Chapter 610 : Invitation from the Master of Skyland Sect

"My thanks for your generosity, Esteemed True Lord."

Upon hearing this, everyone's faces lit up with joy.

They weren't refining the fifth-grade treasure ship for nothing. Every time they processed a piece of spiritwood, they received a sum of spirit stones. Though the profit was pitifully small compared to crafting second-grade magical treasures, the sheer volume from the Chen family made it worthwhile.

Each person processed several 100 second-level spirit woods, elevating the crafting proficiency of every second-level Artificer present by at least 1 or 2 tiers.

Eldrin paid little heed to the crowd's gratitude. Having successfully forged a fifth-grade treasure ship, he was in excellent spirits. With a flicker of movement, he soared toward the Green Lotus Isle.

No sooner had he returned to Greenlotus Isle than Chen Changxuan sought him out. "A few days ago, the Second Elder of the Celestial Reed Sect paid a visit to Verdant Chariot Mountain (Location)," Chen began upon meeting him. "He expressed a desire to invite you to the Celestial Reed Mountains for a discussion."

Heavenly Abode Sect?

Eldrin and Lyra exchanged a glance, a faint flicker of movement in their eyes as he remarked, "To summon us for a face-to-face discussion... it seems the adversaries within the Blazing Fire Sea of the Infernal Abyss are far more troublesome than we anticipated."

The old clan leader also nodded at the sight and said, "In recent years, word from the Heavenly Abode Continent (Location) has it that the master of the Heavenly Abode Sect recently retreated in defeat from the Flaming Prison Inferno, clearly having suffered a bitter setback."

"In that case, I shall go take a look first."

Lyra also spoke, then set off together with Eldrin toward the Heavenly Abode Continent.

When the 2 arrived at Mount Tianlu, they found that the Second Elder, Elder Longbeard, had been waiting for a long time.

The Longbeard True Monarch was delighted to see the 2 visitors. "You have traveled a great distance," he said. "Normally, our sect leader would have welcomed you personally. However, he is currently indisposed. I hope you will not take offense, Fellow Daoists."

"Oh?" Eldrin exchanged a glance with Lyra, offering a serene smile as he replied, "Merely a trivial matter. There's no need for such formalities."

The Long-Bearded Daoist nodded and gestured with his hand. "Please, follow me."

The group strode toward Mount Tianlu and soon met the sect master within a cave abode nourished by a spiritual spring.

Within the cavern abode at this moment, the master of the Celestial Abode Sect, clad in Taoist robes, coughed twice with a pallid complexion before remarking with a tinge of envy, "After all these years apart, I never imagined both Fellow Daoists would advance your cultivation with such astonishing speed."

"Alas, I remain trapped at the Nascent Soul, 6th Tier (Cultivation Realm), unable to advance even a single step further for a 1000 years."

Eldrin's eyes flickered slightly. The master of the Celestial Abode Sect was a genuine Nascent Soul cultivator. For such practitioners, the late Nascent Soul stage represented an immense barrier—the hope of breaking through to late Nascent Soul through 1's own efforts was vanishingly slim.

Even with the aid of the Heavenly Dao Pill (Spiritual Object), the certainty of breaking through to the late Nascent Soul stage did not exceed 30 percent. If 1's spiritual power was even slightly lacking, the hope would become utterly negligible.

The successive attempts by the Lord of the Heavenly Abode Sect to acquire the Heavenly Dao Pill (Spiritual Object) in hopes of breaking through to the late Nascent Soul stage had nearly depleted over half of the sect's accumulated resources. Yet, despite these efforts, that elusive realm remained frustratingly beyond his grasp.

At this thought, Eldrin couldn't help but worry about the old clan leader's path of cultivation.

He took a deep breath and, after a moment of silence, recalled the matter at hand. "Fellow Daoist, have you sought me out regarding the Balrog within the Flaming Sea of the Infernal Prison?"

"Fellow Daoist, your foresight is truly remarkable."

At the mention of this matter, the Lord of Tianlu nodded, his expression turning grave.

He hesitated for a moment, as if wanting to say something, yet the words seemed to catch in his throat.

Seeing this, Eldrin (Person Name) spoke up, "If you sincerely seek assistance, it would be best to state your purpose clearly."

"Sigh…"

The Lord of Sky Abode Sect let out a soft sigh, yet still began recounting the tale in a measured, flowing manner.

As he narrated, Eldrin soon gained a clear understanding of the situation within the Flaming Abyss of the Infernal Prison.

The Fiery Prison and Sea of Flames was originally the forbidden land for demonic cultivators known as the Blood Demon Ridge. At that time, it was occupied by the Blood Demon Dao Lord and stood as the foremost demonic cultivation forbidden land within the Eastern Wastelands (Location).

What kind of figure was this Blood Demon Dao Lord? His cultivation had reached the Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul stage, and his strength ranked among the top 3 supreme powerhouses in this realm.

The Blood Demon Reincarnation Art he pioneered, along with the cultivation method of the 9 Blood Demon Seeds, rank among the top 3 supreme demonic divine abilities in this realm.

At that time, the Blood Demon Dao Lord's prestige was unparalleled across the lands. Merely his 9 Blood Demon Avatars were equivalent to 9 Nascent Soul Dao Lords, their overwhelming might suppressing the entire Eastern Wastelands. He was acclaimed as the foremost demonic path cultivator of the Violet Realm.

Back then, the collapse and annihilation of the entire Eastern Sea cultivation world, and even the Eastern Wastelands (Location), were directly linked to the Blood Demon Dao Lord.

And now, the Blood God Dao Lord who dominates the Eastern Sea cultivation world was merely a disciple under the Blood Demon Patriarch back in those days, hardly anyone of great significance.

Such a demonic overlord dominating the Eastern Wastelands (Location) naturally posed a grave threat to human cultivators.

Later, when Emperor Jiang arrived from the Central Ancestral Domain, the first formidable foe he encountered along the way was none other than Patriarch Blood Demon. The 2 engaged in a full 3 great battles.

In the final battle, Emperor Jiang's cultivation had already reached a state bordering on immortality, single-handedly purging the Blood Demon Ridge.

However, the Blood Demon Ancestor possessed combat prowess that could startle immortals, and was by no means so easily slain.

To eradicate him completely, Emperor Jiang had no choice but to shatter a Supreme Treasure of Pure Yang (Magic Treasure), piercing through the earth's core beneath the Blood Demon Ridge. This unleashed boundless subterranean fire, reducing the ridge to ashes and transforming it into the present-day million-mile Sea of Blazing Flames.

Speaking of this past event, the master of Sky Abode Sect took another deep breath and said, "After the fall of Blood Demon Ridge, the boundless essence of fire veins surging from the earth's core converged within the Flaming Prison Inferno, ultimately forming a top-grade, fifth-tier underground fire vein."

"After the fall of Crimson Demon Ridge, the rootless demonic energy seeped into the underground fire veins, merging with their primordial essence. Through thousands of years of gestation, this fusion ultimately gave birth to the Infernal Fiend race."

Eldrin listened to his detailed account, and only after a long while did he take a deep breath.

He exchanged a glance with Lyra, finally understanding the origins of that Crimson Flame the Blazing Lord they had encountered in the ruins of the Sun and Moon Sect years ago.

And so it was. Back then, Crimson Flame the Blazing Lord (Person Name) had been born from a fifth-grade, superior-class underground fire vein within the ruins, yet it had not been fully corrupted by demonic energy.

Thus, he fled the underground fire vein and was forced to follow its currents to the ruins of the Tianluzong Sect, where he confronted the Sun-Moon Twin Wheels for thousands of years.

After understanding these matters, Eldrin felt a surge of excitement. That was a top-grade, fifth-tier earth vein! The supreme treasure it nurtured would likely be of immense value even to a late-stage Nascent Soul grandmaster.

At this thought, his expression turned grave as he asked, "How formidable are the Infernal Fiends within the Blazing Abyss of Flames, that even a fellow cultivator like yourself was forced to retreat?"

Lyra’s gaze sharpened slightly at those words. The Heavenly Abode Sect was an organization with 5 Nascent Soul elders, and even its sect leader—whose cultivation had half-stepped into the late Nascent Soul stage—had been powerless to intervene.

Moreover, with the Heaven’s Abode Sect possessing their ultimate treasure, the Heaven’s Crucible Decree, even a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator would, in theory, find it difficult to suppress them.

Hearing this, the Heavenly Abode Sect Leader shook his head, his gaze grave as he said, "Within the Flaming Prison Inferno, there are 5 Flame Demon Monarchs whose cultivation has reached the Monarch Realm."

Chapter 1 The Azure Clouds Sect's recruitment ceremony had just concluded, and the mountain plaza was still bustling with activity. Jiang Ming stood at the edge of the crowd, his gaze fixed on the distant recruitment platform. "Next, Lin Xiao—Grade 7 Spiritual Root!" The elder's voice echoed across the square, followed by waves of exclamation. "Grade 7 Spiritual Root! He’s definitely going straight to the Inner Sect!" "With such talent, he might even catch the attention of a Core Formation elder..." Jiang Ming remained silent, a faint, almost imperceptible smile playing on his lips. "Next, Jiang Ming—Grade 3 Spiritual Root!" The moment the words fell, the surroundings grew noticeably quieter. Many turned to look at him, their eyes filled with pity or disdain. "Grade 3 Spiritual Root... What’s the point of even cultivating?" "At most, he’ll spend his life in the Qi Refining stage..." Jiang Ming paid no attention to the whispers. He stepped forward calmly, placed his hand on the Testing Spirit Stone, and watched as it emitted a dim, flickering glow. The elder shook his head and spoke indifferently, "Grade 3 Spiritual Root, assigned to the Outer Sect. Next!" Jiang Ming bowed slightly, then turned and walked toward the Outer Sect registration area. No 1 noticed the faint, mysterious light shimmering deep within his eyes. "Grade 3 Spiritual Root... Not bad. At least it’s enough to get me into the sect." He murmured softly to himself, his mind drifting back to a scene from 3 days ago— In a pitch-black cave, an ancient, unadorned bronze mirror slowly rose before him. The surface of the mirror rippled like water, reflecting a scene that was both surreal and awe-inspiring. That was his greatest secret, 1 that no 1 else knew. "Fellow Jiang, wait up!" A voice called out from behind. Jiang Ming turned to see a young man in blue robes hurrying toward him, a warm smile on his face. "I’m Wang Lin, also assigned to the Outer Sect. Since we’re going to the same place, why not walk together?" Jiang Ming studied the young man. Grade 4 Spiritual Root—not much better than his own, but the youthful face carried a maturity that seemed beyond his years. "Sure." Jiang Ming nodded slightly. As they walked, Wang Lin chattered enthusiastically. "I heard the Outer Sect disciples have to complete assignments every month. If they fail, their cultivation resources will be cut..." Jiang Ming listened half-heartedly, his attention focused on the system interface only he could see— [Host: Jiang Ming Cultivation: None Spiritual Root: Grade 3 Cultivation Technique: None Abilities: None Lifespan: 16/78 Mirror Energy: 100/100] This was the ability granted to him by the bronze mirror: it could replicate everything in the world, including others’ cultivation, talents, and even... destinies. "Brother Jiang, what are your plans for the future?" Wang Lin asked casually. Jiang Ming looked into the distance, where the mountain peaks pierced the clouds like sharp swords. "Cultivate step by step, take it 1 day at a time." His tone was calm, but a flicker of determination passed through his eyes. No 1 knew that this "Grade 3 Spiritual Root" youth carried a secret that could shake the entire cultivation world. And his journey had only just begun.