Alm and Bruno knew the direction where Salamander’s true body was, but they couldn’t just waste such valuable resources. Unfortunately, the Yin of the area was connected to the formation; taking it could alert the enemies too early. Once they broke the seal, they wouldn’t have time to gather the Yin either—they’d be blocked.
However, the bones in the area were different. All their energy had already been consumed, and they weren’t connected to anything. Still, few would dare to touch them. Lansha, for example, felt immense danger just by getting close.
For cultivators with ordinary souls, any attempt would result in infection by the residual celestial karma within the bones. Alm and Bruno, however, ignored this risk. They opened the inventory and absorbed the bones without hesitation.
The sealed region spanned dozens of miles, resembling a desolate tomb—but an incredibly hot one. Millions of bones, of all sizes, were scattered across the area. At first, Alm and Bruno evaluated each piece, but they quickly realized it was a waste of time. All of them were from beasts, and beasts were naturally physically powerful. Even their immortal bones, no matter how worn out, would still be useful.
Acting like black holes, they collected dozens of complete skeletons per minute. After almost two days of nonstop work, they finally found something that made them stop and take a closer look.
"Celestial Poison Basilisk..." they murmured, sighing.
They’d fought a basilisk before. It had been at the peak of divine cultivation, and even then, it was a ridiculously tough fight. Imagining a creature of that species at the immortal level was a massive headache.
"Ruri, can you sense any spatial flow in the bones?" Alm asked, his expression serious.
Though the bones no longer contained natural energy, the deathly Yin still flowed through them, and there was a small chance that remnants of some law might remain.
Focusing, Ruri’s eyes widened. "Inside the bones! I sense dozens of spatial runes... they’re weak, but it’s incredible that they haven’t been destroyed."
Alm and Bruno grew excited. The laws of Space-Time were extremely hard to dissipate. After all, they constantly existed within the flow. It was like living in the sea: water laws permeated everything. Even after the death of a powerful sea cultivator, the essence of their laws would take ages to fully disappear.
The natural environment around them had helped preserve those high-level runes far more than expected. However, only a few remained now, almost completely destroyed.
"Carefully connect the runes. Can you restore them?" Bruno asked.
Confidently, Ruri puffed out her chest. "Leave it to me."
Using Alm and Bruno’s Qi, Ruri extracted the runes. Though it seemed like a complex task, she realized they actually fit together perfectly. With skill, she reconstructed the set surprisingly fast. Even Ruri, confident in her abilities, was startled by how easily she did it.
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Alm, noticing her surprised expression, commented, "You’re now above the heavenly laws because of your divine soul. Manipulating natural laws has become much easier for you."
Ruri grinned, excited, as she looked at them. Every moment brought a new discovery about the incredible powers of her divine soul. It still hadn’t fully sunk in for her—she could hardly believe she was now immortal and would live forever by their side.
Meanwhile, Alm and Bruno opened the space contained within those runes. The runes connected and revealed what they held: a sinister green liquid.
"Celestial Poison... excellent," Alm said with a dark tone.
The basilisk’s name wasn’t for show. Its poison was terrifying—a single drop could corrode meridians in seconds and reach the soul shortly after. At the immortal level, such poison would be devastating.
Though the amount they found wasn’t large, used correctly, it could be a terrifying trump card. Against an army of peak divine cultivators, a surprise release would be fatal.
Another day passed, but unfortunately, they didn’t find any more significant treasures. Still, they were satisfied with their haul: billions of complete immortal bones had been stored in the inventory. Though they didn’t have an immediate use for them, ideas were already forming.
Finally, they reached a massive mountain made of glowing, red-hot stones. Just touching it would be enough to melt someone at the peak of cultivation. The heat in the area was unbearable, but Alm and Bruno simply ignored it. Lansha, with her unshakable determination, also endured without showing weakness.
Mihkriel, on the other hand, seemed on the verge of collapse. Still, he took deep breaths while casting furtive glances at Lansha. That slender woman was radiant, her green skin glistening with sweat from the heat. Inspired by the sight of her, Mihkriel forced himself to maintain a firm posture.
Despite having recreated her body through metamorphosis, Lansha had faithfully replicated the original, including seemingly unnecessary details. She was the type who loved physically training to exhaustion; if she didn’t sweat, she’d feel something was missing. But her sweat wasn’t ordinary—it was infused with Qi, protecting her body from the fire laws while maintaining the sensation she cherished.
Paying no attention to the two of them, Alm and Bruno analyzed the mountain. It was hollow, and inside, the space was distorted. This was the center of the formation where Salamander was sealed.
With no visible entrance, Ruri split her soul and invaded the formation to analyze it. In less than a minute, the little spirit fairy waved her hand, opening a door in the mountain. The group quickly entered.
Inside, everything was dark and cold. The hellish heat stayed outside, as if they’d entered a completely different world. The place resembled a sealed tomb, where only the aura of death flowed silently.
The place stretched across a dozen kilometers, and ordinary people’s senses were completely nullified there. However, Salamander’s soul guided the way, so Alm and Bruno didn’t even need to use their own spiritual senses.
’There are a few hundred youngsters in here,’ Salamander explained. ’Outside, they’re accompanied by Elders as part of a resilience test. But inside, they’re on their own. The last group entered three days ago. The Elders, after bringing them, leave and usually return a few days later with another group.’
Alm and Bruno nodded. Up until this point, there was practically no security. Maybe it was because this place was hundreds of times harder to invade compared to Undine’s domain. They seemed utterly confident that nothing would go wrong; at most, all the youngsters would fail and die.
If everything went smoothly, they could steal and escape unnoticed. So, the group moved forward cautiously yet calmly.
Minutes later, as they navigated through the grim, dark environment, they heard slow, clumsy footsteps approaching. They stopped and observed a skeleton awkwardly walking in their direction.
’These belong to humanoid races or species without physical power. Their bones were brought here and reanimated by a necromancer,’ Salamander confirmed.
Millions of reanimated skeletons wandered across the vast area. Alm and Bruno studied the one closest to them. The quality of these bones wasn’t even 5% of the ones outside. Not worth collecting.
’An interesting test,’ Alm remarked. ’For any cultivator, these skeletons would be practically indestructible. Whether it’s a young cultivator or someone at their peak, the result would be the same. Likewise, a single strike from them would spell doom.’
Bruno nodded. ’Even so, the necromancer’s power invested in them is weak. They lack intelligence, Qi, or even the ability to move skillfully; they simply wander aimlessly and attack anything living that comes close. The test is for the youngsters to develop sharp senses and avoid contact at all costs. If they’re detected or surrounded, they’re done for.’
It was a high-level training method using low-value immortal bones. The goal was to hone the youngsters’ danger sense and instinctive intelligence, especially for those who didn’t fight in close combat and lacked that skill.
Alm scoffed, and the Yin tattoo in his soul glimmered for a moment. Instantly, the skeleton before them froze.
’Perfect. A mediocre necromancer created these. I’ll accept these fallen warriors as part of our arsenal. They’ll train the next generation, who will carry on their battles. Their deaths won’t be in vain,’ Alm declared calmly, activating his tattoo.
Immediately, he connected to the Yin of the skeletons, replacing the necromancer’s will with his own. The connection established effortlessly, and he summoned all the skeletons in the area.
"Let’s move," he said, storing the skeleton in his inventory.
The group headed toward the center of the area, with millions of skeletons marching toward them as fast as they could. One by one, they were calmly stored. Being external elements to the formation and created afterward, their removal wouldn’t alert anyone.
A few hours later, not a single skeleton remained. Since the area was vast, dark, and senses were muddled, the youngsters would take a while to notice. For now, they simply thanked their luck for not encountering any skeletons.
The group suddenly stopped, sensing a spatial barrier ahead. It marked the access limit for the youngsters, and beyond it was Salamander’s true body.
"I’ve understood this formation’s structure, master," Ruri said lightly before waving her hand.
A hole opened in the barrier, allowing them all to enter. They crossed without hesitation.
Inside, everything was bathed in an intense red light. A colossal fire rune shone like a divine sun before them, surrounded by strange chains and sealed by a powerful heroic force.
"Master, we don’t need to destroy it like before. Now that I’ve gained more experience with these formations, I can create a breach. All I need is to replace it with something similar, and we’ll have enough time to escape before the formation notices," Ruri explained.
Alm and Bruno nodded, impressed by Ruri’s efficiency. Having her by their side, now with a divine soul, was the best thing that had happened in a long time.
"This formation is different… They put in more effort and multiple defensive measures here, unlike the other one. It’s clear they did everything to prevent any possibility of failure," Ruri continued. "I even sense some powerful bodies left as defenses inside. That Elder’s wife must be here too. When I open it, master can rescue her."
They sighed in relief. The old man’s lack of reaction worried them, as did the fact they hadn’t found anything hinting at his wife’s presence.
Ruri took a deep breath, focusing. Moments later, she waved her hand, and the golden runes, along with the chains, loosened.
’Finally…’ Salamander murmured, clearly emotional.
Alm and Bruno opened their inventory. They had already crafted a replica of the fire rune with nearly identical fluctuations to place in its stead. It would take minutes to be detected, but that was enough for a clean escape.
Then, they waved their hands… and something shot out of the inventory!
*CRACK!*
Their eyes widened in shock. A branch emerged from the inventory, quick and sudden, piercing the immortal fire rune before they could react.
The sound of rupture came from the fire rune, disintegrating within seconds. Alm and Bruno felt, horrified, Salamander’s soul fragment vanish.
’He’s gone! That fucking tree!’ Bruno exclaimed.
*BOOM!*
A deafening explosion shook the area. A giant cage materialized out of nowhere, trapping the group completely.
Inside the cage, a skeletal figure emerged. It wore silver armor and held a broken spear. Its presence exuded a dense aura of death. The sheer gravity of its power froze them in place. They couldn’t breathe, paralyzed by the undeniable truth: this being wouldn’t let them escape.