Splitting the Heavens - Chapter 923: The You Continent’s Lack of Population
After the flying ship from the Tongyou Institution docked at the top of Millstone Mountain, the experts of the Tongyou Institution went to climb the Three Footed Peak and attracted the attention of many experts all around. They were waiting for the batch of experts of the Tongyou Institution which was second only to an Elysium at that point to embarrass themselves.
The Three Footed Peak was an extremely strange place. No matter what type of movement art was used, no one would be able to climb up the mountain.
However, there were several Formation Masters who deduced that there was no ‘Space Restriction’ formation or anything of the sort on the peak.
One would only be able to try to ascend on their own feet.
However, even if someone reached the grand completion stage of the Martial Extermination Realm, they would be forced to retreat when they made a little progress.
Not only couldn’t one fly over the Three Footed Peak, but one would also have to endure massive pressure when making their way up. When the pressure exceeded whatever they could withstand, they would be forced back down the mountain.
The experts of the Tongyou Institution didn’t seem to pay any heed to the gazes thrown their way as they quickly strolled up the mountain.
When everyone was ready to watch them embarrass themselves, Sun Haiwei and the rest didn’t seem hindered in the slightest as they went straight up towards the peak. They quickly disappeared from everyone’s sight, leaving them with tongue-tied expressions.
“They… They went up just like that?!” Someone rubbed their eyes in disbelief.
“Did the resistance disappear?” The eyes of another expert lit up as he tried to climb the Three Footed Peak like the experts of the Tongyou Institution.
One had to know that ever since the Five Peaks Ridge was discovered in the Twin Void Marsh, everyone had been able to venture further with the weakening energy that shrouded it. They would gain a lot the deeper they went, and that only increased their desire to venture further. When the first explorers arrived at the top of Millstone Mountain, they managed to improve significantly.
Seeing as the experts of the Tongyou Institution had ascended the Three Footed Peak at the top of Millstone Mountain, everyone tried to follow in their footsteps.
Unfortunately, it didn’t last for long as all of them were quickly forced back down by the pressure surrounding the Three Footed Peak.
“What the hell? Does the mountain actually care about the people who are climbing it?!” Someone grumbled angrily.
There were some who stared at Sun Haiwei and the others with a look of contemplation. The Three Footed Peak might not be able to let specific people up if it was a natural structure, but what if there was someone controlling everything to begin with?
“Right… It’s said that even after the Twin Void Marsh was discovered, hardly any experts of the great powers came exploring, right?” Someone asked suddenly.
“We can’t say that there aren’t any at all, but you’re right. There were hardly any of them. However, with our Spirit Luxuriant World fully taking shape, treasures should be forming everywhere. Those powers are rich and powerful, and they shouldn’t be interested in this backwater place…” Someone else replied.
“That might not really be the case… What if they already knew the secrets of the Twin Void Marsh?” The first person who asked the question seemed to have thought of something.
“Do you mean… Do you mean to say that this place already belongs to a particular faction? Did the Tongyou Institution already occupy this entire region? That shouldn’t be the case, right? With how tyrannical the great powers act, if the Tongyou Institution really owns this place, they won’t allow us to do as we wish…”
That was the Tongyou Institution they were talking about! They had True Immortal Kou Chongxue, a Martial Void Realm expert as their leader! Even though they didn’t have an Elysium, they were comparable to the other Elysiums in terms of strength!
“Maybe the Tongyou Institution isn’t like the rest?” Another expert who seemed a little more well-versed in worldly affairs quipped. “It’s said that the You Continent is sorely lacking in experts and they can’t even control their own territory properly… With the You Continent and half the Bing Continent under their control, they’re stretched too thin. Maybe that’s the reason why they didn’t stop anyone from exploring the Twin Void Marsh even if they already conquered the Three Footed Peak…”
“Don’t the Tongyou Institution seem a little too greedy… They’re biting off more than they can chew…” Someone else mumbled in dissatisfaction. The moment the words left his lips, everyone around him, including his friends. They instantly distanced themselves.
Whatever it was, the Tongyou Institution was an existence akin to the Elysiums. Even if they only had a Holy Land, wandering cultivators like those in the Twin Void Marsh weren’t qualified to criticize them.
There were even many cultivators who had their own thoughts of joining the You Continent after their adventures in the Jiao Continent.
It was said that due to the lack of experts in the You Continent, the Tongyou Institution enrolled many methods to get experts to take root there. It was especially so for those with special skills. They could even enter the Tongyou Institution directly and take on teaching roles!
What was more, because of the Tongyou Institution’s rapid rise, they didn’t have the bad habits of older sects where they would only pass down a single inheritance. They adopted an attitude where they were willing to learn anything that was of value before sharing it with their members.
For cultivators who had incomplete cultivation inheritances or those who were stuck at some strange bottleneck, the Tongyou Institution’s approach was extremely tempting.
What was more, they also had their specialty items like flying ships, Spatial Pouches, and Teleportation Formation. With the Tongyou Institution as their foundation, the You Continent gradually became the go-to trade hub for high-level cultivators in the North.
Even though the Five Peaks Ridge was dozens of miles across, any Martial Dipper Realm expert would be able to encompass the entire area with their divine will.
When Sun Haiwei and the others disappeared while climbing up the mountain, they arrived within the Stellar Cauldron.
When everyone was looking around curiously, Sun Haiwei had a strange feeling and she quickly turned to stare at Shang Xia who appeared in front of them at an unknown time.
“Senior Sister Sun, were you intentionally guiding their intentions out there?” Shang Xia grabbed everyone’s attention the moment he spoke.
Sun Haiwei chuckled in response, “I don’t have a choice. This is our deputy patriarchs’ intention. In the past 3 years, our You Continent has been expanding greatly. Along with half the territory in the Bing Continent, we need a lot of manpower to take care of our land. No matter how hard we tried to recruit experts, we’re still extremely shorthanded…”
Shang Xia nodded slowly in response.
If the Tongyou Institution had its reservations about recruiting talents from other continents, now that Kou Chongxue had entered the Martial Void Realm while Yun Jing and Sun Haiwei broke through to the Martial Dipper Realm, they no longer had such concerns. Moreover, the institution had a lot more Martial Extermination Realm experts than before.
“Did you really stay here for 3 years without going anywhere?!” Chu Jia’s voice rang through the cauldron as she stepped out from behind Sun Haiwei. She stared at Shang Xia and muttered, “There seem to be a lot of changes in the Stellar Cauldron!”
“Yeah, it changed quite a bit. After our world completed its transformation, the cauldron formed a powerful connection to the World Origin Source through the Jiao Continent. That’s the reason behind the change…” Shang Xia chuckled and explained.
Even though Sun Haiwei seemed to be their leader because of her cultivation realm, Chu Jia’s authority in the Tongyou Institution was far too high. She even taught Sun Haiwei and Shang Xia in the past. When she spoke, Sun Haiwei merely stood at the side and chuckled at Shang Xia’s misfortune.
Pointing at a plant in the corner, Chu Jia’s eyes widened in surprise. “What’s that? It seems new…”
The smile on Shang Xia’s face grew wider. “You might not have seen it before, but you’re no stranger to it. That’s the Starry Tree…”
“Starry Tree?!” Chu Jia gasped in shock, and so did Sun Haiwei. The experts who came with them who heard about it were also surprised as they sized up the strange plant in the corner.
As for those who didn’t know what the Starry Tree was, they could guess it was something amazing from Chu Jia’s expression. They started to examine the plant properly as they whispered to each other.
“It actually survived the battle?! Patriarch Kou didn’t say anything about it though…” Sun Haiwei glanced at the plant and wondered out loud, “When Patriarch Kou worked with Master Yuan Chen to fight Dugu Yuanshan, the Star Observatory was destroyed. We thought that the Starry Tree perished in the process. No… Wait a second. We weren’t the only ones… Everyone thought that the Starry Tree was destroyed!”
“Well… It was nearly crushed by the battle, but due to the multiple layers of restrictions placed by the experts from the various powers, along with Liu Jingsheng’s assistance when Dugu Yuanshan went all out, the shockwaves of the battle were weakened. Patriarch Kou managed to salvage the tree before hiding it in the Stellar Cauldron…” Shang Xia explained,
A fire was lit in Sun Haiwei’s eyes when she turned to look at the tree in the corner. “Doesn’t that mean that the Starry Tree belongs to us right now?!”
Shang Xia chuckled when he saw the experts of the institution whispering among themselves. They seemed to be sharing information about the tree as looks of excitement appeared on their faces. He laughed, “Yeah… From now on, you guys can’t mention anything about the Starry Tree.”
The experts of the institution immediately promised to keep it a secret.
The Starry Tree… Starry Fruits… Starry Leaves, Starlight Water…
It was a source of extremely precious treasures!
It was especially so for Starry Fruits! It was a precious treasure that could increase one’s chances when stepping into the Martial Void Realm!
Unfortunately, after the Star Observatory was destroyed, the foundation of the Starry Tree was harmed. Even though it received the blessing from the world like every other living creature while being nourished with Dugu Yuanshan’s void origin, it hadn’t fully recovered.
Shang Xia spoke again, “Oh right. Why did you guys come? Does the patriarch have instructions for me?”
“Right, we got carried away.” Sun Haiwei smiled. “Patriarch Kou is asking if the deed is done…”
Realizing his intentions, Shang Xia chuckled under his breath, “Indeed… They noticed the moment Dugu Yuanshan’s soul was exterminated!”
“The Stellar Cauldron should have allowed Patriarch Kou to sense what happened here better than the others…” Sun Haiwei added.
“Is there anything else?” Shang Xia asked.
With a giggle, Sun Haiwei continued, “Patriarch Kou is telling you to hurry back to the You Continent if you’re done with whatever you want to do. As for what he actually needs you for, I have no idea. All I can tell is that he’s extremely serious. He probably has something he needs to tell you.”
Shang Xia nodded in response. “So, you’re here to take over my position?”
Sun Haiwei couldn’t say anything when Chu Jia butted in with a sinister chortle. “Hehe, we’re here to take advantage of the situation. Haven’t you discovered that of those who came with me and Instructor Sun, all of them are close to breaking through to the next cultivation layer?”
Back when they disembarked, Shang Xia noticed their cultivation. To that, a wide grin appeared on his face. “Haha, because I’ve been using the Stellar Cauldron to seal Dugu Yuanshan, there have been treasures appearing around the cauldron. I kept a portion that grew a little closer to the cauldron. Those treasures don’t belong to me and I’ll hand them back to the institution. All of you can go look around elsewhere for treasures that suit you.”
Looks of excitement appeared on their faces after hearing what he said.
A frown appeared on Shang Xia’s face all of a sudden and a look of realization could be seen on his face. “Senior Sister Sun, have you already become an instructor of the institution?”
Sun Haiwei waved her hand and muttered, “I’m merely taking over the position of the Upper Division Instructor for the time being.”
“Hahaha! Instructor Liu plans on retiring to focus on recovering. Dear Substitute Instructor, you’re probably going to become the Deputy Head Instructor of the institution soon! In fact, you might be taking over the position of the Head Instructor…” Chu Jia laughed at the side.
Shang Xia turned a little more serious and he asked, “Didn’t Instructor Liu already recover?”
A sigh left Chu Jia’s lips. “She recovered, but her foundations were affected and she lost the qualifications to enter the Martial Dipper Realm. Because of that, her mentality suffered greatly and she no longer showed an interest in the affairs of the institution. She has been trying to retire from her position several times now…. Haiwei came down south to take over your position while relieving the pressure of Instructor Liu from seeing her replacement all the time…”
Shang Xia could only sigh and lament the fact that Liu Qinglan’s foundations were damaged. He couldn’t help but gripe at the tough fate of a cultivator.
Watching the mood turn somber, Sun Haiwei quickly shifted the topic. “Oh right, there’s one more thing…”