"Do you two fellow daoists recall a sentence I mentioned earlier, that when the secret cave where the 'Hellsoul Clan's' sect was located was first discovered, the cultivators who entered obtained many inheritances!"
"Miss Su means to say that not only were many cultivation methods of the 'Hellsoul Clan' discovered, but the types of inheritances were also different."
"Is all of this because the 'Hellsoul Clan' is possibly the Immortal-Seeking Lineage? Therefore, the cultivation methods found were numerous, or rather, eclectic."
"That point does seem to fit. But as a large sect, it's quite normal to have collected the cultivation methods of other sects. The Malevolent Spirit Sect, for instance, has thousands, if not tens of thousands, of cultivation methods, both large and small."
Only then did Li Yan remember that Su Hong had indeed said such a sentence before, but at the time, he and Zhao Min hadn't paid attention to its meaning.
After thinking about it again now, he still felt that this explanation was a bit far-fetched.
Su Hong nodded.
"Of course, this alone isn't enough to show that they are the Immortal-Seeking Lineage. But have you ever seen a sect with many martial arts manuals for mortals to practice?"
"Furthermore, among the immortal arts techniques that those people obtained, there were actually traces of many martial arts, especially in some methods of tempering the physical body and cultivating movement skills. Many places borrowed from the styles found in martial arts."
Su Hong smiled as she looked at Li Yan. Li Yan's heart stirred under the gaze of those alluring, bright eyes, but on the surface, he remained composed, nodding his head as if in agreement.
"In that case, it is indeed very likely that they are the Immortal-Seeking Lineage."
"However, as far as I know, traces of the Immortal-Seeking Lineage can be found on all continents. Is it possible that only on the Desolate Moon Continent is it called the 'Immortal-Seeking Lineage'?"
"Do other continents not have this designation, which is why you were able to discover the origin of the 'Hellsoul Clan'?"
Su Hong smiled sweetly.
"That's not it. This designation is not exclusive to the Desolate Moon Continent."
"There are quite a few cultivators who can guess that the 'Hellsoul Clan' originated from the Immortal-Seeking Lineage, but it is likely that only our merchant alliance has discovered its connection to the Desolate Moon Continent."
"We also obtained some cultivation methods in that underground secret cave, as well as some trivial anecdotes. And among them, one jade slip had this passage recorded:"
"'My life, in the end, cannot withstand the perils of the Heavenly Dao. I drifted in space for over four hundred years, returning grievously injured, my time is nigh!'"
"'In this fleeting life, from the desolate moon, I sought immortality through martial arts. I lost eighty to ninety percent of my friends along the way. Finally, I arrived here and obtained an immortal manual. The three of us then founded the Hellsoul.'"
"'Let chivalry be the only code, widely accepting those from the Immortal-Seeking Lineage who enter the Dao through martial arts. Slay demons when they are met, eliminate evil when it is encountered.'"
"'My remaining life is coming to an end, but it is merely a cycle of reincarnation. In the next life, I will surely tread the immortal path again and ascend to the Immortal Spirit Realm!'"
After Su Hong finished speaking, she saw Li Yan and Zhao Min's eyes growing brighter and brighter.
"I imagine you two have gathered something from this?"
"This person should be a martial arts master from the Desolate Moon Continent who later embarked on the path of seeking immortality for the sake of longevity."
"From his words, one can guess that he should have found a secret immortal cultivation method after arriving on the Verdant Continent, and he was not alone, but with others."
"Later, he founded the 'Hellsoul Clan' with two others. They all came from humble, martial backgrounds, which is why they took 'chivalry' as their sect's tenet."
"It's just that in the end, this person was severely injured in the Chaotic Flow Space!"
"The last sentence, 'In the next life, I will surely tread the immortal path again and ascend to the Immortal Spirit Realm,' does it mean that he failed in his search for ascension to the Immortal Spirit Realm, and although he escaped with his life, he was on the verge of death?"
"The most incredible part is what was mentioned before. They might have only obtained a secret immortal cultivation method after arriving on the Verdant Continent. So how did they, as mortals, get here?"
"Could there really be a passage leading to the Desolate Moon Continent that even mortal martial arts masters can pass through? But why has no one else ever discovered this passage?"
Li Yan's mind raced, and he voiced his speculations. Finally, he looked at Su Hong again.
"They built their sect underground. Could it be that the incredible passage is within the secret cave?" "I've said it before, we only guessed all of this from this jade slip. As for that possible passage, no one has really discovered it in the secret cave."
"That place has been searched countless times by who knows how many cultivators. All the secret chambers that could be opened have been opened, and nothing other than cultivation resources has ever been found."
"However, since our merchant alliance has made such a speculation, it's natural that someone was sent over later to investigate specifically."
"Oh? Were there any clues?" Li Yan asked urgently.
"To say there were, in the end, nothing was truly found. To say there weren't, there is one place that is worthy of suspicion."
"In the secret cave, there is a broken statue holding a steel trident. This statue has, of course, been carefully studied by many cultivators, but nothing too special was found."
"It is more like a totem of faith for the 'Hellsoul Clan.' It's just that the material it's made of is very strange. It doesn't emit any spirit qi, nor can it store spirit qi."
"But its material is so sturdy that only a cultivator at or above the Nascent Soul realm can damage it. It's very peculiar."
"This also led to the statue becoming dilapidated later on, as some Nascent Soul and Spirit Transformation cultivators took some of its material back to refine."
"But after they finally integrated this material into their magical treasures, it couldn't improve the rank of the magical treasure at all, and it couldn't transmit spirit power. Over time, this broken statue was ignored by everyone."
"Although the material of that broken statue is hard, even a Golden Core cultivator's Divine Sense can see its interior completely. It has naturally been examined countless times, both inside and out."
"After the experts from our merchant alliance entered, they also studied it for a long time. Although they didn't find anything."
"However, if one looks at the entire secret cave and carefully compares it with all other places, this is the most suspicious place."
"Especially since the spirit qi in the secret cave can only be considered medium-grade. With the formidable strength that the 'Hellsoul Clan' displayed back then, they were fully capable of seizing other places with better spirit qi, yet they chose to establish their sect here."
"If there really is a cross-realm passage to other continents, then that might slightly explain this reason."
Su Hong paused for a moment.
"Oh, that's right. There is another reason that makes us more inclined to believe they came from the Desolate Moon Continent, and that is their hatred for the Demon Clan."
"If I remember correctly, the first time the Desolate Moon Continent was invaded by the Demon Clan was before the Verdant Continent. At that time, the Demon Clan slaughtered many mortals on the Desolate Moon Continent."
"And those experts from the 'Hellsoul Clan,' without waiting for the top-tier sects of the Verdant Continent to gather, took the initiative to come out and kill the demons. It can be seen that they particularly hate the Demon Clan, which does connect some dots!"
Su Hong laid out the results she had obtained one by one.
For a time, both Li Yan and Zhao Min lowered their heads in thought. Su Hong closed her beautiful eyes and did not disturb them.
After about the time it takes for half a teacup to cool, Li Yan finally raised his head. At the same time, Su Hong also opened her eyes.
"Where is that place? I must go there, even if it's just for the 'Howling Cold Stone'."
Upon hearing this, Su Hong once again revealed her alluring smile.
"That place is very easy to find. I can inscribe a map jade slip for you right now."
"However, if you go there and buy the token to enter the secret cave, you won't be able to get a single spirit stone's discount on the ten thousand."
"Our merchant alliance still has a few tokens to enter the secret cave, and we will also attach details about the secret cave and a map of the inside."
"If Fellow Daoist Li wants to buy one, and since we are old acquaintances, I will only charge you seven thousand low-grade spirit stones for one token. How about it?"
Upon hearing this, Li Yan felt a bit of a headache. This woman didn't mention spirit stones at all at the beginning, but later, it was spirit stones this, spirit stones that, and all in the range of nearly ten thousand each.
Although Li Yan had received a lot of spirit stones from "Falling Star Valley" over the years and was wealthier than most Golden Core cultivators, he couldn't afford this kind of consumption.
However, Li Yan also knew that if it really took ten thousand spirit stones per person to enter the secret cave, for Su Hong to name a price of seven thousand spirit stones was already considered a favor.
Although this was partly due to their acquaintance, when he thought about how "Gui Qu Lai Xi" could secretly connect with the Four Great Sects on the Desolate Moon Continent, it was not impossible for them to have established some kind of relationship with some top-tier sects on the Verdant Continent.
Others needed ten thousand spirit stones to exchange for a token to enter the secret cave; "Gui Qu Lai Xi" could probably get it at a very low price.
The other party was definitely making a lot from the seven thousand spirit stones, but what did that have to do with him? If he could get something for cheap, Li Yan naturally wouldn't waste spirit stones.
Knowing full well that Su Hong was making a profit from his spirit stones, he could only be willing.
Li Yan turned to look at Zhao Min. Zhao Min's cold voice came over.
"Two tokens!"
She spoke extremely concisely, but her meaning was clearly expressed. She would not let Li Yan go alone.
Li Yan immediately nodded. His original intention was to have Zhao Min wait for him somewhere while he went to find the "Howling Cold Stone" and also take a look at that broken statue to try and find some clues.
There might be fewer cultivators there now than before, but since everyone was on a treasure hunt, there was definitely a lot of killing inside. Zhao Min had been either fighting or killing all the way with him.
However, since Zhao Min wanted to follow, Li Yan would not try to persuade her. He flipped his hand, and another storage pouch was placed on the table.
Su Hong beamed even more. After a sweep of her Divine Sense, she immediately called out to the door in a sweet voice.
"Mi'er, go and fetch two tokens for the 'Hellsoul Clan' secret cave. And also inscribe the route there!"
The jade slip she gave originally only had instructions about the secret cave. Since Li Yan and Zhao Min were not cultivators from the Verdant Continent, the route to get there had to be added separately.
Before long, Su Hong had two tokens and a jade slip in her hand, but she did not immediately hand them to Li Yan. Instead, she pressed the jade slip to her forehead.
Li Yan and Zhao Min didn't know what she was doing, but they didn't ask. Su Hong would naturally explain to them.
After a few dozen breaths, Su Hong finally removed the jade slip from her fair forehead and handed the tokens and jade slip to Li Yan with a smile.
"The jade slip mainly contains some matters to pay attention to when entering the 'Hellsoul Clan' secret cave and a map."
"However, the explanations are all in the ancient immortal world language. I imagine you two are more accustomed to reading the familiar script of the Desolate Moon Continent, so I have added an explanation in the script of the Desolate Moon Continent at the end!"
Su Hong said with a charming smile.
"Hehehe, thank you very much, Miss Su!"
Li Yan took the tokens and the jade slip. This Su Hong was truly thoughtful. He and Zhao Min had recently become more familiar with the ancient immortal world language.
But they were still not quite used to it, especially when it came to writing and reading.
Li Yan swept his Divine Sense over the token. The material of the token was not very special. It should be made from a type of ore that Li Yan was familiar with. As soon as his Divine Sense touched the token, a wave of restrictive fluctuations emanated.
'As expected, this kind of token cannot be easily forged!'
Li Yan's Divine Sense did not forcibly probe, in case the token's restriction had some self-destruct function.
Then, his Divine Sense entered the jade slip. As expected, he saw an exquisite map, a simple map with only routes, and some text explanations.
At the end of these texts, the script of the Desolate Moon Continent that Li Yan was most familiar with indeed appeared. Li Yan couldn't help but marvel at Su Hong's meticulousness.
She had not erased the original text but had added a section. If Li Yan was not at ease, he could compare it with the ancient immortal world text above to confirm again.
Li Yan satisfactorily put away the two tokens and the jade slip, then stood up. Zhao Min, at his side, also stood up.
"Thank you, Miss Su, for your help this time. We will take our leave now!"
Su Hong also stood up with a smile to see them off. Li Yan cupped his fists at her and was about to turn and leave when his body paused.