Forging Immortality through the Dao Seed

Whoosh, whoosh——

Three loose cultivators were running forward recklessly, their forms as swift as the wind, with flickers of spiritual light beneath their feet, one leap forward covered a distance of seven or eight zhang.

The thick white mist was being pushed forward, waves of mist swept out in all directions.

Feeling the rapid depletion of his spiritual power, the burly man lagging behind couldn't help but lament:

"Damn it, they all say that the gap between us loose cultivators and Dao Institute's cultivators is frightening, and today I finally got to witness it. Old Master Yin's Ghost Skin, it should at least be equivalent to a cultivator in the first or second layer of Qi Refinement. How could it be blown away directly by a single spell from that youthful novice who's also in the early stage of Qi Refinement?"

"How old is he?"

As he was saying this, the burly man suddenly noticed a dangerous aura behind him rapidly approaching. His expression quickly changed. His speed increased instantly. He overtook the older man in front of him.

"Damn, we miscalculated."

The man with a black mole at the forefront spoke with a gloomy tone:

"We originally thought that the three of us working together could be absolutely certain."

While speaking, he couldn't help recalling the terrifying edge filled with a bone-chilling murderous aura he had just seen, and shivered involuntarily.

"Boss, what should we do?"

"That kid is going to catch up soon. I don't want to get hit by his spell, it's deadly."

The burly man shouted out, subconsciously increasing his speed once more, somewhat outstripping the black mole man leading the way.

"Keep running east," the man with the black mole said viciously: "We should try to lead him as far away as we can. At that time, I will activate the magic artifact. No matter how strong he is, he is still in the early stage of Qi Refinement. Facing Old Master Yin's attack, he will be dead or crippled."

As soon as the words were spoken.

The black mole man glanced at the burly man beside him who was about to overtake him, he abruptly stretched out a hand and forcefully slapped the man's shoulder, subtly pushing him back a bit, then said in a meaningful manner:

"These Dao Institute's disciples always have a lot of good stuff on them!"

"When I kill that kid behind us with the magic artifact, don't forget to take his storage bag. Then we will go directly to see Old Master Yin."

At this moment.

There was a 'hiss' sound.

The figure of the old man in last place suddenly stopped, the following moment, a vicious edge pierced out from his chest.

A cold frigid aura swept over them.

"There's no time, do it here."

The black mole man's breath hitched, he hurriedly fumbled in his storage bag, pulling out a small knife magic artifact shaped like tiger teeth, then addressed the burly man at his side:

"You distract him first, I will activate the artifact immediately."

Hearing this, the burly man glanced at the body of the old man on the ground in front of him, then suggested in a diplomatic tone:

"Boss, it's not that I'm afraid of death, but mainly because my weak strength won't last a single encounter in front of him, it won't work at all. You're the one with the highest cultivation; why don't you go hold him off? I will try to manipulate the magic artifact?"

"What the hell are you saying, hurry up and go!"

The man with the black mole shouted.

…....

"There are still two left."

Zhang Jing's gaze swept over the corpse of the old man on the ground, staring directly at a slowly moving blurred figure not far ahead.

Hmm? Where's the other one?

As he pondered, another Ice Edge Spell appeared in his hand, then it transformed into an afterimage and sped towards the figure.

Meanwhile.

Perfect timing!

The black mole man hid nearby, watching Zhang Jing cast his spell with bated breath. Seeing this, his eyes instantly lit up, and he rapidly poured his mana into the small knife artifact.

Grr!

A faint roar resounded, followed by an extremely intense murderous aura that suddenly erupted from the small crimson knife.

In an instant.

The small knife turned into a red light, cutting through the mist on its path, directly heading towards Zhang Jing to strike.

Upon seeing this, the black mole man, whose body had been on edge, finally relaxed. A calm expression gradually returned to his face.

On the other side.

Zhang Jing, having just thrown out the Ice Edge Spell, did not even bother to pay attention to the blurred figure in front. He slowly came to a halt, with his alertness already at its peak.

He seemed to sense some sort of dangerous aura.

A large amount of spiritual sense flooded into his Heart-Eye Dharma Seeds.

With his full activation, the Heart-Eye suddenly opened. The thick white mist seemed to disappear instantly, everything within a distance of about ten zhang all around was reflected in his heart.

Over there!

He turned his head to 'look' at the man with the black mole who was hiding behind a wall, a look of anticipation on his face.

A hint of dangerous aura suddenly appeared in Zhang Jing's perception.

The white mist naturally parted on the sides.

The little knife with a wicked, bloody light was rapidly magnifying in Zhang Jing's line of vision, carrying a startling momentum far surpassing the early stage of Qi Refinement.

Without a moment of hesitation.

Swish, swish——

Seven spell-fish, from within the Five Spirit Rivers, simultaneously leaped out, melting instantaneously into the protective spiritual light around Zhang Jing.

Heavily substantial, the cyan light pierced through the white mist in an instant, illuminating all around them.

Boom!

The small knife artifact manifested as a fierce black tiger choosing its prey, opened its tiger jaws lined with intersecting saber-toothed fangs, and bit viciously into Zhang Jing's augmented protective spiritual light.

The blood light was fierce! The ice light was dense!

Both were stalemated.

Eventually.

With a snap!

The crimson knife shattered into three pieces, falling on the ground. Meanwhile, Zhang Jing's protective spiritual light also became extremely dim, as if it would dissipate at any moment.

After glancing at the debris of the small knife magic artifact on the ground.

Zhang Jing walked straight towards the man with the mole, bolstered by the protection of his spiritual light.

Quietly, a Star Attraction Talisman appeared in his hand.

Step by step--

The sound of footsteps echoing lightly, drawing ever closer.

To the man with the mole, each footfall instilled a cold fear, akin to the death toll of the king of hell himself.

"Is this what the disciples of the Dao Institute are like? Monsters, all of them are monsters!"

Despair and gloom filled his eyes.

Even his trump card had proven unable to breach the protective spiritual light...

With a thud.

The man with the mole fell to his knees in front of Zhang Jing, begging and shouting as he knocked his head against the ground,

"Brother, spare me. We were all forced into doing this. You want information about the devil in Heishan County, right? I will tell you everything I know."

'Speak!"

"The devil hiding in Heishan County is named Old Master Yin. He's responsible for this massive fog tonight, as well as for the Ghost Skins that lurk within. We were just ordinary Loose Cultivators who were fooled and then forced into servitude. We endured humiliation, having no choice but to join this band of thieves."

"Ah, I am a righteous Cultivator. Every moment, I am looking for an opportunity to slay this ancient demon. But, alas, my power falls short, and thus I dare not make a move."

The man with the mole heaved a sigh before looking excitedly at Zhang Jing.

"Now that you're here, Heishan will be peaceful! Now that you're here, there is hope!"

Zhang Jing remained impassive, asking casually,

"So how strong is this 'Old Master Yin'? Where is he hiding?"

"According to Old Master Yin himself, his current cultivation is at the peak of fourth-level Qi Refinement. There is a secret passage in the ruins next to the city wall in East City. It leads directly to the underground palace Old Master Yin constructed in Heishan County. It's said there are also secret passages in West City, North City, and South City, but I don't know their exact locations."

"..."

The man with the mole spilled everything he knew like a torrent, fearful that any delay might seal his fate as his two brothers.

After finishing, he looked up at Zhang Jing, nervously asking, "Brother, in light of my honesty and my identity as a righteous Cultivator, can you please spare my life?"

In the next moment, the protective shield of spiritual light slowly faded.

The man with the mole saw Zhang Jing's enigmatic expression before everything went black.

Shortly after.

Zhang Jing held in his hands two worn-out storage bags containing only some Spirit Stones and a few tattered magic artifacts.

Disappointment revealed itself in his eyes.

Loose Cultivators are indeed poor!

Just then.

"Junior Brother Zhang!"

A deep voice arose suddenly containing a trace of urgency.

Zhang Jing turned to the source of the sound, and saw it was Senior Brother Ding hurrying towards him.

In a matter of a few breaths.

Senior Brother Ding arrived by his side with the remaining group members.

Senior Sister Tong was the first to step out, circling around Zhang Jing with a tense look on her face, inspecting him from head to toe.

After confirming Zhang Jing was not injured, she finally exhaled a sigh of relief, reprimanding him:

"Junior Brother, why did you act alone?"

"Senior Brother Ding reminded us this morning to be careful. Especially you, the newest member of the Institute. You lack experience and don't possess many means of self-defense. What if you had run into a devil? What would I have told Senior Brother Yangchu if something happened to you?"

Zhang Jing was about to reply when Senior Brother Zhou interjected:

"Alright, Tong Yao. Junior Brother Zhang must have acted out of urgency. As long as he is more cautious next time. Besides, Junior Brother Zhang practices a middle-grade cultivation method. These three novice Loose Cultivators could not pose any threat to him."

"But even if..." Senior Sister Tong was going to continue her reproach, but she was interrupted by Senior Brother Ding.

"Junior Sister Tong, it's understandable that Junior Brother Zhang lost his composure since it's his first mission. Wasn't it the same for all of you back then? He, like you all, is at the third level of Qi Refinement. His tricks are no worse than yours. "

Senior Brother Ding then turned to Zhang Jing and spoke solemnly:

"Junior Brother Zhang, let's let this slide this time. Next time something happens, remember to inform me immediately. Taking action alone like this is too risky."

"I understand, Senior Brother," replied Zhang Jing sternly.

As soon as he finished speaking.

He felt several pairs of eyes on him.

Zhang Jing looked around, only to find the astonished faces of Tong Yao and the others staring at him.

"Junior Brother, did you... really break through to the third level of Qi Refinement?" Swallowing hard, Senior Brother Zhou asked incredulously.

Zhang Jing nodded and replied with a smile:

"Yes, Senior Brother."

"No way. You've only been in the Dao Institute for less than two months, right? How could you have accumulated enough spiritual power to progress from the second to the third level so quickly? Let alone break through the bottleneck? That doesn't make sense!"

"That's exactly why Senior Brother Yangchu recognized him."

Chiming in with a hearty laugh, Senior Brother Ding turned to Zhang Jing.

"Junior Brother Zhang Jing, you must have discovered something when you killed those three Loose Cultivators, I presume?"

Before he could finish his sentence.

From all directions, the sounds of stealthy footsteps echoed like countless falling raindrops, quickly drowning out the conversation between Zhang Jing and his companions.

What is this?

Senior Brother Ding's face tensed as a green bamboo staff appeared in his hand, the Dao Patterns inscribed upon it glowing faintly.

Senior Sister Tong and the others also looked worried, subconsciously huddling around Zhang Jing.