The towering mountain ahead drew closer and closer, its entire body emitting a faint azure-golden glow, as if the entire mountain were carved from spiritual jade.
"What a vast and majestic life essence, worthy of being the foremost secret realm of the Tianyuan Sea over tens of thousands of years."
Jiuyou mused inwardly as the green mist around him quickened, leaving only a faint trail in the air. In the blink of an eye, he had already flown into the light curtain of Heavenly Abyss Mountain.
“What a majestic life essence, worthy of being the foremost secret realm of the Tianyuan Sea over tens of thousands of years.”
Jiuyou’s pupils constricted, his Divine Sense instantly enveloping the surroundings, his spiritual power flowing subtly, ready to respond to any sudden changes. Canfeng was so startled that his entire body tensed, instinctively moving closer to the Grand Ancestor.
The white light dissipated.
Jiuyou opened his eyes, and what met his gaze was an endless expanse of grassland. Distant mountain peaks and rolling hills rose and fell, ancient trees towering high, blotting out the sky and sun.
Though the sun shone brightly overhead, countless streaks of light could be seen darting across the sky—cultivators who had entered the secret realm earlier, racing toward their chosen directions.
“Grand Ancestor, this… this is Heavenly Abyss Mountain?”
Canfeng’s eyes suddenly widened, looking around with great curiosity as he took in the scene before him.
Having lived for one or two hundred years, all he had seen in the Tianyuan Sea were desolate islands and hidden reefs—when had he ever witnessed such a peculiar and magnificent sight? An endless grassland, spiritual energy so dense it almost condensed into thin mist, each deep breath making his entire body feel comfortable.
“This isn’t the real Heavenly Abyss Mountain yet.”
Blood Sea True Person’s voice came from behind. He stepped forward slowly, followed by the Blood Withered old monk and Xie Yunqing.
Blood Sea True Person’s gaze was steady as he scanned his surroundings, a hint of anticipation in his eyes, but even more wariness. After all, with over twenty Nascent Soul cultivators entering the secret realm together, no one knew who they might encounter at the next turn.
Senior Blood Vine also approached, a gleam of light flashing in his aged eyes, his voice carrying a trace of curiosity.
“Blood Sea Dao-Friend, what do you mean by that?”
Blood Sea True Person did not answer immediately. He took a step forward, took a deep breath, and his Divine Sense instantly spread out, confirming that no other Nascent Soul cultivators had landed in the same area, before slowly speaking.
“That towering mountain we saw outside is merely a phantom of Heavenly Abyss Mountain. Though our current location is within the secret realm, it can only be considered the border. The real Heavenly Abyss Mountain lies deeper, still at least tens of millions of li from here.”
“Tens of millions of li…” Jiuyou frowned slightly, the hand stroking his chin involuntarily clenching into a fist.
If the border region was already this vast, what kind of scene would the most core Heavenly Abyss Mountain of the entire secret realm present?
The Blood Withered old monk nodded slightly, still stroking the blood-red beads in his hand, adding from the side.
“Our Demon Sea Sect paid a considerable price, even losing a full five Golden Core elders, just to uncover this information. The entire Heavenly Abyss Mountain secret realm is mainly divided into three layers.”
Senior Blood Vine pressed impatiently: “I too have heard a little, but since Heavenly Abyss Mountain only opens once every five hundred years, I really know very few details. I hope Blood Withered Dao-Friend will elaborate.”
The Blood Withered old monk didn’t hold back, his voice steady as he spoke.
“The first layer is where we are now, along with the foot of Heavenly Abyss Mountain. This layer covers an extremely vast area, abundant with all kinds of spirit herbs, spirit fruits, and natural treasures, drawing countless cultivators to flock here. When you travel to the deepest part, you reach the foot of Heavenly Abyss Mountain. There, countless teleportation arrays are set up—the left leads to the second layer, the right leads out of the secret realm.”
Jiuyou and Senior Blood Vine both listened attentively, not daring to miss a single word. This information was bought with disciples’ lives; had it not been for the alliance, the Demon Sea Sect would never have shared it so readily.
“After teleporting to the second layer, you reach the mountainside,” the Blood Withered old monk continued.
“This place is the only barrier leading to the mountain peak. Countless ancient prohibitions fill the sky; even Nascent Soul cultivators should be careful not to fly rashly.”
“To reach the summit, there are four paths to choose from—the Lava Path, the Frozen Path, the Heavenly Thunder Path, and the Gale Path. You can pick any one, but once you set foot on it, you cannot turn back. Either stay there or reach the summit.”
He paused, his gaze growing darker.
“As for the summit of Heavenly Abyss Mountain, it’s the place with the densest spiritual energy in the entire secret realm. Only there can Life-Extending Fruits be born. As for more details… this old monk is not entirely clear either.”
Jiuyou remained silent, nodding slightly, quickly calculating in his mind.
Four treacherous paths, each extremely perilous for Golden Core cultivators. But for Nascent Soul cultivators like them, it wasn’t much of a problem.
Moreover, with the Little Green Bottle in hand, a single hundred-year Life-Extending Fruit would suffice. Unfortunately, from what the other party said, the fruit only appeared at the very summit. Otherwise, unless necessary, he really didn’t want to fight other old monsters of the Nascent Soul stage.
Senior Blood Vine was also lost in thought, his eyes flickering as he schemed unknown plans.
Just then, Blood Sea True Person’s voice suddenly rang out.
“Since both fellow daoists now have a general understanding of the situation inside Heavenly Abyss Mountain, how about we temporarily part ways here, each seek their own opportunities, and then meet again at the foot of Heavenly Abyss Mountain?”
He paused, his gaze looking into the distance, adding.
“The Heavenly Abyss Mountain secret realm is open for a total of five years. The teleportation array to the second layer is fixed and will only officially activate in the second year. Time is relatively abundant. What do you two fellow daoists think?”
Senior Blood Vine smiled faintly and was the first to nod.
“Old me naturally agrees with this proposal. Just so, I also want to see what celestial treasures are hidden within this Heavenly Abyss Mountain.”
Jiuyou didn’t respond, only giving a slight nod. His continuously distant gaze had already answered for him.
Seeing this, Blood Sea True Person flicked his sleeve, sending three red jade tokens flying toward Jiuyou, Senior Blood Vine, and the Blood Withered old monk.
“In that case, we will use these tokens to meet at the foot of Heavenly Abyss Mountain later.”
Before his words had even faded, he had already turned into a blood-red whale-kun, taking Xie Yunqing with him, racing toward the distant sky and earth. That whale-kun phantom was dozens of zhang in size, its blood light soaring to the heavens, spiritual energy churning wherever it passed, its momentum awe-inspiring.
Canfeng stared dumbfounded until the blood light disappeared at the horizon before coming back to his senses.
The others were just as quick.
The Blood Withered old monk took the jade token, and a large blood-red bowl rose beneath his feet, carrying him away in another direction. Senior Blood Vine was even more straightforward, directly using a blood escape technique, turning into a flash of blood light that vanished without a trace.
In the blink of an eye, only Jiuyou and Canfeng remained at the spot.
“Grand Ancestor, which… which way should we go?”
Canfeng asked cautiously, his gaze constantly sweeping around, afraid that a Nascent Soul old monster might suddenly pop up from somewhere.
Jiuyou did not answer. He stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping over a few faint streaks of light in the distance, already having a plan in mind.
The secret realm was vast, with only a little over twenty Nascent Soul cultivators scattered throughout. In this vast border region, they might not even encounter one another.
Even if they did, the other party wouldn’t necessarily start a fight—everyone was here to seek fortune, not to risk their lives. No one wanted to waste their strength before even seeing a Life-Extending Fruit.
“Let’s go.”
Jiuyou uttered a single word calmly, waving his sleeve, causing the green mist to surge forth and envelop Canfeng.
The next moment, the two had turned into a dark green escape light, racing toward the direction with the richest spiritual energy.