Chapter 321: News of Wang Abei

"Even if I didn’t tell you, you would find out sooner or later. It’s better to just tell you from the start."

Chihe Zhenren continued, "Only the younger generation is unaware that Ascension is impossible, but the impact is spreading."

No one had ascended in over ten thousand years. Before, it was said they could still receive divine oracles from the heavens.

Now, the divine oracles were gone too.

Sooner or later, everyone on the Yunzhou Continent would learn this truth.

But even when they found out, the impact wouldn’t be that great.

For now, one must focus on survival. After all, in the past ten thousand-plus years, how many Cultivators have even managed to reach the final step?

Song Jiulai fell into deep thought.

’If Ascension is impossible, then what exactly is going on in this world?’

She thought about the Ancient Cultivation Technique the system had given her.

She couldn’t help but go TSK TSK TSK at the system in her mind.

The system couldn’t take it anymore. "My child, if you’ve got something to say, spit it out."

"..." Song Jiulai said, "To be honest, there’s something I’ve never understood. If a person can become an immortal through Cultivation and achieve Ascension, what level does that make you?"

Although the system didn’t seem to know much, its abilities were telling.

The fact that it could defy the heavens to grant someone a Spirit Root and could even forcibly pull someone from another world said it all.

Breaking through dimensions was just a basic skill for it.

Its power surpassed both the Yunzhou Continent and the technology of Blue Star.

The people of Yunzhou were all trapped on the Yunzhou Continent, yet the system could come and go as it pleased.

What kind of being must have sent it here?

A true god?

Or a more technologically advanced civilization?

The system was very smug. "Feeling like I’m unfathomably mysterious and incredibly powerful all of a sudden?"

Song Jiulai replied, "In that case, can someone as powerful as you tell me the truth about the Yunzhou Continent?"

System: "Oh. In that case, I’m a very useless system."

"..."

Chihe Zhenren, thinking she was pondering the impossibility of Ascension, said, "Apprentice, don’t trouble yourself. Besides pursuing breakthroughs in their Realm, Cultivators must also guard against all the deceit and treachery in the Cultivation World. Just managing to survive is a sign of good fortune. Survive first, and you can think about other things later."

Song Jiulai: "..."

’Master, isn’t it a bit inauspicious to say something like that?’

However, what Chihe Zhenren said was indeed packed with information.

It had certainly made an impact on Song Jiulai.

’Even if I can’t achieve Ascension, I still have the system.’

’Didn’t it say I’d get a chance to return to Blue Star after completing my missions?’

’By the time I go back, I’ll probably know why no one on the Yunzhou Continent can achieve Ascension, right?’

’And this whole process... ’

’Why do I feel like some kind of savior?’

Song Jiulai thought shamelessly.

But being on a savior’s path didn’t mean she couldn’t get killed along the way.

Over the next few days, the vessel continued on to the Major Sects under the Ten Thousand Immortals Sect, picking up the disciples who had passed their respective trials.

It was only then that Song Jiulai learned that besides itself, the Ten Thousand Immortals Sect had five major affiliated sects.

The Sea View Sect, Biyin Sect, Starlight Sect, White Lion Sect, and Wan Die Sect.

Among them, only the Wan Die Sect was a Beast Taming Sect, and its relationship with the Ten Thousand Immortals Sect was particularly special.

This was because the current Sect Master of the Ten Thousand Immortals Sect had come from the Wan Die Sect. He was scouted by the Ten Thousand Immortals Sect for his outstanding talent and had eventually risen to the position of Sect Master.

It was said that this Sect Master not only had extremely high cultivation but also possessed several incredibly powerful spiritual beasts.

But the Sect Master of the Ten Thousand Immortals Sect hadn’t been seen in action for nearly a thousand years.

The Sect Master of the Ten Thousand Immortals Sect that Song Jiulai had seen that day was merely one of his consciousness avatars.

No one knew where the Sect Master’s true body was.

The main bodies of such Great Powers were different from Song Jiulai’s.

The main body and avatar shared a cultivation base, so the avatar could not cultivate on its own.

They first cultivated to their limits, then separated their excess cultivation to create an avatar, thereby postponing the arrival of their Heavenly Tribulation.

For high-level Great Powers, the higher the level of the Heavenly Tribulation, the more dangerous it was. Even those in the Transcendance Tribulation Stage couldn’t guarantee they would survive it.

To live longer, many would go into long-term seclusion after reaching the Mahayana Realm, using only an avatar to move about in the outside world.

With Song Jiulai, however, her several bodies cultivated at the same time. While their consciousness was shared, her Divine Sense could even allow each body to follow a different path individually.

For example, her main body was currently focused on cultivating the Nine Transformations Dragon Bone, so this avatar couldn’t cultivate it for the time being.

When they reached the Starlight Sect, Song Jiulai was surprised to find she had run into an acquaintance.

An acquaintance by her own definition, anyway.

She asked the system, "Isn’t that the guy I met last time in the bridegroom’s pocket dimension from the Moonlight Secret Realm?"

System: "You’re so young and you’re already going senile? You can’t even remember this?"

"...Damn you!"

He just looked familiar, and she was afraid of making a mistake.

But apparently, she wasn’t wrong.

One of the male cultivators who boarded from the Starlight Sect was dressed in blue robes and had a gentle, graceful demeanor.

This person was the Mid Golden Core Stage victor from the Starlight Sect, Xiao Yushu.

He had been in Qin Yongkang’s Secret Realm with her. Although they hadn’t spoken much, there were only a few Cultivators there at the time, so Song Jiulai still remembered him.

In Qin Yongkang’s Secret Realm, she had obtained the Prosperous Scenery Tower and the Moonlight Secret Realm Fragment.

As soon as other people boarded the vessel, they acted like social butterflies. Many of the Cultivators knew each other and gathered together to chat.

Song Jiulai kept to her room at first. But because her cultivation was suppressed and she still hadn’t broken through the Early Stage, meditating wouldn’t help her main body much anyway. So, she spent her time standing on the deck, observing the others.

’I have to memorize the face and identity of every Cultivator.’

Although she was only at an ordinary Early Stage, because she was Chihe Zhenren’s disciple, the people who boarded the vessel would look her over with veiled curiosity.

Their eyes held unconcealable envy.

And jealousy, too.

Song Jiulai didn’t care. ’With such a narrow mindset, they’ll never reach a high Realm anyway!’

"I heard..."

But after Xiao Yushu boarded, Yin Chu suddenly appeared and went straight to him. "You entered a Secret Realm last time with someone named Wang Abei? Did that person take the Moonlight Secret Realm Fragment at the time?"

Yin Chu made this scene without even putting up a sound barrier, so everyone on the vessel heard him.

Everyone glanced over with veiled curiosity.

Song Jiulai’s ears pricked up.

’Isn’t Wang Abei an alias I’ve used before?’

’Why are they suddenly bringing this up out of nowhere!’

Upon seeing Yin Chu, the originally smiling Xiao Yushu’s expression immediately became respectful and restrained. "Replying to Senior, yes. This junior was in the Qin Yongkang Secret Realm with that Wang Abei. Afterward, the Qin Yongkang pocket world collapsed and disappeared. The few of us from the Secret Realm were all together at the time. Only Wang Abei took a different path from us. The only one who could have taken the Secret Realm Fragment is Wang Abei."

Yin Chu sneered, "Anyone can tell ’Wang Abei’ is a fake name just by hearing it. Not to mention, I also heard her cultivation might have only been at the Foundation Establishment Stage at the time. You all couldn’t even see through the disguise of a Foundation Establishment Stage disciple?"

’That was hardly fair.’

’Everyone who enters a Secret Realm has their own tricks. Xiao Yushu might not have seen through it, but neither did anyone else!’

Xiao Yushu gave a bitter smile. "It is this junior’s cultivation that is lacking. I was indeed unable to see through Wang Abei’s disguise."