Chapter 284: Chapter 229: The Legend of the Holy Sanctuary (Part 2)
’If that’s the case, then the Underworld must exist on the Canglan Continent as well,’ Ling Xiao mused. ’But what I don’t understand is why no one has achieved ascension in a world with such abundant Spiritual Qi.’
Listening to Song Mingyue, Ling Xiao seemed to have an epiphany. ’It seems that Saint Domain Emperor must have been a peerless expert. There are countless paths to immortality! The Dao is within a person’s heart; everyone has their own path. So, while I might be the only Cultivator in this world, that doesn’t mean I’m the only one to have achieved enlightenment!’
’After all, even in the Mortal World, someone who performs great deeds of kindness and possesses a noble character, revered by all as a Saint, can ascend through the faith of the masses, even without any cultivation whatsoever!’
Song Mingyue continued, "After completely severing humanity’s faith in the gods, the Saint Domain Emperor felt that there were too many powerful individuals among humans, which would greatly affect the lives of ordinary people. He even considered that if he were to die one day, his kingdom might fall into ruin. That wasn’t the important part—the Saint Domain Emperor was very philosophical about such things—but the disruption High-tier Martial Artists caused in the mortal world was undeniable."
"Ultimately, the Saint Domain Emperor made a resolution and sacrificed his own life. He transformed himself into a wondrous place—perhaps he created a separate dimension!"
"At that time, humanity no longer had Mages. All that remained were Martial Artists who trained in sword techniques."
"Therefore, once those Martial Artists reached the Saint-level—that is, the level of a Sword Saint—they would be automatically drawn into the Holy Sanctuary! And the Saint Domain Emperor himself transformed into the supreme... Holy Sanctuary Law!"
"And so, by the Late Ancient Era, almost everyone, upon their death, would no longer say ’return to the embrace of the gods,’ but rather ’may my soul return to the Holy Sanctuary’!"
"In that case... did the Sword Saint from three hundred years ago, Yun Zilan, also enter the Holy Sanctuary?"
Ling Su’s beautiful eyes widened as she stared at Song Mingyue. She was bewildered as to how Song Mingyue could know such secret matters. But the other girl spoke with such conviction and detail, without using words like "legend" or "rumor." What did that mean? It meant that Song Mingyue believed what she was saying was the truth!
Not a legend!
Song Mingyue nodded calmly and said, "Of course. If the historical records are correct, then yes."
"Historical records? Why have I never seen any records like that?" Ling Su said, almost as if to herself.
Song Mingyue opened her waterskin, took a sip, and frowned before saying, "Between the Late Ancient Era and the present, there is a large gap in history! Almost no historical materials from that blank period have survived."
Ling Su nodded. "That’s right, it’s true. No matter how hard we’ve tried, we can’t find a single shred of information about that period!"
Song Mingyue said, "Now this part is just a legend. It’s said the gods were unwilling to be forgotten by humanity, so they banded together once more. They used avatars to descend upon the mortal world in an attempt to restore their Divine Formats and destroyed all records related to the Holy Sanctuary. But the experts within the Holy Sanctuary began to fight back! Although individually they were no match for the gods, a swarm of ants can kill an elephant. In the end, the gods’ avatars were beaten to death. However, this brought immense trauma to humanity. So much so that for over a thousand years, human civilization almost reverted to a primitive state. Then, someone discovered the post-war ruins... what we now call the Ancient Ruins. Those who found these ruins recovered all sorts of Cultivation Techniques, sword skills... Alchemy, Artifact Refining, and other useful things from within, and so, civilization began to develop once more. This part comes from the family records of my Sea Domain Song Family, so I can’t be certain that all of humanity experienced the same thing."
Ling Su nodded, looking completely dazed. Anyone whose worldview had been so suddenly and completely overturned after more than twenty years would find it hard to accept. This was especially true for Ling Su, whose hobby was archaeology and who believed the historical knowledge she possessed was the official truth. She never expected to be so thoroughly disoriented by a few words from this girl, Song Mingyue. Yet, a strong feeling rose in her heart: what Song Mingyue said was the real history!
Ling Xiao then said, "I think what Brother Song said is ninety percent believable. After all, for thousands of years, even the rulers of the various nations on the continent have been backed by hidden families. In that case, couldn’t history be written however they pleased? Besides, Sister, this is the first Ancient Ruin you’ve truly excavated, isn’t it?"
Ling Su nodded with a wry smile. "If it weren’t for your illness, I probably would have never had the chance to find this place."
Ling Xiao was touched. He then said, "So, I expect that once we finish reading all the written materials here, we’ll be able to verify whether Brother Song’s words are true or not!"
Song Mingyue smiled faintly. "I hope to verify it as well. Though, I already believe what I said is true."
Tiger was leaning against a wall, dozing out of sheer boredom. He hadn’t listened to a word the humans were saying. Although he was quite intelligent, not at all inferior to many humans, Tiger had a fatal weakness—he was illiterate.
As an uncultured Beastman, he could only pass the time by sleeping. Just a few glances at the books on the shelves were enough to make his head spin.
Just then, Tiger’s ears suddenly twitched. He seemed to sense a faint noise from the distant outside, but it quickly returned to silence. Tiger had no desire to crawl back through that pitch-black tunnel again. In any case, if someone were to enter, he would be the first to know.
「Several hours later.」 Ling Xiao and the others spent the better part of the day reading through all the written materials. Although most of the documents didn’t mention much about the Holy Sanctuary, a certain phrase frequently appeared in the diary: "Year XX of the Saint Domain Emperor Era!"
This alone was enough to prove that the Saint Domain Emperor had definitely existed!
Yet, Ling Su had never seen a single piece of information about him in the Empire’s libraries. Perhaps it was just as Song Mingyue had said—the truth had been concealed by those powerful hidden families!
Perhaps, for various reasons, they didn’t want ordinary people to know about the existence of the Holy Sanctuary.
This could also be inferred from the ancestral teachings Song Mingyue herself had received.
Before she had spoken, Song Mingyue had been thinking to herself: ’Ling Xiao is my father’s savior! If not for Ling Xiao, I wouldn’t have a father anymore. Even if I don’t say anything, with Ling Xiao’s strength, he will find out about these things sooner or later. That being the case, I might as well tell him now and earn a huge favor!’
This wasn’t to say Song Mingyue was cunning; it was simply human nature.
Although they hadn’t found any sword skills or Cultivation Techniques among the documents, they had learned a shocking secret. Ling Xiao didn’t feel it was a wasted effort.
None of the storage cabinets were locked. According to the diary, the master of this place had once been incredibly powerful, calling a Tier Seven Magical Beast a "little thing." It was obvious that during the peak of his power, he didn’t give a damn about Tier Seven Magical Beasts!
’According to human classifications, a Tier Seven Magical Beast possesses the strength of at least a Sword Emperor! Moreover, Magical Beasts are typically a bit stronger than human Martial Artists of the same tier. In other words, this Alchemist had the strength of at least a Sword Emperor, perhaps even a Sword Venerable!’
Ling Xiao sighed in admiration. ’It seems that in the Ancient Era, there was no division between hidden families and sects. Powerful Martial Artists appeared one after another!’
Lost in thought, Ling Xiao casually opened one of the storage cabinets. Having expected nothing, he took one look inside and froze on the spot!
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