Chapter 199
If it were any other sect, this technique wouldn’t be given much attention—simply put, it enhances a cultivator's affinity for thunder, but lacks significant offensive power.
Yet, the Jiushan Sect specializes in talismans!
The "Shenxiao Yulei Zhenfa" combined with thunder talismans surprisingly yields results greater than the sum of its parts, earning the Jiushan Sect a formidable reputation.
The thunder talisman formation created by his own master is even more outrageous; ordinary people simply cannot set up a thunder talisman formation—heavenly thunder is too violent and difficult to control.
Without the control offered by the "Shenxiao Yulei Zhenfa," the thunder talisman formation could easily blow up the one attempting to set it up.
Though Zheng Fa has yet to reach the realm of Thunder Field, he has just barely grasped the basics of the "Shenxiao Yulei Zhenfa." Now, as he operates it, the spiritual energy within him seems to have established a faint connection with the surrounding thunder.
The heavenly thunder that once surged towards him has diminished by a third, making things much more bearable.
Ahead of him, Yan Wushuang and the others stood amidst the thunder, glancing back at Zheng Fa's figure. Yan Wushuang frowned, seemingly lost in thought.
“Yan Shixiong, what are you thinking about?”
“I’m wondering… why does Elder Han value Zheng Fa so much?” Yan Wushuang explained, his gaze curious as he looked at Zheng Fa. “I’ve mentioned Elder Han’s character before—he, well, doesn’t even regard you two highly.”
The other two’s expressions darkened at his words.
As true disciples of the Xuanwei Five Sects, they were rarely overlooked.
But the Canyan Sword Immortal would.
They had heard of Elder Han’s temperament; in the past, they could always comfort themselves—
There were many he looked down upon; who were they in comparison?
But now, Elder Han’s regard for Zheng Fa had escalated to the point where he was practically trying to curry favor…
The two pondered, feeling a mix of curiosity and competitiveness towards Zheng Fa.
Watching Zheng Fa walk through the thunder, though somewhat emotional, Chu Tianque nodded earnestly, “Zheng Fa’s mastery of thunder techniques and body refinement is impressive, somewhat reminiscent of you, Junior Sister Xue… In a sect like Jiushan, calling him a prodigy wouldn’t be an exaggeration.”
Junior Sister Xue smiled faintly and nodded gently.
Hearing this, Yan Wushuang understood—though they were praising Zheng Fa, there was an underlying tone of condescension, as if they were evaluating him from a higher pedestal.
He had to admit, he felt similarly:
Zheng Fa’s current performance wasn’t enough to astonish him; even in the past, his interactions with Zheng Fa had been tinged with a sense of condescension.
But Elder Han…
“Junior Sister Xue, how much territory do you think he can seal now that he’s entered the Tianbei?”
At that moment, Chu Tianque suddenly asked.
Junior Sister Xue pondered for a moment before replying, “Given his age and foundation, he’s already at the Foundation Establishment stage, faster than Zhang Wuyi—he must have a single spiritual root and a Dao body. However, since his cultivation is a bit low, we all started with five hundred miles; he should be around fifty miles?”
“I think so too…” Chu Tianque nodded, cursing under his breath, “This divine position is truly strange… What does it mean to control territory with thunder techniques? I still can’t wrap my head around it!”
Hearing this, not just him, but Yan Wushuang and the others wore expressions of frustration.
Yan Wushuang half-consoled, half-complained, “We’ve been trying to comprehend this Tianbei for thousands of years in the Tianhe Sect… The rules are bizarre and truly hard to grasp.”
…
Zheng Fa was unaware of the trio’s conversation as he slowly approached the Tianbei. It was only then that he realized the Tianbei was incomplete. It was a grand square jade pillar, but looking up, he noticed the top was missing a piece, revealing a sharp point that seemed to point to the sky.
As he drew closer, the Tianbei shimmered with a soft glow, as if sensing his approach.
When he was about half a zhang away, a dazzling rainbow light erupted from the pillar, enveloping him. When he opened his eyes again, he found the scenery before him had changed—
The path beneath his feet appeared to be made of shimmering white jade, with traces of spiritual energy flowing through it, resembling rare spiritual materials seldom seen in the Xuanwei realm.
Ahead, a grand hall obscured half the sky, its base floating in mid-air, connected only by three wide steps, with no other support in sight.
Many people were walking up those steps, including Yan Wushuang and the others.
Just as Zheng Fa was about to leap towards the palace, he felt something strange when his spiritual energy stirred—though it could still circulate, he found he couldn’t cast any spells.
Within his Yuanfu Dao foundation, most of his spiritual talismans seemed to be in a deep slumber, no longer moving.
The only one still functioning was the thunder talisman he had condensed.
Zheng Fa pulled out the talismans from his storage bag and discovered that aside from the thunder talismans, the others were all dull and lifeless, as if they had lost their power.
Only then did he understand why everyone was walking so orderly.
“Rules…”
Recalling the two words Yan Wushuang had been fixated on, Zheng Fa felt a stir in his heart:
While others found the rules strange, Zheng Fa saw a hint of familiarity within them.
If his understanding of spiritual energy and talismans was correct, the rules here could be summarized as—
Spiritual energy can only influence electromagnetic forces, and cannot affect other substances?
With this thought, his interest in the Tianbei world grew immensely:
It felt like a natural experimental field controlling variables!
…
Since he couldn’t fly, Zheng Fa quickly walked to the entrance of the palace on foot.
The grand hall was divided into three chambers.
The middle chamber had its door tightly shut.
The left and right chambers were both open, but previously, everyone had only entered the left one, with no one going to the right.
Just as Zheng Fa hesitated, he bumped into Yan Wushuang and the others, who had just exited the left chamber.
“Zheng Xiong, you should head to the right chamber first to obtain the sealed territory.”
“Sealed territory?”
Yan Wushuang seemed to want to keep him in suspense, but he waved Zheng Fa over, signaling him to follow.
The two behind him exchanged glances, seemingly intrigued, and scrutinized Zheng Fa.
Among this group, Yan Wushuang was particularly eye-catching; as he moved, five or six other cultivators also approached.
Zheng Fa felt a bit bewildered but followed Yan Wushuang’s gesture to the entrance of the right chamber.
“These three grand halls are where we come every time we enter the Tianbei world,” Yan Wushuang explained with a smile as Zheng Fa approached. “We call the left chamber the Baibao Hall and the right chamber the Fengshen Hall.”
“Fengshen?”
Zheng Fa asked, feeling a bit sensitive.
“You’ll find out once you go in.”
Yan Wushuang gently nudged Zheng Fa, and he stepped forward, standing at the entrance of the right chamber.
Looking up, he was surprised to see numerous statues standing within.
He counted and found there were as many as twelve.
These statues were tall and imposing, each resembling a colossal pillar, but upon closer inspection, Zheng Fa noticed that each statue had a blank face, which seemed a bit eerie.
As he stepped inside, he felt as if the twelve faceless statues were “staring” at him.
He instinctively lightened his footsteps, slowly approaching the statues.
Before he could steady himself, twelve beams of golden light suddenly shot from the faces of the statues, intertwining around him.
He felt as if he were being scanned from head to toe, inside and out, by this golden light.
What surprised him even more was that the golden light entered his sea of consciousness, heading straight for the yin-yang fish jade pendant.
The pendant seemed to awaken, gently trembling and emitting faint glimmers of light. Though the glow was almost imperceptible, the golden light quickly retreated, appearing dim and lackluster.
The twelve beams of golden light left Zheng Fa and converged before him into a glowing sphere, from which several authoritative voices suddenly resonated, reciting in unison:
“The heavenly court is covered in dust, the celestial sovereign has lost his position.”
“The order of heaven and earth is in chaos, yin and yang are out of balance, and all beings suffer.”
“Since you have received the thunder technique inheritance, with deep fortune and exceptional merit, we bestow upon you a divine position, to master thunder, uphold the heavenly order, control clouds and rain, and nurture all people.”
“Thus decreed.”
Zheng Fa stood there, dazed, unable to process what he had just heard.
The glowing sphere before him gradually solidified and shrank, revealing the shape of a scroll.
…
Outside, Yan Wushuang and the others watched this scene unfold.
“If it’s fifty miles of sealed territory, it should be a bamboo scroll?”
Chu Tianque remarked, while the senior disciple Xue Zhen shook his head, seemingly unsure, “Both of us have five hundred miles of divine positions, and we received copper scrolls.”
One of the onlookers who had followed them chimed in, “It’s a bamboo scroll; that’s what I received. You two, being disciples of the Xuanwei Five Sects, wouldn’t know what it’s like to enter the Tianbei with five hundred miles of sealed territory.”
There was a hint of flattery in his tone.
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