83: The so-called innate meeting, eventually

The northern part of the Yan Country is a snow-covered land, rarely visited by people. Even Acquired Experts rarely spend a night on the snowy plains, let alone venturing deep into the heart of the snowfield.

Only Innate Experts can enter the depths of the snowfield. About five hundred miles into the snowfield stands a towering Great Snow Mountain, stretching five hundred miles in circumference. This mountain connects to a mountain range, piercing straight into the clouds, its summit obscured by them.

The lower slopes are completely bare gravel, devoid of any grass, moss, or foothold for climbing. Fierce gales rage around the mountainside, and the rocks there have become as smooth as black crystal.

The cold wind howled, and blizzards periodically collapsed. In such a harsh and severe Realm, all living creatures had vanished. Yet, at this moment, two humans stood at the foot of the mountain, gazing up at the sky.

Snowflakes drifted down slowly, but before they could reach the two men, they were melted by the Qi and blood emanating from their bodies, evaporating into mist.

“Is this the location of the Innate Assembly?” Chen Cuo pondered slightly.

“Precisely!”

Hearing Yue Wudao’s reply, Chen Cuo no longer hesitated. He stretched out his hands, grabbed a rock, and began to climb upward.

Yue Wudao followed, and the two quickly reached the halfway point of the mountain. Going further would mean facing a biting gale, but both men tacitly stopped.

They stopped on a stone platform less than a foot wide. Yue Wudao took out two Talismans, forced a drop of vital essence to the tip of his tongue, and activated the Talismans. A faint golden light enveloped Yue Wudao’s Physical Body, causing his skin to glow golden.

“Old Brother Chen, are you truly not going to use a Talisman for protection? You should know that this gale is immensely powerful and will erode our protective True Qi. Using True Qi will also subject us to the immense pressure of heaven and earth. At that time…”

“It’s fine. I want to try it first. When I can’t hold on, I’ll use it. Thank you for your support, Brother Yue.”

Chen Cuo patted the Talismans at his waist. Two Golden Light Talismans lay quietly, while another had already been attached to Xiaobai and the others. These Talismans were personally drawn by Yue Wudao and could resist the gale.

He had given Chen Cuo three Talismans. Chen Cuo used one on Xiaobai and the others, keeping the remaining two for emergencies.

“Brother, your Talisman technique is truly impressive. May I ask if it came from up there?”

Chen Cuo asked curiously.

“Hahaha, this is the Blood Talisman technique. I accidentally found the Legacy Martial Arts of the “Big Dipper Seven Kill Sword Scripture” in the past, and it contained this Blood Talisman technique. As long as one learns this Blood Talisman method, Innate Experts can draw them by expending True Qi and time. However, I also studied for over a decade before I only learned three types of Talismans: the Golden Light Talisman, the Sword Qi Talisman, and the Blood Flame Talisman.”

“The Dao of Blood Talismans is merely the lowest-tier method of Immortals. Once I achieve Spirit Absorption, I will certainly be able to draw true Spiritual Talismans.”

Yue Wudao also had his opportunities, obtaining the Legacy of an Innate Cultivation Technique. Even though he had killed countless people, his innocent heart remained pure. The process of Cultivating to the Innate Realm was arduous and unspeakable, but now he had finally achieved his wish.

He then said, “As for this Legacy, whether it originated from the Innate Assembly, I do not know.”

Chen Cuo raised his hand, inserted his fingers, and forcefully plunged them into the black crystal. With a plunge and a pull, he climbed upward step by step. This black stone was incredibly hard, but for Chen Cuo, it was no problem at all; he literally dug out a path with his fingers.

“To be able to insert your fingers into black crystal with just the strength of your Physical Body, Old Brother Chen, you are truly amazing.”

Yue Wudao’s body glowed golden, and he held two mountain-breaking awls in his hands, which were also enveloped in golden light.

As for the gale blowing on his body, Chen Cuo did feel a hint of coldness, but his protective True Qi was immensely thick, and there seemed to be no sign of it being eroded.

After climbing another hundred zhang, they saw another stone platform, showing some obvious signs of artificial carving; it was left by humans.

After they stepped onto it, both felt fine, seemingly without much exhaustion.

“Brother, you are truly steady. We should be able to go up very soon. Brother, you should tell me about the situation of the Innate Assembly now!”

Chen Cuo asked, his eyes fixed on the sky.

“Haha, Brother, you’re still not at ease, are you? Very well, I’ll explain things clearly. Actually, I didn’t know much about the Innate Assembly originally, but after occupying Qian Jing, I did get some information from the old emperor’s treasury.”

“The so-called Innate Assembly is not a gathering of Innate Martial Artists, but rather a market located at the top of the Great Snow Mountain. You will naturally see the specific situation once we go up later, Brother.”

“What I want to talk about are the people inside. The Innate Assembly was originally established by Immortals from outside who came here. Brother, you know that the Spiritual Energy of heaven and earth here is completely sealed. Innate Experts are already affected and dare not easily use their full strength, otherwise, they will suffer severe injuries.”

“And what’s even more terrifying are Immortals. Immortals who Cultivate magical power would die immediately if they came to this Jueling Realm. However, paradoxically, this Jueling Realm frequently gives birth to legendary natural-born Immortals. These natural-born Immortals possess the Aptitude for Immortal Ascension and are rich in various spirit-rich spiritual objects.”

Yue Wudao spoke slowly, and the two began to climb again.

His words sounded contradictory: this place was a Jueling Realm, yet natural-born Immortals were born here. The so-called natural-born Immortals refer to those with a Heavenly Spiritual Root. Spiritual Roots are divided into Five Elements, and also into three rare types and mutated Spiritual Roots. Generally, having more than three types of Spiritual Roots is considered a mixed Spiritual Root, two to three types are considered good Cultivation Aptitude, while a single Spiritual Root is a natural Immortal Seed.

In the Jueling Realm, when heaven and earth change, if an infant is born with a Spiritual Root, there is a high probability that it will be a Heavenly Spiritual Root, which is what is called a natural-born Immortal.

However, such infants are highly likely to die young. Yue Wudao had read some general information from the Qian Country’s historical records. Once, a Body Refining practitioner whose Cultivation was crippled accidentally entered this Jueling Realm and discovered several infants who had been born with the qualifications for Cultivating Immortals.

He somehow conveyed this news to his Sect, which attracted widespread attention from the outside Cultivation world. Subsequently, the Cultivation world discovered the strangeness of this Realm. In order to gather talented individuals capable of Cultivating Immortals, they dispatched Innate Martial Artists to cross the Jueling blockade and establish the so-called Innate Assembly on this Great Snow Mountain.

What Yue Wudao said was partly from Qian Country’s historical records, partly from his own Legacy, and some was even his own speculation.

After listening to his explanation, Chen Cuo felt some doubts. Firstly, why would infants with Heavenly Spiritual Roots be born in a Jueling Realm? Perhaps it was because the Jueling blockade caused the Spiritual Energy of heaven and earth to converge on a few individuals?

Secondly, the Jueling Realm seemed to have no effect on spiritual objects and exotic beasts. For example, Xiaobai and Xiaoling continued to grow as usual. Of course, it might also be because Xiaobai and Xiaoling currently had no magical power.

Finally, how did the people in the Innate Assembly gather these so-called natural-born Immortals? He had been Transmigrated for over ten years now, and he had never seen any Innate Experts descend to search for infants. Could it be that he was too weak to notice?

Chen Cuo grumbled inwardly for a while, then looked at Yue Wudao with some doubt.

“Brother, don’t you know that people from the Innate Assembly only enter and exit the Great Snow Mountain once every hundred years? Normally, those Innate Experts only wish to Cultivate on the mountain.”

“In the history of the Qian Country, about seventy years ago, two great Innate Experts descended, causing the Qian Country to conduct a large-scale census of newborn infants. Historical records show that one was called Immortal Master Yuanfu, and the other was called Immortal Master Hongguan. They should be two of the administrators of the Innate Assembly. It’s unknown if, after seventy years, these two Immortal Masters are still at the top of the snow mountain.”

Once every hundred years, that efficiency is too low!

The two had reached the middle of the mountainside. The gale was fierce, blowing their bodies to sway. Chen Cuo also used a Golden Light Talisman to protect himself. Although the wind’s damage was low and meant nothing to him, the crucial thing was the cold; the cold wind brought a chill that pierced into his bones.

Yue Wudao also stopped speaking and affixed two Blood Flame Talismans to his body. As the name suggests, these Talismans invigorated Qi and blood, enhancing their power.

After enduring countless hardships and spending two days and two nights, Chen Cuo and the others finally saw the summit. The area around the summit was flat, seemingly cut away, and the center resembled a vast basin, like a giant bowl. Surrounding it were countless buildings, forming a city similar in size to a capital city of the Qian Country.