Chapter 230: Another Core Formation Secret Technique

On the rear slopes of Gu Demon Mountain, Chen Luo carefully stored his fishing rod before vanishing in a flash to appear beside Ding Zhao.

The entire Gu Demon Mountain was enveloped within his protective array formation. With a mere thought, he could manifest anywhere on the mountain through this network.

“Mountain Lord!”

Sun Yanyan and her companions swiftly bowed their heads in obeisance. Ding Zhao trembled, attempting to follow suit, but his body remained paralyzed by the curse. Even his lips quivered uncontrollably as he tried to speak.

“Malevolent curse.”

Chen Luo immediately recognized the curse afflicting Ding Zhao - a technique from the Demonseed Sect.

Someone was testing him.

Basic-level curse. Can be dispelled with spiritual energy.

The external brain, specialized in curses, immediately provided a solution. However, Chen Luo had no intention of using it. If he did, his opponents would realize he was proficient in curse techniques, leading to even more probing attempts.

For now, Chen Luo had no desire to confront the Demonseed Sect Leader - that ancient monster.

A Foundation Establishment expert at the peak of cultivation was a formidable opponent. Such old-timers were never easy to deal with. As one of the seven top cultivators controlling second-rank spirit meridians, the Demonseed Sect Leader’s capabilities would undoubtedly match or exceed Elder FusionSpirit’s.

Formation suppression, formation shift, can be extracted.

Soul-Parasitic Gu can consume it.

The formation master’s mind flashed with these thoughts. As fellow Foundation Establishment cultivators, their brains naturally had their own methods of response. Other external brains also began to react, with the gu cultivator’s brain even directly providing a solution - to use the Soul-Parasitic Gu to consume these curses. To gu cultivators, curse power served as nourishment, and the Soul-Parasitic Gu, one of the peculiar gu species, could devour such energy.

“Then let’s not waste it.”

With a thought, Chen Luo commanded the golden gu attached to the silver centipede to detach. It slid down his palm like a golden droplet, merging into Ding Zhao’s body. Late Foundation Establishment spiritual energy flowed in, suppressing the curse’s backlash.

Fizzle…

Black smoke billowed as the curse face embedded in Ding Zhao’s chest was completely devoured by the golden gu. Having finished its task, the gu flew back out and reattached itself to the silver centipede, which had just regained its freedom and was preparing to flee.

“Many thanks, Mountain Lord.”

Ding Zhao, lying on the ground, exhaled in relief. His life had been preserved.

Before Foundation Establishment cultivators, these Qi Refining realm cultivators were too fragile. The gap between their cultivation levels was too great - any minor technique from the Foundation Establishment cultivators could curse them to death.

“Return and rest.”

Chen Luo waved his hand, then leaped with a light motion to the highest peak of Gu Demon Mountain. His gaze pierced through the void, focusing on Pingshan Creek’s location. This had been a test, so both sides had held back—Chen Luo hadn’t exerted full strength, resulting in a stalemate.

Within the cave where Shangren Yinwind had once sequestered himself, all former opulence had vanished. The floor lay strewn with corpses—Shangren Yinwind’s rat children reduced to lifeless forms, dancers transformed into Bai Gu. The cavern pulsed with an eerie gloom, black mists swirling like the wails of departed souls.

At the center sat a gaunt old man cross-legged on a crudely woven mat, eight pitch-black stones arranged before him.

Crack!

One stone shattered into fragments.

“Gu? Could it be that Liu Ghost Han isn’t dead after all?”

The Demonseed Sect Leader frowned, sensing the residual energy. The opposing cultivation technique’s gu manipulation was unmistakable—such precise control required centuries of arduous practice. Foundation Establishment cultivators only possess five hundred years of lifespan. The assailant had been a curse specialist, clearly one who focused solely on curses. Such practitioners would lack the energy to cultivate gu techniques.

“With this, Gu Demon Mountain can be ruled out.”

“That leaves Fox Mountain. What a nuisance.”

The Demonseed Sect Leader rose to his feet and began walking toward the cave exit. As he moved, his body continuously twisted and overlapped, as if dozens or even hundreds of Demonseed Sect Leaders were merging together.

A massive amount of resentment emanated from his body. Demonic seeds, each resembling human faces, emerged from his form only to be pulled back by another force. The black qi from the dead disciples in the cave was gradually consumed by these demonic seed faces, restoring calm to the area.

After the Demonseed Sect Leader departed, Gu Demon Mountain returned to its peaceful state.

Half a year later.

Pingshan Creek welcomed a new master.

A stranger at the mid-Foundation Establishment stage arrived. With the presence of this powerful cultivator, the chaos around Pingshan Creek slowly subsided, and order began to reestablish itself. Roaming rogue cultivator clans quickly gathered there, reopening the once-abandoned market. Within months, the market regained its former prosperity.

With the market restored, Chen Luo’s supply of medicinal herbs for his pill refinement work was reestablished.

For half a year, Chen Luo rarely left his mountain, devoting himself entirely to cultivation.

During this period, Su Linlin had come to find him once, inviting him to explore the ruins of a Core Formation secret technique with her. He had declined her offer. After that, no one else disturbed him. Chen Luo regained his composure, practicing Qi Refining breathing exercises morning and evening to gradually accumulate strength and process the gains from his Demonic Heart Tribulation.

“Mountain Lord, a catastrophe has struck Blackstone City. While the Blackstone Ancestor was away, an elder recklessly used the great array to attempt a tribulation crossing, destroying the city’s second-rank formation. The indirect casualties among Foundation Establishment cultivators exceed ten.”

Early that morning, Ding Zhao rushed over with the latest news, his face flushed with urgency.

Blackstone City served as the heart of the entire demonic cultivation realm, and the Blackstone Ancestor was its sole Core Formation expert - a figure revered by all. Such a major incident in Blackstone City naturally shook the entire demonic cultivation realm to its core.

“Hm.”

Chen Luo responded with a calm, impassive tone.

No one understood this situation better than him. The “reckless elder” Ding Zhao spoke of was none other than Elder FusionSpirit, with whom he had spent an entire lifetime during his Demonic Heart Tribulation.

The speed at which news spread through the demonic cultivation realm proved slower than Chen Luo had anticipated.

Though Gu Demon Mountain lay far from Blackstone City, the news had taken half a year to reach here—still too slow. This delay clearly demonstrated the gap between Foundation Establishment cultivators and Qi Refining realm practitioners.

What Foundation Establishment cultivators could traverse in days via sword flight required Qi Refining cultivators half a year to cover on foot.

As Ding Zhao spoke, a sudden chill ran through him, and he immediately fell silent. If the mountain lord showed no interest, this matter held no value for Gu Demon Mountain.

“News regarding the ancient corpse acquisition,” Ding Zhao began, skipping past the Blackstone City affair to address the task Chen Luo had previously assigned him.

Corpse cultivation proved expensive, but couldn’t unrefineable ancient corpses at least offer some cost-effectiveness? Over the past half-year, Chen Luo had tasked Ding Zhao with utilizing Gu Demon Mountain’s channels to acquire ancient remains excavated from ruins.

Not all corpses were suitable for cultivation. Those high-grade specimens deemed unfit for refinement became precisely Chen Luo’s target.

“Report,” Chen Luo commanded, his eyes opening with renewed interest.

At his current level of cultivation, progress had become excruciatingly slow. His earlier trip to Blackstone City had been aimed at acquiring a Core Formation Stage alchemist’s brain. Though the journey yielded substantial gains, he failed to secure the third-order alchemist’s brain he’d initially sought.

“Pingshan Creek holds a Corpse Water River where a Foundation Establishment corpse cultivator resides,” Ding Zhao revealed. “They’re known as Grainger.”

“Grainger practices a peculiar cultivation technique requiring bone soup to advance.”

Bone soup?

Chen Luo’s mind flashed back to his first grim exhumation in the demonic cultivation realm. His pickaxe had nearly smoked from overuse, yet he’d failed to unearth a single skeleton. Later inquiries revealed a sect of corpse cultivators operating there - to them, even immortal cultivators’ remains served as precious materials, never to be wasted.

This Grainger likely belonged to their ilk.

“Our operatives established contact with Grainger’s disciples,” Ding Zhao stated, skipping the tedious details.

“They claim they can steal some ancient corpses to sell us, but their price is quite high.”

“Pay them,” Chen Luo said bluntly. In his view, resources existed to serve one’s needs - those who couldn’t afford to spend were simply fools.

“Understood.”

Ding Zhao let out a sigh of relief. To establish connections with the Corpse Water River, he’d lost several subordinates. Without the Sun Clan’s full support, he might have crumbled under the pressure. Now that he’d completed the mountain lord’s task, this transaction would bring substantial rewards - enough resources to push him toward Qi Refining Perfection.

“One more thing, Mountain Lord,” Ding Zhao added, stopping mid-step as he remembered an incident from two days prior. “The Five Eyes Temple Master is dead.”

The Five Eyes Temple Master had been one of the seven top cultivators in the demonic cultivation realm. Born from a willow spirit, he possessed immense magical power and was hailed as the strongest Foundation Establishment cultivator below Core Formation. The lecture gathering Chen Luo and Shangren Yinwind had attended had been convened by none other than the Five Eyes Temple Master himself.

Chen Luo had first met Shi Jun, the Demonseed Sect’s seed master, at that exchange conference. Beyond Shi Jun, he’d encountered several powerful Foundation Establishment cultivators, including the Bamboo Sword Fairy, who had left a particularly deep impression. There was also a Blackstone City expert who used spirit essence, though this person had kept their appearance hidden throughout their interactions. Now, it seemed likely that this individual was none other than the Black Carapace Daoist.

Chen Luo had come into contact with all three of Blackstone City’s Foundation Establishment experts. Elder FusionSpirit was already dead, and the Demonseed Sect Leader held a grudge against him. The Black Carapace Daoist had been the least involved, with their only interaction being during Blackstone City’s chaos when they’d jointly plundered the underground river. After that, Chen Luo had heard nothing more.

“Rumors claim the Five Eyes Temple Master obtained a rare Core Formation secret art that could enhance the quality of his Pill Formation. Those who didn’t want him to reach Core Formation joined forces to kill him.”

Another Core Formation secret art?

Chen Luo frowned slightly, feeling increasingly certain that something about this situation wasn’t right.