Aspiring to the Immortal Path
chapter-554

Tang Jie flew back to the ground with Na Shan, who then took him to the Celestial Flame Pagoda.

His status in the Celestial Flame Pagoda was clearly extremely high, and nobody stopped them as they went up.

They went all the way to the eighth floor, where Na Shan guided Tang Jie to a set of large double doors and pushed them open.

The doors creaked open, revealing a spacious hall.

This was clearly a martial exhibition hall. Various weapons were on display, with the lowest being middle-grade art relics.

There were three people in the center of the hall, sparring with each other.

One person wore a water-blue gown and seemed to be elegantly dancing, ripples of watery light constantly appearing in her hands. This was none other than the Shui Yao who had been speaking with the red-robed man.

Another was a person with a withered constitution and wearing an azure robe, vines wrapped around their body.

The last was surrounded in a haze of black demonic energy, recognizable at a glance as a demon. He was a rather handsome demon youth, but the pair of dark circles around his eyes seemed to indicate that he hadn't had a good rest in a long time.

The three of them were sparring in the hall, various colors of flames intersecting. But when they saw Na Shan come in, they immediately stopped.

The demon youth said, "Big Brother Na Shan is back. What's the situation?"

Shui Yao cast Tang Jie an alluring gaze, and she flirtatiously said, "Since he's here, he must have passed."

Na Shan laughed. "Of course. Come, Brother Tang, and I'll introduce you."

He pointed at the three. "Shui Yao, Qing Lian (Green Lotus), Hei Yan (Black Eyes). They're all our people."

Tang Jie had heard of all three. They were all illustrious figures in the arena.

After introducing the three, Na Shan pointed at the principal seat of the hall. "This is the Western Heavenly King."

Na Shan was pointing at empty space.

But a moment later, the space distorted, and a man in a fiery cowled robe appeared before Tang Jie.

Tang Jie saw a middle-aged man whose face was brimming with majesty. He had very special eyes, covered in concentric grooves that formed their own little maze. In the center of his forehead was a flame insignia, which flickered ceaselessly as if it was an actual flame. Just looking at it made Tang Jie dizzy.

Those patterned eyes fell upon Tang Jie, and the Western Heavenly King smiled.

He nodded. "Good, very good, extremely good!"

He seemed to be extremely satisfied that Tang Jie had been able to pass Na Shan's test.

He then said, "My name is Hero. You may call me the Western Heavenly King or the Western Lord."

"Hero"?

Tang Jie was startled. This name had a very strong Hemos flavor.

As if he could see Tang Jie's surprise, the Western Heavenly King removed his cowl.

What Tang Jie saw was a pair of broken horns atop the Western Heavenly King's head.

"I am a Hemos," the Western Heavenly King said. "But I am also a Hemos that has abandoned this status. In the Celestial Flame Pagoda, there are only allies and enemies, no race."

"'Only allies and enemies, no race.'" Tang Jie pondered these words.

Turning his head, he looked at Na Shan, Shui Yao, Qing Lian, and Black Eyes, and then he looked at himself. Humans, Hemos, and demons were all standing together, and Na Shan had said that they were all on the same side.

He turned back to the Western Heavenly King and said, "If there is no race, then who is the enemy?"

Western Heavenly King Hero chuckled.

He said, "There is only one thing that can transcend race."

Tang Jie was startled, and then after some thought, he said, "Profit."

Na Shan and the others laughed.

Shui Yao covered her mouth and chuckled. "The Western Lord's eyes are as sharp as ever. Brother Tang is very quick-witted."

Hero nodded in satisfaction. "Correct. Only profit can transcend all boundaries and bring together different races. It is also profit that allows the Celestial Flame Arena to stand tall in this place, and allows you to stand before me here today."

He waved his hand, and the surrounding walls turned transparent, allowing them to see the outside world.

He saw that they were high in the clouds, and beneath them was the clamorous Celestial Flame Arena.

Countless braves were fighting to the death, blood splashing amid the rising and falling of cheers.

Pointing down at the arena below, Hero slowly said, "All the world rushes here and there for the sake of profit. But different people are bound to obtain different profits. We are all cultivators, but some people will participate in battles where they have only a one-in-ten chance of winning to earn a paltry ten blackstone coins, whereas God Killers can take part in a single bout and gain tens of thousands, perhaps even hundreds of thousands of blackstone coins. Which would you choose?"

"The latter, naturally," Tang Jie replied.

"But to become a God Killer, you must experience various dangers and tribulations," Hero said.

Tang Jie smiled. "The Great Dao is the stage, and flesh and blood are the steps. The Immortal path has always been like this. One either becomes a stepping stone for another or else climbs up on the bodies of others."

Hero was taken aback, and then he erupted in laughter. "Good, good, the Great Dao as the stage, and the flesh and blood as the steps! In other words, you're willing to take risks for big profit?"

Tang Jie replied, "Isn't that the case for anyone who has entered the arena? For me, the question will always be this: 'Are the rewards appropriate for the risks involved? Am I getting enough for what I'm paying?'"

Hero laughed again. "Hahaha, good words! This is exactly the reason Master established the Celestial Flame Arena. As you said, those who enter the arena are people who are willing to brave the risks for the sake of profit, and what we need… is exactly people like this!"

"So you're saying that the Celestial Flame Arena isn't for making money?" Tang Jie asked.

"'Making money'?" Hero chuckled. "Of course, that also played a part, but it wasn't the original purpose of the Celestial Flame Arena. From the very start, the Celestial Flame Arena has existed to choose the talents we require. And only this sort of person has the right to vie for huge profits!"

"'Huge profits'?" Tang Jie's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"Naturally, the only thing that can be considered 'huge profits' for us is a tremendous fortune that can lead to the supreme Heavenly Dao, opening up our path to Immortality!" Hero proclaimed.

"Then where do you plan to get these huge profits from?" Tang Jie asked.

"The Treasure Paradise."

Tang Jie was instantly dumbfounded.

On the subject of the Treasure Paradise, one first had to discuss something else.

The Lustrous Treasure River!

This was a legendary place.

It was said that in the depths of the Great Stellar Chiliocosm's infinite void was a resplendent sea of stars.

That was the Boundless Sea of Stars.

Nobody could say how large the Boundless Sea of Stars was. All that could be said was that nobody had ever been able to cross this sea of stars and reach the other side.

But everybody knew what was beyond the sea of stars.

The Lustrous Treasure River!

This was a river that consisted entirely of divine tools and Dao armaments, countless natural treasures of extremely high quality. These were much stronger than ordinary Dao armaments.

Countless people had seen this river before, because while it was impossible to physically reach it, it was possible for the will to cross.

When Tang Jie had charged at Mortal Shedding, his energy had linked with the heavens and earth and his mind had ventured into the void, so he had passed through this area before. He had gone even farther, seeing the Heavenly Dao Law Wheel and comprehending the Dao of Insight. After that, he had experienced the same thing when his original body had reached Mortal Shedding.

He knew that any one of the treasures in the Lustrous Treasure River could shake all of the Great Chiliocosm, yet they were as numerous as the grains of sand in the bank of a river, flowing endlessly through the cosmos.

Only a small number of powerful wills could commune with one of those treasures and borrow the power of its treasure light, even calling that treasure over to their side. And each one of these treasures was a divine weapon that could shake the world.

The people who could reach this level were far too few in number.

But there were always a few astounding geniuses who could do what others could not. When other cultivators were wondering if they could succeed once in a lifetime, others could successfully communicate with treasures again and again as if they were fishing, pulling treasure after treasure out of the Lustrous Treasure River.

Such a person was the famous Reverend Celestial Hook.

He was called "Celestial Hook" because of his ability to fish out treasures.

In his lifetime, this person had fished out more than eight hundred treasures from the Lustrous Treasure River. More than six hundred had been divine treasures and more than a hundred had been Dao armaments, and all of them were naturally formed. Many of the Dao armaments circulating through the Great Stellar Chiliocosm in the present had come from Reverend Celestial Hook, who had become shockingly wealthy.

In the legends, this person was the only person who had more money than the Court of Myriad Domains.

But this was exactly the reason he had died.

It was said that several Titans of the Court of Myriad Domains had joined together to kill Reverend Celestial Hook, seizing his property for the Court of Myriad Domains.

Even so, the Court of Myriad Domains still didn't rest, and it began to seek out existences linked to Reverend Celestial Hook. Gradually, a rumor began to circulate that Reverend Celestial Hook had a secret treasury that contained all of the real treasures he had gathered over the years.

This was the Treasure Paradise.

The Court of Myriad Domains had spent ages searching for the Treasure Paradise, but they ultimately found nothing. With the passage of time, the Treasure Paradise became nothing more than a myth.

But some people still believed that the Treasure Paradise existed.

The Flame Celestial Sovereign was one of them.

――――――――――

The hall on the eighth floor of the Celestial Flame Pagoda.

The transparent walls had been replaced with flashing golden walls.

At the back of the hall was a large golden throne.

Western Heavenly King Hero was seated on this throne.

Beneath the throne were five long tables, and Tang Jie and the other four were seated behind them. Various exquisite fruits had been served, all of them of a spiritual nature.

But Tang Jie wasn't interested in eating. He was immersed in Hero's story of the Treasure Paradise.

"Master always believed that the Treasure Paradise existed. This is because Reverend Celestial Hook obtained some very famous treasures, but when the Myriad Court exterminated the reverend, they didn't find these supreme treasures that were known as being the kings of Dao armaments. Thus, Master believed that Reverend Celestial Hook had kept them in the Treasure Paradise. The reason the Treasure Paradise has never been discovered is simply that it is too well-hidden. That's why Master came to the Blood River Domain. He was hoping to find an answer here."

"Why the Blood River Domain?" Tang Jie asked.

"Because Reverend Celestial Hook was a native of the Blood River Domain," Na Shan replied.

Since the reverend was a native, if he wanted to hide his most important treasures, he would naturally put them in the Blood River Domain.

Upon arriving, the Flame Celestial Sovereign began searching for the Treasure Paradise.

And he really did manage to find it.

"Where is it?" Tang Jie couldn't help but ask after hearing this.

He asked despite knowing that this was important information that Hero probably wouldn't divulge to him.

But to his surprise, Hero pointed downward.

Tang Jie was stunned by this action, and then he realized and blurted out, "Here?"

"To be more precise: it's under the arena," Hero casually said. "Three thousand meters under the arena is an entrance, the entrance to the Treasure Paradise."

As Hero spoke, Tang Jie finally understood what had transpired.

After arriving at the Blood River Domain, the Flame Celestial Sovereign, through herculean efforts, really did manage to find the Treasure Paradise's entrance.

But the Treasure Paradise was a sealed world. To be more precise: it had been created from a supreme Dao armament. Even the Flame Celestial Sovereign wasn't strong enough to break that seal and enter the world to search for treasure.

The Flame Celestial Sovereign had racked his mind for ideas.

Gradually, he came up with the idea of the Celestial Flame Arena.

The Flame Celestial Sovereign had several goals behind establishing the Celestial Flame Arena. The first was to establish his own territory and prevent any other Titans from interfering. The second was to gather talented individuals in preparation for his adventure into the Treasure Paradise, for the Flame Celestial Sovereign had already realized that the Treasure Paradise was brimming with dangers. Even if he opened the seal, he couldn't just rush in. And the third reason was to set up a blood formation to open the seal.

Very early on, Tang Jie had noticed something strange: even though many cultivators fought and died in the Celestial Flame Arena every year, the spiritual energy concentration was very average.

Mortal Shedding Realm cultivators were insignificant in this regard, but if Celestial Heart Realm cultivators died, a spirit rain would appear. And if Soul Transformation cultivators died, a long deluge was commonplace.

But even though he had spent some time in the City of Freedom, he had yet to see anything like this.

He thought that this was because the Blood River Domain was different from the Rosecloud Domain and that Returned Remnants were less likely to appear.

But this wasn't the case at all.

Under the Celestial Flame Arena was a Sanguine Death Sea Formation. All the cultivators who died in the Celestial Flame Arena would have their energies turned into blood by the formation, upon which it would seep into the ground and enter the blood sea in the formation.

Once there was enough blood in that sea, it could wipe away the seal and open up the Treasure Paradise.

"I see." Tang Jie finally understood why the Flame Celestial Sovereign had founded the Celestial Flame Arena.

Now that he thought about it, it was only this sort of method that could cause mass death without causing trouble. As for making money, in front of the Treasure Paradise, this was truly just small change.

After hearing the Western Heavenly King say all this, Tang Jie said, "The arena has been running for much longer than a few days, and the Flame Celestial Sovereign is now wandering the myriad domains. It looks to me like the Flame Celestial Sovereign has already opened up the Treasure Paradise and taken its treasure, no?"

Hero chuckled. "Correct. If not, I wouldn't have been willing to tell all of you such a big secret. But alas, the Treasure Paradise didn't have as many valuable treasures as imagined. There were five natural Dao armaments that had gone missing back then, but only four were found in the Treasure Paradise. The first became the Treasure Paradise and couldn't be taken away, and the second and third had been merged into the Treasure Paradise to create a sealing treasure, so they also couldn't be taken. As for the last, Master obtained it. Even though there weren't many natural Dao armaments, there were plenty of divine treasures and art relics. Those things were of little use to Master, so most of them were left in the Treasure Paradise."

Tang Jie seemed to understand. "Heavenly King must have been referring to those divine treasures and art relics left in the Treasure Paradise before, yes?"

Hero nodded. "Correct. The huge profits I refer to are those divine treasures and art relics. The Treasure Paradise is opened up every twenty years, and we four martial brothers will send people into the Treasure Paradise to seek out treasures."

Tang Jie frowned. "I don't understand. Why didn't the Flame Celestial Sovereign simply leave them to you, instead of opting for this method? And why don't you four take the treasures yourselves?"

Hero replied, "There are three reasons. As I said before, two Dao armaments merged with the Treasure Paradise. One of them is called the Divine Genesis."

"'The Divine Genesis'?"

"Yes. Unlike other Dao armaments, it has no combat ability, but it has the ability to create all treasures. Any item placed within the Treasure Paradise will become a treasure in the future, and ordinary beasts will evolve into fiends. This is one of the reasons that the Treasure Paradise has so many art relics. Rather than being put in there by Reverend Celestial Hook, they were created by the Divine Genesis. This Dao armament merged with the Treasure Paradise, and the Treasure Paradise is a small and isolated world embedded into the Blood River Domain, so it cannot be taken away. We can only come back at intervals to take the treasures. Thus, Master chose to leave everything in the Treasure Paradise for us to take ourselves."

"I see."

"The second reason is that the Treasure Paradise is not without danger. Of the two Dao armaments that merged with it, the Divine Genesis creates and produces countless art relics and terrifying fiends, but the other is a divine sword that can even kill Immortal Platform Titans. After merging with the Treasure Paradise, its horrifying power was spread out across the Treasure Paradise, and you can never know when you might be killed. Even Violet Palace and Immortal Platform cultivators face the risk of death. And in that place, the stronger one's cultivation, the more liable one is to trigger the power of the divine sword. I went into the Treasure Paradise in my early years, and there, I experienced some of the power of the divine sword. That scene…"

Hero did not continue, but there was a hint of awe on his face.

He shook his head. "Anyone who has experienced it once won't want to go in again."

Tang Jie understood. "This arena's purpose, other than undoing the seal, is for selecting talented individuals to venture into the Treasure Paradise, and based on what the Heavenly King has said, what matters about the person entering isn't whether they have a high cultivation level, but how strong they are among their peers."

"Correct!" Hero nodded.

He was currently at Violet Palace, so if he went in, he had an extremely high chance of dying, so he did not make the decision to go in lightly.

"And the third reason?"

Na Shan replied, "The third reason is very simple: some people are sent specifically to die. The Treasure Paradise is an isolated world, and while it is powerful enough to simulate its own universe and produce spiritual energy, only putting out without putting in is not a long-term solution."

Is that what was going on?

Tang Jie understood.

From a certain perspective, the Treasure Paradise was like the Water Moon Paradise.

If spiritual energy was the power source, they were the tools used to convert power. In the Water Moon Paradise, this spiritual energy was used to irrigate the fields and produce spiritual herbs. In the Treasure Paradise, the spiritual energy was given to the Divine Genesis to produce art relics.

And the ideal vessel for spiritual energy was cultivators.

In the Celestial Flame Arena, the dead were responsible for breaking the seal and providing energy while the living took the treasures and enjoyed the wealth.

The Celestial Flame Pagoda didn't need to hide this. Just as was said before, those who chose to enter the arena understood that they might have to offer themselves for the sake of wealth and profit.

The Great Dao was the stage, and blood and flesh formed the steps.

Either ascend on the bodies of others or be the body being stepped on.

―――――――――――

Author's Note: In response to the comments from all my friends, when I talked about learning from other novels, I wasn't saying that I was going to abandon my own style and turn entirely to writing empty novels. The purpose of all these changes is for progress, not retreat.

As for whether the changes are good or bad, I won't make this judgment based on the opinion of others, but based on my performances, and I will keep adjusting and changing according to it.

Thus, don't believe that I'm giving up completely on my style just because I said I'm going to change.

This is impossible.

It's just that I'm finally confronting some subjects that I've always avoided. For example, this sort of treasure hunting is a more popular topic that I've always done my best to avoid, but I'm not avoiding this time. This is what it means to learn from and use. But the contents will still be written according to my style.

So don't be too afraid of change. Change has never been scary. What's important is to evolve while changing.

Compared to making mistakes while changing, staying in one place is even scarier. If there's a problem with the former, at least I can go back, but the latter means that I will be stuck in the same place forever.

Finally, the year 2015 has come, so I'm wishing all my friends who support me progress in your studies, a smooth time at work, a healthy body, and a harmonious home.

At the same time, I wish for myself to write better works, get more fans, and have fewer complainers.