Chapter 431: Western Pure Land

When the Master of Demon Heart Cave proposed to recruit the Old Monster of Stone, Lu Hongtu readily agreed.Only, it was unexpected that numerous recruitment attempts failed.Lu Hongtu, of course, knew the dark intentions of the Master of Demon Heart Cave and the others, but he could not dwell on them, for before the great battle, manpower was urgently needed.However, he also could not allow these individuals to engage in petty schemes. After much deliberation, he decided to personally take action, bringing the two Nascent Soul Masters, Demon Heart and Blood Shadow, along to exert pressure upon the Old Monster of Stone, forcing the latter to emerge from seclusion!

Deep within the mountain cave.Ning Zhuo slowly opened his eyes. Although utterly exhausted, his gaze was filled with joy."The Divine Ability of Stone-Forged Earthly Treasure... sixty percent completed!"Just as he was preparing to rest, he discovered that Sun Lingtong was nowhere to be seen."Huh? Where did Boss go?"A carrier pigeon specially left behind by Sun Lingtong, like a bird, circled around Ning Zhuo.Ning Zhuo received the message and, upon reading it, immediately understood the entire sequence of events."Boss, always coming up with something new."Ning Zhuo helplessly shook his head and let out a bitter laugh.He immediately chiseled open the stone skin and saw the Breath-Holding Spirit Skiff that had become a stone boat. The latter was struggling to survive, the full text of the scriptures of the "Great Method of Heaven and Earth Nourishment and Breath-Holding" shining brightly.Ning Zhuo approached the stone boat and infiltrated his divine sense.Sensing this, Sun Lingtong immediately communicated with Ning Zhuo using divine sense."Little Zhuo, this is so much fun.""Not only does my physical foundation surge using this method, but I can also learn about the past experiences of the Old Monster of Stone.""Being an earth spirit is truly boring. But occasionally, many novel things happen.""Come play with me too!"Sun Lingtong enthusiastically invited Ning Zhuo.Ning Zhuo let out a sigh of relief: "Boss, it's good that you're alright.""I'll rest in the Ten Thousand Li Traveling Dragon first.""This is the Thousand Peaks Forest, after all, enemy territory. Let's excavate as quickly as possible to avoid any unexpected events."No sooner had Ning Zhuo finished speaking than a powerful energy fluctuation arose.The fluctuation quickly covered the entire mountain peak.On the outer perimeter, a vast and immense formation was activated, its boundary enveloping the entire Heaven-Supporting Giant Tree!Sun and Ning: ??!!Sun Lingtong no longer bothered with cultivation: "No, this is not good, could this be a trap? Little Zhuo, let's hurry and run."Ning Zhuo reacted even faster.Just as Sun Lingtong transmitted his message using divine sense, he pulled out the Breath-Holding Spirit Skiff, carrying the boat and Sun Lingtong, and plunged into the Ten Thousand Li Traveling Dragon.The stone skin on Sun Lingtong's body was already several inches thick, and he was struggling vigorously with his small arms and legs.Ning Zhuo had now mastered sixty percent of the divine ability and could see through the details with a single glance. He transmitted a message with his divine sense to Sun Lingtong: "Don't move around, Boss. I have to remove this stone skin. Wait a moment, let's leave this place first!"As a result, when Ning Zhuo arrived at the dragon head cabin, he discovered an extremely dire reality."Boss, we can't run. This formation suppresses space, the Ten Thousand Li Traveling Dragon cannot traverse it at all. Forcing its activation would be like an egg hitting a stone wall." Ning Zhuo transmitted his divine sense."?!!" Sun Lingtong was instantly struck as if by a bolt of lightning."I'll let you out first." Ning Zhuo just extended his hand, preparing to remove Sun Lingtong's stone skin.The voice of the Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave resonated throughout the entire mountain peak: "Lu Hongtu of the Six Caves Sect, along with the two Cave Masters, Demon Heart and Blood Shadow, come to pay respects to the mountain.""Old Monster of Stone, how about coming out for a talk?"The sound waves, vast and mighty, pierced through the cave entrance and finally reached the bottom depths of the cave.The Ten Thousand Li Traveling Dragon slightly trembled within the sound waves.Inside the dragon head cabin, the hearts of Ning Zhuo and Sun Lingtong also heavily thumped."Lu Hongtu? The Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave of the Six Caves Sect!""And Demon Heart, Blood Shadow... How did they come?""They want to contact the Old Monster of Stone. With such a posture, they are trying to force him out of seclusion!"Sun and Ning exchanged divine sense messages, realizing the gravity of the situation almost instantly.Since the Ten Thousand Li Traveling Dragon could not traverse the void, the space available for movement became extremely limited.Once the three Nascent Soul cultivators discovered that the Old Monster of Stone was dead and had traces of being excavated, they would certainly not withdraw the formation but would instead conduct a large-scale search.At that time, could the Ten Thousand Li Traveling Dragon continue to hide and evade the search of these three individuals?The possibility was too small!Because before this, Sun Lingtong had already tried. In the main hall of the Six Caves Sect, they were discovered by the Master of Demon Heart Cave.And now, the Master of Demon Heart Cave was among them.Not only that, the Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave, whose strength was widely acknowledged to be greater than his, had also personally arrived!Desperate situation!The great ups and downs of life came too quickly, too suddenly.Just moments ago, Sun and Ning were filled with joy, dreaming of the future in the wonderful reality. The next moment, it took a sharp turn for the worse, plunging them into a desperate situation.The pressure of death assaulted them.Ning Zhuo's face was pale, and he felt it difficult to breathe: "How can we break this stalemate?"Sun Lingtong, subconsciously, struggled vigorously within the thick stone skin.Suddenly, Sun Lingtong's movements abruptly stopped, and his divine sense fluctuated violently: "Little Zhuo, I, I've thought of a way!""We'll drill into the stone sphere together and let the stone skin wrap and cover us.""This way, we can disguise ourselves as the Old Monster of Stone."Ning Zhuo shook his head: "I thought about it. It's unreliable! Because Ink Abyss and the others will definitely probe the Old Monster of Stone. We don't even know the tone or manner of speech of the Old Monster of Stone..."At this point, Ning Zhuo paused.He suddenly remembered the conversation Sun Lingtong had with him not long ago.By actively enduring the divine ability Stone-Forged Earthly Treasure and the Breath-Holding Spirit Skiff, Sun Lingtong entered a state of breath-holding, gaining access to many memories of the Old Monster of Stone.Tone and manner of speech were naturally included!

Outside the cave.Ink Abyss, Demon Heart, and Blood Shadow hovered high in the air. After waiting for a moment, they saw no response from the Old Monster of Stone."Hmph, this old monster is utterly taciturn, could he still be in deep sleep?" The Master of Blood Shadow Cave coldly snorted."Impossible. We have sealed the void and suppressed the earth element. Although the Old Monster of Stone is in the Nascent Soul stage, he is an earth spirit by origin, and the instinct to escape underground has long been ingrained in his bones. This time, with earth遁 suppressed, he must have reacted. It's just that he sees our side has a Great Master present and doesn't dare to come out!" The Master of Demon Heart Cave flattered the Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave.The Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave's expression was indifferent: "Let's go, we'll go meet the Old Monster of Stone together."Saying that, he took the lead and descended.The two Cave Masters, Demon Heart and Blood Shadow, exchanged glances and followed closely behind.The mountain cave within this Heaven-Supporting Giant Tree was complex, with numerous hidden passages, but it could not stump cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage.Moreover, they had previously dispatched cultivators to pay respects to the mountain and had already scouted the path.Although these cultivators were killed by the Master of Demon Heart Cave, the intelligence they brought back was not destroyed.Therefore, Ink Abyss and the other three quickly arrived at the final mountain wall cave hall.The enormous cave entrance was utterly dark, as if it had swallowed even light.The previous batch of cultivators from the Six Caves Sect had stopped here, set up a formation, and even sacrificed many of their companions.From beginning to end, they dared not venture deeper into the giant cave.Ink Abyss and the other three, however, did not slow down and proceeded straight ahead, passing through a section of the passage and reaching the stone sphere at the bottom of the cave.Ink Abyss and the three cultivators voluntarily stopped ten steps away from the stone sphere."Old Monster of Stone." Ink Abyss lightly called out.Demon Heart and Blood Shadow had solemn expressions and were secretly on guard.Although they had the numerical advantage, this was, after all, the territory of the Old Monster of Stone, who possessed the advantage of the terrain.The Old Monster of Stone had resided here for many years and might have cultivated some formidable hidden abilities here. In short, caution was never wrong.They did not know that the Old Monster of Stone had long been dead, and hidden within his body at this moment was a mechanical traveling dragon, along with Sun and Ning.

Sun Lingtong and the Breath-Holding Spirit Skiff were both brought out and pressed tightly against the stone sphere.As for Ning Zhuo, he was panting heavily, almost completely exhausted.Just moments ago, he had raced against time, fully squeezing out his essence, qi, and spirit, urging the divine ability of Stone-Forged Earthly Treasure within his Divine Sea Dantian.With more than half of the divine ability mastered, and under the vast supply of spiritual power from the Ten Thousand Li Traveling Dragon, Ning Zhuo had still managed to restore the stone sphere to its original state just before the arrival of the three cultivators, though it was a close call.Never would Ning Zhuo have expected that he would proactively help the stone sphere regain its former appearance.The stone sphere temporarily bluffed the three Nascent Soul cultivators.But this severe test, concerning life and death, had just begun.The Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave lightly called out "Old Monster of Stone," and Sun and Ning had to respond.Not responding would be disrespecting the Nascent Soul level expert, Lu Hongtu!Therefore, Sun Lingtong, following the content of the memory fragments, emitted a vicissitudinous and aged voice: "Lu Hongtu, the Thousand Peaks Earth Vein Map you promised to draw for me, is it done?"The Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave's expression immediately darkened.This involved an old affair.The Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave was skilled in the art of painting. Back then, he sought a breakthrough in his personal painting skills and wanted to depict the earth vein map of the Thousand Peaks Forest.He proactively sought out the Old Monster of Stone, spent a lot of time, and paid a considerable price, finally persuading the Old Monster of Stone to cooperate with him.The Old Monster of Stone was an earth spirit himself, and if he could control the Thousand Peaks Earth Vein Map, it would be quite helpful for his own cultivation.As a result, just as the two of them, working together, had completed thirty percent of the exploration, they were mercilessly suppressed by the Ginseng Root Dragon King.The Ginseng Root Dragon King was an existence at the Deity Transformation level, the undisputed strongest being in the Thousand Peaks Forest, possessing the most faith. Its countless dragon roots extended deep into the earth, spreading throughout many Heaven-Supporting Giant Trees, their roots entwined.Although the Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave and the Old Monster of Stone were a powerful alliance, they were still only at the Nascent Soul level and were no match for the Ginseng Root Dragon King.Furthermore, their attempt to survey the earth veins of the entire Thousand Peaks Forest had also touched upon the interests of the Ginseng Root Dragon King.Such an important thing as the earth veins naturally had to be kept in one's own hands to be safe.Without any surprise, the Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave and the Old Monster of Stone suffered a heavy defeat.Their first collaboration ended in failure.The Old Monster of Stone was severely injured and held a great deal of resentment towards the Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave. This was because beforehand, Lu Hongtu had guaranteed a high probability of success, promoted it for a long time, and severely overlooked the existence of the Ginseng Root Dragon King.Now, Sun Lingtong proactively brought up this old affair with two purposes.The first purpose was, of course, to reveal his identity and prove that he was the Old Monster of Stone.The second purpose was to preemptively block the invitation of the three cultivators. Because, once the Old Monster of Stone were to move, he would no longer be in the stone sphere form, and Sun and Ning would be exposed!Lu Hongtu said coldly: "Old monster, do you still have the audacity to bring up the matter from back then?""If it weren't for you withdrawing beforehand, if we had fought side by side, we could have at least cut off a hundred of the Dragon King's ginseng roots.""As a result, you deserted in battle, leaving me to fight alone, cutting off only over thirty ginseng roots, and I could only admit defeat and surrender.""You were indeed severely injured, but wasn't I?""And since then, my Six Caves Sect and its disciples have had to establish Dragon King Temples and offer incense to the Ginseng Root Dragon King from now on!""It was precisely because our side paid a huge price that we appeased the Dragon King's wrath. From this perspective, you owe me a favor."Sun Lingtong immediately retorted: "Hmph, if it weren't for you inciting me back then, how would I have been injured when I was perfectly fine staying by myself?""This time, I will not go out no matter what.""If the armies of the two kingdoms are attacking, then let them come. At worst, I'll just leave the Thousand Peaks Forest!"Sun Lingtong's heart was racing.Even wrapped in stone skin, it was difficult to remain calm.However, these words were not improvised but suggested by Ning Zhuo.In Sun Lingtong's opinion, these words were too dangerous, as if they were meant to provoke the three Nascent Soul cultivators into action!Lu Hongtu's expression darkened again.Sun Lingtong's words had hit the deepest concern within his heart.If the Old Monster of Stone had threatened to surrender, he would have been easier to handle. At least in engaging in combat, he would be on the side of righteousness for the indigenous people of the Thousand Peaks Forest!But if the Old Monster of Stone wanted to leave, it would be difficult for him to stop him.Once he took action, this move would be too overbearing and would provoke resentment from many forces and individuals.The Old Monster of Stone was a relatively special existence among Nascent Soul cultivators.He only occupied this one Heaven-Supporting Giant Tree, staying at the bottom of the cave all year round without moving, and rarely had conflicts with surrounding forces.For such an existence, it was unreasonable for Lu Hongtu to take action to eliminate him, and it would cause apprehension and suspicion within the indigenous alliance of the Thousand Peaks Forest.And these were things that Lu Hongtu absolutely did not want to see.

Thus, Lu Hongtu lightly smiled and took out a sample of soil from his embrace, displaying it publicly.This was a sample of white earth, appearing bright white, pure and flawless. It had no earthy smell whatsoever but emitted a faint fragrance, like a gentle breeze, like temple sandalwood.An Earth element meritorious treasure, and also one of the Buddhist treasures, the Western Pure Land!A poem says:White earth gives light illuminating the mind,Ten thousand thoughts pure, Buddhist dharma arises.Western Paradise, land without defilement,Washing away worldly troubles, returning to purity.Wherever this earth is located, it is a pure place transcending the mundane world. It can cleanse dust, purify pollution, eliminate karma, counteract the erosion of demonic energy, and transform everything it touches into purity and peace.Not only that, for cultivators, it can also purify the mind, eliminate worries and obsessions, and guide cultivators into the holy realm of the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.

As soon as this earth appeared, Buddhist fragrance permeated the air.The two Cave Masters, Demon Heart and Blood Shadow, immediately took a step back, revealing expressions of disgust and apprehension.Sun and Ning: ?!They had never expected that the Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave had come prepared. Coercion and enticement were his methods. Secretly setting up the formation was his coercion, and taking out the Western Pure Land was his enticement.

"Old Monster of Stone, haven't you always sought the Western Pure Land?" Lu Hongtu smiled, "Now, it is before your eyes."Sun Lingtong and Ning Zhuo held an urgent discussion."Old Monster of Stone" remained silent for a moment, then spoke: "Leave the Pure Land. When the great army attacks this place in the future, I will naturally take action."Lu Hongtu chuckled: "How could such a precious treasure as the Western Pure Land be so easily given to you?""This place of yours is not a crucial location either, the kingdom's army might not even attack here.""Don't say such words of taking advantage, lest you be looked down upon by us."

Speaking of this, Lu Hongtu paused and revealed a shocking plan: "The vanguard army of the Two Kingdoms has already stationed themselves below the Thousand Peaks Forest.""The commander, Du Tiechuan, is also commanding the main army, located in the Woodwheel Town.""Both of these locations are heavily guarded, we will not take them.""Azure Forest Immortal City is the major rear area for this battle and has been training and reorganizing new troops.""Our side has detected that the Golden Halberd Army, one of the forbidden armies, has already reached Azure Forest Immortal City. They are about to depart for Woodwheel Town to rendezvous with the main army.""Therefore, we have decided to gather most of the Nascent Soul and Core Formation cultivators of the Thousand Peaks Forest and ambush them along their march route!""If you want the Western Pure Land, sign this contract, and we will act together at that time."Sun and Ning: ...

Lu Hongtu took out a divine decree, which was ostensibly a reminder but in reality, a pressure. He said: "I must make it clear to you beforehand, Old Monster, this is a divine decree personally made by the Ginseng Root Dragon King. Once you sign it, you must execute it, otherwise, you will surely suffer divine wrath.""The power of the Dragon King, we have both experienced it, haven't we?"Sun and Ning: ...

After the Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave finished speaking, he quietly stared at the Old Monster of Stone.The atmosphere in the cave gradually became heavy.The expressions of the Cave Masters Demon Heart and Blood Shadow became increasingly dangerous, eager to act.

"Alright." Sun and Ning were forced to agree, having no other choice.What other option was there?The situation was clear, not agreeing would mean a fight!Let's escape this calamity first before considering anything else.The two could only pinch their noses and sign this contract.

Seeing the Old Monster of Stone's reaction, the Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave's expression softened: "On the day of the operation, you and I will meet at the summit of Desolate Wood Peak."Sun Lingtong coldly snorted and, in the tone of the Old Monster of Stone, said: "No need, I will go and ambush the armies of the Two Kingdoms myself."The Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave nodded, left the Western Pure Land, and, taking the two Cave Masters, Demon Heart and Blood Shadow, turned and departed.The figures of the three cultivators disappeared into the dark cave, and the final instruction from the Great Master of Ink Abyss Cave was heard: "Old Monster of Stone, do not try any tricks of feigning effort. The restraint of the Dragon King's divine decree is far beyond what you and I can imagine!"