"Sect Master…" Qin Qingshan, who had been patrolling the sect, saw Ding Huan return and immediately came forward to greet him.
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Elder Liu also rushed over as soon as possible.
"Master." Mo Huaping called out excitedly.
Elder Liu was surprised to see not only Guan Pou brought back by Ding Huan but also her own disciple.
After introducing Sang Yuhe, Ding Huan then said,
"Sister Yin Zhu, take me to see where Elder He is in closed-door cultivation."
Upon hearing Ding Huan’s words, Elder Liu was startled and it took several moments before she asked,
"Ding Huan, you want to do it now…"
Ding Huan nodded; he simply had no time to waste.
"But, but…"
Even though Elder Liu had always been aware of Ding Huan’s plan, hearing that he intended to confront Elder He made her hesitate.
It wasn’t that she was worried about Elder He, but she was worried about Ding Huan.
Ding Huan said to Qin Qingshan:
"Steward Qin, go and rest with Guan Pou and Mo Huaping, while Elder Liu, Elder Sang, and I discuss some matters."
"Yes," Qin Qingshan responded promptly and hurriedly left with Guan Pou and Mo Huaping.
"Ding Huan, Elder He has perfected his Primordial Soul and has even half-stepped into the Void God Realm. You challenging him, this is…"
Elder Liu didn’t know how to finish.
She knew deep down that if Ding Huan couldn’t kill Elder He, staying here would be pointless.
Only then did Sang Yuhe realize that the prerequisite for Ding Huan’s plan to establish a sect in Purple Mist Valley was to kill a cultivator who had perfected his Primordial Soul.
She just looked at Ding Huan speechlessly, wondering what madness had possessed her to be tricked by him into coming to Purple Mist Valley.
Ding Huan did not explain; he knew that Elder Liu would understand the reasons.
"Let me take you there. How can I assist you?" Elder Liu ultimately sighed.
Her life was saved by Ding Huan, more than once. At this moment, she simply could not speak of leaving.
Sang Yuhe was also silently speechless; her life was saved by Ding Huan too.
Ding Huan shook his head:
"Your abilities won’t be of help to me, just lead me to the mountain where Elder He is cultivating in isolation."
Elder Liu led Ding Huan to Purple Creek Peak, the most remote peak within the Purple Mist Valley.
Upon arriving, Ding Huan could tell that the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi here was no weaker than at Dawn Peak.
"This is where Elder He is in secluded cultivation," Elder Liu said apprehensively as she brought Ding Huan to the outskirts of Purple Creek Peak.
"Sister Yin Zhu, you go back first. If anything happens to me, just say that you couldn’t control me at all, and it was beyond your ability."
Ding Huan was not confident in dealing with Elder He.
He had encountered cultivators of the Primordial Soul Realm before, but what level was Hao Wudao? He was far inferior compared to Elder He.
Moreover, Hao Wudao was on his last legs then, with only a tenth of his life force remaining, not even equal to an ordinary True Pill.
Because he was not confident, he had reluctantly bought the Hell Vine Seed.
Once Elder Liu left, Ding Huan carefully concealed his aura and began to survey the topography.
Purple Creek Peak, due to its remoteness, had no disciples or elders residing in the surrounding peaks.
Two sides consisted of cliffs sheer as if cleaved by a blade, and at the base of one side, there appeared to be a perennially flowing stream.
The other side was a sloping path leading up the mountain, which was the most normal path.
Ding Huan guessed that the stream was probably the origin of the name Purple Creek Peak.
The terrain here made it simple to set up a Killing Trap Array.
Ding Huan did not immediately set up the Killing Trap Array but continued to carefully observe the surroundings while concealing his aura.
He had only one chance, and it had to be flawless. Should he fail, death would likely be his only fate.
Ding Huan spent three full days scouring the outskirts of Purple Creek Peak.
During this time, to minimize his movements, he carefully concealed his figure and then executed the Extreme Shadow Jutsu.
Elder He must have had great confidence in the safety of his Purple Creek Peak and trusted his own arrays. Moreover, as he was about to attempt to ascend to the Void God Realm, he never released his Divine Will.
Indeed, his cave mansion was in Purple Mist Valley, and he was the highest-ranked and most powerful elder there.
Who would dare to seek trouble here unless they had the heart of a bear and the gall of a leopard?
Elder He’s Array Dao was indeed impressive. On the sides of the two cliffs, he had set up a fourth-level Defense Array, and there was also a Teleportation Array.
The level of the Teleportation Array was a bit low, only third-level.
Apparently, this was a contingency plan by Elder He; should any problems arise, he could leave immediately through the Teleportation Array from this location.
Although Elder He had set up all third and fourth-level Arrays, Ding Huan believed that Elder He’s Array Dao level was no lower than his own.
At least, he couldn’t set up a Teleportation Array.
On the fourth day, Ding Huan began to set up various Arrays.
First, he set up Killing Trap Arrays around Purple Creek Peak, and also added locking Array Flags.
Once his Killing Trap Array was activated, it would completely lock down the Teleportation Array set up by Elder He.
One Killing Trap Array was not very secure, so Ding Huan simply set up five Killing Arrays. He had enough Array Flags, and a few more Big Arrays just wasted some materials and time.
After setting up the Killing Trap Arrays, he moved on to setting up Illusion Arrays and Poison Arrays.
The poison used in the Poison Array was all taken from Ji Xinting in Hidden Sword Mountain, now used against Elder He.
Elder He might be at the perfect stage of Primordial Soul, but in terms of cultivation, he likely still lagged far behind Ji Xinting, even by several grades.
For the final step, Ding Huan concealed the Big Universe Pearl at the base of the Spirit Gathering Array, so as long as Elder He used the Spirit Gathering Array for cultivation, the poison fog would be swept away by Elder He.
This way, it wouldn’t seem abrupt, yet could utilize the poison fog effectively.
As soon as Elder He appeared, he would completely activate the poison fog within the Big Universe Pearl.
As for whether the poison fog would spread out, Ding Huan didn’t care even slightly. After all, he had placed Binding Arrays around the entire perimeter of Purple Creek Peak.
Having busied himself with these tasks, it was already the eleventh day since Ding Huan had stayed on the outskirts of Purple Creek Peak.
According to Ding Huan’s plan, he just needed to lie in wait on the outskirts of Purple Creek Peak and wait for Elder He to show up.
With Elder He’s cultivation level, it shouldn’t take long to discover that he had been poisoned from absorbing spiritual energy.
Ding Huan did not linger; instead, he calculated this matter, but the results were vague, and he always felt there was something odd.
If he had predicted his future facing a blank, Ding Huan would have left immediately. This wasn’t a matter to joke about as it concerned his life.
Ding Huan inspected the cliffs thoroughly, finding nothing unusual, completely engulfed by his Killing Arrays.
Could it be the little stream?
But that stream was crystal-clear, one glance with Divine Will should be able to clearly see anything; what could be wrong?
Thinking it unlikely there was anything wrong with the little stream, Ding Huan still came to it and carefully surveyed it again with Divine Will.
A day later, Ding Huan’s Divine Will had not detected anything, but his eyes spotted something different.
At the edge of the stream, some stones seemed differently arranged, invisible to Divine Will, but the eyes could faintly discern some vague pattern traces.
For such a situation, Ding Huan dared not be careless.
His eyes were fundamentally different from those of ordinary cultivators; his eyes had merged with the Eye of the Great Wilderness.
Though not yet fully developed, they could already see things others could not. In the great ravines, it had been of great use.
With Divine Will focusing again on the suspicious spot observed by his eyes, Ding Huan quickly realized what it was.
It turned out to be a Teleportation Array, and moreover, a natural Teleportation Array.
Natural Teleportation Arrays were exceedingly rare, and this one not only was natural but had extremely clear and layer-by-layer Array Patterns, most suitable for beginners to study.
Even if slow to catch on, Ding Huan now understood why Elder He could set up a Teleportation Array.
This guy must have learned it right here, no wonder Elder He didn’t want to leave Purple Creek Peak, maybe he worried that someone else might learn the Teleportation Array.
Be it in the Taoist Realm or the Ascension Realm, each Teleportation Array was incredibly difficult to come by.
They were set up by the top Array Dao masters of the Ascension Realm using a plethora of premium materials.
Now that Ding Huan had discovered a natural Teleportation Array, how could he possibly pass it by?
But before delving into perceiving this Teleportation Array, Ding Huan set up a bunch of trapping arrays and Forbidden Arrays that blocked teleporting around the outside of this Teleportation Array.
That wasn’t all; Ding Huan implanted the costly fifth-level Hell Vine Seed into the Array Core of this natural Teleportation Array.
After discovering this Teleportation Array, Ding Huan was nearly one hundred percent certain.
Elder He’s real escape route was not the various Teleportation Arrays set up at the cliff’s edge, but rather the least noticeable Teleportation Array in the stream right in front of him.
It cannot be denied that this natural Teleportation Array was the best tutorial material for learning how to set up Teleportation Arrays. In just half a month, Ding Huan had perceived the methods of setting up a Teleportation Array through the Teleportation Array Pattern.
After learning how to set up Array Patterns and Array Flags for the Teleportation Array, Ding Huan quickly left that Teleportation Array and hid in a Concealing Array he had set up.
Once Elder He tried to escape, finding him right by the edge of the Teleportation Array would surely arise suspicion.
He lurked again on the outskirts of Purple Creek Peak, focusing on studying the Teleportation Array.
Ding Huan was already a peak fifth-level Array Master, plus he had a wealth of theoretical knowledge of Array Dao. All he lacked was merely a key to unlock it…
Guided by the patterns of this natural Teleportation Array, it took him only a month to elevate his Teleportation Array setting level to the fourth level.
Just as Ding Huan planned to continue advancing his Teleportation Array setting skills to the fifth level, the spiritual energy in Purple Creek Peak suddenly began to swirl.
Ding Huan immediately stopped deducing the Teleportation Array and grasped the Separation Spear.
Elder He started to cultivate, and since he had started, the next step was to discover the poison fog contained in the spiritual energy he swept over.
Time slowly passed, and to Ding Huan’s surprise, the scene of Elder He sweeping up spiritual energy was growing larger.
Finally, at the peak of Purple Creek Peak, even a vortex formed.
Ding Huan was stunned; had this guy discovered the Tricolored Purple Lin Flower early and refined a Void Network Pill, preparing for Ascension to the Void God level?