Aspiring to the Immortal Path

Chapter 822: Darkness

In a multicolored burst of light, Tang Jie appeared in the subterranean world beneath the Verdant Cloud Domain.

This was a spacious valley surrounded by high and barren walls. Right in the middle of the valley was a giant teleportation formation.

Tang Jie stood in the center of this formation.

Looking around, he saw the sprawling mountains of the Five Elements forbidden zone, as well as that pillar of fire rising to the heavens.

Everything was like before, as if nothing had happened.

Tang Jie, who had already prepared himself for the worst, couldn't help but be stunned by the sight.

Had Ice Phoenix not fallen into demonhood because of that earlier incident? Was Immortal Ji Yao still imprisoned?

If that was the case, then there could still be a chance.

Tang Jie couldn't help but get a little excited.

He flew toward the demon cave and found that the entire region was still the same, awash in demon fog, the golden talisman floating high over the mountain. Nothing had changed, and even that row of small buildings was still there.

Tang Jie sighed in relief.

At this moment, a person came out of a building, wearing white robes and holding a zither, her eyes like stars: Ice Phoenix.

As Ice Phoenix raised her head and spotted Tang Jie, delight appeared in her eyes. "Big Brother Tang Jie, you're here!"

Putting down the zither, she swiftly walked over to Tang Jie.

Seemingly going too fast, when she reached Tang Jie, she actually tripped, her body falling toward him.

Tang Jie grabbed her, and Ice Phoenix's body fell into his embrace. Tang Jie wanted to push her away, but then he recalled the Azure Dragon's words, which robbed this push of strength. Thus, the beauty fell onto his chest, and time seemed to stop.

The two of them said nothing, one leaning against the other.

Seemingly unable to endure this awkward stalemate, Ice Phoenix blushed, and she mumbled, "Big Brother Tang…"

Tang Jie responded, "Have you been well?"

Ice Phoenix's face turned bitter. "After Brother Tang's rebuke, Phoenix thought that she wouldn't get the chance to see Big Brother anymore, and my heart was wracked by grief and pain. I thought that Big Brother wouldn't come to see me anymore, so when you suddenly came back, Phoenix forgot herself and acted rudely. Brother Tang, please forgive me for this."

She extracted herself from Tang Jie's embrace, clearly recalling Tang Jie's previous attitude to her.

Tang Jie sighed. "I was very rude to you last time. Everything is fine so long as you're okay."

"Could anything worse have happened to me? When you left, I was so furious that I almost fell victim to corruption. It took so long for me to recover…" She began to silently weep. Pushing at Tang Jie, she said, "Just go already. There's no need to come and taunt me."

Tang Jie hadn't expected this reply from her, shamefully saying, "In the end, I let you down."

He had come with a heroic resolve, ready to sacrifice himself, but all he had found was a resentful girl. All of his meticulous plans became useless, and he became distracted and hesitant.

Ice Phoenix darkly said, "I was too impulsive last time, so don't blame yourself. I've learned my lesson, so there's no need for you to apologize. Right, last time, you said that your battle with that Jewel Immortal Sovereign would be soon. Is it already done now?"

She put on a happy face and changed the subject. Tang Jie also showed tact, nodding and saying, "I was fortunate enough to win."

"That's good," Ice Phoenix happily said. Then her face dimmed once more. "That must have been a wonderful battle. Alas, I couldn't bear witness to it, couldn't support you from the sidelines."

"It's not like you weren't allowed," Tang Jie said. "You could have come to Rosecloud."

In the past, Tang Jie definitely wouldn't have invited her.

But now, Ice Phoenix was cultivating the Iceheart Jade Lady Mantra with Immortal Ji Yao and was in danger of suffering backlash from demon energy, so Tang Jie naturally wanted to persuade her to leave this place.

"Go to the Rosecloud Domain?" Ice Phoenix's eyes lit up. But then she shook her head. "To do what? To see that Xu Miaoran of yours?"

Tang Jie froze.

Ice Phoenix continued, "Actually, I've wanted to leave the Verdant Cloud Domain for a long time now. I want to leave this small world and see what other domains are like. The Great Stellar Chiliocosm is vast, so why should I be penned up in a small place like this? Alas, so long as the Domain Astral Winds are present, I can't leave. The only place that I can go, the Rosecloud Domain, has the person I want to see the least…"

Tang Jie was going to say, "You might not see Xu Miaoran even if you do go." But then he recalled that since Xu Miaoran was so famous now, even if she couldn't see her, she would at least hear her name, which might be enough to make her unhappy. Rather than going to just get upset, it would be best not to go.

Thus, Tang Jie also began to hesitate.

Ice Phoenix said, "If only this teleportation formation could go to other domains."

Tang Jie's eyes brightened. "It's not impossible."

Teleportation formations could go to many locations. All that was needed was a set of coordinates.

Tang Jie currently only knew the coordinates for Rosecloud and Blood River.

He was just about to ask if Ice Phoenix wanted to go to Blood River when he suddenly recalled that Xu Miaoran also occasionally appeared there, so he couldn't bring himself to ask.

But Ice Phoenix herself asked, "Then can you set the teleportation formation to lead to the Vast Wilderness?"

'The Vast Wilderness'?

Tang Jie was startled.

Ice Phoenix nodded. "Master once said to me that the land there is extensive and abundant in resources, that it's the number one world of the Great Stellar Chiliocosm. There are countless powerhouses cultivating there, possessing all kinds of powerful abilities. Worlds like the Rosecloud Domain are nothing more than a village to worlds like the Vast Wilderness or Primordial Fog."

'A village'.

Tang Jie's mind was in turmoil.

What sort of place was that, to receive such praise?

Ice Phoenix grabbed Tang Jie's hand. "Let's go to the Vast Wilderness!"

Tang Jie bitterly smiled. "I'd like to take a look, but I don't even know where it is."

"Silly," Ice Phoenix chuckled. "You don't know, but I do. Master told me the coordinates to a High Antiquity teleportation formation there. All you need to do is adjust the teleportation formation to link them up, and then we can head off to the Vast Wilderness."

Tang Jie was tempted by the offer.

If he really could go to the Vast Wilderness, then he was happy to, so he agreed.

Thus, Tang Jie began to modify the teleportation formation.

The modifications weren't difficult. It was just adding another set of coordinates. Since it was already an extreme long-distance teleportation formation, distance wasn't a problem. He just needed some new materials, but they weren't too hard to find.

For this, Tang Jie left the subterranean space and took a trip to the surface.

On the surface, all was well in the Verdant Cloud Domain, with no news of any massacres, setting Tang Jie at ease.

He went straight to the capital of Fengshan and went to see Feng Wuxiang.

A few years ago, Feng Wuxiang had broken through into Deification and could now break through the Domain Astral Winds to wander the cosmos. But to protect this human country, Feng Wuxiang had chosen to remain as the guardian god for Verdant Cloud's humans.

Feng Wuxiang was delighted to hear of Tang Jie's visit, going out personally to see him. But when he saw that Tang Jie had already entered Deification, he froze.

After a while, he bitterly smiled. "As expected of a young hero. Tang Jie, your rate of progress is truly exceptional."

The two chatted for an entire day and night.

Several dozen days later, Tang Jie returned to the underground with the materials he needed.

Ice Phoenix went up to greet him, asking, "Well? Did you find all the materials?"

"They're all here," Tang Jie answered with a smile.

"That's good." Ice Phoenix clapped her hands in glee.

"But based on what Master's wife said before, the Vast Wilderness is a place where Violet Palace experts are like dogs and Immortal Platform experts can be seen wherever you look. A little Soul Transformation expert like you might not even be able to deal with a bandit. Are you sure you want to go?" Tang Jie asked.

Ice Phoenix rolled her eyes. "That's all just exaggerated nonsense. While there are more Violet Palace and Immortal Platform experts in the Vast Wilderness, the basic tier system is still maintained, with fewer people at the higher realms than the lower ones. Thus, while there are more Violet Palace and Immortal Platform experts there, there are also more Mortal Shedding and Celestial Heart cultivators. Violet Palace and Immortal Platform cultivators are still great powers that mortals barely get the chance to see, not something you can just randomly run across. And they certainly wouldn't become bandits."

Ice Phoenix covered her mouth and giggled, clearly amused by Tang Jie's words.

Tang Jie once more became embarrassed. "I'm just too dumb."

Ice Phoenix jabbed his forehead with a finger. "Silly! If you were dumb, then there's no one smart in the world. What are we wasting time chattering for? Hurry and modify the teleportation formation."

"Understood." Tang Jie set about making the changes.

While he was doing so, Ice Phoenix watched from the side.

She seemed to be very interested in formations, occasionally asking Tang Jie what this and that was for.

Tang Jie patiently explained all the functions and meanings for his arrangements, as if he had taken a disciple.

For this reason, a job that should have taken three days ended up taking two more on top.

On the sixth day, Tang Jie finally finished adding the new coordinates to the teleportation formation.

After doing this, he let out a breath. "Alright, it's finally done."

Ice Phoenix stared at the teleportation formation. "In other words, we can just activate the teleportation formation to reach the Vast Wilderness?"

"Correct! So long as the coordinates are correct," Tang Jie answered.

"Of course the coordinates are right. How could they be wrong?" Her eyes playfully gleamed, and then she coldly glared at Tang Jie.

Startled, Tang Jie cried out, "Ice Phoenix, you!"

"Shut your mouth! You're not fit to call my name!" Ice Phoenix roared.

Black energy surged out of her body, and she flew high into the sky.

Her snow-white robes turned purple, and thick purple-black demonic energy engulfed her. In a flash, she had gone from a pure snow fairy into a demonic banshee.

That woman wreathed in black energy bowed to the horizon, calling out, "Disciple Ice Phoenix has carried out Master's command and completed the mission."

"HAHAHAHA!" Crazed laughter rang out.

"Very good, my precious disciple!" A massive dark figure appeared in the distance.

Darkness instantly consumed the world.