Three days after the battle in Constellation Valley.
In front of Ink Heart Mountain, two rays of light came from the horizon. They came close in a moment and descended from the sky, landing near a clear spring on the mountainside. Then, Zhang Yan and Yong Fu walked out of the light.
Zhang Yan turned around and saw that the mist in front of him was very thick. He waved his sleeve and dispersed the mist, revealing a pond in front of him. It was about a mu in size, and the ripples were clear and cold. There was also a thin curtain of water flowing down from between the rocks, gurgling unceasingly.
On his left, with his back against the cliff, about one zhang above the ground, there was a deep and secluded cave. It was covered in lush vegetation, half concealing its mysteriousness. He could vaguely make out the three words "Ningyong Cave" on its upper edge. Pointing, he asked, "Master Yong, is this the entrance to the Immortal City?"
Yong Fu chuckled and shook his head. "No." He turned around and walked back a dozen steps until he came to an inconspicuous well. He stepped on it and said, "This is it."
Zhang Yan looked carefully and saw that half of the well's railing had collapsed. The stone edge was covered in moss and mud, and there was no restriction on it at all. He nodded and said, "So that's how it is. What's real is fake, and what's fake is real. It's well hidden."
Yong Fu said, "Only the celestial city's ruler can enter and exit this place, so we have to be careful."
The celestial city was not built in an obvious place but was hidden deep inside the mountain to prevent it from being taken away by outside cultivators. Other than the main gate, this was the only way in and out. Only the ruler of the celestial city knew about it.
Zhang Yan walked around the well twice and said, "There are no restrictions here. Even though it can fool some people, it's not guaranteed. There should be some backup."
Yong Fu revealed a look of surprise and praised, "Zhang Zhenren's guess is correct. There's also a thousand-year-old toad spirit. It received a favor from a certain leader and volunteered to guard this place. I heard that it once received the teachings of a certain powerful cultivator. Although its face is a little ugly, its cultivation is profound. Zhang Zhenren, please don't underestimate it. "
Zhang Yan nodded to show that he understood.
Yong Fu took out an item from his sleeve and slowly handed it to Zhang Yan. He said in a low voice, "This is the city's restriction talisman, and you can enter the main control center with it. After you refine the Restriction Tablet, you can control the restrictions in the city. I'll give it to Fellow Daoist today."
Zhang Yan reached out and took it. He cupped his hands towards Yong Fu.
Yong Fu returned the greeting and said, "I am no longer in charge, so it is inconvenient for me to accompany you. Zhenren Zhang, farewell."
After saying that, he tapped his feet and rode the wind. He floated into the clouds, and a moment later, he was nowhere to be seen.
Zhang Yan held the talisman in front of him and sent a stream of spiritual energy into it.
With his current magical power, it was impossible for him to escape. However, with just a slight movement, he had completely refined this item and turned it into his own.
Then, he tossed it upwards, and the Astral Cloud above him rotated slightly. He put it away.
He looked down at the deep well and smiled. He made a hand seal and rose up, turning into a beam of light and leaped down. The moment he entered the water, he used the Water Escape Technique and passed through the long well in one breath, arriving at the bottom.
At this moment, his body felt light, and he realized that he was in a cave that was a thousand feet high. This should be the belly of the Mental Demon Mountain, and it had been hollowed out by someone using a large amount of magical power. Looking up, there were tens of thousands of pearls and jade embedded on the cave walls, and they shone brightly like it was daytime. Below his feet was a deep blue pool, and above it was an exquisite stone bridge that led deeper.
He waved his sleeves and floated in.
After crossing the stone bridge and passing through a few cave doors, he arrived at another cave abode. It was also spacious. There was a shallow layer of clear water beneath his feet, and there were tens of thousands of stone barricades that looked like chess pieces. There were seven-colored banners on top of them, and there were traces of greenish-purple light emitted from the banners, faintly showing the patterns of stars. As he walked, the talismans and banners resonated with each other, constantly shaking and making the rumbling sound of waves. One could imagine how powerful it would be once the restrictions here were activated.
Before Zhang Yan came here, he had heard Taoist Chu's description that the immortal city was surrounded by mountains, and the inside was protected by jade stones and spiritual wood. If there was a formation formed by these banners, it could be said to be impregnable. If he did not choose to fight this time, but to forcefully seize it, it would be very difficult to succeed.
However, this was also because of the desolate mountain boundary of the Divine House Mountain, and the fact that there was no abode heaven guarding it, which was why it was so heavily guarded. It was said that the immortal cities established by the Zhong Tai Sect were all lonely in the sky, and could be seen from thousands of miles away.
Following him forward, not long after, he arrived in front of a half-moon cave door. There was a golden-copper toad the size of a human squatting in front of it, and it seemed to have sensed his approach. It suddenly let out a buzzing sound and shouted, "Who are you?"
Zhang Yan stopped, took out the talisman, and waved it at the golden-copper toad.
The voice suddenly came to a realization, "So the person in charge has changed again."
At this moment, the golden-copper toad spouted a white gas from its nose aperture, and it spun on the ground. Then, a short Taoist with a round belly and short legs walked out, holding a horsetail whisk in his hand, and two mustaches above his lips. His face was bumpy, and his face was ugly, but his eyes were very clear. He bowed and said, "The little demon guarding the door, Tian Chong, greets the person in charge."
Zhang Yan looked at the top of the demon's head, and there were actually three High Clouds. It was obvious that the demon's cultivation was at the second level of Yuanying, and its appearance was righteous but not evil, clear and pure. He knew that this demon walked the path of Qi, and should be cultivating the superior cultivation method of Xuanmen, so he also bowed and said, "Greetings, fellow Taoist."
Tian Chong said loudly, "This little demon will open the door for the person in charge."
He turned around, flicked the horsetail whisk, and the cave door behind him rumbled open. He pointed and said, "The place after this is an important place in the celestial city, and many rare treasures are also hidden inside. Only the person in charge can enter, so forgive me for not being able to accompany you."
Zhang Yan thought, "So this door can only be opened by this toad demon."
He expressed his gratitude before striding in with large strides, and he arrived at the inner room in less than a dozen steps. He swept his gaze around and noticed that this abode wasn't very large compared to the outer room. It was only around a hundred meters in length and width, and there was a stone tablet at the center. It was where the mechanism of the restriction was located.
Behind it was a square table, and on the table was a scroll of jade scrolls. Against the wall, there was a stone cabinet, and the layout was very simple.
Zhang Yan walked to the front of the stone tablet, took a few glances, and walked around to the table. He picked up the scroll of jade scrolls and slowly opened it. He looked at it and found that what was written on it was the incantation to refine this tablet, and he had to follow it to completely control the formation.
Because the incantation wasn't complicated, and there were only a hundred sentences, he only glanced at it a few times and memorized it.
Only then did he come to the front of the Mechanism Tablet. He slapped his hand on it and poured the mana in his body into it.
As he walked according to the incantation, the tablet let out a series of rumbling sounds, and then the entire cave shook as if it would collapse at any time. However, he seemed to have expected this, and his expression didn't change at all, and his movements didn't stop at all.
After about a moment, the trembling of the tablet slowly calmed down, and then there was a loud sound. Light appeared, and eight flag doors flew out around him.
Zhang Yan looked around and nodded slightly.
From this moment on, he could be considered to have the Celestial City in his hands, and he could use this flag door to go to any place in the mountain.
He chanted a few incantations and pointed at the tablet. It floated like a water mirror, and the various scenes inside and outside the mountain appeared. After looking for a while, he saw Taoist Chu's figure. After thinking for a moment, he walked towards one of the flag doors. In an instant, the scenery in front of him changed, and he was already at the foot of Ink Heart Mountain.
Before Zhang Yan and Yong Fu went together, he ordered Taoist Chu to wait here. At this moment, when he suddenly saw Zhang Yan appear in front of him, he was stunned at first, and then he revealed a pleasantly surprised expression. He said, "Has the Manor Head taken control of the Celestial City's Mechanism Restriction?"
Zhang Yan smiled and nodded. "Yes."
Taoist Chu was overjoyed, and he couldn't help but say, "It's been more than 200 years. After Master Shen passed away, the position of Manor Head finally fell into the hands of the Deep Abyss Sect."
He couldn't help but be excited. After Zhang Yan took the position of Manor Head, the Deep Abyss Sect could naturally occupy 70% of all the cultivation items in the Celestial City. It was equivalent to gathering the power of dozens of sects to support one sect. It could be seen just by looking at how prosperous the Mountain Sect had been over the years.
If the Celestial City Head was a bit more ruthless, he would suppress those sects, and never let them have the possibility of threatening him.
The reason why Yong Fu treated the Deep Abyss Sect like this, and did everything possible to push them out, other than the fact that Cang Zhu Peak was a blessed land, and he had the intention to occupy it, was because he was afraid that the Deep Abyss Sect would obtain some mysterious technique from Shen Baishuang, and someone would come out to compete with him for the position.
After being happy for a while, he seemed to suddenly remember something, and he slapped his forehead. "I almost forgot about the important matter."
He took out a stack of Jade Talisman from his sleeve, and handed it over, saying, "Manor Head, there are a total of 37 sects on Mount Shenwu. Today, 36 sects have already sent over their names and genealogies. Manor Head, please have a look."
This Jade Talisman was the name list of the personal disciples and elders of each sect on Mount Shenwu. If the Celestial City Head changed hands, they would have to send this item, and this was a sign of respect. In the future, whenever these sects recruited disciples, expanded their sects, or increased their cultivation, they would have to send him this.
Zhang Yan accepted it calmly. After looking through it, he asked, "Which sect did not send over their genealogies?"
Taoist Chu replied, "This sect is called the Longxiang Sect. I heard that, like Master Shen and Manor Head, they also came from the Outer Seas. However, they have never interacted with other sects, and even in this battle, they did not send any disciples. When Sage Yong was around, he never intervened, so this little brother does not know their background. Manor Head, please tell us how to deal with them."
Zhang Yan's thoughts turned. The Celestial City Head of the sect was equivalent to the Sect Master of the various sects. Normally, they would not allow such a maverick sect to exist in their territory, but this Longxiang Sect could do so. There must be a reason for this.
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