Ascension Day

The mountain was tall and perilous, soaring into the clouds. No such mountain existed in Lingling!

Let alone Lingling, there probably wasn’t such a magnificent, wondrous mountain in all of the Divine Land!

Xu Ying’s heart stirred, and he softly recited, "South of Xiao Xiang, Cangwu Abyss. Beneath Jiuyi Mountain, an Immortal resides. ’Could the mountain in the painting be Jiuyi Mountain?’"

’But Jiuyi Mountain isn’t nearly this tall!’

Xu Ying was filled with doubt. He had been to Jiuyi Mountain a few times. While it was picturesque, its peaks weren’t very high. It couldn’t be the mountain in the painting!

’However, if Wu Wang Mountain could become Wuyang Mountain, then could the true form of Jiuyi Mountain be this wondrous peak from the painting?’

’It’s a shame Yuan Qi is in seclusion. Otherwise, I could go take a look at Jiuyi Mountain.’

Xu Ying was also getting tired, so he chose a room to stay in. He had been on the run for days and was utterly exhausted, but his mind was still racing with excitement. Unable to fall asleep, he simply picked up a book from the shelf to read.

After reading just two or three pages, Xu Ying’s head drooped to the side, and he was fast asleep, snoring softly.

He slept for a long, long time. When Xu Ying opened his groggy eyes and awoke from his dreams, he felt his Qi Blood surging. Qinyan Cave was filled with a strange Vitality and Activity that continuously enhanced his Qi Blood Cultivation. Just by sleeping here for one night, he could feel a significant improvement in his Cultivation!

’This place is truly a Grotto Heaven Blessed Land!’

Xu Ying suddenly noticed a strange odor on his body, likely the stench of decay he’d picked up from passing through the Underworld.

Yuan Qi was still in seclusion, not yet awake.

He went outside the palace, stripped completely naked, and jumped into the pool.

"Huh, I’ve grown a few little hairs here." Xu Ying glanced down, somewhat puzzled, and muttered to himself, "Strange little hairs, sprouting all over. Might as well pluck them."

He scrubbed the grime from his body with force, his hands passing over the places where he had once been injured. Then, he saw a Ginseng plant on the bank and suddenly froze.

’That’s not right... that’s not right at all!’

Xu Ying stood there, dumbstruck. After a long moment, he murmured, ’Is the Vitality of Qinyan Cave healing me, or is it my own Vitality? Is the strange Energy in Qinyan Cave really Vitality at all?’

He had seen plants grow like mad under the influence of Vitality and Activity, yet the Ginseng on the bank hadn’t grown wildly at all.

’In other words, the Vitality and Activity emanating from Qinyan Cave aren’t *true* Vitality and Activity. The power that healed the scars on me and Yuan Qi didn’t come from Qinyan Cave—it came from within us!’

’This mysterious power in Qinyan Cave can stimulate our own innate Vitality and Activity!’

Xu Ying’s eyes gleamed. ’Where does the Vitality and Activity within the human body come from?’

"The Mud Ball Secret Treasury," he whispered.

The Mud Ball Secret Treasury contained the body’s Activity, and this White Jade Palace was also called the Mud Pill Palace. He had previously sensed a connection between the Mud Pill Palace and the Mud Pill, but now he had a sudden realization.

’The Mysterious Energy in Qinyan Cave can activate the Mud Ball Secret Treasury!’

Xu Ying sat in the water, muttering to himself, "That’s right, the Mud Ball Secret Treasury. I just need to track the path of the Mysterious Energy from Qinyan Cave after it enters my body. Then I can use Dragon Seeking Positioning to find the Mud Ball Secret Treasury! But... I don’t have any injuries..."

At this thought, he abruptly raised a hand and pointed. His Finger Power pierced straight through his thigh!

Blood gushed from his thigh. Xu Ying grit his teeth against the pain and immediately focused his mind. Divine Light swirled beneath his eyelids as his Divine Sense manifested once more!

He pushed open the "door" and entered the Mysterious Domain within his own body.

Within his inner world, faint currents of air seeped in from the outside. These were the streams of Mysterious Energy from the pool seeping into his body!

These faint currents were drawn toward a mysterious location somewhere within him, all flowing in the same direction.

’It’s just as I thought!’

Xu Ying’s Divine Sense took to the air, following these currents as it roamed through his inner world.

His Divine Sense moved like a bolt of lightning, whistling as it traveled higher and higher. It reached his heart and lungs, which were as massive as inverted mountains, but it didn’t stop there.

He followed the currents through the Mysterious Domain, roaming and exploring, reaching places he had never been before and discovering more of the human body’s secrets.

Looking up, he saw what looked like the inside of an immense, perfectly layered Treasure Tower. To his sides were the towering mountains of his heart and lungs.

His Divine Sense whistled past the great mountains of his heart and lungs, tracking the currents through layer after layer of the majestic Treasure Tower. Suddenly, a bright light appeared ahead. As he drew closer, he found it was a Jasper Pool, as vast as an ocean!

A Divine Bridge arched high above the Jasper Pool!

Xu Ying was mesmerized. He followed the currents across the Divine Bridge and looked up to see a sun of unimaginable size hanging in the sky, blazing with furious flames.

Beside the sun hung an impossibly large moon, emitting a cold, faint light that shimmered in concert with the great sun.

’There are so many places inside my own body I’ve never been to!’

Xu Ying’s Divine Sense passed between the sun and moon. Following the currents, it soared upward, arriving at a vast, unfathomable region within the Mysterious Domain.

A region of Chaos within the brain.

His Divine Sense floated before the Chaos Qi in his mind. At the center of this swirling energy was a sphere of pure Chaos, like an enormous, perfectly round egg, suspended in the middle of the Chaos Qi.

The Mysterious Energy from the pool drilled into this Chaos Egg and vanished. Then, his Physical Activity would be stimulated, healing the damage to his body!

’This Chaos Egg must contain the Mud Ball Secret Treasury, one of the Six Secrets of the Human Body!’

Xu Ying steadied himself. The Mud Ball Secret Treasury was right in front of him. He had found this Secret Treasury without relying on the Dragon Seeking Positioning of other Grand Nuo!

’But finding it is one thing. Opening it is another matter entirely!’

Just as this thought crossed Xu Ying’s mind, the region of Chaos in his brain trembled slightly, sending out ripples.

He looked toward the source of the ripples and was left utterly dumbfounded.

A large Bell had barged in from who knows where. It swayed back and forth as if drunk, flew above the Chaos Qi, and then came to a stop beside the Chaos Egg.

The large Bell gave a hard shove, trying to nudge the Chaos Egg aside. When it wouldn’t budge, the Bell had no choice but to settle down next to it.

On the Bell Wall, there was a deep Palm Seal. It was none other than Da Zhong, the very Bell that had been following Xu Ying around!

Only then did Da Zhong notice Xu Ying’s Divine Sense floating nearby. The Bell and the Divine Sense stared at each other. For a moment, there was absolute silence.

Da Zhong silently lifted off and flew out of this region of the brain.

Xu Ying waited quietly for a moment. Da Zhong slowly drifted back in. Seeing that Xu Ying’s Divine Sense was still there, it finally confirmed that its eyes hadn’t deceived it.

"Lad, you’re here too?" Da Zhong’s voice boomed, deep and resonant.

Xu Ying’s Divine Sense flared. "What do you mean, ’I’m here too’? This is my brain, you know! How did you get in here?"

"I came in through the Jade Pillow Acupoint on the back of your head."

Da Zhong answered honestly, "Your Qi Blood Cultivation improved, so I took the opportunity to heal a bit more. I saw you didn’t bring me with you, so I thought I’d come in and have a seat."

Since entering Qinyan Cave, Xu Ying’s wounds had healed, and even his old, hidden injuries had been cured. His Qi Blood was more abundant than ever. Da Zhong had seized the opportunity to absorb some of this extra Qi Blood to regain its mobility sooner.

It had planned on entering Xu Ying’s mind to secretly leech more Qi Blood for its recovery, but it hadn’t expected to run into the man himself. The situation was, needless to say, a little awkward.

Xu Ying didn’t press the matter. Instead, he asked, "Why are you near my Mud Ball Secret Treasury?"

"This is the Mud Ball Secret Treasury?" Da Zhong sounded quite surprised. It flew a few circles around the Chaos Egg, clucking in amazement. "No wonder I couldn’t budge it. I entered your mind through your Jade Pillow Acupoint, but I had no idea this was the Mud Ball Secret Treasury."

Xu Ying explained how he had tracked the Mysterious Energy from Qinyan Cave and used Dragon Seeking Positioning to find this location. "The Mysterious Energy enters this place, and my Physical Activity is stimulated," he said. "This proves it has to be the Mud Ball Secret Treasury."

In Da Zhong’s era, the concept of the human body’s Secret Treasuries didn’t exist. It was a bit baffled. "Why would the Mud Pill Palace Grotto Heaven have Mysterious Energy capable of activating the Mud Ball Secret Treasury? How bizarre."

Xu Ying replied, "Isn’t it normal for a Grotto Heaven Blessed Land to possess mysterious Spiritual Qi and Spiritual Power?"

Da Zhong sneered. "You think Grotto Heaven Blessed Lands are a dime a dozen? There’s a finite number of them, and every single one has a profound origin. While this is an Ancient Cave Mansion, there’s no way it could contain a Grotto Heaven! The original owner calling this place the Mud Pill Palace Grotto Heaven was just puffing himself up."

Xu Ying mused, ’If the Mysterious Energy in Qinyan Cave isn’t Spiritual Power or Spiritual Qi, then that’s strange. This force... most likely wasn’t formed naturally...’

His eyes suddenly lit up, and he grinned. "If I can follow the flow of the Mysterious Energy to find the Mud Ball Secret Treasury, then I can also trace it back the other way to find its source!"