Longzhou, located at the junction of the central and western parts of the Great Jin Dynasty, is famous for its steep mountains and poisonous insects and magical beasts.

The state is controlled by two major sects - the righteous Yueyang Palace and the Momu Sect among the ten major demon sects, making it difficult for outside forces to intervene.

Other local immortal cultivation forces are insignificant and have to rely on these two super sects for protection, forming a situation where the two powers of the East and the West coexist.

Yueyang Palace is located in the Tianyue Mountains in Xichuan Prefecture. The mountain range is over 100,000 miles in radius and is entirely made up of continuous wild mountains and ridges.

The Yueyang Palace is located on a giant peak called Nantian Peak in the center of the mountain range. Its tens of thousands of disciples are distributed on the surrounding hilltops, making the Tianyue Mountains an indestructible place.

Anyone who attempts to invade Yueyang Palace must face the thirteen-level forbidden formation set up by Nantian Peak, which is difficult to cross.

On this day, a team of disciples from Yueyang Palace just flew over an uninhabited hilltop on the edge of the mountain range.

Suddenly, a green light flashed on the top of the mountain. A young man in green clothes stood on a huge rock with his hands behind his back. He watched the disciples of Yueyang Palace go away, with no expression on his face.

This person is Chen Yun.

"Han boy, are you really going to take action against Yueyang Palace? I don't think this is a wise choice."

Dayan Divine Lord transmitted his voice through his divine consciousness, saying, "Even among the ten great sects of the righteous path, Yueyang Palace can be ranked in the top five. It is not a target that can be easily provoked."

"Of course I know something about this matter. At present, we have basically collected most of the materials needed for the Three Flame Fan through various means. The only things left are the long feathers of the Haoyang Bird and the scales of the Scarlet Fire Dragon."

"Regarding the Scarlet Fire Flood Dragon, we have learned from rumors that several powerful evil flood dragons have appeared in the coastal areas of eastern Jin and have come ashore to attack cultivators. One of them is suspected to be a Scarlet Fire Flood Dragon or at least a fire-attributed flood dragon."

“So heading out to that area to try and catch one is a viable strategy.”

"As for the Haoyang Bird, according to our investigation of the entire southern region, only the Yueyang Palace raises this rare spiritual bird."

"Although the Yueyang Palace is powerful and difficult to deal with, considering that there is no other more suitable way to obtain its feathers, we can only face the challenge."

"I'm not against avoiding direct confrontation, but why don't you just come and ask instead of doing it in secret?"

"With your current strength of the middle stage of the Nascent Soul, plus some precious items in exchange, you may be able to convince the other party to help you."

Lord Dayan said in a slightly teasing tone.

What the senior said is true. Exchange is only feasible when the strength is equal.

I am currently only a cultivator in the middle stage of the Nascent Soul, and Yueyang Palace is guarded by a great cultivator in the late stage of the Nascent Soul, so naturally they will not take my cultivation level seriously.

Furthermore, Yueyang Palace obviously regards the two Haoyang Birds as the sect's inherited spiritual birds, and will never allow others to pluck their feathers easily, so as not to affect their cultivation.

However, the value of the treasures I can offer in exchange is too low, and Yueyang Palace will definitely disdain it.

If he took out rare items, it might arouse the covetousness of Yueyang Palace and might even lead to his own death.

As an outsider cultivator, I am in the opponent's sphere of influence. I am unwilling to rely on the opponent's whim for my own safety.

If I had the cultivation of the late Nascent Soul stage, perhaps I would consider the advice of the senior. Chen Yun sneered and answered.

Lord Dayan pondered for a moment and had to admit that what Chen Yun said made sense.

However, he was curious about Chen Yun's recent behavior and wondered what his plans were.

"Don't worry, we are just looking for a suitable location to set the trap."

Chen Yun's eyes sparkled and a faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"Set a trap? I expected that if you had any intentions towards Yueyang Palace, you would not come unprepared. Why not reveal a few things first?"

Lord Dayan responded in a relaxed tone.

"After I choose the location, I will know the details. However, regarding the two Haoyang birds, one big and one small, in Yueyang Palace, we still need to consider which one is the more suitable target."

Chen Yun glanced into the depths of the mountains and muttered to himself.

"Obviously, the big one is said to have reached the eighth level of demon beast cultivation. Do you think it can be subdued in a short time?"

Dayan God asked back indifferently.

"That's true. If it weren't for the difficulty of awakening these ancient spiritual birds and their inability to transform into human form in the human world, how could they be willing to be controlled by Yueyang Palace?"

"I'm not completely sure I can deal with this spiritual bird with great magical powers. As for the smaller one, it is said to be at a slightly lower level, level seven, so it should be easier to deal with."

Chen Yun pondered for a moment and nodded in agreement.

"However, if we can use the long feathers of the eighth-level Haoyang Bird to refine the Three Flame Fan, its power will be even more significant."

Lord Dayan said regretfully.

In the world of cultivation, the pursuit of perfection is futile.

Facing the eighth-level Haoyang Bird, although there is still a chance, the risk is extremely high. If you are not careful, you will alert the monks of Yueyang Palace.

Chen Yun recalled the experience of being chased and seriously injured on the Tianlan grassland, and decided to adopt a more prudent strategy: target the smaller Haoyang bird.

Dayan Divine Lord agreed with this, pointing out that the two spiritual birds spent most of their time in Yueyang Palace, only occasionally going out and moving around in a limited range.

Therefore, the key to successfully capturing them is whether you can seize the opportunity when they leave the palace.

Chen Yun responded confidently that he had learned the pattern of Haoyang Bird's leaving the palace from a disciple of Yueyang Palace through the dream-guiding technique.

In order to avoid the two spiritual birds going out at the same time and being difficult to control, Yueyang Palace specially arranged for them to take turns going out for fresh air at different time periods. This was the best time for him to act.

"Given your profound understanding of the importance of the matter, I need not elaborate further."

"However, please make sure not to miss the trading event in Jinjing. I am still short of several materials for the puppet I am making, and I believe I can find them there."

Lord Dayan suddenly remembered something and gave a solemn reminder.

"The Jinjing Auction is one of the three major auction events in Dajin. It is only held once every ten years. I will not miss it."

"Once matters here are resolved satisfactorily, we will quickly head to Jinjing, and then continue to the eastern part of Dajin to deal with those evil dragons."

Chen Yun already had a comprehensive plan in mind and responded calmly.

"That's very good. However, looking back at your recent actions, I am really impressed by you."

"I thought it would take you at least three to four years to collect so many materials, but I didn't expect you to do it in two ways, even resorting to robbing and stealing, and to collect almost all the materials you needed in just one year."

"This kind of courage and decisiveness is something I never expected."

Lord Dayan could not help but admire him. Although there was a smile in his words, he was obviously very satisfied with Chen Yun's actions.

“While the juniors preferred a robust approach to searching for the necessary materials, time was of the essence.”

"Although the senior's Yuanshen has been nourished by the soul tree, it is obviously not as good as before." "Therefore, if I want to witness the senior's achievement of a puppet at the Yuanying level, I must speed up the process."

Chen Yun's expression changed slightly. After a pause, he continued speaking in a calm tone.

"I know your intentions. I also know that I can't hide anything from your perception. My soul can only last for three or four years at most, and then it will completely dissipate."

"However, judging from your progress in collecting materials, there is great hope that you can complete the puppet refining before I reincarnate."

Lord Dayan smiled bitterly and said helplessly.

"Since I met you, you have helped me many times. Han is not an ungrateful person, and I will always remember your help. I will do my best to fulfill your wish."

Chen Yun took a deep breath and said solemnly.

"In fact, my help to you is also out of consideration for self-protection. If I fall into the hands of outsiders, I am afraid the ending will not be much better."

Lord Dayan said with emotion, a hint of helplessness in his tone.

Chen Yun smiled slightly, and then his figure flashed. With a flash of green light, the whole person turned invisible in the wind and hid his figure again...

Two days later, Chen Yun appeared in another small valley.

The valley is covered with a peach forest, and the pink flowers cover the ground, creating a very beautiful scenery.

Chen Yun observed the situation in the valley from the air and released his spiritual sense to scan the surrounding area within a hundred miles, with a look of satisfaction on his face.

"Yes, this place is remote and there are no other Yueyang Palace monks nearby, so it is very suitable for setting up a magic array."

Chen Yun muttered to himself, then turned into a beam of green light and landed in the center of the peach forest.

He immediately began to get busy, using formation flags and formation plates to set up seven or eight sets of magic arrays in one breath, most of which were forbidden magic arrays that blocked breath and isolated spiritual energy.

There are only two or three magic arrays that can actually trap the enemy.

In addition, he also set up a set of illusion arrays to conceal the true situation in the peach forest.

Although Dayan God was curious, he resisted the urge to ask and just continued to watch.

After everything was arranged, Chen Yun did not act immediately, but sat cross-legged in the center of the peach forest and began to meditate.

At dusk on the third day, Chen Yun ended his long meditation and slowly opened his eyes.

He looked up at the sky. It was already dark, so he waved his hand lightly and a moonstone appeared in his palm.

As the stone was thrown into the air, a soft light fell, illuminating the surrounding peach forest.

Chen Yun stood up silently, took out a piece of red coral of appropriate size from his arms, and placed it under a peach tree.

Then, he opened a jade box, inside of which lay a magical herb with a single stem and thirteen leaves, emitting a faint glow - the Rainbow Grass.

This magical herb was carefully cultivated many times and is of great significance to Chen Yun.

Seeing this, Lord Dayan was filled with doubts: "Is this the method you prepared?"

Although he already knew how to use this magical herb to feed gold-eating bugs, he was still puzzled about its specific use this time.

Facing the question, Chen Yun smiled and explained: "In fact, this grass has another name - 'Demon-luring Grass'. Senior must have guessed my plan."

Hearing this, Lord Dayan suddenly realized: "So that's it! You want to use it to lure..."

After six days, the smaller Haoyang bird will be released to breathe fresh air. At that time, Chen Yun sneered, as if foreshadowing that some plan was about to be implemented.

Fang Chu, as a cultivator in the middle stage of foundation building in Yueyang Palace, should be considered an insignificant person in the palace.

However, the actual situation was completely different, even the uncles and aunts in the Jindan stage would be courteous to him when they saw him, and did not treat him as a junior at all.

Whenever there is a distribution of benefits in the palace, Fang Chu is always the first beneficiary among the disciples in the foundation-building stage.

Behind all these advantages lies his special responsibility - taking care of a relatively young Haoyang bird.

This position is very important, not only because the Haoyang Bird itself is rare, but also because Fang Chu is born with the unique ability to communicate with avian spirit birds, which makes his position in the sect unique.

The spiritual bird that Fang Chu is in charge of taking care of, although its cultivation is still shallow, has an overwhelming advantage. It can easily defeat a cultivator in the late Jindan stage, and can even approach the strength of a Yuanying stage master.

Therefore, it is not difficult to understand why other monks are wary of him.

Fang Chu has been taking care of this spiritual bird full-time for more than 30 years, and everything has gone smoothly during this period.

However, the only difficulty he faced was that no matter he was practicing or meditating, he had to be accompanied by the spirit bird. Even during the short half-day flying time, he had to interrupt his practice and follow it secretly to prevent any accidents.

However, Fang Chu was not worried about this situation. After all, the Tianyue Mountains were a vast area of ​​100,000 miles and were all under the jurisdiction of Yueyang Palace. What could possibly happen?

One morning, Fang Chu followed the Haoyang bird out of the aviary as usual.

Although this Haoyang bird is not large, only about ten feet long, the long feathers on its tail almost account for half of its body length. From a distance, it looks like a giant fiery red peacock. But where in the world can you find such gorgeous fiery red peacock feathers?

Obviously, the spiritual bird was quite excited. Once it was out of the restriction, it kept flapping its wings and circling, completely unaware that someone was following it quietly from behind.

Under normal circumstances, Fang Chu's cultivation level would be difficult to escape the Haoyang Bird's keen perception.

However, before setting off, he had taken precautions in advance and attached a breath-concealing talisman carefully made by the palace to his body, ensuring that even if his cultivation was not high, he could safely avoid being noticed by the Haoyang Bird.

Seeing the Haoyang Bird chirping joyfully, Fang Chu showed a satisfied smile on his face.

Having been with this spiritual bird for a long time, he could easily interpret that the Haoyang Bird was in extreme joy at this moment.

Apparently, today's outing was enough to keep the bird calm for the next half month.

The Haoyang Bird circled leisurely above the Yueyang Palace for a long time, then changed its flight direction and began to fly towards the periphery.

Fang Chu was not surprised by this. Based on his understanding of the bird's habits, it would fly around the Yueyang Palace in a big circle within a radius of 100 miles before returning to the palace with satisfaction.

Therefore, he followed calmly.

The flight lasted only over thirty miles before an accident occurred.

The Haoyang Bird, which was originally in high spirits, suddenly stopped its wings, and then the cry from its mouth became sharp and shrill.

When Fang Chu heard the cry of the Haoyang bird, he was stunned at first. Before he could react, he saw the bird flapping its wings and flying quickly. Suddenly, red flames several feet high rose around its body, and it suddenly changed direction and flew away into the air.

After a few moments, it turned into a huge fireball and shot out hundreds of feet away.

This scene shocked Fang Chu, and then he was terrified.

He quickly took out a jade token from his bosom, desperately injected spiritual power into it, and made a strange sound like a bird's cry, trying to call back the Haoyang Bird. (End of this chapter)