Chapter 802: Falling Demon Land

Volume Six: Heavenly Spirit Treasures

A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality VIP Volume Six: Heavenly Spirit Treasures

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Dongyu Nation in Tiannan is one of the few countries in the Tiannan cultivation world that does not belong to any of the four major powers. It is not that this nation is too small or lacks resources, which would explain why it wasn't favored by the major powers. On the contrary, in terms of both territory size and abundance of cultivation resources, this nation ranks among the top ten in Tiannan. The reason no single power has been able to control this nation to date is entirely due to Dongyu Nation's unique geographical location. Apart from being too far from the Nine Nations Alliance to have any ties, this nation is simultaneously bordered by countries belonging to the other three major powers. It is essentially sandwiched in the middle by these four powers.

Furthermore, due to historical reasons, the cultivation sects within this nation are numerous and diverse. There are sects aligned with both righteous and demonic paths, as well as smaller, independent factions outside these main alignments. Most importantly, none of the indigenous cultivation sects in Dongyu Nation possess enough power to dominate the others and become a decisive force. They cannot represent Dongyu Nation itself and make a decision to side with any particular power.

As a result, none of the three major powers wanted to give up on this nation, leading to constant overt and covert struggles. However, no conclusive outcome was reached. Ultimately, they could only vaguely agree that none of the three major powers would interfere in the nation's affairs, allowing Dongyu Nation to remain a neutral state. Of course, many of the nation's indigenous sects had long since aligned themselves with either the Righteous Path, Demonic Path, or the Heavenly Dao Alliance, thereby gaining secret support from these three powers. This allowed Dongyu Nation to precariously maintain a balanced situation for over a century. Many cultivators began to view it as a neutral territory and settled there, leading to the nation's extreme prosperity for a time.

In Changzhou, located in the northern part of Dongyu Nation, there is a basin that covers almost two-thirds of the province's area. Most of this basin is covered by exceptionally dense forests. At the center of the basin, however, lies a vast mountain range stretching for a million li. Locals refer to it as the "Myriad Peaks Mountain Range."

No one has actually verified whether this mountain range truly contains ten thousand peaks. However, given its immense size, spiritual beasts and rare spiritual herbs are naturally abundant there. Yet, except for specific periods every few decades, even cultivators dare not easily come here to collect herbs or capture spiritual beasts. The reason for this is entirely because the Myriad Peaks Mountain Range has another ominous name, known to everyone in the Tiannan cultivation world: the "Demonfall Land."

In a hidden location within the mountain range lies the "Demonfall Valley," reputed to be the most dangerous secret valley in Tiannan. This secret valley has existed since ancient times. Over countless millennia, an unknown number of powerful cultivators with great divine abilities have entered the valley in search of treasures. Yet, it remains shrouded in a mysterious and blood-stained veil, deterring entry to this day.

Of course, the fearsome reputation of Demonfall Valley alone couldn't stop cultivators from attempting to exploit the mountain. However, perhaps influenced by Demonfall Valley, the Myriad Peaks Mountain Range has been perpetually sealed by a multicolored miasma for an unknown period of time. This miasma is not only incredibly toxic, causing instant death upon contact, but also incredibly dense, almost like a restriction, making it impossible to see one's hand in front of their face. Once a person enters deeply, they become disoriented and lost.

In such an environment, even if cultivators could survive the miasma, collecting spiritual herbs and capturing spiritual beasts would be out of the question. They can only gaze longingly at the 'treasure mountain' or make small efforts in the outermost areas where the miasma is thinner. However, approximately every fifty years, the miasma in this mountain range dissipates, and concurrently, the spatial rifts within Demonfall Valley become fewest and most stable. During this brief period, treasure hunters from all over Tiannan seize the opportunity to enter the mountains in search of riches.

Of course, even with such a vast mountain and abundant spiritual herbs and beasts, only a small fraction of cultivators actually make significant gains. Nevertheless, thousands of cultivators of all levels still gather here during these periods. Furthermore, near the mountain, merchants backed by influential families quickly establish several markets of various sizes. These markets are used to acquire spiritual herbs and beasts from successful cultivators, leading to temporary prosperity.

This year, the miasma in the Myriad Peaks Mountain began to thin. It was clear that the miasma would completely dissipate within a few months at most. Immediately, large numbers of cultivators poured into Changzhou. Their sheer volume far exceeded previous occasions. The majority of them were cultivators from other nations, and high-level cultivators appeared with remarkable frequency. This greatly alarmed the local cultivation sects and families. They hastily restricted their disciples from venturing out easily and dispatched personnel to investigate the reasons behind this influx. The information they received left these local cultivation powers dumbfounded.

On an unnamed small mountain at the border of Changzhou, a male and female Core Formation cultivator stood side by side on the peak. The man wore a dark blue long robe, appearing to be in his early thirties, handsome and refined. The woman was dressed in palace attire; though her figure was full, her looks were ordinary, with no outstanding features. While the two appeared composed, their occasional glances around and the hint of anxiety in their eyes betrayed their true feelings.

A short while later, a silver light flickered in the distance, followed by a startling silver streak of light flying from afar, heading towards the small mountain. Upon seeing this streak of light, the male and female cultivators, who seemed like a couple, simultaneously revealed expressions of joy. Once the silver streak flew above the small mountain, it circled once and revealed a scholar in brocade robes, appearing to be in his early forties.

"Big Brother, you're finally here! How did it go? Was it smooth? Did you get the valley entry token?" the woman asked with a soft laugh as soon as she saw the man.

"Hehe, I made it just in time. The tokens are in hand," the scholar chuckled, raising his hand. Two streaks of green light shot towards the male and female cultivators.

The man and woman quickly reached out and caught them. They were two bronze tokens. On one side, the red characters "Demonfall" were inscribed, and on the other, a golden "Token" character, radiating faint spiritual energy. The female cultivator immediately showed excitement. The male cultivator, however, frowned, a pensive expression on his face.

"Wonderful! With this Demonfall Token, we can enter the valley and search for treasures. If we can obtain some ancient spiritual elixirs, perhaps the three of us will even have a chance to form our Nascent Souls!" the female cultivator exclaimed happily, unable to contain her joy.

"Such a small token, yet they dare to sell it for thirty thousand spirit stones," the blue-robed male cultivator beside the woman sighed softly. The total price for these three tokens amounted to a hundred thousand spirit stones. This nearly emptied the three of them of all their accumulated wealth over several centuries, causing the blue-robed cultivator natural heartache.

"Second Brother, don't lament it. This time, if it weren't for my life-or-death friendship with that person, and their sect lacking manpower, they wouldn't have decided to give up this chance to enter the valley. Even at a hundred thousand spirit stones per token, people outside would likely be fighting over them. Moreover, the Ghost Spirit Sect originally intended to monopolize the treasures of Demonfall Valley. It was only under pressure from other sects that they reluctantly agreed to allow outsiders to participate in the treasure hunt. Otherwise, even if you offered a hundred thousand spirit stones for a chance to enter, the Ghost Spirit Sect wouldn't have agreed at all," the scholar said with a helpless expression.

Upon hearing this, the blue-robed cultivator had no counterarguments, but he still looked at the token in his hand and asked worriedly, "However, is the Ghost Spirit Sect's method of entering the valley truly reliable? I've heard that the valley entrance is riddled with numerous spatial rifts, and one wrong move could mean complete annihilation. And the news that a Ghost Spirit Sect elder once emerged alive from the valley... Big Brother, you don't think this is fake, do you?"

"Unless the Ghost Spirit Sect intends to become an enemy of the entire Tiannan cultivation world, there won't be any issues with this. Besides, haven't we all heard that the Ghost Spirit Sect elder merely managed to escape with his Nascent Soul, while his physical body was also lost in Demonfall Valley? That makes sense," the scholar replied without hesitation.

"But even if we can enter the valley, Demonfall Valley is extremely perilous. I wonder if buying these tokens to enter is the right decision or not," the blue-robed man said, still hesitating after hearing the scholar's explanation.

"Hmph! Given the three of us' aptitudes, our current cultivation realm is already the peak. Without some fortunate encounter, in another two hundred years, we will all turn to dust. With such an opportunity, we naturally must take a gamble. Moreover, I've heard that dangers like spatial rifts in the outer reaches of Demonfall Valley are much fewer than in the inner depths. If we only search for treasures in the outer areas and are extra careful, there shouldn't be any problems," the woman said dismissively.

"I heard that this time, the Ghost Spirit Sect released hundreds of Demonfall Tokens in one go, and most of them fell into the hands of various sects. I even heard that the Mulan Spellcasters might send people to participate. This means hundreds of cultivators will be able to enter the valley with the Ghost Spirit Sect members to search for treasures. With so many people going together, what do we have to fear? At worst, if it becomes too dangerous, we can just turn back immediately. But if we miss this opportunity, we will regret it for the rest of our lives," the scholar said calmly, showing he understood the situation clearly. The female cultivator beside him nodded repeatedly, seemingly in strong agreement.

"Since Big Brother has said so, then I, your younger brother, will naturally enter the valley with you," the blue-robed man said with a bitter smile, saying nothing further.

Similar scenes were frequently playing out across various locations near Changzhou. About half a year ago, rumors began circulating from an unknown source that the Ghost Spirit Sect had unexpectedly obtained a method to enter Demonfall Valley and intended to monopolize its treasures, keeping it hidden from other sects. Upon the release of this news, the entire cultivation world was instantly shaken.

The major sects, who had originally planned to recuperate after their recent great war with the Mulan people, could no longer sit still. They all dispatched representatives to the Ghost Spirit Sect to inquire about the matter. Even the other six Demonic Path sects sent envoys to verify the truth of the situation. The high-ranking members of the Ghost Spirit Sect were naturally furious about this. However, under such immense pressure, they could only grit their teeth and admit the truth. After all, anyone determined to investigate would eventually uncover the facts from various clues.

Consequently, the other sects naturally demanded to share the means of entering the valley without hesitation. This time, however, the Ghost Spirit Sect adamantly refused. Finally, they proposed a compromise: they would provide some valley entry tokens to the various sects. As long as one possessed such a token, during the period when the spatial rifts in Demonfall Valley were stable, each sect could dispatch a certain number of people to enter the valley alongside the Ghost Spirit Sect's cultivators. Naturally, this would come at a cost in spirit stones. Of course, to appease the discontent of rogue cultivators, over a hundred tokens were also specifically released for them and smaller sects.

Now, as this period approached, Changzhou naturally became bustling. Near the Myriad Peaks Mountain, numerous cultivators from other nations appeared. This made the local cultivators, who originally intended to enter the mountain for treasures, become extraordinarily cautious, all of them keeping a low profile.