Chapter 514 512: Gold Realm Exploration

"Celestial Essence Integration." Lan Yunzhu thought for a moment before saying, "I think I've heard of it. I remember now, my master mentioned it before. However, Celestial Essence Integration is just a theory. In reality, no cultivators have ever truly accepted it. Many believe it's just empty talk."

"You're wrong about that." Li Qiye shook his head. "Although Celestial Essence Integration was proposed in a very ancient era, it's not just a theory. Later, during the Pioneer Era, the first to achieve it was the Feixian Sect's Can Long Immortal Emperor. Everyone knows that his Immortal Emperor True Artifact was refined from a Heavenly Destiny True Stone with three Celestial Essences. However, very few know that this particular Immortal Emperor True Artifact was a fusion of three paths into one. That is Celestial Essence Integration!"

"Celestial Essence Integration!" Lan Yunzhu couldn't help but murmur, "Someone actually achieved this?"

Li Qiye nodded. "In fact, it wasn't just Can Long Immortal Emperor. During the Age of Emperors, several Wudi existences also achieved it; later generations just don't know about it. Moreover, some people call the Heavenly Destiny True Stones capable of integration 'supreme'!"

"Three paths for life, six paths for great forms, nine paths for gods!" Lan Yunzhu murmured to herself. "Integration is supreme!"

Heavenly Destiny True Stones are born from heaven and earth, so they contain Dao Rings from the moment of their creation. Each Dao Ring is a Great Dao. The Celestial Essences within a Heavenly Destiny True Stone are also subject to very particular rules.

If there are three or fewer Heavenly Essence Paths, they are predominantly paths of living things, such as Sword Tiger, Mulberry Tree, or Firebird. If there are four to six, the Heavenly Destiny True Stone is called a "great form." This is because among these Four, Five, or Six Dao Celestial Essences, a more powerful Great Dao will emerge. For example, with Six Dao Celestial Essence, while five paths might be of the living-thing variety like Sword Tiger, Mulberry Tree, or Firebird, the sixth could be a Heavenly Essence Path of the sun and moon, or of yin and yang.

As for "nine paths for gods," if a Heavenly Destiny Stone has seven or eight Heavenly Essence Paths, there is a chance it will birth a path of gods. A Nine Dao Celestial Essence Heavenly Destiny True Stone, however, is guaranteed to birth one.

Because of this, since time immemorial, the vast majority of cultivators have believed that a great form path is stronger than a living thing path, and a god path is stronger than a great form path.

There's a reason countless cultivators have thought this way throughout the ages. For example, the might of a True Dragon Path is certainly greater than that of a River Dao. It's precisely for this reason that for millions of years, many cultivators have held the belief that the more Heavenly Essence Paths a Heavenly Destiny True Stone possesses, the better it must be!

"Ultimately, however, it all comes back to the same principle: there is no 'strongest' Heavenly Destiny True Stone, only the 'most suitable,'" Li Qiye said with a smile. "But there's a place around here that produces the best and rarest Heavenly Destiny True Stones in the world. Perhaps you can find one that's even more suitable for you. You might even find one that allows for integration. And even if you can't, finding a Nine Dao Celestial Essence Heavenly Destiny True Stone wouldn't be a bad consolation prize."

"Fine, let's go! Who's afraid of who?" Lan Yunzhu shot Li Qiye a look, retorting irritably.

Li Qiye chuckled, got his bearings, and then said, "We'll head this way. We'll definitely find that place." With that, he led Lan Yunzhu in that direction.

The Gold Realm was filled with countless Stone Mountains, forming a complex, jagged labyrinth. It was a place where one could easily get lost, yet Li Qiye was completely unaffected, navigating it with the ease of a well-trodden path.

"Have you been here before?" Lan Yunzhu couldn't help but eye him suspiciously, seeing how familiar he was with the place.

Li Qiye lightly flicked her forehead. "I keep telling you to read more, but you never listen. Reading the works of the sages is good for you. A certain sage once left behind a map of the First Evil Tomb. If you had read it, you'd understand a thing or two about this place."

"Tsk, how come I've never heard of any sage leaving behind a map of the First Evil Tomb?" Lan Yunzhu was naturally skeptical of his claims and rolled her eyes at him.

Li Qiye chuckled. "That's because your horizons are too narrow. A short-sighted frog in a well, of course you wouldn't know about a sage leaving behind a map."

"You're the short-sighted frog in a well!" Lan Yunzhu was so exasperated she could grind her teeth. She stomped hard on Li Qiye's foot to vent her frustration.

Li Qiye just laughed and flicked her forehead again. Lan Yunzhu's only response was to give him another glare, her face a mask of vexation.

The Gold Realm was vast. The most common sights were rocks, Stone Mountains, stone piles, stone beaches... Trees were scarce here. As far as the eye could see, it was a world of rock. Even when there were mountain ranges and Giant Peaks, it was rare to see any trees or flowers.

Many Great Teaching Territories and smaller sects of Loose Cultivators had already arrived in the Gold Realm. All the cultivators and sects who came here were searching relentlessly for Treasure Gold Divine Stones.

For the cultivators of the world, the First Evil Tomb only opened once every few ages. No one would waste such an incredibly rare opportunity.

"Li Qiye—" Before Li Qiye and Lan Yunzhu had gone far, they encountered some Ghost Race cultivators. However, Li Qiye's notorious reputation preceded him. Everyone knew he was a ruthless killer who wouldn't bat an eye, especially when it came to the Ghost Race. He was said to chop off their heads as easily as splitting watermelons.

Therefore, these cultivators, who weren't particularly powerful, all kept a respectful distance from him.

Li Qiye led Lan Yunzhu toward their destination. Along the way, they met many cultivators and members of Great Teaching Territories. Some sects were excavating entire Stone Mountains, hoping to dig out Divine Stones, while other cultivators ventured deep into stone caves, seeking legendary Immortal Gold.

The Gold Realm was rich in Treasure Gold Divine Stones, and indeed, many cultivators and sects had reaped great rewards. Li Qiye saw quite a few successful parties on their journey.

"Ha! The Essence of Ten Thousand Sands, the King of Sand! This is the legendary Emperor Sandstone!" As Li Qiye and Lan Yunzhu crossed a vast sand dune, they saw an expert who had leveled more than half of it and actually managed to dig up an Emperor Sandstone.

"Dig, hurry! Emperor Sandstones come in pairs! The other one hasn't been found yet!" The other cultivators on the dune grew red-eyed with envy when they saw someone had found an Emperor Sandstone. They immediately began to dig frantically, all hoping to find its twin.

As Li Qiye and Lan Yunzhu passed by a great river, they saw a large group of cultivators diving headfirst into the water. This group was clearly from the same sect, and by the looks of it, they wouldn't be satisfied until they had turned over every stone in the entire river.

"I found it! I found it! Sect Leader, I found the Ten Thousand Rivers Origin Stone!" Finally, a disciple downstream shouted loudly.

Hearing this, all the cultivators in the river, SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH, immediately rushed downstream, ecstatic. The Sect Leader took the stone and examined it, his face lighting up with joy. "This is the exact Ten Thousand Rivers Origin Stone our sect needs! Good, good, good! Xiaoliuzi, you have performed a great service. We'll note it down for now, and you'll be handsomely rewarded when we return."

The disciple who had performed the great service was also overjoyed.

Li Qiye led Lan Yunzhu over mountains and across ridges. They saw many cultivators making rich finds, and the atmosphere of successful harvesting was infectious to the many others who had come to the Gold Realm.

Of course, the First Evil Tomb was listed as one of the Twelve Burial Lands for a reason. It was by no means a peaceful place, nor was it safe.

As one of the Five Great Realms of the First Evil Tomb, the Gold Realm was far from calm. It was certainly not some Treasure Hunting Paradise; it was still fraught with danger.

As they crossed a mountain range, they witnessed a Ghost Race clan level an entire Giant Peak and dig down a thousand feet. At last, they finally unearthed what they were looking for.

"Look! This is the legendary Angry Howl Devouring Heaven Divine Gold!" As the treasure was found, the Ghost Race's Clan Leader held up a piece of Divine Gold, from which a great roar erupted.

Just as the clan was immersed in their joy, a sound—BUZZ, BUZZ, BUZZ—filled the air. A sky-blotting swarm of flying insects surged out of the newly dug pit.

"Not good! Gold-Eating Insects! Run—" Seeing the swarm blot out the sky, everyone was terrified and immediately turned to flee.

"AHHH—" Screams rose and fell. Although these experts fled for their lives, the insects were too fast. In the blink of an eye, every expert from the clan digging for treasure was devoured. As the insects flew past at an incredible speed, all that was left of the powerful cultivators were skeletons.

After devouring all the treasure hunters, the swarm of insects actually lifted the Angry Howl Devouring Heaven Divine Gold and descended back into the deep pit, vanishing without a trace.

Witnessing several hundred experts being devoured down to their bones in an instant made the blood of the other cultivators in the area run cold. No one dared to get close, let alone try to claim the Angry Howl Devouring Heaven Divine Gold for themselves.

Lan Yunzhu was shocked at the sight of these flying insects, which looked as if they were cast from metal. She asked Li Qiye, "What are Gold-Eating Insects?"

"A type of extremely dangerous, vicious insect," Li Qiye explained. "They eat anything, but their favorite food is Divine Gold, and their bodies are incredibly hard. It's not easy to find Gold-Eating Insects in the outside world, but here in the Gold Realm, they are everywhere. Anyone digging for Treasure Gold Divine Stones might run into them at any moment!"

"Gold-Eating Insects are incredibly dangerous. They like to hide beneath Treasure Gold Divine Stones, and the bigger they are, the stronger they are. Legend has it that there is an Insect Ancestor in this world capable of devouring even Wudi existences," Li Qiye said.

"Capable of devouring a Wudi existence!" Hearing this, Lan Yunzhu was deeply moved. In the Cultivator Realm, not just anyone could be called a "Wudi existence." Even a being at the level of a Founding God couldn't claim such a title. One could only imagine how powerful a Wudi existence must be, yet the Gold-Eating Insects could devour them. That was even more terrifying.

In fact, the dangers in the Gold Realm were far from being as simple as just Gold-Eating Insects. Here, there were even dangers that no one could identify.

"Run! Run—" As Li Qiye led Lan Yunzhu across a great plain, they saw a great personage of the Saint Venerable Level burst out of a bottomless stone cave, drenched in blood. Several other experts followed behind him, also covered in blood.