Entering the mountainside of Lingyun Peak, Chen Ping did not relax in the slightest; instead, a lingering sense of strangeness rose in his heart.

The Qi became even denser, and the exotic flowers and rare herbs in the mountains also noticeably increased. He even luckily picked three portions of Amethyst Flower and one portion of Sunfire Grass.

However, it was too quiet.

Apart from the occasional encounters with fierce demon beasts, for several whole days, he hadn’t run into a single cultivator from any other Sect!

It was as if everyone had disappeared.

He had also gone to investigate several dangerous areas marked on the map where Foundation Establishment main medicines might exist. Apart from signs of battle and dried bloodstains, they were similarly empty and devoid of people.

The abnormal, deathly silence pressed down on his heart like an invisible boulder, making him even more vigilant and slowing his travel speed.

Several days later, the main medicines for Foundation Establishment Pills he had accumulated reached twenty portions.

The True Essence Fruit remained elusive, which was expected. Being able to find that one in the Jade Pendant space was already an immense stroke of luck.

…

Three days later.

Chen Ping was searching along a hidden mountain ravine when his Divine Sense suddenly caught a trace of exceptionally pure Qi fluctuation, far exceeding the surrounding area.

The source of the fluctuation came from a cave entrance on the cliff face, half-covered by vines.

The density and purity of that Qi even faintly surpassed certain areas of Lingyun Peak’s main peak.

A spirit medicine? Or a spirit spring?

Chen Ping’s heart stirred, and he cautiously approached.

He did not enter immediately. Instead, he condensed his Divine Sense into threads, extending it gingerly into the cave.

The cave entrance was narrow and deep. Extending his Divine Sense dozens of zhang inside, he did not detect any signs of living creatures or obvious traps. Only that Qi grew increasingly dense, as if the source was deep within.

After brief consideration, Chen Ping pushed aside the vines, crouched down, and squeezed into the cave.

The cave interior was damp and dark, only allowing one person to pass through.

He held his breath, his footsteps extremely light, his Divine Sense constantly maintained at its limit, probing every inch ahead and beneath his feet.

After walking for roughly the time it takes half an incense stick to burn, the space ahead suddenly opened up, revealing a small stone chamber.

On the ground in the center of the stone chamber was carved an extremely complex pattern composed of countless silver lines.

At this moment, it was emitting faint spatial fluctuations.

“A teleportation array?!”

Alarm bells rang loudly in Chen Ping’s heart!

He immediately wanted to retreat!

However, the moment he stepped into the center of the stone chamber, the silver lines beneath his feet suddenly erupted with blinding light!

An irresistible spatial force instantly enveloped him!

A violent sensation of dizziness and disorientation assaulted him!

The scene before his eyes instantly blurred, twisted, and then abruptly stabilized!

Bone-chilling cold and the dry scent of rock replaced the dampness of the cave.

Chen Ping found himself standing in an extremely massive underground stone cavern.

The cavern was circular, with a diameter of a full hundred zhang. The vaulted ceiling soared into darkness, its end unseen.

The walls and floor were all made of hard black rock, polished exceptionally smooth, reflecting a dim, cold, faint light coming from an unknown source.

Silence! Absolute silence!

Only his own slightly hurried breathing echoed in the vast cavern.

Before Chen Ping could steady his mind and observe his surroundings.

Clack… clack… clack…

Dense, cold friction sounds, like a sudden downpour, rang out from all directions!

On the smooth walls of the cavern, twenty neatly arranged square openings silently slid open!

Twenty figures, marching with uniform steps, stepped out from the openings!

Their entire bodies showed a cold, dark golden hue. Their joints were intricately structured. Their heads were smooth spheres, without facial features, only two holes flickering with faint red light, like eyes.

They held standardized long-handled war blades in their hands, the blades gleaming coldly.

All were Tier 1 High-grade Dharma Artifacts!

Each one emitted a metallic attribute spiritual power fluctuation at the Qi Condensation Great Perfection level!

Twenty Tier 1 top-grade — Spirit Gold Battle Puppets!

Chen Ping’s heart instantly sank to the bottom, all the hairs on his body standing on end!

He instantly understood his situation: this was no spirit medicine cavern at all, but an extremely dangerous forbidden zone!

Either a cruel inheritance ground left by ancient cultivators, or… the burial tomb of some powerful being!

The former still offered a slim chance of survival; the latter… a Narrow Escape!

No time to think!

The red-dot gazes of the twenty Spirit Gold Battle Puppets instantly locked onto Chen Ping!

They made no sound, silently raising their war blades. Cold Killing Intent spread out like a tangible substance!

A cold light erupted in Chen Ping’s eyes!

He deeply understood the principle of striking first!

The spiritual power within his body instantly boiled…

The “Water Divider” and “Metal Splitter” twin swords transformed into two sharp streaks of light, carrying the sharp whistling sound of tearing air, heading straight for the heads of the two foremost battle puppets!

Simultaneously, his hands flew out together. Over a dozen Tier 1 top-grade “Fire Snake Talismans” and “Ice Spike Talismans” whistled like a swarm of bees leaving their nest, blanketing the group of battle puppets!

Clang! Clang!

Two ear-piercing sounds of metal clashing!

Sparks flew from the heads of the two battle puppets struck by the flying swords. The immense force made their bodies sway, and obvious dents appeared on their necks, but they did not shatter!

The dark gold material was unimaginably hard!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Fire snakes and ice spikes exploded among the group of battle puppets!

Flames roiled, ice shards flew!

However, the defensive power of these battle puppets far exceeded Chen Ping’s estimation!

The flames only left scorch marks on the surface, and the ice spikes shattered upon impact, only able to briefly hinder their movements for an extremely short moment!

What made Chen Ping’s scalp tingle even more was that these battle puppets were not fighting individually!

They appeared scattered, but their steps actually followed some kind of formation!

The moment the talismans exploded, the battle puppets on the periphery quickly moved, faintly forming an encirclement. Meanwhile, several battle puppets in the inner circle actually swung their blades simultaneously!

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Several condensed, pale golden blade auras tore through the shockwaves of the talisman explosions, like precise arrows, crisscrossing as they slashed towards Chen Ping!

The power of each one far exceeded the full-force strike of an ordinary Qi Condensation ninth layer cultivator!

“Not good!”

Chen Ping’s pupils contracted sharply!

He had severely underestimated the strength of these Spirit Gold Battle Puppets!

Not only was their defense astonishing, their attack power was comparable to Qi Condensation Great Perfection, and they even knew how to coordinate in a battle formation!

These were definitely not simple inanimate objects!

His feet stepped on profound footwork, his body rapidly dodging like a willow catkin in the wind, narrowly and dangerously avoiding most of the blade auras!

But one blade aura still grazed past his left arm. The sharp energy instantly tore through his Dharma robe, leaving a deep, bone-visible gash on his arm!

Intense pain transmitted!

Couldn’t hold back anymore!

A flicker of heartache passed through Chen Ping’s eyes, but more so, it was icy resolve!

He no longer spared the talismans, his hands moving rapidly like butterflies threading through flowers!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh…!

This time, they were no longer single-attribute talismans! Golden Needle Armor-Piercing Talismans led the way, Fire Snake and Ice Spike Talismans covered and suppressed, Vine Entanglement Talismans restricted movement, and several “Explosion Talismans” detonated in the center of the battle puppet formation!

The multicolored light of the talismans instantly illuminated the entire cavern as bright as day!

Violent energy turbulence swept through everything!

Simultaneously, he pushed his Divine Sense to the extreme. The “Water Divider” and “Metal Splitter” twin swords transformed into two whirlwinds of death, no longer seeking a one-hit kill, but specifically attacking the battle puppets’ joint connection points and their blade-wielding arms!

Clang! Clang!

Crack!

Boom!

Dense sounds of collision, shattering, and explosion merged into one!

The battle instantly entered a white-hot intensity!

Chen Ping’s figure weaved and dodged amidst the dense blade auras and the light of exploding talismans, each movement fraught with peril.

Talismans were consumed like flowing water, each strike of the flying swords exerted with full force.

One by one, battle puppets, under the relentless bombardment of talismans and the precise strikes of the flying swords, finally began to sustain damage…

Joints severed, arms dismembered, heads pierced by golden needles through the red dots before collapsing with a crash…

When the last battle puppet was simultaneously blasted in the chest by three Fire Snake Talismans, its dark golden chest exploding into a large hole, its internal structure exposed, flickering with electric sparks as it collapsed to the ground with a crash…

The entire cavern once again fell into a deathly silence.

Victory!