"Lu Xing, you don't have a Magic Treasure yet. Earlier, I snatched a Space Ring that contains some materials. When I have time, I will help you craft a Magic Artifact."
"Thank you, Master Xie," Lu Xing bowed.
Lin Mo shook his head helplessly. The Jiuxian Immortal had departed to the west on his crane, not only entrusting the Star Sect to him but also leaving Lu Xing in his care.
As they ventured deeper into the Great Snow Mountain, the wind and snow grew even more intense. Lin Mo activated his True Essence Shield to envelop both Lu Xing and Yingzi, allowing them to walk freely, but suddenly, Lin Mo stopped in his tracks.
"Following us for so long, don't you plan to show yourself?"
Lin Mo's voice, calm and faint, spread clearly across the snow mountain, in an environment filled only with the sound of wind and snow.
Yingzi and Lu Xing both furrowed their brows and looked around; all they saw was an endless expanse of blinding white. There seemed to be no one else around.
"Your Divine Sense is truly impressive, to be able to discover me even in such a place."
Suddenly, a voice tinged with laughter came through, and a vague figure appeared amid the snow flurries, striding toward them.
Yingzi and Lu Xing's faces showed a hint of alertness, and Lin Mo also frowned slightly. The stranger had a familiar aura, similar to the three people they had encountered earlier, all carrying the 'scent' of coming from the Heavenly Sect, yet distinctly different was the Demon Energy on the stranger.
At this moment, everyone saw clearly that the newcomer was a young man with black hair, extremely handsome. If some infatuated fans were to see him, they would definitely scream.
"I am Ye Beichen from the Beiyao Sect. May I know which Sect you are from?" The black-haired youth asked Lin Mo with a bow.
The Beiyao Sect?
Hearing the name, it was clear it came from the Heavenly Sect, and he was a Demon Cultivator.
Lin Mo did not expect that a trip to the Great Snow Mountain would lead him to the fourth Cultivator from the Heavenly Sect, and additionally, a Cultivator from the Demon Clan.
"I am the Sect Leader of Star Sect, Lin Mo," said Lin Mo, returning the bow faintly.
Lu Xing and Yingzi were momentarily stunned, then quickly realized that Lin Mo must have wanted to extract some information by identifying himself as someone from the 'Heavenly Sect'.
Ye Beichen furrowed his brows, apparently not familiar with the 'Star Sect.' Though the Heavenly Sect was indeed self-contained, the majority of its activities happened within the Sect, and they only recognized other Sects of 'the same level.' He hadn't heard of the 'Star Sect,' thus indicating that 'Star Sect' had no reputation within the Heavenly Sect.
Despite this, Ye Beichen appeared affable by nature and smiled, "Brother Lin, I haven't heard of 'Star Sect,' but your coming here, you must be heading to the Miao Xue Divine Palace in the Great Snow Mountain, right?"
"Yes, I am indeed on my way to visit Miao Xue Divine Palace," Lin Mo replied with a light smile.
He actually had no idea where Miao Xue Divine Palace was stationed, but since the other had mentioned it, Miao Xue Divine Palace must be nearby.
"Miao Xue Divine Palace is not a good place. Brother Lin, what takes you there?" Ye Beichen asked with a smile.
Lin Mo replied, "Certainly, Miao Xue Divine Palace is no good. They captured my wife, then erased her memory. Now, she doesn't remember me anymore. I am going to Miao Xue Divine Palace precisely to rescue my wife."
Hearing Lin Mo's response, Ye Beichen paused for a moment, then his expression turned to one of surprise, followed by laughter, "Brother Lin, you're going to Miao Xue Divine Palace to look for your wife? This is the first time I'm hearing such a thing. I also know a bit about Miao Xue Divine Palace; may I ask who your wife is?"
"Miao Xin." Lin Mo's reply was plain.
Ye Beichen, evidently not fond of Miao Xue Divine Palace, seemed excited to know Lin Mo was planning to take back his wife.
"Miao Xin? Isn't she the fiancée of that guy Qing Xuan?" Ye Beichen's face showed shock.
Lin Mo's brows tightened, "What did you say?" Subsequently, Ye Beichen narrated the entire story to Lin Mo. It turned out he had followed Qing Xuan from the Heavenly Sect, and waited outside Miao Xue Divine Palace. Qing Xuan emerged from the palace with a beautiful woman and the two even fought, but it seemed Ye Beichen did not benefit from the conflict and even sustained injuries. He had been in the snow mountain, quietly recuperating, and just when he was about to leave, he encountered Lin Mo and his group.
"I've always disliked that guy Qing Xuan. This time he ventured out alone and even abducted someone else's wife; the next time I encounter him, I will definitely make him suffer," Ye Beichen scoffed, clenching his fist in anger.
Lin Mo's eyes narrowed slightly, leaving a chilling slit. If what Ye Beichen said was true, then Miao Xin might have already left Miao Xue Divine Palace, so there was no need to go there anymore. The urgent task at hand was to find Miao Xin.
"Do you know where they went?" Lin Mo looked up, his gaze fixed on Ye Beichen.
"They are probably wandering around Qinghai, and with people from Heavenly Sect coming out recently, I suspect there are a few auction events about to take place," a glint of light flashed in Ye Beichen's eyes.
Lin Mo squeezed his palm, "Then let's head back now and check out Qinghai."
"I was planning to go to Qinghai myself, and since I don't have any friends with me this time, can I join you?" Ye Beichen asked.
"Of course," Lin Mo nodded.
He could tell that although Ye Beichen was from the Heavenly Sect, he was straightforward and much better in character compared to those three from Ouyang Xing, and Lin Mo wanted to understand more about the Heavenly Sect.
Along the way, Ye Beichen, who was cheerful by nature, shared quite a bit about the Heavenly Sect. Although the sect was mysterious, it was similar to the Mortal World with Sects everywhere, distinguishing between good and evil; Sects like Qingxuan Sect and True Fire Sect considered themselves Righteous Sects and were always in conflict with the Demon Clan and Demon Sect. However, due to their reclusive nature, these conflicts were minimal. With people from the Heavenly Sect venturing into the mundane world this time, some conflicts were likely to erupt.
"What 'Righteous Sect', 'evil heretics', everyone is just trying to enhance their cultivation and seeking a higher path. I've seen some so-called Righteous Sects do things even despicable than those 'evil heretics,'" Lin Mo disdainfully said.
Ye Beichen clapped his hands and laughed heartily, "Brother Lin, I feel like I have really found a kindred spirit. When we reach Qinghai, we must have a few drinks and a proper chat."
The three of them traveled by wind, and since they didn't need to search for the Miao Xue Divine Palace's base anymore, their speed was much faster. They reached Qinghai in less than half a day, and Ye Beichen pulled Lin Mo into a hotel room where they drank throughout the night.
Lin Mo also learned some things; the people from Heavenly Sect who had come out this time were all from the younger generations, and those 'Big Shots' seemed to want to leave the Heavenly Sect but faced many restrictions, needing to wait six months to a year before they could come out.
This confirmed Lin Mo's thoughts; those people within the Heavenly Sect cultivated behind closed doors, and the sects were all equipped with Arrays, so those with greater mana faced some limitations in leaving.
"Brother Lin, I have some matters to attend to. I'll look for you after I'm done. If I encounter Qing Xuan, I will definitely tell you," Ye Beichen left the hotel as dawn approached.
After sending off Ye Beichen, Lin Mo called Lu Xing and Yingzi to his room and distributed items from the Space Ring to them, instructing Lu Xing to take the items back to the Star Sect. Although these resources were of no use to him, they were a significant 'wealth' for the Star Sect.
"If Master Uncle knew that Sect Leader sent so many things back, he would definitely be very happy," Lu Xing's pretty face showed joy, "I will set off now, deliver the items to the Star Sect, and then come back to find you."
After Lu Xing had left, Lin Mo sat cross-legged in his room, his Divine Sense spreading throughout the city. He immediately detected several candle-sized flames. Those emitting such flames had to be extraordinary people, and it was very likely some of them were from the Heavenly Sect.
"But even if I find Meng Die now, how could I convince her to believe what I say?"
Lin Mo heaved a sigh and put that thought aside for the time being, taking out the True Fire Fruit from the Space Ring. The fruit, about the size of an apple, blazed with flames and emitted intense heat.
Lin Mo swallowed the fruit in one gulp and immediately sat down to cultivate.
A flame seemed to burn in his stomach, making him feel like his whole body was about to ignite. If Ye Beichen were to see this scene, he would probably be terrified.
The True Fire Fruit wasn't considered a top-tier Spirit Fruit, but it was extremely rare and precious, growing in extremely hot places and accumulating a mass of Fire Element, giving birth to such a fruit. It needed to be slowly refined and absorbed, unlike Lin Mo's violent approach of directly swallowing the True Fire Fruit, treating himself like a Pill Furnace.
After forging his body in the Starry Sky Tower, every part of Lin Mo's body was tempered, as tough as steel, which was why he dared to swallow the True Fire Fruit directly. If it were anyone else, they would probably have been turned into ash by the flames of the True Fire Fruit by now.
Lin Mo gathered Spiritual Energy inside him, constantly absorbing and stripping the Fire Element from the True Fire Fruit. Gradually the fruit shrank, and its essence was completely absorbed into his body.
Not knowing how much time had passed, when Lin Mo opened his eyes again, he had completely absorbed the True Fire Fruit. Although he had not reached the Small Success Realm of the Fire Attribute, he could clearly feel that the Fire True Yuan inside his body had condensed further.
"I can go out now," Lin Mo extended his index finger, a brilliant orange flame igniting at the tip, containing energy that seemed capable of burning everything.
The flame at his fingertip extinguished, and then Lin Mo left the hotel.
"Master, where are we going?" Yingzi followed him closely as they emerged into the night, surrounded by streams of vehicles and neon-lit buildings.
"To the Jia Auction House!"
Lin Mo smiled faintly; he had already noticed that around the Jia Auction House, many Magic Users had gathered, including several strong 'souls' that were likely from the Heavenly Sect.
Although the people from the Heavenly Sect were powerful, with several Late-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators capable of destroying a modern city, the Heavenly Sect still had to consider the deterrent of modern weaponry, which only those above the Innate level could withstand should a real conflict break out. Big-nation states also wouldn't fear the Heavenly Sect.
(The wonderful story continues tomorrow.)