Chapter 303 – Repairing the Flowing Cloud Golden Light Vessel, A Dawn of Escape? [8k]

【Year eleven. In your spirit field grotto-heaven, you retrieved the materials you had prepared over many years and formally began refining immortal treasures.】

【Your strategy remained the same as always — proceed from easy to difficult.】

【You started with small-scale immortal treasures, from daggers and hidden weapons to sabers, spears, swords, and halberds…】

【In a mere half year, you refined five half-step immortal weapon grade treasures.】

【And so, another nine years passed.】

【Year twenty. Over nine years, you refined artifacts no fewer than a hundred times, and finally produced your first low-grade immortal treasure.】

【At this point, you had truly entered the ranks of Artifact Refinement Grandmasters!】

In the Real World, Su Xing nodded slightly upon seeing this.

“Artifact Refinement Grandmaster — ordinary artifact-refining cultivators might train bitterly for centuries without reaching this level… the talent bonus really is fierce!”

“As for limited materials on hand… perhaps selling the completed immortal treasures could yield a decent amount of spirit stones, and then I could purchase sufficient materials in Star Realm!”

After a pause, Su Xing continued deliberating:

“And Star Stones… I should try to acquire some as well, and break through to the third layer of the Great Shaman Body Forging Art as soon as possible!”

His gaze turned to the simulation panel.

【Year twenty-one. You sold the half-step immortal treasures and other items you had refined over the past decade, and purchased a considerable amount of artifact-refining materials from various tribes.】

【You acquired several dozen Star Stones, and aside from artifact refining, you also began using the Star Stones to commune with the stars above, further tempering your body.】

【And so, another ten years passed.】

【Year thirty. Your progress in the Great Shaman Body Forging Art was remarkable. You could feel your connection with the stars above growing ever stronger.】

【Your physical strength grew further, reaching one hundred and forty units of power of mountains and rivers.】

【That same year, your artifact-refining skills also advanced further. Your success rate for low-grade immortal treasures reached over ninety percent, and you began attempting to refine mid-grade immortal treasures.】

【And so, another twenty years passed.】

【Year fifty. Your physical strength grew to one hundred and fifty units of power of mountains and rivers.】

【Your physical Bloodline underwent a preliminary transformation. From the Great Shaman Body Forging Art, you learned the supernatural art Heaven and Earth Dharma Manifestation!】

【When you activated the Heaven and Earth Dharma Manifestation, your physical body could instantly amplify over tenfold, transforming you into a giant standing ten zhang (33.3 m) tall!】

【What delighted you even more was that after activating the Heaven and Earth Dharma Manifestation, your strength would further amplify, reaching three hundred units of power of mountains and rivers — a full doubling of your raw power!】

【This year, the commotion over the stolen star observation methods from various tribes had died down, and you continued stealing different star observation methods from the tribes…】

In the Real World, Su Xing felt a surge of joy in his heart.

“The third layer of the Great Shaman Body Forging Art — I’m getting closer and closer to fully mastering it!”

“Heaven and Earth Dharma Manifestation… this must be a Bloodline supernatural art hidden within the Great Shaman Body Forging Art, similar to the Myriad Stars Attraction?”

Activating the Heaven and Earth Dharma Manifestation amplified one’s body tenfold, so an increase in physical strength was naturally inevitable.

Su Xing had once heard that in ancient times, the Wu Clan’s Heaven and Earth Dharma Manifestation could grow to the size of a planet!

It was precisely because of such scale that they could support an entire world — otherwise, how could a mere seven-chi (2.33 m) frame accomplish such a feat?

“It’s like the Giant Spirit God of mythology… one must activate the Heaven and Earth Dharma Manifestation to unleash their full power…”

Su Xing fell into deep thought.

【Year sixty. After more than thirty years of artifact refining, you finally produced your first mid-grade immortal treasure.】

【Mid-grade immortal treasures were priceless — only cultivators at the Earthly Immortal realm and above could afford them.】

【You drifted between various tribes, and aside from stealing star observation methods, you also sold low-grade and mid-grade immortal treasures. Far from running a deficit, you had in fact made a handsome profit.】

【At the same time, after decades of selling immortal treasures, your reputation in Star Realm gradually grew.】

【Many tribal cultivators requested that you forge immortal treasures for them, not only providing their own materials but also paying you a generous refining fee.】

【Of course, these tribal cultivators would never have imagined that the renowned Artifact Refinement Grandmaster and the thief who stole their ‘star observation methods’ were the same person.】

【And so, over the next twenty years, you received a steady stream of artifact-refining requests from cultivators.】

【But you only accepted commissions for mid-grade treasures and above — not only could this improve your refining skills, but you also earned additional fees.】

【And every so often, you would covertly infiltrate various tribes to steal their star observation methods, further restoring the Lesser Celestial Cycle Star Observation Method…】

【And so, twenty years passed…】

【Year eighty. Your talent Late Bloomer had already taken effect. This year, you began attempting to refine top-grade immortal treasures.】

【Top-grade immortal treasures contained far more spiritual essence than mid-grade ones, and were the common armaments of Heavenly Immortal realm cultivators.】

【Even with your refining skills, successfully crafting one was no easy task.】

【You spent several years attempting.】

【Year eighty-five. You finally produced your first top-grade immortal treasure — a long spear!】

【Although you were not proficient with spear-type weapons, you could clearly sense the extraordinary nature of this spear. The spiritual essence contained within had nearly given rise to the weakest form of an Artifact Spirit.】

【You were quite satisfied with this and publicly announced that you could now forge top-grade immortal treasures!】

【Upon hearing this news, dozens of Heavenly Immortal realm cultivators throughout Star Realm rushed over, all requesting that you forge treasures for them.】

【You turned no one away, collecting materials along with large deposits, and agreed upon delivery dates.】

【Refining top-grade immortal treasures was extraordinarily taxing on one’s mental faculties.】

【Even for you, refining a single top-grade immortal treasure required three to five months.】

【The materials provided by these cultivators were enough to keep you refining for twenty to thirty years…】

【In between refining sessions, you also cultivated the Great Shaman Body Forging Art, and your strength grew further…】

【And so, another five years passed.】

【Year ninety. Your strength grew to one hundred and seventy units of power of mountains and rivers.】

【You could now preliminarily channel the power of the stars from the heavens above, further strengthening your body and power.】

【Over these years, you refined over a dozen top-grade immortal treasures, with your success rate rising from an initial fifty percent to eighty percent.】

【The cultivators of Star Realm all praised and marveled at the brilliance of your craft…】

In the Real World, Su Xing’s face lit up with delight.

“Top-grade immortal treasures… an eighty percent success rate at most — this is already a level that most Artifact Refinement Grandmasters would struggle to reach!”

After all, not every Artifact Refinement Grandmaster had the luxury of endless time and a continuous supply of materials like Su Xing did.

Many Artifact Refinement Grandmasters, relying on their status, were reluctant to readily take on refining work, which in turn made it difficult for their skills to improve further.

But Su Xing was different. His goal was to refine as many times as possible, honing his artifact-refining skills.

As for making money, that was merely a side benefit…

“When it comes down to it, it’s the Luotian Sect’s artifact-refining methods that are truly profound!”

“These refining methods are sufficient for me to cultivate all the way to the limits of a Grand Artifact Refinement Grandmaster… perhaps I could even forge a supreme post-celestial treasure with my own hands!”

Su Xing’s eyes gleamed with excitement.

A supreme post-celestial treasure was the absolute limit of what a Grand Artifact Refinement Grandmaster could create.

As for what lay beyond — innate treasures were birthed by heaven and earth themselves, beyond the capability of human hands to forge.

“If I push a little harder and manage to refine a top-grade immortal treasure, I can try to repair the Flowing Cloud Golden Light Vessel!”

Su Xing pumped his fist, his gaze turning back to the simulation panel.

【Amid daily artifact refining and cultivation, another ten years passed in the blink of an eye…】

【Year one hundred. During this period, you refined another twenty or so top-grade immortal treasures, with your success rate holding steady at around seventy to eighty percent.】

【You felt as though you had temporarily hit a bottleneck, unable to advance your refining skills further.】

【So you slowed the pace of your refining and devoted more energy to cultivating the Great Shaman Body Forging Art.】

【Year one hundred and ten. Your strength grew to one hundred and eighty units of power of mountains and rivers. Full mastery of the third layer of the Great Shaman Body Forging Art was no longer far away…】

【Over these ten years, you refined over a dozen top-grade immortal treasures, but your skills still showed no improvement.】

【So you chose to take a Spirit Awakening Pill, to further comprehend the Dao of artifact refining…】

【After taking the Spirit Awakening Pill, under the enhancement of the Great Wisdom state, all those previously incomprehensible refining problems suddenly became crystal clear.】

【In a mere month, your understanding of the future direction of the artifact-refining Dao became much clearer.】

【Your artifact-refining skills, stagnant at a bottleneck for so long, finally achieved another breakthrough this year…】

【Having gained refining inspiration, over the next ten years you worked day and night, honing your artifact-refining skills.】

【And so, another ten years passed…】

【Year one hundred and twenty. Your success rate for top-grade immortal treasures reached over ninety percent.】

【This year, you began attempting to refine a supreme-grade immortal treasure…】

【That same year, during one of your cultivation sessions, you felt as though the stars in the sky were very close to you, as if they could endlessly provide you with power…】

【This year, you finally crossed the threshold into the third layer of the Great Shaman Body Forging Art!】

【Your pure physical strength grew to three hundred units of power of mountains and rivers!】

In the Real World, Su Xing’s face erupted with wild joy.

“Finally — the third layer of the Great Shaman Body Forging Art! Three hundred units of pure physical power of mountains and rivers? With just my Body Tempering cultivation alone, I could battle a Heavenly Immortal realm cultivator!”

Su Xing’s heart pounded rapidly.

At present, his Body Tempering cultivation had finally surpassed his Qi Refinement cultivation entirely — an entire major realm higher — becoming his primary means of combat!

“However… relying solely on pure physical strength to defeat a Heavenly Immortal realm cultivator is obviously impractical…”

“The third layer of the Great Shaman Body Forging Art, aside from the physical enhancement, should provide other bonuses that I need to experience!”

A thought stirred in Su Xing’s mind as his gaze returned to the simulation panel.

【Year one hundred and thirty. You attempted to refine a supreme-grade immortal treasure multiple times, but still fell slightly short. The treasures you produced, while surpassing the level of ordinary top-grade immortal treasures, still seemed to have a gap before reaching supreme-grade.】

【But you knew in your heart that time could no longer be delayed.】

【So you began attempting to repair the Flowing Cloud Golden Light Vessel…】

【And so, another five years passed.】

【Year one hundred and thirty-five. After five years of continuous repair, you had finally restored the Flowing Cloud Golden Light Vessel to a largely functional state. Though it had not recovered to its full glory, it was already capable of continuing void travel.】

【This year, you accelerated your collection of star observation methods from the tribes…】

【And so, another three years passed.】

【Year one hundred and thirty-eight. You had nearly completed your collection of the Lesser Celestial Cycle Star Observation Method, though a small portion still remained uncollected.】

【But you had no intention of waiting any longer.】

【This year, you piloted the Flowing Cloud Golden Light Vessel and prepared to leave Star Realm.】

【Your chosen destination was another Medium Chiliocosm called Cangwu Realm, located five void nodes away from Star Realm.】

【This world was rich in wood-attribute spiritual energy and contained many precious natural treasures.】

【After a full three months of void travel, you finally arrived at Cangwu Realm…】

In the Real World, Su Xing’s face lit up with delight.

“Finally… I’ve at last gained the ability to repair the immortal vessel!”

“As long as I can repair the vessel, doesn’t that mean I can keep traveling between different lesser chiliocosms? If I run fast enough, Qingyunzi might never find me!”

Su Xing thought this, then recalled the intelligence he had about Cangwu Realm.

Cangwu Realm — among the Three Thousand Worlds, a Medium Chiliocosm of respectable overall strength.

This world had once produced cultivators of the Mystic Immortal realm at its peak…

Due to its geographical location, this realm was far from the front lines and had not yet been invaded by the alien races.

Moreover, trade was extremely flourishing here. Not only had major powers like the Celestial Secrets Pavilion, the Celestial Demon Prison, the Azure Cloud Sect, and the White Emperor Tower established presences…

There was also another top-tier power among the Three Thousand Worlds — the Gold Coin Trading Company!

Legend had it that the president of the Gold Coin Trading Company was a Grand Luo Golden Immortal!

And this company’s creed was: as long as you have enough spirit stones, nothing is impossible!

The saying “money can move the gods” — this was the epitome of it…

“The Gold Coin Trading Company is different from other top-tier powers… though it’s neutral, it only opens branch offices in select lesser chiliocosms and Medium Chiliocosms…”

“Perhaps I could seek protection through the Gold Coin Trading Company!?”

Su Xing’s eyes brightened, as if he had grasped a lifeline.

“Let me head to Cangwu Realm and see what’s there first!”

Su Xing thought this, then turned his gaze to the simulation panel.

【Year one hundred and thirty-nine. You arrived at Cangwu Realm and beheld this prosperous Medium Chiliocosm.】

【Cangwu Realm was vast in area — dozens of times larger than the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm.】

【Legend had it that hundreds of thousands of years ago, over seventy percent of this realm was ocean. Later, a mighty immortal used supreme power to fill the seas and reshape the terrain, making it capable of sustaining far more cultivators.】

【After arriving in Cangwu Realm, you disguised your appearance, concealed your aura with breath-concealing techniques, and assumed a new identity.】

【Then, using sword flight, you headed toward a city where cultivators gathered.】

【The cultivators in this city were generally a tier higher in cultivation than those of the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm.】

【You could even occasionally spot Human Immortal realm cultivators moving about within the city.】

【And similar to the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm, this city also had a branch of the Celestial Secrets Pavilion.】

【Over the next six years, you refined artifacts and honed your craft while simultaneously investigating intelligence about Cangwu Realm, with a particular focus on the Gold Coin Trading Company.】

【You compiled this intelligence into records, documenting everything one by one…】

“Finally — I’ve broken past the one hundred and forty year simulation limit. At year one hundred and forty-five, Qingyunzi still hasn’t detected my whereabouts?”

Su Xing felt a surge of joy and silently thought: “Activate immersive simulation, duration one month…”

【Ding…】

The next second, Su Xing appeared in the simulated world, holding in his hands the intelligence reports he had compiled on Cangwu Realm over the years.

Su Xing read through each piece of information one by one…

Recalling the intelligence about Cangwu Realm, Su Xing furrowed his brow slightly.

“In Cangwu Realm… there seem to be traces of the Advent Cult as well?”

Su Xing immediately felt a sense of unease.

The Advent Cult’s presence in any given world could only mean one of two things.

First, the world was currently under alien invasion, and the Advent Cult was acting as an inside agent, accelerating the invasion.

Second, the alien races were preparing to invade that world, and the Advent Cult was laying groundwork in advance — scouting intelligence.

Clearly, Cangwu Realm’s situation belonged to the latter…

“Tsk tsk, it seems the situation on the front lines is looking grim! Has the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm already been destroyed?”

“I should probably investigate some intelligence about the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm as well…”

Su Xing planned to purchase intelligence about the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm at the Celestial Secrets Pavilion.

“However, the Gold Coin Trading Company is quite reliable!”

The corners of Su Xing’s mouth curled slightly upward.

The Gold Coin Trading Company — money paves the way, and all things become possible. That was no idle boast!

According to the intelligence Su Xing had obtained, the Gold Coin Trading Company had a completion rate of ninety-nine percent for all commissioned tasks!

That remaining one percent of uncompleted tasks was only because the clients hadn’t paid enough!

From purchasing rare treasures and materials, to forging weapons, seeking protection… even hunting down enemies…

One could say that as long as you were willing to spend the money, there was no task the Gold Coin Trading Company wouldn’t accept!

“I just don’t know how much longer this simulation can continue… Perhaps it’s time to contact the Gold Coin Trading Company!”

Su Xing thought to himself, then took to sword flight, heading west toward the largest city in the Cangwu Realm.

Cangwu City!

Within Cangwu City, all the major top-tier powers had established branch offices. Su Xing could even occasionally sense cultivation auras in this city that were no weaker than his own.

Su Xing wandered through Cangwu City for quite some time before finally stopping in front of a particular shop.

The Celestial Secrets Pavilion Intelligence Office!

Before seeking the Gold Coin Trading Company’s protection, Su Xing intended to first purchase intelligence at the Celestial Secrets Pavilion.

Stepping into the familiar shop, he felt formation fluctuations ripple around him. Su Xing raised an eyebrow and muttered:

“The aura of this formation seems considerably more sophisticated than the branch in the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm?”

The moment Su Xing entered the shop, a young woman’s voice reached his ears.

“Fellow Daoist, are you here to buy intelligence or sell intelligence?”

Su Xing looked up and saw a languid young woman draped lazily across a desk, her demeanor somewhat resembling those at the Celestial Secrets Pavilion Intelligence Offices he’d visited before.

But her appearance and figure were entirely different.

Su Xing paused for a moment, then said:

“I’m here to buy intelligence… I want information about the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm!”

Hearing Su Xing’s words, the young woman raised an eyebrow and said:

“The latest intelligence on the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm is classified as Upper Grade B. The purchase price is five hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones… or you may exchange equivalent intelligence in trade?”

Upon hearing this, Su Xing directly produced a bag of spirit stones and tossed it over. A mere five hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones was nothing to the current Su Xing.

The young woman caught the storage ring and casually handed over a jade slip in return.

Su Xing probed the jade slip with his divine sense, and streams of information flowed forth…

Ten years ago, the red-eyed aliens launched a massive invasion of the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm. The frontline at Celestial Demon City could not hold, with casualties among cultivators reaching a staggering one million. Yet they defended the city stubbornly, holding out for a hundred days.

Until a black-armored figure burst forth — the Celestial Demon General’s external avatar. With one man and one axe, he grievously wounded the Red Moon.

After that battle, the black-armored general never appeared again…

Three years ago, the red-eyed aliens launched a second massive invasion. Celestial Demon City could not hold, and over a hundred cities were abandoned. The northwestern territories of the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm fell. The Celestial Demon General’s avatar did not appear.

Currently, the three great powers — White Emperor City, the Celestial Secrets Pavilion, and the Azure Cloud Sect — had completely withdrawn from the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm, leaving only the local cultivators to struggle on in bitter resistance…

According to the Celestial Secrets Pavilion Master’s projections, the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm would fall completely in at most twenty years, or as few as five to ten years…

……

Stream after stream of information flashed through Su Xing’s mind.

Su Xing furrowed his brow slightly, his expression grave.

“At this rate, it means the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm will be completely destroyed around the one hundred and fifty to one hundred and sixty year mark?”

Su Xing closed his eyes, and a map of the Three Thousand Worlds surfaced in his mind.

The Lesser Azure Cloud Realm occupied an extremely critical position within the Three Thousand Worlds.

It bordered lesser chiliocosms such as the Azure Cloud Realm and the Black Water Realm.

Once the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm was conquered, the alien race could completely bypass the Azure Cloud Realm and accelerate their devouring invasion into the interior of the Three Thousand Worlds!

When that happened, hundreds of lesser chiliocosms and dozens of Medium Chiliocosms would have their gates thrown wide open, becoming easy pickings for the alien race!

“The Three Thousand Worlds… are in grave danger!”

Su Xing thought to himself, feeling somewhat dazed.

He couldn’t understand why those great powers weren’t intervening in this matter. After all, the destruction of other lesser chiliocosms would inevitably affect them — when the lips are gone, the teeth grow cold…

Could it be that they truly had confidence they could protect themselves under the alien invasion and remain uninvolved?

Seeing Su Xing’s grave expression, the young woman before him let out a light laugh and said:

“Fellow Daoist, you seem quite concerned about the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm?”

Su Xing was only stunned for a brief moment before replying casually:

“The matter of the alien invasion… As a cultivator of our world, one naturally must pay close attention and ideally contribute whatever little one can…”

Hearing Su Xing’s words, the young woman’s eyes lit up with an intrigued expression as she said:

“Fellow Daoist, your aura seems somewhat familiar. Could it be that you visited the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm over a hundred years ago?”

Su Xing’s heart tightened at her words. Within the simulation, he had indeed visited the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm to sell intelligence.

But Su Xing would never admit it. He simply shook his head and said:

“I spent a hundred years in secluded cultivation and only recently emerged, never expecting such events to have occurred… How lamentable!”

With that, Su Xing shook his head with an air of theatrical sorrow and left the Celestial Secrets Pavilion Intelligence Office.

Behind him, the young woman tilted her head to one side, and countless phantom images flickered rapidly behind her once more.

After a moment, the young woman opened her eyes and murmured:

“So it’s him… It seems he’s a cultivator who came from a minor realm… The person that Qingyunzi and the Advent Cult have been searching for?”

“Strange… With a mere Earthly Immortal realm cultivation, why would he appear in the Cangwu Realm?”

……

Su Xing was unaware that his identity and information had been exposed. He merely quickened his pace and headed toward the Gold Coin Trading Company.

Moments later, Su Xing arrived before a magnificent, resplendent palace.

In this Cangwu City where every inch of land was worth its weight in gold, this building stood a hundred zhang (333 m) tall and covered an area of over a hundred mu (6.67 ha)!

At first glance, this looked nothing like a trading company — it was practically a royal palace.

Su Xing stood before the Gold Coin Trading Company and muttered:

“This Gold Coin Trading Company really is wealthy!”

Upon entering the trading company, attendants quickly approached to inquire about Su Xing’s purpose.

“Fellow Daoist, what brings you here?”

Su Xing simply willed it and revealed his Earthly Immortal realm cultivation, then said:

“I have a major deal to discuss, and I’d like to speak with someone from the Gold Coin Trading Company’s upper management!”

The two attendants were both Mahayana stage cultivators. They instantly sensed the terrifying aura emanating from Su Xing and exchanged a glance before saying:

“Esteemed Immortal, right this way to a private room!”

Su Xing followed the two attendants to a secluded private room outfitted with protective formations.

The table was laden with an array of spirit fruits and delicacies for Su Xing’s enjoyment. Before long, two female cultivators of considerable beauty came in bearing tea.

Su Xing didn’t touch the food. He simply sat quietly in the room and waited.

About a quarter hour later, a woman in a purple dress with bewitching features walked into the private room.

After sizing up Su Xing for a moment, she bowed in greeting and said:

“Fellow Daoist, I am the vice president of the Cangwu City Gold Coin Trading Company. You may call me Zi’er…”

This female cultivator had an alluring figure, her seductive charm seeming entirely natural, but her cultivation was something even Su Xing found difficult to see through.

So Su Xing didn’t dare let his guard down. He simply returned the greeting and said:

“Fellow Daoist, is it safe to speak here?”

Hearing Su Xing’s words, the woman called Zi’er covered her mouth and laughed lightly:

“Fellow Daoist jests. Never mind the Cangwu Realm — in the entire Three Thousand Worlds, there are scarcely any forces that would dare cross our Gold Coin Trading Company…”

As Zi’er spoke, a flash of pride gleamed in her eyes.

Su Xing nodded slightly upon hearing this, then asked probingly:

“I’ve heard that as long as the price is right, the Gold Coin Trading Company will take on any task… Can you accept contracts to assassinate cultivators?”

Zi’er nodded after hearing this and said decisively:

“As long as the spirit stones are sufficient, who can’t be killed?”

Su Xing was immediately reassured, and so he made a jaw-dropping request:

“Ahem, then what about killing a half-saint?”

“Uh… That particular half-saint’s current condition is off. His strength should only be about thirty percent above an ordinary Grand Luo Golden Immortal…”

Hearing Su Xing’s words, Zi’er froze. The smile on her face stiffened as she said:

“Heh heh, Fellow Daoist… you must be joking?”

“You want to assassinate a half-saint? Are you toying with me?”

“In this era where saints do not reveal themselves… who could possibly kill a half-saint?”

“Fellow Daoist, please stop jesting… and make a more reasonable request!”

Zi’er’s expression had turned visibly unpleasant.

Hearing this, a look of disappointment crossed Su Xing’s face as he murmured:

“Sigh, so it really can’t be done…”

Su Xing then changed his request and said:

“Then what about saving someone from the hands of a half-saint… Can the Gold Coin Trading Company manage that?”

Hearing Su Xing’s words, Zi’er dropped all pretense. Her gaze turned cold as she said:

“Are you here to make trouble at our Gold Coin Trading Company?”

“In that case, I won’t keep you any longer…”

“Guards! See the guest out!”

As her words fell, sounds of movement came from outside. The room’s door opened on its own, as if to usher Su Xing away.

Su Xing showed no urgency at the sight. He simply walked to the door, gently closed it, and then said:

“Ahem, since those two requests can’t be fulfilled… let me propose something slightly simpler.”

“Could you arrange to send me to the Celestial Demon Prison or to the Celestial Secrets Realm where the Celestial Secrets Pavilion is located?”

As he spoke, Su Xing produced a storage ring and offered it to her. Inside were one million high-grade spirit stones, as a show of sincerity.

Zi’er’s gaze swept over the storage ring. After a moment of silence, she said:

“An escort mission? That can certainly be arranged…”

“At least you’re not making a mockery of our Gold Coin Trading Company this time…”

Zi’er accepted the storage ring, and after confirming it contained one million high-grade spirit stones, her expression softened somewhat as she said:

“Ahem, however!”

“The Celestial Demon Prison and the Celestial Secrets Realm are extremely far from the Cangwu Realm… The number of void nodes you’d need to pass through exceeds a thousand, and the void voyage would likely take over a hundred years…”

“Moreover, a void voyage of such distance would require several Golden Immortal realm powerhouses to oversee it… With your financial resources, I’m afraid you couldn’t afford to hire them?”

After a pause, Zi’er continued:

“However, our Gold Coin Trading Company does organize long-distance void voyage escort missions on a regular schedule… once every hundred years…”

“The next one is in fifty years… The destination is the Tianyuan Realm, a Greater World located one hundred void nodes away… Would you be willing to join that voyage?”

“After reaching the Tianyuan Realm… we have a branch of the Gold Coin Trading Company there. From there, you may find opportunities to travel to the Celestial Demon Prison or the Celestial Secrets Pavilion…”

Hearing Zi’er’s words, Su Xing fell into deep thought.

It wasn’t that he was unaware of the difficulties of void voyaging.

With Su Xing’s strength, even with a semi-supreme post-celestial treasure, he could at most traverse about ten void nodes.

Void traversal not only demanded extremely high levels of magical power and cultivation from both the practitioner and the vessel, but also required profound comprehension of the spatial Dao. Otherwise, there was an extremely high probability of losing one’s way in the void…

And perishing in the chaotic spatial currents…

Even if all conditions were met, long-distance void voyaging remained extraordinarily dangerous!

Never mind Heavenly Immortal or True Immortal realm cultivators.

Even Mystic Immortals and Golden Immortals faced some degree of risk…

Perhaps only upon achieving Grand Luo Golden Immortal could one roam freely and fearlessly between the Three Thousand Worlds, ignoring the dangers of the void…

Su Xing didn’t expect to travel directly to the Celestial Demon Prison or the Celestial Secrets Realm. Being able to first reach the Tianyuan Realm, a hundred void nodes away, was already quite good.

“Fifty years from now… That timing?”

Su Xing frowned slightly. Though he felt it was somewhat late, he still nodded and said:

“Very well, let’s head to the Tianyuan Realm first.”

Zi’er breathed a sigh of relief. Having dealt with this “difficult” client, she then quoted her price.

“For a void voyage of this distance — one hundred void nodes away — a single voyage takes approximately ten years. The fee you’ll need to pay is ten million high-grade spirit stones!”

As she spoke, Zi’er waved the storage ring in her hand and said:

“As for this one million high-grade spirit stones, it can serve as a deposit… If you’re willing, come find me here in fifty years, and I’ll arrange your passage to the Tianyuan Realm!”

Hearing the price of ten million high-grade spirit stones, Su Xing couldn’t help but click his tongue.

Ten million high-grade spirit stones — that was no small sum!

An ordinary Earthly Immortal realm cultivator’s entire fortune would amount to no more than a few million high-grade spirit stones.

Ten million high-grade spirit stones was a sum that only a Heavenly Immortal realm cultivator could produce…

This meant that only Heavenly Immortal realm cultivators possessed the basic qualifications for medium to long-distance void voyaging.

After brief deliberation, Su Xing nodded and said:

“Then I’ll trouble you, Fellow Daoist…”

With that, Su Xing left the room and browsed around the Gold Coin Trading Company for a while, encountering many rare and exotic treasures that broadened his horizons considerably…

Soon the immersive simulation ended, and Su Xing returned to the Real World.

“Sigh, fifty years from now — meaning around the two-hundred-year mark of the simulation — before I can board the immortal vessel?”

“I hope I can hold out until then…”

Thinking this, Su Xing turned his gaze to the simulation panel.

【After leaving the Gold Coin Trading Company, your knowledge and experience grew considerably.】

【Next, you continued to remain in the Cangwu Realm, refining artifacts daily. To guard against unexpected incidents, you began attempting to repair the Flowing Cloud Golden Light Vessel…】