Chapter 282: At the Entrance
The entrance of the Nine Treasures secret realm was located in an ice valley outside of Ice Palace city.
As early as one month before the opening of the secret realm, cultivators had begun to gather at the valley.
When Yu Nianzhen and his group arrived at the valley, it was only three days before the opening of the secret realm and more than ten thousand origin tempering realm cultivators were already waiting.
"Can the Nine Treasures secret realm really support such consumption?" Jiang Yue asked and frowned a little.
Each origin tempering realm cultivator required nine treasures to temper their origin.
This translated to more than ninety thousand pieces of treasure.
No matter how he thought about it, Jiang Yue couldn’t believe that the Nine Treasures secret realm was so abundant.
"The Nine Treasures secret realm is the most blessed land of our Cangxing world." Yang Xu said with a smile on his face.
Many cultivators had tried to study the Nine Treasures secret realm, wanting to find a way to take out the treasures inside.
However, all their efforts had come to nought.
The treasures were open to everyone but it was impossible to take them out.
"We have to be careful this time around." Yu Nianzhen suddenly commented.
Although three months had passed, a lot of cultivators were still looking for them.
More importantly, the Death Flower Ascension Front had reached an agreement with the orthodox cultivators.
According to the agreement, the members of the Death Flower Ascension Front could enter the Nine Treasures secret realm.
However, this agreement was not a truce.
It was only a strategic move that was beneficial to both parties.
After they entered the Nine Treasures secret realm, a war between the Front and everyone else would definitely break out.
"Nianzhen is right. We should hurry to enter as soon as the secret realm opens." Bing Lan added.
She had entered many secret realms and she knew what to expect.
In the current situation, those who entered first would be safer than those who entered later.
"Does the mistress suspect there will be an ambush?" Jiang Yue asked.
"It’s most likely." Yang Xu answered and frowned.
If they weren’t being hunted, he would have wanted to cooperate with other orthodox cultivators to ambush the Death Flower Ascension Front.
Unfortunately, reality wasn’t so convenient.
If they dared to reveal themselves in front of others, they would likely be attacked regardless of the Death Flower Ascension Front.
In such a situation, it was better to act separately.
Yang Xu wasn’t worried that they wouldn’t get a chance to kill a few Front members.
"We should take the opportunity to earn merit points." He reminded.
"I can’t wait." Jiang Yue said excitedly.
He had been itching to earn merit points but he hadn’t gotten a chance yet.
"Don’t worry. We will be in the Nine Treasures secret realm for one hundred years. We will have many opportunities to kill members of the Death Flower Ascension Front." Yu Nianzhen comforted.
"I Know."
"One hundred years sounds like a lot but it actually isn’t. Some treasures are easy to handle and can be fully refined in days or months. However, others may take years and even decades. You have to manage yourselves well." Yang Xu reminded.
"Master, will you act together with us?" Yu Nianzhen asked.
"It’s best to act together." Yang Xu said.
Although time was of the essence, the Nine Treasures secret realm was especially dangerous this time around.
In that case, acting together was the best way to take care of each other.
"Acting together won’t waste too much time." Bing Lan said and the others agreed.
When she was in the Ice Palace sect, she had a map of the Nine Treasures secret realm.
Fortunately, she brought it with her when she escaped from the sect.
In the months when Yu Nianzhen and Jiang Yue were in seclusion, Yang Xu and Bing Lan did their best to supplement the map.
They combined Bing Lan’s map with the map brought from the Sea Cloud sect.
Even more fortunate, they obtained a copy from Xuan Ke which added more details to the map.
With the detailed map, the group wouldn’t waste too much time looking for treasures.
"Master, will everyone appear in the same place when we enter the secret realm?" Yu Nianzhen asked.
He wasn’t worried about himself and Jiang Yue since they had the golden teleportation talisman.
However, Bing Lan and Yang Xu were different.
If their group got separated, it would be difficult to meet each other in a short while.
"Don’t worry, the Nine Treasures secret realm is different from other secret realms." Yang Xu said but didn’t elaborate.
As they were talking, more and more cultivators arrived in the ice valley.
On the eve of the opening, the original ten thousand origin tempering realm cultivators had more than tripled.
With the increase in numbers, tension arose.
The orthodox cultivators gathered on one side of the valley while the Death Flower Ascension Front gathered on the other.
"There are less than ten thousand people on the side of the Death Flower Ascension Front." Jiang Yue said and sighed.
However, he wasn’t stuck on numbers.
Although the Death Flower Ascension Front had fewer numbers, their quality was better.
This was because each of the members was transplanted with the foundation of a talented cultivator.
"If possible, it would be better to wipe out all the members of the Death Flower Ascension Front who enter the secret realm." Yu Nianzhen said.
"Your idea isn’t bad. The orthodox cultivators have probably planned it that way." Yang Xu said and sighed.
He knew that the regional rulers had held many meetings over the past few months.
Although he didn’t know the details, he suspected their plan was to kill all the Front members who entered the secret realm.
’The Nine Treasures secret realm won’t be peaceful.’ He thought but didn’t worry about it.
The Death Flower Ascension Front was the world’s enemy and they had to be eliminated through any means.
"Master Yang, what is the motive of the Death Flower Ascension Front?" Jiang Yue suddenly asked.
He had always wondered about this point and had never had the chance to get a clear answer.
"No one really knows but there are a few speculations." Yang Xu said and frowned.
"Can master tell us?"
"We have always suspected that the leader of the Death Flower Ascension Front is not of our Cangxing world."
"Could it be a foreign devil?"
Yang Xu frowned when he heard that.
He had risen to fame through his fights against the foreign devils.
Because of this, he was an expert on matters related to the foreign devils but he couldn’t be sure about Jiang Yue’s question.
"It is possible but I don’t think it is."
"Why does master say that?"
"The foreign devils are a brutal race. They solve things through violence and rarely resort to plots."
"Master thinks that the matter of the Death Flower Ascension Front is too complicated for the foreign devils."
"I believe so."
"If it’s not the foreign devils, who else could it be? Is there a way to enter our world from other worlds?"
"Ancient records mention teleportation arrays and space channels. However, no one has encountered them for many years."
"They should exist." Jiang Yue said excitedly.
"Why do you think so?" Bing Lan asked.
She also believed that the teleportation arrays and space channels existed but she was curious about Jiang Yue’s reaction.
"We know there were many experts in ancient times. However, those experts suddenly disappeared from the Cangxing world. Maybe they used the teleportation arrays and space channels to go to other worlds."
"It’s possible." Yang Xu said but didn’t sound optimistic.
After he cultivated to the peak of the nascent soul realm, he tried to find a way to break through to a higher realm.
His search for a way brought him to many dangerous places.
However, before he found a way to break through, he discovered other traces.
From what he discovered; he suspected that the ancient experts didn’t leave but instead encountered some kind of disaster.
The nature of the disaster was still a mystery but Yang Xu believed in his intuition.
However, it was not the right time to mention it to the other three so he didn’t say anything.
"If the enemy is from another world, what’s their motive? Are they preparing an invasion?" Jiang Yue wondered but no one could answer his question.
The Death Flower Ascension Front had greatly damaged the foundation of the Cangxing world.
If an enemy world capitalised on this, the Cangxing world wouldn’t have enough strength to resist.
"We should try to capture those bounties with high merit points. If we question them, we may be able to learn something." Yu Nianzhen added.
He disliked being in the dark about his enemy and he couldn’t wait to do something.
"Let’s do it if we have a chance." Yang Xu agreed.
