Chapter Nine, there is a young girl over there

Su Jing could not help but touch the ox-slaying knife, the stone slab, and the token that Lu Ya had just given him not long ago, all of which were in his satchel

Lu Ya Jiu glanced at Su Qiangqiang with a look of disdain, saying: "If it were truly possible, why would I bring you in here? The spiritual energy in the Qingdeng Realm is not scattered all around; rather, it has coalesced into a vast energy vein. One end is in the treasure basin held by that noodle-eating old Taoist, and the other end is in the giant statue beneath the hands of the statue girl! Do you understand? The spiritual essence of the Qingdeng Realm only circulates between those two. I have tried; it is utterly impossible to shake it, not a single thread can be taken away."

Without the support of spiritual essence, cultivators cannot practice their cultivation. Although Lu Ya Jiu can indeed evade the heavenly tribulation here, what difference is it from being imprisoned

The words were somewhat verbose and awkward, yet Su Jing could still understand them, and he nodded in agreement. At that moment, a piercing long howl suddenly echoed from a distance, followed by a fierce gust of wind! As soon as the wind touched his body, Su Jing immediately felt an unbearable pain. Had it not been for Lu Yajiu swiftly enveloping him in a stream of water-like radiance, Su Jing had no doubt that this violent wind would have torn his flesh from his bones.

Lu Ya Jiu understood his thoughts and nodded, saying: "Indeed, these are the items. Originally, the Sky Treasure Pagoda was an ancient temple of the True Sect of the Heavenly Buddha, built in the clouds, which fell to the mortal realm millions of years ago. I thought the items I found would surely be righteous magical tools, but unexpectedly, the knife and stone are quite ordinary, mere mundane objects. The other three items, however, possess a strong malevolent nature, suitable only for use by great demons and dark spirits."

Lu Ya Jiu also paid no attention, removing the protective divine light that had been bestowed upon Su Jing, and continued the previous topic:

After a while, the howling finally ceased, and the terrifying gale also came to a halt. The mist once again rose, obscuring the enormous statue that resembled a mountain.

The fierce wind surged from all directions, rushing towards the source of the howling sound, and in an instant, it blew away the layers of grim mist that enveloped the world. When the view became clear, Su Jing suddenly realized that the distant mountain was actually a colossal statue of a man

Lu Ya was taken aback and hurriedly mobilized his profound skills to resist. Even with his substantial cultivation, it took him nearly a month to suppress this sinister object.

Breaking through the immeasurable and transcending the tribulations of thunder and fire can indeed refine one into an immortal body, but this refers to the fact that your body itself will not die, not that it cannot be obliterated by external forces. Cultivation is an act against the heavens; the heavenly way will not grant you infinite time to slowly cultivate. From the moment you enter the 'Ruyi胎' realm and begin to nurture your original spirit, regardless of how long you may still live, you will only have three thousand years. Once the time is up, regardless of whether you are in the Ruyi胎, a joyful child, or any other realm, the heavenly tribulation will strike down directly. If you can pass it, you will survive; if you cannot, you will die and dissipate, and then enter the cycle of reincarnation.

At this point, Lu Yajiu smiled and said: "It is precisely because this place is completely isolated from the outside that I can hide here and barely survive. If the Qingdeng Realm had even the slightest connection to the outside world, the Heavenly Tribulation would pursue me here and take my life directly"

There is no need to ask, this is indeed a cave of wonders, but it is not the cave of immortals. Its earliest master was either the Lord of the Underworld or the Celestial Demon

A piercing howl continued unabated, emanating from the direction of the colossal statue

There is a young girl over there, continuously carving this statue, though it is unclear how long she has been at it. Like the old Taoist eating noodles, she pays no attention to outsiders, and they do not acknowledge each other either. As long as we do not provoke them, there will be no issues. Lu Yajiu had visited the Qingdeng Realm before and is quite familiar with the situation here

Lu Ya nodded and said, "Indeed, that cultivation method is quite unique." He then redirected the conversation back to the previous topic: "The sinister aspects of the Qingdeng Realm go without saying, and that token is a treasure that only the great saints of the demon clan possess. As for that evil technique... it is written with the ink of vengeful souls."

As he spoke, he extended his hand to point first at the sky and then at the ground: "Let us speak of this realm beyond the ordinary, illuminated by the green lamp. This realm, which has another name you should be familiar with: Dongtian."

I have previously encountered several otherworldly realms left by ancient immortals. Although they are extraordinary, they are ultimately not completely isolated and still maintain some connection with the vast universe. However, this particular place is utterly isolated from the outside world, with not even a single gap. This clearly demonstrates the remarkable prowess of the malevolent beings that originally opened it up.

In response to this question, Lu Yajiu not only did not show any impatience, but instead revealed a look of approval. It is important to note that he had explained in one breath those realms that ordinary people had never even heard of. If one had not been fully attentive during the lecture, they would likely be completely unaware of the progressive relationships among these levels. Su Jing's inquiry clearly demonstrated that he had listened attentively and retained the information well

Su Jing was delighted to hear this: "This is wonderful. The benefactor can cultivate here, and when Huanxi grows up to become a wanderer, he can comprehend the Great Carefree Question and then venture out, no longer fearing the heavenly tribulation"

"Is it beautiful?" Su Jing blurted out, and once the words were spoken, he regretted asking them.

Su Jing reacted quickly and immediately asked, "The peculiar cultivation method I practice does not require spiritual essence support?"

Then, looking at the parchment, Lu Ya observed with keen eyesight as the dust settled in minute detail. He soon discovered that every character on the scroll seemed to writhe and struggle like ants, each stroke and line concealing countless vengeful spirits. Faces twisted and contorted appeared, futilely writhing as they sought to escape the parchment

The sinister text was inscribed on an unknown piece of leather. At first glance, it seemed unremarkable, and Lu Yajiu did not think much of it at the time. He simply collected it along with a few other items and quickly left the Sky Treasure Temple. However, when he emerged and found a secluded spot to carefully unroll the leather scroll for study, he was immediately overwhelmed by a cacophony of ghostly wails and howls in his ears, while simultaneously feeling a chilling and malevolent force surge from the scroll into his body

Fifteen years ago, a gap appeared in the protective formation of the Skyward Treasure Temple. I pondered that my calamity had come, so I went to try my luck, hoping to find some extraordinary treasures that could help me quickly elevate my realm. My luck was quite good; I discovered a knife, a whetstone, a scroll of forbidden techniques, a token, and a lamp. Naturally, I gathered all these items together.

It is a statue, yet it appears lifelike. The figure is elegant and carefree, not arrogant but certainly not humble either

"Very beautiful, it looks about the same size as you." Old Master Lu was not always so serious; he actually responded to Su Jing, and then added, "In this world, apart from you, me, the old Daoist, and the woman, there is no one else."

Draped in a long robe, with the collar open and exposing his chest, he faces the wind. This is a seated figure, unlike the Buddha, Laozi, or other deities who sit upright and solemnly. The middle-aged man casually sits on the ground, one leg extended and the other bent, gazing down at this world with a half-smile.

Su Jing had never seen such a "casual" stone sculpture on such a grand scale

He has sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, with a prominent nose bridge. A cluster of short beard adorns his chin, and faint wrinkles can be seen at the corners of his eyes and brows, suggesting he is of middle age. However, it is not difficult to discern that he was a remarkably handsome man in his youth

Regardless of which celestial family's cave heaven it is, it is always filled with warm sunlight and colorful clouds woven like brocade, with lush greenery and spiritual beasts roaming about. Who would deliberately create such a terrifying world?

Since I crossed the Eighth Realm and began to cultivate my primordial spirit, it has been a full three thousand years, yet my primordial spirit remains immature. I have not yet refined the 'Wanderer', so how can I have the qualifications to comprehend the 'Great Carefree Inquiry'? However, to survive the final heavenly tribulation, I must derive a method to overturn the heavens from the 'Great Carefree Inquiry'. As I stand now, I have not a shred of hope for this tribulation.