Huang Kexiu carried the treasure away from the market, feeling a bit of heartache but still satisfied with the result.

The Altar Cave Heaven is a very special spiritual cultivation compensation space. For cultivators entering, an essential process is the Flipping Altar. The more people enter, the higher the level of the high-level spiritual space that opens up in the Altar Space. However, wanting to reach higher levels of spiritual cultivation space is not without cost.

You either eliminate others to rise, or present an extraordinary space artifact to the Cave Spirit,

The Cave Spirit will not keep the treasure for itself, but will surely return it when you leave. It simply has a fondness for space artifacts, inherently preferring this type of artifact. The better the treasure a cultivator offers, the longer it needs to comprehend it, and along with that, it will keep the presenting cultivator longer.

If one's abilities are insufficient, and there is no treasure to offer for the Cave Spirit to consider, such a cultivator will be ejected soon after entry, thus failing to achieve the training effect. Generally, that's how it is.

He was fortunate; quite a few of his fellow disciples were also looking for space artifacts through the black market. Here it's all about luck and connections, and it just so happened the patron he knew was rather capable.

In the Heartless Dao, competition between same-sect members is very fierce, and they don't shy away from fratricide; this is a hallmark of the Heartless Dao. All these disciples have long been accustomed to such things. However, the competition within the Heartless Dao is fair, so no one harbors resentment. This aligns with the objective rule of survival of the fittest in the Cultivation World.

Before the upper realm visitor Lao Du took charge of the sect, the Heartless Dao had organized several explorations of the Altar Cave Heaven, but the effects were not great, and the operational mechanism of this cave heaven was still being explored. This is a very normal process; any cave heaven cultivator needs a long time to master its workings and characteristics. The Wu Sect took two thousand years to understand theirs, and they've only explored it for a hundred years, so it's certainly impossible to master it quickly. Before the Heaven Creation, they can't rely on it to cultivate the sect's cultivators, which is a big concern for the higher-ups in the Heartless Dao.

The arrival of Lao Du changed it all. Although he couldn't figure out how the Wu Sect operates the Altar Space either, he had his unique ways. For example, using life sacrifices to stimulate the creation of higher-level spiritual spaces within the Altar Cave Heaven—simply put, the winner takes all, and the loser loses everything.

This approach can fully unleash the potential of the Altar Space, with great results, albeit at a cost to the disciples.

The only self-preservation is whether one can bribe the Cave Spirit well, which is why everyone desperately searches for good space treasures.

Huang Kexiu's strength is average; he hasn't been in the Golden Core Realm for long, only mid-Golden Core cultivation. He got in because he showed great performance in the war between humans and demons, willing to risk his life, not because he surpassed his peers of the same realm.

He felt that he was more likely to serve as a sacrifice to feed those exceptionally talented senior brothers this time; but he couldn't swallow this anger, for fortune favors the bold. Heartless Dao cultivators have higher needs for spiritual aspects than other Daoist traditions, and he needed such opportunities.

The path of cultivation is not smooth; hesitating may result in being abandoned by the mainstream. Under the prospect of Jinxiu's Heaven Creation, no one would ignore it. Turning a blind eye leads to having no room to struggle, just like Luo Yewang and his wife.

Huang Kexiu returned to his cave mansion on Lotus Mountain with the Stone Fetus. The more he studied it, the more confused he became, but the more confused, the more he liked it. Its space Dao Realm is quite mysterious, probably enough to satisfy the Cave Spirit's preferences. If it could hold the Cave Spirit's attention indefinitely, he would effectively gain a layer of life protection.

The Cave Spirit of the Altar Cave Heaven has no preference for humans; it is a very standard polite spirit that acts according to its rules. It doesn't care if human cultivators die within its space, but it values its rules, like returning everything owed.

It values this point greatly; it's the foundation of its existence. If I take your treasure, comprehend it, and gain from it, then I must return it to you. Humans may not always have principles, but the Cave Spirit must have its bottom line.

If the treasure-presenting cultivator dies inside, the Cave Spirit cannot return it intact; if the space ability of the treasure didn't aid it, it wouldn't care about the cultivator's death, because you presented a useless item. But if the treasure is good and valuable, the Cave Spirit will subconsciously protect this cultivator. Achieving this in its space isn't difficult.

After several days of contemplation with no results, this instead gave Huang Kexiu more confidence. On the third day, the Heartless Dao cultivators participating in this trial gathered in Mo Pin Hall, ready to depart.

Huang Kexiu felt some excitement in his heart; this was the best trial within the Heartless Dao so far. Even being used as a sacrifice is not an opportunity everyone has.

Accompanying him were more than twenty Golden Core cultivators, all familiar faces. They would perform a final screening here to determine if there were any impostors among them.

The Heartless Dao, having stolen this cave heaven from the Wu Sect, was naturally vigilant about losing it again. It was conceivable that the unfortunate Wu Sect was always thinking about reclaiming their treasure, and their defenses had never been relaxed.

A series of screenings occurred, including cultivation methods and ancient practices. Under such strictness, no one could switch places.

When everything concluded, they arrived at the rear hall of Mo Pin Hall, where a small transmission formation was located. In a flash of white light, they found themselves in an underground space, not understanding exactly where they were, but approximately knowing it was deep within Lotus Mountain.

Then they navigated through a maze of mechanisms, leaving no one able to accurately discern their location.

Huang Kexiu sighed inwardly at such defense measures—perhaps even a fly couldn't get in.

They finally reached the end, but the crowd before them astonished all participating cultivators.

Lao Du and three Heartless Dao Nascent Soul Masters stood before them, as if they had been waiting a long time.

Lao Du spoke emotionlessly, "We will enter with you, but we won't join your competition, so you need not worry."

Huang Kexiu instantly understood their implication; the sect's vigilance was so strong—not only guarding against the outer cave heaven but also within? Or perhaps it heard some news?

These words were not something ordinary Golden Core cultivators dared to ask. Led by Lao Du, they walked into the Altar Cave Heaven one by one.

With the world spinning around him, Huang Kexiu felt as if he had arrived in a world of chaos.

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