Chapter 1890: Initial Arrival in the Spiritual Realm

A deserted island in the Coral Sea.

The sky was cloudless, clear for thousands of miles, and a gentle sea breeze blew.

On a steep peak, Shangguan Tianhong, Sun Hao, and Situ Qing stood at the summit, whispering excitedly among themselves.

They had waited too long for this day. If there had been a way to ascend to the Spirit Realm, they would not have initiated the inter-realm war.

The calm sea surface suddenly churned violently, water surged back, and towering waves rose. The void emitted a deafening roar, and with a flash of golden light, a magnificent, gleaming golden pagoda appeared out of thin air. The characters "Zhenxian" were clearly visible on its body.

Shangguan Tianhong and the other two grew excited, all looking towards the Zhenxian Pagoda.

A golden light illuminated the top of the Zhenxian Pagoda, revealing the spirit of the artifact.

At the same time, four streaks of light flew from the distant horizon and stopped high in the air. They were Wang Changsheng, Wang Ruyan, Cheng Zhanxian, and Old Ancestor Qinghua.

"What are you two little demons doing here, joining the fun?"

The artifact spirit's tone was indifferent.

Wang Changsheng quickly explained, "Senior Ye, these two fellow daoists also wish to accompany us to the Spirit Realm. They are willing to offer treasures to Senior Hei."

Old Ancestor Qinghua flicked his sleeve, and a green storage ring flew out. Cheng Zhanxian also hastily conjured a blue storage ring, sending it towards the artifact spirit.

The artifact spirit scanned with its divine sense, a contemplative expression appearing on its face.

"I happen to need some errands run, so I'll bring you along! As for whether you reach the Spirit Realm safely, that's up to your luck."

The artifact spirit flicked its sleeve, and a dazzling golden light shot out. It was a golden Eight Trigrams diagram, over a hundred zhang in size, its surface covered with profound patterns, emitting a terrifying surge of magical power.

"A Heaven-Reaching Spirit Treasure!"

Sun Hao exclaimed in surprise, then realized his impropriety and quickly fell silent.

"This is a Flying Spirit Disk, a consumable item. It should allow us to ascend to the Spirit Realm. The Flying Spirit Disk is not as good as a true Flying Spirit Platform, but being able to gather the materials to craft one in the lower realm is already quite remarkable."

The artifact spirit's tone carried a hint of pride.

"Flying Spirit Disk? Flying Spirit Platform? Can such treasures really allow one to ascend to the Spirit Realm?"

Wang Changsheng's face was full of curiosity.

"The Spirit Realm has dedicated Ascension Platforms specifically for receiving cultivators who ascend from the lower realms. If one were to 'smuggle' in, even if they reached the Spirit Realm, they wouldn't know which corner they'd appear in. If it were in human-controlled territory, it would be fine, but if it were in territory controlled by other races, it would be a dead end. When lower-realm cultivators reach a certain cultivation level, they can be sensed by the Ascension Platforms. The cultivators guarding these platforms activate them to smoothly guide lower-realm cultivators to the Spirit Realm. A Flying Spirit Platform can allow cultivators with insufficient cultivation to be sensed and guided to the Spirit Realm. However, the lower realm lacks the materials to craft a Flying Spirit Platform. If I weren't proficient in artifact refining, I wouldn't have been able to craft this substitute, the Flying Spirit Disk. And without a Spirit Transformation stage cultivation, even with a Flying Spirit Platform, you wouldn't be sensed by the Ascension Platform."

The artifact spirit explained slowly, then changed its tone and said, "Alright, no more idle talk. Young Friend Wang, Young Friend Wang, once you reach the Spirit Realm, please convey my regards to Old Devil Lin."

As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions of the five — Shangguan Tianhong and the others — changed. Listening to the artifact spirit's words, did the Azure Lotus Immortal Couple have a powerful backer in the Spirit Realm?

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan repeatedly affirmed, then leaped onto the Flying Spirit Disk.

The artifact spirit cast several incantations, and the Flying Spirit Disk immediately began to spin. Countless profound runes flew out, enveloping Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan's bodies.

Time passed slowly, but there was no abnormality.

"A substitute is just a substitute; it's not as reliable as the real thing. Fortunately, I prepared a backup plan."

The artifact spirit flicked its sleeve, and two gleaming golden talismans shot out, transforming into two streaks of golden light that adhered to Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan's bodies.

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan's aura surged dramatically, raising them to the mid-Spirit Transformation stage.

Sun Hao's expression darkened. It seemed the Flying Spirit Disk had a certain flaw: without a mid-Spirit Transformation stage aura, it couldn't be sensed by the Ascension Platform.

It was unknown how many secret talismans the artifact spirit possessed. Without such talismans, early-Spirit Transformation stage cultivators would likely find it difficult to ascend to the Spirit Realm.

The void vibrated and distorted, emitting an earth-shattering roar. The void suddenly tore open, and a dazzling blue glow flew out from it, enveloping Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan.

After the blue glow dissipated, Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan vanished. The spiritual light on various parts of the Flying Spirit Disk dimmed. It was clear that the Flying Spirit Disk had a limited number of uses; it would be better to depart sooner rather than later, or they might not be able to leave at all.

Cheng Zhanxian and Old Ancestor Qinghua leaped towards the Flying Spirit Disk; neither wanted to be the last to ascend.

The Flying Spirit Disk flew back to the artifact spirit's side. Cheng Zhanxian and Old Ancestor Qinghua froze, angry but daring not to speak.

"They're going to the territory of Zhenhai Palace. I need to go elsewhere, so follow me."

The artifact spirit instructed. The Zhenxian Pagoda flew towards the distant horizon, and Shangguan Tianhong and the other five exchanged glances, then quickly followed.

***

The Spirit Realm, northwestern corner of the Xuanling Continent.

Xuangang Island was covered with pine and cypress trees, green willows, continuous perilous mountains, and peculiar peaks. Strange, jagged rocks were everywhere, and waterfalls cascaded from the sky, while spiritual energy permeated the air.

In the northwestern corner of the island stood a colossal peak that soared straight into the clouds. At its summit was a bluestone plaza spanning a thousand acres. In the center of the plaza stood a blue platform over three hundred zhang tall, its surface covered with profound spiritual runes, emanating an imposing spiritual aura.

Below the platform, a handsome young man in red robes sat cross-legged on a red meditation cushion, his eyes closed. His body was enveloped in a layer of crimson flames, and a delicate red jade lock hung on his chest. Dense fire spiritual energy continuously converged into the red jade lock, being refined by the red-robed youth.

After a while, the red-robed youth suddenly opened his eyes, and the crimson flames on his body dissipated.

He raised a finger, and with a muffled "whoosh," a crimson flame suddenly appeared in his palm, emitting a terrifying high temperature.

"Excellent. After a hundred years of arduous cultivation, my Pure Yang True Flame has advanced significantly. Fortunately, I took on the duty of guarding the Ascension Platform, which has allowed me so much abundant time for cultivation. I should be able to win a ranking in the small competition a century from now."

The red-robed youth muttered to himself and stood up.

He glanced at the blue platform and frowned, saying, "No one has ascended for over ten thousand years. I really don't know what Ancestor Master Chen is thinking, keeping thirteen Ascension Platforms. Operating them consumes a massive amount of cultivation resources. It would be much better to use them for training disciples. The resources to operate one Ascension Platform for ten thousand years would be enough for me to cultivate to the Void Refinement stage."

Just then, the Ascension Platform shook violently, all the spiritual runes on its surface instantly lit up, and a dazzling blue light shot skyward.

The red-robed youth was stunned. He quickly reacted, immediately pulling out a gleaming blue nine-cornered formation disk and casting several incantations into it.

A sky-blue water curtain materialized out of thin air, enveloping the bluestone plaza and blocking the blue light.

As the blue light dispersed, a robust young man in blue robes and a plump young woman in palace attire appeared.

"Two people ascending simultaneously from the lower realm!"

The red-robed youth stammered, his face flushed red with excitement.