Chu Feng successfully reached the peak of the True Essence Mountain, but it was a little different from what he had expected.

  There were no grand palaces to welcome him, just a simple-looking two-storey building erected in the midst of greenery.

  This building looked more like a simple house. It wasn’t shabby, but it did look simplistic.

  Two disciples happened to walk out of the building when Chu Feng arrived. There were smiles on their faces, presumably because they had received pointers from True Essence Exalted.

  They were about to head down the mountain when they spotted Chu Feng and began to assess him contemplatively. There wasn’t any hint of arrogance on their faces though. On the contrary, they smiled at Chu Feng when they walked past one another.

  Most likely, they thought that someone who could reach the top like them deserved to be respected.

  Chu Feng entered the building and found that its interior was even more simplistic than what he had seen on the outside. The walls were painted white, and there were hardly any ornaments to be seen around. However, it did look comfortable to the eye.

  If not for a massive copper cauldron that was five meters in height and three meters in diameter sitting at the center of the building, the place would have looked incredibly empty.

  This copper cauldron had an ancient appearance and gave off a scent of history too. There were mysterious old inscriptions on it that even Chu Feng was unable to interpret.

  To a world spiritist like Chu Feng, this massive cauldron was incredibly attractive.

  However, he only spared this cauldron a glance before turning his sights toward the corner of the building, where an old man with white hair and dressed in simple garbs sat.

  This old man gave off the feeling of an unworldly expert.

  Without a doubt, this person was True Essence Exalted, the elder of the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect he was looking for.

  “Disciple Chu Feng pays respects to elder,” Chu Feng greeted respectfully.

  “Enter the cauldron,” the old man said.

  His eyes remained closed, and he didn’t even look up when he spoke.

  “Elder, I’m a disciple from the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect. A crisis has befallen the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect, and I’m here to seek your help,” Chu Feng revealed his intention.

  The old man opened his eyes slightly to look at Chu Feng before saying, “You’ve gotten the wrong person.”


  “Elder, are you not True Essence Exalted?” Chu Feng asked, thinking that he had gotten the wrong person.

  The old man smiled as he stroked his long beard. “Those who come here do address me as True Essence Exalted, but I’ve never said that I was him.”


  “Elder, the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect is in grave danger, or else I wouldn’t have disturbed your rest. Our sectmaster is currently at the foot of the mountain. If it isn’t too much trouble, could I ask you to meet with our sectmaster so that she could share the details with you?” Chu Feng asked.

  “Little friend, I’ve said that you’re asking the wrong person. I’m not the elder you’re looking for,” the old man said.

  “Elder, do you know where the elder I’m looking for is?” Chu Feng asked.

  “How would I know who you are looking for? In any case, the fact that you’re standing before me shows that you’re qualified to receive my pointer. Enter the cauldron,” the old man said.

  “Elder……”


  Chu Feng still wanted to persuade the old man to help him, but the latter had already closed his eyes and said impatiently, “If you’re unwilling to enter the cauldron, you may leave right away.”


  Chu Feng had no choice but to take back whatever he wanted to say. He bowed slightly to the other party before walking toward the cauldron.

  He had long noticed that there was something peculiar about the cauldron. It emanated a strong scent of the Ancient Era, and it harnessed a great amount of spirit power too. It was a rare world spiritist treasure.

  Chu Feng had already relayed the words he was supposed to.

  Regardless of whether the old man before him was the elder he was supposed to be looking for or not, there was nothing he could do if the other party was unwilling to help them.

  Since he had already done everything he could, there was no reason why he should give up on a benefit that was already right before him. So, he stepped into the cauldron.

  “What kind of pointers do you hope to receive? Cultivation, world spiritist techniques, or something else? Feel free to reveal what you want. If it’s within my means, I’ll do my best to help you,” the old man said.

  “Elder, I have a treasure on me that’s binding my cultivation. I wish to decipher it, but my intelligence is lacking. I hope to receive guidance on that,” Chu Feng said.

  “Intelligence? That’s not difficult, but it’ll depend on you whether you’ll be able to benefit from it or not. I’d advise you to choose something else. Cultivation and world spiritist techniques are not bad options too,” the old man said.

  “Thank you for your advice, but I’d prefer to receive help on my intelligence,” Chu Feng said.

  He insisted on it because he noticed that the cauldron was a formidable treasure that could potentially help him unlock the Hidden Dragon Soul Armor. It was indeed a gamble, but it was one he was willing to take. Even if he failed, he would have no regrets.

  “Haa……”


  Chu Feng’s obstinacy made the old man sigh.

  “You should learn to heed the wisdom of your elders. Since you don’t treasure this opportunity you have been bestowed with, I’ll allow you to do what you wish.”


  The old man was disappointed by Chu Feng’s decision, and his voice showed his disapproval. Despite this, he still took out two items from his robe.

  One of them was a smaller cauldron that was about the size of a fist. This cauldron was identical to the massive cauldron Chu Feng had entered in terms of shape and aura.

  The other item was a sheet of paper. Interestingly, it gave off the same aura as the cauldron too.

  They were likely to be treasures from the Ancient Era that had been created by the hands of the same person.

  The elder used his finger as a brush to write down the words ‘enhance intelligence’ on the paper before tossing it into the smaller cauldron.

  Whoosh!

  The paper was immediately burned to cinders as soon as it entered the smaller cauldron. However, as flames burst in the smaller cauldron, a furious inferno also arose in the larger cauldron. It burst out of the cauldron and rushed right to the ceiling.

  As the building wasn’t tall in the first place, the flames began to spread outward upon reaching the ceiling.

  “Why would it turn out like this?”


  The old man, who looked as if he was on the verge of falling asleep, suddenly widened his eyes in astonishment at the sudden onslaught of flames.