Firefly Journey

Two months later, at the Fire Cloud Sect Square.

Today is a big day for the Fire Cloud Sect. Everyone in the Fire Cloud Sect, from the sect leader, elders, and senior disciples to ordinary disciples, cooks, and laborers, has gathered together.

The Fire Cloud Sect is built on a volcano. Every year, the volcano erupts, and the entire sect must work to contain it.

Otherwise, not only would the sect perish, but the people within a hundred miles would also suffer a sudden calamity.

Lin Yuanran has been at the Fire Cloud Sect for two months as an exchange disciple. Two months is enough time for him to fully understand the Fire Cloud Sect.

When suppressing a volcanic eruption, the sect leader will unleash the sect's most precious treasure, the Seven-Flame Fire Lotus.

This is the only time each year that the Seven Flame Lotus is revealed to the public, and it is Lin Yuanran's target.

Although the Fire Cloud Sect's overall strength is somewhat inferior to the Star Moon Alliance, it should not be underestimated. Including the sect leader Tang Wujie, the Fire Cloud Sect has a total of five Jade Pool Realm experts.

In addition, there are dozens of advanced disciples in the Void Travel Realm, and countless cultivators in the Opening Yang Realm and below.

If he were to seize it by force, Lin Yuanran would have no chance; he could only outsmart him.

How to outsmart them became the question.

Lin Yuanran knew that by seizing someone else's treasure, he would become an irreconcilable enemy of the Fire Cloud Sect, a fight to the death.

There was no other way; the Seven Flame Lotus was too compatible with his cultivation attributes. If he obtained it, his cultivation would advance by leaps and bounds, if not by a thousand miles a day, then by a rocket.

After much deliberation, Lin Yuanran decided to go for it. After all, he had "Brawich's Mask," and once he changed his image, no one could find him.

If given the opportunity, he would also try to compensate the Fire Cloud Sect in other ways, but that's a matter for later.

Lin Yuanran suddenly felt like he had become the villain...

Pulling himself back to reality, the Fire Cloud Sect's grand formation opened, and numerous disciples flocked towards it, including Lin Yuanran.

The way to suppress a volcanic eruption is to inject a large amount of magical power into it, causing the explosive force to collide with the magical power and cancel each other out internally, thus preventing the magma from gushing out.

The purpose of the grand formation is to gather the magical power of everyone, knead it together, and send it into the volcano.

It can be said that when everyone channeled their magical power into the great formation, it was also the time when the entire Fire Cloud Sect was at its weakest.

If an external enemy attacks at this time, the Fire Cloud Sect will find it difficult to defend itself.

However, the Fire Cloud Sect obviously couldn't have overlooked this issue. Not everyone in the sect would participate in the transfer of magical power; they would leave at least one elder and several disciples to protect the sect.

The elder who was protecting the Dharma this time was also an old acquaintance of Lin Yuanran, Zheng Bafang from Songhua Mountain.

Lin Yuanran didn't know much about Zheng Bafang, but he roughly knew his strength. Among all the Jade Pool stage cultivators of the Fire Cloud Sect, Zheng Bafang was considered to be of average strength.

Everyone found their places inside the formation, sat cross-legged, and began to channel their magical power into the formation.

Lin Yuanran also found a place to sit down, but he was about to do something big, so he definitely wouldn't obediently hand it over.

To avoid being seen slacking off, Lin Yuanran dispersed some of his magic power and enhanced it with magic to make himself appear to be working very hard. In reality, the amount of magic power he dispersed was less than one-thousandth of what he possessed.

There's no rush now. We can make our move once the formation has reached the middle stage and Tang Wujie and the others have transferred enough of their magical power.

……

……

Extremely cold icy valley.

In the same two months, Fengling also thoroughly searched the entire Frozen Valley but found nothing suspicious.

Currently, only one location remains unclear.

Indeed, it was Chu Muyu's cultivation cave.

Normally, no one is allowed to approach her cave. To Fengling, this is like trying to hide something obvious. After all, if she had nothing to hide, why would she be so afraid?

The master of the Extreme Cold Ice Valley was a tall, thin man, but he rarely appeared. Feng Ling had only seen him once when she entered the valley.

However, Fengling keenly sensed that his relationship with Chu Muyu seemed quite unusual, even improper.

Between the two, Chu Muyu was the one in charge. In other words, although the Extreme Cold Ice Valley was nominally under the jurisdiction of that valley, the actual leader was Chu Muyu.

In addition, Fengling also discovered several rather strange martial arts techniques in the secret manual pavilion in the valley.

Indeed, it was the dual cultivation method that Lin Yuanran had mentioned to him, the one that Mu Jiaoluan had spoken of.

The so-called dual cultivation technique is to absorb yin to replenish yang, or absorb yang to replenish yin, and Chu Muyu seems to be practicing the latter.

Every so often, Chu Muyu would seek out the sect leader for a private time, ostensibly to exchange cultivation insights. As for the truth, it was probably about to become clear.

During this time, Fengling arrived outside Chu Muyu's cave.

Chu Muyu wasn't stupid; every time she went out, she would leave trusted confidants to guard the cave.

For example, this time, Feng Ling was standing in front of Mu Jiaoluan.

"Diana, what are you doing here?" Mu Jiaoluan asked, frowning. "Didn't Master tell you that no one is allowed to come near without her permission?"

Feng Ling laughed and said, "We both know what's inside, so why hide it?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Mu Jiaoluan said.

Feng Ling continued, "The dual cultivation method recorded in the Secret Manual Pavilion, Chu Muyu should be using it, right? And you, I'm afraid, are not her disciple, but just a vessel for cultivation."

"What do you know?" Mu Jiaoluan's eyes were clearly evasive.

Feng Ling sighed. The dual cultivation methods recorded in the Secret Manual Pavilion were no longer just ordinary Yin-Yang replenishment and Yang-Yang replenishment of Yin. There were even Yin-Yang replenishment of Yin and Yang-Yang replenishment of Yang, which was simply mind-blowing.

Feng Ling said, "No wonder Chu Muyu took the initiative to ask the sect leader to let me be an exchange disciple. It turns out she had such dirty thoughts. Unfortunately, I am not you. I can control my own destiny."

Mu Jiaoluan exclaimed in astonishment, "You...you knew all about it??"

Wind Chime nodded: "I've deduced some things, and I'm not far from the truth. If you want freedom, then tell me everything, otherwise no one can help you."

"Of course, if you remain obstinate and wish to continue being Chu Muyu's slave, then I will have no choice but to get rid of you."

Feng Ling's tone left no room for refusal, and Mu Jiaoluan looked at the girl in front of her, unable to muster even the slightest thought of resistance.

"I...I'll tell you everything!"

It turns out that Chu Muyu was not originally a cultivator of the Extreme Cold Ice Valley, but a heretical cultivator. Many years ago, she set up a trap to imprison the Valley Master of the Extreme Cold Ice Valley, and from then on, she changed her appearance and became an elder of the valley.

Those dual cultivation techniques were also brought in from outside.

The poor original valley master was completely manipulated by her.

"This is it." Mu Jiaoluan, carrying the wind chimes, entered Chu Muyu's cave.

On one side of the cave, there is a stone door.

Mu Jiaoluan pressed the switch, and the stone door slowly opened. The horrific scene that came into view made even the well-informed Feng Ling feel a chill run down her spine.

This is utterly inhumane!

In the narrow stone chamber that resembled a prison, dozens of women were imprisoned, most of them barely clothed, and many had no clothes at all.

They were covered in wounds, some of them so badly that they had lost their hands and feet.

Their eyes were lifeless, as if they longed for death. Indeed, in this state, living was worse than dying!