Chapter 34: Jade Void Temple’s Secret Domain

“Ding! Took in a second disciple, rewards 100 merits.”

“Ding! Triggered a mission: Ling Xian has a shattered Dao Palace, please aid him with its repair. Reward: 1000 merits, the third disciple position.”

‘Fuckin’ a, a big mission finally came!’

His merits reached rock-bottom. He first needed to infer comprehend the Dao Canon to a certain stage then let Ling Xian cultivate for a while. He didn’t have any magical arts besides the Lustrous King Sword Art and Fairy Sword Art. They were good for the Dao Initiation realm but once he reached the Archfiend stage, they were dispensable, as anyone at that stage would have something similar!

Moreover, when the time came for Ling Xian to learn magical arts, he couldn’t teach Lustrous King Sword Ard and Fairy Sword Art again! When his disciple became great experts, a single look would be enough to see that these two arts didn’t come from a man of great status. ‘They all must cultivate different paths, that’s the right way!

Adding to that he also needed to comprehend arrays, and how should he use the promoted Dao Palaces at the 6th stage of Dao Initiation realm? If he couldn’t then he would be unable to set up an array. Wouldn’t his dream of becoming a human-shaped walking array go up in smoke?

As his eye drifted towards the unconscious Ling Xian, Chen Ming gave him a medicine soup, then began writing his insights on the Dao Canon. When he finished, he put an inkstone over it, told the Great Fiends that he was his disciple, then started reflecting on how to rebuild Ling Xian’s Dao Palace.

If it were before, he wouldn’t have had away, but now that he became a member of team Archfiend, he knew many many secrets.

A rumor had it that a sect in the Southern Border kingdoms, the formally flourishing Jade Void Temple, from ten thousand years ago, has now declined in power, having a similar standing as the Endless Swords Sect.

The Jade Void Temple had a legacy, a secret domain that was filled with treasures. But because of its danger, they didn’t dare explore it, and so they sold the entry spots to maintain their power.

And in this secret domain, there was a spiritual fruit called Spirit Returning Fruit, whose effect could rebuild one’s Dao Palace.

Once he confirmed this information, Chen Ming was set on paying the Jade Void Temple a visit. But to gain entry, he needed to pay a thousand spirit stones.

He had the thousand spirit stones, but they were in Yan Empire. Who would casually carry a thousand spirit stones on himself?

It took him three days to go to the Yan Empire, fetch two thousand spirit stones, then rush over to Jade Void Temple. Like a switch, the Fire Crow Art’s Dao Palace went in front. He did this all in order to avoid any further annoyances, thanks to his Archfiend status since power spoke louder than words.

As Chen Ming flew, the fiend energy gave a biting cold feeling, as if a black cloud shrouded the sky, making the cultivators on the ground realize that an Archfiend graced Jade Void Temple with his presence. At this news, the entire sect was beside itself in fear, while the Sect Leader sent a message to their protector, the Flying Immortal Sect, waiting for their Human King to come to negotiate.

Chen Ming jumped from his fiend cloud and landed before the Jade Void Temple’s gate, giving a strong sense of dread from the fiend energy surrounding him. A cultivator, then and there, shrieked, “T-that i-is an Archfiend!”

“How terrifying, is this an Archfiend? Just looking and I feel like fainting. An Archfiend’s pressure is horrifying!”

“Me too, me too, soo handsome. I’m gonna faint from how cool he is…”

…

Despite being in seclusion for many years, the Sect Leader had to come out. Who would dare not welcome an Archfiend!

Jade Void Temple’s Sect Leader was just a forty years old middle-aged man, wearing a black Daoist robe, while his face stayed neutral. He cupped his hands, “Why has Sir Archfiend come to visit our Jade Void Temple?”

Chen Ming stated, “I heard you have a secret domain, so I came to try my luck.”

The first rule of business: don’t let the other know what you want.

The Sect Leader considered, “My Jade Void Temple is under Flying Immortal Sect’s protection. Wouldn’t it be better if Archfiend discusses this with them?”

Chen Ming frowned slightly, “Are you trying to pressure me with the Flying Immortal Sect?

The Sect Leader didn’t dare admit it, “It was never my intention.”

Chen Ming asked, “Then tell this to the Sect Leader of Flying Immortal Sect: I am the sixth Archfiend Wandering Crow from the Six Kings Alliance. Tell him to go talk to my brothers and sister!”

The Sect Leader was terrified, he thought Chen Ming was but an ordinary mountain’s Archfiend. Who would have guessed that he had five more behind him? The Flying Immortal Sect was impatient to die, offending suck a great power like the Six Kings Alliance.

Chen Ming added, “How about this, I first wipe out your sect, shouldn’t take too much, then I will take a walk inside your secret domain. This is way better, saving a thousand spirit stones too.”

The Sect Leader finally caved, ‘Since an Archfiend arrived, wouldn’t it mean disrespect if I don’t let him enter the secret domain? And even if he went inside, this unprovokable Wandering Crow, he will be just at the Human King rank in the secret domain.’

And most of the cultivators in the secret domain were humans. Once he entered, he might not come back.

“Alright, then I will guide Sir Archfiend to the secret domain.”

As they walked, Chen Ming wasn’t afraid if the Sect Leader laid an ambush since he didn’t have the guts.

Under the gesticulations of the disciples, the two of them reached a mountain cave. Chen Ming could feel that the surroundings have a fantastic appeal, as space-time was warped here. One Flower One World, this was a type of Mt Meru(1 a famous mountain in ancient India. in Buddhist text is the flower of north India check wiki mt Meru) magical art, and the source of it all was a spatial stone, strengthening this secret domain, similar to a small world.

The cave walls were lined with night pearls, flickering like stars. On the floor of the cave, there were many flowers, incredible and vibrant, with soft green grass and sounds of water trickling down. The siberian crane spread its wings, the red crap flowed through the water. The whole area held an atmosphere akin to an immortal’s dwelling, along with its wide variety of plants, the likes of which Chen Ming has never seen before.

The Sect Leader led him to a silver lake, “This is the entrance to the secret domain. The secret domain is shrouded in Elemental Arrays of earth, wind, fire, and water. One-quarter of the secret domain is the earth world, Floating Mountain, another quarter is the water world, Shifting Glacier, another quarter is a world of storms, Eroding Winds, and the last quarter is a raging world of fire, the Infernal Flames. While in the center, there is a bronze cauldron as big as a mountain, the Elemental Cauldron. It is the heart of the secret domain, and if you want to get out, just enter the silver lake on top of the bronze cauldron.”

Chen Ming waved his hand and a thousand spirit stones appeared, then circled the lake and jumped inside.

The current pulled him in towards the vortex at the bottom, then sucked him inside.

The next moment found Chen Ming in dark blue seawater and using his fiend cloud, he reached the surface. The bone-chilling wind struck him, while also containing a violent water attribute’s spiritual energy. For Chen Ming who trained in the Fire Crow Art, it pressured him. It stifled his Archfiend’s spiritual energy down to seventy percent. Under this pressure, a Fiend General wouldn’t be able to last very long and would soon meet his end here.

(1)    Mount Meru is the sacred five-peaked mountain of Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist cosmology and is considered to be the center of all the physical, metaphysical and spiritual universes.