Xuantian Immortal Cultivation Record

The map provided by Hu Tiancong spanned nearly 300 million miles, detailing thirteen locations. The closest, called Hidden Mountain, was ten million miles southwest. It was a mountain capable of concealing itself, making it difficult to find its entrance, often leading to aimless wandering around its perimeter. It was said to contain many spiritual objects, and was highly likely to be a place where earth-grade spiritual objects could be found.

The next closest was the Six Yang Mirror, located fifteen million miles northwest. The Six Yang Mirror was a desolate mountain range, said to have six cliffs that, under certain special circumstances, could illuminate a cultivator's spirit, revealing deficiencies in their path and thus allowing them to complete their foundation and increase their chances of breaking through.

The map included a note indicating that the name of this place originated from a demon clan legend, which claimed that a celestial object called the "Six Yang Mirror" had descended from the heavens onto this mountain, occasionally displaying miraculous powers that could illuminate the path to immortality. The predecessor who drew the map believed that this legend was not credible, and it was more likely a supremely yang spiritual object, which could aid in breakthroughs if obtained.

Looking at the other locations, the closest were all more than fifty million miles away, requiring over two years of non-stop travel to reach. With such a long time, even if there were opportunities, they would have already been seized by others or demons. Therefore, his choices were limited to either Hidden Mountain or Six Yang Mirror.

He chose the Six Yang Mirror without hesitation.

For him, he already had enough spiritual objects to improve his cultivation, and more were unnecessary. On the other hand, supremely yang spiritual objects that could help him break through were always welcome.

Currently, the most potent breakthrough spiritual object he possessed was the Yang Yuan Crystal obtained from the Thick Earth Creation Cauldron, which offered at least a 30% chance of breaking through. The second was the Yin Lightning Fruit, but relying on it was entirely dependent on luck. Furthermore, he could exchange that seventh-order Yin Lightning Fruit for a middle-grade Purple Zenith Pill at the Profound Elixir Hall, if not a high-grade one.

However, the breakthrough probabilities offered by these items could not be stacked, so the maximum probability was still only 30%. He was well aware that with his aptitude, these spiritual objects might not be enough, and he had to prepare as many as possible.

Given the name of the Six Yang Mirror, there would be no shortage of cultivators or demons seeking it out. However, since this place had what he needed, he had to explore it, no matter how dangerous it was.

Zhang Yuanjing traveled west along the Wind Lightning Valley for five million miles, then turned northwest and sped for over ten million miles, arriving at a region of clustered peaks shrouded in clouds and mist. Most of the peaks here were over ten thousand feet tall and very close to each other, like a fortress guarding the mountains.

The place called Six Yang Mirror was located in the middle of this region, hidden in a mountain basin shrouded by clouds and mist.

To save time, he often flew through the sky on his sword when traveling, but upon arriving here, he dared not expose himself in the sky again. Instead, he honestly traversed through the forests and grasses, climbing step by step towards the mountain peaks.

There were hundreds of peaks in this area, connected to each other. Several large spiritual nodes were located beneath the ground, making the spiritual energy in the mountains dense and the number of demons numerous. Reckless flying would inevitably attract attacks from demons, adding trouble and exposing his whereabouts.

Currently, the Yang Refining Umbrella was weakened and unusable. Being on solid ground was his strongest life-saving trick.

According to the map, to reach the Six Yang Mirror, he had to cross the outer mountain ranges and enter the central area of the peaks.

If he traveled on the ground, he would inevitably have to pass through the territories of some demons and suffer attacks from various fierce beasts hiding in the shadows.

Zhang Yuanjing summoned the Truth-Determining Disk above his head, wore a stone armor made of Source Stones, and released Ape Thirteen to protect his rear, making his progress quite smooth. The Azure-Eyed Lion-Leopard Beast had not yet awakened, and this time it was likely to break through to the Great Perfection stage, so its slumber would be longer than before.

A day later, he reached the top of a peak and looked ahead, seeing clouds and mist like a sea, and mountain peaks like bamboo shoots. Occasionally, a ray of light would pierce through the heavy clouds, revealing figures that were difficult to distinguish as human or demon, before disappearing again.

The clouds and mist billowed, sometimes with golden light flashing, sometimes with flames bursting, dangerous and strange, making people hesitant to approach.

If it were in the past, Zhang Yuanjing would have weighed the pros and cons and might have turned around and left. The vast Transverse Mountain Range had many usable items that could be found without entering these dangerous places. However, after his conversation with Hu Tiancong, knowing that the future situation of the sect might worsen, his desire to improve his strength as soon as possible became extremely strong.

Along the hillside, he continued downwards, once again disappearing into the clouds and mist. Between the mountain peaks, dangerous and precipitous ridges were connected, covered by dense forests, making it difficult to see the sun. Insects and beasts roamed in the forest, and large pythons and flying beasts attacked from time to time, not of high cultivation, but difficult to defend against.

Zhang Yuanjing knew that this was not the time to be frugal. He held various talismans and consumable spiritual weapons in his hands, and when he encountered swarms of insects and beasts, he would throw them out. Especially against those insects and beasts that were good at using venom and poisonous smoke, he would use fire talismans to eliminate both the insects and the poison.

Two days later, Zhang Yuanjing stopped on a rock, looking back with a solemn expression.

"Yuanjing, why did you stop?" Ape Thirteen asked in surprise.

Zhang Yuanjing whispered, "A leopard demon in the Great Perfection stage of the Demon Core realm has been following us all the way, getting closer and closer. Have you noticed it?"

Ape Thirteen's eyes widened, and he turned his head to scan around, then twitched his nose and sniffed hard, shaking his big head: "There's no leopard demon! Yuanjing, are you mistaken!"

"No mistake, Zhang San said so."

Ape Thirteen naturally knew who Zhang San was, and stopped questioning upon hearing this, instead asking, "What leopard demon is so powerful that it can evade my nose?"

"Lightning Leopard!"

"Lightning Leopard? What kind of demon is that?"

Zhang Yuanjing explained, "It's a leopard demon with extremely fast speed and good at hiding its aura. It is said that its attacks are faster than a cultivator's divine sense reaction. As long as its figure cannot be locked on in advance, then when it appears, the cultivator is bound to die. There is a clan in the Transverse Mountain Range, but their numbers are small and they are rarely seen. However, it is also possible that most of the cultivators who have seen the Lightning Leopard are dead!

"This demon never provokes opponents who are too much stronger than it, and often only targets those with comparable strength, following them all the way, waiting for an opportunity to attack. If the first attack fails, it will temporarily retreat, waiting for a second chance. It will repeatedly attack in this way, eventually killing its prey. This demon is the most difficult to deal with. You can beat it, but you can't catch it. You can't beat it, and you can't escape. Moreover, its frequent attacks are difficult to defend against and extremely dangerous."

Ape Thirteen said, "I hate things like that the most, fighting is not refreshing!"

Zhang Yuanjing smiled bitterly, "This is not a matter of whether fighting is refreshing or not! We still have to explore the Six Yang Mirror, and being targeted by this leopard demon is too dangerous!"

Ape Thirteen asked doubtfully, "Can't you get rid of it by using Earth Escape Technique?"

Zhang Yuanjing said, "This demon has a very strong sense of smell. Now that it has captured my and your aura, it can find us within a thousand miles. This demon is probably also going to the Six Yang Mirror. If we are targeted by it there, it will be even more dangerous."

Ape Thirteen was too lazy to think so much and asked, "Then what should we do? Why don't you think of a way to lure it out, and I'll deal with it!"

Zhang Yuanjing's mouth twitched, knowing that talking to this reckless monkey was like playing the lute to a cow, so he nodded and said perfunctorily, "Let me think of a way."

He looked around, seeing that most places were dense forests and deep valleys, with lush vegetation, which was very conducive to the leopard demon concealing its figure. Occasionally, there were a few slopes with no tall trees, and the terrain was quite open. Although they were also covered with low shrubs, they were more suitable for dealing with the Lightning Leopard than the dense forests.

According to some records in the Immortal City's classics, if a cultivator wants to defeat the Lightning Leopard, they must choose a battlefield in advance and set up a formation. If the Lightning Leopard is unaware and trapped by the formation, then the cultivator is very likely to win.

However, this is often wishful thinking. The Lightning Leopard has a very cautious personality and is extremely sensitive to aura. Unless the formation can be made without leaking a trace of aura, it is impossible to hide it from its ears and eyes. As long as there is a little abnormality, the Lightning Leopard will choose to lie in wait and compete with its prey in patience.

Zhang Yuanjing thought for a while. Currently, his only advantage was the existence of Zhang San, which allowed him to discover this hunter lurking in the dark in advance, while it was still unaware that it had been exposed. Therefore, the first method of luring this demon out had the highest success rate.

He turned over hundreds of thoughts in his mind, and finally decided on a method, saying, "Brother Ape, let's go forward, but we shouldn't be too fast."

The man and monkey continued to traverse the mountains and forests, with Zhang Yuanjing dealing with various insects and beasts, while Ape Thirteen held the Chaos Heaven Cudgel, vigilantly looking around. The purpose of this was to make the Lightning Leopard wary and not launch an attack in the dense forest.

After crossing another mountain, the sky was already dim. Zhang Yuanjing led Ape Thirteen to dig a hole on a sparsely vegetated slope, and put the low-grade Wind-Controlling Cart into it, embedding the bottom into the soil.

Zhang Yuanjing took out more than a dozen talismans from the storage bracelet, all of which were of low grade, mainly middle-grade low-rank. There were square ones, round ones, horseshoe-shaped ones, crescent-shaped ones, flower-shaped ones, and even sword-shaped and knife-shaped ones, arranged in a certain direction on both sides of the flying cart.

After Zhang Yuanjing finished arranging, he instructed Ape Thirteen a few words, then drilled into the flying cart to sit and practice, leaving Ape Thirteen to guard outside the cart.

Nothing happened overnight.

The next day, they continued on their way, and in the evening, they arranged things as before, with Ape Thirteen keeping watch again. This was the case for the next five days.

On the evening of the eighth day, Ape Thirteen seemed quite exhausted, and even fell to the ground while guarding, snoring loudly.

Zhang Yuanjing was still practicing, and the aura on his body fluctuated, stabilizing after several hours.

At this moment, a huge force struck, breaking the flying cart. Just as Zhang Yuanjing was about to act, he did not see the leopard demon rushing into the cart. Looking out through the hole smashed in the flying cart, he saw the mountains and forests rising and falling in the night, and besides Ape Thirteen holding a cudgel ready to fight, there was nothing else.

Zhang Yuanjing's expression was solemn. He stood up, walked out of the damaged flying cart, and communicated with Zhang San, the result of which was that the leopard demon had already fled dozens of miles away.

This demon was too intelligent! Even if it did not see through his trick, it sensed that this flying cart was a hidden danger, so it seized the opportunity to break it with one blow, and immediately withdrew without any hesitation, not giving him any chance to detect the enemy's situation.

If it were not for the Yang Refining Umbrella, ordinary cultivators encountering this situation would probably not even know who their opponent was. This Lightning Leopard had a very terrifying talent, that is, when it was escaping, it was almost impossible for cultivators of the same realm to capture it with their divine sense. This was also the reason why this leopard demon dared to use its first attack to destroy the flying cart.

Zhang Yuanjing immediately felt a headache. Of course, he could directly use the Earth Escape Technique and leave. However, when exploring the Six Yang Mirror next, he would still have to be distracted by this demon, which would inevitably be somewhat dangerous.

He thought that if possible, he should first find a large spiritual node to allow the Yang Refining Umbrella to recover.

"Yuanjing, why did that leopard demon attack the flying cart! The flying cart can't be eaten!" Ape Thirteen asked, scratching his head.

Zhang Yuanjing said helplessly, "This demon saw through my trap, so it chose to destroy the flying cart."

The flying cart was not a trap, but a barrier used to cover the formation. The leopard demon would definitely be able to discover the formation if it was set up in advance. Therefore, he could only make arrangements first, but not complete the placement of all the formation tools. When the leopard demon attacked, he would complete the last step, so that he could trap it. The arrangements made in advance needed to be hidden by the flying cart to prevent the leopard demon from seeing through them.

However, he had obviously underestimated the intelligence and caution of the leopard demon. Since this demon felt that the flying cart was an obstacle, it directly attacked and destroyed it, leaving no hidden dangers.

This move would of course alarm the prey, but it was obviously confident enough to kill the prey even if it was prepared.

Three days later, Zhang Yuanjing and Ape Thirteen crossed the tenth high mountain, and a huge basin appeared in front of them, hundreds of miles in radius. Around it were not only ten-thousand-foot-high peaks, but also rolling hills, from high to low, like steps.

Below the hills were dense forests composed of towering trees, like river belts, galloping across the basin. In the center where several forest belts intersected, there was a crescent-shaped yellow patch, which seemed to have flying sand sweeping the ground, and flashes of light and flame could be seen from time to time. It was probably the legendary "Six Yang Mirror".

It was about a thousand miles to the center of the basin. If they flew on their swords, they could reach it in less than a quarter of an hour. Even if they walked on the ground, they could arrive in a day.

During these three days, the Lightning Leopard did not attack again, and even Zhang San's spiritual sense could not sense its existence. This undoubtedly meant that if the leopard demon was still tracking behind, it must be wandering more than a hundred miles away. Of course, it was also possible that it was close to the Six Yang Mirror, and this demon had other goals and had already left.

He pondered for a long time and decided to proceed cautiously, dealing with this leopard demon first before going to the Six Yang Mirror. If he missed the opportunity in the Six Yang Mirror because of this, he could only say that his luck was so and could not be forced.

Among the mountains around the basin, there was one mountain with abundant spiritual energy, which should have a large spiritual node at the bottom of the mountain. He went to that mountain.

Halfway through, Zhang San sent a thought, saying that the leopard demon had appeared again seventy or eighty miles behind, and was following them.

However, this demon only followed them all the way, getting close to less than ten miles at the closest time, but still did not launch an attack.

A day later, Zhang Yuanjing arrived at the high peak with a large spiritual node. There were quite a few demons in the mountain, but most of them were below the Spirit Enlightenment realm. Only in a stone cave with obvious carvings, there were several Demon Core realm demons. That place was probably the nest of a transformed great demon.

He also hid his tracks, stepped on the flying sword, and went with Ape Thirteen to kill the stone cave.

The demons in the cave were headed by a red-browed white-haired tiger in the late stage of the Demon Core realm. The remaining five, including golden-eyed pigs, iron-eating beasts, and armored bears, were all in the middle stage of the Demon Core realm.

Seeing the man and the monkey killing up so arrogantly, the white-haired tiger led three beasts to meet them, while the remaining two iron-eating beasts each moved a huge rock to block the entrance of the stone cave.

Zhang Yuanjing knew that the leopard demon was peeping in the rear, so he did not hold back. First, he shrouded them in a sandstorm, then dropped a rain of boulders, and then entered the sand array, using the Earth-Breaking Axe and the Limitless Blade. He immediately chopped down a bear and then split a pig, scaring the remaining white-haired tiger and armored bear to flee in all directions, fully stimulating their blood and energy, and using twelve points of strength to deal with the two sharp weapons.

Ape Thirteen went straight to the two iron-eating beasts, waving the Chaos Heaven Cudgel up and down, killing the two beasts screaming, but had no power to fight back.

After a battle that lasted half a cup of tea's time, the white-haired tiger, with its considerable strength, managed to break through the sand formation and escape. The remaining armored bears were powerless to resist, falling under the blades and axes, their corpses littering the sand.

At the same time, the two iron-eating beasts were also crushed to death by Ape Thirteen's iron staff.

Zhang Yuanjing dug out the inner cores of the five beasts and stored them away. He also cut off the most succulent parts of their meat to provide Ape Thirteen with food. The golden-haired ape, having learned some roasting and cooking techniques from the Azure-Eyed Suanni beast, squealed with excitement upon receiving tens of thousands of pounds of fresh meat.

Zhang Yuanjing instructed it to move the boulder blocking the entrance of the stone cave and search inside. The interior contained numerous stone chambers, each spacious, with stone tables and stools. There were also various dried meats, fruits, vegetables, and monster beast furs. Deep inside, a cave connected to a hidden river within the mountain. Dozens of spiritual herbs grew along the riverbank, though their grades were not high, the highest being only Xuan-grade four. Three mud pits in the middle indicated where even higher-grade spiritual herbs had been, likely taken by the transformed great demon who had occupied this place.

The area through which this hidden river flowed was the most spiritually dense part of the stone cave, making it an ideal place to refine the Yang Umbrella and restore its spiritual power.

Zhang Yuanjing then took out a set of Anti-Five Elements Locking Yuan Formation tools. Years ago, he had seized a set of Anti-Five Elements Locking Yuan Formation from the Six Righteous of Deer Head Mountain after killing them north of Yu Mountain Marsh. However, those were Foundation Establishment stage formation tools, and he had rarely used them after reaching the Core Formation stage. This time, remembering how convenient and useful the formation was, he had asked Fire Crow Taoist to reforge a set based on the formation principles, capable of temporarily trapping Core Formation stage middle and late-stage cultivators.

He placed the five formation flags in the soil beneath the outermost spiritual herbs, using the herbs' aura as cover. He held the formation plate, the key to the formation, in his hand, refraining from setting it up for now.

He walked into the middle of the spiritual herbs, placed the crystalline jade stone he had found in Thousand Peak Cave on the three mud pits, then took out the Yang Umbrella and placed it on the stone, allowing it to rapidly absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. He then sat down to the side, taking pills and circulating his energy.

Ape Thirteen, on the other hand, found a stone chamber outside, built a stove with stones, and twisted iron into a pot, wholeheartedly dedicating himself to cooking his delicious feast.

Zhang Yuanjing did not tell it that the Lightning Leopard was still lurking nearby, lest the golden-haired ape become too vigilant, which might arouse the leopard demon's suspicion.

He deduced that this demon had come from thousands of miles away, ignoring the Six Yang Mirror right in front of it, its target must be him, not Ape Thirteen. For demon beasts, a cultivator's golden core and soul were its most desired prey.

Inside the stone cave was not a suitable battlefield for the Lightning Leopard. However, Zhang Yuanjing's purpose was not entirely to deal with this demon, but to allow the Yang Umbrella to recover slightly, so that it could be used to save his life at a critical moment.

Two days later, Zhang Umbrella sent a message, saying that the Lightning Leopard had entered the stone cave. His heart stirred, he retracted his divine sense, restrained his thoughts, and did not probe outwards. He only asked Zhang Umbrella whether the leopard demon was coming for him or Ape Thirteen. Zhang Umbrella did not answer immediately, waiting a few breaths before saying that the leopard demon was heading straight for this hidden river.

He had expected the leopard to test the waters, but a shadow flashed, and a strong wind rushed at him. He had no time to react, and could only summon the Origin-Introducing Stone to protect his face, blocking the blow, but he was still shaken painfully, feeling dizzy and lightheaded.

Fortunately, using earth escape was an ingrained action, and with just a thought, he successfully burrowed into the earth, diving downwards.

The leopard demon failed to kill its enemy with one blow. It wanted to strike again, but the enemy had disappeared. If it fled immediately, it would be safe. However, the Yang Umbrella on the jade stone radiated an extraordinary aura, clearly a rare treasure. The Lightning Leopard had coveted it while scouting outside the stone cave, originally intending to kill and seize the treasure, but now that it had failed to kill the person, it would take the treasure as a consolation prize. It stretched its head out and used its sharp teeth to bite the umbrella, turning to retreat quickly.

At this moment, Zhang Yuanjing in the earth had activated the Anti-Five Elements Locking Yuan Formation. Instantly, fog rose, and space distorted. The Lightning Leopard charged out, directly crashing into the formation's barrier with a loud "bang." The formation remained intact, only making the leopard demon feel somewhat dizzy.

The Lightning Leopard excelled at speed and concealment, not strength. However, even a casual claw strike during rapid movement could shatter a low-grade Wind-Riding Chariot, demonstrating its power.

Realizing it had fallen into a trap, it spat out the umbrella, roared, and charged forward, striking the formation with a claw.

"Bang!"

The formation barrier trembled, but remained strong.

When Fire Crow Taoist refined this formation, he had already advanced to the Nascent Soul stage. Both the materials used and the restrictions sealed were top-notch. Although the Lightning Leopard was strong, it was difficult to break the formation suddenly.

At this time, Ape Thirteen had arrived, hearing the commotion. In the past two days, the golden-haired ape had been eating with greasy lips and a delighted heart. Seeing Zhang Yuanjing set up a formation, it did not know why.

Zhang Yuanjing said, "The leopard demon has been trapped in the formation. Go inside and fight it."

Ape Thirteen's eyes lit up, and it shouted, eager to enter the formation.

Zhang Yuanjing opened a corner of the formation from behind the leopard demon, allowing Ape Thirteen to enter. He then manipulated the formation plate, directing the formation's power entirely towards the leopard demon's main attack direction.

The leopard demon was also cunning. After charging in one direction several times, sensing that the resistance was not weakening but strengthening, it immediately changed its target, crashing to the side, shaking the formation as if it were about to collapse.

By the time Zhang Yuanjing adjusted the formation's power, the demon had already changed its attack direction again. Its speed was extremely fast, almost instantaneous, and the formation's power could not be transferred in time.

Zhang Yuanjing simply stopped making this useless effort, letting the formation's power be evenly distributed, lest the demon break through a weak point.

Ape Thirteen entered the formation, and the leopard demon immediately noticed it, but did not seek a great battle. Instead, it focused on breaking the formation. After several attempts, finding that the resistance was the same everywhere and could not be broken through in a short time, it turned to face Ape Thirteen.

Ape Thirteen was angry. After entering the formation, it had chased several times, but had not even touched a leopard hair. Seeing the leopard demon come to its door, it was overjoyed and struck with its staff.

Unexpectedly, this demon not only ran fast, but also clawed extremely fast. When its staff went out, the leopard demon was still several feet away, but by the time the staff reached its full extension, the leopard demon was already in front of it. The staff naturally missed completely, exposing its chest and abdomen to the enemy's attack.

Ape Thirteen roared, its body protected by golden light, allowing the leopard demon to strike a palm, discarding the Mixed Sky Staff in its hand, and smashing its bare fists at the two-zhang-long, pitch-black creature.

However, by the time its fist landed, the leopard demon had already moved behind it, striking it again with a palm.

Ape Thirteen was furious, and unleashed a set of unrestrained, fierce, and ruthless fist techniques. For a time, fists filled the space within several feet, the force of the wind like a tide, surging and surging.

But even so, it still could not touch a single hair of the big black leopard.

After fighting for several breaths, the leopard demon simply retreated ten feet away, standing there motionless, staring at Ape Thirteen. It was tall, strong, and well-built, its bulging muscles containing explosive power, its eyes sharp and mocking.

Ape Thirteen was so angry that smoke came out of its ears, and it chased after it, but could not catch up.

However, the Lightning Leopard's triumph lasted only a few breaths before it completely disappeared. Because the formation space suddenly began to shrink.

The leopard was shocked and quickly abandoned Ape Thirteen to attack the formation barrier again, but the shrinking formation was even more defensive. It tried several times without success, but was instead chased closer by Ape Thirteen and hit by several punches.

The Lightning Leopard's body defense was not strong. After taking Ape Thirteen's angry iron fists, its skin was torn and blood flowed. It finally showed panic, rushing around like a ghost, frantically attacking the formation, but to no avail.

When the formation space shrank to about five feet, Ape Thirteen was almost standing in place when it punched, beating the leopard demon into a sorry state. It took countless heavy punches that could break a thousand jun of force, and was finally knocked unconscious by the golden-backed ape with one punch.

This was because Zhang Yuanjing had specifically instructed it to leave it alive. A living Core Formation stage Great Perfection Lightning Leopard was worth much more than a dead one.