After an unknown period of time, Zhang Xuan finally came to a halt and stood up.
As expected of a Celestial Master Teacher, he was indeed extraordinary. Even though his cultivation remained at Prolonged Longevity realm pinnacle, he had gained a deeper understanding of cultivation and battle techniques.
His fighting prowess had increased by more than twofold.
If he was able to stand his ground against a Transcendent Mortal 2-dan intermediate stage cultivator previously, even without the help of the Library of Heaven's Path, he was already on par with an Origin Energy realm advanced stage cultivator now.
His Soul Depth had also increased tremendously, rising from 12.1 to 14.1. In other words, it had increased by 2.0.
Even though this increase wasn't as frightening as the Book of Heaven's Path, it would still require several decades of hard work.
In other words, becoming a Celestial Master Teacher had reduced his Soul Depth by at least a few decades!
Fearsome!
On top of that, his Eye of Insight and Impartation of Heaven's Will had also improved. The former could now easily see through existences two small realms above him.
At this point, he could even see through Origin Energy realm intermediate stage cultivators easily.
As for Impartation of Heaven's Will, he was able to make it even more convincing and difficult to reject.
Previously, he had to exhaust his soul energy to persuade Song Chao. But now, as long as he used Impartation of Heaven's Will, he would be able to unconsciously trust him.
More importantly, after receiving the acknowledgement of the heavens, his understanding of master teachers had deepened, and his Soul Depth had reached a new level.
As expected of the acknowledgement of the heavens, it was extremely useful to master teachers.
"Even though I haven't achieved a breakthrough in my cultivation, I'm not far from it!"
The acknowledgement of a Celestial Master Teacher had given him a clearer understanding of cultivation. Even though he was still at Prolonged Longevity realm pinnacle, it would be easy for him to achieve a breakthrough.
After all, he had studied several hundred Origin Energy realm cultivation technique manuals. Even though he hadn't managed to form a complete Heaven's Path Divine Art, he had still managed to point out the direction of his cultivation. As long as he had sufficient spirit stones, achieving a breakthrough wasn't too difficult.
"Look at this room!"
After sensing the changes in his body, Zhang Xuan lifted his head to look at the room before him once more.
"This isn't a formation or a mechanism!"
With his Soul Depth improved, his perception of things was vastly different from before. Previously, he was unable to recognize what was before him, but now that he took a closer look, he understood everything.
"Did Zhang Shi notice something?"
Everyone turned their gazes over.
They had never met a Celestial Master Teacher before, but given that he was able to become a legend of Mingshi Tang, there was no way that he would be an ordinary person.
Frowning, Zhang Xuan said, "This is the means of the soul oracles to beguile souls. In other words, what we are seeing is an illusion!"
"If it was an illusion, why would the puppet disappear all of a sudden?" Luo Zhu was in disbelief.
Illusions could at most make people hallucinate, but it wouldn't be able to send things out, right?
As soon as the puppet walked out of the passage, it disappeared. It was obvious that it had been teleported away by some powerful array.
"Soul oracles use bewitchment on lifeforms with souls so that we will 'see' the same image, and we will naturally believe it to be real. However … puppets are different. They don't have a soul, they don't have a mind of their own, and they can't be bewitched … Thus, they don't disappear. Rather, they exist in the real world, unable to enter the illusory realm. Naturally, they can't be seen! "
Zhang Xuan explained.
Soul oracles use bewitchment on lifeforms with souls, causing them to be unable to discern reality from illusion. However, puppets were different. Since they were unable to bewitch them, they were able to walk straight into reality.
"If it's real... could it be the soul oracles'... [Mirage Deity's Illusory Sea]?"
Upon recalling something, Luo Zhu's face suddenly paled, and he nearly fell to the ground in fright.
"Mirage Deity's Illusory Sea?"
Everyone was confused. Even the knowledgeable Master Sai was unable to comprehend what was going on.
"Mirage Deity's Illusory Sea is a unique means of the soul oracles. Through using soul energy, one can create an incomparably realistic image, inducing one to walk into it uncontrollably, similar to a mirage in the desert. Once one enters it, one's soul will be separated from his body, falling under his control... "
As Luo Zhu explained, his body trembled.
"Soul separation?"
Everyone was shocked.
The reason why humans were able to stand against soul oracles was due to the existence of their physical body. If one were to separate from their physical body, they would be at the mercy of the other party?
"Indeed. If we had entered it, it would have been equivalent to our souls leaving our bodies. Even if we didn't die... we wouldn't be far from it!"
Cold sweat trickled down Luo Zhu's forehead.
The faces of the others paled as well.
It was fortunate that they didn't rush over upon seeing the anomaly. Otherwise, if their souls were to leave their bodies, they wouldn't even know how they died.
As expected of a soul oracle, they were indeed fearsome. Even their means of killing were hard to guard against.
"Just that... to be able to execute the Mirage Deity's Illusory Sea, it means that the other party has reached at least 6-star. Could this be... the tomb of a 6-star soul oracle?" Luo Zhu was perplexed.
The Mirage Deity's Illusory Sea wasn't something that just any soul oracle could execute. Only those who had reached 6-star were capable of doing so.
Just like master teachers and the other Upper Nine Paths occupations, soul oracles had a high requirement on one's cultivation. Without sufficient cultivation, it was impossible for one to execute it... In other words, there was a high chance that the owner of this tomb was a 6-star soul oracle!
At this level, if he were alive, he would have stood at the pinnacle of Transcendent Mortals!
Even after his death, he was still an existence that none of them could stand against!
"I think we should leave immediately!" Master Sai's eyebrows shot up.
Even though he was interested to take a look at the tomb of a soul oracle and see what kind of treasures there were... if the owner of the tomb was a 6-star soul oracle, he wouldn't dare to disturb him.
"Indeed. An expert of that level isn't someone we can afford to offend..."
Jin Conghai clenched his fists tightly as he hurriedly spoke up.
The higher one's cultivation, the more one would understand respect.
The more knowledgeable one was, the more one would understand ignorance.
To deal with a 6-star soul oracle, even if the soul oracle had died many years ago, it was impossible for the few of them to do so.
"Leave? That's a good idea... "
Lifting his head, Zhang Xuan smiled bitterly. "However, I'm afraid that it's already too late..."
"Hehe!"
Before Zhang Xuan could finish his words, everyone suddenly felt a chill run down their spine. A sinister laughter echoed in the air.
"To think that my Mirage Deity's Illusory Sea would be seen through so easily. Not bad, it seems like there are quite a few decent bodies here!"
The voice was eerily piercing, and it seemed to resonate in the depths of one's soul.
Huala!
As soon as the voice came to a halt, the flowers and clouds before them vanished, and an empty hall appeared before their eyes.
There was only a single coffin in the hall, and it was placed about forty to fifty meters away from the group. Due to the distance, it was impossible to see the exact size of the coffin. However, just from its appearance, it was clearly much larger than the four coffins in the first hall.
"Resurrection? Are you intending to possess us? "Zhang Xuan narrowed his eyes.
Driving his Soul Clarity, he was no longer nervous or fearful.
"After sleeping for so many years, it's only natural that I have to possess someone else. Otherwise, how am I supposed to recover?" the voice chuckled.
Hearing those words, Zhang Xuan activated his Eye of Insight and began scanning the surroundings.
No matter how powerful that fellow was, he had been dead for many years. For him to choose to use an illusion to beguile the group instead of revealing himself, it could only mean that he wasn't as fearsome as they had thought.
As long as they could find his hiding spot, they might be able to turn things around.
However, after scanning the surroundings, he realized that he couldn't see anything at all.
Seemingly seeing through Zhang Xuan's intentions, the voice sounded once more. "Don't waste your efforts. If I don't want to appear, who in the world can possibly find me with your meager strength?"
Zhang Xuan fell silent.
The voice was transmitted through their souls, and it was indeed difficult to find the other party if he didn't want to appear.
Zhang Xuan turned to look at Jin Conghai, Master Sai, and the others, only to see them shaking their heads.
It seemed like the two of them were thinking the same thing as him. They were trying to find the source of the voice, but to their disappointment, they were unable to do so.
"Zhang Shi, I'll think of a way to stall him. You take gongzi and the others and leave!"
Just as Zhang Xuan was contemplating what he should do, Jin Conghai's voice sounded in his ears.
Lifting his gaze, Zhang Xuan saw Jin Conghai's eyes filled with determination, as if he was determined to die.
"Do you have a way?" Zhang Xuan asked telepathically.
"I don't, but I have a few poisons on me that are effective against souls. It might work!" Jin Conghai replied grimly.
Formidable poisons could not only kill one's physical body, they could even destroy one's soul.
Take the Innate Fetal Poison in Zhang Xuan's body for example. It was planted in him when he was pregnant, and along with his life force, he wouldn't be able to live past thirty.
"You want to kill me with poison? You'll have to find me first! "
Just as the duo was discussing, the voice sounded once more.
"You can hear telepathic messages?" Zhang Xuan widened his eyes in shock.
Even Hall Master Sai, who was standing by the side, wasn't aware of the contents of their conversation. Yet, this fellow actually heard it clearly and knew that they were going to poison him...
This was way too formidable!
"I can communicate with you through my soul. Putting aside telepathic messages, I can even hear your thoughts clearly!"
Harrumphing coldly, the voice continued, "Alright, stop your futile struggle. Even though there aren't any traps or dangers in this passageway, it can be opened and closed. When you were bewitched by the Mirage Deity's Illusory Sea, I closed it. It's too late for you to leave now!"
Hearing those words, everyone turned around, and what they saw made their faces pale.
Just as the other party had said, the passageway behind them was blocked by a boulder. It was as if the passageway didn't exist at all.
"Let me give it a try!"
With a livid face, Jin Conghai turned around and punched the boulder.
Hong long!
The boulder seemed to be protected by some kind of powerful object. Even with his strength as a Transcendent Mortal 4-dan expert, he was unable to move it, needless to say, break it.
"Let me give it a try as well!"
Master Sai also stepped forward, took out his saber, and hacked at the boulder several times. However, just like Jin Conghai, there was no effect at all.
"This is the [Dragon Severing Lock] set up by a 6-star celestial designer. Only a Transcendent Mortal 9-dan cultivator will be able to break it with brute force. Otherwise, you will have no choice but to die here... or be possessed by me..."
The voice chuckled.
"Dragon Severing Lock?"
Everyone's complexion turned awful.
Trapped here, unable to advance, unable to retreat either... could it be that they could only wait for death?
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
