Chapter 1985: Cultivating in the Spirit Gate
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“Yes, the Domain Chief’s Manor.” The Millet Emperor nodded at Ye Futian. “Donghua Domain Chief’s Manor oversees the entire domain. Virtuosos can be found everywhere in the manor. While the manor naturally does not nurture practitioners, it will continuously absorb virtuosos into their ranks to increase their strength. Only then will they have the ability to control all the factions.
“With your current abilities, you definitely are eligible to join the Domain Chief’s Manor and become their member. Any faction in the Divine Prefecture will hesitate before attempting to do you any harm.”
Ye Futian nodded. According to what he knew, the older brother of the king of the Golden Divine Nation of the Original Realm was a subordinate of Donghuang the Great. Of course, there would be many people who worked under the chief of the Domain Chief’s Manor.
The Millet Emperor now understood Ye Futian’s circumstance from listening to the Donglai Goddess. He had two reasons for giving this suggestion. First, it was for Ye Futian’s sake. With a powerful faction backing him, all antagonistic factions would think twice before doing him any harm. Second, it was for the Eastern Deity Island’s sake. If Ye Futian managed to gain influence in the Domain Chief’s Manor, Eastern Deity Island would also be a lot more stable, and the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family would not dare to act rashly.
Furthermore, given Ye Futian’s display of his extraordinary combat abilities, there was a high chance that he would become a member of the upper echelons in the Domain Chief’s Manor.
While Ye Futian was inclined to take up this suggestion, he was still a little hesitant. With his origin still a mystery, he was unsure of his position. Even though Donghuang Princess had saved his life once, Donghuang the Great still bore a grudge against Emperor Ye Qing…
The Millet Emperor continued, “However, you need not think about this now. Your combat abilities far surpass your cultivation level. Now you are only at the fourth Renhuang level. If you can raise your cultivation to the pinnacle of the middle-level Renhuang level, no one can threaten you unless they are really at the pinnacle of the Renhuang level. If you can further raise your cultivation to a high-level Renhuang level with a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel, there won’t be many people who can even touch you in the entire Divine Prefecture.” Even though there were several exceptional characters in the Divine Prefecture, considering the size of the Divine Prefecture, the ratio was miniscule.
The Divine Prefecture had infinite continents. In contrast, just how many exceptional characters were there?
Apart from this special class of practitioners, only high-level Renhuangs with a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel could pose a threat to a Ye Futian, who had attained a high-level Renhuang cultivation level. Furthermore, they had to be at least a level-eight Renhuang. These people would already be considered the cream of the crop.
Of course, this was only with the premise that Ye Futian would break through to a high-level Renhuang while retaining the perfection of his Great Path.
“I understand. However, cultivation isn’t something that is completed in a single act. Thus, I can only learn through trials that I encounter as I tour the entire Divine Prefecture, and raise my cultivation as I train myself,” Ye Futian said.
“Mmm.” The Millet Emperor nodded. “Continuously shutting yourself off from the rest of the world to cultivate is indeed pointless. Moreover, the cultivation of one’s Great Path requires one to travel abroad to feel and comprehend the Great Path. Before you have attained a sufficient depth of understanding, you should not rush to raise your level. In particular, you should avoid using elixirs to attain a breakthrough. Only by doing so will your Great Path foundation be stable. The opportunity that you encountered on the Eastern Deity Island that strengthened your life force was, in fact, the origin of all life. It’s the same thing with the Path of Heaven and Earth. Only if your foundation is stable can you progress smoothly. Even though you inherited the ability to refine elixirs, don’t over-rely on the elixirs’ powers to raise your cultivation level. Especially those who forcefully raise their cultivation through ingesting elixirs… Their foundation of their Great Path is damaged. Even if it is not noticeable from the surface, it is very different for you. You are looking to forge a Perfect Grade Divine Wheel, so you cannot even take a single misstep. Only then can you maintain your perfect Great Path.”
Ye Futian listened on quietly. The Millet Emperor was giving him advice, afraid that he would take the wrong path.
“Before I became a high-level Renhuang, my Divine Wheel was perfect. However, after that, I was a little too impatient in my cultivation and was too hasty in leveling up. Even though my consciousness was calm and stable, there was still a wisp of impulsiveness in me, and I overestimated my own abilities. This caused flaws to form in my Great Path when I ascended to the high-level Renhuang level, and my cultivation thereafter was affected.”
Even though he was very calm when recounting his past, if he were given a chance to go back into the past, he would certainly pay even more attention to the foundation of his Great Path and would rather make a breakthrough at a later time.
“I will remember your words earnestly.” Ye Futian bowed lightly. The memories of the Donglai Supreme Deity believed the same thing. He inferred this because the elixirs that the Supreme Deity refined weren’t ones that directly helped him to attain breakthroughs. Rather, they were elixirs that helped stabilize his foundation further, strengthen his body, nurture his lifeforce, and raise his sensitivity to the Great Path. This was all so that he could feel the Great Path even more closely.
In the past, when he helped Emperor Helian broke through, the elixirs that he refined were also of the same type. He helped Emperor Helian avoid destabilizing his foundation in his haste to pursue success and thus avoid the tragedy of a cultivation breakthrough at the expense of future progress.
Of course, as for the elixirs that helped one to break through one’s bottleneck, he prescribed them to those who had reached the limit of their cultivation. They already knew that they did not have the ability to level up any further. To them, when any further progress was hopeless, any step forward was a step up. Even if they had to rely on elixirs and pills to do it, it was still better than no progress at all.
At that moment, the Millet Emperor turned around and said to Ye Futian, “Follow me.”
Ye Futian nodded and followed behind the Millet Emperor toward Wangshen Watchtower. It stood straight between heaven and earth. The Donglai Goddess and the rest stood there silently and watched. It seemed that the Millet Emperor wanted Ye Futian to cultivate in the Wangshen Watchtower.
Ye Futian had inherited everything her father had left behind and had even displayed such prowess. The Millet Emperor was naturally very impressed by him and wanted to help him in his cultivation to reach even greater heights.
This Wangshen Watchtower was a mystical object in the world of cultivation. It had amassed the fortune of the world. In the Dongxiao Continent, there were many rumors regarding this “Wangshen Watchtower.” Many people believed that it was merely a watchtower that had become renowned because of the Millet Emperor. In reality, it was truly a “Spirit Gate.” [1]
Ye Futian followed the Millet Emperor to the front of Wangshen Watchtower. The World Tree in his body swayed and emitted a crisp sound, as though it were trying to break out from his body. In the past few years, Ye Futian had also encountered a few similar incidences. The objects that could cause the World Tree in his body to behave in such a manner were all divine objects.
His eyes followed the Watchtower up into the skies above and saw that this Spiritual Gate seemed to be one with the Path of the Heavens, as though it were the Great Path itself. This space that he was in seemed to be different from the space below the watchtower; this space was separate from the rest of the world.
“Can you feel it?” the Millet King asked Ye Futian.
“It is the Great Path of Sealing,” Ye Futian replied.
“Mmm.” The Millet King nodded. “I noticed that you are also well-versed in the Great Path of Suppression. The power of the divine elephant is extremely domineering and can suppress an entire space. This watchtower here has an extremely ancient history. Legends say that this divine object is a treasure from the ages before the collapse of the Heavenly Path. Some legends say that this watchtower used to be a stone gate guarding the entrance to the Heavenly Realm. By a stroke of luck, it ended up in my possession. It might be because I happen to be familiar with a very similar type of power as well. However, even after countless years, I am unable to refine it fully. Perhaps only a divine being could fully refine a divine object.
“Why don’t you give it a try?” the Millet Emperor asked Ye Futian. Wangshen Watchtower stood just ahead. It seemed to be so close to them, yet, in reality, they were still some distance away. It was like an otherworldly gate; its aura was very pressurizing, and even with a glance, one could sense its solemn, ancient aura.
Ye Futian stepped forward towards it, and an impossibly heavy pressure of the Great Path pressed onto his body. That power felt like the heavens were pressing down on him.
The watchtower seemed to be just in front of him, yet it wasn’t easy to reach it.
Bang. A low sound echoed out, and Ye Futian’s footsteps became heavier. At that moment, he felt that everything around him had disappeared. In his senses, there was no Millet Emperor, no cultivation court. There was only that Spirit Gate.
“Divine objects encompass the most original power of the Great Path, the purest form of power,” Ye Futian chanted in his heart. The space here seemed to have morphed into a separate domain, isolated from the rest of the world. He stood at the top of the Spirit Gate that seemed to peek into the heavens. From above the Spirit Gate, the force of the Great Path pressed down on him like the weight of the heavens was compressing him. With each step he took forward, he felt the pressure on him increase.
Furthermore, an illusion seemed to be presenting itself to Ye Futian. In his mind, the Spirit Gate seemed to be getting taller, as though it were becoming a true Heavenly Tower.
If I cultivated the Great Path of Suppression here, I would definitely progress at an incredible rate, a thought surfaced in Ye Futian’s mind. “This was the purest power of the Great Path. How high must my cultivation level be if I wanted to step into the Wangshen Watchtower?”
Ye Futian continued forward, and it seemed like he had walked for a very long time. His footsteps became slower, and it seemed like he could never reach the end. After some time, he finally stopped to sit down and began cultivating.
Not far away, the Millet Emperor and the rest observed Ye Futian quietly. The Donglai Goddess walked to the Millet Emperor and asked, “Uncle Millet, what happened to him?”
The Ye Futian now seemed to be acting strangely.
“The Spirit Gate forms its own dimension around itself. He had already reached the center of the Great Path of the Spirit Gate,” the Millet Emperor replied. “He might cultivate for quite some time in there, so there is no need to be concerned for him.”
“Mmm.” The Donglai Goddess nodded. The Alchemy Emperor also looked ahead. Ye Futian was powerful, and he had pretty good luck, too, for the Millet Emperor to allow him to cultivate under this divine object. This divine object was the Millet Emperor’s personal cultivation grounds; only those for whom he had the highest hopes could enter.
“Now that he is here, what are your plans?” the Millet Emperor looked at the Donglai Goddess.
“It is time for me to return,” the Donglai Goddess said.
“The Great Yan Ancient Royal Family will probably target here and not pay as much attention to the Eastern Deity Island. If they wanted to act, they would not provoke me through the Eastern Deity Island because it is just not worth it. If they really acted, it would be directed towards him or you.” The Millet Emperor looked at the Ye Futian in front and said, “In that case, why don’t you stay here and cultivate as well. You can bring him to the Donghua Heavens next time. With your strength, there aren’t that many people from the Great Yan who can defeat you.”
The Donglai Goddess let out a thoughtful expression. The Eastern Deity Island was of little value to the Great Yan Ancient Royal Family, and they couldn’t care less about it. With Ye Futian emerging from the Eastern Deity Island, they could deal with Ye Futian directly if they wanted to deal with the Eastern Deity Island. They did not have to attack the Eastern Deity Island and provoke the Millet Emperor!
[1]: This is a play on words by the author. In the original language: “Wangshen Watchtower” is pronounced as “Wangshenque.” The last two characters are the same as “Shenque,” which is translated to “Spirit Gate,” a pressure point in Traditional Chinese Medicine.