Chapter 30: Registration

Elder Dongzhen had white hair and eyebrows, a slender build, and wore a light blue Taoist robe. With every slight movement, he exuded an air of celestial elegance.

At that moment, Elder Dongzhen was examining Huaiqing with a profound gaze. As the leader of the Xianyun Sect, Huaiqing would not disturb Elder Dongzhen’s meditation unless it was truly urgent.

“Uncle, junior brother Huaiyou went to the Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons and discovered the Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes,” Huaiqing said simply.

Elder Dongzhen, who usually remained as still as an ancient tree, couldn’t help but shrug upon hearing this.

“The Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes? Such monsters still exist? It seems the four major cultivation sects of Cuimu Planet will have to go to the Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons once again to find them and destroy them,” Elder Dongzhen said calmly.

Huaiqing frowned, thinking that his uncle, who spent most of his time in his cave and had long neglected the sect’s affairs, still hadn’t realized why he was bringing this up.

“Uncle, I’m worried that the other three sects might capture the Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes and raise them secretly. That would be a real problem for our Xianyun Sect,” Huaiqing explained patiently.

Elder Dongzhen smiled. How could he not notice the change in Huaiqing’s expression? He was deliberately testing whether this young disciple was qualified to lead the Xianyun Sect. It seemed he was quite capable so far.

“Youthful Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes are at the Foundation Establishment stage, while adult ones are at the Golden Core stage. Moreover, these mosquitoes have a special ability—they are highly sensitive to spiritual energies above the Nascent Soul stage. Cultivators at our Nascent Soul stage cannot enter the Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons directly and can only wait from afar. This time, let’s select some disciples at the Foundation Establishment and Golden Core stages to go there and search for them,” Elder Dongzhen ordered.

Huaiqing listened quietly and nodded immediately.

Although Huaiqing was the sect leader, his strength was only at the early Nascent Soul stage, and he was still just a junior disciple. He couldn’t defy Elder Dongzhen’s orders.

Soon after, Huaiqing returned to Zuiyun Peak and immediately gathered the sect elders to inform them about the Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes.

The elders also rushed back to their own cultivation peaks, spreading the news and urging disciples at the Foundation Establishment and Golden Core stages to volunteer to go to the Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons to search for them.

In Tingfeng Residence, Qu Yi continued to meditate quietly, his mind constantly scanning the knowledge of formations in his memory. It took him ten days to scan through formations of the “Wind-Rising” type. Now, he was scanning those of the “Rain-Falling” type.

Outside the Wind-Listening Residence, a gurgling sound suddenly came from afar—the Golden Crown Heron had arrived.
“Qu Yi, come out quickly,” Bai Man’s voice rang out.
Hearing her voice, Qu Yi immediately woke up and realized it was Bai Man coming. He happily flew out of the room and rushed to the flat ground in front of the residence, looking at Bai Man with great joy.
Bai Man’s face turned red. She was both happy and shy at Qu Yi’s obvious affection for her.
“Qu Yi, I’m here to tell you that there’s an announcement from Chase Cloud Peak. It asks disciples at the Foundation Establishment and Golden Core stages to sign up for a mission to the Abyss of Ten Thousand Monsters to hunt for Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes. I’ve come especially to warn you—don’t go,” Bai Man said firmly, her expression serious.
Well, if Bai Man hadn’t come, Qu Yi might have continued studying formations in the Wind-Listening Residence and never had the chance to see the announcement. But now that Bai Man had mentioned it, his mind became active as he started thinking about whether to go to the Abyss of Ten Thousand Monsters.
Qu Yi knew about the Abyss of Ten Thousand Monsters—it was located in the southern part of the Four Veins Continent, near the Moon-Embracing Mountains where the Fire Moon Sect was based. It was filled with dangerous monsters and poisonous insects. But since the sect had issued this announcement, there must be protective measures in place for those who went there.
Over the past three years, Qu Yi’s cultivation had reached the early stage of Foundation Establishment, and he was likely to break through to the middle stage at any moment. So, he indeed met the qualifications to sign up.
“Sister, what kind of monster is this Blood-Sucking Mosquito?” Qu Yi asked curiously.
Bai Man became anxious. Since Qu Yi had asked, he must be thinking about it—was he really planning to go to the Abyss of Ten Thousand Monsters?
“It’s just a small mosquito. Nothing special. You don’t need to worry. Just stay here and continue your cultivation,” Bai Man said calmly, though her wandering eyes betrayed her feelings.
Qu Yi stopped asking, knowing that Bai Man, worried about him, wouldn’t tell the truth. He would have to find another chance to ask someone else.
“Alright, I’ll go back inside. I still need to continue practicing,” Qu Yi said with a smile before turning and entering the Wind-Listening Residence.
Bai Man pouted. Since Qu Yi didn’t even offer to go outside with her to enjoy the scenery, she felt dissatisfied. She stamped her foot and climbed onto the back of the Golden Crown Heron, flying away.
After Bai Man left, Qu Yi immediately left the Wind-Listening Residence and rushed up the mountain.
Announcements from Chase Cloud Peak were posted on a windproof stone wall outside the Immortal Cloud Hall.
Qu Yi went to the wall, read the entire announcement, then headed straight to the Immortal Cloud Hall to find his master, Huai Qing.

On the way, suddenly someone flew down from the sky and blocked Qu Yi. It was Elder Kang Yao from the Medicine Garden. “Haha, Qu Yi, I’ve finally met you. Three years ago, you had Bai Man send over some clusters of Blood Essence Grass. I’ve since cultivated a large amount of it, allowing us to produce a large supply of Foundation Establishment Pills for the sect. This year, fifty disciples in the sect have reached the early stage of Foundation Establishment—this is all thanks to you,” Kang Yao said joyfully. Qu Yi was stunned for a moment before recalling that he had found some clusters of Blood Essence Grass during his training in the Misty Demon Mountains. He had originally intended to exchange them for Foundation Establishment Pills, but since Kang Feng had given him five such pills, the Grass was no longer useful. After returning to the sect, Qu Yi handed the Grass to Bai Man to deliver to Kang Yao. “Elder Kang Yao, it’s my duty. I’m glad to be able to help the sect,” Qu Yi said with a smile. Seeing Qu Yi’s calm demeanor, Kang Yao was even happier and declared loudly, “Qu Yi, if you need pills in the future, I’ll charge you the lowest price and ensure you get what you need.” Qu Yi was overjoyed, not expecting the Blood Essence Grass to still bring him benefits. “Yes, Elder. I will definitely come to you in the future,” he said happily. After chatting for a while longer, the two parted, with Qu Yi entering the Immortal Cloud Hall. “Qu Yi, why have you come?” Suddenly, Huai Qing appeared in the Immortal Cloud Hall, asking in surprise. “Master, I want to go to the Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons,” Qu Yi replied directly. Huai Qing immediately scanned him with his spiritual sense and frowned. “Disciple, haven’t you seen the announcement? To enter the Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons, one must reach the Foundation Establishment stage.” Qu Yi remained silent and immediately activated the “Silent Art” to reveal his true strength. Early Foundation Establishment! Huai Qing was shocked. His spiritual sense only detected Qu Yi’s strength at the later stage of Qi Guidance. He never expected this kid to possess a hidden skill that could even deceive his own spiritual sense, which was at the early stage of Yuan Ying. “Have you already reached the early stage of the Metal element in Foundation Establishment?” Huai Qing asked in disbelief. Reaching the Foundation Establishment stage in less than five years was utterly unbelievable, especially since Qu Yi had the worst constitution—five elemental roots. “Yes, Master. Please don’t blame me for hiding my strength,” Qu Yi said frankly. Qu Yi felt a special bond with Huai Qing, as it was because of him that he could practice cultivation. Therefore, this time he was willing to reveal his true strength. If Huai Qing had any malicious intentions, Qu Yi was ready to bear the consequences.

“Haha, disciple, it seems you’ve encountered another opportunity. Don’t worry; I won’t force you to reveal your secrets. I trust whatever you decide to do. If you want to go to the Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons, I agree.” Huai Qing smiled calmly and didn’t press further.

Ever since Huai Qing obtained a jade sword from Qu Yi, he lost interest in other cultivation artifacts and techniques. Qu Yi held secrets, and the faster he cultivated, the more beneficial it would be for the Immortal Cloud Sect. Once he gained enough strength, the position of sect leader could be passed to him, allowing Huai Qing to focus solely on his own cultivation.

Qu Yi also felt relieved and said with a smile, “Thank you, master.”

On Dragon Yao Peak, the cultivation site of elder Huai Jin, two people were also talking at that moment.

“Grandpa, I want to go to the Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons,” it was clearly Liu Qingfeng’s voice.

A month earlier, Liu Qingfeng, who had been in seclusion for three years, had reached the early stage of the Golden Core realm. However, he hadn’t reported this to the sect yet, so he still didn’t have his own cultivation site, and naturally, others were unaware of his cultivation level.

Huai Jin immediately looked at Liu Qingfeng with concern and said, “Qingfeng, you’ve just reached the early stage of the Golden Core realm. The Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons is full of monsters, including many at the Golden Core stage. If you go there to search for Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes, you might be able to escape if you only encounter young ones. But if you run into adult ones, you’ll be in great danger.”

Liu Qingfeng shook his head and then said seriously, “Grandpa, don’t worry. I believe Master Zhang and Master Dongzhen will definitely go. If there’s any danger, they’ll surely step in. Moreover, my main purpose for going to the Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons this time is to find the Nine Nether Sunken Wood. If I obtain it, I can absorb its spiritual energy, which will speed up my progress to the middle stage of the Golden Core realm.”

The Nine Nether Sunken Wood only grew in the Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons and was considered a spiritual artifact-grade wood. It was extremely effective for Liu Qingfeng, who practiced wood-based cultivation techniques.

Huai Jin watched Liu Qingfeng for a while and realized his grandson wouldn’t change his mind, so he stopped trying to persuade him and said directly, “Well then, since you’re determined to go, I’ll accompany you to the Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons so I can feel at ease.”

Liu Qingfeng nodded slightly.

In ten days, the registration for disciples from various peaks of the Immortal Cloud Sect to go to the Abyss of Ten Thousand Demons was completed.

At the registration altar, there were five disciples in the Foundation Establishment stage and ten in the Golden Core stage—these were all the disciples from the Immortal Cloud Sect who had signed up for this journey.

Qu Yi and Liu Qingfeng stood side by side, exchanging smiles.