Four guards followed closely behind Ning Zhuo.
Among them were two in the qi refining stage and two in the foundation establishment stage, all of whom had been sent by the Ning family to protect Ning Zhuo.
Ning Zhuo was now extremely important, as his support in exploring the Lava Immortal Palace was invaluable to the Ning family.
The family's regard for him was evident from the presence of these four guards.
Instead of returning home directly after leaving the family residence, Ning Zhuo visited several shops, purchasing a large quantity of specialty bricks, formation disks, and other materials for setting up formations.
The four guards, observing his actions, exchanged whispered messages.
"It looks like Ning Zhuo is planning to set up his own cultivation chamber."
"Such chambers offer decent protection and can shield against divine sense. How are we supposed to keep watch over him? Using artifacts would be too conspicuous."
"We should report this to the Young Clan Leader."
"Though, to be fair, this kid is pretty wealthy."
"He's the Young Clan Leader’s favored one right now, and he’s backed by resources from the three allied families. Naturally, he’s well-funded."
After making his purchases, Ning Zhuo spared no expense and hired a formation master to arrange the chamber.
By afternoon, a small newly constructed compartment had been added to his bedroom, with walls entirely of stone bricks and a stone door that could be controlled with spiritual power, allowing it to open and close with ease.
However, as the formation was not yet fully set up, the compartment didn’t offer much defensive power.
Two of the qi refining stage guards patrolled the outer courtyard, maintaining vigilance inside and outside the small courtyard.
Meanwhile, the two foundation establishment guards took their positions—one concealing his presence, while the other guarded the rear door, eyes closed in apparent rest.
As night deepened.
Ning Zhuo opened his eyes, rose quietly, activated a switch, and entered the underground workspace.
"Young people," remarked one of the foundation establishment guards with a knowing smile as he slowly opened his eyes.
In the workspace, Ning Zhuo, visibly tense, checked a few spots around the room, ensuring nothing had changed.
These were part of his detection measures; any external intrusion would likely trigger some visible signs.
Finding everything in order, Ning Zhuo exhaled in relief, his tension easing as he relaxed fully.
He wandered around, touching this and that, as if enjoying the comforting safety of his nest.
After a brief rest, he rose and pulled a meditation mat from his storage pouch, placing it at the center of the room.
Sitting cross-legged on the mat, he took out several bottles of pills, setting them before him.
The mat and pills made the two foundation establishment guards watching feel a tinge of envy.
Though Ning Zhuo was only in the qi refining stage, he was now a prominent figure in the reformation team of the three allied families, receiving substantial resources.
Before beginning his cultivation, Ning Zhuo took out a white handkerchief from his chest.
The handkerchief was as white as snow, soft in texture, and bore no pattern.
He infused it with spiritual power.
Gradually, clouds of white mist emerged from the handkerchief, enveloping Ning Zhuo in a thick shroud.
The two foundation establishment guards frowned simultaneously.
"Isn’t this the Floating Cloud Cloak?"
"Yes, it’s an artifact well-known in the Flying Cloud Kingdom."
"How does Ning Zhuo have one?"
"It could be his mother’s keepsake. Don’t you remember? The records say Ning Zhuo's mother, Meng Yaoyin, was from the Flying Cloud Kingdom."
"Oh, I remember now! That must be it. But what should we do now? We can no longer observe his cultivation state."
"The Floating Cloud Cloak’s concealment ability is quite strong, which is why it’s so renowned."
"Doesn’t matter. Our main task is to ensure Ning Zhuo's safety, not to monitor him. Of course, we’ll report this by morning."
Ning Zhuo had planned carefully, preparing for various contingencies.
As the two foundation establishment guards speculated, this Floating Cloud Cloak was indeed his mother’s keepsake.
With this artifact, the floating clouds provided exceptional concealment.
With the cloud cover, his cultivation state would be well-hidden.
Even if someone with Heaven-Piercing Eyes observed him, the clouds would deplete rapidly, giving Ning Zhuo ample warning and time to adjust.
Naturally, there was still risk.
In the world of cultivation, countless talents and techniques existed, and it was possible that some ability could pierce through the cloud, observe Ning Zhuo’s true state, or bypass the cloud’s reaction.
Ning Zhuo was aware of this.
But as he often told himself—he had no choice but to proceed. He had done all he could.
The strength and resources of the four allied factions allowed their reformation team to progress rapidly in cultivation, rendering Ning Zhuo’s previous deterrent measures obsolete.
The constant investigation from Zhu Xuanji also added significant pressure.
Ning Zhuo had to seize every opportunity!
Defense could only last so long.
No matter how meticulously he’d built his defenses over the past decade, they would eventually crumble.
He had to claim the Lava Immortal Palace before anyone else!
Therefore, taking risks in these matters was necessary.
He began refining his blood with the Demonic Blood Vein Technique.
He channeled spiritual power with the Five Elements Qi Regulation Technique.
He honed his divine sense with the Mirror Platform Spirit Communication Technique.
Rotating between these three cultivation techniques, he consumed various costly and rare pills one after another.
Even the mat beneath him was a supplementary artifact provided by the three allied families to accelerate his cultivation.
Progress across all three techniques was visible to the naked eye.
"There's no issue with the cultivation techniques."
"But I can’t practice any of the spells, nor the nascent divine ability."
Whenever Ning Zhuo thought of the Life-Hanging Thread divine ability, his fingers itched to test its effects.
But in his current situation, he could only exercise patience.
At the summit of Fire Persimmon Mountain, amid thick clouds, Meng Chong was also cultivating.
Suspended in mid-air, he appeared to be in deep sleep with his eyes closed.
The current Fire Persimmon Immortal City Lord, Meng Kui, hovered above him, his hand resting on Meng Chong's head.
Meng Kui activated his spiritual power, channeling his essence energy into Meng Chong.
Meng Chong, his own grandson, shared the same bloodline, allowing him to absorb Meng Kui’s essence naturally.
Under this infusion, Meng Chong’s sunken eyes and protruding cheekbones gradually filled out, his recovery visibly rapid.
Meng Kui, however, grew noticeably weaker.
Despite being a nascent soul cultivator, Meng Kui, as a spiritual cultivator, had devoted little effort to his physical form.
Of course, a nascent soul cultivator’s body was naturally more robust than that of most golden core body cultivators.
The main issue lay in the substantial loss of energy.
Meng Kui’s essence blood underwent multiple layers of refinement, allowing only a small fraction to be absorbed by Meng Chong.
While the energy loss was enormous, this ensured that Meng Chong’s essence blood remained exceptionally pure, free of any foreign impurities.
Meng Kui hadn’t wanted to resort to this, but he had no choice.
He knew that the three allied families had made substantial progress in exploring the Lava Immortal Palace.
Meanwhile, Meng Chong was still stuck in Room Three, unconscious.
Thus, he had to act.
"Meng Chong, my grandson, you are destined to be the new master of the Lava Immortal Palace. Hurry and awaken!" Meng Kui communicated.
Meng Chong slowly opened his eyes, "Grandfather, I…"
Meng Kui instructed him to continue resting and focus on recovery.
A cultivator’s essence, energy, and spirit were their three treasures.
Meng Kui replenished Meng Chong’s essence until it was completely restored before stopping.
His face had paled slightly, and his gaze dimmed.
Freed from Meng Kui’s hand, Meng Chong began recounting his experiences in Room Three.
Meng Kui couldn’t imagine that the Golden Blood Battle Ape Dasheng was a trap laid by a rival.
Stroking his beard thoughtfully, he said, "Your martial techniques and the mechanical ape lag considerably behind. Even with special training, it will take much time."
"Time is of the essence, and you must gain the upper hand!"
"I have a method to help you close the gap swiftly, though it may be painful."
Meng Chong was delighted. "Grandfather, your grandson doesn’t know the meaning of pain! What’s the method?"
"Lightning strikes," Meng Kui replied.
Meng Chong blinked, "What do I strike?"
Meng Kui shook his head, "You will be struck."
"What?"
As Meng Chong started to speak further, a sudden thunderclap rang out, and a flash of blue light appeared in the clouds.
Meng Chong was struck hard by the lightning, left dazed.
His entire body turned blackened, his hair stood on end, and wisps of smoke rose from him.
Boom, boom, boom…
Thunder continued to rumble through the clouds.
Gritting his teeth, Meng Chong endured the strikes, repeatedly visualizing the image of the Golden Blood Battle Ape Dasheng in his mind. "I will master this. I will regain my honor!"
At the Ning residence.
Ning Xiaohui was undergoing special training.
She plunged both hands into a basin filled with ice.
A bone-chilling cold seeped into her, turning her face pale and causing her to shiver uncontrollably.
"Hold on, Xiaohui," her grandmother said sternly, offering encouragement.
"Your innate talent, the Icy Jade Palm technique, is the best way to counter Ning Zhuo."
"Ning Zhuo’s talent has yet to be assessed, and even if it’s evaluated, there may be no mature methods to fully develop it."
"You, on the other hand, are different. Your Icy Jade Palm technique has been cultivated multiple times within our family."
"This is the advantage of family heritage."
"Sharing the same bloodline, we practice similar techniques and consume similar resources."
"Our ancestors developed numerous methods for cultivating the Icy Jade Palm."
Ning Xiaohui nodded firmly. "I understand, Grandma. The Icy Jade Palm has always been my greatest advantage."
"Once my training is complete, Ning Zhuo will be nothing to worry about."
At the Zhou family.
Zhou Zeshen was connected to various tubes, with medicinal liquid flowing continuously into his body as he cultivated.
At the Zheng family.
Zheng Jian trained diligently with mechanical puppets, fully absorbed and completely focused.
The battle over the Lava Immortal Palace had already moved past its opening stages into an increasingly intense phase.
Late at night.
Yuan Er tossed and turned, unable to sleep, feeling restless and uneasy.
Since Yuan Dasheng’s passing, he felt an emptiness in his heart every night, a profound lack of security.
"Why hasn’t Uncle Dasheng’s mechanism been completed yet?"
"Tomorrow, I’ll go and find Ning Zhuo!"
Inside the Lava Immortal Palace.
The Golden Blood Battle Ape Dasheng waited quietly in Room Three.
When dormant, it was indistinguishable from the stone and bricks surrounding it.