After figuring out these two things, Lu Xuan finally turned his attention to what he cared about most: that strange spiritual fire.
This flame stood apart from the other two, clearly not belonging to the same series. The fact that it was a special spiritual fire that only burned the physical body left Lu Xuan somewhat puzzled.
He tried various methods to test the nature of the flame, but he could never determine its true nature. It was completely different from all the spiritual flames Lu Xuan had ever seen. Lu Xuan couldn't even be sure if its spirituality was the same as his understanding of spirituality.
Lu Xuan spent a full month writing it, but he didn't get any useful information. In the end, he could only seal it away and wait for other clues to appear.
At this moment, Lu Xuan received a message that forced him to leave seclusion ahead of schedule.
"Please explain in detail what exactly happened."
"Reporting to the Sect Master, ever since the last incident at the Heavenly Emperor's Treasury, the sect has been sending disciples to patrol and monitor the area around the Death Swamp. However, two of our disciples went missing two days ago."
"What disciples?" Lu Xuan asked for a reason. The outer disciples of the Hidden Immortal Sect were responsible for various tasks, including gathering spiritual herbs, collecting spiritual metals, searching for mineral veins, tracking spirit beasts, and so on. The disciples guarding the area around the Death Swamp also shared these responsibilities.
"They were two disciples who specialized in tracking spirit beasts. Two days ago, they reported that they had found a white deer with extremely high spiritual power and were trying to capture it. But then there was no further news."
"Didn't I strictly forbid them from entering the depths of the swamp?"
"According to the disciples over there, the two of them have always been very obedient to orders, only operating on the outskirts of the Death Swamp. But this time, for some unknown reason, they suddenly lost contact. They didn't even send out any distress signals."
Lu Xuan fell into deep thought after hearing this. The fishmen of the Death Swamp had become even more active after being alerted last time. They would actively ambush cultivators entering the swamp. However, the disciples of the Hidden Immortal Sect were specially trained in this regard. Even if they were overwhelmed by a large number of fishmen, they wouldn't be unable to send out a distress signal.
When Lu Xuan first encountered those fish-men in the swamp, he knew they were definitely under human control. He initially thought they were there to prevent the fish-men from wreaking havoc in the Central Plains from the west. However, he later discovered that they didn't leave the swamp; they merely remained within it.
This led Lu Xuan to speculate that something might exist deep within the swamp. The fish-men's existence wasn't for attacking the inland areas, but rather as a special defensive line.
Just as Lu Xuan was pondering, another disciple came to report the news.
"Reporting to the sect leader, there is a rogue cultivator outside requesting an audience. He claims to be an old acquaintance of the sect leader from the Death Swamp."
Upon hearing this, Lu Xuan immediately thought of the three people he had saved back then.
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Chapter 443 Incense Valley
Lu Xuan wasn't particularly concerned about what Burning Incense Valley was plotting. However, it was a different story when it involved his disciples. He had no choice but to intervene now.
As expected, the newcomer was one of the three rogue cultivators he had rescued in the Death Swamp.
"Greetings, Sect Leader Lu." The newcomer's voice trembled slightly, and he was having difficulty breathing, clearly indicating that he had suffered extremely serious injuries.
"What happened? I remember you followed me all the way to the edge of the swamp. How did it end up like this?"
"Sect Leader Lu, we have encountered a colossal secret. Two of my companions have perished as a result. I myself am severely injured. We beg Sect Leader Lu to do us justice!!"
"Let me explain in detail how I decided whether or not to get involved in this matter."
"Yes, this is what happened. On that day, we saw that we had reached the edge of the swamp and thought we were safe. Just then, Brother Cao found a spiritual herb. So we decided to gather some spiritual herbs and medicines on the outskirts. After all, we are a small family and it would be too much trouble for us to travel such a long distance. But we didn't expect that the swamp was full of valuable spiritual herbs. We became interested and decided to stay there for a few more days."
Lu Xuan understood their psychology well. He had actually noticed the spiritual herbs on the perimeter long ago, but their spiritual energy was far too weak for him to care about. However, for those independent cultivators and small sects, these were the main consumables in their cultivation.
"We stayed there for a full month, collecting enough spiritual herbs to last for several years. Nothing unexpected happened during that time. This made us feel safe, so we ventured a little deeper in."
"What's wrong? Did you run into a mermaid?"
"No, not a mermaid. A human cultivator."
Lu Xuan's expression changed slightly. With a wave of his right hand, a burst of spiritual energy swept across the man's body.
"You've been poisoned? Are you from the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect?"
“That’s right, it was them. They seem to specifically target rogue cultivators like us. They use a colorless and odorless spiritual poison. By the time you realize it, your entire spiritual power is locked. You can’t even speak, and you’re captured without any resistance. I have a family heirloom that happens to be resistant to the poison. That’s how I managed to escape.”
The information from that man revealed that not only Burning Incense Valley was involved, but also the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect. The name Ten Thousand Poisons Sect itself is terrifyingly sinister; nothing they do would surprise anyone. Now it seems they're also stirring up trouble behind the scenes.
Just like what Lu Xuan said to the Ghost King before. Everyone else is cultivating immortality, but you don't seek longevity or more powerful supernatural abilities. You spend your days scheming and plotting, your biggest dream being to unify the world. A cultivator, unifying the world? My foot! Who knows, some reclusive master might emerge from some hidden corner and, if they don't like you, just wipe you out in a flash.
At the height of the Demonic Cult's power, the Blood Refining Hall unified all its branches. They dominated the world, forcing the righteous sects to unite in a fight against them. But what was the ultimate consequence? The Blood Refining Hall's ultimate boss, the Black-Hearted Old Man, was killed by a rogue cultivator (the original owner of the Heavenly Jade Sword, the Withered Heart Hermit).
Over the years, Lu Xuan still couldn't fathom the thoughts of these villains. He could only say they were utterly unambitious. Because no one in this world had ever achieved true immortality or ascension, those cultivators who considered themselves at the top began to indulge in wild fantasies. It could only be said that these guys were incredibly unambitious. For thousands of years, apart from the witch Linglong, not a single cultivator had truly sought immortality. It must be understood that only through immortality could one possibly attain the Great Dao.
Most cultivators in this world treat cultivation merely as a means to an end. But people like Lu Xuan and Linglong see cultivation as a pursuit. There's a fundamental difference between the two. No wonder Lu Xuan can't understand their way of thinking.
Although the situation is still somewhat unclear, Lu Xuan has basically grasped the overall picture. Combining the plot from the original novel with the information he has now, Lu Xuan is able to draw a general conclusion.
Unsurprisingly, the instigator was Fenxiang Valley. They were inheritors of the Southern Frontier witchcraft tradition. And the master of Southern Frontier witchcraft was none other than Linglong. Fenxiang Valley couldn't possibly be unaware of her. Linglong's greatest achievement, or rather, her greatest failure, was creating the Beast God.
As a product of her immortality experiment, the Beast God could be considered both a success and a failure. It succeeded because the Beast God is indeed immortal. However, it failed because this method is almost impossible to apply to humans. Therefore, Linglong sacrificed her life to seal the Beast God.
Lu Xuan had always felt that the Beast God of this world had most likely surpassed that limit. If he were to truly get serious, he would be invincible in the entire world of Jade Dynasty.
The most likely reason for Incense Valley's ambitions is to covet the power of the Beast God. If they could control the Beast God, or even master the method of creating it, unifying the world wouldn't be impossible. Although Lu Xuan didn't know what use unifying the world would be...
“Beast God…” Lu Xuan uttered these two words softly. The rogue cultivator beside him naturally did not understand.
While Incense Valley is causing trouble in Southern Xinjiang, it seems that some kind of research is also being conducted simultaneously in the Death Swamp. The reason it hasn't been discovered for so many years is that the local sect, Ten Thousand Poisons Sect, is cooperating with them.
All of this began to pique Lu Xuan's interest. After all, the research on spiritual fire in the Heavenly Emperor's Treasury had reached a bottleneck. Lu Xuan felt that it was entirely possible to challenge the Incense Valley.
Thinking of this, he summoned Zhang Xiaofan and Lin Jingyu.
"You two go to Kongsang Mountain and find a place called Xiaochi Town. There's a hidden place called Black Stone Cave around Xiaochi Town. Go there and explore. If possible, rescue him."