Chapter 261: Immortal Palace

Waking up from their trance, everyone cast their gazes toward Zhang Nuo and Ye Yuemiao. They were very surprised: why were these two not affected by the white light from just a moment ago? Instead, they had reacted so quickly! Even an existence like Nanxuan Laozu had been captured by the white light; what method had these two used?

The large seal and the purple handkerchief blocked the front of the two giant ships. Countless soft and peaceful white rays of light covered the two magic treasures, but this light seemed to only affect the minds of cultivators, having absolutely no effect on the magic treasures themselves.

Ye Yuemiao turned her head to glance at Zhang Nuo, her heart also filled with astonishment. She possessed a strange object on her person, which was why she had successfully resisted the temptation of the white light, but what kind of thing did Zhang Nuo have on him?

"That was close!"

Zhuge An let out a long breath, his forehead covered in beads of sweat the size of beans. The other few people also broke out in a cold sweat, as if waking from a great dream.

"What terrifying white light!"

Nanxuan Laozu looked up at the sky, recalling the scene from just a moment ago. It was truly like living a second life; with his cultivation, his mind had long since reached a certain level of strength, yet he had still been caught off guard by it.

"Senior! Should we continue forward?"

Ye Yuemiao turned her beautiful eyes and asked Nanxuan Laozu.

"Forward. Since things have reached this point, retreating is meaningless!"

Knowing full well that the things ahead were extraordinary, Nanxuan Laozu still had to make this decision. However, the situation left him no room to retreat; trapped in the vast mist, if they waited too long, they would have no way out. It was better to head forward and try their luck!

Ye Yuemiao nodded in agreement. She was meticulous, and after a moment of thought, she understood the old ancestor's meaning. Just like that, the two giant ships continued forward in the direction the white light was emanating from!

Strangely enough, the further they went, the lower the concentration of the white light became. In the end, the shadow of the white light could not be seen in the air at all. Zhang Nuo tried retracting the Heaven-Turning Seal, and sure enough, no one was affected anymore.

"Zhang Nuo, how did you discover there was something strange about the white light?"

Nanxuan Laozu turned his head back. He was very curious about what method Zhang Nuo had used to see through the white light; even someone as powerful as him had been completely defenseless against it.

"I was deep in thought about a problem just now and didn't pay attention to the white light at all. By the time I noticed it, I felt the white light was gnawing at my mental defenses!"

These words were all taught to him by Chunyangzi. If he couldn't find a good excuse, it would be very difficult for Zhang Nuo to get past this hurdle!

"So, if one doesn't focus intently on the white light, nothing will happen?"

Nanxuan Laozu lowered his head and muttered a few words to himself. He hadn't discovered this issue, but now that the white light had long since vanished, there was no way to verify the question.

Seeing that he hadn't aroused the old ancestor's suspicion, Zhang Nuo finally let out a long breath. When his gaze drifted toward Ye Yuemiao, he felt very puzzled. He had the help of a powerful Remnant Soul like Chunyangzi to avoid being captured by the white light, so what had this woman used? It seemed the Ye Family truly lived up to their reputation on the Tianyuan Continent; a Foundation Establishment Stage female cultivator was already like this, so the Nascent Soul Stage cultivators were even more unimaginable.

The horn-shaped magic treasure in the green-bearded man's hand flashed with light, and a gust of wild wind surged from it. With a 'whoosh', it blew away all the mist for several dozen zhang ahead. However, what shocked everyone was that after the mist dispersed this time, it did not close back up again, as if a passage had been punched through the thick fog.

Zhang Nuo watched this, his heart filled with confusion. Everything in this thick fog was too bizarre; it simply could not be understood by common sense!

"Senior, in your opinion, what exactly is behind this mist?"

"I don't know either! But it certainly isn't anything simple. Kid Zhang, you had better be careful!"

Hearing Zhang Nuo's voice transmission, Chunyangzi gave a solemn warning.

With an expressionless face, Zhang Nuo listened to Chunyangzi finish speaking and kept it in mind. At this moment, a loud 'boom' was heard, and both giant ships stopped at almost the same time, their hulls swaying.

Everyone on the ships had their expressions change drastically, not knowing what had happened.

"It seems we've run aground?"

The green-bearded man standing at the bow of the ship used the power of his magic treasure to blow away the mist beneath the ship. They saw that the bottoms of both giant ships were caught by reefs to varying degrees, unable to move forward even an inch.

"It seems the destination is right ahead!"

After discovering that the flying boats were not severely damaged, Nanxuan Laozu said with a grave expression.

"Senior, are we to abandon the ships and proceed on foot?"

A trace of surprise appeared on Ye Yuemiao's beautiful face. The ships were their foundation for traveling through the Mist Sea; without them, relying solely on flight speed, she didn't know how many years it would take to find the Xianhuan Continent. Even more critically, compared to Flying Magic Tools, the Spirit Power within the bodies of cultivators of their level was far from sufficient to fly for such a long time!

"Leave most of the people to guard the ships, and the rest will come with me!"

Without the slightest hesitation, Nanxuan Laozu made a quick decision. Being trapped in the mist for too long was disadvantageous to them; only by unraveling the mystery as soon as possible could they return to their normal route.

After some discussion, Zhuge An was left behind to guard the flying boats, while on Ye Yuemiao's side, the white-haired old man was left to guard. After selecting a few more Foundation Establishment Stage disciples, these people began to pilot their Flying Magic Tools and charged toward the front.

Zhang Nuo was unlucky and was also selected. He hadn't wanted to go, but pressured by the old ancestor's might, he could only brace himself and follow behind.

While in the escape light, feeling the thick mist around them, their Divine Sense could only extend at most two zhang forward. This terrifying feeling made all the cultivators feel fearful; one had to know that Divine Sense was equivalent to a cultivator's eyes. Imagine having no eyes—it was like walking with one's eyes closed.

"Hmm!"

After flying forward for a while, Nanxuan Laozu suddenly let out a soft sound of surprise. Zhang Nuo looked up, but the mist was too thick, and he had no idea what had happened. However, judging by the sound, it shouldn't have been anything particularly major. He continued flying forward when, suddenly, he seemed to burst out of the thick fog. Everything before his eyes made him gasp!

He saw that the mist ended right there, as if sliced off by a knife. Not even a speck of fog could be seen in front of them. On the flat ground ahead, Nanxuan Laozu stood tall, his snow-white eyebrows trembling uncontrollably, while Ye Yuemiao's pretty face was slightly startled, her small mouth almost forming a circle, unable to close it for a long time.

At this moment, Zhang Nuo's gaze also looked forward. He saw that the area ahead was extremely vast, like a peach blossom spring outside the world. The surrounding flowers, grass, and trees were lush and vibrant, a scene full of vitality. In the sky above this region, streaks of seven-colored rainbows cut across the horizon. The gorgeous rainbow radiance was comparable to a fairyland on earth!

What shocked everyone even more was a giant palace floating in mid-air. This palace was nearly a thousand zhang in circumference and hovered more than seven zhang above the ground. There was no support in the middle, and the entire palace emitted a pale golden light, with waves of vast Spirit Power emanating from it.

This scene was like the existence of an Immortal Palace; even as composed as Nanxuan Laozu was, he couldn't help but feel a sense of shock in his heart.

"Could this be the legendary Xianhuan Continent?"

Taking a few quick steps forward, Nanxuan Laozu kept scanning the 'Immortal Palace' with his Divine Sense. There was no thick mist here, and his Divine Sense was liberated, able to extend as it had before.

Hearing the old ancestor's words, Zhang Nuo frowned slightly. Others might not know what the Xianhuan Continent looked like, but he was very clear about it. According to the terrain recorded in the 'Measuring Heaven Ruler', this place didn't resemble the Xianhuan Continent in the slightest.

Sweeping his gaze, he discovered that all the cultivators had looks of worship as they walked step by step toward the 'Immortal Palace', especially those disciples with lower cultivation, who were trembling all over with excitement.

"Haha! This old monk has lived in this place for nearly a thousand years; I didn't expect fellow Daoists to arrive today! How truly discourteous of me!"

Just as everyone was stepping forward, a deep, hearty laugh came from within the 'Immortal Palace', the sound like a great bell carrying very far!

Hearing this, everyone stopped in their tracks. Nanxuan Laozu's gaze was fixed on the entrance of the 'Immortal Palace', his Divine Sense trying its best to penetrate deep inside.

At this moment, a streak of escape light flew out from inside the 'Immortal Palace', its speed so fast it was staggering. In the blink of an eye, it arrived before the crowd. The escape light faded, revealing an elderly monk.

This monk wore a plain white monk's robe, with 108 prayer beads hanging around his neck. The top of his head was as bright as the moon in the sky, and his large ears almost hung down to his shoulders. His round face appeared extremely kind and benevolent. It was just that his aged features made it impossible to guess how old he actually was.

Many cultivators felt a sense of security upon seeing the old monk! For some reason, the white-robed monk before them seemed like a great master who had descended from the Immortal World! He made people feel both approachable and somewhat in awe.

"Hehe! This old monk has been in seclusion here for many years and has never seen strangers. With you benefactors arriving today, it seems I have been somewhat discourteous!"

Pressing his palms together, the white-robed monk bowed deeply to Nanxuan Laozu and the others, his aged face smiling as brilliantly as a flower!

"Master is too polite!"

Judging from the Spirit Power fluctuations radiating from the other party, this old monk's cultivation was around the Nascent Soul Late Stage, a full minor realm higher than Nanxuan Laozu! Seeing the other party being so polite, he dared not be negligent and immediately returned the salute.

"This old man brought a group of disciples and inadvertently trespassed here; I hope Master will forgive us!"

"Amitabha, what are you saying, benefactor? Since you have come, you are guests. Please, come to my humble abode for a chat!"

The white-robed monk was very generous, and his aged face always wore a smile that did not make people feel annoyed at first sight; despite this, Nanxuan Laozu was still very cautious in his heart, for a cultivator who could practice alone in the Mist Sea was certainly not comparable to an ordinary person, especially since he had created such eerie thick fog, and his attainments in the Array were terrifyingly high!

After extending a hand in a gesture of invitation and seeing that no one in the group moved a step, the old monk frowned slightly, but immediately laughed and said:

"Fellow Daoists, do not misunderstand. This old monk has lived in seclusion here for many years and has never left, nor do I know what has happened in the outside world; I just wish to understand a little more!"