Chapter 137: Chapter 107: The Origin of the Golden Cicada Secret Realm, Late Foundation Establishment Stage, Departure Matters
Translator: 549690339
Han Ye escorted Wang Da Niu back to the Pure Yang Peak, planning to return to his own cave mansion, when a familiar voice echoed from the mid-air.
“Han Ye, come over here.”
Han Ye looked up and saw the figures of his Master and Sister Shen. Like always, Elder Gai was stern, not bothering with pleasantries, his cracked lips looked intimidating.
“Disciple pays his respects to the Master.”
He slightly bowed, not showing any sign of negligence.
Ever since the incident at the Ghoul Sect, the Master had been in seclusion for recovery. It had been a long time since he saw him.
Elder Gai looked at Han Ye with satisfaction and said earnestly, “You have done well by securing the first place in the inner gate, providing pride and honor for our Pure Yang Peak. However, now that the big competition of the sect has ended, it’s time to prepare for the opening of the Golden Cicada Secret Realm. Have you prepared well? Are you aware of this secret realm?
Han Ye shook his head, “Though the Golden Cicada Secret Realm was mentioned earlier, I truly do not know what is special about these secret realms. If Master or Sister Shen is aware, could you inform me about what should I prepare in advance before entering the secret realm?
Sister Shen Yuxiang blinked her eyes and said, “Didn’t Chu Xianyu tell you?”
Han Ye replied helplessly, “Sister Shen, like I said, Chu Xianyu and I aren’t quite close yet, not in a Daoist couple relationship. Perhaps in some aspects, I’m closer to Sister Shen.”
This remark was rather pleasing to Shen Yuxiang; it made her smile more brightly. “I thought you’d forget about me since you got Miss Chu. Now, let me talk about the origins of the Golden Cicada Secret Realm. As a cultivator, you cannot possibly be unaware of the origins of these relics.”
“I’m all ears,” Han Ye nodded.
Sister Shen began slowly: “You should know that our sect is divided into four levels: Beyond Heaven, Blessed Land, Cave Heavens, and Treasure Peak. In fact, in the ancient and middle ages, there were no such explanations because immortals could still move among people, the Immortal Gate flourished, the Taoist orthodoxy was eternal, and the world was peaceful. But at the end of the middle ages, a dark and bloody war broke out between immortals and demons. Many sects disappeared in the river of time.”
“After that, the number of these immortals drastically dwindled, making them extremely rare today. Those remaining Cave Heavens and Blessed Lands were vacant and were shared by the sects and imperial court. Half of them were occupied by top-tier sects like the Dragon Sparrow Sect, while other half were wasted and turned into ruins or secret realms, leaving behind only formations. Later, with the rotation of powers in the imperial court, the cultivators from Great Zhou were gradually controlled by Wuliang Tian.
“Those undiscovered ruins, not occupied by the sects, were designated as secret realms, controlled by major Immortal Gates. Every ten years, only partial quotas would be opened. Based on the danger level of these secret realms and the odds of finding treasures, the realms were further classified into four levels. Even with the cultivation of an outer gate disciple, one would face life-threatening risks even in the lowest level secret realm. Typically, a visit to the ruins would be accompanied by elders or disciples with relatively high cultivation.”
“This Golden Cicada Secret Realm is an Earth-grade secret realm, which was once the Daoist arena of the middle-aged Golden Cicada True Immortal. It’s a small world, like Cave Heavens. Over time, the formations have broken, and rules are not complete. It can accommodate Nascent Soul cultivators at most. However, the things inside would even make Nascent Soul cultivators envious.” “Therefore, you should be careful on this trip. The focus should mainly be on exploration, grasping the opportunities that come by. Don’t insist on things that seem out of reach.”
Han Ye asked, “What’s the story behind this Golden Cicada True Immortal? He seems to have such a large territory?”
Shen Yuxiang smiled lightly, “Among the cultivation world, there are many secret realms, and this Golden Cicada Secret Realm is just one of them. Before the middle ages, Qingyun Immortal Mountain was also a Daoist arena, much larger than it is now. It is the Lotus Blessed Land under the Lotus Immortal.” “The cultivation level of this Lotus Immortal among the immortals is equivalent to a high-ranked Nascent Soul. According to the records, when the Lotus Immortal taught, there were millions of cultivators in his Daoist arena listening.”
“However, this Lotus Immortal is also one of the top existences among the
Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.”
Han Ye pondered and said, “It seems that since ancient times, the cultivation world has been maintained by the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths. There used to be many cultivators in the mortal world, but later all resources were concentrated in the hands of the sects.
Shen Yuxiang slightly nodded, “That’s roughly the case. This time, the team leader for the Golden Cicada Secret Realm is Elder Yu Linglong from Ziwei Peak. You should prepare well before setting off. The Golden Cicada Secret Realm is like a large Cave Heaven. You need to pay attention to three points. First, it’s said to be very hot and dry inside. You definitely need to prepare enough water and ice-attribute magic treasures to resist the heat.” “Second, many unheard-of ancient monsters are born in the Golden Cicada Secret Realm. You should guard against their ambushes.”
“The third point, you should be cautious of other cultivators. Han Ye asked, “Does sister mean the disciples from other sect forces? Shen Yuxiang said solemnly, “They are just one part of it. In addition, the Demon Path cultivators would sneak in amidst the chaos. Also, if you find a treasure in the secret realm, even your close fellow disciples may stab you in the back.”
Even without Sister Shen’s reminder, Han Ye would have kept this in mind.
“Understood, I’ll be careful.”
Shen Yuvxiang gave her final reminder, “Although the Golden Cicada Secret Realm is somewhat dangerous, it is also filled with opportunities. If you explore for a month, the gain might equal to that of a ten year’s external cultivation. It all depends on your luck.
Upon hearing the word ‘luck’, Elder Gai’s eyes mysteriously flickered.
In terms of good fortune, no one could compare to Han Ye.
According to the Great Elder, Han Ye’s fate increases every once in a while, which is truly an unthinkable matter.
“I’ve told you everything I need to. You have a few days left, you can go into seclusion for cultivation, and strive to advance your cultivation further,” Elder Gai pointed his finger in the air, and a shimmering spirit light appeared in the air, floating in front of Han Ye.
“Since you joined the Sect, besides from the Mountain Shaking Five Elements Gang, your master hasn’t taught you much.”
“These two divine powers are my proud accomplishments, you can go ahead and study them, you might have unexpected gains.
Han Ye accepted the spirit light, and suddenly a trace of special memory appeared in his mind.
These were two divine powers that his master had comprehended.
They were Observing Water and Gazing at the Moon and Connecting Heaven and Penetrating Earth.
“Thank you, Master!”
Han Ye bowed deeply in gratitude.
In the following days, Han Ye never left but stayed in his Cave Mansion cultivating in seclusion, naturally, and by using his Sun Spiritual Root, he broke through the late-stage of Foundation Establishment.
Justifying his senior sister’s words, the cultivation at this stage of Perfect Foundation Building was very quick, without any bottleneck. Everything was so smooth and logical.
In the Cave Mansion, the air rapidly fell, condensing into snowflakes, which fluttered down. Ning Yujing’s figure appeared inside the Cave Mansion, smiling warmly:
“Senior brother, you’re all set, we can depart now.”
She held a cold jade cup in her hand which stored a large amount of solidified liquid; it was obvious that these were preparations of water, having learned about the conditions of the Secret Realm, she was fully equipped.
“The climate in the Golden Cicada Secret Realm is very hot and dry, it would be good for senior brother to prepare some clothes made of Ice Toad skin.” Ning Yujing very thoughtfully took out a jacket, and handed it over.
Han Ye looked at her with a somewhat complicated gaze.
The impression of her being merciless toward her fellow disciples still lingered.
In fact, Ning Yujing also knew about the relationship between Wang Da Niu and Han Ye, which was a rather good one, no wonder senior brother was angry that day.
“Let’s go, I’ll call Da Niu.”
He didn’t say much, packed his things, took his magic treasure and elixir, mounted his sword and left.
At this time, at the gate of the Dragon Sparrow Sect, Elder Yu Linglong had been waiting for a long time.
Five True Inheritance disciples dressed in Purple-Phoenix Treasure Scarves, two Outer Sect disciples, and three Inner Sect disciples.
Ten people in total, all of whom were ready.
“Let’s depart.”
Accompanied by Han Ye, Ning Yujing, Wang Da Niu and others appearing in view, Elder Yu threw out a Miniature Spirit Boat from his hand.
It flew out, became huge, and everyone swiftly hopped on.
In the blink of an eye, the Spirit Boat turned into a streak of light and disappeared from the Dragon Sparrow Sect, leaving no trace.
