Chapter 137 A Great Harvest: The First Person to Accept the Test of Inheritance
For Han Wuyue, this was far too stimulating. The conflicting thoughts of following Song Yin and the elders raged in her mind.
Han Wuyue finally asked the crucial question: "What if the elders keep asking us about it when we get back?"
Song Yin: "It's simple. The situation in the ruins is complicated. We got lost and were unexpectedly teleported. We had no choice but to separate from the elders."
You lie so easily. Tell me, haven't you been thinking about leaving the elders' ranks all along?
The best things in the secret realm are usually in the central area. Although Song Yin and the others temporarily separated from the elders, they still headed towards the central area.
It has to be said that treasures can be found everywhere in the Nine Heavens Secret Realm. Sometimes, when Song Yin encounters a thousand-year-old spiritual herb, she chooses to skip it because there are even better ten-thousand-year-old spiritual herbs in front of her.
Throwing a Song Yin into the Nine Heavens Secret Realm is like throwing a mouse into a rice jar.
Song Yin occasionally pops up in different places.
Song Yin was a little dizzy, "What a bumper harvest! What a bumper harvest! There's so much!"
The Green Grass Spirit Fruit grew in abundance, its branches laden with ripe, golden fruits. So plentiful were the fruits that even the demonic beasts didn't bother with them. The Mist-Willow Grass's leaves seemed translucent, their veins clearly visible; one plant after another was picked. The Frost-Clad Grass was entirely covered in a layer of white frost, its silvery-white hues standing out like blooming white flowers amidst the green expanse.
After the five people left the elders, Xia Xining suggested that they could split up, but not go too far apart, and each person could go to collect the various resources they needed.
Shen Yuzhu originally wanted to continue following Song Yin and stay by his junior sister's side at all times.
As a result, Shen Yuzhu was driven away by Song Yin, who told him to go find the various resources he needed and not waste time with her.
In the Nine Heavens Secret Realm, time truly becomes money; every wasted second could mean missing out on various treasures.
The giant tree, so large that five people couldn't encircle it, was covered in lush foliage. Song Yin looked up from beneath the tree, then lightly leaped onto a branch. Concealing her presence and minimizing her aura, she carefully approached the Golden Feathered Kite's nest and picked out several feathers—good materials for refining weapons.
Without disturbing the fledglings in the nest, Song Yin picked up the feathers and jumped down from the tree.
Xia Xining was closest to Song Yin at this moment.
To avoid making too much noise and attracting other dangers, Song Yin transmitted her voice to Xia Xining: "How was the harvest?"
Xia Xining, unable to hide her excitement, transmitted her voice: "There's absolutely no need to specifically hunt monsters for materials. You can just pick up many usable materials directly from the ground! How's your harvest?"
Song Yin transmitted her voice: "Rare spiritual herbs can be seen everywhere, and they are all quite old. Fortunately, I prepared several high-level storage bags before coming, which is enough for me to carry a lot."
From a distance, Shi Heming transmitted his voice to everyone: "Everyone, gather together first. I see someone rushing this way."
Mingzhu, the second-ranked cultivator in the Alchemy Cultivation Group of the Xuantian Assembly, is flying here with fellow cultivators from the same sect.
A male cultivator said to Mingzhu, "I know you need the spiritual herbs more, so we'll all help you gather them tomorrow. Today, let's fulfill Junior Brother Du's need for spiritual ore first." The members of the Wuji Sect chose to take turns fulfilling the needs of each person in the team each day.
Mingzhu: "I understand... There seem to be people ahead, five of them."
As they flew closer, Mingzhu's eyes lit up. "It's Song Yin, and the people next to her are all cultivators from the Immortal Firmament Sect."
Male cultivator: "Strange, didn't the Immortal Firmament Sect send the most people? How come there are only half of them?"
Mingzhu said to the male cultivator, "Uncle-Master, may I go down and say hello?"
Uncle Mingzhu nodded, "Go ahead, don't linger too long, say hello and we'll continue on our way."
Mingzhu flew straight towards Song Yin and landed in front of her: "Song Yin, what a coincidence, I didn't expect us to meet so early."
Song Yin: "Mingzhu? That's quite a coincidence."
"Just you two?"
"No, everyone is here."
Song Yin saw that everyone above was waiting for Mingzhu, and exchanged a few words with them.
"We still need to go further in, bye-bye for now. I'll find you when we get out." Song Yin, who had just gotten her wish, simply said goodbye.
Upon learning that Song Le and Song Yin were the same person, Mingzhu was overjoyed. At the same time, she finally understood why Song Yin had been able to win first place so easily; with her sword cultivation skills, who in the alchemy group could subdue her?
Mingzhu came suddenly, and she left suddenly.
Upon returning to the group, Mingzhu was greeted with questions from her martial uncle.
"Are there only five of them from the Immortal Firmament Sect?"
Mingzhu: "No, I just asked, and they're all here."
Uncle Mingzhu nodded without saying anything more, and instead instructed the team to move forward quickly.
"She came all the way down just to say hello to you?" Xia Xining asked incredulously, thinking that this jewel of the Wuji Sect had something else to say.
Song Yin: "Don't let your guard down. If anyone asks about the elders, just say they're all here."
Shi Heming: "Are you afraid they'll rob you?"
"Who knows?" Song Yin shrugged. "Being cautious is never a bad thing."
Xia Xining: "There's no one else here, let's get back to work."
Having collected enough from this area, the five moved on to another location.
When they arrived at a new place dozens of miles away, they landed, and after taking only a few steps, their feet suddenly slipped and they lost their footing.
"not good!"
As they felt the urge to fall, they tried to use their spiritual energy to fly upwards, but the next second everything went black.
Within the Nine Heavens Secret Realm Ruins.
Several elders from the Immortal Firmament Sect explored the ruins together, turning them upside down, but they couldn't find the inheritance they were looking for. Instead, they found quite a few poisonous snakes.
Elder Pei's fiery temper finally snapped. "Where did those five brats go? I told them not to get separated before we came in! Not to get separated!"
Elder Cang had an expression that said, "You'll get used to it. They can abandon us and return to the Immortal Cloud Sect from the Heavenly Radiance Holy City ahead of time, and they can also abandon us in the Nine Heavens Secret Realm."
Now that you mention it, they seem even more pitiful.
Elder Fu: "Let's think about the matter of inheritance. Since we don't have this relic, we need to move on to the next place."
Elder Feng asked, "What should we do with the five disciples?"
Elder Fu's smile remained unchanged. "If they want to run away, they have to take the risk. We don't need to worry about them."
Those disciples must have their own ways of protecting themselves if they were capable of sneaking away.
Elder Feng: "What I'm afraid of is that they won't be able to find a successor."
Elder Fu: "It's not our fault that we can't find the inheritance. Let's go and head to the next place."
The five elders slowly made their way toward the central area, their voices carrying on the wind.
"Everyone says the Nine Heavens Secret Realm has many inheritances, but we haven't encountered a single one since we entered."
"Encountering a tradition requires a certain amount of serendipity; today is only the first day, so take it slow and don't rush."
"Could it be that those few brats were lucky enough to discover the inheritance before us?"
"No way..."
...
After a series of dark spells, the feeling of falling disappeared, and they landed in a place where they couldn't see their own hand in front of their face. Because of the spiritual energy cushioning their fall, none of them were injured.
Song Yin summoned the Purple Sun Spirit Fire, illuminating the space. "One, two, three, four, very good, all are here."
Han Wuyue patted her clothes and used magic to summon a cluster of flames. "Let's find an exit first."
Shen Yuzhu looked up and saw that the passage above had disappeared. "The passage we came from is gone."
The space where the five people fell was small, with only one tightly closed door.
Song Yin: "It seems this place is forcing us to step through this door."
"Could it be a trap?" Xia Xining asked worriedly.
After considering the matter for a moment, Song Yin stepped forward and prepared to push open the door, saying, "We'll know once we go in."
Shi Heming: "Since the passage above is blocked, we can only enter this door by following Yinyin's method."
Song Yin: "I'm not sure what's behind the door. If everyone agrees, I'll push the door open. If anyone thinks the door shouldn't be opened, then I won't push it open, and we'll think of another way."
As if summoned by some unseen force, Han Wuyue said, "Push it open, there might be a surprise behind the door."
With no objections from her companions, Song Yin exerted force, and the bronze door in front of her opened behind her.
Once the door is opened, glowing beads at intervals on both sides of the wall illuminate the passage.
Xia Xining: "There's nothing behind the door."
Song Yin extended her divine sense, "The passage is not long, it connects to another space."
The five people walked cautiously through the passage, and after a few turns, the view suddenly opened up before them.
They are still in an enclosed space, but it is larger than other places.
Song Yin, who was walking at the front, stopped. Beyond her was only water; there was nowhere to step. There was light underwater, making it seem as if the water itself was glowing, illuminating the entire space.
The water in front of us was bottomless, but a stone pillar protruded from the center, with a round bead floating up and down at the top of the pillar.
Xia Xining: "What a huge bead! It's about the size of an adult's head."
Song Yin: "I don't know if it can move. I'm afraid that if it moves, the surrounding walls will collapse, or the water level will rise."
Shen Yuzhu: "There's nothing here but water and beads on the stone pillars. There's no way out. Why don't we go back the way we came and look for an exit again at the starting point?"
“That makes sense,” Song Yin said to everyone. “Let’s go back the way we came.”
As soon as he finished speaking, five beams of light flew out of the bead and stopped in front of each person.
"What is that?"
A few seconds later, the light instantly entered everyone's body.
Song Yin immediately activated her cultivation technique, fearing that the light from earlier, like vital energy, might cause trouble for others.
Song Yin checked herself over and confirmed that she was fine. "I'm alright, what do you guys think?"
"I'm fine too," Shi Heming said.
Xia Xining looked at Han Wuyue, was startled at first, and then said, "I'm fine, but Han Wuyue seems to be in trouble."
Han Wuyue stood there, frozen in place, her eyes unblinking, like a statue.
"Senior Sister Han? Han Wuyue?" Song Yin called out tentatively.
Han Wuyue stood in front of everyone, remaining silent for a long time.
Shen Yuzhu checked her breathing directly. "She's still alive. It must be from the light just now."
What was the reason that made you, Senior Brother, immediately think of checking if she was still alive? Song Yin: "Let's try to wake her up first."
"Hahaha, little girl, you mustn't touch her."
In a space with only five people, the voice of a sixth person suddenly rang out.
Song Yin and the others instantly assumed a fighting stance, and the four of them surrounded Han Wuyue.
A figure emerged from the stone pillar. "You've come to the Nine Heavens Secret Realm to seek your inheritance, haven't you?"
The figure was the appearance of a middle-aged man, and it was clear that he was just a spirit.
"Among the five of you, only she cultivates the Path of Ruthlessness, which is why you were not affected by the beams of light just now, while she was."
Song Yin: "Who are you?"
The figure floated in front of the group and began to chatter, “I was once a ruthless sword cultivator who sought opportunities in the Nine Heavens Secret Realm, but unfortunately, I perished there due to bad luck. Those beams of light were a test. I will pass on all my skills to whoever can accept and successfully pass the test.”
Xia Xining: "Inheritance?!"
Song Yin took the initiative to speak, "May I ask your honorable surname, senior?"
His surname was Zhao.
“Then I’ll call you Senior Zhao.” Song Yin gave an innocent smile.
Senior Zhao: "Of course."
Han Wuyue is still undergoing a test, and no one knows what the test is for her, so they can only wait on the sidelines.
During the wait, it's inevitable to quiet down.
For a moment, only the sounds of everyone breathing and the splashing of fish in the water could be heard.
Are there fish in the water?
Song Yin peered down into the water, her divine sense probing into the deep water.
At that moment, a pinkish-white fish leaped out of the water.
Upon seeing this, Senior Zhao drifted away into the distance.
Song Yin keenly noticed this, and she took out her fishing gear from her spatial storage, recreating the fishing life of mortals.
"Waiting here is so boring, I'll sit here and fish for a while. Senior Zhao, can you fish in the water?"
Your companions are undergoing the test of inheritance, and you're not even envious, still thinking about fishing?
Senior Zhao twitched his lips and said, "It's possible, but the fish here are quite difficult to catch. I guess they won't bite for a long time. Maybe we should just forget about it."
Song Yin had already brought out a small stool and sat down by the water. "It's alright, Senior Zhao. Fishing is just to pass the time while waiting for my friend to wake up. May I ask, Senior Zhao, what was your cultivation level when you were alive?"
Senior Zhao: "His cultivation level in life wasn't very high, only at the Integration Stage."
His cultivation level was at the Integration Stage, which meant it was higher than the cultivation levels of all five of them.
Song Yin was about to send a telepathic message to Shi Heming when she suddenly realized that this soul had a very high level of cultivation in life, and even after death, its consciousness was still at the Integration Stage. Sending a telepathic message would not be a safe option.
"Shi Heming, come fishing with me." Song Yin took out a small stool and placed it next to her.
Senior Zhao wasn't sure what this female cultivator was up to, but judging from her obedient demeanor, there shouldn't be any unexpected problems... right?
As soon as Shi Heming sat down, Song Yin reached out her hand, "Hold my hand."
Many eyes fell on him. Shi Heming glanced at everyone and naturally took Song Yin's hand.
Senior Zhao was speechless for a moment upon seeing this.
Shen Yuzhu stammered, "You, you, you, you guys?" No, when did these two get together behind his back?
Junior sister, am I not the senior brother you trust the most? Why didn't you tell your senior brother? How sad!
Xia Xining, speaking with the wisdom of someone who's been through it all, said, "Take it easy."
Shi Heming felt the touch in his palm and was puzzled. He then remained still and waited quietly for Song Yin to finish writing in his palm.
Song Yin: This soul is not right. Be wary of possession. Set up an array.
The fish in the water is called the Soul-Soothing Fish, which eats souls.
The ability to catch fish is the most effective weapon against the soul; if the fish cannot be caught, the formation can also help her deal with the soul.
Han Wuyue is currently undergoing a test. She appears to be unharmed, but her consciousness has actually been pulled to another location.
Tempting people and things kept appearing before her. Han Wuyue walked against the flow of people, and in the direction she was going was a sword stuck in a boulder.
Xia Xining kept a close eye on Han Wuyue's condition. "She's frowning. Is the test not going well?"
Senior Zhao: "Don't worry, the test will present various temptations to test whether her ruthless heart is firm."
The fishing rod made a sound, and Song Yin reeled in the line. A pinkish-white anchovy was hooked.
Seeing this, Senior Zhao drifted further away.
Song Yin: "Wow, what a beautiful fish! Senior Zhao, do you know what kind of fish this is?"
Senior Zhao forced a smile: "I don't know."
Did they not know that they had deliberately kept their distance from him multiple times?
If Han Wuyue hadn't been receiving the inheritance, Song Yin probably would have already taken action.
"Uh—" Han Wuyue suddenly uttered, her face full of lingering fear.
Once she regained consciousness, Han Wuyue took deep breaths, and soon her whole body was covered in cold sweat.
Xia Xining helped Han Wuyue up, "Are you alright? Would you like to take a pill to help you recover?"
"It's alright." Han Wuyue was still immersed in lingering fear. If she had wavered in her Dao heart halfway through, she would probably be a corpse by now. Many people passed by her during the test. She saw through the old people, young people, pregnant women, and so on, but in the end, she almost perished because of a toddler.
Song Yin: "Did you receive the inheritance?"
Han Wuyue nodded halfway before stopping, "How do you know there's a legacy?"
Clap clap clap!
Applause erupted, and Senior Zhao floated toward Han Wuyue, "Congratulations on successfully passing the test and obtaining the inheritance of the Ruthless Path."
Han Wuyue: "Who are you?"
Xia Xining explained to her, "His surname is Zhao, so you can just call him Senior Zhao. The inheritance you received is from Senior Zhao. He was also a ruthless sword cultivator in his lifetime."
Han Wuyue: "Thank you, Senior Zhao."
Senior Zhao: "No need to thank me. Since I am already a ghost, I might as well pass on what I have learned in my life." He beckoned to Han Wuyue, "Take a few steps forward. Actually, my self-created sword technique is missing from the inheritance. Since you are the first person to pass the test, I have decided to pass on my self-created sword technique to you as well."
Song Yin then got up and stretched her muscles.
Senior Zhao kept a close eye on Song Yin, who had a Soul-Soothing Fish nearby, fearing that the fish might suddenly jump near him and take him as food.
"Thank you, Senior Zhao. I will certainly carry forward your legacy." Han Wuyue bowed in thanks and then stepped forward.
Senior Zhao raised his hand and pointed his fingers together at Han Wuyue's brow.
The next instant, Senior Zhao's soul vanished before everyone's eyes, turning into black smoke and heading towards Han Wuyue's brow.
Before Han Wuyue could react, Song Yin was already standing in front of her, her palm protecting Han Wuyue's brow, while simultaneously releasing golden light of merit.
"ah--!"
Suddenly crashing into the golden light of merit, Senior Zhao rolled on the ground in pain, and the entire space trembled at the same time.
"How could it be golden light of merit! How could you have golden light of merit!"
Everything happened so suddenly that Xia Xining reacted quickly and took out her magic weapon to collect the soul.
Song Yin: "Who exactly are you?"
"Don't come near me! Don't come near me!"
Song Yin laughed, "So afraid of the golden light of merit, it seems you were a heretical cultivator in your previous life and did a lot of heinous things."
"I'm not going to possess anyone anymore, you all go, go quickly!" Senior Zhao scrambled towards the stone pillar as if he were rolling and crawling.
Shi Heming activated the formation, cutting off his path and trapping him inside.
Song Yin, holding the Soul-Soothing Fish she had caught, said, "Will you tell me or not? If you don't, I'll throw the Soul-Soothing Fish into the formation to keep you company."
"Speak! I'll talk, I'll talk!" Senior Zhao wanted to go back to the beginning and slapped himself a few times. This female cultivator before him was anything but docile; she was clearly ruthless! And this ruthless female cultivator even possessed golden light of merit—heaven was blind!
"What I said before was all true, except that I was someone who failed the test after accepting the inheritance."
Han Wuyue: "What he said is true; failing the test will result in death."
Song Yin: "Do you know how to get out of here?"
Senior Zhao: "I don't know. I was trapped in this space until I died, so how would I know how to get out?"
Han Wuyue said to Song Yin, "I have successfully accepted the inheritance, and there is a way to get out of it."
Song Yin handed the Soul-Soothing Fish to Han Wuyue, "Then he has no value in this world. Your enemy, no, your vengeful spirit, you shall erase your vengeful spirit."
"Thank you." Han Wuyue accepted the Soul-Soothing Fish, her eyes icy cold.
"Please! No! If you're alright, please let me go! Please!"
"ah!"
Within moments, his soul became still, completely absorbed by the Soul-Soothing Fish.
Song Yin bent down, picked up the Soul-Soothing Fish, and put it back into the water. "Your mission is complete. Go back now."
Xia Xining: "The Soul-Soothing Fish is so effective at dealing with the soul!"
Song Yin: "It is the nemesis of the soul. Whether it is a human or a demon beast, whether the cultivation level is high or low, it is a great source of nourishment for it."
Han Wuyue drew her sword and slashed at the sphere on the stone pillar, shattering it.
The water churned and slowly rose to the surface, forming an archway.
“Only those who successfully inherit the legacy can break the sphere and an exit will appear. We fell in because the legacy sensed the ruthless sword cultivator and pulled us in.” Han Wuyue spoke at length, and finally said, “I’m sorry, I’ve dragged everyone down with me.”
"I'm not a burden at all. I haven't even had a chance to congratulate you on obtaining the inheritance yet." Song Yin blinked. "Maybe the elders are a step behind you and haven't found the inheritance yet."
The five elders, who were on their way, began to sneeze one after another.
Achoo!
Achoo!
"Achoo! Who's talking about us behind our backs?"
"Achoo! Do you even need to guess? It must have been those few rascals who sneaked away."
After Song Yin and the others passed through the archway, they were immediately confronted with a huge lake.
A gentle breeze rippled across the lake's surface.
Song Yin was the first to come out, but she saw a black figure disappear on the lake in the blink of an eye, as if they had deliberately hidden themselves after coming out.
Shi Heming compared the map on the token with the map, "We went directly to the central area of the Nine Heavens Secret Realm."
Song Yin pointed to the spot on the lake where the figure disappeared: "There was a figure that disappeared on the lake just now."
Xia Xining: "A figure? Are you sure you're not seeing things?"
Shen Yuzhu spread his divine sense to investigate the surroundings: "There's no one around. Those cultivators rushing towards the central area aren't as fast as us."
"Maybe she was just seeing things because she was suddenly exposed to a confined space." Song Yin gave Han Wuyue a thumbs up. "Thanks to our Senior Sister Han for passing the inheritance test, we were able to get to the central area before everyone else."
Han Wuyue had been feeling guilty for dragging everyone down, and when she heard Song Yin's words, she was slightly stunned. Song Yin's words were clearly meant to comfort her and tell her not to overthink it.
Song Yin was full of energy: "Everyone, let's get to work and try to grab a bunch of good stuff before the others arrive."
Yes, they arrived first, and they got to choose the best things first.
"Charge! Charge! Charge!" Xia Xining rolled up her sleeves and rushed to the left.
Song Yin went to the right front, where there was another patch of spiritual herbs that only grew by the water. Although she might have been mistaken earlier, Song Yin still kept a close eye on it.
After Elder Fu and the others finished fighting the demonic beasts, they started talking about Song Yin and the others.
"I wonder if any of the disciples were injured. Although there aren't many demonic beasts inside, most of them are powerful, and it's easy to suffer losses if you fight them." Elder Feng put away the spiritual herbs next to the demonic beast's nest, along with the soil, into her spatial storage. She wanted to bring some unique spiritual herbs from the Nine Heavens Secret Realm back to Spirit Herb Peak for cultivation.
Elder Fu: "The closer we get to the central area, the more unexpected dangers we encounter. We haven't encountered any inheritances along the way, and we've also fought several battles with demonic beasts. We've had such a difficult journey, so they're bound to suffer some losses."
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The author's note: Before reaching the central area, Elder Fu said: "They will definitely suffer losses if they try to go to the central area."
Upon reaching the central area, the elders stared in disbelief at the disciples who had not been injured and had even received the inheritance.
Elder Fu: The clown is actually us [the clown]!
-
[Empty bowl]
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