Chapter 703 - 354: Cyan Profound Sect (2)

Chapter 703: Chapter 354: Cyan Profound Sect (2)

The talents of those people were nothing special.

After dealing with that matter, Cheng Zongyang left the Realm of Ten Thousand Races again.

A few days passed. After confirming that the various family factions showed no signs of dissatisfaction with his plan to depart in another two and a half years, he took out his Flying Cloud Shuttle, formally left the Immortal City, and headed south toward the Land of the Thirteen Royal Families.

The Seven Kingdoms and the Thirteen Royal Families coexisted within the vast Martial Arts Realm, which was home to countless Martial Artists and an immense population. The benefits of such a large populace, however, could only be fully realized through proper policies.

This was a principle Cheng Zongyang had consistently been putting into practice.

Only by making the Immortal City prosper could the lower echelons of the Martial Arts Realm benefit. The upper echelons, in turn, would lead even better lives thanks to the prosperity and contributions of the common folk.

And by harnessing the resources of the Martial Arts Realm, he could better serve the Immortal City.

Cheng Zongyang rode the Flying Cloud Shuttle and quickly arrived at the border, finding the place that was once dilapidated and desolate, littered with Chaotic Burial Mounds and mass graves.

He took out Soul Crystal Stones and began placing them one by one in these desolate, uninhabited areas, moving from one location to another.

He marked each location so that he could retrieve them on his return.

With these preparations complete, Cheng Zongyang finally made his way toward the ruins.

Traveling at a steady pace, Cheng Zongyang alternated between using the Wind Manipulation Technique to increase his proficiency and riding the Flying Cloud Shuttle to rest. Soon, he arrived at the location indicated on the map.

Looking down from high above, he saw a treacherous and steep mountain peak, impossible for any ordinary person to climb. The summit was densely forested, with no buildings in sight.

Anyone looking up from the base of the mountain would only be able to see the trees. No one would ever suspect that ruins were hidden here.

The next moment, he sent out his Divine Sense to probe the area, but it detected nothing.

This genuinely surprised Cheng Zongyang. If the map hadn’t been left behind by Tang Feng and the location pointed out by his grandson, he would have started to suspect the Tang Family was trying to deceive him.

After a moment of consideration, however, he jumped from the Flying Cloud Shuttle, storing it in the Realm of Ten Thousand Races as he descended.

He cast the Wind Manipulation Technique, guiding his body down through the air.

The moment he landed, he felt a sense of unease. It was a feeling similar to a Martial Artist encountering a Geomagnetic Stone, but it was bearable.

This convinced Cheng Zongyang he was in the right place. ’For a Cultivator with my Half-Step Foundation Establishment Cultivation to feel this, there must be an array or some special object here emitting a strong magnetic field to influence and repel any creature that gets close.’

He immediately took out a Talisman and, guided by the sensation, moved toward the location where the intensity was greatest.

When the Talisman in his hand spontaneously burst into flames, he immediately stopped.

As the Talisman finished burning, Cheng Zongyang channeled Spiritual Power into his right hand and unleashed a Great Strength Vajra Palm straight ahead!

BAM!!

Suddenly, a powerful rebound force sent Cheng Zongyang staggering backward!

The searing rebound pain in his palm was quickly nullified by his Adaptation Talent.

It was his attack that triggered it, causing a transparent membrane of light to slowly materialize before his eyes.

Seeing this, Cheng Zongyang quickly retreated several steps.

Sensing the terrifying aura emanating from the array before him, Cheng Zongyang relied on his keen perception to discern that its Grade was extremely high. It was certainly not something an ordinary person could break, nor was it something a typical power or individual could have deployed.

’For an array to still exist in the Martial Arts Realm, where Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi is depleted, it must have its own self-sustaining array formation. It must also have a treasure, a High-Tier Spiritual Item, providing it with Spiritual Qi!’

"Shielding Divine Sense, invisibility, rebounding attacks, an internal cycle, a magnetic field... for such a complex, composite array to be on this unremarkable little peak!" Cheng Zongyang’s curiosity about the ruins intensified.

’Tang Feng’s grandson said his grandfather was killed instantly by some mysterious power. Could it have been this rebound attack? No, that can’t be right.’

’Tang Feng wasn’t reckless. Even if he had struck the array with his full power and had the force rebound on him, it should have only injured him. Severely injured at worst, but it shouldn’t have killed him. And Tang Feng’s son was also gravely wounded, eventually succumbing to his injuries after returning home...’

Cheng Zongyang shook his head slightly, pushing the thought aside for the time being.

He entered the Realm of Ten Thousand Races and retrieved a Spirit Testing Talisman.

This type of Spirit Testing Talisman wasn’t used for testing a person’s Spirit Root aptitude, but for measuring the degree of Spiritual Power contained within an object.

These were a product of the Infinite Daoist Sect from the Cultivation Immortality Realm. The price wasn’t exorbitant, but it depended on the Tier. They sold quite well in Ice City.

The one he held was a Tier Four Spirit Testing Talisman, capable of measuring the level of Spiritual Power in items of Tier Four and below.

Holding the Spirit Testing Talisman, Cheng Zongyang looked at the array’s light membrane and immediately pressed the talisman against its surface.

As the power of the Spirit Testing Talisman came into contact with the ruin’s array, the talisman flared with light, and a powerful ripple of power spread out from it.

Cheng Zongyang frowned as he watched the light from the Spirit Testing Talisman grow increasingly blinding before the talisman finally combusted.

’Tier Five? Or Tier Six? Or perhaps even higher?’ Cheng Zongyang’s expression turned grim as he entered the Realm of Ten Thousand Races once more.

He didn’t have any Tier Five Spirit Testing Talismans; after all, talismans of that Tier were unavailable in Ice City. He had bought his Tier Four talismans from the Cyan Dragon Commerce Association, and there hadn’t been many of them available.

Thus, he needed to put in a purchase request.

While Luo Dingran handled the purchase request, Cheng Zongyang began to survey the environment around the ruins.

An array this powerful would normally suggest that this was the former site of a Major Sect, like one of the Five Great Immortal Sects.

However, after surveying an area of more than ten square kilometers, Cheng Zongyang dismissed that idea.

The reason was simple: the area was too small.

This was just an isolated mountaintop, not a continuous mountain range that could serve as a Sect’s headquarters. Even the territory of a Four-Star Level family in the Cultivation Immortality Realm would be larger than this peak.

This was definitely not the kind of territory a Major Sect should occupy. His curiosity about what lay inside the ruins only deepened.

Two days later, after cultivating while he waited, he successfully acquired a Tier Five Spirit Testing Talisman.

After using the Tier Five Spirit Testing Talisman, Cheng Zongyang stared at the array. When he saw the talisman glow with a dazzling light that remained steady for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, he knew this array was Tier Five!

"Good," Cheng Zongyang murmured. If it had been higher than Tier Five, he would have had to spend a fortune in Points.

Without hesitation, Cheng Zongyang entered the Hall of Ten Thousand Races again to request an item that could break a Tier Five Array.

Three days later, Cheng Zongyang was holding a Tier Five Array-Breaking Talisman worth Five Thousand Points.

He wasn’t worried about being unable to recoup the cost.

The array alone was worth more than enough.

With the array successfully broken, Cheng Zongyang flew into the air and looked down, finally seeing the true appearance of the mountaintop!

It was a Daoist temple that looked quite ordinary, like the ones he had seen on Wudang Mountain as a tourist in his past life.

But for a single Daoist temple to be protected by a Tier Five Array capable of defending against a Divinity Transformation Cultivator was more than enough to prove this place was anything but simple.

He quickly swept the area with his Divine Sense, but found nothing. Not just no people—there wasn’t even a single animal inside.

He slowly landed in the clearing out front and cautiously stepped into the Daoist temple.

As he entered a small plaza, he looked up at an archway where three large characters were carved: "Cyan Profound Sect." The script was vigorous and powerful, radiating a majestic aura.

His Divine Sense continued its sweep. From the arrangement of the furnishings and buildings, he concluded that this was the site of a former small Sect, not merely a Daoist temple.

Then again, calling it a Sect was plausible. There were a fair number of buildings, after all.

The entire Sect seemed to be frozen in time. Aside from fallen leaves on the ground, everything was perfectly preserved, showing no signs of decay. Even among the wooden buildings, there were no cobwebs to be found.

It was as if some unseen power was protecting this place.

Ancient buildings were scattered across the mountaintop in a picturesque layout, exuding a quaint and mysterious air.

Beyond the archway lay a wide avenue paved with bluestone. Both sides were lined with all sorts of verdant Spirit Trees, their leaves rustling in the gentle breeze as if whispering tales of this place’s past to Cheng Zongyang.

Following the bluestone avenue, Cheng Zongyang first arrived at a large plaza flanked by several weapon racks.

’This must be the Martial Arts Arena.’

The Martial Arts Arena was broad and level, paved with hard bluestone slabs. Cheng Zongyang noticed that these slabs were covered with all kinds of complex runes.

Though the runes had long lost their luster, he guessed they were intended to prevent the ground from being damaged during martial practice.

It was easy to imagine the scenes of the Cyan Profound Sect disciples cultivating and sparring here.

As for the weapon racks surrounding the Martial Arts Arena, he had thought they might hold Magical Artifacts or something similar. But when he went to take a closer look, he saw that the weapons had long lost their luster; some had even rusted.

They were clearly just ordinary weapons.

He swept his Divine Sense across the Martial Arts Arena one more time, checking every direction. The next moment, he turned, left the arena, and headed east.