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"This is Mystic Essence Iron, which can be reforged and used to craft spirit swords," Wen Qiao explained, thinking that there would be more and more cultivators in Guzhang Mountain in the future. She knew the pressure Ning Yuzhou had to bear in supporting the family, so she had to help share some of it.

Moreover, Mystic Essence Iron is rare, and the quality of spirit swords forged from it would be better than ordinary ones. It would be a waste not to pick it up.

The slacker male cultivators suddenly understood and became even more enthusiastic in helping, flattering, "So the boss also knows how to forge weapons, no wonder you're the boss." No wonder she's so strong—must be the standard for a weapon forger.

However, Wen Qiao said, "I'm not a weapon forger, my husband is."

The cultivators looked at Ning Yuzhou, a bit confused, wondering whether he was an alchemist or a weapon forger.

But whether he was a weapon forger or an alchemist, he was not someone to mess with.

After picking up all the arrows on the ground, they continued forward.

This was an extremely long passage, not particularly narrow, but full of traps, the most common being the unexpected arrows. A careless moment could get you pierced. This was also a way to train the reaction abilities of cultivators. Those with slow reactions would surely be pierced through by the arrows.

However, with the stone puppet taking the lead and absorbing most of the attacks, those behind did not encounter much danger, mostly just some minor injuries, nothing serious.

The cultivators picked up all the arrows that came their way and handed them over to Wen Qiao.

Shi Wuming sighed, "Little sister Qiao is truly a smart and thrifty girl, running the household so well."

As he spoke, suddenly there was a clicking sound, and everyone became alert, instinctively looking around.

"Above!" Ning Yuzhou said, his powerful spiritual sense allowing him to detect it first.

Without hesitation, Yi Xuan sent a wave of frost upwards, instantly freezing the opening in the stone, along with whatever was about to slide out, turning it into a block of ice.

Since Yi Xuan refined the Snow Domain Pearl, not only had his cultivation stabilized at the late stage of the Yuanling stage, just a step away from the Yuanzong stage, but his freezing ability could also change at will. The ice carried the aura of exotic ice, making it difficult for ordinary cultivators to break. If frozen, breaking free wouldn’t be easy.

Even Qin Hongdao, who was at the Yuanzong stage, dared not easily test Yi Xuan's freezing technique.

The slacker cultivators stared at the place frozen by Yi Xuan, unsure whether to marvel at his freezing power or the ever-present traps in the Sea God Token quest. Indeed, competing for the Sea God Token was no simple matter.

"What is that?"

"It seems to be a ninth-tier sea snake."

"Something slithering, probably a snake."

"..."

After some discussion, they quickly moved on. It wasn't until they had gone far that the power attached to the ice dissipated, and the sea snake frozen in the hole shivered and crawled back.

Finally, they successfully passed through the long passage, and the view before them opened up.

Ahead was a vast space filled with stunning coral reefs, occasionally seeing some brightly colored ornamental fish swimming through them. Of course, besides the fish, there were also cultivators, wandering around aimlessly among the coral reefs. The path was right in front of them, but they turned and went in another direction.

"What are they doing?" Shi Wuming asked in confusion, "Why aren’t they coming out?"

The others were also puzzled. They knew there must be something tricky about the coral reefs, but just by looking, they couldn’t see anything unusual.

These cultivators were clearly those who had entered the Sea God Token quest earlier, who had taken the same path as them.

Not sure what was going on, Yi Xuan, Shi Wuming, and Wen Qiao all looked at Ning Yuzhou.

Seeing this, the slacker underlings also looked at Ning Yuzhou in confusion.

Ning Yuzhou observed for a moment, then pointed at one person and said, "You, go in."

The one pointed out was the salted fish junior. He instinctively glanced at Wen Qiao, and after her nod, took a deep breath before heading towards the coral reef.

The salted fish male cultivator quickly entered the coral reef.

As soon as he stepped in, everyone saw his face twist in shock. Then, like the other cultivators trapped in the coral reef, he began to wander around aimlessly, as if he didn't know how to get out.

Wen Qiao looked across and realized that to get to the other side, they would have to traverse this coral reef.

But there was clearly something mysterious about the coral reef. Once inside, crossing it would not be easy, and they might even get trapped within the coral reef.

“There's a Formation within the coral reef,” Ning Yuzhou said. “As for what kind of Formation it is, it's impossible to tell from the outside. You have to go in to find out.”

Even Ning Yuzhou, skilled in Formations, couldn't decipher it. They would have to enter themselves.

Without a second thought, everyone made their way towards the coral reef.

The juniors followed in confusion, their minds a blank slate. They seemed to have realized by now that Ning Yuzhou was also a Formation Master...

He could refine pills, craft artifacts, and master Formations. What did Min Jishu and Xing Jinling have to compare with him? They were fairly outmatched.

Upon entering the coral reef, everyone immediately noticed a sudden change in the surroundings.

In an instant, they found themselves in a dark, menacing underwater jungle. Looking around, there was no end in sight. The palace had suddenly disappeared, and apart from the ever-present seawater, there were also thick, towering underwater cliffs in the distance.

Now, everyone finally understood why the salted fish male cultivator had looked so shocked when he entered. They were equally shocked and wanted to find a way out as soon as possible to avoid being trapped here.

“Could this be an illusion?” someone murmured.

Yi Xuan, Wen Qiao, and Shi Wuming all observed their surroundings. Hearing this, their first thought was that it might be an illusion.

But uncertainty lingered—was the coral reef they saw outside the illusion, or was the illusion what they encountered after entering?

With no way to discern the truth, retreating wasn't an option.

Wen Qiao touched the surrounding cliff walls and suddenly realized the Formation's texture felt off. At that moment, a gasp echoed, followed by a voice filled with surprise: “What is this?”