Chapter 549: Four Holy Lands
Chapter 549: Four Holy Lands
Xiao Chen carefully looked around the seventh floor. Compared to the dazzling first floor, this floor looked very plain. All the treasures here had their auras withdrawn. However, if one looked carefully, one could sense a faint Spiritual Energy filling every corner of the floor.
All sorts of treasures covered the tables and shelves made of platinum-glazed jade. There were Spirit Cores from thousand-year-old Spirit Beasts and Demonic Cores from thousand-year-old Demonic Beasts. These creatures had been incredibly strong when they were alive. Even after they died and their inner cores taken out, intense energy fluctuations could be felt.
There were also rows of bookshelves filled with Cultivation Techniques and Martial Techniques for the saber. All the secret manuals were at least Earth Ranked. These were the gains of the seniors of Heavenly Saber Pavilion when they left the mountain.
When Xiao Chen continued looking, he saw several exquisite brocade boxes with Inferior Grade Spirit Gathering Pearls in them. The Heavenly Saber Pavilion used to have Martial Sages as well. It was not strange that they were able to refine Spirit Gathering Pearls.
However, the Heavenly Saber Pavilion no longer had any Martial Sages. So every time one Spirit Gathering Pearl was used, that would be one Spirit Gathering Pearl less from their savings. They could only keep these in the Hidden Treasure Pavilion.
On the weapons rack, there were ten sabers of various styles. They all glistened with a bright light. Occasionally, they gave off a strong saber light. Saber light coming out automatically was a sign of a Heaven Ranked Spirit Weapon.
When Jiang Chi noticed Xiao Chen looking at the weapons rack, he could not help but say proudly, “Xiao Chen, this are the things that our Heavenly Saber Pavilion has obtained over the years. There are ten Heaven Ranked Spirit Weapons. One of them is a Superior Grade Heaven Ranked Spirit Weapon. I can tell that your Lunar Shadow Saber is only a Superior Grade Earth Ranked Weapon; you can choose one of these.”
Use a Heaven Ranked Spirit Weapon to replace the Lunar Shadow Saber?
Xiao Chen smiled faintly and refused. What a joke! The Lunar Shadow Saber was once a Sub-Divine Weapon.
Although the Lunar Shadow Saber was only a Superior Grade Earth Ranked Spirit Weapon now, once Ao Jiao finished nourishing it, it would immediately become a Heaven Ranked Spirit Weapon. In the future, as long as Xiao Chen could find the necessary materials, he would be able to restore it to a Sub-Divine Weapon.
If there was an opportunity, with Ao Jiao’s help, it might become a new Divine Weapon. How could Xiao Chen be willing to swap it out?
Jiang Chi was somewhat stunned. Clearly, he had not expected Xiao Chen to reject his offer. However, this was fine as well. Coincidentally, Murong Chong’s weapon had just been broken. It would be appropriate to give him a new weapon.
Jiang Chi immediately said, “As you wish, then. If there is anything you like here, you can take them.”
Xiao Chen was astonished. “I can take them? First Elder, aren’t you afraid that I would empty out the entire floor?”
Jiang Chi’s wrinkled face had a happy smile on it. “Ha ha! I really am not afraid of that. In fact, what I am afraid of is you taking too little. I am not afraid of you taking too much.”
In Jiang Chi’s opinion, for Xiao Chen to resist the offers of the various great sects and return to the Heavenly Saber Pavilion, that meant he was a person who repaid debts of gratitude. If he took a lot of items, he would end up owing the Heavenly Saber Pavilion another favor. The bigger the favor, the greater the repayment.
Thus, Jiang Chi was not afraid that Xiao Chen would take too much. He was afraid that Xiao Chen would not be interested in these items and take too little.
Of course, it was impossible for Xiao Chen to truly empty out the floor. Finally, he took a hundred Inferior Grade Spirit Gathering Pearls, fifty thousand Inferior Grade Spirit Stones, a thousand-year-old lightning-attributed Rank 9 Demonic Core, and the secret manual for the Lightning Tribulation Saber Technique.
This Lightning Tribulation Saber Technique was a peak Earth Ranked Saber Technique. This was the Saber Technique that the Heavenly Saber Pavilion’s founder created. It was slightly weaker than the Four Season Saber Technique but stronger than the Wukui Saber Technique.
He could make the Four Season Saber Technique his trump card and use this Lightning Tribulation Saber Technique normally, to hide his true strength.
The things that Xiao Chen took were within Jiang Chi’s expectations. He smiled and said, “Come, let’s go to Jade Maiden Peak and pick some thousand-year-old Spirit Herbs.”
After they left the Hidden Treasure Pavilion, First Elder Jiang Chi waved his hand and a warship descended. He smiled and said, “Let’s board!”
Xiao Chen hesitated for a moment before saying, “First Elder, you have already given me so many treasures. Let’s leave these Spirit Herbs for the other Elders and the juniors.”
Jiang Chi laughed loudly and pushed Xiao Chen up. He said, “Don’t overthink this. If you went to another sect, they would only give you even more. Like I said before, since you chose the Heavenly Saber Pavilion, we will do our best to nurture you.”
The two climbed to the deck and the warship immediately soared into the sky, heading towards Jade Maiden Peak.
As the warship passed through the clouds, the wind blew strongly, making Xiao Chen’s and the First Elder’s hair flutter about.
Jiang Chi thought to himself for a while before saying, “Xiao Chen, you don’t seem understand what the Luck from the Five Nation Youth Competition represents—or to be more precise, the value of this Luck.”
Xiao Chen was slightly stunned. He looked at Jiang Chi and said, “Would you please explain more?”
Honestly speaking, Xiao Chen really did not understand the value of Luck. So he sincerely asked Jiang Chi to explain. After all, the First Elder was someone who controlled a sect. He had to know something that Xiao Chen did not.
“Luck is something that seems ethereal, something intangible. However, it truly exists. Twenty years ago, our Heavenly Saber Pavilion was counted among the peak sects. However, we eventually suffered from a calamity. In the end, the problem would be that we did not have enough Luck.
“If there is something tangible that represents Luck, that would be the Dragon Veins!”
Dragon Veins?
Jiang Chi continued to explain, “The Dragon Vein is a representation of Luck. There are nine Dragon Veins in the world. Each of the Five Great Nations controls one Dragon Vein each. In a way, the various Royal Courts are great sects without status. This is also why the people of the Royal Courts are not allowed to participate in the Five Nation Youth Competition. They already have a vast amount of Luck and they are not allowed to compete for more with the other sects.”
Xiao Chen felt very curious. He asked, “Then where are the remaining four Dragon Veins?”
Jiang Chi said, “These are things that you couldn’t have known. However, you are now qualified to know them. The remaining four Dragon Veins are under the Wind Cloud Arena in the Great Jin Nation.
“Once upon a time, the last emperor of the Tianwu Dynasty was overly ambitious. He wanted to gather all the nine Dragon Veins in the air and obtain all the Luck. He wanted to go against the heavens and gain immortality. This provoked the Four Holy Lands and resulted in a ninth grade Demonic Calamity.”
The nine dragons had escaped and the Spirit Veins turned chaotic. Hence, the Spiritual Energy of the current five Great Nations plummeted. Xiao Chen had known that much. However, he had not been aware of the Tianwu Emperor’s ambitions.
Unexpectedly, the Four Holy Lands were the ones who caused the Demonic Calamity that destroyed the Tianwu Dynasty. This secret was something that most cultivators simply could not imagine.
In the eyes of regular cultivators, the Holy Lands were the representation of righteousness, helping to seal spatial cracks everywhere.
Jiang Chi said softly, “Aside from the Great Jin Nation, the Royal Courts of the Five Great Nations are the representatives of the Four Holy Lands. Back then, the Tianwu Dynasty was able to rule the entire continent due to the Four Holy Lands’ support. When their puppet stopped obeying their instructions…he he…they just had to swap them out.”
“Weng!”
Xiao Chen was shaken. He had not expected such a secret to exist. To think the Holy Lands were so mighty! Even someone as strong as the Tianwu Emperor, a hero of that generation, someone who left his mark in history and was remembered for ten thousand years, unexpectedly he was but a pawn in the hands of the Holy Lands.
As for Xiao Chen, what was he now? He was not even qualified to be a pawn.
Suddenly, Xiao Chen noticed a problem. He felt it was strange, so he asked, “First Elder, you said Four Holy Lands earlier. How come we know of only the Three Holy Lands?”
Phoenix’s Passion Palace, White Emperor City, and Divine Martial Gate. Although the Three Holy Lands were mysterious, their names were no secret. However, no matter how Xiao Chen counted, there were only three.
Jiang Chi’s complexion changed; he knew that he had said too much. He smiled and said, “Don’t bother about that. All you need to know is that the four Dragon Veins under the Wind Cloud Arena give the sects of the world a chance at a fair competition. Whoever can obtain ranking will obtain great Luck.
“Furthermore, this time, a great age is imminent. In the past, only one Dragon Vein, at most, would awaken. This time, it might be possible that four Dragon Veins will awaken. Hence, if you are able to obtain a ranking, no matter how much I give you, it would be worth it.”
Seeing that Jiang Chi was not willing to say more, Xiao Chen did not press the matter.
Xiao Chen thought to himself, One day, I will personally unravel all these mysteries. Does the Azure Dragon Martial Spirit represent the fourth fallen Holy Land? I have to figure all this out.
Xiao Chen had once heard from Leng Yue that there were three thousand great realms in this universe. The Tianwu Continent was known as the Sky Dome Realm. However, it was only an average realm among the three thousand great realms.
The so-called upper realm was a high-ranking realm that governed the three thousand great realms—Kunlun Realm.
From that moment, Xiao Chen had some guesses in his heart. His so-called transcension might not have been a coincidence. Earth, where he came from, might be one of the three thousand great realms.
Of course, this was the deepest secret hidden in Xiao Chen’s heart. He would not tell this to anyone. The only thing he could do was continue becoming stronger, increasing his strength. Then, he would unravel the mystery personally.
As the two spoke, Jade Maiden Peak appeared before them. It was covered with a spiritual fog and a fragrance. The warship continued flying to a pavilion at a cliff in Jade Maiden Peak.
A large portion of the pavilion was not sitting on the cliff. It looked like the entire pavilion was hovering in the air.
Xiao Chen’s eyes lit up. He said, “This is Ancestral Martial Aunt Shen’s place.”
Jiang Chi nodded and said, “That’s right. When going to Jade Maiden Peak to get natural treasures, we have to get permission from Martial Aunt Shen first. However, there should not be any problems. You can rest assured.”
When the warship was a kilometer away, Jiang Chi waved his hand and the warship stopped. Then, he led Xiao Chen to gently float down to the ground without making a sound.
“Martial Aunt Shen, Martial Nephew Jiang Chi requests an audience.” Jiang Chi, the person controlling the Heavenly Saber Pavilion, was very respectful at this moment.
The doors of the pavilion gradually opened. The young-looking Shen Manjun slowly came out with Chu Xinyun carefully following behind her.
When Jiang Chi saw Shen Manjun coming out, he quickly rushed forward and told her the purpose of his visit.
When Shen Manjun heard it, she looked with interest at Xiao Chen. She smiled and said, “Unexpectedly, this little fellow from two years ago grew so much. Xinyun, take my token and bring him to the herb fields with Spirit Herbs older than a thousand years old. If there is anything he likes, he can take it.”
Xiao Chen bowed and offered a cupped-fist salute. “Many thanks, Ancestral Martial Aunt!”
When Xiao Chen met a regular Martial Monarch, the most he would do would be to speak respectfully and perform a cupped-fist salute. This was the rule of the continent; the weak had to do this when they met the strong. If one behaved too carefreely, their words might cause trouble for them. So one had to have respect for the strong.
However, when Xiao Chen met Shen Manjun, he bowed. Actually, he already guessed long ago. It was not rare to meet a three-hundred-year-old Martial Monarch. However, she maintained a youthful appearance, looking like a young girl. She was definitely a strong expert that was only a step away from becoming a Martial Sage. She was worthy of this bow.