Chapter 1296
Chapter 1296:
Right, right. I think we have possibly found a treasure this time. Little Ao Jiao nodded vigorously, her smiling face filled with anticipation.
After not obtaining anything in the ten half-step-Martial-Emperor-level forbidden lands, the two were very dispirited. The sudden discovery naturally excited them.
After observing for a long time, Xiao Chen saw that all the ice fish that ate were at ease and relaxed, not worried at all.
He made up his mind and silently swam over. However, he remained cautious, not lowering his guard in the slightest.
The patch of water plants seemed to stretch out endlessly. Xiao Chen appeared as insignificant as an ant among them. He looked carefully and found that the roots of the water plants did not pierce the ice but connected with each other, intertwining in an incredibly complex manner.
However, Ao Jiao did not show as much concern as Xiao Chen did. She had already come out and was using a jade bottle to gather all these dewdrops, happily keeping herself busy.
If only Little Yellow Feather were here. As Xiao Chen watched Ao Jiao's figure, he could not help thinking this.
Unfortunately, such a legendary thing like the Solar Divine Flame had disappeared long ago.
Ao Jiao, do you know what this is? Xiao Chen asked after he collected his thoughts and gently swam over.
Hehe! I don't know, Ao Jiao replied without even turning her head back. Collecting these cold light dewdrops was even more difficult than collecting mountain dew; it required absolute focus.
Xiao Chen smiled and said, You don't even know, and yet you are so happy about gathering it.
Idiot. Have you not notice the special properties of these dewdrops? They are cold, extremely cold. If we can get enough of these dewdrops, they would be a more suitable quenching liquid than any other liquid.
Quenching liquid!
This was a step that the forging of any weapon could not skip. Only when Ao Jiao reminded him did he remember it.
It was no wonder. Ao Jiao was gathering all the materials needed for forging a Divine Weapon. Given that, she would definitely think of this ahead of Xiao Chen.
"When using these dewdrops as a quenching liquid, the quality of the Divine Weapon should be increased by at least thirty percent."
When Ao Jiao said that, Xiao Chen's expression immediately turned joyful, and he joined her in collecting.
This was indeed an unexpected harvest. Although Xiao Chen did not find a Magic Skill, the mysterious dew water that he obtained could greatly increase the chances of the Lunar Shadow Saber making it into the Divine Weapon Ranking.
Although collecting this dew was problematic, one would become accustomed to the process with some practice.
An idea occurred to Xiao Chen. He spread out his Saber Domain. Instantly, the area within one kilometer of him was within his grasp. Under his control, the tiny dewdrops headed for the jade bottle in his hand and entered it like bullets falling inside.
This was a very simple and direct method. However, Ao Jiao did not like it. She preferred collecting them drop by drop, which gave her a certain sense of accomplishment.
As the two happily worked, they did not notice that the many ice fish left despite not having had their fill yet.
Xiao Chen, we should have gotten enough dewdrops already, Ao Jiao said with a smile as she held her own bottle.
Xiao Chen glanced at the boundless patch of water plants. He smiled and said, There is no rush. This is a great treasure trove. We have not collected even a ten-thousandth of it yet.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Just at this moment, the water plants under them suddenly moved, springing up like a fishing net. Before the two could react, their arms and legs became tangled in the water plants, continuously being pulled up.
Xiao Chen's expression changed drastically. He did not hurry to struggle free. Instead, he shouted to Ao Jiao, Quickly, come back in!
Light flashed. Ao Jiao turned into a bright beam of light and entered the Lunar Shadow Saber.
Now, Xiao Chen relaxed and calmly observed his current situation. The water plants, which covered a vast area spanning more than several thousand kilometers, had turned into a net moving upwards.
"Break!"
The situation was urgent. Xiao Chen gathered all the saber intent in the Saber Domain. Then, he held the Lunar Shadow Saber in a reverse grip and swung it towards his left.
However, to his surprise, while the water plants were not tough, they possessed unimaginable resilience.
After spending a long time, Xiao Chen managed to struggle free of the water plants. However, he was now completely surrounded.
The water plants layered thickly over each other. If he wanted to charge out, he would have to break through layer after later, continuously chopping them apart.
The surroundings were filled with water plants that had dewdrops hanging on them. When those dewdrops combined, they became light flames.
This is troublesome. Am I going to die here?
Xiao Chen tried several times. However, he discovered that no matter what, he could not break through all the water plants in one breath and make an opening.
As for tearing space, this cold water seemed to have a strange suppressive power, rendering the space here even stabler than the Kunlun Realm's.
I can only use that move, Xiao Chen thought. That move was to focus everything in the Saber Domain on the saber.
However, Xiao Chen had never succeeded even once before. He was not confident of using it at this crucial point.
Xiao Chen, don't panic. Above. There is an exit above.
At the critical moment, Xiao Chen heard Ao Jiao's voice.
That was right. The water plants were soaring upwards from the ice layer and closing up. However, as long as they had not closed completely, there would be an exit above.
Pressed for time, Xiao Chen executed his Movement Technique to the limits. He turned into a purple lightning dragon and soared up.
Right before the water plants completely closed up, Xiao Chen managed to escape narrowly. Then, he landed heavily on the ice layer.
The Lunar Shadow Saber could not stab into the ice. Due to the lack of friction, he slid back one kilometer before he could perform a somersault and come to a stop.
Xiao Chen held his saber and stood upright. Even though he felt fatigued, he did not relax after managing to escape alive. Instead, he looked to the front warily.
The water plant that originally covered the ice layer disappeared. In its place was an extremely tall and gargantuan water plant.
The water plant was more than ten kilometers tall. Its roots of unknown thickness stabbed deep into the ice as the plant stood tall.
The entire surface of the water plant flowed with a vague fiery light.
When billions of these mysterious dewdrops combined, they actually formed a horrifying ice flame.
This also explained why Xiao Chen and Ao Jiao did not manage to gather a flame even after collecting so many dewdrops. They were still severely short in number.
What is this flame? Why do I feel that it is even stronger than the Lunar True Flame? Ao Jiao had a strange look in her eyes, appearing confused.
Flames could be categorized into Yin and Yang. Of the Yin flames, the Lunar True Flame was the top one without a doubt.
However, before the primal chaos split and the distinction between Yin and Yang arose, there had to have been flames in the universe as well.
This mysterious flame should be a flame from the primal chaos of the universe. Its rank should not be lower than the Lunar True Flame's.
As for this flame's name, Xiao Chen did not know. That was something from far too long ago. There were no longer any flames of this universal level.
Xiao Chen only knew some scattered pieces of information that he had read in some extremely ancient books.
He looked at his feet. His Lunar Shadow Saber could not even split the thick layer of ice. He guessed that this place had a flame seed.
This was a flame seed that the Sky Dome Immortal Lord personally found in the universe during the Immortal Epoch.
This water plant was a mysterious item from the Immortal Epoch as well. To think that it could actually grow into such a large water plant on this ice! Just from this, it was clear how extraordinary it was.
Good, good, good! Although I did not find a Magic Skill, today's harvest is even better than finding a Magic Skill!
Excitement and incomparable joy burned in Xiao Chen's eyes.
However, the problem now was how to deal with this. Regardless of the water plant or the flame seed that was hidden somewhere, neither was easy to handle.
Xiao Chen, what should we do?! Ao Jiao asked with some dissatisfaction as she flew out and looked at the mysterious water plant.
The sight of an unobtainable treasure was truly hard to bear.
When faced with Ao Jiao's question, Xiao Chen had no ideas, either. There is no rush. We should just take this slowly. The water plant should open on its own. When it does, I will think of something. Going over now is too dangerous.
After some thought, Xiao Chen tossed the Lunar Shadow Saber at the ice where the root of the water plant was.
This throw looked casual. However, in reality, he put in all his effort to drive his remaining Primordial Energy, gathering it in the saber.
Before Xiao Chen's gaze of anticipation, the instant the Lunar Shadow Saber moved, it gave off an unparalleledly sharp saber intent and stabbed in about five centimeters.
Let's go!
Xiao Chen only wanted to leave a mark. Now that he succeeded, that was fine.
He truly relaxed only after he completely left the water.
After dropping to the ground, Xiao Chen lay there, resting. Both times he entered the water, he had gotten scared half to death. Just one simple forbidden land had drained him so much.
"What a pretty flower bud!"
In a half-awake state, Xiao Chen heard Ao Jiao's gentle cry and quickly opened his eyes.
He saw many translucent golden branches about one-millimeter thick appearing at the center of the lake. At the tips of the branches were small, exquisite flower buds. The flower buds were a faint white, and their stalks seemed very thin. There were thousands of them looking like snowflakes, pure and pretty.
After the gargantuan water plant came out of the lake, it actually displayed such a scene.
A thought flashed in Xiao Chen's head, banishing all his sleepiness, and he stood up.
Back at Heavenly Star Island, Xiao Chen had read some Buddhist canons for the sake for dealing with the fake Buddhist sect that the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva supported.
This flower bud seemed to be one of Buddhism's three holy flowers, the Udumbara Flower. The other two were the Brahmin Bodhi Flower and Asura Lotus Flower.
Putting aside what these three Buddhist holy flowers meant and the various myths and legends behind them, they all had many miraculous uses.
There was a saying, a lotus was good for cultivation, and a bodhi was good for comprehension and wisdom. When a fig flower appeared, a holy king would appear.
[TL Note: The udumbara is a type of fig.]
The first two segments were easy to understand. By cultivating on a lotus flower, one could raise one's cultivation. Sitting under a bodhi raised one's comprehension ability, allowing one to achieve more with less effort.
When a fig flower appeared, there would be instant youth. A holy king would undergo nirvanic rebirth. In other words, the blossoming of the flower meant rebirth, equal to having another life.
"It turns out that it is an Udumbara Flower seed under the ice. No wonder it can penetrate the ice and fill such a vast area."
Xiao Chen's expression turned incredibly grave at this moment. No matter what, he had to obtain this seed.
If it really had the effect of rebirth, then no matter how difficult his Great Tribulation of wind and fire was, he would be very confident of clearing it. However, even after doing everything he could, he only penetrated about five centimeters into the ice. He would not be able to dig out the Udumbara Flower seed.