Chapter 75: Barbarian Wildlands Secrets
Chapter 75: Barbarian Wildlands Secrets
Revered Qin never had patience for rookies newly assigned to him. He nodded to acknowledge the cultivator from Penglai Island, then immediately handed him over to Lu Hangzhi:
“From now on, the duty of commanding the defense outside the Matrix Tower is yours. I believe you won’t disappoint me.”
No one was surprised by Revered Qin’s arrangement—not Mo Li, Cheng Fei, Nangong Jun and the others who were about to leave, nor the fourteen who remained, like Lei Qun and Tong Zhan, who all breathed a collective sigh of relief.
Lu Hangzhi nodded.
The dozen or so people Mo Li took away were all elite members of the War Zone, each capable of holding their own. However, taking away two core figures at once left the rest feeling uneasy and unsettled.
But he was confident! He would perform no worse than Cheng Fei.
After Mo Li led his team away, Revered Qin turned and went straight back into the Matrix Tower, leaving Lu Hangzhi and the group to face sixty-two confused new recruits.
Especially the leading disciple from Penglai Island, a peak Seventh Grade cultivator, who eyed Lu Hangzhi suspiciously, as if unable to understand why the Venerable One would appoint someone who appeared to be only at the early Sixth Rank Cultivation as commander, instead of using one of the Eighth-Grade Cultivators.
Disciples from major sects often didn’t know how to hide their expressions. After one glance, Lu Hangzhi understood. He turned and ordered:
“Lei Qun.”
“Hangzhi.”
“I still need to cultivate. You explain the rules of the War Zone to them.”
“Leave it to me.”
Lei Qun pounded his chest in agreement.
Tong Zhan volunteered to assist and add details.
“After that, each of you will be responsible for leading a team and carrying out defense duties.”
“Okay!”
The fourteen cultivators replied in unison.
Instantly, the Penglai Island disciples’ looks toward Lu Hangzhi held less contempt and arrogance, becoming more reserved:
They were indeed young, but that didn’t mean they were stupid.
For someone at the Sixth Rank Cultivation to command a group of Eighth-Grade Cultivators, with everyone acting as if it were natural—even the dullest among them realized this Sixth Rank youth was anything but ordinary.
Lu Hangzhi found an open spot near the Matrix Tower, sat down cross-legged, took out a Ninth-Grade Internal Core, inhaled its energy, and began refining it using “The Path to Divinity”.
“Not going inside the tower to cultivate?”
Revered Qin’s voice sounded in his ear.
Without even blinking, Lu Hangzhi sent a mental reply:
“Things have been calm these past few days. It makes no difference whether I’m inside or outside the tower. Besides, I’ve already broken through to Seventh Grade, equivalent to an ordinary early Eighth-Grade Cultivator. I won’t break through again anytime soon, so I’m not worried about others seeing.”
“These rookies are lucky. The most dangerous period just ended when they arrived.”
“Yeah.”
A bitter smile appeared at the corner of Lu Hangzhi’s mouth:
“The disciples of Xuanxin Sect were the unluckiest. On their very first day rotating into Two Realms Mountain, they encountered the Demon Beast Mist… faced the fall of over five hundred War Zones, nearly wiping out everyone… If they had arrived a few days later like these newcomers, perhaps a few more Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters would have survived.”
“…”
Revered Qin was silent for a moment, then spoke with a heavy, reminiscing tone:
“Thirty years ago, I entered Two Realms Mountain for the first time.”
“…”
“I remember that year, including me, the sect sent seventy-five people to participate in the rotation at Two Realms Mountain! All of them were elites from the sect, proud sons of heaven—young! Confident! Powerful! But do you know how many are still alive today?”
Lu Hangzhi opened his mouth but ultimately didn’t interrupt Revered Qin’s sorrowful reminiscence, until the latter softly uttered four words:
“Only me.”
“…”
Lu Hangzhi shuddered, as if a blast of frigid air had suddenly filled his chest. His whole body turned cold, his mouth went dry, and he felt terribly flustered.
A scene unfolded before his eyes:
A young cultivator, in the fierce and brutal battles of Two Realms Mountain, watched helplessly as familiar faces and voices from his sect were torn apart on the mountain, buried under the claws and fangs of monster beasts. Silently screaming, until… only one person remained between heaven and earth.
Years passed, leaving him alone.
Lonely, sorrowful…
An invisible weight pressed on Lu Hangzhi’s chest, leaving him speechless for a long time.
“I know these past few days have been hard for you. Your Senior Brothers and Sisters have also been suffering… But you must believe me, anyone who survives Two Realms Mountain knows that feeling. Moreover, those who live bear more pain and responsibility—pain a hundred times worse than death. Because we must endure the agony of losing friends and brothers while continuing to guard Two Realms Mountain, fighting on and on in this inescapable nightmare land, until you grow weary, until you are ready to abandon this defense line.”
Abandon?
Lu Hangzhi’s heart felt immensely heavy.
The Sky Passage released Monster Beasts from the Demon Realm every moment. These incredibly tenacious creatures were millions of times more terrifying than floods and wild beasts. Once they left Two Realms Mountain, carnage would surely follow.
Then humanity would have nowhere left to stand!
Everywhere would become Two Realms Mountain!
“Venerable One, there’s a question I haven’t had a chance to ask.”
Lu Hangzhi said.
After a thoughtful pause, Revered Qin responded, “You want to know how the rift above Two Realms Mountain appeared?”
“Yes!”
Lu Hangzhi said, “From the time I was assigned to Two Realms Mountain until now, I’ve had no time or opportunity to think about it. I wonder if you could enlighten me.”
Indeed.
Since arriving at Two Realms Mountain, there had been little time to ponder.
The relentless assaults forced him to focus his mind on survival.
Now, with his cultivation equivalent to an ordinary early Eighth-Grade Cultivator and strength not inferior to a Ninth Grade cultivator, his situation had improved as the attacks gradually eased, making this question stand out more and more.
Revered Qin didn’t refuse and spoke at length:
“Originally, Two Realms Mountain was an ancient forbidden land. A super sect called ‘Cloud Mountain Sect’ was established here… Don’t look at me with doubt. Back then, the Spiritual Energy on Two Realms Mountain was dense, making it an ideal place to found a sect. Hundreds of years ago, the ‘Cloud Mountain Sect’ was even more prosperous than the current Seven Great Sects.”
“And now?”
Lu Hangzhi glanced around at the scorched earth where every grain of soil was mixed with the blood of countless humans and Monster Beasts, showing no trace of its former self.
“According to the Seven Great Sects, Cloud Mountain Sect, in seeking a breakthrough, activated an ancient forbidden Magic Formation to pierce the Firmament, attempting to search for a legendary foreign realm. Unexpectedly, on the day the Firmament was torn open, hordes of Monster Beasts swarmed in, turning the entire Cloud Mountain Sect into a living hell.”
“…”
Lu Hangzhi could imagine it.
The Sky Passage newly opened, countless Monster Beasts pouring in.
How tragic it must have been for Cloud Mountain Sect to resist using only the strength of one sect.
Revered Qin looked at him and said:
“The Cloud Mountain Sect of that time was far stronger than the present Seven Great Sects. They had hundreds of Immortal Lords at the Mystic Light Stage, tens of thousands of Venerable Ones at the Spirit Condensation Stage, and countless disciples at the Epiphany Stage, plus a three-layer Sect Protection Array—an extravagant lineup! Even though countless Monster Beasts soared through the skies and burrowed underground, they still had no way to breach Cloud Mountain Sect’s protective arrays. For months, the entire Cloud Mountain Sect was strewn with corpses and flowed with rivers of blood, yet it stood unyielding.”
Lu Hangzhi showed a look of reverence.
To hold back the Monster Beasts for months using only one sect’s strength—their power was evident.
But…
“What a pity. No matter how powerful a sect is, it can’t withstand such endless consumption.”
“You’re right!”
Revered Qin sighed and nodded:
“Cloud Mountain Sect was indeed powerful, but after months of day-and-night depletion, the Epiphany Stage disciples were all dead within a few months, over half the Spirit Condensation Stage cultivators had fallen, and several Immortal Lords at the Mystic Light Stage were lost… Realizing the situation was dire, Cloud Mountain Sect finally recognized the Demon Realm’s strength, but it was too late for regrets! Then two different views emerged within: one advocated for war, proposing to unite the forces of all sects in the Barbarian Continent to resist the Demon Realm’s invasion; the other different voice advocated for sealing, believing that the weaker sects were too feeble and would be even more helpless against the Demon Realm… They planned to use another forbidden Formation to seal the hole in the Firmament.”
Here, Revered Qin paused, then continued, “What you see now at Two Realms Mountain is the result of combining these two forces.”
“Venerable One, you mean…”
“The Immortal Lords at the Mystic Light Stage who advocated for sealing were the very ones who caused the hole in the Firmament. With hundreds of thousands of Cloud Mountain Sect disciples dead, they felt too ashamed to live on. Burning their lives, they sacrificed over a hundred Immortal Lords at the Mystic Light Stage to activate another ancient Formation, casting it into the hole in the Firmament, forming over a hundred Spatial Rifts. For all eternity, these would tear apart any Monster Beast attempting to pass through the Sky Passage, atoning for their mistake, thus creating the current Sky Passage.”
Lu Hangzhi was filled with respect!
This was what responsible cultivators! A responsible sect did.
“…”
“The war advocates then united all the strong sects in the Primordial Wildlands, established the Two Realms Mountain defense line, founded the Two Realms Mountain Reinforcement Department, and drafted the initial framework of the current cultivation world rules.”
Revered Qin relayed this slowly.
…
So much information!
He never imagined that above the Seven Great Sects there was once a Cloud Mountain Sect…
A super sect that, before the Sky Passage stabilized, could resist the Demon Realm’s invasion using only its own strength!
He never knew the Two Realms Mountain Reinforcement Department had traces of Cloud Mountain Sect behind it.
Lu Hangzhi worked hard to digest the information Revered Qin revealed, then asked another question:
“Since Cloud Mountain Sect was so strong, why does everyone now only mention the Seven Great Sects and not Cloud Mountain Sect?”
“Over the years, the Demon Realm also tried every means to break through the blockade. Moreover, they seemed to have the ability to communicate with the other end of the Demon Realm. Almost every so often, the Sky Passage would erupt in a large-scale assault. The Immortal Lords at the Mystic Light Stage of Cloud Mountain Sect were almost all sacrificed, the entire Two Realms Mountain became what it is now, and many Cloud Mountain Sect disciples, knowing the inside story, either died or went into hiding. Naturally, Cloud Mountain Sect became a mere name… The Reinforcement Department gradually came under the control of the Seven Great Sects.”
“So that’s how it was.”
Lu Hangzhi suddenly understood, then sighed with deep emotion.
He never thought such an immensely powerful super sect could vanish into the river of history after one misstep.
“Any other questions? Ask them now, before I start studying the Codex.”
“Oh, right, what exactly is the Codex? Is it very precious?”
Reminded by Revered Qin, Lu Hangzhi casually asked in return.
Revered Qin smiled and said: “The Codex is equivalent to a top-grade Spirit Condensation Stage spell, only held by the Seven Great Sects. Do you think it’s precious?”