Ye Qin shot away like a streak of azure light, breaking free from the chaotic mêlée in the treasure hall and surging towards the entrance of the fifth passage—the Earth Vault corridor. The entrance glowed with a hazy, yellowish light gate, emanating a soft radiance.

Huangfu Bing'er followed closely behind Ye Qin, arriving at the yellow gate.

Landing swiftly before the corridor entrance, Ye Qin paused for a brief moment, a thread of unease coiling in his heart.

He had no way of knowing what lay beyond that light gate.

Would it lead to the storeroom, filled with a dazzling array of treasures? Or would it conceal an ancient vault formation, fraught with peril and intricate mechanisms? Perhaps, even, it held nothing at all. After all, this was an ancient treasury left from the Immortal-Demon War ten millennia ago; after such an expanse of time, no one knew the true state of affairs inside.

Ye Qin had never favored taking gambles where the outcome was uncertain.

Yet, given the current situation, he had no choice but to venture forth.

Ye Qin tensed his nerves, clutching a dark, large token in his hand.

This ancient vault token, allowing one to claim several artifacts meant for Nascent Soul cultivators from within the vault, was an exceptionally hot potato. If he didn't leave the chaotic battle hall quickly, the Golden Core cultivators who failed to secure a token would certainly fix their sights on him, inviting immense trouble.

Before stepping into the Earth Vault passage, Ye Qin glanced back at the hall where cultivators were still fighting in disarray. He saw Grand Cultivator Cao, Sun Xing, and a few others rushing into the entrances of the vault's other chambers.

"Husband, are you concerned about what's inside the passage? Those disciples of Elder Xing Shang from the Heavenly Dao Alliance mentioned in the jade slips that holding these tokens allows one to retrieve treasures from the vault. Since they, with their Golden Core cultivation, could enter, so can we!"

Seeing Ye Qin hesitate before the yellow light gate of the Earth Vault, Huangfu Bing'er softly inquired.

"It shouldn't be a problem for the two of us to enter with the tokens. What worries me is the Cao clan. He holds the Number Two large token, which opens the Wood Vault. The Wood Vault stores countless spiritual elixirs, and Cao might acquire a supremely rare Nascent Soul Pill from there. If he manages to consume that pill and break through to the Nascent Soul realm, our chances of survival will be slim."

Ye Qin showed a look of vexation.

Back in the ruined great hall outside, he only knew these black tokens could open the vaults, but he hadn't known which token opened which specific chamber. That was why he had casually selected the Number Five token. Had he known the function of each token beforehand, he would certainly have seized the Number Two token first, ensuring the Cao clan never had a chance at the Nascent Soul Pill.

"Cao dodged the surprise attack from the Heavenly Solitary Deep Water Sword just now; that effort went to waste. Now that he and his two accomplices have entered the Wood Vault, it will be difficult to kill him. Let's enter the Earth Vault first. Once we retrieve our treasures, we can devise a plan to deal with him later!"

Ye Qin shook his head, putting the thought aside, and together with Huangfu Bing'er, they rushed into the yellow light gate.

Passing through a dazzling sheet of yellow light, Ye Qin felt a momentary vertigo. When he opened his eyes again, he found that he and Huangfu Bing'er were standing in a dimly lit, ancient corridor.

The passage was constructed of massive, incredibly hard bluestone blocks, appearing grand and austere.

Along both sides of the corridor walls hung lamps crafted from phosphorescent stones.

Even after ten thousand years, these lamps still emitted a faint, yellowish glow.

The moment Ye Qin entered this place, he sensed a dense concentration of Earth-elemental spiritual energy, at least ten times stronger than the outside world.

"Is this the passage to the Earth Vault?"

Ye Qin gazed ahead down the corridor, muttering softly.

The spacious Earth Vault passage was so quiet it was almost frightening.

Seeing no immediate danger, it paradoxically made him more vigilant.

It was impossible for a treasury passage like this to be entirely devoid of danger, allowing cultivators free passage.

Huangfu Bing'er scanned her surroundings with her clear, icy eyes. She noticed that the small token in her hand was emitting a yellow glow that enveloped her, and the same was happening to Ye Qin. She couldn't help but ask with a hint of confusion, "Perhaps because we hold the tokens, we haven't triggered the restrictions within the Earth Vault passage? Husband, have you ever entered the treasury of the Purple Sword Palace? Is their vault structured the same as this?"

"I have never entered the Purple Sword Palace treasury, only heard the Great Elder mention its layout."

Ye Qin surveyed the corridor, shaking his head. "However, the defenses—the guardians, formations, and traps—of every treasury will differ. What specific restrictions exist depends entirely on the locale."

He added, "In fact, I only chanced to see the Great Elder use this type of special black token once before. Otherwise, I wouldn't have known that these tokens could be used to enter the vaults."

"The Azure Pill Sect also has storage vaults, but they are completely different; they are guarded personally by our sect's ancestors, possessing no formations, allowing direct entry for item retrieval."

Huangfu Bing'er’s delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly.

"For now, we can only take things one step at a time. This passage should lead to the Earth Vault's storage room. While nothing seems unusual, we had best proceed with caution!"

Ye Qin considered the situation, feeling perplexed but lacking any concrete leads.

With that resolved, he summoned his five Primordial Spirit Flying Swords, which instantly arrayed themselves into the Grand Five Elements Sword Formation, five dazzling, sharp beams hovering powerfully around him. In his right hand, he held the minor divine artifact, the Ancient Thunder Mirror, and in his left, the large token.

Even the peak ninth-stage Silver Armored Guard and the late ninth-stage Rotting Bone Crocodile Skeleton Demon were released.

With no other cultivators present, and for maximum safety, Ye Qin had no need to conceal his true strength.

Huangfu Bing'er nodded, weaving her Ice and Fire Twin Swords into the Ice Fire Sword Array.

Furthermore, her top-tier fire artifact, the Rock Fire Butterfly Wings, was deployed.

She beat the massive wings on her back, clutching the Ancient Crimson Flood Dragon Sword and her small token, her feet lifting three feet off the ground as she floated lightly in the air.

However, the Earth Elemental energy within the vault was so overwhelmingly dense that controlling the Butterfly Wings felt abnormally heavy. The Rock Fire Butterfly Wings seemed burdened with tons of armor, their agility less than half of what it was in the outside world.

Together, their combined strength could contend with four peak ninth-stage Golden Core cultivators. As long as they didn't encounter a Nascent Soul expert like the Green Robe Ancestor, self-preservation should not be an issue.

"Let's go!"

Ye Qin nodded in satisfaction, pausing no longer. He and Huangfu Bing'er, accompanied by the Silver Armored Guard and the Rotting Bone Crocodile, moved toward the front of the Earth Vault passage.

This corridor was not a straight path but rather a corridor winding in a '' (return) pattern. Every thousand zhang, there was a sharp bend leading deeper into the Earth Vault. Fortunately, although the passage was shaped like a return character, it wasn't a maze.

Ye Qin walked cautiously for a good while when suddenly his body froze, his gaze sharp.

A few hundred zhang ahead stood a ten-zhang tall humanoid stone monster. It stood hunched over, arms crossed over its chest, motionless, as if slumbering. What was shocking was that the Earth Elemental energy around it was thousands of times denser than normal, emitting layers of yellow halo light.

The intensely concentrated Earth Elemental energy created an extremely potent sense of sluggishness, making even movement difficult.

"This is... a Stone Monster?! An Earth Elemental Stone Monster condensed purely from Earth Spiritual Energy! I heard that these monsters possess extremely long lifespans, being functionally immortal, growing stronger over countless ages as a type of monstrous spirit."

Huangfu Bing'er also descended from her flight, her eyes wide with astonishment.

Ye Qin was slightly taken aback, instantly assessing the monster's strength. "Based on its spiritual energy density, this Stone Monster likely possesses eighth or ninth-stage power—the strength of a late or mid-stage Golden Core cultivator."

The Stone Monster awoke from its slumber, stretching its frame with a loud crackling sound, rising to a height of twenty or thirty zhang.

It then stared blankly at Ye Qin and Huangfu Bing'er for a good while without reacting. It was likely that no cultivator had set foot in its territory for over ten thousand years, making them seem utterly unfamiliar.

However, intrusion into its domain was intolerable. It suddenly reacted, letting out a low, furious roar, and lumbered forward. In just a few heavy strides, it closed the distance to Ye Qin and violently swung a stone fist the size of a small mountain toward him.

If this punch landed squarely, even a cultivator wearing high-grade artifact armor would be crushed into bloody paste.

Ye Qin was mildly startled by the Stone Monster’s sudden aggression. He remained calm, raising his hand and forming hand seals in rapid succession. The five flying swords around him immediately formed the massive Grand Five Elements Sword Array and swept toward the Stone Monster.

"Bang!"

The stone fist clashed against the Grand Five Elements Sword Array. With one punch, it struck one of the flying swords. The array vibrated violently, its radiance dimming slightly.

Moreover, the large token in his hand now emitted an even stronger light, enveloping him in a strange protective shield.

Ye Qin’s previously taut expression relaxed.

This Stone Monster truly only possessed late-stage Golden Core strength; it could not breach the defense of the Grand Five Elements Sword Array. Such power meant it was no match for him and Bing'er. Even without the black token, he could have passed this obstacle.

"Go!"

Almost simultaneously, Huangfu Bing'er directed the Ice and Fire Twin Swords to shoot out, transforming into two arcs of rainbow light aimed at the Stone Monster.

The ice and fire swords struck the monster, creating a rapid succession of loud clang-clangs, scattering shards of rock.

"Hmph! This Stone Monster's defense is terrifyingly strong, comparable to an Earth Elemental Nascent Soul artifact!"

Huangfu Bing'er exclaimed in surprise. Even with the might of her Ice and Fire Twin Primordial Spirit artifacts, she couldn't severely injure the stone armor.

However, even though the Ice and Fire Twin Swords didn't inflict major damage, the frost from the ice sword coated the monster's armor, creating a layer of icy frost that made its movements and punches even stiffer and slower. When the fire sword's intense flame struck, fine cracks quickly appeared across the stone carapace.

The Silver Armored Guard’s eyes glowed red. It stomped forward, silver spear in hand, and stabbed at the Stone Monster. But the effect was minimal; one thrust only chipped away a gap the size of a fist. Ye Qin hadn't placed much hope in it anyway. As a puppet armor guard refined from magic-repelling materials, it possessed immense resistance but mediocre offensive power. Against a monstrous spirit with super-strong stone armor like this one, the Silver Armored Guard couldn't achieve much.

Simultaneously, the Rotting Bone Crocodile opened its jaws and spewed a ball of corpse fluid, splashing onto the Stone Monster and rapidly eroding its stone armor.

The Stone Monster thrashed about furiously, besieged by the coordinated attacks from the flying swords controlled by Ye Qin and Huangfu Bing'er.

Mid-fight, Ye Qin and Huangfu Bing'er even deliberately allowed the Stone Monster to strike the protective shields around them.

They discovered that every time the Stone Monster's attack hit the yellow shield, the power from the token instantly neutralized the impact.

"It seems these large and small tokens do possess protective capabilities!"

In less than half an hour, Ye Qin had cleaved the Stone Monster dozens of times with his sword strikes. With a loud shatter, the monster exploded into countless hard stone fragments scattered across the ground. The extremely dense Earth Elemental energy inside it then slowly dispersed into the air.

After dispatching the Stone Monster and recalling his swords, Ye Qin couldn't help but shake his head regretfully. "If this Stone Monster had survived another few thousand or ten thousand years, it might have reached Nascent Soul level strength. If it could be subdued, it would be an incredibly powerful monstrous spirit for guarding treasuries or cave dwellings, and its lifespan is frighteningly long."

"Using a Stone Monster to guard a dwelling?"

Huangfu Bing'er's eyes lit up, momentarily captivated by the idea, but she quickly shook her head. "I don't know how to subdue this kind of Stone Monster spirit. Moreover, a Golden Core cultivator only lives for a few centuries, and a Nascent Soul cultivator for just over a thousand years. These spirits count their lives in millennia. Before a low-tier spirit could grow into a high-tier one, the cultivator themselves would already be reduced to a pile of white bones. Unless we could capture a Nascent Soul level Stone Monster to guard the dwelling, but that difficulty is equally immense."

"Boom! Boom...!"

The corridor echoed with vibrations, and sounds of roaring, monstrous cries traveled from the passages in all directions.

"Something's wrong! There are... many Stone Monsters in this passage!"

Ye Qin and Huangfu Bing'er exchanged glances, their faces turning somewhat pale.

Judging by the thundering footsteps, there must be dozens of them. Even holding the tokens, they dared not engage such a large horde of Stone Monsters.