again made his way toward the "heaven-reaching pagoda" at the center of the Secret Realm.

This time he was even more careful, alternating between the Divine Spirit Steps and the fragment of the Shadowless Evasion Technique. He restrained his aura to the limit, specifically choosing remote and difficult mountain paths and dense forests to traverse, fearing he might be spotted.

The journey was uneventful. After traveling for over half a day and crossing several mountain peaks, a dense primeval forest appeared ahead. The ancient trees in this forest reached the sky, vines were intertwined, and it blocked out the sun, making the light very dim. The air was filled with a damp smell of rotting leaves and a faint fragrance of plants.

Not long after Fang Hao entered the forest, his Clear Spring Spirit Eyes captured a sudden burst of violent spiritual energy fluctuations and the sound of fighting from ahead, mixed with a woman’s delicate shouts and the roars of a Demon Beast.

"Again?" Fang Hao was a bit speechless. Why was there fighting everywhere in this Secret Realm? Couldn’t people just search for treasures in peace? He didn’t want to meddle and prepared to take a detour, but as his Divine Sense swept over, he found the auras of both fighting parties to be somewhat special.

One side was a Demon Beast with a violent aura and a fishy wind, likely the overlord of the forest. The other side consisted of several Cultivators with decent cultivation: two at the Early Golden Core Stage and one at the Great Perfection Foundation Establishment. What caught Fang Hao’s attention was that their Cultivation Technique auras were full of vibrant vitality, and their spiritual power carried a dense and very pure wood-element Spiritual Qi.

"This style... it’s not from the West Province; it seems more like a Sect that specializes in wood-element Cultivation Techniques." Fang Hao muttered to himself, his pace involuntarily slowing down. He activated the Ethereal Art and silently approached, hiding behind a massive ancient tree that would take several people to encircle, peeking out to observe.

In a clearing within the forest, three Cultivators wearing light green Sect robes were locked in a bitter struggle against a massive Yao Python! The Yao Python was emerald green all over, its scales shimmering with a metallic luster. It had a fleshy crest on its head and spat out a foul-smelling poisonous mist. It was actually a Fourth-Rank Low Grade "Green Phosphorus Poisonous Python"!

The three Cultivators were two women and one man. Leading them was a woman who looked to be in her early twenties, with a clear and beautiful face and a gentle temperament, but her attacks were not at all hesitant. She held an Emerald Ruyi that scattered trails of green light, transforming into tough vines that constantly coiled around and restricted the Yao Python’s movements; her cultivation was at the Early Golden Core Stage. The other woman was slightly younger, at the Great Perfection Foundation Establishment, wielding a pair of Willow Leaf Short Blades. Her movement was agile as she provided support and harassment from the side. The male Disciple was also at the Early Golden Core Stage, using a wooden sword with a nimble sword technique that carried a Concept of endless life, coordinating perfectly with the female Cultivator.

"They’re from the ’Green Wood Sect’ of Liang Province!" Fang Hao recognized them by the green leaf and vine emblem on their clothes. The Green Wood Sect was a major Sect in Liang Province, famous for its wood-element Cultivation Techniques and Alchemy. Most of its Disciples were gentle-natured, aloof from worldly competition, and had a good reputation.

At this moment, the situation for these three Green Wood Sect Disciples was not good. The Green Phosphorus Poisonous Python was extremely difficult to deal with; not only was it immensely strong with hard scales, but the poisonous mist it spat out also had strong corrosive and paralyzing effects, leaving the three of them restricted. Although the clear and beautiful woman leading them barely suppressed the poisonous mist with wood-element Spells, her spiritual power consumption was enormous, and her face had already turned somewhat pale. The male Disciple tried to close in for a powerful attack several times but was swept back by the poisonous python’s tail, facing many close calls. The female Foundation Establishment Cultivator could only engage in hit-and-run tactics on the periphery, unable to be of much help.

"Senior Brother, Senior Sister! This beast’s poisonous mist is too powerful; my ’Heart-Clearing Talisman’ is about to fail!" the Foundation Establishment female Cultivator shouted anxiously. She was enveloped in a thin light shield that was flickering under the erosion of the poisonous mist.

"Hold on! There must be ’qingxin grass’ or detoxification Spirit Medicine near this Green Phosphorus Python’s nest! Once we take it down, we can concoct an antidote to save Junior Brother Lin!" the clear and beautiful woman said through gritted teeth. The green light from the Emerald Ruyi in her hand flared up as she once again grew more vines to coil toward the Demon Beast’s seven-inch mark.

Fang Hao saw everything clearly from the side. These Green Wood Sect Disciples had righteous Cultivation Techniques and coordinated well, but their offensive power was slightly lacking. They lacked a powerful means to achieve victory in a single strike and were being countered perfectly by this thick-skinned, poisonous creature. If the fight continued, they would surely suffer.

His gaze swept across the battlefield and discovered several Spiritual Plants with heart-shaped leaves emitting a faint fragrance growing next to a large tree hollow where the Yao Python resided.

"As expected, it’s qingxin grass, and it’s five hundred years old." Fang Hao understood. It seemed the people from the Green Wood Sect desperately needed this herbal medicine to save someone, which is why they risked provoking this Fourth-Rank Demon Beast. They were quite loyal to their fellow Disciples.

He rubbed his chin, feeling a bit hesitant. The Green Wood Sect had a good reputation; there was no harm in forming a good connection with such a Sect. Moreover, he was also somewhat interested in the Green Phosphorus Poisonous Python’s poison sac and Yao Core, which were good Materials for refining Detoxification Pills and certain special Poison Talismans. If he lent a hand, maybe he could get a share of the benefits?

However, what if they harbored ill intentions after he helped? One must always be wary of others.

Just as he was weighing the pros and cons, the situation on the field suddenly changed! Unable to win after a long time, the Green Phosphorus Poisonous Python went into a frenzy. It suddenly opened its bloody maw, but instead of spitting poison, it spat out an egg-sized, shimmering green Yao Core! The Yao Core spun rapidly, emitting terrifying Yao power fluctuations!

"Oh no! It’s going to self-detonate its Yao Core!" The clear and beautiful woman’s face turned pale as she screamed in horror! A Fourth-Rank Demonic Beast self-detonating its Yao Core had power comparable to a full-strength strike from a Middle Golden Core Stage Cultivator. The three of them absolutely could not block it!

"Retreat, quickly!" The male Disciple’s face was also deathly pale as he grabbed the Foundation Establishment female Cultivator to pull her back!

But how fast was the self-detonation of a Yao Core! Seeing the green Yao Core’s light flashing rapidly, it was about to explode!

At that critical moment!

A nearly invisible phantom shot out from the woods on the side like a ghost, its speed exceeding everyone’s reaction! A highly condensed silver sword beam in the phantom’s hand arrived first, precisely striking a very minute node on the surface of the rapidly swelling Yao Core!

Ding!

A soft sound! As if a bubble had been pricked!

The Yao Core, which was about to explode, suddenly stalled in its light, then quickly dimmed like a deflated ball, falling to the ground with a "clack"! The mental connection between the Yao Core and the Yao Python was forcibly severed by this sword strike! The Green Phosphorus Poisonous Python suffered a backlash, letting out a painful hiss as its massive body twitched violently!

"What?!" The three Green Wood Sect members were all stunned, looking at this sudden scene in disbelief!

The phantom succeeded in one strike and did not linger. With a flash of movement, he appeared beside the Yao Python’s massive head, which was stiff from the backlash! The long sword in his hand erupted with brilliant starlight, carrying a resolute Sword Intent of pressing forward—Starfall Sword Art, Meteor Strike! It pierced ruthlessly into the Yao Python’s right eye, going straight through to the brain!

Puchi!

Green blood and brain matter splattered! The Yao Python’s hissing stopped abruptly, its massive body crashed to the ground, twitched twice, and then went completely silent.

From the moment the Yao Core was about to explode to the death of the Yao Python, the entire process was as fast as a flash of lightning! By the time the three Green Wood Sect members regained their senses, they only saw a young Cultivator in ordinary green robes and an ordinary face standing by the Yao Python’s corpse, slowly sheathing his sword. It was Fang Hao in his disguised appearance.

Fang Hao actually breathed a sigh of relief as well. It was extremely dangerous just now! He had seen the signs of the Yao Core’s self-detonation and risked using his Clear Spring Spirit Eyes to see through the most unstable node of the Yao Core’s energy, integrating the technique of the Star Shattering Finger into his sword move to forcibly interrupt the self-detonation. If there had been even a slight mistake, he would have been injured by the explosion. Fortunately, it was a success.

He turned around, looked at the dumbfounded trio from the Green Wood Sect, cupped his hands, and said in a deliberately altered raspy voice, "Fellow Daoists, are you all right?"