"Everything's changed, and the people aren't the same..."
Han Xuanji walked slowly along a tree-lined path in the chores courtyard, his heart full of emotion.
Li Shanhai could be said to be the person he knew best in the Divine Profound Sect, and he had helped Han Xuanji a great deal when he first joined.
Li Shanhai had once been quite determined.
Now, his mindset had changed completely, so much so that he had developed all sorts of distracting thoughts.
It also had to do with his recent experiences.
One of Li Shanhai's senior brothers, with whom he had been on good terms, had died attempting to reach the Golden Core realm.
The atmosphere in the sect had gradually begun to affect him as well.
Many people were thinking about breaking through and improving their strength.
The sect, deliberately or not, also tended to favor disciples willing to fight when allocating resources. After all, the Heavenly Devil Cult was powerful, and the sect was under great pressure; it had to cultivate its disciples' fighting abilities.
People were not grass or trees; who could be without feeling?
Han Xuanji had secretly lent Li Shanhai a hand as well.
As a Spirit Transformation Realm cultivator, he still had such means at his disposal. He could not guarantee that Li Shanhai would succeed in his breakthrough, but if he failed, there was a good chance his life could be saved.
Having helped him this far, his conscience was clear.
Cultivating immortality was defying the heavens to change one's fate, and he would not go out of his way to do more.
The average lifespan in the Spirit Transformation Realm should be between four and five thousand years. With my foundation, my lifespan far exceeds others at the same level; at the limit, I should be able to reach eight thousand years... I suppose that makes me a long-lived person?
Han Xuanji's thoughts churned.
Seen this way, he had nothing to worry about when it came to his lifespan.
But in this world, strength was the key.
Now that I've reached the Spirit Transformation Realm, those old places are no longer worth much.
Han Xuanji had something of a headache.
At many of the famous alchemy and artifact-forging workshops, he would already have been lucky to get a Spirit Transformation Realm item from a single check-in.
He felt he needed to find some higher-level places to check in.
Han Xuanji turned his gaze toward the main peak's grand hall.
There were countless palaces within the main peak's grand hall, and the most important was undoubtedly the Soaring Cloud Palace in its deepest reaches.
The Soaring Cloud Palace was an important location on Spirit Elegance Peak, housing many of its secret techniques and treasures.
The founding ancestor of Spirit Elegance Peak had been an Immortal Ascension Realm expert, and among its successive Peak Masters, there had been no shortage of Void Return Realm great powers. This place could be said to hold the accumulated legacy of Spirit Elegance Peak's ten thousand years, and its Dao accumulation was bound to be exceptionally rich.
He had wanted to sneak in before, but unfortunately, the place simply had no need for chores disciples to clean it.
Now Han Xuanji had reached the Spirit Transformation Realm and perfected the Myriad Phenomena Instruction. Even Void Return Realm cultivators would have difficulty detecting his presence.
I'll give it a try.
Han Xuanji pondered for a moment and made up his mind.
If he was discovered, the worst that could happen was that he would run.
If anyone asked, he was good at Movement Methods and ran fast.
Han Xuanji entered the main peak's grand hall and found that there were not many people there. Only a few inner sect elders and True Disciples were cultivating in their respective halls. As long as he did not barge into a hall, he would not usually disturb them.
But the deeper he went, the more easily he could be discovered.
Han Xuanji could sense faint, intermittent surveillance.
Although the cultivation world had no such thing as cameras, it did have Law Artifacts with similar functions.
But they were useless against Han Xuanji. At the Spirit Transformation Realm, many Law Techniques had reached an inconceivable level.
Even if he stood in front of some lower-realm cultivators, they would not notice him.
Here should be close enough.
Reaching the outside of the Soaring Cloud Palace, Han Xuanji nodded slightly.
Fortunately, he did not need to be inside to check in; getting close was enough.
If he actually went inside, he was certain to be discovered.
Han Xuanji silently said to himself:
System, check in.
[Congratulations, host. Check-in at the Soaring Cloud Palace successful. Divine Ability "Void-Penetrating Divine Eye" obtained.]
A Divine Ability?
Han Xuanji's heart leaped with joy.
Unlike ordinary Law Techniques, Divine Abilities were often related to innate talent and Principles, and might involve deeper things or special fortuitous opportunities.
Inheritable Divine Abilities like this often placed extremely high demands on a cultivator's aptitude. If someone could not learn one, they might never learn it in their entire life.
After claiming the reward,
Han Xuanji soon mastered the Void-Penetrating Divine Eye.
This Divine Ability had five stages: Void Insight, Truth Tracing, Heaven Peering, Unbroken, and Cosmic Light.
He was currently only at the first stage, Void Insight. Besides greatly enhancing his perception, it also allowed him to see through disguises and discern weaknesses.
If cultivated to the utmost, it could even discern cause and effect, peer into fate, see through life and death, and trace back time...
Rumor has it that some people are born with spirit eyes or double pupils, truly divine from birth. But it's said that some cultivators can also develop Divine Abilities like this later in life if they cultivate certain Cultivation Methods to the utmost.
Han Xuanji's thoughts churned.
He activated the Void-Penetrating Divine Eye.
Han Xuanji could sense that everything his eyes saw was observed down to the finest detail, without a single blind spot.
He could sense many traces of Qi coming from all directions, some strong and some weak, some near and some far. With just a thought, he could pinpoint their locations.
This Divine Ability really is good.
Han Xuanji turned his gaze and instantly perceived the surrounding formations and everyone's presence.
He had not known what was happening inside the Soaring Cloud Palace before, since a concealment formation blocked spiritual sense from probing it from outside. The Void-Penetrating Divine Eye, however, helped him see clearly what was going on inside.
At that moment, deep within the Soaring Cloud Palace, the Peak Master of Spirit Elegance Peak was in seclusion. He did not appear to be far from the Void Return Realm.
Now he realized that the Peak Master and the Grand Elder, who had once seemed so far above his reach, were actually only at the Spirit Transformation Realm.
If they really fought, he thought he might not necessarily lose.
This also showed just how badly Spirit Elegance Peak had declined.
After all, it was a lineage that had produced an immortal, yet now it could not even produce a single Void Return expert.
The other peaks of the Divine Profound Sect, however, were clearly much stronger. There were quite a few powerful presences, including those of Void Return Realm experts.
With these big shots around, Han Xuanji felt much more at ease.
You'd better hold firm against the demonic cultivators' attack!
The next day, Han Xuanji returned to the Soaring Cloud Palace to check in.
[Congratulations, host. Check-in at the Soaring Cloud Palace successful. Low-grade Immortal Artifact "Soaring Firmament Sword" obtained.]
Seeing a flying sword flashing with blue light in the system space, Han Xuanji's eyes filled with shock.
I knew it. This is where Spirit Elegance Peak's true foundations lie.
An Immortal Artifact!
Even though Han Xuanji had checked in for so many years and seen quite a few good things, he was still excited for a moment.
The value of an Immortal Artifact-grade flying sword was hard to measure.
Previously, at the various artifact-forging workshops on Heavenly Craft Peak, even when he was lucky, he had only checked in for some high-grade Nascent Soul- and Spirit Transformation-level Law Artifacts. Those were already quite impressive treasures, but compared with an Immortal Artifact...
They were on a completely different level.
Across the entire cultivation world of the Nine Provinces, Immortal Artifacts were as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns. They were treasures used by the top powers to safeguard their sects, and were rarely brought out except at moments of life or death.
There was even less chance of letting a disciple take one out to use.
After all, these were Law Treasures that only Immortal Ascension Realm experts could forge.
Often, such experts might not even leave their Immortal Artifacts behind; when they ascended, they took them straight with them.