Desolate Sand Region.
Lin Yan walked alone across the endless sand, completely unaware that Zhang Bai, a Rank 5 Gu Master, was already following him from behind.
Even so, he remained extremely cautious. He was more worried about being tracked by someone from the Family. After leaving, he deliberately paused for a long time, activated his Fire Eyes and Golden Gaze, and carefully observed the surroundings behind him. After confirming that no one was present, he still did not relax. Instead, he chose a random direction and continued moving, deliberately creating a misleading trail to shake off any possible pursuers.
There was no other choice. The Thousand Wishes Tree was too important.
This was a Desolate Plant from ancient times, extremely valuable. It could very well become his first major gain after Immortal Ascension, and one of the few opportunities in the Western Desert that could be taken with relatively low risk.
Moreover, as a Human Path Desolate Plant, its effects were extraordinary. In the original story, Fang Yuan was able to survive the chaotic tribulation on his path to becoming a Venerable, and a large part of that credit was tied to it.
Of course, Lin Yan's erratic movements in the desert were not without reason. The original novel only mentioned that the Thousand Wishes Tree was somewhere near Sandwell Oasis, but gave no exact location. He could only rely on wandering aimlessly, letting luck guide him.
After all, the illusion around it covered tens of thousands of li. Walking in circles might seem pointless, but over time, it greatly increased the chance of stumbling into it.
Fortunately, Lin Yan had made thorough preparations before setting out. He had borrowed the Family's Earth Kiln Gu to store a large supply of dry rations. Then, while in the Ten Thousand Li Silk Corridor, he refined hundreds of jars of Rank 3 and Rank 4 Burning Fire Wine, enough to sustain all his Gu for an entire year.
By now, he had already spent most of his primeval stones, fully preparing for a long and uncertain search. He checked the Gu inside his aperture and felt reassured, confident that he could handle unexpected situations.
Rank 4: Fusion Fire Gu, Life Spirit Fire Gu, Mystic Yellow Earth Fire Gu, Nine-Eyed Liquor Worm, two Yellow Golden Relic Gu.
Rank 3: Exploding Fireball Gu, Flame Armor Gu, Treading Fire Gu, Fiery Eyes and Golden Gaze Gu, Fire Source Gu, Accumulated Ash Gu, Flame Blade Gu, Burning Wind Gu, Splash Gu, Sparks Gu, Earth Kiln Gu, Glass Flame Bone Gu (already consumed), Fire Soul Gu (already consumed), Dream Derivation Gu, Elder Gu, Soul Travel Gu, Clear Mind Gu, three White Silver Relic Gu, Strengthen Soul Gu (already consumed).
Second Rank: four Red Steel Relic Gu. Rank 1: six Green Copper Relic Gu.
As Lin Yan wandered aimlessly, Zhang Bai, who was secretly following him, had an extremely miserable experience. His tracking Gu was repeatedly activated, yet the direction kept shifting. He was led in circles again and again, to the point that he almost suspected he had been discovered and was being toyed with on purpose.
After a long time, Zhang Bai finally lost Lin Yan's trail completely. Only then did a thought occur to him—could it be that Lin Yan himself didn't know the way and had simply gotten lost?
Zhang Bai's expression darkened as he cursed, "And this is supposed to be the Huang Family's Genius?!"
He had no choice but to keep going, hoping to find some trace.
Time passed, and about two months went by.
At this moment, in a desolate sand region, Lin Yan's appearance was no longer neat. His clothes were torn, his hair slightly messy, and faint dark circles hung under his eyes. In front of him, hundreds of Flame Wolves charged forward, surrounding him from all sides.
"Good beasts."
Lin Yan sneered and only activated a single Flame Blade Gu. A scarlet blade condensed in his hand as he stepped forward alone to meet the pack.
His movements were calm, clean, and precise. Each strike was direct, with no wasted motion. In less than half an hour, the entire wolf pack was slaughtered, blood staining the sand.
He paused briefly to catch his breath, then quickly moved forward, extracting wild Gu from the corpses and collecting valuable materials before leaving the area without delay.
During these two months, Lin Yan had endured constant hardship in the wilderness. Traveling alone was completely different from moving with a caravan. There was no safe rest, and danger could appear at any moment.
He had to carefully manage his primeval essence, and over time, he developed a habit—defeat enemies using the least amount of effort and the most efficient methods.
Lin Yan welcomed these hardships. As he fought and survived, he quietly felt his own growth. Even if he failed to find the Thousand Wishes Tree, this experience alone would not be a loss.
By now, his aperture had accumulated a batch of Gu from Rank 1 to Rank 3, worth more than ten thousand primeval stones in total. It wasn't a huge gain, but it was still something.
Among them, only two truly caught his attention. One was a Rank 3 Flame Claw Gu, obtained from a Beast King Lava Lizard, capable of forming a massive flaming claw. The other was a Rank 3 Fire Python Strength Gu, which granted him the strength of a fire python.
The former matched his idea of developing a new Flame Path killer move, while the latter could be integrated into the Huang Family's Flame Extreme Sky Blade.
For now, however, he had no time for proper cultivation. These ideas could only be set aside temporarily.
Fortunately, he had not encountered a Myriad Beast King during this time. Otherwise, the situation would have been extremely dangerous.
A Myriad Beast King usually led tens of thousands of wild beasts, forming a terrifying tide. Even a lone Rank 4 Gu Master would not dare face such a force head-on.
As Lin Yan quickly left that area, he suddenly stepped into an unfamiliar desert zone. The scenery changed at once. The sand beneath his feet turned a faint golden color, and in the distance, a massive dune rose into the sky, its outline stretching for thousands of feet. When he turned back, the path he had taken shimmered with shifting light and color, as if distorted.
Lin Yan's eyes lit up. "Hahaha… I finally found it."