The stout Cheng Wenming, however, let out a bitter laugh and continued to speak politely, "Oh, it's like this. Based on Fellow Daoist's cultivation and direction of travel, if I'm not mistaken, you should also be heading to the second level, right? The three of us entered the Northern Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda the day before yesterday, but our luck was terrible. We were teleported to the northwest corner, completely opposite from the entrance to the second level. The three of us either had to cut across to the west, fly over the continuous snowy mountains, and then turn south; or we had to come east and then cross the vast snowfield from north to south. Obviously, the three of us chose the latter. It was an extremely arduous journey. Those Snow Mosquitoes left us in a sorry state even when we joined forces. We were in extreme danger several times and nearly died there. We only escaped a Snow Mosquito colony that was over a thousand li wide half an hour ago. Shortly after breaking out, we saw you, Fellow Daoist. To be able to reach this place alone, you must be a person of immense power, hehe!"
Towards the end, Cheng Wenming even complimented Li Yan a few times, a smile returning to his face. But after hearing his words, Li Yan did not take the bait. For these three to so abruptly chase after him, their intentions were unknown. He just watched Cheng Wenming quietly.
Seeing that Li Yan paid no mind to his compliments and still maintained an air of keeping everyone at a distance, and sensing the impatience from the two behind him, Cheng Wenming quickly spoke again. "These two fellow Daoists behind me are from the 'Mind-Clarifying Sect.' The three of us are in such a state even when we join forces, which shows how strong you are, Fellow Daoist. But I wonder if you know the method to pass through the 'Melting Cave' up ahead? Even a Pseudo-Core cultivator would find it very difficult to pass through that place alone. Therefore, the three of us would like to team up with you to brave it together. What do you say?"
After hearing this, Li Yan's cold gaze swept over the three of them. He thought to himself, 'These three are from two different sects. To suddenly approach and propose traveling together, it can't be as simple as just wanting to borrow my strength.'
"Fellow Daoist Cheng, I am used to being alone. I will have to decline the offer of traveling with others. Farewell!" Li Yan didn't want to say more. With a slight nod, he was about to turn and leave.
"Hey, hey, hey, Fellow Daoist, please wait..." Cheng Wenming saw that Li Yan had no intention of listening to him and couldn't help but feel anxious. He saw Li Yan traveling alone to this point. Although he didn't know where the man had started from, he had been here several times before and knew that the nearest entrance was also within three thousand li of the snowfield. This was already very close to the southern edge of the snowfield. But to be able to walk here so calmly and alone from even the nearest entrance, this person had to be a master of the fire attribute.
Li Yan turned his head abruptly, his eyes coldly staring at Cheng Wenming. "What? Are you thinking of using force to keep me here?"
This time, before Cheng Wenming could speak, the taller cultivator behind him had already spoken. "Brother Cheng, this man is a master. Why must we..." But before he could finish, Cheng Wenming shot him an intentional, yet seemingly unintentional, side glance. The man immediately swallowed the rest of his words, though his face turned somewhat gloomy.
This time, Cheng Wenming waved his hands repeatedly and said quickly, "It's like this. If you, Fellow Daoist, feel that you already know what I am about to say, then please consider us to have disturbed you. If I'm not mistaken, this should be your first time in the Northern Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda. Otherwise, you wouldn't be planning to brave the 'Melting Cave' region alone."
After saying this, Cheng Wenming stared at Li Yan, wanting to see his reaction. This time, it was just as he expected. Although Li Yan's face remained impassive, he did not immediately leave.
"Hehe, it seems I was right. What I said before was not alarmist talk. The level of danger in the Northern Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda is not clearly distinguished by the first and second levels. Before you came, Fellow Daoist, had you ever heard that even Foundation Establishment cultivators like us who come here might not necessarily be able to reach the second level?" Seeing this, Cheng Wenming knew he had guessed correctly and was even more certain of Li Yan's next move.
"Oh? I would like to hear the details!" Although Li Yan did not admit it, his words were as good as an admission that this was his first time in the Northern Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda. Although Li Yan had gathered a lot of information about the pagoda before coming, it couldn't possibly cover every single detail. Even the family Jade Slip given by Huchen Wuding only recorded the locations of important herbs and dangerous areas.
Li Yan had heard of the "Melting Cave." After passing the snowfield, the world of ice and snow would no longer have a vast sky and earth. Instead, there would be a wall of ice and snow that reached from the zenith to the ground, blocking the world as if one had reached the end of the sky, with a wall blocking the way. The wall was also ten thousand li deep, enclosing the southernmost glacier in a "U" shape from east to west. No matter which direction one came from—east, west, or north—one had to penetrate this thick wall. It was impossible to fly over it.
Li Yan had learned from the Blood Leaf Adept that the level of danger there was very high. On the U-shaped, ten-thousand-li-thick wall of ice and snow, there were countless passages to enter, like melted holes in a block of ice. These passages extended endlessly within the thick wall, either upwards or downwards. They did not intersect within the ten-thousand-li wall, but the distance from each passage to the final southern end of the glacier varied greatly. It was said that some had taken a year to reach the glacier area, while others only needed a few days. The reason was that the paths inside these caves might go up and up and up, or down and down and down, and then turn at some inflection point. But what frustrated cultivators the most was that after entering these passages, no matter how the passage trended, one could not feel whether the entire passage was going up or down. One could only see the undulating terrain inside the passage but could not judge the overall trend of the passage based on it.
If it were only that, it would be fine. The level of danger in all the passages was also different. If one was lucky, they might fly through without being attacked at all. If one was unlucky, it was common for people to die after only a few steps. Moreover, once someone entered these passages, the entrance on this end would close until the person inside either walked out or was completely dead. Only then would it reappear. However, the next time, that entrance would not necessarily appear in the same place on the ice wall. So, no one could say that a certain passage was safe.
Li Yan knew all this, so what he had to do was leave it to fate and choose a random ice passage to enter.
Cheng Wenming continued, "Firstly, if a fellow Daoist is directly teleported to the southernmost glacier upon entering the Northern Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda, that is, the 'U' shaped area, then their luck is needless to say, excellent. It's much easier to enter the second level. But more people, like us, are teleported to the east, west, or north. In that case, the 'Melting Cave' is a natural chasm. Unless you don't want to enter the second level and only want to explore the first, you have to enter the 'Melting Cave' to reach the southern glacier.
"As for Qi Condensation cultivators, they only stay on the first level. They either explore in the east, west, or north, or if they enter in the southern glacier, they can only stay and explore there. However, for Qi Condensation cultivators, even a single glacier region has enough rich resources and materials for them. These Qi Condensation cultivators do not have the ability to break through the 'Melting Cave,' so they cannot explore all four areas of the first level at once. Of course, with the help of a Foundation Establishment cultivator or higher, it's possible to reach all four areas.
"Secondly, and this is a point you seem to be unaware of, Fellow Daoist, opening a Melting Cave requires at least three initial-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators to join forces." Cheng Wenming gave Li Yan a meaningful look.
Li Yan's brows furrowed. He knew most of what Cheng Wenming had said. But the final point, that it required at least three initial-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators to open a passage, was something he truly didn't know. Li Yan thought it meant it required the attack power of at least three initial-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators to open the Melting Cave, but that didn't seem too difficult.
"Could it be that with Fellow Daoist Cheng's peak Foundation Establishment cultivation, you can't open it alone?"
A peak Foundation Establishment cultivator could easily handle ten initial-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators. For Li Yan to ask this, with this person's cultivation, opening the Melting Cave alone should be no problem.
Although Li Yan asked this, he knew the answer was probably not that simple.
As expected, the three of them looked at each other and confirmed the same information from each other's eyes: the person before them was indeed a newcomer to the Northern Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda. However, they did not randomly guess Li Yan's identity. With the fame of the Northern Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda, among the numerous sects within the jurisdiction of the Jingtu Sect alone, only a small portion could enter. They either had the support of a large force or a major sect, or they had obtained a Netherworld Order by chance, or they had spent a huge sum to buy a token for entry. The people who entered were a motley crew, so guessing was meaningless.
"You must know the origin of the Northern Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda, right, Fellow Daoist?" Cheng Wenming suddenly changed the subject, which made Li Yan vaguely understand something. He nodded.
"Then you must also be clear about the initial purpose of the Northern Abyss Demon-Suppressing Pagoda. It suppresses millions of Vicious Souls and then refines them into a part of the magical treasure. These are all publicly known facts.
"However, I imagine you don't know that some of the restrictions themselves are refined from Vicious Souls. The entrance to the 'Melting Cave' is a restriction refined from Vicious Souls. The so-called requirement of at least three initial-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators joining forces to break it does not refer to cultivation level, but to the need for the combined soul attack of three people at or above the initial-stage of Foundation Establishment to break it. I think after this explanation, you understand now, Fellow Daoist. If you go to the 'Melting Cave' alone, even if you get there, you will still have to wait for two more Foundation Establishment cultivators to gather before you can enter together. That is why we invited you to go with us. Of course, unless your soul is as powerful as a Golden Core cultivator's, then please consider me to have been presumptuous, hehe!!" At the end, the stout Cheng Wenming's laugh clearly carried a hint of sarcasm.
A person's soul strength also gradually increases with their cultivation level. However, cultivating the soul is not much easier than cultivating Divine Sense; it is also extremely difficult. It's possible for a Golden Core cultivator's soul to be stronger than that of several Foundation Establishment cultivators. But among Foundation Establishment cultivators, even a Pseudo-Core cultivator's soul would not be much stronger than an initial-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator's. Being twice as strong would already be considered having an innate gift.
Of course, there was another type of cultivator in this world, called a "Soul Cultivator." Their souls were much stronger than those of cultivators at the same level. However, these cultivators specialized in soul cultivation, and their bodies were very fragile. Although their souls were strong, their chances of perishing during a tribulation were also very high. But this didn't mean Soul Cultivators were weak. On the contrary, in battles against those of the same level, their long-range attacks were exceptionally sharp, and they could also use their souls to control puppets and demonic beasts to resist heavenly tribulations. However, there were not many puppets and demonic beasts in this world that could resist heavenly tribulations.