The Ice Demon had been secluded in cultivation within the Phantom Tower for a very long time, never coming out.
He had taken many medicinal pills refined by Ye Yunfei while in the Canghuang Realm, with the intent of breaking through his bloodline. However, despite his prolonged seclusion, the Ice Demon had yet to successfully achieve a bloodline breakthrough.
"Boss, what opportunity?"
Inside the Phantom Tower, the Ice Demon had been lying within a transparent ice coffin, eyes closed in meditation. He suddenly opened his eyes and asked.
"The Ice Toad Treasure Pearl," Ye Yunfei replied.
"Ice Toad Treasure Pearl? Is it a very precious treasure?" the Ice Demon asked.
"Of course it's precious. This Ice Toad Treasure Pearl is the inner elixir left behind by a Three-Eyed Ice Toad from ancient times after it perished. It contains the ice attribute energy and laws of ice cultivated painstakingly by that ice toad during its lifetime. If you can obtain it, I guarantee you can break through your bloodline twice in succession within a short time, which will definitely lead to a great increase in your strength," Ye Yunfei explained.
"Twice in a short time... Boss, you're not fooling me, are you? I've been in seclusion cultivating for so long now and haven't managed a single bloodline breakthrough yet," the Ice Demon retorted.
"Rest assured, I wouldn't fool you. You'll know when the time comes," Ye Yunfei said with a laugh.
"Perhaps, there might also be an opportunity for me within," Ye Yunfei murmured to himself.
One day later.
"We're here."
Inside the flying ship, the Third Elder suddenly stood up and led the group out of the vessel.
Ahead was a mountainous region. Many people had already gathered in this area, scattered densely in all directions. In the distance, more flying ships were arriving.
After the tomb of Ancient Sage Gu Yao was discovered, news quickly spread throughout the entire Eastern Barrens, and countless factions swarmed to the site. Ancient Sage Gu Yao was a renowned powerhouse of the Eastern Barrens in ancient times, said to have accumulated vast wealth throughout his life. After his death, that wealth mysteriously disappeared, leading to speculation that he had taken it with him into his tomb. Thus, its emergence naturally piqued the interest of many.
"Third Elder, you've finally arrived."
A middle-aged man came to greet the Ziwei Sect contingent. This was Ma Zhishi, a steward of the Ziwei Sect who had come ahead to gather information.
"Steward Ma, you've worked hard," the Third Elder nodded.
"That peak ahead is Ancient Sage Gu Yao's tomb," Ma Zhishi said, pointing at a large mountain in the center of the mountain range.
That mountain was surrounded by groups of martial artists from all directions.
"Why isn't everyone going in? What are they waiting for?" the Third Elder asked.
"Several groups have already gone in, but they suffered heavy casualties and quickly retreated. This ancient tomb is of a very old era and is sealed with a lot of miasma and sinister entities. Everyone is waiting for the miasma inside the tomb to dissipate before entering," Ma Zhishi explained.
"Hmm, generally speaking, the older an ancient tomb is, the more likely it is to spawn spirits and anomalies. Let's wait as well, and then enter along with the crowd," the Third Elder nodded.
Looking from afar, it was true that billows of yin energy rose from the mountain, piercing into the heavens, darkening that patch of sky as if endless gloomy clouds were seething, obscuring the firmament. Moreover, even from this distance, one could clearly feel waves of icy-cold aura spreading outwards from that mountain center, like the onslaught of the harsh winter of the twelfth month, causing martial artists with weaker cultivation to shiver involuntarily.
"Could this be the Heaven-Plague Lone Star terrain?" Ye Yunfei thought to himself as he observed the mountain from afar.
As the yin energy grew increasingly dense, the mountain began to turn black. The mountain was round in shape, and from afar, it looked like a black celestial star.
In fact, in his previous life, after the tomb of Ancient Sage Gu Yao was discovered, Ye Yunfei had also participated in this expedition with the Ziwei Sect members. It was just that at the time, Ye Yunfei had only just begun cultivating the Nine-Yang Scripture and his strength was still relatively weak, so his harvest from that expedition wasn't particularly great. The Ice Toad Treasure Pearl and several other precious opportunities within Ancient Sage Gu Yao's tomb were all taken by disciples from several major powers of the Eastern Barrens.
"In this lifetime, all the treasures and opportunities within this tomb belong to me!" A cold smile curled on Ye Yunfei's lips.
"Ji Yue, you came after all."
At that moment, a voice full of pleasant surprise rang out. From a distance, a handsome, tall, and slender young man strode over directly to stand before Ji Yue. Three old men followed behind him without a word; all three were Destiny Realm experts, and one of them was even at the late-stage Destiny Realm!
This young man completely ignored everyone from the Ziwei Sect, his eyes only for Ji Yue, as if the rest of the Ziwei Sect people were not worth mentioning.
"Zhao Lingfeng is here," Ye Yunfei thought with a cold inner laugh.
Zhao Lingfeng was a direct descendant of the Zhao Family, a great clan of the Eastern Barrens, and had been persistently pursuing Ji Yue. The reason he pursued Ji Yue was precisely because Ji Yue came from the Ji Clan, another great power of the Eastern Barrens!
As for why Ji Yue, a core member of the great Ji Clan, entered the Ziwei Sect as a disciple, it was because the Ji Clan had a deep relationship with the Ziwei Sect since ancient times. When the Ziwei Sect was at its peak in ancient times, there was a prodigiously talented female disciple who married into the Ji Clan. With the Ziwei Sect's help, the Ji Clan continuously developed and grew, eventually becoming a great clan of the Eastern Barrens. From that era onwards, the Ji Clan would select a group of members with good talent from each generation to send to the Ziwei Sect.
Later, as the Ziwei Sect declined and the Ji Clan grew stronger, fewer and fewer Ji Clan members were willing to come. In this generation, only Ji Yue, filled with admiration for the Ziwei Sect's ancient glory, came.
"Ji Yue, my Zhao Family's people are over there. Why don't you come with me? I've heard Ancient Sage Gu Yao's tomb might be extremely perilous. It would be dangerous for you to stay with these people from a weak sect. With our Zhao Family, your safety can be guaranteed," Zhao Lingfeng said.
As he spoke, he completely disregarded the Ziwei Sect members around them, his words laced with undisguised contempt for the Ziwei Sect.
Hearing his words, the disciples of the Ziwei Sect glared at Zhao Lingfeng with fury. Even the Third Elder and the other high-level members showed anger on their faces.
"Zhao Lingfeng, who I'm with is none of your business. Go away," Ji Yue also spoke with anger.
"Ji Yue, I'm worried about your safety, I genuinely mean well. Honestly, I don't understand—your Ji Clan is so powerful, yet as a member of the Ji Clan, you came to a small country like Yan to join some insignificant minor sect. What's the point of that? Ji Yue, our Zhao Family higher-ups said Ancient Sage Gu Yao was a formidable powerhouse of ancient times in the Eastern Barrens, so his tomb is sure to be full of dangers. That's why our Zhao Family sent many experts. I believe you would be much safer coming with me," Zhao Lingfeng continued.
"What dog is this, running over here and barking so wildly?" Before Ji Yue could answer, a voice sounded.
"Who dares call me a dog!" Zhao Lingfeng flared up in rage.