Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 277: Storage Ring

Zhao Changhe’s judgment was correct.

This place was originally hollow. So, where had the jelly come from? The jelly seemed to have formed in time, as the energy mixed with the sand and soil and condensed into its current state. By digging through the jelly, he should be able to find other things inside.

For example, the Azure Dragon Seal was something similar to the glowing gemstone, but it had been modified by the Azure Dragon of the previous era into a jade seal, leaving behind a legacy within it at the same time. It was not purely a heavenly treasure.

In contrast, the gemstone they had found now appeared to be unmodified and unpolished. So, Zhao Changhe could not help but wonder if there was anything else left behind.

After carefully digging around, truly digging deeply and meticulously, he finally found something.

After digging directly beneath the floating gemstone, there was a small stone platform resembling an altar with carvings of the four idols. On the front was the depiction of the Black Tortoise, bearing the image of tortoise and snake.

Apart from the carvings, the altar itself had no energy reaction. In the center, there was a small concavity containing a precious-looking ring that seemed to be made of platinum.

Zhao Changhe immediately wondered if it was a storage ring.

It was inconvenient to lug around such a large saber, along with various pieces of luggage, medicines, the golden foil, and the jade pendant. The fact that he had not lost anything in battles so far was incredibly lucky. It was truly hard to imagine how he had managed to do that.

If this ring before him was truly a storage ring, he felt that the value of the ring itself would be greater to him than whatever might be inside.

Zhao Changhe picked up the ring, examining it closely for some time. It was quite beautiful, but he could not sense any energy from it, nor could he figure out how to activate it. Although he had already begun interacting with the golden foil with his spirit, it seemed that his mental energy was too weak to interact with the ring when he tried probing into it.

Meanwhile, Yue Hongling was silently sensing the state of her body as it was being transformed by the energy of the gem. She was considering whether the changes truly were suitable for her, and she had yet to enter a state of deep meditation to truly accept the transformation. Seeing that he found a ring, she curiously poked her head over and asked, “What are you thinking about?”

Zhao Changhe handed her the ring. “You’re on the verge of unlocking the Profound Mysteries, so your spiritual sense should be stronger than mine. Can you check and see if you can sense anything about this?”

Yue Hongling took the ring, closed her eyes, and probed it with her spiritual sense. She then opened her eyes in shock and said, “There is a small space inside! It contains books and a sword!”

Zhao Changhe was ecstatic. “Can you take them out?”

Yue Hongling shook her head and said, “We don’t have the mental energy required to retrieve things from the ring. That is the power of immortals. However, if we can learn a technique to retrieve items, we should be able to use internal energy to grab items from afar as long as we can see them.”

Zhao Changhe remembered that he had discussed this with Xuan Chong, and Xuan Chong had said the same.

Xuan Chong also mentioned that techniques for retrieving items were best learned from the Thieves Guild as they were the most skilled in such arts.

“But of course, once again, your mental energy needs to reach the appropriate level first...” Yue Hongling looked him up and down for a moment and then asked, “You mean you don’t have a cultivation technique for reaching the Profound Mysteries?”

“Nope. I was planning to find an opportunity to seek out Cult Leader Xue and see if I can get anything from him, but now that he’s on the Ranking of Man, it feels much more difficult.”

“He’s only at the bottom of the ranking; he might not be that much stronger than you.” Yue Hongling smiled. “People like us, who have yet to unlock the Profound Mysteries, are not that different from those like Cult Leader Xue, who are at the bottom of the Ranking of Man. I know what you’re thinking—since there’s such a significant gap between us and someone like Hu Lie, why can people like us make it onto the Ranking of Man?”

“It’s because there are only so many people who have unlocked the Profound Mysteries, and there simply aren’t enough of them to fill up the places on the Ranking of Man. So those who are still at the ninth layer of the Profound Gate are able to make it onto the ranking, and those strongest in actual combat are able to move up a little,” replied Zhao Changhe.

“Exactly. However, people like Cult Leader Xue, who have honed their skills at the ninth layer of the Profound Gate for many years, are by no means pushovers. They have excellent techniques and they’ve accumulated extensive combat experience. So then, why was I able to defeat him? It’s all because although he’s been at the ninth layer for all this time, he still hasn’t even touched the doors to the Profound Mysteries. On the other hand, when I was still at the eighth layer, I had already vaguely gotten a glimpse of what lay behind those doors.”

Zhao Changhe said, “I can see that. Your fight with Chi Li had very distinct imagery, and that is beyond the capabilities of ordinary martial artists. At that time, both of you were only at the eighth layer, but you were already stronger than many martial artists at the ninth layer. Others say it was because of fortuitous encounters.”

“Indeed, I had some lucky encounters that allowed me to gain a deeper understanding of sword intent and touch the door to the Profound Mysteries in advance,” Yue Hongling said with a smile. “Would you like me to teach you?”

Zhao Changhe blinked. “I’m only at the seventh layer, is that really doable?”

“I’m not talking about right now, but can’t you cultivate to the eighth layer here?” said Yue Hongling. “With such perfect cultivation conditions, if you can’t reach the eighth layer here, then it would be a huge waste of our life-and-death efforts. And I’m talking about reaching the eighth layer for both your internal and external cultivation. Otherwise, if your cultivation becomes imbalanced, you won’t be able to get a glimpse of the Profound Mysteries.”

Zhao Changhe was stunned for a moment. “I think I can get to the eighth layer of external cultivation, but my internal cultivation is still only at the sixth layer. Isn’t jumping to the eighth layer in such a short period of time a bit too outrageous? My meridians...”

“I’m sure you can optimize your body a bit here. I believe in you,” said Yue Hongling softly. “I understand your concern over how you aren’t exactly compatible with the Innate Dao Body, but you don’t need to completely take up that physique...”

Zhao Changhe’s heart stirred as Yue Hongling lowered her head slightly and said, “The treasure indeed suits me pretty well, but it isn’t a perfect match. I will only consume as much of it as is beneficial to my body. Then, you can teach me the Pure Bliss Art. If we strengthen both our bodies, when we dual cultivate, you should receive quite a lot of benefits.”

Zhao Changhe grinned from ear to ear.

Yue Hongling rolled her eyes at him and sighed. “Although we can stay here for a long time, we should not linger here for too long. Remember, we headed to Yanmen to help those on the frontlines. The decisive battle at Yanmen is likely to happen soon.”

Zhao Changhe was startled, and all his fleeting thoughts vanished into thin air as he solemnly replied, “Yes, I will do my best.”

“The pleasures of love are a hero’s grave,” Yue Hongling whispered as she softly kissed his lips. “In the future, as you grow stronger, there will likely be more and more women who want to be with you... I only hope that when that day comes, you won’t forget who you used to be...”

*

Zhao Changhe and Yue Hongling had seemingly vanished after entering the mountains, leaving Chi Li and others unable to find a single trace of them even after scouring the entire mountain.

Rocky Mountain was barren, with very little vegetation and scattered rocks. The rocks were not particularly large or tall, so a quick glance would reveal everything within any pile of rocks. Even caves or holes would be easily noticed when searching through the mountains, but they had been unable to find any trace of them.

After two days, Ubalu sent more troops to search Rocky Mountain, expanding the search to other peaks. Even Tngri Temple sent a high-ranking shaman along with a group of warrior monks to aid in the search. Yet, it truly was as if the two had vanished into thin air.

Ubalu held a small meeting with Chi Li and the others. “There’s only one possible explanation for this situation. There must be a secret realm here. We’ve actually long suspected this, and we’ve searched the lake at Huangsha Market for five years but we found nothing. It seems that the entrance to the secret realm truly is somewhere in these mountains.”

Chi Li asked, “Commander, have you not checked the nearby mountains during the past five years?”

Ubalu shook his head and replied, “We focused our efforts on the lake, so we haven’t paid much attention to this barren mountain.”

The temple shaman spoke slowly, “But as far as we know, Commander Ubalu, you might have actually found something in the lake but simply kept it a secret. At such a time, shouldn’t you share any valuable information you have with us?”

Ubalu narrowed his eyes. “Who spread those rumors? If I found anything, do you think I’d be standing here not knowing what to do?”

The shaman frowned and said nothing further.

Ubalu continued coldly, “I don’t know why your temple is supporting Third Lady Yuan. In my opinion, she’s likely a spy for the Xia Empire. She’s probably just here to stir up trouble. Instead of suspecting me of hiding something, you should be questioning her for any information she might have.”

The shaman replied slowly, “I will.”

Ubalu continued, “Also, the Warring Lion Tribe raided the Desolate Wolf Tribe, killed the Desolate Wolf King’s entire family, conscripted their able-bodied men, and seized a large amount of grain. Does your temple have any thoughts on this?”

Batu and Chi Li had traveled to Jiangnan together and had a good personal relationship. Chi Li, being a direct disciple of the Great Shaman from the temple, made Ubalu wary of the temple’s stance on this matter.

Chi Li said coldly, “The temple has never been involved in tribal disputes. You want to know the temple’s stance? Where was your concern when the Warring Lion Tribe was embroiled in internal strife and the other tribes were eyeing them ravenously?”

Ubalu asked, “So you’re saying that if we stand up for the Desolate Wolf King, your temple won’t interfere?”

Chi Li turned around and headed into the mountains. “I’m only interested in finding Yue Hongling. Don’t bother me with anything else.”

Ubalu watched his retreating figure, a fierce look emerging in his eyes.

The conflicts among the tribes of the Grasslands tended to snowball. If Batu assimilated the Desolate Wolf Tribe and secured enough grain, he would gain significant strength. With that increased strength and power, Batu could immediately become a proper and major contender to quell the internal strife taking place in the Warring Lion Tribe. If he managed to absorb the brother tribes, he could unify the Warring Lion Tribe and would then be commanding an army of tens of thousands.

He Lei was loyal to the khagan, but what about him? Should I cut off Batu’s rise before he gains too much momentum?