The gray-black rotting ground, the murky puddles constantly bubbling, the twisted trees of bizarre shapes, the unknown blood-red grass underfoot, the pungent strange smell permeating the air – this was the scene Han Li first perceived upon regaining consciousness.
Without pausing to question this strange environment, Han Li first swept a wary glance around to see if anyone else was nearby. After all, the greatest danger still came from disciples of other sects who had entered the forbidden ground together.
It seemed he was quite lucky. Within a radius of several dozen zhang, there was no one but himself. He let out a soft breath of relief.
However, he did not relax his vigilance on account of this. Instead, he held a talisman in one hand and took out the set of Gold Winged Mother-Child Blades with the other, as a precaution.
Only then could Han Li calm his mind and carefully observe the oddities of his surroundings.
He was not surprised at suddenly finding himself in an unfamiliar place. Long before the trip to the forbidden ground, those stewards had each distributed a detailed dossier about the forbidden ground to all disciples.
The dossier mentioned that anyone who stepped into the forbidden ground would be instantly teleported to various corners of the forbidden ground by some teleportation formation still in effect inside. As for exactly where one ended up, that depended on each person's luck.
Some might be teleported to the very core area, where upon appearing there would be abundant spirit herbs to gather – these were the fortunate ones. Others might, the moment they were teleported, find several demon beasts staring at them, making it impossible to escape unscathed without a bloody battle. As for the truly unlucky ones, they might be sent directly into some death trap, perishing on the spot. Of course, such cases were the least common.
The most common outcome was being teleported to the corners of the forbidden ground, just like Han Li, having to grope forward on one's own.
The reason for these situations, according to the deductions of those senior experts, was that their method of breaking through the barrier to enter was not the proper way in. Naturally, this would trigger certain minor restrictions and cause some unexpected occurrences.
While cautiously circling the area, Han Li cross-referenced the information he remembered from the dossier with the surrounding scenery. Finally, he found some very useful information – the accumulated experiences of disciples who had previously exited the forbidden ground, which were now of great help to newcomers.
"Black Dragon Pool is located in the northeast corner of the forbidden ground. Centered around a deep pool of several dozen zhang in area, within a radius of over ten li, there are many Rotting Bone Flowers, Serpent Creep Trees and other plants, which can be used to make poison but are of little value."
"At the center of Black Dragon Pool, by the pool's edge, every dozen years or so, some 'Frost Herb' will randomly appear. This is an extremely versatile strange herb. If possible, one should try to collect as much as possible, and hand it over to the sect in exchange for certain rewards. However, one must be careful: in the depths of the pool lurk a group of Grade One Low-Rank demon beasts, Frost Ice Toads. But they are docile in temperament, and as long as one does not provoke them, there should be no danger."
After reviewing the information several times in his mind, Han Li felt confident.
In theory, the closer to the center of the forbidden ground, the rarer the spiritual items and the more powerful the guardian demon beasts. Black Dragon Pool's location was slightly toward the outer areas, but not in the outermost layer. If he hurried, he could still reach the central area within a day.
Thinking this, Han Li dared not ride a magical tool, but leaped up onto a densely foliaged tree. After surveying all around to orient himself, he jumped back down.
The pool lay to Han Li's south, right on the path to the center of the forbidden ground. It seemed he could take a look on the way.
Han Li cast an Invisibility Technique on himself, then set off with light, cautious steps. Whether it was because Han Li was overly tense or not, after traveling several li, nothing unexpected happened. It seemed the entire Black Dragon Pool area held only him.
Only when he heard the sound of flowing water did Han Li finally relax his taut nerves.
He parted several curved branches blocking his way, and a deep emerald-green pool appeared. Before he even drew near, a piercing, bone-chilling coldness made Han Li shiver.
This was Black Dragon Pool? Han Li gazed at it with curiosity.
The pool was not large in area, surrounded by a vast expanse of Serpent Creep Trees, yet wisps of visible cold mist rose from the water's surface. Even along the pool's edge, a layer of glistening frost had formed, showing just how frigid the pool water was.
Han Li paid little attention to these details. What caught his interest was that in a low-lying spot by the pool, over a dozen tufts of small white, downy grass were growing. This grass had one stem with five leaves, was pure white all over, and emitted a faint white mist, as if shrouded in smoke. It truly had the appearance of a spiritual herb.
"Indeed, this is Frost Herb – exactly as described in the dossier!" Han Li murmured softly to himself, feeling a secret thrill of delight.
Although this herb had nothing to do with his Foundation Establishment Pills, being able to obtain it so easily right at the start was truly a good omen.
Han Li habitually glanced left and right, and was about to step forward, but suddenly his expression shifted slightly. He hunched his body, retreated a few steps, and once again concealed himself among the foliage, then stared expressionlessly at the dense woods to his left.
Before long, a figure flickered, and a man in blue clothes emerged, looking about cautiously. From his attire, he should be someone from Heavenly Pass Fortress. This person was extremely careful, looking back after every few steps and constantly surveying all around. From his tightly clenched fists, it was clear he was prepared to deal with an attack. His direction of movement was toward those tufts of "Frost Herb."
Han Li sighed to himself. It seemed he would have to return empty-handed.
The opponent was so vigilant that a sneak attack would certainly not succeed. And Han Li did not intend to engage in a face-to-face battle with this person. To risk a confrontation over a few optional items was simply not worth it!
"Come out! I saw you! Stop hiding!" When he was only a dozen or so paces from the Frost Herb, the blue-clad man suddenly stopped, turned around, and shouted.
Han Li was startled, thinking he had accidentally been spotted. But immediately, he felt a mix of amusement and exasperation, because although the blue-clad man was shouting loudly, his eyes were darting about erratically, not even looking in Han Li's direction. He was merely using a bluffing tactic.
Han Li found this both annoying and funny as he watched the blue-clad man shout and holler for quite a while before finally, with genuine relief, proceeding to harvest the "Frost Herb." This kind of self-smart behavior by the blue-clad man actually made Han Li hesitate, considering whether to seize this moment of carelessness and strike from behind.
Before he could make up his mind, the blue-clad man worked with remarkable speed, quickly picking three or four tufts of the white grass. It seemed this man also understood the principle of not letting delays breed trouble, and was about to sweep all the grass away in the blink of an eye.
Han Li secretly shook his head and decided to withdraw. His main objective was still the three primary ingredients for his Foundation Establishment Pills. Before that, conserving his strength as much as possible was the best approach!
Thinking this, Han Li quietly slipped away. Only after retreating over a dozen zhang did he finally feel safe enough to consider breaking into a run, so that after the man finished gathering herbs, he wouldn't follow.
But before his figure could even move, a scream came from the direction of the pool. From the sound, it was the blue-clad man's death cry.
Han Li shivered instinctively, hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and quietly circled back. He needed to find out what had happened, lest he meet the same fate.
When Han Li sneaked back near the pool, two more fierce-looking men had appeared by its edge. From their colorful attire, they should be from Spirit Beast Mountain.
At this moment, they were gleefully rummaging through the Heavenly Pass Fortress disciple's storage pouches, with over a dozen large blue toads lying around them. As for the blue-clad man, over a dozen large holes now punctuated his body – he was thoroughly dead.
"Senior Brother Yu, this plan was brilliant! Upon discovering this fool, instead of striking directly, you had us rush ahead to Black Dragon Pool and scatter some beast-repelling powder in the water, temporarily controlling this nest of Frost Ice Toads. Heh heh! Then we lured away his attention, and借助 the demon beasts' power, unleashed a barrage of Ice Spike techniques from behind, taking him out in one go. The fool probably never imagined he would die at the hands of a pack of low-rank demon beasts. Still, this fellow had quite a stash! Senior Brother, why don't we use the same trick – keep hiding here and wait for other fish to take the bait? These Frost Herb will be our lure!" The younger man viciously kicked the Heavenly Pass Fortress disciple's corpse, speaking with some greed.