Su Changyu had left one thing unsaid.
Searching for fortuitous encounters was never without risk.
If they all went together and were completely wiped out, wouldn't the legacy of Immortal Restoration be severed forever?
This was Xiao Heng's greatest concern.
Yet Su Changyu could also see that, apart from Xiao Heng, no one present placed much weight on Immortal Restoration. At the very least, compared to their own cultivation, the so-called legacy of Immortal Restoration was hardly worth mentioning.
Xiao Heng himself was surely aware of this. But while he held fast to his own principles, he never forced them on others. Thus, he found it difficult to say outright.
Though Su Changyu kept his eyes closed, he saw right through the thoughts of everyone present.
So he stepped forward to resolve the impasse: "How about this: Xiao Heng, Xiaomei, and Zhang Haobo, the three of you travel together to Cangwu Abyss. As for me, I will remain here."
Before Su Xiaomei could object, he continued to explain, "My cultivation method is unique. Such opportunities hold little value for me anyway, so none of you need to feel uneasy about it."
Hearing this, Xiao Heng cast a grateful glance at Su Changyu.
Su Xiaomei turned her head away in a huff, refusing to look at him. Still, she respected Su Changyu's words. With him making the final call, the matter was essentially settled.
"Then doesn't that leave us with an extra Small Medicine King Cauldron? Could it be that we should really sell it, just as Senior suggested?" Zhang Haobo asked with a furrowed brow.
"No," Su Changyu shook his head. "To possess a Small Medicine King Cauldron is already to invite disaster by holding jade. To expose our knowledge of the true Medicine King Cauldron for some petty gain would be utterly foolish. We should keep it and toss it out at a crucial moment as bait to draw an enemy's attention."
Xiao Heng also agreed with Su Changyu's reasoning.
"It's a bit of a pity, but this is indeed the safest course."
"Whatever! You two call the shots anyway!" Su Xiaomei huffed, offering no further resistance. Grabbing Han Wuyou by the arm, she dragged him outside to play.
"It is a long journey to Cangwu Abyss. We aren't Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals cultivators, so we cannot use the teleportation arrays," Xiao Heng said, stroking his chin with a furrowed brow. "Flying by ourselves would take too long, and who knows what accidents might happen along the way. We need to think of a better way..."
"Well..." Zhang Haobo hesitated, starting to speak before holding back.
"What is it?" Xiao Heng looked at him, slightly surprised.
"We might actually be able to use the teleportation arrays," Zhang Haobo explained. "You know that during our expedition in Jiushan Province, we met Senior Shuo Feng. And during the trip to Chaoyuan Sect, we fought side by side through a sea of blood and corpses. You could say we share quite a bond. When parting, Senior Shuo Feng invited us to join the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals. Although we declined, he was very understanding and left a jade talisman for Xiaomei. With that jade talisman, borrowing the teleportation arrays shouldn't be much of a problem."
Hearing this, Xiao Heng nodded. "That couldn't be better."
Assuming Zhang Haobo's earlier hesitation was because Shuo Feng was an Alliance cultivator, Xiao Heng added solemnly, "I am not so rigid as to refuse to adapt. Our enemy is the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals, not every individual cultivator within it. If we can befriend Alliance cultivators and undermine them from within, it brings nothing but benefits. Why would I object? I'll go speak with Xiaomei right away."
With that, Xiao Heng went off to find Su Xiaomei.
Watching his retreating figure, Zhang Haobo shook his head helplessly.
"What? Is there something between Xiaomei and that Shuo Feng?" Having sensed what Zhang Haobo was hinting at, Su Changyu asked with interest.
"Who knows? From what I saw, the two of them got along like a house on fire. Even though Shuo Feng has now regained his Soul Formation cultivation, he doesn't seem to care at all about Xiaomei's low cultivation. Sigh, that boy Xiao Heng doesn't have the slightest sense of crisis."
Su Changyu laughed dismissively. "You worry too much. In my view, romance has likely never crossed Xiaomei's mind."
Zhang Haobo could only shake his head in silence.
...
After all these years, the young children of back then seemed to have grown up.
Yet faintly, some things remained unchanged.
Li Fan could not help feeling a sudden wave of emotion, his thoughts drifting for a moment to his children from his earliest lives.
*I really am getting old,* he murmured inwardly.
Soon after, Li Fan suppressed this sliver of sentiment.
...
Meanwhile, it took a great deal of effort on Xiao Heng's part before he finally managed to coax Su Xiaomei into smiling again and parting with Shuo Feng's jade talisman.
After several days of preparation, Xiao Heng, Su Xiaomei, and Zhang Haobo set out on the long journey to Cangwu Province.
Han Wuyou's large eyes were full of envy as he waved goodbye to them.
Su Changyu's eyelids twitched violently, as though he wanted to open his eyes, but his expression remained calm throughout. In the end, he never did open his double pupils.
Shuo Feng's jade talisman proved effective indeed.
Even though they were not Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals cultivators, Xiao Heng and the others entered Shilin Immortal City without hindrance.
Xiao Heng kept a tight grip on Su Xiaomei, who was brimming with curiosity and eager to explore, and activated the teleportation array with slight trepidation.
Teleporting to the border of Shilin Province, they crossed the White Mist Barrier and arrived in Yuandao Province.
Afterward, they continuously used teleportation arrays to make their way toward the Abyss of Cangwu in the southwestern corner of the Xuanhuang Realm.
Thus, more than half a month passed.
By the time Li Fan began inspecting the Heavenly Profound Spirit-Locking Formation in Lanlin Province, Xiao Heng's group had finally reached their destination.
*It seems Lanlin Province really isn't far from Cangwu Abyss. Even without relying on a sensory array, my Formless Killing Intent can perceive the imagery.*
Through their eyes, Li Fan could finally behold the long-famed Abyss of Cangwu in person.
Unlike Congyun Abyss, which had turned entirely into nothingness, this Cangwu Abyss resembled the Ruins Abyss of Great Xuan.
Beneath the towering cliffs lay an endless, fathomless chasm.
Above the chasm, crimson mist swirled without end.
Flocks of strange birds and exotic beasts soared through the clouds and mist.
And along the cliff faces, built into the mountains and extending deep into the rock at descending intervals, were numerous architectural structures.
"The Abyss of Cangwu is a unique landform created many years ago when the mountains and rivers across the entirety of Cangwu Province vanished overnight.
"Hence, the abyss has defined boundaries, shaped like a footprint.
"It has presently been explored downward to approximately three hundred thousand zhang, yet the bottom remains far out of reach.
"The Cangwu Abyss is not empty. Each layer has its own distinct landscape.
"First layer: surface to thirty thousand zhang underground. Numerous strange beasts dwell within the Cangwu mist and the cliff walls of the abyss boundary.
"These beasts swallow metal and exhale lightning, possessing extraordinary strength. They are fearless of death and roam in packs. Great caution is advised.
"Second layer: thirty thousand to eighty thousand zhang underground..."
Reading word by word from an informational jade slip that cultivators had distributed freely outside Cangwu Abyss, Su Xiaomei's eyes widened.
"It's so vast, so deep. Even if that Medicine King Cauldron is really inside this Cangwu Abyss, how could we possibly find it?" she transmitted mentally.
Xiao Heng's heart stirred.
He channeled his sense toward the Small Medicine King Cauldron in his storage ring.
Sure enough, somewhere far down in the depths of the abyss, something was resonating with the Small Medicine King Cauldron.
Chapter 396