The Jade Pendant's Secret, Shi Nandang's Message

The Venerable Tianhe's... Jade Pendant?

Upon hearing these words from Dragon Lord Shuyu, Zheng Fa's heart trembled slightly, but his face remained expressionless.

The Yin-Yang Fish Jade Pendant was, for him, the most fatal and most secret that could not be exposed.

It wasn't that he was arrogant; he was now unafraid to bear some of the karma from Venerable Tianhe —the saying goes, "The more debts you have, the less you worry." Even without Venerable Tianhe's involvement, Thunderclap Temple and Vast Sun Mountain wouldn't let him off the hook.

But the Modern World has always been his Achilles' heel.

If the existence of the Yin-Yang Fish Jade Pendant were known, it would most likely have been exposed in modern times as well.

Upon thinking of this, even with Zheng Fa's composure, his mind went blank, and he was momentarily speechless.

Xiao Yuying, however, was quite curious. "Jade Pendant? Master, what Jade Pendant? Venerable Tianhe left behind Jade Pendant?"

She was already fascinated by history, and Venerable Tianhe was an indispensable figure in Xuanwei, so Xiao Yuying was naturally very interested.

The Dragon Lord Shuyu glanced at his disciple, not noticing Zheng Fa's silence, and waved his hand, saying, "I don't know the specifics of what those people from Jade Pool said. If you hadn't mentioned the Tianhe Legacy Treasure, I wouldn't have remembered it at all."

Zheng Fa snapped out of his reverie and asked the question that concerned him most, "Did Jade Pool and the others say they wanted to find this Jade Pendant for what purpose?"

Seeing Zheng Fa's expectant expression, Dragon Lord Shuyu seriously tried to recall the scene, and after a long while, he nodded somewhat uncertainly.

"They said that the turmoil at the Tianhe back then was actually quite strange."

"Hmm? That's strange?"

"The Venerable Tianhe was not defeated by the Four Sects; no, they didn't even fight."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Fa and Xiao Yuying both widened their eyes.

Why did Venerable Tianhe perish?

"He seemed to..." Dragon Lord Shuyu paused for a moment, frowning, seemingly very puzzled, "... to choose death himself."

This answer was somewhat shocking to Xiao Yuying.

As Zheng Fa had predicted.

Or rather, he was also somewhat confused about Venerable Tianhe's final choice.

Zheng Fa actually had some guesses about the strength of Venerable Tianhe: at the very least, he was Golden Immortal.

Since the Four Immortal-Slayer Swords have killed True Immortal, the master and wielder of the Four Immortal-Slayer Swords must generally be far stronger than True Immortal, otherwise it would be difficult to subdue the Four Swords.

On the other hand, to unify the Xuanwei, True Immortal might not be enough, and even Golden Immortal might be a stretch—but Zheng Fa couldn't yet comprehend what Golden Immortal was, so he dared not make a hasty judgment.

Even if the entire Tianhe Sect were to rebel now, it would not pose any fatal threat to Venerable Tianhe.

Therefore, it is even more strange that Venerable Tianhe died so completely: Great Freedom Devil Ancestor could jump around a few times.

"Suicide?"

Xiao Yuying looked dazed, as if she couldn't believe that Venerable Tianhe would make such a choice.

"So no one can believe it." The Dragon Lord Shuyu shook his head as well, "Everyone is afraid..."

What's there to be afraid of?

What they feared most was that Venerable Tianhe was not dead and was hiding in the shadows, preparing to give them a severe beating.

Even if Venerable Tianhe is dead, the way he died makes it hard to believe that he didn't have a backup plan.

Zheng Fa can testify – he was the backup plan.

Thinking of this, he asked again, "How did Jade Pool know that what they were looking for was a Jade Pendant?"

"The Tianhe Sect originally had a grotto-heaven called the Myriad Swords Realm, and among its treasures, a Jade Pendant was missing."

Zheng Fa suddenly realized.

He had seen that incomplete treasure of the cave before—back when the Six-Sect Alliance Assembly, Sect Master Yan was holding an array plate and wanted to check if Zheng Fa had Jade Pendant, but he was injured by the Nine Nether Devil Ancestor.

"The Myriad Swords Realm was originally the foundation of the Tianhe Sect, but after Venerable Tianhe's fall, this grotto-heaven was almost abandoned." The Dragon Lord Shuyu seemed to know quite a bit. "I've only heard from Jade Pool that several Founder of the Tianhe Sect have mentioned that the Myriad Swords Realm contains the legacy left by Venerable Tianhe, and even treasures."

"Treasure?"

"The Venerable Tianhe unified the Xuanwei, collecting all the spiritual materials, Law Treasure, and Secret Method in the world. Guess where he kept them?"

"The Myriad Swords Realm?"

Dragon Lord Shuyu nodded and sighed with a smile, "Even I, upon hearing these words, cannot help but be tempted."

"What are your plans, Myriad Swords Realm?"

Inside the Tianhe Sect camp, in the main tent, the four members of the Nishang Yuanjun reunited, but the atmosphere was not as good as before.

"Why not wait for the Cloud True Immortal of Vast Sun Mountain to arrive?"

The Old Monk Zhitong, no longer as impatient as before, said, "Cloud True Immortal will be setting off soon. He has entrusted the matter of the Myriad Swords Realm to this old monk."

Upon hearing this, Nishang Yuanjun couldn't help but glance at Xuanding True Immortal Xian.

The relationship between Thunderclap Temple and Vast Sun Mountain is closer than they imagined, unlike Jade Pool and Supreme Dao, who are said to be allies, but whose interests are not actually aligned.

That makes sense, considering that Lu Mo of Vast Sun Mountain needs to rely on Thunderclap Temple to attain enlightenment.

Patriarch Xuanding remained silent, but Li Sanxian, acting as his megaphone, asked, "The treasures of the Myriad Swords Realm are missing and have not yet been replenished. What plans do you have?"

Zhitong smiled but didn't answer; he simply looked at Patriarch Xuanding.

Patriarch Xuanding remained silent for a long while before asking, "Not waiting?"

"I can't wait any longer."

Li Sanxian's eyes widened in astonishment, but then he saw that the three True Immortal in the tent seemed to understand everything. Suddenly, he realized, "We've been waiting for the person who took the Jade Pendant to appear?"

Nishang Yuanjun shook her head and explained, "No, it's not."

"We saw this in the Previous Epoch; without a treasure from a celestial abode, it's almost impossible to control the Myriad Swords Realm."

Li Sanxian was puzzled.

"If we can't control the Myriad Swords Realm, we can utterly destroy it."

"..."

In an instant, Li Sanxian realized. "In this way, no matter what tricks Venerable Tianhe has up his sleeve, it's useless?"

Nishang Yuanjun nodded and said, "Moreover, if we're lucky, some of the treasures might survive."

Li Sanxian stammered, "Then... why wasn't it like this before?"

"The Four Tianhe Branches Founder of the Heavenly River are unwilling. They are already constrained by the Four Swords and have always wanted to find the Venerable Tianhe's legacy," said Nishang Yuanjun frankly. "Moreover, who would willingly destroy the wealth of the Xuanwei Realm?"

Li Sanxian nodded slightly. If the Myriad Swords Realm is destroyed, it would be good if even one percent of the treasures inside could be preserved.

The Old Monk Zhitong continued, "Destroying the Myriad Swords Realm is not such a simple matter. If the Four Sects hadn't gathered together to set up a grand formation, we wouldn't have had the strength to do so."

"That person who possesses the Jade Pendant..."

"Just a side effect." The Old Monk Zhitong clasped his hands together. "If that person doesn't come this time, then the Myriad Swords Realm will naturally have no chance with him, and the Jade Pendant will be irrelevant."

"If they come, that would be perfect."

Zheng Fa was thinking about going to the Tianhe Sect.

Now, he has to admit that the most likely place to find the legacy of Venerable Tianhe is indeed the Myriad Swords Realm.

The questions are whether to go or not, and how to get there.

He stood in the courtyard of the Purple Tenuity Enclosure, watching the Heavenly Emperor Body sit on his divine chariot, pulled by the Little Golden Crow, slowly rising from the east.

If he were to go, having the Heavenly Emperor Body, he wouldn't be so afraid of death: the One Qi Transforms into Three Purities would grant him a certain ability to resurrect.

However, it cannot be said that there are no problems at all.

On the one hand, the Four Sects have surrounded the Tianhe Sect tightly, so it is a big problem what identity he should have to enter and how he can make contact with the Myriad Swords Realm.

On the other hand, if the Jade Pendant can truly uncover the secrets of the Myriad Swords Realm, there are actually quite a few potential problems:

If there are any significant changes in the Myriad Swords Realm, it almost certainly means that the Jade Pendant has been created.

The reactions from the Four Sects were predictable.

If we don't go, none of these problems will exist.

There's only one troublesome thing: how to improve the Celestial River Method.

The Four Tianhe Branches Founder of the Heavenly River lineage spent an entire era on this, and all they managed to come up with was a substitution trick...

This is clearly not in line with the approach of the * Yellow Court Scripture *.

Even though Zheng Fa was extremely confident in his research capabilities regarding the Nine Mountains Realm, the idea of perfecting the Celestial River Method in such a short time was probably only a pipe dream.

If a card takes tens of thousands of years to cast, then the Nine Mountains Sect is probably doomed.

Besides this, there is another reason, which is deeply hidden in Zheng Fa's heart.

He wanted to know how he had traveled to the modern world, whether everything in the modern world was real or fake, and more importantly, whether his fate had been predetermined, whether he... was a pawn.

Compared to this, the Celestial River Method is nothing.

Zheng Fa looked up at the sky.

On that day, at whom did Venerable Tianhe swing his sword?

The best way now is to quietly obtain the Tianhe Biography —at this moment, he somewhat missed the Shi Nandang finding a mentor.

Life is tough for Shi Nandang.

In a valley two thousand miles away from the Hundred Immortals Alliance.

Shi Nandang walked out of the courtyard and looked around.

The Spiritual Qi here is scarce. Although the collapsed rocks have been cleared away, the surrounding mountains look like they have bald patches, revealing large chunks of bare yellow mud.

Outside the courtyard, people came and went, more than half of them disciples of Vast Sun Mountain.

But no one spoke to him, this half-step Vast Sun True Disciple, and even their gazes towards him were filled with apprehension.

Shi Nandang's expression remained unchanged, though he felt helpless inside.

The incident involving the Immortal-Trapping Sword resulted in heavy losses in the mountains.

Not only were 20% of the Spirit Vein destroyed, but most importantly, a perfectly good Immortal-Trapping Sword was turned into a laughable Immortal-Trapping Sword, which would be embarrassing to take out.

As the person in charge of the Heaven-Earth Divine Baleful Array, the blame naturally falls on him.

If it weren't for Ancestor Luo rushing to take the blame and being killed by Zheng Fa with a single sword strike, he would already be facing interrogation within the sect.

With the resurrection of Ancestor Luo and the affairs of the Tianhe Sect at the moment, the sect is in complete chaos, and no one is paying attention to him.

But these fellow disciples weren't fools; they could all see that Shi Nandang never be able to obtain a surname like Lu in his lifetime, and might even suffer a terrible misfortune.

Nobody dares to touch it.

These people's attitudes naturally made Shi Nandang even more flustered.

Lost in thought, a crimson talisman suddenly streaked across the sky and landed above his head.

Cloud True Immortal's stern voice rang out:

"Vast Sun disciple Shi Nandang, quickly return to Vast Sun Mountain and come with me to the Tianhe."

Shi Nandang accepted the imperial edict and looked around.

Some disciples stood a short distance away, whispering amongst themselves, their eyes filled with schadenfreude.

A chill ran through him; he knew that if he returned to Vast Sun Mountain, he would not have a good outcome.

Most importantly, with so many Vast Sun disciples here, why are they making me go back...?

It's obvious that True Immortal Lu does have doubts about me, but he just didn't have time before. Now that he's set off from Vast Sun Mountain, he's thinking of bringing me to his side.

Shi Nandang took a deep breath, ignoring everyone's gaze, and bowed towards Vast Sun Mountain: "As the Founder commands!"

Having said that, he leaped into the light and flew towards Vast Sun Mountain.

Halfway there, Shi Nandang his Divine Sense to scan his surroundings. Seeing that no one was around, he took out the Comprehensive Mirror and reported the situation to Zheng Fa.

After a while, Zheng Fa sent a message: "The Nine Mountains Realm has reached the border of Vast Sun. You should return first."

"Return to the Nine Mountains?"

Shi Nandang overjoyed. For him, a disciple of Vast Sun Mountain, returning to Vast Sun Mountain was something he hesitated about, but returning to the Nine Mountains was something he could do with ease.

He used the Heavenly Dipper and Earthly Fiend Transformation to become a middle-aged cultivator and flew desperately towards the Nine Mountains Realm.

In less than two hours, he arrived at the border of Vast Sun Mountain again.

Upon entering the Nine Mountains Realm, he saw a difference— the Heavenly Palace Nine Isles had been transformed into hundreds of stars.

"Come see me at Heavenly Market Enclosure Spirit Herb Market."

Zheng Fa's voice rang in his ears.

A distant island glowed faintly, Shi Nandang knew in his heart that it was the Spirit Herb Market. He hurriedly got up and flew towards it.

Despite his anxiety, his eyes were involuntarily drawn to the prosperity of the Celestial Market Isles along the way.

The Celestial Market Isles consist of two parts: one part was originally inhabited by ordinary people from Paradise Island, and the other part, which is more important, is an expansion of the original Nine Mountains Market.

Based on different types of transactions, four Marketplace have now formed—

The Spirit Herb Market, Dharma Tool Market, Immortal Elixir Market, and Spirit Talisman Market.

In each Marketplace, many cultivators shuttled back and forth, and at the docks beside the Marketplace, Divine Firmament Warship landed like raindrops.

The Shi Nandang astonished you become.

Although he wasn't good at business, he had seen quite a few Marketplace in Vast Sun Mountain.

Vast Sun Mountain is the number one for weapon refining in Xuanwei, and its Marketplace is also among the most prosperous in Xuanwei.

He used to think that Vast Sun Mountain Marketplace was making a fortune every day, but today he truly felt that he had broadened his horizons:

Rare and precious spiritual herbs, seldom seen in the Eastern Continent, were being transported in boatloads. The sporadic price quotes made Shi Nandang's heart itch with desire to buy some.

The Divine Firmament Warship, having just unloaded the spiritual herbs, did not stop but turned and flew to the Immortal Elixir Market, loading bottles of the Supreme Dao's unique spiritual pills, before flying directly towards the outside of the Nine Mountains Realm.

Looking further afield, the Law Artifact and talismans manufactured by the Nine Mountains Sect were also in high demand and short supply.

Shi Nandang has finally come to understand:

To supply Jade Pool and the Hundred Immortals Alliance, at Supreme Dao were sent here.

Thirty percent of the spiritual herbs in Jade Pool are traded here.

Today, Heavenly Market Enclosure can be said to be a trading market shared by the three major sects: Supreme Dao, Jade Pool, and Nine Mountains Sect.

It's easy to imagine how much of the income Jade Pool and Supreme Dao currently rely on Heavenly Market Enclosure.

Lost in his own thoughts, he found himself already inside the Spirit Herb Shop.

Zheng Fa stood in the crowd, talking to Senior Sister Zhang. When she saw him coming, she waved to him.

Shi Nandang quickly went over.

Then Zheng Fa said to Senior Sister Zhang:

"The pilots of the Divine Firmament Warship can be trained among the cultivators of the Hundred Immortals Alliance."

"Tell the Supreme Dao that the price of spiritual herbs can't be low; we also have transportation costs."

Shi Nandang looked at Zheng Fa with a different expression—"Your Nine Mountains Sect is far too greedy!"

"Senior sister, please calculate how much our Merit will increase this month."

Shi Nandang:... The Sect Leader is right, Supreme Dao to buying or not!

After Zheng Fa finished speaking, Senior Sister Zhang spoke again, giving a few instructions to the disciples managing the Spirit Herb Market. Only then did the two of them take Shi Nandang and fly out of Heavenly Market Enclosure, returning to Purple Tenuity Enclosure.

"Sect Leader, regarding this talisman..." Shi Nandang hurriedly asked, "If I return to the sect, I'm afraid... I won't be able to withstand Ancestor Yun's methods."

Zheng Fa and Senior Sister Zhang exchanged a glance.

I also understand Shi Nandang's anxiety.

After all, Shi Nandang is indeed questionable. If that Cloud True Immortal becomes suspicious and uses soul-searching, it will be very difficult for Shi Nandang to keep his secrets completely hidden.

What do you think?

"I... I want to hide in the Nine Mountains Realm."

Shi Nandang said in a low voice, feeling a little guilty, as if he had let down the Sect Leader's expectations.

He understood, of course, that the Sect Leader had his own purpose in placing him at Vast Sun Mountain.

The problem is... he's really scared.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing Shi Nandang's words, Zheng Fa not only did not get angry, but instead laughed.

"Sect Leader?"

"You will remain in the Nine Mountains Realm," Zheng Fa said with a smile, "But Shi Nandang must return to Vast Sun Mountain."

Shi Nandang blinked, initially not understanding, but having learned from his mistakes, he quickly grasped Zheng Fa's idea.

"Sect Leader, you want to... impersonate me?"

"Is that not allowed?"

Shi Nandang scratched his head, pondered for a long time, and then couldn't help but grin.

What are you laughing at?

"Sect Leader, will I one day see Ancestor Yun in the Nine Mountains Realm?"

You really have a wild imagination!

"You want to go to the Tianhe Sect?"

Zheng Fa's departure from the Nine Mountains Realm is a major event, and naturally not everyone can know about it. However, it will be informed of the sect's higher-ups, otherwise many things in the Nine Mountains Sect will be difficult to arrange.

Upon hearing the news, Xie Qingxue rushed over.

"Well, I might not go." Zheng Fa had thought it through. "I'll give it a try first, and if there's no chance, I'll just come back."

To put it bluntly, it's all about playing it by ear.

Xie Qingxue looked at him and suddenly said, "I'll go with you."

Zheng Fa shook his head and said, "Fairy Xie, Fairy. I have the Nine Nether Talisman Edict, which can even deceive Dao Fruit cultivators."

The Heavenly Dipper and Earthly Fiend Transformation are not omnipotent; at the very least, they cannot conceal the Divine Soul.

It was also because of the Nine Nether Talisman Edict that he felt more confident.

Why... are you going?

Zheng Fa was taken aback for a moment. "Of course I want to go and see if we can improve the Celestial River Method."

Xie Qingxue stared at him intently, then suddenly shook her head. "That's not your personality."

"..."

"The Celestial River Method is insufficient to make you act this way," Xie Qingxue said swiftly, not allowing him to refute. "The approach most suited to your character would be to modify the <Yellow Court Scripture> and see if you can circumvent the Celestial River Method's obstruction."

I suspect you're calling me a coward.

However, it must be said that Xie Qingxue saw through him—he was never someone who blindly believed in the Cultivation Method of his predecessors, and besides, the <Yellow Court Scripture> was not perfect to begin with, so there was actually more than one path to take.

Deep down, Zheng Fa wanted to go to the Tianhe Sect mainly to find out about the Yin-Yang Fish Jade Pendant.

He didn't investigate this matter thoroughly before because he lacked the strength, but now that he has a certain degree of confidence, he naturally won't turn a blind eye.

But he was unwilling to say this to Xie Qingxue directly.

He didn't even tell Senior Sister Zhang about the Yin-Yang Fish Jade Pendant.

Therefore, for a moment, I didn't know how to explain it.

Seeing that he remained silent, Xie Qingxue's gaze softened even more. "I will take good care of the Nine Mountains Realm."

"Fairy Xie, I'm not..."

"I understand."

What did you understand?