readytorunbook Chapter 184 Cloud Dao Seeking Pagoda
Chapter 184 Cloud Dao Seeking Pagoda
Chapter 184: Cloud Dao Seeking Pagoda
In the Grotto-Heaven secret realm, the sky was clear and sunny, without a cloud for thousands of miles.
Although the Dao Venerable had fallen for countless years, the world he had created still had a complete and self-consistent system of Dao laws. Those whose cultivation was not enough could hardly feel the difference between here and the outside world.
On a gentle slope, Qin Muling put away the Soul-Slaying Bell in his hand. Despite having just experienced a bloody battle, he remained clean and sharp, showing no signs of fatigue.
There were corpses scattered all over the ground, including human cultivators and native spirit beasts from the secret realm. Some of them were quite large and intimidating. The air was filled with the remnants of violent and chaotic spiritual energy.
Cheng Yulan and Yu Binghua, two senior sisters, were commanding the puppet soldiers to clean up the battlefield. Qin Muling wanted to help, but they refused. After all, he had already exerted himself a lot earlier, so it was only natural to let him rest for a while.
The cause of the incident was simple. The three senior sisters and brothers were hunting spirit beasts in this mountainous area and collecting various ancient medicinal herbs. A group of Independent Cultivators who happened to pass by took an interest in them. After confirming that there were only three of them, they became even more brazen, constantly making lewd remarks and threatening to snatch their gains.
Naturally, there was nothing to say about this. Qin Muling, burning with anger, took the initiative to attack, with the assistance of the two senior sisters. It didn't take long for them to kill these people. The intense battle alarmed some powerful spirit beasts lurking in the mountains, and one by one, they rushed out to join the fray, only to be killed by the three of them working together.
"...There's nothing good, they're all a bunch of poor beggars, a waste of time!"
After examining the spoils collected in one place, Cheng Yulan shook her head with some disappointment.
There were only some Spiritual Weapon-level bracelets, rings, flying swords, robes, and low-grade elixirs. The craftsmanship was rough, and the quality was lacking. Most of these Independent Cultivators were at the bottom of the cultivation world, so how could they have any decent wealth? If it weren't for the valuable spirit beasts nearby, this fight would have been a bit of a loss.
Qin Muling didn't mind. Compared to the senior sisters, his experience in actual combat was not rich enough. He considered it a warm-up and practice.
After cleaning up, Yu Binghua set fire to the bodies of the Independent Cultivators, burning them to ashes.
The three of them moved to another location, lit a bonfire, and took out various utensils to cook the killed spirit beasts. These creatures thrived in the secret realm, enjoying the abundant heavenly treasures and rare materials. When roasted, they tasted delicious and were truly nourishing.
"I feel like if we live in here for three to five years, we could reach the True Immortal realm just by eating!"
Qin Muling stared at the spirit beast meat on the grill, which was dripping with oil and emitting a faint glow. He sighed slightly. After all, the effectiveness of this meat was... too strong. It contained an unusually rich essence of spiritual energy, like walking elixirs.
After entering for a few days, he found that there were indeed quite a few high-level spirit beasts in this Cave Mansion secret realm, appearing in groups. Moreover, their meat was delicious, and there were various rare spirit fruits, mushrooms, and fresh fish in the lakes. They could eat wherever they went, to the point where they couldn't digest it all.
Fortunately, the space in his bracelet was large enough, and the space inside his Innate Primordial Spirit Seed had grown to a size of thousands of miles, more than enough to hold all the harvest along the way.
Of course, these native spirit beasts were powerful and not easy to deal with. Before cultivators could make a move, they had to carefully consider their own strength. A slight mistake could result in being counter-killed by them.
However, with Cheng Yulan's cultivation and the effect of the formation, she was already one of the most outstanding people in the Cave Mansion secret realm. With Qin Muling and Yu Binghua assisting her, dealing with these creatures was effortless.
"It's a pity that this secret realm is only open for a hundred days. If we don't return in time, the next opening may not be for another five hundred years!"
Yu Binghua by my side has a charming and radiant smile, but in her heart, she is thinking that if she could live here with her junior martial brother for five hundred years, engaging in dual cultivation every day as immortal companions, it wouldn't be bad at all. It would also allow them to avoid those seductive foxes outside. Unfortunately, the higher-ups in Dao Court would never agree to it.
"Don't think too much. It's already a rare opportunity for us to come in and plunder for over a hundred days in this extraordinary treasure land. Dao Court is not a charitable organization. How can everything go according to your wishes?" Cheng Yulan said, handing two large pieces of roasted spirit beast meat to Qin Muling. As the junior martial brother, he had the highest physical consumption, so it was only natural to let him eat his fill first.
Only when he was full could the senior martial sisters eat their fill. Qin Muling took the meat and began to eat heartily. The two senior martial sisters were not idle either. In just half an hour, several large-sized spirit beasts had been completely devoured by the three of them.
What happened next was a matter of course...
"Did something happen to Senior Martial Sisters? Why haven't they arrived yet?" In the luxurious and fragrant chamber of the Cave Mansion Law Treasure, Qin Muling, who looked a bit tired, released the milky-white snow child beside him and took out a jade slip containing a topographic map to examine it, muttering with some doubt.
He wasn't too worried, as the spiritual connection from his Dao companion allowed Qin Muling to confirm that Xue Bingxuan and the other women were safe at least in terms of security. However, he wasn't sure about other things.
Cheng Yulan, with her beautiful blushing face and watery eyes, turned over and pressed her flawless and enchanting body against her junior martial brother, saying in a sweet voice, "They must have encountered some important opportunity, right? Otherwise, they might have clashed with cultivators from other sects and were temporarily held back. But that's not a big deal. We can go find them later."
Qin Muling thought it made sense. After all, with the strength of his senior martial sisters, there weren't many enemies that could threaten them. Those guys should be grateful if they weren't targeted by them.
"But, Cloud Dao Seeking Pagoda is not far from here. I heard that there may be ancient lost cultivation techniques and scriptures hidden inside. It would be a pity if we missed it so easily!" Yu Binghua lazily stretched her voluptuous and fair body, kissed Qin Muling affectionately with a look of infatuation and happiness in her shimmering eyes. She didn't want to meet up with her senior martial sisters too early. When there were more people, it would be inconvenient for her to get close to her junior martial brother. Unlike now, she could just pull him into the room whenever she wanted and eat to her heart's content. It felt so joyful.
"Well..." Qin Muling hesitated for a moment. In the topographic map, Cloud Dao Seeking Pagoda was an important location in the secret realm. It was very likely the place where the mysterious Dao Venerable gave lectures during his lifetime, and it was normal for it to contain some lost cultivation techniques and scriptures.
Such an important area would undoubtedly attract the attention of various forces, and Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace couldn't afford to be absent. Otherwise, if they missed out and allowed hostile forces to benefit, there would be no place to buy regret medicine.
Cheng Yulan glanced at her junior martial sister and already understood what she meant. However, she also didn't object to it. It would be better to spend more time with her junior martial brother and deepen their emotional connection.
"Then let's go take a look at Cloud Dao Seeking Pagoda first. I believe our senior martial sisters will join us soon," Cheng Yulan said.
After weighing the options, Qin Muling finally made a decision.
The two senior martial sisters breathed a sigh of relief and continued to cultivate with him until they were satisfied before leaving the chamber and continuing on their journey.
Tens of thousands of miles away, deep within the majestic and towering mountains, the brilliance of Law Treasures illuminated the sky, creating a colorful and dense radiance that covered half of the horizon.
As time passed, more and more cultivators rushed over from all directions, bustling and mixed together. They gathered in groups of three to five, not knowing how many hidden powerhouses were among them.
At the peak of those mountains, there was a faint silhouette of a small tower that was translucent and surrounded by countless clouds and mist. The tower had nine levels, with a smooth and integrated surface, exuding an ancient and majestic aura, with a profound and mysterious Dao resonance lingering in the depths of the soul.
At this moment, under the gaze of countless cultivators, this small tower was growing visibly to the naked eye, simultaneously transitioning from illusion to reality. The awe-inspiring Dao resonance became stronger and stronger.
Everyone quickly came to the conclusion that when this small tower completely solidified, it meant that it had emerged from an unknown spatial dimension. At that time, everyone should be able to enter it to seek opportunities, and whether they could gain anything would depend on fate.
When Qin Muling and her two senior sisters arrived, what they saw was this crowded and chaotic scene, with disciples from various factions, including some from hostile forces.
However, everyone's attention was focused on the Cloud Dao Seeking Pagoda, and no one wanted to engage in meaningless fights. Therefore, the atmosphere in the field was quiet and harmonious, with no one making any rash moves.
However, many cultivators had already summoned their Law Treasures, enveloping themselves and their fellow disciples in shimmering lights and shadows, to prevent any surprise attacks.
"This scene... feels a bit difficult to handle!"
Qin Muling frowned as soon as she saw it. Once this kind of large-scale situation turned chaotic, it was hard to say what the outcome would be. Even with the protection of supreme luck and the cooperation of her second senior sister's formation, it would be difficult to guarantee complete safety.
"It's not necessarily the case. Let's stay away for now."
Cheng Yulan gently waved a plain cloud silk formation flag, and rolling thick fog emerged out of thin air, enveloping the three of them and making them disappear from sight.
This was the advantage of having a small target. Only three people wouldn't attract attention. On the contrary, the cultivators closest to the Cloud Dao Seeking Pagoda had already been secretly locked onto by countless divine senses.
As long as they started fighting later, they would undoubtedly be the first targets to be targeted. It was hard to say how many people would survive in the end.
"Hmm, the people from the Shadow Assassin Temple have arrived. There are so many of them?"
Qin Muling suddenly glanced towards the end of the sky, where thousands of dark figures controlled their escape lights and rushed over at lightning speed. The arrogant and chilling killing intent was not concealed, causing nearby cultivators to dodge one after another.
In the blink of an eye, this group of bloodthirsty individuals rushed forward, with the core elder of the Shadow Assassin Temple, Su Zhengji, at the forefront. There were more than three thousand disciples gathered around him, including a considerable number of sealers. Their strength was undeniably powerful.
The cultivators from the Supreme Dao lineage couldn't help but shudder. With such a lineup from the Shadow Assassin Temple, theoretically, they could pose a fatal threat to the disciples of any force. If they didn't form an alliance and advance and retreat together, they would only end up being overwhelmed by them.
"It's a good place. Our Shadow Assassin Temple has set our sights on this place."
Su Zhengji swept his gaze around and narrowed his slender eyes when he saw the shining white tower. Then, he loudly declared, "I am Su Zhengji, the core elder of the Shadow Assassin Temple. Fellow Daoists who are unrelated, please leave quickly to avoid being accidentally injured when conflicts arise later. The Shadow Assassin Temple will remember everyone's goodwill!"
...
The field fell silent, and no one spoke.
Many cultivators quietly changed their positions, intentionally or unintentionally gathering together. At the same time, more defensive Divine Abilities and Law Treasure seals were activated, and the atmosphere in the field became subtly tense.
With such a great opportunity, who would be willing to give up? Even if your Shadow Assassin Temple has a fearsome reputation and formidable strength, you have no right to monopolize this place.
Want to book the entire venue? Are you prepared to pay a sufficient price?
Su Zhengji's face darkened. He didn't expect that even after revealing his identity, there would still be people who dared to disregard him. Were they not afraid of death? He had over three thousand people by his side!
"Shadow Assassin Temple is indeed mighty, but... do you have the ability to contend against so many Fellow Daoists present here? Don't let yourself become the target of everyone and end up with no remains!"
A fluctuating voice, neither male nor female, faintly sounded.
"Hmm?"
Su Zhengji's gaze swept across the entire field with a sinister look, but he didn't discover anything and couldn't determine who was provoking him.
At this moment, there were tens of thousands of cultivators gathered from all directions. Although their cultivation levels varied, in terms of numbers alone, they had an absolute advantage. If they were to really fight, the people from Shadow Assassin Temple would not be enough to contend with them.
"Elder Su, the opportunities in this secret realm belong to no one. Whoever can find them depends solely on fate. With your aggressive and domineering approach, not only will you offend everyone, but even the higher-ups of the Dao Court will not turn a blind eye. Are you sure about this?"
Chi Yeling spoke indifferently.
Su Zhengji looked at him with a gloomy expression. This young clan leader of the Immemorial Qilin Race, once hailed as the number one talent of the younger generation, was now surrounded by hundreds of powerful individuals from different races, each with unfriendly eyes.
If negotiations were to break down and a fight broke out, Su Zhengji had no confidence that he could escape unscathed, even with the sacrifice of a substitute death talisman. It would be embarrassing and unavoidable.
"Since your side is also interested in this place... forget it!"
Su Zhengji snorted in annoyance and didn't mention booking the venue again.
Perhaps there would still be conflicts and battles later, but it was better to avoid being targeted in advance. Otherwise, it was hard to say how many of his elite disciples, numbering over three thousand, would survive.
The field fell silent once again.
After waiting for another half an hour, the Cloud Dao Seeking Pagoda had grown to a height of a hundred zhang, its form completely stable. With layers of colorful light and auspicious qi spreading out, the ethereal sound of the Great Dao resonated clearly in the realm of the soul.
Near the base of the tower, a semi-circular portal emitting a gentle radiance quietly appeared.
The Cloud Dao Seeking Pagoda had officially opened.
(End of this chapter)