Chapter 652

The tall plant reflected in the broken mirror was crystalline like jade, with branches and leaves displaying nine distinct colors.

A crimson, gelatinous resin seeped from the trunk, staining the spring water at its roots deep red. However, the other half of this giant tree was tainted by a withered, desolate, and highly ominous aura; even a fleeting glance was enough to feel the scent of death upon it.

Beside this spiritual root were wood-grain stalks resembling trees, bearing plump grains that split open to reveal crystalline flesh.

There was also a spiritual root whose fruit, leaves, and flowers were all like pearls, swaying in the wind beside a jade tree!

Brother Qian Chen stared intently at the phantom reflected in the mirror and sighed, shaking his head as he said, "To think that the Elixir of Immortality can still be seen in the mortal world. It is a pity that it has already been tainted; I wonder how much of its medicinal power remains!"

"Senior, is that truly the Elixir of Immortality?"

Someone hidden in the crowd asked, unable to believe it. The Elixir of Immortality had become a legend over a million years ago, and even the First Emperor of the Immortal Qin could not find it. How could it appear in this illusion?

"The Elixir of Immortality is hard to find in this world. Even when the ancient Earth Immortal Realm was still intact, I doubt there were even nine such plants!"

Brother Qian Chen sighed with emotion: "For an alchemist, refining the Elixir of Immortality is a lifelong dream, almost on par with refining a Nine-Turn Golden Pill! But the only truly reliable records of the Elixir of Immortality are the Imperial Elixir of Mount Wu, the one guarded by the Ten Shamans of Mount Ling, and the Tree of Immortality of Western Western Kunlun! Other so-called Elixirs of Immortality are likely just primary ingredients for refining it, not the true divine spiritual root of immortality!"

"Mount Wu and Mount Ling perished in antiquity, and the Western Western Kunlun Continent was conquered by the First Emperor, yet no Elixir of Immortality was found!" a Nascent Soul Great Cultivator questioned: "How can you be so certain that the one in the illusion is real?"

"Because this plant is the Elixir of Immortality with clear historical records!" Brother Qian Chen shook his head and recited: "On Western Kunlun Void there are wood-grain stalks, five fathoms tall. The Pearl Tree, the Jade Tree, the Whirl Tree, and the Tree of Immortality are to its west."

He pointed at the various spiritual roots surrounding the Tree of Immortality in the illusion and sighed: "I see the wood-grain stalks, the Three-Pearl Tree, and the Jade Tree. That divine medicine, resembling a giant tree, has been eroded by the power of total annihilation within the Gui Xu, yet it still retains such vitality. Only the divine medicine of immortality possesses such miraculous properties!"

"Legend has it that when the Immortal Qin conquered Western Western Kunlun, the Yaochi lineage sank the Western Kunlun Void, the capital beneath the Emperor, into the turbulence of the void. Only the Western Kunlun Mirror could retrieve it, but the Western Kunlun Mirror has long since vanished, which is why the First Emperor failed to obtain the Elixir of Immortality!"

"That place is likely a fragment of the Western Kunlun Void!" Brother Qian Chen pointed at the Tree of Immortality, his words filled with seduction and fanaticism.

Some old monsters nearby were unable to contain their excitement. Once this news spread, even the longevity-seeking demons and ghosts, who were nearing the end of their lifespans and would use any means to extend them, would emerge.

Only the old man from the Yu Jiuyou Sect felt a bit suspicious. Looking at Brother Qian Chen's back, he thought, "I feel like there is a problem! It gives me a very uneasy feeling!"

"This overseas region is becoming increasingly sinister! Last time, even that old monster comparable to a Primordial Spirit fell! Even the spiritual treasure he carried, the Nine Springs, was lost! It caused the sect to rush us here to find clues... It is said that the Heavenly Demon divination within the sect indicates the Nine Springs is in the Gui Xu..."

"I originally wanted to avoid provoking this tough nut, but I never expected to get news of the Gui Xu just by coming here!"

"This coincidence... I feel like something is fishy!" The old man felt increasingly uneasy, watching the illusion that was still manifesting.

At this moment, the figure of a young Daoist appeared in the illusion. He held a broken mirror, stood amidst the ruins of the burial soil, and spoke in a hollow voice: "Finally found this place, the burial soil in the Gui Xu of legend!"

"Many great beings are buried here, hoping to use the sliver of vitality within the deathly silence of the Gui Xu to gather feng shui and live another life!"

The cultivators surging around were filled with Nascent Soul old monsters, and there was no lack of Soul Transformation True Persons. Core Formation cultivators were already as common as dogs; if you threw a brick here, you would hit several.

And they probably wouldn't even care if they were hit until their faces were covered in blood; they would still stare at the illusion without blinking, terrified of missing a single opportunity!

Seeing that figure, the crowd became noisy. A Soul Transformation old monster stared at Brother Qian Chen in the illusion and exclaimed: "Daoist Brother Qian! That is the Daoist Brother Qian who went to sea with Old Monster Feng and the others! Those who went together—Shouyang, Elder Fengyang, Yunhe, Cangshan, and Huofa—are all dead! Half of the overseas cultivation world is practically in mourning, yet he is still alive!"

Brother Qian Chen also said solemnly: "Legend has it that this person is the mastermind behind the scenes who killed several Soul Transformation experts. Could it be for this secret land in the Gui Xu?"

"Fengyangzi sought the Divine Turtle precisely for longevity!"

An ancestor of the Seven Immortal Alliances who knew the inside story widened his eyes and said in horror: "Could it be that they went precisely to find this Tree of Immortality?"

Hearing this, the onlookers were stirred up again, but they heard Brother Qian Chen in the illusion sigh: "It seems the core copper plate of the Dew-Collecting Tray really did sink into the Gui Xu. With the help of the silver plate fragments, I have sensed it! Perhaps I can cast a spell to draw it over!"

He calculated with his fingers and said: "This burial soil moves with the Heavenly Origin Divine Turtle in the Gui Xu. According to the current movement pattern, it will only approach that area in three years! I can set up an array in advance to draw the Dew-Collecting Copper Plate!"

"The Dew-Collecting Tray!"

Countless more cultivators felt their hearts tremble.

The core part of the spiritual treasure, the Dew-Collecting Tray, was the copper plate, cast from the majority of the Immortal Han's foundation, using the last of the Mount Shou copper in the Earth Immortal Realm. The gold and silver plates were merely outer plates for receiving the essence of heaven and earth; the core copper plate was where the true power of the spiritual treasure lay.

But as early as the end of the Immortal Han, the Dew-Collecting Tray had gone missing! Never did they expect the core copper plate to be sunk in the Gui Xu.

And the true insiders were not surprised, because the Dew-Collecting Tray had been seized by the Dragon Clan. Human powerhouses intercepted them in the East Sea, and during the struggle, the silver plate shattered, and the copper plate was knocked into the turbulence of the void!

Naturally, the probability of it sinking into the Gui Xu was the highest!

Who knows how many people were still collecting clues to the whereabouts of the Dew-Collecting Tray? Now that news of the copper plate had appeared, it had already stirred up surging undercurrents.

At this moment, Brother Qian Chen suddenly spoke: "It seems that when that Daoist used the Dew-Collecting Tray fragments to draw the copper plate's location, it caused this segment of the illusion to be sensed by other silver plate fragments! In this way, one can use the fragments of the Dew-Collecting Tray to inversely sense that piece."

"If enough fragments are collected, perhaps one can use the power of the Taiyin Star to open a passage to that secret land!"

The old man from the Yu Jiuyou Sect nearby felt his heart pounding. Looking at the heaven-shaking illusion, he suspected: "Why does this look a bit like the methods commonly used by my Demon Sect? Could it be that someone is fishing?"

At this moment, on the back of the Heavenly Origin Divine Turtle in the Gui Xu, Brother Qian Chen's remnant soul was dreaming of the scene in the flying boat market while live-streaming the scene inside his own grave.

'Li Er' in the Twelve-Story Building was just a dream of his!

The Brother Qian Chen appearing in the grave was also a wisp of a dream.

Through the broken mirror of the Dew-Collecting Tray, he projected this dream of his onto other fragments of the Dew-Collecting silver plate, which created this illusion! Of course, Brother Qian Chen did not lie to them; finding enough fragments of the Dew-Collecting silver plate could indeed be used to sense and utilize this one-third of a nation-protecting spiritual treasure to open a passage to that continent in the Gui Xu.

Even the Tree of Immortality and the Dew-Collecting Copper Plate were not fake...

The Tree of Immortality was given to Brother Qian Chen by the Western Kunlun Mirror. Originally, it was naturally a supreme treasure, but unfortunately, it was tainted by a destructive, void-like power within the turbulence of the void! The Western Kunlun Mirror could not purify it either, so it lent it to Brother Qian Chen to plant on his grave, hoping to erase that curse and ominousness through the Gui Xu!

And the Dew-Collecting Copper Plate was indeed sunk in the Gui Xu, but Brother Qian Chen had no time to retrieve it, so he simply used it to go fishing!

No matter how those old schemers investigated or divined, these things were all true and not mixed with a shred of falsehood. Brother Qian Chen's true purpose was simply to invite them to his grave for a meeting.

What bad intentions could little Brother Qian Zhuzhu have?

Little Brother Qian Zhuzhu just wanted to keep some people to keep him company!

Brother Qian Chen in the illusion walked through many parts of his grave, and some secret places drew gasps from the crowd.

"A temple ruin flashed by, and there seem to be many eerie stone figures!"

"I saw an ancient grave that seems to bury a terrifying existence!"

"A shadow of an immortal flashed by; there might be immortals in that burial soil!"

"This burial soil is too ancient! It may hide heaven-shaking secrets. The cave heavens and continents that sank into the Gui Xu might all appear there! Some things we thought were destroyed might still exist in that secret land!"

"Once this news spreads, the entire overseas region will be alarmed, and perhaps cultivators from the Central Lands and other continents will also rush over!"

"After all, the existence in that secret land is too astonishing, and it hides endless treasures!"

Brother Qian Chen pulled Hua Hua Daier along, echoing the crowd's words one by one. From time to time, he explained certain heavenly materials and earth treasures and astonishing ruins that appeared in the illusion. The surrounding cultivators were stirred up with desire. This time, many immortal sects and aristocratic families, and even the top few Daoist lineages, were likely to fall into his trap.

Thinking of his possible gains, Brother Qian Chen was full of energy, his face filled with a gentle smile.

"Uncle Li!" Hua Hua Daier whispered: "This has really blown up! The entire overseas region is going to tremble..."

"Strange, why am I learning to talk like you!" Hua Hua Daier was a bit puzzled: "And the tone of others is also weird; their word choices are different from usual!"

"Be good... Everyone is infected by this astonishing secret land, and for a moment, they can't help but speak like this!"

Brother Qian Chen looked smilingly at the amazed passersby around him. Now he didn't even need to speak; the people around him seemed to have remembered something, exclaiming one by one, creating an atmosphere one by one, and explaining one by one!

It was as if thousands of Brother Qian Chens were speaking. They couldn't help but imitate Brother Qian Chen's tone, and even their expressions were as exaggerated as his, yet they were completely unaware of it.

"This is all a dream!"

Brother Qian Chen whispered: "A great dream; it's good to wake up!"

"But... it's also possible not to wake up!" Brother Qian Chen's tone was deep, making Hua Hua Daier beside him shiver.

Brother Qian Chen in the illusion was still revealing secrets: "I saw a golden figure... It is as tall as the Divine Turtle, and its volume is astonishing! Beside it, there seem to be the wreckage of the Stellar Heavenly Ship... The Immortal Qin's terracotta soldiers seem to be still guarding it."

"For hundreds of thousands of years, these terracotta soldiers have remained powerful, making one yearn for the greatness of the Immortal Qin era!"

"There is inextinguishable light in some cave heaven wreckage; it might be a spiritual treasure that suppresses the cave heaven!"

"Many immortals and gods are buried here, and at night, one can see many terrifying ghosts..."

The young Daoist in the illusion held up the broken mirror, as if recording what he saw and heard. Brother Qian Chen in reality looked down at Hua Hua Daier and asked with a smile: "Do you feel like something is wrong?"

Hua Hua Daier nodded and whispered: "I feel like that person is luring us in..."

Brother Qian Chen smiled: "This is an open conspiracy; this illusion might have been released by someone on purpose. But even if they know there might be a ghost, I'm afraid not many people can resist the temptation!"

He looked at the world reflected in the broken mirror and sneered: "What decent person writes a diary?"

"Do you write one?"

Hua Hua Daier shook her head hurriedly, her baby-fat face rippling with tiny waves of flesh...

"I don't write one either... unless it's for others to see!" Brother Qian Chen revealed a meaningful smile.

This was a great divine ability, an astonishing Daoist technique. He used the fragments of the Dew-Collecting silver plate as a medium to create a dreamlike illusion. Through the Dao of Heavenly Divination and the traction of karma, he gradually turned all of this into a dream of his own.

The Nanhua Sect seeks transcendence through dreams, but at this moment, Brother Qian Chen is creating a tribulation through dreams!

Great Divine Ability—Dream of the Zhou Tian!

The karma gathered in this tribulation would all become part of Brother Qian Chen's dream. Even the entire tribulation would become a great dream. In this tribulation drawn by the Dew-Collecting silver plate, all the living beings who died around those silver mirrors were a dream of Brother Qian Chen's. When the tribulation ended, it would shatter like a reflection in a mirror or the moon in the water.

All involved living beings, in their dreams, in their consciousness, and in their wisdom, would contain a part of Brother Qian Chen's thoughts.

It is unknown whether Brother Qian Chen dreamed of them, or they dreamed of Brother Qian Chen.

This is the method of attaining the Dao that Brother Qian Chen realized after comprehending the "Sutra of the Root of All Laws"—he combined the Nanhua Sect's "Free and Easy Wandering" and "Discussion on the Equality of Things," turning his thoughts into wisdom, infecting living beings one by one through Heavenly Divination, and finally turning the entire tribulation into a dream.

In this way, in everyone's thoughts, in everyone's wisdom, there is a part of Brother Qian Chen, and they have all become part of this dream of Brother Qian Chen's. He will turn into everyone in the dream, performing a "plot"!

Then, through this predetermined plot tribulation, he will refine everyone into his wisdom beads, Mani beads!

Three thousand wisdoms to become an immortal; in Brother Qian Chen's view, how can mere Mani beads represent wisdom?

One bead is one kind of wisdom, but this so-called wisdom, this so-called Prajna, still has limitations—too limited! True wisdom should be people! Therefore, he proves the Dao through the living beings in the dream, proving one person after another in the dream, turning them into his own wisdom, and refining this tribulation into his own dream. I am the living beings, and I am the Buddha.

The wisdom of the living beings is my wisdom!

And everything the living beings experience is a dream of mine!

This is the true wisdom of attaining the Dao, attaining the Dao in a dream... Of course, Brother Qian Chen is not devouring everyone, but dispersing his own dreams, some extremely subtle thoughts, into everyone's consciousness. These thoughts constitute a part of their consciousness, jointly forming a part of Brother Qian Chen's dream.

For the living beings dreamed of, the self will not change, just like the butterfly dream section in the Nanhua Sutra...

Once, Zhuang Zhou dreamed he was a butterfly, a butterfly fluttering about; he was satisfied with his own will and did not know he was Zhou. Suddenly he woke up, and he was Zhou again!

Dream of the Zhou Tian is an extremely brilliant great divine ability. When it is unleashed, there are no heaven-shaking phenomena or power, only the creation of a dream and the entrustment of an illusory Dao fruit!

Brother Qian Chen combined the "Sutra of the Root of All Laws," the "Nanhua Sutra," and that wisp of Dao fruit from the Supreme Heavenly Demon to create this technique! With the Dream of the Zhou Tian, he entrusts an illusory Dao fruit, refines countless living beings into his Mani beads, and then attains the Dao as an immortal in the dream!

This is the method of attaining the Dao through wisdom, attaining the Dao in a dream, and attaining the Dao through transformation!

For this, he planned a great tribulation. Starting from the fragments of the Dew-Collecting silver plate, he lured all interested parties to the flying boat market, allowing the fragments to reunite. Then he opened the tribulation, grandly dragging 60% of the overseas immortal sects and aristocratic families into it. At the moment the Dew-Collecting silver plate reunited, he evolved the Dream of the Zhou Tian, attaining the Dao as an immortal. Then he lured these leeks who had survived the tribulation to his own grave to continue the next round...

Cutting a crop of leeks twice! Even the roots are gone!

You really have a way, Brother Qian Brother Qian Zhuzhu!

Brother Qian Chen's conscience wailed, wishing he could come out and shout: "This is a leek-killing plate, everyone don't go!"

But soon, the conscience person was beaten half to death, dragged out, and said weakly: "The Earth Immortal Realm is not a place outside the law. My remarks have caused Brother Qian Brother Qian Zhuzhu a lot of trouble, and I feel very guilty about this..."