Transmigrating Into a Fantasy World: Signing in During Pregnancy, Reaching the Summit with My Childhood Sweetheart

128: Chapter 128: Tracing the Continent and Initial Understanding of the Star PivotCharging out of the Beiming Ice Sea and returning to the light of day, the biting cold wind remained, but the bone-deep dead silence and resentment were gone. Nangong Xuan and Su Muxue did not linger, turning into two streaks of light as they sped toward the relatively warmer regions to the south.

The chaos star core, wrapped in layers of Nirvana Dao Rhyme within his robes, remained icy cold. The deep blue profound ice condensed from Xuanming True Water had not completely melted, but more fine water droplets and cracks had appeared on its surface. The thrilling struggle within had been greatly delayed but had not stopped; like a frozen volcano, it could erupt again at any moment.

They had to find a solution as quickly as possible!

The whispers of ”the dark side” lingered in their minds like a curse. Terms like ”coordinate lock” and ”recovery sequence” meant their time might be even tighter than they imagined.

”Senior Brother, where are we going?” Su Muxue asked via voice transmission, her brow furrowed with worry. The anomaly of the star Core had disrupted their rhythm, making their original plan to collect the star keys step-by-step precarious.

Nangong Xuan’s gaze swept over the glaciers and snowy plains flashing by below. He said in a deep voice, ”We know too little about ’the dark side,’ the star Core, and even the Guixu. We must seek ancient legacies or records. Elder Lu Cheng of the Tiangong Workshop might provide some clues, but his level may not be high enough. We need older information that is closer to the Core.”

Several place names surfaced in his mind: the Night Watchmen Ancestral Shrine, the Ancient Battlefield Ruins, and perhaps... other remaining ruins of the Star Palace.

”Let’s return to the continent first and find a large gathering place for Cultivators. Perhaps we can hear some inkling of ancient secrets.”

Over ten days later, the two finally left the bitter cold of the extreme north and entered the southern border of the North Plain Continent. The Spiritual Qi here returned to normal, and the light from Cultivators’ flight could occasionally be seen passing by.

They chose to land in a major northern city called Shuofeng City. This city was grand in scale and served as an important resource distribution center for the North Plain Continent, with many passing Cultivators and relatively accessible information.

After entering the city, the two did not draw attention to themselves. They restrained their auras and checked into a quiet inn like ordinary Golden Core Cultivators. Only after Nangong Xuan set up a Restriction in the room to block investigation did he carefully take out the frozen chaos star core and place it on the table.

The profound ice had melted a bit more, and the cracks were deeper. Through the ice layer, the chaotic flickering of light within the star Core could be vaguely seen, and its slow pulsation seemed much heavier.

Su Muxue extended her finger and carefully sent a trace of Taiyin Star Power into the ice, attempting to sense the internal situation. A moment later, she withdrew her hand, her face slightly pale.

”The situation is very bad. Senior Brother Lin Mo’s consciousness light is much dimmer than before. Although he is still resisting and even trying to reverse the assimilation, the Origin of ’the dark side’ is extremely stubborn and cunning; the erosion is still slowly progressing. The profound ice seal can be maintained for half a month at most.”

Nangong Xuan remained silent, his finger unconsciously tapping the tabletop. Half a month—the time was too tight.

”We can’t just sit and wait for death. We’ll act separately. You go to the city’s largest library or trading house to look for ancient secrets, records, or clues regarding the Star Palace, the Night Watchmen, or special energy purification. I will try to communicate with the star Core using my Divine Sense to see if I can contact Lin Mo or find another way.”

Su Muxue nodded and immediately got up to leave.

Inside the room, Nangong Xuan took a deep breath to adjust his state to its peak. Then, he separated a wisp of extremely pure Divine Sense and carefully probed toward the frozen star Core.

The moment his Divine Sense touched the ice layer, an extreme chill surged back along it, nearly freezing his Divine Thought. Nangong Xuan circulated his Nirvana Dao Rhyme to neutralize the chill, and his Divine Sense slowly penetrated inside.

Inside the ice layer was a chaotic scene of extremely turbulent energy and conflicting wills. His Divine Sense was like a small boat in a raging sea, struggling to avoid those violent energy currents as he searched toward the direction of Lin Mo’s consciousness at the Core.

”Lin Mo!” he called out with his Divine Thought.

There was no direct response, only countless chaotic fragments of thought rushing at him, mixed with painful roars, cold mockery, and visions of stars being born and destroyed.

”...Hold... on...” ”...Get... out...” ”...Nirvana... devour...” ”...Coordinates...” ”...Guixu...”

Nangong Xuan’s Divine Sense traveled with difficulty, protected by the Nirvana Dao Rhyme, preventing him from being crushed by this chaotic flood. He kept calling out, transmitting his firm will to resist ”the dark side.”

After an unknown amount of time, at the edge of a violent energy storm, he finally captured a faint, clear thought belonging to Lin Mo!

”Nan... gong...” The thought was intermittent and full of exhaustion. ”...It’s... very troublesome... stealing... star key... power... backfiring on me...” ”...Ice seal... soon... failing...” ”...Need... more original... power... to suppress... or... balance...”

”What original power?” Nangong Xuan immediately followed up.

”...Don’t know... but... star Core... memory fragments... show... nine luminaries... star key... power... if... gathered... might... trigger... star pivot...” ”...star pivot... is... the key...” ”...Might... be able to... purify...”

Lin Mo’s thoughts came to an abrupt halt here, as if he had been pulled back into the intense conflict once again.

The star pivot? Nangong Xuan’s heart stirred. This wasn’t the first time he had heard this term; it had been vaguely mentioned in some of the star key information fragments he had obtained earlier. It was rumored to be the Core of the Star Palace, the ultimate hub controlling the power of the nine luminaries.

Could the true purpose of collecting the star keys be more than just opening a path, but rather to trigger the star pivot and obtain the original power to purify everything or even combat ”the dark side”?

Just then, the door was pushed open, and Su Muxue walked in quickly, her face carrying a hint of urgency and discovery.

”Senior Brother, there’s a clue!” She held a tattered Jade Slip in her hand. ”I found this in a corner of the ’Wanjuan Tower’ in the south of the city. The Restriction on it is ancient, almost merging with the dust. I barely managed to break a corner using Taiyin Star Power; what’s recorded inside seems to be fragments about an ancient organization called the ’Stargazers’!”

Nangong Xuan immediately took the Jade Slip and immersed his Divine Sense into it.

The content of the Jade Slip was indeed incomplete, but one passage made his gaze freeze.

”...The power of Dark Erosion is not of this world and is difficult to purify by conventional means... However, all things have their counters. According to research, ’Primordial Light’ or the ’Silence of the End’ may damage its Origin...” ”...The star pivot is the manifestation of the convergence and sublimation of the nine luminaries’ power, suspected to contain a trace of the secret of ’Primordial,’ yet no one has seen it...” ”...Additionally, deep in the northwest desert, there was an ancient kingdom named ’Loulan’ that believed in ’Reincarnation.’ Its sacred object, the ’twin glazed lamp,’ is said to be able to balance life and death and purify evil filth, which might have a miraculous effect on resisting ’Dark Erosion.’ However, that kingdom has long since vanished beneath the shifting sands, its location unknown...”

Primordial Light? Silence of the End? star pivot? twin glazed lamp?

The information was fragmented, yet it was as if a few faint lamps had been lit in the darkness.

”Silence of the End... Senior Brother, does your Nirvana Dao Rhyme belong to the power of ’the End’?” Su Muxue looked at Nangong Xuan.

Nangong Xuan pondered for a moment and shook his head. ”My Nirvana Dao Rhyme comes from my own insights. Although it has the form, it is far from reaching the realm of the ’Finality’ Origin. Perhaps... it needs further sublimation.” He thought of that speck of ”Guixu” intent within Lin Mo’s star Core, which seemed closer to the so-called ”End.”

As for ”Primordial Light,” he had no clue at all.

Regarding the ”twin glazed lamp,” it sounded like an exotic treasure with the power of purification and balance. Perhaps it could temporarily alleviate the crisis of the star Core?

”Loulan Ancient Kingdom... Northwest Desert...” Nangong Xuan recalled the parchment star map. In the northwest direction, there was indeed a vast area marked with a sand pattern. His previous sensing had been blurred, so he hadn’t investigated it closely.

”The sensing for the next star key is in the southwest. It has a rich vitality, seemingly related to Yimu, but it’s not the dead silence of the previous Nether Yimu, but pure vitality.” Su Muxue sensed the faint guidance coming from the star Core. ”It’s in the opposite direction of the Northwest Desert.”

Their goals diverged: Should they continue following the sensing to collect the next star key and strive to gather all nine keys as quickly as possible to trigger the star pivot? Or should they divert to the Northwest Desert to find the potentially existing ”twin glazed lamp” to solve the immediate emergency?

The two fell into deep thought. The star Core’s ice seal would last half a month at most. To go to the Northwest Desert to find a vanished ancient kingdom—the time was too tight, and the hope was slim. Meanwhile, the sensing for the next star key was strong and might be obtained relatively quickly.

But if they couldn’t solve the erosion of ”the dark side,” collecting more star keys might just be doing someone else’s work.

Just as the two were weighing their options, the frozen star Core in Nangong Xuan’s robes suddenly jolted violently without warning!

The profound ice covering its surface was instantly covered in web-like cracks, and a trace of an extremely faint yet bone-chilling aura from ”the dark side” suddenly seeped out. Although it was immediately suppressed by Nangong Xuan’s Nirvana Dao Rhyme, it caused the expressions of both to change drastically!

The ice seal was about to fail! The erosion speed had exceeded their estimates!

There was no time to hesitate!

Nangong Xuan stood up abruptly, his eyes resolute. ”To the Northwest Desert! We’ll find the Loulan Ancient Kingdom and the twin glazed lamp!”

They had to stabilize the star Core and save Lin Mo first!

He looked toward the southwest, a trace of regret flashing in his eyes, which then became firm.

”Let’s go!”

The two quickly left Shuofeng City, turning into streaks of light as they sped toward the northwest, toward that endless sea of yellow sand.

Hope was slim, but they had no other choice.