Longevity, starting from traveling and telling stories

Chapter 229 Eve of the Trial
Mysterious runes are engraved between two six-pointed stars of different sizes.

At the center of the six inner stars, there was a blank space. Ye Beixuan guessed that this might be the location of some kind of passage.

Ye Xiaofan took out a spirit stone from his storage ring and embedded it in the array eye. Then he walked to the center of the six-star array, turned around and smiled, "If you feel uncomfortable anywhere, just close your eyes. There's nothing to be afraid of. Just close your eyes and open them again, and it will all be over."

As soon as he finished speaking, six beams of light shot into the sky, suddenly emitting a bright glow and enveloping Ye Xiaofan. In just a few breaths, the teleportation array returned to normal, and Ye Xiaofan had vanished.

"Come with me!" Ye Yaoyao reached out her soft hand and gently took Ye Beixuan's hand, saying, "The teleportation array might cause some discomfort, you..."

Suddenly, a sound like a mirror shattering came from a spatial rift.

Ye Beixuan suddenly felt dizzy, as if his internal organs were being squeezed together, and countless star charts flashed before his eyes.

In just a moment, when he recovered from the feeling of weightlessness and stepped back onto the ground, a formation identical to that of the Tianyan Sect appeared before him.

He curiously stepped out of the formation, glancing around every now and then.

"Such a miraculous formation."

"Teleportation arrays rely on spatial coordinates to achieve teleportation." Ye Yaoyao tidied her slightly disheveled hair and continued, "Therefore, a large number of spirit stones are needed to maintain the operation of the array."

"Junior Sister Ye, Junior Brother Ye." A voice interrupted the two, and Ye Xiaofan, who was waiting there, said in a gentle tone, "Please come with me."

"Thank you, Senior Brother Ye." The two bowed and followed Ye Xiaofan up the white jade steps toward the mountain gate.

Before long, they arrived at a square. Looking up, the dome of the majestic palace pierced the clouds, and the gilded eaves were faintly visible in the swirling mist.

Suddenly, a colossal stone stele, thirty feet tall, came into view in the plaza. Behind the massive stele lay a forest of steles. Ye Beixuan stopped, gazing at the forest of steles before the palace gate; those steles were covered with sword marks.

On the large stone tablet, a sword mark the same length as the tablet itself emanated a chilling sword intent. A sense of familiarity surged into his heart like a tide.

"Greetings, Young Sect Master."

A voice pulled Ye Beixuan back to reality. Before he knew it, the three of them had arrived at the cloud ladder, where the guarding disciples were bowing to Ye Xiaofan.

Ye Xiaofan smiled slightly and returned the greeting with a cupped hand, saying, "No need for formalities. These are two disciples with good aptitude whom I brought back from the lower sect. They wish to pay their respects to our master. Please allow them to pass."

"In that case, we would like to ask the young sect leader to come and verify your identity before you may enter."

"No problem." Ye Xiaofan took out an identity jade token and inserted it into the array's core. The array core automatically emitted a voice: "Identity verification successful."

“Your identity is not a problem, Young Sect Master, please.”

"Thank you both, senior brothers."

After saying that, the group climbed the cloud ladder. As the sound of the formation activating rang out, Ye Beixuan felt his body slowly rise.

After passing through a hundred-foot-high cloud ladder, the group arrived at a floating corridor bridge about a thousand feet long. Ye Yaoyao gently nudged Ye Beixuan and whispered, "Look at both sides of this bridge, there are remnant souls of sword cultivators. They must be people whose bodies were destroyed on the battlefield, clinging to life here, waiting for a chance to revive. We must not be careless and provoke them."

"understood."

As soon as Ye Beixuan finished speaking, a vortex of sword intent formed on the bridge, and the phantom of an old man emerged from the vortex: "Eh? Xiao Fan, are these your two newly accepted disciples?"

As soon as the old man finished speaking, Ye Beixuan felt a strong pressure from the sword, making it hard for him to breathe and causing him to pause slightly.

"This girl is quite good." The old man nodded approvingly, but he clearly looked down on Ye Beixuan.

"It's Elder Qi! I was just about to take them to see Master!" Ye Xiaofan bowed and greeted him.

"Go! Go! Now it's your turn to rule as young people!" The old man vanished in a flash of sword light.

After crossing this thousand-foot-long covered bridge, a magnificent palace soon comes into view.

"Master, your disciple greets you." Ye Xiaofan called out to the door, then led everyone into the hall.

As soon as they entered the main hall, they felt a powerful surge of sword intent.

Their clothes fluttered without wind, and the hall was filled with the twinkling light of swords.

White mist rose from the seat in the center of the hall, and a figure appeared and disappeared in the mist. It was Ye Zhiluo, the Palace Master of Tiansui Palace.

"Heaven has actually recognized its master?" Ye Zhiluo's voice was cold and tinged with disappointment.

Before Ye Xiaofan could speak, the sword box containing Tianding suddenly exploded, and a sharp sword aura appeared out of thin air.

Ye Zhilu frowned, pointed his fingers to form a sword, and with a casual wave of his hand in the void, chains of spiritual energy instantly formed, tightly locking Tian Ding in place.

However, before half a breath had passed, the chains suddenly shattered.

"Quite the temper." Ye Zhiluo said calmly, as a giant sword suddenly appeared behind him, heading straight for Tian Ding.

The Heavenly Sword let out a mournful cry, and the words "Exterminate Evil" suddenly appeared on its blade, forcing the giant sword back with a single strike.

Boom! The entire hall trembled violently, and even the ground was covered with cracks like a spider web.

Ye Zhi Qiu's body trembled, and the Heavenly Sword flew back into Ye Yao Yao's hand.

In that instant, Ye Beixuan suddenly noticed a fleeting glint of bloodlust in Ye Zhiluo's eyes.

"Master." Ye Xiaofan hurriedly stepped forward and asked with concern, "Master, are you alright?"

"Sigh," Ye Zhilu sighed, looking helpless. "Perhaps it's because my aptitude is limited. The destiny left behind by your grandmaster refused to acknowledge me. If I could obtain the destiny, break through the shackles of the Great Luo Golden Immortal, and advance to become a Saint, how could Tian Sui Palace have declined to this extent? And why would it have been suppressed by the Three Pure Ones and the Three Teachings for so many years?"

"Master, you are exceptionally talented and will surely break through to a higher realm. Besides, you have already reached the peak of the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm, just one step away. Your disciple believes you will break through soon." Ye Xiaofan's tone was full of comfort.

Ye Zhilu nodded. This disciple was quite considerate; it wasn't a waste of time to take him in.

Thinking of this, a purple light flashed in his eyes. He turned to look at Ye Yaoyao and said in a calm tone, "Is this the Ye Yaoyao you mentioned?"

Ye Yaoyao felt a chill run down her spine as he stared at her with his sharp, eagle-like eyes, as if he were seeing right through her.

Ye Beixuan was startled. "Damn it, could it be that even I've been seen through? I hope my Thousand Faces of Thought will work."

"Hmm, not bad, it's an innate sword physique." Ye Zhiluo turned to look at Ye Beixuan, feeling that he was unremarkable, yet something seemed off. However, he didn't reveal much, simply saying calmly, "Take them to the cave first, and go to the Misty Swamp for trials in three days. I need to go into seclusion to study."

"Yes, Master."

After the group bid farewell, Ye Xiaofan led the two through a mountain path shrouded in mist. After walking for a long time, they finally stopped in front of a cave dwelling covered in moss.

Ye Xiaofan pushed open the stone door, which was covered with mottled marks of time, and a cold aura rushed out, indicating that no one had lived here for a long time.

Ye Beixuan looked into the cave and saw that the environment was like a naturally formed stone cave on Earth. Inside, there was a cold pool with emerald green water. Beside the pool was a stone bed with a dusty futon on it.

"It is said that this place was once the residence of our sect's founder, Lord Suifeng. Although it is somewhat simple, it is exceptionally quiet and suitable for cultivation." After saying this, Ye Xiaofan casually waved his hand towards the corner, and a stream of spiritual energy shot out, instantly illuminating the spirit-gathering array in the corner.

He spoke in a grand and righteous tone, but in reality, he just wanted to keep Ye Beixuan, this "country bumpkin," at a distance. After all, this cave was poorly spiritually rich and was the worst place in the entire sect, so no one wanted to come here.

"In that case, thank you very much, Young Sect Master," Ye Beixuan said, bowing respectfully.

Ye Xiaofan smiled slightly and said calmly, "Since that's the case, then I won't bother you any longer, Junior Brother Ye. I still need to take Junior Sister Yaoyao to find a cave dwelling."

After saying this, Ye Xiaofan left with Ye Yaoyao. Ye Yaoyao didn't want to leave, but seeing Ye Beixuan give her a look, she had no choice but to follow Ye Xiaofan.

The two walked out of the cave and through a winding corridor, arriving at a cave with extremely abundant spiritual energy.

The place was warm and inviting, with a spiritual spring gushing forth from the mountain's spiritual veins, forming a long waterway that eventually converged into a nearby spiritual pool. A thin mist emanated from the pool's surface, all materialized from spiritual energy.

Ye Xiaofan casually waved his hand at the stone bed beside the pool, which was covered with mysterious runes. Instantly, all the runes on the stone bed lit up, gathering all the spiritual energy of the pool and the surrounding area together—it turned out that this spirit-gathering array was actually engraved on the bed.

"Junior Sister Yaoyao, please make do here for now!" Ye Xiaofan said calmly after finishing everything. "Once the new cave dwelling is built over there, I will take you there."

Ye Yaoyao frowned slightly. She might not have noticed before, but now she could see clearly that Ye Xiaofan harbored improper thoughts about her.

Although he was perfect and the ideal partner for many women, she felt no affection for him whatsoever. Instead, a vague shadow lingered in her mind that she couldn't shake off.

However, she still responded politely, "In that case, thank you very much, Young Sect Master."

Ye Xiaofan replied magnanimously, "Then I won't disturb you any longer. Junior Sister, please continue your cultivation!"

This was his first tactic in pursuing a woman—playing hard to get. He first gained her favor by offering her generous terms and establishing himself as a gentleman. Once everything was in place, he would then use his second tactic.

the other side.

A vortex of spiritual energy floated in a ring above the icy pool, and Ye Beixuan sat at the bottom of the water, absorbing the surrounding spiritual energy.

Although he was in the icy pool, he felt hot all over. Due to the clash of hot and cold water, a large amount of steam rose to the surface. The cave of Lord Suifeng was indeed extraordinary. With each cycle of the Chaos Technique, he was able to absorb the spiritual essence liquid at the bottom of the pool. This spiritual essence liquid was many times more concentrated than liquid spiritual energy, and gaseous spiritual energy could not compare to it.

Until the dawn of the third day, Ye Beixuan at the bottom of the pool suddenly opened his eyes, slowly floated up from the water, sat upright in the air, felt his sea of ​​qi expand, and successfully broke through to the peak of the Earth Immortal realm, crossing two minor realms in a row, as if he had been given a cheat code.

"Junior Brother Ye!" A clear and melodious voice called out, interrupting Ye Beixuan's joy.

He shuddered, shaking off the water stains, dressed, and stepped out of the stone gate, where two figures gradually appeared in the mist.

Ye Yaoyao was dressed in a scarlet outfit, which instantly reminded him of someone. He stared at her blankly, as if someone's shadow appeared before his eyes.

"Junior brother?" Ye Yaoyao blinked as she looked at Ye Beixuan, pulling him back to reality.

"Oh! So it's the young sect leader and senior sister? Are you going to the trial?" Ye Beixuan realized that he had been a bit out of line and quickly cupped his hands to cover up his embarrassment.

Ye Xiaofan smiled slightly, and two jade bottles appeared in his hand. He said, "These are antidote pills bestowed by my master."

He then handed the jade bottle to Ye Yaoyao and Ye Beixuan respectively, and turned to smile, saying, "The miasma in the Misty Swamp is extremely poisonous, junior brothers, do not stray too far, stay close to us."

"Thank you, senior brother."

After saying that, the group followed the winding mountain path, preparing to head towards the teleportation array.

As Ye Beixuan passed through an open space, he noticed that the stone wall was covered with carvings—these were the sword moves that Ye Xiaofan usually practiced. He secretly memorized them and realized that Ye Xiaofan was probably using this to remind him of the vast difference in their status.

The Misty Swamp is located in the middle of the Southern and Northern Regions. Although it is called a swamp, it is actually a large mountain deep inside, and on the other side of the mountain is an endless sea of ​​blood.

It is said that blood-sea monsters often appear here, but the monsters on the outer perimeter are not very strong. Therefore, all the major sects use this place as a training ground to improve the strength of their disciples.

On the unusually quiet outskirts of the swamp, the footsteps of several people scraped against the swampy ground, making a sticky sound.

Ye Yaoyao suddenly pointed to a hill-like structure in the swamp and said, "I heard that the heroic souls of the three realms of our immortal world are trapped here. If we can split it open, we can rescue them."

"However, many people later found that they couldn't split it at all, so they stopped doing this useless work," Ye Xiaofan added earlier.

Ye Beixuan looked at the large mound of earth that was faintly visible in the mist and laughed, "This is a bit like the story of splitting a mountain to save one's mother."

"Splitting a mountain to save one's mother?" Ye Yaoyao paused, her big eyes blinking as she looked at Ye Beixuan curiously, "What does 'splitting a mountain to save one's mother' mean?"

Amidst their astonished gazes, Ye Beixuan calmly explained, "Legend has it that long ago, immortals and mortals were forbidden from falling in love. One day, a fairy named Yunhua, the mother of Yang Jian, descended to the mortal realm without permission and fell in love with a mortal man. She was then suppressed under the Xuan Tie Divine Mountain by her brother, the Heavenly Emperor."

Ye Xiaofan's eyes widened in shock. Legend has it that this rule did exist in ancient times, but it was changed for some unknown reason later. He himself had only learned of this rule by chance. How did he know it? Or...?
Then, under the curious gazes of the two, Ye Beixuan recounted how Yang Jian had automatically awakened his third eye when he was seven years old, and then went on to tell the story of Yang Jian's helpless struggle between heavenly rules and family affection.

"Until the very end, when he witnessed his most loyal hound, Xiaotian, being injured by the heavenly soldiers and generals, he suddenly realized the ruthlessness of the immortals and the even greater ruthlessness of the Heavenly Dao." Ye Beixuan's tone became more and more impassioned as he spoke: "On that very day, 100,000 heavenly soldiers were defeated, the Queen Mother's phoenix hairpin was knocked off, and even the Heavenly Emperor's uncle was beaten and forced to hide under his chair."

Ye Yaoyao listened with rapt attention, her heart surging with passion. To fight against the Heavenly Court alone was incredibly awe-inspiring; even a saint would find it difficult to do so!

Ye Xiaofan listened to the story thoughtfully, wondering to himself, "Could this story be true?"
"In the end!" Ye Beixuan lowered his voice, his tone calm but suddenly changed, and said, "The Heavenly Emperor finally compromised, allowing Yang Jian to serve as the Heavenly Enforcement God of the Immortal Realm, while Fairy Yunhua was able to live with her husband in the mortal world, but she had to experience birth, aging, sickness and death."

"What does it matter if I'm born, grow old, get sick, or die, when I can be with the one I love?" Ye Yaoyao murmured to herself, her face filled with longing. The vague image in her heart became clearer and clearer.

"Giving up the immortality is truly foolish," Ye Xiaofan thought, holding a completely different view.

Just then, a faint footstep sound came from the depths of the swamp. The three of them tensed up and immediately looked on alert in the direction from which the sound came.

"There seems to be some noise," Ye Yaoyao said in a low voice. "Could it be disciples from other sects who have come for trials?"

“It doesn’t seem like…we might be in trouble.” Ye Xiaofan said, gripping the hilt of his sword.

(End of this chapter)