The reason that he had allowed a venomous creature to inject its toxins into his body was to prove his deduction to Zhao Ya, as well as to feel how the antidote within the pond neutralized the toxins of the venomous creatures.
He had swiftly realized that the antidote worked in a similar manner to his Heaven’s Path zhenqi.
Other than Kong shi, he could not think of anyone else who possessed such an ability. That was also why he had thought of making a fishing rod with his own zhenqi. To be honest, he had not really been sure whether it would work out or not!
“It’s indeed Kong shi’s unique zhenqi, but… why do you possess the same ability as him?” the koi fish asked questioningly.
“It’s because I’m a Celestial Master Teacher as well!” Zhang Xuan answered with a chuckle.
“You are a Celestial Master Teacher? That explains a lot…” The koi fish widened its eyes in realization. “Alright, I have made up my mind! I’m going to be with you from now on! Back then, Kong shi instructed me to stay here, saying that I should only leave when the next Celestial Master Teacher comes by. That way, I’ll be able to be fished every day!”
“Fished every day?” Zhang Xuan recoiled in disgust.
That koi fish sure was a masochist, wanting to be caught every day.
“You should enter my folded space for the time being. I’ll call you when I need you!” Zhang Xuan said with a wave of his hand.
“Roger that!” the koi fish replied excitedly.
The next moment, it entered Zhang Xuan’s Myriad Anthive Nest and found a massive brick lying before it.
“Woah! This brick is forged so exquisitely…” the koi fish complimented.
It had seen quite a few bricks in its lifetime, but it had never seen one with so many good materials wasted on it.
“You are the one that is a brick. Your whole family are bricks! I am the Golden Origin Cauldron, a true cauldron through and through!” the Golden Origin Cauldron roared in fury.
“You are a cauldron?” the koi fish scoffed in disdain. “So, you should be able to light up a fire, right? Why don’t you come grill me then? People have told me that I taste wonderful grilled! Don’t you want to try a slice of me? Quick, I can’t hold myself back anymore…”
“…” the Golden Origin Cauldron.
“There’s no need to go through that much trouble. Raw slices are good enough!” the Infernal Blacksaber harrumphed coldly as a cold glint flashed off its blade.
“Ah. I’m sorry…” Horrified by the appearance of an Ancient Sage artifact, the koi fish immediately lowered its head subserviently, not daring to run its mouth anymore.
…
Unaware of the little drama that had just happened within the Myriad Anthive Nest, Zhang Xuan brought Zhao Ya to the area above the pond.
Just like before, he was unable to advance any further upon reaching an altitude of thirty meters. Thus, he whipped out the Infernal Blacksaber and sliced the air above him.
Huala!
Space was torn apart, and a dimension rift emerged in its place. The duo continued heading upward, and it did not take long for them to arrive on flat ground.
Similar to before, a massive palace could be seen right in front of them in the distance.
“This should be the Subordinate Hall,” Zhang Xuan said. “Let’s head over!”
So, the two of them swiftly made their way forward.
“This is… the Hall of Lull1? Is this where Kong shi used to stay in?”
On the plaque hung right above the entrance of the Subordinate Hall, the three words ‘Hall of Lull’ were written. It was likely where Kong shi had stayed back in his time.
“Teacher, the gates to the Subordinate Hall have already been opened. Let’s hurry in!” Zhao Ya urged.
Given that the Hall of Lull had already opened, it was likely that someone had already entered its premises. They would have to hurry, or else they could potentially miss Wei Ruyan.
“Let’s go!”
Zhang Xuan took out Little Amulet, who swiftly enveloped the duo with its light. After that, the two of them passed through the gigantic gates and entered the Hall of Lull.
Just like before, there was an invisible barrier shrouding the Subordinate Hall. Those who did not have the corresponding Celestial Amulet of Legacy or unique constitution would not be able to pass through the invisible barrier. However, through the authorization of the Prime Amulet, Zhang Xuan could enter any Subordinate Hall without any trouble.
One thing that Zhang Xuan could not help noting was that the Infernal Blacksaber was actually able to pass through the barrier around the Hall of Lull despite being an Ancient Sage artifact. Based on what he knew, Ancient Sages were not permitted to enter the Subordinate Halls and Prime Hall. He had actually been ready to leave the Infernal Blacksaber outside if it bounced right off the seal.
Thinking about it, it might be because the restriction was not imposed upon those who had achieved a breakthrough in the Temple of Confucius or that it was not imposed on artifacts at all.
In any case, this was good news for him as it meant additional security.
The interior of the Hall of Lull was vastly different from the Hall of Great Accomplishment. If the latter was a manifestation of extravagance, the former was a symbol of frugality.
It was not to say that the Hall of Lull was small and shabby; on the contrary, it was extremely vast. Yet, it was oddly empty. All that could be seen was a simple bedstead positioned in the innermost location of the room.
There were no inscriptions or paintings on its blank, white walls, nor were there any sculptures or ornaments to inject some vibrance into the room. The entire Hall of Lull was simply dyed the clean color of white and nothing else.
“Is this where Kong shi once stayed?” Zhao Ya widened her eyes in disbelief as well.
Even she could hardly believe that this was the place where the great Kong shi had resided.
Kong shi was respected as the World’s Teacher, having nurtured innumerable experts in his lifetime, especially the seventy-two Sages. Yet, who would have thought that his living environment had actually been so modest?
“Kong shi truly saw past the facade of power and wealth!” Zhang Xuan remarked as he examined the room carefully.
Similar to the poison dimension, the layout of everything in the room felt perfectly natural. It was an environment that stripped a person of their worries and frustrations, leaving them refreshed and invigorated.
Cultivating in such an environment would surely be highly beneficial to raising one’s Soul Depth.
“Since the gates have already opened. Wei Ruyan and the others should have already entered this Subordinate Hall. Where are they?” Zhao Ya scanned her surroundings doubtfully as well.
The entire room was visible with a glance; there was nowhere for one to hide. It was apparent that they were the only two people in that room. This did not make sense. There should have been quite a number of people there.
Boom boom boom!
Just as they were perplexed by this bizarre situation, they suddenly felt a disturbance in the spiritual energy ahead.
“They should be right there!” Zhang Xuan said.
Tracing where the disturbance was coming from, Zhang Xuan hurried ahead and left the room through the back door in front of them.
The moment they walked out, a gush of concentrated zhenqi suddenly washed over them, exerting immense pressure on them.
Beyond the back door of the Hall of Lull was a garden.
“We have already reserved the Bodhi Fruits on the tree. I’ll have to ask you to return from where you came!” a voice harrumphed coldly.
“There’s no one in the world who doesn’t desire treasures, but these are things that we have put a great deal of effort into obtaining. We can’t give them to you!”
“The treasures of the world go to those who are capable enough to acquire them. We are the ones who made sufficient preparations to acquire them, so it goes without saying that they belong to us!”
…
From where the voices were soundings from, Zhang Xuan could see two factions standing opposite one another, the air between them a little tense.
The group on the right side consisted of ten members, and Wei Ruyan was among them as well. The other nine were dressed in identical clothes, which indicated their identity as offspring of the Hundred Schools of Philosophers.
On the other hand, the group on the left side only consisted of a single person. A round orb twirled with a light hum in front of her.
Dimension Silencer!
The person was actually Luo Qiqi!
Upon the entrance of Zhang Xuan and Zhao Ya, the crowd swiftly turned their eyes over to take a look at the two new guests.
“Zhang shi!” Luo Qiqi’s eyes lit up with a hint of anticipation.
Zhang Xuan directed a nod at Luo Qiqi before turning his gaze to the Hundred Schools of Philosophers.
Among them, only Wei Ruyan paid no attention to his arrival. She was in a trance, just like Zhao Ya before. Her hands were directed toward the Bodhi Tree, which was located not too far away from her, and the fruits were gradually becoming more and more crimson under the influx of her zhenqi. It seemed as if the fruits would mature at any moment.
“This isn’t an ordinary Bodhi Tree; it’s Great Sage tier!” Noticing Zhang Xuan’s doubt, Luo Qiqi hurried over. “Unlike the one in the Hongyuan Empire, consuming the Bodhi Fruits growing on it increases the chances of a cultivator reaching a Soul Depth of 30.0 by thirty percent, thus reaching the level equivalent to an Ancient Sage!”
“It allows one’s Soul Depth to reach 30.0?” Zhang Xuan was startled for a moment as his eyes widened in shock.
It was a common saying among master teachers that Soul Depth was the hardest to cultivate, and that was something that he could relate deeply with!
Be it his zhenqi, physical body, or soul cultivation, as long as he had the corresponding cultivation techniques, he would be able to advance with ease. However, he could not do the same with his state of mind.
It had already been a few days, but he had only managed to raise his Soul Depth from 28.1 to 29.99. He was still lacking a bit to reaching 30.0.
It might have appeared to be a simple 0.01, but this final step happened to be the greatest hurdle to overcome. Who knew how much time and effort would be required to overcome this challenge?
If the Bodhi Fruit really could raise one’s Soul Depth to 30.0, one’s chances of achieving a breakthrough to Ancient Sage would really be raised significantly!
