Chapter 260: Departure

Revenge is never easy. If her grandfather hadn’t died, there might still have been some hope. But now, she was the last remaining member of her family. Lacking status and influence within the sect, she’d risked everything to secure a meager resource allocation by traveling to the God Lake Immortal Sect, nearly getting sacrificed as cannon fodder.

Looking back, it was clear this mission had been a trap from the start. The sect’s true geniuses had long since gone into “seclusion,” leaving only disciples like her—lacking powerful backgrounds—to be sent out. At the time, she’d been thrilled to secure a spot. Now, she realized the hardship of cultivation wasn’t just about the practice itself, but also about navigating the struggles of others.

“Cover it up,” Chen Luo said.

Having learned of his old acquaintance’s fate, he no longer wished to disturb him. The girl placed the mummy elder’s corpse into the black coffin, clearly intending to nurture it. Her earlier opening of the coffin had already released significant death energy, setting back the corpse’s transformation progress.

Thanks to the Black Carapace Daoist’s brain, Chen Luo was now an expert in cultivating corpses himself.

“Understood.”

The young woman sighed in relief, knowing her life had been spared. At the same time, she was deeply curious about how her grandfather had known this senior. Judging by the senior’s demonstrated strength, he must be among the most powerful cultivators even within the Foundation Establishment realm.

She had witnessed Chen Luo’s earlier slaughter of the two Foundation Establishment experts from Nine Poisons Valley.

“Affix these to it,” Chen Luo said, retrieving three second-rank Corpse Nurturing Talismans from his Pouch of Holding. These had been left behind by the Black Carapace Daoist. Having already refined the Silver Carapace Corpse King, Chen Luo saw no point in keeping them and decided to give them to the Dry Corpse Daoist’s granddaughter.

Second-rank Corpse Nurturing Talismans!

The young woman’s eyes lit up as she eagerly accepted the talismans.

“The wood of this casket is excellent, but the nails are misplaced,” Chen Luo observed, casually offering advice now that he had already given her the talismans.

Hearing his guidance, the young woman immediately realized the truth.

Her eyes now shone with admiration as she looked at Chen Luo.

This casket had been left behind by her grandfather before his death, yet this senior could casually point out its flaws. It was clear he was a true expert in corpse cultivation.

The girl was only at the Qi Refining realm. She hadn’t dared to watch, nor could she clearly see, the battle between Chen Luo and the two Core Formation cultivators in the sky. The gap in their cultivation levels was too vast. To her eyes, the clash between Core Formation cultivators was a collision of elemental energy—a storm of wind and thunder that completely obscured the figures locked in battle.

By the time Chen Luo finished his business, the Foundation Establishment cultivators from the Three Sects had also settled their scores.

Nine Poisons Valley emerged victorious. The Corpse-Raising Sect’s grand elder had been critically injured, and two other Corpse-Raising Sect Foundation Establishment cultivators had been slain. The remaining Corpse-Raising Sect members scattered in full retreat. Within the God Lake Immortal Sect, the Peak Lord of Divine Lake Peak had fallen in battle. The remaining four elders had escaped with severe injuries, while some had surrendered to Nine Poisons Valley and were now helping to clear the battlefield.

“Let’s go. I’ll take you away.”

Chen Luo had no interest in lingering over these squabbles. By now, even Foundation Establishment minds felt beneath his notice. He had just claimed the Immortal Sect Leader’s mind and wanted to find a quiet place to digest it properly.

Before the girl could recover her wits, Chen Luo flicked his sleeve, and the two transformed into a streak of light that vanished beyond the horizon. The other Nine Poisons Valley Foundation Establishment cultivators, witnessing this, hastily moved aside, none daring to intercept them.

Wu Dao Peak.

Chen Luo landed once more on Wu Dao Peak.

Unlike other areas, this place remained tranquil, untouched by the chaos erupting on Divine Lake Peak.

“Uncle-Master!” Ding Xiaoxia rushed forward as soon as Chen Luo landed.

Only seven disciples remained on Wu Dao Peak. The rest had fled during the main peak’s turmoil, proving that loyalty to the Immortal Sect’s rules was rare.

“Pack your belongings and prepare to leave the mountain,” Chen Luo instructed, tossing the Dry Corpse Daoist’s granddaughter aside and tasking Ding Xiaoxia with her care.

“I have urgent matters to attend to. Move quickly.”

“Yes,” Ding Xiaoxia replied.

With that, Chen Luo transformed into a streak of light and soared back toward Divine Lake Peak.

By now, the Nine Poisons Valley Lord should be looting resources in the Immortal Sect Leader’s cultivation chamber. Reusable resources like cultivation techniques ranked lower in priority. As a Core Formation cultivator, the Nine Poisons Valley Lord wouldn’t switch his main cultivation technique, at most learning supplementary divine abilities. Therefore, the order of resource acquisition was crucial.

Chen Luo aimed to exploit this very prioritization.

Capitalizing on his status as a disciple of the sect, Chen Luo swiftly arrived at the Divine Lake Peak’s library pavilion. The great battle had startled everyone, and even the disciples guarding the pavilion had fled. Some bolder Immortal Sect members had gathered there, eager to loot the chaos.

For Immortal Sect disciples, personal gain comes first!

When Chen Luo arrived, seven or eight disciples were busy plundering cultivation techniques on the first floor. Some were even attempting to break into the entrance to the second floor.

With a flick of his finger, several streams of light shot into the bodies of the looters.

Bloody mist exploded, sending Pouches of Holding and stolen cultivation techniques flying back into his sleeve, propelled by spiritual energy.

Even a mosquito is meat—nothing should go to waste!

After eliminating the disciples who had been competing for cultivation techniques, Chen Luo flew to the entrance of the second-floor library. As he approached, a faint golden barrier lit up—the library’s protective restriction, requiring merit points to pass. But how could Chen Luo possess any merit points? He swiftly activated the restriction’s computational core, his eyes gleaming. Corresponding energies coalesced between his fingers. With a twist of his index finger, he quickly cracked the primary restrictions. He didn’t bother wasting time on the rest.

Chen Luo extended his palm, a radiant light flashing across his palm as his five fingers grasped the silk threads. With a sharp tug, he pulled.

Fzzzt!

Black smoke erupted from several nearby locations, and the calligraphic scrolls and paintings hanging on the walls burst into flames. These were all nodes of the prohibitions, some connected to the second floor. If Chen Luo didn’t break the main prohibition, the others would spread, destroying the bookshelves within.

This was a common theft-prevention method used by Immortal Sects.

The second floor contained cultivation techniques for the Foundation Establishment realm, housed on nine bookshelves.

After flying up, Chen Luo approached the first bookshelf. The bone pattern on his chest flickered as he grabbed the edge of the bookshelf with one hand and lifted. A series of cracking sounds echoed as he ripped the bookshelf out by its roots, snapping the surrounding prohibitions. Scrolls and porcelain vases shattered in the process.

After claiming the first bookshelf, Chen Luo repeated the method for the remaining eight, hauling them all away.

The floor was now riddled with craters, and the second-floor archives resembled a scene ravaged by a hurricane. Undeterred, Chen Luo swiftly moved to the third floor. Though the prohibitions there were even stronger, they proved no match for him. Having breached the main defense, he brute-forced his way through once again.

The third floor contained only one bookshelf, upon which lay three books.

All Core Formation cultivation techniques!

Chen Luo immediately grabbed the bookshelf, but this time the binding was far deeper. Silken threads of restriction snaked all the way to the bottom of the library. He couldn’t even lift the bookshelf with one hand.

“A global prohibition?” Chen Luo frowned, realizing the problem.

This type of global restriction was the most troublesome. It couldn’t be broken quickly, and he’d already sensed the aura of the Nine Poisons Valley Master. The old bastard must have finished plundering the spiritual materials vault and was now flying this way.

“You think I’ll let meat that’s already in my hands escape?”

Steeling his resolve, Chen Luo summoned the Silver Carapace Corpse King.

The Corpse King stood opposite him, grabbing the other side of the bookshelf, while Chen Luo channeled the Demon Bone Array Sigil Art within his body.

Simultaneously, they gripped the bookshelf and yanked it upward with all their might.

Creak!

The sound of the wooden structure swaying filled their ears. In the next instant, countless threads of restriction erupted from the library walls, spreading across the floor until even the foundation began to tremble. Finally, at the breaking point, dozens of snapping sounds echoed as the threads snapped. Chen Luo ripped out the shattered bookshelf. Seizing the opportunity created by the destruction, he snatched the three cultivation techniques atop the wreckage and stored them in his Pouch of Holding.

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Boom!!

The foundation of the Library Pavilion crumbled under the immense force, collapsing with a thunderous roar.

Amidst the ruins, Chen Luo summoned a Magic Sword, recalled his cultivating corpses, and instantly fled the scene.

Moments later, the Valley Master of Nine Poisons Valley arrived at the Library Pavilion.

He stood in silent contemplation, staring at the rubble before him.

“This was… truly the Library Pavilion?”

The Immortal Sect elders who had defected to Nine Poisons Valley spoke tremulously. None of them had expected this. After all, this was the Immortal Sect’s Library Pavilion, heavily warded with numerous restrictions. Even ten Foundation Establishment cultivators attacking simultaneously couldn’t have breached it in such a short time.

Yet now, this seemingly impregnable book tower lay in ruins before them.

“Never mind,” the Valley Master said, glancing in the direction Chen Luo had vanished. He abandoned the pursuit.

His earlier battle with the Immortal Sect Leader had drained considerable energy. At this moment, he couldn’t afford another confrontation. Moreover, the Corpse-Raising Sect Master was still lurking in the shadows, watching for any opportunity. He wouldn’t give that predator a chance.

After leaving the main peak, Chen Luo returned to Wu Dao Peak.

This time, he thoroughly ransacked the mountain for anything of value. While doing so, he sent a message to his master, Void Sage, and his shimei, Huang Ying, briefly explaining what had happened at the God Lake Immortal Sect and advising them to stay away for the time being.

“Shishu, do we really have to leave?” Ding Xiaoxia still found it hard to believe that such a grand Immortal Sect could vanish so suddenly. The feeling was similar to how Chen Luo had felt in his past life when a major world power dissolved—utter disbelief, yet undeniable reality. It was a sensation only those who lived through that era could understand; in hindsight, it seemed like an inevitable consequence of historical forces.

“Only temporarily. We’ll return once the storm blows over.” Chen Luo had no intention of abandoning Wu Dao Peak; the place held profound significance for his master, Void Sage, and for Xianhe Chengfeng.

Remembering the Master Xianhe who had once saved his life, Chen Luo led Ding Xiaoxia and the others to the precipice of the cliff.

Xianhe Chengfeng stood at the cliff’s edge, his gaze fixed on Divine Lake Peak.

“Master Chengfeng.”

Chen Luo landed beside the immortal crane Chengfeng.

The last time he called the crane “Uncle-Master Chengfeng,” he had been corrected, and Chen Luo had since adjusted his address.

“Is the Immortal Sect finished?” Xianhe Chengfeng asked abruptly.

He had sensed the terrifying Core Formation struggle that had erupted on the mountain earlier. However, as only an early Foundation Establishment cultivator, he had no power to intervene beyond observing from a distance.

“Only temporarily,” Chen Luo replied.

“Take them and leave,” Xianhe Chengfeng said, interrupting Chen Luo before he could finish.

“I won’t be going. I’m too old and can’t bear to leave my home.” A flash of weariness flickered in Xianhe Chengfeng’s eyes.

Human cultivators are forever embroiled in conflict!

Behind every rising powerhouse lies a mountain of resources. For them, these resources are like blood—converging to forge their invincible ‘Immortal Path.’

Chengfeng was a demon beast, having lived too long.

Having witnessed too much, his mentality had grown old, weighed down by too many attachments.

“Let’s go,” Chen Luo said.