139: Hidden Cloud River

The Jade Slip was cool to the touch, its texture neither metal nor jade. Its surface had fine, natural patterns like water ripples. He released a wisp of Divine Thought and immersed it within.

In an instant, an aura far more ancient and vast than Yunhe Sect's own records, accompanied by a stream of information, surged into his Sea of Consciousness.

The content within this Jade Slip was not created by Yunhe Sect, but was their transcription and Legacy!

The source of the information pointed to an ancient secret, regarded by Yunhe Sect as the foundation of its rise, yet also a potential source of disaster.

According to the opening records in the Jade Slip, this part seemed to be a preface added by later generations of Yunhe Sect. Back then, to escape the pre-Qin wars, Yunhe Sect relocated its entire Sect, venturing deep into Yunmeng Marsh. After countless hardships, they finally found this treasure land, surrounded by mountains and rivers and rich in Spiritual Qi. They decided to establish their School here and continue their Dao tradition.

However, as they were constructing buildings, leveling the foundation, and excavating beneath the mountain ridge where the main hall now stands, they unexpectedly unearthed an Ancient Tomb that had been sealed by layers of Restrictions and natural rock for an unknown number of years!

The tomb was extremely simple, without lavish burial objects. There was only a Cultivator's remains, crystal clear like jade and uncorrupted after ten thousand years, interred in a stone coffin, along with a few fragments of Magical Artifacts that had lost their spiritual light, and this Jade Slip tightly held in the Cultivator's hand.

The Yunhe Sect ancestors felt as if they had found a treasure. They carefully took out the Jade Slip, and as their Divine Thought probed it, they learned the identity of the tomb's owner and his earth-shattering past.

The core content of the Jade Slip was written with an intent filled with endless regret and reminiscence:

"I, Lanyuan, the last master of the ancient 'Yushui Sect', and also the final tomb guardian..."

"Yushui Sect..." Gao De's mind trembled. He had never seen this name in any records, but its prefix "ancient," and the profound sense emanating from the words, all indicated its extraordinary origin.

According to Lanyuan's account, Yushui Sect was no ordinary immortal Cultivation School. Its Dao tradition could be traced back to the time when the Human Race's ancestors blazed trails and first explored the Dao.

This Sect did not Cultivate Golden Core or Nascent Soul, nor did it condense Dharma Idols or Primordial Spirits. Its core Legacy lay in "controlling the true essence of all waters and wielding the authority over rivers, lakes, and seas," pursuing a unique path of resonating with the water veins of heaven and earth and incarnating as the Law of water.

All its Disciples bore the surname 'Shui' (Water), communicating with water spirits through their Divine Soul and intent. When they reached a profound Realm, a single thought could cause the Heavenly River to reverse, and a singleanger (rage) could make the four seas boil. It was one of the important forces in ancient times that controlled the circulation of water elemental power throughout the world.

However, such a glorious Sect suddenly declined due to an unknown great calamity that swept across heaven and earth.

Lanyuan's account was vague about this, only describing it ambiguously as "black tide annihilating the world, all Laws collapsing," with an unspeakable fear and powerlessness permeating the lines.

The Yushui Sect's mountain gate was destroyed, and its Legacy almost severed. Lanyuan narrowly escaped with the Sect's supreme treasure, the "Water Repelling Pearl," along with some core Legacies and the "Sea Suppressing Stele," which recorded the Sect's ultimate secret. He journeyed through many twists and turns, eventually succumbing to severe injuries and perishing here, establishing his final resting place.

Lanyuan left a dying wish in the Jade Slip: he did not carry all of Yushui Sect's core Dao tradition with him, but sealed it within the true core of Yunmeng Great Marsh, in the "Yunmeng Water Eye," which ancient Cultivators called the "Source of Ten Thousand Waters."

Only there, by leveraging the immense water spirit power and special environment of the Water Eye itself, could one truly inherit the complete Legacy of Yushui Sect, and even... have the Opportunity to glimpse the truth of the great calamity that led to the Sect's demise, as well as the insights and heritage of Yushui Sect's past sages in resisting the calamity.

And the key to opening the Legacy land deep within the "Yunmeng Water Eye" consisted of three scattered fragments of the "Sea Suppressing Stele."

This Sea Suppressing Stele, according to Lanyuan, was the remnant of Yushui Sect's protective treasure, inherently containing the supreme Daorhyme (Dao charm) and partial authority of Yushui Sect.

It was not only a "compass" guiding the way to the core of the Water Eye, but also the "password" to unlock the final Seal.

All three fragments must be gathered; not one can be missing. Otherwise, forcibly attacking the core of the Water Eye would only trigger the Restrictions left from ancient times, leading to utter disaster.

Regarding the specific whereabouts of the fragments, Lanyuan left no clear map or directional guidance. Many years might have passed, and perhaps the Sea Suppressing Stele fragments had already been collected by Yunhe Sect, and the Legacy taken.

Gao De didn't care about this.

The Jade Slip only described the characteristics of the Sea Suppressing Stele fragments in detail: their substance was neither metal nor stone, their color was deep blue, almost black, and their surface had naturally formed Dao patterns resembling flowing water. They were cool to the touch and would faintly resonate with pure water-elemental Spiritual Qi or powerful aquatic Bloodlines.

Each fragment was about a foot long and irregularly shaped, but when pieced together, they should be able to restore the approximate outline of the ancient stele body.

At the end of the Jade Slip was Lanyuan's dying message, full of anticipation and warning:

"Latercomer, if you can sense this slip, you are fated with the Dao of water. Gather the stele inscriptions, reopen the Water Eye, and you may obtain the Dao tradition of my Yushui Sect, and also learn the secrets of heaven and earth. However, the road ahead is treacherous, and the calamity power still remains. Be cautious, be cautious!"

His Divine Thought exited the Jade Slip. Gao De remained silent for a long time, but a monstrous wave had already risen in his heart.

Yunhe Sect, back then, most likely obtained the initial capital to establish itself in Yunmeng Marsh by relying on this accidentally discovered Ancient Tomb and Jade Slip!

The Yunhe Water Control True Art they Cultivated was probably absorbed from the Yushui Sect's Dao tradition recorded in the Jade Slip!

And the true core, the supreme Legacy capable of wielding the authority over water elemental power, was actually hidden within that mysterious "Yunmeng Water Eye"!

This was undoubtedly an earth-shattering discovery!

Its value far exceeded Yunhe Sect's own Legacy, and might even be related to the ancient secrets of this world. However, so many years had passed, and Gao De had some doubts about how much value this Treasure Trove still retained.

More importantly, Opportunity and risk coexist. Currently, he didn't want to risk his life to collect those possibly still existing stele fragments for this Treasure Trove of uncertain value.

Collecting three Sea Suppressing Stele fragments with only vague characteristics and no directional clues, and exploring the "Yunmeng Water Eye" which even ancient mighty beings treated with deep reverence, the difficulty and danger were imaginable.

This was akin to finding a needle in a haystack, and required immense Opportunity.

Was the pure-blooded Black Tortoise, which had just appeared and possessed terrifying strength, guarding near the Water Eye? Or, did the Water Eye itself contain unknown risks even more terrifying than the Black Tortoise?

Gao De tightened his grip on the Jade Slip, Purple Lightning flashing in his vertical pupils.

The path to dragon transformation was already difficult, and now it involved the Dao tradition and secrets of an ancient Sect. Would this path widen, or would every step be fraught with peril?

But he knew that he temporarily did not have the strength to investigate.

The Legacy of Yushui Sect was not an indispensable item for him, a Purple Lightning Flood Dragon with a Bloodline Legacy.

"Sea Suppressing Stele fragments... Yunmeng Water Eye..." Gao De memorized the characteristics of the fragments.

The task of finding clues about Yunhe Sect left an imprint in his heart. In his future journey through Yunmeng Marsh, he would also have to pay attention to any traces that might be related to the "Sea Suppressing Stele"; any discovery would be a good thing.