Hearing the old man say he was tricked by someone named Lu Tianqi immediately piqued Zhang Ergou's interest.
"Senior, you say you were tricked here by Lu Tianqi, what exactly happened?"
The old man seemed unable to bear hearing Lu Tianqi's name. Upon hearing Zhang Ergou speak, he patted his chest and took a long while to recover.
"Lu Tianqi, that shameless scoundrel, is the founding sect leader of the Misty Sect."
"Ah?" Zhang Ergou exclaimed in surprise. Lu Tianqi was the first sect leader of the Misty Sect; this was something he had never expected.
From the old man's tone, it seemed he was acquainted with the first sect leader of the Misty Sect.
However, there appeared to be some past grievances between them.
Before Zhang Ergou could ask again, the old man continued to recount Lu Tianqi's wicked deeds to him.
"I was originally cultivating in seclusion in a hidden place, absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Little did I know that Lu Tianqi passed by that day and discerned my extraordinary nature."
"Then he wanted to forcibly abduct me, but I, having been nurtured for over a hundred thousand years in the Kunlun Immortal Realm, could not be moved by ordinary means."
Recalling the events of that time, the old man still felt it was not worth it for his past self.
"Seeing that Lu Tianqi couldn't move me, he sat by my side for several years. I, at that time, was unable to find the path to the Immortal Realm and was filled with melancholy. Seeing Lu Tianqi refuse to leave, I eventually transformed into human form and began conversing with him."
"That shameless Lu Tianqi happened to encounter me and treated me with utmost respect, calling me 'Senior, Senior.' I was blind back then."
"Fooled by that shameless fellow's few words, I became disoriented and was then tricked by that shameless scoundrel to this Misty Sect."
"Upon arriving at the Misty Sect, that shameless Lu Tianqi revealed his true colors. He colluded with a few old fellows and cast a magical formation to trap me in this place. For the past ten thousand years, I have been unable to go anywhere."
The old man sighed tragically, clearly harboring deep resentment towards Lu Tianqi.
Hearing such a secret, Zhang Ergou's heart churned like waves. He had never imagined that this place, used to punish disciples, was a result of trickery.
"Senior, you say you were tricked and trapped here by a magical formation. It should be a blessed land. Why does the inner sect of the Misty Sect use it to imprison erring disciples?"
Zhang Ergou's confusion deepened. According to the old man, he was originally a part of a celestial mountain in the Kunlun Immortal Realm, which had fallen into this world. He should be an extraordinary entity, and cultivating here should yield twice the results with half the effort.
Yet, the inner sect of the Misty Sect was now used to imprisoning erring disciples, and he was a prime example.
Zhang Ergou's doubts grew even stronger. Could it be that the elders and the sect leader of the Misty Sect were unaware of the benefits of this celestial mountain?
Hearing Zhang Ergou's confusion, the old man chuckled slyly, "Heh heh, of course, this was my deliberate doing. Lu Tianqi had people trap me here with a magical formation. Do you think I don't know what his true intentions were?"
"Is there another hidden reason?" Zhang Ergou inquired, puzzled.
"Hmph, that shameless Lu Tianqi, does he think trapping me here will fulfill his wishes?"
"I will make sure he doesn't get his way. I am indeed a corner of a Kunlun celestial mountain. If cultivators in this world cultivate within me, they can indeed achieve twice the results with half the effort."
"It's no exaggeration to say that one year of cultivation within me is equivalent to ten years of cultivation in the outside world."
"That shameless Lu Tianqi saw this benefit of mine and tricked me into coming to this place and trapping me. He not only wanted to accelerate his own cultivation speed but also wanted his disciples and their descendants to cultivate as quickly as he did."
"How could I let him have his way? I was already filled with resentment for being tricked here, and now I'm trapped as well. How could I easily grant that shameless scoundrel's wish?"
The more the old man spoke, the angrier he became, his voice growing considerably louder.
"This snowy mountain and this ice cave are naturally my true form. I can control the changes within them at will."
"In the beginning, that shameless Lu Tianqi had his disciples come here to cultivate. I then controlled the spiritual energy and the changes in the cold air. Some of them couldn't withstand the intrusion of the cold, and naturally retreated.
"However, some cultivators with ice elemental spiritual roots were not afraid of the cold air I deliberately summoned. Instead, it boosted their cultivation speed."
"That shameless Lu Tianqi didn't know it was my doing. He wrongly assumed that I was only suitable for ice elemental cultivators. Later, they only sent ice elemental cultivators to cultivate here."
"After a few thousand years, I don't know what changes the Misty Sect has undergone. There are fewer and fewer cultivators practicing ice elemental techniques, and this place then evolved into a place for imprisoning erring disciples."
The old man finished explaining the entire affair in one breath. Zhang Ergou was even more stunned.
He had never imagined that the cold air here was intentional on the old man's part. Thinking this, Zhang Ergou suddenly realized that his body was about to freeze stiff. If he didn't find a solution soon, he would surely freeze to death.
With this thought, Zhang Ergou looked at the old man with a look of urgency and said, "Senior, you say you can control the cold air here. Could you perhaps help my body first?"
"My body is about to freeze stiff!"
"Haha, little fellow, don't be anxious. I will free you now."
After speaking, the old man flashed and disappeared from Zhang Ergou's sea of consciousness. Zhang Ergou looked around, unable to find where the old man had gone.
Just as he was growing anxious, he heard someone outside call him, "Little fellow, wake up quickly."
Zhang Ergou painstakingly opened his eyes and saw an old man, about the height of a seven or eight-year-old child, standing before him.
Wasn't this the same old man who had appeared in his sea of consciousness just now? He had actually appeared in this secret chamber.
Zhang Ergou slowly turned his stiff neck. After his body had adjusted, he was deeply shaken.
"Little fellow, how do you feel?"
The old man stood smilingly before Zhang Ergou, looking at him with hopeful eyes.
Zhang Ergou tentatively circulated the Chaos of Heaven and Earth Technique. The spiritual energy within his body flowed through his meridians without any obstruction, and its speed was even faster than usual.
"Senior, this?" Zhang Ergou said, his face filled with astonishment and disbelief.
"Haha, I converted the cold energy that invaded your body into spiritual energy. With that spiritual energy as a medium within your body, you will naturally achieve twice the results with half the effort when cultivating here in the future."
The old man said indifferently, while Zhang Ergou looked incredulous. Such a good thing had come his way so easily.
There must be a trick to this, right?