AWB Chapter 43 Finding the Ruins of the Former Sect
Chapter 43 Finding the Ruins of the Former Sect
Lin Yue accepted the wheat spirit's gratitude, and they continued on their journey. The wheat spirit told them that deep within this forest lay a barrier that had existed for thousands of years. The wheat spirit said that the barrier had been there since its very existence. Between two trees was a gap, leading into another world. This was what the previous wheat spirit had told her, and Lin Yue received this information.
Lin Yue and her group continued walking until they reached the large, forked tree the Wheat Spirit had told them about. When Lin Yue looked at the tree, it felt strangely familiar. Suddenly, the remnant soul Xueyang jumped out. "This is our sect! This is my former sect!" Xueyang exclaimed excitedly. The Fire Cloud Immortal Emperor said, "Is this your former sect? I don't see it. It's empty. There's just a mountain in front of us." Xueyang shook his head and said, "No, it's this tree. Look," the Fire Cloud Immortal Emperor said, "this tree isn't anything special." Xueyang said, "You don't understand. You haven't seen this tree before, have you?" The Fire Cloud Immortal Emperor said, "No, what kind is it?" Xueyang said, "Ordinary trees become old after a hundred years, but this tree only grows one ring every thousand years. Look at this tree, so many years have passed, and it's still here, not particularly big, and so inconspicuous. But do you know? This tree is the entrance point to our sect, the very point of entry." "
The remnant soul Xueyang told Lin Yue to prick her finger and drip a drop of blood onto the middle of the tree branch. Gong Yong picked Lin Yue up, let her step onto his shoulders, and led her to the middle of the branch. He then climbed up, flipped his feet, and sat on it, biting his finger and dripping two drops of blood onto the tree. Suddenly, the middle of the branch slowly opened, like the Jingyue Water Cave. The remnant soul Xueyang told everyone, "Let's go in from here." Mingyue started walking in front, followed by the tiger, two wolves, Gong Yong, Da Bao, Er Bao, and San Bao. A snake slithered in from the ground, and the rat spirit quickly jumped onto its head and went in together.
Upon entering the valley, the remnant soul of Xueyang emerged from Lin Yue's body, its mournful voice crying out, "Senior brothers, senior sisters, junior sisters, junior brothers, are you still there? Are you still there?" The dilapidated state of the sect brought tears to Xueyang's eyes. This was the sect he had once protected, now reduced to ruins. The front hall, presumably cleaved in two during a battle, was broken cleanly in half. Following the path upwards, they reached the middle hall. Between the front and middle halls lay a vast plaza with a Bagua diagram in the center. A sliver of sunlight still lingered on the Bagua diagram, supporting twelve pillars.
Twelve pillars rose upwards, displaying wondrous characters. As the remnant soul Xueyang stepped onto these twelve pillars, suddenly, tears streamed down his face, and he wept bitterly.
A figure in tattered white robes appeared atop the first pillar. "Junior Sister, have you returned? I am your Senior Brother. This is a remnant of my soul, protecting the sect for you. After you left, you exhausted your cultivation to guard this place above the sect. Do you know? After you left, chaos reigned both outside and within the sect; people's hearts were treacherous. We could only use soul techniques here. I guarded this place, this broken formation, resisting the erosion of this world by demonic energy from the outside world for countless millennia. Junior Sister, it's wonderful that you've returned. I am about to dissipate; I can no longer protect this world for you." The first pillar vanished.
The second pillar shimmered, revealing a figure in a blue sandalwood robe with delicate features and a severed arm. "Junior Sister, I am your second senior brother. I'm sorry, after our eldest senior brother left, I couldn't protect this sect either. I was ambushed while fighting an enemy and perished inside the main gate of another formation. I could only maintain this great formation, protecting all living beings. My time is up for another 100 years. Take care of yourself." The second pillar vanished again.
A beautiful and dignified woman in a red silk robe emerged from the third pillar. "Senior sister, I'm sorry, I failed to protect this world. After our eldest and second senior brothers left, the sect was invaded by outsiders. I could only stand at the center of the formation to maintain it, and I only managed to hold it for 50 years. Goodbye, senior sister." Another pillar vanished.
The remnant soul Xueyang roared and screamed in front of the three vanished pillars, repeatedly shouting, "How could this be? How could this happen? How could this happen? My senior brother, my eldest senior brother, my second senior brother, my junior sister, ahhhhh!"
The remaining pillars, still glowing, seemed to be calling out "Senior Sister, Junior Sister," their voices rising and falling. However, the remaining pillars did not disappear, nor did any figures appear; all that could be heard were those cries filled with longing, regret, and resentment.
The remnant soul of Xueyang knelt in mid-air, bowing deeply nine times to the nine remaining pillars that were still lit within the formation. Xueyang knew that these pillars held the names of his beloved senior sisters, junior brothers, and senior brothers. The other pillars at the other cores of the formation, those that hadn't shone and had completely vanished, likely represented loved ones who, over the long years, had lost even a wisp of their souls, disappearing from the world.
One of the remaining nine spoke up: "Junior Sister, I can still hold on. Your soul power isn't very strong, so stay alive and don't enter the array's core again. Since you escaped from the core, it proves your mission is complete. You've sacrificed your soul for this world, for the sect. Your body is still here, and the sect..."
Your body is still on the ice coffin atop the millennia-old ice in the sect's secret chamber. Over these countless millennia, that body is nearing its end. It should dissipate into the world upon contact with air. Alas! A low, mournful sigh: "We can still maintain this world for a while longer. Some things are too late, unchangeable, so don't force it. Just enjoy this world, okay?"
The remnant soul Xueyang said, "But senior brother, I promised the ancestor I would protect it. I am the sect leader of this sect." The senior brother replied, "What kind of lousy sect leader are you? Nobody wants to be it because nobody wants to shoulder that responsibility. Only you, with your stupid brain, are willing to promise the ancestor this. Why don't your senior brothers, sisters, junior brothers, and junior sisters want to be the sect leader? Why are you chosen instead? Because you're the stupidest!"
The remnant soul Xueyang said, "Because you love me, I am the most favored. I grew up in the sect since I was a child. My senior brothers and sisters, junior sisters and junior brothers all came down from the mountain, but I grew up in this sect. I grew up with you after you entered this gate, and you never looked down on me for being weak. Even though you are all very talented and each of you is more skilled in Taoist magic and spells than I am, I am the weakest. You all dote on me."
The senior brother laughed and said, "Are you stupid? Since the twelve of us came in one after another, you have shared all kinds of spiritual objects and rare treasures of the sect with us and let us use them. You have never thought about yourself."
The remnant soul Xueyang said, "Because you are my older brothers and sisters, I am very lonely in this sect. It was not easy for you to come in and accompany me for a thousand years."
The senior brother laughed and said, "Silly boy, the 12 people who came in are each of the positions chosen by the sect as the core of the formation, and you, you have been the core of the formation since you existed."
The remnant soul Xueyang said, "Impossible, how could this be?"
My senior brother said, “I am most skilled in mechanical arts, and I repaired this formation. I know that the ancestor planned it all from the beginning. Everyone dotes on you because you are the youngest, and everyone dotes on you because you are the core of the formation and have suffered the most. Although each of us guards a region, only you have experienced being struck by lightning and riddled with holes, your soul being torn apart a thousand times, and your soul being overwhelmed and eroded by demonic energy over the long years, being shattered and rebuilt again and again. We cannot bear this suffering! We want you to enjoy all the love of heaven and earth before you go to the core of the formation, so that in your endless protection, every time you think of this sweetness, it can make up for all the bitterness and pain.”
Another female voice rang out: "Junior Sister, your ability to escape the constraints of this array and re-enter this place is perhaps due to the sliver of divine secret the Ancestor foresaw. That sliver is uncontrollable; it is a sliver of hope for this world, a sliver of divine secret. My best skill is observing celestial phenomena, projecting thousands upon thousands of years into the future. The Ancestor couldn't even catch his breath after his calculations, and I followed in his footsteps. I wanted to see a sliver of hope through this sliver of divine secret. And this sliver of hope is entirely tied to you. We twelve are truly heartbroken because we are all stronger than you, yet we cannot bear the countless hardships and pains for you. We have let you, the weakest and least talented, bear all of this. When I see you here again, I realize that the entire scheme the Ancestor laid out was actually for you to bring that sliver of hope to the millions of people in this world."
A bolt of lightning struck this space, blasting Lin Yue, Gong Yong, all the spirit pets that had entered, and the child away. The remnant soul of Xueyang was also forced back into Lin Yue's body. The sect gate closed.
From inside the door came the calls of his senior brothers and sisters: "Xueyang, be careful and take care of yourself. We can hold out for a while longer."
Everyone who entered the sect was shaken out by the ripples from the tree branch and fell to the ground below. Lin Yue unconsciously shed tears; she knew it was because the remnant soul Xueyang's emotions were affecting her. The tree branch returned to its original state, and looking out, there was a high mountain ahead, and nothing else.
Although they didn't know why, a bolt of lightning blasted them out. The old man of the Fire Cloud Immortal Cauldron said, "Such a large sect, gathering all its power, just to maintain this world. Alas, I finally understand why the elves and giants can't be detected in this world. They may have moved away, or they may be like this sect, using a large formation to hide in this world, undetectable to the outside world."
Lin Yue asked the old man Huoyun Immortal Cauldron, "Will the remnant soul Xueyang be alright? That heavenly lightning struck him." The old man Huoyun Immortal Cauldron replied, "How could he be alright? He'll probably need to recuperate for a while, after all, he escaped from the array's core. As for how he escaped, those who disappeared earlier probably played a significant role."
Gong Yong asked Lin Yue, "Where are you going now?" Lin Yue said, "Never mind, let's head back. The remnant soul Xueyang will probably need to recuperate for a while, and the little willow tree spirit is also recuperating. We're running out of companions." Gong Yong said, "Alright, let's stop here for now and go back."
Gong Yong and Lin Yue put the child and their spirit pet into their spatial dimension, quickly left the mountains, and released the child at the foot of the mountain. They drove to the guesthouse and rested for three days, allowing the child to fully recover. After all, spending so much time in the mountains had been exhausting.
After resting, everyone decided to fly back instead of driving. Finally, Gong Yong and Lin Yue found a place without cameras, parked the car there, released the three children, bought plane tickets, and flew to Chengdu.
Lin Yue and Gong Yong had originally planned to spend the New Year away from home, but they didn't. After they left, several elders in the mountains circled the tree for a long time, wanting to go in and take a look, but they knew that Lin Yue's group had been struck by lightning and had to be pulled out, so it would be difficult for them to get in. They circled the tree several times, but couldn't figure out a way to get in. However, the elders had marked the place, knowing that there was an entrance to a different world there, but they didn't know how to open it.
Some of the elders even suspected that the spirit rice and spirit flour might originate from this place. Lin Yue and Gong Yong went in to pick up the goods. That was also their thought and speculation.