Xiao Shun had thought about Ning Zhiyuan’s question for a long time. When he saw the pattern emerge on the “Antarctic Directive” and the withering of the “Cerulean Asherah,” he had a hypothesis in his mind. However, he was not certain about this assumption yet. Seeing Ning Zhiyuan’s expression at the moment, Xiao Shun had a slight realization and asked softly, “Could the conjecture you mentioned be related to the ‘Celestial Kernels’?” Hearing this, Ning Zhiyuan looked at Xiao Shun with some surprise and nodded “Yes.” Xiao Shun thought to himself, as expected!
Then, he changed to a relaxed posture and waited for Ning Zhiyuan to continue. Ning Zhiyuan smiled slightly and then gestured for Xiao Shun to hand over the black gold in his hand. After examining it for a moment, he muttered to himself, “Indeed, this place!” “What place?” Xiao Shun asked eagerly.
Ning Zhiyuan did not directly answer his question but spoke in a soft tone. “When my sect obtained the ‘Asherah,’ that precious item had already taken its current form, unchanged for more than five centuries. Therefore, our ancestors speculated that the ‘Celestial Kernels’ had been picked by someone.” This was exactly Xiao Shun’s previous guess. However, he still couldn’t figure out a crucial question and had to reluctantly ask Ning Zhiyuan, “Then why hasn’t the ‘Asherah’ withered after nine leaves, returning to the cycle of reincarnation?”
“Mr. Xiao is indeed knowledgeable.” Ning Zhiyuan looked at Xiao Shun with deep meaning and began to explain. “All things have spirits, and a spiritual root transformed by the spiritual energy of heaven and earth is a rare treasure in the world. The fact that the nine leaves of ‘Cerulean Asherah’ have not withered indicates that the ‘Celestial Kernels’ formed in this cycle have not been consumed by anyone.” Xiao Shun nodded in full agreement with Ning Zhiyuan’s words and then shared his thoughts. “I had the same idea before. If my guess is correct, the location of the current treasure of the ‘Celestial Kernels’ should be on the map above the secret order!” “Is a storm about to start after more than five hundred years?” Regretfully saying this, Ning Zhiyuan handed the “Antarctic Directive” back to Xiao Shun with a worried look in his eyes.
Seeing this, Xiao Shun asked again, “Senior, where exactly is this place?” Ning Zhiyuan answered in three words. “Central Kylian!”
A dull thunder sounded outside, exploding between the heavens and the earth. Huge electric arcs pierced through the vast white icy world, heralding the arrival of a storm! At this moment, Xiao Shun’s mind was also buzzing, contending with Ning Zhiyuan’s words earlier.
“Central Kylian, the tomb of cultivators.” This was a phrase that had been passed down among cultivators since ancient times, and also the burial place of countless ancient great cultivators. Xiao Shun did not know exactly what kind of tremendous horror existed in that place to claim the lives of countless cultivators. Even his own master spoke with extreme caution about that place. A place that even his master, a “Consolidation” cultivator, refused to talk about, must be a place of despair!
Although he was only one realm below the “Anterior” realm, Consolidation was like heaven and earth compared to Anterior! With Xiao Shun’s current cultivation level, going there would probably lead to a death that he couldn’t even comprehend. Just then, Ning Zhiyuan opened his mouth, “Mr. Xiao, do you remember the anomaly in Kylian five hundred years ago that I mentioned to you earlier?” Xiao Shun instantly understood and asked, “Could it be that the anomaly is in the Central Kylian?” “Exactly!” Ning Zhiyuan nodded, extremely serious. “The reason those capable individuals remained indifferent to the anomaly in Kylian at that time was because the source of that anomaly was too dangerous and unpredictable!” Xiao Shun frowned slightly. He had wondered why the “ancestral vein” had anomalies, yet cultivators around the world remained inactive. It turned out that the place where the anomaly occurred five hundred years ago was a dangerous area!
Glancing at Xiao Shun, Ning Zhiyuan continued, “Although ‘Antarctica House’ was not a powerhouse in martial arts, Damian Southcastle was the pinnacle of martial arts at that time, with a cultivation base that could transcend realms. If he took one step further, he would have been the legendary ‘Empyrean’ cultivator!” Upon hearing this, Xiao Shun couldn’t help interrupting in shock, “The pinnacle of ‘Consolidation’!” This expression appeared on his face for the first time. After all, even his master had never reached that realm! This indirectly confirmed the terrifying nature of the “Central Kylian,” where even someone like Damian Southcastle with such cultivation had not returned after more than five hundred years, let alone anyone else with the two treasures.
Just as Xiao Shun was surprised, Ning Zhiyuan dropped another bomb. “Our ancestors speculated that before leaving, Damian Southcastle had already taken the ‘Celestial Kernels.’ His purpose was probably to preserve his life. Since he had asked the sect for a vial of Phoenix Blood before leaving, the combination of these two items would have been a matter of life and death!” “Sss!” Upon hearing this, Xiao Shun took a cold breath. Then, he exclaimed in disbelief, “But the Phoenix Blood that takes a hundred years to condense at the bottom of the heavenly pool!” “Mr. Xiao is indeed knowledgeable, even aware of this item!” Ning Zhiyuan gently stroked his beard, a look of surprise on his face, before returning to normal and stating seriously, “This item is the essence of the heavens. When combined with the ‘Celestial Kernels,’ the supreme treasure of the Anterior realm, even if a cultivator’s soul is on the verge of extinction, it can lead them back from the brink of death!” Pausing for a moment, he continued with a look of fear, “But why hasn’t Damian Southcastle returned after more than five hundred years?
At these words, Xiao Shun’s eyes widened in shock. “Are you saying…?” “Hehe, there is only one conclusion: Damian Southcastle never used these two items. In that case, this map is questionable!” Ning Zhiyuan looked deeply at the ‘Antarctic Directive’ in Xiao Shun’s hand, his eyes flashing with a hint of cunning. Xiao Shun, unmoving, looked at the secret order in the book and finally said four words, “This item is treacherous!” Ning Zhiyuan looked at him with relief, nodded, and said, “Mr. Xiao is indeed a clever person.”
Shaking his head, Xiao Shun looked out of the window. At this moment, the sky was dark and gloomy, with snowflakes mixed with sparkling raindrops filling the sky over Eastbrook. Just like Xiao Shun’s mood, not very beautiful. The feeling of not knowing where to start when faced with a treasure was truly indescribable. Through his conversation with Ning Zhiyuan just now, Xiao Shun had already understood the danger hidden in this map. Why Damian Southcastle insisted on going to the “Central Kylian” was unknown to anyone. But one thing was certain, someone had annihilated him and a group of elite warriors from the “Antarctica House” instantaneously when they were fully prepared, giving them no chance to react!
Although this was just a speculation, the possibility was very high. After all, “Central Kylian” was a dangerous place, but not an absolute death trap. With Damian Southcastle leading the team, as long as they avoided some dangerous spots, it was impossible that no one would come out in the end, especially with two precious treasures in hand.