Chapter 469: Yuanxu Master

Amidst the flickering silver light, Chen Mobai returned to the Immortal Sect.

Opening his eyes, he saw the familiar snow-white walls of an apartment he rented near the Mending Heaven Academy.

With a wave of his hand, a radiant purple sword flew out from his sleeve, circling continuously around him.

"Thank you very much this time," Chen Mobai whispered to the Purple Lightning Sword. When he was teleported back, he naturally didn't forget to retrieve it.

"You are my master, it is only right... that... well..." The Purple Lightning Sword transmitted an idea, hinting as much as possible by the end.

"You've also worked hard," Chen Mobai asked with a slight smile, playing along. "How many spirit stones will it cost for your assistance this time?"

"That demonic tree was quite formidable; my vital energy is significantly depleted. I need at least one whole spirit stone to recover." After receiving the Purple Lightning Sword's message, the wealthy Chen Mobai directly tossed two high-grade spirit stones to it.

"The extra one is a reward for you." "Thank you, Master!" The Purple Lightning Sword shimmered with faint purple arcs, gleefully collecting the two high-grade spirit stones.

After completing this, Chen Mobai sat quietly and pondered for a while.

He knew too little about the Longevity Sect, only that it was an ancient major sect that had scattered after enduring several great calamities.

The five great immortal scriptures and twenty-four major arts were information he had obtained after repeatedly probing the Dao Tree's talent tree.

He wondered what the status of this so-called "Celestial Venerable" was within the Longevity Sect.

Right, this secret realm of the Divine Wood Sect was inherited from the Five Elements Sect, so Patriarch Hunyuan should know something about it.

Furthermore, according to sect records, in the past, True Monarch Yiyuan, to cultivate the "Longevity Art," transplanted three Longevity Trees from a certain immortal secret realm, which are now the Three Divine Trees of Giant Wood Ridge.

This so-called immortal secret realm is very likely the Divine Tree Secret Realm currently inherited by the Divine Wood Sect.

Given True Monarch Yiyuan's astonishing talent, which allowed him to ascend, theoretically, he should also be a sacred embryo capable of becoming a vessel for a Celestial Venerable.

Considering the legends that True Monarch Yiyuan only began to distinguish himself after receiving an ancient cultivator's inheritance, eventually ascending on a dragon...

...Chen Mobai formed a bold conjecture.

Could True Monarch Yiyuan have been possessed by the so-called Celestial Venerable of the Longevity Sect through transmigration, thus becoming the only ascended cultivator in the Heavenly River Realm over the past ten thousand years?

Upon realizing this, Chen Mobai's expression turned solemn.

If that were truly the case, then the waters of the Five Elements Sect, and even the Eastern Barrens, were much deeper than he had imagined.

However, this was the worst-case scenario. It was also possible that due to the passage of time, this so-called Celestial Venerable of the Longevity Sect had long since passed away and vanished.

Or, conversely, the Celestial Venerable's spiritual consciousness, weakened by the erosion of time, might have been devoured by True Monarch Yiyuan, becoming a resource for his ascension.

In any case, he should still communicate with the two patriarchs of the Divine Wood Sect. Given that the "Scripture of Immortality" originated from the "Azure Emperor's Longevity Scripture," it was evident that the Five Elements Sect lineage had at least entered the talent tree and, like him, obtained the five great immortal scriptures.

However, Guibao's teleportation would still take some time. Chen Mobai checked the time; there was a class at the Mending Heaven Academy, so he prepared to attend, something he hadn't done in a while.

On the way, he specifically checked Yan Bingxuan's class schedule and found that they would finish class at the same time. Just as he was about to invite her for dinner, Fu Borong called.

Chen Mobai: "Hello, Teacher Fu."

Fu Borong: "Are you at school?"

Chen Mobai: "Yes, I am."

Fu Borong: "The Formless Golem at the academy had some issues during yesterday's simulation. We need your help to repair it. Are you free?"

Chen Mobai: "Yes, I can. I'll come over as soon as my class finishes."

Fu Borong: "Please come as soon as possible; the Principal is waiting."

Chen Mobai's expression tensed when he heard this.

The principals of the four great academies were all Nascent Soul Venerables, and the Principal of the Mending Heaven Academy, Venerable Yuanxu, was the most renowned, said to be the one whose thoughts were closest to the Soul Transformation stage.

How could an existence like Venerable Yuanxu be concerned with a minor matter like the Formless Golem?

Shocked, Chen Mobai dared not delay. Since he hadn't gone to class yet, he simply took out his own Formless Golem and sent it to class, while he himself headed to Fu Borong's office.

Upon seeing him, Fu Borong also let out a slight sigh of relief, then, without daring to waste time, immediately led him to the laboratory where the Formless Golems were kept.

"Teacher Fu, has the Principal just come out of seclusion?"

Unexpectedly, Fu Borong didn't answer directly, but instead asked a question that greatly surprised Chen Mobai. Chen Mobai nodded; he had once used his Foundation Establishment Treasure usage quota to obtain many resources from the wealthy senior student, Shen Juanxiu.

The talismans, brushes, ink, and other items necessary for him to begin his path in the Way of Talismans were all acquired through this one transaction.

"The Foundation Establishment Treasure is actually an incomplete product. This project was originally named 'Realm Treasure,' and theoretically, it should be usable for breakthroughs in every major realm and even minor stages."

"However, due to the Immortal Sect's limited resources, and because this 'Realm Treasure' requires the computational power of Patriarch Qianxing's fifth-tier Celestial Calculation Orb, they could only create the Foundation Establishment Treasure first. Only with this achievement could the Principal continue to mobilize various resources to research the 'Realm Treasure.'"

"The origin of this 'Realm Treasure' is the Formless Golem, which you are very familiar with."

Upon hearing this, Chen Mobai's expression turned to shock. He hadn't expected that Venerable Yuanxu had been researching this project all these years.

If it could truly be completed, it would undoubtedly be another massive impetus for the Immortal Sect.

Currently, within the Immortal Sect, the Foundation Establishment stage had largely been thoroughly understood.

If subsequent stages like Core Formation, Nascent Soul formation, and even Soul Transformation could also be meticulously simulated, then with the Immortal Sect's cultivator foundation, it might lead to an explosive surge of successive breakthroughs among high-level cultivators.

However, Chen Mobai thought more carefully: even if this were the case, due to the scarcity of resources on Di-Yuan Star, it would likely remain largely the same, with at most a slight improvement.

After all, even with the Foundation Establishment Treasure now, those destined to fail would still fail.

The only difference was that before, failures were due to ignorance, and there was at least a glimmer of hope during breakthrough attempts. Now, knowing one would fail even before Foundation Establishment was even more disheartening.

But upon further thought, if this Realm Treasure project truly succeeded, it would certainly bring more benefits than drawbacks to all cultivators in the Immortal Sect.

After all, many cultivators whose Foundation Establishment probability was originally fifty-fifty could use this simulation opportunity to identify their shortcomings and flaws in breakthrough, thereby defying fate and changing their destiny.

However, for cultivators who truly had no chance of breaking through, this would be of little use.

But then again, this Realm Treasure was not originally intended for such people.

At the very least, the Foundation Establishment Treasures currently in widespread use by the Immortal Sect primarily served students of the four great academies and ten major palaces. For the hundred and twenty prefectures below, if there were any 'hidden gems' (talented individuals), principals or similar figures would help them apply for usage.

For those truly beyond help, the Immortal Sect would not grant them the opportunity to use the Realm Treasure.

After all, resources on Di-Yuan Star were simply too precious.

But after learning about this, Chen Mobai's heart began to pound.

He had just reached the ninth layer of Foundation Establishment with the Pure Yang Scroll. Could he use this Realm Treasure to simulate and deduce his success rate for Core Formation?

With this thought in mind, he became even more eager for his upcoming meeting with Venerable Yuanxu.

"We're here."

Soon, Fu Borong led Chen Mobai to an underground laboratory. He opened the door to a sealed space, and a rich wave of spiritual energy washed over them.

According to Chen Mobai's estimation, this was at least fourth-tier spiritual energy.

Only projects overseen by Nascent Soul Venerables would have such a lavish setup.

He followed Fu Borong, changed into a research-specific white coat, passed through a glass-lined corridor, opened another small door, and entered a massive, oval-shaped space.

Inside, there were five people, and in their midst stood a faceless golem.

After Chen Mobai entered, the four people beside the Formless Golem looked over. Chen Mobai surprisingly recognized two of them: Ding Chunzhi and Chen Chun.

The only one who didn't turn around was a bald middle-aged man.

Fu Borong walked up to him and respectfully called out, "Principal."

So, he was Venerable Yuanxu.

Chen Mobai immediately bowed his head in greeting.

"Hmm, come take a look at this one. It seems to have a lot of problems; it's on strike."

Venerable Yuanxu turned around. He was an ordinary-looking middle-aged man with plain-framed glasses, a scruffy beard, and an unkempt appearance. But what drew the most attention was the shiny bald spot in the middle of his hair.

From his appearance alone, one wouldn't guess he was the Immortal Sect's foremost researcher.

After nodding, Chen Mobai immediately went to his side and began inspecting the Formless Golem.

This one must have been replicated by the Mending Heaven Academy according to the blueprints. However, the person who made it was clearly a master, using some alternative materials as substitutes without compromising its functions.

Halfway through his inspection, Chen Mobai discovered that more than half of the golem's internal components seemed to have undergone high-temperature scorching; they had begun to liquefy, and some fragile bionic materials had even turned black and withered.

"This one probably can't be repaired; it's completely scrapped."

At Chen Mobai's level of knowledge, even if it were to be repaired, it would likely require replacing eighty to ninety percent of its parts, essentially amounting to rebuilding it.

"It seems that simulating the process of forming a Nascent Soul is still not feasible," Venerable Yuanxu said with a hint of regret. Chen Mobai, upon hearing this, his mouth twitched slightly, finally understanding why this Formless Golem had ended up in such a state.

"Although the Formless Golem is a peak third-tier puppet, the process of forming a Nascent Soul is an evolution from third to fourth tier. Even if the process could be simulated, the puppet's materials would certainly not be able to withstand it," Chen Mobai added. In fact, he had secretly wondered before if he could use a Formless Golem to simulate and deduce his own Core Formation process.

After all, Formless Golems could achieve third-tier power with sufficient spiritual energy, but due to a lack of theoretical knowledge and relevant operational experience, this had remained merely an idea.

He had never imagined that Venerable Yuanxu had already put it into action, and with remarkable results.

"The Immortal Sect isn't approving the fourth-tier materials," Venerable Yuanxu said. "It seems we can only present the results of the Realm Treasure simulating Core Formation first, and see if we can persuade Teacher Qianxing to step in and apply some pressure."

Fu Borong, standing by, looked somewhat embarrassed upon hearing this.

"How long will it take to repair this one?"

At this moment, Venerable Yuanxu pointed to a corner of the wall; a glass door rose, revealing another damaged Formless Golem.

However, only a dozen or so parts of this one were burnt. With some effort, Chen Mobai could probably fix it in about a day and a night.

"This one broke down during a Core Formation simulation," Ding Chunzhi explained as he walked over to Chen Mobai. Venerable Yuanxu had already taken out another intact Formless Golem and was leading the others to attempt another Core Formation simulation.

"How did you fortune-tellers end up joining this project too?" Chen Mobai asked. He was quite surprised to see both Ding Chunzhi and Chen Chun there.

After all, scientific research was a serious and materialistic endeavor, completely different from their idealistic paths.

"Borrowing the Formless Golem's deduction methods, combined with the miraculous divining power of ancient Daoist traditions, and the integration of the Mending Heaven Academy's Inch Square Book—these are the three main theoretical foundations of the Realm Treasure," Ding Chunzhi explained, pointing to Chen Chun to indicate that she was the primary contributor.

"This one," Chen Mobai couldn't help but complain, "she was so hesitant when I asked her for a divination before, saying she only divined three times a day, and wouldn't do it without fate..." Chen Mobai couldn't help but complain. If this Realm Treasure truly succeeded, wouldn't the Divine Mechanism Palace have to perform Core Formation calculations for all cultivators in the Immortal Sect who had perfected their Foundation Establishment?

"Venerable Yuanxu personally invited her here; she couldn't refuse," Ding Chunzhi replied. "And aren't you, the esteemed chief of the Martial Artifacts Academy, here to study as well?"

"I'm different; I wanted to come myself," Chen Mobai stated, first clarifying that he was invited willingly. However, as he spoke, he finally understood why Fu Borong, given his status, would come to the Martial Artifacts Academy to invite him to study.

It was probably Venerable Yuanxu's intention behind it.

It was possible that he had already been incorporated into this project's plans when he ordered third-tier chips to refine his Formless Golems.

If he hadn't accepted the invitation, there were likely more schemes awaiting him.

Had he known this, he would have held out longer; perhaps he could have gained more benefits.

Chen Mobai was still thinking about the wisp of Pure Yang Qi left behind by Patriarch Yuanyang.

"Didn't you say she's Patriarch Qianxing's disciple?" Chen Mobai asked, as he disassembled the Formless Golem and pointed to the weary-faced Chen Chun, addressing Ding Chunzhi. "Theoretically, shouldn't she be Venerable Yuanxu's junior sister? Did she come just because she couldn't refuse due to appearances?"

"It's different," Ding Chunzhi said quietly. "Venerable Yuanxu is Patriarch Qianxing's inner-chamber disciple, inheriting his mantle, and might even be the next Soul Transformation Patriarch. Chen Chun, on the other hand, is a disciple who inherited the karma of the Divine Mechanism Palace. Their future paths are different, and they are certainly bound to separate. It's precisely because of this that his master, Venerable Plum Blossom, refused to acknowledge himself as a successor of the Divine Mechanism Palace."

Therefore, when Venerable Yuanxu made the request, Chen Chun had no choice but to come and assist him in developing this Realm Treasure.

At this moment, Chen Mobai was glad he hailed from the Martial Artifacts Academy, which also had a Soul Transformation Patriarch above it. No matter how influential the Mending Heaven Academy was, they could only take a soft approach with him.