[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl":3,"chapter-the-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl-the-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl-chapter-538":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Great Jin's Most Iron Rice Bowl",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1897312,2531,"Chapter 538: Entering the Soul Realm","the-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl-chapter-538",538,"\u003Cp>\"The conditions for entering the Nine Nether Soul Realm are non-negotiable!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Reading the reply from the Lingguang Hall, the leaders of the various major sects and noble families were furious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This Hall Master of Lingguang Hall is far too overbearing!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Exactly, who conducts affairs like her? Leaving no room for discussion whatsoever is simply autocratic!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Within the Spirit Realm Pavilion of the Pill Saint Hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meng Qingyao sat upright in the seat of honor, her gaze sweeping over the secret realm masters and department heads present, before stating in a heavy voice, \"Since Lingguang Hall is unwilling to lower its conditions, if we wish to seize the opportunity to enter the Soul Realm, I fear we have no choice but to accept the price she has set.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As her words fell, a brief silence descended upon the main hall, and everyone's eyes drifted subtly toward Yu Fu and Jia Lu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Ziyang could not help but speak up to test the waters: \"Hall Master Yu, Hall Master Jia, may I ask how you both view this matter?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Fu and Jia Lu exchanged a glance, then turned to Meng Qingyao with respectful expressions, replying in unison, \"We abide by Pavilion Master Meng's instructions.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing these two kick the ball back, Shen Qianfan suddenly spoke: \"I heard that Peak Master Hua exited seclusion yesterday; some disciples spotted Peak Master Hua on Danyuan Peak.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon hearing this, the expressions of everyone present immediately straightened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Fu glanced at Shen Qianfan and smiled faintly, \"Pavilion Master Shen is indeed well-informed.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shen Qianfan pressed on relentlessly: \"May I ask what Peak Master Hua thinks regarding the matter of the Nine Nether Soul Realm?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Fu remained as impenetrable as ever: \"The Master has instructed that all affairs of the Pill Saint Hall are to follow Pavilion Master Meng's arrangements.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Realizing he could pry no extra information from Yu Fu and Jia Lu, Shen Qianfan helplessly shifted the topic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Lingguang Hall's conditions are truly too high.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If we truly act accordingly, a single slot would cost one billion low-grade spirit stones. For one hundred slots, that is one hundred billion low-grade spirit stones, enough to equal a medium-sized spirit mine.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even for a Dao-protecting family with deep foundations, parting with a medium-sized spirit mine would cause considerable heartache.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Ziyang looked toward Meng Qingyao and suggested, \"Pavilion Master, I believe we should delay making a decision for now, wait and see, and observe the reactions of other holy lands, sects, and noble families first.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, the others nodded in agreement one after another.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meanwhile, in the Elder Hall of the Artifact Saint Palace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Liulang followed behind Tong Yao, entering with slight apprehension. Seeing the elders seated together, he unconsciously slowed his breathing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Grand Elder Yiming, his expression grave, spoke first: \"Lingguang Hall insists on not lowering the price; ten billion low-grade spirit stones per slot is truly an outrageous demand.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Other holy lands have sent messages proposing that we jointly lodge a protest against the Hall Master of Lingguang Hall and pressure her to lower the conditions. What does everyone think of this move?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The elders responded one after another, clearly unwilling for the Artifact Saint Palace to pay such an exorbitant price.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing that everyone was of one mind, Grand Elder Yiming turned his gaze toward Tong Yao and Hua Liulang: \"What do you two think?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tong Yao pondered for a moment before answering honestly, \"This disciple feels... perhaps we should not.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his view, while ten billion low-grade spirit stones per slot sounded like an astronomical figure, cultivating a single Nascent Soul realm cultivator required roughly the same amount of resources.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If cultivating within the Soul Realm could truly grant Spirit Platform realm cultivators a significant improvement, then this asking price was not actually an sky-high extortion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Liulang had not expected the Grand Elder to ask for his opinion; somewhat nervously, he scratched his head: \"I... I have no opinion.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Hua Liulang's honest and bewildered expression, Grand Elder Yiming had no choice but to speak plainly: \"Liulang, rumors are currently spreading outside that Hua Changxi is actually the Hall Master of Lingguang Hall...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Grand Elder, that is a rumor!\" Hua Liulang interrupted without a moment's thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Grand Elder Yiming choked slightly, then said helplessly, \"...Very well, let us assume it is a rumor. I am speaking hypothetically: if the Hall Master of Lingguang Hall truly is Hua Changxi, and we join forces with other powers to pressure her, do you think she will yield?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Liulang shook his head like a rattle-drum, his tone firm and decisive: \"Definitely not, there is not the slightest possibility!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Recalling his Ninth Sister's temperament, Hua Liulang could not help but complain: \"My Ninth Sister has a very stubborn temper; the more she is suppressed, the more fiercely she resists.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I remember when we were children, Grandmother made her apologize, but she refused; as a result, she was locked up for three days and three nights. Even when she was so starved she had no strength left, she did not make a single sound.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If my Ninth Sister truly is the Hall Master of Lingguang Hall, and you all pressure her even more, hmph hmph...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching Hua Liulang go \"hmph hmph,\" the hesitation and indecision in Grand Elder Yiming's eyes grew denser; his original intention to unite with others to apply pressure and lower the cost wavered somewhat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meanwhile, within the Array Saint Sect and the Talisman Saint Pavilion, Yan Zhenzhen and Jing Liao were also asked for their opinions by their respective sect high-ups.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yan Zhenzhen said, \"If the Nine Nether Soul Realm can truly greatly enhance the divine sense of Spirit Platform realm cultivators, then I feel the conditions set by Lingguang Hall can be accepted.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jing Liao stated, \"Transactions follow the heart; if Lingguang Hall's price does not suit us, we simply do not trade with them. Joining other powers to coerce them by force is truly not a good deed.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The four great holy lands each possessed deep foundations and were still weighing pros and cons, hesitating; as for the other sects and noble families, the situation went without saying.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone harbored their own little calculations, tacitly choosing a delaying tactic, all thinking to give Lingguang Hall the cold shoulder first, thereby observing the situation in hopes of forcing the other party to lower the price.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for the Xuanyuan Prefecture and the Central Holy Land, serving as the balancing hub and coordinating body among the various human powers, it was difficult for them to rashly take a stance in this situation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In order not to go against the majority of powers, they also chose to remain stationary, not immediately replying to Lingguang Hall's message.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meanwhile, within Lingguang Hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Facing the various parties that had shown no movement for a long time, Yun You felt not the slightest surprise and calmly reported the matter to Hua Changxi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, having to part with such enormous resources, anyone would find it difficult to make a decisive choice in a short time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nearly all the stewards and department heads of Lingguang Hall were Spirit Platform realm cultivators; many suffered from slow cultivation progress due to the difficulty of cultivating their divine sense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Therefore, they all wished to open the Nine Nether Soul Realm as soon as possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet now, various powers were observing each other and dawdling in order to pay less; if this endless delay continued, who knew when the Nine Nether Soul Realm would truly open.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One month later, in the main hall of Lingguang Hall, Hua Changxi stored away the refined fourth-grade pills she had made and took out a One-Thought Communicator to check.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There were no messages!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In other words, a month had passed, and the various parties were still dawdling and delaying.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hmph!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although she had not encountered life-or-death crises while venturing deep into the Nine Nether hinterlands, she had still paid a considerable price.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Netherfire Wood was seized by her, so how to set the rules for entering the Soul Realm was for her to decide.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The various parties merely wanted to rely on their superior numbers to coerce her into changing the conditions, dictating the terms of entry according to their own will.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She hated being threatened and coerced, and she even more so hated various parties gathering together to bully her by relying on their power!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After pondering for a moment, Hua Changxi sent a message to the Hall Master of the Mission Hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Have the patrols and garrison troops at all borders of Nanxiang County been arranged?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Mission Hall Master replied, \"They have been arranged.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi said, \"Notify the selected Spirit Platform and Infant Transformation cultivators to gather at the Shanmen plaza early tomorrow morning.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among the hundred thousand Zhu Que soldiers, there were nearly a hundred Spirit Platform cultivators and over twenty thousand Infant Transformation cultivators.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Due to the responsibility of guarding Nanxiang County, a month ago she had the Mission Hall randomly transfer fifty percent of the Spirit Platform and Infant Transformation cultivators into the Soul Realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Afterwards, Hua Changxi sent a message to the Discipline Hall Master: \"The Zhu Que army is about to enter the Soul Realm for cultivation. Since the duration of stay in the Soul Realm is uncertain, the stationed Zhu Que troops must strictly patrol and fully maintain order in Nanxiang County and its surroundings, ensuring absolutely no mishaps.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon receiving the message, both the Mission Hall and the Discipline Hall immediately began their deployments.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Early the next morning, three groups of people had already arrived at the Lingguang Hall Shanmen plaza.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first group was led by Jing Sheng; behind him stood over a hundred jailers from the Ghost Fire Well, all uniformly at the Infant Transformation stage, surrounded by ghostly qi, emitting an aura of grim killing intent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The second group, led by An Ze, was equally impressive. Besides three fierce Spirit Platform realm demonic beasts, there were more than ten Spirit Platform cultivators and dozens of Infant Transformation cultivators arrayed in formation alongside them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The final group consisted of a solitary figure—Die Wu, a Spirit Platform cultivator. She stood alone in a corner of the plaza; though single and shadowless, she possessed an undeniable aura of calm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the selected Spirit Platform and Infant Transformation Zhu Que soldiers were notified to assemble at the Shanmen plaza, they noticed these three groups from afar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Who are those people...?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yun You and other hall masters and stewards had also come to the Shanmen plaza; looking at the three groups, their eyes flickered slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That is Die Wu, the guardian of the Wutong Forest!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And the jailers from the Ghost Fire Well!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"As for that other batch... except for the leader who is from the Zhu Que army, the rest do not seem to be our people.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the Mission Hall Master announced today's assembly, he did not explicitly state the reason, but upon seeing these three groups, everyone immediately guessed—the Hall Master was about to lead them into the Soul Realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking of this, a small number of people immediately took out their One-Thought Communicators and sent out their speculations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since they did not recognize An Ze and his party, the Zhu Que soldiers gathered in the plaza immediately began discussing loudly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An Ze, however, paid no heed to the scrutinizing gazes from all sides; instead, he looked straight up toward the main hall at the top of the stone stairs—there,不知 when, a crimson figure shimmering with colorful light had appeared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon, the others in the plaza also noticed the presence of that figure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In an instant, the originally noisy plaza fell completely silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi stood at the highest point of Lingguang Hall, looking down from above upon the Zhu Que soldiers in the plaza.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since the Soul River traverses the Heaven, Human, and Earth realms, the entry points to the Soul Realm can be anywhere; it is called the \"Nine Nether Soul Realm\" simply because the Soul River manifests more frequently in the Nine Nethers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She prepared to open the Nine Nether Soul Realm right there at the Lingguang Hall Shanmen plaza.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Confirming that everyone had arrived, Hua Changxi flipped her right hand, and a dark blue orb of light exuding a dense, yin cold air suddenly materialized out of thin air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Netherfire Match!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When she first obtained the Netherfire Match, although Hua Changxi knew it was the key to opening the Nine Nether Soul Realm, she did not know exactly how to use it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, upon seeing the match's peculiar structure resembling an ordinary matchstick, a flash of inspiration struck her mind, and she instantly comprehended the method to open the Soul Realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Scratch~\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hua Changxi gently struck the Netherfire Match in her hand just like striking an ordinary match.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Immediately, the surrounding space instantly rippled with layers of violent fluctuations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next moment, the center of the fluctuations seemed to be sliced open by an invisible sharp blade; the crack rapidly spread and expanded, finally turning into a slit tall enough for a person.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As soon as the slit appeared, dense soul force leaked out, causing the expressions of everyone in the plaza to brighten.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone stared eagerly at that slit, thinking it was the entrance to the Soul Realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who would have expected that the very next instant, a formless, vast, and solid soul force would envelop the entire area without any warning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soul Domain!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After covering the people on the main Shanmen plaza with the Soul Domain, Hua Changxi stepped forward into the rift before her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for the crowd within the Soul Domain, they felt darkness fall before their eyes, and their consciousness was instantly pulled away. When they regained awareness, they were already standing within the Soul Realm, abundant with soul force and boundless in scope.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No sooner had the figures in the plaza vanished than two majestic airships roared down and landed outside the Lingguang Hall Shanmen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One flew the banner of the Demon-Suppressing Army, while the other fluttered the banner of the Xuanyuan Army.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yun You, who had been waiting at the Shanmen gate specifically tasked with dealing with various parties, watched as the Minister of the Heaven Department and five generals from the Xuanyuan Prefecture leaped down rapidly from the airships; the slight depression accumulated in her heart immediately dissipated somewhat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Zhenjie took three steps in two, rushing frantically to stand before Yun You.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before he could speak, Yun You抢先 spoke first, smiling brightly: \"Minister Wei, five generals, what bad luck; you are one step too late. The Hall Master has already led the Zhu Que army into the Soul Realm.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Wei Zhenjie raised his hand and slapped his forehead with a \"pa,\" sighing: \"Rushing as fast as we could, we still failed to make it in time.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why such urgency?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"A single Netherfire Match can only open the Soul Realm nine times; each use reduces the count by one. Naturally, each opening must reach the maximum capacity of entrants to avoid being a loss!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching his demeanor, Yun You helplessly spread her hands: \"The Hall Master gave you plenty of time long ago; it is you yourselves who failed to cherish it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>",2545,"2026-06-12T02:51:24.126Z",1,"Qwen3.5 397B","f13e3f2032493d6a4780cb4182c0a42ca67e2cbe7cb1ab5b13136517a47a0294","the-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl-chapter-539","the-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl-chapter-537",558,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl-cover.jpg"]