Chapter 588: Entrance to the Yōumíng Imperial Palace

"Don't rush, wait!" He He Pingsheng halted the rabbit-drawn cart and said, "I haven't asked you one important question yet!"

"If one wishes to enter the Youmingdigong, can anyone simply walk in?"

"Is there any qualification required?"

The rabbit stopped the cart.

It turned around and nodded: "Yes, yes, yes! Master, you reminded me—I'd forgotten! To enter this Imperial Palace, you must possess the 【Yōumíng Immortal Token】; only those holding the Yōumíng Token may enter!"

"Otherwise, no one is permitted inside!"

He He Pingsheng's stomach clenched.

Yōumíng Token!

"Where can I get one?" He He Pingsheng, desperate, asked the beast whose cultivation was merely Foundation Establishment.

Fortunately, these were basic common knowledge, and the rabbit knew.

"Respectful Master, the Yōumíng Immortal Token is granted only to cultivators ranked within the top ten thousand on our Zhu Que Imperial Domain's 【Shènghuǒ Rankings】!"

"If your rank is among the top ten thousand, you may apply for one Yōumíng Token!"

"But Master, don't be too discouraged!" the rabbit added, "I've heard the Yōumíng Imperial Palace allows free entry and exit, with no limit on visits—Nascent Soul cultivators who enter often emerge again!"

"So some, realizing they gain nothing inside, sell their tokens!"

"And some… cough… tokens are obtained by killing others and stealing them, then resold!"

"All sorts of ways!"

"In any case, once you reach the palace entrance, you'll understand—you'll surely have a chance to enter!"

Hearing this, He He Pingsheng exhaled slightly.

But tokens, he knew, could never be easily obtained.

"Alright… thank you!" He He Pingsheng paused, then asked: "If I fly there myself, from the Imperial City to the palace entrance, how long would it take?"

The rabbit replied: "It's said Nascent Soul cultivators require two to three years to make the journey alone!"

He He Pingsheng's face darkened.

Two to three years…

Though he'd already missed the past twelve years, the sooner he entered, the better.

What if someone else took the Huángquán Qi?

"Is there a shortcut?" He He Pingsheng stared at the rabbit.

The rabbit said: "Yes… within the Imperial City, all major guilds offer transport services to the Yōumíng Imperial Palace entrance. If you're willing to pay, you can go."

"Good, good, good!" He He Pingsheng said, "Take me to the guild immediately!"

Without leaving the city, the rabbit brought He He Pingsheng to the largest guild in the Imperial City: 【Shènghuǒ Guild】.

The Tianhuo Continent was inherently fire-affiliated!

The Zhu Que clan was also fire-affiliated, so in this imperial domain, people held an extraordinary reverence for fire.

Everything was named after fire.

Like the Shènghuǒ Guild, the Shènghuǒ Rankings, and so on!

"Thank you, little rabbit!" He He Pingsheng handed the rabbit one hundred low-grade spirit stones and a vial of supreme-grade 【Jùlíng Elixir】: "You've done me a great favor today—these are your reward!"

The rabbit's eyes turned red.

He'd never earned so much in one go in his entire life.

"Thank you, Master! Thank you, Master! Whenever you're in the city and see me, I'll pull your cart for free!"

He He Pingsheng smiled. "Go on, then!"

After parting with the rabbit, He He Pingsheng entered the Shènghuǒ Guild with Hao Cang.

Soon, under the shopkeeper's arrangement, a Nascent Soul Elder from the guild came to greet He He Pingsheng and Hao Cang.

"Friend, you wish to go to the Yōumíng Imperial Palace?" The Elder regarded He He Pingsheng.

He He Pingsheng said: "Yes… I won't hide it—I'm going there. Can you help me obtain a token?"

"No," the Elder shook his head. "You may wait at the entrance; perhaps fortune will come your way."

"We can transport you. In the past, our guild's ship carried a hundred people at once, with costs shared—each person paid one hundred high-grade spirit stones!"

"It took roughly seven or eight days to reach the Yōumíng Imperial Palace."

"Now, you're alone."

"So if you go… hmm… I won't charge you ten thousand high-grade spirit stones—five thousand will do!"

Five thousand high-grade spirit stones?

He He Pingsheng nearly spat blood.

He could only refine two per day—five thousand would take two thousand five hundred days, seven years.

He'd refined many spirit stones over the years, but never amassed five thousand.

Besides, he'd spent hundreds just recently buying the Six-Bath Pure Dew!

Undeniably, this guild was ruthless.

"Here's an alternative!" He He Pingsheng reached out and produced a vial.

Inside were ten ice pills made from fifth-rank 【Bīngyù Pípá Gāo】: "This is Jipin Bīngyù Pípá Gāo—top quality!"

"You're a guild Elder—you know its function and value; I won't explain."

"Ten pills total."

He He Pingsheng pushed the vial toward the Elder.

The Elder trembled, then opened the vial and glanced inside.

"Good…" Seeing it, the Elder nodded vigorously: "Excellent, excellent! Friend, we'll trade for this!"

"Follow me… I'm idle anyway—I'll personally escort you."

Boom…

Soon after, a flying vessel rose from the guild.

Flight was forbidden within the city.

But that applied only to ordinary cultivators.

If your power was great enough, you could trample any mundane rule.

The ship was large, but compared to the 【Inter-Domain Immortal Vessel】 He He Pingsheng had once ridden, it was negligible in size.

Yet despite its smallness, its speed was terrifying.

It rivaled even the Inter-Domain Immortal Vessel.

Clearly, a vessel of this caliber was worth an astronomical sum.

Eight days later, the vessel arrived precisely at the palace entrance.

He He Pingsheng looked up and saw a vast vortex inexplicably appearing in the void.

The vortex was black, spinning ceaselessly; within its dark aura, nine-colored divine light flickered intermittently.

Beside the black vortex stood a woman radiating profound energy.

She sat cross-legged at the vortex's entrance.

Below, countless people gazed upward, yet none dared force their way into the vortex.

"Here it is!" The guild Elder landed the ship and said, "To ascend, you must first possess a 【Yōumíng Immortal Token】. Young man, good luck!"

"Oh, and a special warning—don't break through to Soul Transformation!"

"Once you reach Soul Transformation, even with the Yōumíng Token, you're barred from entering!"

With that, the guild Elder reboarded the flying vessel and departed.