1017

Chapter 1017: The Far Edge of the Grand Essence Realm

“Little Miss, I’m afraid this person is beyond help. He seemed injured by the power of laws, which also shattered his bones. Even his essence spirit is unconscious and has fallen into a chaotic state. I’m afraid.......” The blue-robed girl looked at the person Zuo Zhong placed on the bow and said while shaking her head.

Zuo Zhong didn’t speak; he had also examined this man’s situation. If not for the Little Miss’s order, he wouldn’t have bothered to bring this person onto the airship. Being injured by the power of laws was entirely different from external injuries through physical forces. Moreover, once injured by the power of laws, it was almost impossible to recover. In other words, this person’s bones would likely never heal even if he gained consciousness. Let alone now when the essence spirit is unresponsive and has fallen into a chaotic state.

The best-case scenario would be becoming an imbecile after waking up. No, it should be an imbecile with shattered bones after gaining consciousness.

The yellow-robed girl walked over, lowered her body, and put her palm on Ning Cheng’s forehead to examine his condition. After some time, she finally gave a soft sigh, “He’s indeed been injured by the power of laws. Zuo Zhong, take him to the cargo storage. Once we reach landfall, find a place for him to settle down. Since its fate that we ran into each other, we can at least help him with this much.”

“Yes, Little Miss.” Zuo Zong answered and left with the person he rescued.

“Little Miss, looking at his state, his Sea of Consciousness should have also shattered. I don’t know where he went, but wherever it was, it must have had supremely powerful laws.” The blue-robed girl was slightly puzzled when she saw Zuo Zhong taking the person away.

The yellow-robed girl pondered for some time before replying, “There are too many strange things in this part of the void, so we need to be cautious. Your cultivation has been stagnant for quite some time now, so you will have to retreat and cultivate for a while after we return home.”

Seeing the blue-robed girl about to speak, the yellow-robed girl raised her hand to stop her. “Mo Yuan, I also need to head back into secluded cultivation for some time. Therefore, I’ll leave the business to my brother. There shouldn’t be any problems with Zuo Zhong’s help.”

......

The injured person Zuo Zhong placed in the cargo hold was naturally Ning Cheng. It’s just that Ning Cheng was currently unconscious and didn’t know anything going on around him.

Call it fate or luck, but this cargo storage, a part of the main utility chamber of the void airship, was also quite close to the restriction covering the power source of the airship.

Moreover, after Zuo Zhong carefully put Ning Cheng in the cargo storage, he didn’t bother to check Ning Cheng’s body. If he had, he would have realised that in Ning Cheng’s Sea of Consciousness, a steady stream of Mysterious Yellow Origin was flushing out the aura of netherworld’s laws that had penetrated his Sea of Consciousness.

Not knowing how long it took, Ning Cheng finally opened his eyes. Ning Cheng immediately stretched out his spiritual consciousness to find himself in a void ship’s cargo storage. Finding only seven cultivators on the airship, he immediately relaxed.

Looks like these people saved him. He also felt secretly glad that he had re-refined his body at the Dragon Washing Pool. Otherwise, it would have been difficult for him to survive the crushing pressure of the netherworld’s worldly laws as it forced him out of the netherworld.

Under that crushing pressure, he couldn’t use any artefact and could only resist it with his physical body.

Ning Cheng felt sure that the ‘green hat’ had lied to him, but it wasn’t a complete lie either. If an ordinary person wanted to leave the netherworld, they couldn’t leave by letting themselves be crushed by the laws. After all, even if it was a Dao Essence Holy Emperor, as long as they weren’t a powerful body-forging expert, the netherworld’s worldly laws would crush them into nothingness.

Even if it was possible to leave using this method, it would only be possible for holy emperors above the Dao Essence Realm. In other words, Dao Fusion or Dao Perfection Holy Emperors. But even so, would such people deliberately let the laws crush them when they decided to leave?

That ‘green hat’ really was quite insidious. Back then, that ‘green hat’ thought he was very strong and wanted to kill him using this method. This fellow was simply too black-bellied that he couldn’t be any more black-bellied. Obviously, the two of them had no grievances or grudges. Moreover, even if he had killed Ning Cheng in this way, the ‘green hat’ couldn’t have gotten hold of his treasures. In other words, that ‘green hat’ did this only to harm others without any benefit to himself.

Fortunately, that ‘green hat’ didn’t know that he was a body-forging cultivator who quenched his body in the Dragon Washing Pool. Or that he had reached the full circle of Starry Sky Physique. Not only that, his Starry Sky Physique had gone through another round of tempering through the netherworld’s worldly laws. The combination of all these factors allowed him to keep his little life.

Ning Cheng took out a few pills and swallowed them. Whether it was his shattered bones or his injured Sea of Consciousness, he wasn’t too bothered by it. After all, he was a body-forging cultivator with a Starry Sky Physique and had several Empyrean Consciousness Transmutation Pills. Moreover, even if his body was injured by the netherworld’s laws, he could even refine these laws and transform them into the strength of his body, given enough time.

Half a month later, Ning Cheng refined the rampaging laws in his body. Even his Sea of Consciousness, injured by the netherworld’s laws, had been completely restored.

Ning Cheng’s spiritual consciousness then seeped into the True Spirit World, where Yan Ji was still in closed-door cultivation. Fortunately, she had no idea about his injuries.

Ning Cheng let out a sigh of relief and began to re-condense his spirit essence. Although he almost died in the netherworld, he also obtained a good harvest.

He not only succeeded in condensing the third bridge fully, but he also condensed the fourth bridge, which meant another ace card for him. Moreover, his body refinement had also reached the late-stage Starry Sky Physique[1] again, and it was still an enhanced version. As for the three Six yin Fruits, it was a complete surprise.

More importantly, he learned about the existence of this place, the Grand Essence Netherworld, and that the Seventh Bridge of Reincarnation could only be condensed in the depths of the netherworld.

Unfortunately, his cultivation level is still too low; but once he reaches the Dao Confirming Second Step, the Dao Essence Realm, he will definitely make another trip to the netherworld.

After a few days of condensing spirit essence in the cargo storage area, Ning Cheng finally stood up and pushed open the door. He felt ready to go out to thank the other party for saving him and then leave the void ship.

“Huh, you’re actually standing up? No, even your cultivation has been restored, this, this.....” A blue-robed girl, who had just come down, stared at Ning Cheng with wide eyes, disbelief written all over her face.

Ning Cheng cupped his fists and said, “Many thanks to Junior Apprentice Sister for saving me.”

Ning Cheng didn’t know the age of this blue-robed girl, but she didn’t seem old. Plus, she was only a late-stage Eternal cultivator; therefore, he purposefully chose to address her as ‘Junior Apprentice Sister’.

The young girl quickly waved her hand and backed off, “No need, no need.......”

After saying that, she immediately rushed out, and Ning Cheng could hear her talking about his recovery to someone in the inner cabins. That astonished and exaggerated tone made Ning Cheng wonder if she truly was an Eternal Starry Sky Emperor.

“Many thanks to this Junior Apprentice Sister and this elder brother’s kindness for saving me.” Ning Cheng calmly followed up and clasped his fists towards the girl in yellow robes.

“You’ve really recovered?” The yellow-robed girl couldn’t help but stare at Ning Cheng in shock. Not only did his physical body, injured by the power of law, recover completely, but it had done so in such a short amount of time. It was something truly unimaginable for her.

Only the middle-aged man who brought Ning Cheng to the ship remained silent. He kept a close eye on Ning Cheng, but the shock in his heart wasn’t any weaker than the two girls.

Ning Cheng gave a simple answer, “It was only by luck. Fortunately, because I tempered my body, I could recover somewhat quickly.”

This yellow-robed girl had a beautiful appearance and looked quite gentle and soft. Therefore, although she didn’t ask any follow-up questions, Ning Cheng could still see more surprise in her eyes after listening to his words.

Ning Cheng didn’t explain any further. If his body hadn’t gone through the tempering process with the netherworld’s worldly laws, it would have truly been difficult for him to recover quickly.

When Ning Cheng wanted to say goodbye, the blue-robed girl shouted in surprise, “Elder Brother Xu is here to pick us up.”

Ning Cheng and others also noticed the new arrival when the blue-robed girl said this. The yellow-robed girl immediately rushed to the front of the airship with a surprised expression and opened the restrictions without waiting for the flight-type artefact to come near it.

Seeing this, Ning Cheng had to put his farewell aside.

As soon as the airship’s restriction opened, a slender figure flew over and landed on the front of the airship. It was a young man with long, thick hair and a late-stage Dao Sculpting cultivation. He also felt relatively strong for someone at that cultivation level.

“Xiqian, it’s been hard on you this time. Next time, I will accompany you.” The man’s tone was gentle but also had a hint of pity.

The yellow-robed girl blushed slightly, but she couldn’t hide the joy. “Big Brother Xu, if I asked you to pick me up every time, it would take up a lot of your time.”

The man laughed and patted the yellow-robed girl’s long hair gently. “Xiqian, stop saying such silly things. Whether it takes a lot of time or not, why would it matter between you and me...... Huh, this is?”

As the man spoke, he finally noticed Ning Cheng standing to the side and asked with some confusion.

“I’m Ning Cheng. I got injured in the void, but this Junior Apprentice Sister and this elder brother saved me.” Ning Cheng hurriedly stepped forward and cupped his fists.

Since he was rescued by these people, he naturally wouldn’t use a fake name to fool them.

“That’s right; we picked him up on the way here. He was badly injured and accidentally hit the restriction on our airship. Little Miss let Zuo Zhong save him, but he recovered on his own. It’s not related to us.” The blue-robed girl spoke in a hurry.

When the long-haired man heard about how they saved Ning Cheng, he cupped his fists towards Ning Cheng and said, “My Name is Xu Yan, and we’re about to head home. Dao Friend Ning, if you’re okay with it, please come to our Su’s Corner and rest.”

“I’m sorry, I’ve been in seclusion for a long time, so I have no idea where Su’s Corner is.” Ning Cheng said apologetically. He naturally could see that Xu Yan didn’t really want to invite him. Rather, he only showed politeness because of the yellow-robed girl who saved him. Moreover, Ning Cheng had another purpose in saying those words. That is, he wanted to know where exactly he had come out because of the forced removal by the netherworld’s worldly laws.

Moreover, after he said his name, Xu Yan and the others showed no special expressions. Therefore, Ning Cheng understood that they hadn’t heard of him. This made Ning Cheng a little worried. He was afraid that he might have come out in a location far away from the Grand Essence Domain. There was even a possibility that he wasn’t even in the Grand Essence Realm anymore.

As long as he was still in the void outside or near the Grand Essence Domain, he could at least inquire about the direction and leave. But if he wasn’t in the Grand Essence Realm anymore, he could only go to this Su’s Corner to figure out a way to return to the Grand Essence Realm[2].

The blue-robed woman seemed to like to talk a lot, so without waiting for Xu Yan to speak, she interjected, “Su’s Corner actually is in the Grand Essence Realm; but it’s the most remote area of the Grand Essence Realm, too far away from those big sacred cities.”

This blue-robed woman apparently took Ning Cheng to be from the Grand Essence Realm. And in truth, she wasn’t completely wrong with her guess.

After hearing the blue-robed girl’s words, Ning Cheng felt slightly relieved and quickly said, “Then, I’m sorry to bother you, but I want to go to the Grand Essence Sea. I wonder if there is any convenient way to get there from Su’s Corner?”

When Xu Yan heard that Ning Cheng wanted to go to the Grand Essence Sea, he paused slightly before replying. “I’m afraid that would be difficult. Although our Su’s Corner is still within the Grand Essence Realm, it is still a year away from the Grand Essence Sea. Moreover, because Su’s Corner is in an extremely remote corner, there are no teleportation arrays to bridge the distance. If Brother Ning wants to go to the Grand Essence Sea, you will first have to head to the Broken Spear Spirit City and then take one of the void ships heading to your destination.”

[1] The raws mention it here as ‘late-stage’, but the previous paragraphs state it as ‘full circle/grand completion’ Starry Sky Physique. It’s likely a typo, but I will keep it as-is until I get confirmation.

[2] For those who forgot, the Grand Essence Domain, the Grand Essence Sea, and the Grand Essence Ruins are the big-three known areas of the Grand Essence Realm.

Chapter 1017: The Far Edge of the Grand Essence Realm

“Little Miss, I’m afraid this person is beyond help. He seemed injured by the power of laws, which also shattered his bones. Even his essence spirit is unconscious and has fallen into a chaotic state. I’m afraid.......” The blue-robed girl looked at the person Zuo Zhong placed on the bow and said while shaking her head.

Zuo Zhong didn’t speak; he had also examined this man’s situation. If not for the Little Miss’s order, he wouldn’t have bothered to bring this person onto the airship. Being injured by the power of laws was entirely different from external injuries through physical forces. Moreover, once injured by the power of laws, it was almost impossible to recover. In other words, this person’s bones would likely never heal even if he gained consciousness. Let alone now when the essence spirit is unresponsive and has fallen into a chaotic state.

The best-case scenario would be becoming an imbecile after waking up. No, it should be an imbecile with shattered bones after gaining consciousness.

The yellow-robed girl walked over, lowered her body, and put her palm on Ning Cheng’s forehead to examine his condition. After some time, she finally gave a soft sigh, “He’s indeed been injured by the power of laws. Zuo Zhong, take him to the cargo storage. Once we reach landfall, find a place for him to settle down. Since its fate that we ran into each other, we can at least help him with this much.”

“Yes, Little Miss.” Zuo Zong answered and left with the person he rescued.

“Little Miss, looking at his state, his Sea of Consciousness should have also shattered. I don’t know where he went, but wherever it was, it must have had supremely powerful laws.” The blue-robed girl was slightly puzzled when she saw Zuo Zhong taking the person away.

The yellow-robed girl pondered for some time before replying, “There are too many strange things in this part of the void, so we need to be cautious. Your cultivation has been stagnant for quite some time now, so you will have to retreat and cultivate for a while after we return home.”

Seeing the blue-robed girl about to speak, the yellow-robed girl raised her hand to stop her. “Mo Yuan, I also need to head back into secluded cultivation for some time. Therefore, I’ll leave the business to my brother. There shouldn’t be any problems with Zuo Zhong’s help.”

......

The injured person Zuo Zhong placed in the cargo hold was naturally Ning Cheng. It’s just that Ning Cheng was currently unconscious and didn’t know anything going on around him.

Call it fate or luck, but this cargo storage, a part of the main utility chamber of the void airship, was also quite close to the restriction covering the power source of the airship.

Moreover, after Zuo Zhong carefully put Ning Cheng in the cargo storage, he didn’t bother to check Ning Cheng’s body. If he had, he would have realised that in Ning Cheng’s Sea of Consciousness, a steady stream of Mysterious Yellow Origin was flushing out the aura of netherworld’s laws that had penetrated his Sea of Consciousness.

Not knowing how long it took, Ning Cheng finally opened his eyes. Ning Cheng immediately stretched out his spiritual consciousness to find himself in a void ship’s cargo storage. Finding only seven cultivators on the airship, he immediately relaxed.

Looks like these people saved him. He also felt secretly glad that he had re-refined his body at the Dragon Washing Pool. Otherwise, it would have been difficult for him to survive the crushing pressure of the netherworld’s worldly laws as it forced him out of the netherworld.

Under that crushing pressure, he couldn’t use any artefact and could only resist it with his physical body.

Ning Cheng felt sure that the ‘green hat’ had lied to him, but it wasn’t a complete lie either. If an ordinary person wanted to leave the netherworld, they couldn’t leave by letting themselves be crushed by the laws. After all, even if it was a Dao Essence Holy Emperor, as long as they weren’t a powerful body-forging expert, the netherworld’s worldly laws would crush them into nothingness.

Even if it was possible to leave using this method, it would only be possible for holy emperors above the Dao Essence Realm. In other words, Dao Fusion or Dao Perfection Holy Emperors. But even so, would such people deliberately let the laws crush them when they decided to leave?

That ‘green hat’ really was quite insidious. Back then, that ‘green hat’ thought he was very strong and wanted to kill him using this method. This fellow was simply too black-bellied that he couldn’t be any more black-bellied. Obviously, the two of them had no grievances or grudges. Moreover, even if he had killed Ning Cheng in this way, the ‘green hat’ couldn’t have gotten hold of his treasures. In other words, that ‘green hat’ did this only to harm others without any benefit to himself.

Fortunately, that ‘green hat’ didn’t know that he was a body-forging cultivator who quenched his body in the Dragon Washing Pool. Or that he had reached the full circle of Starry Sky Physique. Not only that, his Starry Sky Physique had gone through another round of tempering through the netherworld’s worldly laws. The combination of all these factors allowed him to keep his little life.

Ning Cheng took out a few pills and swallowed them. Whether it was his shattered bones or his injured Sea of Consciousness, he wasn’t too bothered by it. After all, he was a body-forging cultivator with a Starry Sky Physique and had several Empyrean Consciousness Transmutation Pills. Moreover, even if his body was injured by the netherworld’s laws, he could even refine these laws and transform them into the strength of his body, given enough time.

Half a month later, Ning Cheng refined the rampaging laws in his body. Even his Sea of Consciousness, injured by the netherworld’s laws, had been completely restored.

Ning Cheng’s spiritual consciousness then seeped into the True Spirit World, where Yan Ji was still in closed-door cultivation. Fortunately, she had no idea about his injuries.

Ning Cheng let out a sigh of relief and began to re-condense his spirit essence. Although he almost died in the netherworld, he also obtained a good harvest.

He not only succeeded in condensing the third bridge fully, but he also condensed the fourth bridge, which meant another ace card for him. Moreover, his body refinement had also reached the late-stage Starry Sky Physique[1] again, and it was still an enhanced version. As for the three Six yin Fruits, it was a complete surprise.

More importantly, he learned about the existence of this place, the Grand Essence Netherworld, and that the Seventh Bridge of Reincarnation could only be condensed in the depths of the netherworld.

Unfortunately, his cultivation level is still too low; but once he reaches the Dao Confirming Second Step, the Dao Essence Realm, he will definitely make another trip to the netherworld.

After a few days of condensing spirit essence in the cargo storage area, Ning Cheng finally stood up and pushed open the door. He felt ready to go out to thank the other party for saving him and then leave the void ship.

“Huh, you’re actually standing up? No, even your cultivation has been restored, this, this.....” A blue-robed girl, who had just come down, stared at Ning Cheng with wide eyes, disbelief written all over her face.

Ning Cheng cupped his fists and said, “Many thanks to Junior Apprentice Sister for saving me.”

Ning Cheng didn’t know the age of this blue-robed girl, but she didn’t seem old. Plus, she was only a late-stage Eternal cultivator; therefore, he purposefully chose to address her as ‘Junior Apprentice Sister’.

The young girl quickly waved her hand and backed off, “No need, no need.......”

After saying that, she immediately rushed out, and Ning Cheng could hear her talking about his recovery to someone in the inner cabins. That astonished and exaggerated tone made Ning Cheng wonder if she truly was an Eternal Starry Sky Emperor.

“Many thanks to this Junior Apprentice Sister and this elder brother’s kindness for saving me.” Ning Cheng calmly followed up and clasped his fists towards the girl in yellow robes.

“You’ve really recovered?” The yellow-robed girl couldn’t help but stare at Ning Cheng in shock. Not only did his physical body, injured by the power of law, recover completely, but it had done so in such a short amount of time. It was something truly unimaginable for her.

Only the middle-aged man who brought Ning Cheng to the ship remained silent. He kept a close eye on Ning Cheng, but the shock in his heart wasn’t any weaker than the two girls.

Ning Cheng gave a simple answer, “It was only by luck. Fortunately, because I tempered my body, I could recover somewhat quickly.”

This yellow-robed girl had a beautiful appearance and looked quite gentle and soft. Therefore, although she didn’t ask any follow-up questions, Ning Cheng could still see more surprise in her eyes after listening to his words.

Ning Cheng didn’t explain any further. If his body hadn’t gone through the tempering process with the netherworld’s worldly laws, it would have truly been difficult for him to recover quickly.

When Ning Cheng wanted to say goodbye, the blue-robed girl shouted in surprise, “Elder Brother Xu is here to pick us up.”

Ning Cheng and others also noticed the new arrival when the blue-robed girl said this. The yellow-robed girl immediately rushed to the front of the airship with a surprised expression and opened the restrictions without waiting for the flight-type artefact to come near it.

Seeing this, Ning Cheng had to put his farewell aside.

As soon as the airship’s restriction opened, a slender figure flew over and landed on the front of the airship. It was a young man with long, thick hair and a late-stage Dao Sculpting cultivation. He also felt relatively strong for someone at that cultivation level.

“Xiqian, it’s been hard on you this time. Next time, I will accompany you.” The man’s tone was gentle but also had a hint of pity.

The yellow-robed girl blushed slightly, but she couldn’t hide the joy. “Big Brother Xu, if I asked you to pick me up every time, it would take up a lot of your time.”

The man laughed and patted the yellow-robed girl’s long hair gently. “Xiqian, stop saying such silly things. Whether it takes a lot of time or not, why would it matter between you and me...... Huh, this is?”

As the man spoke, he finally noticed Ning Cheng standing to the side and asked with some confusion.

“I’m Ning Cheng. I got injured in the void, but this Junior Apprentice Sister and this elder brother saved me.” Ning Cheng hurriedly stepped forward and cupped his fists.

Since he was rescued by these people, he naturally wouldn’t use a fake name to fool them.

“That’s right; we picked him up on the way here. He was badly injured and accidentally hit the restriction on our airship. Little Miss let Zuo Zhong save him, but he recovered on his own. It’s not related to us.” The blue-robed girl spoke in a hurry.

When the long-haired man heard about how they saved Ning Cheng, he cupped his fists towards Ning Cheng and said, “My Name is Xu Yan, and we’re about to head home. Dao Friend Ning, if you’re okay with it, please come to our Su’s Corner and rest.”

“I’m sorry, I’ve been in seclusion for a long time, so I have no idea where Su’s Corner is.” Ning Cheng said apologetically. He naturally could see that Xu Yan didn’t really want to invite him. Rather, he only showed politeness because of the yellow-robed girl who saved him. Moreover, Ning Cheng had another purpose in saying those words. That is, he wanted to know where exactly he had come out because of the forced removal by the netherworld’s worldly laws.

Moreover, after he said his name, Xu Yan and the others showed no special expressions. Therefore, Ning Cheng understood that they hadn’t heard of him. This made Ning Cheng a little worried. He was afraid that he might have come out in a location far away from the Grand Essence Domain. There was even a possibility that he wasn’t even in the Grand Essence Realm anymore.

As long as he was still in the void outside or near the Grand Essence Domain, he could at least inquire about the direction and leave. But if he wasn’t in the Grand Essence Realm anymore, he could only go to this Su’s Corner to figure out a way to return to the Grand Essence Realm[2].

The blue-robed woman seemed to like to talk a lot, so without waiting for Xu Yan to speak, she interjected, “Su’s Corner actually is in the Grand Essence Realm; but it’s the most remote area of the Grand Essence Realm, too far away from those big sacred cities.”

This blue-robed woman apparently took Ning Cheng to be from the Grand Essence Realm. And in truth, she wasn’t completely wrong with her guess.

After hearing the blue-robed girl’s words, Ning Cheng felt slightly relieved and quickly said, “Then, I’m sorry to bother you, but I want to go to the Grand Essence Sea. I wonder if there is any convenient way to get there from Su’s Corner?”

When Xu Yan heard that Ning Cheng wanted to go to the Grand Essence Sea, he paused slightly before replying. “I’m afraid that would be difficult. Although our Su’s Corner is still within the Grand Essence Realm, it is still a year away from the Grand Essence Sea. Moreover, because Su’s Corner is in an extremely remote corner, there are no teleportation arrays to bridge the distance. If Brother Ning wants to go to the Grand Essence Sea, you will first have to head to the Broken Spear Spirit City and then take one of the void ships heading to your destination.”

[1] The raws mention it here as ‘late-stage’, but the previous paragraphs state it as ‘full circle/grand completion’ Starry Sky Physique. It’s likely a typo, but I will keep it as-is until I get confirmation.

[2] For those who forgot, the Grand Essence Domain, the Grand Essence Sea, and the Grand Essence Ruins are the big-three known areas of the Grand Essence Realm.