197: Chapter 197 Shen Qingyi Enters the Supreme Creation Lesser Luo Cave Heaven!

The matter of Feng Jiuge was set aside for the moment.

Gu Yan pondered briefly, then raised his hand to activate the haotian mirror once more.

The mirror's surface shimmered with flowing light as the scenes of the Cangwu Realm slowly unfolded.

The view looked down from above, passing through layers of clouds, skimming over mountains and rivers, finally settling on a desolate location.

It was the site of an old, long-collapsed mansion.

Amidst the broken walls and ruins, wild grass grew rampantly and vines clung to the stones; one could vaguely discern the grand layout of the powerful clan that once resided there.

Shen Qingyi stood right in the middle of those ruins.

She still looked the same as when Gu Yan had seen her in the past, her age seemingly frozen at eighteen.

Her features were as delicate as a painting, but her overall Aura was a bit more composed and profound than back then.

Her current cultivation Realm was, surprisingly, the Peak of the Golden Core.

Gu Yan wasn't particularly surprised.

With this girl's cheat-like Aptitude, if she had been practicing within the Supreme Creation Small Luo Grotto-Heaven, she would likely have reached the Void Refining or Body Integration Stage by now.

In the image, Shen Qingyi let out a faint sigh.

She had already stepped into the Peak of the Golden Core twenty years ago.

But after that, her cultivation was like hitting an invisible wall; it was difficult to advance even an inch.

She had tried countless methods.

Closed-door bitter cultivation, traveling the world, honing herself through combat, and even trying to use the methods of the Martial Dao to nourish her Immortal Dao.

None of it was of any use.

It was as if this world did not allow the existence of anything above the Golden Core.

At first, Shen Qingyi refused to believe it; she had never believed in fate in her life.

But after twenty years had passed, she believed.

It wasn't that she was incapable; it was that this world was too small to contain a greater version of her.

Thus, she thought of that Senior.

The Senior in the Place of Origin of Myriad Swords whose face was blurred and unrecognizable, who had imparted an immortal law to her with a single finger.

If she could see that Senior again and ask how to walk the path beyond the Immortal Dao, perhaps the current predicament could be resolved.

Unfortunately.

During these twenty years, she had tried countless times to step back into that Holy Land of sword dao, but no matter what, she could not enter.

It was as if that world was just a grand dream she had.

Shen Qingyi shook her head, no longer thinking about these troubling matters.

Carrying a jar of wine in her hand, she walked slowly through the ruins.

Her footsteps stopped before a set of broken stone steps.

This place had once been the main hall of her family home.

As a child, she often played here, watching her father receive guests and listening to her mother play the zither.

Shen Qingyi removed the mud seal from the wine jar, and the aroma of wine wafted everywhere.

She first spilled half the jar onto the ground as a memorial offering.

Then she raised the jar and tilted her head back to drink deeply.

The strong liquor entered her throat, spicy and choking, but she seemed completely oblivious.

Shen Qingyi wiped the corner of her mouth, her gaze sweeping over the ruins, her heart filled with a mix of emotions.

Back then, after she had completely exterminated the imperial family of the Cangwu Imperial Dynasty and all the court officials, the world fell into chaos, heroes rose up, lords carved out territories, and the fires of war raged continuously.

She didn't bother to care about those things.

She had killed enough, her revenge was complete, and her hatred had mostly dissipated.

The power struggles of the mortal world were, in her eyes, nothing more than ants fighting—not worth mentioning.

Later, when a new Imperial Dynasty was established and a new emperor ascended the throne, the first thing he did was send people to the old Shen Family site to renovate it and erect a monument, honoring her as the strongest Martial Venerable of the current age, with annual sacrifices and yearly tributes.

This wasn't surprising.

She was now the only Ninth Revolution Martial Dao practitioner in the Cangwu Realm, an existence that had slaughtered her way through an entire old dynasty.

Which new emperor would dare not respect her?

Shen Qingyi withdrew her gaze and took another gulp of wine.

The wine slid down the corner of her mouth, soaking her collar.

She set down the wine jar, looking at the setting sun on the horizon, and murmured:

“Ninth Revolution Martial Dao, Immortal Dao Golden Core—both have reached the Peak. The road ahead is vast and hazy; I know not where to go.”

She fell silent for a long time before continuing to recite:

“A hundred years of time like flowing water, looking back, the old home has turned to ash.”

“There is a path to ascend to heaven, but it is blocked; there is no gate to seek the Dao, for the gate destroys itself.”

“The blood of enemies is spent, yet hatred is hard to fade; old friends are scattered, leaving only empty sorrow.”

“A single Golden Core swallowed into the belly, yet it traps this body, forbidding flight.”

“I once settled the mountains and rivers with a sword, but now I sit alone watching the sunset glow.”

“I ask the heavens, where does the immortal path lie?”

“I ask the earth, who shall return with me?”

“Heaven and earth are silent, there is only the blowing wind.”

“So be it, so be it.”

“Let me finish this cup of wine; one bout of drunkenness dissolves a thousand sorrows.”

After finishing her recitation, Shen Qingyi tilted her head and drank the remaining wine in the jar in one go.

She casually tossed the empty jar onto the ground, the sound of the pottery shattering echoing through the ruins.

Just as she was about to turn and leave, a voice suddenly sounded in her ear.

“Good poem, it does indeed have some heroic spirit.”

The voice was low and indifferent, carrying a hint of approval.

Shen Qingyi's body jolted. Her Divine Sense instantly spread out, and within a hundred-mile radius, every blade of grass and every insect was within her perception.

No one.

Her brow furrowed tightly, and a warning sign suddenly rose in her heart.

To be able to approach her so silently and remain hidden from her Divine Sense meant their cultivation was far above hers.

And this voice...

It seemed somewhat familiar.

Shen Qingyi was silent for a moment before tentatively speaking: “Senior?”

“Your memory is not bad.”

The voice sounded again, its tone carrying a trace of a smile.

Shen Qingyi's heart shook, and memories flooded back like a tide.

The Place of Origin of Myriad Swords, that blurred figure, that finger pressed to her forehead, that immortal Cultivation Technique that pointed directly to the Golden Core Great Dao.

“It's you!” Shen Qingyi's voice trembled slightly. “That Senior from the Place of Origin of Myriad Swords!”

“It is indeed I.”

Shen Qingyi took a deep breath, suppressing the excitement in her heart, and bowed toward the void. “Junior Shen Qingyi greets Senior.”

She hesitated for a moment, then couldn't help but say: “Senior, Junior has a request.”

“Speak.”

“A hundred years ago, Junior received the immortal law from Senior and cultivated all the way to the Peak of the Golden Core.”

“But after stepping into this Realm twenty years ago, there has been no further progress.”

“This world seems... to not allow the existence of anything above the Golden Core.”

“Junior would like to ask Senior, how should the path ahead for the Immortal Dao be walked?”

The voice was silent for a moment before saying: “The Cangwu Realm where you reside has thin Spiritual Qi; being able to cultivate to the Golden Core is already the limit. If you wish to go further, the only way is to leave this Realm.”

Upon hearing this, Shen Qingyi felt a sudden sense of enlightenment, yet a new confusion arose: “Leave this Realm? How can I leave?”

“Since I have come, I naturally will not let you be trapped to death here.”

Shen Qingyi was stunned: “Senior means...”

“My Daoist title is Daoist Changsheng. If you are willing, you may join my sect and enter my Supreme Creation Small Luo Grotto-Heaven to practice.”

Hearing this, Shen Qingyi's knees hit the ground as she kowtowed heavily toward the void.

“Disciple Shen Qingyi pays respects to Revered Master!”

Gu Yan watched this scene in front of the haotian mirror and nodded slightly.

When this girl knelt and bowed, her expression was sincere and her gaze was clear, without the slightest hint of pretense.

It was genuine.

Regardless of whether she was an Immortal Emperor's Reincarnation who had yet to awaken her memories, or whether she was a pawn placed by some Immortal Emperor.

This Disciple, he would take her.

Gu Yan was now in the Immortal King Realm, with combat power no less than an Immortal Emperor, and his mindset was quite confident.

In his view, even if Shen Qingyi really was an Immortal Emperor's Reincarnation, he was certain he could keep her in check and make her useful to him.

If she was just a heaven-sent genius who appeared due to Luck, then it was even less of a loss.

Gu Yan made up his mind and immediately raised his hand to activate the haotian mirror.

The power of the highest grade innate spirit treasure connected the heavens, and a faint light shot out from the mirror's surface, tearing through the void and entering the Cangwu Realm directly.

That faint light landed on Shen Qingyi, turning into an irresistible pulling force.

Shen Qingyi felt her vision blur as the world spun.

By the time she regained her senses, she was already inside a towering palace.

The Spiritual Qi in the hall was as dense as a sea, so thick it almost condensed into substance.

With every breath, it felt as if countless amounts of Spiritual Qi were flooding into her limbs and bones, an extremely comfortable sensation.

Shen Qingyi looked up and saw a person sitting cross-legged on a prayer mat ahead.

The person had a handsome face and an otherworldly temperament; there wasn't a hint of a sharp Aura about him, yet he possessed a natural majesty that made one dare not look directly at him.

It was as if heaven and earth themselves stood there, and all things had to bow their heads.

Shen Qingyi only took one look at that person before involuntarily lowering her head.

It wasn't out of fear, but rather a feeling that looking even one more time would be a desecration.

Is this Revered Master's true face?

He truly is quite extraordinary, quite handsome.