Trials of the Abyss

Chapter 42: Spiritual Land

After Su Yuntian and He Rong stepped onto the island, they activated their clan's cultivation methods and took deep breaths. Before long, they cried out in surprise.

"This truly is a spiritual land!"

"There's actually a piece of spiritual land hidden in the Solitary Mountain Range! Could it be because it's right next to the bizarre mist?"

"This is an important matter! If there's a spiritual land, we must relocate some of our clan's elites here for cultivation!"

The Fourth World was regarded as part of the lower world not only because it occupied the lower half of their world but also due to its sparse and impurity-laden spiritual qi.

This left the seven major families feeling hopeless.

Thick, pure spiritual qi was an indispensable resource for any sect or faction. It was the fundamental requirement for founding and establishing sects.

There was no place in the entirety of the Fourth World with as pure and abundant spiritual qi as Central Lake Island.

The fragmented lands where their sect was located were larger than Northern Qi and had slightly thicker spiritual qi.

However, the spiritual qi there was filled with impurities, and they had to work to purify it when they absorbed it into their bodies.

The reason they wanted to send their sons and daughters to the upper worlds was because sects such as the Red Mountain Sect, the Star River Alliance, and the Blood Moon Sect were established in spiritual lands where the spiritual qi was pure and thick.

When cultivating in such places, they would only need to put in half the effort for twice the reward, allowing their cultivation to advance much more rapidly compared to cultivating in the lower worlds.

Nobody could have imagined that a spiritual land existed near the boundary wall in the desolate Solitary Mountain Range.

As Pang Jian observed their excitement, akin to explorers discovering a new continent, he asked in amazement. "What are spiritual lands?"

Luo Hongyan noticed Pang Jian's confusion and casually explained, "Cultivators of the upper worlds classified the unusual places of our worlds into spiritual lands, restricted areas, and sacred lands.

"Spiritual lands, like the island beneath us, have an abundance of pure spiritual qi of heaven and earth, which allow for the growth of exotic plants and flowers. There's also a decent chance of producing pure spirit stones. Furthermore, wild beasts that live on these spiritual lands have a high likelihood of evolving into intelligent Spirit Beasts.

"Restricted areas, on the other hand, have strange energy that is filled with impurities, and this strange energy is often denser than the spiritual qi in that area. If ordinary cultivators were to absorb this energy, it would result in more of a loss than a gain. Most of their time would be spent purifying the impurities, and the spiritual power they would get is limited.

"Cultivating in restricted areas also carries significant risks, as one could easily succumb to cultivation deviation. Similarly, the wild beasts that live in the restricted areas are extremely dangerous and bloodthirsty."

"As for sacred lands..." When she said this, the Su Clan's and the He Clan's expressions turned blank. Luo Hongyan's demeanor abruptly turned cold as she continued, "Sacred lands are extremely rare, and ordinary people seldom encounter them. Therefore, I will not dwell on this topic."

"Sister Ning, we've all heard of spiritual lands and restricted areas, but I've never heard of sacred lands," Su Meng said curiously.

He Rong and Su Yuntian exchanged glances.

It was also their first time hearing about sacred lands.

Luo Hongyan raised her head to stare at the sky as if trying to pierce through the clouds and reach the higher realm, then said, "If you're fortunate enough to reach the Second World, someone will tell you about sacred lands."

"The Second World?" Su Meng stuck out her tongue. With a face full of yearning, she said, "I've heard about the Second World but I don't know if I'll have the chance to go there. My dream is to be able to cultivate in the Third World."

"It's fine to have dreams." Luo Hongyan chuckled before turning toward Pang Jian. "You're not familiar with how to harvest the exotic plants and flowers here, so refrain from touching them for now. Let's finish exploring this island first. If we're still alive by then, I'll teach you how to harvest them and trade them for spirit stones."

Hearing this, Su Meng finally noted the exotic flowers and plants around them, and exclaimed, "These flowers and plants can be exchanged for spirit stones?"

Su Yuntian and He Rong also instructed their servants not to touch the flora. They cautiously scanned their surroundings.

Their eyes lit up with greed and excitement.

This was their first time visiting a spiritual land. They had only ever heard about the rare exotic flowers and plants that grew on spiritual lands, but now they could confirm for themselves that it was true.

"The one controlling the Divine Spirit Pagoda must be near where it fell." Luo Hongyan ignored them and looked toward the small hill at the center of the island. She knitted her brows as she continued, "Regardless of their whereabouts, once they notice that the Divine Spirit Pagoda has fallen, they will surely come and investigate."

These words pulled everybody out of their daydreams about the spiritual land and snapped them back to reality.

A person capable of controlling the Divine Spirit Pagoda to search for souls on the island had to be a formidable character. They had to be approached with caution.

"Even though the Divine Spirit Pagod is here in the northernmost region of the Solitary Mountain Range, most members of the Sinister Soul Temple perished in the southernmost region," Pang Jian commented, brows knitted as he carefully advanced through the exotic flora with his spear in hand. "These two places are extremely distant from each other."

Luo Hongyan interjected from behind him, "Before we entered the Solitary Mountain Range, the Divine Spirit Pagoda must've brought the members of the Sinister Soul Temple to different regions of the mountain. With the Divine Spirit Pagoda's speed, circling the Solitary Mountain Range wouldn't have taken much time at all.

"Perhaps it landed in the middle of the canyon or somewhere nearby. The members of the Sinister Soul Temple may have disembarked in search of something and met their demise there. The strange array in the stone pile might've drawn their attention."

"That's possible," Pang Jian agreed.

Ignoring the Su Clan and the He Clan, the two continued their discussion while making their way to the small hill.

Throughout their trek, flowers and plants could be seen everywhere, alongside massive trees with lush green branches. The air was filled with a refreshing vitality, bringing Pang Jian an unparalleled sense of tranquility and serenity.

Even without a single spirit stone, living and cultivating in such a place would be much more effective than cultivating diligently elsewhere.

It's no wonder that the elite talents from the seven major clans aspire to gain recognition from the major sects in the Third World and be brought there for cultivation, Pang Jian thought to himself.

During their journey to the small hill, they did not encounter anyone else, nor did they come across any skeletons or wild beasts.

Despite the idyllic, harmonious atmosphere permeating the island, Pang Jian remained cautious.

Blackwater Pond had a giant serpent and Insect Valley had a huge beehive. Central Lake Island had also been designated as a forbidden zone by his father, it surely had to have its own terrifying secrets as well.

No matter how beautiful the island appeared, Pang Jian could not shake the feeling that it concealed lurking dangers that were just waiting for the right time to strike.

Su Meng had ventured away from her clan and now trailed behind Pang Jian and Luo Hongyan, Despite being a young girl, she seemed fearless, disregarding her father's attempts to stop her from silently following them.

Her twin-tails swayed from side to side as she walked, curiously observing Pang Jian and Luo Hongyan all the while.

Atop the small hill adorned with colorful flowers, Pang Jian spotted the Divine Spirit Pagoda in the distance.

The Divine Spirit Pagoda was very sturdy. Despite plummeting down from the sky, there were no obvious signs of damage.

From afar, Pang Jian noticed that the Divine Spirit Pagoda was remarkably tall. Even from a distance away, he could sense a cold energy emanating from it. This cold energy was Profound Yin energy, albeit much denser.

It seemed to be constructed from the bones of some gigantic creature. In addition to the chilling Profound Yin energy, there was also a strong malevolent aura lingering around its perimeter.

As Pang Jian studied the Divine Spirit Pagoda, the faint sounds of clashing weapons and the crying of lost souls and wandering spirits echoed through the air.

"Don't get any closer," Luo Hongyan warned, expression frosty. "We're lucky this thing isn't flying. If it hovered above us, it could forcibly extract our souls. The Divine Spirit Pagoda's purpose is actually to extract a person's soul from their sea of consciousness."

The crowd trailing behind her came to an immediate halt when they heard her words.

Su Yuntian cherished his daughter deeply. He abandoned all thoughts of treasure and reluctantly stepped forward to grab Su Meng.

"The four servants who arrived on the island before us are nowhere to be seen," He Rong whispered.

"Why is there nobody near the Divine Spirit Pagoda? Wouldn't the one controlling it go investigate after it fell from the sky?" Su Meng asked.

"I'll go and have a look." Wary of the eerie atmosphere surrounding the Divine Spirit Pagoda, Pang Jian tightened his grip on his Dragonwood Spear and circled to the back of the white pagoda.

Coincidentally, that was also the highest point of the small hill.

Reaching a higher vantage point with a better view, he could overlook the island and properly assess the situation.

Glancing at the opposite end of the island, closest to the mountains behind Black Orchid Lake, he noticed a silk-clad figure sitting blankly beside a huge well. The figure looked to be silently waiting for something.

Pang Jian squinted his eyes for a better look. "Shangguan Qin."

He was surprised to see the woman from the Shangguan Clan here.

At Blackwater Pond, he spent most of his time submerged underwater, so he was unaware of what had occurred on the surface.

He learned later on that Shangguan Qin had been rescued by Ouyang Duanhai and managed to escape from the Shadow Specter Sect.

Now, she appeared on Central Lake Island and was guarding a well.

As Pang Jian stared at Shangguan Qin in surprise, Luo Hongyan had silently approached.

"She's not the owner of the Divine Spirit Pagoda. She doesn't have the ability to control it." Shifting her gaze to the well beside Shangguan Qin she continued, "That's not a well. That's where the fourth bone of the Celestial Phoenix landed."

Upon closer inspection, Pang Jian noticed that the "well" Shangguan Qin guarded indeed lacked any bricks or stones.

It seemed that a bone of the Celestial Phoenix had fallen from the sky, piercing through the island, and creating a massive hole that resembled a well from afar.

Suddenly, he became suspicious of whether Shangguan Qin had also obtained a drop of the essence of the Celestial Phoenix.

Hmm!

At this moment, Shangguan Qin caught sight of them. Like a bird startled by the twang of a bowstring, she wrapped her body tightly with her clothes before waving toward the two of them.

She gestured repeatedly, signaling for the two of them to leave.

Her eyes were filled with fear and she did not even dare to make a sound as she continuously gestured.

Neither Pang Jian nor Luo Hongyan could make head or tail of the situation.

Seeing their hesitation Shangguan Qin grew increasingly anxious and gestured more urgently.

But she never made a sound.

"There must be something or someone nearby that she fears will be alerted if she makes any noise," Luo Hongyan calmly assessed. "She doesn't dare to leave because she knows she won't get far. She's afraid of them."

"They must be in that hole," Pang Jian remarked.

"Are you suggesting that someone dived into that deep hole to search for the essence of the Celestial Phoenix?"

The two of them exchanged whispers, speculating about the situation as they tried to decipher what was happening.

"That woman bears deep resentment toward you because you gained the favor of the Blood Moon Sect's Eye of Imprint. She's not the kind of person to give you a warning after that." Luo Hongyan analyzed coldly. "My Ning Clan and her Shangguan Clan have never had a good relationship, so she's not fond of me either. In theory, she should want both of us dead.

"She's urging us to leave because she believes we're no match for this person or thing. It's also possible that she thinks our deaths would only make them stronger. She could also be urging us to leave in hopes that we'll bring someone stronger to deal with the situation."