Immortal Path Space

Chapter 82: Ink Jade Spirit Lotus

"Hand over the Storage Bag first, and I'll take care of it for you. Oh, and that Flying Sword too," said the Middle-aged Man with a Black Face among the five people when Wang Hong agreed.

The five people narrowed the encirclement a bit more when Wang Hong hesitated. After a moment of struggle on his face, he ultimately chose to compromise.

Putting away the Flying Sword, Wang Hong grabbed it and stuffed it into the Storage Bag. At the same time, a black Medicinal pill appeared in his hand. He casually crushed a small Medicinal pill inside the bag, and the five people couldn't notice his subtle movements in the Storage Bag.

Wang Hong obediently threw the bag, but not to the Old Man with the highest cultivation level or the Middle-aged Man with a Black Face who spoke earlier.

The Storage Bag fell into the hands of the youngest among the five, who hesitated before passing it to the Old Man.

The Middle-aged Man with a Black Face glared at Wang Hong. "Kid, don't play useless tricks. Follow us honestly, and we'll let you go when the time comes."

The Old Man took Wang Hong's Storage Bag, opened the mouth, and scanned it with his divine sense.

"Is your Qingxu Sect so poor that you can't make ends meet?" he commented.

In Wang Hong's Storage Bag, apart from the high-quality Flying Sword he took out earlier, there was nothing valuable. It contained miscellaneous items, a few first-tier Spirit Herbs, a poorly conditioned Ore not worth picking up, a low-grade defensive Magical Weapon with some cracks on it.

The others also explored the opened Storage Bag with their divine senses and burst into laughter simultaneously.

The Old Man, a bit puzzled, searched Wang Hong's body with his divine sense twice. Finding nothing suspicious, he hung Wang Hong's Storage Bag on his waist.

The Old Man found a robe from the Storage Bag and instructed Wang Hong to wear it to avoid being recognized by Qingxu Sect cultivators.

The five people, along with Wang Hong, headed towards the central area. Wang Hong felt relieved that they were going in the same direction, eliminating the need for detours.

On their journey, they encountered other cultivators, but due to mutual wariness, no one engaged in combat.

At night, they found a mountain cave to rest.

"Huh!"

Suddenly, the Old Man sitting in the corner exclaimed softly.

He noticed a black energy forming within him, small but exceptionally potent. It continuously devoured his Spiritual Energy while corroding his flesh and blood.

Although he used Spiritual Energy to suppress it temporarily, the black energy consumed Spiritual Energy at an even faster rate, growing stronger every moment, with inevitable moments of being uncontrollable.

"Senior Qi, have you noticed anything unusual?" a fellow disciple inquired.

Everyone else asked in quick succession upon hearing the question.

"I might be poisoned. There's a black energy inside me," the Old Man detailed his situation.

"Kid, did you do something?" The Middle-aged Man with a Black Face accused Wang Hong first, and others glared at him too.

"You better hand over the antidote, and we might spare your life."

"You may have misunderstood. I have nothing on me, and the Storage Bag is with you. You can search it thoroughly. I know nothing about poisons, and there are no toxins or antidotes in the Storage Bag."

Upon Wang Hong's reminder, the five people considered the possibility of something on the Storage Bag. They gathered around, using divine sense to thoroughly inspect Wang Hong's Storage Bag several times and emptied its contents onto the ground.

The items inside were simple, and they carefully checked them multiple times, finding nothing related to poison.

"I speculate that Fellow Daoist has come across a significant opportunity."

"Wang Fellow Daoist, what do you mean?" the Old Man asked uncertainly, and the others looked at Wang Hong with suspicion.

"Have you encountered anything peculiar or special before, Fellow Daoist?" Wang Hong thought about their days in the secret realm. It wasn't possible for them not to encounter anything. He had spent time in the forest and had even seen the unique species like the Demon Hunting Tree.

After a moment of contemplation, the Old Man nodded uncertainly, "Yes, I have."

"That's it. I read in the Sect records that in ancient times, cultivators had incredibly robust bodies, capable of resisting Demonic Beasts with their physical strength alone. This was not only due to abundant Spiritual Medicine but also two types of Spirit Qi: Xuanhuang Qi, where Xuan Qi purifies the meridians and marrow, and Huang Qi nourishes the flesh. These remnants can be found in some ancient ruins and special places in various secret realms."

"I guess Fellow Daoist might have coincidentally obtained the Xuan Qi from the Xuanhuang Qi."

Wang Hong hadn't expected to use the knowledge he had spent a lot of time learning so soon, especially to deceive others. Nevertheless, when the others heard this, despite some doubt, they admired the Disciples from major sects. Even in such a miserable state, they possessed a wealth of knowledge.

"May I ask, Wang Fellow Daoist, what should I do now?" The Old Man's tone towards Wang Hong had become much more polite.

"I don't know much about it. After all, such ancient items are something ordinary people might not encounter in their entire lives," Wang Hong said, appearing unwilling to share more.

"Kid, you better be honest. If something happens to Senior Qi, don't expect a good outcome for yourself. I have a hundred ways to make you beg for life and not find death," warned the Middle-aged Man with a Black Face, his face cold and a smirk on his lips.

"Junior brother, don't be disrespectful to Wang Fellow Daoist!" The Old Man stopped the Middle-aged Man with a Black Face and then smiled as he returned Wang Hong's Storage Bag to him.

"Wang Fellow Daoist, we may have offended you earlier. Rest assured, as long as you help us with a small favor, we will compensate you with a thousand Spirit Stones once the task is completed," the Old Man said with a smile.

Upon hearing the reward of a thousand Spirit Stones, Wang Hong's eyes lit up, showing a pleasantly surprised expression.

"In fact, while this Xuan Qi is corroding your flesh and Spiritual Energy, it is also refining your body and Spiritual Energy. Just endure it, and your strength will increase several times. In ancient times, Xuan Qi was used in combination with another type called Huang Qi. Xuan Qi refines the body and Spiritual Energy, while Huang Qi reshapes the body. Nowadays, obtaining even one of them, especially Xuanhuang Qi, is a huge opportunity. But there's only one type now. If handled improperly, it's as dangerous as ingesting intestinally poisonous herbs. I once read in a sect ancient text about a way to deal with it, as for the method..."

Wang Hong spent a lot of effort persuading the Old Man that he had obtained a great opportunity rather than being poisoned. In reality, he had several types of poison, but only a small amount of poison crafted from the Red Powdered Skeleton Flower Pollen he collected could silently kill them. The others were traceable, and he wouldn't fare well if the five people retaliated.

After considering, he thought a slow-acting poison would be more cost-effective. Once a cultivator was poisoned, engaging in intense battles would trigger the rapid onset of toxicity. Moreover, only his specially formulated antidote would work.

The Old Man, having kept Wang Hong's Storage Bag at his waist, was the first to experience the effects. The next day, everyone except the Old Man confidently followed Wang Hong's instructions to resist the pain caused by the corroding bones within their bodies.

They continued their journey, and today, the five people were much more courteous to Wang Hong. Even the Middle-aged Man with a Black Face no longer spoke harshly to him.

After walking for two hours, they arrived at a mountain cave and stopped. The five people subtly surrounded Wang Hong, as if afraid he would escape.

"Wang Fellow Daoist, please proceed!" The Old Man's expression remained friendly.

Wang Hong walked towards the mountain cave. The entrance was well-hidden, only allowing one person to enter or exit at a time. After a short distance, the passage widened to over ten feet.

They walked a few more miles, and the passage continued to broaden until they reached a water pool. They stopped advancing.

Wang Hong surveyed the water pool and couldn't help his heart racing. There, unexpectedly, grew a three-tier Spiritual Medicine.

In the center of the water pool stood a Spiritual Lotus, with a lotus seedpod rising in the middle. Two ink-green lotus flowers bloomed on either side, one petal of one already withered, while the other had just begun to open.

Having studied various Spiritual Medicines day and night at the sect, Wang Hong immediately recognized it as a three-tier Spiritual Medicine, the Ink Jade Spirit Lotus.

The Ink Jade Spirit Lotus took three hundred years to bloom, three hundred years to bear fruit, and a total of six hundred years from blooming to the maturation of the lotus seeds.

A three-tier Ink Jade Lotus Seed was something even a Golden Core cultivator would fight over.

At this moment, facing such a treasure, everyone's breathing became somewhat hurried, yet none of them stepped forward to pick it.

Instead, they remained vigilant, indicating that despite the seemingly calm water pool, it concealed enormous danger.

Wang Hong was also on guard. Suddenly, he leaped high into the air, summoning his Flying Boat, and landed on the Windsoar Boat.

Simultaneously, the five people below cast Magical Arts, striking the spot where he had stood moments ago.

"A few Fellow Daoists, I have promised to help. Why attack me?" Wang Hong already knew the five harbored ill intentions, but he wanted to extract more information.

"Wang Fellow Daoist, you can't escape our encirclement. I advise you to surrender obediently. At least, you can die more quickly," the Old Man, enduring immense pain, suppressed the toxins in his body while speaking. He had almost been devoured by the toxins after casting a Magical Art a while ago.

"At this point, I might as well tell you the truth. We won't spare you. This pool contains a type of poisonous insect that feeds on a cultivator's heart's blood. The reason we brought you here is to use your hot blood as bait to lure the demonic insect out of the pool, allowing us to then harvest the Spiritual Medicine."

The Old Man continued speaking, and the five people simultaneously unleashed two flying Magical Weapons, intercepting Wang Hong in mid-air.

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