「Two months later.」
In the central region of the Ten Thousand Mountains.
Two large Flying Spiritual Artifacts broke through the thick cloud layer, landing on the peak of a high mountain.
The Hundred Flowers Sect’s passenger artifact was a White Jade Flower Boat, complete with pavilions, terraces, and even a Tier Two Array.
In comparison,
Pei Jingque’s Flying Ship seemed extremely simple.
"SWOOSH!"
Two beams of Tunneling Light rose from the White Jade Flower Boat and landed near the Flying Ship, revealing the figures of a man and a woman.
The Hundred Flowers Sect was predominantly composed of Female Cultivators; male Cultivators were rare, and there was only one male Dao Foundation Cultivator.
Li Xingzhi!
He had reached the Dao Foundation thirty years ago.
An Early Stage Dao Foundation Cultivator.
He had been raised by the Female Cultivators of the Hundred Flowers Sect since childhood, and his Hundred Flowers Killing Sword technique was exceptionally sharp.
The female Dao Foundation Cultivator was Dong Yuelan.
The Vice Sect Leader of the Hundred Flowers Sect, a Mid-Stage Dao Foundation Cultivator, was still wearing her eye-catching Sharp Gold Fang Armor.
"Sect Leader Pei!"
"Sect Leader Pei!"
"Fellow Daoist Dong, Fellow Daoist Li." Pei Jingque nodded to the two of them, her beautiful eyes gazing into the distance as she said,
"It seems we’ve arrived early."
"No." Dong Yuelan shook her head and said with a cold hmph,
"It’s they who are late."
"Mm." Pei Jingque gave a faint, calm smile.
Her life had been filled with too many twists and turns. She no longer possessed the arrogance of her youth, nor could she be as overbearing as Dong Yuelan.
She simply said slowly,
"Let’s just wait."
"Without the items held by the other forces, we won’t be able to find the location of the Void even if we go in."
Zhu Ju looked in the direction of the Earth Abyss.
Far in the distance, beyond where the eye could reach, a massive fissure of unknown destination scarred the land.
The Earth Abyss!
The most mysterious and terrifying place in the Ten Thousand Mountains.
A dense black mist spewed from the Earth Abyss, pervading the surroundings and, over countless years, spreading for a thousand li.
Countless Voids were scattered throughout the mist, devouring any existence that tried to approach the Earth Abyss.
「A few days later.」
"SCREECH!"
A shrill cry came from the distant horizon. At first, it was dozens of li away, but in the blink of an eye, it was close by.
A massive Six-Winged Lark crossed the sky, flying toward the mountain peak where the group was gathered.
"The people from the Zhao Family are here."
Dong Yuelan, who had been sitting cross-legged on a rock to regulate her breathing, opened her eyes. She watched the Spiritual Bird slowly descend, a hint of envy in her gaze.
"A Tier Two Six-Winged Lark. The Zhao Family is truly lucky."
Taming Tier Two Demon Beasts, comparable to Dao Foundation Cultivators, was not uncommon among the major Immortal Sects, but the Six-Winged Lark was different.
It was a rather special type of Spirit Beast, with a Flying Escape speed far surpassing its peers.
When flying at full speed, the Zhao Family’s Six-Winged Lark could even outpace a Golden Core Cultivator.
"Haha..."
A hearty laugh came from the back of the Six-Winged Lark, and a burly figure leaped down from it.
"Have only the Bright Void Sect and the Hundred Flowers Sect arrived?"
"Looks like we’re not late!"
The newcomer had a face full of brutish flesh, and he made no effort to conceal his aura, making him seem like a savage Fierce Beast.
Mid-Stage Dao Foundation!
Body Refining Second Realm!
Zhu Ju’s eyes twitched slightly.
He had spent several decades in the East Sea. In terms of cultivation resources, the vast East Sea was not barren.
It could even be described as extremely rich.
But in terms of Cultivation Techniques and the strength of its Cultivators...
The Cultivators of the East Sea were far inferior to those of the Ten Thousand Mountains, let alone the Dazhou Cultivation World.
This was likely a result of the different regions.
The East Sea was indeed vast, but habitable places were few and far between, scattered all over, which made it difficult for cultivation resources to accumulate.
Cultivators couldn’t gather to exchange knowledge, so their Cultivation Techniques and legacies naturally struggled to advance.
A Cultivator at Mid-Stage Dao Foundation and the Body Refining Second Realm was extremely rare in the East Sea, yet here it seemed quite common.
"Hmph!" Dong Yuelan snorted coldly at the newcomer.
"Zhao Yongze, your Zhao Family is already late. It’s just that the others are even later!"
"Hehe..." Zhao Yongze chuckled.
"Fellow Daoist Dong, the agreed meeting time was within a month. As long as we arrive within that month, there’s no need to be so rigid about it."
"The Seeking Immortal Sect should be here soon, too. I ran into their Heaven Escape Shuttle on the way."
"Brother Zhao." Pei Jingque spoke up.
"Are you the only one from the Zhao Family this time?"
"There’s one other, but that Fellow Daoist is feeling unwell and it’s not convenient for them to come out and meet everyone." Zhao Yongze cupped his hands.
"I hope you can all be understanding."
The crowd looked toward the Six-Winged Lark.
Over a dozen Innate Qi Refiners had already disembarked from the lark’s back, but one figure, wrapped up tightly, remained.
"Look!"
Before everyone could get a good look, Zhao Yongze clapped his hands and pointed into the distance.
"The people from the Seeking Immortal Sect are here."
On the horizon.
A Flying Shuttle, pointed at both ends and thick in the middle, streaked over like lightning, its speed second only to the Six-Winged Lark.
As it drew near,
The middle section of the Flying Shuttle opened, and a dozen figures leaped out one after another.
The Heaven Escape Shuttle!
A Magical Treasure!
Large, passenger-carrying Magical Treasures were extremely rare, and the Seeking Immortal Sect’s Heaven Escape Shuttle was one of them.
"Everyone!"
A Cultivator dressed as a middle-aged scholar cupped his hands in a circle to the crowd.
"Apologies for the long wait."
"Fellow Daoist Xu." Pei Jingque’s eyes showed surprise.
"I can’t believe you’re leading the team personally this time."
Xu Canglan.
The Sect Leader of the Seeking Immortal Sect.
A Late-Stage Dao Foundation Cultivator!
Not only did the Sect Leader, Xu Canglan, come from the Seeking Immortal Sect this time, but there were also three other Dao Foundation Cultivators.
A total of four Dao Foundation Cultivators!
The mobilization of so many Dao Foundation Cultivators made the members of the Hundred Flowers Sect and the Zhao Family look wary.
"Hehe..." Xu Canglan stroked his beard and chuckled lightly.
"Besides exploring the Void Secret Realm, I have other business to attend to. I hope you won’t mind."
"Other business?" Dong Yuelan’s beautiful eyes gleamed.
"Could it be..."
"The Seeking Immortal Sect has discovered another Void Secret Realm?"
Hearing this,
The others couldn’t help but have their eyes light up.
The "Seeking Immortal" in Seeking Immortal Sect’s name wasn’t for nothing. The sect’s ancestor became famous for his art of geomancy, unearthing several ancient Heritage Mansions and Spiritual Land Secret Realms, which led to the founding of the modern-day Seeking Immortal Sect.
Even the Void Secret Realm they were all heading to this time was first discovered by people from the Seeking Immortal Sect.
Xu Canglan smiled but said nothing.
A few more days passed before the Wuh Family’s members finally arrived late.
The Wuh Family was the weakest of the forces, with only three Dao Foundation Cultivators and no Mid-Stage Dao Foundation Cultivators among them.
The Bright Void Sect also had three Dao Foundation Cultivators before.
But a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. With Pei Jingque, who possessed a Magical Treasure, present, no one dared to underestimate them.
*
*
*
With the Five Forces assembled, they set off once more.
The closer they got to the heart of the Ten Thousand Mountains, the thicker the mist became.
The black mist felt tangible, settling heavily on their bodies. It not only restricted their movement speed but also affected the range of their Divine Thought.
As for casting Magic by drawing on the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi, that was out of the question.
"We’re here."
The Seeking Immortal Sect’s Sect Leader, Xu Canglan, let out a low cry. He took out a Jade Token and looked at the others.
"Everyone, let’s begin!"
As he spoke, he tossed the Jade Token with one hand, and it flew out to hover in mid-air.
Pei Jingque glanced at the others, then also took out a Jade Token and tossed it up to join the one above.
Of the Five Forces, each possessed one Jade Token. When the five Jade Tokens came together, they formed a Jade Plate.
"VMMMM..."
The moment the Jade Plate formed, it trembled violently. A rosy glow emerged, pointing deep into the thick fog.
"The location of the Void is not fixed; it wanders around." Pei Jingque transmitted in a low voice:
"This Five Elements Spirit Locking Disc can lock onto the location of the Void Secret Realm. It’s also the key to opening it. The five families each hold one piece, and each piece has its own activation method. This ensures that no party’s interests are compromised."
Zhu Ju nodded slowly.
Just then,
Xu Canglan was the first to speak.
"Let’s go!"
"Everyone, be careful. There may be Voids nearby. Only by releasing your True Essence can you perceive them."
Everyone nodded.
The spatial rifts were difficult to discern with the naked eye. If one were to crash into one, even a Golden Core Grandmaster would not escape death.
Fortunately, they could be detected in advance and avoided.
Although the Voids wandered, their speed was not very fast. As long as they were detected, it was not a problem.
Since spatial rifts could devour anything, they wouldn’t spare projected True Essence either. Dao Foundation Cultivators could locate a Void by the disappearance of their True Essence and avoid it in time.
Pei Jingque and her companion took turns leading the way, following the guidance of the Five Elements Spirit Locking Disc deeper into the mist.
Before long,
Zhu Ju circulated his True Essence and discovered a long, narrow vacuum ahead. He immediately led everyone on a wide detour around it.
Under these circumstances, they naturally couldn’t pick up speed.
「Half a month later.」
Following the guidance of the Five Elements Spirit Locking Disc, the group arrived deep within the thick mist, where they could already faintly sense the aura of the Earth Abyss.
The black mist grew even denser.
Although it wasn’t yet so dark that they couldn’t see their hands in front of their faces, it was already difficult to distinguish day from night, and their perception was severely limited.
Even at a distance of over a dozen zhang, with the eyesight of Dao Foundation Cultivators, they could only make out shadowy figures.
"How are we not there yet?"
Dong Yuelan’s brow furrowed.
"The last time we came, it wasn’t this far."
"Indeed."
Pei Jingque nodded, her expression growing a little grave.
"It seems the Void Secret Realm has moved much deeper."
"We should be close." Xu Canglan’s expression, however, remained unchanged. He held a Compass, making calculations from time to time.
"We’ll definitely arrive within two days."
"Then let’s keep moving." Zhao Yongze patted the Six-Winged Lark beside him, calming the Spiritual Bird’s agitation, and led his contingent of disciples forward with large strides.
「Two days later.」
"We’ve arrived!"
The group stopped on a hillside.
The area was covered in all sorts of bizarre trees, their branches gnarled and twisted like coiling venomous snakes.
A Void, difficult to discern with the naked eye, hovered silently three feet above the ground.
"Let’s do this!"
Xu Canglan took a deep breath, strode to the center of the area, and pointed from afar at the Five Elements Spirit Locking Disc in front of them.
"VMMMM..."
A brilliant Spiritual Light flared.
Pei Jingque followed close behind, pressing her hand forward through the air.
"VMMMM..."
As the Spiritual Light from the Five Elements Spirit Locking Disc surged, the Void that was originally hard to see with the naked eye gradually became visible.
It was a spatial rift nearly a zhang long, pitch-black inside, leading to an unknown destination.
The Hundred Flowers Sect, the Zhao Family, and the Wuh Family successively contributed their power.
The spatial rift slowly twisted and expanded, finally stabilizing into the shape of a gaping mouth.
"Phew..."
Xu Canglan let out a long, turbid breath and slowly withdrew his hands.
"We arrived just in time. In a few more days, the Void’s entrance will be completely stable, and we can go in."
The Void Secret Realm!
Looking at the entrance before him, Zhu Ju couldn’t help but feel a surge of emotion.
For this expedition, he had prepared for nearly two years. For the past several months, he had been constantly traveling, with almost no time for Cultivation.
Fortunately, he was currently focused on taking medicine to expel the Pill Poison from his body, so his Cultivation would naturally and slowly increase.
It wasn’t something he needed to worry about.
’An expedition...’
’If there are rewards, it can indeed greatly increase the strength of a Dao Foundation Cultivator.’
’But it also means potential dangers and wasted time. All things considered, it might not be a good choice.’
’Every expedition is a gamble.’
*
*
*
During the wait, the various juniors were called aside by their Dao Foundation elders for some quiet instructions.
"You two, come here."
"Yes."
Guk Rusong and Xi Chen followed Zhu Ju to one side.
"After entering, you’ll appear at random locations within the Secret Realm. No one can predict what you will encounter inside."
After a moment of contemplation, Zhu Ju looked at the two ’young people’ before him, sighed lightly, and said slowly,
"Your survival comes first."
"Get the Spiritual Medicine if you can, but if it’s too dangerous, you can give it up. Returning safely is what’s most important."
"Master." Xi Chen nodded.
"I understand."
Guk Rusong, however, looked surprised.
’Martial Uncle spent so much effort and so many Spirit Stones on me, yet his final instruction is to prioritize my life.’
’This...’
’It seems I was judging a gentleman by my own petty standards!’
"These are two Void Escape Talismans. They can give you a burst of speed comparable to a Dao Foundation Cultivator for the time it takes an incense stick to burn." Zhu Ju took out two Spirit Talismans and placed one in each of their hands.
"I know that people’s hearts can be treacherous, but if by some chance you end up together, it would be best to help each other out."
"Returning alive is what matters most."
Guk Rusong and Xi Chen exchanged a look and nodded slowly.
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