Li Mo carefully examined the Primordial Dao Seed.
The so-called Primordial Dao Seed refers to the Dao Seed within the Middle Dantian, whose flawless, smooth surface can be used to inscribe cultivation techniques.
As soon as Li Mo inscribed the Yang Yuan Ben Jing onto the Dao Seed, characters emerged on its surface.
With the Dao Seed’s functionality, the Mist Fog Spiritual Power began to operate in a Circulation Cycle, subtly altering the energy flow path to become more streamlined.
Not only did it assist cultivation, but the Primordial Dao Seed could refine and enhance Li Mo’s primary Yang Yuan Ben Jing via the inscription of other techniques.
Li Mo was naturally ecstatic.
However, he quickly realized that during his secluded cultivation, many disturbances seemed to have occurred within the Iron Cauldron Secret Realm, leaving the black market in panic and unrest.
Li Mo returned to the Secret Realm, where the tremors of Corpse Mountain had grown more frequent and intense, with shattered stones raining down like a storm. The cave interior was engulfed in a cloud of dust.
His expression grew grave, and the joy of advancing to the Fourth Layer of the Childhood Stage evaporated completely.
Li Mo could hear dense footsteps echoing from outside the cave.
The footsteps did not belong to the cultivators of the Viper Gang. Evidently, mud sculptures were waiting for him outside his cave residence; such a large-scale gathering was unprecedented.
Li Mo summoned the Ghost Tiger and placed the Mother Ghost Head on its back, mentally communicating with the magic artifact.
The enthusiasm for excavating spiritual materials in the Iron Cauldron Secret Realm had significantly waned. Most cultivators possessing Child Ghost Heads now lingered on the outskirts of Corpse Mountain, and the number of loose cultivators venturing into the Secret Realm had sharply decreased.
The primary cause was that over ten cultivators had gone missing deep within Corpse Mountain, with no sign of return for over half a month.
The outside world assumed the missing cultivators had perished in danger, their paths severed and Dao extinguished. However, Li Mo could clearly sense that they were still alive.
Unfortunately, the Child Ghost Heads deep within Corpse Mountain were far out of reach. The sensing range of the Mother Ghost Head was limited; it only indicated they were gathered in a specific location.
After all, the magic artifact was constrained. The Mother Ghost Head, after all, was merely a Low Grade Magical Artifact of the Second Refinement.
Li Mo did not immediately leave his cave residence. He closed his eyes and connected with the Mother Ghost Head, hoping to glean clues from the Child Ghost Heads.
Despite long attempts at communication, he could only faintly discern sensory details through the hearing capabilities of the Child Ghost Heads.
The cultivators trapped within the depths of Corpse Mountain seemed to be temporarily safe from mortal danger but appeared caught in an inexplicable predicament.
Li Mo carefully distinguished the sounds transmitted by the Mother Ghost Head.
The primary sounds were the heavy breathing of various cultivators, noticeably filled with unusual excitement, yet devoid of any trace of fear.
They seemed to be in a confined, narrow space, accompanied by an eerie voice lecturing them on magic techniques.
"Heaven and Earth Profound Sect, Root of Primordial Qi, cultivating eons upon eons, proving my divine skills."
"Within and beyond the Three Realms, Only the Dao reigns supreme. My body emanates Golden Light, enveloping and shielding me."
"Visible to none, audible to none..."
Li Mo’s complexion darkened; the content of the voice distinctly referenced the Child Device Sect’s Armament Covering Spell. It also bore resemblance to the Golden Light Spell he’d once heard about from Jin Li in his past life.
The Creation Book infused his mind with more memories of the Child Device Sect.
In ancient cultivation society, the Armament Covering Spell was considered a legitimate technique. It employed the absorption of Golden Energy from magical artifacts to temper the practitioner’s body.
It was one of the indispensable techniques for disciples of the Child Device Sect, typically performed in conjunction with their life-bound magic artifacts.
When the Armament Covering Spell reached minor completion, it would even return Golden Energy to the magic artifact to repair any wear and tear caused by the technique itself.
Without a doubt, the source of the metallic poisoning was the so-called Armament Covering Spell.
Considering the Iron Cauldron Secret Realm is saturated with an abundance of metallic toxins, could it signify the presence of an ancient magic treasure from the Child Device Sect in the depths of Corpse Mountain?
Li Mo summoned a salamander to keep watch over the surroundings and then directed the Ghost Tiger out of the cave residence.
The Ghost Tiger whimpered involuntarily. The corridor outside the cave residence was indeed filled with a large gathering of mud sculptures, so much that the Ghost Tiger’s legs softened in fright.
The mud sculptures remained motionless, locked in kneeling postures, like mortals worshiping an immortal.
Li Mo’s expression shifted unpredictably.
His advantage lay in utilizing the Tea Poison technique. Ordinary cultivators needed to swallow elixirs to suppress the toxins when returning to the mortal plane, and even then, the medicinal effects took a full two hours to materialize.
In contrast, Li Mo could exit the Iron Cauldron Secret Realm instantly upon invoking the Tea Poison technique.
Li Mo instructed the Ghost Tiger to monitor the mud sculptures and walked along the wall out of the cave residence. Seeing the fanatical mud sculptures unnerved him.
Although the mud sculptures lacked facial features, their appearances and physiques were distinct.
Through the cracks in the mud sculptures, Li Mo saw their interiors were filled with countless maggots, each as thick as a finger, inducing a chilling revulsion.
According to the memories flowing out of the Creation Book, the maggots were known as Gold-eating Worms, creatures that consumed metal residues to nurture refined iron spiritual materials. They were often found near iron mines.
In ancient times, the Child Device Sect would rear Gold-eating Worms to ensure full utilization of mineral resources.
Li Mo felt a profound absurdity. Why had Gold-eating Worms transformed into these bizarre and ominous mud sculptures? What kind of grotesque mystery did Corpse Mountain harbor?
It seemed the mud sculptures intended to guide him to the depths of Corpse Mountain.
Li Mo understood the likely connection between his Primordial Postnatal Dao Body and the Child Device Sect, which led the mud sculptures to mistake him for a Child Device Sect disciple.
He stepped toward the depths of the mine.
Whenever the mud sculptures vanished from his line of sight, they would immediately reappear at intersections, bowing to direct his way.
Li Mo advanced straightforwardly toward Xu Guangcheng, soon entering a region illuminated by flickering candlelight. The rock walls were covered with hanging corpses of Viper Gang cultivators, displayed by Xu Guangcheng for secretly hoarding spiritual materials.
In addition to these, numerous corpses of loose cultivators were scattered around, all horribly mutilated.
The Viper Gang’s cultivators were terrified, the severed limbs they had just hacked off from corpses slipping to the ground, scraps of flesh still clinging around their mouths.
The sheer number of mud sculptures was utterly horrifying in their eyes.
However, the mud sculptures, which the Viper Gang feared to death, were docile as lambs in front of Li Mo.
Li Mo surveyed the mining cave. The Viper Gang was, at least, not overly ambitious, as they only dared to mine spiritual materials within a thousand meters, avoiding any deeper ventures.
There was no need for him to take action. Once the mud sculptures targeted the Viper Gang, survival became impossible.
The Ghost Tiger took charge of gathering the spiritual materials.
Wherever Li Mo passed, a trail of flesh and blood remained. The Viper Gang, notorious for their heinous deeds, all had bodies tainted by slaughter. Being killed by the mud sculptures was almost too lenient a fate for them.
Xu Guangcheng resided in the cave residence Li Mo had initially established.
Before him stood a wooden table adorned with an assortment of spiritual materials, shimmering with five-colored radiance in the dim light.
Xu Guangcheng was gaunt and skeletal, his sunken eyes fixated on the spiritual materials.
"Foundation Establishment, I’ll establish my foundation, establish it..."
Hearing the agonized screams from the mining cave, Xu Guangcheng’s right arm transformed into a venomous needle, stabbing into the body of a nearby cultivator, his sanity long consumed by greed.
"No one can stop me, not even the Mad Taoist, it must be that lunatic Mad Taoist..."
Xu Guangcheng displayed a twisted expression, stumbling toward the cave residence’s entrance, only to see, reflected on the rock wall by Li Mo’s gesturing hand, the ominous silhouette of a fox’s head.
The seven-meter-tall Two-tailed Red Fox devoured Xu Guangcheng in a single bite, its overwhelming demonic energy nearly tangible.
Li Mo coldly walked past, restraining his aura while leaving all the mud sculptures confined within the mining cave occupied by the Viper Gang cultivators.