Gateway of Immortality

The white light was already right before its eyes.

Its demonic power had no effect on the light.

The golden eagle could now clearly see two figures standing atop the distant mountain. Both wore masks, and their auras were unmistakably human, though their cultivation levels were low.

Floating in front of one of them was a white orb.

The moment it saw the orb, that unsettling feeling of dread became even clearer.

A surge of alarm rose within the golden eagle. It dared not face the light head-on and swiftly flapped its wings, veering to the right.

Just then, from the corner of its eye, it caught a sudden shadow. At some point, a dark figure had appeared to its right. With a greenish face and fierce fangs like an evil spirit, it lunged toward the eagle at an astonishing speed.

"Flying yaksha!"

The golden eagle shrieked, every feather standing on end.

With its original strength, it would never have feared a mere flying yaksha.

But now, it was injured, and that mysterious white light was about to descend upon it. In such a state of entrapment, the sudden appearance of a flying yaksha was nothing short of fatal.

The golden eagle made a split-second decision and immediately changed course, fleeing to the left.

Yet just as it seemed about to evade the white light, it sensed something wrong. Glancing down, it saw countless vines sprouting from the ground.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

The vines shot into the air at astonishing speed and entangled the golden eagle tightly before it could retaliate, forming a cage around it.

Boom!

A deafening crash erupted from within the cage as it swelled and trembled. Several vines snapped under the strain.

At this rate, the vines alone would never be able to contain it.

But in the very next instant, the white light descended and merged into the cage. Silence fell. The vines, still gripping the cage, swiftly retracted and disappeared into a dense forest.

Two figures stood at the edge of the forest, watching from outside.

Wandering Man looked at the silent grove with a smile. "The ancient barrier within this forest is no simple matter. Calling it perilous at every step wouldn't be an exaggeration. The golden eagle won't escape any time soon. Let it struggle in there to slowly unravel the barrier. Let's go!"

"Senior, you not only broke through the ancient barrier but even turned it to your own use. I am truly in awe," Qin Sang said, thoroughly impressed.

He had watched the entire ambush unfold. Neither he nor the flying yaksha had truly acted; they merely showed themselves. Everything had been orchestrated by Wandering Man alone.

Not many people would believe that someone of the Fake Core Realm was able to trap a Demonic Core Realm beast without lifting a finger.

Wandering Man remained humble. "I merely borrowed the ancient barrier's power. It would be an overstatement to say I controlled it."

...

With the golden eagle trapped and one threat eliminated, they still didn't let down their guard. They pressed on at full speed, breaking through one barrier after another, growing ever closer to the Purple Cloud Fruit.

On a sheer cliff face, a waterfall thundered down like a silver ribbon from the heavens.

Cascading thousands of feet, it looked as though the Milky Way had fallen from the skies. No description could be more fitting.

Qin Sang looked up at the waterfall, sensing the lingering aura of a celestial realm. He saw Wandering Man leap directly into the torrent and hurried to follow with the flying yaksha.

Passing through the waterfall, they found the stones within polished smooth by constant battering. The immense weight of the falling water made it nearly impossible to stay upright.

Qin Sang followed Wandering Man upstream and eventually landed on a protruding boulder. He had to channel all his spiritual power just to remain standing.

Following Wandering Man's gaze, he examined the surrounding rock. Seeing nothing unusual, he looked to Wandering Man with a hint of confusion.

Wandering Man summoned the Flawless Orb and guided it toward the stone wall as he explained, "There's a hidden space behind the cliff wall. It was already protected by an ancient barrier and later reinforced by the demon race. It's so well concealed that without knowing what to look for, even sweeping spiritual consciousness across every cun wouldn't reveal it."

The Flawless Orb drifted toward a moss-covered stone and emitted waves of white light that sank into the rock wall.

To Qin Sang's amazement, the green stone shimmered and became illusory, revealing a staircase that led into the cliff's depths.

"Let's go," Wandering Man said as he stepped in first.

They ascended the stairs, and the walls around them glowed faintly with green phosphorescence. It was unclear whether the glow came from some strange mineral or was a phenomenon of the ancient barrier itself.

Not long after, the sound of flowing water echoed ahead. They had reached an underground river.

Following the river further in, the space gradually widened. After some distance, a large stone chamber abruptly appeared. There were no signs of it being man-made. The chamber seemed to have formed naturally.

It was also the source of the underground river, where the water pooled into a subterranean lake in the chamber's center. As a result, the air here was damp and biting cold.

The river water was crystal clear, its surface perfectly still.

Qin Sang stood at the entrance of the stone chamber and suddenly halted. His gaze had been completely drawn to a spiritual tree on the far side of the underground lake.

Across the lake lay a shallow depression.

From the cracks in the stone there, a spiritual tree had taken root. Though not tall, its trunk was gnarled and sturdy, its branches lush with leaves. It resembled a plum tree, and several fruits hung among the leaves, partially hidden.

The fruits varied in size. The largest was about the size of an adult's fist, while the smallest was no bigger than a longan.

The smaller fruits were all green, clearly unripe.

But the largest one was entirely purple, and its surface was adorned with concentric cloud-like patterns. These cloud markings were deep red, giving it a mysterious and arcane appearance.

A strong, strange fragrance wafted from the spiritual fruit, filling the entire stone chamber.

This was the fully ripened Purple Cloud Fruit.

It was named for its color and the cloud patterns on its skin.

The fruit could repair the damaged foundations of cultivators. For demonic beasts, it was even more precious.

Its greatest value lay in its ability to refine a demonic beast's blood and essence. By purifying their bloodline, demonic beasts could significantly accelerate their cultivation progress.

That was precisely why the cultivating demons of Heavenly Demon Hill had entered the inner palace to compete for it.

However, the Purple Cloud Fruit was only effective for beasts below the Demonic Core Realm. It grew extremely slowly, and each time Ziwei Palace opened, only one or two would mature.

This time, only one had ripened.

Unripe Purple Cloud Fruit was useless if consumed.

They had finally found it!

Since the start of his Foundation Building, Qin Sang had suffered from a damaged foundation for nearly a hundred years.

He had endured with a weakened body all this time, relying on sheer perseverance. Luckily, he had obtained several rare treasures that helped offset the effects, so his strength had never fallen behind others of the same realm.

But how could he not long for full recovery?

Now, at last, the Purple Cloud Fruit was before him. A ripple of emotion stirred within his chest.

Qin Sang clenched his fists and nodded to Wandering Man, preparing to fly over and harvest the fruit.

Just then, a mocking voice rang out from behind. "Two human cultivators with nothing more than Fake Core Realm cultivation, and you dare covet the spiritual fruit of our race? I am quite curious. How did you know the Purple Cloud Fruit was here?"

Qin Sang and Wandering Man's expressions shifted drastically. They turned sharply.

From the darkness at the entrance of the chamber, a black panther strolled forward with graceful steps.

Its movements were completely silent, and its posture was elegant and fluid.

That graceful bearing did not resemble a wild, untamed beast in the slightest. It felt more like a noble of the human race. In fact, few human nobles could match its poise.

It was absurd.

What was even more shocking was the cultivation aura it revealed without the slightest attempt to hide it.

Middle-stage Demonic Core Realm!