"Tsk, Which question do you want me to answer first!" Liu Chuan's lazy voice drifted over through a sound transmission.
"Answer in order, thanks!" Jian Dan fought the urge to roll her eyes.
"The Immortal Realm's huge, at least a hundred times bigger than the Lingyun Continent. This little corner here, ruined as it is, how would I know where we are? Maybe once we reach the central region and run into real immortals, I'll be able to tell."
Jian Dan wasn't surprised. Liu Chuan always just followed his master, going wherever his master went. If the Immortal Realm was that vast, what he said made perfect sense.
"This is a fragment of the Immortal Realm, of course the Xianyuan force is thick here. Don't forget, I was born in the Immortal Realm. It's normal I can absorb it, and it helps me recover. As for the Mò Xī Jiàn and the Mó Yuè Zhǎn, both are ancient weapons, naturally they can draw on both spiritual power and Xianyuan force.
As for you, you're cultivating the Primordial Chaos Art. What can't it refine? The only issue is you don't have a true Immortal Realm cultivation method yet. Even so, you can still store some Xianyuan force in your meridians."
Jian Dan frowned slightly at that. "Won't the Xianyuan force clash with the spiritual energy already in my meridians?"
"No. The Xianyuan force just sinks into your meridians. Once you reach the Mahayana great perfection and ascend, all your spiritual energy will convert into Xianyuan force. Even then, it'll only barely fill a tenth of your dantian. You get it now?"
She understood instantly. It was like how in the Qi Refining stage, spiritual energy only counted as solid when it condensed into liquid to form the Foundation.
"I get it. So that means I can cultivate too?" Jian Dan couldn't help feeling excited.
"You're too bold. Without a method, you dare to mess around with cultivation? With your art pulling in force, the Xianyuan you keep will only be enough to open your storage bracelet and ring, and let your divine sense spread without getting affected. That's already the limit."
"So I can't cultivate on my own?"
"If you did, you'd rocket straight to Mahayana great perfection. Then what, you ascend now or not?" Liu Chuan honestly started doubting this woman's intelligence. Why was she so obsessed with rushing cultivation? Her progress was already insanely fast!
"Oh right, I forgot! You can't ascend from Lingyun Continent right now." Her excitement fizzled out, but quickly shifted into a grin. "Then that means when I fight, my life-bound sword can still channel Xianyuan attacks. And you can strike too, right?"
"You're a female cultivator, can you stop thinking about killing all day?"
"I'm a sword cultivator! Give me a straight answer, will you help me? I don't think those immortals in the central region will be easy to deal with."
"Just some Dixian, I can handle them. But for now, don't force me to fight. Let me use the Xianyuan force to recover."
"No problem. But we've still got to stay cautious. Even the weakest Dixian's still an immortal. We can't charge in blindly. Think about how many lives Jian Jun sacrificed to keep this fragile balance."
"You're too long-winded. If I really do act, I won't let them get a chance to send word."
"Alright, I believe you!"
Liu Chuan went silent after that. Jian Dan, however, felt more at ease. Her Purple Palace had expanded, meaning her strength had grown.
By dawn, everyone was full of energy and ready to move.
Jian Dan gathered them together and spoke calmly. "I can open my storage bracelet and storage ring now."
No one looked surprised. When she released Xiao Yue earlier, they already guessed as much.
Then she shared the decision she'd mulled over all night. "My Purple Palace has opened."
That announcement drew actual shock, followed by smiles.
"Congratulations, Junior Sister!"
The opening of the Purple Palace was the Heavens themselves recognizing a cultivator, a guaranteed sign of ascension. Jian Mao led the congratulations, the others bowing with smiles.
"It's thanks to all of you that I could achieve this." Her words were vague, but the others naturally linked it to her strange behavior since they'd entered the space rift.
"The situation before was too chaotic to check carefully, and it wasn't safe either. I only confirmed it last night."
"This is good news. It means we've got another trump card."
Kung Dao's eyes gleamed, and he bowed too. "Kung Dao swears to keep this secret. Heavenly Sword Sect, you have my word."
The Heavenly Sword Sect members were satisfied with his response.
Jian Dan wasn't worried. Kung Dao owed her a life. If he couldn't even keep this small secret, then she'd simply misjudged him. Once they left this place, she had plenty of ways to deal with him. By openly telling everyone, she was making sure no cracks formed in their team, since that'd only hurt their chances.
"Zūnshàng, their storage room still has a pile of items. Let's bring it along. We were regretting not being able to take those before!" Wu Siyuan chuckled.
Their storage treasures were already stuffed full. No one wanted to waste space on junk. But now, that problem was solved.
Jian Dan nodded, pulled out an empty storage ring, and swept half the cavern's contents inside.
Only then did Kung Dao wake Hu San and another captive.
"Let's go. Which group nearby is the biggest? We need to dig for news."
Hu San led the way reluctantly, muttering warnings. "The closest is Mao Wu's gang. If they see that wolf, they'll definitely try to snatch it. Their strength's way above ours!"
"How many people do they have?" Jian Xu asked.
"Almost fifty. They're the biggest team around here. Mao San's cruel, he loves torturing female cultivators." As he spoke, he glanced at Jian Dan and Jian Jing. Both were striking and sharp, the kind Mao San would definitely target.
"Is that so?" Jian Dan's tone was light, but her eyes were sharp.
"I swear, you'll know if you ask around!"
A faint gleam flashed in Jian Jing's eyes.
They moved out of the rift.
The moment Xiao Yue spotted Jian Dan, it stretched, shook out its fur, then shrank into a wolf cub and leapt straight into her arms. She smiled and stroked Xiao Yue, then signaled for Hu San and the other captive, who were staring at the wolf in awe, to lead the way.
The Heavenly Sword Sect group felt more at ease with Xiao Yue's transformation ability, like they'd gained another shield. They followed lightly behind.
"Where do they usually gather?"
"Across Greenfield Lake. Once we pass this ancient forest, you'll see it."
Jian Dan extended her divine sense, but when it reached Greenfield Lake, it hit resistance. She withdrew it instantly.
"We'll move closer first. Once we reach the forest edge, we'll send scouts to check ahead." She exchanged a glance with Jian Mao, who understood and told Hu San to keep leading.
Hu San didn't dare run. He knew the slightest wrong move would get him killed. Kung Dao stuck close to him on one side, ready to strike at the first sign of betrayal. The other captive trailed along on the other side, head down, too scared to even twitch.
The six Heavenly Sword Sect members kept their neat formation, their movements flowing like shadows through the towering trees. In less than an hour, they neared their destination.
"Hold it. There are hidden sentries ahead."