Chapter Eighty One

In the span of just two days, Chú Róng had broken through to Nascent Soul in one fell swoop — and without even using the dragon breath.

Innate gifts and aptitude like this left even Ning Yuan, watching from outside, unable to suppress a surge of astonished wonder. When Ning Yuan himself had broken through to Nascent Soul, it had taken him a full seven days and seven nights.

Three hundred years ago, Chú Róng's time to form the nascent infant would likely have been even shorter.

Terrifying.

This level of talent already exceeded the limits of what a human being could conceivably possess.

Utterly staggering.

No wonder the Heavenly Dao — already weakening three hundred years ago — had sought out Chú Róng. His everything had been enough to sustain the three realms for three centuries.

Ning Yuan gazed deeply at the person within the barrier. Ripple upon ripple stirred through his eyes. He watched as the small figure above the young man's head gradually dissolved into wisps of mist and retracted, thread by thread, into his sea of consciousness.

The spiritual energy gathered within the barrier poured in full into the young man's body. The Nascent Soul pressure radiating from him — with him at its center — seeped into the surrounding air and spread in a dense, suffocating curtain, pressing down so heavily it was difficult to breathe.

Had anyone else been present — anyone but Ning Yuan — they would by now have been unable to stop their legs from bending as their knees buckled and hit the ground, bowing in reverent obeisance.

Chú Róng was completely unaware. He was entirely submerged in his cultivation, with no idea that he had already successfully formed his nascent infant. Following the guidance of instinct, he continued cultivating without pause — until he touched the wall and barrier of late Nascent Soul, at which point he finally had the sense to stop. He stilled his mind and slowly withdrew his spiritual consciousness.

Chú Róng's dense, curling lashes trembled. Before he had even opened his eyes, he sensed the spiritual energy within his body — expanded by more times than he could count — flowing endlessly, continuously, as though it could never be exhausted.

Chú Róng's heart gave an involuntary stir. He slowly opened his eyes. The first thing that came into view was a tall silhouette, and a pair of long, well-muscled arms that swept around his waist and back and pulled him tightly into an embrace.

The man's familiar, pervasive scent enveloped him completely. He paused slightly, and then the corners of his crimson lips curved upward, spreading into a thin, light smile. He looked exactly like an impossibly gorgeous fox spirit — even more captivating than he had been two days before, his every frown and smile enough to send Ning Yuan's mind into a daze without the slightest resistance: "I promised you — and I did it."

He had succeeded.

He had become the third Nascent Soul cultivator in the world of cultivation — one step ahead of the original protagonist.

Now — setting aside Ning Yuan, the sole Mahayana cultivator — he could walk through the cultivation world entirely on his own terms. What had happened at Qingyang, with all those disciples pressing down on him, would never happen to him again.

Ning Yuan's eyes darkened. His throat moved involuntarily. He buried his face deep against the side of the neck of the person in his arms. His slightly roughened voice, carried on the warmth of his breath, was pressed directly against Chú Róng's glowing, jade-pale skin: "Róng Róng is truly impressive — a few days shorter than it took me to form my infant."

"Is that so?" Chú Róng instinctively tucked his neck in to shy away, his luminous eyes going slightly wider.

In the original novel, descriptions of Ning Yuan had been far too sparse — this particular detail Chú Róng had had no way of knowing. Three hundred years ago, he had formed his nascent infant in under a day. Given the extent of Ning Yuan's gifts, he had assumed Ning Yuan was the same.

Ning Yuan lowered his head, his forehead resting against Chú Róng's pale brow. His features were sharp and striking, his nose bridge high, his beauty breathtaking. The gaze he directed at Chú Róng overflowed with warmth and devoted fascination: "I have never lied to you. Given time — no, within a hundred years — your cultivation will certainly catch up with mine."

This was the truth.

Three hundred years ago, when Chú Róng had made his bargain with the Heavenly Dao, he had been nothing more than a young boy of thirteen or fourteen — yet his cultivation had already been just one step short of Mahayana.

Today's cultivation world was impoverished in spiritual energy; cultivation resources were scarce. The environment could not compare to what it had been three hundred years ago. For Chú Róng to return to his former heights in ten years would be impossible — but within a hundred, it was entirely achievable.

It could not be denied — Ning Yuan's words landed very well with Chú Róng. Men are born with a competitive streak in their bones, and no one dislikes being praised. Especially when that praise came from the lips of the strongest person in all three realms.

The smile at the corner of his lips grew richer. Even the corners of his eyes and brows could not be kept from betraying it — only adding to the breathtaking, soul-seizing beauty of his expression.

Ning Yuan's gaze, beyond his will, went completely, utterly dark.

Chú Róng could feel the man's breath growing heavier. His brow gave a small jump. The jade-pale skin of his cheeks began to fill slowly with a faint blush. His gaze slid off to one side, not daring to meet the man's eyes.

Ning Yuan stared, captivated, at the rosy color on his face. His breath was thick and uneven, his voice a deep, low murmur that fell into Chú Róng's ear: "Speaking of which — now that Róng Róng is at Nascent Soul, he is finally able to bear……"

BOOM——

Another violent tremor shook through the secret realm, cutting off the rest of Ning Yuan's words.

Chú Róng turned to look. It wasn't the secret realm collapsing — just a few steps away, a teleportation array like a curtain of water had appeared within his field of vision.

The dragon breath was the most important resource within the Dragon Vein Ancient Land. Once someone obtained the dragon breath, the secret realm would automatically close.

Chú Róng remembered — in the original plot of Tiānyáo Chronicles, after Cen Yan obtained the dragon breath, a teleportation array just like this one had appeared.

Tiānyáo Chronicles had been the medium the Heavenly Dao used to bring him back. Chú Róng was no longer entirely sure whether the plot was still following the original text, but a point of reference, however imperfect, was still better than nothing.

Chú Róng thought briefly, put away the dragon breath swirling around him, and pointed at the water-curtain with a slender pale finger. He made the call without hesitation: "This teleportation array should be able to take us out. Let's go!"

The main street where the dragon breath had resided was deeply sinister — easy to enter and impossible to leave. Even the places Ning Yuan had forcibly demolished two days ago had vanished without a trace, as though they had never existed. The streets crisscrossing in every direction were like a cage with no visible way out and no visible end.

Of course, he and Ning Yuan joining forces to tear through the secret realm by force was another option — but with countless teleportation arrays inside the realm, that approach would be far too troublesome.

Ning Yuan asked nothing at all. He swept an arm around Chú Róng's waist and flew into the water curtain.

In the next instant, the blazing lamps of the main street vanished. The world around them shifted and tilted. The light went from dim to bright, and the sounds of voices filled their ears.

Chú Róng looked up. The teleportation array had sent him and Ning Yuan directly out of the miasma forest surrounding the ancient land.

The miasma in the forest had not diminished in the slightest from when they had first entered. Haze hung thickly in the air, the mountain ranges of the ancient land obscured from view.

Outside the forest, disciples from the Hundred Immortal Sects stood packed together — many times more than had gathered at Qingyang. After all, a secret realm of this rarity came along once in a thousand years, and most sects had come out in full force.

The cultivators from the various sects were staring at one another in confusion, their expressions all equally blank — as though they still hadn't worked out what had just happened.

What was going on?

They hadn't fully obtained all the opportunities available inside the secret realm — how had they suddenly found themselves outside the ancient land? The dragon breath in particular — days had gone by and they hadn't caught so much as a glimpse of it.

Could it be that the Heavenly Secrets Sect's intelligence had been wrong?

No — everything within the ancient land had matched what the Heavenly Secrets Sect had said. Then either the dragon breath was still inside the secret realm, or it had already fallen into someone's hands. If the former, well and good — but if the latter……the cultivators' eyes swept casually around in all directions, the light in their eyes obscured and unreadable.

Suddenly, someone happened to notice something and the faces of the Hundred Immortal Sects' cultivators broke into expressions of shock. When had the people from Qīngxū Sect arrived?

There they were — the disciples of Qīngxū Sect, lined up in a magnificent, sweeping row. Every single one of them was bright-eyed and full of vigor, their cultivations nearly all at the late Golden Core stage, with several even at Great Completion of Golden Core.

Golden Core cultivators were common enough in today's world of cultivation, it was true — but not in such sheer numbers as this. Qīngxū Sect had clearly obtained no small share of fortunate opportunities inside the secret realm.

Sensing the appraising gazes coming from every direction, the Second Elder's expression didn't change, though the hand clasped behind his back gripped into a tight fist, tinged with a barely suppressed flicker of excitement.

It was all thanks to the young master. Qīngxū Sect as a whole had reaped tremendous gains from this venture. Even his own cultivation — which hadn't budged in several hundred years — had loosened somewhat, with faint signs of a possible breakthrough.

The Second Elder was still in the middle of these thoughts when he felt a tremendous pressure spreading through the air, so overwhelming it made one's scalp prickle and even breathing feel difficult.

This kind of pressure — was this the Immortal Venerable?

No — it was the aura of Nascent Soul!

But there was no one among those present who was at Nascent Soul…… Before the Second Elder could think further, two figures appeared out of nowhere before him, and he froze in place.

The young master seemed somehow different.

The Hundred Immortal Sects' cultivators were likewise rooted to the spot as though struck by an immobilization spell, their gazes frozen, every face wearing an expression of speechless, entranced wonder.

Who was this person?

The young man had black hair and snow-white skin. His eyes were luminous and shimmering, the outer corners tinged with red. His lips were a deep, vivid crimson. His entire bearing was like a piece of fine jade ascending to immortality — beautiful to the point of devastation. Even a single glance cast from afar was enough to ensnare the soul.

The immortal sects were not lacking in people of striking appearance — but through all their years of cultivation, none of them had ever seen anyone whose looks could compare to this young man. For a moment, they forgot entirely where they were. The blood through their veins surged and blazed, their breathing growing heavy and unruly beyond their control.

Outside the forest, dead silence fell in an instant. The cultivators stood packed together, dense as trees — like rows of carved stone statues. For a long moment, not a single person spoke.

It was the Second Elder who recovered first. He gave a slight bow and said with deference: "Immortal Venerable. Young Master."

His voice was neither too loud nor too soft. It rang out over the silence outside the forest with particular clarity.

The disciples of Qīngxū Sect collectively drew a sharp, astonished breath. This was Master Chú?

Chú Róng had been at Qīngxū Sect for two months, but he had been detoxifying during that time and rarely left Wangxian Peak. The sect's disciples were only vaguely aware of his existence and had never seen him.

A few days prior, Chú Róng had broken through to Great Completion of Golden Core in one step — and still hadn't once shown his face to the disciples.

The Dragon Vein Ancient Land expedition, too, had been managed entirely by the Second Elder. Before entering the secret realm, Chú Róng had stayed at the rear to bring up the tail of the group, and the disciples hadn't managed to get a look at him then either.

But every single disciple had known from the very beginning: the fact that they had been able to enter the secret realm and obtain opportunities and resources was entirely to Chú Róng's credit.

The disciples' faces flushed deep red. Their voices trembled with emotion as they spoke in unison, raising their voices in salute: "We pay our respects to Master Chú!"

The sound rang out powerfully, resounding through both the forest and the land beyond it.

The Hundred Immortal Sects' cultivators slowly came back to themselves, most wearing expressions of puzzlement. Who was this Master Chú, and why did the people of Qīngxū Sect show him such reverence?

Only those who had been at Qingyang and seen Chú Róng before recognized him: "Chú Róng — Cen Yan of Qingyang's man from the mortal world. His fiancé."

Most of the Immortal Sects had never seen Chú Róng before and didn't know him. But mention of Cen Yan — that name they recognized.

This person was a mortal?

And Cen Yan's fiancé?

Wait!

Someone, sharp-eyed, sensed something was wrong. They stared toward the young man, their pupils contracting, their face draining of color as they blurted out: "How is he a mortal? That is clearly a Nascent Soul cultivator!"