Moving like a blur through the forest, Lin Sheng rapidly crossed from the inner regions toward the territories approaching the core region.
The moment he entered deeper areas, his Mental Field expanded.
Instantly, countless streams of information flooded into his perception.
Roaming yao beasts.
Hidden spirit herbs.
Hunting teams carefully traversing dangerous territories.
Abandoned beast nests.
Underground caverns.
Even the faint traces of spiritual veins buried beneath the earth.
Ever since entering the Xuan Gang Realm, his perception had undergone a qualitative transformation. The opening of the Baihui Acupoint and the strengthening of his Shen allowed him to perceive the world from a completely different perspective.
The forest was no longer merely a forest.
It was a living network of spiritual qi.
Every mountain.
Every river.
Every beast territory.
Every hidden resource.
Everything was connected by the flow of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.
As he flew forward, part of his attention remained focused on analyzing the underground spiritual vein pathways.
One of the major foundations supporting immortal cultivation on the continent was the abundance of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.
When spiritual qi accumulated over countless years, it naturally merged with the earth and gradually formed invisible pathways.
These pathways eventually became Spiritual Veins.
The Chip had already organized most of the information available within the Training Center and Cloud Mist Market.
According to existing records, Spiritual Veins were divided into Rank-1 through Rank-5.
Possibly even higher.
Unfortunately, the information regarding anything above Rank-5 had either been deliberately hidden or simply wasn't available within Dragon Yuan Province.
Rank-1 Spiritual Veins were the most common.
Apart from possessing abundant spiritual qi, they rarely contained anything special.
Most sects and cultivation families were established atop Rank-1 Spiritual Veins.
Cloud Mist Market itself was built around one.
Rank-2 Spiritual Veins were considerably rarer.
Not only did they possess denser spiritual qi, but they also occasionally gave birth to mineral veins containing rare cultivation ores.
Some exceptionally fortunate Rank-2 Spiritual Veins even produced Spirit Stone Mines.
Such discoveries were enough to trigger wars between cultivation powers.
Spirit stones represented cultivation resources.
Resources represented strength.
Strength represented survival.
Because of this, Spirit Stone Mines were among the most contested resources within the cultivation world.
As for Rank-3 Spiritual Veins—
They represented a completely different level.
Peak Foundation Establishment cultivators seeking to reach the Purple Palace Realm often required spiritual items matching their spiritual roots.
A fire cultivator needed fire treasures.
A lightning cultivator needed lightning treasures.
A water cultivator needed water treasures.
The more compatible the spiritual item, the greater the chances of successfully opening the Purple Palace.
And Rank-3 Spiritual Veins naturally produced such treasures.
For example, a Rank-3 Fire Spiritual Vein would gradually gestate a Rank-3 Fire Spiritual Item over roughly a hundred years.
This item could then be used by a peak Foundation Establishment cultivator during breakthrough.
Because of this—
Rank-3 Spiritual Veins were the true foundation of major cultivation forces.
Without one, nurturing Purple Palace cultivators became significantly harder.
As for Rank-4 Spiritual Veins—
Even Golden Core cultivators coveted them.
Not only could they accelerate Golden Core cultivation, but they also continuously produced high-grade Rank-3 treasures and occasionally birthed Rank-4 spiritual items.
Typically, a Rank-4 Spiritual Vein would produce high-grade Rank-3 treasures every hundred and fifty years.
Rank-4 treasures appeared roughly every five hundred years.
Such resources were enough to sustain an entire province-level power.
According to available records, Dragon Yuan Province possessed only a single Rank-4 Spiritual Vein.
Naturally, that location was controlled directly by the Golden Core Lin Family.
Anything less would invite disaster.
There were also unusual phenomena known as Spiritual Eyes and Spiritual Ponds.
These existed outside the normal classification system.
A Spiritual Eye was formed when a Spiritual Vein somehow failed to mature completely.
Instead of spreading throughout the earth, the concentrated essence condensed into a single source.
Compared to Spiritual Veins, Spiritual Eyes possessed an extraordinary advantage.
Portability.
A cultivator could carry a Spiritual Eye.
A Spiritual Vein was rooted to the earth.
Only legendary Nascent Soul cultivators possessed methods capable of relocating entire Spiritual Veins.
A Spiritual Eye, however, could be stored and transported.
Not only did it continuously gather surrounding spiritual qi, but it could also increase cultivation speed regardless of location.
Because of this, every Spiritual Eye that appeared immediately became the target of countless cultivators.
Even Lin Sheng found such treasures tempting.
While contemplating these matters, he suddenly slowed.
A strange fluctuation appeared within his Mental Field.
His eyes narrowed.
The surrounding spiritual qi had changed.
Not significantly.
Just enough to draw his attention.
Several hundred meters ahead, a concealed cave sat beneath a cliff face.
The cave itself appeared ordinary.
However—
The spiritual qi surrounding it displayed obvious distortions.
Light bent unnaturally.
Perception became warped.
Even ordinary Foundation Establishment Divine Sense would likely be misled.
"A formation."
Lin Sheng immediately reached a conclusion.
The concealment wasn't particularly sophisticated.
However, it was sufficient against most Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Unfortunately for the creator—
His Mental Field operated differently from Divine Sense.
Without hesitation, his perception penetrated the distortion.
The next moment—
A familiar figure appeared within his senses.
"Su Yang."
Lin Sheng immediately recognized him.
Inside the cave, a fierce battle was currently underway.
Lightning flashed continuously.
Spiritual qi erupted in every direction.
Facing Su Yang was a gigantic serpent over twenty meters long.
Dark green scales covered its body.
Demonic qi continuously leaked from its mouth.
Its aura clearly belonged to a Rank-2 Mid Stage Yao Beast.
Boom!
A bolt of lightning exploded against the serpent's body.
Several scales shattered.
The beast let out an enraged hiss.
Yet despite the damage, the wounds appeared surprisingly shallow.
Lin Sheng observed silently.
Su Yang's strength had clearly increased tremendously after entering Foundation Establishment.
Not only had his cultivation broken through, but his physique had also reached a shocking level.
The lightning surrounding him continuously enhanced his body.
Every punch carried immense force.
Every movement displayed confidence.
Yet despite all this—
He still struggled to seriously injure the serpent.
"The physique."
Lin Sheng immediately identified the problem.
His perception moved toward the serpent.
Moments later, his eyes brightened slightly.
The beast's physique was abnormal.
Far stronger than an ordinary Rank-2 Mid Stage Yao Beast.
Its scales alone possessed astonishing defensive power.
No wonder Su Yang could only break a few scales despite wielding lightning techniques.
As he continued observing, Lin Sheng's attention shifted toward the environment.
The moment his Mental Field spread deeper into the cave—
He discovered something interesting.
A crevice.
The cave extended far deeper than expected.
Even more surprising—
The crevice connected directly to another underground space.
A hidden world.
His Mental Field immediately entered.
The next moment, countless details flooded into his mind.
Dense spiritual qi.
Rank-2 spiritual herbs.
Rare medicinal plants.
Natural formations.
And most importantly—
A Rank-2 Spiritual Vein.
The spiritual vein stretched beneath the underground chamber like a sleeping dragon.
Countless streams of spiritual qi continuously flowed outward.
Immediately, everything made sense.
The serpent wasn't originally present during the beast tide.
Nor had it appeared within the records collected by the hunting teams.
The reason was obvious.
It had been cultivating here.
Perhaps even undergoing its own breakthrough.
The spiritual vein explained everything.
It also explained why Su Yang had chosen to remain.
Most people would immediately flee after breaking through and attracting a Rank-2 Yao Beast.
Yet Su Yang stayed.
Because beneath the danger—
There were opportunities.
And opportunities of this level were worth risking one's life for.
As Lin Sheng's perception continued exploring the hidden chamber, another discovery appeared.
A pond.
Located near the center of the underground space.
The liquid within shimmered faintly with spiritual light.
The moment his Mental Field touched it, the Chip immediately began calculations.
[Unknown Spirit Liquid Detected]
[Physical Body Enhancement Properties Detected]
[Estimated Effectiveness: Rank-2 Body Refinement Resource]
Lin Sheng's eyebrows rose slightly.
A body-refining pond.
No wonder.
The serpent's physique finally made sense.
Years of soaking within such a resource would naturally strengthen its body far beyond ordinary standards.
Similarly—
It explained Su Yang's physique.
Although his body was already unusually powerful, there were signs that he had recently undergone another enhancement.
Most likely, he had also used the pond.
For a moment, even Lin Sheng felt slightly envious.
Such luck truly bordered on absurdity.
A mysterious inheritance.
A transformed spiritual root.
Foundation Establishment.
A hidden Rank-2 Spiritual Vein.
A body-refining pond.
Even among geniuses, such fortune was rare.
Yet just as Lin Sheng was about to withdraw his perception—
He paused.
Something felt wrong.
Very wrong.
His Mental Field slowly descended toward the bottom of the pond.
The deeper it went—
The stronger the strange sensation became.
At first, he assumed it was merely spiritual qi accumulation.
Then he realized his mistake.
There was something else.
Something hidden.
Something concealed beneath layers of mineral deposits and concentrated spiritual essence.
The moment his Mental Field touched it—
The familiar sensation returned.
The exact same sensation he had felt when his Mental Mark disappeared.
Lin Sheng's pupils contracted.
His breathing slowed.
The Chip immediately issued warnings.
[Energy Coalescion Detected]