The void mirror gate to leave this plane wasn’t close, even with Lan Xiaobu’s Reincarnation Pot’s speed, it took nearly a year to reach the massive void mirror array gate.
This mirror array gate was entirely unlike the many void vortex gates Lan Xiaobu had seen before, though it was clearly a patch of void, the naked eye could seemingly glimpse several worlds within it, yet upon closer inspection, aside from the rippling, mysterious spatial rules, it seemed like nothing was there.
Even Lan Xiaobu couldn’t help but marvel, the vastness truly held billions of wondrous sights, if he hadn’t seen it himself, he’d struggle to imagine something like a void mirror gate existed.
It was as if, in this one spot, you could sense several distinct planes at once.
Of course, any void location, if torn open, could lead to different planes and realms, but that required immense supernatural power to rip the void apart, a place like this, where several planes were plainly visible, was rare indeed, even a mortal could see it clearly here.
Lan Xiaobu was about to call Zhi Yi, but she emerged on her own, from the joy in her eyes, he could tell her year-long seclusion had yielded great gains.
“Thanks to Brother Lan for the insight jade slip and the small Time Dao Scroll, I’ve benefited immensely,” Zhi Yi said, bowing in gratitude as soon as she appeared.
Lan Xiaobu waved it off, “You’ve helped me plenty too, it’s only fair I help you some.”
Zhi Yi knew in her heart, though, that her aid to Lan Xiaobu paled in comparison to what he’d done for her.
“Brother Lan, this void mirror gate can lead to three different planes…” Zhi Yi began explaining the gate.
A single void mirror gate connecting to multiple planes required a plane-breaking talisman to lock onto a specific direction, it reminded Lan Xiaobu of the Seven Realms Stone, the functions were similar, could this be a treasure too?
While he could scan the Seven Realms Stone with his divine sense, this void mirror gate defied his attempts, if he forced it, his divine sense would be shredded and devoured.
Lan Xiaobu sighed inwardly, he’d once thought, having mastered the Great Dao of Space, he could enter without a talisman, now he abandoned that idea, perhaps his spatial mastery meant he wouldn’t perish without one, but who could guarantee where he’d end up?
The vast cosmos, the boundless Dao, truly the stronger one cultivated, the more one felt their own shortcomings.
“Brother Lan, I’m going in, follow behind me and activate your talisman, once it’s triggered, we can’t control ourselves,” Zhi Yi said, holding a plane-breaking talisman and standing before the gate.
Lan Xiaobu nodded, pulling out his own talisman, “Got it, I understand.”
Zhi Yi knew Lan Xiaobu far outstripped her in strength, so she activated her talisman without hesitation, it flared with spatial light, whisking her toward one of the gate’s directions, vanishing instantly, Lan Xiaobu followed suit, activating his talisman and disappearing in the same direction.
Unlike Zhi Yi, though carried by the talisman, Lan Xiaobu could still slowly extend his divine sense, at first, it was indeed devoured, but once he condensed his own spatial rules around himself, he immediately sensed the shifting space.
Lan Xiaobu was elated, indeed, after refining his Dao, his spatial rules could stand apart from the vast cosmos, if he wished, he could halt mid-transit or even change course.
But the moment his divine sense stretched beyond his constructed rule-space, it was devoured again, he figured this was due to his Dao’s still-weak foundation, once it grew stronger, he could tear through the talisman’s transit space effortlessly without needing his own rule-space.
This was clearly an ultra-long-distance plane transfer, even wrapped in the talisman, Lan Xiaobu could distinctly feel time passing.
The talisman seemed to rip through realm after realm, half a month later, he finally felt the spatial transfer rules dissipate.
Extending his divine sense, he saw Zhi Yi in the distance, awake and searching for him, shortly after he spotted her, she saw him too, but he’d already summoned the Reincarnation Pot.
Zhi Yi landed on it, saying, “Brother Lan, I’ll guide us from here.”
Inwardly, she was stunned by his strength, she’d entered the mirror gate first, yet he’d woken before her.
“Fine, here’s the control flag, you steer my flight treasure,” Lan Xiaobu replied, handing her a flag without a hint of surprise.
For a cosmic sect like Zhi Yi’s, there’d surely be rules against giving outsiders their sect’s coordinates.
“Thanks, Brother Lan,” Zhi Yi said, deeply grateful for his understanding, taking the flag, she added, “I only roughly know the Beast Soul Dao’s direction, I’ll point it out for you later.”
“Sure, lead the way,” Lan Xiaobu said, now that they were here, as long as the Beast Soul Dao was in this plane, he was confident he’d find it.
With the Beast Soul Dao’s reputation, he doubted anyone wouldn’t know its location.
Zhi Yi’s control of the Reincarnation Pot wasn’t as fast as Lan Xiaobu’s, but with her Eighth-Turn Sage strength, even at a slower pace, it wasn’t sluggish.
Inside the pot, Lan Xiaobu began studying how to fuse his Dao Cocoon into the Longevity Halberd, his cocoon was a ruleless one, if he could integrate it, the halberd might gain a new ruleless technique.
Three months later, the pot stopped, Lan Xiaobu paused his refining research and stepped out.
In the distance, his divine sense picked up a brilliant blue planet.
“Brother Lan, this is where my sect, Li Zhou Palace, is located, I only know that from here, heading this way leads to the Beast Soul Dao’s planet,” Zhi Yi said, pointing in a direction.
She truly only knew this much, and only from her sect’s planet could she indicate the Beast Soul Dao’s position.
Lan Xiaobu thanked her, “Thanks, Friend Zhi, we’ll meet again.”
Zhi Yi bowed again, “Thank you, Brother Lan, for guiding my Dao and bringing me back to Li Zhou Palace.”
Riding the Reincarnation Pot saved her years of travel, what shamed her more was her lowly status in Li Zhou Palace, she didn’t even have the standing to invite Lan Xiaobu as a guest.
She might hold some rank in Tai Xu Hall, but in Li Zhou Palace, even those far below her in cultivation outranked her.
She had a nickname there, “Coward Sage,” earned from her extreme fear of death, always in seclusion, avoiding risky secret realm fights, fleeing at the first sign of danger, this time, if not for the Time Tree and her family’s survival, she wouldn’t have ventured out.
It had boosted her cultivation, avoiding death or rebirth, but lacking those trials, as an Eighth-Turn Sage, she couldn’t match some Sixth or Seventh-Turn Sages, leaving her low in Li Zhou Palace’s hierarchy.
Seeing Zhi Yi step off the pot, Lan Xiaobu couldn’t help saying, “Friend Zhi, your Dao is solid, and your comprehension is strong, in a peaceful cosmos that’d be fine, but here, it’s all competition and bloodshed, if your cultivation rises but your strength doesn’t keep up, your Dao won’t go far, if you’ve got rebirth ability, maybe take a few more risks.”
With that, he sped off in the Reincarnation Pot, he’d seen through Zhi Yi’s nature, decent, even kind, but far too timid, not just her Tai Xu Hall behavior, even now, parting ways, most would casually invite him over, she didn’t dare, showing her caution.
…
Zhi Yi watched the pot fade into the distance, feeling ashamed, she knew her own flaws, unworthy of Lan Xiaobu’s aid.
Gathering herself, she sighed, summoned a flight treasure, and headed for Li Zhou Palace.
The planet’s defensive array was formidable, only native-born cultivators could enter without escort, the array fused with their blood and soul essence, even seizing a native’s body wouldn’t grant access.
Her ship landed on the void plaza outside the planet, she noticed an unusual number of ships docked there.
Though Li Zhou Palace’s planet had many residents, few ventured out, so the plaza was usually sparse, today’s crowded scene was rare.
“Coward Sage’s back, huh, not keen on going out, but quick to return,” a light chuckle came.
Zhi Yi didn’t need to turn to know it was Cai Gu Yuan, a Seventh-Turn Sage and fellow elder, far outranking her, despite her Eighth-Turn status, she couldn’t match Cai Gu Yuan’s strength.
“Sister Zhi, perfect timing, I sent you messages, you never replied,” a crisp voice called, a young girl at the God-Unification Realm approached.
“Yiya, why are you here? What’s with the messages?” Zhi Yi asked, delighted.
Yiya, with her delicate features, looked seventeen or eighteen, she hurried to Zhi Yi’s side, whispering, “The Time Tree contest got moved up, if you hadn’t returned, you’d have missed it.”
“Ah…” Zhi Yi gasped, now understanding Cai Gu Yuan’s displeasure at her return.
