Facts proved that human talent truly was divided into tiers, and the mortals within Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World were no exception.
Of the seven individuals upon whom Wei Yuan had placed high hopes, only two Heaven Foundation cultivators gained any insight, their Dao Foundations advancing from Heaven Foundation to immortal foundation, while the other five came away with nothing.
These Dao Foundation cultivators had to constantly expend Dao power to resist the corrosive cold of the Nether Cold Realm. Consequently, the two Mortal Foundations soon reached their limits and were forced to return to Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World.
The two hall masters, however, were entirely at ease; it seemed moving about the Nether Cold Realm for an entire day would pose no difficulty for them. Wei Yuan instructed them to roam the small valley as they pleased, gathering as many specimens as possible to bring back to the mindscape world for study, while he personally conducted repeated tests on the portal's spell.
This spell required the caster to possess a mindscape world and could only connect to the Nether Cold Realm; it was, in truth, an art exclusive to Nether Shamans. After pondering it for a time, Wei Yuan came to understand that this was likely the very spell a Nether Shaman used to carve out a realm in the Nether Cold Realm upon a successful advancement.
Although Wei Yuan had not yet reached Scenery Command, Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World was already nearly indistinguishable from a true mindscape world. Thus, by a stroke of luck, he had opened a passage between the two worlds, allowing the first batch of Dao Foundation mortals to step beyond Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World.
Wei Yuan's mastery of Daoist arts was exceptionally profound. After studying the spell for a brief while, he made a few minor adjustments and shortly afterward placed a disguise over the portal.
Once the disguise was applied, looking into it from the Nether Cold Realm no longer revealed Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World, but rather a roiling mist of bloody vital energy and overflowing yin aura—making it appear very much like the mindscape world of some Nether Shaman.
Having set up the disguise, Wei Yuan was quite pleased. Looking it over and finding no flaws, he prepared to summon the two hall masters back from the valley.
Right then, Wei Yuan felt a sudden premonition. His figure vanished from the spot in an instant, concealing his aura as he hid behind a massive tree.
Four Dao Foundation Shamans walked into the valley, peering around with great vigilance. Each held a ghostly blue tube in hand, containing who knew what.
They advanced in search, conversing in hushed voices as they walked.
"Lord Gu Xiong sent back a signal saying the target has been spotted. We're almost at the location mentioned in the message. Everyone stay alert, or we won't even know how we died when the time comes."
"Is Wei Yuan really that formidable?"
"You've been staying in the Nether Cold Realm all this time, so you don't know the latest situation outside. The entire Land of Rain mobilized in full force to attack Wei Yuan's domain. They've been fighting for months now and still haven't taken it!"
"You probably don't know this either, do you? I heard that in a recent battle, Wei Yuan called out Lord Hongye by name for a decisive duel, but the lord didn't accept the challenge."
"There was such a thing?!"
"By the way, why have I never heard anyone mention where Lord Hongye's realm is located..."
Before this Shaman's voice had even faded, the other three Shamans took on expressions of sheer terror!
While that Shaman was still baffled, fresh blood suddenly began streaming incessantly from his mouth and nose. His two eyeballs began rolling in opposite directions, and after a few twitches, they dropped to the ground.
Massive patches of blood welled out across his body. Incapable of even uttering a scream, he melted into a puddle of foul blood in the blink of an eye!
The three surviving Shamans remained completely silent. Only after a moment did one speak: "He shouldn't have brought up a forbidden topic."
"The realm is in utter chaos right now. It's possible no one warned him about these things when he came in."
"What a pity. He was still so young..."
The three Shamans did not linger for long, pressing forward. None of them noticed two faint, indistinct figures appearing in the woods to their flank, both possessing quite skilled methods of breath containment and stealth.
As for Wei Yuan, he was watching from directly above their heads. Three Dao Foundation Shamans had no chance whatsoever of detecting Wei Yuan after he had consumed the Concealment Fruit.
One of the figures in the woods was itching for action, intending to strike and do battle with the three Shamans. The other figure, however, made a restraining gesture and pointed toward the sky.
Wei Yuan naturally took in both of their reactions.
The one eager to attack was the brilliantly talented Vice Hall Master. He had sparred with the Hall Master many times in the Battle Saint Hall, suffering defeat on every occasion. Yet none of the others were a match for him, and over time, he had gradually lost interest in battles that held no suspense.
Now, the three Shamans possessed cultivation comparable to his own, and taking on three at once posed a fair amount of pressure. This immediately set the Vice Hall Master's heart pounding, stirring his desire to wage a fierce fight against the first true enemies he had encountered in his life.
Conveniently, Wei Yuan also wanted to see the caliber of these mortal cultivators from Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World, so he prepared to intervene to isolate heaven and earth, preventing the fluctuations of the battle from leaking outward.
Just at that moment, one of the Shamans walking in front suddenly exclaimed, "What's that?"
He pointed forward, a thin beam of ghostly light shooting from his fingertip. Where there had once been empty space, a portal abruptly manifested—the very gateway leading into Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World.
Wei Yuan had not expected that among three ordinary Dao Foundation Shamans, one would actually possess the divine ability of the Heavenly Eye, seeing through his disguise and discovering the portal.
Upon catching sight of it, an older Shaman grew so excited that his words became somewhat incoherent: "Th-this is a portal leading to a Nether Shaman's mindscape world! Judging by the appearance inside, it must belong to an exceptionally formidable lord. Furthermore, this world is utterly lifeless, with not a single living creature to be seen. We might just have discovered a realm left behind by a deceased Nether Shaman!"
At these words, all three Shamans were thrilled beyond measure.
A Nether Shaman's realm differed from a Scenery Command mindscape world in that a realm was far more stable. Many Nether Shamans disliked others entering their realms, keeping their locations strictly secret. Once they met an untimely demise outside, their realms would become ownerless land.
Even if a Nether Shaman perished, the realm they left behind could often endure for tens of thousands or even over a hundred thousand years. For later generations, discovering such a realm was tantamount to finding a Nether Shaman's lifetime of accumulated wealth.
The three Shamans gathered before the portal. Just as they were about to inspect it closely, Wei Yuan had already quietly appeared behind them and, with a swift kick to each, booted them all inside.
The three Shamans tumbled headlong into Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World. Before they could even find their footing, they looked up only to have their eyes stabbed with piercing pain by the brilliant light.
Surrounding them were dozens of Dao Foundation warriors who had long formed an encirclement. Swarming forward at once, they unleashed a barrage of punches and kicks, first beating the three Shamans half to death before proceeding with a meticulous interrogation.
The three Shamans' cultivations were not high to begin with, nor was their willpower particularly resolute. Furthermore, Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World was home to plenty of remarkable talents, who, having fought the Shamans for so long, possessed a wealth of expertise when it came to torturing them.
Within Smoke and Fire of the Mortal World, there were more than seventy major tortures designated specifically for Shamans and labeled as utterly inhumane. Before even reaching the second torture, every one of the Shamans suffered a complete collapse of their Dao hearts, spilling everything—what should be said and what should not, what they knew and even what they did not know—in one breathless torrent.
The three minor lackeys genuinely did not know much, but they disclosed one extremely important matter: any mention of Hongye's realm was an absolute taboo in the Nether Cold Realm. No matter who it was, so long as one asked the complete question of where Hongye's realm was located, they would end up just like that young Shaman moments ago, their entire body dissolving into foul blood and perishing.
They did not know whether this curse had been cast by Hongye or by some other entity. They only knew that the curse was unfailingly potent; even a Great Shaman who violated the taboo could not escape.
Yet upon hearing this, an idea sprouted in Wei Yuan's mind. His Dao Foundation warriors were originally derived from Shamans anyway and existed in great numbers. If he manipulated a Dao Foundation warrior into asking that question to trigger the curse, and laid out an array in advance, it was possible to trace the karmic connection of the curse—perhaps even locating the source of the curse itself.
Wei Yuan immediately issued the task, beginning the optimization of the relevant arrays.
On this journey to the Nether Cold Realm, no matter how many Nether Shaman realms he overturned, none would be as direct and effective as finding Hongye's realm.
Chapter 532