Heaven and earth, vast and boundless.
Ye Xue produced a magical artifact shaped like a fishing rod. With a flick of the line, it flew into the great formation, vanishing into the shattered fragments of the void without a trace.
She held the rod, concentrating intently, the fluctuations of magical power rising and falling about her as if she were communicating with some unknown presence.
About a quarter of an hour passed.
Suddenly, the fishing line trembled and tightened! The rod bent as though something had been hooked.
Ye Xue’s face brightened with delight. With a graceful flick of her hand, a talisman shot out, tracing the line and disappearing in a stream of light.
Not long after, Ye Xue stepped back half a pace and drew her hand across the air. Before her, a gate of light appeared out of nowhere!
Within the portal, a field of blinding white radiance poured forth, releasing waves of bone-chilling cold that coated the surroundings in a layer of frost.
“It’s done!”
Ye Xue stowed away her fishing rod artifact and addressed the others, “Let’s go in!”
With that, she was the first to step through the gate of light.
...
On the sea, hundreds of thousands of miles from the solitary island.
Dark clouds gathered overhead, fierce winds and torrential rain battered the waves, and tidal surges raised towering crests of white foam. The spiritual energy of heaven and earth was in utter disorder.
A colossal tornado, stretching from sky to sea, swept up billions of pounds of water, spinning ceaselessly across the ocean.
Within the eye of this storm,
Over a hundred cultivators clad in white-gold armor stood steadily in the void.
At their head was a figure towering more than three yards high, his imposing, mountainous form standing tall and unyielding.
His white-gold armor radiated a gentle glow, like a blazing sun, brimming with boundless primordial energy.
Behind him, the hundred-odd warriors carried a sharp, murderous aura, as if an invincible army poised for the trumpet of war.
The golden-armored giant gazed at the shattering, dissolving void within the eye of the tornado, his eyes shooting twin beams of fire into the depths.
Moments later, he uttered in a low voice, “Brothers, follow me to slay the enemy!”
“Yes!” The hundred Dao Foundation cultivators responded in unison, their voices shaking the heavens; even the tornado outside seemed to waver.
“Kill!” With a sudden charge, the golden-armored giant erupted in dazzling white-gold light and plunged headlong into the fragments of the void.
...
After he entered, a golden corridor remained in the sky, shimmering and steady.
The hundred cultivators transformed into streams of light, orderly and swift, entering the passage and vanishing into the rift.
...
Somewhere beneath the sea.
Within an ancient, ruined underwater site.
Enormous statues of foreign races lay toppled and askew amid broken walls and scattered remnants.
A team of cultivators, their bodies aglow with spiritual light, appeared in the pitch-black depths of the ruins.
In the dim radiance, more than eighty cultivators formed a great formation, encircling a swirling, pitch-black sphere.
At its center, the void was shattered, crisscrossed with dark fissures that spread in terrifying waves.
In this eerie, lifeless abyss,
The eighty cultivators vanished without a sound.
...
The Eastern Sea.
Eight thousand miles west of the ancestral grounds of the Harmony Sect.
A massive blue whale swam leisurely across the boundless ocean.
Sunlight sparkled, the sea breeze gentle.
Within the whale's belly,
Thirty-eight female cultivators stood poised and elegant, watching as their leader—a stunning woman—opened a portal of space.
These women were a dazzling array of beauty: some seductive and alluring, others pure and innocent, some graceful and gentle, others lively and charming...
The myriad facets of feminine beauty were embodied in these cultivators to the fullest.
With fragrant scents lingering in the air, the group vanished within the whale.
...
A finely crafted small boat sailed through the billowing clouds.
At the bow, five cultivators of distinct temperament stood with hands clasped behind their backs, chatting as they admired the scenery.
“My Mystery Island divides Dao Foundation cultivators into four ranks: Heaven, Earth, Mysterious, and Yellow. For ten thousand years, these have been recognized by the cultivation world as the standard for measuring Dao Foundation prowess.”
“Yellow rank denotes ordinary Dao Foundation cultivators, commonly found in smaller sects or clans, or as outer elders in major sects.”
“Mysterious rank is mostly inner disciples of large sects, or direct heirs of Golden Core families.”
“Earth rank comprises true disciples of great sects! Their techniques are the highest primordial soul inheritances in this realm, their magical power far surpasses others, and they wield formidable spells... Their strength is terrifying.”
“Additionally, some Mysterious rank cultivators who possess magical treasures can also be classified as Earth rank.”
...
“Heaven rank masters must meet two criteria: true disciples of major sects and possession of magical treasures.”
“For this expedition to the Ancient Secret Realm, pay special attention to a few Heaven rank masters.”
The leader, a tall man in a green robe, spoke.
He resembled a learned strategist, wisdom shining in his eyes, as he commented,
“Shentu Hao of the True Sun Sect, Ye Xue of the Demon Talisman Sect, Pang Zeyao of the Heavenly Sea Sect, Yuan Ziyi of the Harmony Sect... These four are all prodigies, not to be challenged lightly.”
“Senior brother, compared to these four, how do you fare?” someone asked.
The green-robed man smiled, “Shentu Hao of the True Sun Sect possesses two supreme arts and a third-grade magical treasure; he should be the strongest in this Ancient Secret Realm.”
“Ye Xue of the Demon Talisman Sect comes next. She is said to have received the true inheritance of the Ice Demon Hall, trained in the Heaven Demon Seizing Dao secret art from the ‘Chaotic Shadow Demon Talisman Codex,’ and refined a Heaven Demon Golden Core...”
“Ye Xue is the hall master’s direct disciple and surely has a second-grade magical treasure. You must be cautious.”
“Besides these two, the others are not my match; you all may take this as a reference.”
Though his tone was light and casual, the green-robed man carried an innate air of dominance.
“However...” He changed direction, “Our purpose in entering the secret realm is to seek the ancient Buddhist treasure. We must avoid unnecessary complications.”
Another sighed, “Those four sects see Mystery Island as a thorn in their sides. If we run into them, there’s no hope for a peaceful resolution... I fear that even if we don’t provoke them, they’ll seek to destroy us first.”
The green-robed man spoke solemnly, “All four of you possess Earth rank strength. Unless you encounter a Heaven rank, you should be able to reach the rendezvous point. If absolutely necessary, use the talisman.”
As they spoke, the boat broke through the clouds, then vanished from sight.
...
Pang Yue stepped through the portal of light.
Before him stretched a boundless expanse of snow.
Beneath his feet, snow piled over a foot deep; from the sky, large, feather-like flakes drifted down, the heavens gray and somber.
There was not a trace of life; the forty-nine companions who entered with him had been scattered by a mysterious force to various locations.
The world’s spiritual energy was dense, infused with the essence of ice—a paradise for cultivators of the ice arts.
But for others, it was anything but pleasant.
Through the swirling snow, ice fields and snowy mountains unfurled like a painted scroll before his eyes.
A bridge of the underworld emerged beneath Pang Yue's feet; with a light step, he transformed into a phantom and soared toward the horizon, following the map Ye Xue had left, heading for the rendezvous point.