Ascension Day

Xu Ying pondered, "But since she and the Master of the Mud Mound Palace are old acquaintances, why won't he see her?"

Da Zhong didn't understand the reason and remained silent.

The Copper Mirror moved along the fractured passage into the mountain. The cliffs on either side rose like sharp, grim blades. Had the ghost in the mirror not led the way, they never would have discovered that a passage had ever existed here.

They walked deeper and deeper until, about a third of the way into the mountain, the passage bent and descended into the mountain's interior.

Ahead, the surface of the Copper Mirror emitted a faint glow, illuminating the passage walls. There were murals on the walls. Xu Ying slowed his pace and saw that they depicted primitive people hunting and performing celestial sacrifices.

This cave must have been the dwelling of a primitive people, which would explain the murals.

He examined them as he walked, noticing the content of the murals gradually grow stranger. The people in the murals were originally dressed very simply, usually in animal hides, and their weapons were simple clubs and stone spears.

Their faces were painted with strange patterns in black lacquer. They had several piercings on the bridges of their noses, with thin bones inserted as ornaments.

They wore glowing bones around their necks, their hunting trophies.

But the later murals grew increasingly bizarre. A woman had appeared among them. She was drawn with only a simple nose and eyes, her features indistinct, yet she wore fine, ornate clothing and led the primitive people on hunts.

The people's weapons also changed, becoming Flying Sabers and Flying Swords. Even their great bone clubs could fly.

The prey they hunted was no longer simple beasts but increasingly massive Ancient Giant Beasts.

They piled up the corpses of the giant beasts and offered them to the woman. The woman seemed to be practicing some bizarre cultivation technique, and soon, the beasts' corpses were reduced to skeletons.

In the next mural, even the bones had crumbled to dust.

The following murals also depicted scenes of slaughter. Gradually, it was no longer giant beasts they hunted, but humans from other nations in wars and massacres.

The woman performed a grand ritual on the battlefield. Judging from the mural, the scene was extremely bloody and cruel.

The primitive people had simply drawn mountains with a few dead bodies at the peak and base, but Xu Ying could tell—these were mountains of corpses!

These primitive people had piled the corpses into mountains, sacrificing them to the woman in ornate robes for her Evil Skill!

Xu Ying's heart pounded in terror. He whispered, "Lord Zhong, when do you think the events in these murals took place?"

"It shows primitive people, so it must be from an extremely ancient time—much, much earlier than my master's and my era."

Da Zhong said, "That would have been a time when Qi Refiners were still at their peak. It could be ten thousand years ago, a hundred thousand, or even a million."

Xu Ying was astounded. He never expected this Ascension Land could be traced back to such an ancient age.

The last few murals depicted the woman in ornate robes Crossing the Tribulation. A massive tribulation cloud formed above her, and a bolt of lightning of unimaginable thickness shot out from it, striking down at her.

There was something else strange in the mural. Above the tribulation cloud, a weapon hung suspended in the air, shaped like a great fork.

Xu Ying stared for a moment, but before he could even guess what the weapon was, Da Zhong said, "A Celestial Dao Divine Artifact."

Xu Ying asked in confusion, "Aren't Celestial Dao Divine Artifacts in the Heavenly Dao World? Why would one appear in the Mortal World?"

Da Zhong was just as baffled.

The next mural showed the Celestial Tribulation ending. The woman had succeeded in Crossing the Tribulation, and the Ascension Radiance descended from the heavens. However, the Celestial Dao Divine Artifact fell and pierced her through the heart, pinning her to the ground.

In the next mural, the primitive people sealed the woman away, along with the Celestial Dao Divine Artifact. They placed her in a coffin and surrounded it with various Magical Treasures they had forged.

They then built a Stone Coffin around the first one, carving various sealing patterns onto it.

They left the woman in the place where she had attempted her Ascension, and then went their separate ways.

At this point, the path ended before a stone door. The door was tall and heavy, marked with blood-stained patterns and dark, damp streaks, exuding an immense sense of pressure.

The ghost in the Copper Mirror went no further, hiding behind Xu Ying.

"So this is Wuyang Mountain's Ascension Land, behind this door?" Xu Ying asked.

The ghost in the mirror nodded repeatedly.

Xu Ying steeled himself and pushed with all his might. The stone door groaned and creaked as it slowly opened, and a brilliant light flooded his vision.

The scene behind the stone door was not the evil, monstrous place Xu Ying had expected. Instead, it was a bright expanse of brilliant flowers and lush greenery.

Behind the stone door was a funnel-shaped space, wide at the bottom and narrow at the top. Even the narrow opening to the sky was over a dozen acres wide, while the floor below spanned about a thousand acres.

Xu Ying scanned his surroundings. The cavern walls were made entirely of Jade, unlike the rock outside. As he drew closer, he could smell a faint fragrance, unlike any flower he had ever known.

This fragrance permeated the very soul, intoxicating it.

"It's Ten Thousand Years' Sky Cyan."

Hearing his description, Da Zhong was incredibly envious. It said, "The inside of Wuyang Mountain has turned to jade. The larger the piece of jade, the more easily it gathers nature's spiritual energy. The jade inside Wuyang Mountain is simply massive. Nourished by nature's spiritual energy, the very center of the jade block slowly liquefies. This liquefied jade is called Ten Thousand Years' Sky Cyan. Consuming it grants Longevity. The Female Demon in the murals must have consumed it during her Cultivation, allowing her to withstand the Celestial Tribulation and ascend from this place. It's a shame she committed so many evil deeds and was struck down by the Celestial Dao Divine Artifact that followed the tribulation."

Xu Ying looked around. 'In a space this large, just how much Ten Thousand Years' Sky Cyan could there be?'

'A pity it's all been consumed.'

He sighed with regret. He saw a beam of Ascension Radiance descending from the sky, dazzlingly colorful. He could faintly hear strains of immortal music, like the sound of a Daoist Mystery from beyond the Nine Heavens, so enchanting it made one feel they could ascend on the spot.

Under the radiance was a thatched hut, the straw still golden yellow.

Beneath the hut rested a Stone Coffin, bound with Chains and carved with scarlet Blood Curses. Strangely, there was a table next to it, holding a teapot and a single teacup.

A faint wisp of white steam rose from the cup.

Xu Ying stepped forward and held the teacup. The water in the cup was still warm.

'Someone's been here?'

He looked around, but there was no one in sight. His heart skipped a beat. He quickly looked at the Stone Coffin, a chill running down his spine. 'Don't tell me she got out for a cup of tea?'

"Ying, this is most likely a cup of tea from three thousand years ago."

Da Zhong said, "I've heard that in an Ascension Land, the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi is so dense it transforms into Spiritual Qi. The Spiritual Energy in an Ascension Land is so immense that it prevents other things from releasing their own Energy, which is why the tea has maintained the same temperature. Look, do you see how the steam is rising but not dissipating?"

Xu Ying looked closely, and it was indeed so. He laughed, "I was just scaring myself. Then, who was drinking tea here three thousand years ago?"

Da Zhong said, "It was naturally the small Sect from outside. I suspect this nameless little sect is descended from those primitive people. They've passed down their duty from generation to generation, guarding this place to prevent the Female Demon who achieved Ascension to Immortality from escaping to wreak havoc on the world."

Xu Ying nodded and smiled, "It seems those primitive people had some conscience after all. After all these years, the Female Demon should be dead by now, right?"

"Once you cross the tribulation, you're considered an Immortal. How could she die so easily?"

Da Zhong urged, "Ying, if you practice your Cultivation here, you'll get twice the results with half the effort! It's probably even better than the Chaotian Cave Heaven!"

Xu Ying immediately activated his Taiyi Guiding Skill while circulating the Yuan Yu Eight Sounds. As expected, nature's spiritual energy here was unimaginably abundant. The headaches that had plagued him due to his uncontrolled memories even healed without him noticing!

Xu Ying was overjoyed, but then he suddenly remembered something that didn't seem right. 'The Geographical Map of Wuyang Mountain the ghost drew earlier... it looked like a bird's-eye view. To draw a map like that, you'd have to fly up into the sky to see the entirety of Wuyang Mountain, wouldn't you?'

Cold sweat began to form on his brow. 'So, why is the ghost sealed in the Copper Mirror? And how does she know about such a secret Ascension Land?'

Xu Ying abruptly stopped his cultivation, spun around, and snatched the Copper Mirror, shouting, "Lord Zhong, cover the Stone Coffin!"

————Three chapters, nearly twelve thousand words. Thank you to the friends who are still reading at this hour. Please rest early and take care.