Library of Heaven’s Path

Knowing that the others would get suspicious if he continued dwelling on this matter, Zhang Xuan decisively changed the topic. “Brother Yuan and Brother Luo are injured, so I’ll be counting on you to take care of them. I’ll head in to take a look.”

“Let me do it instead!” Bi Hongyin stepped forward and said, “I specialize in dealing with illusions and soul attacks, so I should be able to withstand them better.”

“Alright then.” Zhang Xuan hesitated for a moment before nodding. “There’s a good chance that there are many different formations in there, so be careful. Make sure that you don’t use your cultivation regardless of the situation.”

The illusion formation was a separate entity from the spatial seal, which was the reason why Zhang Xuan did not notice it through the Library of Heaven’s Path. Otherwise, he would have surely reminded Luo Xuanqing in advance.

“Un.” Bi Hongyin nodded before sealing her cultivation completely.

Her ability to seal her cultivation was not as absolute as Luo Xuanqing’s, so Zhang Xuan was still able to see through her using his Eye of Insight. However, she was still able to keep her zhenqi from emanating, and the formation was unlikely to be sensitive enough to sense the zhenqi concealed in her dantian either.

Hu!

The young lady began proceeding forward, and in just a few steps, she arrived at where Luo Xuanqing and Yuan Xiao came under attack. As if something had come to her vision too, she abruptly stopped as well.

“Be careful!” Yun Lianhai could not help but remind her.

“There’s no point shouting. The spatial seal in there prevents sound and even one’s Spiritual Perception from getting through!” Luo Xuanqing shook his head.

“It seals off Spiritual Perception as well?” Astonished, Zhang Xuan tried to extend his Spiritual Perception over, but upon reaching a certain point, his Spiritual Perception seemed to disappear in an abyss. No matter how he pushed on, he was unable to sense anything at all.

It was a very perplexing and bizarre situation. It was obviously something that was right before them, but due to a profound manipulation of space, it felt like these two spaces were in completely different worlds.

Amid everyone’s worried gazes, Bi Hongyin continued advancing forward steadily, but eventually, she was still unable to hold herself back from driving her zhenqi, and as a result of that, she was jolted out of the spatial seal just like everyone else.

Zhang Xuan rushed over and asked, “What happened?”

“After entering the spatial seal, I was teleported into another space where a saint beast was rampaging all around, devouring everyone in its sight. Unable to withstand it, I could only make a move in the end,” Bi Hongyin explained with a reddened face.

She had been determined to suppress her cultivation down to the very end, but she simply could not bring herself to stand by as the saint beast attempted to bite off the head of a child.

“Teleported? But you didn’t move at all!” Yun Lianhai exclaimed.

All of them could clearly see Bi Hongyin with their own eyes, so there was no way she could have been teleported somewhere else.

“Don’t you think it’s weird that we are able to look into the spatial seal despite being unable to perceive it with our Spiritual Perception?” Luo Xuanqing suddenly interjected.

“This…” Yun Lianhai fell into deep thought.

Sometimes, what the eye saw might not necessarily be real.

Just like mirages in the desert, no matter how lifelike and authentic they seemed to the thirsty explorers, they were actually all illusions.

The reason cultivators believed in their Spiritual Perception was because they were extending their consciousness directly toward their surroundings to perceive it, so it was much more unlikely for them to perceive something incorrectly. In their current situation, they were indeed able to see the entire situation clearly with their eyes, but who could guarantee that what they were seeing was real?

“Brother Yun, can you help us sense if that Dongxu Gourd is real?” Zhang Xuan suddenly spoke up.

“Alright!” Yun Lianhai nodded.

If what they were seeing within the spatial seal was false, there was a good chance that the Dongxu Gourd could be fake as well.

A droplet of blood flew toward Yun Lianhai’s glabella, and an eye abruptly opened up between his brows. The eye quickly turned its gaze toward the gourd in the sky.

A moment later, he shook his head and said, “I can’t sense the presence of any treasure…”

“You can’t sense it?” Luo Xuanqing’s face turned pale.

He had prepared for a very long time in order to acquire this Dongxu Gourd. If it turned out to be an illusion, he really might break into tears!

“Let me take a look at it,” Zhang Xuan said with a frown.

He could not make a clear assessment of the situation with what they had gathered so far, so the most effective way was for him to enter the spatial seal personally to check things out.

“Be careful,” Luo Xuanqing instructed.

“Un.” Taking a deep breath, Zhang Xuan suppressed his cultivation before making his way into the spatial seal.

The method he used to seal his cultivation was not as advanced as Luo Xuanqing, but the zhenqi he cultivated was the Heaven’s Path zhenqi. As long as he willed it so, not even Saint 9-dan experts would be able to discern his level of cultivation, let alone the others!

Hu!

As soon as he entered the spatial seal, his surroundings abruptly turned completely white. He tried to extend his Spiritual Perception to the limits, but he was still unable to perceive anything at all. It was as if he was standing amid a barren land where he was the only man existent within this world.

Luo Xuanqing and the others had already vanished without a trace, as if they had not even been there in the first place.

This sure is a little unnerving… Zhang Xuan thought with a frown as he slowly proceeded ahead.

Shortly after, a mountain range appeared before his sight.

After which, he arrived before a waterfall with a lake at the bottom. The cascading water sounded deafening in the surroundings.

This is…

Taking a closer look, Zhang Xuan’s heart began beating in agitation.

He had been there before. That was where he had first met Luo Ruoxin!

The Verdant Mountains of the Huanyu Mountain Range!

In this very place, he had witnessed countless spirit beasts gathering around the waterfall, and he had thought that they were intending to do Luo Ruoxin harm. So, he had charged forward in the hope of saving her. That was how they had first met.

He quickly turned his gaze over to the waterfall, and a beautiful figure stood calmly over there. Just as always, she stood with an air of indifference, reminiscent of an inviolable lotus. It seemed as if there was nothing in this world that would be able to faze her.

“Ruoxin…” This was not the first time they had met one another, but even so, Zhang Xuan’s heart still could not help but skip a beat as if it was the first time.

He had thought that he would be able to meet Luo Ruoxin as soon as he came to the Sanctum of Sages, but as he came to learn more about their current situation, he felt more pressured. It was to the point where he was not sure how he could face her anymore.

Even so, the yearning in his heart never died down even for a moment; on the contrary, it had only been growing stronger with time.

No, this isn’t real. This is just an illusion… Clenching his fists tightly, Zhang Xuan endured his urge to charge over, and his breathing gradually calmed down as well.

His mind had been confused for a moment, but as rationality slowly returned to him, he recalled that he was in the midst of finding the Dongxu Gourd, and there was no way he could appear in the Verdant Mountain all of a sudden, let alone meet Luo Ruoxin. Even if it was not an Illusory Formation, it was likely to be some clever manipulation of folded space that allowed for the reflection of his memories.

Sou!

Having calmed down, Zhang Xuan was just about to advance forward when a sharp glint of light suddenly flashed across the sky. In the blink of an eye, it sliced right across Luo Ruoxin’s body.

Following which, a young man with a vile look on his face appeared before Luo Ruoxin, and he uttered with a cold sneer, “You are my fiancée, but you fell in love with someone else. Since that’s the case… why don’t you just drop dead!”

The young man had a demented look in his eyes, and his facial features were deeply reminiscent of Zhang Chun. But for some reason, the young man seemed to bear some resemblance to him too.

The young prodigy of the Zhang Clan… Zhang Xuan gritted his teeth in fury.

How dare that bastard young prodigy of the Zhang Clan make a move against Luo Ruoxin? He’s courting death!

Just as Zhang Xuan was about to unseal his cultivation, the Library of Heaven’s Path in his mind jolted. For an instant, he felt as if a resounding bell had chimed right next to his ear, causing his body to stiffen in shock. He was forcefully jolted back to rationality, and he told himself, It’s just an illusion. It’s just an illusion…

At the same time, he drove his state of mind swiftly and re-entered the state of Heart of Tranquil Water. When he looked over once more, the young prodigy had already disappeared, and Luo Ruoxin was nowhere to be seen. In fact, even the entire Verdant Mountain had vanished.

Everything had returned to a completely white space.

That was a close shave, Zhang Xuan thought as cold sweat trickled down his body.

Even though he knew that it was an illusion, he still could not help himself from making a move upon seeing Luo Ruoxin being injured. It seemed like the spatial seal did not just seek to confound—it intended to play on the emotions and feelings of others as well.

Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief. It’s fortunate that I have the Library of Heaven’s Path, or else I would have been jolted out like Luo Xuanqing and the others…

Just as he was about to proceed ahead once more, he suddenly felt the ‘ground’ beneath him giving way, and he abruptly plummeted downward. The piercing whistling of the wind reverberated in his ears.

When he lowered his head, he could see the earth accelerating toward him at a fearsome speed, and it seemed like he would collide anytime soon.

He had suppressed his cultivation entirely, so his current strength was only at that of an ordinary human. If he fell from such a height, he would definitely lose his life.

In response to the danger perceived, his zhenqi began jumping into action, attempting to push its way out of the seal so that he could break the fall.

It’s an illusion. It’s an illusion! Zhang Xuan suppressed his zhenqi with greater force as he slowly closed his eyes.

If not for what he had experienced earlier, he surely would have succumbed. However, the previous experience had left him prepared for whatever was to come, so he was no longer as panicked or affected as before.

If he really used his zhenqi, the spatial seal would immediately rebound against him, and that would cause him to get injured.

Hu!

As soon as his heart had returned to perfect calmness, the deafening whistling of the wind and the falling sensation disappeared without a trace. When he opened his eyes once more, he found himself still standing amid the white space.

Using space to conjure effects reminiscent of illusions, I have never really thought of that possibility before… Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief as he examined his surroundings once more.

His comprehension of formations had reached the level of 8-star pinnacle, and he had learned the Heavenly Art of Dimension Unravel as well. Under normal circumstances, a folded space would not be able to trap him. However, this place was actually able to breach his mental fortitude without him sensing that anything was amiss. The means of the owner of the ancient domain were truly astounding,

Activating his Eye of Insight, Zhang Xuan noted that the structure of the surrounding space was reminiscent of a beehive, consisting of small cubes placed together. However, unlike an ordinary beehive, the cubes were not stationary. Instead, they were flowing along with drifting water, forcing one to go along with its momentum and fall under its effects.

Space is basically ripples moving at a frequency. As long as I can find the true nature of this space, I’ll be able to manipulate it too, Zhang Xuan thought as he went through what he had learned in the Heavenly Art of Dimension Unravel.

Some time later, Zhang Xuan’s eyes lit up. I see!

Through analyzing the structure of the space around him, the various parts of the Heavenly Art of Dimension Unravel that did not make sense to him previously suddenly made complete sense.

Back when he cultivated the Heavenly Art of Dimension Unravel, his cultivation was still a little too low, making it highly difficult for him to comprehend the deeper nature of space. However, with his cultivation being raised to Leaving Aperture realm pinnacle, he was able to better analyze the space around him and advance his understanding of spatial laws to a higher level.

Zhang Xuan nodded in realization. It’s no wonder this spatial seal is able to evoke illusions. Space can be formed using formations, and the inverse is true as well. So, naturally, it can be used to influence the thoughts of others as well.

Formations could be used to set up space, and space could be set up as formation. Building on this, that would mean that it was possible to embed formations within space itself to make one see the things that they desired the most.

Exhaling a mouthful of turbid gas, Zhang Xuan’s eyes glowed in excitement.Having comprehended this, my understanding of space should have reached the level of ‘Control’!

There were mainly five levels of the Heavenly Art of Dimension Unravel, namely Compress, Traverse, Control, Creation, and Destruction.

Compress allowed one to compress space and hasten one’s movements.

Traverse could be considered as a deepening of the concept of Compress. Through a greater understanding of space, one would be able to execute movements reminiscent of teleportation, covering a distance of several hundred meters in an instant.

One who had comprehended this realm would be able to breach the Dominion of a Phantasm Space realm expert without being affected by the latter’s control of space.

Control referred to gaining the ability to manipulate space. Upon reaching this realm, folded space and the sort would no longer be able to trap one. In fact, one would even be able to tap into the strength harnessed within these spaces to suppress one’s opponent.

As for Creation and Destruction, Zhang Xuan still had not managed to fully comprehend those two concepts. He could tell that the creator of this ancient domain had reached the level of Creation at the very least, but for the time being, he still could not say for sure what ‘Creation’ in terms of space represented.

Since I have managed to reach the 3-dan Heavenly Art of Dimension Unravel, this spatial seal won’t be able to trap me any longer… Zhang Xuan chuckled inwardly.

With his current comprehension of spatial laws, this beehive-like space was an enigma to him no more.

Even the various formations embedded into the spatial seal that induced illusions in his head earlier also appeared clearly before his eyes, and he could destroy him on a whim.

I should leave now. Zhang Xuan drove his zhenqi and lightly waved his hand.

Then, he took a step forward, and the next moment, he was standing right before the river. A lush green gourd floated right before him, emanating an overpowering aura.