The news that the Undying Tree would bear the Undying Elixir caused an enormous stir within the Hua Shan faction.

Upon reaching the eighth or ninth stage of Longevity, one needed to prepare for the Great Dao Realm breakthrough, a bottleneck notoriously difficult to pass.

Not to mention reaching the peak of Longevity, which demanded even more rigorous preparation.

When something appeared that could increase the chances of breaking through to the Great Dao Realm, everyone fought tooth and nail. Consider the previous occasion with the Great Dao Law Pill—so many people battled to the death, including the ten most formidable figures among the Ten Great Demon Elders. This time, however, an Undying Elixir was about to appear, one purportedly even more effective than the Great Dao Law Pill.

Naturally, this drew immense attraction.

The number of people whose intentions were stirred was countless.

Focusing only on North Peak, Fang Ru, Ye Yangrong, and Lu Yuan were greatly moved. Recalling that their assault on the subterranean world this time was almost a complete rout with little real danger, Fang Ru decided to go. Ye Yangrong also felt he stood a chance, and eventually, they simply let Chu Fei and Dugu Ye take the lead.

After all, several Great Dao Realm figures were already hidden within the crowd, ensuring that the North Peak contingent would face no serious problems.

Fang Ru smiled, "This time, I'll rely on Junior Nephew Lu for any necessary care." Lu Yuan nodded slightly, "Uncle Master Fang is jesting."

Currently, on the surface, Fang Ru appeared to be the highest combatant—Longevity Tenth Stage, plus the head of a peak. However, everyone knew that Lu Yuan was actually North Peak’s foremost visible combat power. During the battle when one hundred thousand demons attacked Hua Shan, he displayed terrifying strength, defeating seven Demon Elders single-handedly; his combat power had already surpassed Fang Ru's.

From East Peak, three Sword Immortals were also going: first, the Lone Sword Immortal Shi Chongtian; second, the Wellspring Sword Immortal Ling Luoshi; and third, the Miscellaneous Sword Immortal Ximen Luan, whom they had encountered at Repentance Peak. Including one other Sword Immortal, that made four in total. South Peak had the Great Mist Sword Immortal Mo Chuichui and the Spring-Plum Sword Immortal Nangong Hui, totaling three. West Peak had the Purple Haze Hundred Li Duan Qingzi and two other Sword Immortals, making three. And Middle Peak had only one: the Jade Sword Immortal Nangong Bi.

Including Lu Yuan, Hua Shan sent out fourteen Sword Immortals in total.

These fourteen were, at minimum, at the Longevity Ninth Stage, with many at the Tenth Stage. Oh, a separate note on the Lone Sword Immortal Shi Chongtian: he had already cultivated to the Half-Step Great Dao Realm, significantly boosting his power. While this offered no aid in breaking through to the Great Dao Realm, his combat strength had risen considerably.

Lu Yuan looked at the thirteen others besides himself and noticed they were all familiar faces from the battle when one hundred thousand demons attacked Hua Shan. Though they might not have exchanged many words, they at least knew each other.

Naturally, Lu Yuan perceived that the gazes these Sword Sect and Qi Sect members cast upon him were not entirely friendly. This was understandable: the Undying Tree would bear the Elixir, but there wouldn't be many Elixirs.

And Lu Yuan's combat power was absolutely immense. Any one of these individuals present was likely no match for Lu Yuan.

Thus, Lu Yuan was a formidable competitor. Lu Yuan shrugged, a gesture of resignation.

The group of fourteen then set off together toward the direction of the Undying Tree, which was some distance away.

"I told you, in Jin State, cultivators who wield swords are still the pinnacle of kingship; all other magic is mere trivial art," remarked a Sword Immortal from the Sword Sect.

"Man follows Earth, Earth follows Heaven, Heaven follows Nature; all things have a Way. This magic, naturally, is the Supreme Great Dao. The sword is a post-celestial object, thus following the acquired Way, not the Innate Way. To attain the Innate status, one must still pursue the Great Dao of magic," countered a cultivator from the Qi Sect. Qi Sect members often engaged in verbal sparring with Sword Immortals. Although Qi Sect practitioners utilizing magic shouldn't strictly be called Sword Immortals, the term had stuck out of habit; even those using spells were referred to as Sword Immortals. In Jin State, practitioners of the sword path were actually more numerous.

The Sword Sect and Qi Sect members continued their verbal spar.

Those from the Sword Qi Sect were naturally just tagging along, but even they got caught in unwarranted disaster, cursed by both sides for being proficient in neither sword nor spirit arts.

Alright, then came the tripartite squabble of the three sects.

In truth, everyone understood that regarding the current situation—seeking the Undying Elixir—cooperation meant mutual benefit, while division brought harm to both sides. If this were normal times, they might have simply tolerated each other, but recently the three sects were like fire and water, especially now that Chu Duan’s prestige was rising and the Sword Sect’s influence was growing daily.

In the end, they simply split up.

The three sects would each pursue their own path.

If they split, let them split.

Fang Ru, Ye Yangrong, and Lu Yuan headed toward the Undying Tree. During their journey, Ye Yangrong spoke, "I have researched this. The area around the Undying Tree is divided into two layers: Undying Earth Layer One and Undying Earth Layer Two. The Undying Tree is in Layer Two, and one must pass through Layer One to reach it. Furthermore, both Layer One and Layer Two of the Undying Earth are teeming with demonic beasts. Reportedly, the beasts in Layer Two are a strange breed of ancient demonic beasts, strange variants left over from the Ancient Era, extremely difficult to provoke."

As they spoke, a stretch of snow-white land appeared before them. This land was completely different from the rest; the soil elsewhere underground was pitch black, but this area was brilliant white. It was clearly not accumulated snow, yet it possessed a snowy texture, feeling extremely soft underfoot.

Ye Yangrong said, "Seeing this snow-white ground nearby means we have reached Undying Earth Layer One. Once we enter this area, numerous demonic beasts await." As the three prepared to step onto the white earth of Layer One, a group of more than ten Sword Immortals flew past nearby. These were not utilizing simple sword flight; many were riding strange beams of treasured light—one riding a blue-patterned bowl, another riding a monk's begging bowl. They were all using magical artifacts with relatively slow speed but extremely high defensive capabilities. Clearly, they were from the Kunlun Immortal Sect; only Kunlun cultivators would behave this way.

The leader of this group of Kunlun Sword Immortals was a cultivator in green robes riding a wheel of fiery light beneath his feet. This green-robed cultivator moved with the swiftness of the wind; he was the Half-Step Great Dao Realm expert of the Kunlun Immortal Sect, the Flame Light Sword Immortal Nie Chenfeng. He was also an unusual figure; reportedly, his offensive power wasn't high, nor was his defense, but his greatest advantage was that below the Great Dao Realm, no one was faster than him.

Moreover, this Nie Chenfeng held a grudge against North Peak of Hua Shan. He had once lost to the Elder Yuan Yuan, and he considered this defeat a great humiliation. Seeing Fang Ru, Ye Yangrong, and Lu Yuan this time, he couldn't help but sneer, "Oh, isn't this the people from North Peak of Hua Shan? Why only three? And one of them is a junior filling a spot." As soon as he spoke, the other Kunlun Sword Immortals immediately mocked, "Perhaps they think they can create a miracle."

"A mere North Peak of Hua Shan," the Flame Light Sword Immortal Nie Chenfeng laughed coldly at the three from North Peak, "Fang Ru, Ye Yangrong, Lu Yuan, is it? Remember this, if I run into you in the Lower Kun Domain or Undying Earth Layer Two, I will directly leave you severely wounded. Alas." Nie Chenfeng made no attempt to hide his intention to take revenge on North Peak.

Just as Lu Yuan was about to say something, Fang Ru raised a hand, stopping him. Fang Ru looked at Nie Chenfeng, "Brother Nie, if you can manage that, it will be your capability." Clearly disdainful of a verbal spat.

Nie Chenfeng laughed loudly, utterly arrogant, and led the Kunlun Sword Immortals away, already viewing Fang Ru, Ye Yangrong, and Lu Yuan as mere ants. He was powerful himself, and he had more than a dozen Sword Immortals backing him up, whereas the Lu Yuan group only had three.

Fang Ru, Ye Yangrong, and Lu Yuan entered Undying Earth Layer One. The ground was snow-white. In that instant, fiery crows flew in from the distance, swarming until they almost stained the sky ahead crimson. Fang Ru’s expression changed drastically, and he immediately drew his spirit sword, the Vast Spirit Sword, his entire body radiating a majestic aura.

Ye Yangrong's face also shifted: "These are Fire Crows, demonic energy composed of essence of Lihuo Fire. They are said to exist only in places near the sun; I never expected to find them underground. Senior Brother Fang, Junior Nephew Lu, be extremely cautious; we have reached a moment of life and death."

Ye Yangrong was not exaggerating with these words.

The strength of these Fire Crows was inconceivably formidable. Many were at Longevity Sixth or Seventh Stage cultivation, and the leaders could even reach Longevity Eighth Stage. While this level of magic power didn't sound excessive, there were over a thousand of them! Ye Yangrong calculated that dealing with a hundred would be his limit, yet over a thousand appeared at once.

Naturally, if they could slay these Fire Crows, the rewards would be immense. Each crow was a reincarnation of fire essence; upon death, they reverted to the state of Fire Spirit Stones, which were far more valuable than ordinary spirit stones. The Fire Spirit Stones yielded from Fire Crows at Longevity Sixth, Seventh, or Eighth Stage could pile up—immense treasure!

However, a thousand gathered together presented too much danger.

Fang Ru roared, "The three of us will form a triangle, each taking a corner to attack the enemy from the outside!" The triangular formation was one of the most common battle arrays in the cultivation world: three people occupy the corners of a triangle, back-to-back, meaning each person only needed to face the opponent directly in front of them. Clearly, Fang Ru felt the situation had escalated significantly, encountering such a massive flock of Fire Crows immediately upon entering the Lesser Kunlun region.

"Why make such a fuss? Just let me kill them." Lu Yuan laughed loudly, drawing his Yang Cultivating Spirit Sword. The Water Sovereign Sword Dao erupted instantly, manifesting endless, massive water swords that rushed toward the Fire Crows. A single sweep of the sword struck dozens of Fire Crows, turning them into pieces of Fire Spirit Stone.

The Water Sovereign Sword Dao was naturally not as potent here as it was in the sea, but since water naturally counters fire, even with diminished power, it was simple to deal with the Fire Crows.

Dozens killed with one sword!

This meant that dealing with over a thousand would take perhaps only twenty swings!

At that moment, Fang Ru stood frozen, and Ye Yangrong was stunned into silence.

They believed they were facing a moment of mortal peril, yet Lu Yuan resolved the situation so easily.

And he resolved it so casually.

An immense gulf of contrast!

They always knew Lu Yuan was very, very strong—his might was displayed during the battle when one hundred thousand demons attacked Hua Shan. But they had never cooperated with Lu Yuan before. Now that they were fighting alongside him, they realized the sheer depth of his strength.

It was far, far beyond what the two of them could comprehend! Powerful!