It turns out, they were the main characters.

But if he can temporarily shield himself from the rules of heaven and earth, can he also shield himself from the rules of forbidden lands?

The princess glanced at him and said seriously, "Do you know why all cultivators fear the forbidden land, and even dare not approach it?"

"When a Dao-Merging Great Being dies, they will bathe the land there, and there will even be a situation where all things receive the blessing. However, in the Forbidden Land, the death of a Great Being will not bring blessings to all things, but will turn into a 'curse'. Even if you just accidentally violate the rules there, you will definitely become food for the Forbidden Land."

Lan Mulian muttered to herself thoughtfully, "I once heard my master mention that the nine forbidden lands are extremely dangerous. Some lesser cultivators might be fine if they enter them as long as they follow the rules, but if a cultivator above the Enlightenment stage sets foot there, there is a very high chance that they will be swallowed up by the forbidden land."

Mu Zhian said "Oh," and asked, "So, there must have been cultivators who risked entering the forbidden area in search of immortal medicine?"

He was well aware of human greed. If word really spread that there were immortal herbs in the forbidden land, even knowing it would be suicide, people would still go there to search for the herbs.

“Yes, there are quite a few,” the princess said. “However, these cultivators were not killed by the ancient creatures of the forbidden land, but died because they did not know what the rules of the forbidden land were.”

"The Great Peng Emperor once sent many cultivators from Yunzhou into the Forbidden Land of Life. One team almost made it to the deepest part. That team had about twenty people, but only one came out alive... and the reason that person survived was because his surname was Lan."

Mu Zhian glanced at Lan Mulian subconsciously.

Lan Mulian glanced at the boy and then asked, "What does this have to do with the surname Lan?"

"One of the rules of the Forbidden Land of Life in Yunzhou is that only those with the surnames Lan, Xiao, and Ye can set foot there. I later checked the historical records and it seems that the ancient creatures there had three deceased wives, namely Lan, Xiao, and Ye."

"How can the rules of the forbidden zone of life be so bizarre?" Mu Zhian complained speechlessly.

"The rules of some forbidden places are very strange. In the end, these rules are all set by people. As long as you are human, you will set some strange rules."

As the princess spoke, she seemed to recall something and gave Mu Zhi'an a wistful look: "Aren't the rules of the Heavenly Court just as strange?"

Now that things have come to this, even a fool could guess what the relationship between Mu Zhi'an and the Heavenly Court really is.

One must be barefoot, wearing stockings and a skirt to enter the Heavenly Court... Who but Mu Zhian would set such a strange rule for the Heavenly Court for no reason?

Mu Zhian coughed lightly and said, "Then do you know where the forbidden land in the Eastern Continent is? The Flower of the Great Dao should be deep within the forbidden land of the Eastern Continent, right?"

Upon hearing this, Lan Mulian couldn't help but frown slightly: "I have never heard of any forbidden land still existing in the Eastern Continent."

In various forbidden areas of the Nine Provinces, cultivators have ventured into them to varying degrees in search of rare natural treasures, but the Eastern Continent is an exception.

Since the Blue Clan's ancestor suppressed the forbidden land, the forbidden land in the Eastern Continent has mysteriously disappeared and faded from people's sight.

The princess glanced at Lan Mulian and gave a gentle smile: "Indeed, there are no more forbidden places in Dongzhou."

Mu Zhian was taken aback: "There are no forbidden places...? Then why are they called the Nine Forbidden Places?"

"The forbidden land of Dongzhou suffered heavy damage and was later suppressed by the ancestors of the Blue Clan. Now that area is practically extinct," the princess said.

In other words, the Flower of the Great Dao may never be found again?

Mu Zhian couldn't help but frown secretly.

Seemingly sensing what Mu Zhian was thinking, the princess continued, "The forbidden land in the Eastern Continent has indeed disappeared, but later someone established their own power in the forbidden land."

"This force is very powerful. It has survived the test of time and still exists in the Eastern Continent. It still retains some of the rules of the forbidden land from back then."

After a long pause, Mu Zhian seemed to realize something and murmured, "Forbidden Zone?"

Yes, there are no more forbidden lands in the Eastern Continent, but the forbidden zones are built on the ruins of forbidden lands. Therefore, some cultivators who rashly step into the forbidden zones are inexplicably cursed and die.

The princess nodded, acknowledging Mu Zhi'an's guess.

Then she continued, "But I advise you to give up."

The princess's tone softened slightly as she said softly, "The forbidden zones have always been peaceful and detached from worldly affairs. The once incredibly powerful forbidden lands have all been completely destroyed by the current forbidden zones. Even if there truly is a Great Dao Flower within the forbidden zones, they would never give it to you."

"After all, the elixir of immortality involves the secret of ascension to immortality."

Seeing Mu Zhian remain silent, the princess said softly, "Perhaps there are other ways. You don't need to be too discouraged. Moreover, according to my judgment, the Great Dao Flower probably hasn't been discovered in the forbidden area yet. If there were a celestial herb in the forbidden area, they would probably have already secretly asked Luo Tan to try to refine it. It's impossible that there has been no movement for the past ten thousand years."

"If we could venture deeper into the forbidden area, perhaps we could find the whereabouts of the Great Dao Flower?" Mu Zhi'an suddenly said.

Upon hearing this, the princess immediately tried to dissuade Mu Zhi'an from his idea: "Give up. Although the forbidden land of Dongzhou has been destroyed, most of the 'rules' are still there. Moreover, the forbidden area has always been exclusive. You will probably be killed by the clansmen who are responsible for guarding the forbidden area before you even reach the depths of the forbidden area."

"There seems to be some activity in the forbidden area lately. Perhaps they are also searching for the Flower of the Great Dao. If you rashly step in, you will be in great danger," the princess added.

Mu Zhian shook his head: "The commotion you mentioned is probably because they are holding a succession ceremony to select a new master of the forbidden zone. I don't think it has anything to do with the Flower of the Great Dao."

"After all, the forbidden zone's own daughter is among the participants this time, so the forbidden zone naturally attaches great importance to it."

The princess was taken aback for a moment, then asked, "How do you know so much?"

Because of the special rules, no outside force can penetrate into the restricted area, which is why it has always been incredibly mysterious in the eyes of outsiders.

Judging from Mu Zhian's tone, he seemed to know everything that was happening in the restricted area...?

Lan Mulian said expressionlessly, "The Holy Maiden of the Forbidden Zone is a disciple of the Liangyi Sect. My junior brother knew her back in Tianxuan City."

It turned out to be an old acquaintance...

How many old acquaintances does he actually have... and how many secrets is he still hiding?

The princess narrowed her eyes, a hint of danger now appearing in her usually gentle gaze.

Even before Mu Zhian claimed to possess a natural spiritual body, the princess suspected that he might be connected to a princess in the forbidden area.

In retrospect, this guess was indeed correct.

At this moment, Mu Zhian put down his teacup, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Perhaps, perhaps I can try going to the restricted area."

……

……

[It's been a while since I've asked for your votes!]

Chapter 514 One Encounter with the Azure Emperor, a Lifetime of Misfortune (6K)

Liangyi Peak.

Lan Mulian arrived at the courtyard and respectfully looked at the woman sitting in the courtyard playing chess with herself to pass the time.

Shang Yanfei didn't look up, but asked in a soft voice, "Has he left?"

Lan Mulian gave a soft "hmm": "Junior brother learned that Senior Linglong wanted to ascend to immortality and might need to use the Great Dao Flower, so he just went to the forbidden area with the Princess of Yunzhou."

"Many people are still unclear about the rules of the forbidden area in Dongzhou. The fact that the princess was willing to take your junior brother to the forbidden area without knowing the rules shows that she has deep feelings for him."

Shang Yanfei stopped placing her piece and smiled sweetly: "However, given your junior brother's personality, I'm afraid he won't let her enter the forbidden area with him."

“The forbidden land is unlike any other place. Even powerful beings at the Dao Integration Realm risk their demise. After all, it is a rule set by the Heavenly Dao.”

The path of cultivating immortality is defying the heavens; even if one cultivates to the extreme, one is still human.

As human beings, we should have a sense of awe and reverence for the heavens.

Lan Mulian's red lips parted slightly, as if she hesitated a little, seemingly wanting to say something.

"You want to ask me why I didn't let you leave Liangyi Peak, and why I didn't let you go to the forbidden area with your junior brother?" Shang Yanfei asked.

A hint of unease flashed in Lan Mulian's cool, beautiful eyes: "I just feel that he is, after all, a disciple of the Liangyi Sect, and he has helped me a lot in the past. This is the time to repay him..."

"He is now at the peak of the Returning to the Void realm. Although it will take him some time to stabilize and adapt to this realm, with his current strength, he no longer needs to worry about being ambushed."

Shang Yanfei paused, then looked at Lan Mulian with a smile and said, "You've almost fully grasped the legacy that Lan Shihuai left you, haven't you?"

Lan Mulian showed a hint of surprise on her face, seemingly not expecting that her master knew about this matter without even leaving the house.

Even the members of the Blue Clan, including the clan leader, were unaware that Lan Shihuai had completely handed over his legacy to her.

"With your aptitude, plus the mark Lan Shihuai left in your body, it's only a matter of time before you achieve enlightenment after the fifth stage of returning to the Void. But I see you seem a bit lost these days. What's troubling you?" Shang Yanfei asked.

Lan Mulian hesitated for a moment, then said, "The Heavenly Dao is in trouble now, but most cultivators in the Nine Provinces will choose the Heavenly Dao as their method of enlightenment... I'm wondering, even if one reaches the fifth level of the Void Return Realm, what path of enlightenment should one choose?"

“You don’t need to choose anything,” Shang Yanfei said calmly.

Lan Mulian looked at Shang Yanfei in surprise and subconsciously asked, "What do you mean by that, Master?"

Shang Yanfei looked at Lan Mulian quietly and smiled, "Who told you that you have to choose one of Heaven, Earth, or Man to attain enlightenment?"

……

Dongzhou, restricted area.

This is the forbidden land of the Eastern Continent, where the rules of heaven and earth are completely different from those of the outside world. Most cultivators who rashly step into it will die from the curse.

However, if one is familiar with the rules of the restricted area, it is not impossible to find some rare treasures or exotic magical beasts in the restricted area and leave alive.

Most of the rare and precious materials found in restricted areas are not available outside of China, and therefore they often fetch extremely high prices at auctions.

Such a price is enough to save an ordinary cultivator twenty or thirty years of effort.

Therefore, there have always been some cultivators who have ventured into forbidden areas in search of "gold," aiming to capture rare magical beasts or even find rare and precious materials.

Now that the rules of heaven and earth have changed dramatically and the golden age has begun, the Enlightenment Realm is no longer an insurmountable height.

The resources required to enter the Enlightenment Realm far exceed people's imagination. Some independent cultivators, without the backing of a large family, can only place their hopes on dangerous places like forbidden zones.

Those cultivators with powerful families behind them generally do not risk setting foot in forbidden areas.

After all, they were able to use the resources provided by their families to create a saint who had reached the Enlightenment Realm.

In an era when ascension to immortality was rare and the attainment of Dao was unseen, the saints who reached the Enlightenment Realm were among the most elite cultivators.

The princess tore open a spatial rift and stepped into the outer perimeter of the forbidden zone with Mu Zhian.

Looking ahead, one can vaguely see a lush green meadow in the restricted area, with towering ancient trees rising from the ground, their branches and leaves verdant and radiating a rosy glow, and fiery red flowers swaying in the wind, enchanting and captivating.

The vegetation here looks beautiful, but who knows how many cultivators' remains are buried beneath it.

“Your Highness, this is enough. I can walk the rest of the way myself.”

Mu Zhian stopped and looked at the beautiful woman beside him, speaking softly.

The princess frowned slightly and said, "I'll escort you in. The forbidden area does have rules that prohibit cultivators above the Enlightenment level from entering, but if I wish, I can temporarily disregard these rules."

Mu Zhian slowly shook his head: "No need, you don't need to take the risk with me... My strength is just within the rules, and I won't be in danger in the restricted area."

"Besides, you've been out for so long, the Great Roc Emperor must be worried, right?" Mu Zhian continued.

The princess glanced at the young man with her beautiful eyes and said calmly, "If he were worried about me, he wouldn't have hoped that I would leave Yunzhou for a few days so that he could regain control of Yunzhou."

Upon hearing this, Mu Zhian seemed to have thought of something as well, and said, "Don't you care about the power in Yunzhou at all?"

"As long as Yunzhou can remain stable, that's enough. It doesn't matter who holds power," the princess said, gently shaking her head.

"Have you ever thought about what the Great Roc Emperor will do after he gains control of Yunzhou?" Mu Zhian asked.

The princess's eyes flickered, as if she was thinking of some things that had happened in the past.