Chapter 447: A Pattern Emerges
That was when Nie Tian thought of that legend again.
According to Dong Li, for thousands of years, people with limited lifespans would come roam the barren land in the Realm of Unbounded Desolation, placing their last shred of hope in finding that miraculous place where wood power was as thick as water.
There had been quite a few Qi warriors who were experts at using wood power among them. Some of them had managed to detect rich wood power in different locations in the Realm of Unbounded Desolation at different times.
However, none of them had actually managed to enter that miraculous place.
A major reason why many people doubted the authenticity of the legend was that people had claimed to discover that miraculous place in different locations.
But at this moment, Nie Tian was deeply convinced that whatever was stirring his bloodline was not stationary, but rather constantly on the move.
All of a sudden, he started to think that the legend might be true.
Ignoring Dong Li’s persuasion, he determined a new direction according to the level of activity of the green spots within the crystal-like chains in his bloodline.
He pointed in a direction and said, “Let’s go there.”
Dong Li turned to look, and discovered that he was pointing at another area filled with extinct volcanoes. Thus, she asked, looking rather confused, “The 50-kilometer-radius region around us used to be the Bonebrutes’ headquarters. Extinct volcanoes are the only things we can find in this whole region. Does it really matter if we go there or stay here?
“Don’t tell me that you’re still hung on the idea of finding valuable things left by the Bonebrutes...”
Nie Tian nodded. “I believe I will find something.”
“Stop dreaming, will you?!” Dong Li curled her lips. “Over the past thousands of years, tens of thousands of Qi warriors from every corner of the Domain of the Falling Stars have come and searched this region. Not a single bone is left of those bone palaces. What in the world are you expecting to find?”
“You can either come with me or stay here. Either way, I’m not going to give up. I’ll go search over there.” With a hearty smile, Nie Tian sped off into the distance.
He wasn’t sure that he would be able to find what had been attracting his bloodline by relying on the subtle interactions between it and his bloodline, just as he was uncertain that the legendary place was what had been attracting his bloodline in the first place.
Furthermore, he didn’t want to explain his bloodline and the fact that he was able to detect something with it to Dong Li.
“Damn fool!” Dong Li cursed, seeing that Nie Tian had moved out, completely ignoring her persuasion.
Even so, she decided to follow along.
Afterwards, Nie Tian constantly changed directions according to the profound sensations he received from his bloodline, as he kept searching for that magical land.
However, its constant change of location made it very hard for Nie Tian to find it.
Gradually, he followed the indications away from the Bonebrutes’ former headquarters, and traveled among numerous extinct volcanoes.
Half a day passed.
A skinny man that looked like a bag of bones suddenly descended in the Bonebrutes’ former headquarters, and sat down at the bottom of one of the enormous craters.
It was Zhao Shanling.
Soon, profound spatial energy fluctuations exploded from within him.
Like water ripples, they rapidly spread out, forming layers of spatial energy wards over the enormous crater he was sitting in.
Even though the existence of those spatial wards was indisputable, they were invisible to the naked eye. Qi warriors with cultivation bases lower than the Soul realm wouldn’t even be able to sense their existence.
The multiple wards cloaked Zhao Shanling’s trace, life aura, and soul fluctuations.
Finished with the spell, Zhao Shanling closed his eyes, focusing all of his soul power and spiritual power on manipulating the Death Reign.
The Death Reign was the most curious tool he had ever forged. As long as he remained in the Realm of Unbounded Desolation, no matter where he hid, he would be able to manipulate the Death Reign by relying on his profound connection with it.
On the other hand, as a unique spiritual tool, the Death Reign was filled with death power which could wither all plants and extinguish all creatures.
Even he hadn’t gained total control of it yet, and thus was unable to fight enemies within it.
Furthermore, he would have to be focused and undisrupted when he wanted to stimulate the Death Reign’s might to the fullest.
Only by staying far away from the Death Reign and Qi Bailu’s sight would he be able to do that.
That was why he hadn’t gone to the Tool Sect with the Death Reign, but rather come here to manipulate it in the dark.
He didn’t trust anyone.
Since the relationship between him and the Flame God, Xia Yi, was strictly cooperative, he didn’t want anyone to know where he was when he was concentrating on manipulating the Death Reign, lest they take the opportunity to harm him.
Finished with his preparations, Zhao Shanling closed his eyes. “You lot really think those wards can stop my Death Reign from going further? Quit dreaming!”
With a cold snort, he commanded the Death Reign to fly directly into the defensive wards established by the Tool Sect experts.
…
One day later, Nie Tian came to a stop. Looking at the wall fragments before him, he seemed deeply confused. “Where is this place?”
At the foot of extinct volcano lay dozens of dilapidated stone pavilions.
His nine Heaven Eyes circled around in the vicinity and failed to detect any signs of life from the abandoned stone pavilions.
Dong Li glanced around and explained, “I’ve never been here before, but I’m pretty sure that this used to be the Bone Sect’s headquarters. The Bone Sect was a Qi warrior sect. It was said that a foreign Qi warrior discovered the method of practicing the Bonebrutes’ special incantations from the ruins of the Bonebrutes’ headquarters, which we visited earlier.
“He derived a series of bone-tempering incantations from them, and established his own sect in this place: the Bone Sect.
“Back in those days, the Bone Sect was a very small sect in the Realm of Unbounded Desolation. In the eyes of the Tool Sect and other powerful sects, the bone-tempering incantations he created were nothing but a bunch of heretical cultivation methods.
“Limited by his human features, his bone-tempering incantations didn’t allow him to advance by leaps and bounds in his cultivation.
“Eventually, his cultivation base got stuck at the early Profound realm.
“When Zhao Shanling finished his Death Reign, the Bone Sect was the first place it floated to.
“The entire Bone Sect was annihilated by the Death Reign within an hour. Even their founder was sucked into the Death Reign and died just as miserably as his disciples.
“However, a handful of the Bone Sect members escaped death, for they weren’t in their sect at that time.
“None of the Bone Sect survivors ever rose to prominence after that. They just relied on the bone-refining incantations they practiced to discover the remains of the Bonebrutes and traded them for spirit stones and spiritual materials.”
“I see..." Nie Tian nodded as he continued his search by relying on the faint changes in his bloodline.
Soon, as he wandered through the ruins, the green spots in the crystal-like chains within the green aura started to flicker increasingly frequently.
Nie Tian was thus convinced that the roving, magical place was in the vicinity.
However, as he scanned the area with his nine perceptive Heaven Eyes, he couldn’t find anything noteworthy.
That was when he realized that he could only try to locate that magical place by relying on the level of activity of his bloodline.
Dong Li followed him as he searched, looking extremely bored. She would also complain every now and then that, instead of wasting their time wandering around, they might as well focus on practicing cultivation and quietly ride out the turbulent situation in the Realm of Unbounded Desolation.
Before long, Nie Tian found himself by a shallow creek by the foot of an extinct volcano behind the Bone Sect.
As he came to a stop by the unexpected creek, he discovered that the green spots started to shine unprecedentedly dazzlingly.
However, nothing caught his eyes or Heaven Eyes.
Even so, he was convinced that the thing that had been stirring his bloodline was somewhere around here.
With a deep breath, he closed his eyes and conducted an inch-by-inch scan of his surroundings with his Heaven Eyes.
Moments later, he finally discovered something abnormal in the creek.
There seemed to be an invisible object in the quietly flowing creek, creating a small vortex in the flowing water.
However, that mysterious object seemed to disappear in the next moment, along with the vortex.
Not one to easily give up, Nie Tian focused all of his attention on scanning the creek. It wasn’t long before he discovered a similar occurrence in a location upstream.
Something seemed to suddenly appear in the creek, creating a quiet vortex.
SHEW!
Like an arrow, Nie Tian blurred into action and leapt towards the forming vortex.
CLATTER!
Water splashed as Nie Tian landed on a rock in the creek, disrupting the vortex. He scanned his surroundings with rapt attention, but couldn’t find anything.
However, as he stood there, his bloodline grew even more active.
That was when he instantly looked up into the sky. A strange feeling struck him.
“Dong Li!” Nie Tian called out. “Summon your black phoenix. I need you to take me into the air!”
Dong Li was deeply confused. “What the hell are you up to?”
“Trust me!” Nie Tian called out again.
“You’re crazy!” Dong Li said. Nevertheless, she summoned her black phoenix, walked up to Nie Tian, and took him up into the air.
Nie Tian kept a close watch on the changes in the creek.
As another vortex began forming in the creek, he shouted, “Over there! Let’s go!”
WHOOSH!
Like a flash of black lightning, the black phoenix carried him and Dong Li towards the area directly above the vortex in the creek.
In the next moment, Nie Tian and Dong Li felt light-headed, as they found that they had stumbled into a spatial tunnel.