After the Great Dao Died

An Immortal Slough!

To the many experts of the Under-Dao Academy, it was an opportunity far more extraordinary than any Cauldron Vessel.

After all, Cauldron Vessels varied in strength.

Some profound ones could tap into the very transformations of heaven and earth to create matter from the void.

Others, though still mystical, offered little real benefit to a cultivator.

Lin Suri had mentioned one such example during their journey up the snowy mountain: a Cauldron Vessel within the Under-Dao Academy known as the [Fortune Copper Coin].

If a cultivator held this vessel while cultivating, they would always stumble across some copper coins while walking around.

However, these were merely mortal coins, utterly useless for a cultivator.

A Cauldron Vessel like that could not even compare to an ordinary spirit treasure, let alone an Immortal Slough.

But an Immortal Slough was entirely different.

There was no telling what terrifying power lay dormant within an Immortal Slough. Lin Suri’s Martial Aunt in Red had said that with this slough, True Person Lingguang’s [Spirit-Gathering Wondrous Pearl], and the vast accumulated resources of the Pool Soul Courtyard, they could forge a [Nine-Transformation Precious Body]!

At that thought, Chen Lingxi felt a surge of curiosity regarding this Nine-Transformation Precious Body.

’In terms of cultivation, even if Lin Suri’s Martial Aunt in Red isn’t a figure of the Golden Portal, she must have at least stepped into the Dao Foundation Late Stage or even reached its peak.’

’Yet when an expert of her caliber mentioned the Nine-Transformation Precious Body, her eyes still shone with radiant light, as if greed had taken root in her heart.’

’That alone proves just how powerful this Nine-Transformation Precious Body must be.’

’However, the Immortal Slough is currently in Emperor Daye’s hands.’

’And Emperor Daye... is not the type to hand over an Immortal Slough to others.’

As his thoughts reached this point, Chen Lingxi suddenly remembered Lin Suri.

He immediately sat cross-legged and used Vision Roaming on Lin Suri.

Lin Suri was still atop the snowy mountain. The grand array hidden within the clouds pulsed with spiritual qi that was vastly thicker and more concentrated than before.

It seemed this grand array was finally complete.

Using Vision Roaming, Chen Lingxi watched Lin Suri meditate and cycle his breathing the entire time before finally letting the connection shatter.

’It seems I’ll need to use Vision Roaming on my Daoist Brother Lin more often in the future,’ he thought.

’The Under-Dao Academy is using the Myriad Realms Projection to send numerous experts down into this Grotto-Heaven.’

’These experts are also scheming to seize the Immortal Slough. A battle with Emperor Daye is inevitable.’

Chen Lingxi stood up, conjured a cloud, and flew straight toward the King of the East’s Traveling Palace on Cuojin Mountain.

The King of the East had died by his hand. Without him, Qinghua Province could no longer be defended; it would inevitably be breached by Xiao Changlv.

Yet, over the next two or three months, as Chen Lingxi repeatedly used Vision Roaming on Emperor Daye, he discovered that the emperor paid absolutely no attention to the current state of his empire.

’It makes sense,’ Chen Lingxi mused. ’He has glimpsed immortality, witnessed a vastly broader world, and grasped the mighty power of the Dao Foundation.’

’Couple that with the looming threat of the Que Star Xi Family refining this Grotto-Heaven.’

’It’s no surprise that Emperor Daye no longer cares about his empire.’

With those thoughts in mind, Chen Lingxi settled into the King of the East’s Traveling Palace. Aside from cultivating the True Edict of Approaching the Dao each day, he maintained his daily routine of using Vision Roaming on Lin Suri and Emperor Daye.

Until three months later.

Chen Lingxi used Vision Roaming on Lin Suri as usual.

Yet he saw that Lin Suri was no longer alone on the snowy peak; three other figures had appeared.

The three were quite young. Profound spiritual fluctuations radiated from them, enshrouded by a dense aura of spiritual qi.

There was one man and two women. All three possessed an extraordinary bearing and wore luxurious garments.

It required little thought to realize these three were the experts the Under-Dao Academy had projected down.

In addition to the trio, a figure in red faintly flickered behind Lin Suri.

This red-clothed figure was none other than Lin Suri’s Martial Aunt.

Looking through Lin Suri’s perspective, Chen Lingxi watched the three Under-Dao Academy experts continuously form hand seals and carve out runes, laying down an array atop the snowy peak.

A dense web of spiritual qi threads flowed through the air. At the center of the array, a black hole slowly rotated, exuding an aura completely different from this Grotto-Heaven.

”This Grotto-Heaven is already in the pocket of the Que Star Xi Family. For them to allow disciples from other sects to reincarnate here and search for Cauldron Vessels is already a massive concession.

”But if they find out that there is an Immortal Slough hidden inside this Grotto-Heaven, that True Lord will definitely intervene personally.

”At that point, getting our hands on this Immortal Slough will become even more difficult.” Lin Suri had not opened his mouth; instead, a woman’s voice slowly spoke from behind him.

It went without saying that the speaker was Lin Suri’s Martial Aunt in Red.

”There cannot be a single flaw in this Heaven-Fishing Grand Array,” she said. ”Only then will our Chi Soul Master be able to silently fish that Immortal Slough right out of this Grotto-Heaven.”

”Understood... Martial Aunt Shu Rong,” a tall, handsome man brimming with spiritual energy replied with a slow nod. He hovered in midair, his long hair fluttering in the wind.

An incredibly dense aura of spiritual qi rippled outward from his body.

At that moment, he extended a hand, forming his fingers into a sword gesture, and carved more runes into the empty air.

The runes were profoundly mystical, pulsing with wondrous spiritual fluctuations.

’The Twelfth Floor of Qi Circulation!’

Chen Lingxi was no longer who he once was. Having already experienced the mighty power of the Twelfth Floor of Qi Circulation, he instantly recognized the man’s cultivation realm the moment he saw that billowing spiritual qi.

Chen Lingxi could not help but draw in a deep breath.

’To think that a mere projection avatar possesses the cultivation of the Twelfth Floor of Qi Circulation,’ Chen Lingxi thought. ’By that logic, anyone capable of projecting their avatar down into this Grotto-Heaven must be at least an Early Dao Foundation expert.’

Chen Lingxi frowned, his gaze sweeping over the other two women.

The two women were quite different; one was elegantly beautiful, while the other carried a heroic bearing between her brows.

At this moment, the two of them were also constructing the Heaven-Fishing Grand Array.

Their cultivation bases were equally profound.

’The Under-Dao Academy truly lives up to its reputation as a major sect of the Great Xuanzhuo Realm,’ he mused.

’They casually send over a few figures, and even as mere projection avatars, they are this formidable.’

Amid his awe, Chen Lingxi’s gaze could not help but fall back onto the Martial Aunt in Red standing behind Lin Suri.

’This woman in red is the Martial Aunt to both Lin Suri and these three cultivators, so her cultivation must definitely be extremely powerful.’

’I wonder what realm her projection is at? How does she compare to Emperor Daye?’

Chen Lingxi pondered in his heart.

Then he heard the Martial Aunt in Red slowly speak again. ”You must hurry. We cannot afford to waste too much time here.

”Otherwise, the Great Divine Ability that will be born on Yuantian Mountain in six years might no longer be our Pool Soul Courtyard’s destined fortune.”

Chen Lingxi’s mind stirred.

The man turned his head and chuckled. ”The founders of our Under-Dao Academy have all stepped into the Golden Palace Realm. They are all True Persons.

”While that Great Divine Ability, [Fuxuan Court], is certainly extraordinary, it offers little benefit to the disciples of our Under-Dao Academy. Why are you so anxious about it, Martial Aunt?”

The phantom of the Martial Aunt in Red slowly shook her head.

”This [Fuxuan Court] is no ordinary divine ability. It is a divine ability that transcends the Twenty-Four Heavens, seizing the grand momentum for one’s own use.”

”If we can obtain this divine ability, even if our Under-Dao Academy cannot use it, we can still sell it at a high price to other sects. To those immortal clans in particular, it is extremely precious.”

’Fuxuan Court?’

’A divine ability transcending the Twenty-Four Heavens?’

Chen Lingxi immediately recalled something Lin Suri had once told him: of the thirty-six Dao pathways, ordinary cultivators could only ever come into contact with twenty-four.

’Could this Fuxuan Court... be outside of those twenty-four pathways?’