Chapter 475: Remnant Spirit: I Really Have a Way |
"There is hope, trust me." The Remnant Spirit was resolute and decisive: "Even if this Sovereign of the Purple Zenith has been discovered by them, he still has to find a Chosen. He will just look within the Five Pillars. You need to seek to join one of the Pillars next, and then you'll have a chance."
"Easy to say." Su Chen shook his head and sighed, "I merely have the Divine Dawn Talent and just joined recently. Why would they help me?"
"There are ways for all of this. Talent can be elevated, and trust can be cultivated," the Remnant Spirit coaxed patiently.
Su Chen sighed, "But there's no time. There are people far more powerful than me in the Five Pillars, and they can be found everywhere. They will definitely compete for the position of this Chosen immediately."
The Remnant Spirit paused. This was indeed a fatal problem. It seemed there was no reason for the Five Pillars not to select a Chosen immediately.
"There is, there is a way!" the Remnant Spirit said in a deep voice.
There's actually a way... Su Chen was inwardly astonished. He was just about to steer the conversation his own way. After a pause, he asked hesitantly, "What other way is there?"
"Very simple: make the Spirit of the Vast Sun reject them."
Su Chen narrowed his eyes and asked skeptically, "How do we make the Spirit of the Vast Sun reject them? Will the Spirit of the Vast Sun listen to me?"
"There is a way." The Remnant Spirit repeated those four words. "You have already been recognized. Contacting the Spirit of the Vast Sun couldn't be simpler; it just involves making a sacrifice to it."
"If there's a blockade nearby, it will be a bit more troublesome, but with the help of my remaining Primal Source, it can also be done."
"You just need to establish contact with the Spirit of the Vast Sun and tell it that Taixuan Ye's death was caused by the Five Pillars acting simultaneously."
"In addition, I estimate the Taixuan House's current situation is extremely dire. Go to the Abyssal Domain, get a general understanding, and then tell it about that matter as well."
"The Five Pillars acted simultaneously? Is that true or false?" Su Chen was astonished and couldn't help but ask.
"Naturally, it's to deceive it, but there were calculations by the World-Honored One of Buddha Land, and Great Heaven also acted in secret." The Remnant Spirit seemed to be risking it all. In the past, whenever Su Chen asked about similar matters, he would pretend to be utterly clueless.
World-Honored One... Great Heaven. Su Chen was thoughtful, then dragged the topic back: "So you're saying it will believe that and then resist everyone from the Five Pillars?"
The Remnant Spirit explained in detail, "Although Professional Spirituality can largely determine its affiliation, it doesn't mean there are no reservations. As long as the Spirit of the Vast Sun harbors resistance in its heart, let alone a Chosen, even the process won't be able to proceed in the short term."
"This way, it will buy you enough time."
Su Chen remained silent, his expression strange. His original plan was to fool the Remnant Spirit and see if he could extract a method to secretly contact the Spirit of the Vast Sun.
But he didn't expect that upon discovering his despair, the other party's subjective initiative would be so strong, directly laying out a series of plans for him.
"But..." Su Chen still didn't agree decisively, instead hesitating: "I'm still worried. The risk is too great. After all, it's snatching food from the tiger's mouth—the Five Pillars."
"High risk, high reward!" The Remnant Spirit was quite frustrated by his unfulfilled potential and raised his voice: "You only need to join one of the Pillars; you're not going as an undercover agent with bad intentions. If you become the Chosen, it will also be a great help to the faction you're in, and its leader will naturally protect you."
He further advised, "Furthermore, among the Five Pillars, Great Heaven is the most treacherous, Buddha Land the most wicked, and Longevity has such a sparse population that you wouldn't even see anyone. The only ones you can join are the Machine Domain and High Firmament."
"The Machine Domain requires body modifications, so I suggest you join High Firmament. Daoist Lord Lingxiao is more or less a normal person."
After he finished speaking, it took a long while before he heard Su Chen's faint response: "Didn't you say you forgot all information related to the Abyssal Domain?"
This... The Remnant Spirit froze. Is now the time to care about this?
Su Chen sensibly didn't press the issue, merely saying, "Then... let's temporarily do as you say. I hope it really works."
The Remnant Spirit secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't actually expect that in a few words he could really motivate Su Chen, but at least he gave this guy some hope, so he could plan further.
"...How do we contact the Spirit of the Vast Sun? Tell me..." Su Chen finally asked.
"...You need..." The Remnant Spirit immediately began to narrate.
"...A recognized identity, I have already been Chosen, so that's definitely not a problem. I need at least five hundred portions of Faith Essence as assistance, plus the Great Void Origin..." Su Chen ended his exchange with the Remnant Spirit.
Su Chen roughly estimated that he only had around seven hundred Faith Essence left in his hands. "Fortunately, I didn't use it to buy Cinders back then, so it's still enough."
"However, this is High Firmament after all, not the Bronze Sect. I still need to be careful when using the Remnant Spirit Origin. And it's best to synchronize the timing, wait a moment..."
Contacting it once required five hundred Faith Essence. Su Chen couldn't afford this kind of squandering. It was best to get everything done at once, including the matter of selecting a "new Chosen" later on.
After all, the old Chosen wasn't truly dead.
"With this, it's almost a done deal. All is prepared..." Su Chen went over the plan again. "There shouldn't be any loopholes left, but whether it succeeds or not, I can only resign to fate."
Activating the Bio-chip's loop, his body entered a state of autonomous development.
Since this side could also be set to auto-pilot, it didn't matter if his consciousness stayed here. Su Chen simply descended into his avatar again.
With the help of the Seven-Branch Wondrous Tree and using the Flash-Shadow Body, he could reach his destination even faster.
Somewhere deep within the Nether Realm, the scene was magnificent. Mysterious light intertwined like a galaxy, and deep within, amidst the flickering shadows, a profound figure faintly appeared.
Outside, the Nether Mist surged, and a sallow-faced elder appeared. It was precisely Eerie King Huang Pan.
"God of Three Obsessions..." Huang Pan bowed and called out.
Ripples appeared in the surrounding void, and black tentacles emerged from the emptiness, coalescing into a tall, thin figure. A dark cloak fluttered behind him, its high collar covering half his face.
"Huang Pan? This is the third time you've come in the past half year..." Sanchi's voice was deep and ghostly.
Huang Pan gave a helpless, bitter smile. "I wonder if there is any news from your side?"
Sanchi said indifferently, "I've searched the entire Abyssal Domain. I found a few guys internally with relatively dense bloodlines who match the people you have, and they are now spreading outside the Abyssal Domain."
"I did find two with the Divine Dawn Talent, but your minimum requirement is True Radiance. They probably aren't the targets you want..."
"I have already said, according to your previous estimates, even for the Taixuan clan members who ran the furthest, I can track them down within a year."
"It's only been half a year, what's the rush?"
"This guy sure runs fast." Huang Pan pondered inwardly, explaining, "The other Pillars are pressing me urgently, so I could only come."
This costs one hundred portions of Faith Essence a day, and nearly twenty thousand have already been consumed. If we really have to wait a year, the loss would be too great.
Sanchi remained noncommittal, and his figure dissipated.
"It should be right here..."
Su Chen's figure suddenly appeared, silent and traceless. Not even the surrounding Nether Mist changed in the slightest.
He looked forward, where a hazy, shifting radiance shone through the mist. It was precisely the Void Light.
"Using the Flash-Shadow Body to travel was even faster than expected. I arrived in just over two months."
He wasn't sure if that Zhou Lin had arrived yet or not. After all, he was a guy who had refined Six Paths Dawnfire, so he didn't dare underestimate him. Further concealing his aura, he quietly parted the Nether Mist and advanced step by step.
Soon, as if crossing some boundary—it took only a single step—his vision cleared. A boundlessly massive landmass hung in the firmament, covering the sky, surrounded by celestial bodies with no end in sight.
"It's actually this huge..."
Su Chen looked up, quite shocked. Compared to the illusion of the Flash-Shadow Body previously, experiencing it personally left a much deeper impression.
"Although this place is far from that Abyssal Rift node and separated by Nether Mist, making it difficult to slowly explore here, I estimate it won't stay hidden for much longer..."
Su Chen didn't enter rashly. Instead, he retreated back into the Nether Mist and spent some time wandering around the perimeter.
Sure enough, in another direction of this Great Void Realm, he found a slender, grayish-black warship.
"A Nuo Vessel?" Su Chen stared at the warship in the distance through the Nether Mist. It looked like a fusion of flesh and metal. Black flesh squirmed on its surface, continuously inhaling the thin Nether Mist around it.
Nuo Vessels were manufactured by Great Heaven, and were one of the few vehicles capable of navigating the Nether Realm.
Because of the nature of the Nether Realm, living entities from the reality world couldn't recover their energy here. If they expended too much power traveling, it wouldn't be worth it.
Nuo Vessels used Nether Mist as fuel, indirectly saving energy. However, they were extremely precious and exorbitant in price. Just one cost over a thousand essence, and that was just the basic model.
"Unfortunately, it's too big to fit into the wristband. This thing is still useful, so it can't be destroyed." Su Chen shook his head. His gaze moved past the Nuo Vessel to the Great Void Realm. Zhou Lin's speed was a bit faster than he had anticipated.
But he shouldn't have been here for too long. The Nuo Vessel couldn't pass through those small Abyssal Rifts; it could only use large ones.
After circling once more, Su Chen attempted to board this Great Void Realm.
This thing appeared to exist upon the land of the Nether Realm, but in reality, it was a completely independent area.
Just as Su Chen approached the edge, his vision blurred with bizarre colors. His body constantly sank until he set foot on solid ground. Before his vision could even clear, he was enveloped in a cloud of fragrant breath and soft murmurs.
"Master~" A delicate frame crashed into his embrace. Su Chen looked down. Her eyes were lustrous, and her clothing was scant, faintly concealing her crucial parts, which instead added an indescribable charm.
"What, don't you remember this little slave?" The woman raised her slender, tender arm and stroked his cheek. It was soft and cool, the sensation incredibly realistic.
The surroundings were filled with the singing of birds and the fragrance of flowers, as if they were in a utopian paradise.
"What manner of freak is this?" Su Chen's mouth twitched, and his large hand grabbed the woman's head.
Boom!
Thick black electric arcs shot out from between his fingers. The void vibrated and shattered inch by inch like glass, revealing the true, scorched earth.
Only then did Su Chen realize that there was a giant crimson fox with six tails. Its tails wrapped tightly around him like live snakes. Its head was raised high, its face as hideous as a malicious ghost, with three vertical pupils where tricolored halos intertwined and flowed.
"Met something good right off the bat, a Six-Tailed Phantom Fox..." Su Chen recognized it. This was a Nether Realm Creature that could only be born by combining with a mental-type Class Affinity.
He had previously specifically sought out a large amount of information regarding the birth of Nether Realm Creatures in the Guixu Abyss and studied it deeply.
Su Chen's fingers formed a blade, and he chopped fiercely. A dense, pitch-black electric arc coalesced in his palm, hissing as it traced an arc through the air.
The giant tail wrapping around him was forcefully severed in mid-air. The scorched stump smoked, its fur curled and burnt, and a foul stench assaulted his nose.
"Hiss————" The Phantom Fox roared in pain. Its three eyes abruptly contracted, and crimson, faint blue, and pale golden light overlapped in its vertical pupils. A piercing chill spread through the air.
Sizzle!
A beam of light, condensed as if tangible, shot out from its third eye on its forehead, heading straight for Su Chen's face.
Activating the World-Slaying Manifestation and slightly elevating the Mystic Tool, Su Chen raised his hand and deflected the beam of light. It landed in the distance without a loud boom, only a blinding brilliance that cracked the scorched earth inch by inch.
The Six-Tailed Phantom Fox seemed to realize this guy in front of it was not easy to deal with. Dragging its remaining tails, it turned and tried to run.
"Where are you going?" Su Chen's figure blurred, and ink-colored afterimages rippled outwards as he arrived above its body.
Spreading his fingers, chains of black iron shot out from his body, forcefully binding the Phantom Fox.
The Six-Tailed Phantom Fox let out bursts of ear-piercing whimpers. Under the shackles of the chains, its figure shrank step by step.
Finally, it was forcefully dragged into his body.
"Phew..." A scarlet light flashed in Su Chen's eyes. Feeling the changes in his body after detaining another Nether Realm Creature, he had grown considerably stronger.
"That is..." Su Chen turned his head and looked. In the spot where the Six-Tailed Phantom Fox had been, stood a pink peach tree with only a single branch, bearing a pink peach fruit.
[Pink-Faced Peach: Consuming it can slightly weaken the requirements for mental-type Class Affinity.]
"Good stuff..." Su Chen's eyes lit up, and he immediately tucked it into his wristband. This thing was worth at least a few dozen essence.
"Tsk, no wonder so many people and factions love exploring the Guixu Abyss." Su Chen couldn't help but sigh. He then uprooted the entire tree before him and stuffed it into his wristband; it could probably fetch a good price as well.
Only then did he have the time to observe his surroundings. The ground was a scorched brown color, with rolling mountains and earth, but he couldn't see far. The void was filled with irregular radiances like shattered glass.
"Void Light... you might encounter great treasures, or great dangers, or more likely, be randomly teleported somewhere else..."
Living entities from the reality world couldn't discern what lay behind these Void Lights, but Su Chen could faintly sense the terrifying might emanating from some of them. This was the advantage of being a native.
His eyes flickered. "I'll find Zhou Lin's group first. It would be troublesome if I miss the regularly sent message. I can also catch some Nether Realm Creatures to fill myself up along the way."
Su Chen picked a general direction and carefully concealed himself.
"This f*cking place is a Mid-Realm of the Returning Abyss? Even for a Great Realm, this scale isn't small! Chen Fan, do we still have a way out!?"
On the scorched brown earth, inside a cave halfway up a withered mountain, a gaunt figure with a pale, defeated face gnashed his teeth as he looked at the middle-aged man before him.
Chen Fan's expression was equally ugly. He said coldly, "Who knew that what Zhou Lin discovered was a Great Void Realm!"
If it were a Mid-Realm of the Returning Abyss, he didn't think Zhou Lin would dare violate the rules of the Storm Tower and bury them all alive.
But a Great Void Realm was different. There were too many benefits inside. If they really found what he wanted according to Zhou Lin's orders, then they probably wouldn't have a way out.
"Let's figure out a way to run."
Hearing this, Chen Fan looked over and couldn't help but say, "Old Fan, we still have the Nine-Headed Insect he planted inside us. Where can we run to?"
"This..." Old Fan's expression fluctuated. "Then we can't just wait here for death! Even if we can't run, we have to let the Tower know!"
Just as Chen Fan was about to speak, his expression slightly changed, and he made a gesture for silence. Shadows crept around them, gradually enveloping them and causing them to vanish.
Footsteps approached from outside the cave, faintly sounding like two figures arriving.
"There's someone else here?" Chen Fan couldn't help but be stunned, only to hear a faint voice drifting in.
"Second Uncle, is that thing you mentioned really here?" The voice sounded quite clear, likely belonging to a young man.
They are also here to look for something?
Chen Fan was thoughtful. Could it be the thing Zhou Lin told them to find?
"Hong'er..." The responding voice was deep and resonant, its owner seemingly not young. While being resolute and decisive, it carried a hint of excitement: "It's definitely here. Let's look carefully again."
"As long as we find that thing, our Taixuan House will definitely be able to return to its peak!"
Taixuan House? Chen Fan froze, his heart suddenly skipping a beat, and his pupils contracted.
Hong'er... Taixuan...
Taixuan... Hong!?