Chapter 57: Golden Sun Heavenly Mountain

Time flashed by, and another three months had passed.

Deep within the secluded chamber of the side hall on Soul Wraith Island.

As the last strand of Golden Sun True Flame origin merged into the Heavenly Azure Mountain Ancient Relic, a formidable spiritual pressure suddenly erupted from within the ancient relic, carrying a blazing heat that surged outward in all directions. The temperature of the entire secret chamber skyrocketed, the air becoming scorching and oppressive.

If Jiuyou had not already set up a concealing formation to lock this aura tightly within the chamber, the terrifying fluctuations would have been felt for a hundred miles around.

Even Long Yan and Old Ghost of Baiyuan, both Early Nascent Soul cultivators skilled in fire-attribute techniques, faintly sensed a burning heat within the chamber, with tiny beads of sweat forming on their foreheads.

At this moment, the Heavenly Azure Mountain Ancient Relic had completely transformed.

The original ancient appearance of green mountains and clear waters was long gone, replaced by a layer of platinum flames covering its surface.

The entire ancient relic now shimmered in a platinum hue, with flames intertwining and leaping, the fire licking at the surrounding air, causing space itself to warp and twist continuously. A domineering and fierce pressure radiated endlessly from the relic.

"Excellent treasure!"

Long Yan stared unblinkingly at this reforged ancient relic, unconsciously swallowing hard, his voice carrying a hint of shock.

"With such power, it's probably not inferior to the top-tier ancient relics in the hands of those Grand Cultivators."

Old Ghost of Baiyuan's eyes flickered slightly as well, but he quickly suppressed his reaction, his face returning to calm. He chuckled lightly and clasped his hands toward Jiuyou in a salute.

"Congratulations to Daoist Jiuyou for acquiring such an ancient relic. With this, I'm afraid even other seasoned Mid-Nascent Soul cultivators, unless they possess an equally top-tier ancient relic, will find it hard to match you, Daoist."

"You two flatter me too much."

Jiuyou returned the gesture with a slight nod. He was well aware in his heart that this relic's power far exceeded expectations, but he revealed nothing on his face.

With a thought, the Heavenly Mountain that had nearly filled the entire chamber began to shrink slowly. The light receded, the flames gradually died down, and it eventually shrank to the size of a palm, quietly hovering above his hand. The ancient relic was entirely platinum in color, with faint flame patterns appearing and disappearing, resembling an exquisite piece of craftsmanship.

Jiuyou glanced down at the ancient relic in his palm, probing it with his Divine Sense and carefully examining it. After confirming that its power was stable, its control was effortless, and there were no hidden issues, he looked up at the two men and revealed a satisfied smile.

"The two of you have rendered great assistance this time; this old man will remember it well. Here are the rewards I promised you."

As Jiuyou spoke, a flash of prismatic light emerged from his Storage Pouch at his waist, and two jade-green jade boxes flew out from the pouch's opening, drifting slowly toward Old Ghost of Baiyuan and Long Yan.

Almost simultaneously, spiritual light flickered in both men's eyes as their Divine Sense delved into the jade boxes to carefully inspect them. After confirming these were the items they sought, they waved their hands to accept them, a trace of joy flashing in their gazes.

The two men each put away their treasures, exchanged a few pleasantries with Jiuyou, and showed no desire to linger on Soul Wraith Island. They clasped their hands in farewell and transformed into two streaks of light—one white, one red—fleeing rapidly toward the distance.

The moment the streaks of light disappeared over the horizon, a single thought arose in both their minds almost simultaneously:

Now that this old demon Jiuyou has obtained such a fearsome ancient relic, they must inform their own factions and allies as soon as possible… From now on, try not to provoke this old demon, to avoid bringing disaster upon themselves.

Jiuyou stood with his hands behind his back, watching the two streaks of light fade into the distance, a faint curl forming at the corner of his mouth.

He knew the secret of this ancient relic couldn't be hidden, but that was exactly the effect he wanted. With this relic as a deterrent, combined with his Mid-Nascent Soul cultivation, there would be few people in the entire Demonic Path Alliance who would dare to show him disrespect.

His gaze fell upon the small ancient relic in his palm. His eyes shifted slightly, and he murmured to himself.

"Old Ghost Qingshan is already dead, and this relic has been reforged by this old man, so calling it 'Heavenly Azure Mountain' no longer seems fitting. Since it was fused and refined using Golden Sun True Flame, let it be called 'Golden Sun Heavenly Mountain' from now on."

With a subtle movement of his Divine Sense, Jiuyou stored the Heavenly Mountain back into his Storage Pouch and turned to walk toward his main hall.

Deep within the cave dwelling, in the insect-breeding chamber.

Jiuyou once again arrived before that withered, gnarled tree.

At this moment, the clump of purple mist on the dead branches was even thicker than three months ago. The spherical structure had swelled by a full circle, and countless buzzing sounds faintly emanated from within.

All of these Soul-Eating Insect eggs had hatched. Hundreds of thousands of purple spirit insects were packed together, layer upon layer, densely crawling and writhing within the mist, sending chills down the spine.

During the three months it took to refine the Golden Sun Heavenly Mountain, Jiuyou had basically stayed in the secluded chamber of the side hall, unable to attend to these spirit insects. Now that he returned to check on them, not only were the Soul-Eating Insects not weakened, but they were even more active than when they first hatched, clearly having gradually adapted to the external environment.

Jiuyou probed them with his Divine Sense, then waved his hand to retrieve a Cold Wind Turtle's claw from his Storage Pouch. This was a material he had obtained when he killed an Eighth-Rank Demon Beast on Coldwind Island, and it had been stored in the pouch ever since.

He casually tossed the claw in front of the withered tree and muttered softly.

"I wonder if these bugs will eat this thing."

The moment the claw hit the ground, the purple spirit insects buzzed loudly and swarmed out of the mist in a frenzy. But after circling the claw once, they flew back dejectedly, showing no desire to feed.

"Soul-Eating Insects specialize in devouring souls, not physical flesh."

Jiuyou nodded thoughtfully, then raised his hand and waved. Green mist flickered beside him, and two foundation-establishing stage Soul Wraith Puppets materialized, standing still on the spot.

Those Soul-Eating Insects, as if sensing the soul force emanating from the puppets, immediately burst into loud buzzing. Under Jiuyou's Divine Sense control, the Insect Queen let out a sharp shriek, and the hundreds of thousands of Soul-Eating Insects lunged at the two Soul Wraith Puppets like a pack of starving wolves, madly tearing and devouring them.

In less than a moment, the two foundation-establishing puppets were consumed entirely, not even leaving a scrap behind. After absorbing the soul force, the Soul-Eating Insects' purple glow noticeably brightened, and their aura thickened considerably compared to before.

"Not bad."

A sinister smile crept onto Jiuyou's face as he chuckled silently a few times.

"No wonder ancient texts call them an ancient exotic insect of the highest order. So ferocious even just after birth. With proper nurturing in the future, this old man's strength will undoubtedly soar."

Just as he was pondering how to raise these Soul-Eating Insects in the days ahead, his eyes suddenly flickered with a glint of light.

Jiuyou reached into his Storage Pouch and retrieved a white jade token.

The jade token was entirely crystalline, its surface covered with flowing runes, spiritual light flickering in and out, exuding an aura of ancient solemnity.

This was the communication jade token uniformly distributed by the Three Alliance Council.

At this moment, the jade token was trembling slightly, its spiritual light flashing intermittently—clearly, a message had arrived.

Jiuyou raised an eyebrow slightly and probed the jade token with his Divine Sense. After a moment, he withdrew his Divine Sense, his face calm, though a hint of gravity flickered in his eyes.

The message was simple and direct.

The Three Alliance Council had ordered all Nascent Soul cultivators to take turns guarding the border defense line.

He had been assigned to a five-thousand-mile stretch of coastline defense, with a one-year term. During that time, besides him as the Mid-Nascent Soul cultivator stationed there, three Early Nascent Soul cultivators would also garrison with him.

For every five-thousand-mile stretch of defense line, this was the standard configuration—one Mid-Nascent Soul and three Early Nascent Souls, forming a mutually supportive, coordinated defense.

The message also included a simple map jade slip, marking the specific location of the defense line, as well as the meeting time and place.

Jiuyou held the jade token, silent for a moment.

The border defense line… the frenzied Beast Tide… garrisoning…

He too would finally face this calamity sweeping across the entire Tianyuan Sea.

Jiuyou returned the jade token to his Storage Pouch, his gaze drifting toward the crack above the cave dwelling.

Moonlight poured down like water, falling upon his transformed, aged face.

He didn't set out immediately but instead turned and walked toward his main hall. Before departing, there were some matters he needed to attend to.

That brat Canfeng was still in seclusion, attempting to break through to Late Golden Core. He wondered how the result would turn out.

The nurturing of the Soul-Eating Insects couldn't be stopped either.

And then there were the defensive arrangements for Soul Wraith Island…

There were quite a few matters, but none were urgent.

Jiuyou walked with his hands behind his back, his steps steady.

Outside the cave dwelling, the sea wind howled.

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