I Was Forced To Marry The Phoenix Empress-Chapter 173: Sky Devouring Tomb
’Sky Dee...vour? ....and what’s that written next to it??’
Yi Chen furrowed his eyes while trying to read through the scroll, which Gao Zhen had just placed in front of him.
From top to bottom, the scroll was completely covered in bold black text. However, the handwriting with which the characters were written was barely legible.
Clearly understanding the struggle Yi Chen was going through at the moment, Gao Zhen said with a smile.
"I’ll explain it to you in a bit, Young Master Chen, so you don’t need to try reading it for now."
"A-Ah yes...alright."
He nodded when he heard her, but at the same time, he couldn’t help but complain inwardly while pursing his lips.
’Then why did you open it in front of me like that in the first place...’
Clearly being able to make out what was going on in his mind, Gao Zhen chuckled softly and asked the next second.
"Has Young Master Chen previously heard of the Ancient Ruins?"
"Ancient Ruins?" A frown formed on Yi Chen’s face when he heard this.
As a former eastern fantasy reader, he obviously knew about what these ancient ruins were.
’Legacies of strong cultivators,’
Yi Chen thought to himself while smiling internally.
However, externally, he made sure not to show that on his face and shook his head like it was his first time hearing it.
"No, what are these Ancient Ruins, Madam Gao? I’ve never heard about them before." Yi Chen lied.
There were two reasons behind his action.
The first one was that he would have to think of a suitable explanation if Gao Zhen ended up asking him how he got to know about the ancient ruins in the first place...something which he really didn’t want to use his brain cells for.
The second reason was more of an objective reason, with Yi Chen being aware that there was always a chance that the ancient ruins could mean something completely different in this world from what he knew.
"It’s understandable since not many Meridian Refinement Stage cultivators know about it."
Gao Zhen nodded in understanding and said, "These Ancient Ruins are mystical lands all around our continent.
Each one of them is the remnant of an ancient past...the time when there were cultivators beyond the Heaven Ascension Stage in our continent."
"Beyond the Heaven Ascension Stage?" Yi Chen’s ears pricked up the next second.
From what Yi Chen had heard from Feng Yu, the celestial world they belonged to was a part of the Fallen Realm.
When compared to the True Realm, the Fallen Realm barely had any Qi, and therefore, there was no way for cultivators above the Heaven Ascension Stage to exist in this realm.
It’s also why Feng Yu was rejected by the realm after breaking this ceiling and had to go along with Elder Lei back to the True Realms.
’Is Madam Gao mistaken?’
Yi Chen thought to himself the next instant.
According to the information he was aware of, Gao Zhen’s words made no sense.
Not aware of what was going through his mind, Gao Zhen nodded and said the next instant.
"Sounds unbelievable, right? For thousands of years, the cultivators in our continent have been trying to break through the Heaven Ascension Stage, but none have succeeded even now.
But despite failures, they’ve kept pushing themselves all in the hope of achieving this unreachable goal.
That’s what I used to think as well when I was a child. Just why don’t they give up? How can they be sure that there’s a realm above the Heaven Ascension Stage?"
Gao Zhen said with an amused smile on her face as she thought back on her past self before continuing.
"However, my thinking changed when I learnt about the presence of the ancient ruins."
Gao Zhen paused for a second and continued.
"Out of the numerous ancient ruins, the few that have been successfully explored have granted the cultivators with enormous boons.
Ancient artefacts, special cultivation physiques, miracle pills, formidable techniques, and even ancient knowledge received directly from the remnant souls within!
After the news about these boons spread far and wide, the fact that many more stages existed beyond the Heaven Ascension Stage was no longer shrouded in uncertainty and had turned into a fact.
Therefore, to come as close as possible to the goal of finally breaking through to the Heaven Ascension stage, all the ancient ruins are regularly challenged by cultivators all around the continent.
Either on the behest of their clans, sects, or on their own accord.
However, just because they want to doesn’t mean that they can.
There are some ancient ruins that, along with having high difficulty to explore, also have certain strict restrictions."
When Gao Zhen arrived at this topic of restriction, she pointed towards the scroll that was lying on the table and said.
"The scroll in front of you talks about one such ancient ruins named the Sky Devouring Tomb, and it’s also the ruin for which I had approached Young Master Chen this morning."
Gao Zhen stated.
"I see..." Yi Chen answered with furrowed brows. He was still trying to process everything that Gao Zhen had just said.
’Knowledge from remnant souls?... existence of cultivators beyond the Heaven Ascension Stage?... Just who should I believe right now?’
He was struggling with accepting what was just told to him by Gao Zhen.
Accepting it would mean that Feng Yu was wrong, and rejecting it would mean that the whole light continent was wrong.
While he was stuck in this moral dilemma, Gao Zhen’s voice suddenly entered his ears.
"Is Young Master Chen reconsidering his decision right now?" Gao Zhen asked with a worried expression on her face.
"A-ah, no, I was still mulling over what Madam Gao had stated earlier. Please continue," Yi Chen said while gesturing with his hands.
"That’s a relief," Gao Zhen said with a relieved expression on her face.
Although she had previously stated that she wouldn’t mind if Yi Chen rejected her request earlier, her current actions were clearly done to add passive pressure on him.
The next second, she said, "The Sky Devouring Tomb, which I just mentioned, is a unique one among the many ruins that are available on the continent.
The reason is its entry requirements.
Almost all the other ancient ruins are filled with such great dangers that the minimum requirement to explore them is mostly above the Qi Absorption Stage.
However, it’s only the Sky Devouring Tomb which is different in this aspect.
It not only allows Meridian Refinement Stage experts to enter but also restricts anyone beyond the Meridian Refinement Stage from entering it.
This had made many believe that it might just house great treasures, that it might just hold the clue to successfully breaking through the Heavenly Ascension Stage.
Thanks to this, many clans and sects actively send their experts every year to explore the Sky Devouring Tomb, only for most of them to end up dying in vain, leaving the tomb still vastly unexplored.
Observing Yi Chen’s attentive expression, Gao Zhen continued after a pause.
Those who had managed to reach the farthest were a team consisting of a few Ninth Meridian Refinement Stage cultivators, and the scroll placed in front of you is a written record by the sole survivor of that team.
"This..."
Yi Chen’s breathing momentarily paused when he heard this, as his eyes fell on the barely legible characters that the scroll was filled with.
The previous frustration he felt when he glanced at those words was no longer present in his face, and instead, it was replaced with a thoughtful expression.
’Just what mental agony did he go through inside to write in such a manner...’
"Just like you’ve guessed," Gao Zhen nodded when she saw his changing expression and continued, "the man wasn’t in the right mental state when he wrote this...and had even ended his own life a few months later.
However, much of the information in this scroll has been confirmed by other cultivators in the recent entries, so it can be trusted."
As she said that, Gao Zhen slowly reached for the scroll and started rolling it up.
Putting the rolled scroll aside the table, she finally glanced towards Yi Chen.
"So, would Young Master Chen like to accompany us inside. Although I don’t want to pressure you, with your addition, the chances of our succeeding within the tomb will greatly increase!"
Gao Zhen said with an expectant look in her eyes, the next moment.
When Yi Chen heard her, two questions immediately arose in his mind, which gave rise to a strong frown on his forehead.
The next second, he asked.
"From ’accompany us’ does Madam Gao mean that you will also be entering the Sky Devouring Tomb?"
Gao Zhen made an expression as if it was only natural and said, "Of course, since it’s a task which I want to do, it’s only natural to accompany my team inside, isn’t it?"
She asked back with a playful expression.
"No, I didn’t mean it in that way," Yi Chen shook his head and said, "Madam Gao had just mentioned that the Tomb restricts anyone beyond the Meridian Refinement Stage from entering, so how could..."
Yi Chen’s words saw an understanding expression in Gao Zhen’s eyes the next moment.
"Ah, that," Gao Zhen raised her brows in realisation and said with a smirk, "I have my means, Young Master Chen."
"Ah..." Seeing that Gao Zhen was unwilling to answer him fully, Yi Chen could only nod his head.
"You still haven’t answered my previous question, Young Master Chen," Gao Zhen reminded him the next second with her unwavering gaze directed towards him.
