Chapter 272: Langhuan Water Mansion, Treasure of Merit

"Heavenly Star Divine Sand?"

Fang Longye caught a glimpse of the divine sand corridor before him, and his heart could not help but stir.

Observing it closely, he confirmed it was indeed Heavenly Star Divine Sand.

Although the color appeared iridescent, looking completely different from the lustrous white starlight of Heavenly Star Divine Sand, that was merely the halo refracted by the illumination of the celestial light.

Looking carefully, one could still see the starlight flowing beneath those seven colors, shimmering and brilliant.

Full, yet not overflowing.

He could not help but sigh in his heart once more at the extravagance of the mother of the Macaque King.

Heavenly Star Divine Sand is not ordinary; it belongs to a type of exceptionally rare divine material that originates from the Jiutian Yinhuo.

And that Jiutian Yinhuo is composed entirely of Weak Water, flowing within the Star Sea of the Heavenly Realm.

As mentioned before, the Nine Heavens Weak Water never touches the mortal dust for all eternity; it is the purest water in the world.

Once any person or object touches it, they will be thoroughly decomposed and purified by the Weak Water, erased from the human world, and transformed into a part of the Weak Water.

Under such circumstances, the silt that can still accumulate and form in the Heavenly River is naturally extraordinary in essence.

And this silt deposited in the Heavenly River can only become a special substance full of strange stellar power after being eroded by the power of the stars for hundreds of millions of years, which is called Star Sand.

This Star Sand can be used to refine treasures and draw immortal talismans, and is occasionally used in alchemy; it is an immortal material with a wide range of uses.

And this Star Sand, formed only after hundreds of millions of years, can only become the Heavenly Star Divine Sand in this divine sand corridor before his eyes after another hundreds of millions of years of polishing and sedimentation.

One can imagine just how precious this Heavenly Star Divine Sand is.

It is said that in the Heavenly Court, it is strictly controlled.

For this very reason, the Heavenly Court even established a Heavenly River Water Force with eighty thousand fierce warriors, stationed within the Heavenly River to strictly prevent private digging and unauthorized mining.

Of course, the Heavenly River is vast and boundless after all; even with eighty thousand water soldiers patrolling day and night, it is impossible to guard everything completely.

There are indeed quite a few rogue immortal gods who sneak in to privately mine the divine sand.

However, most people do not have the specialized tools used to mine Heavenly Star Divine Sand, and coupled with the fact that Heavenly Star Divine Sand is extremely rare—perhaps only one grain of Heavenly Star Divine Sand exists among hundreds of millions of grains of Star Sand.

After a trip, they simply cannot mine much.

Yet this corridor is paved entirely with Heavenly Star Divine Sand, which shows just how extravagant the mother of the Macaque King—Shuimu Niangniang—was.

"It's good to have an ancestor!"

Fang Longye knew with his toes that so much Heavenly Star Divine Sand could naturally not have been earned by that Shuimu Niangniang herself; it must have been inherited from that Huai River Water God—Wuzhiqi.

However, this also served as a warning to him.

Good things should be converted into combat power as soon as possible, lest one dies before the money is even spent.

How tragic that would be! One must know—the reason Heavenly Star Divine Sand is called by this name is because this divine sand contains an immeasurable amount of stellar power, making it incredibly heavy. A single grain of Heavenly Star Divine Sand is equivalent to a small star.

With so much Heavenly Star Divine Sand, even if one cannot refine a treasure like the 'Ganges Sand Sumeru Pot', its power would definitely not be small.

Regardless of whether it was because Shuimu Niangniang had an incredibly high standard or for some other reason, using this Heavenly Star Divine Sand to pave the ground was a great waste.

If this Shuimu Niangniang had armed herself with the various treasures in her own dojo, Fang Longye would not believe she would have fallen at the hands of Guoshi Wang.

But as soon as this thought emerged, it made him smile to himself.

If this Shuimu Niangniang had really done so, it would not be his turn to prepare to explore for treasure here—a hundred thoughts turned in an instant, and in reality, only a few breaths of time had passed.

After the divine sand corridor appeared, the Macaque King was also stunned for a moment, then reacted, stepped aside, and smiled as he gestured: "Brother Fang, please!"

Hearing these words, Fang Longye also woke up from his trance.

He smiled, and immediately, carrying the Huai River Dragon Lord and his newly acquired loyal servant—Shentuo, he followed the Macaque King and his nephew into this divine sand corridor.

This divine sand corridor wound and extended, leading straight to the immortal island in the center.

The deep, dark divine water on both sides looked like a waterfall, but the water flowed upward, and inside, various strange fish swam freely, as if one were in an undersea world.

Looking up, one could still see the blue sky overhead, and even seabirds flying down gracefully.

Such a scene was truly magnificent and spectacular.

Even though Fang Longye had been to many aquariums in his past life, he could not help but take a few extra looks.

Although he knew in his heart that the "strange fish" in this deep, dark divine water were not real living creatures, but a phantom scene evolved from the karmic sins within the Yellow Springs True Water.

He still could not help but click his tongue in praise for this ingenuity.

The Water Ape Great Sage originally had tears hidden in his eyes, revealing a deep sense of nostalgia, but upon catching a glimpse of Fang Longye's expression, he could not help but feel a sense of self-satisfaction.

The construction of this Water Mansion dojo had cost his sister and him quite a lot of effort back then.

Glancing at the scenery as they passed, they soon arrived at the immortal island in the center, where all kinds of flowers and greenery came into view.

A rich spiritual aura rushed toward them.

Looking back, the deep, dark divine water had already closed, and the divine sand corridor had also disappeared.

The immortal island was not large, only a thousand miles in circumference, but it was planted everywhere with all kinds of rare flowers and grasses, orchids, and cassia trees.

A fragrant scent drifted over, coming even without a breeze.

Fang Longye and the other two followed the Macaque King and his nephew, riding the clouds to Cuiping Feng in the center of the island.

"Yingxian Ting?"

Fang Longye looked at the hexagonal pavilion before him; the three gilded seal characters on the plaque were ancient and natural, naturally revealing a wonderful charm.

He saw vermilion pillars and green tiles, with four jade pavilion pillars standing on each side; inside, there was a stone table and four stone chairs, and nothing else.

The entire layout looked simple, yet it had an ethereal and otherworldly quality, quite like an immortal's abode.

Seeing that everyone had arrived at this Yingxian Ting, the Macaque King immediately followed what his uncle had taught him, forming seals and chanting incantations.

Subsequently, this originally simple and natural Yingxian Ting immediately manifested twelve kinds of flowing colors, shining brightly and looking exceptionally beautiful.

Amidst the flowing light and vibrant colors, a wonderful scene enveloped the five of them.

Looking around—

It could be described as ten thousand points of golden scales sprinkled on the green waves, flying fish piercing through the waves, seagulls touching the water, and even bursts of light surging sounds reaching their ears.

The sound of water grew louder and louder, as if clouds were leaning against the mountains, like waves washing against cliff rocks.

In an instant, strange seal characters emerged from the void, appearing as halos beneath everyone's feet.

A sound of a jade chime came, and space shifted.

Fang Longye only felt a blur before his eyes; when he could see clearly again, what lay before him was a crystalline water curtain.

……

"It really is layer upon layer of defense!"

Fang Longye muttered in his heart.

He saw that this crystalline water curtain covered everything, with no end in sight.

The whole thing was a deep blue, and one could not tell how many layers of secret Restriction arrays had been reinforced upon it.

Earth, fire, water, wind, wind, rain, thunder, lightning, Yin and Yang, Five Elements, Nine Palaces, Eight Trigrams,... and so on, densely packed.

It made Fang Longye's scalp tingle.

The Water Ape Great Sage to the side explained to everyone: "This water curtain is the final gateway protecting the Water Mansion, and also the most important one."

"On this water curtain, restrictions are listed in layers, drawing upon the water veins and earth energy of a million miles, connecting to the entire Water Mansion Daoist site protected by the water curtain."

He paused, then continued: "As soon as anyone uses a Spirit Treasure or divine ability to forcibly attack this layer of water curtain, the restrictions upon it will immediately erupt."

"Burning both jade and stone, destroying everything. Even an existence in the Taiyi Realm could be beaten until their body and soul are extinguished, with no True Spirit remaining."

Having said this, he signaled the Yurong Wang to the side to open this gateway.

The Yurong Wang nodded, and with a wave of his hand, that previously pitch-black Talisman Order flew out from an unknown place.

Holding the Talisman Order, he performed another series of hand seals and incantations.

After this operation, the deep blue water curtain immediately rippled, followed by the emergence of rosy light and the surging of auspicious energy.

Immediately after, the entire water curtain gradually became transparent.

Through the water curtain, one could faintly see what appeared to be a celestial palace inside, with countless pavilions and towers. Looking at it, everywhere was filled with golden courts and jade pillars, vermilion railings and emerald tiles, bizarre and magnificent, with a thousand variations of atmosphere.

Seeing this scene, Fang Longye licked his lips.

After going through so much trouble, he was finally about to enter. He wondered what kind of surprises the collection within this Water Mansion would bring him. The Huai River Dragon Lord to the side also had joy in his eyes. That divine sand corridor from before had given him a huge shock.

So much Heavenly Star Divine Sand was used to pave the ground just like ordinary sand.

What kind of extravagance was this? As the Huai River Dragon King, a Dragon Lord recognized by the Heavenly Court, he only received about half a liter of Heavenly Star Divine Sand in his salary issued every thousand years.

The display was already this grand.

One could imagine how precious the legacy within the Water Mansion must be. Even the divine turtle newly subdued by Fang Longye, standing to the side in human form, revealed a smile. It was happy for its master to have such an opportunity and fortune.

A short while later—

Bursts of clear jade chime sounds came from within the water curtain; as the halos of light swirled and the Divine Light and auspicious colors permeated, the water curtain gradually split from the middle, forming a gateway a hundred feet in size.

At the same time, a towering archway plaque appeared around the gateway, inscribed with four gilded seal characters with strange and vigorous brushstrokes.

"Langhuan Shuifu?"

Fang Longye read it out softly, then complimented the Yurong Wang: "A good name! The name of your mother's Water Mansion is truly extraordinary!"

The Yurong Wang smiled without responding, instead waving his sleeve, and the gateway immediately parted to both sides like a water curtain.

Once this gateway opened, ten thousand rays of light immediately radiated from within. For a time, celestial mist shimmered, auspicious light shot in all directions, and there were a thousand strands of auspicious energy.

It dazzled them all so much they could hardly open their eyes, and it took a while to adapt.

"Brother Fang, please!" The Yurong Wang stepped aside and said with a smile.

Fang Longye looked through the gateway and could vaguely see large areas of architecture.

"Then I shall not decline."

As he spoke, his escape light rose from beneath his feet, carrying the divine turtle and the Huai River Dragon Lord into this gateway.

Once Fang Longye's escape light rose, the Yurong Wang and his nephew naturally followed, accompanying him at his side.

Entering this gateway, they suddenly felt their eyes brighten; they saw that this Water Mansion hidden in the depths of the Huai River was not built on the riverbed, but was floating within the Huai River.

The spatial barrier of the entire Water Mansion was actually transparent; from any angle, one could see the scenery of the Huai River outside the Water Mansion.

At a glance, it looked like an island tens of thousands of miles in circumference, floating in the water, completely surrounded by a huge transparent cover that kept the Huai River at bay.

One could even see many strange-looking aquatic creatures swimming back and forth outside the Water Mansion, above and below, and in all directions.

Aside from such magnificent scenery, the spiritual energy of the entire Daoist site was also extremely abundant, emitting infinite golden light and auspicious mist.

Layer upon layer surged, continuous and endless.

A continuous mountain range stretched across the center of the entire Water Mansion.

Within the mountain range were countless pavilions and kiosks, strange rocks and exotic mountains, flying eaves and upturned corners, and corridors connecting them; there were also spiritual streams flowing down from the mountains, finally turning into spiritual mist and Divine Light, scattering in all directions.

The Yurong Wang did not stop to sightsee; under the guidance of his uncle, he led Fang Longye and the others straight toward the mountain peak.

At the mountain peak, there was only one magnificent palace, which looked incredibly conspicuous.

Without the Yurong Wang's uncle explaining, Fang Longye could guess that this must be the place where Shuimu Niangniang usually practiced and resided.

……

After having tea in a palace hall and eating some spiritual fruits that were specialties of the Water Mansion.

The Yurong Wang, under the guidance of the Water Ape Great Sage, passed through corridors and paths, turning left and right, and brought Fang Longye and the others into a palace hall.

This palace hall was not small, but it was somewhat empty; inside, apart from thirty-six towering crystal pillars, there was nothing else.

These crystal pillars were completely surrounded by Divine Light, with seal characters appearing, and one could faintly see the treasure light and various fluctuations of Dao Rhyme within them.

Fang Longye naturally understood that this was where Shuimu Niangniang's collection was kept.

Sure enough—

The Yurong Wang cast numerous seal character Dharma curses toward these thirty-six crystal pillars.

He dispelled the Divine Light and auspicious colors swirling around them, revealing their true appearance completely.

These crystal pillars were seen to be entirely translucent, their material unknown, and each stood over a hundred zhang tall.

Every large crystal pillar had many hollowed-out compartments from bottom to top. Inside each compartment, treasure light shimmered, clearly indicating various treasures stored within.

Fang Longye cast his gaze over them.

He saw that inside the compartments of these large crystal pillars were pitch-black broadswords, cyan banners, ancient bronze mirrors, crystalline jade bottles, miraculous pills and medicines, and rare treasures of heaven and earth...

There were countless treasures of every variety.

Moreover, the higher one looked, the more intense the fluctuations of spiritual energy within the holes became, and the treasure light was so blindingly dazzling that it seemed as if it wanted to break free from the crystal pillars.

By the time he reached the holes at the very top, the treasure light radiating from them was simply a mass of scorching brilliance.

It was impossible to see what was inside at all. However, many of them faintly radiated an Innate Aura.

"This Brother Yuan truly did not lie to me back then," Fang Longye sensed several strands of Innate Aura and could not help but think to himself, "There really are Innate Spiritual Objects in his mother's Water Mansion~"

"Brother Fang!" King Yu Rong withdrew his movements and said with a beaming smile: "In any case, you have helped me a great deal this time. You should choose first!"

"Whatever you take a fancy to, just take it~"

Looking at this display of a nouveau riche attitude, Fang Longye just loved friends like this.

He did not stand on ceremony and first collected three Innate Spiritual Objects: an Innate Divine Iron shaped like a divine sword, a handful of Innate Divine Soil, and a rhombic Innate Wood Heart.

Afterwards, he knew when to stop.

He began to examine the various acquired treasures, Spirit Treasures, divine materials, immortal pills...

They were dazzling to the eyes, making it hard to choose.

King Yu Rong saw Fang Longye scanning the crystal pillars there, only taking out a treasure every now and then, but he did not mind and just smiled.

Then, he also began to examine the treasures within these crystal pillars with great interest.

"Eh?"

When his gaze fell upon this section of compartments at the very bottom, an ancient, verdant Turtle Shell caught his attention.

There was an inexplicable resonance.

His heart could not help but stir, and he could not resist projecting a strand of Dharma power, implicitly containing the true intent of the Supreme Purity.

Following his probing, this Turtle Shell, verdant as jade and exuding an ancient and vicissitudinous air, suddenly trembled violently.

In the end, it actually broke free from the restraints of the crystal pillar and flew straight toward King Yu Rong.

King Yu Rong reached out to catch it and circulated his Dharma power.

This Turtle Shell immediately burst forth with Mysterious Yellow Merit Golden Light, brilliant and eye-catching.

It drew the attention of the few people present.

"A Merit Treasure?!"

Fang Longye could not help but exclaim in surprise.

"Sigh!"

King Yu Rong instead let out a long sigh, withdrew his Dharma power, and became dispirited.

"Divine objects conceal their own brilliance!"

"Why must divine objects conceal their own brilliance?!"

At this moment, King Yu Rong felt an incomparable hatred that the rule of "divine objects concealing their own brilliance" existed in this world.

"If only—"

"Sigh!"

He stopped mid-sentence, sighed again, closed his eyes to stroke the Turtle Shell in his hand, and then opened his eyes.

Without the slightest reluctance, he pushed with his Dharma power, sending this Merit Treasure before Fang Longye.

"I observe that Brother Fang does not seem to have any defensive treasures on your person."

"Although this Merit Treasure is somewhat damaged, it still counts as a heavy defensive treasure."

"I shall gift it to Brother Fang!"

(End of chapter)