As soon as these words were spoken, Chu Fan's eyes suddenly lit up. He suppressed his joy and asked Cui Fu, "What method?"
Cui Fu took a deep breath and calmed his breathing before saying, "You should know some of my past!"
Chu Fan nodded.
Cui Fu continued, "The direction my former sect primarily focused on was formations and restrictions!"
"Everything has its progenitor. The reason my sect was able to come into contact with formations and restrictions was because our progenitor once obtained an ancient artifact."
"All knowledge regarding formations and restrictions was researched and acquired from that ancient artifact."
"I once heard my master mention that the ancient artifact not only contained endless formations and restrictions but was also the nemesis of all formations and restrictions."
"Any powerful formation or restriction could be broken when facing that ancient artifact."
"That ancient artifact is called the Star Compass!"
"Is there such a good thing?" Chu Fan couldn't help but show a hint of blame in his eyes, thinking, since there's a Star Compass that can break formations and restrictions, why didn't you say so earlier? If that were the case, he would have directly used all his strength to search for the Star Compass and wouldn't have wasted his time and energy learning formations and restrictions.
Catching a glimpse of Chu Fan's expression, Cui Fu rolled his eyes and muttered, "Do you think I didn't want to tell you about the existence of the Star Compass?"
"If I knew where the Star Compass was, would I need to live in seclusion here?"
Hearing this, Chu Fan couldn't help but ask, "You mean, you know the Star Compass exists, but you don't know where it is?"
If the Star Compass couldn't be found, then the so-called method was no different from saying nothing. The flame of hope that had just ignited in the Demon God's heart seemed to be doused with a basin of cold water. Although the flame of hope hadn't completely extinguished, it wasn't far from it.
Cui Fu chuckled and nodded with some embarrassment.
How much hope there is, how much disappointment there will be. Chu Fan's entire strength seemed to be drained, and he slumped powerlessly into his chair.
"Don't be discouraged!"
"Since I've brought up the Star Compass, there must be related information!"
"Although I don't know the exact location of the Star Compass now, I've collected a lot of clues about it over the years!"
"If it weren't for my lack of strength, I would have gone out to find the Star Compass myself long ago!"
"Although I haven't fully recovered yet, with your assistance, I believe we still have a chance to find the Star Compass!"
Having hope is better than having no hope at all. Chu Fan nodded and said, "Then when do we act?"
Time was of the essence, and the Azure Dragon was still waiting for his rescue. Chu Fan truly couldn't afford to waste much time.
"Let's go to the place I mentioned earlier first. There should still be many clues there!" Cui Fu said.
The initiative was entirely in Cui Fu's hands, and Chu Fan had no choice but to follow. Who knew how long it would take to return after this journey.
Before leaving, Cui Fu had to make arrangements for the shop. Considering that someone might come to cause trouble, Chu Fan also contacted Zhu Fei, informing him to pay attention to the Treasure Pavilion and to handle any troublemakers directly with the two arranged retainers.
Afterward, Cui Fu led Chu Fan directly into the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains in the southern part of Nanyun City.
Along the way, Cui Fu intermittently explained their destination. Hundreds of years ago, sect powers bloomed everywhere. The Hundred Thousand Great Mountains was the main gathering place for various sects in the southern region. Even in this current era of declining magic, the Muan Sect's base was located within the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains. Legend had it that the hidden abode of the Qin family's main lineage was also within the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
Their destination was the sect territory of the Fa Sect, the sect Cui Fu once belonged to. Although the Fa Sect had declined, its forbidden ground still existed, and even now, many treasure hunters ventured there. Unfortunately, the outer perimeter of the Fa Sect's forbidden ground was protected by formations and restrictions set by the progenitor. Without understanding formations and restrictions, attempting to forcibly break through was merely wishful thinking. Although it was his own sect's forbidden ground, Cui Fu shamefully admitted that even after the complete demise of the Fa Sect, he had not been able to enter the forbidden ground.
The activation of the formations and restrictions required a special method. Cui Fu's master had passed away too suddenly, and he hadn't had time to pass on the method to Cui Fu. As a result, forty to fifty years after the Fa Sect's demise, the forbidden ground remained inaccessible.
Hearing this, Chu Fan couldn't help but ask, "Since it's a sect's forbidden ground, are there many good things hidden inside?"
"Logically, there should be, but whether there are specifically, I don't really know, because I haven't been inside!" Cui Fu replied.
Chu Fan hummed and after hesitating for two breaths, he still asked, "Are there any elixirs inside?"
Cui Fu's eyes shifted, and he retorted, "Are you hoping that the contents of that wooden box are elixirs?"
Since they were on the same side, Chu Fan no longer concealed anything and nodded, saying, "The thing I most want to find now is elixirs!"
"Since childhood, I've been poisoned by an unknown exotic toxin. This toxin has long since integrated into my body, and it cannot be eradicated through normal means. Currently, it's only suppressed using special methods!"
"After understanding a lot of information, I believe that ancient elixirs that have long since disappeared might be able to completely eradicate the exotic toxin, after all, those elixirs possess different and mysterious powers!"
Cui Fu naturally knew about ancient elixirs. He nodded and said, "The poison that has left you helpless should, by all rights, be a poison from ancient times. To break this kind of poison, ancient elixirs are indeed needed!"
"To be honest, I can't guarantee whether there are ancient elixirs in the forbidden ground."
After a pause, he continued, "The Fa Sect, by the time of my generation, had already declined considerably. Even if there were ancient elixirs, they might have been consumed. Therefore, don't hold out too much hope!"
"Nowadays, possessing an ancient elixir is equivalent to possessing a life; they are very scarce!"
Whether there were ancient elixirs within the forbidden ground or not, the prerequisite was to first break through the formations and restrictions on the outer perimeter of the forbidden ground. Chu Fan said no more and focused on the journey.
After about a day's travel, Cui Fu led Chu Fan to stop in front of a mountain valley. What met the eye were all vines and plants, but upon closer inspection, one could see that some building materials like bricks and tiles were buried beneath the vines. The destination had been reached.
Cui Fu stood in front of the valley, gazing with a melancholic expression for three minutes, as if reminiscing about his days living in the Fa Sect. Afterward, he bowed towards the valley before leading Chu Fan deep into the valley.
Unattended, the former buildings of the Fa Sect had long since collapsed and decayed. Clearing the obstructing vines and wild grass along the way, Cui Fu led Chu Fan to stop beneath a cliff face at the deepest part of the valley.
Once the surrounding plants were cleared, a dark cave appeared in front of them. Outside the cave, weeds and vines were everywhere. However, the inside of the cave entrance looked very clean at first glance, not even a single fallen leaf was visible. Chu Fan knew that the interior of this cave entrance was the Fa Sect's forbidden ground, and the entrance was protected by formations and restrictions.
"The formations and restrictions in this place can be studied and learned while you decipher them!"
"By the time you completely break through the formations and restrictions of the forbidden ground, your mastery of formations and restrictions will have reached the stage of entering the hall!" Cui Fu said as he sat down to the side.
Seeing this, Chu Fan asked, "What about you?"
"Are you asking an old man who hasn't recovered to do the work?" Cui Fu said with a look of composure.
A surge of anger instantly rose to the Demon God's forehead.