Tribulation of Myriad Races

Su Yu sank into thought again. As a central acupoint, there should be a way for him to exert more control over the subsidiary acupoints. Or to be precise, there should be a way to figure out the identities of the passengers inside.

Was this how it worked during the ancient past? Or perhaps this was a system where a big shot could bring nine subordinates along into the mansion? Perhaps that was the case.

“Why does the mansion open only once every ten years?”

Before long, Su Yu recalled something, “Ten years. One tide. A round of circulation.”

Understanding dawned on Su Yu.

Yes. For super experts, ten years would end in an instant. That was perhaps only enough time to complete a single circulation of their cultivation method. That was why all these tunnels would open once every ten years.

It wasn’t that they couldn’t open normally. Rather, the mansion lacked a source of energy due to a lack of maintenance. Thus, the tunnels would operate in their most natural state, opening upon completing an entire circulation.

“In that case, there is no hard limit on the opening of the tunnels. Instead, it’s a matter of sufficient energy. A powerful force is also required to materialize the special entrance…”

In short, if one were strong enough, coupled with the grand cycle cultivation method, one would be able to freely open the Luminous Domain Mansion.

“I’m such a genius!”

Su Yu inhaled deeply, awed by his own genius.

“Thus, if I wish to enter again, I can look for a Pseudo Emperor to act as the power supply and materialize the special entrance. Then, I can rotate the 360 doors in accordance with the special cultivation method. Of course, I will require the help of experts for this task…”

Before all that, Su Yu had to first derive the complete grand cycle cultivation method. He grew more and more excited.

Luminous Domain Mansion!

Finally, he started placing more importance to the Luminous Domain Mansion. This was more than a treasure trove. It was also filled with numerous secrets. Those treasures weren’t even that important.

“The architect of the Luminous Domain Mansion was most definitely an expert who had opened the grand cycle acupoints. No, that’s not all. The architect must be a super expert who had opened even the 360 soul apertures. In that case, the entire mansion must follow a certain rule.”

“Source Opening, Great Strength, Infinite Strength, Skysoar, Cloudbreach, Mountainsea, Sunmoon, Eternal…Emperor?”

Su Yu muttered. Nine levels. Nine. A special number. Almost all cultivation levels were split into nine levels. Even the physical cultivation path would have nine realms if there were really a realm beyond the Eternal Realm.

“Does the ninth level correspond to the Emperor Realm? Was that where the ancient Human Emperor conducted his business while the eighth level was reserved for the Eternals?”

Suddenly, Su Yu felt a sense of frustration. Damn it! He was too ignorant prior to this. He could have asked the old turtle more. If he had asked more about the mansion, he could have discovered even more of the secrets here. This could very well be a secret not even the old turtle knew.

“If the first level represents the Source Opening Realm, what special characteristics does the Source Opening Realm have? Nine acupoints!”

Su Yu ignited his fire of inheritance as he started his deductions. If the first level corresponded to the Source Opening Realm, one should not forget about the nine acupoints. For the Source Opening Realm, the nine acupoints were extremely important.

“Nine acupoints. The design must be based on human cultivation. In that case, I only need to find one of the nine acupoints to deduce the locations of the rest. Does this mean that there are nine unique locations on the first level?”

Su Yu continued his contemplation.

If there was a secret on the first level, the same could be true for the other levels as well. In comparison, the so-called secrets in the mansion were nothing. Someone powerful enough to build the Luminous Domain Mansion would not build a place just to store his treasures.

What a joke.

Even the so-called nine-leaf skylotus could only be a mere decoration for the master of the mansion.

“I will naturally understand after entering. If my guesses are right, there will be nine locations hiding a big secret on the first level. Perhaps they hide treasures, or something else, or even cultivation methods. In any case, I can try searching for these locations.”

***

While Su Yu was deep in contemplation.

Seeing that no other tunnel was collapsing, the observing Invincibles were relieved. That must have been an accident. Dao King sure was unlucky. This was something that had never happened before. How did he get unlucky enough to encounter something so rare?

In fact, his bad luck was so unbelievable some even suspected that he was indeed being targeted.

While all the Invincibles were waiting.

Deep under the Sea of Stars.

The old turtle looked up. He could sense the powerful spatial force at work in the mansion. That wasn’t the point. The point was…He Tu was still gone.

That fellow had gone recruiting help previously. He had boasted that he would return with helpers soon. But instead, he had gone missing.

Did he lose his way in the Death Realm? Was that the case?

What a weird guy. After losing some of his memories, he seemed to be even more unreliable than before. To speak the truth, the old turtle did not mind He Tu’s presence. It would be too boring to stay here for eternity alone. With He Tu around, the old turtle could enjoy some free massage every now and then.

Yes. Massage. As far as the old turtle was concerned, each time He Tu attacked, it was a massage session. Thus, he was finding it difficult to sleep when He Tu wasn’t around.

“Where did he go?”

If it wasn’t for the fact that the old turtle was too proud, he would have started shouting for He Tu to return sooner by now.

Abruptly, the space around the city rippled.

A golden piece of paper dropped down from above.

Countless characters could be seen on the paper. After shooting the paper a glance, the old turtle said, “Greetings, Pavilion Master. Excuse me for not greeting you outside.”

Pavilion master.

Only one person in existence was qualified to be called that by the old turtle. The head of Heavenly Hunt Pavilion’s East Spire, or to be precise, the master of the Heavenly Hunt Pavilion.

Yes. The head of the East Spire was also the master of the Heavenly Hunt Pavilion.

The paper hovered above the city. Then, a projection appeared above it. With a smile, the projection spoke, “It has been a while, Grand Dream.”

“Yeah. It has been quite long.” The old turtle asked, “Why are you here? Do you need anything from me?”

“I guess you can say that. Earlier, the White Jade Gate trembled. Did you feel it?”

The old turtle replied slowly, “Yes.”

The projection stepped forth, slowly transforming into a handsome and refined humanoid.

Clad in white, scholarly robes, he created a tea table with a wave of his hand. With a gentle smile, he said, “Grand Dream, let’s have some tea.”

A young man walked out of the stone statue. With a smile, he asked, “What tea do you have?”

“Profound Heaven Tea, a specialty of the eighth level. I sent someone to harvest some three hundred tides ago.”

“How carefree of you.”

The old turtle sat down in front of the pavilion master. While the pavilion master prepared the tea, the old turtle said, “I felt the gate trembling. So?”

The pavilion master said, “The ancient past is no more. The White Jade Gate will not open anymore. Nobody is qualified to reopen it. The day it reopens, a new era will arrive, and a new Emperor will emerge.”

“So?” The old turtle said indifferently, “Time changes everything. Sooner or later, such a day will arrive. That which is long divided will unify, and that which is unified will divide. Such is the way of the world. The ancient past ended a long time ago. The emergence of a new Emperor will perhaps bring some peace back to the world.”

He laughed and continued, “I have been the Spirit Suppression General for over ten thousand tides. It’s time I retire. My brothers and sisters have spent countless years as guardians. It’s also time for them to retire. Having a new Emperor and a new set of laws isn’t a bad thing. My years of service have earned me enough merit. Whoever the new Emperor is, they can’t ignore my merit.”

The pavilion master poured the old turtle a cup of tea. The fragrance of the tea drifted everywhere. When it drifted outside the city, a passing aquatic beast abruptly advanced into the Skysoar Realm from the Infinite Strength Realm. Then, the beast’s body started undergoing forging. It only stopped after about seven or eight forgings.

The aquatic beast also gained a humanoid form, the form of a beautiful young woman. After her transformation, she gave the ancient city a respectful bow, wisdom and joy in her eyes. Clearly, she was aware that fate had granted her a chance encounter with someone incredible.

She did not dare to leave. Noticing the two indistinct figures sipping tea above the city, she did not make any noise to disturb them. She merely knelt down and started cultivating. Next, another wave of fragrance wafted out of the city, greatly boosting her wisdom and helping her further forge her body.

***

The old turtle and the pavilion master merely glanced at the young woman before putting the matter behind them. They were unconcerned.

This was her luck.

One could only say that fate had decided to smile upon her.

After pouring himself a cup of tea, the pavilion master said, “I’m here to ask you a question. Brother Grand Dream, who do you think has the highest chance to become the next Emperor?”

“How am I supposed to know that?”

The old turtle shook his head. He did not feel like entertaining this question.

The pavilion master said, “The White Jade Gate has trembled suddenly. Is the future Emperor one of the 3,600 beings entering the mansion this time? Earlier, something unforeseen happened. Someone had died in the tunnel during the transference. Both of us know full well that the tunnels shouldn’t collapse even after countless tides. The mansion was the creation of that man. The mansion is a supreme weapon surpassing divine weapons. These tunnels have only collapsed in the ancient past. The ancient past is no more. Why did it collapse?”

The old turtle thought about it and said, “You mean…”

“You understand what I’m trying to say. Perhaps…the Luminous Domain Mansion will gain a new master soon. In that case, what about us? You’re in a better position since you have an official position. As for me…the appearance of the new Emperor will spell my doom.”

The pavilion master sighed and continued, “The Heavenly Hunt Pavilion was meant to supervise the Myriad Realms. However, I have gravely mismanaged it. The current Heavenly Hunt Pavilion no longer has the ability to supervise the Myriad Realms. Even the Heavenly Hunt Index is no longer complete…”

The old turtle said, “As the Heaven Overseer Marquis, you have indeed failed in your task. The moment a new Emperor emerges, you can only pray that the new Emperor is willing to wipe the slate clean. If the new Emperor wishes to investigate the past, you will die. And you deserve this punishment.”

The old turtle continued, “Tell me. Why are you here? Are you thinking that I will be the new Emperor? That’s impossible. My path is set. That is not a height I can reach.”

The pavilion master said, “I’m only here to ask you something. Since we are fellow officials of the same court, I hope you can be honest with me.”

The old turtle said, “Don’t ask. I don’t want to answer. And I won’t answer.”

The pavilion master sighed.

“You knew it. You knew I wanted to ask about Su Yu. Indeed, you knew. Is he related to the Time Sage? Is he in his city?”

The old turtle said, “Don’t ask me. Judge for yourself.”

“Sigh.” The pavilion master said, “Fine. I won’t ask about the present. Have you heard of the rumors that the Time Sage was also that direct superior of mine?”

“Yes.”

The pavilion master said with grief, “In that case, I’m doomed. If Su Yu were to become the new Emperor…I hope this is wrong. If he has also received the inheritance of the Time Sage, I won’t escape punishment.”

A golden page appeared above his palm. He said, “The Heavenly Hunt Index is damaged. I am no longer capable of supervising the Myriad Realms.”