The figure finally revealed itself and stepped out of the cave.

He let out a gentle sigh, "Old Ox."

"Moo!" The big black ox was still far away, not daring to come closer.

Even though it had only been twenty years, Chen Xun felt as if an eternity had passed, as though he had been cultivating for a very long time.

He looked up at the glaring sunlight, his eyes still somewhat dazed. After a moment, he retracted all his spiritual energy, and everything started to return to normal.

Chen Xun's imposing aura was no longer evident, and his previously calm expression slowly turned into anger. "Damn it, Old Ox, get over here!!"

"Moo~~"

The big black ox grinned, thinking, "This is the real Chen Xun." It ran over excitedly, constantly nudging Chen Xun.

"Old Ox, how many years have I been in seclusion?" His mind was still a bit muddled, and he felt quite disoriented.

"Moo~" The big black ox quickly wrote on the ground: 20 years.

"That long?!" Chen Xun was shocked, his eyelids twitching. "Old Ox, how did you get through these years?!"

He wasn't concerned about how long he had been in seclusion; his main worry was how the big black ox had managed on its own.

They walked to the stream, and the big black ox started gesturing wildly, constantly mooing and writing.

It told Chen Xun everything in detailstudying formation diagrams, using materials to set up formations, and then talking about some other modifications it had envisioned.

"Is the Five Elements Formation complete?"

"Moo!"

The big black ox nodded vigorously. With the expensive materials bought by Chen Xun, it followed the instructions meticulously.

"Moo moo~"

The big black ox asked him to hand over a drop of his essence blood. Without any hesitation, Chen Xun forced out a drop from his body.

"Moo!"

The big black ox suddenly stood up, its hoof transforming into a hand. Dirt flew everywhere as a beam of light from the formation shot up to the sky, and an endless gust of wind howled.

The light from the formation spread like ripples, instantly covering the area around the cave. A fleeting, murderous aura flashed by.

The surrounding scenery began to change, even isolating divine senses while allowing clear visibility of the outside world.

A thin film-like barrier covered the sky, occasionally emitting a soft glow and looking quite enchanting.

Chen Xun's essence blood was placed into the formation's core by the big black ox, allowing him to enter and exit freely without being attacked by the formation.

"Wow!!" Chen Xun was both shocked and delighted as he looked around, feeling like he was in a completely different world.

"Moo moo~!"

The big black ox, seeing Chen Xun's expression, excitedly mooed twice, but this was just the beginning! It took a deep breath, its spiritual energy spreading out, and suddenly thirty-two green flags appeared at different points in the formation's light.

Boom!

The big black ox continuously waved its hands, making the formation's light even more dazzling, and the entire ground sank slightly.

Holy cow!

Chen Xun's pupils contracted. With this level of defense, even a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator wouldn't be able to break through!

Moreover, underground attacks wouldn't work either; the formation extended three feet underground!

"Awesome!!" Chen Xun shouted, continuously patting the big black ox. "Old Ox, you're a genius!!"

"Moo moo moo!!"

The big black ox was so excited that it almost flew. Praise from the boss! Its tail wagged so fast that it could almost take off.

"Old Ox, let's go down the mountain and hunt three Red Lightning Wolves." Chen Xun's face was flushed with excitement. He hadn't been this excited even when he came out of seclusion, "Today, we'll have a big celebration!"

"Moo~" The big black ox happily hoisted Chen Xun onto its back and headed out of the cave.

"Hahaha..." Chen Xun laughed heartily, watching the illusionary array around them continually make way for them.

Once they were out, the formation concealed everything; the cave was completely hidden by cliffs. However, since this was the Qin Immortal Mountain, the big black ox left an obvious restriction in front of the cave, indicating that someone was residing there.

After going down the mountain and buying the Red Lightning Wolves, Chen Xun prepared an exceptionally sumptuous meal, also making a lot of jerkies.

During the meal, Chen Xun constantly shared his experiences with the big black ox. From dawn until dusk, he spoke the entire day while the ox diligently recorded everything in a small booklet.

The next day, the big black ox formally went into seclusion, and Chen Xun resumed his axe training and cultivation of his life-bound magic weapon, occasionally tending to spiritual herbs.

Sometimes, Chen Xun would go down the mountain alone to sell some spiritual herbs or pills to support their household.

However, as he passed various shops, he no longer felt like browsing; everything seemed dull and uninteresting.

Passing by street vendors, he no longer had an appetite for them. Golden Core cultivators could avoid eating altogether; there was nothing particularly appealing. When other cultivators greeted him with cupped hands, he would only nod slightly, his eyes filled with indifference. He would return directly after selling his goods, never lingering in the city.

Winter is the residue of the year; night is the residue of the day; rainy days are the residue of time. In the blink of an eye, another twenty years had passed.

Chen Xun meticulously planned his time, never wasting a moment, and today, the big black ox emerged from seclusion with a bang!

"Old Ox!!" Chen Xun shouted.

"Moo!!" the big black ox bellowed.

The man and ox ran towards each other, embracing each other's excitement.

"How was it, Old Ox?"

"Moo~" The big black ox carefully felt its changes and found them similar to Chen Xun's.

"Consolidate your gains first. I've seen several new shops opening down the mountain these years, all selling great stuff!" Chen Xun laughed, strapping the mountain-opening axe to his waist, "Tonight, let's have a good stroll and get some freebies!"

"Moo moo~" The big black ox jumped up in delight, its eyes wide with excitement at the prospect.

"I've also spotted a new beast that probably has even better meat than the Red Lightning Wolf." Chen Xun pondered for a moment, "On our way back, let's buy one to try. Even Golden Core cultivators need to eat!"

"Moo!" The big black ox ran around Chen Xun, nudging him occasionally, showing its strong agreement.

The fasting ability of Golden Core cultivators was pointless; they didn't get hungry, but that was no fun. Eating dirt wouldn't make them hungry either, so what was the point?

"Old Ox, get ready quickly. We're going shopping."

"Moo moo~"

They each began to prepare, making a racket inside and outside the cave. The big black ox also personally took charge of reorganizing the spiritual herbs.

At this moment, the sun had just risen over the mountain, covered by the crimson morning glow. Sunlight streamed through the clouds like countless golden waterfalls.

Wearing a straw hat, Chen Xun occasionally gazed at the peaks in the distance, sighing to himself that this was the rarest fine weather in twenty years.

However, he made a silent decision in his heart: if he ever went into seclusion again, it would definitely be with the big black ox.

Half a day later, the man and the ox dashed down the mountain, spending three days playing in the city without spending a single spirit stone.

They thoroughly enjoyed Yuxu City, and they left feeling they hadn't had enough, pointing and commenting everywhere they went.

Back home, they formally started the latter sixty years of their hundred-year plan.