Chapter 14 The Lower Realm

Ji Ning stood outside the Immortal Estate.

"Uncle Bai, Xiaoqing." Ji Ning transmitted directly with his mind. In a moment, Uncle Bai and Xiaoqing both arrived; they had been outside the Divine Immortal Palace discussing the Dao with other disciples of the Fangcun Mountain lineage.

"Master, what are you calling us for? We were just getting excited about the discussion," Xiaoqing said discontentedly.

White Water Marsh looked at Ji Ning, waiting for him to speak.

"I'm going down to the lower realm, to the cave-world below," Ji Ning said. "Short as a year, long as ten."

"Ah, the lower realm?" Xiaoqing was excited. "Great! Although Fangcun Mountain is good, with the Patriarch's lectures and plenty of divine abilities and secret arts, it's too leisurely—boringly so."

Ji Ning shook his head. "This time I'm going down for serious business. You and Uncle Bai should seize this rare opportunity to cultivate well on Fangcun Mountain. After all, when we return to Great Xia... who knows when we'll be back? Such chances are hard to come by."

Once he went to the Great Xia world, returning would not be easy. This was not his decision; it required the master's permission.

If the master did not permit it, no one could find this cave-world.

"Oh." Xiaoqing understood and nodded.

"Ning'er, be careful down there. This cave-world is no less than the Great Xia world; there are many powerful figures below, and I fear quite a few Celestial Immortals," White Water Marsh admonished.

"Don't worry." Ji Ning nodded.

"Master, what are you going down for? What serious business? Oh, if it's important and you can't say, that's fine." Xiaoqing said this, but her eyes sparkled with anticipation.

Ji Ning smiled. "It's a trial set by the master: to take disciples and kill people below."

"Take disciples? Kill people?" Xiaoqing and Uncle Bai were both stirred.

"These two jade bottles each contain one hundred fifty thousand catties of liquid elemental essence." Ji Ning flipped his hand, and two green jade bottles appeared. "Uncle Bai, Xiaoqing, you've both reached the perfection of the Nascent Soul stage over the years. But from Nascent Soul perfection to Return to Void requires a long period of accumulation. Moreover, the techniques you cultivate are the Qi Refinement methods of Fangcun Mountain; it will take at least decades to achieve success. With this liquid elemental essence, you can break through to the early Return to Void stage and consolidate your cultivation."

White Water Marsh hesitated.

Xiaoqing, however, took them excitedly. "Thank you, Master! You're too kind! I've long wanted to step into Return to Void and become an Earth Immortal."

"Uncle Bai, take them." Ji Ning said.

It was only because he couldn't earn liquid elemental essence on Fangcun Mountain that he didn't have more. Given his current strength, acquiring some treasures and more liquid elemental essence would not be difficult. In the future, his true body, Uncle Bai, and Xiaoqing would all need to advance to the late Return to Void stage!

As for the perfection of Return to Void?

Ji Ning was not in a hurry, because he often listened to Patriarch Bodhi's lectures and knew that the 'Heavenly Tribulation' varied from person to person. The more monstrous the talent, the more exaggerated the tribulation. Someone like him, who cultivated multiple divine abilities like 'Star Picking Hand,' would face a terrifyingly powerful Heavenly Tribulation!

He must be fully prepared!

His realm must be elevated higher; the Eight Nine Arcane Art, Houyi's Archery, and Star Picking Hand must all reach perfection below the Celestial Immortal level. He also needed to prepare treasures and rare items. His Dao-heart must be stronger... In short, no amount of preparation for the 'Heavenly Tribulation' was too much, for no one wanted to fail.

If he failed, death was certain. Even if he became a loose immortal, he would face endless calamities and eventually meet his end.

The Heavenly Tribulation...

It was the true tribulation of life and death! The greatest tribulation on the path of immortality. Success meant soaring beyond the Three Realms, carefree and eternal, with no more calamities. Failure meant utter ruin.

...

On the mountain path of Fangcun Mountain.

White Water Marsh and Xiaoqing accompanied Ji Ning all the way. Ji Ning did not bid farewell to his senior brothers, as this was merely a trial and would not take long. To his senior brothers, who had lived for billions of years, it was indeed very brief.

"No need to see me off." Ji Ning smiled.

He immediately transformed into a streak of light, flew straight out of the floating Fangcun Mountain, and headed toward the endless earth below.

"Ning'er, be careful."

"Master, be careful." White Water Marsh and Xiaoqing watched Ji Ning fly away until he disappeared.

...

Ji Ning looked down at the endless cities and lands. Before leaving Fangcun Mountain, Xiaoqing had sought out a friend she had made—an ordinary disciple of the Fangcun Mountain lineage, a great demon at the Return to Void stage. From this great demon friend, she obtained a relatively detailed map of the entire 'Slanting Moon Great World.'

"The Slanting Moon Great World is as vast as the Great Xia world. On the endless ocean, there are three enormous landmasses. Each is slightly smaller than the Great Xia continent. Together, the three landmasses might equal the endless lands of Great Xia." Ji Ning pondered. "Alright, I'll go to Star Continent."

The Slanting Moon Great World was divided into three continents: Cloud Continent, Flame Continent, and Star Continent.

Directly below the floating Fangcun Mountain was Cloud Continent, which had the best order. Flame Continent and Star Continent, however, were extremely chaotic, filled with countless small states, great demons, tribes, and sects in absolute disorder.

"In chaos, there are many with great sins. Perhaps I can also find some with great merit who slipped through the cracks." Ji Ning thought to himself.

Whoosh!

Ripples spread around him, and Ji Ning vanished directly from midair.

...

Slanting Moon Great World, Star Continent.

A long shuttle was flying at high speed through midair. Inside were a group of cultivators, led by one man and two women, with six others as servants and guards.

"We've already ceded our Qi State to those demons. Why won't they let us go?" A purple-robed girl spoke with anger in her eyes. "We hid in the wilderness, but they still found us and chased us all the way. The royal clan of Qi is now weak and poses no threat to them. Why won't they spare us?"

"Little sister." The black-robed girl beside her shook her head. "The demon king who occupied our Qi State has directly ordered that every member of the Qi royal clan be killed without exception. Naturally, the countless demons under his command are desperately hunting us. Killing us earns them merit and the demon king's favor."

"So we just keep running, forever?" The purple-robed girl gnashed her teeth. "I've had enough of this fugitive life. I've been fleeing since before I came of age, for decades now. I'm sick of it. Let's fight these demons to the death! Big brother, second sister, let's fight them!"

"Shut up."

The tall man standing there said in a low voice, "Our royal clan has been passed down for tens of thousands of years, and now only the three of us remain from the direct line. Even our uncle died protecting us from the demons. Our lives were bought with the deaths of countless subordinates and clansmen. We cannot die easily."

"Then what can we do? The demon king's power is so great. How can we escape? Where can we flee?" The purple-robed girl said angrily.

The tall man said in a low voice, "At this point, there's no other place. We have to go... to the Evil Dragon River!"

Silence fell.

His two sisters and the servants and guards all fell quiet, horror in their eyes.

The Evil Dragon River?

Star Continent was vast and boundless, at least to these three royals and their servants, who could not fly across its broad lands. Among the places in Star Continent, the Evil Dragon River was one of the most famous great rivers!

The Evil Dragon River ran through most of Star Continent.

It was incredibly wide—eight hundred li at its narrowest and over a thousand li at its widest. As for its length, it wound through most of Star Continent, making it impossible to measure.

Legend had it that this river was formed from the corpse of an ancient 'evil dragon' after it was slain. Of course, this legend was too exaggerated to verify. But the 'Evil Dragon River' was indeed mysterious: within a thousand li of it, one could not fly or use the Five Elements escape techniques. It was said that even a 'Celestial Immortal Patriarch' would be unable to fly or escape once near the river.

Such was the wonder of the Evil Dragon River!

Moreover, there were dangerous places within the river that even cultivators dared not enter recklessly.

"On the Evil Dragon River, we can't fly or use escape techniques. Those demons will have a hard time chasing us." The tall man said in a low voice. "I believe they will also be wary and dare not pursue us into the river."

"But that's the Evil Dragon River." The black-robed girl quickly said.

"We're seeking life amidst death. We can't afford to worry about how dangerous the river is. Besides, the river is huge, running through most of Star Continent. Most places are actually safe, only a few are dangerous. If we're lucky, we can find a safe island and live there, building our strength until we can kill the demon king and reclaim Qi State." The tall man said. "Second sister, little sister, we have no other choice now."

The two girls gritted their teeth and nodded.

"Life or death, we'll risk it this once." The black-robed girl said.

"Yes, let's risk it." The purple-robed girl also gritted her teeth.

...

"Rumble..."

The Evil Dragon River's waters surged violently, treacherous and dangerous.

"The Evil Dragon River."

"Big brother, ahead is the Evil Dragon River."

"We've arrived."

The one man and two women, along with six servants and guards, soon reached the riverbank. They looked at the turbulent waters and felt an invisible, inexplicable fluctuation—the aura emanating from the entire 'Evil Dragon River.' It made their hearts uneasy, for the river's reputation was immense.

"Hey, big brother, second sister, look!" The purple-robed girl pointed at the vast river. On its surface, a wooden boat drifted with the current. On the boat lay a youth in animal skins, holding a bamboo leaf to his lips and playing a tune.

These people were all cultivators with sharp eyesight, and they saw clearly.

"This youth dares to sail on the Evil Dragon River, leisurely playing a leaf?" The black-robed girl was astonished.

"If he's a cultivator, no matter how powerful, he would be extremely cautious." The tall man frowned. "Could he be a mortal?"

Although the Evil Dragon River was dangerous, only parts of it were truly perilous.

Occasionally, some reckless mortals would sail on the river to show their courage or for a thrill. Indeed, some mortals were lucky enough to sail for months and return alive.

"Big brother, that youth is coming over!" The purple-robed girl exclaimed.

The youth in animal skins, who had been drifting with the current, began to row his oars, splashing the water and heading toward the shore.

...

Ji Ning rowed with both hands, smiling as he looked at the group on the riverbank. His divine sense had already swept over that area. Among them, a maidservant was radiating golden light—merit light—covering a full three hundred zhang, astonishingly vast.

"I'm so lucky to have found a great merit-holder so quickly." Ji Ning was overjoyed.

...