"Speechless, do I look that fierce? Why do they run the moment they see me?"
Li Qingyun looked at the two cultivators cornered against the wall, saying with a face full of helplessness.
These two were a young couple, originally enjoying some clandestine activities by the moonlit flowers.
Suddenly, someone flew down from the sky, startling them both.
Then, upon closer inspection, seeing it was Li Qingyun, they were even more terrified!
In this Li Huo Palace ruins, it was already universally acknowledged that people would resort to any means to gain benefits.
Among the five hundred people who had entered, many had not yet broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage. Li Qingyun, as the only Golden Core stage cultivator, was essentially a dimensionality reduction attack; he was practically a god-killer and Buddha-slayer here.
Furthermore, Golden Core cultivators could fly, and their speed was not on the same level as others. How terrifying was that!
They couldn't fight him, and they couldn't escape!
Unexpectedly, they had dodged Meng Zibin and Chen Xiaohan, only to fall into the hands of Li Qingyun, who had just emerged from seclusion!
"Don't come any closer!"
Li Qingyun spread his hands and said helplessly, "Really, don't be nervous. I just came out of seclusion, and I don't understand many things yet. Tell me what happened during these past few months of my seclusion, and I promise I won't make a move."
"Swear on your Dao heart! We're all broke, we haven't grabbed anything. If you want to rob, go rob those powerful ones; we're just trash!"
"Alright, I swear on my Dao heart..."
"You can't get closer than three meters to us!"
"Okay, I won't get close."
After a prolonged tug-of-war, the two finally confirmed that Li Qingyun would not attack them.
After all, if he truly intended to act, he wouldn't need to say a word; he could have easily annihilated them.
Thus, Li Qingyun patiently gathered all the information that had transpired over the past few months.
"The old Taoist scammed people, his persona collapsed. He occupied the cultivation rooms using the Four Symbols Heaven-Shattering Array, tricking many cultivators who stumbled in..."
"Meng Zibin and Chen Xiaohan turned into malevolent stars, robbing anyone they encountered..."
"Meng Zibin chased Ah Wei for three days and three nights. Later, Ah Wei cooperated with the old Taoist, forcing Meng Zibin to retreat..."
"Zhang Xiaohu attempted to monopolize the opportunities in the Alchemy Hall but was pursued by thirteen Foundation Establishment cultivators. However, he managed to escape with severe injuries..."
"Boss Xue's alchemy rooms became increasingly popular, with people flocking there to learn alchemy..."
"..."
This was all the news that had spread within the ruins. One could hear it by asking around.
After months of scouring, the Li Huo Palace had little left. The remaining opportunities were all more deeply hidden.
Li Qingyun's mind stirred, and he asked, "What are Ah Wei and the old Taoist doing now?"
"We don't know! But they seem to have separated recently, wandering around randomly. We don't know what they're up to, and we don't dare to ask!"
"Alright, I understand. Thank you both for the information. I'll be taking my leave!"
Li Qingyun did not make things difficult for them and flew directly into the sky, leaving the area.
The couple hugged each other tightly, exhaling a heavy sigh of relief.
"Actually, Li Qingyun is quite reasonable compared to those malevolent stars, isn't he?"
"If it were that Meng Zibin, wouldn't we have already been robbed?"
"Meng Zibin is one thing, but I heard the woman beside him not only robs people but also poisons them. That's terrifying!"
"..."
In the storage ring obtained from the Supreme Elder last time, there was a mysterious map. Bai Nianchen determined it to be a hidden formation and then discussed with Luo Xiaowei and the others about illuminating all these points.
When hidden opportunities arose, it would be a matter of individual capability!
Although the Li Huo Palace ruins were small, finding all these points was a major undertaking. Doing it alone would waste a lot of time, so it was best to split up.
At this time, all the clearly visible opportunities had been found.
After finding them, it was time to digest these gains, enter seclusion for cultivation, and wait for the end of the time limit!
And that old fellow Bai Nianchen had set up formations around the entire cultivation room!
Initially, it was to trick people. After people entered, they would accidentally trigger a killing formation, and then Bai Nianchen would demand their storage rings before letting them leave.
Later, when no one fell for it, the guy actually started charging! Those who wanted to enter and use the Spirit Gathering Array to cultivate had to pay one top-grade spirit stone or other valuable items, and they could only stay for a month at a time.
At first, people were unhappy, but later they discovered that within this formation, not only were they protected from external disturbances, but they also enjoyed a spirit energy concentration many times higher than outside. Moreover, with a Innate Dao Body cultivating here, if they were lucky, they could even enter a state of enlightenment.
It was truly wonderful!
This was the fundamental reason why the old Taoist firmly held the top spot on the exploration leaderboard.
It didn't matter if his persona collapsed; it would collapse sooner or later. Once outside, the cultivators from Mount Longhu would surely help him spin the narrative in reverse.
"Here, insert the formation flags here, discretely, so no one discovers them!"
"Do I need you to tell me? Move a rock over to cover it, so others won't see it."
Luo Xiaowei and Qin Xiaoxiao were here, cross-referencing the map with the points marked by Bai Nianchen to set up the formation.
They didn't understand the Five Elements, Bagua, Feng Shui, or anything else. They could only roughly determine the locations based on the points on the map.
However, at this moment, Li Qingyun, who had emerged from seclusion, descended before them like a stream of light.
The two were immediately greatly surprised.
Luo Xiaowei directly drew his long sword, staring fiercely at the suddenly appearing Li Qingyun.
Qin Xiaoxiao also held a great axe in both hands, with a chilling aura attached to it.
This great axe was also a magic treasure found in the Alchemy Hall. Although it couldn't compare to Luo Xiaowei's [Candle Dragon Burning Heaven Sword], this item could at least boost combat power!
It was better than the giant hammer she condensed herself using ice.
When Luo Xiaowei asked her, "Can't you use a more ladylike weapon?"
Qin Xiaoxiao's answer was, "Using such a big and fierce weapon gives me a sense of security!"
Speaking of which, Li Qingyun finding them now greatly increased Luo Xiaowei's sense of crisis!
Li Qingyun did not expect that in just a few months of his seclusion, everyone had become so vigilant. The trust between people had vanished.
"Brother Wei! I really didn't intend to attack you. Have you ever seen me attack anyone?"
"I don't believe you! You, you, you... go find Meng Zibin! He's been a bandit, he must have more stuff than us!"
"But from what I've gathered, you guys seem to have done quite a bit of bad stuff too..."