Chapter 346: Returning to the East Holy Land

Chapter 346: Returning to the East Holy Land

"We've finally left the Boundless Sea."

Chu Ning gazed at the stagnant waters ahead, a sigh of relief escaping his lips.

"Yes, we're finally out!"

Bailing, too, wore an expression of relief.

"Master, a few days ago when we encountered that tenth-stage demon, we were lucky. That fellow just happened to recognize Turtle Senior's shell and the spirit treasure I was holding. If it had truly attacked us, we would have been in big trouble."

Chu Ning recalled the events of that day, a slight chill running down his spine at the close call.

"It's also fortunate that the other tenth-stage demons had gone to Snow Mist Valley to cause trouble for those Nascent Soul cultivators. Otherwise, our journey might not have been so smooth."

Chu Ning had only learned from the latter tenth-stage demon that the powerful beasts of the outer sea had gone to Snow Mist Valley. Perhaps this was the reason for their relatively uneventful journey.

In the following days, as they flew across the sea, they encountered few obstacles. Not only did they not come across any tenth-stage demons, but they also didn't meet any eighth or ninth-stage beasts.

At this moment, Chu Ning stood in mid-air, turning to look back, a wave of emotions washing over him.

He calculated that since embarking on the path of cultivation, he had spent the most time in the Northern Cold. Altogether, it had been nearly fifty years.

However, most of that time in the Northern Cold had been spent in secluded cultivation, and he had little interaction with others. As a result, his memories of this place were not as profound as those of the East Holy and West Alliance continents.

During these decades, his cultivation had advanced from the initial to the later stages of the Golden Core. His divine abilities had also improved significantly.

In the Northern Cold, Chu Ning had perfected the Five Elements Chaotic Formula and cultivated the complete Five Elements Sword Array. Additionally, he had acquired numerous spells and treasures from other cultivators.

These gains were far beyond what he had imagined before entering the Golden Spirit Species Spirit Domain from the Nine Splendid Sects.

After a moment of reflection, Chu Ning turned back and, with the Eight Trigrams Flying Wheel, continued to fly southward.

Now that Nascent Soul cultivators and demon beasts of the same level were clashing in the Northern Cold, it seemed that great chaos was imminent. However, Chu Ning knew that it had little to do with him anymore.

But he was certain that if he ever crossed paths with those Nascent Soul cultivators again, he wouldn't need to be as cautious and calculating. He would be able to face them directly.

As they flew out of the Boundless Sea and entered the Infinite Sea, Chu Ning immediately sensed a difference.

While the Boundless Sea had chaotic spiritual energy, the spiritual energy in the surroundings was not thin. This was why many beasts were able to reach the tenth level of cultivation there.

However, upon entering the Infinite Sea, he felt no trace of spiritual energy at all. Chu Ning couldn't even sense the presence of any living beings.

"Cang Xuan Spirit Turtle mentioned that there are powerful demons in the depths of this Infinite Sea, but I wonder how deep it is. And what kind of demon beasts lurk within?"

Chu Ning gazed at the lifeless sea below, his curiosity piqued.

Of course, curiosity aside, he had no intention of exploring the depths.

Instead, Chu Ning channeled his spiritual power into the Eight Trigrams Flying Wheel and flew southward at full speed.

Fortunately, despite the lack of spiritual energy in the Infinite Sea, there was no suppression of their original power, so Chu Ning's spiritual power could still function normally. It just couldn't be replenished.

From now on, he would have to rely on the thousand-year and ten-thousand-year spirit milk.

Speaking of original power, Chu Ning recalled the strange drop of water he had obtained in the Snow Mist Valley passage.

When it had first entered his body, it had wandered through his meridians. But ever since his spiritual power recovered, the droplet had remained dormant, unmoving within him.

During his flight, Chu Ning had tried to control the droplet, but to no avail. So, he eventually stopped paying attention to it.

At least for now, it didn't seem to be causing any harm.

As they flew southward, Bailling initially maintained her youthful female form. But when they realized that no beasts seemed to inhabit the Infinite Sea, she returned to her true form and hid in Chu Ning's sleeve, as it required less spiritual power.

Chu Ning also shrank the Eight Trigrams Law Wheel back to its normal size to conserve some energy.

Flying across the vast and monotonous sea could be boring, so Chu Ning occasionally chatted with Bailing.

They reminisced about their time on the East Holy Continent, Chu Ning's cultivation in Qingxi Zong, and how they had unintentionally met during the beast tide.

They talked about entering the Wood Spirit Species Spirit Domain later on, leaving Qingxi Zong, and venturing into the Thousand Lakes and Islands.

They discussed Chu Ning's relationship with Zicen Zijing and how he had narrowly escaped death at the hands of Yin Demon Sect cultivators several times in the East Holy Sect.

A flood of memories washed over them, but after a few days of chatting, the novelty wore off.

So, they began to focus on their individual pursuits.

Bailong continued to study her spirit treasure. According to her, after hearing the tenth-stage demon mention its name, she vaguely recalled some related information from her inherited memories.

However, these memories were not clear, and they paled in comparison to the cultivation techniques she had learned. They were more like snippets of conversation overheard in the womb.

Chu Ning was no longer surprised by Bailong's vast and mysterious knowledge.

In fact, he had been wanting to ask the Cang Xuan Spirit Turtle about Ling Xiaobai's whereabouts. It seemed that the turtle vaguely knew what kind of spirit beast Bailong was.

However, ever since entering the Great Void Abyss, Chu Ning had rarely had the opportunity for idle chatter. And when they left the abyss, the giant turtle and the Nascent Soul cultivator from the Longkong Temple had just finished fighting and fallen into a deep slumber.

In the meantime, Chu Ning turned his attention to examining the other items he had acquired.

First, he took out the Mysterious Sky Mirror and carefully studied it while they were still in the Boundless Sea, free from the presence of other cultivators or demonic beasts.

Just as the giant turtle had said, he couldn't refine or wield the treasure at all, nor could he fathom the divine abilities it possessed.

Thus, Chu Ning shifted his focus to studying the newly acquired spell, the Green Wave Whirlpool.

After a month of diligent practice, he gained a profound understanding of it. However, due to the scarcity of spiritual energy in the Boundless Sea, Chu Ning was reluctant to use his spiritual power to cultivate it.

During the next month, Chu Ning delved into the study of talismans.

As he meticulously sorted through the storage bags of the Nascent Soul cultivators he had encountered, he categorized and organized various pills, artifact refining materials, and other items.

To his surprise, in Qiu Qijun's storage bag, he discovered a top-grade lower-tier talisman within a jade box. Moreover, it was a wind-attribute attack talisman.

This discovery delighted Chu Ning immensely, as he possessed a wind spirit root but had very few wind-based spells.

At the moment, the two spells he cultivated were the Divine Wind Escape and the Bonfire Scorching Technique, both of which he had learned back in the Thousand Lakes and Islands.

While these spells were decent, they were no longer sufficient for Chu Ning's current stage.

The wind-attribute attack talisman, named Furious Wind Slash, was an extremely powerful wind-based offensive talisman.

By deciphering and mastering the art of creating this talisman, Chu Ning would be able to eventually condense a talisman seed and directly cast true talisman spells, essentially giving him access to a top-tier wind-based spell.

It was similar to the Ice Shadow Sword Talisman he had been using. After activating it dozens of times, he was close to reaching the stage of activating it a hundred times and condensing a talisman seed.

Chu Ning spent another month tirelessly deciphering the intricacies of the top-grade Furious Wind Slash talisman, and finally grasped the art of creating it.

In the subsequent month, he dedicated himself to studying the intricacies of formations and restrictions.

Cultivators who ventured into the Great Void Abyss had a certain level of understanding of formations and restrictions.

While Chu Ning had relied on Bailong's innate divine abilities to smoothly navigate his journey, his comprehension of formations and restrictions might not necessarily surpass that of the Nascent Soul cultivators he had encountered.

Perhaps anticipating the need to face intricate and complex formations within the Great Void Abyss, these cultivators carried jade slips that recorded various formation layouts and methods for breaking restrictions.

Some of the formation layouts and restriction-breaking techniques were comparable to the formation legacy of the Tianmu Continent that Chu Ning had obtained from Di Yan.

They lacked the same level of completeness and comprehensiveness, however.

Chu Ning had a keen interest in this field and eagerly absorbed the best practices from various sources, making numerous comparisons that deepened his understanding of formations and restrictions.

With this single-minded dedication to his studies, the otherwise monotonous flight across the Boundless Sea passed by in a flash.

After four months of flying over the Boundless Sea, Chu Ning finally spotted land on the horizon, about a hundred li away.

His eyes lit up with anticipation.

"The East Holy Continent, this should be the northernmost part of the East Holy Continent.

The area where the Boundless Sea meets the East Holy Continent is vast, with the Jinwu Manor to the east, the Zhongbei Jing Palace in the center, and the Hun Gu Zong further west.

There seem to be a few smaller sects as well, but I don't know their names or which sect's territory I'm currently in."

Even though Chu Ning originated from the East Holy Continent, he didn't have a thorough understanding of the power dynamics there.

He was familiar with some of the major forces but lacked detailed knowledge of the rest.

When he had first entered the cultivation world, his perspective had been limited.

Although he had accessed some information about the various cultivation forces on the East Holy Continent from Qingxi Zong's records, it wasn't comprehensive.

Moreover, it had been over eighty years since he left Qingxi Zong, which was a considerable amount of time in the cultivation world, and some changes in the power dynamics were possible.

"Master, we'll know once we reach the shore," Bailong said, transforming into a charming young woman with sparkling eyes as she gazed ahead.

Chu Ning nodded slightly. "If it's one of those three major sects, they all have Nascent Soul cultivators, so we'll need to be careful."

As he spoke, Chu Ning used his spiritual sense to transmit his voice into the spirit beast bag.

"Senior Turtle, we're about to leave the Boundless Sea and arrive at the East Holy Continent."

However, as he directed his spiritual sense toward the spirit beast bag, he suddenly sensed something amiss.

He quickly picked up the bag to examine it.

Bailong, curious about Chu Ning's actions, asked, "Master, what's wrong?"

Without answering, Chu Ning channeled his spiritual power into the spirit beast bag.

The bag opened, but it was empty. There was no sign of the Cang Xuan Spirit Turtle.

"Senior Turtle... "

"He's gone," Chu Ning said, shaking his head slightly with a hint of regret as he lowered the now-empty spirit beast bag.

"I don't know when he left, and I didn't sense a thing. The cultivation of this Heavenly Spirit Turtle is truly unfathomable."

Chu Ning sighed softly, feeling a sense of loss.

Having the Cang Xuan Spirit Turtle with him had given Chu Ning a great deal of confidence. Even if he encountered life-threatening situations, he could rely on the turtle's assistance.

What he didn't expect was that the giant turtle had quietly disappeared while they were in the Boundless Sea.

However, after a brief moment of reflection, Chu Ning's mood stabilized.

After all, he was now a late Golden Core cultivator, and apart from his encounter with the late Nascent Soul cultivator in the Northern Cold, he had managed well on his own.

Without further ado, he set off with Bailong, flying swiftly toward the landmass in the distance.

As soon as they left the area of the Boundless Sea, Chu Ning and Bailong immediately sensed the presence of spiritual energy.

Although it was a bit sparse, it still brought a look of relief to Chu Ning's face.

After flying over the Boundless Sea for four months, all of the thousand-year spirit milk had been consumed.

And twenty drops of the ten-thousand-year spirit milk had been used up as well.

This was the case even with Bailong in her true form, hiding in Chu Ning's sleeve, requiring minimal spiritual power.

Despite having a substantial amount of spirit milk, Chu Ning still felt the pain of its depletion.

Now that there was spiritual energy in the environment, there was no need for such excessive consumption.

As Chu Ning scanned the surroundings, he released his spiritual sense to search for cultivators.

Since he was unfamiliar with this place, he needed to find a cultivator to gather information.

Chu Ning's spiritual sense was now strong enough to cover three hundred li, and with this sweep, he immediately found his targets.

Dong Rui Zong was a small sect in the northernmost part of the East Holy Continent, with only two Golden Core cultivators.

Because the northern region lacked abundant resources, although there were a few major forces, these forces covered a wide area, focusing more on the southern mountain ranges.

The large and small sects didn't have much influence on each other, and Dong Rui Zong managed to get by just fine.

At this moment, the two Golden Core cultivators of Dong Rui Zong were discussing something with other cultivators at the sect entrance.

The one standing in the center was a black-haired elder in his fifties, with a dignified demeanor, appearing to be the leader.

Next to him was an older-looking cultivator; although his hair was still black, his face was calm and his eyes carried a hint of life's vicissitudes.

He seemed to be quite aged.

At this moment, the two of them simultaneously paused, their faces filled with surprise and suspicion.

"Sect Master, Elder, what's wrong?"

The other cultivators, seeing their expressions, couldn't help but ask.

The two didn't pay attention to the others' questions. The black-haired elder in the lead spoke first.

"Brother Li, did you sense it too?"

The older cultivator named Li nodded slightly, his previously calm face now serious.

"A powerful spiritual sense, very unfamiliar, and it's actively probing this way without any concealment.

I wonder if it's an ill-intentioned visitor or a friendly gesture."

After Elder Li spoke, the black-haired elder immediately addressed the other cultivators.

"You all quickly return to the sect and instruct the disciples to be cautious. Always be ready to activate the sect's protective formation.

Brother Li and I will wait here to see who this cultivator is."

Elder Li nodded in agreement.

Hearing the conversation between the two elders, the other cultivators' faces changed slightly, but they dared not delay and quickly returned to the sect.

After a while, two flying figures appeared in the distance and landed in front of the mountain gate in the blink of an eye.

When the two elders saw the visitors' appearances, their faces changed slightly.

It was a young man and a young woman, both looking to be in their early twenties.

The female cultivator wore a yellow dress, and her aura indicated that she was at the early stage of the Golden Core.

The male cultivator, on the other hand, wore a white robe and was surprisingly at the late stage of the Golden Core.

And they were only at the mid-stage of the Golden Core themselves.

At that moment, the black-haired elder cupped his hands and politely said, "I am Yue Qing of the Dong Rui Sect, and this is our sect's Elder Li Liquan. It's nice to meet you, fellow cultivators. May I ask why you have come to our Dong Rui Sect?"

The visitors were Chu Ning and Bailong, and as the two Dong Rui Zong cultivators scrutinized them, they were doing the same.

Hearing the other party's greeting, Chu Ning cupped his hands and said, "So it's Fellow Cultivators Yue and Li. I am Chu Ning, and this is my companion, White Dragon."

We happened to pass by this place unintentionally and, as we are unfamiliar with the area, we saw you two and took the liberty to ask for some information.

We hope you don't mind."

Hearing Chu Ning's polite and harmless tone, Elder Yue and Elder Li both breathed a sigh of relief.

"What would you like to know, fellow cultivator?"

"If it's convenient, I would like to ask Fellow Cultivator Yue for a map." Chu Ning requested.

He knew that even though Dong Rui Zong was a small sect, they should still have relevant maps for their disciples to use.

Upon hearing Chu Ning's request, Elder Yue hesitated for a moment before readily agreeing.

"Please wait, I'll have someone bring it out."

As the visitors' origins were unknown, he naturally wouldn't let Chu Ning enter the sect.

Chu Ning didn't mind.

Soon, someone brought out a jade slip containing a map.

Chu Ning carefully examined it and found that the map wasn't very detailed, covering only the northern part of the East Holy Continent.

However, as he had previously known, the major sects like Jinwu Manor, Zhongbei Jing Palace, and Hun Gu Zong were marked.

Some smaller sects were also introduced in great detail.

But further south, not only was Qingxi Zong missing, but even Yaochi Palace, which Chu Ning wanted to learn about first, wasn't marked on the map.

After glancing through the jade slip, Chu Ning cupped his hands towards Elder Yue and said, "Thank you for the gift, Fellow Cultivator Yue. May I also ask how far it is from here to Yaochi Palace?"

Hearing Chu Ning's question, Elder Yue's face showed a hint of strangeness, and he asked uncertainly, "Do you mean the Yaochi Palace in the Lesser Medicine Mountain?"

Chu Ning nodded, seeing the other party's expression.

Elder Yue gave him a strange look before replying, "Fellow Cultivator, are you not aware that Yaochi Palace was destroyed a few years ago?"

Chu Ning's heart skipped a beat when he heard this.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end