Gou Zai Fei Men made up myths

The horse-faced cultivator's eyes flickered, his heart filled with suspicion and uncertainty. He carefully scrutinized Shen Mo, trying to find a trace of guilt on the other's face.

But Shen Mo's expression was calm as still water, his eyes deep and unfathomable.

"You...you're trying to scare me with those Golden Core cultivator tricks!" the horse-faced cultivator said, forcing himself to remain calm. "Those kinds of methods aren't something you can just use casually. Maybe...it's just a coincidence!"

"Oh?" Shen Mo raised an eyebrow, slowly raising his right hand. A faint starlight seemed to flicker at his fingertips (in reality, he was secretly circulating the last bit of star power within his body and using his divine sense to simulate a trace of sword intent fluctuations). His tone turned sinister.

"If you don't believe me, fellow Daoist, feel free to try. Behold the sword intent left behind by my Qingyun Ancestor; today... can it still slay one more foolish person?"

His words were filled with murderous intent, and coupled with the faint yet exceptionally sharp fluctuation of sword intent, they immediately made the horse-faced cultivator's hair stand on end!

He seemed to feel the earth-shattering power of that sword strike again, in the dead of night or early morning!

"You...you..." He was so frightened that he took two steps back, his face pale, pointing at Shen Mo, and he couldn't even speak properly. The disciples behind him were even worse off, each of them showing fear and all their momentum gone.

"Get lost." Shen Mo coldly uttered a single word.

The horse-faced cultivator's face alternated between pale and flushed, his inner turmoil reaching its peak. The treasure was tempting, but his life was more important! In the end, the fear of that unknown sword intent overwhelmed his greed.

He glared fiercely at Shen Mo, gritting his teeth, and said, "Fine! Fine! Qingyun Sect... you're ruthless! Let's go!"

Having said that, he actually led his men and slunk away quickly, not daring to utter another harsh word!

Only after their figures disappeared at the end of the passage did Shi Tie and the others breathe a long sigh of relief, their backs soaked with cold sweat.

"Sect Leader...you're truly amazing!" Zhang Daniu looked at Shen Mo with admiration. "You scared them away with just a few words!"

"Let's go!" Shen Mo showed no smugness; instead, his expression grew even more grave. "They're only temporarily intimidated. Once they realize what's happening, or if they encounter someone else, they'll definitely come back! We must leave the Water Mansion immediately!"

The five men dared not delay and retreated along the original route as quickly as possible.

Along the way, they encountered several groups of cultivators vying for treasures or fighting with guardian beasts, but when they saw that they were from the Qingyun Sect, most of them showed fear and made way for them, and no one dared to step forward to stop them.

Clearly, the lingering power of the "Nascent Soul Sword Immortal's Manifestation" continues to unfold.

After a series of close calls, they finally broke through the light barrier at the entrance to the Water Mansion and returned to the circular waters of Yunmeng Marsh.

There were still many cultivators lingering outside, and their appearance caused another stir and discussion.

Ignoring the stares, Shen Mo quickly determined the direction and led his disciples away towards Qingyun Mountain.

Several days later, when the five of them, travel-worn but unable to hide their excitement, stepped onto the land of Qingyun Mountain, Li Xiaocao, A Yuan, and the others who had stayed behind had already received the news and excitedly came out to greet them.

"Sect Leader! You're finally back!" Li Xiaocao's eyes were red, and she almost cried when she saw that everyone was safe and sound.

"It's good that you're back! It's good that you're back!" Wang Lie and Sun Xiaohou rubbed their hands together excitedly.

When they saw the wounds and exhaustion on Shi Tie and the others, yet their spirits remained high, they knew that this trip must have been very fruitful!

"Quick! Let's go inside first!" Shen Mo waved with a smile, feeling a sense of security as if he were returning home.

Inside the main hall, everyone sat together. Shen Mo first gave a brief account of the trip, which elicited gasps of surprise and excitement from Li Xiaocao and the others.

When they heard "Star Sword Startles Golden Elixir" and "Cleverly Seize Vermilion Fruit", they were even more excited.

"Alright, now... take stock of the spoils." Shen Mo smiled and began taking things out of his storage bag one by one.

First, there was the ruby-red main root of the Vermilion Fruit and the crimson Vermilion Fruit itself. A rich medicinal aroma immediately filled the entire hall, invigorating everyone present!

"This is... a Vermilion Fruit?!" Li Xiaocao exclaimed in surprise. She studied spiritual plants and naturally recognized this one.

"That's right." Shen Mo nodded. "This main root is even more precious. If we cultivate it well, perhaps our Qingyun Sect can have its own Vermilion Fruit Tree."

Next were some other medicinal herbs collected from the herb garden: Ice Heart Orchid, Earth Dragon Root, Purple Cloud Flower... Although the quantity was not large, the quality was quite good.

Then there were several special minerals obtained from the walls or corners of the Water Palace passageway: a piece of "Azure Water Stone" with water ripples, several pieces of "Star Pattern Steel" containing faint star power (of average quality, but rare), and a small piece of extremely heavy "Sinking Iron".

Finally, Shen Mo took out a broken jade slip. They had found it by chance in a corner of a collapsed side hall while hiding from a sudden ice trap.

The document contains a fragmented escape technique called "Flowing Cloud Escape Technique." Although only the first half is available, its rank seems to be quite high, at least at the Xuan rank or above.

"These are the main spoils of our trip to the Water Palace." Shen Mo looked at the dazzling array of items on the ground and a satisfied smile appeared on his face.

Although the process was extremely dangerous, the rewards were also incredibly generous! These resources are enough to elevate the overall strength of the Qingyun Sect to a new level!

"Wow...so many good things..." Sun Xiaohou's eyes widened in amazement.

"According to the sect's rules, the harvest this time will be distributed according to each person's contribution."

Shen Mo looked around at everyone and said solemnly, "First of all, 30% of all the harvest will go into the sect's public treasury and be used for daily expenses, formation maintenance, and disciples' basic cultivation."

"The remaining 70% will be rewarded according to merit." He looked at Shi Tie and the other three, "Junior Brother Tie, you charged ahead bravely and decisively this time, and deserve the first merit! You will be rewarded with 300 contribution points, and you can also exchange them for a piece of 'Sinking Iron' first, which can be used to temper your iron rod."

Upon hearing this, Shi Tie's dark face immediately broke into a wide smile, and he rubbed his hands together, chuckling, "Thank you very much, Sect Leader!"