Chapter 416: Golden Bell Rings, Mount Zhong Shakes; Mysterious Light Appears, Grotto-Heaven Opens

Night fell, and the stars in the firmament became even more brilliant. The lights of ten thousand homes in Jin Ling City in the distance were like stars falling to the ground. But when the moon was in the middle of the sky, the brilliance of the Taiyin star gradually took away all the starlight, like a beam of light connecting heaven and earth, casting toward the Dragon-Locking Well. By the ancient well, figures were already moving.

The older generation of clan True Persons brought their younger generation to the ancient jade well.

There were more than a hundred people standing by the jade well, mostly one older True Person bringing one young cultivator.

The clans had the largest number of people, with a total of nine Yin Spirit True Persons coming together, bringing dozens of clan cultivators.

The Immortal Sect side had a total of three Yin Spirit True Persons. The Third Elder of the Luo Fu Sect had a lazy expression, his green Daoist robe wrinkled and disheveled. True Person Xin Zhao of Mount Qingxu was a refined middle-aged scholar wearing a headscarf and Confucian robes, his demeanor gentle. Added to them was True Person He Jian Ku of the Wu Yue Sword Gate, who was tall and thin, possessing a sharp aura and a very solemn expression. Among these three, two came from cultivation families, while only the Luo Fu Sect elder was a figure from a humble background.

As for the loose cultivators, only Brother Qian Chen and Liu Yu had Yin Spirit combat power, and several Core Formation scholars, and even Aperture Opening cultivators, all took them as leaders, vaguely taking refuge behind them.

In addition, there was the Dao Academy side, which was also a Yin Spirit True Person, bringing several true disciples of the Dao Academy. These true disciples hadn't even appeared at the Copper Sparrow Tower banquet, and Si Princess Qingcheng mixed among them, secretly giving Brother Qian Chen a wink.

At this moment, a red copper hall in the sky roared and flew into Mount Zhong.

An Yin Spirit cultivator in front of the hall scanned the crowd with a sinister look, his face respectful, and said to the people behind him: "Prince, several clan sons, we have arrived at Mount Zhong!"

Master Sima Wu Yue walked out of the hall and looked down at the crowd. Seeing Brother Qian Chen, his face twitched, and the corners of his eyes jumped slightly. That arrogant aura was suppressed by three points, which made the group of clan True Persons find it funny, and their prejudice against Brother Qian Chen dissipated by three points in their hearts—this Li Taibai really didn't give anyone face, and that faint arrogance wouldn't change because of who it was, so it wasn't entirely aimed at their clans.

Didn't they see that the Prince of Donghai, who had the momentum of a Crown Prince in this generation of the Master Sima family, had suffered a loss in front of him?

"Prince!" The royal attendant was like a slave in front of Master Sima Wu Yue. Seeing Master Sima Wu Yue staring at Brother Qian Chen, he also felt a little guilty, and could only bite the bullet and say: "Should we use the Emperor's decree to drive this person away?"

Master Sima Wu Yue shook his head slightly: "Offending Xiao Xie Gong like this! And, how could I be afraid of a mere Yin Spirit loose cultivator?"

"The Master Sima family has come, it seems the time has arrived, and the road to the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven should be opened!" The sloppy elder of the Luo Fu Sect opened his eyes, and the oily and slippery look revealed in his eyes, which were narrowed into a line, showed that he was also a person who had become a spirit. Fuyouzi asked curiously: "This well leads to the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven, do we have to jump in?"

The third elder said gloomily: "I don't know!"

The chubby Fuyouzi widened his eyes, looking at the third elder with a dumbfounded look of 'how can you not know.'

"The Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven opens once every hundred years. The entrances rotate between Xuanwu Lake, the Imperial City, the Zhu Que Bridge, and Mount Zhong. The last time it opened at Mount Zhong was more than three hundred years ago. I wasn't a Luo Fu elder then, so where would I have the opportunity to see it?"

The third elder flicked his sleeves in annoyance. He paused and pointed out with meaning: "The Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven has been controlled by the clans of the Great Jin throughout the ages. If it weren't for the invitation of Xiao Xie Anshi Gong this time, how could we immortal sect cultivators have the opportunity to see it?"

True Person Gu laughed and said: "The Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven relies on the Jiankang dragon vein and is related to the foundation of the country, so the Imperial Court's supervision is strict. Therefore, it is only opened to young people with high grades recommended by the local Zhang Zhongzheng officials. Although family background is a top choice, what is more important is a clean background. Otherwise, if the dragon vein is destroyed, wouldn't it be..."

The Third Elder smiled slightly. "A clean background—doesn't that mean it must be a noble family? And it must be a prominent family that has served in office for generations; even the cultivation families that control the Immortal Sects are excluded."

True Person Xiao pointed to the Dragon-Locking Well and said: "The last time the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven opened was in the water eye of Xuanwu Lake. True Person Liufeng of the Dao Academy came with the Zhang Tian Shi's magic seal, triggering the Zhang Tian Shi's sword at the bottom of the lake, causing a huge water eye vortex to form on the lake surface. We sank into the water eye on flying boats, and naturally arrived at the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven. As for this Mount Zhong Dragon-Locking Well, the last time it opened was too long ago, and I can't remember..."

At this moment, the moonlight was shining straight into the well, and the ancient symbols engraved by the side of the well bloomed with brilliance. A huge sound of surging water came from the well mouth, as if the clear spring water in the well was drained in an instant.

Fuyouzi leaned over to look, only to see the water level in the well dropping rapidly.

At this moment, even those who knew nothing about how the Dragon-Locking Well entrance opened understood—the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven—was opening!

Wang Wang Zhiyuan, who was sent by the Dao Academy to guard this place, stepped forward. He held the golden bell engraved with countless spiritual texts and channeled the nameless Dao scripture engraved on the golden bell. In an instant, the bell rang loudly, and the spiritual texts on it detached from the bell wall, flying and circling. The nameless Dao scripture changed, vaguely forming a sacrificial text for the gods. The bell sound echoed fiercely in the mountains, triggering the divine texts engraved on the jade wall at the well mouth.

Brother Qian Chen stared at the sacrificial text. That was the most ancient sacrificial chapter of the Dragon-Locking Well, containing the great secrets of the ancient Divine Dao inherited in the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven.

It was once a sacrificial text used by the Great Wu of the Chu State to sacrifice to this place on Mount Zhong.

This sacrificial text was engraved on the golden bell by Wang Wang Zhiyuan. At this moment, the bell rang, as if crossing the ages, the Great Wu of the Chu State sacrificed here, triggering the astonishing changes in the Dragon-Locking Well...

"This is... why has the opening method of the Dragon-Locking Well changed?" True Person Zhu's face changed greatly, and he turned back to ask: "Wang Wang Zhiyuan, what kind of tricks are you playing? Why not summon the dragon species raised in the well and use blood sacrifice to open the Grotto-Heaven?"

Wang Wang Zhiyuan sneered: "I have guarded this place for decades and studied the relics of the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven. You wouldn't think I have gained nothing, would you! I have restored the ancient Wu-Chu sacrificial ceremony of this place, which will inevitably trigger deeper changes in the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven... I guarantee that I can send you all into the Grotto-Heaven smoothly. And it can directly enter the deeper level of the Grotto-Heaven. You have made a profit, haven't you?"

Master Sima Wu Yue stood in the copper hall, his face gloomy, staring at Wang Wang Zhiyuan: "The four entrances to the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven have long been cleared by my Master Sima family, and there is no danger, so we can safely go deep into the Grotto-Heaven. You are sending us all into the deeper part of the Grotto-Heaven. If you trigger the arrangements of those Fangxian Daoists, or even touch the legacy of the Wu Divine Dao, are you trying to kill us?"

"Prince of Donghai is overthinking!" Wang Wang Zhiyuan said: "The places where the four entrances lead have long been scraped clean, what harvest can there be! Sending you to a deeper place is the great blessing!"

"And, this means of entering the Grotto-Heaven is the legacy of the Chu State Wu sacrifice, which is the safest means of entering the Grotto-Heaven, how can there be danger?"

"You can rest assured and go in!" Wang Wang Zhiyuan shouted: "For this, I have spent my capital. Moving the source of the Dao golden bell like this once will delay my refining it into a magic treasure for ten years. If it weren't for the entrustment of the three Heavenly Masters, how could I lightly move the source of the golden bell!"

Golden thunder emerged from the sacrificial text surrounding the Dao source golden bell, striking the well railing, as if the roar of nine-day divine thunder came from the endless distance in the well, piercing through a thousand li to the surface. The agitated bell sound caused the huge chain hanging from the Dragon-Locking Well to tighten suddenly, and then the chain vibrated violently, making a clanking sound. A huge mechanism starting sound came from the depths of the Dragon-Locking Well. A small dragon in the well was terrified and fled, hiding behind Wang Wang Zhiyuan and trembling.

This dragon species had a purer bloodline than the evil dragon killed by Wang Longxiang, and had already condensed a dragon pearl, but it was trembling and terrified in this astonishing change and divinity.

In the Dragon-Locking Well, the ancient and vast sacrificial sound echoed clearly. In the divine light erupting from the well, many ancient ancestors with blurred faces appeared, wearing masks and feather crowns of the Chu State Wu sacrifice, dragging a true dragon to the Dragon-Locking Well. He held the sacrificial knife high and pierced the dragon's reverse scale.

The dragon blood fell into the well, and the sacrifice reached its climax!

The divine light trembled, and another group of ancient cultivators wearing Dharma robes and feather crowns appeared. They came to this ancient sacrificial land, demolished the sacrificial altars and temples here, leaving only the Dragon-Locking Well. They built huge mechanisms, cast the chain with Heavenly Fire Purple Copper, and went deep into the well mouth, becoming a part of some mechanism magic treasure...

"The material of this chain is not Purple-Yang Flame Copper, but the immortal material for refining magic treasures—Heavenly Fire Purple Copper!" An immortal sect cultivator exclaimed.

Everyone's eyes looking at the thick and long chain became scorching hot. According to legend, the chain was at least three thousand zhang long. How many magic treasures could this spiritual material refine? Casting such a supreme treasure into a chain and becoming a part of some mechanism was not just extravagant, it was simply a waste of heaven's gifts.

"Once Heavenly Fire Purple Copper is formed, there is almost no fire that can melt it... That is the copper material nurtured in heavenly fire after all!"

"Waste!" Fuyouzi roared to the sky: "What kind of mechanism did those Fangxian Daoists cast so extravagantly? Leave it to me! How many resources did you Fangxian Daoists waste, harming our descendants to suffer poverty..."

"Legend has it that the decline of the Fangxian Dao was due to wasting too many resources, attracting the dissatisfaction of the Dao Lords of the Heavenly Realm. Now it seems, they really deserved to die!" True Person Zhou Yin sighed.

"Awesome!" Brother Qian Chen also sighed: "To be able to tie up a Grotto-Heaven world, it really requires such divine gold. These Fangxian Daoists borrowed the sacrifice left by the Chu State to leave a passage to the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven... Oh! At that time, it was still a piece of divine soil, borrowing the passage left by the sacrifice to pierce through the Grotto-Heaven divine soil, using chains to tie the Grotto-Heaven to the earth root of Mount Zhong, and then using the power of the Great River and Mount Zhong's mountain and water dragon veins to accumulate power, so that when necessary, the Grotto-Heaven could be pulled back to the Central Lands."

"No wonder the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven could open when all thirty-six Grotto-Heavens of the Earth Immortal Realm were hidden!"

The sound of the chain pulling was actually pulling a Grotto-Heaven world closer. The power carried by the vibrating chain was enough to crush dozens of Primordial Spirit True Immortals. As the incomparably vast and ancient aura between heaven and earth approached, the Grotto-Heaven and the Jiankang dragon vein were quietly approaching, and even overlapping. At this moment, the dragon Qi of the earth vein under Jiankang City glowed with divinity.

The Qin Huai River glowed with five-colored light, the Zhu Que Bridge was as bright as fire, reflecting the Wuyi Lane to be bright all night.

At the Lesser Yin White Tiger Imperial City, dragon roars sounded under the armillary sphere, the Imperial City underground palace trembled slightly, as if a true dragon was roaring in anger.

In Xuanwu Lake, the turtle and snake coiled, floating up a huge Xuanwu stone statue, like a small island in the lake. The divine light on the statue was brilliant, as if a true Xuanwu was shaking its head and tail, causing the surrounding fishermen to kowtow.

At the bottom of the Dragon-Locking Well, a magic seal shone brightly and flew up suddenly...

The brilliant spiritual light triggered the Azure Dragon Seven Mansions. Seven great stars, Jiao, Kang, Di, Fang... shook, surrounding the bright moon and dropping a beam of light connecting heaven and earth. On the magic seal, the seal script appeared, and each character shone brightly. Wang Wang Zhiyuan turned his head abruptly, looking at the seal script in the beam of light, his face full of disbelief.

As the Supreme One's Decree!

"How is it possible... The Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven has ancient divine soil, Fangxian relics, and even a history of being occupied by side-door immortal sects, but how can there be the Supreme One's decree? The Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven is not one of the thirty-six Grotto-Heavens of the Dao Sect! Could it be?" Wang Wang Zhiyuan recalled that someone who held his junior sister's token came here three years ago and threw a magic seal into the well.

Someone was using the remaining magic seal, using the beam of light connecting the Central Lands and the Grotto-Heaven, the chain, and the seal to point to the distant end of the Grotto-Heaven to explore this road.

Brother Qian Chen opened his eyes, shocked in his heart: "In the well, something huge is rushing up... I still underestimated the madness of those Fangxian Daoists. They actually built an elevator between the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven and the Earth Immortal Realm!"

Mount Zhong trembled violently, the mountain roots erupted with divine light, and the Divine Dao marks branded here years ago resonated again. The origin of the Jin Ling dragon vein suddenly manifested. A towering and unparalleled divine peak stood in the divine light, with a red dragon holding a candle coiling around the divine mountain, just like the rubbing Si Princess Qingcheng had shown Brother Qian Chen.

East of heaven is Ruomu, Mount Zhong has a red dragon holding a candle!

Mount Zhong, it really is Mount Zhong!

"No wonder Mount Zhong is not towering, yet it can become the Ancestral Dragon of the south!" Xiao Xie Xiao Xie Lingyun also said in shock: "It turns out it is transformed from the mountain roots of an ancient divine mountain!"

At this moment, no one was more shocked than Brother Qian Chen in his heart. He whispered: "The God of Mount Zhong is named Zhuyin... But Mount Zhong should be north of the Red Water, the country without sun in the northwest, it is an extremely cold mountain in the far north. Why is this realm in Jin Ling?"

At this moment, Mount Zhong trembled, the mountain top where the jade well was located cracked, revealing the mysterious yellow stone quality of the mountain roots. Pale yellow dragon Qi steamed, the jade well erupted with divine light, in which black, white, green, red, and yellow five-colored divine light rotated, triggering the power of Brother Qian Chen's Five Elements Heavenly Escape Great Pill, and even the mysterious symbols engraved on the mysterious yellow mountain body, under the traction of various astronomical symbols in the ancient well, gathered together to form a huge Eight Trigrams diagram.

"The power of the five elements, containing the aura of the ancient Divine Dao!"

"And the Eight Trigrams diagram is engraved by Fangxian Daoists, recording the manifestation of the coordinate data of the passage between the Grotto-Heaven and the Earth Immortal Realm!"

At this moment, only Brother Qian Chen could sort out these various anomalies: "The principles are clear, the five elements aura is divine and ancient, while the Eight Trigrams contain extremely profound mysterious principles!"

With the jade well as the center, the Eight Trigrams mysterious light covering the entire mountain top emitted a faint traction force. Wang Wang Zhiyuan took a step back, with a slight shock, looking at this astonishing change, and whispered: "Everyone, the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven has opened, why don't you enter?"

At this time, some people followed this traction force and threw themselves into the Eight Trigrams mysterious light, turning into streams of light and throwing themselves into the jade well.

Brother Qian Chen smiled slightly and was the first among the Yin Spirits to step into the mysterious light.

Wang Longxiang pondered slightly, then followed, and then a group of loose cultivators gathered their courage and threw themselves into the mysterious light. The sloppy elder of the Luo Fu Sect laughed, pulled the unwilling Fuyouzi and walked into the mysterious light, and finally the immortal sect cultivators followed.

The group of clan True Persons looked at each other. Yu Liang said calmly: "It's just some changes, what do we have to fear? Could it be that we are really as the loose cultivators say, the clans are old and cowardly?"

Following the group of clan disciples, they also stepped into the mysterious light.

In the sky, the royal attendant driving the copper hall turned to look at the Prince of Donghai. Master Sima Wu Yue gritted his teeth, drove the copper hall, and fell into the Eight Trigrams mysterious light.

Wang Wang Zhiyuan stared at the well mouth, the golden bell in his hand shook violently, the Eight Trigrams mysterious light slowly dissipated, and the various anomalies also subsided.

He still looked at the jade well and suddenly whispered: "Li Taibai, I don't want to investigate your background, but you better protect Ning Ning Shimei well, humph! The Master Sima family colluded with the Demon Dao and also sneaked into the Jin Ling Grotto-Heaven. I sent you deeper, which should have broken some of their plans. As long as you are smart enough, nothing will happen."

Thinking of this, Wang Wang Zhiyuan revealed a sneer—

"Master Sima Wu Yue's face just now was quite a sight..." ===== CHAPTER 417 =====