"What happened? How were we teleported out?" Susan asked, looking confusedly at the scenery of the Burial Demon Mountain Range.

"Could it be that the time limit for the ruins’ opening was reached, so it automatically teleported us out?"

"But we haven’t been inside for very long," Qing Ying said, equally baffled.

Just as everyone was filled with doubt, the huge rock nearby that originally led to the ruins suddenly flashed four dazzling rays of light again.

After the light dissipated, Elder Bao and Elder Niu of the Qingyun Dao Lineage, along with two Immortal Emperor experts from the Sword River Dao Sect, were also teleported out from the rock.

Upon closer inspection, it was clear that the four Elders looked somewhat disheveled, their clothes torn, with traces of battle remaining on their bodies.

Clearly, they had just experienced a fierce battle and had expended a lot of energy.

However, comparatively speaking, Elder Bao and Elder Niu of the Qingyun Dao Lineage looked to be in better spirits.

They even wore faint smiles, their expressions showing a spirited and triumphant demeanor.

In contrast, the two Elders from the Sword River Dao Sect looked depressedly at Elder Bao, their eyes filled with unwillingness.

Their appearance suggested that Elder Bao had stolen their most precious treasure.

Elder Bao noticed their gazes but paid them no mind, simply smiling faintly before raising his hand.

What was shocking was that the huge rock leading to the ruins slowly flew up into the air.

Moreover, it continuously shrank, eventually transforming into a palm-sized Strange Stone that landed firmly in Elder Bao’s hand.

Seeing this scene, Fang Hong suddenly realized the truth and finally understood the whole story.

It turned out that Elder Bao and Elder Niu had defeated the two Elders of the Sword River Dao Sect within the Ancient City, successfully seizing control of the ruins, which allowed them to teleport everyone out.

As for the two Elders of the Sword River Dao Sect, not only did they fail to obtain the ruins, but they also lost the great battle, naturally filling them with unwillingness and frustration.

The two Elders of the Sword River Dao Sect watched Elder Bao put away the rock, knowing the tide had turned, and that saying anything more would be useless.

One of the Elders spoke solemnly to Elder Bao and Elder Niu: "Brother Bao and Brother Niu, your strength is truly extraordinary. This time, we admit defeat."

"The green mountains remain, and the green waters flow on. We shall meet again!"

After saying this, the two Elders of the Sword River Dao Sect did not linger. They gathered their Dao Lineage disciples and left the Burial Demon Mountain Range with gloomy expressions, their figures quickly disappearing into the air.

"Hahaha. exhilarating. Come on, let’s head back home too."

Elder Bao laughed heartily. This trip to the Burial Demon Mountain Range, which resulted in successfully subduing an Ancient Ruin, filled his face with unconcealable joy.

Elder Bao once again took out the ancient Bronze Mirror and, together with Elder Niu, cast a spell to open a teleportation gate.

Afterward, he called out to Fang Hong and the disciples of the Qingyun Dao Lineage, taking the lead to step into the passage. The entire group grandly returned to the Qingyun Dao Lineage. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

With this, the training expedition in the Burial Demon Mountain Range ruins officially concluded... As soon as he returned to the Dao Lineage, Fang Hong separated from Su Shan and the other woman, instantly flashing into the Years Pearl Space.

Fang Hong walked straight toward a quiet secret chamber. Pushing open the door, he saw the Old Man in Black Clothes tightly bound to a stone pillar by the Years Divine Chains.

The Years Divine Chains flickered with golden light, runes circulating, suppressing the Old Man in Black Clothes tightly, making him unable to move or mobilize even a trace of Immortal Power.

When the Old Man in Black Clothes saw Fang Hong push the door open and enter, a look of panic instantly appeared on his face.

He quickly twisted his body, pleading urgently:

"Fellow Daoist! This old man’s eyes were clouded; I shouldn’t have offended you earlier. I beg you to be magnanimous and spare this old man’s life!"

"As long as Fellow Daoist is willing to spare my life, this old man is willing to completely submit to you. From now on, I will follow your every command, even if it means working like an ox or a horse!"

In order to survive, this supreme Immortal Emperor expert had already cast aside all dignity, desperately begging Fang Hong for mercy, adopting an extremely subservient posture.

However, Fang Hong maintained a cold and ruthless demeanor throughout, completely unmoved by the Old Man in Black Clothes’ pleas.

He looked indifferently at the other party, and without the slightest hesitation, raised his hand and reached toward the Old Man in Black Clothes.

An invisible suction force suddenly erupted, forcefully extracting the Old Man in Black Clothes’ soul directly from his physical body!

"Ahhh... why?!"

A sharp, miserable scream echoed throughout the entire secret chamber.

The Old Man in Black Clothes’ soul struggled painfully in mid-air, terrified, as the aura of death closed in on him!

He truly couldn’t understand why the other party still refused to spare him, even after he had lowered his Immortal Emperor status and willingly submitted.

Could it be that this young man didn’t even care for the allegiance of an Immortal Emperor expert?

"Instead of keeping someone like you by my side as a subordinate, it’s better to turn you into a dao pill to help me achieve the Great Dao faster," Fang Hong said coldly.

"Turn... turn into a dao pill? Y-y-you... what exactly do you want to do?!"

The Old Man in Black Clothes’ soul trembled violently, his eyes filled with terror, unsure of Fang Hong’s meaning.

Next, Fang Hong did not give the Old Man in Black Clothes a chance to speak any more nonsense. Mobilizing Immortal Power at his fingertip, he directly performed the Soul Searching Technique on his soul... A moment later, Fang Hong obtained all the Old Man in Black Clothes’ memories.

This old man was named "Liu Jiang," and his cultivation was indeed at the Early Stage of the Immortal Emperor realm. He was the Founding Old Ancestor of the Divine Fire Kingdom, considered a renowned expert in that region.

Fang Hong had zero interest in Liu Jiang’s background or identity.

With a casual wave, he drew Liu Jiang’s soul toward the demon soul banner. The demon soul banner instantly erupted with dense black Qi.

Like a hungry beast, it completely devoured this Immortal Emperor-level soul, and the aura emanating from the banner itself strengthened slightly.

Immediately afterward, Fang Hong fed Liu Jiang’s corpse to the Demon Gourd, refining it into an Immortal Emperor-grade dao pill.

And that Savage Ox was refined along with it.

After dealing with Liu Jiang and the Savage Ox, Fang Hong began checking Liu Jiang’s personal wealth and belongings.

As the Old Ancestor of a Kingdom and an Immortal Emperor-level expert, his wealth certainly wouldn’t be meager.

Fang Hong extended his Divine Sense into the Storage Artifact and meticulously began counting... After sorting through everything, Fang Hong smiled, having indeed gained quite a few things.

The Storage Artifact contained twenty million Immortal Stones, three hundred various Immortal Artifacts, two Fourth-Grade Dao Artifacts, a large pile of rare immortal herbs, and various miscellaneous Heaven And Earth Treasures.

Nobody ever had too many Immortal Stones or Immortal Artifacts; they were all useful resources.

The two Fourth-Grade Dao Artifacts consisted of a sharply designed Flying Dagger and a gourd that was entirely purple.

According to Liu Jiang’s memory, this Flying Dagger was named "Crimson Gold." It was incredibly sharp, and when fully activated, it was enough to tear through the defenses of an Immortal Emperor expert.

The purple gourd was named "Heavenly Poison," and it was one of Liu Jiang’s Natal Dao Artifacts.