Fire Virtue Immortal Clan

Lu Jinglin and Lu Jingxiu were both at the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm. Their strength was not particularly formidable, but breaking through the entrance to that secret realm was not difficult.

Not long after they found Lu Chengzhuo and the other two, they worked together to break open the entrance to the secret realm and then led them into it.

Just as Lu Chengzhuo and his companions had predicted, the secret realm they discovered did indeed contain a fourth-order spiritual object and a fourth-order spiritual vein.

The secret realm is not small, and dangers lurk within it.

Even with Lu Jinglin and Lu Jingxiu's combined strength, they need to explore carefully.

For this reason, they have been delayed in that secret realm for a long time and have not yet finished exploring it.

They have already made great gains, obtaining as many as eighteen fourth-tier spiritual items.

Of these eighteen fourth-tier spiritual objects, six are mid-grade fourth-tier spiritual objects, and a mid-grade fourth-tier jade silver pine tree was also discovered.

The main function of this spiritual plant is to produce jade oil and silver pine cones. Jade oil can be used to refine a mid-grade fourth-level healing pill, while silver pine cones are spiritual fruits that can be taken by mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivators to increase their cultivation. They are extremely valuable.

However, the area around the Jade Silver Pine Tree was extremely dangerous, and Lu Jinglin and Lu Jingxiu were completely unable to harvest the spiritual items produced by the Jade Silver Pine Tree.

They relayed the news of the Jade Silver Pine Tree back to their clan, hoping that the clan could find a way to harvest the spiritual treasures from the Jade Silver Pine Tree.

Only three members of the Lu family have this ability: Lu Cheng'an, Lu Jingkun, and Lu Chengping. However, none of them have the time right now.

After discussing with Lu Jingkun and Lu Chengping, Lu Wenxing decided that Lu Jinglin and Lu Chengzhuo would stay in the secret realm with Lu Jinglin and Lu Chengzhuo until Lu Jingkun and Lu Chengping finished their clan affairs before heading to the secret realm.

The spiritual energy in that secret realm was quite abundant. Although it couldn't compare to the concentration of spiritual energy in the Lu family's mountain gate, it was still enough to support Lu Jinglin and the others' normal cultivation.

Lu Jinglin and the others are still cultivating in that secret realm. It will take Lu Jingkun and Lu Chengping several more years to completely set up the spirit array in the Lu family's mountain gate.

Lu Cheng'an didn't know much about the secret realm that Lu Chengzhuo and the other two had discovered. After comprehending the fire rules in the Azure Netherworld Fire, he spent nearly a year perfecting the secret treasure he had crafted using the Azure Netherworld Fire.

Lu Cheng'an named this secret treasure the Azure Nether True Yang Cup.

The Azure Netherworld True Yang Lamp, a secret treasure, is mainly crafted from Azure Netherworld Fire and True Yang Heavenly Fire Stone.

The True Yang Heavenly Fire Stone is a special mineral that has been tempered by the true fire of the sun. When Lu Cheng'an fused it with the Azure Netherworld Fire to create the Azure Nether True Yang Lamp, the power of this secret treasure would be extremely unique.

According to Lu Cheng'an's deduction, the power that the Azure Netherworld True Yang Lamp will eventually form will have the characteristics of both the Netherworld and the mortal realm.

It will cause even greater harm to cultivators in both the underworld and the mortal world.

When Lu Cheng'an was perfecting the refining method of the Azure Nether True Yang Lamp, he had already asked his clan to help find auxiliary materials for refining the Azure Nether True Yang Lamp.

The Azure Nether True Yang Lamp is still at the fourth rank, and the materials needed to refine this treasure are also at or below the fourth rank.

Now that the Lu family has become the most powerful Nascent Soul force in the three states of Qing, He, and Tai, it will be much easier for the Lu family to find spiritual materials.

After Lu Cheng'an perfected the refining method of the Azure Nether True Yang Lamp, Lu Wenxing also helped Lu Cheng'an collect all the materials needed to refine the Azure Nether True Yang Lamp.

Lu Cheng'an did not waste any time after that. After receiving the materials from Lu Wenxing, he entered the weapon-refining room to begin preparing to refine the Azure Nether True Yang Lamp.

During this time, Lu Cheng'an also summoned Jin Yuan and Jin Dou to his cave.

Jin Yuan had been following Lu Cheng'an for a long time. He was born into the Mineral Spirit Clan and his cultivation level was now at the upper level of the third rank. He could help Lu Cheng'an refine various materials below the fourth rank.

Jin Yuan's talent is limited. Even though Lu Cheng'an has spent a lot of resources to cultivate him, it is impossible for his cultivation to break through to the fourth level.

Jin Dou is the most talented of Jin Yuan's many offspring. He currently has the cultivation level of the early stage of the third rank, but he can refine high-grade third-rank materials.

Moreover, the materials refined from golden beans are of even higher quality than those refined from golden coins.

Jin Dou has a certain chance of breaking through to the fourth rank in the future, which is why Jin Yuan often brings him to appear in front of Lu Cheng'an.

In fact, Jin Yuan's actions were unnecessary. If Jin Dou really had the ability to break through to the fourth rank, Lu Cheng'an would have done his best to cultivate Jin Dou to the fourth rank even if Jin Yuan didn't do this.

The quality of the ores refined by the fourth-tier Mineral Spirit Clan is much higher than that refined by weapon refiners, and the ores they refine will increase the success rate when refining magical artifacts.

Of course, the most important thing is their speed in refining ores, which is far superior to that of human weapon refiners.

Lu Cheng'an needed a lot of materials to refine the Azure Nether True Yang Lamp this time. Among them, the fourth-grade materials required Lu Cheng'an to refine them personally, while the materials below the fourth grade were handed over to Jin Yuan and his son.

There are more materials of the fourth rank and below, but Jin Yuan and his son are from the Mineral Spirit Clan. They can refine spiritual materials very quickly, and the quality of the refined materials is also very good.

After Jin Yuan and his son finished refining all the materials below the fourth rank, Lu Cheng'an had not yet finished refining all the materials he needed.

After completing the task assigned to them by Lu Cheng'an, Jin Yuan and his son left Lu Cheng'an's cave.

Another half month passed, and Lu Cheng'an completed the refining of the required fourth-order materials.

"Begin refining the Azure Netherworld True Yang Lamp now!"

In the weapon-refining room, Lu Cheng'an threw a large piece of True Yang Heavenly Fire Stone into the weapon-refining furnace. As time passed, the True Yang Heavenly Fire Stone emitted a series of cracking sounds.

During this process, Lu Cheng'an continued to add a large amount of materials to the refining furnace.

After continuous refining, these materials slowly fused together, transforming into the shape of a lamp.

Once the lamp was fully formed, Lu Cheng'an summoned the Azure Netherfire and poured it into the lamp.

This does not mean that the Azure Fire Lamp has been successfully refined, but rather that it is only half-finished.

Next, Lu Cheng'an needs to fuse the Azure Nether Flame and the lamp together.
This process is extremely dangerous because the properties of the lamp and the Netherworld Fire are incompatible. The slightest carelessness could cause a violent explosion between the lamp and the Netherworld Fire.

Both of these forces are extremely powerful. If the fusion fails and an explosion occurs, the released power might be too much for even Lu Cheng'an to withstand.

Therefore, Lu Cheng'an became extremely careful in the subsequent refining process, which slowed down the process.

Time passed slowly, and more than half a year went by in the blink of an eye.

In the weapon-refining room, a pleased smile appeared on Lu Cheng'an's slightly pale face as he quickly formed a hand seal. A bluish-red light flashed within the weapon-refining furnace, and a lamp burning with bluish-black flames shot out from it.

This lamp is the Azure Nether True Yang Lamp!
After sensing the power of the Azure Nether True Yang Lamp, Lu Cheng'an's smile grew even wider.

"The Azure Netherfire is a fifth-grade low-level flame, while the True Yang Heavenly Fire Stone is only a fourth-grade high-level flame, and my cultivation is still at the Nascent Soul stage."

"Once my cultivation breaks through to the Nascent Soul realm, and I collect more Azure Nether Flame, and then refine it with a fifth-grade low-rank True Yang Dao Fire Stone, I will be able to upgrade the Azure Nether True Yang Lamp to the fifth-grade low-rank!"

The True Yang Dao Firestone is a low-grade fifth-order material, and materials of this grade are extremely rare in the three states of Qing, He, and Tai.

Lu Cheng'an hasn't thought about searching for it yet, because he knows the chances of finding this grade of mineral in this cultivation world are slim.

Moreover, due to the limitations of his cultivation level, even if he finds the True Yang Dao Fire Stone now, he will not be able to refine the fifth-grade low-rank Azure Nether True Yang Lamp.

After confirming that there were no problems with the Azure Nether True Yang Lamp he had refined, Lu Cheng'an stored this treasure in his dantian to nurture it.

After putting away all the tools needed for refining the weapon, he left the refining room and returned to the quiet room in his cave to rest.

After resting for three days, Lu Cheng'an left his cave dwelling to ask Lu Wenxing about the current situation of the Lu family.

"Jingkun and Chengping have been working hard to build the spirit array in the family's mountain gate for many years. After years of effort, they have successfully upgraded the mountain protection array to the middle grade of the fourth rank."

"As the abundant spiritual energy from the Hong'e Mountains flows into the family's mountain gate, a new fourth-order spiritual vein is being nurtured within it. Now they are considering how to cultivate a fifth-order spiritual vein, and there are still some details of the mountain-protecting formation that need to be perfected."

"Yonghui's breakthrough to the Nascent Soul realm is expected within the next month. I've spoken with him, and he's very confident of succeeding..."

Lu Wenxing had a broad smile on his face as he introduced his family to Lu Cheng'an.

Over the years, the Lu family's strength has been steadily increasing, especially after successfully relocating the family's ancestral temple to the Hong'e Mountains. The Lu family's strength has been able to change almost every so often.

"You tell Jingkun and Chengping to focus on the family's protective mountain formation. I'm going to take a trip to that secret realm to see what kind of spiritual treasures it holds!"

He doesn't have anything urgent to deal with right now, so he can take the opportunity to thoroughly explore that secret realm.

That secret realm was, after all, within the territory of the Heavenly Sword Sect. Even if the Heavenly Sword Sect wouldn't say anything about it, they couldn't stay there indefinitely.

After Lu Cheng'an and Lu Wenxing made their agreement, they didn't waste any time. He set off directly from the Lu family's mountain gate and sped towards the secret realm where Lu Chengzhuo and the others were.

The Lu family and the Heavenly Sword Sect were far apart, but Lu Cheng'an was extremely fast, and he arrived at the secret realm in no time.

Lu Cheng'an did not alert the cultivators of the Heavenly Sword Sect; he went directly to the location of the secret realm.

"Wanlin Peak, this is the location of the secret realm that Cheng Zhuo and the others discovered!"

Clouds surged beneath Lu Cheng'an's feet as he looked down at the mountains and forests, releasing his Nascent Soul power to investigate the location of the secret realm.

Wanlin Peak is a dangerous place within the territory of the Heavenly Sword Sect. The environment here is quite perilous, filled with miasma, and inhabited by many tree demons and vine demons.

The tree spirits, vine spirits, and other plant-based demons within Wanlin Peak are relatively unintelligent, and they are also more ferocious.

Within their bodies, a spiritual essence called the Essence of Myriad Trees is nurtured. The Myriad Trees Essence Pill, refined from this spiritual essence, can increase a cultivator's lifespan.

Lu Chengzhuo and his two companions entered Wanlin Peak for the sake of the essence of ten thousand trees.

Lu Chengzhuo did it for his father, while Lu Jingkang and Lu Jingle, the siblings, did it for their mother.

Lu Chengzhuo's father is Lu Wenhua, who is a cultivator at the Golden Core stage.

His mother was a rogue cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage. After giving birth to him, her essence was greatly damaged. Even though she later consumed spiritual items to strengthen her foundation, she was still greatly affected.

Not long after Lu Chengzhuo broke through to the Golden Core realm, his mother passed away.

Although his father, Lu Wenhua, was a cultivator at the Golden Core stage, he was not young.

The lifespan of a Golden Core cultivator is between eight hundred and one thousand years. If they consume spiritual items that extend lifespan, their lifespan can be extended to a maximum of twelve hundred years.

Lu Wenhua is now over seven hundred years old. The cultivation technique he practices is the Azure Emperor Wood Sovereign Technique, which has certain benefits in prolonging life.

Even without consuming longevity-prolonging elixirs, Lu Wenhua could live to be nearly a thousand years old.

There are still more than two hundred years left before Lu Wenhua's lifespan ends, which is definitely not a long time for a cultivator at the Golden Core stage.

Although Lu Cheng'an has been focusing on his own cultivation over the years, he has not forgotten to care for his uncle.

He had already prepared longevity-extending spiritual items for his uncle, enough to extend Lu Wenhua's lifespan to the limit of the Golden Core realm.

As for helping Lu Wenhua break through to the Nascent Soul realm, that's not something Lu Cheng'an can do.

Cultivating talent is predetermined by heaven and cannot be achieved by ordinary human effort.

Unless Lu Cheng'an's cultivation level rises to a higher level than the Nascent Soul stage, or his uncle has a cheat code like his, which are both very difficult things to achieve.

Lu Chengzhuo knew about what Lu Chengan had done for his father, but as a son, he knew that what Lu Chengan did was what Lu Chengan did, and he also wanted to do his part for his father.

Lu Jingkang and Lu Jingle's father is Lu Chengping, a Nascent Soul cultivator. Their father's lifespan is longer than theirs.

They obtained the essence of all trees primarily for their mother.

Their mothers were sisters He Huan and He Ying. The reason these two sisters chose to have children was because they felt that it would be difficult for them to break through to the Nascent Soul realm in their lifetime.

After the two sisters each gave birth to their own children, the probability of them breaking through to the Nascent Soul realm became even more remote.

The He sisters, He Huan and He Ying, were not much older than Lu Wenhua. The cultivation techniques they practiced did not have the effect of prolonging life, and even if they took longevity-prolonging spiritual items, it would be difficult for them to break through the thousand-year mark in the end.

Lu Chengzhuo and Lu Jingkang, brother and sister, had a good relationship. After traveling to the vicinity of Wanlin Peak and learning about the spiritual essence of Wanmu, they had the same idea.

The three of them were quite lucky; not long after entering Wanlin Peak, they successfully obtained the Essence of Ten Thousand Trees, and later even discovered the existence of that secret realm. (End of Chapter)