Chapter 350: Chapter 335: Cave Dwelling, Ancient Corpse [Request for Subscription]
Cyan Cloud Garden!
This is the name of the small courtyard in front of Zhou Yang and Jiang Fengxian.
A very ordinary name.
"The formation array within this courtyard must also be at least Tier Five!"
Zhou Yang gazed intently at the wooden gate of the courtyard, muttering in a low voice.
Earlier, he tried both with his Divine Sense and the "Separation Fire Golden Eye," but he could not see through the mist inside it; this isn’t something a Tier Four Array can achieve.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Fengxian slightly nodded and said, "It seems the predecessor who left this residence was a formidable Array Master!"
"Fortunately, the array outside has already exhausted the spiritual energy accumulated in the valley’s Spirit Vein. No matter how formidable the array inside is, it’s likely driven by Spirit Stones."
"In that case, even if driven by top-grade Spirit Stones, after hundreds of years, the spiritual power in the Spirit Stones supporting the array’s operation should be nearly depleted!"
Zhou Yang continued with his opinion, and after exchanging glances, the two of them sat cross-legged outside the courtyard to meditate and restore their magical power.
Having already experienced the might of a Tier Five Array earlier, Zhou Yang and the others dared not rush into the array without fully restoring their magical power.
Moreover, after continuous battles, they indeed needed to rest and recover their spirits.
It was only after a day and night passed, once their magical power and spiritual state had been fully restored, that the two began to formally enter the array.
To their surprise, the array enveloping the "Cyan Cloud Garden" wasn’t a killing array as before but an illusion array testing the cultivators’ will and temperament.
Upon entering the array, they each fell into an Illusion Realm, facing various illusion tests.
They must rely on their will to pass through one layer of illusion after another; otherwise, their consciousness would eternally sink, ending up like walking corpses.
For those with an unstable will or insufficient mental cultivation, this kind of illusion array is far more terrifying than killing arrays.
Although killing arrays are perilous, one can at least depend on external objects to help pass through.
But there are very few treasures that can help a cultivator pass through an illusion array; one can only rely on one’s own will to break through.
Major sects often use such illusion arrays to temper the temperament of their disciples. They have high-tier cultivators constantly monitoring the array’s operation, ready to shut it down at any sign of anomaly from the disciple tempering their mind within.
Despite this, there are often still some cultivators who suffer significant mental trauma in the Illusion Realm, affecting their future path.
Of course, for major sects, such people who suffer mental setbacks even in illusion trials aren’t worth the investment in cultivation, and nobody cares whether their future path goes smoothly.
Now, Zhou Yang and his companions cannot rely on older members of their sect to help close the array, so they must face any danger on their own.
One could clearly see the young man and woman stepping through the courtyard gate with expressions that sometimes filled with smiles, sometimes twisted like fierce ghosts, and at other times panic-stricken, as if disaster was at their doorstep, struggling intensely in the Illusion Realm.
Less than a quarter of an hour later, they were already covered in sweat, their faces pale, indicating significant mental exhaustion.
Hmm!
After a soft hum, it was Jiang Fengxian, whose cultivation was much higher, who first awoke from the Illusion Realm.
When she awoke, a trace of confusion appeared in her beautiful eyes, then her face changed as if remembering something, and she quickly looked down at her body.
Upon seeing that her clothes were intact, she seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and raised her head again to survey the courtyard’s environment.
Since she had passed the illusion test, the white mist in the courtyard no longer affected her, so everything within the courtyard was fully exposed to her eyes.
The courtyard was like the Imperial Palace’s Imperial Garden, complete with gardens, rockeries, and flowing water, with pavilions and towers everywhere, and white jasper paths connecting the various buildings, giving the entire courtyard a refined and beautiful look.
However, the difference was that the garden here wasn’t planted with ordinary flowers, but with various precious Spirit Grass and Spirit Wood, among which were even Tier Five rare Spiritual Objects.
Some of these Spiritual Objects had withered and died from long neglect, but most were thriving, nourished by the abundant spiritual energy within the residence, radiating vigorous vitality.
Jiang Fengxian’s beautiful eyes swept over these spiritual objects, a flash of joy appeared in her eyes, and she almost immediately wanted to step forward and pick these spiritual objects.
But she paused before taking a step, instead looking at Zhou Yang, who hadn’t yet awakened beside her.
Her brows slightly furrowed, and after thinking a bit, she suddenly formed a spell with her hands, sending a blue spiritual light toward Zhou Yang, then bit her teeth and shouted, "Hm! Not waking up, if not now, when!"
Ah!
Zhouyang let out a loud shout, suddenly clutching his head with both hands and stepping back, his eyes filled with panic.
"Fellow Daoist Zhou, are you okay?"
"Just now, things were urgent. I was afraid you might become trapped in the illusion realm and unable to extricate yourself, so I used this method to startle you into waking. If I offended you, I hope you can forgive me."
Jiang Fengxian calmly withdrew her jade-like hand, her beautiful eyes fixed on Zhouyang as she explained.
Upon hearing her words, Zhouyang’s eyes steadied slightly, and he quickly cupped his hands, saying, "Fellow Daoist Jiang, you speak too highly. I should be the one thanking you for your assistance. If it weren’t for Fellow Daoist Jiang’s help, even if I could eventually escape the illusion realm, I would have been utterly exhausted, greatly draining my primordial qi!"
"Fellow Daoist Zhou, you’re too polite. It was merely a small effort on my part. The main issue is of greater importance. We should start by searching this dwelling." Jiang Fengxian waved her hand and pointed into the courtyard with her jade-like hand.
Zhouyang’s gaze followed the direction she pointed, a glint of unusual expression in his eyes, and he nodded, saying, "You’re right, the main issue is indeed pressing."
Jiang Fengxian would never know that Zhouyang actually woke up shortly after she did, but he noticed that her attention was entirely focused on the spiritual objects in the courtyard. So, he decided to test her, to see if she would seize the opportunity to kill him for the treasures while he was still trapped in the illusion realm.
The result of the test satisfied him greatly. Jiang Fengxian indeed proved to be a trustworthy companion, a fellow cultivator worth deepening his connection with.
It wasn’t that Zhouyang was viewing others with suspicion but considering he faced an entire dwelling of a Golden Core Stage cultivator, filled with treasures of inestimable value, and the possible presence of the "Nine Heavens Profound Gold," he simply couldn’t easily believe others would resist the temptation to claim everything for themselves.
For someone with such intentions, the situation where both of them were trapped in an illusion realm presented a perfect opportunity.
At the time, if Jiang Fengxian decided to take everything, she could have simply maneuvered her flying sword and taken Zhouyang’s head.
Thus, for Zhouyang, there was no better situation than this to use as a test.
In fact, Zhouyang suspected that the owner of "Cyan Cloud Garden" set up an illusion array in the courtyard deliberately to test human nature.
Imagine if a group of treasure seekers entering the dwelling fell into an illusion realm together, the person who awakes first among them, looking at the whole courtyard of spiritual objects and unguarded companions still struggling in the illusion, might entertain thoughts of seizing everything for themselves?
If someone did intend to seize everything, the effect of such an illusion array would be much stronger than a killing array!
Of course, these were just his conjectures, unlikely to ever be proven, so he had to suppress all his assumptions and began searching the courtyard with Jiang Fengxian.
There were seven or eight palaces with various functions in the courtyard, but Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian simultaneously chose the central main hall as their first search target.
Generally speaking, for such dwellings built on the ground, the main hall on the surface is the living quarters of the dwelling’s owner, while the underground part serves as a secluded chamber.
If the owner truly passed away in a seated meditation, then their remains and main relics should indeed be found in either the living quarters or the cultivation chamber.
The main hall was quite large, covering three to four acres. The main doors were made of thousand-year ironwood, using enough wood for both doors that it would take a Qi Cultivation Stage cultivator a lifetime of earnings to afford.
However, compared to the numerous spiritual objects seen after entering the courtyard, these two doors merely played the role of doors in the eyes of Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian.
As their eyes met, Zhouyang waved his hand, and the tightly closed door swung open with a "clang."
With the doors open, the situation inside was completely visible. The entire hall was divided into a front hall and a rear hall. The front hall served as a place for the owner to entertain guests, filled with wooden tables, chairs, and cabinets made from Spirit Wood. The hall also had many landscape paintings of the Wilderness Jungle, some depicting scenes of the Barbaric Alien Race living, hunting, and performing rituals.
Zhouyang and Jiang Fengxian entered the hall, pausing briefly in the front hall to appreciate the paintings on the walls, then proceeded through a passage into the rear hall.
The rear hall was much larger than the front hall, mainly consisting of the owner’s bedroom and study.
The bedroom alone was half an acre in size, housing a Warm Jade Bed fashioned from thousand-year jade. The owner of the dwelling, an elderly man with white hair and a wizened face, lay quietly on his back with closed eyes on the bed.
On the thousand-year ironwood table before the jade bed, lay the magical artifacts the owner used during his life and personal storage rings, among other items. A small array specially protected these items to prevent the spiritual qi within the treasures from dissipating.
From these arrangements, it was evident that the owner of the dwelling had prepared for the discovery and inheritance of the dwelling before passing away, having made special preparations.
"This senior must have been a person of noble character and high ethical standards during their lifetime, willing to support the younger generation. Otherwise, we would not have encountered no danger besides the two arrays on our way here!"
"Look, even these personal treasures are specifically sealed with an array to prevent spiritual qi from leaking out, left behind with great care to benefit future generations, showing how considerate the person was!"
Jiang Fengxian glanced at the old man’s remains lying on the jade bed, and her expression shifted as she pointed at the treasures on the wooden table and whispered her thoughts to Zhouyang.
However, listening to her words, Zhouyang felt somewhat skeptical.
A kind-hearted person could cultivate to the Golden Core Stage as a Loose Cultivator?
A kind-hearted person would set up an illusion array to test human nature in the courtyard?
Somehow, he found it hard to believe that!