Chapter 817 - 369: Taiyin Treasure Vault

"In the cultivation system of ancient cultivators, they referred to their own bodies as ’Shenzang,’ and cultivation was a process of opening the ’Shenzang.’ The various parts of the body were considered major ’Shenzang.’

"And the ’Taiyin’ mentioned in ghost civilization refers to the location of that ancient cultivator’s Divine Soul, which is also the most important of all Shenzang."

Qingyunzi explained leisurely: "After that ancient cultivator died, the Dao Rhyme retained within his body largely remained in various Shenzang, forming incredibly mystical [Treasure Vaults]. These treasure vaults aren’t quite like what Daoist friends imagine, but they do indeed contain infinite secret treasures transformed from Dao Rhyme, like this Inheritance Immortal Stele I hold, which was unearthed from a certain Shenzang."

"Only, over the long years, the Dao Rhyme has been continuously consumed by tribulations, which is why the remaining secret treasures are so scarce."

"But the [Taiyin Treasure Vault] is different, serving as the place where the ancient cultivator’s consciousness was stored. It’s the most securely defended place for a cultivator. From the Yin Qi continuously descending from it without any sign of tribulation pollution, it can be seen that it is still in a [sealed] state, potentially containing infinite Dao reserves!"

Qingyunzi’s words finally piqued Chu Xiu’s interest.

Taiyin Treasure Vault! Secret treasures transformed from Dao Rhyme!

The mystique of the Inheritance Immortal Stele, which he had witnessed firsthand, not only contained an innate space but also inspired intuition and bestowed inheritance.

And this was from the Dao reserves left in areas widely attacked by tribulations.

It’s hard to imagine how many secret treasures are hidden within the ’Taiyin’ itself—already the most important Shenzang and not attacked by tribulations!

Despite his interest, Chu Xiu remained vigilant.

He wouldn’t be foolish enough to fully trust a newly met ghost entity, so he simply said, "So you’re uncertain about the situation within the secret realm, aren’t you? Otherwise, you wouldn’t be merely speculating based on the descending Yin Qi."

Qingyunzi responded, "Certainly not, Daoist friend. Actually, within Penglai, there is a passage leading to ’Taiyin.’"

"Oh?"

"However, the gateway to Taiyin is constantly covered by a barrier, and ahead of the area leading to the portal, a mass of tribulations gathers."

"The quantity of tribulations here is far beyond what Daoist friend can imagine. Compared to the death qi waterfall pouring down around Penglai, it’s like the tip of an iceberg; hence, we’ve always been unable to proceed."

"But this also indicates that the barrier of the Taiyin Treasure Vault is still intact; even tribulations have not entered," Qingyunzi continued.

His words made Chu Xiu nod silently; if this is true, then the treasure vault is likely still well-preserved.

Despite the long years, there’s still power remaining. Even in death, the vitality within the body could automatically evolve into a world, even creating treasure vault secret treasures. It’s hard to predict how powerful the ancient cultivator was in life.

"Though there is plenty of death qi along the path to the portal, over the years we’ve refined quite a few dharma artifacts to ward it off, barely sustaining for a few minutes, but attempting to breach the portal surrounded by layers of death qi is far beyond possible."

"So you plan to rely on tribulations?" Chu Xiu asked thoughtfully.

"Correct," Qingyunzi nodded, "The tribulation pearls contain substantial tribulation, but like the Immortal Stele, they cannot be driven by ordinary means. Yet if thrown onto the barrier, they will automatically unleash a large amount of tribulation to damage the barrier."

"Over two thousand years, we have gathered six tribulation pearls, and including the one in Daoist friend’s possession, there are seven, while I estimate at least six are required to break the barrier."

As he spoke, Qingyunzi glanced at Su Jinyu beside him and smiled, "Initially, I planned to rely on Miss Su’s talent to gradually replicate tribulation pearls, but now, since only one is lacking, I happen to have some secret techniques that might successfully achieve it directly."

With these words, Su Jinyu’s face turned pale, and she immediately cast a pleading look at Chu Xiu.

Although Qingyunzi didn’t explicitly state it, the difficulty in replicating tribulations is obvious; even though Su Jinyu has merged with the Ancient God Relic, she’s merely at King Tier. How could she replicate such a terrifying thing? It’s clear that this so-called evil technique must forcibly refine through some method using her life as a condition.

Chu Xiu pondered for a while before asking, "How confident are you in this?"

"It’s hard to say," Qingyunzi shook his head, "I haven’t fully grasped the characteristics of tribulations yet, and those secret techniques merely bolster Miss Su’s replication ability."

"Let’s continue discussing acquiring tribulation pearls then."

With that, Su Jinyu breathed a sigh of relief, while Qingyunzi’s expression remained unchanged as he smiled, "That works; tribulation pearls usually originate in areas rich in death qi, but among the four perilous realms, only in Carrion Cave—due to the presence of spirits especially suppressive to ghost entities—has exploration been low; the tribulation pearls in the other three perilous realms have generally been collected."

Chu Xiu replied, "I only detected this one tribulation pearl in that cave; there might be more in the depths, but the effort required to find them is uncertain."

Exploring the Carrion Cave consumed Chu Xiu significantly, requiring a day of full exploration followed by meditation outside to recover; the cave hasn’t been thoroughly explored to its bounds, and aimless searching might take an indefinite amount of time, with the possibility of no additional tribulation pearls and ending with nothing.