Chapter 461: 不语钟

The number of figures on the mountain increased. Aside from a few familiar faces and common Daoist robes, there were also many strangers in unfamiliar attire, perhaps cultivators from Wu or the northern regions, each standing on a cloud.

After a few breaths, a young man finally stepped out from the clouds. He was young-faced, dressed in white robes with faint golden patterns on the cuffs, his hands empty. He simply cupped them and surveyed the crowd, saying softly, "Just standing around won't do us any good. Whatever we're here to contend for, we must at least open this grand formation first. I am Nian Yi from the Xiuyue Sect. If there are no objections, a few of our major sects will organize to open this formation."

His wind-manipulation spell was exceptionally powerful. Even with the heavy winds of the Deep Abyss filling the sky, he could still stand aloft, unable to move freely but demonstrating an unparalleled mastery of wind control.

The Xiuyue Sect's reputation preceded it; it stood above all other immortal sects. With his words, no one dared to speak out of turn. Everyone exchanged glances, or simply looked down, remaining silent.

After a breath, a middle-aged man descended from the clouds. Simply dressed, with a long saber strapped to his back, he stood with his arms folded and said plainly, "Zhang Yun of the Jinyu Sect."

His aura was calm and undisturbed, like an ancient well, yet it made everyone look sideways. Nian Yi looked surprised and cupped his hands, saying, "I didn't expect a senior to come in person this time. This junior has been impolite..."

Zhang Yun waved his hand. Below, two figures rose: the man in black and gold robes from earlier, and Yu Muxian. They stood on a cloud, and Zhang Yun announced, "Tang Shendu and Yu Muxian of Qingchi Yuanwu."

The three sects of Yue had shown up, but no overseas cultivators appeared. Instead, a man in grayish-blue robes, wearing a jade crown, with a handsome face, rose on the wind: "Qing Zhuo of Changhuai Mountain, Wu Kingdom."

As Qing Zhuo paused on the cloud, neither Nian Yi of Xiuyue Sect nor Zhang Yun of Jinyu Sect showed any surprise; it seemed to be expected. Qing Zhuo then spoke, sweeping his gaze across the people below. He said softly, "The Qingsong Dao Lineage spans both Wu and Yue, so it is only right that we take the items from this hall. As for the cultivators from Jiangbei and overseas, please disperse! Try your luck among the clouds outside; you might still find something."

At his words, the crowd below reacted with either joy or concern. Li Xuanfeng's gaze quickly swept over Lin Chensheng and Bi Yuzhuang's faces, noting that they showed no surprise. He thought to himself, "The True Cultivators of Jiangnan must have already divided everything... The Donghuo Grotto-heaven of yesteryear was similar, even more orderly because a True Cultivator entered then..."

All three sects were Golden Core lineages, plus Changhuai Mountain from the Wu Kingdom. With just a glance, many Eastern Sea cultivators rose on the wind and flew in all directions, most of them departing, leaving only two still standing in place.

Qing Zhuo glanced at them. One of the two nervously stepped forward and replied, "I am from Chunyidao..." Qing Zhuo didn't wait for him to finish, pouting slightly with a hint of dissatisfaction, but said nothing. He turned to Zhang Yun beside him, his tone quite respectful: "I thought Senior had entered seclusion to break through to Purple Mansion. I didn't expect Senior to come to this grotto-heaven personally..."

Zhang Yun shook his head, saying little. Only then did Qing Zhuo take out a token from his sleeve.

The token was entirely grayish-blue, carved with three ancient characters, appearing unassuming. Li Xuanfeng watched intently, using his eye technique. In an instant, he caught the three characters on the token: "Qing Chang Huai."

Yishan City had a long history, abundant in ancient texts and characters, so he easily recognized the nearly ancient script.

The grand formation before them slowly lit up. There were no sudden changes or flickering resistance; it simply vanished completely before the eyes of all the cultivators.

‘The Changhuai Mountain token can actually open this grand formation...’

No sooner had it opened than, before anyone could act, several beams of light burst forth. First, the person sitting cross-legged on the ground twitched violently, and a translucent, light-blue treasured sword leaped from his chest, flying towards the sky like a fierce falcon.

At the same instant, that person's bones turned to ashes, and countless golden rays burst forth, transforming into golden sparrows in the air, chirping with blinking eyes, exceptionally nimble, flapping their wings and flying in all directions.

Meanwhile, the corpse that had reached for the jade box finally collapsed to its knees with a thud, disintegrating from head to toe into a spreading wave of red heat. Two patches of red light burst from its chest and abdomen, mixed with red jade beads of various sizes, rolling across the main hall.

The jade boxes on the six jade platforms began to creak and jump. The scattered magical artifacts and books on the prayer mats twisted their forms, awkwardly propped themselves up, and then flew away on the wind.

In an instant, streams of magical light flowed everywhere, a truly magnificent sight. Lin Chensheng's black robes fluttered. He seemed to have a pre-selected target and quickly leaped towards the fourth prayer mat.

Rainbow light surged from within the main hall, seemingly unaffected by the heavy winds of the Deep Abyss. Each light-form made to flee, and several ancient books opened their pages, rising rapidly in the wind.

Without a word needing to be said, chaos erupted in the air. A multitude of magical artifacts ascended, the fastest among them being a small mirror, palm-sized, radiating dazzling purple-gold light.

As soon as the small mirror appeared, it immediately drew everyone's attention. Several people forcibly rose on the wind, reaching out to seize the artifact, but then a golden hammer flew through the air.

"This is mine!" A black-robed cultivator, wielding a long hammer, charged out alone. He actually rode the wind to such a height, looking down on others. His artifact was incredibly powerful, forcing two people back.

With his other hand, he conjured gray flames, sweeping them across, burning several people and making them retreat repeatedly. With a quick grasp, he took the purple artifact into his hand.

This grab immediately provoked outrage. In an instant, five or six spells simultaneously struck him. The black-robed man chuckled, advanced instead of retreating, and flew straight into the hall.

While the cultivators outside fought fiercely, Zhang Yun and the others did not linger outside the hall; they had already flown into it. Everyone seemed to have an unspoken understanding not to enter and contend with these powerful figures. Now, with this black-robed man charging into the hall, it truly made the onlookers outside pause.

Li Xuanfeng did not pay much attention to the situation on the field. Instead, he targeted the closest page of an enchanted book.

"Boom!" He stomped hard on the ground with both feet. With a thunderous roar, he leaped fifteen meters high from the ground. Without needing to ride the wind, he still soared high, reaching out with one hand to grasp the enchanted book page.

The two people near him had each gone to find what they wanted, leaving an open space. For a moment, no one competed with him. The enchanted book page, caught off guard, was snatched into his hand.

‘Much simpler than I imagined...’ With just that, Li Xuanfeng understood that the truly valuable items in this grand hall were only the remaining five. These magical artifacts and ancient books were genuinely items casually discarded by others, but after being nourished by the grand formation for centuries, they developed sentience and would naturally try to escape.

As soon as he gripped the enchanted book, the tiny bit of sentience that had emerged from its complete spiritual essence instantly vanished, turning it back into a dead object. Li Xuanfeng looked back into the air; only two or three items were still flying, and everyone was fighting fiercely.

Li Xuanfeng observed for a moment, keeping his true purpose for being there in mind. Not wishing to expose his strength, he hid the enchanted book in his sleeve, quickly moved, activated his Wujin Spirit Armor, and concealed himself within the pine forest.

Two streaks of light quickly pursued him. One wore gray clothes and a brownish-gray Daoist robe, with slightly small eyes and a high nose bridge, holding a whisk. He appeared to be a cultivator from the Changxiao Sect. The other was dressed in white, holding a long sword in one hand, appearing middle-aged, and standing on a jade-colored flying shuttle. Both their eyes shimmered with magical light, indicating they had cultivated eye techniques. They had been tracking the enchanted book all along; Li Xuanfeng's figure had been spotted earlier, and he was recognized within a few breaths.

The white-clad middle-aged man focused his gaze, recognized the man in black-gold armor holding a long bow, and his expression changed dramatically. He remained silent for several breaths, then exclaimed, "Xuanfeng!"

Li Xuanfeng paused slightly, stared at his eyes for a breath, and then realized, "Senior Yongling!"

This white-clad middle-aged man was none other than Li Tongya's old acquaintance, now the Feather Mountain Elder, Xiao Yongling! The two elders had known each other since their humble beginnings, forging their friendship as mere Fetal Breath cultivators, making him a senior to Li Xuanfeng.

The gray-clad man from Changxiao Sect saw this scene and realized the two were old acquaintances. Feeling an instant sense of dread, he said nothing, turned, and fled in a hurry towards the edge of the forest.

He conjured a spell, pulling open a long streak of escape light in one breath, which shone especially brightly in the night. He flew so fast he almost crashed headfirst into a bluish-green spirit pine.

Xiao Yongling, for reasons unknown, did not act, and Li Xuanfeng also let it go. Looking at the middle-aged man's expressions of both emotion and surprise, he cupped his hands and said, "Greetings, Senior! Congratulations on breaking through to the late Foundation Establishment stage."

Xiao Yongling waved his hand, his face still holding a hint of surprise. This was not the place for conversation. Li Xuanfeng quickly took out the enchanted book and shook his head, saying, "Our luck isn't good; this is just a small letter."

Li Xuanfeng tried his best to avoid any misunderstanding, immediately handing the letter to Xiao Yongling. The white-clad man did not refuse, taking it to read carefully. With his profound family knowledge, he naturally recognized the ancient characters: "Junior Brother Du, it is not easy to snatch chestnuts from the fire. If you need help, Senior Brother and I will do our best to assist you... feel free to speak up."

The front contained only a few words, seemingly torn from an ancient text, but the back had hundreds of words. Xiao Yongling read closely; it discussed the matter of the Luojie He Shui.

"Hmm," Xiao Yongling responded, lamenting, "I saw it fly out from an ancient book on the third prayer mat and thought it was some secret technique annotation... I just thought its value wouldn't be high, so fewer people would contend for it... I didn't realize how worthless it was."

He casually handed it back to Li Xuanfeng. The two then approached the main hall again. Few people remained outside the hall; cultivators who had seized items had fled, and those who hadn't were pursuing them, leaving hardly anyone behind.

With no substantial gains, the two took a few steps forward when they suddenly heard the clang of metal. Looking up at the starry night sky, both their expressions changed.

For the past dozen hours since they entered, the sky here had remained a somber, starry night, the clouds a pale gray. Apart from the myriad stars, the only light came from the cultivators' magical radiance.

However, in the distant west, a brilliant light was slowly rising, like the morning sun. Intense golden light shone upon them, transforming into numerous illusions of gold and stone. Both were instantly dazed and terrified, immediately closing their eyes.

Almost simultaneously, a resonant bell chime echoed from within the grand hall, buzzing and lingering in their minds.

"Dong..." Li Xuanfeng moved his lips but found them unable to open. His eyes were intensely painful, and magical power continuously surged into them, seeking only to protect his sight.

The struggle outside the hall was fierce, but inside, a stalemate had formed. Yu Muxian and Tang Shendu stood together, their white and black robes complementing each other, quietly waiting in the southeast corner.

Qing Zhuo, in his grayish-blue attire with a proper jade crown, stood alone in the west. Nian Yi stood in the north, performing hand seals. Zhang Yun stood with his hands clasped behind his back, looking the most relaxed among them.

There were two others remaining, each standing in a corner. One held a golden hammer, his eyes continuously sweeping back and forth across the hall. He stood quietly in the corner, a swaying token at his waist faintly showing gray flames. The other was, surprisingly, a female cultivator. She possessed a gentle demeanor and astonishing beauty, with soft jawlines yet remarkably sharp eyes, staring intently at the large bell.

These chosen elites remained silent, standing still. After a few breaths, Zhang Yun stepped forward, slowly moving to the very front, and said with some solemnity:

"Back then, the Six Sons of Chongming Hall in Qingsong Abbey were true geniuses who stirred up storms. My Jinyu Sect has always respected these six seniors, and we have no significant Dao lineage connection with Qingsong Abbey. This entry into the grotto-heaven... does not involve much covetousness."

He slowly brought his hand near the large bell in the hall and softly said, "This time, a True Cultivator within my sect seeks the Dao path, only wishing to examine this Silent Bell. As for other items, the Zhang clan will take nothing."

He channeled his magical power into the large bell and slowly performed hand seals. Yet, the bell remained completely still, showing no reaction, neither resounding nor shrinking to its original form.

"A pity," Zhang Yun sighed, then turned to look at the three below him and whispered, "Everyone, close your eyes!"

At his words, the others seemed to understand. They focused their spiritual platforms, closed their eyes, and calmed their minds.

Only a breath later, the starry sky above the grand hall suddenly brightened. A silvery-white elliptical object rose, emitting an intense light that completely obscured the countless stars in the sky.

"Dong!" All of them closed their eyes and remained silent. Zhang Yun had already prostrated himself on the ground. The large bell he was touching finally trembled violently, as if propelled by an invisible force, emitting a loud chime.

Their throats and tongues went numb, and they all lost sensation, one after another, falling to their knees. Although not a full prostration like Zhang Yun's ceremonial bow, it was still a respectful gesture of obeisance.

Guided by the silvery-white light, the bronze bell rotated continuously in the air, slowly shrinking, until it transformed into a fist-sized stream of yellow light that flew out from the grand hall, ascending into the sky like a comet streaking upwards.

The large bell slowly settled into the silvery-white ellipse and gradually vanished. Only then did two barriers slowly converge from the top and bottom of the silvery-white ellipsoid, little by little departing from this realm.