Mo Tiange did not notice that after she left, Ling Yunhe stared at the traces left by their fight for a long time without speaking.
After a long while, he shook his head and murmured to himself, "None of them are simple..." With that, he clasped his hands behind his back and slowly returned to the Ling family mansion, his brows tightly furrowed, though it was unclear whether he was pleased or worried.
Three days later, the six of them gathered once more at the Ling family mansion. This time, Ling Yunhe did not put on airs and directly invited everyone inside. After a final confirmation, the group of six transformed into streaks of light and vanished into the sky.
The location of Carefree Valley was at the border between the Dongtang Kingdom and the Beilin Kingdom. Tianxue City was in the northern part of the Dongtang Kingdom, only about six or seven days' journey from the Beilin Kingdom. All six of them had decent cultivation levels; even the two early-stage Core Formation cultivators possessed many spiritual treasures and were quite formidable. The six of them sped up, and five days later, they arrived at Jialing Mountain, where Carefree Valley was located.
Jialing Mountain was a mountain range bordering the Dongtang Kingdom and the Beilin Kingdom. The mountain stretched for hundreds of miles, towering into the clouds. To the southeast of the mountain was Jialing Town of the Dongtang Kingdom, while to the north was the famous demonic territory of Xingluo City in the Beilin Kingdom. Jialing Mountain was only the Dongtang Kingdom's name for it; people of the Beilin Kingdom were accustomed to calling it Xingluo Mountain. Carefree Valley was hidden deep within this mountain.
Six streaks of light landed on a deserted peak of Jialing Mountain—it was precisely Mo Tiange and her five companions.
"Is this the place?" Tian Zhiqian spoke up, his tone filled with surprise.
Mo Tiange surveyed her surroundings. This peak was bare, with only some rocks and not a trace of Spiritual Qi to be found. It truly did not seem like the location of an ancient blessed land, no wonder Tian Zhiqian was so astonished.
Ling Yunhe took out a map and checked it, confirming, "That's right, this is the place."
Mo Tiange also took out her own map. The marked entrance to Carefree Valley was nearby, yet there was not the slightest trace of Spiritual Qi around, nor any signs of formations or restrictions. How exactly were they supposed to enter?
The gazes of the five others all rested on Ling Yunhe.
Ling Yunhe, unhurried, retrieved an object from his Qiankun Bag.
"The God-Restricting Bead!" Ling Yunfei was taken aback, the words bursting from his lips.
Mo Tiange focused her gaze and saw Ling Yunhe holding a large, round pearl in his hand, emitting a hazy light. The area around it seemed to undulate like water ripples.
She could confirm that this pearl was a top-grade magic treasure. Since Ling Yunfei called it the God-Restricting Bead, was it used for breaking restrictions?
Ling Yunfei's expression shifted uncertainly as he looked at Ling Yunhe, hesitating repeatedly before finally asking, "Second Brother, where did you get this God-Restricting Bead?"
Ling Yunhe smiled slightly, glanced at him, and replied calmly, "Don't worry. This was personally approved by Seventh Granduncle."
"Oh..." Ling Yunfei relaxed slightly, his expression improving.
"So this is the Ling family's God-Restricting Bead?" Tian Zhiqian looked at the pearl in Ling Yunhe's hand with considerable interest.
Ling Yunhe nodded. "Correct. With this, entering Carefree Valley will be much easier for us."
Seeing Mo Tiange looking at the God-Restricting Bead in Ling Yunhe's hand, Ling Yunfei moved closer to her and said in a low voice, "Fellow Daoist Qin, you probably didn't know? This God-Restricting Bead is a family heirloom of our Ling family, always kept by our Nascent Soul ancestors. This bead has an extremely strong restraining effect on Spiritual Qi and Divine Sense. If used skillfully, one can move freely between restrictions."
Upon hearing this, Mo Tiange was inwardly shocked. Moving freely between restrictions—this was even more formidable than the Taiji Bagua Diagram in her possession. The Taiji Bagua Diagram contained the profound principles of Yin-Yang, the Five Elements, and the Eight Trigrams. It could stabilize Yin and Yang and regulate Spiritual Qi. In places where Spiritual Qi was chaotic and the Five Elements were interwoven, the Taiji Bagua Diagram could display great power. But when it came solely to breaking restrictions, this treasure could only assist and was not as effective as this God-Restricting Bead.
Indeed, Mo Yaoqing was certainly a genius of her generation, but Yunzhong was so vast that naturally other talented cultivators had also refined other treasures. Moreover, in terms of profound mysteries, the Taiji Bagua Diagram was not inferior to the God-Restricting Bead; it was merely less effective at breaking restrictions.
"So that's how it is. This bead is truly marvelous," Mo Tiange praised.
Ling Yunfei's face showed a look of pride. He added, "Usually, we Core Formation juniors of the family never get to see this God-Restricting Bead. Our Nascent Soul ancestors..."
"Is everyone ready? It's time to enter." Ling Yunfei was cut off mid-sentence by Ling Yunhe. After speaking, Ling Yunhe shot a meaningful glance at Ling Yunfei before turning away.
Scolded by that look, Ling Yunfei looked embarrassed and didn't dare to continue. He rubbed his nose and followed.
Mo Tiange was inwardly amused. This Ling Yunfei seemed to be about the same age as Ling Yunhe, but in terms of cultivation and handling affairs, he was much more immature. He had probably just formed his Core and hadn't yet learned to restrain himself. A secret treasure in the hands of the family ancestors should be kept confidential, yet he had blurted it out casually.
The five of them followed behind Ling Yunhe, descending from the mountain peak. Jialing Mountain was covered in scattered rocks everywhere. It seemed there wasn't much rain, and few plants survived, resulting in such terrain. These rocks were oddly shaped; walking among them, surrounded by jagged, strange stones and precipitous peaks, it was like being among fierce beasts. The entire mountain peak was like this—covered in scattered rocks, not even a complete path could be found.
Yet Ling Yunhe moved with practiced ease, weaving through the scattered rocks.
Entering deep into the rocky area, at first there were only scattered rocks and yellow earth, but gradually traces of green appeared. Finally, Ling Yunhe stopped before an ancient tree.
This ancient tree was dozens of zhang tall. Though it didn't have many green leaves, its branches and vines were intertwined, blocking out the sky and sun. It stood alone among the scattered rocks, squeezed into a tiny space to survive, yet its branches and leaves covered an area of a hundred zhang.
"Brother Ling, what is this?" Tian Zhiqian, seeing Ling Yunhe stop here, asked in confusion.
Ling Yunhe did not answer. Instead, he raised the God-Restricting Bead in his hand, formed a hand seal, and channeled Spiritual Qi into the bead.
As Spiritual Qi was channeled, the water-ripple-like undulations around the God-Restricting Bead grew increasingly intense, and its hazy glow grew brighter.
Suddenly, Ling Yunhe shouted. The God-Restricting Bead abruptly erupted with a dazzling light, shooting toward the ancient tree.
A "hum" sound, dull and heavy, reverberated in the ears of the six. The sound wasn't piercing, but it was too low, as if striking directly against the eardrums, pounding deep within their brains. Expressions of discomfort appeared on everyone's faces.
Although they were all powerful Core Formation cultivators who could easily endure severe injuries in battle against others, they were helpless against this kind of sound. This was a physical weakness of humans. As long as they were still human and hadn't attained the Dao and ascended, they couldn't escape it.
At this moment, Mo Tiange's heart stirred. Although she also found the sound irritating and uncomfortable, she didn't feel it was particularly unbearable. Perhaps it was because she had cultivated the Refining Divine Art? If so, couldn't she rely on her powerful Divine Sense to create a similar magic treasure to put opponents at a disadvantage?
This thought flashed through her mind. Soon after, Ling Yunhe put away the God-Restricting Bead and said, "Everyone, let's go in."
Mo Tiange snapped back to attention and looked. She saw faint fluctuations of Spiritual Qi emanating from within the ancient tree.
"Brother Ling, this... how do we enter?" Tian Zhiqian looked at the ancient tree, completely baffled. Although the God-Restricting Bead had been used, and this tree clearly had some mystery to it, there was no visible entrance no matter how one looked.
Ling Yunhe smiled. "Everyone, please follow me." With that, he flicked his sleeve and flew up onto the ancient tree.
Seeing this, the others followed suit.
Standing on a branch of the ancient tree, Mo Tiange looked down and suddenly understood. So there was an opening on the trunk of this ancient tree. It was just that this opening wasn't very large, and the Spiritual Qi fluctuations inside were extremely subtle. None of the group had noticed it.
Without a word, Ling Yunhe activated his protective spiritual light and jumped down.
Seeing this, the other five followed immediately. Ling Yunfei went down first, followed by Tian Zhiqian and Yang Chengji. Mo Tiange glanced at Tian Can, activated the Primordial Chaos One Qi Art to form a protective spiritual barrier around herself, and also jumped down.
In the darkness, the sound of rushing wind filled her ears as she continued to fall. Mo Tiange released her Divine Sense and immediately frowned. Sure enough, the restrictions here also suppressed Divine Sense. In most ancient places, the restrictions left behind by those cultivators often suppressed Divine Sense. She wasn't too surprised.
Additionally, the Spiritual Qi here was indeed chaotic, as if many types of restrictions were intertwined. There was also a strange, foul aura—quite complex. In this place, even weaker Core Formation cultivators would likely find it difficult to endure. The various auras were simply too chaotic, easily disrupting a cultivator's internal balance and corroding their meridians.
It seemed Ling Yunhe had brought the God-Restricting Bead considering this aspect. With the bead's restraining effect on Spiritual Qi and restrictions, it could ensure that even the early-stage Core Formation cultivators among them could enter smoothly.
Thinking of this, Mo Tiange quietly retrieved the Taiji Bagua Diagram from her Qiankun Bag and placed it in her sleeve. This immediately made the Spiritual Qi around her much more gentle.
After a while, the faint light of the God-Restricting Bead stopped moving. Then, Mo Tiange also felt solid ground beneath her feet.
By the time Tian Can also landed, all six had jumped down.
"Everyone," Ling Yunhe turned to face the group, "we've already discussed how to proceed on this journey. Going out from here is Carefree Valley. I must emphasize one more thing: you'd better not stray more than a hundred zhang away from me. Without the God-Restricting Bead, even though we've formed our Cores, our cultivation will be suppressed by these chaotic auras within Carefree Valley. If we encounter a monster or two then, it would be dangerous."
Everyone nodded. When they had just descended, they had already sensed this place was not simple. With Spiritual Qi so chaotic, along with demonic and foul auras, in such an environment, even the greatest supernatural powers could only be exerted at half strength at best.
"Good, let's continue." With that, Ling Yunhe turned to scout the path.
At that moment, Mo Tiange felt the faint light above dim slightly, and the Spiritual Qi underwent a subtle change. The entrance through the ancient tree above had actually vanished.
Ling Yunfei looked up, somewhat uneasy. "Second Brother, does this entrance require the God-Restricting Bead to open?"
Ling Yunhe put the God-Restricting Bead into his robe and, while leading the way, said, "Not exactly. Actually, Carefree Valley doesn't have only this one entrance. It's just that the other entrances are all very dangerous—either inhabited by monsters or with strange auras. Only here are the restrictions relatively weak; they just need to be broken."
"Why do these restrictions close automatically?"
This question made Ling Yunhe sigh. "The restriction arts of the Ancient Era were far more advanced than those of today. Carefree Valley was a blessed land of the Ancient Era, so there must have been great supernatural beings cultivating here. Therefore, these restrictions were undoubtedly left behind by cultivators of realms far higher than ours. Their supernatural powers were profound and marvelous, naturally not something the restriction arts of today's cultivation world can compare to."
As Ling Yunhe finished speaking, light appeared ahead. Heading toward the light, passing through scattered rocks and earth, their view suddenly opened up.