Day of Ascension

“Chance of survival...” Xu Ying stood up. Although his tone remained calm, a fierce, heroic spirit surged within his chest. ”There is only one way to survive: find them and send these rotten bastards to death!”

Old Ancestor Guo sighed. “That is much easier said than done.”

Xu Ying’s eyes flickered. “Elder Guo, did you see the Other Shore after opening nine grotto heavens of your Crimson Palace?”

Puzzled, Old Ancestor Guo asked, “The Other Shore?”

Xu Ying explained what he had seen when he opened his Jade Pool grotto heaven. “I suspect the jade-like world that the Jade Pool grotto heaven points toward is a world on the Other Shore. That grotto heaven is a bridge that connects to it. Since our grotto heavens haven’t fully opened, we can’t enter that world and can only siphon its power.”

Old Ancestor Guo said, “You mean, the power contained within the Other Shore that corresponds to the Jade Pool grotto heaven is primordial qi, while the power contained within the Other Shore world that corresponds to the Crimson Palace grotto heaven is heart energy. The six secrets of the human body actually correspond to six great Other Shores, am I right?”

Xu Ying nodded, a little embarrassed. “I have only just become an Exorcist and don’t understand its inner workings. I’m not sure whether I’m right.”

Old Ancestor Guo paced back and forth, pondering aloud, “If you were just an ordinary Exorcist and said this, I would definitely have sent a slap your way for daring to doubt the ancestor’s teachings. But you happen to be older than me. So, I must consider your words seriously.”

He came to a halt. “When I opened my ninth grotto heaven, I saw an immortal palace within the sea of flames. There were some characters on that immortal palace, but I couldn’t understand them.”

Xu Ying instantly perked up and smiled. “Since there’s an immortal palace, there must be an Other Shore! Perhaps reaching the Other Shore would allow us to avoid the master of the Crimson Palace!”

Old Ancestor Guo shook his head. “I’ve only seen that immortal palace in the flames once. I might have been too excited and imagined it...”

Just then, Pei Du’s voice rang out with a laugh. “Did I also imagine it? I also saw an immortal palace when I opened the ninth grotto heaven of the Jade Pool. Unlike Brother Guo, I memorized the characters on it.”

He strode over to Xu Ying and Old Ancestor Guo, then traced several characters onto the stone with his finger. They were written in the long-lost bird-worm seal script.

Old Ancestor Guo said, “That immortal palace I saw in the fire also had similar characters! But I didn’t memorize a single one of them!”

Xu Ying looked at these characters and murmured under his breath, “Jade Void Palace!”

Pei Du looked up in shock and blurted out, “Brother Xu, you know these characters?”

Old Ancestor Guo cleared his throat. “Call him Old Senior Xu! Don’t try to take advantage of me.”

Xu Ying answered, “I recognize these three characters. It means Jade Void Palace, though I don’t know where I learned this script.”

Pei Du and Old Ancestor Guo exchanged glances. Old Ancestor Guo whispered, “Old Pei, if there really is an Other Shore, perhaps we really could escape the misfortune that strikes Exorcist Immortals in their later years. Shall we give it a try?”

Pei Du asked, “How do we try?”

“We break through!”

Old Ancestor Guo reached out his hand and made a grabbing motion. His azure dragon halberd flew into his hand from afar as a surge of heroic spirit rose within his chest. “You unleash your grotto heaven. I’ll break through it to see if I can reach the Other Shore! I’ll help you open your path, and you help open mine!”

Pei Du shook his head. “Your way of doing things has always been crude. I’m worried that you won’t break through to the Other Shore, but straight through me instead. This time, I’ll do it. You unleash your grotto heaven, and I’ll make the breakthrough.”

“Alright!”

Old Ancestor Guo stood there and unleashed his ethereal void without reservation, revealing the exact location of the Crimson Palace in his heart ventricle. His vital energy surged as the nine crescent grotto heavens of the Crimson Palace manifested before everyone.

The nine grotto heavens plunged into the sea of fire. The flames blazed ferociously. Strangely, although everyone could see them, they felt no heat.

Pei Du immediately jumped up, turned into a stream of light, and flew into his Crimson Palace crescent grotto heaven, soaring deeper into the blazing sea of fire.

Xu Ying grew tense. He was very familiar with the crescent grotto heaven. It was actually the Crescent Furnace, a massive cauldron that grew hotter the deeper one went!

The flames in the first level of the cauldron were already divine fire. Each successive layer burned even hotter. Otherwise, the Crescent Furnace could never provide such immense power to the physical body.

Still, Pei Du was an Exorcist Immortal who possessed mystical power rivaling an immortal. Relying on his boundless primordial qi, he suppressed the furnace’s flames and continued pushing deeper.

He moved at a terrifying pace, quickly passing through the nine grotto heavens and reaching the end of the ninth Crescent Furnace Grotto Heaven.

Xu Ying activated his Third Eye and strained his vision to the limit. He saw Pei Du channeling his mystical power and unleashing his divine abilities at the end of the ninth grotto heaven. Each strike forced Old Ancestor Guo’s ninth grotto heaven to expand farther toward the Other Shore.

Xu Ying couldn’t help but grow excited. Dazhong also flew out and watched this scene anxiously.

At first, Pei Du’s momentum was unstoppable. Soon, however, blood began pouring from his seven orifices.

Xu Ying immediately said, “Master Zhong, let’s go help him!”

Dazhong flew up and followed Xu Ying. The latter turned into a streak of sword light and flew into Old Ancestor Guo’s grotto heaven along with the bell with a loud whistle, charging all the way through.

After a long while, Xu Ying and Dazhong finally reached Pei Du’s side. The bell descended over him, covering him and shielding him from the increasingly violent sea of fire.

With his support, Pei Du was finally able to fight with all his strength, carving a path deeper into the ninth grotto heaven.

Suddenly, a snow-white streak of light struck Dazhong, tilting him. A clear crack appeared on his surface!

Xu Ying pushed himself to the limit, pouring vital energy into Dazhong to steady the bell and protect both himself and Pei Du.

Dazhong said, “Chancellor Pei, there’s something strange in the fire!”

Instead of retreating, Pei Du charged forward with all his might, meeting the sea of fire and the second streak of white light head-on.

What is he trying to do? Xu Ying’s heart leaped up to his throat. He activated his Third Eye to look and couldn’t help but shudder with horror.

Amid the sea of fire, an immortal palace vaguely came into view. Several figures stood before it. Some sat, while others remained standing, all motionless as they bathed in the immortal fire.

Pei Du thrust one hand past Dazhong’s protection and reached into the sea of fire.

As soon as his arm left Dazhong’s cover, it burst into flames and was quickly burned black. Despite his boundless primordial qi, he could not suppress the fire!

Pei Du retracted his hand, seemingly having grasped something. He clutched it tightly to his chest and shouted something to Xu Ying. Out of nowhere, another streak of brilliant light slammed into Dazhong, sending him hurtling toward the exit of the grotto heaven.

Xu Ying grabbed Pei Du and pulled him back inside the cover of the bell. The blazing immortal fire flowed under them like water. As the two hid under the bell, Pei Du still clutched onto that thing desperately, refusing to let go.

Streak after streak of bright light struck Dazhong, producing loud clanging sounds. The barrage sent him tumbling uncontrollably through Old Ancestor Guo’s grotto heaven until he finally crashed out of it.

Once Dazhong landed on the ground, Xu Ying and Pei Du tumbled out.

Dazhong glowed bright red from the heat. Weakly, he cried out, “Ah Ying, Old Man Pei, I won’t let this go unless you each give me sixty percent of your vital energy.”

With a loud crack, Pei Du’s burnt arm turned into charcoal and fell to the ground. Yet, the chancellor was overjoyed. He smiled. “Forget sixty percent. I’d gladly give seventy or even eighty!”

Startled, Old Ancestor Guo hurriedly stepped forward. “Old Pei, you...”

Pei Du laughed heartily as he rose to his feet unsteadily, filled with excitement. “There’s an immortal inside the fire! I caught an immortal!”

He was holding a little girl in his arms who looked only eight or nine years old. Her eyes were closed tightly, without a hint of breath.

Her heart wasn’t beating either, yet her complexion was a healthy color, making her seem like one of the living dead.

A tiny spark of immortal fire burned beneath her nose, drifting in and out of her nostrils.

Xu Ying stepped forward. “There are many such people before the immortal palace in the sea of fire. Are they really immortals?”

Overcome with excitement, Pei Du and Old Ancestor Guo crowded around the girl. She had flawless flesh and bone, as if carved from jade. Not a single blemish could be found on her.

The two gasped, “A true immortal!”

Suddenly, the spark of immortal fire beneath her nostrils went up her nostrils and disappeared. Then, her chest rose and fell as her breath returned. A steady pulse gradually spread through her veins, as though she had come back from the dead.

She snapped upright, turned her head to look, and wore a puzzled expression as she began to speak.

It was a strange language. Pei Du, Old Ancestor Guo, and even Dazhong couldn’t understand a word. However, Xu Ying felt a stir in his heart. He instinctively replied in the same obscure, incomprehensible language.

The girl’s expression turned solemn, and she suddenly shot through the air, vanishing without a trace!

Pei Du and Old Ancestor Guo stood there dumbfounded. Before they could even try to stop her, she was already gone without a trace.

Dazhong hurriedly asked, “Ah Ying, what did that girl just say?”

Pei Du and the Old Ancestor Guo snapped out of their daze and hurriedly turned to look at Xu Ying. Moments earlier, he had exchanged a few words with the immortal girl before she fled.

Xu Ying said carefully, “She asked whether this was the Immortal Realm and whether she had already ascended. I told her this is still the mortal realm.”

Old Ancestor Guo quickly asked, “And then?”

“That’s it.”

Pei Du and Old Ancestor Guo stood there completely blank. Then, they snapped back to their senses. Pei Du immediately started walking outside. He said, “I’ll go mobilize my clansmen to search for her whereabouts! Brother Guo, don’t forget to inform me if you have any news!”

Old Ancestor Guo also hurried toward the exit, but suddenly stopped. He took out a book from his bosom and tossed it to Xu Ying.

Xu Ying raised a hand to catch it. As Old Ancestor Guo walked outside, his voice entered Xu Ying’s ear. “Back then, I accidentally stumbled into an immortal’s grotto residence and obtained the Crimson Palace Crescent Furnace Art. If you practice this art, you will sense that pair of eyes.”

He quickly looked at the scripture. Indeed, it bore the words Crimson Palace Crescent Furnace Art!

“Once I discovered what happens to Exorcist Immortals in their later years, I stopped teaching this art to anyone else, not even my son. After you read it, whether you practice it or not, destroy it.”

Old Ancestor Guo’s voice echoed from outside calmly, “I will definitely keep fighting! Even if my body is destroyed and my cultivation is completely wiped out, I will never admit defeat! As long as there’s even a sliver of hope, I’ll seize it. Before that, I need to make sure I leave nothing behind.”

His only concern was the lack of a successor. He feared no one would rise to defy the Crimson Palace Master after he fell.

He needed someone to take up the Crimson Palace Crescent Furnace Art and continue the fight!

However, he wouldn’t force Xu Ying to practice this cultivation technique.

Like Zhou Qiyun, he had his pride.

Xu Ying put the scripture away.

Dazhong swayed as he flew up, revolving once to check his new wounds. “Ah Ying, is Old Ancestor Guo not confident against the Crimson Palace Master?”

Xu Ying’s eyes flickered as he replied, “The Crimson Palace Master is an existence as powerful as the Mud-Pill Palace Master, and he’s just as patient as the Mud-Pill Palace Master. Old Ancestor Guo’s spirit isn’t old, and he remains confident. His body, however, is simply losing to time.”

Dazhong said, “Old Pei left so quickly. It seems he’s forgotten that he still owes me seventy percent of his vital energy. Ah Ying, when will you give me your sixty percent of vital energy?”

“Master Zhong, siphon it yourself.”

Overjoyed, Dazhong struggled to fly into the back of his head.

Xu Ying gazed in the direction where the child immortal had vanished. Are those in the sea of fire really immortals? Was that girl earlier also an immortal?

He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was amiss, but since he couldn’t figure it out, he decided to just drop it for now. He composed himself, flipped open the Crimson Palace Crescent Furnace Art and read it carefully.

The cultivation art treated the Crimson Palace’s crescent grotto heaven as a massive furnace from which heart energy could be drawn. Its method of cultivating and expanding the crescent grotto heaven to strengthen the heart was exceptionally ingenious.

Afterward came the process of harvesting heart energy to refine the body and soul. That section, however, held little value for Xu Ying.

What he lacked was the method to refine the crescent grotto heaven!

He circulated the first half of the Crimson Palace Crescent Furnace Art, drawing heart energy from the boundless sea of fire. Just then, that strange feeling surged through him again.

He felt as if he stood in darkness, and a pair of eyes slowly opened behind him.

The Crimson Palace Master had taken notice of him.

In that darkness, Xu Ying gazed into those eyes and committed the other’s aura to memory.

He channeled the Grand Unity Guiding Method. The power of Crimson Palace and Mud Pill’s grotto heavens surged out endlessly as he refined it into himself. Xu Ying felt his physique become stronger than ever, brimming with vitality. Every movement sent waves of raw power rippling through the air!

By now, the sun was no longer suitable for cultivation. Even without absorbing sunlight, however, the two Secret Troves within him continuously supplied boundless vitality and power, steadily increasing his cultivation.

Thrilled and amazed, Xu Ying exclaimed, “This is a true spiritual sanctuary! This is what true Qi cultivation is like!”

In his mind, Dazhong was very pleased with Xu Ying’s diligent practice. “Ah Ying, you’ve unlocked your Mud-Pill Secret Trove and practiced the Mud Pill Palace Master’s legacy. Now you’ve done the same for your Crimson-Palace Secret Trove. When you’ve refined both Secret Troves to the nine heavens, which of them would come and devour you?”

Xu Ying paused. He hadn’t considered this problem.

Yuanqi, who was basking in the sun nearby, said lazily, “Maybe they’ll both want to devour Ah Ying and end up fighting each other until they’re both badly injured.”

Dazhong sneered coldly, “I think old monsters like them would surely sit down together in harmony. You’ll eat Ah Ying’s Mud Pill, while I devour his Crimson Palace. They won’t get into a fight at all. Perhaps they’ll even invite the other to have a taste of their own creation!”

Yuanqi froze for a moment, then asked, “What if Ah Ying unlocked all six Secret Troves? They’ll surely fight, right?”

Dazhong replied, “They’ll surely sit down together and eat him. That’s called sharing a meal!”

Xu Ying shuddered and said nervously, “Master Zhong, if I unlocked all six Secret Troves, my cultivation and strength would become unimaginably powerful. Defeating them shouldn’t be difficult... right?”

Dazhong replied, “What if the six of them joined hands to fight you?”

Xu Ying groaned, dejected.

Just then, a fruit core landed right at his feet. Xu Ying looked up and saw a girl with braids, seemingly eight or nine years old, sitting on the walls of the Guo residence, holding a handful of cherries.

The girl stood up, her figure flickered, and arrived at his side. With the bearing of an old master, she asked, “What are you practicing?”

She spoke in that ancient language from before. Strangely enough, Xu Ying understood her and replied in the same language, “I’m practicing exorcism art.”

“Exorcism art? I’ve never heard of it.”

With the posture and mannerisms of an adult, she continued, “Write it down. Let me see which character you use for ‘Nuo.’”

Xu Ying wrote the character on the ground. The girl looked at it closely and said, “This is clearly the ‘tan’ character. It means to lie there motionless.”

Xu Ying corrected her, “It is pronounced ‘nuo.’”

She argued, “Or maybe it’s pronounced ‘nan.’”

Xu Ying said patiently, “Repeat after me, ‘nuo.’”

The girl rolled her eyes at him and shouted, “No matter if it’s ‘nuo’ or ‘nan,’ it’s pronounced ‘tan,’ meaning to lie flat! Are you practicing the mystic art of lying flat? Stop slacking off.

“From now on, you’ll follow and protect me! When this old ancestor’s cultivation is recovered, I will reward you handsomely, so you’ll never have to lie flat again!”