"There's actually something to be found?" Xi Ying said with some surprise.

"Just give me a moment," Yuan Ming said, before leaping into the river.

Unlike the previous struggle for survival, Yuan Ming fell to the riverbed and no longer needed to struggle. His body was like an iron buffalo anchoring the river, unmoved no matter how the waters churned around him.

He made his way upstream along the riverbed, unobstructed by the murky sand and silt.

Soon, he arrived at the spot where he had found the Stealing Heaven Tripod years ago. Despite the passage of time and the erosion, a round, concave imprint still marked the rock where the tripod had been embedded.

A few steps upstream from that rock, on another in the water, lay a set of white bones.

They fit perfectly into a groove on the rock, and the robes wrapped around them were not yet fully decayed, trailing rags that swayed in the river's undercurrents like aquatic plants.

Yuan Ming approached and grabbed the bones, pulling them out of the crevice. Just as he was about to take them back, a glint of metal caught his eye.

He immediately stooped down and swept away the sediment, extracting a palm-sized golden token.

Yuan Ming furrowed his brow and saw that the token bore the ancient seal characters for "Double Immortals." Flipping it over, he found two more characters on the other side: "Kato."

After a thorough check to ensure there were no other items, he dragged the bones out of the water and surfaced.

Back on the bank, Xi Ying first examined the body, then the token.

"Did you find anything?" Yuan Ming asked.

After all, his time in cultivation was short. Although he had spent a long time in the Southern Border, his cultivation level was too low at the time, and as a guest reliant on others, he could only access limited information.

"I can't discern anything useful from these bones, but the words 'Double Immortals' remind me that there's some sect known as the Double Immortal Sect in the Southern Border Western Regions," Xi Ying pondered, then said.

"Double Immortal Sect?" Yuan Ming asked, puzzled. This chapter is part of the collection on *.

"That one is unlike other sects, more like a religious cult. Its followers worship the Turtle Immortal and the Snake Immortal. Its power spreads across the entire Southern Border Western Regions, but they only operate within their domain, seldom meddling in external affairs. Do you think this token and the skeleton have something to do with the Stealing Heaven Tripod?" Xi Ying put forth.

"It's too soon to draw conclusions, but in that watery area, the most likely ties to the Stealing Heaven Tripod would be these two items," Yuan Ming suggested.

"After we sort out the Red Lotus Island issue, let's investigate this Double Immortal Sect," Xi Ying proposed after some thought.

"I was indeed thinking the same," Yuan Ming said, and with a sweep of his hand, he stored away the token and the bones.

Following that, the pair continued on their journey.

...

Over half a month later.

In a vast valley in the Southern Border, lush with vegetation and pleasing to the eye.

On one side of the valley, a succession of terraced fields rose in elevation, planted with a variety of spiritual materials, many in bloom with vibrant flowers that created a stunning seascape of terraced fields.

Beyond the fields and near a lake stood a sprawling, impressive manor with courtyards and structures arrayed in orderly succession—an estate that clearly was no ordinary residence.

On the smooth road leading to the valley, Yuan Ming and Xi Ying walked side by side.

However, to avoid trouble, Yuan Ming had used the Blood Bone Mask to alter his appearance into that of a young man with thick eyebrows and large eyes, soon after leaving that river valley.

"Is this really the secret base of the Xi Family here in the Southern Border?" Yuan Ming asked, looking at the surroundings in disbelief.

"What, do you find it too conspicuous, not secretive enough?" Xi Ying asked with a smile.

"A bit," Yuan Ming admitted, smiling.

"The greatest concealment is in plain sight. This place has always functioned as a plantation for mundane spiritual medicines, and the business it runs is also related to spiritual medicine, so even if someone deliberately investigates, they won't discover anything," Xi Ying replied.

"Ultimately, hiding your physical body here is indeed quite bold," Yuan Ming said, not entirely convinced.

As they spoke, they arrived at the front gate of the manor.

The attendant at the gate noticed the pair stopping outside and hurriedly came to inquire.

"You both look unfamiliar. Are you new traders?" The attendant greeted and politely asked.

"Take this to your master, and he will know," Xi Ying replied as she produced a jade token and handed it to the attendant.

Though slightly hesitant, the attendant said, "Please wait a moment," and immediately went into the compound.

Shortly thereafter, a middle-aged man with a neat appearance, slightly thin stature, and a short beard came out quickly. When he saw Xi Ying, there was no joy in his eyes, but instead, a hint of puzzlement.

However, after examining her closely for a moment, that puzzlement turned to surprise, and with it, his eyes lit up.

"Girl, you have been gone for so many years. You've finally come back," the middle-aged man greeted her and said eagerly.

"I've seen Second Uncle," Xi Ying said with a smile, performing a ritual courtesy.

Yuan Ming did not speak and followed suit, cupping one fist in the other as a sign of respect.

The middle-aged man sized up Yuan Ming with a somewhat strange expression after seeing this but did not greet him.

Xi Ying introduced through a secret voice transmission, "This is my Second Uncle, Xi Dongliu. He has always been here with a few family members at the Core Formation Stage, responsible for guarding this place."

Yuan Ming nodded silently in his heart and maintained his silence.

"Come on, let's go inside and talk," Xi Dongliu said, leading the two towards the inner courtyard.

They passed through successive courtyards and as they moved further back, the fewer people were seen in the yards and the more hidden Forbidden Arrays there were.

After passing through four layers of courtyards, there were no longer any attendants to be seen in the whole area, and it was eerily quiet, with only the sound of their footsteps echoing in the courtyard.

When they reached the center of the courtyard, Xi Dongliu suddenly stopped, turned his head to look at Yuan Ming once more, and asked out of the blue, "He's not a Puppet?"

Yuan Ming was startled by the question and turned to look at Xi Ying, not understanding why her Second Uncle would ask such a thing.

"No, his surname is Yuan, and he is a friend of mine," Xi Ying simply stated.

After hearing this, Xi Dongliu furrowed his brows even more, looking as if he had heard something incredibly difficult to comprehend.

"Girl, don't blame your Second Uncle for thinking nonsense. I'm well aware of your lifelong aversion to men, and I've never seen you befriend a male in the family from your youth till now," Xi Dongliu said, unable to hold back.

"Second Uncle, it's just my nature, I don't like socializing with people," Xi Ying denied.

"Is that so," Xi Dongliu responded, noncommittal.

"By the way, Second Uncle, wasn't Uncle Chen the one who used to guard this place? Why has it changed to you now?" Xi Ying changed the subject and asked.

"I came to the Southern Border with the Clan Leader to attend to some matters. Just so happened your Uncle Chen needed to return home, so I'm standing guard here in his stead," Xi Dongliu replied.

"Father is also in the Southern Border?" Xi Ying expressed in surprise.

"Yes, but he's not on this side of the manor. You'll probably have to wait a few days if you want to see him," Xi Dongliu nodded and said.

"There's no rush. Second Uncle, please arrange a place for my friend to stay first. We will need to stay here for about half a month," Xi Ying said, not overly concerned.

Afterwards, Xi Ying left first, heading toward a deeper part of the courtyards, while Xi Dongliu brought Yuan Ming to a guest room in one of the four-connected courtyards.

"Fellow Daoist Yuan, right? Please rest here for now. Meals will be sent over by attendants, and if you find it dull, feel free to visit the front courtyard or valley at your leisure," Xi Dongliu said, opening the guest room for Yuan Ming.

The tone was neutral, neither warm nor cold.

However, the underlying message was clear: he didn't want him wandering into the rear courtyard area without permission.

"Thank you. However, I may also need to be in seclusion for Cultivation these next few days, so I won't be going out or requiring meals," Yuan Ming said indifferently.

"If that's the case, I will make sure no one disturbs you here. You can cultivate in peace," Xi Dongliu said, nodding upon hearing this.

"Many thanks," Yuan Ming said, bowing with his fist in his palm.

Xi Dongliu then excused himself and left.

Once Yuan Ming closed the door, he took out a Forbidden Talisman and affixed it to the door. He then cleared a space in the room and set up a Forbidden Array before sitting down cross-legged within it.

He took out the Stealing Heaven Tripod and once again carefully examined the treasure that had accompanied him on his Cultivation journey, filled with emotion.

This time, he was going to attempt refining the Stealing Heaven Tripod once again.

His previous attempts had only allowed him to successfully refine the external prohibitions of the Stealing Heaven Tripod. To completely master this treasure, he needed to refine its internal prohibitions as well.

After a moment of Breathing Control, Yuan Ming held the Stealing Heaven Tripod in both hands and opened his mouth to emit a stream of Mana, enveloping the tripod.

He then began to attempt to refine the Stealing Heaven Tripod, invoking the Secret Technique taught to him by the Shura Master.

The golden patterns on the Stealing Heaven Tripod soon emerged, offering no resistance to Yuan Ming's Mana, which easily penetrated them.

However, at the same time, Yuan Ming's vision blurred and he found himself spontaneously inside the Stealing Heaven Tripod, sitting cross-legged on the White Jade Lotus Platform.

"I've entered the Stealing Heaven Tripod? No... that's not right," Yuan Ming was initially shocked but then sensed something amiss.

Although he was indeed on the White Jade Lotus Platform, the surroundings were an expanse of white, and it was not the same space within the Stealing Heaven Tripod.

"Now's not the time to think about this," Yuan Ming shook his head, casting aside stray thoughts, and immediately continued to guide his Mana towards the Lotus Platform beneath him.

The White Jade Lotus Platform lit up with brilliance, and more intricate patterns emerged. Starting from under Yuan Ming, they spread outward, eventually covering the entire platform.

As Yuan Ming's Mana entered these golden lines, he immediately felt a force of resistance and his progress became arduous again.