Chapter 120: Exploring the Secret Realm, Premonition of the Goddess’ Awakening
The glory of winning the double championship at the Thousand Realms Tianjiao Association still lingers in our ears. Ye Li and Qin Yixuan's names shone like stars in the spiritual world. However, this honor brought not only prestige but also a deeper responsibility and a more secretive scrutiny. Three days after the awards ceremony, all the top 100 Tianjiao received a secret order from the Tianjiao Association's Supreme Council: to travel to the [Taichu Secret Realm] in the far north of Zhongzhou, known as the "Origin of All Daos," to undergo the final trial and seek opportunities.
The Primordial Secret Realm is rumored to be a small fragment of the original space left from the beginning of the spiritual world. It contains the most primitive laws of heaven and earth and the rhythm of the Dao, but is also filled with unknown dangers and trials left by ancient times. Each opening requires a huge price, and only the top one hundred geniuses at grand events like the Thousand Realms Pride Conference are qualified to enter.
In the central square of Tiandi City, a hundred Tianjiao stood in awe. Presiding over the opening of this secret realm were three elders with auras as profound as the ocean. They came from the ancient Jiang family, the Xuanyuan Imperial clan, and the Xinggong clan, respectively, and served as the supreme arbitrators of this Tianjiao Conference.
"The Primordial Secret Realm is a sacred place for enlightenment, but also a place of extreme danger." The white-bearded ancestor of the ancient Jiang family spoke calmly, yet his voice was clearly heard by everyone. "Within this, the laws are chaotic, time and space are distorted, and there are ancient species and natural disasters. Opportunities and dangers coexist. You may not stay there for more than one month. Once the time is up, the power of the secret realm will automatically repel you. During this time, life and death are left to fate. I urge you to act with caution and take good care of yourself."
As soon as they finished speaking, the three elders attacked simultaneously, pouring immense spiritual energy into an ancient altar in the center of the square. The complex runes engraved on the altar lit up one by one, and space began to violently distort, ultimately forming a vortex of light ten feet tall, emitting a chaotic aura.
"enter!"
With a command, hundreds of figures turned into streams of light and rushed into the light gate.
Ye Li and Qin Yixuan exchanged a glance, then moved simultaneously in tacit agreement. The moment they entered the portal of light, Ye Li subconsciously grasped Qin Yixuan's hand. A powerful tearing sensation spread through her, more intense than any previous teleportation, as if tearing her soul and body apart. Ye Li channeled her spiritual energy to shield them both. The fragments of the Samsara Mirror glowed faintly in her sea of consciousness, helping to stabilize the chaotic spatial fluctuations around her.
After an unknown amount of time, they felt their feet solid, and the pulling force suddenly disappeared. The two of them appeared in a strange world.
The sky was a chaotic grayish-white, devoid of sun, moon, or stars, yet endless runes of the Great Dao floated and vanished like fish in the void. The earth took on a dark, glassy hue. In the distance, mountains rose and fell, their shapes bizarre. Some pierced the sky like sharp swords, while others swirled like crouching dragons. The air was filled with an inextricably rich, innate spiritual energy, yet it was also rife with violent, chaotic fragments of laws. Every breath brought a tingling pain through the meridians.
"The laws of the universe here... are so primitive and chaotic." Qin Yixuan frowned slightly. She could feel that the operation of the "Nine Heavens Mysterious Water Sutra" in her body was affected a little, but that strand of divine origin seemed to become a little more active.
Ye Li nodded, her feelings becoming clearer. The fragments of the Samsara Mirror vibrated slightly, as if resonating with the world, or perhaps alerting someone. "We shouldn't stay here for long. Let's find a relatively safe place and familiarize ourselves with the surroundings."
The two chose a direction and cautiously advanced across the Glazed Land. Their spiritual senses were severely suppressed here, allowing them to explore only a few hundred feet around them. Along the way, they witnessed many bizarre sights: a lake formed entirely from lightning, with dancing electric snakes; a mountain peak floating in mid-air, surrounded by a twisting force field; and rare ancient medicinal herbs long extinct in the outside world, growing in extremely dangerous environments.
After about half an hour of marching, they heard the sounds of fierce fighting and the roars of demonic beasts ahead. Five or six Tianjiao were besieging a giant beast resembling a Qilin, but covered in rocky scales. The beast possessed a ferocious aura, remarkably reaching the peak of the Yuandan realm. Its every move stirred earth and rock, its force astonishing.
"It's an ancient species, the Stone Armor Monster!" Qin Yixuan recognized the monster.
Although those Tianjiao were quite powerful and had good coordination, they were already struggling under the violent attacks of the Stone Armor Monster and were in danger. One of them was even hit by the Stone Armor Monster's tail, spitting blood and flying backwards.
Ye Li glanced over, not intending to intervene. In this secret realm, protecting oneself was already difficult, and she had no intention of interfering.
However, just as they were about to make a detour, something strange happened!
The stone-armored monster seemed completely enraged, raising its head to the heavens and letting out a deafening roar. Its single horn suddenly lit up with a dazzling yellow light! A domain force as heavy as a mountain erupted, completely enveloping the area! The movements of the several geniuses within the area instantly became sluggish, as if they were stuck in a quagmire!
"Oh no! It's the innate magical power 'Qianjun Domain'!" someone shouted in horror.
A fierce gleam flashed in Shijiazhe's eyes. He stood up with his massive body, carrying a tremendous force, and stomped down fiercely towards the nearest female cultivator! If this kick landed firmly, the female cultivator would be reduced to a pulp!
At the critical moment, a curtain of azure water suddenly appeared above the female cultivator's head! The water curtain seemed weak, but it was resilient and blocked the blow from the stone armor monster that could have crushed a mountain!
It was Qin Yixuan who took action. After all, she couldn't bear to watch her fellow Daoist die.
"Ye Li!" she called softly.
Ye Li understood without further explanation. The Xuanbing Sword was instantly unsheathed, and her figure transformed into a shadow. She unleashed her "Universe Traceless Step" to its fullest extent, avoiding the Qianjun Domain's influence and piercing the relatively vulnerable neck of the Stone Armored Monster with the tip of her sword!
"Xingji—Break the Gang!"
The icy sword energy, condensed to the extreme, contained the artistic conception of the annihilation of the stars, and accurately pierced the gaps in the stone armor's ferocious scales! Blood gushed out instantly, and the extreme cold power rushed into his body through the wound!
The Stone Armored Monster roared in agony, and the Qianjun Domain trembled. The trapped geniuses seized the opportunity and unleashed their strongest forces, bombarding it with various magical artifacts.
Qin Yixuan also used all his strength to activate the Cang Hai Ming Yue Pearl. The power of the mysterious water turned into countless tough chains, wrapping around the limbs of the stone armor monster and restricting its movements.
With the addition of Ye Li and Qin Yixuan, the battle situation was reversed in an instant. In just a moment, the powerful stone-armored beast collapsed to the ground, its breath cut off.
The rescued prodigies, still in shock, hurried forward to express their gratitude. The leader, a Buddhist disciple from the Great Leiyin Temple in the Western Regions, clasped his hands together and said sincerely, "Thank you, two female donors, for your help. I will always remember this kindness."
"It's just a small favor, Master, you're welcome." Qin Yixuan returned the greeting.
The Buddhist disciple looked at the corpse of the Stone Armor Monster on the ground, then looked at Ye Li and Qin Yixuan, and said hesitantly: "This Stone Armor Monster is full of treasures, especially its single horn and inner elixir, which are even more precious. The two donors saved our lives, so this beast should be dealt with by you two."
Ye Li shook her head: "We only need three drops of his blood and essence, and you can distribute the rest among yourselves." Shijia Zhe's blood and essence contained the essence of earth, which was slightly helpful for her to comprehend the mystery of "the earth's bearing" in "The Ice Emperor's Sealing Heaven Art". She did not value other things.
After taking the blood essence, Ye Li and Qin Yixuan left without stopping. The Buddhist disciple watched them go away and chanted the Buddha's name once more, his eyes filled with admiration.
The two continued to delve deeper into the secret realm. The deeper they went, the more bizarre the environment became, and the more dangers they encountered. Sometimes there was the invisible and intangible "Soul-Eating Miasma" that specifically eroded the soul; sometimes there were "Mirror Puppets" that could replicate the opponent's attacks; and in one area, the flow of time suddenly accelerated and slowed down, making it extremely difficult to adapt.
During this process, Ye Li keenly noticed that something seemed off about Qin Yixuan's condition. Her aura would sometimes be steady, and sometimes inexplicably fluctuate. Especially when she used divine power or passed through certain special areas, her divine essence would become unusually active, occasionally even revealing signs of being difficult to control.
"Senior Sister, how do you feel?" Ye Li asked with concern, handing over a bottle of pills for calming the mind.
Qin Yixuan swallowed the pill and frowned slightly. "I don't know why, but after entering this secret realm, the energy within me seems to be particularly agitated, as if it's being attracted to something, yet also as if... resisting something. When I'm practicing the technique, I occasionally feel a momentary stagnation."
Ye Li's heart trembled. Thinking of the origin of the Taichu Secret Realm and Qin Yixuan's possible life experience, he had a vague guess: "This place is the origin of all things. The origin of the laws is active. Perhaps it has the same source as the power in your body, so it resonates with you. Be careful. If you feel something is wrong, tell me immediately."
Qin Yixuan nodded, feeling warm in her heart: "Yes, I will."
After walking for a few more days, they passed through a foggy area filled with colorful rays of light, and the scene before them suddenly became clear.
It was a vast, circular valley, as if formed by a meteorite impact. In its center, not the expected deep pit, but a towering ancient altar. Constructed entirely of a chaotic-colored stone, neither gold nor jade, the altar stood a hundred feet tall and comprised nine tiers, each engraved with dense, intricate ancient divine script. Atop the altar, a constantly shifting mass of chaotic light emanated a gentle yet supreme aura, as if it were the core of the laws and energy of the entire secret realm!
Just by seeing the altar and the ball of light from afar, Ye Li felt that the fragments of the Samsara Mirror in his sea of consciousness were emitting an unprecedentedly strong buzzing sound. It was a complex emotion of desire, vigilance, and even a hint of awe.
Qin Yixuan next to him reacted even more violently!
The moment she saw the altar and the chaotic ball of light clearly, her delicate body trembled violently, and her face turned pale! The divine essence within her body, which had been relatively quiet until then, suddenly exploded like a kindling being thrown into boiling oil!
Buzz——!
An indescribable, pure, noble, ancient, and sacred aura, seemingly transcending all living things, surged uncontrollably from Qin Yixuan's body! Her eyes instantly dyed a pure, brilliant gold. The divine blue pattern on her forehead, which had only been faintly visible, now emerged with uncanny clarity, gradually shifting to gold! The Cang Hai Ming Yue Pearl and the Buddhist prayer beads automatically flew out, rapidly swirling around her, emitting a clear and melodious sound, as if echoing, or trying to soothe this uncontrolled power!
"Ugh..." Qin Yixuan groaned in pain, clutching her head tightly with both hands. Her body trembled slightly from the violent clash of forces. She could feel something within the chaotic ball of light frantically calling upon her inner essence, trying to absorb it and merge with it! Her consciousness, pulled by these two forces, seemed to be torn apart!
"Yixuan!" Ye Li's face changed drastically, and she immediately stepped forward to support her shaky body. As soon as her hand touched Qin Yixuan, she felt a powerful and violent divine power rebounding from her, making her arm numb!
This was the first time that the Goddess's origin showed such obvious signs of being out of control!
Ye Li didn't dare delay and immediately activated the "Emperor's Scripture of the Netherworld." Her extremely cold spiritual energy transformed into the purest cold current, attempting to help Qin Yixuan sort out the raging energy within her body. At the same time, she exerted all her might to activate the fragments of the Samsara Mirror. A gentle force imbued with the essence of time, space, and reincarnation carefully penetrated Qin Yixuan's sea of consciousness.
However, the out-of-control divine origin was of an extremely high level, repelling all external forces. Ye Li's extremely cold spiritual power and the power of the Samsara Mirror were like hitting an invisible wall, unable to penetrate deeper, and instead provoking an even more violent resistance from the origin!
The sacred aura on Qin Yixuan became more and more intense, and the golden light almost swallowed her. Her eyes began to become empty and indifferent, as if they were being replaced by another consciousness!
"Stay true to yourself! You are Qin Yixuan!" Ye Li shouted sternly in her ear. At the same time, ignoring the backlash, he injected more of the power of the Samsara Mirror into her body, trying to cut off the strange connection between the chaotic light ball and the divine origin!
The power level of the Samsara Mirror is obviously higher. Under the intervention of the light golden original power, the suction force of the chaotic light ball on Qin Yixuan was slightly stagnant.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Ye Li made a prompt decision and picked up the almost unconscious Qin Yixuan by the waist. He used the "Universe Invisible Step" to the extreme and fled madly in the direction away from the altar without looking back!
She must leave this area as soon as possible, find a relatively safe place, and help Qin Yixuan stabilize her out-of-control origin!
Shortly after they left, several powerful auras swept towards the edge of the circular valley from different directions. They were Xuanyuan Potian, the Young Master of Xinggong, the Holy Son of Wan Yao Valley, and other top-tier geniuses. They gazed at the towering altar and the chaotic ball of light in the valley's center, their eyes filled with shock and greed. They also sensed the lingering, heart-pounding sacred aura.
"That power just now... was it Qin Yixuan from the Bishui Pavilion?" The Young Palace Master of Xinggong frowned.
Xuanyuan Potian's eyes flickered as he looked in the direction where Ye Li and the others left, wondering what he was thinking.
By this time, Ye Li had already fled hundreds of miles, carrying Qin Yixuan. Finding a relatively secluded cave, she laid down layers of restrictions and began to work tirelessly to calm the surging power within her. This sudden change cast a shadow of uncertainty over this secret realm trial. The signs of the goddess's awakening were already evident, and the road ahead was destined to be even more turbulent.
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