Zhi Xuan sat cross-legged, his back resting against the cold crystal surface. He closed his eyes, holding the Jade Bottle in his lap. Amidst the cosmic silence and destruction, he began to cultivate.
WHUUM!
The Heavenly Samsara Wheel, which was previously chaotic, now spun slowly. Zhi Xuan carefully drew Essence from the Taiyin Crystal. The pure Extre Yin Essence entered through the pores of his skin, like frozen water flowing through his ridians.
Unlike ordinary spiritual Essence, this Taiyin Essence was extrely thick and cold. It went directly to his fractured left arm, where the cracked bone felt like shards of glass. When the Taiyin Essence touched the wounded area, Zhi Xuan felt imnse pain—a mixture of frozen physical pain and burning spiritual pain.
"ARGH!" Zhi Xuan scread in his mind, but he restrained himself from moving.
"Hold on! This Taiyin Essence is purifying and rearranging his bone!" Ruo Xianxue hissed. "If you move, the bone will fuse crookedly!"
Zhi Xuan gritted his teeth, the hot tears that escaped his eyes imdiately freezing on his cheeks. He allowed the Taiyin Essence to do its work, forcing himself to stabilize and focus the cold energy onto the shattered bones.
CRACK! SZZZZ!
The sound of bone fusing echoed in Zhi Xuan's Sea of Consciousness. In a short ti, which felt like endless torture, the pain in his left arm subsided. The cold numbness was replaced by a sensation of spiritual essence flowing calmly.
Zhi Xuan opened his eyes. He moved his left arm. His wrist, elbow, and ulna moved perfectly. Not only had it recovered, but the bone now felt denser, infused with a subtle, cold Jade aura. The physical strength in his arm increased drastically.
"Not bad, at least you did not beco a disgusting, crippled vessel." Ruo Xianxue chuckled softly, her voice dripping with scorn. "This crystal cannot be carried, absorb it wisely."
Zhi Xuan nodded faintly, his touch on the giant Extre Yin crystal was respectful, not greedy. The crystal, the essence of the legendary Taiyin Sacred Pool, radiated a calming yet threatening cold aura. If absorbed too quickly, the energy would freeze his organs and ridians.
'I must not be greedy,' Zhi Xuan muttered in his heart. 'This is enough to reach the Divine Wheel sanctum stage.'
The Divine Wheel, the Divine Wheel spinning between his ribs, was the foundation of his life. After breaking free from the limitations of the Human Wheel, which only supported a lifespan of 80 years, one year ago, he had stepped onto the path of cultivation, a path that would lead him past the boundaries of Long-Life Mortals. At this Divine Wheel level, every breakthrough to the next stage was crucial.
He closed his eyes, focusing his will. His Heavenly Samsara Wheel spun, radiating a harmonious resonance. Carefully, he drew a strand of Taiyin Essence from the crystal.
ZZZZZZZZ...
The Essence entered, not as a wave, but as an extrely cold jade liquid. This Extre Yin energy was much purer, more concentrated, and more spiritual than the ordinary spiritual Essence he usually absorbed. Upon entering his ridians, the Taiyin Essence cleansed and strengthened, but also brought intense cold.
Zhi Xuan felt as if his entire body was lted and recast with ice. However, he did not resist. Instead, he used the Ancient Devil Monunt's energy to balance the extre cold. The Devil Monunt, which was an essence that transcended Yin and Yang, imdiately overpowered the Taiyin Essence, forcing it to submit to Zhi Xuan's Heavenly Samsara Wheel system.
WHUUM!
Zhi Xuan's Heavenly Samsara Wheel spun faster, radiating a sudden cold aura. The essence gathered within the Wheel—which was previously just ordinary pure Essence—now beca denser, purer, and infused with a transparent layer of Ice Jade. The quality of his Essence increased at least twofold.
Zhi Xuan felt a familiar boundary in his Sea of Consciousness. It was the seal that limited his potential at the Divine Wheel zenith stage.
"Co on, boy! Use this pure Extre Yin energy! Push!" Ruo Xianxue roared, her voice filled with excitent. "This Taiyin Essence is the best food for your Divine Wheel!"
Zhi Xuan took a deep breath, ignoring the spiritual pain in his chest. He flooded his Heavenly Samsara Wheel with a faster torrent of Taiyin Essence, forcing it to spin faster.
CRACK!
A faint cracking sound was heard. The boundary broke, and a wave of Extre Yin energy emanating from the Taiyin Crystal bombarded his body. His Divine Wheel spun madly, absorbing the flood of pure energy.
Instantly, Zhi Xuan's aura erupted. The cold essence surrounding him faded, replaced by a calm and dense aura that radiated tranquility like a soaring pillar of ice.
He had succeeded. Divine Wheel Sanctum.
Zhi Xuan opened his eyes. His blue pupils now emitted a subtle Jade light. Although he had only just reached the final level of the Divine Wheel, his foundation felt incredibly solid, as if he could imdiately start searching for the Fla of Sunrose Flower to step into the First Ember Realm.
"In just one hour of cultivation..." Zhi Xuan muttered, surprised by the speed of his breakthrough. "This Taiyin Essence is truly terrifying!"
"That is the wonder of primal energy, you fool," Ruo Xianxue hissed. "Your Divine Wheel now radiates an Extre Yin aura. Your strength is now at least equivalent to a Divine Wheel Sanctum cultivator who has cultivated for fifty years."
Zhi Xuan rose from his position, his left sapphire blue pupil still blind. But he did not care; Zhi Xuan tried to run toward the remnants of the silver moon trees far ahead. His steps were initially hesitant, but he quickly felt his Divine Wheel begin to spin rapidly and his resistance seed to vanish.
He was no longer out of breath. His movents were no longer awkward. Every step he took was now aligned with the Extre Yin Essence in the air, making him glide over the scorched ground with a speed he had never expected before.
'I... I am so strong now!' Zhi Xuan thought, excitent flooding his Sea of Consciousness.
"Stop!" Ruo Xianxue hissed with a sharp tone that cut through his excitent. "The Taiyin Pool Essence is a gift. Do not waste it by running around like a puppy just released from its cage."
Zhi Xuan imdiately stopped, taking a deep breath. "What else should I do, Ruo? This crystal is too big to carry..."
"Indeed. That crystal is the essence of the Taiyin sacred pool; it will be reabsorbed by nature over ti," Ruo Xianxue replied. "Pay attention to that Jade Bottle. You made a promise to the Celestial Insect, and that promise, strangely, is one you must keep."
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Zhi Xuan looked down, picking up the small Jade Bottle from the ground. Its surface was still ice-cold. The pitch-black liquid inside gently rippled, as if a living creature was hiding.
"This liquid is its reincarnation seed," Zhi Xuan muttered. "The Moth wants to take it to the 'Folded Silver Moon'."
"Yes. The Moth wants to reincarnate in a suitable place," Ruo Xianxue said, her tone serious. "As a celestial creature, it cannot fully die. The Taiyin liquid it gave you is the final essence of its soul. If you do not plant it in the right place, it will die forever, and you will incur Karma."
"Karma?" Zhi Xuan shivered. The word was one of the things most feared by cultivators.
"Exactly. Karma for breaking a promise with a celestial creature. Try opening the bottle," Ruo Xianxue commanded.
Zhi Xuan took a deep breath, carefully lifting the Jade seal from the Bottle. As soon as the seal was removed, the air around them changed. A very pure aroma, a mixture of frozen dew and ancient flowers blooming at night, wafted out.
The pitch-black liquid inside emitted a dark Jade light. It was the Thousand Feathered Moth's Reincarnation Essence.
"Now, absorb a little bit through your spiritual senses. Do not try to drink it! It is too strong and will freeze your Sea of Consciousness," Ruo Xianxue urged. "We must find out where the 'Folded Silver Moon' is located."
Zhi Xuan nodded. He focused his Heavenly Samsara Wheel, forming a thin spiritual essence thread from his index finger, and carefully touched the black liquid.
WHUUM!
It was not coldness that ca, but an overwhelming burst of information. Zhi Xuan's Sea of Consciousness was flooded with images coming from the Moth's perspective. He saw a sky filled with billions of stars, he saw countless Formations. He saw the silver moonlight split and then fold itself, creating a vast dinsional rift.
Amidst the chaos of information, a spiritual map was engraved into Zhi Xuan's Sea of Consciousness. The map was very ancient, displaying formations of mountains and rivers with nas he did not recognize in the mortal continent, but in the center, a luminous spot, marked with the Moth's spiral rune, blinked.
"Haoyue Sacred Mountains," Ruo Xianxue repeated, her voice calm, but with a clear tone of discovery. "It is rely the remnants of the Celestial Rain Realm."
Zhi Xuan frowned, staring at the jade bottle which was now closed again. "Celestial Rain Realm?"
"Yes, a distant celestial realm in the upper world. You will not be able to find it now." Ruo Xianxue whispered softly, her voice pragmatic. "I have a way to make it reincarnate on this mortal plane later, without waiting for you to go to the upper realm."
Zhi Xuan nodded slowly, understanding that there was a realm that was the proper place for the ancient insect creature to be. But now, he could not be fixated on that. Zhi Xuan put the jade bottle inside his robe, keeping it safe.
"So, what do we do now? I did not find the five-elent scroll or even the Fla of Sunrose Flower." Zhi Xuan walked calmly, his heart-protecting jade still tying his hair. "I still need to find information about that poison sect in Shoutuo City."
Zhi Xuan sighed softly. "And where are we now? This is not like a pocket world, not death cliff or shadow cliff. Where are we, red stone?"
Ruo Xianxue was silent for a mont, the spiritual threads of the Ancient Devil Monunt scanning in all directions. Now that the natural Taiyin Formation had been destroyed by the Saint's intervention, the formation shackles were wide open and there were no barriers.
"You are not far; this death cliff apparently housed the Taiyin sacred pool here," Ruo Xianxue said. "Keep walking; the dawn light will soon appear and can guide you to find the way out."
Zhi Xuan nodded, glancing at the amazing starry sky above his head—the result of the collapsed Formation. The air around him was still filled with residual energy from the Saint's battle of wills, but now, the freezing coldness had been replaced by peaceful Yin Essence.
He walked quickly, following Ruo Xianxue's instinct. After crossing the area completely scorched by the Pure Void—where the trees vanished without a trace—Zhi Xuan saw the edge of the mist in the distance. The mist was thick and white, exactly like the one that covered the Silver Moon Forest before.
"Head there, boy. Beyond that mist is the exit," Ruo Xianxue commanded. "We must leave imdiately. The destruction of this Taiyin Sacred Pool will not go unnoticed. Great powers in this mortal world may not know what happened, but they will certainly feel this sudden change in spiritual energy."
"You an, the mortal sects?" Zhi Xuan asked, his excitent subdued, replaced by vigilance.
"Yes. They will send people to investigate. We do not want to be found in this state," Ruo Xianxue replied.
Zhi Xuan increased his speed. Using his Divine Wheel Sanctum energy, he glided, his body like a phantom amidst the remnants of destruction. In a mont, he reached the edge of the mist.
As he stepped through the mist, the sensation of the surrounding environnt changed drastically. The scent of moss and ancient dew disappeared, replaced by the sll of dry earth and ordinary rocks. The air temperature jumped, and the pure spiritual pressure of Extre Yin subsided.
Zhi Xuan stopped. Before him lay a steep valley covered with red and dry rocks. In the distance, he could see a familiar-looking cliff, the Death Cliff.
"The Death Cliff..." Zhi Xuan muttered. "Were we circling inside this pocket world?"
"No. That spatial rift indeed threw you out of the spiritual boundary of the Death Cliff into a world protected by the Taiyin Formation. Now you are back at the outer edge," Ruo Xianxue explained. "This is the Death Cliff, but from a different side, the side facing outward."
Above the horizon, the first golden lines of dawn began to appear, coloring the sky with a calm orange-red hue.
"That is the way out," Zhi Xuan said, pointing to a narrow path between two large rock formations.
"Correct. Now, run and leave this damned place."
Zhi Xuan took a deep breath, feeling the new strength flowing in his ridians. He looked back one last ti, gazing at where the giant Taiyin Crystal faintly shone under the starlight.
'Thank you, Celestial Insect. I will keep my promise,' Zhi Xuan promised internally.
He turned, and with a strong push of his feet, slid down the rocky valley, heading toward the narrow path. Behind him, the open starry sky was slowly being covered by normal clouds as dawn arrived, hiding the cosmic silence and destruction that had just occurred.
His steps now felt light and precise, unlike before when he descended the valley cautiously. The scent of morning dew made the atmosphere cool, his hair fluttering gently. The chirping of small birds adorning the valley felt like a new beginning to his life.
"This is so fun!" Zhi Xuan shouted excitedly as he descended the valley quickly but without falling like before. "Red stone! Look at this!"
"Indeed. Your monkey speed has increased slightly," Ruo Xianxue scoffed. "Do not scream, idiot! You will attract the attention of birds of prey who think you are noisy prey!"
Zhi Xuan jumped from one rock formation to the next, testing his new agility. "I am not afraid of birds of prey! I am Zhi Xuan, a Divine Wheel Sanctum cultivator! And look at my feet, I am not falling!"
"Pfftt. You are just lucky to have a strong Taiyin foundation now," Ruo Xianxue hissed. "But you must rember, you are walking with one blind eye, like your grandfather's one-eyed goat. If you et other cultivators, you will look like an idiot who is newly drunk on spiritual energy."
Zhi Xuan stopped his jump. He touched his left eye which still could not see, only feeling a piercing coldness.
"Do not call a one-eyed goat!" Zhi Xuan protested, pouting. "Grandpa Wu had a very wise goat! I am just temporarily in 'Extre Yin mode'. I will return to normal after digesting all the residual Taiyin energy!"
"Extre Yin mode? That sounds stupid," Ruo Xianxue retorted flatly. "You are just a one-eyed Zhi Xuan with a ragged robe and a cold aura. Stop complaining and focus. There, on that narrow path, you will find the way back to the Shadow Cliff."
Zhi Xuan, although annoyed, obeyed. He knew they had to leave imdiately. The security offered by the Death Cliff was just an illusion. After passing through the narrow path, the scenery changed again. There were no more red rocks, but a familiar dense forest.
"Look! The broken bamboo gate!" Zhi Xuan exclaid, pointing ahead. Between the trees, a broken bamboo gate appeared, which was now crowded with Divine Wheel and First Ember level cultivators.
"We are back, Red Stone," Zhi Xuan whispered, his tone filled with a mixture of relief and new ambition. He had lost sothing like the search for the five-elent scroll, but he had gained sothing much greater.
"Yes, back to continue your foolish life," Ruo Xianxue mocked. "Guard that Moth bottle well. Now, you must continue your search for the poison sect, but with one new problem. You must find the right place for that Moth to reincarnate. Do not underestimate karma, monkey."
Zhi Xuan smiled broadly, ignoring the mockery. "I am Zhi Xuan, and I never forget a promise. Now, where are we heading? Shoutuo City?"
"Of course. But before that, let us find so clean water. Honestly, after the Saint's intervention, the dirty aura on your body feels very uncomfortable for the Devil Monunt," Ruo Xianxue hissed with a tone of pure disgust. "You sll of moss and Void dust."
Zhi Xuan laughed, his fatigue completely gone. Although one-eyed, although there was a promise of reincarnation on his shoulders, and although there was a poison sect he had to find, he now felt ready.
"Alright! Finding clean water! Then we go to Shoutuo City, Red Stone!"
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