Chapter 541

Kacha~

The stone slab shattered into countless fragments of varying sizes, falling to the ground with a rustle, turning into powder, and merging with the dust.

And in the center of the stone slab, a simple and ancient jade pendant, only the size of a palm, entirely warm as jade, and presenting a faint sky-blue color, lost its support and fell downward.

Chen Mu’s heart moved, and the jade pendant hovered in front of him, spinning around.

The jade pendant was simple and ancient in style, with a simple pattern on the front that looked like flowing water and also like a sword mark, faintly emitting an aura homologous to "Tianhe True Li Yuan," yet more ethereal and profound.

Chen Mu slowly probed his spiritual sense into the jade pendant.

There was no massive information flow as expected, no complex inheritance imprint, and no attack or defense restrictions.

Only twelve text messages, like an imprint, were directly imprinted into his sea of consciousness.

"The soul is in the Nine Nether, the technique is in the Nine Nether, the path is in the Nine Nether."

After the information was transmitted, the sky-blue jade pendant seemed to have exhausted its last trace of spirituality, its surface luster dimmed rapidly, and then with a "kacha" sound, it shattered on its own, turning into a pile of ordinary jade debris without any spirituality, falling into the dust.

Chen Mu frowned slightly, withdrew his spiritual sense, and fell into thought.

"The soul is in the Nine Nether, the technique is in the Nine Nether, the path is in the Nine Nether..."

The soul should refer to the "Sword Soul," the strange object left by the Tianhe Sword Venerable.

The technique is very likely to refer to the follow-up technique of the "Tianhe Sword Canon" after the Heavenly Palace Realm.

Thoughts about the path after the Heavenly Palace.

The path might refer to the "Martial Dao Path" that the Tianhe Sword Venerable explored back then, leading to the Myriad Phenomena Realm and even higher levels! It was his comprehension, conception, and even unfinished exploration of higher realms.

And these three crucial things were actually all in the Nine Nether!

"Nine Nether... the Nine Nether Sect, one of the seven major martial sects?"

Chen Mu’s eyes flickered.

The Nine Nether Sect is both righteous and evil, and its mountain gate is located deep in the "Netherworld Mountains" in the southwest of Jiannan Dao. Its sect name is taken from the two words "Nine Nether." In many classics, "Nine Nether" also often refers to the place of extreme yin and deathly silence.

The "Sword Soul" is actually in the Nine Nether Sect?

This was beyond Chen Mu’s expectation.

The inheritance of the Tianhe Sword Venerable and the technique path of the Nine Nether Sect can be said to be poles apart.

Could it be that the Tianhe Sword Venerable had some unknown intersection with the Nine Nether Sect back then?

Or is it that the "Sword Soul" was obtained by the Nine Nether Sect later and kept secretly?

As for the "technique" and "path" also being in the Nine Nether, Chen Mu didn't feel surprised.

The path after the Heavenly Palace Realm is inherently different for everyone, but leads to the same destination.

After a martial artist reaches the Heavenly Palace Realm, they basically have to start exploring their own path, comprehending heaven and earth, attempting to fuse their own martial dao with the rules of heaven and earth, and finally condensing their own "Martial Dao Divine Crystal" and possessing a "Myriad Phenomena Martial Domain."

Therefore, before the Heavenly Palace Realm, there is the guidance of predecessors' techniques, so one can follow the steps and walk faster.

But after the Heavenly Palace Realm, if one still blindly follows others' technique paths, one will never be able to truly surpass predecessors, let alone step out of one’s own "Dao" and condense one’s own "Martial Crystal," with no hope of reaching the Myriad Phenomena Realm in one’s life!

This is also why Chen Mu was not panicked at all after discovering that practicing the "Tianhe Sword Canon" only went up to the Heavenly Palace Realm.

Because he had a better choice, the "Great Luo Martial Scripture"!

This martial dao general outline, although it does not involve specific cultivation methods and killing techniques, is all-encompassing, points directly to the essence of martial dao, and can help him sort out what he has learned, clarify the path ahead, and walk out of the martial dao that is most suitable for him and has infinite potential.

It is far better than following the old path of the Tianhe Sword Venerable.

Therefore, Chen Mu had little interest in the follow-up techniques of the "Tianhe Sword Canon," but it still had value as a reference and for broadening his horizons.

What he was truly interested in was the "Sword Soul"!

So far, there was no information about what the "Sword Soul" was.

"The Sword Soul is in the Nine Nether Sect..."

A trace of determination flashed in Chen Mu’s eyes, "Then go to the Nine Nether Sect for a trip!"

The mountain gate of the Nine Nether Sect is located in the southwest of Jiannan Dao, far away from Hannan Dao, requiring a turn to the south, crossing the southern part of Hannan Dao, and then entering Jiannan Dao, which is not a short distance.

But at his current speed, galloping with all his might, it wouldn't take too long.

Thinking of this.

Chen Mu took one last look at the cave, turned around, and walked out of the cave without nostalgia.

His figure flickered, soared into the sky, identified the direction, turned into a faint cyan rainbow, cut through the long sky, and galloped toward the south.

The Netherworld Mountains are a vast mountain area shrouded year-round in gray-black thick fog carrying a faint fishy, sweet, and decaying smell.

In the mountains, there is no sun, with strange peaks and dangerous ravines, poisonous insects and miasma everywhere, and there are many naturally formed yin-evil earth veins and strange illusions, which are a dead zone for ordinary martial artists, but the ideal sect residence for major sects like the Nine Nether Sect that practice yin-cold techniques.

Chen Mu did not break directly into the depths of the Netherworld Mountains.

The Nine Nether Sect has been inherited for thousands of years, with a deep foundation, many sect members and disciples, and even Myriad Phenomena Realm ancestors sitting in town.

Breaking into the mountain gate by force is by no means a wise move.

After entering the southwest border of Jiannan Dao, he found a hidden place to disguise and change his appearance.

After the disguise, Chen Mu turned into a middle-aged martial artist with an ordinary face, slightly pale skin, sinister eyes, dressed in gray-black tight-fitting clothes, and carrying a simple long sword on his back, controlling his cultivation aura to around the innate peak.

This level was not conspicuous in the area controlled by the Nine Nether Sect, and he had a certain ability to protect himself, making it convenient to act.

After preparing properly, Chen Mu quietly sneaked into the outskirts of the Netherworld Mountains.

The outskirts of the Netherworld Mountains were not completely uninhabited.

On the contrary, due to the existence of the Nine Nether Sect, several small market towns and workshops formed by Nine Nether Sect disciples, vassal forces, loose cultivators, black market merchants, and desperadoes had formed within a range of hundreds of miles in the outskirts.

The largest one, closest to the core area of the Nine Nether Sect’s mountain gate, was the Black Nether City located at the northeast entrance of the mountain range, guarding the traffic artery.

Black Nether City, rather than a city, is a huge fortress built in a steep valley, constructed from countless black rocks and gloomy wood.

The city walls are towering, entirely pitch-black, engraved with various gloomy and strange runes, emitting faint restriction fluctuations.

Most of the buildings in the city are low, sturdy, and rough in style, the streets are narrow and winding, the light is dim, and the air is filled year-round with a strange smell mixed with cold, damp, and blood, medicinal materials, metal, and other smells.

This place is a mixture of fish and dragons, an important transit station for entering the depths of the Netherworld Mountains and trading with the Nine Nether Sect, and also an outpost for the Nine Nether Sect to monitor the outskirts, screen talents, and obtain supplies.

Although there are Nine Nether Sect disciples patrolling and maintaining order in the city, secret fighting, looting, and black market trading are common, and as long as there is no big movement and no damage to the fundamental interests of the Nine Nether Sect, usually no one asks.

It follows the naked law of the jungle!

Chen Mu paid the head tax for entering the city and mixed into the crowd to enter the city.

The scene inside the city was completely different from any Great Zhou prefecture city he had been to.

On both sides of the street, there were quite a few shops.

There was the "Hundred Bones Pavilion" that bought and sold various exotic beast materials, poisonous herbs, and yin-attribute ores.

There was the "Shadowless Tower" that specialized in intelligence, assassination, kidnapping, and other special services.

There was the "Seven Emotions Workshop" that refined and sold various poisons, aphrodisiacs, and even things that controlled people’s minds.

There was even the "Blood Slave Field" that openly conducted human trafficking, using martial artists and ordinary people as "goods."

There wasn't a single normal one!