"After reading the memories of that member of the Devil Clan, Duan Gujin finally realized that this place was Exile Island of Xuankong Mountain for exiling criminals.

The dead bodies of the Devil Clan he had seen earlier were those of deceased criminals.

It can be said, every serious offender of the Devil Clan sent here ends up dead.

'No wonder they call it Exile Island!'

Duan Gujin took a deep breath, uninterested in meddling with the internal affairs of Xuankong Mountain's Devil Clan.

Although he had extracted quite some information from the Devil Clan's memories, those pieces of information were of little value to him.

'It seems I need to bypass this castle and enter into the island!'

With a flash in his eyes, Duan Gujin decided to head deeper into the island.

He circumvented the castle and then arrived at a lake described in the Devil Clan's memories as Blood Evil Land.

He checked the Rule Power nearby and discovered that the Rule Power here was very unsuitable for the Devil Clan.

If Miao Yu were to enter with him, she would have to face the horrifying pressures here.

Duan Gujin quickly found a hidden spot nearby and set up a Concealing Array and various Killing Arrays there.

After setting up, he let Miao Yu out and asked her to wait inside.

Miao Yu was accustomed to such situations and waited inside peacefully for his return.

Having made all preparations, Duan Gujin proceeded along the edge of the lake.

Once inside, he realized that traveling along the lake's edge without releasing his Giant Demon Dragon Elephant Martial Soul would subject him to immense gravity pressure.

But if he did release his Giant Demon Dragon Elephant Martial Soul, the pressure he faced became much more manageable.

He immediately deduced that this place was a hidden stronghold Zhao Wuji had set up for himself.

'Damn it! Even if there is a Transmission Tower here that could send me back to Jiuzhou Continent or Hundred Saints Mountain, what about Miao Yu? She can't come in here with me!'

He exhaled deeply, thought for a moment, and then continued on.

'If there really is a Transmission Tower left by Zhao Wuji here, I won't touch it. Instead, I will look for a way to enhance my Primordial Power here!'

Three kilometers on, he indeed saw a tall tower-like structure beside a valley.

He approached and inspected it for a while, verifying that it indeed was a Transmission Tower.

He surveyed the surroundings and noted that there was still some Transmission Energy inside the tower, but he shook his head, knowing that even if the tower could transport him back to the Jiuzhou Continent, he would not activate it.

'I wonder if he left any Gathering Spirit Array here?'

He wandered around the vicinity and soon found a Gathering Spirit Array by the lake.

Observing the Gathering Spirit Array, he deduced that it had been activated not long ago.

He carefully inspected the Gathering Spirit Array and found many Gathering Spirit Crystal Stones.

Inspecting these crystal stones, he discovered that they were precisely the crystal stones that the Devil Clan criminals in the castle were supposed to mine.

'Truly heaven-sent!'

Realizing this, he immediately understood that Zhao Wuji had used this place as a transmission hub, which conveniently had the Gathering Spirit Crystal Stones needed to activate the Gathering Spirit Array.

'Ha ha! Just as I'm getting sleepy, someone brings a pillow!'

Overjoyed, Duan Gujin started hovering around the area and indeed found an extracted vein of Gathering Spirit Crystal Stones.

He mined many Gathering Spirit Crystal Stones from that vein, then placed them into the Gathering Spirit Array.

Subsequently, he activated the Gathering Spirit Array.

Time passed gradually, and he started sensing massive amounts of Heaven and Earth Essence Energy emanating from the lake ahead.

Duan Gujin knew time was of the essence and dared not waste any time.

Moreover, Miao Yu was outside, and he did not want a repeat of what had happened before.

The pure Heaven and Earth Essence Energy methodically entered his body, permeating every inch of his flesh and every one of his meridians.

The Heaven and Earth Essence Energy was extremely pure; he took a deep breath, unwilling to waste any of the Heaven and Earth Essence Energy.

An hour later, he felt as if his whole body was on fire.

Every inch of his skin, every piece of his flesh, and every meridian felt abnormally hot.

At first, he thought there was a problem with the Gathering Spirit Array, but after repeated confirmations, he eventually realized that there was no issue with the Array and that the abnormal condition of his body was due to the overly dominant nature of the Heaven and Earth Essence Energy from before.

'My God! Zhao Wuji was here before me doing the same thing, swallowing, absorbing, and refining the Heaven and Earth Essence Energy coming from this lake, and he arrived here before me and surely absorbed more of the Heaven and Earth Essence Energy, and he survived it!'

He couldn't help but sigh, imagining the ordeal Zhao Wuji must have endured here.

'If he could endure it, then I can too!'

Once he ascertained that the Heaven and Earth Essence Energy he was absorbing, swallowing, and refining had no issues, he gritted his teeth and decided that no matter what, he had to hold on.

Another hour later, he felt as though he had been roasted in a furnace for a hour.

He felt every pore in his body was emitting fire, fortunately, he had already taken off his clothes beforehand and placed his personal treasures in a corner far away.

Otherwise, his clothes and treasures would likely have turned into something unimaginable by now.

At the same time, he noticed a large amount of black liquid flowing out of his body.

Touching the black liquid and inspecting it with Divine Sense Inspection, he finally understood that the black liquid was the residue from inside his body being expelled.

'Why is this happening? I thought after reaching the Martial Emperor Realm my body shouldn't have much leftover residue from cultivation, but why am I still expelling so much black liquid now?'

Duan Gujin thought carefully, feeling that it was very likely related to the Heaven and Earth Essence Energy he was currently absorbing, swallowing, and refining.

Whatever the real reason might be, he felt it wasn't necessary to know; he just needed to understand that the Heaven and Earth Essence Energy he was absorbing was highly beneficial for enhancing his Cultivation.

Duan Gujin took a deep breath and hurriedly circulated his Primordial Power to better absorb and refine the Heaven and Earth Essence Energy.

Another hour passed, and he suddenly gained a revelation.

'The Heaven and Earth Essence Energy here is so pure! It's almost close to the Heaven and Earth Divine Essence. How did Zhao Wuji manage to accomplish this?'

He guessed that the Heaven and Earth Essence Energy he was now refining and absorbing was probably just a small portion of what Zhao Wuji had absorbed, like leftover cold gruel Zhao Wuji didn't want."

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