Chapter 209: Rank 5 Secret Realm of the Mind
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Translated by Frog in the Well
Read it only at Nineheavens.org
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The soul of Oh Geum-ryong, the general manager of the Wind Snow Chamber of Commerce, left him.
To think a Soul Formation spiritual object suddenly came looking for him when he had done nothing, it was utterly hard to believe.
Just as he was gaping.
The youth, who was staring intently at him who could not easily recover from the shock, reached out.
*Click.*
As the lid of the wooden box closed to hide the Red Dust Heart Lotus, he suddenly snapped to his senses.
“If you are not interested, I will go elsewhere.”
“No! I will buy it!”
For a very brief moment.
An instantaneous desire to ambush the youth and snatch the Soul Formation spiritual object boiled up, but he barely regained his reason.
There was no way someone trying to sell a Soul Formation spiritual object so openly lacked strength.
Indeed.
The youth was calm from beginning to end. Even while selling a Soul Formation spiritual object, there was no agitation of emotion.
“If you buy this, a considerable amount of problems will arise for the Wind Snow Chamber of Commerce. You must be aware of that.”
“Yes. I will bear all of it, so please sell it. But what should I give you in return…?”
A Soul Formation spiritual object was a treasure whose value could not be appraised. Since the price was whatever was asked, he had to give whatever was demanded.
Was it because of that?
The youth did not answer. He merely stared quietly without a word, but Oh Geum-ryong seemed to know what it meant.
That was right. To buy a Soul Formation spiritual object, he had to bring and offer everything he had and did not have.
“Please wait for a moment.”
He hurriedly scraped up all the assets in the chamber of commerce.
Including 3.42 million supreme-grade spirit stones, various Rank 4 spiritual treasures, implements to install formations, and all kinds of precious cultivation resources.
Literally meaning he offered everything.
Honestly, even if he gave this much, the Soul Formation spiritual object was far more precious.
Once one reached the Soul Formation stage, assets like these could be obtained all too easily.
“I swear on the Great Dao, this is all that I possess.”
Belatedly, a worry about what to do if it was insufficient arose, but he had already handed over his entire fortune. There was nothing more he could do.
‘Please…!’
Did his earnest prayer work?
The youth, who scanned the storage pouch containing the entire fortune of the chamber of commerce, nodded and placed down the wooden box.
“If it is known that you bought a Soul Formation spiritual object from me, disaster will fall upon the Wind Snow Chamber of Commerce, so be careful. Then, I will take my leave.”
At the same time that the words finished.
The youth who was in front of him vanished like smoke.
“···!”
Oh Geum-ryong, who was startled out of his wits, searched the surroundings thoroughly using his Divine Sense, but could not find even a trace.
A drop of cold sweat rolled down the back of his neck.
‘It is a good thing I did not do any useless things.’
Letting out a sigh of relief, he turned his gaze.
What was important now was not where the youth had vanished to.
He hurriedly opened the wooden box placed on the table, and saw the lotus enveloped in red dust.
“Ah!”
Being swept away by an intense desire for a split second, he closed the wooden box with difficulty.
To think it caused heart demons just by looking at it. It was clearly the Red Dust Heart Lotus he had only heard of through rumors.
Suddenly, a rumor that a person named Jin So-myeong had obtained the Red Dust Heart Lotus came to mind.
‘He was said to be dead, but was he alive?’
Belatedly, he realized the youth’s identity, but at this point, such a thing was not important.
Was not the Red Dust Heart Lotus in his possession now, after all.
While doing his best to maintain the secret, he had to ponder how to handle the opportunity that had visited out of nowhere.
***
A wasteland without even a spiritual vein.
Jin So-myeong, who had sold the Red Dust Heart Lotus he duplicated in advance and left Yunlai Capital City, nodded his head.
‘3.42 million supreme-grade spirit stones. This is enough.’
He liked that cultivation resources were also piled up in a heap besides the spirit stones.
Actually, in a way, he had sold a Soul Formation spiritual object for a bargain, and there was a high probability that the Sacred City would notice this situation, but he did not pay attention in particular.
What was most precious now was time.
Since supreme-grade spirit stones were obtained, he became able to duplicate Immortal Stones, and this meant he became able to grow the Secret Realm of the Mind to Rank 5.
Was not the last piece to reach the Soul Formation stage filled now.
For how much he sold the Red Dust Heart Lotus, or what kind of repercussions would occur, was no longer important.
What he should think of now was to use the harvest obtained through this transaction properly to proceed toward the Soul Formation stage.
Pondering for a moment, he first gave all the spiritual treasures related to sharp intent to Limitless.
His life-bound spiritual treasure Limitless was already in a state of reaching Rank 4 highest-grade, but it was out of a desire for him to become even slightly stronger.
And he took out a handful of the supreme-grade spirit stones, which were his main purpose.
‘As long as I have this… I can make Immortal Stones.’
【Resource Production】 : 88 supreme-grade spirit stones / 1 day
If the supreme-grade spirit stone production reached 100, the Secret Realm of the Mind would grow to Rank 5.
Since there was one Immortal Stone left for duplication, the required Immortal Stones were eleven in total.
‘Since it takes about 150 million Supreme Great Abilities to duplicate one Immortal Stone… seven months will be enough.’
Since the spirit stone problem was resolved, it was now time to find a place to cultivate until the Nascent Soul stage Great Circle.
‘Where would be good?’
First, a place that would not catch people’s eyes was good.
Although he had made a lot of growth in the True Realm of Illusory Dreams, defeating the Lord of the Divine Tree, a late Soul Formation stage cultivator, in his current state was impossible.
‘Lightning Fall Valley. This place is not bad.’
Pulling out the map of the Middle Province and scanning it, he was able to find a decent place.
It was a valley in the southeastern part of the Middle Province, and it was said to be a place difficult to detect with Divine Sense because it was filled with clouds despite being underground.
The tunnels were intricately tangled like tree roots, and the depth exceeded a hundred thousand zhang, making it an extremely difficult terrain to search.
If there was a problem,
It was that the lightning Qi boiled inside the clouds, making it unsuitable for cultivation, but to Jin So-myeong who had achieved Great Success in the Heavenly Thunder Dao Body Art, it did not matter.
Far from being an obstacle, the lightning Qi would rather accelerate his cultivation speed.
He examined other regions too, but Lightning Fall Valley was the best.
‘Everything is good, but it is too far to fly directly.’
Pondering for a moment, he took out the Ten Thousand Li Water Moon Mirror and contacted the Myriad Cultivators Alliance.
He requested to use a teleportation array connected to the southeastern part of the Middle Province.
Is it not said that a rich man’s estate lasts three generations even if he goes bankrupt?
Although the Myriad Cultivators Alliance had now scattered and become pursued, he judged they would have at least the ability to use teleportation arrays since they had possessed a mighty power.
“Teleportation arrays? It is difficult. Currently, all teleportation arrays are thoroughly managed by the Sacred City.”
The Myriad Cultivators Alliance branch steward whom he met with difficulty made a groaning sound, but when Jin So-myeong took out the Rank 5 spiritual herb Nine Heavens Jade-Core Grass, his attitude changed completely.
“P-Please wait for a moment. I will request the higher-ups.”
“I need not only teleportation arrays, but also information on flying vessels equipped with spiritual veins, and Rank 5 spiritual herbs.”
“···Understood.”
Exactly a fortnight later.
Everything he had requested of the Myriad Cultivators Alliance was accomplished.
“A mobile spiritual treasure equipped with a Rank 4 mid-grade spiritual vein. The Spiritual Dwelling Flying Vessel.”
He received the flying vessel he had ridden when going to the True Realm of Illusory Dreams with Ju Gwang in the past, and a jade slip containing information on various Rank 5 spiritual herbs.
When he handed over the promised Nine Heavens Jade-Core Grass, the Myriad Cultivators Alliance branch steward, whose fingertips trembled finely, spoke with a solemn expression.
“Follow me. There is a teleportation array we have installed secretly. If we use it this time, it will be discovered due to the spiritual Qi fluctuations and we will have to discard it, but… it cannot be helped.”
***
Two months later.
A valley filled with thunderclouds. A giant flying vessel stopped in the sky of Lightning Fall Valley.
Jin So-myeong, who scanned the surroundings on the deck, nodded his head.
‘It is not bad.’
It was exactly the information written on the map.
Because clouds flickering with bright yellow lightning were spread all over the canyon, it felt as if he had come to a river where lightning strikes flowed instead of water.
As he operated the flying vessel to enter inside the valley, the thunderclouds that had been spitting out thunder became gentle like a lie.
As expected, indeed.
Thanks to achieving Great Success in the Heavenly Thunder Dao Body Art, the lightning Qi was not a hindrance at all. Rather, it was absorbed by the Five Elements Divine Thunder to aid his cultivation.
Thereafter, he explored Lightning Fall Valley over a fortnight.
He wandered around every corner looking for a good spot to cultivate, and chose the location where the thunderclouds were densest to dig a tunnel.
After digging a spacious cavern so that there would be no discomfort in cultivating, he placed the Spiritual Dwelling Flying Vessel, shrunken to the maximum, on the empty ground.
‘It is done.’
All preparations were over. Now, all that remained was to cultivate until he reached the Nascent Soul stage Great Circle.
Sitting cross-legged on the deck of the flying vessel, he took out the Rank 5 spiritual herbs he had stored in his subspace.
A flower resembling a dandelion, and a root plant shaped like a jellyfish.
They were spiritual herbs obtained in the Defeated Sage Dojo but left neglected because he could not find out their identity, but thanks to the information received from the Myriad Cultivators Alliance this time, he found out their usage.
‘They were the Sacred Flower Grass and the Spirit-Sealing Root.’
First, the dandelion-resembling Sacred Flower Grass was an ingredient for the medicinal pill named the Mysterious Heaven Spiritual Transformation Pill.
The effect of the Mysterious Heaven Spiritual Transformation Pill was…
Outstanding enough to make his eyes pop.
Because it was written that it was a pill that pulled a cultivator’s talent up to the Heavenly Spiritual Root.
‘It is regrettable, but the ingredients are insufficient.’
Many other ingredients besides the Sacred Flower Grass were needed.
Each of them was so rare that finding them in the Human Realm was impossible, so he could not use the Sacred Flower Grass immediately.
Next, the Spirit-Sealing Root.
If expressing this jellyfish-resembling root plant in a single word, it could be called a toxic grass.
It was said that if burned with fire, smoke causing illusions rose up, and it also had the effect of paralyzing Divine Sense.
[The Spirit-Sealing Root is suitable to be used as a formation core. For example, if used in the Rank 4 highest-grade formation, the Mind-Falling Illusionary Realm Formation, it can pull the power of the formation up to Rank 5, even if only for a very brief moment.]
Reading the jade slip received from the Myriad Cultivators Alliance, he nodded his head.
The Spirit-Sealing Root seemed likely to be used usefully before long.
Of course, since he could not install a Rank 4 highest-grade formation at once, he had to study it in between his cultivations.
‘Let’s duplicate the Immortal Stones first. The Rank 5 spiritual vein is the most important.’
*
Five months later.
【Resource Production】 : 98 supreme-grade spirit stones / 1 day
Thanks to diligently duplicating Immortal Stones every time his Supreme Great Abilities recovered, the Secret Realm of the Mind reached right before Rank 5.
And today. The time had finally come.
Clutching two Immortal Stones, Jin So-myeong cheered silently.
Since a total of two Immortal Stones were gathered, including the one kept for duplication, it was time to welcome the moment he had waited for.
‘Let’s go immediately.’
The preparation of his mind was already over. As soon as the last Immortal Stone was duplicated, he immediately headed to the Secret Realm of the Mind.
Simultaneously with his will to upgrade the Secret Realm of the Mind, the two Immortal Stones turned to dust and…
A strange silence.
No, an intangible wave that could not even be sensed swept through the Secret Realm of the Mind.
“···Heaven and Earth Origin Qi.”
There was no violent change. When he closed and opened his eyes once, everything had changed.
Scanning the Secret Realm of the Mind, which had widened tenfold in an instant, with his Divine Sense, Jin So-myeong took a deep breath.
The pure energy filling the surroundings before he knew it. He was to the point of his mind becoming hazy at the dense Heaven and Earth Origin Qi.
‘It is tremendous. It is far better than the Rank 5 spiritual vein I stayed in inside the dream.’
The spiritual vein grade was the same as Rank 5 low-grade, but the difference in Heaven and Earth Origin Qi was overwhelming.
The common sense that Heaven and Earth Origin Qi was sparse in the Human Realm did not seem to apply to the Secret Realm of the Mind.
‘With this level of Heaven and Earth Origin Qi… I should be able to reach the Nascent Soul stage Great Circle in a year.’
It was a much earlier time than the originally expected period of two or three years.
To think the Secret Realm of the Mind that reached Rank 5 would be this outstanding.
【Secret Realm of the Mind】
【Facilities】 : Rank 5 low-grade spiritual vein, Rank 5 low-grade spirit stone mine
【Resource Production】 : 1 Immortal Stone / 1 day
Just as he was smiling while looking at the status window.
Hearing the news of upgrading the Secret Realm of the Mind, Geum-cheong, who had been lying at his feet, tilted her head.
“Squeak? Is it already finished?”
“Yeah, it seems so.”
“It is nothing much.”
Watching Geum-cheong go back to the Jade Light Spring, saying she liked it because it was not noisy, he was dumbfounded.
Perhaps because she was only a kid at Rank 3, she did not seem to feel this tremendous change properly.
Tearing out a dry laugh and shaking his head, Jin So-myeong returned to his cultivation room and fell into thought.
‘What should I do during the remaining one year.’
Since the Soul Formation stage was right before him, his heart grew anxious naturally, but while working hard to be as calm as possible, he continued his thoughts.
Repeatedly consuming the Nine Heavens Jade-Core Grass that trained his Divine Sense, installing formations around the grotto…
Repeatedly listing the thoughts that rose without rhyme or reason, he set his priorities.
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