Chapter 292: Acquaintance Among the Young Generation

Meanwhile, on another side.

Songyun Dynasty, Jingcheng.

A hazy rain curtain enveloped the entire capital, and the ruined imperial palace added a further air of desolation to the city.

Inside a secluded, somewhat dilapidated little courtyard.

Water seeped through the roof, continuously dripping down to form a small puddle.

A cold wind blew in through the broken window, chilling the heart to the bone.

On a bed of straw, Xiao Fan stripped off his blood-stained, tattered clothing.

On his chest, a grotesque wound stretched from his right shoulder to his left lower abdomen, flesh torn and horrifying.

A purple aura swirled around it, shifting unpredictably, blocking the wound's healing.

He took out two jade vials from his storage ring, opened one, and poured its contents directly onto the wound.

White powder scattered, and the instant it touched the wound!

Hss~!

A puff of white smoke rose; intense pain surged from the wound, and the purple aura diminished slightly.

Unsatisfied with this effect, Xiao Fan frowned, but still took some gauze to bandage the wound and changed into a clean set of clothes.

After finishing this, he opened the other jade vial and swallowed a translucent pale green pill.

Then he sat upright on the bed and closed his eyes to meditate.

These injuries were related to what had happened before.

After killing the old Emperor, he immediately engaged in a fierce battle with Zi Yan, who claimed to be the Lower Realm Guide of Zi Qing Guan.

But he had not yet reached the Creation Foundation Establishment stage, and Zi Qing Guan was one of the Three Heavenly Realms' largest sects.

Facing Zi Yan, who was at Mid-Golden Core, with his own Foundation Establishment peak realm, he ultimately succeeded in killing him—but suffered severe injuries himself.

Worse, he was entangled by the purple aura Zi Yan had unleashed, his combat power drastically reduced, and he was hunted for a long time by the remaining Zi Qing Guan disciples in Jingcheng.

Fortunately, thanks to his master's various trials, he had extensive experience handling such situations, and he had managed to survive…

Soon, the rain outside grew even more intense.

Strong winds swept raindrops through the window; Xiao Fan remained motionless.

Only when his fluctuating aura stabilized somewhat did he slowly open his eyes.

Huh~

He exhaled slowly, stepped down from the bed, and gazed through the window's gap at the rain outside.

Zi Qing Guan had been destroyed.

But the Zi Qing Guan disciples in this city seemed unaware.

If he continued to delay like this, his injuries would not heal anytime soon.

Yet this aura was another problem—it clung to him and prevented him from moving far…

As he thought this, Xiao Fan's gaze suddenly sharpened, and the black longsword appeared in his hand.

Someone's coming!

And they're strong!

"Xiao Fan brother, are you inside?" A rough voice pierced the rain, crystal clear.

Xiao Fan paused, but did not speak.

Instead, he concealed his aura warily, then crept quietly to the door and peered through the crack.

With his injuries, he couldn't even extend his spiritual sense.

Though his spiritual sense was blocked, his Foundation Establishment-level eyesight remained unaffected.

Under the dim sky, through the hazy rain, two figures stood by the courtyard gate, holding umbrellas.

One was handsome, with soft features, dressed in black fitted attire, a jade plaque hanging at his waist inscribed with two characters—Shenji.

The other, though not as handsome as the man beside him, carried a calm and steady aura, dressed in blue fitted attire, a jade plaque at his waist engraved with a single character: "Jian."

They were cultivators from Shenji Lianbao Pavilion and Jian Zong.

Creak~

Xiao Fan opened the door.

Even in his current wounded state, let alone at full strength, he was no match for both of them; better to be open and honest.

"What do you want?"

Between them, across the rain, the man with the gentle, androgynous features smiled.

Then, a voice utterly incongruous with his appearance rang out.

"Mo Cheng of Shenji Lianbao Pavilion, greetings, Xiao Fan brother."

"Lin Qiuxian of Jian Zong—we participated in the same trial at Xuanjian City," Lin Qiuxian said directly.

After returning to his sect, he had checked the records of that trial and remembered all participants.

Participated in the Xuanjian City trial?

Xiao Fan hesitated.

"Come in."

"Let's go, Lin brother!"

With that, Mo Cheng stepped directly into the courtyard, umbrella held high; Lin Qiuxian followed close behind.

The rain poured heavily, yet neither man was dampened a single drop; in a few strides, they entered the room.

Mo Cheng put away his umbrella and glanced around.

"This place is way too dilapidated—I'll fix it up." Mo Cheng was remarkably at ease.

He raised his hand and tossed out a silver-white capsule.

Puff~

The capsule opened midair, and from it emerged a transparent gelatinous mass.

"Expand!"

Mo Cheng pointed with two fingers, and a golden rune fell into it.

Huhu~

The transparent gelatinous mass swelled outward, like a balloon inflating, spreading in all directions.

Xiao Fan stood motionless until the thin film passed through his body and adhered to every corner of the room.

"Stabilize!"

Another golden rune descended, hardening the gelatinous film into a milky white.

The cold winds and drizzling rain were now kept outside.

Mo Cheng tapped on it with his hand, producing a tapping sound like striking a plastic panel.

"How's that? Convenient, right?"

Convenient? "My Xiang Jianzong's Transmission Hall records over two hundred techniques of 'gathering earth into dwellings, controlling wood to build shelters.' Several of them, when mastered to the highest level, can turn stars into palaces with a single finger." Lin Qiuxian said coolly.

"..."

Damn it!

Like we at Divine Mechanism Alchemy Pavilion haven't recorded such techniques!

Do you think I don't know that?

Precisely because there are so many such techniques that my 【Portable Capsule Shelter】 became a dead product!

"Indeed convenient. This item consumes minimal resources and should prove highly useful in critical moments." Xiao Fan nodded slightly.

Mo Cheng's eyes lit up!

He turned and gave a thumbs-up: "Xiao Fan, brother, you've got great taste! Want to buy some as backup?"

Xiao Fan glanced at him.

"No need."

Mo Cheng: "..."

Tai Xuan Tian.

Within that Ascension Sacred Ground.

!. Read

Xu Xing's sword-intention spiritual form still sat seated in the void, before him a semi-transparent pale blue screen.

Compared to the cultivators' screens, his was far more complex.

It flickered with countless data points, dizzying to behold.

Yes, this world's chat channel was his creation.

But it was not due to Jiu Yu's prayers—it was an existing mechanism, designed to give cultivators a channel for constant communication.

Judging by current results, it worked exceptionally well.

Many cultivators who had previously known each other successfully reconnected through this channel.

Or rather, they successfully found each other.

Of course, some cultivators who had never met before also became acquainted during this trial.

Like Zhang Yunlu, Lin Xuanxuan, and Nangong Ruo.

And Xiao Fan, Mo Cheng, and Lin Qiuxian.

They were all among the most outstanding of the younger generation.

Perhaps after a thousand or hundred thousand years, they too would become leaders of their respective factions, like today's sect masters.

Forming a small circle like mine and my fellow Dao companions.

emm...

But judging by how things look, Xiao Fan, as Huo's disciple, won't end up like the current Huo—'not in the group chat'—by then.

"Heh." Xu Xing idly scrolled through a few entries. "That kid really is incredibly unlucky."

He was referring, of course, to Yang Lin, the "sacrifice."

The Grand Void Sect's Nascent Soul Completion cultivator who had participated in his trial in Xuan Jian City.

Last time he entered the trial, his spawn point was set at the valley floor, and he was dragged to death by a swarm of Tong Xuan Grass Monsters.

This time, it was worse.

Master Xiao Yu and the Demon Sovereign clashed fiercely, terrifying countless demonic creatures and phantom spirits into fleeing.

Unluckily, one of those spirits—a type capable of piercing illusions and revealing truth—had latched onto him, and it was Spirit Transformation Stage.

He couldn't fight it, and he couldn't escape it.

Even if he wanted to call for help, the place he fled to was extremely remote.

In the end, after exhausting every technique and severely wounding the spirit, he himself perished.

The trial failed; he was teleported back to the Xuan Realm.

"So you see, the path of survival also requires a bit of luck."

Xu Xing smiled, then lifted his gaze toward the valley entrance.

The valley entrance was now empty.

Since that day when he captured the dragon and executed it, Chen Yan, the old Taoist, the sword cultivator, and the big Monk all retested their cultivation progress.

Chen Yan has made progress.

The old Taoist contributed the most, so he received sixty percent of the merit.

The other two have also improved.

The sword cultivator received thirty percent of the merit; the big monk barely earned one percent.

"Now, we'll see how far you can go…"

Unlike the struggle against the myriad races of the Fu Liu Realm, the Three Heaven Realms, though home to other races, are still dominated by humanity.

Humanity's overall strength even exceeds the combined power of all other races.

Now that they've uncovered the method to increase merit and cultivation, how could they possibly sit idle?

There are many wolves and little meat—once it's gone, it's truly gone!

But the process… may not go smoothly, given the variable of the cultivators in training.

Some among them have already learned of the "Ascension."

Aside from the cultivators in training from the Tai Shang Dao Sect and the He Huan Sect, all others with sufficient cultivation will surely come to join the commotion.

From now on, each of the Three Heaven Realms will have its own agenda—there will be much commotion for a long while.

Of course, the one who ultimately ascends…

Will be Chen Yan alone!

Xu Xing had already planned this.

Not to mention that killing other races or those steeped in grave sins has its limits, and since the Ascension Plan is still in its early stage, Xu Xing will enforce strict screening.

If one's mind is not strong enough, and upon ascending is immediately brainwashed by Gu, then turns straight to the Cang Race, that would be ridiculous.

Let's take the Monk and the sword cultivator alone.

If their minds were subjected to the same temptation as Li Ming, they might joyfully fall to their knees, believing they had seen the Dao of Heaven and Earth and bowed in worship.

"But once the Ascension becomes mature, there's no need to fixate solely on worlds of the Return-to-Emptiness level."

Xu Xing mused.

At that time, subordinate Ascension Halls could be established in suitable Return-to-Emptiness-level worlds.

From low to high, ultimately reaching the Tai Xuan Realm.

Of course, one may also choose to be directly guided to the Tai Xuan Realm.

Adapt to local conditions. (End of Chapter)