Mirror of Judgment, the Great Sun Golden Crystal's Whereabouts

Several days later,

Northern Azure Spiritual Academy's main hall.

Tai Cang handed Lu Chen a crimson jade bottle and a Mustard Seed Bracelet.

"Young friend, the Flowing Fire Heavenly Flame is inside this jade bottle. Its temperature is extraordinarily high; even Supreme Realm experts would not dare touch it lightly. Please use it with caution."

"The Mustard Seed Bracelet contains the twenty thousand drops of Sovereign Spiritual Liquid being paid to you."

Lu Chen nodded and accepted the jade bottle and Mustard Seed Bracelet. He merely glanced at the bracelet before putting it away.

When he opened the jade bottle, he found a mass of viscous liquid inside. Scarlet as blood, it resembled flowing magma. Its radiance was restrained, and it was crystalline and translucent. Though it seemed unremarkable, the heat it gave off was terrifying.

With just one glance, Lu Chen felt his heart palpitate. This thing was clearly far from as simple as it appeared.

"As for the Mirror of Judgment, this old man has already discussed it with the others. You may borrow it whenever you wish."

Tai Cang Dean said with a smile.

"Then let's do it now."

Upon hearing that, Lu Chen spoke somewhat impatiently.

Tai Cang Dean was not surprised by Lu Chen's urgency. Smiling, he nodded, then waved his hand. The space before them tore open into a spatial rift, and he stepped inside.

"Follow me."

Lu Chen nodded and immediately followed him.

As Lu Chen entered the spatial rift, the scene before him abruptly changed. It appeared to be a small independent space, not particularly large and filled only with chaos.

At that moment, an ancient bronze mirror thousands of feet in size floated silently within the space. Its surroundings were covered in profoundly mysterious inscriptions, ancient and obscure.

The mirror's surface was dim and gray, as though obscured by dust. It was impossible to see through, yet it gave off a miraculous feeling as if it could illuminate the entire Great Thousand World.

The Mirror of Judgment!

A stone staircase stretched through the space all the way to the ancient bronze mirror. Tai Cang Dean brought Lu Chen there and handed him a bronze seal.

"Activate this, and you will be able to use the Mirror of Judgment. However, your authority is limited. You may only use it to search for objects and people; you cannot use it to attack."

Lu Chen accepted the bronze seal and nodded.

Then, gripping the seal in his hand, he poured spiritual energy into it.

A faint radiance shot from his hand and directly entered the gray mirror surface of the Mirror of Judgment.

Buzz! Buzz!

Subtle ripples spread across the mirror's surface, and the Mirror of Judgment gradually became clearer. Yet the surface was incomparably profound, like the night sky, carrying an air of mystery.

Seeing this, Lu Chen took a deep breath. With a spread of his palm, a crimson Scroll bearing an image of the Great Sun Golden Crystal floated before the Mirror of Judgment.

Buzz! Buzz!

The mirror surface rippled, and streams of light suddenly flowed across it. In the end, they transformed into a beam of light that shot out and enveloped the crimson Scroll.

Then, beneath the shroud of light, the Mirror of Judgment began to tremble violently. Intense ripples surged across its surface, and blurry images began to emerge within the pitch-black mirror.

Lu Chen's expression brightened, and wild joy welled up in his eyes. Was there finally a clue?

Ripples spread across the ancient bronze mirror. The deep, mysterious blackness receded like a tide, while the blurry image gradually became clear.

However, the Mirror of Judgment suddenly shuddered. The image that had been clear became faint and indistinct once more. As it flickered continuously, another image emerged, gradually becoming clear and forming a map of a continent.

It was a land of utter devastation. The earth stretched boundlessly, with no end in sight, yet it was covered in bottomless abysses thousands of feet deep. These abysses carved the continent into fragments of all sizes, like a piece of porcelain filled with cracks.

As Lu Chen looked at the map of the continent, he was about to take out a Spirit Map to search through it when Tai Cang Dean shook his head and smiled as he spoke its name.

"So it's the Remains Continent. There really could be what you're looking for there..."

"The Remains Continent?"

Lu Chen raised a brow, feeling that the name sounded somewhat familiar.

At this, Tai Cang Dean slowly explained, "In ancient times, the Remains Continent was once one of the most vast continents in the Great Thousand World. Later, because of the ancient calamity, it shattered and formed countless fragment continents of varying sizes."

"Such fragment continents are considered treasured lands within the Great Thousand World, for countless ancient ruins remain within them. Those with deep fortune may even obtain ancient treasures and ancient inheritances there."

Upon hearing this, Lu Chen immediately understood.

Wasn't this the continent where the Five Great Academies held their competition in his memories of his previous life?

From what he knew, one of the three primary materials Mu Chen had found there to forge the Great Sun Undying Body, the Nine Yang Spirit Mushroom, had been discovered there.

However, Tai Cang looked at the Mirror of Judgment before him and narrowed his eyes. An ancient bronze seal appeared in his hand, and spiritual energy poured into it.

The Mirror of Judgment blossomed with endless spiritual light. The image of the Remains Continent shifted, and light gathered once more, vaguely transforming into a mountain range that stretched beyond sight. Above the mountain range hung a great sun, its radiance seeming to envelop an entire vast continent.

Above the tallest peak, upon closer inspection, an enormous cloud ladder appeared within the light. The cloud ladder was divided into nine levels and floated high in the heavens.

Looking at the towering mountain peak, a trace of shock appeared on Tai Cang's face as he exclaimed, "Holy Spirit Mountain? How could it be this place..."

"Holy Spirit Mountain?"

"Wouldn't that be on the Northern Azure Continent?"

Lu Chen was also startled when he heard this and spoke in surprise.

"Yes, that place is not easy to enter. No wonder this old man sensed something strange about the Mirror of Judgment earlier and felt that it seemed to be deliberately overlooking something."

"So the thing you're searching for is there as well. That is the place where a Heavenly Supreme passed away..."

Tai Cang stroked his beard, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"Not easy to enter? Isn't that place always a trial ground for the younger generation of the Northern Azure Continent?"

"Could it be that the top forces of the Northern Azure Continent have made an agreement not to allow outside Supremes to enter?"

Lu Chen frowned and spoke slowly.

It now seemed that the Mirror of Judgment had found two places containing the Great Sun Golden Crystal. One was the Remains Continent, and the other was the Holy Spirit Mountain Range.

Although he did not know why the Mirror of Judgment had initially overlooked Holy Spirit Mountain, which was closer to them, he would certainly try Holy Spirit Mountain first if it could save time.

"It is not like that, young friend..."

"In that region, whether they are local Supremes or foreign Supremes, any expert who has stepped into the Supreme Realm cannot approach it."

"Because a lingering pressure remains there, presumably left behind when that ancient Heavenly Supreme passed away. Those who have not entered the Supreme Realm cannot sense that pressure and may approach freely. On the contrary, Supreme Realm experts like us cannot get close to that place."

Tai Cang Dean spoke with some emotion, his tone full of wistfulness.

"The lingering pressure of a single Heavenly Supreme can prevent ordinary Supremes from even approaching?"

Lu Chen frowned, immediately sensing how troublesome this matter was.

"Young friend, Holy Spirit Mountain will open in one month. If you do not mind the trouble, why not wait another month? After one month, I will send Northern Azure students to Holy Spirit Mountain to search for you."

"If you are pressed for time, you may set off for the Remains Continent now. Northern Azure Spiritual Academy's teleportation array also happens to lead there."

Seeing Lu Chen's predicament, Tai Cang smiled and offered his solution.

Lu Chen's eyes immediately lit up. He said with considerable gratitude, "Then I'll have to trouble you, Dean. I'll first go to the Remains Continent and search there. If I find nothing, I'll return in a month to seek your assistance."

"Very well."

Tai Cang stroked his beard and nodded with a smile.