Meng Hao's expression changed. He abruptly turned his head to look at the swirling mist. Not far away, about ten *zhang* distant, a figure in tattered robes was charging straight towards him.
A powerful, overwhelming surge of killing intent transformed into a brutal murderous aura. Seeing it about to arrive, Meng Hao quickly retreated.
This scene was too sudden. The figure moved incredibly fast, stopping within an instant, about three *zhang* from Meng Hao. It looked at the Jade Cleaver in Meng Hao's hand, its expression revealing apprehension and fear.
Meng Hao's heart stirred. Spiritual power within his body was channeled into the Jade Cleaver. The jade immediately emitted a blood-red light, illuminating the tattered robes, allowing Meng Hao to clearly see the person's appearance.
It was a middle-aged man, but his body was withered, like a vengeful ghost.
A mournful cry emanated from the middle-aged man's mouth. He hastily retreated, disappearing into the mist after only a few flashes.
Sweat poured down Meng Hao's forehead. He took a deep breath. That middle-aged man made him feel as powerful as Elder Ouyang.
"Is it a Foundation Establishment cultivator?"
Meng Hao was slightly surprised and wary.
Following the guidance of the blood-red light, he cautiously moved forward. After walking for about half an hour, with every step filled with trepidation, Meng Hao saw figures appearing in the mist.
These figures all had cultivation levels similar to Elder Ouyang, and some even made Meng Hao feel the same oppressive power as Sect Master He Luohua.
"Are these... puppets!?"
Meng Hao looked at the figures and gradually realized they had no vital signs. Fortunately, they only circled around, not approaching, as if drawn by the Jade Cleaver, but they seemed very afraid of it.
Another stick of incense worth of time passed. The figures around slowly disappeared. Meng Hao paused slightly, staring blankly ahead, his breathing ragged, his eyes wide.
"This... this..."
Meng Hao murmured. Before him was a mountain, about a hundred *zhang* tall. If it were just a mountain, it wouldn't have made Meng Hao look like this, but it was a mountain of spirit stones!
Countless spirit stones piled together, forming a mountain of spirit stones!
Meng Hao had never seen so many spirit stones in his life. At this moment, his head felt like it was exploding. He instinctively walked forward to collect them, but after taking half a step, he immediately stopped.
Because this mountain was gray, as if covered by a layer of mist. It was a restriction, a restriction that could not be touched.
Meng Hao hesitated for a long time, wanting to give up but unwilling. As he approached the spirit stone mountain to about twenty *zhang*, a sense of life-and-death crisis filled his heart, causing Meng Hao to immediately stop. He could only stand and sigh at the spirit stone mountain.
He understood that if he got any closer, with his cultivation, he would surely be utterly annihilated.
After struggling for a long time, Meng Hao had no choice but to turn around, reluctantly leaving the spirit stone mountain.
Another stick of incense worth of time passed. Following the guidance of the blood-red light, Meng Hao appeared in a hazy pavilion. There was a garden here, a withered patch with quite a few weeds.
There was also a stone tablet, almost half a person's height, standing there. This stone tablet was the only thing Meng Hao saw that wasn't just black and white, and it wasn't surrounded by mist; instead, it was a place of many colors.
The Jade Cleaver flew by itself to the stone tablet. As soon as it landed, the blood-red light immediately flickered.
Meng Hao quickly walked over, standing near the stone tablet and looking around. He thought to himself that this place corresponded to one of the three locations where he could gain enlightenment.
He sat cross-legged on the rock, gazing at the Jadeite Blade suspended before him, his eyes reflecting a thoughtful glint.
"After so many years, many people have entered here before me, but no one has ever successfully achieved enlightenment. Once the blood-red light on the Jadeite Blade burns out, it means the time for enlightenment is over!"
Meng Hao frowned, his heart filled with an intense longing to obtain the Condensing Qi Scroll.
But he also understood that his aptitude was very ordinary. After all, this opportunity originally belonged to Wang Tengfei, and he feared it would be difficult for him to succeed.
He did not immediately burn the Jadeite Blade. Instead, he looked up at the blood-red light, a strange glint appearing in his eyes.
After a moment, Meng Hao gritted his teeth, snatched the Jadeite Blade into his hand, his expression revealing intense determination.
"At this moment, no matter what, I must comprehend that Grand Spirit Scripture!"
Meng Hao said resolutely. He patted his storage bag, and the bronze mirror immediately flew out. He also took out quite a few spirit stones, preparing to replicate.
Meng Hao had been in the inner sect for a month. The spirit stones distributed to inner sect disciples were considerably more than those given to the outer sect.
Moreover, during this month, his general store in the outer sect had been intentionally flattered by the outer sect disciples, filling his storage bag with quite a few spirit stones.
But very quickly, his expression turned ugly. He discovered that he had taken out all the spirit stones distributed by the sect, but he still couldn't complete the replication. It wasn't that the bronze mirror had lost its function, but that there weren't enough spirit stones. Even mid-grade spirit stones were useless.
Meng Hao stared at the Jadeite Blade. After a long while, he remembered that he still had seven or eight special large spirit stones.
He hesitated for a moment. After a short pause, he gritted his teeth, his eyes also turning red. He took out one block and placed it on the bronze mirror.
Before Meng Hao could take out the second block, the bronze mirror flashed with light. In an instant, there was a dazzling ray of light, and immediately afterward, fifteen Jadeite Blades appeared.
This scene stunned Meng Hao. He had originally thought he would need to spend many more spirit stones to finish, not expecting that one large spirit stone would replicate fifteen blood crystals.
Those were Jadeite Blades, formed from the painstaking effort of Old Ancestor Kaoshan, but today fifteen of them appeared. Meng Hao stared with wide eyes and an open mouth.
"What... what kind of spirit stone is this?"
Meng Hao was dazed. Then he remembered that he had spent over two thousand of these large spirit stones, and his heart immediately ached.
He strongly felt that this large spirit stone was not an ordinary item!
But at this moment, for Meng Hao, the Grand Spirit Scripture was the main focus. He gritted his teeth, no longer thinking about the two thousand large spirit stones from before.
Meng Hao immediately took out a blood crystal and burned it. As it ignited, a blood-red light shot out, and faint, indistinct sounds emerged, as if from a dream.
This made Meng Hao immerse himself in it, forgetting the passage of time.
At this moment, Xu Qing and Chen Fan were both in their own separate enlightenment areas.
Their figures were obscured by the blood-red light. Both had extraordinary aptitudes, making their chances of achieving enlightenment a few points higher.
In fact, this was where Old Ancestor Kaoshan had secluded himself. Everything depended on aptitude, and the so-called serendipity was also the same.
He didn't know how much time had passed. The blood-red light on Meng Hao's body disappeared, and he awoke, his expression somewhat bewildered.
After a long while, he returned to normal, but his mind was completely blank, without any content of the Grand Spirit Scripture.
Meng Hao sighed. He had already anticipated this.
He took out more blood crystals and continued to meditate. When he had spent fourteen blood crystals without success, Meng Hao felt even more distressed and conflicted.
He gritted his teeth, took out another large spirit stone, and resolved to replicate the newly acquired Jade-Slaying Blood Crystal. He burned it once more, and the blood-red light enveloped his body again as he continued to meditate.
By this time, the blood-red light on Xu Qing and Chen Fan had long since dissipated, but neither of them stood up. Instead, they remained seated, though it was unclear if they had gained any insights.