Cultivation: I Can Solidify Equipment Attributes

The order arrived at dawn.

A Late-stage Foundation Establishment disciple from the Celestial Peak Sect personally ran to the marketplace and handed Li Yuan a mobilization order stamped with Xuan Pu Master’s private seal.

The contents were brief: Li Yuan, supervisor of the Mist Forest Marketplace, was to immediately report to the outpost, join the exploration team, and carry out a mission in the deep regions of the Ghost Mist Forest.

Li Yuan put away the order and departed with the disciple.

When he arrived at the outpost, a crowd had already gathered at the assembly point.

Eight disciples from the Primordial Yang Sect, all with Cultivation from Mid-stage to Late-stage Foundation Establishment. Twelve disciples from the Celestial Peak Sect, two of whom were Late-stage Foundation Establishment Array Masters standing at the very front, each holding a heavy instrument case.

Chen Yi was also in the group.

He stood at the very back of the Primordial Yang Sect disciples, his face ashen. When he saw Li Yuan approaching, he gave a slight shake of his head but said nothing.

Xuan Pu Master did not appear. A Late-stage Foundation Establishment disciple from the Celestial Peak Sect announced the mission details on his behalf: proceed to the area of the stone gate, assist the Array Masters in breaking the final layer of the Restriction, and then enter the Sub-Palace for a preliminary survey.

The team set out.

The twenty of them split into three groups—front, middle, and rear—and advanced along the established route through the heart of the Ghost Mist Forest toward the Abyssal Rift Valley. The Celestial Peak Sect members took the front and middle positions, while the Primordial Yang Sect members were assigned to bring up the rear.

Li Yuan walked at the very end of the group, his aura so firmly suppressed he was practically untraceable.

Six hours later, the team reached the edge of the Abyssal Rift Valley.

The dense fog in the rift was even thicker than the last time he was here. Grayish-white mist billowed up from the bottom of the valley, reducing visibility to less than ten zhang. The Celestial Peak Sect disciple leading the team took out a compass-like Magical Artifact to determine the direction, guiding them down a narrow path along the southern wall of the rift.

The narrow path snaked its way down the rock face, and the air grew heavier and more oppressive the further they descended. After about one hundred and fifty zhang, an artificially widened cave entrance appeared ahead.

Beyond the entrance was a passage about two zhang wide, the tool marks of its excavation still visible on the rock walls. This was the result of several weeks of work by the Celestial Peak Sect’s advance team, who had dug all the way from the side of the rift to the underground space where the stone gate was located.

At the end of the passage, the space suddenly opened up.

An underground hall with a domed ceiling over ten zhang high appeared before them. The floor was paved with large, dark cyan stone slabs, consistent with the construction materials found in other ruins of the Profound Nether Sect.

On the wall directly opposite them was the giant stone gate.

Five zhang high, three zhang wide. It was made entirely of the same dark cyan stone, its face covered inch by inch with a dense network of Array Patterns.

Li Yuan already had a rough impression of the gate from when he had scanned it remotely with his Golden Core Stage Divine Sense, but seeing it in person was a completely different experience. Up close, the density and complexity of the Array Patterns were even more shocking. The Profound Nether Sect Array Masters from three hundred years ago had poured a terrifying amount of effort into this gate.

’If I hadn’t already known where this place was, I probably would have deliberately ignored it when my Divine Sense swept past.’

The two Array Masters from the Celestial Peak Sect walked to the front of the stone gate and set down their instrument cases.

The slightly older one crouched down, placed his palm on an Array Pattern node at the base of the gate, and closed his eyes to sense it for a moment before opening them again.

"The outer layers of the Restriction have all been removed. Only the final core locking array remains." He turned to his companion. "Same as always. You stabilize the left-wing node, I’ll handle the right-wing and the core."

The younger Array Master nodded and moved to the left side of the gate.

Both of them extended their Divine Sense into the gate’s surface at the same time, their Spiritual Power Threads cutting into the veins of the Array Patterns with the precision of a scalpel.

Li Yuan stood more than ten zhang away, silently observing the duo’s array-breaking techniques with the passive perception of his Dark Evil Insight.

Their mastery of arrays was at least between Tier Two Perfection and early Tier Three. Their methods were skilled, and their teamwork was seamless. The elder was in charge of the main assault, his Divine Sense Lines peeling away the key veins of the Array Patterns layer by layer. The younger was responsible for stabilization, absorbing and neutralizing the Spiritual Power backlash generated by the peeled-off sections to prevent the Restriction from collapsing.

About half an hour later, the light from the last Array Pattern on the stone gate’s surface completely faded.

"CLICK."

A low, mechanical sound echoed from deep within the stone gate.

The two massive stone doors slowly parted inward. A gust of stale air, sealed for an unknown number of years, billowed out from the opening, carrying with it dust and a certain indescribable scent.

Behind the gate was a wide corridor leading deeper inside.

The Celestial Peak Sect disciples entered first, followed by the disciples from the Primordial Yang Sect.

Li Yuan scanned it with his Divine Sense. From the inside, there was no sign of the gate at all; it was indistinguishable from the wall.

After about fifty zhang, the corridor opened into a larger space.

The main hall of the Profound Nether Sub-Palace.

Li Yuan glanced around and understood immediately. This was the same area he had reached when he infiltrated through the side passage before, except last time he had entered from a flank near the cliff’s edge. That hidden crevice was tucked away at a corner, concealed among the overlapping, ancient Restrictions and Array Patterns on the hall’s walls.

The great hall was completely empty.

There was nothing on the stone shelves on either side, only thick dust and a few scattered pieces of rubble on the floor. The walls bore clear indentations and mounting holes where items must have once been hung or embedded, but the items themselves were long gone.

Everyone saw the same scene.

"It’s been cleared out," the older Array Master muttered, his tone filled with unconcealed disappointment.

The team continued to advance deeper into the hall.

When they reached the far end of the hall, everyone stopped.

A round stone platform stood in the very center of the hall. It was about three zhang in diameter and two chi high, its surface covered with extremely intricate Array Patterns. The Array Patterns were currently active, emitting a faint but continuous Spiritual Light.