In addition, the legend of "Fallen objects from the Upper Realm," though incredibly elusive, is enough to drive people mad, making this location, despite its fierce reputation, still a magnet for countless desperados willing to risk their lives.

At this moment, an inconspicuous gray Escape Light, with all its aura restrained, slowly approached a commonly recognized entrance to the Ten Thousand Demon Mountain.

The Escape Light dissipated, revealing an ordinary-looking, medium-build Early-stage Nascent Soul Cultivator, precisely Xu Ping in disguise.

"So this is the Ten Thousand Demon Mountain? It truly lives up to its name," Xu Ping muttered to himself in awe.

He hadn’t even fully entered the mountain range yet; just along the periphery, he could distinctly feel the vulnerability and instability of the surrounding space, like a fragile layer of thin ice that could shatter at any moment.

One could imagine that once inside, the teleportation Divine Techniques that Nascent Soul Cultivators rely on for survival might completely fail, and if a battle were to cause too much commotion, it could easily trigger spatial rifts.

Those irregular, all-cutting spatial rifts could spell certain death even for Late-stage Nascent Soul Cultivators if caught.

This is precisely why even late-stage Great Cultivators are reluctant to venture into this place lightly.

Suppressing his wariness, Xu Ping flew toward a checkpoint guarded by Star Palace Cultivators at the entrance.

In the inland areas controlled by the Star Palace, nearly all valuable secret realms and hazardous areas have been claimed by them and checkpoints set up for tolls.

After paying an amount of Spirit Stones painful enough for an ordinary Early-stage Nascent Soul Cultivator, Xu Ping received a temporary pass Token.

Just as he was about to step into the demonic aura-filled mountain range, a lazy yet commanding voice rang out:

"Stop!"

Xu Ping halted and looked in the direction of the voice.

He saw a young man dressed in the attire of a Star Palace Core Disciple, exuding an aura of sinister arrogance as he scrutinized Xu Ping.

This man, though young, was already of Early-stage Nascent Soul cultivation level, indicating a significant status within the Star Palace and an extraordinary talent.

"I wonder what guidance this Star Palace friend has for me?" Xu Ping turned around, cupped his hands, and spoke in a calm tone.

The young man looked Xu Ping up and down as if appraising merchandise, and asked indifferently, "What’s your name, and which faction do you belong to?"

Hearing such a questioning tone, Xu Ping felt disgruntled, his brow subtly furrowed, but he held his temper and replied, "I am Li Feiyu, a Loose Cultivator, unaffiliated with any sect or faction."

"A Loose Cultivator?"

The young man sneered and casually tossed over a specially marked Star Palace storage bag, commanding, "Once inside, all your loot should go into this bag, and you’ll hand over half upon exiting."

"Hand over half?"

Xu Ping’s heart went cold, but his face remained calm as he retorted, "From what I know, there are no such rules in the Ten Thousand Demon Mountain; only an entry fee is required."

The young man’s face darkened instantly, and his tone turned hostile: "Hmph, rules? Here, my Star Palace makes the rules!"

"If you don’t like it, you can leave now, and don’t even think about getting a refund!"

A trace of murderous intent flickered through Xu Ping’s heart.

This Star Palace fellow is indeed overbearing.

Sizing him up as unaffiliated and merely Early-stage Nascent Soul, they simply intended to rob him.

Judging by his demeanor, it’s probably not his first time doing this.

If this were in the outer sea, just for his attitude and actions, Xu Ping would have struck him down with a sword long ago.

Yet, being deep in Star Palace territory, he had no choice but to suppress his killing intent.

After a moment of silence, Xu Ping seemingly resigned himself and accepted the storage bag.

Seeing this, the young man wore an expression of satisfaction, as though acknowledging Xu Ping’s good sense.

However, he seemed still uneasy and coldly added, "To prevent any tricks, a mark needs to be left."

Saying this, without waiting for Xu Ping’s consent, he flicked his finger, sending a barely detectable, yet uniquely tracking Mana mark, right into Xu Ping’s robe.

Xu Ping did not resist, nor did he say anything, simply enduring in silence.

Only then was the young man satisfied, dismissively waving his hand as if shooing away a fly: "Go on, good luck, don’t die in there, or the Star Palace will lose a portion of the loot."

Xu Ping remained silent, turned around, and stepped into the dense demonic aura of the Ten Thousand Demon Mountain.

Only when Xu Ping’s figure completely vanished among the gray-black ridges did the pretense of compliance on his face disappear, replaced with a cold, icy intent to kill.

Tracking mark?

Xu Ping laughed coldly in his heart.

When he emerges from the Ten Thousand Demon Mountain, it will be time to settle this account with interest.

For now, let this fool live a little longer.

...

Upon stepping into the Ten Thousand Demon Mountain, it was like entering another world.

The sunlight and freshness of the outside world were completely shut out.

The dense, ink-like demonic aura and chaotic Spiritual Qi intertwined into a murky fog, not only obstructing vision but also significantly suppressing Divine Sense.

The range of ordinary Nascent Soul Cultivators’ Divine Sense probing might be reduced to an alarming degree here.

Yet Xu Ping’s Divine Sense was vast, comparable to Nascent Soul Perfection; though a bit hindered, it still covered dozens of miles, capturing every movement in the surrounding area.

The ground beneath was a strange dark red, as if soaked by countless blood, and the vegetation was twisted and grotesque, bearing an ominous purple-black hue.