Thick black and white smoke billowed around the palace, with molten lava flowing slowly beneath it.
The palace, with red bricks and golden pillars, stood towering and magnificent, like an ancient giant lying in a river of heat from the molten lava, basking.
In the deepest part of the main hall, on a high-backed throne, lay a coiled little dragon.
This little dragon was entirely orange-red, as though condensed from lava, with streams of golden light flowing within it, majestic and extraordinary.
It had a dragon's head, dragon's tail, and four dragon claws, but the upper half of its body was that of a turtle. Its shell surface was covered in rough, red-brown rocky blocks.
The stones were spaced apart, with intersecting grooves forming a distinct grid-like turtle pattern.
This was the palace spirit of the Lava Immortal Palace — the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit!
At this moment, the resting Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit slowly opened its eyes.
It looked up, gazing towards the top of the palace.
The Lava Immortal Palace trembled slightly, assisting its vision to penetrate the roof, through layers of smoke and clouds, finally spotting a vague figure.
It was the Lord of Fire Persimmon Immortal City!
To avoid alerting the city lord, the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit refrained from observing closely and quickly shifted its focus, letting its gaze extend downward.
Its vision spread rapidly, quickly covering the entire Fire Persimmon Immortal City, and continued down to the dense and fiery Fire Persimmon Forest at the mountain's foot, where it finally stopped.
In its crimson eye sockets, the golden pupils gleamed brightly.
It intensified its surveillance.
In its view, physical entities such as mountains, forests, and residents gradually faded, revealing a grand formation.
This formation had two main nodes, one large one within the mountain, and a smaller one in the city lord’s residence.
There were also five formation pillars located in the residences of the Zhou, Zheng, and Ning families, as well as within the dungeon and the city guard barracks.
The formation was vast, almost covering the entirety of Fire Persimmon Mountain, while also linking with numerous smaller formations in the Fire Persimmon Forest at the mountain's base.
The formation's roots extended from the mountain’s summit, plunging deep into the mountain itself.
The green formation lines of the Immortal City’s Grand Formation intertwined, like an immense web that enveloped the entire Fire Persimmon Mountain, imprisoning the palace like a caged bird.
The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit let out a grumbling huff, its bound state causing it considerable irritation.
With a forceful push of its front claws, it lifted itself and suddenly leapt into the air.
Though wingless, it flew swiftly and gracefully.
Moving with lightning speed, it streaked through the air like a blazing orange-gold light.
The light traced a brilliant arc in the air before settling back onto the throne.
In an instant, the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit shifted from motion to stillness, sparks scattering and cascading across the throne in the dim palace.
After venting a bit of frustration, it raised its dragon head once more, gazing far and observing the world outside.
Its gaze first settled on the city lord's residence.
Inside, a burly young man with large eyes was sitting cross-legged, diligently cultivating.
But unlike usual, he wasn’t gathering spiritual power; he was dissipating it.
He was none other than the city lord’s grandson — Meng Chong!
The city lord’s voice seemed to still echo in Meng Chong’s ears.
“Meng Chong, my grandson, I have utilized the Destiny-Drawing Talisman, linking the fortune of the Lava Immortal Palace to you! I also ignited the Divine Insight Incense to determine the optimal steps.”
“Remember, you need to be the first to master the Five Elements Qi Regulation Technique and reach the third level of qi refining."
"This is crucial, giving you an immense head start. Achieving this will be half the battle."
"Advantage builds upon advantage, like a rolling snowball, enabling you to outpace other competitors.”
“It’s unfortunate that the Five Elements Qi Regulation Technique belongs to the Dao Gate. If it were from the Buddhist Gate, the Conversion Pill I possess could be of use to you.”
“Now, you must disperse your cultivation as quickly as possible and start anew with the Five Elements Qi Regulation Technique!”
“Someone will deliver ample Vein-Nourishing Body Powder to you. Don’t hesitate to use it all, reaching a perfect dispersal of cultivation as swiftly as possible!”
Meng Chong exhaled a breath of stale air, his large eyes filled with unwavering determination.
Both the Destiny-Drawing Talisman and Divine Insight Incense were nascent soul-level treasures, worth a fortune.
With the Fire Persimmon City Lord investing so heavily, he had effectively placed the burden of seizing the Lava Immortal Palace upon Meng Chong’s shoulders.
Meng Chong’s heart swelled with fighting spirit!
“Grandfather, you’ve done so much for me. If I fail, I’d be unworthy of the surname Meng!”
“I will not disappoint you.”
“I will secure first place!”
With a resolute expression, Meng Chong closed his eyes and continued to dissipate his power.
However, due to his prior cultivation having reached the ninth level of qi refining, dispersing his power now required even more time.
The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit slowly shifted its gaze from the city lord’s residence to the Zhou family estate.
In an underground chamber within the Zhou family.
Zhou Zeshen and Zhou Zhu stood before a grand formation.
Zhou Zeshen said, “This Spirit Mist Formation is unique to the Zhou family in Fire Persimmon Immortal City.”
“Zhu, you will enter this formation to disperse your cultivation, then choose the Five Elements Qi Regulation Technique to start anew.”
“This formation can expedite your dispersal and aid you in rapidly rebuilding your cultivation.”
“I’m counting on you!”
With deep heritage, the Zhou family held the top position among the three great families, undisputed.
To contend for the Lava Immortal Palace, the Zhou family had made extensive preparations long before.
Among these, they had sent family members Zhou Zeshen and Zhou Zhu to the Mudflow Sect for training.
The Mudflow Sect was one of the rare sects proficient in mechanical arts.
After Zhou Zeshen and Zhou Zhu completed their studies, they returned to the family to await orders.
And now, the Dharma Transmission Bell had tolled, forcing them to make a choice.
After careful deliberation, the Zhou family decided to retain Zhou Zeshen and have Zhou Zhu take the risk of switching to the Five Elements Qi Regulation Technique.
Zhou Zhu had no objections, grumbling, “Brother Shen, you’re smarter than I am. Whatever you ask me to do, I’ll do.”
“No need to feel guilty. Contributing to the family is my duty!”
With that, Zhou Zhu strode into the formation.
He did not sit cross-legged but stood tall like a towering pillar, steadfast and solid.
The dispersal began.
Zhou Zeshen sighed, inwardly feeling sorry for Zhou Zhu.
Zhou Zhu had reached the eighth level of qi refining, one level higher than Zhou Zeshen.
Dispersing the power painstakingly cultivated over years was a tremendous loss.
But there was no other choice!
The Five Elements Qi Regulation Technique could very well be the key to claiming the Lava Immortal Palace.
The Dharma Transmission Bell’s first toll, with such a commotion, hinted that the selection process for the Lava Immortal Palace had undergone significant changes upon reaching the qi refining stage!
To prepare for potential changes, the Zhou family, while cautious, also took proactive measures.
The formation began humming, and a hint of pain appeared on Zhou Zhu’s face.
The invisible force generated by the formation forcibly extracted the power within Zhou Zhu, inevitably causing him harm!
However, Zhou Zhu’s body possessed the Life-Sustaining Constitution.
As long as he remained motionless, vitality would surge within, swiftly healing his injuries.
The formation violently dispersed his power, while Zhou Zhu’s self-healing ability simultaneously worked to mend his meridians.
This was the critical reason for choosing Zhou Zhu to start afresh.