Trouble had arisen in the Arctic Yama Heavens!
Hearing the abrupt news, Luo Chen's expression shifted slightly.
As the former mountain gate of a Soul Formation sacred land, it had been a blessed grotto-heaven celebrated throughout the entire Mountain Sea Realm. Yet after the demons of the Northern Sea annihilated the Yuan Demon Sect, that paradise turned into an outright domain of peril, trapping an unknown number of top-tier demon beasts within.
One could say it was a powder keg ready to detonate at any moment. And should it erupt, the nearest power—the Myriad Immortals Association—would bear the brunt of the devastation!
In an instant, Luo Chen realized how his cultivation would be disrupted if the horde of beasts in the Arctic Yama Heavens surged forth en masse.
Yet observing Ding Yi's worried demeanor, Luo Chen felt somewhat surprised. "Fellow Daoist, you are hardly one to lament the world and pity the common folk. Even if things go awry over there, those with greater stature will hold up the sky!"
Ding Yi snorted. "I'm merely a rogue cultivator, free to come and go as I please. Even if the entire Northern Sea were overrun by demons, I could simply flee to another human continent. But don't forget the geographical position of the Arctic Yama Heavens, and how it impacts our upcoming plan!"
The Sunken Sea lay right behind the Arctic Yama Heavens.
This time, Luo Chen's heart leapt into his throat.
Ding Yi did not keep him guessing, immediately laying out the details he had gathered.
"Relying on the Three Oceans Defensive Line, the Myriad Immortals Association has resisted the onslaught of demon beasts for over a century. Over the past hundred years, they have pieced together the patterns behind the beast attacks. Roughly every ten years or so, a massive horde of low-tier demon beasts would escape the seal of the Arctic Yama Heavens and assault the Three Oceans Defensive Line.
"However, over the last thirty years, that pattern has broken down!"
Luo Chen was puzzled. Broken down?
The last time he went to garrison the Quyang Defensive Line, he had heard that large hordes of demon beasts were active in the Liuyang Sea territory along the first defensive line.
Seeing Luo Chen's skepticism, Ding Yi asked solemnly, "Did you ever see those beasts push through to the two lines behind it?"
"No!" Luo Chen clenched his fists involuntarily.
"Exactly," Ding Yi sighed. "In the past, whenever demon beasts broke free, most would assault our human territories. In severe cases, they even breached all three defensive lines and threatened the human heartlands. Yet over these last thirty years, such occurrences have become exceedingly rare."
Any sealing formation would only weaken over time as the years passed and the suppressed entities fought back. The beasts trapped within the Arctic Yama Heavens should have emerged in greater and greater numbers, not fewer.
Luo Chen naturally understood the logic and asked instinctively, "Where did they go?"
"The Sunken Sea!" Ding Yi answered without hesitation. "From what I know, the low-tier demon beasts that escaped the seal over the past thirty years no longer attempted to push into human lands. Instead, they rushed toward the Sunken Sea to patrol and guard the perimeter. Qingyangzi, do you realize what this means?"
Luo Chen's voice sounded somewhat dry. "Could it be... these demon beasts have set their sights on the ancient cultivator ruins within the Sunken Sea?"
"Nine times out of ten, that is precisely the case." Ding Yi sighed, a trace of dread showing in his eyes.
Luo Chen found it strange. "Why would the ruins of an ancient human cultivator hold such immense appeal for demon beasts?"
His question carried internal logic. Even though demon beasts could pursue the path of metamorphosis, humans and demons ultimately walked different paths; their cultivation philosophies and technique methods were entirely distinct. Under normal circumstances, demon beasts would have no interest whatsoever in ancient human ruins—unless the master of that ancient ruin was not human!
To this, Ding Yi had no answer either. The Yuan Demon Sect Golden Core disciple he had captured years ago had not held a particularly high position within the sect, never privy to crucial secrets, so his knowledge was fairly limited.
He could only remark with a sigh, "Perhaps the demon race uncovered some intelligence within the Yuan Demon Sect, which elevated the importance of the Sunken Sea above all else, to the point where they can't even be bothered to attack us humans."
After all, it was an ancient cultivator ruin that even the Yuan Demon Sect had coveted and spent over a millennium investigating. If anyone in this world knew the most about that realm, it was bound to be the fallen Yuan Demon Sect.
Luo Chen's feelings were mixed. Learning that the demons had dispatched heavy forces to garrison the Sunken Sea, he felt both the pang of being unable to enter a secret realm and relief that he would not have to risk his life. As a result, his tone became somewhat breezy.
"If that's the case, I suppose we won't be able to visit those ruins!"
Cave Master Moyun, who had been quietly sipping tea beside them, shot Luo Chen an odd look. "Why wouldn't we? It's merely a garrison of low-tier demon beasts. If we wish to go, they won't be able to stop us."
"Uh..."
Ding Yi chimed in, echoing Cave Master Moyun's words. "We must go. In thirty years, the number of demon beasts able to break free from the seal remains limited. If we prepare thoroughly, forcing our way in won't be difficult, not to mention I have my own routes. Conversely, if we miss this chance, once the demon race secures complete control over the Sunken Sea centuries from now, we will never have another opportunity to glimpse that secret realm!"
Luo Chen's thought of using the news as an easy way out was instantly shot down.
He also sensed that something was amiss. These two were simply far too determined to enter those ancient cultivator ruins!
"Even if you aren't worried about the demonic army, are you not afraid of those Nascent Soul Perfected Persons?"
Ding Yi looked bewildered. "Didn't we discuss this before? What we seek is entirely different from what the Nascent Soul Perfected Persons want, so there won't be any conflict. Besides, we'll enter through a different location, so the chances of running into them are slim..."
At that point, his eyes narrowed slightly. "Qingyangzi, could it be you no longer want to go?"
Luo Chen replied frankly, "I do indeed feel like backing out."
"You promised both of us back then!"
"The situation has changed!"
"A minor variable is still within manageable bounds."
"Is it truly manageable? The celestial omen marking the opening of the ruins hasn't even appeared yet. Once it does, who knows what scale the demon beast garrison around the Sunken Sea will reach? We are merely Golden Core cultivators. Flying through the sky and burrowing into the earth may come easily to us, but against the elite forces capable of annihilating a Soul Formation sacred land, who can ensure nothing goes wrong? Fellow Daoist Ding, Cave Master, can either of you guarantee that?"
This time, both Ding Yi and Cave Master Moyun fell silent.
Luo Chen said no more, quietly sipping his steaming spiritual tea.
After a long while, Ding Yi finally said in a strained voice, "I don't want to miss this chance. It may well be the only opportunity in my entire life."
Cave Master Moyun sighed. "The same is true for this old man."
*Clack!*
Luo Chen set down his teacup and looked at the two in bewilderment. "What exactly is inside that makes you both pursue it so relentlessly?"
Ding Yi and Cave Master Moyun exchanged a glance, finally revealing the truth.
"The master of that ruin must have been a pinnacle artifact refiner in life. Numerous formidable magic treasures have spread from within, with True Artifacts and spirit treasures being no rarity. This old man wishes to obtain his heritage," Cave Master Moyun stated.
Luo Chen froze. He had wanted to question why the cave master sounded so certain, but an image of bloody light surfaced in his mind.
It was a blood-colored sword!
It had appeared at the Lengguang Island Jade Cold Auction, hailed as a spirit treasure that had once slain a mighty expert of the blood path. It was said that the blood sword eventually broke free from the Perfected Person's control, flew north, and plunged into the Sunken Sea.
Could that sword have originated from the ancient cultivator ruins in the Sunken Sea?
"Then what about you, Fellow Daoist Ding?" Luo Chen suppressed the turmoil in his heart and looked at Ding Yi's plump body and small face. "The Cave Master is obsessed with artifact refinement, so I can accept that he is consumed by the craft. But why are you so dead set on entering those ruins?"
Ding Yi let out a bitter laugh. "Dead set? Hardly!"
He patted his rolls of fat. "I have no choice."
Amid his bitter laugh, right before Luo Chen's eyes, he actually sliced off a chunk of fat from his belly.
"What are you..."
Before Luo Chen could understand the gesture, he saw the severed lump of flesh squirming on its own, visibly brimming with vitality!
The gruesome sight choked off the rest of Luo Chen's words.
"See that?" Ding Yi released his magic power and incinerated the chunk of flesh.
"When I first explored the Sunken Sea years ago, besides the Soul Nourishing Wood, I also obtained a damaged Taisui. I thought I had struck gold, never anticipating that the Soul Nourishing Wood harbored gloomy blight, and the Taisui held lingering malice. That treasure bored into my body and formed a symbiosis with me, eating away at my physique like a maggot in the bone. As you can imagine, if I let it feed unchecked, my body and soul will eventually dissolve, ending my vessel for cultivation.
"All these years, I have searched for a remedy. Your Dust-Descending Pellets are indeed effective for me, allowing me to convert the Taisui's power into magic power for brief periods to use as my own. But that only treats the symptoms, not the root!
"I must enter that secret realm to find the original body of the Taisui and thoroughly resolve the hidden peril within me."
Luo Chen was half-skeptical. Yet when he saw fresh, pale fat already growing back over the wound where Ding Yi had cut himself, his belief deepened.
Such an ability to spontaneously regenerate flesh was far beyond what an ordinary person could achieve. Even with his current Desolate Ancient Tier 3 physique, he could not reach such a level. Only the legendary Taisui, famed for its peerless vitality that was 'translucent as hard ice, granting longevity without age,' could possess such miraculous potency.
With Ding Yi possessed by a damaged Taisui, unless he found the original body, he would eventually be consumed and digested from the inside out.
Pulling his robes back down to cover his torso, Ding Yi looked at Luo Chen once more. "The Taisui is a legendary spiritual medicine of a grade unmatched in the Mountain Sea Realm. And according to what I gleaned from the lingering remnant will of this damaged Taisui, the Five Elements Lotus Platform you seek grows right near it.
"Qingyangzi, if you miss this opportunity, you might regret it for the rest of your life!"
Cave Master Moyun urged from the side as well. "A being capable of forging spirit treasures and possessing treasures like the Taisui had to be a pinnacle powerhouse. The fact that the ruins withstood over a millennium of exploration by the Yuan Demon Sect shows just how profound its master's cultivation must have been. If we venture inside, even if we fall short of our ultimate goals, a modest harvest would still bring boundless benefit. Qingyangzi, what are you hesitating for?"
The red-faced Taoist in white robes showed a flicker of indecision.
In the end, he spoke.
"Allow me to think on it a while longer."
Luo Chen took his leave.
Ding Yi and Cave Master Moyun escorted him out of the cave dwelling once more.
Watching his receding back, Ding Yi shed his earlier gloom and bitterness, a touch of sinister coldness creeping into the corners of his narrow eyes. "The former Demonic Lord Qingyang was never like this. Coveting safety when great undertakings are at hand—he has grown cowardly."
Standing beside him, Cave Master Moyun looked on with a hint of envy. "Haven't you noticed his cultivation is growing higher and higher? Even standing before the two of us, he isn't disadvantaged in the slightest."
"Hmph, so what?"
Cave Master Moyun shook his head. "You mentioned that during the battle at Lengguang Island, he was only at the fourth layer of Golden Core. Yet according to Dao Lan, what he displayed at Kumu Ridge was fully at the sixth layer. Breaking through two minor realms in a mere twenty years—do you realize what such speed means?"
Ding Yi froze slightly.
Cave Master Moyun sighed. "With cultivation speed this fast and an appearance so youthful, his true age cannot be large. Unlike us, who have at most a century or two left to live, he still has plenty of time to tread the grand path toward the Nascent Soul realm. Under such circumstances, how could you expect someone to willingly risk his life?"
The plump cultivator suddenly understood. Consumed by tracking the developments around the Sunken Sea all these years, he had forgotten that those around him were not stagnant like himself. Rogue cultivators typically progressed at an agonizingly slow pace, leading him to overlook Luo Chen's advancement entirely.
Thinking about it now, reaching the sixth layer of Golden Core at such an age would make him a genuine prodigy even within a major sect.
Asking such a man to risk his life was far from simple.
***
"You, my friend, have truly grown more timid the older you get in this world."
On the isolated island in Penghu Lake, a three-inch figure manifested his true Nascent Soul form, chuckling softly at the white-robed man.
Luo Chen ignored the mockery and asked directly, "In your senior's view, should I go to the Sunken Sea or not?"
"Your affairs should naturally be decided by yourself. Why ask this old man?" Han Zhan scoffed. Seeing Luo Chen's rare hesitation, he shook his head. "It isn't fitting for me to give you advice, but I can lead by example and offer you a ready illustration."
"Oh?"
"Tell me, if this old man hadn't explored that ancient Nascent Soul cultivator's ruins back then, would the world ever have known the name of Perfected Person Han Zhan?"
Han Zhan's opportunity to advance to the Nascent Soul stage had originated from exploring a secret realm. Because of it, he had once offended Golden Core cultivators from Tianfan City, prompting a Nascent Soul Perfected Person from Tianfan City to demand an explanation. Yet Han Zhan had turned calamity into fortune, gaining Tianfan City's backing. Not only did he obtain a fourth-rank spiritual land to break through to the Nascent Soul stage, but he also elevated the Luoyun Sect from a Golden Core sect into a Nascent Soul grand sect.
Luo Chen fell into deep thought.
Finally, he asked tentatively, "If I go, is Senior willing to accompany me and take action on my behalf?"
The lips of Han Zhan's three-inch Nascent Soul curled slightly, looking at Luo Chen with a faint, knowing smile. "Your hesitation was fake; asking for my help was your real goal!"
Luo Chen scratched his head, putting on the sheepish look of a green youth, appearing quite embarrassed.
Han Zhan laughed heartily. "Between the two of us, why beat around the bush and act so distant? I have heard of the Sunken Sea for a long time and wanted to visit it long ago."
Now Luo Chen was genuinely surprised. "Senior has researched the Sunken Sea as well?"
"Not researched." Han Zhan's tone grew slightly solemn as his gaze fell toward the Soul Nourishing Wood tablet harboring his Nascent Soul. "There may be a chance there for me to borrow a body and be reborn."
Luo Chen was startled.
Looking closely, he realized that Han Zhan's Nascent Soul was now solid and defined, just like a real infant, with none of the ethereal frailty from years past!
A look of delight appeared on his face. "Senior, your strength has recovered?"
Han Zhan waved his small hand. "Far from fully recovered. Without a physical body to anchor me, my magic power diminishes with every bit spent in battle. If you truly want me to protect you during the exploration, you had best find me a few handy magic treasures."
Handy magic treasures?
Luo Chen's mind stirred. With a flick of his sleeve, several streaks of brilliant light materialized before them.
Han Zhan focused his gaze, his eyes instantly lighting up.
"An entire matched set of flying sword magic treasures?"
"They are called the Seven Fiends Swords. They can be wielded individually or deployed as a formation to attack. Even if they cannot compare to the Two Instruments Five Elements Sword Formation Senior once used, in your hands, they should still unleash formidable power."
"The Seven Fiends Swords..." Han Zhan murmured. As his magic power surged, the seven brilliant blades floated upright in the air. The surrounding worldly spiritual energy flooded into them, instantly drawing forth a sharp, resonant hum.
The razor-sharp aura was so chilling that even with the Xuanchen Armor shielding him, Luo Chen felt a shiver run through his skin.
Chapter 640