Nine Transformations of the True Spirit.

Chapter 1109 Waiting

Seven days later, the three parted ways, having had their fun. Chen Yuan and Elder Yuan bid farewell to Wei Wushang and returned to Tongtian Island.

Cultivators and mortals perceive time differently, especially high-level cultivators at the Integration Realm.

Seven days and seven nights were just a blink of an eye for the three of them. They exchanged cultivation experiences and talked about interesting things they had seen and heard over the long years.

When Chen Yuan went to Duobaoge to inquire about the True Spirit Blood, he had heard of the Donghua Auction House, but he didn't know much about it. This time, he learned most of it from Wei Wushang and Elder Yuan.

Auctions are held in various spiritual domains of the Spirit Realm, but the Donghua Auction is one of the most famous auctions on the Star Ruins Continent. When it is held, cultivators from other spiritual domains and even the continent come to participate.

This is because the Tai Xuan Sect uses the power of the Myriad Stars Disc to open up spatial channels and conquer other worlds, unlike other sects that have to borrow the power of the Tai Xu Jun Tian Axe every time they conquer other worlds.

The Tai Xuan Sect submits far fewer treasures and cultivation resources to the Fa Tian Pavilion; the remaining portion is auctioned off at the Donghua Auction House to attract cultivators from all over.

In the past, other Mahayana sects on the Star Ruins Continent would also use the power of the Myriad Stars Disc to conquer other worlds and give some treasures to the Tai Xuan Sect.

The Donghua Auction House boasts even more rare and precious treasures, and each auction is a grand event in Donghua City, attracting cultivators from other continents.

However, it is likely that in recent years, in preparation for building a city on Turtle Island, Master Fu has not lent out the Myriad Stars Disc for over a thousand years.

The number of rare treasures at the Donghua Auction has decreased significantly, and cultivators from other continents are becoming increasingly scarce, but cultivators from the Star Ruins Continent still flock to the auction.

On the surface, the rules of Duobao Pavilion are extremely strict. Even though Chen Yuan is an elder of Tai Xuan Sect, he does not receive any preferential treatment and can only bid for treasures at the auction like other cultivators, with the highest bidder winning.

But in secret, it was not like that. Chen Yuan could preview the list of treasures at the auction and make preparations in advance.

The treasures at the Donghua Auction were selected by the Treasure Pavilion, and most of them were bid on with spirit stones or spirit herbs and pills.

However, there are still some extremely precious and rare treasures for which the bidding requirement is not spirit stones or elixirs, but some special treasure, and the bidding is conducted through barter.

Such treasures require at least the Nascent Soul stage cultivation level to use. Only with such precious treasures, which are difficult to obtain even with spirit stones and pills, would the Treasure Pavilion allow the auction method of bartering.

The spatial spiritual materials that Chen Yuan needed happened to be this kind of treasure. He wanted to reforge the Cangming Halberd, and top-grade spiritual materials alone were not enough. He needed even more precious spiritual and demonic materials.

These kinds of spiritual materials are treasures for the Integration Stage. Even if he has a large number of Refinement Stage pills and hundreds of ten-thousand-year-old spiritual herbs and thirty-thousand-year-old spiritual materials, he may not be able to buy them. He must prepare in advance.

When Wei Wushang got excited, he mentioned Wei Zhaoning. Chen Yuan thought for a moment before remembering this aloof woman who took over the reins of power after Wei Chang's death and continued to lead the Wei family cultivators.

Wei Wushang casually mentioned that Wei Zhaoning wanted to thank Chen Yuan for saving her life by slaying the Demon Saint's divided soul in the Xuanli Realm and turning the tide to defeat the demon race.

However, after the six Nascent Soul cultivators opened the blessed land, she used the pure spiritual energy within to hone her true essence and solidify her foundation before returning to the Wei family to attempt the Void Refinement stage. It will take her some time before she can emerge from seclusion.

Wei Wushang invited Chen Yuan to visit the Wei family after Wei Zhaoning emerged from seclusion, so that Wei Zhaoning could express her gratitude in person.

Chen Yuan understood Wei Wushang's meaning perfectly well, but he already had a wife, and even though Jing Shuhan wasn't by his side, he had no interest in other women, let alone Wei Zhaoning. He was focused on the Dao and immediately declined.

Seeing that Chen Yuan had no such intention, Wei Wushang did not bring up the matter again, and the three continued to discuss metaphysics and Taoism for seven days before parting.

After returning to his cave, Chen Yuan continued to meditate and regulate his breathing. He still had spiritual herbs that needed to be refined into pills, but it would take three months to refine a batch of pills for the Void Refining stage and as long as half a year for pills for the Body Integration stage.

Zhang Yanwei went to the Frost Spirit Domain to find out Yun Jinyue's intentions. The journey was extremely fast via the teleportation array, so it shouldn't take long. Once this matter was settled, it wouldn't be too late for Chen Yuan to refine pills.

Chen Yuan didn't have to wait long. Half a month later, Zhang Yanwei, who had been away from Tongtian Island for a month, returned.

He walked into Chen Yuan's cave in a daze, came to the stone hall, clasped his hands in a fist and bowed to Chen Yuan, and said in a muffled voice, "Disciple Zhang Yanwei... greets Master."

Seeing the strange look on his face, Chen Yuan frowned and asked, "Has this trip gone wrong?"

Zhang Yanwei lowered his head slightly, looking dejected: "Jin Yue's father did not agree to this marriage. I waited for a month but did not even see Jin Yue's face. I dared not stay any longer, so I returned to the sect to report to my master."

Chen Yuan frowned even more: "Explain in more detail."

“Yes…” Zhang Yanwei’s voice grew lower and lower. “This disciple was ordered by Master to go to Frost Spirit Domain to inquire about Jin Yue’s intentions. I stated my purpose in front of the gate of Miaohe Sect, but was refused entry.”

“A disciple of Yun Xubai came to see me and told me to leave and not to have any more designs on Jin Yue.”

"This disciple wanted to ask a cultivator from the Miaohe Sect to deliver a message privately, but was targeted by Yun Xubai's disciples and failed. He then sought an audience with Yun Xubai, but also returned empty-handed. Helpless, he had no choice but to turn back."

Chen Yuan narrowed his eyes: "Did you say my name?"

Zhang Yanwei raised his head: "When I paid my respects to the mountain, I mentioned my master's name and made it clear that my master is an elder of the Tai Xuan Sect, but Yun Xubai remained unmoved."

"Moreover, when Jin Yue entered the Spirit Realm, she knew that her master was an elder of the sect, so Yun Xubai should have known about this long ago."

Chen Yuan pondered for a moment and said, "Since Yun Xubai knows my identity, he still acts in this way, showing no respect for me or our sect. If there is no hidden reason, then Yun Xubai is simply arrogant and conceited."

"But Yun Jinyue once spoke of her father to me, and this man doesn't seem to be an unwise person..."

"Are you sure Yun Jinyue's feelings for you won't change?"

Zhang Yanwei fell silent, a hint of hesitation flashing in his eyes, but it ultimately turned into determination.

"I will share life and death with Jin Yue, and I will never change my feelings for her, nor will she change her feelings for me!"

Chen Yuan nodded slightly: "Since you are so confident, then I will go there myself. If Yun Xubai tries to obstruct us, I will make him agree to the marriage."

"But if Yun Jinyue changes her mind, you must sever all ties with her and not let this matter corrupt your Dao heart."

A hint of joy flashed in Zhang Yanwei's eyes, and he solemnly replied, "Master, rest assured, if Jin Yue changes her mind, this disciple would never dare to let personal feelings interfere with my cultivation."

"But the Miaohe Sect is far away in the Frost Spirit Domain, and Yun Xubai also has a mid-stage Refinement Void cultivation. Master offended him because of his disciple's matter..."

Chen Yuan said calmly, "I know what I'm doing. Go and adjust your breathing and calm your mind. Three days later, you will come with me to the Frost Spirit Domain again."

Zhang Yanwei dared not persuade him any further, and bowed deeply with his fists clasped: "Disciple obeys!"

……

Frost Spirit Domain, Ten Thousand Crane Mountains. The name Frost Spirit Domain contains the word "frost," but the territory is spring-like all year round. The vast area is covered with beautiful mountains and clear waters. Even in the depths of winter, snow is rarely seen, only a slight chill and the falling of green leaves.

At this time, the Wanhe Mountains were in the depths of winter. The cold wind pierced through the majestic curtain of wind, gently brushing against Yun Jinyue's slender body and stirring her plain skirt.

As a Nascent Soul cultivator, the naturally occurring cold winds of heaven and earth could no longer make her feel cold, and even the severe icy power of the ancient ice could not penetrate the true essence shield on her body.

But as Yun Jinyue felt the cold wind brushing against her face, a sense of loneliness inexplicably rose in her heart, like a withered branch swaying in the cold wind.

In the distance, a pair of red-headed cranes leisurely flew across the sky. The founder of the Miaohe Sect, Crane Daoist, loved spirit cranes very much. He married seven white crane, black crane, and yellow-feathered crane demon kings and raised tens of thousands of spirit cranes in the sect.

The Crane Master has long since passed away, but his teachings have been passed down. Over the long years, the number of spirit cranes raised by the Miaohe Sect has only increased, spreading throughout the mountain gate.

Among the spirit cranes, the red-headed crane is the most loyal and faithful. Once they become husband and wife, they will never be separated for the rest of their lives. If one of them dies, the other will even follow him in death without hesitation.

Yun Jinyue has been accompanied by cranes since childhood. In the past, when she watched the red-headed cranes fly peacefully in the sky, her mind would gradually calm down.

But now that she saw Zhu Shouhe, she felt even more agitated. She turned around, walked to the table, and sat down. With a wave of her hand, all the windows on the four sides of the pavilion closed, leaving only the dim light from the lampstand in the room.

Yun Jinyue was in a difficult mood. Her father had confined her to Jianyue Peak for eighty years, preventing her from leaving the mountain.

Her father forbade her to go to the Xuanling Domain. For the past eighty years, she had spent her days cultivating, and in her spare time she could only come to the pavilion on the mountaintop to look at the surrounding scenery and the graceful cranes in the sky.

Yun Jinyue has no shortage of cultivation pills. Her father is a mid-stage Void Refinement cultivator and an elder of the Miaohe Sect, while she is just a minor Nascent Soul cultivator.

Her father casually tossed out a single immortal spirit stone, which was enough for her to cultivate for hundreds of years.

She was not lacking in treasures. After she formed her Nascent Soul, her father had a weapon refiner in the sect refine her natal magic weapon using top-grade spiritual materials. Once formed, it was a high-level magic weapon, full of spirituality. As long as she carefully nurtured it, she could smoothly advance to the third-grade spiritual treasure after she became a deity.

To ensure that Yun Jinyue never left Jianyue Peak, her father specially ordered the weapon refiner to open a weapon refining room on Jianyue Peak. He also ordered a Nascent Soul cultivator to collect earth fire every month and send it to Jianyue Peak for the weapon refiner to refine magic weapons. Yun Jinyue would inject her essence blood and leave a divine imprint.

This is an opportunity that countless cultivators dream of. They possess the most resilient Dao heart and talent no less than Yun Jinyue, but they are unable to cultivate to the next realm due to a lack of elixirs. They die young or enter the interface fragments to fight with others for a treasure, ending up dead and their Dao disappears.

Yun Jinyue's aptitude is not extraordinary. Having three spiritual roots is quite commendable among independent cultivators, but even small sects require three spiritual roots as an entry requirement.

In a medium-sized sect like Miaohe Sect with a long history, 99% of the cultivators have the aptitude of having three or more spiritual roots.

Yun Jinyue knew that many of her fellow disciples were jealous of her. Although cultivators defied the heavens, they seemed to be no different from mortals.

Cultivators from privileged backgrounds have an easier time reaching higher cultivation levels and having longer lifespans than others.

Yun Jinyue's cultivation to her current level is inseparable from her father's help. Without the Nascent Soul spiritual object provided by her father, she might not have been able to overcome the three tribulations of the Nascent Soul stage, nor could she have raised her cultivation to the peak of the early Nascent Soul stage in less than a hundred years.

But compared to the endless cultivation resources, Yun Jinyue wanted to leave this exquisite cage even more.

Yun Jinyue knew that many of her fellow disciples would stop at nothing and use any means necessary to improve their cultivation.

But perhaps because cultivation resources were too easily obtained, she was unwilling to sacrifice everything for her lifespan and cultivation level.

Cultivators strive for immortality and freedom. What use is a long lifespan if one cannot live freely and unrestrained?

When she was kidnapped by the demon race and sent to the Northern Underworld Cave, Yun Jinyue refused to live and would rather die than be a slave.

Now she is unwilling to become a caged crane just because of her father's help.

Outside the cage was her lover waiting. During the difficult years when she was hiding from the demons in the Burning Demon Realm, she and Zhang Yanwei developed feelings for each other and almost became Daoist partners under the witness of Senior Cangsong.

Senior Chen said he would ask his father to send someone to rescue them, but there was no response. She thought that Senior Chen had forgotten about the matter, or that something had happened.

However, Senior Cangsong was extremely certain that Senior Chen was still alive and would definitely send someone to rescue them, allowing the two to become Daoist partners again after returning to the Spirit Realm.

She and Zhang Yanwei did as instructed, and after hiding for more than two hundred years, they indeed met the reinforcements sent by Senior Chen and entered the spirit world.

It was only at this time that she learned that in just over two hundred years, Senior Chen had actually crossed a whole major realm and become a cultivator at the peak of the Void Refinement stage, and had even become an elder of the Great Ascension Sect, Tai Xuan Sect.

Yun Jinyue was overjoyed. She had been worried that her father would not agree to her marriage with Zhang Yanwei, but Senior Chen's cultivation was higher than her father's, and he was also an elder of the Mahayana sect.

As Senior Chen's personal disciple, Zhang Yanwei's potential is limitless, so his father should be at ease now.

But to her surprise, after hearing her story with Zhang Yanwei, her father left without saying a word, and the next day he ordered the array masters in the sect to set up a large array around Jianyue Peak.

She was locked in a cage for eighty years.

Unable to move an inch, she could only climb to the pavilion on the mountaintop and gaze into the distance, hoping to catch a glimpse of Zhang Yanwei.

But eighty years have passed, and Zhang Yanwei has still not been found.

Yun Jinyue's anticipation slowly turned into disappointment. Had he forgotten the vows they made under the bright moon and stars?

Yun Jinyue sat silently in the attic as the sunlight streaming in through the cracks in the wooden window slowly dimmed.

Yun Jinyue got up and walked down from the pavilion. Outside the door, a few stars were scattered in the dark sky, and a thin crescent moon was dim and without light.

Yun Jinyue looked up at the moon in the sky, then turned and walked into the cave. Suddenly, a streak of light streaked across the night sky, flying impatiently from afar, accompanied by a shout: "Jinyue!"

Yun Jinyue paused, turned around abruptly, and couldn't believe her eyes.

The beam of light stopped outside the array, revealing a figure she had longed for day and night.

The man held a token tightly in his hand, threw it forward, and a beam of spiritual light shot out from the token, landing on the array and creating a passage.

Before the passage was fully formed, the tall figure rushed in, landed in front of Yun Jinyue, and strode forward.

"Jinyue, I'm late."

Yun Jinyue stared at him blankly, then smiled brightly: "It's good that you're here." (End of Chapter)