Yuan Ming raised his eyebrows upon hearing the words of Thunderbolt Ancestor, and noticed that Xi Ying's fists unconsciously clenched tighter, but she still suppressed her anger, silently retreated two steps, and hid behind Dugu Feng.

"Hehe, I've heard that Fellow Daoist Yu has numerous wives and concubines. Surely not all were charmed by such sweet nothings?" Golden Dawn Fairy said, half reminding and half mocking, dissatisfied with the attitude shown by Thunderbolt Ancestor.

Thunderbolt Ancestor glanced at Golden Dawn Fairy nonchalantly, just about to speak, but was interrupted by Wan Qi Hong.

"Enough, no wonder you've made no progress over these years, spending all your energy on these schemes and intrigues. Have you all forgotten what we came here for?" Wan Qi Hong said with a disdainful glance, igniting anger in each of them, yet none dared to react.

"Fellow Daoist Wan Qi is right, but I wonder how many treasures Fellow Daoist Wan Qi has found in the city so far? It would be enlightening for us to know," Su Zimo said in a sarcastic tone.

The recent fog had affected them, the Nascent Soul cultivators, though not severely, and so they had braved the forbidden areas and explored many locations. They found that despite the city's size and the abundance of buildings, the locations containing fortunes and treasures were few. Even when encountered, the items within were not appealing to beings at the Nascent Soul stage.

Moreover, many of the treasures were guarded by evil beings, whose powers were greatly enhanced under the cover of the recent fog. Even for these Nascent Soul cultivators, dealing with them proved quite troublesome, and after defeating them, they found that the treasures were only suitable for those at the Core Formation stage or below, which was frustrating, to say the least.

The reason they had gathered here instead of exploring on their own was precisely because of this discovery. Otherwise, they wouldn't have waited for any Core Formation cultivators to arrive and would have each searched for their own fortunes.

"I indeed haven't found any treasures, but I have discovered their location," Wan Qi Hong said calmly.

"Since Fellow Daoist Wan Qi has already located the treasure, why come to find us? Could it be that you've encountered some formidable restrictions?" Dugu Feng immediately understood.

"Exactly, we can enter most of the mansions throughout the city at will, but the City Lord Mansion at the heart of the city is enveloped by a space-transposing restriction. Although I have deciphered it, there's another, more formidable restriction inside that I fear I cannot break alone. We will need to join forces," Wan Qi Hong confessed.

His frankness indeed surprised the other Nascent Soul cultivators, who couldn't help but wonder what kind of restriction could force the proud Wan Qi Hong to seek help.

Thus, under Wan Qi Hong's lead, everyone immediately rushed towards the City Lord Mansion at the city's center, but as they approached the mansion, they witnessed a horrifying scene.

The street in front of the City Lord Mansion was bathed in blood. Both the ground and the walls on either side were painted a deep red, marked with countless sword scars, each bearing ominous intents that alarmed Thunderbolt Ancestor and the others. Although no corpses or remains were visible, the scene vividly illustrated the fierce battle Wan Qi Hong had experienced here.

However, when they looked at Wan Qi Hong, they saw his face remained calm, his clothing untouched by any blood, recalling his nonchalant demeanor upon arrival, which raised their vigilance.

Wan Qi Hong's strength might be greater than they had imagined.

The main gate of the City Lord Mansion was already shattered by Wan Qi Hong, but looking through the door, the inside appeared eerily dark. Even though the fog had dispersed, they couldn't see anything inside, and their released Divine Sense vanished as quickly as if sinking into the sea.

Seeing this, everyone felt a slight shock, yet Wan Qi Hong fearlessly walked into the City Lord Mansion right before their eyes.

His figure quickly disappeared into the darkness, vanishing from their sight, without even a sound being heard.

Seeing this, Thunderbolt Ancestor and the other Nascent Soul cultivators no longer hesitated and led their followers into the City Lord Mansion, following Wan Qi Hong.

However, when Golden Dawn Fairy was about to lead Pi Xiu and Wen Zaihou inside, she noticed Yuan Ming still standing in place after taking a few steps, showing no intention of following.

"Yuan, why aren't you entering?"

"Thank you for your concern, Senior Golden Dawn. It's just that I know my strength is meager. I've had some difficulty dealing with the evil beings in this city. Hearing what Senior Wan Qi said, this City Lord Mansion is said to contain heavy treasures. I stumbled into this place by mistake, and now I do not wish to risk my life further. Please forgive me and allow me to rest at the door until everything settles down. Then I shall leave with you," Yuan Ming bowed and said.

Golden Dawn Fairy saw his earnest and sincere expression, nodded without insisting, and after giving a couple of warnings, she led Pi Xiu and Wen Zaihou inside the City Lord Mansion.

As Yuan Ming watched Golden Dawn Fairy enter the City Lord Mansion, he waited silently for a moment. Seeing no one emerge from the mansion, he quickly turned around and dashed towards East City.

When the Illusion Array was intact, two areas in the city where Black Mist gathered were the City Lord Mansion as the source and the East City Garden as the return spot, forming head and tail, causing the Black Mist to shuttle incessantly through the city.

Now with the fog dispersed, Yuan had observed before leaving the Stealing Heaven Tripod that both places had shown a faint flash of spirit light, but it had quickly faded, unnoticed by others.

With five Nascent Soul cultivators gathered, even if the fortunes inside the City Lord Mansion were tempting, it would be immensely difficult for Yuan to have a share. It would only invite unnecessary trouble and potentially fatal danger. It might be better to take advantage of the interval and search the East City Garden. Even if the treasure found were of a lower tier, it would be safer than trying to snatch the spoils from a tiger's mouth.

The road to East City was unobstructed, possibly due to the dissipation of the Black Mist, the evil spirits hiding in the streets and residences seemed to have gone deeper. As Yuan Ming walked along, he encountered no obstacles.

Soon after, Yuan Ming arrived in the garden. Entering the garden, he saw aged trees everywhere, leaves whirling in the wind, and weeds growing rampant, with pavilions and terraces showing signs of heavy dilapidation and desolation.

Before stepping onto the Immortal Path, Yuan Ming was obsessed with ink landscape paintings and had some insights into garden construction. Surveying the garden landscape, although covered with weeds and withered leaves, he could faintly discern its former glory, which inevitably made him sigh with regret.

However, after a moment of emotion, Yuan Ming immediately summoned the Bronze Small Tripod to protect his body, without letting his guard down.

Wherever flora thrive and humans haven't ventured in a long while, shade accumulates and becomes a gathering place for spirits. The formation that once shrouded the entire city also took advantage of this fact, choosing this location as a gathering place for the Black Mist.

Unlike the City Lord Mansion, which also served as a gathering place for the Black Mist but was protected by forbidden arrays, this place had no such defenses to prevent entry.

Yuan Ming remained cautious, then slowly began exploring the garden.

The garden was structured in a circular layout. Green trees and blooming flowers encircled the central lake, and it was broadly divided into four areas: a lush green forest right past the main entrance, a rocky area with stacked artificial mountains to the left, and a brightly colored, flower-filled area to the right.

If he were to go straight, he could cross a bridge over the pond to a small island. Bypassing the island and moving forward, he would find a dark three-story pavilion standing quietly as if watching those who entered the garden, instilling a faint chill in onlookers.

Although the mist had dispersed, the invisible force blocking Divine Sense still existed. Without the aid of the "Stealing Heaven Tripod," Yuan Ming could not penetrate the veil and had to rely on his naked eyes and Divine Sense, floating a few feet from his body, to observe the surroundings.

The garden didn't lie in just any wilderness; the sky above bore no sun or moon yet was faintly illuminated.

Yet, as Yuan Ming stepped into the forest, underneath the dense canopy of branches and leaves, shadows enveloped his body, swallowing the faint light and leaving only darkness behind.

Silence surrounded him, broken only by the rustling of wind through the treetops, reminiscent of venomous snakes hissing in the dark, hissing at Yuan Ming.

Suddenly, Yuan Ming felt an inexplicable chill crawl over his body, as if he were being watched by someone. He looked around, but aside from the swaying shadows of the trees, he could see nothing.

His pace gradually slowed, the Bronze Small Tripod continuously spinning around his body, and after a long while, no evil spirit attacked.

Meanwhile, as he delved deeper, there appeared around him numerous spirit woods of considerable age. Yuan Ming took out his White Bone Knife and used his mana to gather them.

Soon, Yuan Ming reached the edge of the forest, adjacent to the central lake. There, the trees were sparse except for a solitary, strong ancient pine standing alone in front of the pier, its branches swaying in the breeze as if they were waving arms gesturing to Yuan Ming.

Seeing the intense Spiritual Energy on the ancient pine, Yuan Ming's eyes sharpened, and he immediately flicked his finger, sending the White Bone Knife chopping towards the trunk.

After a crisp sound, a hack appeared on the trunk of the ancient pine, but the tree only shook for a moment from the cut before becoming still again.

However, Yuan Ming did not ease up and continued to drive the White Bone Knife with accelerated chops.

As the chopping increased in speed, the crisp sounds continuously linked together, eerily resembling the screams of mortals, chilling to the bone.

When the trunk of the ancient pine was nearly severed, the tree could no longer support its heavy body and began to slowly fall toward the direction in which Yuan Ming was standing.

Seeing this, Yuan Ming instantly dodged to the side and then heard a sound resembling a sigh of relief as the ancient pine completely fell over, shaking a few times before settling completely still.

Yuan Ming waited a moment to see if there were any anomalies, then slowly exhaled, raised his hand to wipe, and gathered the pine stump along with its roots.

From the tree rings of the ancient pine, it was over two thousand years old, and the intensity of Spiritual Energy within it almost qualified it as a top-tier spiritual material.

However, after gathering the ancient pine, Yuan Ming couldn't help but feel a flicker of doubt. Most treasures in this place were guarded by evil spirits, yet this ancient pine stood alone unguarded, which seemed highly peculiar.

Yuan Ming pondered as his gaze followed the pier forward, seeing a pavilion on Lake Heart Island surrounded by lush vegetation but devoid of tree shadows. He thought for a moment and then suddenly turned and retraced his steps.

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