Trials of the Abyss

A Cloud Sail, loaded with people and goods, left a nameless fragmented land and flew toward the Three Immortal Islands.

Cloud Sails were much simpler than Formless Sailboats or Fire Cloud Ships and lacked private rooms or multiple decks.

Its slow speed and fragile structure meant Cloud Sails could not travel between worlds.

All the passengers were on deck with their belongings, with some finding a random spot to sit.

Pang Jian leaned over the bow of the Cloud Sail and looked down at the fragmented land below where the black turtle was hidden.

Black turtle. Earth Spirit.

Pang Jian was filled with anticipation as he quietly activated the Qi Nurturing Divine Cauldron Art, closing his eyes as he tried to connect to the small black turtle.

Surprisingly, his vision was not limited to the depths of the fragmented land where the black turtle resided!

He could also see parts of the fragmented land!

And it was still expanding!

The black turtle seemed to be merging with the nameless fragmented land. Its aura was slowly spreading and would soon cover the entire fragmented land!

Earth Spirit!

Pang Jian’s heart stirred as he opened his eyes. He now realized the significance of the name.

The black turtle, known as the Earth Spirit, lived up to its name. It had an unimaginable influence over the land it resided.

That nameless fragmented land would undoubtedly undergo a wonderful transformation due to the black turtle’s presence!

A spiritual land. It could even form a blessed land, nurturing mineral veins and growing rare herbs.

Pang Jian’s eyes lit up.

"Ahem, esteemed guests..." The manager of the Cloud Sail approached with a fawning smile, stopping a few meters away.

"What’s the matter?" Luo Hongyan asked, eyeing the manager suspiciously.

She sat next to Pang Jian on an exquisitely embroidered carpet with a white veil concealing the bottom half of her beautiful face.

Pang Jian snapped out of his thoughts as he turned and looked at the manager in puzzlement.

Roughly a dozen rogue cultivators were ogling Luo Hongyan from behind the goateed manager.

A few of them gulped audibly as if swallowing their saliva with great difficulty.

Even though her face was veiled, the top half was still exposed, revealing her smooth forehead and bright eyes. Combined with her perfect figure, this was enough for those men to drool with desire.

The rogue cultivators were distracted from their cultivation. Although they blatantly gaped at Luo Hongyan, they did not dare to act on their improper thoughts.

"I have some news to share with our two esteemed guests. Free of charge." The manager, Gao Yuan, glanced at the spatial bracelets on their wrists and said ingratiatingly, "It’s about the lower worlds."

When Luo Hongyan and Pang Jian boarded the Cloud Sail, he noted their spatial bracelets and casually asked where they came from.

Luo Hongyan told Gao Yuan they had come from the Second World and that she was accompanying her brother in exploring the Third World.

Gao Yuan immediately viewed them in a new light.

No wonder they dare to show off their spatial bracelets, he thought.

"What happened in the lower worlds?" Luo Hongyan asked coldly.

Feeling pressured by her gaze, Gao Yuan lowered his head and said quietly, "You came from the Second World, so you probably haven’t heard the news. I came across this information by chance, and it’s currently being kept under wraps.

"The territories of the Ouyang Clan and the Shangguan Clan in the Fourth World below have been contaminated by the murky energy from the Fifth World!

"Many fragmented lands within their territories have turned into living hells, a scene of utter devastation!"

Pang Jian remained unfazed.

Luo Hongyan feigned surprise and exclaimed, "How could this be?"

"I don’t know the details." Gao Yuan shook his head. "I mean no harm. I just want you to be aware of this. It’s fine to wander in the Third World, but avoid going to the Fourth World for now."

With that, he tactfully withdrew.

This news had yet to spread but would inevitably circulate throughout the different worlds. Gao Yuan hoped to build goodwill with the siblings by offering it now for free.

After all, they were from the Second World, so he naturally hoped to earn their favor.

Should he ever have the fortune to reach the Second World and come across them again, the goodwill he sowed today could benefit him.

Gao Yuan prided himself on his keen insight, which allowed him to own a Cloud Sail and operate as a rogue cultivator across the fragmented lands of the Cosmic Skies Continent and Dark Abyss Continent.

***

"We’re almost there," Gao Yuan’s shout caused everyone scattered on the deck to stand up.

Many aboard the Cloud Sail had never been to the Three Immortal Islands. Thus, they curiously moved to the edge of the vessel to peer down at it.

Pang Jian also opened his eyes from his meditation.

He gazed at the deep night sky, taking in the sight of the twinkling stars and the full moon.

For the past two days, he had been secretly trying to use the Qi Nurturing Divine Cauldron Art to draw the power of the sun, moon, and stars into his body.

Unfortunately, while the miniature sun, moon, and stars in the dantian could absorb the celestial energies, the efficiency was extremely low compared to when he was lying inside the copper chest.

He could lay directly beneath the sun, moon, and stars inside the copper chest. It felt like the sky was within arm’s reach. In that state, his speed in absorbing the lunar energy, stellar energy, and solar radiance was much quicker.

The absorption efficiency in the copper chest was more than ten times faster than outside.

The Third World is still too far from the sky.

He decided that if he wanted to absorb the power of the sun, moon, and stars in the future, it would be better to find a hidden place and enter the copper chest.

With this in mind, he stood up and leaned over the bow of the Cloud Sail to look at the island below.

Beneath the Cloud Sail were three fragmented lands, each about the size of the Divine Fortune. They were laid out in a triangle with stone bridges connecting them.

Pang Jian squinted his eyes for a better look at the three fragmented lands. If the edges of the lands were brought closer together, they could almost form a complete island.

"The Three Immortal Islands consist of Ice Rock Island, Gold Stone Island, and Cloud Island. Even though they’re collectively called the Three Immortal Islands, they’re actually three different fragmented lands. It’s said that these fragmented lands were originally one piece but were split into three during a battle," Gao Yuan loudly explained to the passengers on deck.

"Gold Stone Island and Ice Rock Island are barren and are made up entirely of rocks. Gold Stone Island has rich mineral veins, which attract many miners. Meanwhile, Ice Rock Island is perpetually cold.

"Cloud Island, on the other hand, is humid and covered with forests, making it ideal for growing spirit materials and rare plants. Some rogue cultivators cultivate rare herbs and plants on Cloud Island in exchange for spirit materials.

"Our destination is the Giant Stone Palace on Ice Rock Island where Maverick Ling Yun’s trade fair will be held in three days. Once the trade fair ends, I’ll steer the Cloud Sail to the next fragmented land.

"If you wish to continue traveling, it’ll cost fifty spirit stones per person. Of course, there are many other Cloud Sails near the Giant Stone Palace, so you can always choose to board another Cloud Sail as well."

The Cloud Sail descended as he spoke.

The Giant Stone Palace…

Pang Jian glanced down and saw a ruined city on Ice Rock Island.

The city was made up of giant rocks, and all its buildings had collapsed, with no intact structures in sight.

However, even the collapsed buildings stood tens of zhangs high!

The broken windows and doors were absurdly large, seemingly not built for humans. Humans would appear like dwarves in a land of giants in this large and imposing city.

Suddenly, an image flashed through Pang Jian’s mind.

He once saw a towering one-eyed giant in the Fifth World. It had shot a crimson beam from its single eye, and within that vast beam was the image of majestic mountains, flowing rivers, and a magnificent kingdom built from giant stones.

That giant stone kingdom bore a striking resemblance to the ruined Giant Stone Palace below.

Could this have once been the city of the one-eyed giants?

Pang Jian was startled by his own speculation.

One-eyed giants existed in the perpetually dark Fifth World and could never ascend to the upper worlds due to the Heaven Ascension Tribulation Pillars. Despite that, a giant stone kingdom had fallen into ruins here on Ice Rock Island in the Third World.

Boom!

Gao Yuan’s Cloud Sail came to a stop and its passengers disembarked.

Pang Jian left the Cloud Sail with Luo Hongyan and stood before the collapsed buildings of the Giant Stone Palace. He saw many other Cloud Sails anchored nearby, seemingly not allowed to fly into the city.

Some rogue cultivators headed straight toward the Giant Stone Palace after disembarking.

Luo Hongyan was staring intently at something over Pang Jian’s shoulder. Her beautiful eyes swirling with coldness. "Perhaps I should’ve left them on a fragmented land in the lower world instead of bringing them to the Third World..."

Puzzled by her strange words, Pang Jian followed her gaze to a pile of rubble outside the Giant Stone Palace.

The rubble seemed to serve as a dumping ground for corpses. Many rogue cultivators were thrown into the pile like trash.

Zhao Ling, Meng Qiulan, Bai Wei, Bai Zhi, Wu Yi, and the commanders of the Shadow Specter Sect were all there.

The members of the Shadow Specter Sect had arrived at the Three Immortal Islands before Pang Jian and Luo Hongyan.

They had fulfilled their wish of escaping the lower world and had the opportunity to set eyes on the bright moon, twinkling stars, and scorching sun, only to end up as nothing more than another corpse in the rubble.

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