Chapter 172: Journey to the Mountain Abyss

The first layer, White Tiger, suppresses strength; the second layer, Black Tortoise, suppresses the physical body; the second layer, Vermilion Bird, suppresses the spirit.

The three-layer tribulation is like three great mountains pressing down on one's body, nearly crushing a person into a meat patty.

Yet, some are able to persist.

Jiang Shenyi is climbing upward step by step.

After climbing for the better part of the night, Jiang Shenyi's clothes are now soaked through, sweat having permeated both his inner and outer garments. With both spirit and body under heavy pressure, he has reached the moment where he needs the support of his willpower.

By this time, his spirit is under heavy pressure, and most of his Art Tools cannot be mobilized; only a pair of Fenglei Wings, connected to his bloodline and having reached the point of sharing life and death, can still shroud his form, providing final support.

The mountain path is pitch black and lightless. Jiang Shenyi has not lit a Lamp, continuing upward only by the faint electric light of his Thunder Wing. He is unwilling to light a lamp, firstly to avoid increasing his own consumption, and secondly because he does not want to see his own disheveled state.

"Hiss... hiss..."

From ahead comes the sound of heavy, ragged breathing, along with the sound of near-sobbing.

This sound is very pathetic. Jiang Shenyi coughs lightly to signal his arrival, allowing the other person to stop.

As a young man who cares deeply about his reputation, he takes care of the other person's face whenever he is not in a hostile situation.

The other person indeed stops sobbing.

Jiang Shenyi walks past him without a word, only to hear him say in a hoarse voice, "Thank you."

Jiang Shenyi hears that his voice is not young, belonging to an adult man, and is greatly surprised. He says, "What are you crying for? If you can persist, then persist; if you can't, then go back. A grown man, crying and whimpering here?"

The man is silent for a moment, clears his throat with difficulty, and says, "I have persisted all the way to here. Seeing the finish line right before my eyes, yet unable to advance any further, seeing all my efforts go to waste, yet unwilling to retreat—caught in a dilemma, so I was momentarily dejected..."

Jiang Shenyi pauses and says, "Why go so far? It is just a small hurdle. If you lose, you lose; if you win, you win. Why be so dejected? With such willpower, how did you even get this far?"

The man says indignantly, "Of course it's because of my own ability! Could it be that someone helped me? It's just that my Protective Artifact was just destroyed; otherwise, I could have gone a few more steps!"

Jiang Shenyi says, "So that's it. You are an outstanding Talisman Sword Master, but you lack training yourself? Whether it is an Art Tool or a Dharma Artifact, no matter how profound, they are ultimately external objects. How can they replace one's own cultivation? One's own Rigidity is the foundation; relying on external objects is ultimately a heterodox path."

The man knows that what Jiang Shenyi says has some merit, but hearing that Jiang Shenyi's voice is younger than his own, how could he accept being scolded to his face? He retorts, "We are Talisman Sword Masters; if we don't rely on external objects, what do we rely on? Those external objects were also made by my own hands. By your logic, are Sword Guests also relying on swords?"

Jiang Shenyi says loudly, "That is why Sword Guests are also on a crooked, evil path!"

The man shudders and falls silent.

He originally felt that the person opposite him spoke bluntly but had a point, but after this sentence, he only feels that the other person has something wrong with his brain.

When a normal person meets a madman, what more is there to say? He flips onto the slide and slips away.

Jiang Shenyi also notices the other person's movements; this is an expression of disdain for being associated with him. He is not surprised; in this world where Sword Guests are revered, these remarks would be viewed as bizarre fallacies everywhere, so he has never truly brought it up with anyone, not even his mentor or fellow disciples, having only said a word or two to Tang Zhao in private.

It was only because it was dark and no one knew anyone else that he accidentally spoke his mind, and sure enough, it was viewed by the other party as the ramblings of a madman, leading them to flee directly.

Although he had expected it, a sense of indignation still rises in him, and he suddenly shouts loudly, "Not only will I not be a Sword Guest, I will not be a Sword Smith either! I will abandon the sword and only persist in the path of the Rune Formula, along with my own strength, and I will still be able to reach the top of the mountain! Then let's see who in the world dares to look down on me!"

As he speaks, he wipes the sweat from his face, spreads his wings, and wind and thunder roll within the narrow cave. Relying on his exceptional perseverance and robust body, he climbs upward step by step.

Not far away, in the darkness, someone sighs softly, "Good, truly a fine talent."

The next day, Tang Zhao follows the plan made last night, saying he has business ahead, and bids farewell to Wang Fei.

Wang Fei feels deep regret, stroking the Six Dragon Carriage with reluctance, and says, "Then we shall have to meet at the Talisman Assembly. I've already placed my order, right? Remember to customize one of these carriages for me, with built-in special effects. It doesn't have to be fast, the key is that the effect must be good."

Tang Zhao says, "No problem, I am placing the order for the flight now. Are the special effects also flames?"

Wang Fei says in surprise, "Can this be chosen too?"

Tang Zhao says, "Yes. Your needs are our pursuit! The appearance can be whatever you want. For example, my carriage is actually amphibious. The underwater effect is rolling waves, churning spray, and it can even dive."

Wang Fei is overjoyed and says, "Then get me an ice and snow effect, with snowflakes and hail all the way. Let's call it the 'Da Xue Shan'!"

Tang Zhao smiles and says, "Alright. This deposit..."

Wang Fei reaches out to take out money and says, "I'll pay half first. Is it okay to pay with Origin Stones?" After saying this, he hands over the bag containing the Origin Stones. Tang Zhao reaches out to take it, and as their hands clasp, Tang Zhao notices something extra in his hand.

The two release each other and nod in greeting.

Tang Zhao mounts the Fire-Type Carriage and says, "See you at the Talisman Assembly."

Tang Zhao rides along, the turtle placed in the back seat, unable to see the movements in front of him.

After riding for a distance, Tang Zhao gently unfolds the object in his hand; it is a crumpled piece of paper.

On it is a sentence:

"The turtle is an envoy, unusual; do not easily trust its words. You may go to Jiu Yuan to search for information on the Yuangui Clan."

Are they accusing each other of being suspicious?

Tang Zhao tilts his head slightly and says, "Old Turtle, what kind of person do you think he is? He keeps saying he is ordinary, so he must be extraordinary, but I don't know what kind of extraordinary?"

The turtle says, "The helmet he is wearing is military; he must be the nephew of some big shot in the army, the playboy type. Although he might have other motives, that idiot air of his isn't entirely faked."

Tang Zhao nods. That Wang Fei indeed does not show his true colors, but showing them doesn't mean he isn't a real person. He also feels the other party is a young member of a big figure or a major force, and says, "Old Turtle, you are truly a smart turtle."

"It's Gui Ye... if you aren't happy with that, at least call me Elder Turtle."

"By the way, you turtles can all speak human language; were you raised by Tian He?"

"Pah, we are a natural Spirit Race, and we only have a cooperative relationship with Tian He. You make it sound like we are Tian He's pets. Honestly, it's only because of the agreement from back then; otherwise, I find Tian He less pleasing to the eye than you. If you butter me up, I'll give you some pointers and dig up some of Tian He's secrets for you."

The man and the turtle chat along the way. Looking far ahead, they see a mountain peak facing them, short and stout like a basin, with a waterfall in the middle flying straight down like a jade dragon, the sound of water rumbling.

"Is that Jiu Yuan?"

Tang Zhao stops the carriage to look from afar. He sees that the waterfall is indeed spectacular, but he has seen the Tian He that connects heaven and earth; having seen the vast sea, it is hard to be impressed by other waters, so he doesn't find it much of a miracle.

But thinking about it, this Jiu Yuan was originally man-made, imitating a natural scene, and with such momentum, it can be considered a grand undertaking.

"Is Tian He beneath this waterfall?"

"Hmm..." The turtle stretches its head to look, curls its lip, and says, "It's my first time seeing it too. This is called a one-to-one model? This scale isn't even one-tenth of it; it's just fooling people. In a while, when you go to see it, Tian He has six dragons: Dragon Head, Dragon Tail, Dragon Tooth, Dragon Scale, Dragon Might, and Dragon Chant. I wonder how many they have restored?"

Arriving in front of the waterfall, they see an iron fence, and in front of the fence is a small pavilion.

Tang Zhao knocks on the door, and a person in their twenties comes out, slightly chubby, wearing a Tian He uniform, and says in surprise, "Someone is here so early? Being a step ahead must mean you are an elite. Please, come in."

After saying this, he turns and hands over a large sign, saying, "These are the rules of our Tian He; take a look."

Tang Zhao lowers his head, then immediately grimaces.

He sees it written on it:

"Jiu Yuan, tour the Dragon Abyss exhibition: free. Observe Sword Casting, one Origin Stone. Dragon Abyss rafting, two Origin Stones. Enter the abyss to gather materials, three Origin Stones... One Dream Sword Casting, one hundred Origin Stones."

This "Yuan" refers to the Origin Stone; one Origin Stone is worth one hundred gold.

Tang Zhao almost cried: You guys really make money fast. Is it easy for me to suck up to rich patrons to land a single deal? It's not even enough to play a few of these activities.

He was a man with an industry, still in the startup phase, and all his spare cash had to be poured into his career. If he played a whole round, a month's worth of revenue would be lost.

The man continued to ramble: "Our checkpoint is very peaceful; the previous checkpoints were all dangerous. You must be tired, so wouldn't it be nice to come here and relax?"

Tang Zhao clutched the list and said: "No danger, but no gains either, right? So it doesn't matter if I play or not? I'll just take a free tour..."

The man was taken aback and hurriedly said: "Don't say that. Jiu Yuan is a Shengdi for Sword Casting. As a future Sword Smith, how can you not go to the Shengdi to take a look? Take observing Sword Casting for example—in your sect, is it something you can observe whenever you want? I'm afraid it's quite normal to spend several Origin Stones just to find an opportunity to observe up close, right? Here, you only need one Origin Stone to watch a Sword Master cast a sword."

Tang Zhao asked skeptically: "I spend one Origin Stone, and a Sword Smith will cast a sword on the spot specifically for me?"

The man said: "That's not it, it's an illusion... a Sword Casting illusion. But our illusion is very powerful; it's immersive."

Tang Zhao didn't believe it—truly high-end illusions cost more than one Origin Stone just to activate once; being able to watch one like a video would already be decent.

Seeing that Tang Zhao was still resistant, the man slapped his thigh and said: "Hey, who says you're the first to come to Jiu Yuan? There must be a discount. I'll make the call: twenty... ten Origin Stones, and I'll give you the full package. Including the Dream Sword Casting; at one hundred Origin Stones, that's less than a ten percent discount now! You go into Jiu Yuan yourself to collect materials, and then personally cast a sword in a dream—how many years would you have to wait for a hands-on opportunity like that? Now, you can do it on the spot..."

Tang Zhao said: "Just to have a dream?"

The man laughed: "I won't lie to you, it's immersive! If not ten parts real, it's at least eight parts real. Otherwise, I wouldn't dare sell it at this price. Are you going to try it or not? If you're going to try, be quick about it; there won't be a second chance like this later."

Tang Zhao gritted his teeth and said: "Fine."

Casting a sword in a dream, even if it weren't eight parts real and just as illusory as a normal dream, the experience would still be beneficial. He hadn't actually cast a sword even once yet.

What finally made him decide was a whisper that came from the turtle crouching behind him:

"Go in and have a dream, I'll show you something good."