Imperial Cultivation Chapter 1497 - 1493: Acknowledging the Master

He appeared suddenly, and the momentum around Cheng Qian and Cheng Kun surged fiercely.

Then Li Hongzhao smiled charmingly.

Like thousands of flowers blooming instantly, her radiance was dazzling.

From beginning to end, Li Hongzhao always maintained a faint expression.

Cold and stunning, unapproachable.

It was the first time they saw Li Hongzhao smile like this, feeling that her beauty was overwhelming, impossible to look directly at.

"You’ve arrived," Li Hongzhao smiled charmingly.

Chu Zhiyuan glanced around, clasped his fists and smiled, "Senior Song."

Song Chaoge said, "You arrived quite quickly."

Chu Zhiyuan laughed, "Knowing you were going to enter, I was prepared to come and assist at any time."

He then clasped his fists and smiled at Huang Zhengyang, "Brother Huang, how have you been?"

Huang Zhengyang sighed, "Lucky, lucky."

Entering the Grotto Heaven several times, tense and thrilling, made him feel especially prolonged.

Now looking at Chu Zhiyuan, he felt as if it had been a lifetime and felt the excitement of seeing an old friend.

Chu Zhiyuan laughed, "Brother Huang, you’ve always had good luck."

Huang Zhengyang said, "Brother Chu, this is Senior Cheng, Elder Cheng. These three are my colleagues..."

He introduced everyone present.

Chu Zhiyuan greeted them all with clasped fists.

Luo Yun and Zheng Zhenxing, Meng Xianda, all had eyes ablaze.

Chu Zhiyuan was their target as cultivators, making breakthroughs as easily as drinking water.

Cheng Qian and Cheng Kun were also full of curiosity.

They had been curious about Chu Zhiyuan for a long time, now meeting for the first time.

Cheng Qian’s curiosity quickly turned to surprise, "Mr. Chu, are you in Third Transition?"

"Yes."

Chu Zhiyuan nodded with a smile.

After absorbing the abnormal energy from the cave and converting it into Divine Essence, he was close to Fourth Transition, ready to step in anytime.

"Third Transition?" Cheng Kun studied Chu Zhiyuan.

Chu Zhiyuan laughed, "I’ve been focused and closed off, fiercely cultivating for a while."

Cheng Kun shook his head, sighing, "Indeed, truly deserving of Mr. Chu’s reputation, such talent!"

Those just entering Spirit Venerable all bury themselves in cultivation, but even after decades or centuries, they only reach Second Transition.

He did it in just a few months.

This speed of cultivation makes one despair, incapable of even feeling jealousy.

Chu Zhiyuan chuckled, "What do you want me to do, calling me over?"

Song Chaoge said, "We’re blocked by this valley and can’t get across, so we rely on you to think of a solution."

"What’s strange about this valley?"

Li Hongzhao said, "Inside the valley, there’s an array. The water is a strange poison; the stone walls contain abnormal energy that disrupts True Yuan. We really have no solution."

Chu Zhiyuan said, "Can’t you use a Spiritual Artifact to fly across from above?"

He didn’t believe Song Chaoge didn’t have such Flying Spirit Artifacts.

As one of the Four Great Saint Veins, with the entire Court as its foundation, it’s beyond the imagination of ordinary people.

Li Hongzhao said, "That array is very peculiar, using a Spiritual Artifact won’t work."

"Such peculiarity..." Chu Zhiyuan pondered.

Those stones in Snake Valley are very important. After I collected them, the array began to disorder, yet its power increased.

The danger of the stone wall is known to him.

Cheng Qian asked, "Mr. Chu, do you have a solution?"

He felt Chu Zhiyuan also had no solution, that even Spirit Venerables before this array and peculiar stones were the same as Venerables.

No matter how strong Chu Zhiyuan is, he is just a Spirit Venerable at Third Transition, equal to himself, what can he do?

Chu Zhiyuan laughed, "I’ll give it a try, but no guarantees."

He spoke, then slowly walked upward, step by step touching the void, as if invisible steps existed in the Void.

Cheng Qian and Cheng Kun frowned.

Spirit Venerables can traverse the void, but in this particular space, it doesn’t work.

Whether it was the oddity of this Grotto Heaven, or the peculiarity of this specific area.

They nearly fell victim to this very point.

Chu Zhiyuan could break through the shackles of this peculiar world and traverse the void!

Chu Zhiyuan rose higher with each step, soon above the stone wall, surpassing it.

Gazing afar, Chu Zhiyuan flickered and disappeared into the sky.

In their confusion, just about to speak, Chu Zhiyuan flickered back beside Li Hongzhao.

Cheng Qian and Cheng Kun’s expressions slightly changed.

This was clearly not just Qinggong but some sort of space-related secret technique.

Secret technique combined with Spirit Venerable’s unique Realm to break the Void’s shackles.

Chu Zhiyuan said, "I can take you all across this valley."

Li Hongzhao said, "I’ll go first, Master?"

Song Chaoge nodded slowly, "Be careful."

"Don’t worry," Li Hongzhao smiled brightly, extending a jade-like hand, "Let’s go."

Chu Zhiyuan smiled and grasped her fair wrist, separated by her sleeve, and the two flickered, disappearing.

The next moment, they appeared inside a cave.

Li Hongzhao looked around in amazement, "Where is this...?"

The Divine Essence quickly enveloped her, isolating the cave’s strange atmosphere.

Chu Zhiyuan pointed to the Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree, "Drop a drop of blood on it."

Li Hongzhao, puzzled but trusting, bit her slender finger.

A Blood Pearl sparkled with a crystalline sheen, gently falling toward the Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree.

The Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree was emitting golden light, absorbing the stardust from the Demon Suppressing Divine Tree.

As the red Blood Pearl reached one foot above the Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree, it halted, blocked by the golden light, unable to approach.

Li Hongzhao grew increasingly confused.

Chu Zhiyuan, focusing his spirit, caused the Demon Suppressing Divine Tree to suddenly brighten, pouring abundant stardust into the Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree.

The Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree’s golden light surged and then retracted, the Blood Pearl dropped onto the trunk and quickly seeped in, disappearing.

Chu Zhiyuan nodded in satisfaction, flickered, and took Li Hongzhao to vanish, reappearing in a narrow path opposite Snake Valley.

Li Hongzhao asked, "What just happened?"

"The Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree is a divine object guarding against the Six Ferocious Beasts," Chu Zhiyuan said, "It has some connection to my Demon Suppressing Divine Tree."

"Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree..." Li Hongzhao pondered.

She knew about Chu Zhiyuan’s Demon Suppressing Divine Tree but didn’t think it was overly powerful.

The Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree was even less so.

But seeing this Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree suppressing the Six Great Fierce Beasts reveals its power.

Chu Zhiyuan said, "With the Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree, you can guard this place."

Li Hongzhao said, "Guard this place?"

Chu Zhiyuan nodded, "It’s considered a hard task but also an excellent opportunity."

"What’s excellent about it?" Li Hongzhao asked.

Chu Zhiyuan said, "The Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree can aid your cultivation, breaking through the mental limits."

Li Hongzhao immediately smiled charmingly, "Why don’t you just keep it yourself?"

Chu Zhiyuan said, "Of course, it belongs to me too, after all, the Demon Suppressing Divine Tree is mine."

Li Hongzhao understood, "You can also benefit from it?"

"We can share," Chu Zhiyuan nodded, "About time, I’ll bring them over."

The key to letting her drip blood to bond was the Phoenix Bloodline.

If Xiao Ruoling were here, dripping blood would be fruitless, as the Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree wouldn’t accept it.

The mental benefits the Little Demon Suppression Divine Tree brings to him are scant.

It’s different for Li Hongzhao.

This can help Li Hongzhao enter the next Realm sooner, comparable to Spirit Venerable.

He felt somewhat fortunate.

Luckily, they were trapped for a few days, giving him time to completely suppress the Six Beasts.

This harvest was tremendous, enough to advance into Fourth Transition.

He then brought everyone over to reunite with Li Hongzhao.

"Not surprising, Brother Huang," Huang Zhengyang marveled, "This is the magic of Ascension Technique, right?"

Seeing Cheng Qian and Cheng Kun’s complex moods, he helped ease their feelings.

Chu Zhiyuan nodded and smiled, "It’s indeed akin to sowing seeds and reaping the harvest. The Court didn’t grant me such secret techniques, and without learning Ascension Technique, I’d be helpless today."

"Haha..." Huang Zhengyang laughed, "The Court is indeed wise."

Chu Zhiyuan chuckled twice, clasped his fists respectfully to everyone, "Then I’ll take my leave, I have other matters at hand."

Song Chaoge solemnly clasped fists, "Mr. Chu, thank you very much."

Chu Zhiyuan smiled and waved, flickering and disappearing.

Everyone gathered their complex thoughts, looked around, realizing they were already on the opposite side of Snake Valley, revealing smiles.

No matter how it was accomplished, they finally crossed this peculiar valley, drawing closer to the Grotto Heaven.

Huang Zhengyang laughed, "Senior Song, the road from here on is smooth, we can find our way!"

"Let’s go," Song Chaoge said.

They soon reached the bottom of the cliff, seeing it shrouded in dense fog halfway up.