Chapter 291 - 289: Blocked by the Secret Realm, Heading for the Zhengxuan Sect

Chapter 291: Chapter 289: Blocked by the Secret Realm, Heading for the Zhengxuan Sect

「A day passed.」

"We’re here, you two," Shen Yuan said.

After some initial conversation, the three of them had fallen silent, each conserving their strength.

All three emerged.

They were out at sea, surrounded by numerous cheap, floating platforms.

Many Cultivators were engaged in makeshift trade, while others sat cross-legged, restoring their Magical Power.

The area was crowded.

There were even members of the Demon Race.

"Come on, let’s go gather some information." Shen Yuan had also spotted the Secret Realm, but instead of heading inside, he decided to make some inquiries.

He casually approached a Cultivator who was running a stall.

"Fellow Daoist, I’d like a bottle of Healing Pills."

"What’s the situation with the Secret Realm?" Shen Yuan asked directly as he handed over the Spirit Stones.

The stall owner, knowing that most Loose Cultivators made inquiries this way, chuckled and said, "It’s not too bad. The Secret Realm isn’t large, and there’s a city inside. You’ll be fine as long as you don’t enter the city."

Shen Yuan nodded. Though the stall owner had been vague, he’d mentioned the most important detail.

"Thank you for the information." Shen Yuan took the bottle of Healing Pills and departed.

It was the cheapest kind of Healing Pill.

For a Second Realm Cultivator, a Tier One Healing Pill wasn’t particularly potent.

But Shen Yuan was essentially just trading Spirit Stones for information.

Su Qing and Su Hongfeng listened to the exchange from nearby.

"Why don’t we go in and take a look?" Shen Yuan asked the other two.

Su Qing shook his head. "I want to wait until someone comes out before I go in. Given the situation, I’ll only feel at ease after I see someone emerge safely."

"And you, Su Hongfeng?" Shen Yuan asked.

Su Hongfeng nodded. "I’m fine with going in for a look. There are plenty of other Cultivators here, after all."

To Su Hongfeng, the large number of Cultivators meant there were likely resources to be found in the Secret Realm, as long as one avoided the dangerous spots.

Just as the stall owner had said, all they had to do was stay out of the city.

The sheer number of Cultivators outside the Secret Realm was telling.

Su Qing nodded, took out thirty Spirit Stones, and handed them to Shen Yuan. "Fellow Daoist Shen, thank you for bringing me here."

"I’m rather fond of my life, so I can’t go in with you."

Shen Yuan accepted them without hesitation. "Of course. In that case, I wish you a fruitful harvest as well, Fellow Daoist Ye."

"I wish you both a fruitful harvest as well," Su Qing said with a smile, cupping his hands in farewell.

The two of them soon entered the Secret Realm.

Su Qing, on the other hand, observed for half a day.

He watched as several Cultivators emerged from the Secret Realm.

Only then did Su Qing decide to try entering.

But...

The entrance to the Secret Realm shimmered, and Su Qing found himself blocked.

Anyone at or below the Third Realm could enter.

’I should count as Third Realm, right?’

But his Soul Path Realm had already reached the Fifth Realm.

"..."

’I can’t get in?’

Su Qing was speechless. ’This Secret Realm is far too restrictive.’

’It wasn’t nearly as accommodating as that other Secret Realm near the Moon God Palace.’

’That one was great. I could get in just fine, even if there was nothing good inside.’

’This is bad. The other Cultivators saw me get blocked.’

Numerous Cultivators, including members of the Demon Race, were now looking at Su Qing with awe.

Without a second thought, Su Qing flew away.

Time to change his appearance and find a new island to live on.

If he wanted a convenient life, his best bet was one of the islands controlled by the Zhengxuan Sect.

So, Su Qing made his way to an island under the Zhengxuan Sect’s control.

He went by the alias Bai Qing.

His face was also completely different.

He posed as an Artifact Refiner.

But in Zhengxuan Sect territory, being an Artifact Refiner—even a Tier Two Refiner—didn’t count for much.

The Zhengxuan Sect was simply too dominant. Su Qing saw countless affordable and highly effective Magical Artifacts for sale.

They were sold for barely fifty percent above production cost, a clear move to squeeze out Loose Cultivator Artifact Refiners.

However, by coming here, he could learn a great deal.

For just a few Spirit Stones, one could attend a week of lectures on the Zhengxuan Sect Master Island. For a Loose Cultivator specializing in artifact refining, the benefits were immense.

"Elder Bai, this will be your residence. Your purchase includes one month of study time."

"It also includes the right to access the books in the Xin Book Hall."

"This access is limited to one month."

A Qi Cultivation Realm Outer Disciple from the Zhengxuan Sect respectfully explained everything and walked Su Qing through the registration process.

The disciple was a Female Cultivator, and she kept giving Su Qing suggestive hints.

She seemed to imply that for a few Spirit Stones, she might find her way to his room at night.

But this one month of study had already cost Su Qing 8,888 Spirit Stones.

It was a fortune.

His goal was simply to learn how to forge unique artifact designs and to read the books in their Xin Book Hall.

Outside of the main Zhengxuan Sect compound, the Xin Book Hall and the Artifact Refining Institute were the two largest structures.

Only the massive Master Island could accommodate two such enormous buildings.

’Zhengxuan Sect territory really is on another level.’

Su Qing almost felt like he had returned to some futuristic world.

His suite contained a living room, a bedroom, a study, and an Artifact Refining Room.

Both the study and the Artifact Refining Room were soundproofed with special designs and runes.

The study was filled with books.

All of them were about artifact refining.

*How to Quickly Make Finished Magical Artifacts*

*How to Maximize the Efficiency of the Spiritual Energy Output Hub*

*Rapid Array Inscription*

*Beginner’s Guide to the Profound Refining Technique*

...

This was all new knowledge.

And for Su Qing, it was all exceptionally useful.

That night, instead of synthesizing Spirit Fruits, he simply read.

Throughout the entire night, his Soul Power was constantly active.

The power of his Comprehension was such that from a single piece of information, he could extrapolate and expand his entire knowledge base.

Most importantly, the books also contained many of the authors’ own theories and conjectures.

These were artifact refining problems that had not yet been solved.

But as Su Qing read them, he realized many of the theories were entirely feasible.

[Artifact Refining: Tier Three (6749/10000)]

...

[Artifact Refining: Tier Three (6895/10000)]

...

[Artifact Refining Proficiency +1]

[Artifact Refining Proficiency +1]

...

What Su Qing didn’t realize was that as he read voraciously, the numbers on his artifact refining panel were soaring.

This was especially true whenever he encountered an interesting theory and fully grasped its implications.

His Artifact Refining Proficiency would jump by several hundred points at a time.

「The next morning.」

Su Qing caught a glimpse of the bright light outside his window and realized he had been reading all night.

"Hah..."

"Truly magnificent. New artifact refining methods, whole new fields of knowledge."

’If this were the me from my past life, I probably wouldn’t have bothered trying to learn any of this.’

’It would have been too difficult.’

’But it’s different now. I can memorize anything with a single glance, and after mulling it over for just a moment, I can understand it completely.’

’This feeling is so much better than that kind of inefficient learning.’

Although he hadn’t yet had a chance to put any of it into practice by making a Magical Artifact, it didn’t mean the knowledge was useless.

First thing in the morning, Su Qing headed to the Artifact Refining Institute.

It was time for his lessons to begin.

At the very least, he was truly learning something new.

Su Qing followed the crowd of Cultivators into an enormous lecture hall.

The hall was split into two areas: one side for theoretical instruction, and the other fully equipped with a variety of artifact refining tools.

The mornings were dedicated to theoretical knowledge, while the afternoons were for practical instruction on how to craft the Zhengxuan Sect’s more conventional Magical Artifacts.

The morning session lasted for three hours, as did the afternoon session.

Since hardly any Foundation Establishment Realm Cultivators chose to attend these lectures, no one sat near Su Qing.

The instructor was also a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

Most Foundation Establishment Cultivators had no interest in learning this "newfangled" Artifact Refining Technique. Besides, Cultivators needed to spend their time gathering resources for their own Cultivation.

This style of intensive, classroom-based instruction was simply not a good fit for most Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

Su Qing, however, quite enjoyed this kind of atmosphere.

The middle-aged instructor spent most of his time teaching right next to Su Qing, addressing him as "Fellow Daoist" and offering pointers: "Refining it this way will be a bit faster," "The Spiritual Power hub should be made like this..."

His instruction was incredibly detailed.

Su Qing listened attentively and diligently followed along.

In his mind, he was constantly comparing different methods. The new techniques were a bit awkward to perform at first.

But with more practice...

...Su Qing quickly became extremely proficient.

...