Chapter 102: Chapter 102: Cold Pool Cave Abode, Tier Three Spirit Vein

RUMBLE~

A massive roar echoed from ahead, making his eardrums throb numbly.

Holding up the Red Flame Shield, Li Ping planted his feet on the damp, cold, shimmering cyan rock. His Divine Sense instantly spread out, blanketing the area before him.

When he finally got a clear look at the scene, his eyes filled with shock.

They were standing inside a naturally formed underground cavern.

Less than five hundred feet in front of him was a massive pool of water.

An underground river cascaded from a waterfall hundreds of feet high, crashing violently into the pool. It kicked up a sky-full of mist, and the sound of the impact created the unending roar that filled his ears.

Li Ping focused his senses and quickly determined that the bone-chilling cold and the invigoratingly rich Spiritual Qi all originated from this pool.

Just by standing at its edge, he could feel a dense Spiritual Qi enveloping him. Judging by its concentration, it had reached Tier Two Upper Grade, in no way inferior to his own abode on Immortal Peach Mountain.

’Wait, this underground cavern is cut off from the sun and sky. Where is this light coming from?’

As doubt filled his mind, Li Ping raised a hand, sending the Red Flame Shield floating a few feet forward. A red mist spread from the shield, protecting the area in front of him completely.

He cautiously approached the edge of the pool, not forgetting to turn and instruct Daoist Ji, "Brother Ji, please wait here a moment. I’m going to scout ahead and see if there’s any danger in the water!"

Daoist Ji also had a small black shield hovering before him. His expression was grim as he said, "Brother Li, you must be extremely careful. This place feels strange. Don’t let your guard down!"

Li Ping nodded. His feet seemed to glide, his body floating like a feather to the pool’s edge.

Only when he stood still did he finally see the full extent of the underground pool. This was no ordinary body of water, but an expanse of frigid, dark blue water that stretched beyond sight.

There, in the middle of the Cold Pool, about a mile away from him, an island spanning several hundred acres stood silently.

The light he had seen was coming from the glowing barrier of an Array that enveloped the island!

Silently sensing the Spiritual Pressure radiating from the Array, Li Ping nearly held his breath.

If his senses weren’t mistaken, the grade of this Array was Tier Three—the same as the great protective Array of Immortal City!

It was common knowledge that there were only two ways to power an Array: either by drawing on the Spiritual Qi of a natural Spirit Vein or by supplying it with a massive amount of Spirit Stones.

Considering the Tier Two Demon Snake and the Jade Frost Grass, the Array on this island in the Cold Pool might have existed for an unknown number of years.

If it were powered by Spirit Stones, no matter how many were buried initially, they would have been depleted and turned to dust after all these years.

For a Tier Three Array to remain intact and operate so stably to this day, there was only one possibility.

Just like Immortal City, the island in the center of the pool had a Tier Three Spirit Vein!

A Tier Three Spirit Vein could support the meditative cultivation of a Core Formation Cultivator. Its value was unimaginable.

SWOOSH!

Li Ping rode his Escape Light high into the air, his gaze sweeping below to take in the entire Cold Pool.

The Cold Pool wasn’t vast, only about ten li in circumference. The island, shrouded in the light of the Tier Three Array, sat securely in its center, like a pearl cradled by dark blue waves.

’Something’s wrong!’

Just as Li Ping was about to fly toward the central island, a sudden shock jolted him, as if he’d been doused with cold water. He instantly snapped out of the stupor induced by the temptation of a Tier Three Spirit Vein.

At that critical moment, a memory surfaced in his mind.

The Tier Three Spirit Vein beneath Immortal City wasn’t some naturally ownerless treasure. Fenglan Master had seized it by force from the Demon Wolf Race after slaying a Tier Three Demon King.

High-tier Spirit Veins often attracted powerful Demon Beasts to occupy the area, drawn by the leaking Spiritual Qi.

The Spiritual Qi in this Cold Pool was so abundant it could even sustain a Tier Three Array. Could there really be no Demon Beasts here?

That was highly unlikely. After all, he and Daoist Ji had already encountered a Tier Two Demon Snake on their way in through the passage.

As the focal point of the Spiritual Qi, if there truly were Demon Beasts lurking in this Cold Pool, they would likely be far more formidable than that Tier Two Demon Snake!

At this thought, Li Ping instantly concealed his Spiritual Power, his gaze growing sharper with caution. He no longer rushed to approach the island, instead meticulously scanning the Cold Pool below for any movement.

Upon inspection, he immediately noticed something amiss.

Beneath the surface of the Cold Pool, dark shadows occasionally flickered and darted about. They were clearly Demon Beasts that lived in the Spirit Vein, moving around!

In less than an hour of observation, Li Ping spotted several hundred Demon Beasts.

What made his heart clench was that the Spiritual Power fluctuations from many of them were on par with the Tier Two Demon Snake he had slain. A few even had more profound auras, having already reached the Tier Two Late Stage.

And in the area of the Cold Pool he was observing, these Demon Beasts were just the tip of the iceberg.

Li Ping couldn’t help but feel secretly glad that he hadn’t acted impulsively.

Otherwise, if he had alarmed the Demon Beasts in the Cold Pool and found himself surrounded, it would have been difficult for him to escape unscathed.

His gaze returned to the island in the center of the pool, and he couldn’t help but speculate, ’The original owner of this island, who could set up a Tier Three Array and occupy a Tier Three Spirit Vein, must have been no ordinary Cultivator.

But now, though the Array is still active, there’s no sign of anyone. Either the owner has long since perished, or they abandoned this abode for some reason back then. Otherwise, with such power, they couldn’t possibly have remained unknown in the Jiang Kingdom.’

However, wary of the Demon Beasts in the pool, he didn’t dare approach the island. Through the Array’s barrier of light, he could vaguely make out what looked like pavilions and terraces, but he couldn’t discern any more detail.

After a moment’s hesitation, Li Ping retreated.

He knew very well that with his current strength, trying to cross a Cold Pool teeming with High-tier Demon Beasts to explore this mysterious abode was far too ambitious. Acting rashly would only increase the risk.

And with the unique properties of his Nourishing Life Skill, as long as he cultivated steadily and step-by-step, reaching Core Formation in the future was a matter of course.

It wouldn’t be too late to come back and explore this abode after he truly stepped into the Core Formation Realm and his strength had soared. Why be hasty now?

Besides, on this expedition, he had already obtained a thousand-year-old Jade Frost Grass, a Bloodline Fruit that was unripe but still possessed most of its efficacy, and the fangs and venom glands of a Tier Two Flower-Scaled Python. Each of these items was incredibly valuable.

His harvest was already bountiful enough.

There was absolutely no need to risk it all for this unknown abode!

Silently reassuring himself, the last trace of hesitation in Li Ping’s heart vanished. After briefly explaining the situation to Daoist Ji, the two of them quickly left along the passage and returned to Little Plum Mountain.

Having investigated what lay beyond the passage, Li Ping bluntly asked for Daoist Ji’s opinion: "Brother Ji, what are your plans?"

At his words, Daoist Ji’s expression became hesitant. He had originally thought it was only a Tier Two Spirit Vein beneath Little Plum Mountain, and even then, he had been prepared to move his entire clan away.

But now, Li Ping was telling him it wasn’t a Tier Two Spirit Vein, but a Tier Three Spirit Vein.

And not only was there a Tier Three Spirit Vein, but on it, there was also a suspected abode left behind by a Core Formation Master, which might contain the master’s Magical Treasures, legacy, and more.

Reason told Daoist Ji that something like this was not for the Ji family, with their meager strength of three Middle-stage Qi Refining cultivators, to get involved in. The best choice was to move away as soon as possible.

But a part of him couldn’t bear to let it go—he couldn’t bear to let this opportunity that had fallen into his lap slip away.

If the Ji family, under Li Ping’s protection, could rely on this Tier Three Spirit Vein to grow and prosper, in the future... they might become a Core Formation Immortal Race, holding sway over the Jiang Kingdom’s Cultivation Realm alongside the Jiang family!

Just thinking about such a future made Daoist Ji tremble uncontrollably.

How could he bear to give up such an opportunity?

After a long silence, Daoist Ji spoke as if he had made up his mind, "Brother Li, I... I have decided to lead the Ji family in guarding the Little Plum Mountain Spiritual Land for you!"

Daoist Ji reasoned that his granddaughter with Dual Spirit Roots had already joined the Crimson Flame Sect, and his grandson with Four Spirit Roots, Ji Shu Xuan, had been sent to Immortal City to cultivate.

Even if their luck ran out and they lost the gamble—if the secret of the Spirit Vein was exposed and all the Ji family cultivators remaining on Little Plum Mountain were annihilated, wiping out the clan—

the Ji family’s bloodline would not be severed.

But if they won the gamble... Daoist Ji knew what kind of rewards it would bring to his family!

Perhaps many years from now, one of his descendants, while chatting with other cultivators, would say: ’The reason I was able to successfully reach Core Formation is all thanks to a decision my ancestor made back then!’

"Good." Li Ping nodded. "Since you’ve made your decision, Brother Ji, my promise remains the same. In the future, Little Plum Mountain will be transferred to your family!"

After coming to an agreement with Daoist Ji, Li Ping rode his Escape Light to the Yu family market, where he purchased a Tier One Array. He set it up over the Little Plum Mountain Spirit Vein, enveloping the entire mountain and shielding it from the prying eyes of other cultivators.

He also refined the Snake Gallbladder into a batch of Pills for Daoist Ji, left him five Tier Two Middle Grade Spirit Talismans as a trump card for the family, and provided a considerable number of other Pills. Only then did he feel at ease enough to leave.

For now, his focus was still on Immortal City.

But he had no intention of giving up on the Spirit Vein and abode beneath Little Plum Mountain either.

Since the Tier Three Spirit Vein on the island was sealed by the Array, the Demon Beasts in the Cold Pool had no Tier Three Spirit Vein to inhabit. It was absolutely impossible for them to break through to Tier Three.

He was certain that the strongest Demon Beasts in the Cold Pool were, at most, at the limit of the Tier Two Late Stage.

There were a lot of them, but they weren’t impossible to deal with.

In the future, when he reached the Peak of Foundation Establishment and needed a Tier Three Spiritual Land to attempt Core Formation,

if he couldn’t use the Cyan Dragon Mountain Spirit Vein at a low cost, this underground Spirit Vein would be one of his options.

What’s more, besides the Tier Three Spirit Vein, there was also an abode left by a Core Formation Master on that island. It might contain some precious Treasure. How could he be willing to miss out on that?

Before bidding farewell to Daoist Ji, Li Ping asked him to look after the Yan family. If a child from the Yan family was born with a Spiritual Root, he also asked Daoist Ji to guide them onto the path of cultivation.

After the incident with the underground abode, the relationship between the Ji family and Li Ping had grown even closer.

Daoist Ji naturally agreed to such a small matter without hesitation.

After settling everything, Li Ping made a point of meeting Daoist Ji’s grandson—the one who had discovered the entrance to the underground passage.

Ji Shuchen, one year younger than Ji Shu Xuan, was at the Qi Refining Second Level.

Li Ping gifted him a Tier Two Lower Grade Flying Sword he no longer used, along with dozens of bottles each of Qi-Replenishing Pills and Qi Gathering Pills, encouraging him to cultivate diligently.

He believed that Ji Shuchen’s discovery of the underground passage was a sign that he was a person of great fortune, one who might achieve great things in the future.

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