Chapter 260 – Critical Intelligence: Qingyunzi’s Reverse Three Corpses Dao Attainment? (10,000 words, 2-in-1)
by spirapiraThinking of this, Su Xing took out a storage ring.
Its internal space was one hundred cubic meters, but with Su Xing’s current comprehension of spatial origin, he was unable to fully protect it.
After multiple attempts, Su Xing discovered that with his currently feeble spatial origin, he could at most protect a space ring with two to three cubic meters of internal space at once.
Under the enhancement of Su Xing’s spatial origin, this storage ring’s internal space became incredibly sturdy—even amid the chaotic currents of the void, it would not be easily damaged.
“Phew… although the space isn’t large, it’s still quite good!”
“This means that in future simulations, I’ll be able to bring two to three cubic meters’ worth of items into the Three Thousand Worlds! At the very least, I’ll have some starting capital.”
“And as my mastery of spatial origin gradually deepens… eventually I could even bring the entire spirit field grotto-heaven into the Three Thousand Worlds!”
Su Xing nodded with satisfaction, his gaze turning to the simulation panel.
【After achieving introductory comprehension of spatial origin, you settled into your cave dwelling and continued cultivating.】
【Year Twenty-Four: Your body tempering cultivation smoothly broke through to Grand Accomplishment Ninth Layer, mid-stage.】
【Just like that, another two years passed.】
【Year Twenty-Six: Your comprehension of the Formation Dao gradually deepened, and you mastered more eighth-tier formations.】
【At the same time, you began attempting to comprehend ninth-tier formations.】
【In the blink of an eye, another four years passed.】
【Year Thirty: Over these years, two more of your senior brothers successively emerged from seclusion, gifting you valuable meeting presents.】
【But you knew this glory was only temporary. Once Qingyunzi emerged from seclusion, he would inevitably turn against you in order to obtain the secrets of Luotian from your person.】
【So your goal was to accumulate resources as quickly as possible, then find an opportunity to leave, avoiding any encounter with Qingyunzi as much as possible to extend the simulation’s duration.】
【Year Thirty-Two: You traded with Fairy Ziling once more, exchanging one thousand Spirit-Gathering Flowers for 1.3 million sect contribution points.】
【Azure Cloud Sect contribution points were precious, capable of being exchanged for many rare items in the cultivation world.】
【But Qingyunzi would emerge from seclusion in just over twenty years—before then, you had to spend all your contribution points and leave the Azure Cloud Realm as soon as possible.】
【You exchanged for a considerable amount of blood essence from Human Immortal realm demon cultivators. This blood essence was sufficient to maintain rapid growth in your body tempering cultivation.】
【You visited the Azure Cloud Sect’s “Sect Treasury” and redeemed several collections of insights from Formation Dao Grandmasters—these insights represented the lifetime research and dedication of Formation Dao Grandmasters regarding formations.】
【Through studying these, your comprehension of the Formation Dao advanced by leaps and bounds.】
【During this period, you spent 200,000 contribution points to purchase the formation insights of a “Mystic Immortal realm Formation Dao Grandmaster.”】
【This Formation Dao Grandmaster was said to have entered the Dao through formations, possessing deep comprehension of aura-concealing formations. From his Formation Dao insights, you learned an advanced form of the Breath-Concealing Formation, called the Xuanyuan Breath-Concealing Formation!】
【This formation required at minimum a ninth-tier formation master to comprehend, and at its highest could be arranged as a super composite formation reaching the fifteenth tier, capable of blocking the perception of all cultivators below the Golden Immortal level.】
【You painstakingly studied this formation, spending three years before finally achieving introductory mastery.】
【Year Thirty-Five: Your cultivation smoothly advanced to Grand Accomplishment Ninth Layer, late-stage.】
【Because you had spent these years comprehending formations, your cultivation progress had somewhat slowed.】
【Year Thirty-Six: Your comprehension of the Formation Dao finally advanced another step! You became a ninth-tier formation master!】
【The formations you mastered included spirit-gathering formations, Breath-Concealing Formations, entrapment formations, killing formations, and many other types.】
【Through formations alone, you were confident you could trap and kill cultivators at the Tribulation Crossing stage!】
【After successfully being able to craft ninth-tier formations, you began attempting to learn seventh-tier micro spirit-gathering formations…】
【The micro spirit-gathering formation was extremely difficult. Its tier did not correspond one-to-one with ordinary formations, but with your foundation as a ninth-tier formation master, you were qualified to attempt crafting it.】
【You took out the spirit carp, spirit beasts, and other creatures you had been raising all these years, and began attempting to inscribe micro spirit-gathering formations on them.】
【In the blink of an eye, another three years passed.】
【Year Thirty-Nine: You successfully achieved introductory mastery of the seventh-tier micro spirit-gathering formation. Though many spirit beasts had died at your hands over these years, you ultimately succeeded in completing the inscription.】
【However, with your current level of proficiency, you didn’t dare experiment directly on yourself, so you continued deepening your study of the micro spirit-gathering formation.】
【Year Forty-One: Your body tempering cultivation advanced further, smoothly reaching Grand Accomplishment Ninth Layer, Peak!】
【At the same time, you began preparing for the breakthrough to Grand Accomplishment, Perfection.】
【Year Forty-Two: You traded with Senior Sister Ziling once more, selling one thousand Spirit-Gathering Flowers and obtaining 1.3 million sect contribution points.】
【At this point, the contribution points remaining in your possession totaled 1.8 million.】
【And there were only just over ten years left until Qingyunzi emerged from seclusion.】
In the Real World, Su Xing nodded slightly at this and murmured:
“So next, it’s about maximizing the benefits gained from Azure Cloud Sect… spending all these contribution points, then leaving the Azure Cloud Realm to seek a thread of survival!”
“There should be enough remaining time for one more trade with Fairy Ziling… over three million contribution points—I wonder what kind of surprises they could bring me?”
Su Xing furrowed his brow slightly. Exchanging for ordinary items wouldn’t be of much help to him.
Because Su Xing’s goal this time was to advance to Body Tempering Grand Accomplishment realm, Perfection, and to master the corresponding Formation Dao knowledge.
So ideally, the items exchanged with contribution points should relate to these two objectives.
“A super composite formation… a fifteenth-tier formation at its highest—the Xuanyuan Breath-Concealing Formation. That’s enough to keep me studying for a long time… and after advancing further in the Formation Dao, I’ll also be able to modify the spirit field grotto-heaven.”
“At the same time, I can conceal my own karmic secrets and suppress my aura… making me much safer in the Three Thousand Worlds going forward!”
After brief consideration, Su Xing decided that if he couldn’t spend all the contribution points, he would convert the remainder entirely into spirit stones.
After all, spirit stones were a universal resource throughout the Three Thousand Worlds. Su Xing could use this batch of spirit stones to purchase more useful intelligence from the Celestial Secrets Pavilion!
“I’ll stay at Azure Cloud Sect for a few more years, then apply to travel to other minor thousand worlds…”
Su Xing thought thus, his gaze turning to the simulation panel.
【Year Forty-Three: You spent 50,000 contribution points to exchange for an eighth-tier Body Forging Pill from the sect. When breaking through minor body tempering bottlenecks, this pill could increase the success rate by thirty percent.】
【After consuming the pill, you formally entered seclusion for your breakthrough!】
【Half a year later, you successfully emerged from seclusion. Your body tempering cultivation broke through to Grand Accomplishment, Perfection!】
【Year Forty-Four: You continued researching the seventh-tier micro spirit-gathering formation.】
【Your mastery of the micro spirit-gathering formation gradually became proficient. You were fairly confident that even if the inscription failed, it would only cause a few months of spiritual energy blockage, and would not endanger a cultivator’s life.】
【So you issued a sect mission, recruiting disciples below the Body Integration stage as voluntary test subjects at a price of one thousand contribution points per day.】
【One thousand contribution points was equivalent to 100,000 low-grade spirit stones!】
【Upon hearing this news, countless sect disciples were eager to try, scrambling over each other to become test subjects.】
【Thus, you perfectly recruited Qi Refinement cultivators as inscription subjects for the micro spirit-gathering formation.】
【At first, some cultivators were afraid, but even when your formation arrangement failed, it only caused blocked meridians and spiritual energy disorder in these disciples—a few months of rest and recuperation would set them right.】
【For those disciples with poor conditions, this was practically free money!】
【After all, even ordinary Body Integration cultivators who were sect disciples might not earn 100,000 spirit stones in an entire year of effort.】
【More and more disciples signed up to serve as test subjects, and after inscribing micro spirit-gathering formations on human bodies, your comprehension of the spirit-gathering formation improved rapidly.】
【Just like that, a year passed…】
【Year Forty-Five: You spent nearly 300,000 contribution points recruiting a large number of cultivators as test subjects.】
【This year, you finally achieved complete mastery of the seventh-tier micro spirit-gathering formation!】
In the Real World, Su Xing nodded slightly at this.
With the simulation having progressed to this point, it had essentially achieved Su Xing’s minimum expectations.
What came next was to exchange for more resources and lay the groundwork for future growth.
“Azure Cloud Sect should still have quite a few high-tier pill formulas—I can spend some contribution points to purchase them!”
“Or perhaps cultivation methods above the Heaven-tier? After breaking through to the Immortal realm… could I obtain a cultivation method to practice to even higher realms?”
Su Xing thought thus, his gaze turning to the simulation panel.
【After achieving complete mastery of the seventh-tier micro spirit-gathering formation, you began attempting to arrange a formation at your own dantian.】
【The entire process went very smoothly… the seventh-tier micro spirit-gathering formation operated autonomously at the dantian position, and the daily passive cultivation gains it provided were comparable to those of a Super Spirit Root cultivator!】
【This year, your Qi Refinement cultivation broke through to Mahayana Stage, Third Layer!】
【After careful deliberation, you decided you must plan for the future. So you wanted to use contribution points to exchange for Azure Cloud Sect’s cultivation methods.】
【You purchased a redemption catalog from the Sect Treasury, and after careful screening, you set your sights on three precious items.】
【The first item: the immortal technique, Xuantian Azure Cloud Record!】
【This cultivation method was extremely precious even within Azure Cloud Sect. It was a cultivation method for realms above the Immortal realm, and what made it most special was that it had no spirit root attribute requirements—any previously learned cultivation method of any attribute could smoothly transition into it.】
【The Xuantian Azure Cloud Record could be cultivated up to the Golden Immortal realm at maximum!】
【This was sufficient to serve as your primary cultivation method, enough for a very long period of future cultivation.】
【The only issue was that this cultivation method was quite expensive, requiring two million contribution points to exchange for.】
【The second item was the Illusory Heart Mystic Pill formula! The primary ingredients for this pill were Jade Bone Snow Ginseng, Condensing Wood, and others—you had already collected the vast majority of the required materials.】
【As a ninth-grade pill, the Illusory Heart Mystic Pill’s effect was to reduce the interference of inner demons during “tribulation heart refinement,” effectively increasing the success rate of passing the Heart Refinement Trial.】
【Moreover, this pill was greatly beneficial for nourishing divine sense. If provided to Luo Shuying, it would certainly increase her strength.】
【The Illusory Heart Mystic Pill formula cost 100,000 contribution points.】
【The third item you had your eye on was an eleventh-tier Aura-Concealing Stone. This stone could resist the probing of cultivators below the Earthly Immortal realm, concealing one’s aura.】
【When you fled in the future, this stone would undoubtedly prove very useful.】
【This Aura-Concealing Stone was valued at 200,000 sect contribution points.】
【The total price for the three items was 2.3 million sect contribution points, but you only had approximately 1.5 million on hand.】
【So you continued planting Spirit-Gathering Flowers, preparing for one final trade with Fairy Ziling.】
【Three years quickly passed.】
【Year Forty-Eight: You traded 1,400 Spirit-Gathering Flowers with Fairy Ziling, obtaining two million sect contribution points.】
【Combined with your previous accumulation, your total sect contribution points reached 3.5 million!】
【You purchased the three items you had previously selected, then converted the remaining contribution points into 1.2 million high-grade spirit stones.】
【This year, you applied to leave Azure Cloud Sect to train in other minor thousand worlds.】
【But with your current strength, you were unable to traverse worlds on your own, so you could only travel by flying vessel.】
【After some hesitation, you decided to head to the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm to see if you could survive a bit longer.】
【One month later, the flying vessel you were aboard arrived at Lesser Azure Cloud City.】
【But you did not stay in the city. Instead, you disguised your appearance and concealed your aura, then took an airship to White Emperor City.】
【You assumed a false identity and rented a blessed land within White Emperor City, continuing to study formations and cultivate Spirit-Gathering Flowers each day.】
In the Real World, Su Xing saw this and silently intoned:
“Activate immersive simulation, duration thirty days!”
【Ding, you have successfully activated…】
As the notification sounded, the view before Su Xing’s eyes shifted and transformed.
At this moment, Su Xing was inside a cave dwelling in White Emperor City. Though it wasn’t as rich in spiritual energy as the spirit field grotto-heaven, it was quite good overall.
“Whew… I still don’t know exactly what changes have occurred with Qingyunzi… but it’s definitely harmful to me, not beneficial!”
“At this point, my only option is to hide in White Emperor City and study as hard as I can.”
With that thought, Su Xing activated his Great Wisdom state and began attempting to comprehend the immortal-level cultivation technique before him — the Xuantian Azure Cloud Record!
Four weeks quickly passed, leaving only two final days before the immersive simulation would end.
And Su Xing had finally succeeded in learning this immortal cultivation technique!
“Whew… as expected of the Azure Cloud Sect’s renowned technique… it truly cannot be underestimated!”
Su Xing rubbed the spot between his brows. Even as a Mahayana stage cultivator, memorizing an immortal technique was still extraordinarily difficult.
After all, memorizing the “immortal script” within consumed an enormous amount of divine sense.
And Su Xing’s divine sense currently remained at only the Subtle Realm!
Fortunately, with the blessing of triple comprehension, and after spending nearly a month, Su Xing had finally managed to learn the technique!
“Not bad… now I have a cultivation technique for after the Immortal realm as well!”
“All I’m lacking is my Qi Refinement cultivation… advancing to Mahayana Stage, Perfection as soon as possible and preparing for tribulation is the way to go!”
After memorizing the technique, Su Xing spent some additional time committing the Illusory Heart Mystic Pill formula to memory.
At this point, there was still one full day remaining before the immersive simulation ended.
“Well then… it’s time to make a trip to the Celestial Secrets Pavilion and see if I can obtain intelligence related to Qingyunzi!”
With that thought, Su Xing tidied up, disguised his appearance, concealed his aura, and headed for the Celestial Secrets Pavilion branch within White Emperor City.
Arriving before the ancient-looking shop, Su Xing saw the three characters “Celestial Secrets Pavilion” written in bold, sweeping calligraphy on the door plaque.
As he crossed the threshold, Su Xing raised an eyebrow — he clearly sensed a mysterious formation fluctuation.
In previous simulations, Su Xing’s perception hadn’t been this refined.
But now, as a ninth-tier formation grandmaster, he felt the terrifying power of this formation even more keenly!
“This is probably… a formation of the fifteenth tier or above!”
“I can sense a trace of something similar to the Xuanyuan Breath-Concealing Formation within it…”
Su Xing took a deep breath, gaining an even deeper appreciation of the immense power behind the Celestial Secrets Pavilion.
This was a colossus no lesser than the Azure Cloud Sect!
The thought flashed through Su Xing’s mind as his gaze fell upon a girl who was boredly dozing off at her desk.
“Fellow Daoist, are you here to buy intelligence or sell intelligence?”
The girl yawned and asked casually.
This wasn’t Su Xing’s first time purchasing intelligence here, so he said directly:
“I’d like to purchase intelligence on the Azure Cloud Sect’s ancestor… Qingyunzi. Only Grade-A intelligence… How do I get to the Celestial Secrets Pavilion headquarters to make the purchase?”
Su Xing knew that Grade-A intelligence couldn’t be purchased at this White Emperor City branch, but he currently didn’t know how to reach the Celestial Secrets Realm where the headquarters was located.
So Su Xing figured he’d just come ask directly — the simplest and most efficient approach.
After hearing Su Xing’s words, the girl raised an eyebrow and said:
“Fellow Daoist… your strength doesn’t seem all that impressive…”
“Early Mahayana in Qi Refinement… your Body Tempering has reached Grand Accomplishment realm, Perfection, which is decent, but coming here straightaway to inquire about Qingyunzi’s intelligence?”
“That doesn’t seem like something someone of your status could reach!”
Hearing this, Su Xing frowned slightly. He had the Heavenly Secrets Concealment Art layered on himself, and with the Aura-Concealing Stone on top of that, even an Earthly Immortal realm cultivator would have difficulty seeing through his cultivation.
Yet this girl had seen through him at a glance, which meant she was at least a cultivator above the Heavenly Immortal realm!
But Su Xing didn’t panic. Instead, he countered:
“What’s this? Does purchasing intelligence now require investigating clients’ privacy?”
The girl covered her mouth and laughed lightly, saying:
“That’s not it… I’m just worried you can’t afford the price!”
“Besides, the Celestial Secrets Pavilion headquarters is very far from here… Without Heavenly Immortal realm strength, you probably wouldn’t even qualify to board a realm-crossing flying vessel…”
Hearing this, Su Xing felt somewhat disappointed. He had heard that traversing the void did indeed carry certain risks.
The greater the distance, the greater the risk…
With Su Xing’s current strength, taking a flying vessel to a distant Greater World wouldn’t be safe either.
Just as Su Xing was about to leave in disappointment, the girl behind him suddenly spoke up:
“Hold on, fellow Daoist… Although you can’t purchase Grade-A intelligence, our Celestial Secrets Pavilion has recently obtained a rather good piece of intelligence. It’s the latest news about Qingyunzi from within the past ten years. Would you be interested in taking a look?”
Hearing this, Su Xing’s heart stirred. The latest news about Qingyunzi — could it be related to him?
After all, it was he who had brought the news that Qingyunzi hadn’t perished, and during his last simulation, this particular piece of intelligence hadn’t been available for sale yet.
So Su Xing followed up and asked:
“What’s the price for this intelligence, and what’s its value?”
The girl slowly extended a single finger and said:
“One million high-grade spirit stones… The price for this intelligence is absolutely worth every stone!”
At this point, seemingly worried that Su Xing wouldn’t buy it, the girl added:
“If the speculation in this intelligence proves correct… the entire Azure Cloud Realm — even the entire Three Thousand Worlds — could see a massive upheaval!”
Hearing this, Su Xing raised an eyebrow. After only a brief second of hesitation, he produced one million spirit stones and handed them over.
Spirit stones were important, but they could only be possessed during a single simulation. Intelligence, on the other hand, provided advance insight into the future — its value was immeasurable!
Seeing Su Xing act so boldly, the girl was slightly surprised. After accepting the spirit stones, she produced a specially crafted jade slip and handed it to Su Xing.
“The intelligence is in here… The value of this intelligence hasn’t been formally assessed yet, but I’ll warn you in advance — even after learning its contents, do not spread it widely. Otherwise, it could cause unnecessary panic!”
Hearing this, Su Xing’s curiosity deepened. He took a deep breath and extended his divine sense into the jade slip.
Moments later, Su Xing’s expression turned grave, and he fell silent.
The jade slip did indeed contain intelligence about Qingyunzi.
According to the Azure Cloud Sect’s original intelligence, two of the three peaks at Three Immortals Peak had collapsed. The Celestial Secrets Pavilion’s master had originally calculated that Qingyunzi had perished through soul dispersal.
But several decades ago, Su Xing had brought news that Qingyunzi was still alive — contradicting the Pavilion Master’s prediction.
After triple verification, the Celestial Secrets Pavilion confirmed that Qingyunzi had not perished and would emerge from seclusion within the coming decades.
Yet the collapse of Three Immortals Peak was not without basis. So the Pavilion Master expended his lifespan to perform a heaven-defying divination, ultimately concluding that Qingyunzi would trigger a catastrophe across the Three Thousand Worlds!
One that could even cause the next Great Tribulation to arrive ahead of schedule!
If this divination alone were all, it naturally wouldn’t be worth one million high-grade spirit stones.
But the Pavilion Master had also attached his own speculation!
It concerned Qingyunzi’s supreme supernatural art — One Qi Transforms into Three Purities!
This art split one into three, dividing one’s divine consciousness into three parts representing the self corpse, the good corpse, and the evil corpse!
After splitting the divine consciousness into three, both cultivation and combat power would multiply several times over!
However, this art also had one drawback.
Beyond the Grand Luo realm, there was only one method to glimpse the faintest chance of “saintly destiny.”
That method was to sever the Three Corpses and achieve sainthood!
The Pavilion Master therefore speculated that the collapse of Three Immortals Peak represented Qingyunzi severing one — or even two — of his “Three Corpses”!
However, the Pavilion Master had not been able to determine which two corpses had been severed.
Under normal circumstances, the process of Severing the Three Corpses to achieve sainthood proceeded by first severing the evil corpse, then the good corpse, and finally the self corpse…
Though this method was difficult, its advantage lay in stability — it was less likely to lead to extremes.
But if one severed the good corpse first, followed by the evil corpse and the self corpse, the process became the easiest.
This was because whether for mortals or immortals, the good thoughts within were easier to eliminate than evil thoughts!
Yet severing the good corpse first carried a hidden danger: the rapidly swelling evil thoughts within could take over. If one failed to successfully sever the evil corpse and preserve the self corpse, the result would be a descent into extremity! It could even bring calamity upon the Three Thousand Worlds!
Based on the Pavilion Master’s divination of an impending “catastrophe,” his speculation was that perhaps Qingyunzi had taken the risk of severing his good corpse, allowing evil thoughts to consume the self, which would plunge the Three Thousand Worlds into chaos…
…
The above was the intelligence and speculation Su Xing had obtained from the jade slip.
Su Xing’s luck was truly excellent. Had he arrived even a little later, this piece of intelligence would likely not have been accessible to a minor Mahayana stage cultivator like him.
It was precisely because he had learned the contents of this intelligence that Su Xing’s expression had become so serious.
Because based on what Su Xing knew, the Celestial Secrets Pavilion Master’s divination was very likely eight or nine parts correct!
Otherwise, there was no explanation for why Qingyunzi had lost his memories of Su Xing. If his split divine consciousness had returned and merged, he would certainly have known the time Su Xing had spent cultivating.
There was only one possibility!
The “Qingyunzi” Su Xing had met two years ago had already been severed as either the “Good Corpse” or the “Self Corpse”!
And the Qingyunzi who would emerge from seclusion in ten years might be nothing but the evil corpse!
“This truly is shocking intelligence!”
Su Xing exclaimed inwardly.
A Grand Luo who had begun Severing the Three Corpses had already surpassed the Grand Luo Golden Immortal level, reaching the legendary realm of half-saint!
For a Grand Luo Golden Immortal, every corpse severed from the Three Corpses brought an earth-shattering increase in power!
The original Qingyunzi was already a renowned top-tier powerhouse across the Three Thousand Worlds.
Now, having severed his “Three Corpses,” Qingyunzi was likely one of the top two or three most powerful beings in all the Three Thousand Worlds!
“How terrifying… A powerhouse like that has his eye on the secrets I carry. Do I really have any chance of surviving?”
Su Xing took a deep breath, unable to suppress a thread of despair rising in his heart.
But the despair flickered away almost as soon as it appeared.
So what if he was a Grand Luo Golden Immortal, a half-saint?
Su Xing had the simulator. If one simulation wasn’t enough, then ten, a hundred, a thousand!
As Su Xing’s strength grew, he could simulate more and more times. Even against a Grand Luo Golden Immortal, Su Xing was confident that one day in the future, he would prevail!
Just as Su Xing was lost in thought, the girl’s light laughter reached his ears:
“So? Fellow Daoist, do you think this intelligence was worth the price?”
Su Xing didn’t answer her question. Instead, he continued:
“I’d also like information about various secret realms… within the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm, for those with difficulty levels between Tribulation Crossing and Human Immortal realm!”
Hearing Su Xing’s words, the girl’s smile didn’t waver as she replied:
“Tribulation Crossing stage secret realms opening within the next ten years, containing opportunities for ascending to immortality… ten million low-grade spirit stones per piece of intelligence. I have three available. How many do you want?”
“As for Human Immortal realm secret realm opportunities… containing secrets of the Earthly Immortal realm… fifty million low-grade spirit stones for one piece of intelligence. I only have one. Do you want it?”
Hearing this, Su Xing was taken aback. He hadn’t expected the Celestial Secrets Pavilion to actually possess such detailed intelligence about secret realms.
It was just that the price… seemed a bit too steep!
A single piece of intelligence on a Tribulation Crossing stage secret realm cost tens of millions of spirit stones…
“Hmm? Wait a moment…”
A thought stirred in Su Xing’s mind, and he suddenly asked:
“Do you have intelligence on secret realms that opened in the past fifty years?”
“I want detailed information on all secret realms in the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm from the past fifty years, ranging from Tribulation Crossing stage to Earthly Immortal realm!”
“Including exploration records from cultivators, the layouts within the secret realms…”
Upon hearing Su Xing’s words, the girl’s face showed a stunned expression for the first time.
The Celestial Secrets Pavilion divined karmic secrets, and the intelligence they sold was typically about “the future.”
After all, who would spend a fortune purchasing outdated secret realm intelligence?
Those secret realms had long been fully explored—even if one knew what was inside, what use would it be?
Nevertheless, adhering to the principle of “the customer comes first,” the girl crouched down and carefully rummaged through her stock, then produced a battered wooden crate containing several dozen dust-covered jade slips.
“These contain information on all secret realms that opened in the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm over the past fifty years…”
“There are thirteen reports on Tribulation Crossing stage secret realms, seven on Human Immortal realm secret realms, and three on Earthly Immortal realm ones…”
“Since you want them, I’ll give you a bundle price… one hundred thousand low-grade spirit stones total!”
The corners of Su Xing’s mouth turned up slightly. As expected, this kind of “expired” intelligence was exceptionally cheap!
But the thing was, although the intelligence was expired within the simulation, for Su Xing in the real world, it wasn’t expired at all!
Su Xing could even use this secret realm intelligence to deploy in advance and seize the many benefits within those secret realms!
So Su Xing decisively paid the hundred thousand spirit stones, then left the Celestial Secrets Pavilion clutching the jade slips from the wooden crate.
…
Long after Su Xing departed, a peculiar glimmer flickered in the girl’s eyes as she murmured:
“A disciple taken by a single wisp of Qingyunzi’s divine sense… the Mahayana stage cultivator Su Xing, originating from the shattered Luotian Realm…”
“In less than a hundred years, he’s cultivated to the Mahayana stage. He’s suspected of having learned the Luotian Sect’s inherited Zhengyi Breath Absorption Art and possessing the Luotian Sect’s secret treasury?”
“He left the Azure Cloud Sect a few months ago… I didn’t expect him to appear here. Did he perceive something in advance?”
“The great tribulation of a chaotic age approaches… who knows whether he will rise or fall?”
Clearly, the girl had long known Su Xing’s identity. Otherwise, no matter what, one hundred million low-grade spirit stones would never have been enough to purchase the critical intelligence that Qingyunzi was about to sever the Three Corpses to achieve sainthood!
Perhaps in the eyes of the girl—or rather, the Celestial Secrets Pavilion Master—Su Xing was an interesting “ant” who could serve as a useful chess piece for probing purposes…
That was why they had revealed such important intelligence to Su Xing.
…
Meanwhile, after obtaining the secret realm intelligence, Su Xing hurried back to his lodgings in high spirits, then began memorizing the secret realm information recorded in the jade slips.
The immersive simulation ended, and Su Xing returned to reality.
At this moment, Su Xing’s mind was filled with numerous memories and information about the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm’s secret realms.
“Not bad! With this information, my cultivation speed after Tribulation Transcendence and reaching the Immortal realm shouldn’t fall behind either!”
The corners of Su Xing’s mouth turned up slightly as he truly experienced the benefits of the simulation’s advance foreknowledge!
Normally, even the Celestial Secrets Pavilion could only roughly determine the future opening time and location of a certain secret realm, and which immortal cultivator had left it behind.
But the intelligence Su Xing had obtained came from secret realms that had already occurred in the simulated future—the level of detail was on a completely different level!
Su Xing even knew the precise moment when a particular secret realm would open, the number of participants, whether there were risks, the casualty probability, and so on.
He even knew the trigger conditions for certain mechanisms within the secret realms, and exactly what treasures could be found in specific locations.
Knowing all this, Su Xing could plan ahead and smoothly obtain a large number of useful items from the secret realms!
For example, in ten years, a “Earthly Immortal Inheritance” secret realm would open in the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm, left behind by a cultivator who was a Grandmaster of artifact refining!
The secret realm contained several immortal treasure embryos, and there was even a mid-grade immortal artifact!
Or, more than ten years later, a certain secret realm would contain a sacred fruit that “enhanced physical constitution”—and Su Xing knew about it in advance.
“Tsk tsk… this kind of advance foreknowledge is practically the equivalent of plundering the destiny of future protagonists!”
Su Xing felt immensely satisfied.
One could easily imagine that during the exploration of these secret realms, there would inevitably be “Children of Destiny” and “lucky ones” who would emerge and obtain great opportunities.
But now that Su Xing knew in advance, all those opportunities would be going straight into his pocket.
“However… there’s no rush with the secret realms. I’ll wait until my cultivation realm is a bit stronger before exploring them!”
“For now, I need to see whether Qingyunzi will go all out searching for me… or even try to kill me!”
With that thought, Su Xing’s gaze turned to the simulation panel.
【After leaving the Celestial Secrets Pavilion, you obtained a large amount of useful intelligence.】
【But the time to use this intelligence had not yet arrived. You decided to remain in White Emperor City and continue advancing your Formation Dao.】
【Possessing the Entering the Dao Through Formations talent, your comprehension speed for the Formation Dao was extraordinary, and you rapidly absorbed the Five Elements Formation Dao techniques.】
【Just like that, another three years passed.】
【Year Fifty-One. You had comprehended the vast majority of the Formation Dao inheritance left by the Five Elements Sect. At this point, you could rightfully be called a ninth-tier formation master.】
【If you could comprehend the tenth-tier Formation Dao, you would become a true Formation Dao Grandmaster!】
【However, tenth-tier formations required more than just Formation Dao knowledge—they also demanded comprehension of the Great Dao laws governing heaven, earth, all things, and the forces of nature.】
【Only by integrating Great Dao laws into formations could one truly enter the Dao through formations and possess combat power comparable to the Immortal realm!】
【And you were still far from reaching that level…】
【So you chose to solidify your foundations, further deepening your comprehension of ninth-tier Formation Dao, studying more advanced composite formations, and attempting to modify the seventh-tier micro spirit-gathering formation…】
【Another three years passed.】
【Year Fifty-Four. Your understanding of the seventh-tier micro spirit-gathering formation advanced further, and the cultivation speed boost from the micro spirit-gathering formation increased by roughly ten percent.】
【You knew that to improve further and achieve an eighth-tier micro spirit-gathering formation, you would need to reach the Grandmaster level in Formation Dao.】
【At that point, the passive cultivation speed from the micro spirit-gathering formation would surpass the Super Spirit Root and approach the level of the Ethereal Root!】
【So you continued your painstaking research into Formation Dao…】
【In the blink of an eye, another three years passed.】
【Year Fifty-Seven. One day while you were in White Emperor City, your instincts screamed a frantic warning, and the Blessed by Fortune talent sent your heart pounding wildly.】
【You cast a divination, but received no specific guidance.】
【This made your heart clench. You suspected that perhaps Qingyunzi was coming to find you.】
【So you resolutely decided to leave White Emperor City and fled into the Hundred Thousand Mountains…】
【The vast expanse of the Hundred Thousand Mountains might help you resist Qingyunzi’s pursuit to some degree.】
【Year Fifty-Eight. You spent a year hiding in the Hundred Thousand Mountains.】
【During this year, you endured the elements, and your daily activities consisted entirely of reinforcing your Breath-Concealing Formations and shielding your karmic secrets, hoping to evade Qingyunzi’s search.】
【But on this day, Qingyunzi found you anyway.】
【Qingyunzi stood not far away wearing a black robe, his expression blank as he looked at you, his thoughts unreadable.】
【Your heart clenched, but knowing escape was impossible, you steeled yourself and stepped forward.】
【Qingyunzi asked you why you weren’t staying in the Azure Cloud Sect and had instead come to this realm.】
【You hastily explained that you had only come to the Hundred Thousand Mountains for training, seeking an opportunity to advance your cultivation.】
【Qingyunzi nodded slightly after hearing this, was silent for a moment, then asked if you had ever heard the words ‘Luo Tian.’】
【You knew this was merely a test from Qingyunzi, so you didn’t dare conceal anything. You stated that you had indeed come from Earth, had visited the Luotian Sect dungeon, and had obtained a cultivation method called the Zhengyi Breath Absorption Art.】
【After hearing this, Qingyunzi told you to transcribe the cultivation method’s incantation for him.】
【You immediately complied and handed over the Zhengyi Breath Absorption Art.】
【Qingyunzi only briefly studied it before discovering that this technique could only be cultivated after reaching the Human Immortal realm.】
【Yet you had been cultivating for less than a hundred years—how could you have reached the Mahayana stage?】
【So Qingyunzi asked whether you had obtained any other opportunities…】
【You replied that you were extremely skilled at growing Spirit-Gathering Flowers and had always cultivated using spirit liquid, which was why your cultivation had progressed so remarkably.】
【Qingyunzi was unsatisfied with your answer, and performed a soul search on you!】
【Your consciousness gradually faded…】
【You died!】
【Ding! This simulation has ended!】
After the simulation ended, Su Xing heaved a long sigh.
“It seems… even confessing honestly still couldn’t avoid the outcome of Qingyunzi performing a soul search and killing me…”
“Perhaps in Qingyunzi’s mind at that point, I was never truly his disciple—just someone taken in by a single wisp of his divine sense, with no real status or bond…”
Su Xing took a deep breath. It seemed that if he followed the path of joining the Azure Cloud Sect, the result was obvious: being discovered by Qingyunzi and ultimately dying!
As for how Qingyunzi found him—that was all too simple!
As long as Su Xing had lived within the Azure Cloud Sect and left behind his aura, for a Grand Luo Golden Immortal, finding Su Xing would be child’s play.
“Joining the Azure Cloud Sect and becoming a second-generation direct disciple… the advantage is easy access to vast resources and roughly sixty years of stable cultivation…”
“But after those sixty years, once Qingyunzi emerges from seclusion, I’m dead for certain!”
Su Xing weighed the pros and cons. Joining the Azure Cloud Sect had both advantages and disadvantages. If he needed to find rare resources or advanced supernatural arts and techniques, he could join!
At the same time, another thought arose in Su Xing’s mind.
“Qingyunzi doesn’t emerge from seclusion until over fifty years later, which proves that’s when he completely severs the good corpse!”
“Perhaps… at this point in time, Qingyunzi still retains his good nature and sense of self. If my cultivation is strong enough, could I help him sever the evil corpse ahead of time and thereby survive this crisis?”
Since there were still over fifty years, there was still time for everything!
As long as Su Xing could preserve Qingyunzi’s good corpse and self corpse before the evil corpse seized absolute dominance, perhaps he could make Qingyunzi truly become his master!
With Qingyunzi as his powerful backer, Su Xing could practically strut wherever he pleased across the Three Thousand Worlds…
But this was merely an idea of Su Xing’s. Whether it could be realized remained unknown.
Su Xing took a deep breath. Although this simulation lasted less than sixty years, the information and benefits gained were enormous!
Advance knowledge of Qingyunzi’s intelligence, comprehension of Formation Dao, and intelligence about secret realms—all of it would make Su Xing’s future simulations much smoother.
“As for the road ahead, naturally it’s to reach Mahayana Stage, Perfection as quickly as possible… then successfully cross the tribulation and achieve the Human Immortal realm!”
Su Xing set himself a small goal first, then turned his gaze toward this simulation’s rewards.
【Entering the Dao Through Formations】: Gold talent. Price: 10 million energy points.
【Fifty Years of Alchemy Experience】: After redemption, existing alchemy comprehension increases by a small amount. Price: 50 million energy points.
【Body Refining Grand Accomplishment Realm, Perfection】: The ultimate mortal body refining realm. At Grand Accomplishment in body refining, one can briefly traverse the void, with physical strength beyond imagination. Price: 4 billion energy points.
【Formation Dao Comprehension】: After redemption, gain Formation Dao proficiency equivalent to a ninth-tier formation master, learn over a hundred formations including the Five Elements Formation Dao, the seventh-tier micro spirit-gathering formation, and the Xuanyuan Breath-Concealing Formation. Price: 3 billion energy points.
【Mahayana Stage, Third Layer】: A Mahayana stage cultivator who has comprehended Origin Force, seeks Dao essence, resonates their magical power with heaven and earth, and commands a boundless sea of spiritual energy… Price: 2 billion energy points.