Chapter 108: World of Immortals
Li Yan and Li Wuyi raised their heads at the sa ti. After scanning the crowd quickly, both of them showed a look of relief. Among the returnees were the three from Little Bamboo Peak, Li Changting, and Zhao Min.
However, the fifteen people who returned were in poor condition. Three cultivators collapsed unconscious as soon as they reached the elders.
The elders imdiately began treating the wounded and took the opportunity to ask about what had happened inside.
Wang Tian’s face was pale. On the penultimate day, he was besieged by two top experts from the Grand Profound Sect. He only managed to escape after seriously injuring one of them by performing a secret technique that greatly depleted his spiritual essence. He had overdrawn his vitality so severely that he would likely need at least half a year to recover. Still, the heavenly materials and earthly treasures he acquired were quite abundant, which eased his grim expression a little.
Gan Shi and Bai Liyuan were in decent shape and still seed to have so strength left. The Chu brothers had never separated from beginning to end and, relying on the powerful joint formation, ca out unscathed. However, they looked visibly exhausted, clearly drained and likely unable to fight again any ti soon.
Li Wuyi and Li Yan were concerned about their own peak mbers. Wei Chituo and Gong Chenying were mostly unhard, though they were stained with flecks of blood, whether it was theirs or others’ was unclear.
Yun Chunque had suffered serious internal injuries. Reportedly, he had encountered a late-stage second rank demonic beast, one that was venomous by nature and immune to many toxins. As a result, half of Yun Chunque's combat power was neutralized. Though he managed to escape, his internal organs were gravely damaged.
Li Changting and Zhao Min had remained together after entering the secret realm and worked well as a team. Li Changting’s vast swarm of gu insects attacked from afar, while Zhao Min excelled at close combat. Their seamless coordination allowed them to escape even when ambushed by four mad swordsn from the Ten-Step Court.
However, both were now pale and obviously depleted. Controlling gu insects was extrely ntally taxing, especially for soone like Li Changting who commanded them on a wide scale. Zhao Min’s high-powered close-range combat style also took a toll. The rosy glow that usually graced their faces had vanished.
Another unexpected returnee was Wei Feng from Four Symbols Peak. She had held out until the end with only mid-Foundation Establishnt cultivation. Her Illusion Poison Formation was intricate and constantly shifting, those who fell into it couldn’t find their way out.
She had joined forces with two fellow disciples, and the trio made it to the end together. However, their cultivation was not particularly strong. They relied on their formation to barely scrape through. All three were injured and imdiately began recovering upon exiting.
Those who made it out in the end had all reaped rich rewards. After handing in their tasks to the elders, they were soon surrounded by the remaining Foundation Establishnt cultivators from their respective peaks, likely sharing intel about the secret realm.
Li Changting and Zhao Min were similarly surrounded by three Foundation Establishnt disciples from their own peak. Even so, the two still noticed Li Wuyi and Li Yan’s distant gazes and nodded slightly in acknowledgnt. It wasn’t appropriate to go over and greet them at that mont.
Li Wuyi then called Wei Chituo, Gong Chenying, and Li Yan over to a quiet corner to ask what had happened, leaving Yun Chunque to ditate and heal after taking so pills.
That night, Elder Peng announced that the Wheel of Life and Death battle would begin at mao hour(5 to 7am) the next morning. Leading the team from the Wraith Sect would be Bai Liyuan, Gan Shi, and Gong Chenying. This announcent puzzled many of the Qi Condensation disciples, including Li Yan.
No one doubted Bai Liyuan’s selection, but Gan Shi and Gong Chenying’s cultivation levels seed a bit lacking. Among the remaining combat-capable Pseudo Core cultivators, Wei Chituo and a disciple from Boundless Peak nad Xie Zhengtin were still in good condition.
Neither of them seed as drained as Li Changting or Wang Tian. In comparison, Gan Shi and Gong Chenying were at late and mid Foundation Establishnt, respectively. Not exactly the strongest among those still standing.
Later, Li Wuyi privately explained to Li Yan that Bai Liyuan was currently the most skilled in poison arts, with the most comprehensive techniques and the highest cultivation.
As for Gan Shi and Gong Chenying, they were the top two in formation techniques among all Foundation Establishnt cultivators. This round's purpose was to slow the approach of the looming black shadow. If they could assist in combat as well, all the better.
Aside from Bai Liyuan, only the formation masters from Four Symbols Peak were suitable for such a task. Originally, the plan was to choose between Gan Shi and one of the Chu brothers, but the Chu brothers and Wei Feng were still in poor condition. If they were to enter, the effort might not be worth the outco. So, Gong Chenying was chosen instead, as his formation skills were equally superb.
As for why soone like Li Wuyi wasn’t selected, it had already been agreed beforehand that only Foundation Establishnt cultivators who participated in the harvesting would be chosen for the Wheel of Life and Death. What the other three sects were planning remained unknown.
And so, the decision was finalized. The three team leaders Bai Liyuan, Gan Shi, and Gong Chenying gathered for a hushed discussion. Not long after, each finalized their team. As expected, Gong Chenying selected Li Yan, in line with Li Wuyi’s wishes.
Though Bai Liyuan and Gan Shi were stronger in cultivation, no one would look after other peak’s disciples like one of their own.
Li Yan maintained an indifferent attitude, survival inside the Wheel wouldn’t rely on others’ protection. Everything would still depend on his own caution and effort. Still, on the surface, he acted with respectful politeness and didn’t decline the arrangent, out of respect for his senior brother and sister.
The night passed without incident. At dawn the next day, the sects boarded massive flying beasts and magical flying artifacts, heading toward a certain part of the secret realm.
The demonic beasts were even more majestic, each flying beast carried one or more others of their kind. Amidst deafening roars, they took to the skies.
“Sixth and Eighth Brother,” Li Wuyi said quietly to Gong Chenying and Li Yan atop Elder Peng’s giant flying beast, “when we get to the Wheel of Life and Death, observe who the team leaders from the other sects and the beast clans are. We couldn’t confirm their identities during the gathering, but once we get there, we’ll have a chance to investigate further before the battle begins.”
Neither Gong Chenying nor Li Yan objected. Everyone wanted to fight a battle they were prepared for. Other Foundation Establishnt cultivators from the three peaks were also briefing their own Qi Condensation juniors.
An hour later, the great procession soared across the sky.
What t their eyes was a land of lush mountains and clear waters. Below them stretched a vast, tranquil lake. It was so expansive that one couldn’t even see the shores on the other three sides.
The lake surface was smooth as a mirror, and so clear one could see dozens of feet down. Aquatic creatures swam between long strands of underwater grass.
Every dozen li or so, a slender peak rose straight from beneath the water into the sky, each coated in vibrant green moss at the base. The entire mountain seed to be infused with moisture and vitality.
Above the middle of these peaks, green cypress and willows flourished, vibrant with life. Wisps of mist drifted through the forest. The peaks’ summits poked through the clouds, and occasionally flying beasts soared between them, letting out piercing cries, truly a scene from a world of immortals.
Upon arrival, the four sects and the beast cultivators circled once overhead before landing on the mountaintops.
The peak that the Wraith Sect landed on was covered in jagged rocks. The pointed stones jutted unevenly, but there was enough space to accommodate several hundred people.
Li Yan gazed at the rolling clouds beneath his feet, as if a boundless abyss lay hidden below. He couldn’t see what lay underneath. The drifting white clouds gave him the illusion of standing atop the world.
Looking around, he saw that the other sects and beast cultivators had all landed atop different peaks. Aside from the clouds and the pointed mountain tops, there was nothing else in sight, the view was expansive and breathtaking.
The mountains ford a ring around a peculiar floating sphere in the center. It had no base or connection to the land, just a lone, spherical mountain suspended in midair, roughly a hundred zhang in diater.
It was referred to as a mountain because it was made of stone and overgrown with vegetation.
Naturally, Li Yan wasn’t the only one who noticed. Many others were now pointing at the spherical mountain and whispering among themselves.
"Could that floating ball be the Wheel of Life and Death? But it’s only a hundred zhang across, wouldn’t one leap carry you to the other side? Could it be a spatial-type magical treasure?”
“If that’s where the Wheel of Life and Death opens, then this must be a spatial magical treasure. That would an whoever created it in the past had mastered high-level space techniques. What a magnificent feat. Even the smallest spatial treasures are priceless, let alone one this large. Out in the world, it would've already been taken by so powerful cultivator.”
“Heh, not necessarily a spatial treasure. This could just be an entrance to a teleportation array. The real Wheel might be hidden sowhere else entirely. That possibility makes more sense to !”
“……”
As expected of cultivators, everyone had heard so description of the Wheel of Life and Death beforehand. Now that they had arrived and seen the floating sphere surrounded by the peaks, the speculations began.
(Chapter End)
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