Chapter 89 - Reflections and Illusions
Earth Immortal Ming Yuan was the teacher in charge of clairvoyance studies. His fortune telling was much more powerful and accurate than Crack Shot Clairvoyant.
Knowing this fact, An Lin was completely stupefied upon hearing his prediction.
After a long time, he asked miserably, “Teacher… can I not go then…?”
Earth Immortal Ming Yuan smiled faintly. “There are times when what you attempt to avoid becomes even more unavoidable. The threads of fate lie amidst the unseen. It may happen that due to the very fact you try to avoid a certain fate, you allow those threads of fate to successfully intertwine…”
An Lin grimaced. “Teacher Ming Yuan, please speak more clearly!”
“Uh-huh, you can’t pull out. This isn’t something I can influence,” Earth Immortal Ming Yuan answered briefly.
An Lin: “…”
Earth Immortal Ming Yuan patted An Lin’s shoulder and consoled, “Every cloud has a silver lining. A lot of the time, great risk brings with it a great opportunity. Perhaps this is a chance for you to grow stronger!”
“Teacher, thank you for enlightening me!” An Lin said gratefully.
Sure enough, An Lin felt better after hearing Earth Immortal Ming Yuan’s explanation.
Earth Immortal Ming Yuan chuckled and nodded his head.
He actually had a very strong impression of An Lin. The memories of the Gallant Human and Dog Duo fighting fearlessly against fate remained clear in his mind. Their actions allowed him to attain a deeper understanding of destiny and fate.
Thus, he thought very highly of this youth who always did the unexpected.
In the coming journey, this youth could perhaps reap even larger rewards…
…
The next day, both Xu Xiaolan and Xuanyuan Cheng returned.
Following their return, they, along with An Lin, Earth Immortal Yue Ying, and Earth Immortal Ming Yuan, started to head off toward the Ancient Jade Pond of Tibet.
This was an independent operation conducted by the Heavenly Court, so Tian Lingling and Dongfang Xue didn’t follow along.
An Lin received a picture of Lin Yi from Tian Lingling, and he promised that if he came across Lin Yi, and Lin Yi was in a perilous situation, he would definitely lend a hand.
Afterward, An Lin and Xu Xiaolan both jumped onto Earth Immortal Yue Ying’s book, and they flew off toward Tibet.
Xuanyuan Cheng and Earth Immortal Ming Yuan followed closely behind on their flying swords.
Tibet had an average elevation of over four thousand meters and was described as the ‘Roof of the World’.
Moreover, the destination of their journey, the Ancient Jade Pond, was amidst a mountain range which was over six thousand meters above sea level.
After an hour of flight, what reflected into their eyes was an endless stretch of snow-capped mountains.
As they flew higher and higher, the sky started to become unclouded and clear.
There were scarcely any animals or vegetation below, crushed rocks and glaciers the only things to be seen.
“Our destination is just ahead!” Earth Immortal Yue Ying suddenly said as she landed her book slowly.
An Lin looked ahead and saw an expanse of water.
He finally understood why this pond was called the Ancient Jade Pond. Looking from afar, it really did look like a piece of ancient green jade. It was sleek and transparent, and there were ripples of azure waves.
Even though the surrounding environment was frigid and cold, the pond water appeared smooth and gentle, making one feel happy and at ease.
If it wasn’t for the rugged terrain surrounding it, as well as the lack of transportation, it might have become a famous scenic spot.
Right now, there were numerous human cultivators around the perimeter of the Ancient Jade Pond. These were cultivators who had come to investigate.
When they saw Earth Immortal Yue Ying and the others descend from the skies, a look of respect surfaced on their faces.
On Earth, cultivators above the rank of Spirit Nurturing Stage were already considered as the pinnacle of the cultivation world.
Now that they had come to investigate, other cultivators naturally wouldn’t dare to bother them.
“Heh, there are remnant auras of the domains of other Soul Formation Stage cultivators. It looks like they’ve already been here once. Clearly, though, they didn’t discover much.” Earth Immortal Yue Ying flipped to some page in the ancient book, and she narrowed her eyes as chuckled.
The domains that she spoke of were one of the traits of Soul Formation Stage cultivators. These were personal domains which were created when cultivators fully grasped and mastered their enlightenments.
An Lin glanced at Earth Immortal Yue Ying, who was brimming with confidence. He knew that it was about time for her to display her skills.
Sure enough, Earth Immortal Yue Ying continued,
“If one doesn’t know about some of the secrets of this place, then there is no way that they can discover its mysterious principles.
“Light from the sky, reflections in the water; the imaginary and the real blend and mingle together…
“Come over here everyone, stand next to me.”
Earth Immortal Yue Ying gestured at An Lin and the others.
An Lin and the others were perplexed. Even Earth Immortal Ming Yuan had a look of confusion.
However, they complied with Earth Immortal Yue Ying’s request anyway and stood next to her.
Then, Earth Immortal Yue Ying fished out a phone and used an immortal spell to make it suspend in the air.
“Come, come, come. Such stunning scenery. Everyone, smile at the camera!”
An Lin: “…”
Xu Xiaolan: “…”
Earth Immortal Ming Yuan: “…”
…
Snap!
The phone captured Earth Immortal Yue Ying’s happy smile, as well as the cold and indifferent expression of the four others.
Behind them was the beautiful Ancient Jade Pond, as well as the vast expanse of snowy mountains.
“Okay, Yue Ying. We’ve snapped a group photo already, don’t you think that it’s time to enter the Ancient Jade Mystic Realm?”
Earth Immortal Ming Yuan asked in exasperation.
Earth Immortal Yue Ying was the only one amongst them who knew how to get into the Ancient Jade Mystic Realm. As such, she was the only person who could lead them into the mystic realm now.
Hearing that a mystic realm really did exist here, An Lin and the others couldn’t help but feel invigorated.
However, Earth Immortal Yue Ying shook her head. “Now’s not the time to enter. We must wait for the moon to rise before we can open the passage. Before that, I’ll brief you guys on the specifics of this mission.”
Saying this, Earth Immortal Yue Ying smiled at An Lin and his team.
“Do you know why I brought you guys along to the mystic realm?”
An Lin and the others all shook their heads.
So they could fight with the Demon Emperor? That was clearly impossible!
The Heavenly Court wouldn’t nonchalantly let An Lin and the others be subject to such needless risk.
“It’s because the Ancient Jade Mystic Realm has already been broken up into four large mystic realms,” Earth Immortal Yue Ying explained. “There’s the White Bone Realm, which only cultivators of the Dao Body Stage can enter. There’s the Spirit Essence Realm, which only cultivators of the Spirit Nurturing Stage can enter. Then, there’s the Soul Separation Realm, which only cultivators of the Soul Formation Stage can enter. Finally, there’s the Convergence Realm, where all three ranks of the realms converge.”
“Is that so,” Xuanyuan Cheng said. “All three of these ranks are represented in our lineup. Are we going to carry out missions in all the different mystic realms?”
Earth Immortal Yue Ying nodded. “That’s right. This Ancient Jade Mystic Realm is a purifying spell formation. It’s especially used by the Heavenly Court’s Heavenly Emperor Zi Wei to purify the Black Wing Tribe’s Evil-Slaying Sword.
“This spell formation is called the Three Extremes Spirit Destruction Formation. It can draw on the power of the earth and divide this power into three streams. These streams of power can then be used to purify the Evil-Slaying Sword of its sword spirit, henceforth allowing it to birth a new sword spirit.
“However, this spell formation has a flaw. When purifying the Evil-Slaying Sword of its sword spirit, its aura leaks into the three realms, spawning monstrosities of all strengths.
“These monstrosities are like blockages which clog up the operation and flow of the spell formation.
“Our task is to enter these three realms and annihilate all of the monstrosities, thereby clearing out this spell formation!”
Hearing Earth Immortal Yue Ying’s description, An Lin’s mind suddenly felt exhausted.
By the looks of it, another mighty cultivator was playing around with weapons, and they were once again asked to lend a hand and labor away.
It was just that this labor was a bit high-end.
Heavenly Emperor Zi Wei was a True God, and the Black Wing Tribe was an especially mysterious and powerful tribe. Furthermore, the Evil-Slaying Sword was an extremely powerful immortal tool…
“Oh, that’s right. The Demon Emperor and Blood God are also inside the mystic realm. Their aim is probably to destroy the spell formation while it’s weak and then retrieve the Evil-Slaying Sword.
“They used a magic treasure of the Black Wing Tribe to force their way into the mystic realm. In order to force one’s way in like that, one must have a rank of Soul Formation Stage.
“So, the enemies are only active in the Soul Separation Realm and Convergence Realm. You guys don’t need to worry about these people at all.
“Earth Immortal Ming Yuan and I will destroy them all.” Earth Immortal Yue Ying added.
Destroy them all?
Hearing this, An Lin’s mind felt even more exhausted.
Why, you ask?
Because his blood… was drawn for nothing!
If the Demon Emperor and Blood God were both killed, what was going to be left for the human cultivators? The promise to give him a storage ring would also become void.
Sigh, life really was full of surprises…
Afterward, Earth Immortal Yue Ying continued to inform them of what they needed to look out for in the mystic realm.
Night fell, and a bright moon was reflected in the waters.
On the surface of the Ancient Jade Pond, the white glow of the moon glimmered. It was as if the vast sky of stars and constellations was contained within this pond.
…
On full alert, five people stood above the Ancient Jade Pond.
Earth Immortal Yue Ying took out a badge, and a streak of light shot into An Lin and the others’ bodies.
“Lord of the Stars; Master of Manifestations; Myrtle Royal Law; Reflections and Illusions—Shatter!”
Following this command, their bodies started to slowly shimmer and disappear, going from something to nothing. Finally, they disappeared from this world…