"Unbeknownst to me, I've already collected so many..."

The middle-aged man chuckled softly, leisurely hanging the three masks in his hand on the wooden rack, then nodded in satisfaction. With a wave of his sleeve, he put the wooden rack away.

After stowing it away, the middle-aged man didn't immediately move. Instead, he flipped his hand and took out a golden, hollowed-out disc, tossing it in front of him.

As the disc flew out a few feet, it immediately shimmered with light, expanding to the size of a round table. Various complex runes on it lit up, and a dazzling golden light emerged from the center, like a towering pillar, shooting straight into the depths of the sky.

Before long, specks of spiritual light gathered around the golden disc, gradually revealing three blurry figures, their bodies overflowing with golden light, making it impossible to discern their original appearance.

"Gongshujiu, weren't you inspecting the Underworld Frost Immortal Abode? Why are you contacting us so suddenly?" One of the figures, its shoulder slightly trembling, asked.

The other two figures also turned to look at the middle-aged man.

"Gan Jiuzhen is also in this immortal abode at this moment," the middle-aged man named Gongshujiu said slowly.

"Are you sure it's her? This woman's identity in the Samsara Palace is extremely mysterious. Even this name, Gan Jiuzhen, may not be real. Moreover, she frequently changes her masks. How can you be sure it's her?" The first figure shuddered slightly and asked.

"I don't have concrete evidence to prove it, but judging from the memories of several No Constant Alliance members I just killed, the 'Jiaosan' who led the group into the Underworld Frost Immortal Abode this time acts very much like this woman, Gan Jiuzhen," Gongshujiu shook his head and said.

"If that's the case, then we'll have to trouble Fellow Cultivator Gongshu to capture her alive. The secrets she holds are worth digging into," the figure on the left side of the disc leaned forward slightly, a smile in its tone.

The middle-aged man nodded silently. Just as he was about to put away the golden disc, he suddenly remembered something and added, "By the way, I also discovered that someone in this immortal abode has used the Refining Spirit Forbidden Art. It seems they have cultivated it to at least the third level."

"I didn't expect that even after so many years of prohibition, there are still people who recklessly defy the ban. This person does not need to be captured alive, but can be executed on the spot," the figure who had been silent all along suddenly spoke, his voice stern.

Gongshujiu nodded. With a wave of his sleeve, the golden disc's light converged, shrinking to its original size and shooting back into his sleeve.

Then, he rode the Emerald Jade Flying Chariot into the sky, streaking straight in one direction.

...

In another area far away, high in the sky,

Han Li and Jin Tong were flying rapidly when they suddenly stopped, gazing in a certain direction.

"What's wrong?" Jin Tong asked, puzzled.

"Just now, I seemed to sense an extremely powerful fluctuation over there, piercing through the sky. Now, it seems to be gone again," Han Li said, shaking his head after looking for a good while.

"Powerful fluctuation... Wouldn't we know if we went over to take a look?" Jin Tong revealed a hint of excitement, eager to try.

"Don't go looking for trouble. We're bound to encounter powerful enemies later," Han Li naturally knew what she was up to and shook his head.

"Boring," Jin Tong pouted, disappointed.

Han Li glanced over there again, his brow furrowed, and continued to flee with Jin Tong.

...

Inside a well-preserved palace complex, four men and women dressed in Azure Stream Palace attire were each urging a treasure, working together to break a restriction outside a palace.

Just as they were about to succeed, an ancient mirror hanging in the center of the palace's lintel suddenly flashed with spiritual light, shooting out a snow-white light that instantly struck one of them in the chest.

With a cry of agony, a round hole instantly opened in the person's chest, and they fell backward.

With a "bang,"

A burst of azure light exploded, and the breaking formation that the four had jointly set up instantly collapsed.

The white-faced scholar leading them swayed and came to the side of the fallen person. He flipped his hand and took out a golden pill, giving it to the person to take. He then used his own immortal spiritual power to guide it, helping to unleash its medicinal power.

Soon, the person's chest healed, bones rejoined, flesh regrew, and returned to its original state, but they were still panting heavily.

Seeing this, the others breathed a slight sigh of relief, but still frowned.

"We've lost contact with Palace Master and the others for more than half a month. We can't continue to be trapped here. We must immediately break through the formation and leave. Perhaps Palace Master and the others have already found that place," the white-faced scholar said with a solemn expression.

"Yes," the other three quickly responded.

After resting for a while, they rearranged the breaking formation.

...

Inside the Underworld Frost Immortal Abode, on a scorched mountain ridge covered with wisps of white smoke,

Dozens of feet underground, there was a deep underground palace with a wide black stone chair inside. Seated on it was a tall man in a gray robe, his face pale purple and haggard, who was none other than Feng Tiandu, the Grand Elder of the Fuling Sect.

At this moment, black boulders were scattered all over the ground in front of him, seemingly the remains of the puppets that originally guarded the palace.

Feng Tiandu stared gloomily at the remains on the ground, wrinkles crisscrossing his face and muscles clearly visible, making him look even more like a hideous zombie.

Just then, footsteps sounded outside the palace, and a thin man, also dressed in a gray robe, walked in from the outside. His only remaining eye looked at the man on the stone chair and bowed to him.

"Senior Brother, the people you brought in have all been dispersed. Two teams are temporarily out of contact, and the remaining people are still searching. They haven't found the Great Beginning Palace yet," Qi Tianxiao said.

"Do you have any news about the people from the Immortal Palace and the Azure Stream Palace?" Feng Tiandu raised his eyes to look at him and asked.

"There is some news, but it was only gathered yesterday and delivered today. The people from the Immortal Palace and the Azure Stream Palace are doing much the same as us, having dispersed their forces. It seems they don't have any clues either," Qi Tianxiao said.

"According to estimates, there are still some days before the Celestial Furnace opens. If we can find its location first, we can arrange measures in advance and take the initiative," Feng Tiandu said in a deep voice.

"Senior Brother, rest assured, I will pay attention to the movements of all parties at any time," Qi Tianxiao said with cupped fists.

...

On a barren red earth wasteland devoid of life, two tall men dressed in Southern Li clan attire were rapidly flying in the sky, each holding a golden cane.

Behind them, three men and women dressed in Ghost Cry Sect attire were closely following, in fact, they were cultivators from the Ten Directions Tower.

For some reason, these two parties had not clashed. Instead, it seemed that the three were chasing after the two in front.

The two tall men flying in the lead had sallow faces and wooden expressions, looking like puppets. They didn't say a word along the way, but just buried their heads and hurried on.

After flying for half an hour, the group finally saw a red earth ruin resembling a city at the end of their vision and quickly accelerated towards it.

...

In the Underworld Frost Immortal Abode, a hilly area with undulating mountains, interspersed with valleys of varying depths,

Some were lush with greenery, some had rivers and rugged rocks, some were narrow and cramped like a line of sky, some were filled with miasma like a poisonous fire valley... each with its own unique form.

Among them, in the middle of the mountains, there was a small valley that looked unremarkable. It had no strange rocks or miasma, no dense forests or valleys, and even its height was three points shorter than the adjacent valleys on both sides.

Inside the valley, three figures were gathered together, whispering to each other.

At this moment, the expressions on each of their faces seemed a bit solemn.

Of the three, the leader was a middle-aged man in a purple robe with a square face and fine eyebrows. He had a unique temperament, combining elegance and dignity, who was none other than Ouyang Kuishan, the Golden Immortal Dao Lord of the Candle Dragon Dao.

"Fellow Cultivator Ouyang, we previously spread the location of the Underworld Frost Immortal Abode entrance, which has already aroused the suspicion of the Immortal Palace. If we inform Huyan Daoist and the others in advance this time, I'm afraid the Immortal Palace will confirm our crime of betrayal," one of them said.

"What does it matter if we have this crime now? How many of the things that the Immortal Palace promised us have been fulfilled? We are now openly laughed at by the entire Northern Cold Immortal Territory as 'traitors to both families', and secretly constrained by the Northern Cold Immortal Palace everywhere. It would be better to have fought to the death in the beginning," Ouyang Kuishan said slowly, a trace of sorrow flashing across his face.

"In the beginning, we had no choice but to betray Dao Lord Baili for the sake of the Candle Dragon Dao's continuation. After all, that was the sect we developed with half a lifetime of effort. Now that we've ended up like this, we can't blame others for laughing at us behind our backs," another person said with a wry smile.

"After this experience, I have completely understood that in this Northern Cold Immortal Territory, only when one's own strength is strong enough will one not be left and right by others' destiny. This time can also be regarded as an opportunity. These major forces in the Immortal Territory are all mixed here. We don't need to be the early birds. As long as we stir up the water and let the Northern Cold Immortal Palace suffer a few losses in this muddy water. As long as their strength is reduced by one point, their control over us will be weakened by one point," Ouyang Kuishan said, a gleam of light flashing in his eyes.

"That's right, anyway, we're just telling Huyan and the others, and the Immortal Palace won't be able to find evidence to prove that we revealed it," another person immediately echoed.

After the plan was decided, the three simultaneously took out an octagonal bronze formation disc. When they were pieced together in the center, the Candle Dragon totems engraved on them simultaneously lit up with crimson light.

Deep in the valley, a water-like light membrane concealed the void inside the valley, rippling with waves, blurring vision and making it impossible to see the scene behind the light membrane clearly.

...

Below a sky with low-hanging leaden clouds stood a blue-black thousand-foot peak.

Near the top of the peak, there was a spacious cliff. Xiao Jinhan, dressed in a white robe, stood on the edge of the cliff, letting the mountain wind blow his clothes, looking into the distance with a complex expression.

At this moment, the only person by his side was a beautiful woman dressed in a blue palace dress, who was naturally Xueying, the Vice Palace Master of the Northern Cold Immortal Palace.