Chapter 159 - 157: Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower
Wang Yuanlie and his son stared blankly at Chen Yuan, their eyes filled with terror and shock.
The father and son were at the Qi Casting Realm and Meridian Passage Realm, respectively.
To them, Chen Yuan’s abilities were like those of an immortal—an existence utterly beyond their comprehension.
Wang Yuanlie suddenly dropped to his knees, his head bowed and voice trembling. "Thank you, milord, for saving our lives! The Wang Family of the Celestial Far Escort Agency is willing to be your beasts of burden, to walk through fire and water for you!"
As he spoke, he yanked Wang Zizhen down, forcing him to kneel on the ground as well.
The Li Cang Sect wanted to hunt them down and wipe them out, and Wang Yuanlie had been utterly powerless to resist.
If this unimaginably powerful expert before them wanted to kill them, they would be even more helpless.
’In that case, it’s better to just give up all resistance and leave our fates in his hands.’
Thrown off balance by his father’s pull, Wang Zizhen looked up at Chen Yuan, his voice filled with excitement. "Milord, are you perhaps Lord Chen Yuan of the Great Brightness Sect’s Celestial Fire Hall?"
"Oh? You recognize me?"
"The Great Brightness Sect has returned to the Jianghu, and you, milord, have made a name for yourself on the Hidden Dragon Rankings. Who hasn’t heard of you?"
The affairs of the Great Brightness Sect were no great secret among the top major sects.
However, some low-level martial artists were unaware that five hundred years ago, during the founding of the Great Xia, such a powerful force had existed in the Jianghu.
Now, with Chen Yuan’s rise to fame on the Hidden Dragon Rankings, these martial artists were beginning to get a vague sense of the Great Brightness Sect’s former might.
These low-level martial artists tended to admire the strong, and the power of the Great Brightness Sect at its zenith completely captivated their imaginations.
Wang Zizhen was just such a person.
"Alright, you can get up."
Chen Yuan sent out a stream of True Qi, lifting Wang Yuanlie to his feet.
"I don’t need you to be my beasts of burden, nor do I need you to walk through fire and water."
"I’ve come to you for one thing only."
Wang Yuanlie quickly replied, "Please give us your command, milord."
Chen Yuan said in a low voice, "Take me to your Wang Family’s ancestral grave."
"Ah?"
Wang Yuanlie and Wang Zizhen were both completely baffled.
...
「On Dragon Ridge Mountain.」
Wang Yuanlie and his son led Chen Yuan through dense forests and over steep cliffs, arriving at the site of the Wang Family’s ancestral grave.
No one had visited this place in many years; even the grave mounds had disappeared.
This wasn’t because the Wangs were unfilial and neglected to worship their ancestors. Rather, over so many years of procreation and inheritance, their family line had nearly been broken at one point.
The ancestors buried here were from generations long past, and the site was a great distance from Yongchuan Prefecture, so the Wang Family had long since ceased their worship here.
Wang Yuanlie’s own direct lineage of ancestors were all buried in the vicinity of Yongchuan Prefecture.
Chen Yuan surveyed the vast area and said, "Cut your palms and drip your blood all around here. One drop in each spot will suffice, but make sure to cover the entire region."
’As the servants tasked with guarding the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower, the Wang Family’s bloodline carries a restrictive seal capable of opening its outer perimeter.’
’In the original story, the Wang Family was wiped out by the Li Cang Sect. Wang Zizhen managed to escape and wandered the Jianghu for several years. Once he thought he was strong enough, he returned to take revenge on the Li Cang Sect.’
’But he ended up being grievously wounded and hunted down by them, eventually fleeing here. His blood activated the restrictive seal of the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower, causing it to resurface, and he escaped amidst the chaos.’
’But now, he was making preparations in advance to open the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower ahead of schedule.’
Although Wang Yuanlie and his son had no idea what Chen Yuan’s purpose was, they obediently followed his instructions, sprinkling their blood across the land.
Just then, as Wang Zizhen’s blood touched the ground, it was instantly absorbed, and a faint glow began to emanate from the earth.
Wang Zizhen paused, stunned, as more blood from his wound dripped onto the ground.
As the glow intensified, the entire mountaintop began to tremble.
With a flicker of movement, Chen Yuan grabbed the father and son, whisking them away from the area.
Following a series of earth-shattering rumbles, the ground on the mountaintop cracked open, revealing the brilliant glow of the Array Dao from beneath.
An immense tower began to rise from the earth.
The massive tower was forged entirely from bronze, its surface covered in strange patterns and Array Dao runes.
However, the part that emerged was not its spire, but its first level.
This was the design of the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower: like an inverted triangle, the tower was plunged into the earth, narrowing as it went deeper.
Furthermore, a Spatial Array was set up inside the tower, making the interior far vaster than its external appearance suggested.
Wang Yuanlie and his son stared blankly at the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower, never having imagined that an Ancient Secret Realm lay buried beneath their family’s ancestral grave.
"Your Celestial Far Escort Agency often travels for missions. You must have a wide network of contacts, correct?"
Chen Yuan asked suddenly.
Wang Yuanlie quickly replied, "I wouldn’t claim to have too many, but we do have some connections."
"Use every connection at your disposal and immediately spread the news that an Ancient Secret Realm has emerged on Dragon Ridge Mountain. Spread it throughout the entire Qingning Border Region, but do not mention my presence."
’Although the secret realm was now open, he couldn’t possibly occupy it all by himself.’
’To enter the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower, the presence of a Primordial Pill Realm Martial Arts Grandmaster was required.’
’This was because, during the zenith of the Palace of Myriad Phenomena, the pinnacle of strength for its younger generation of prodigies was the Primordial Pill Realm.’
’Only when someone among the younger generation of disciples reached the Primordial Pill Realm would the Palace of Myriad Phenomena permit that cohort of disciples to enter the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower for their trial.’
’Otherwise, if a batch of disciples failed to produce even a single Primordial Pill Realm expert, it was proof that the entire generation was useless, and there was no need to waste the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower on them.’
Besides seizing the treasures within the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower, Chen Yuan also wanted to take the opportunity to kill Shangguan Yun.
’Shangguan Yun was currently in the Qingning Border Region with a Primordial Pill Realm Grandmaster from the Shangguan Family, trying to corner him.’
’The Shangguan Family had a long and storied history; they would have naturally heard of the Palace of Myriad Phenomena.’
’Once they received the news, they would undoubtedly come.’
Wang Yuanlie was curious why Chen Yuan chose to spread the news instead of claiming the secret realm for himself.
But he didn’t dare to ask, so he could only do as Chen Yuan instructed and disseminate the information.
Indebted to Chen Yuan for saving his life, Wang Yuanlie acted with great efficiency.
In roughly three days, Wang Yuanlie had spread the news of the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower of the Palace of Myriad Phenomena’s appearance on Dragon Ridge Mountain throughout the entire Qingning Border Region.
Meanwhile, in an inn in a county town at the center of the Border Region, Shangguan Yun and a dozen martial artists from the Shangguan Family were lying in wait.
With them was a Primordial Pill Realm Martial Arts Grandmaster, the Shangguan Family Steward, Shangguan Jue.
Shangguan Jue was over fifty, not of the direct lineage but from a side branch, and he had only recently broken through to the Primordial Pill Realm.
He was formerly a member of a Shangguan Family merchant caravan. Through sheer perseverance, accumulating seniority, and performing many meritorious deeds to obtain spiritual medicines for cultivation, he had barely managed to reach the Primordial Pill Realm, thereby gaining some status within the family.
Shangguan Yun’s father had once done him a great favor by helping his career, which was why Shangguan Jue had put his own matters aside to help Shangguan Yun hunt down and kill Chen Yuan.
This small town was located at the very center of the Qingning Border Region. From here, they could quickly reach any location should Chen Yuan’s tracks be discovered, which was why Shangguan Yun had chosen it as their stakeout point.
Upon hearing the news that the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower had emerged, Shangguan Jue was overjoyed.
He had already been helping Shangguan Yun hunt Chen Yuan for a month and was growing impatient. ’Who would have thought such a great opportunity would just fall into our laps?’
As a major sect with a legacy spanning thousands of years, the Shangguan Family naturally understood what the trial grounds left by the Palace of Myriad Phenomena represented.
’The lowest level of the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower definitely holds a heaven-sent opportunity!’
Therefore, upon receiving the news, Shangguan Jue immediately said, "Young Master, we should take our men and head to Dragon Ridge Mountain at once."
Shangguan Yun frowned slightly. "We’ve been waiting for a month. I refuse to believe that Chen Jiutian can avoid returning to Ning Province forever. What if we head to Dragon Ridge Mountain, and he uses the opportunity to slip back to Ning Province unopposed?"
"Young Master! No matter how strong Chen Jiutian is, no matter how great his potential, there will be other opportunities to kill him in the future."
"But the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower has appeared now—this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance! If we let others beat us to it, it will be too late for regrets!"
"Besides, even if you do kill Chen Jiutian, you’ll only be eliminating a Zhenwu Hall prodigy ahead of his time. How much credit do you think the family will give you for that?"
"He’s merely thirtieth on the Hidden Dragon Rankings. With Young Master Moyuan around, the family isn’t going to lose sleep over a single Chen Jiutian."
"On the other hand, if we manage to seize the treasures inside the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower, that would be a genuine, substantial contribution!"
Shangguan Yun frowned, lost in thought. After a moment, he let out a long breath and said, "Alright, we’ll do as you say, Uncle Jue. We’ll go to the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower first."
After his humiliating flight from Danyang Prefecture back to the Shangguan Family, Shangguan Yun had been feeling incredibly stifled and aggrieved.
He had told the Patriarch and Elders of the Shangguan Family just how terrifyingly powerful Chen Jiutian was, insisting that he must be eliminated preemptively, or he would surely become a dire threat to their family in the future.
But to his dismay, some of the elders had accused him of being utterly useless, claiming he’d been scared out of his wits by his opponent and was just exaggerating the enemy’s strength to be alarmist.
Besides, with Shangguan Moyuan—ranked ninth on the Hidden Dragon Rankings—in their midst, the family truly didn’t pay much mind to a Chen Jiutian who was only ranked thirtieth.
The Shangguan Family was massive. Not only was it divided into direct and side branches, but even the direct lineage itself was fractured into various factions.
This time, Shangguan Yun’s ranking had plummeted after his loss to Chen Yuan. He had tucked his tail and fled back home without even participating in the Furnace Opening Assembly, and on top of that, he had wasted a Divine Artifact Incarnation. Logically, he should have been severely punished for all this.
It was only because his own faction within the family was relatively powerful that he merely suffered a loss of face and a stern lecture, avoiding formal punishment. However, it was now impossible for him to receive the same level of resources as before.
Likewise, Shangguan Yun could no longer hope to command significant forces; he had even been forced to call in the favor owed to his father just to get Shangguan Jue to come.
’Under the circumstances, the emergence of the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower is indeed good news.’
’Even if I can’t kill that Chen Jiutian, seizing the treasures within the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower could help me recover some of my standing in the family.’
Having thought this through, Shangguan Yun and Shangguan Jue immediately led their men toward Dragon Ridge Mountain.
When they arrived at Dragon Ridge Mountain, they discovered that quite a few people were already present.
Among them were local Jianghu forces and, to their surprise, even members of the Forgotten Heaven Pavilion.
The Forgotten Heaven Pavilion was one of the Nine Martial Sects, a top-tier major sect that shared dominance over Qing Province with the Shangguan Family.
The person leading them was also a Primordial Pill Realm Martial Arts Grandmaster, which made Shangguan Jue’s brows furrow instantly.
’It’s going to be difficult to monopolize the Myriad Phenomena Ninefold Tower now.’