Chapter 576: The Heir of the Realm Sovereign

"What are you… all doing?"

Yuan looked at the huge crowd of Nascent Soul cultivators around him, caught between laughter and tears.

"Teacher Yuan, we want to see immortal arts!"

Clear Wind University's principal, Master Dinghai Master Dinghai Zhenjun, seized the chance and answered first.

The scene was strikingly similar to elementary schoolchildren answering how much one plus one equals.

The surrounding Nascent Soul cultivators were a beat slow, their faces full of regret.

In fact, that was exactly what it was.

This batch of Nascent Soul cultivators led by Master Dinghai Master Dinghai Zhenjun had basically all been taught and raised by Yuan and the others; in front of them, many Nascent Soul cultivators still maintained a 'juvenile state,' like cubs that never strayed far from their mother. A thousand years of experience could not change the feelings of their youth.

"Immortal arts?"

Yuan said, puzzled: "Didn't it say above? Only Soul Transformation cultivators can comprehend them. Your realm is a bit lacking — you'll be contaminated by the immortal arts."

"This is still a secondary derivative of immortal arts. If it were true immortal arts, old fellows like us couldn't withstand it either. It's very dangerous."

The surrounding Nascent Soul cultivators exchanged glances, and soon someone fetched a jade slip from Immortal Gate Academy of Sciences' dean, Zhenjun Shuling Master Dinghai Zhenjun, and stepped forward to hand it over.

"Teacher Yuan,"

Master Dinghai Master Dinghai Zhenjun explained: "After more than a year of round-the-clock research, experimentation, and conjecture by tens of thousands of us, we've designed a plan. As long as a Soul Transformation cultivator brings us along, plus treasures made from Po Fa Xian Jin, at most three people can be brought in, and it can still be done safely."

"Teacher Master Canghai Canghai Tianjun said there's a good chance — it's not just wishful thinking."

He added quickly.

"That fast?"

Yuan was shocked, somewhat doubtful: "Don't go messing around. Immortal arts really are dangerous."

It had only been a year — not even enough time for a Nascent Soul cultivator to complete one Zhou Tian — yet this bunch of little monkeys had actually come up with something. It seemed a bit unlikely.

"Absolutely true!"

"Please believe us!"

Master Dinghai Master Dinghai Zhenjun and a group of Nascent Soul cultivators pointed at the sky and swore oaths.

"Master Canghai Canghai Tianjun really did endorse us. Don't not believe it — we're not just bragging."

"Let me see…"

Yuan took their jade slip and read it carefully.

Master Dinghai Master Dinghai Zhenjun and the others didn't even dare breathe loudly, hearts uneasy, stealing glances at his expression from time to time. Clearly, their confidence wasn't as great as they made it sound.

But this was immortal arts!

Immortal arts!

Immortal!

What do cultivators seek the Dao for, braving life and death, paying countless costs?

What do they long for day and night?

Attaining the Dao and becoming an immortal, eternal life and undying.

Now, such a vast and magnificent goal had fallen right before them. If they didn't get a real look, they'd truly die without peace.

Qi deviation be damned.

They weren't afraid at all.

"The two hundred and thirty-seventh array node is a bit sloppy."

"This is your handiwork, Master Dinghai, isn't it?"

Yuan looked at one spot and said casually: "You're just as impatient as when you were in school, Mao Mao."

Master Dinghai Master Dinghai Zhenjun gave an awkward smile.

"The nine hundred and seventieth array node — Danxia, you again, can't tell left from right in the Qiankun array. How many years has this old habit persisted…"

"The one thousand and eighty-seventh spell structure — Tongguang, you…"

Yuan pointed at the protective shielding array in the jade slip and commented casually. He didn't need to ask — at a glance he could tell who had done what, and he gave his assessment one by one.

With each sentence, one or several of the surrounding Nascent Soul cultivators would lower their heads, or guiltily look elsewhere.

Sentence after sentence, a great crowd of proud, self-assured Nascent Soul cultivators all turned into bowed quails, not daring to speak, hearts full of despair.

"However,"

Yuan revealed a mischievous smile, and the tone shifted: "The general approach is viable. Fix these problems, and I'll refine some fifth-tier Primordial Spirit protective shielding treasures for you. It should roughly work, but one Soul Transformation cultivator can bring at most two Nascent Soul cultivators."

"Yay!"

"Aaaaaah!"

"Teacher Yuan!"

Master Dinghai Master Dinghai Zhenjun and the other Nascent Soul cultivators went wild with joy, cheering and leaping about, wishing they could pounce on him and kiss him. And indeed, a large number of Nascent Soul cultivators really did pounce, unable to contain their excitement.

"Stop!"

Yuan casually pointed a finger, freezing the excited Nascent Soul cultivators in place, then said: "Watch your drool. Once the Primordial Spirit treasures are refined, we old fellows will take you in along the way — three days per trip. As for the order, it's random. Every Nascent Soul cultivator who signs up gets a turn."

"This time it's like this."

"Next time, it'll require corresponding library credits. Yes, just library credits. Recently the Immortal Gate's library credits are in very short supply. Understood?"

"Understood!"

"Teacher, understood!"

Master Dinghai Master Dinghai Zhenjun and the others answered in loud, unified voices.

"Alright, one by one — all of you are on leave? Are you going to do your work or not? Having clones do all the work isn't going to cut it either. Get back now, or I'm docking your performance pay!"

Yuan scolded.

"Alright."

"Oh."

Master Dinghai Master Dinghai Zhenjun, Liuling Master Dinghai Zhenjun, and the others drooped their faces, having no choice but to comply, and walked out of the Golden Imperial Palace step by step, looking back three times with every step, utterly reluctant.

After they left, Yuan strode forward at once, pushed through the crowd to squeeze inside, blowing his beard and glaring.

"Make way, make way, it's my turn."

"You've all been pondering it for so long!"

"It's my turn!"

His strength was tremendous; the surrounding Soul Transformation cultivators were shoved aside.

"Yuan!"

Master Canghai Canghai Tianjun said displeasedly: "You came late, so you came late — what does that have to do with us? Go line up at the back yourself."

"Right, right — utterly shameless."

"Stay away from me!"

The surrounding cultivators chimed in as well, indignant.

"Don't be so petty."

Yuan showed not the slightest embarrassment, as if he hadn't heard a thing, pushed through the crowd to the very front, and fixed his gaze upon the painting at the center of the palace, sealed layer upon layer by formations.

Beneath the golden light of the setting sun, a beauty bathed, the lake's surface shimmering.

A simple scene, decomposed within divine sense into ten thousand traces of the Great Dao of Jin Zhi, the marks of the Great Dao of Cause and Effect, all manner of approaches and structures — every bit of it incomprehensibly profound, paths he had never imagined.

"... Jin... Cause and Effect..."

With just one glance, Yuan's face flushed with excitement, his body trembling — nothing like the composure he had shown in Master Dinghai Master Dinghai Zhenjun and the others' eyes: "This is a great Dao that reaches the heavens; the Immortal Gate's exploration of the Void Refinement path will be pushed forward by at least three thousand years!"

"Eh? This structure of the Five Elements' Metal isn't right — it shouldn't be like this..."

"How could Cause and Effect be like this? It's complete nonsense! There's no logic!"

"Is this delirium? Too chaotic."

"How could it be..."

Soon, he began to frown, falling into an utterly agonized tangle, as if some common-sense theorem had been overturned; the magic power within him began to churn, and wild waves rose in the sea of his divine soul.

The surrounding cultivators were much the same — on many faces savage expressions began to appear, killing intent spilling everywhere, the Golden Imperial Palace cold as a prison.

Boom!

Boom, boom!

All around, several ancient, plain bronze bells the size of mountain peaks tolled, sending out waves of sound that swept away inner demons and reshaped the divine soul.

The pained, lost look in Yuan and the other cultivators' eyes cleared at once.

"This is..."

The crowd exchanged glances, each able to see the horror in the others' eyes, a chill rising in their hearts.

"And this is still under the protection of layer upon layer of formations!"

"He... this is just too strong."

Master Canghai Canghai Tianjun's face was full of disbelief as he muttered to himself: "I suspect he already possesses a small portion of the essence of Void Refinement now — otherwise the moment he made contact with this painting his divine soul would already have been corrupted, not still bouncing around alive like now."

"So this is the heir of a Domain Sovereign?

(End of chapter)