Path of Alchemy Mastery-Chapter 276 - 277 Loose Cultivator Dongfeng Shuo

The days flew by quickly; during these days, Mu Can had never been idle. After his tireless pestering, Wang Cai finally agreed to help him open the third layer of the Reincarnation Pearl, allowing him to revisit the Book Collection Pavilion as he wished.

...

Originally quiet, Immortal Ancient City underwent astonishing changes over these days. Countless Cultivators swarmed into this place, all for the legendary Immortal Ancient Secret Realm, aiming for a breakthrough opportunity.

The inns in Immortal Ancient City were already overcrowded, with many Cultivators having to resort to staying in residents’ homes at night. However, money was inevitably involved for those residents – after all, tangible goods were significant for the ordinary folks, but for Cultivators, they were merely external possessions.

"At last, it’s about to begin." Mu Can slowly opened his eyes, which shone brilliantly and surprisingly transformed into two small dragons made of light that flickered and flew, gradually vanishing into the air.

Over these few days, Mu Can’s improvement was not insignificant. Now, if Xuanyuan Mingkong were to see Mu Can’s true strength, he would surely be greatly astonished.

"Donghuang, here I come." Mu Can rose from his room, said farewell to his fellow student, and came alone to the core area of the Immortal Ancient Academy.

The Immortal Ancient Academy is divided into five sub-academies, each managed by a vice-chancellor responsible for teaching. The first problem every student faces upon enrollment is choosing an academy. Once the academy is decided, they can also choose to attend another academy as an observer.

The open learning environment and the absence of classifications are the greatest characteristics of the Immortal Ancient Academy.

In the core area, a common place for all students to take lessons, each vice-chancellor holds classes, resolves doubts, and answers questions periodically. Whenever a vice-chancellor lectures here, almost all students swarm to attend—after all, not everyone can become a direct disciple of a vice-chancellor, but being taught by them is almost akin to receiving a direct disciple’s treatment.

Direct Disciples are also known as core disciples of the sub-academies, personally selected by the vice-chancellors; they might not necessarily be the best student in the academy, but they must have touched the vice-chancellors deeply in some way.

More than once, Mu Can had attended lectures given by vice-chancellors from other academies here. However, today, he came not for the lecture, but because the entrance to the Immortal Ancient Secret Realm was in the central square of this core area.

This plaza was built to provide a place for students to listen to lectures, so it’s vast. The circular structure in the middle has a desk and a chair. Sitting on it, one can see all the students below – those qualified to sit on this chair are invariably strong practitioners at the Martial Saint Level.

Today was not a day for the vice-chancellors to answer questions, yet the place was still crowded as ever.

This was because today was the day the Immortal Ancient Academy opened the Immortal Ancient Secret Realm. Not only were the students of the academy dreaming of being here, but also many young powerhouses from the Mortal World who heard the news hurried over, including heirs from Hidden Families and elite disciples from deeply secluded sects.

Anyone familiar with the Immortal Ancient Academy couldn’t keep their composure once they knew the Immortal Ancient Secret Realm was opening.

The Spiritual Energy that surpassed the Three Realms Level could significantly boost the strength of those who entered.

With the congregation of elites, Mu Can had just arrived and already spotted several young individuals with the strength of Martial Arts Sect members, and even a few youths at the Martial Saint Level – though they tried hard to conceal their true capabilities, Mu Can saw through them at a glance.

"There truly are many hidden powerhouses in this world." Mu Can had always thought that if the Immortal Ancient Academy was not the largest power in the Mortal World, it still housed more than half of the experts from the entire Mortal World.

But now, Mu Can was surprised to find that he couldn’t fully grasp the actual strength of the Mortal World. No wonder Purple Cloud once told Mu Can that the waters of the Mortal World ran deep, deep enough that ordinary Immortal Venerables wouldn’t dare to probe casually, treating it as forbidden territory.

At this moment, there were tens of thousands of Cultivators in the square, young and old, weak and strong. The strong were like Mu Can, at Martial Saint Level, while the weakest attendees were even at rank of Great Martial Master. The elders looked nearly fifty, and the youngsters also included teenagers.

Standing next to Mu Can was an old man whose teeth were nearly all gone, leaning on a cane and coughing incessantly, causing Mu Can to tremble with fear, afraid that the old man would cough out his lungs.

"Grandpa, how old are you this year?" Mu Can asked.

In his eyes, this old man was just at the Martial Arts Sect level, and it seemed that his strength was declining with age.

"I’m 120 years old this year." Although he was continuously coughing, the elder spoke with a robust and vigorous voice.

"Are you also here to participate in the Secret Realm?" Mu Can couldn’t hold back and asked further.

He was genuinely worried that this elderly man would collapse here before the Secret Realm even opened.

"Alas, when one gets old, one becomes less useful. If I can break through, then I will have many good years left. If not, with my injuries, I really can’t hold on for many more years. Isn’t that why I’m trying my luck here?" The old man spoke with a resigned openness.

Only after chatting a few more moments with the elder did Mu Can learn.

The elder’s name was Dongfeng Shuo, a Loose Cultivator. In recent years, he had been ambushed while vying for a treasure, sustaining injuries that caused a lasting illness, halting his advancement at the Martial Arts Sect level. Due to his injuries, the old man appeared significantly more aged than a typical Martial Arts Sect member.

"Look, Xiao Can, you must cherish this opportunity. There are earth-shattering fortunes inside," the elder, being quite familiar, advised Mu Can after chatting for just a short while.

Mu Can was startled by the old man’s words.

Earth-shattering fortune? Did Mo Fei, this elderly man, know the secrets inside the Immortal Ancient Secret Realm? However, why did he seem to be just an ordinary Martial Arts Sect member?

"When I was young, my master told me that ordinary people could find opportunities to break through to Martial Saint Level on the periphery of the Secret Realm, while Martial Saints could find hope to become gods in the core area," the elder said reminiscently.

"So, he doesn’t know the secrets inside the Secret Realm, or he wouldn’t talk about earth-shattering fortunes." Mu Can then felt reassured. No matter how he looked, the old man in front of him was just a regular Martial Arts Sect member.