Cultivation: Immunity to Negative Effects

Zhang Chi had requested this map from the Sect precisely to compare it with the map from the Cave Mansion Stele he had obtained earlier. His goal was to pinpoint the location of the Teleportation Array, so he could use it to leave the Great Abyss if necessary.

However, only Zhang Chi himself knew of this purpose. Qin Susu, the Sect Leader, and the other high-ranking members of the Sect all thought he simply wanted to learn more about the Great Abyss.

After all, every Cultivator had been curious at some point.

For instance, at this very moment, Qin Susu was with Zhang Chi, her eyes fixed on the complete map of the Great Abyss.

Without Zhang Chi, she likely would have never seen this complete map in her entire life.

Even the Ten Thousand Treasures Tower might not possess a map of this level. And even if it did, she couldn’t afford to buy it, or even borrow it.

Zhang Chi was also thankful that he had been able to form a Top Grade Golden Core. Otherwise, without the Sect’s support, he wouldn’t have been able to see this map either.

If that were the case, even with the Cave Mansion Stele left by the Celestial True Monarch, it would be useless if he couldn’t find the precise location of the Teleportation Array.

"The Great Abyss is so vast. I wish I could travel all over it with you, Martial Uncle. It’s a shame we have to train so hard every day. And the Great Abyss is just too big; with our current cultivation, it’s impossible to visit every corner. Not to mention, Yuan Bei has become a dangerous place now!"

Qin Susu sighed softly, nestled against Zhang Chi.

"It’s true. We Cultivators may seem to have longer lives, but we toil every day just like mortals. The only difference is that we cultivate, while they work to make a living. But I believe that one day, we’ll have enough time."

"When that day comes, I’ll definitely take you all over the Great Abyss. We can even go see the world outside of it. As for Yuan Bei, even though it has fallen, it will recover sooner or later."

"After all, the Demon Tide will eventually recede. It’s just a matter of time!"

Zhang Chi replied with a smile.

"Mm, I’ll be waiting for that day!"

Qin Susu didn’t really believe it would happen, but she loved hearing Zhang Chi say it.

After watching for a long while longer, she saw that Zhang Chi was still completely focused, so Qin Susu went back to her cultivation first.

Zhang Chi, however, continued to study the map, only putting it down when it was time for his daily cultivation routine.

After he finished cultivating, he would go back to studying it. A month passed like this before he finally finished examining the entire map and had committed all its specific details to memory.

Of course, this was only possible thanks to his powerful Divine Soul, which was comparable to that of a Nascent Soul Early Stage cultivator. Otherwise, he would never have been able to accomplish such a feat.

After all, the map was immense and contained an overwhelming amount of information.

Next, Zhang Chi put the map away, tossed the metal disc out of his cave mansion and into the sky. The disc immediately transformed into a streak of light and flew back to the depths of the Sect, landing in the Sect Leader’s hand.

The Sect Leader sent a message to inform Zhang Chi he had received it. Only after getting the message did Zhang Chi sit down cross-legged, close his eyes, and begin searching and comparing the maps within his mind using his powerful Divine Thought.

He would even pause at times to perform the Turtle Shell Divination Skill to confirm a direction.

’I found it!’

In the blink of an eye, more than a month had passed. Zhang Chi finally had a result, and his heart filled with joy.

The map on the stele from the Celestial True Monarch’s cave mansion was, as expected, genuine. The terrain it depicted truly existed, and it was located in Yuan South, not very far from the Cangwu Sect.

However, after countless years, the terrain had changed considerably, and the stele map was too simplistic. Therefore, any other Cultivator, lacking a powerful Divine Soul, a detailed map, and the Turtle Shell Divination Skill, would have been utterly unable to find this location.

Then, Zhang Chi took out another turtle shell and performed a divination. Afterward, he sent a message to Qin Susu, telling her he was going into seclusion. He then took his Spirit Beast and silently left the Sect.

One month later, Zhang Chi had no idea how far he had flown. He had even left the territory of the Cangwu Sect and entered the domain governed by the Golden Sun Sect.

Along the way, he used his powerful Divine Thought to avoid Cultivators and Demon Beasts in advance, so his journey was completely uneventful.

At this moment, he arrived deep within a continuous mountain range, stopping in the sky above a large mountain.

This was the location marked on the stele map.

He then swept the area with his powerful Divine Thought and immediately discovered an Earth Palace inside the mountain’s core.

However, there was no passage from the outside leading to this Earth Palace. Or rather, a passage had once existed, but it had since collapsed.

Fortunately, the Earth Palace was protected by an Array and remained perfectly intact.

Zhang Chi landed on the mountaintop, took out a Tier Two Earth Escape Talisman that glowed with an earthen-yellow Spiritual Light, and stuck it on himself. He immediately passed through the layers of earth and arrived outside the Earth Palace in the mountain’s core.

The Earth Palace was enveloped in a semi-transparent white curtain of light from an array, and this Array was at Tier Three Peak.

But due to its immense age and the lack of any decent Spiritual Veins in this mountain range, the Array’s Mighty Power had long since diminished.

Zhang Chi took out a Tier Two Peak Breaking Charm, found a node in the Array, and activated it, easily tearing an opening in the array.

He then entered the Earth Palace.

The Earth Palace was completely empty and held no dangers. There were no Demon Beasts, nor did there seem to be any Guards.

Zhang Chi quickly reached the depths of the Earth Palace and saw a massive Teleportation Array, a hundred zhang in diameter.

The Teleportation Array had long since ceased to function, but the sight of it was still incredibly shocking.

The Teleportation Array was composed of two parts. One part was the array patterns on the ground, which were incredibly profound and complex.

The other part consisted of nine pillars surrounding it, each over ten zhang tall and also carved with profound patterns.

At the same time, there were grooves at the top of the pillars where Spirit Stones could be inlaid to directly activate the Teleportation Array.

In front of the Teleportation Array also stood two metal Puppets, which must have been its guardians.

Unfortunately, due to the passage of time, the Puppets, though intact, had long since exhausted their energy and were completely motionless.

’This trip was just as smooth as my divination predicted!’

After a careful inspection, Zhang Chi nodded in satisfaction.

After forming his Golden Core, he had naturally become a Tier Three Array Master.

Although at his current level, he was still unable to set up this Ancient Teleportation Array, let alone replicate it.

But he could understand a great deal about it.

For example, this Ancient Teleportation Array was one-way and designed for ultra-long-distance travel.

Furthermore, activating this Ancient Teleportation Array required Top Grade Spirit Stones and a Great Teleportation Order.

His Cave Mansion Stele was not a Great Teleportation Order, but it had a similar function.

Of course, these last two points were not something he figured out himself; they were hints that were already on the Cave Mansion Stele.

If an ordinary Cultivator was unaware of these crucial details and rashly used Low Tier Spirit Stones for teleportation, or prepared Top Grade Spirit Stones but lacked a Great Teleportation Order or a similar protective treasure, they would surely meet a violent end during the transit.

Not even a Nascent Soul Powerhouse would be an exception.

As for Zhang Chi, all he needed to do now was find the Top Grade Spirit Stones, and he could teleport out of the Great Abyss at any time.

Zhang Chi counted the grooves and found one on each pillar. This meant he needed a total of nine Top Grade Spirit Stones.

A single Top Grade Spirit Stone was worth one million Low Grade Spirit Stones, so nine would be nine million.

With Zhang Chi’s current status and wealth, getting nine million Low Grade Spirit Stones was just a matter of time.

The only problem was that Top Grade Spirit Stones were too rare and not in circulation. Even with enough Low Grade Spirit Stones, it was impossible to trade for them.

Fortunately, since the Celestial Repair Sect had been able to teleport away, it meant that Top Grade Spirit Stones had once existed in the Great Abyss, and they most likely still did.