This discussion lasted nearly three months, matching Wang Yu's initial estimate. The bone ship's speed was actually faster than a Qi Refining cultivator's flight, but after leaving the sect, Gu Zhengshun stopped using spirit stones to power it.
Instead, he had his subordinates take turns operating it. Wang Yu even got to experience piloting the bone ship himself; it wasn't much different from sailing a boat in his previous life, just happening in the sky.
Outside the sect, there was no need to keep up appearances. Gu Zhengshun was also mindful of spirit stone expenditure, seeing no reason to waste them on travel.
Thus, by the end of the 3rd month of Wang Yu's third year as an outer disciple, the group finally arrived at [Profound Bone Mountain]. Its topography was completely different from what Wang Yu had imagined.
They were three massive, well-like mountains, heavily sculpted by human hands. The centers were hollow, each soaring thousands of meters high. The levels were designed with open spaces, supported by only a few dozen pillars.
From a distance, they resembled stone pagodas.
White Bonewood trees grew on the tiers, the tallest only about six meters, while the ceiling height of each level was around ten meters. Each well-mountain had roughly three hundred levels.
This was a specially modified planting pattern.
Simple stone and wooden houses were evenly distributed across each level. At the very bottom and the very top stood several stone halls, flying the Blood Demon flags of the Reverse Spirit Blood Sect, symbolizing sovereignty.
Between the three Profound Bone Mountains lay a large camp, capable of housing a thousand people. The terrain was mostly barren, with little vegetation, and dotted with rocky hills that encircled the area.
The air carried a faint smell of decay.
"We're finally here!" Gu Zhengshun exclaimed, a note of excitement in his voice.
Their group, affiliated with the [Heavenly Corpse Peak], was the last to arrive, even though they hadn't stopped at the main cities of Night Qiong Province or Maple Province along the way.
The other two Mountain Masters had already chosen their mountains and were directing their subordinates to take over the old formations and set up new ones.
Only the rightmost mountain remained.
This cylindrical, well-like mountain had the sparsest growth of Profound Bonewood, looking patchy and underdeveloped. Unfazed, Gu Zhengshun immediately piloted the bone ship to the base and began issuing orders.
"Go count how many Profound Bonewood trees there are. You, and you, go inspect the [Yin Gathering Formation], the [Soul Siphoning Formation], and the [Bonewood Nurturing Spirit Formation].
"You, go set up the formation flags I brought. Bury the corpses."
With commands flowing one after another, everyone quickly got to work. While demonic cultivators excelled at killing and arson, that was just one aspect.
The saying that they "did not engage in production" didn't mean they completely ignored resource output. When not at war with the righteous path, they did produce, just not as adeptly at management as their counterparts.
Most of these Profound Bonewood trees were first-grade Yin wood, but a few had reached the second grade. They were highly beneficial for Armored Corpses, Sha Corpses, and wraiths.
Therefore, the presence of the Heavenly Corpse Peak and the Five Yin Peak here was perfectly normal.
The Gu Poison Peak, however, was here for something else.
Wang Yu did nothing specific, mostly wandering haphazardly through the layered Bonewood forests, primarily checking if the tops of the bonewood trees had protruding white bone nodules.
Some mature bonewood trees would grow Profound Essence Flowers.
These flowers had the effect of purifying spiritual power, helping Qi Refining cultivators overcome bottlenecks and swiftly complete the second and third spiritual refinements.
Second-grade Profound Essence Flowers could even provide some assistance in breaking through to Foundation Establishment. Acquiring a few would make passing the True Essence Barrier, one of the three barriers of Foundation Establishment, effortless.
This was Gu Zhengshun's true reason for coming here.
Breaking through to the late Qi Refining stage, even condensing spiritual power into a semi-liquid state ready for transformation into True Essence—he came for this very goal over five years!
Si Tu Hong's motives were likely similar.
There were actually many treasures that could assist in passing the "True Essence Barrier." High-grade Foundation Establishment Pills had this effect.
Therefore, the resources of Profound Bone Mountain were considered mediocre by True Disciple standards. Even inner disciples with substantial backing looked down on them.
But for inner disciples like Si Tu Hong and Gu Zhengshun, caught in the middle, they were quite attractive.
Profound Essence Flowers bloomed once every three years. It was currently the end of the 12th month, long past the flowering season. The next blooming period would be in late spring or early summer of the coming year.
Bonewood trees that had already flowered needed three years to accumulate energy again for the next bloom. Wang Yu's task of recording trees with bone nodules was not without purpose.
It was groundwork for the future harvest.
The higher one went up the Profound Bone pagoda-mountain, the colder and more Yin-infused it became. The wind itself seemed to turn black. Occasionally, dark shadows flitted through the sparse Bonewood forests.
These were actually the legitimate "farmers" of this place.
According to the intelligence, these entities were a type of [Earthbound Spirit] in a symbiotic relationship with the Bonewood trees. They could protect the Bonewood within a certain range from various harms.
It was said they were the remnants of the original clan that owned Profound Bone Mountain, slaughtered to the last by the Reverse Spirit Blood Sect, then refined into "Wraith Farmers." This was the demonic path's mode of production.
Bloody, cruel, and utterly inhumane!
Si Tu Hong of the Five Yin Peak came here not only for the Profound Essence Flowers but also for the environment conducive to wraith cultivation. Nurturing his ghost slaves symbiotically with the Bonewood for five years yielded results similar to personal cultivation, with the main advantage being it cost no spirit stones.
A symbiotic relationship with a second-grade Bonewood could far surpass ordinary cultivation investments, achieving twice the result with half the effort, and might even grant access to a special spell.
As for Liu Jinxian of the Gu Poison Peak, she likely came for a specific natural hazard of Profound Bone Mountain!
When Wang Yu reached around the two hundredth level, a dense buzzing sound filled his ears.
Looking closely, he saw a large, flat, ganoderma-like wasp nest hanging from a tall second-grade Bonewood tree surrounded by a cluster of others.
Giant wasps with gray bodies, bone-patterned wings, and bird-like skull heads patrolled the area. These were one of Profound Bone Mountain's hazards—the [Rot-Poison Wasp Swarm]!
In their natural state, these were considered peak first-grade exotic insects. In large swarms, even Foundation Establishment cultivators dared not confront them head-on. They also served as natural materials for gu poison.
The rot-poison they secreted had a corrosive effect on various spiritual metals, making it a powerful tool against a cultivator's magical instruments. It could serve as a trump card for Qi Refining cultivators and remain relevant even into Foundation Establishment.
Highly practical. Making the trip for both the Rot-Poison Wasps and the Profound Essence Flowers was absolutely worth it.
While surveying, Wang Yu simply marked the location and maneuvered his Black Silk flying instrument around the outside, continuing upward.
The Rot-Poison Wasps fed on Bonewood sap and particularly loved Profound Essence Flower nectar. But they were only one of Profound Bone Mountain's troubles.
The second hazard was a type of demonic beast.
Called the—[Direbone Lion]!
These beasts were typically solitary. They would claim a second-grade Bonewood tree as their territory, digging out a den for a nest. They fed on the Bonewood, which strengthened their bodies and the length of the bone spikes on their backs.
It was said to aid reproduction, attracting the favor of female Direbone Lions.
The lower levels had virtually none. From the two hundredth level upward, each level housed two or three, nearly all possessing peak first-grade strength, making them difficult to handle.
After his survey,
it became clear that not only did this particular Profound Bone Mountain have the fewest Bonewood trees, it also hosted the largest number of Direbone Lions. It was a tough nut to crack, no wonder it was dumped on Gu Zhengshun.
**(End of Chapter)**