First Immortal of the Sword

Chapter 1783 - The Book of Karma of the Nine Mysteries of Chaos

Su Yi wasn’t visiting the Eastern Sea on impulse.

Firstly, dark currents were flowing beneath the surface, and the situation was turbulent. It was only by avoiding the spotlight and remaining uninvolved that he could avoid getting passively swept up into various storms.

Secondly, the Eastern Sea was home to countless mysterious forbidden grounds. They were full of good fortune, and they’d play a critical role when he proved his Dao and became an Immortal King.

His third reason involved his fifth incarnation, Li Fuyou!

The sword-bearing ape told him that during the Primeval Era, Li Fuyou left the Fuyou Boat in the Eastern Sea. Those who boarded it were carried to the place Li Fuyou went into seclusion, Spiritual Desolation Mountain.

Li Fuyou left his mantle there, as well as all of the Daoist canons and legacies he’d gathered over the years.

Long ago, the sword-bearing ape was fortunate enough to board the Fuyou Boat and arrive at Spiritual Desolation Mountain. There, he saw an ocean of legacies and tomes.

During this trip to the Eastern Sea, Su Yi planned to see whether or not he could find Spiritual Desolation Mountain and learn more about his fifth incarnation.

......

Evening Fog City, a pawn shop in the southeast quarter.

Su Yi drummed the countertop and called over the dozing, long-bearded old man tending to the store. “I want to visit the Precious Gem Workshop.”

The old man looked him up and down. “Do you want to participate in the Giant Whale Spirit Race’s auction too?”

Su Yi was inwardly stunned, but outwardly, he didn’t react. “Is there something special about this auction?”

The bearded old man smiled, his eyes narrowing into slits. He stretched out his hand and rubbed his fingers together.

Su Yi took out a bag of holding and handed it to him. There were one hundred pieces of immortal jade inside.

The old man glanced at the bag’s contents. A warm smile spread across his face, and he explained the Giant Whale Spirit Race’s auction in full detail.

The Giant Whale Spirit Race lived deep within the Eastern Sea. Half a month ago, they announced that they were holding an auction at the Precious Gem Workshop.

They were going to sell off treasures from the Dragon Palace, relics from the Primeval Era!

This news instantly caused a huge commotion.

Of late, numerous prominent experts had gathered from all across the Immortal Realm, all to participate in the auction and see these relics with their own two eyes.

“Are they really relics of the Dragon Palace?” exclaimed Su Yi.

The Dragon Palace of the Eastern Sea!

This was an ancient faction of the Primeval Era, and it now only existed in fleeting rumors. Despite the passage of countless years, no one had ever definitively proved that this faction had ever existed.

Yet now, the Giant Whale Spirit Race announced that they were auctioning off relics of the Dragon Palace! This naturally piqued Su Yi’s curiosity.

Rumor had it that the Dragon Palace of the Eastern Sea hid unimaginable wealth!

The old man with the long beard pounded his scrawny chest. “The Giant Whale Spirit Race wouldn’t dare to deceive the Precious Gem Workshop. You can rest assured, sir.”

“Give me an admission token,” said Su Yi.

Admission tokens were proof that one was qualified to enter the Precious Gem Workshop.

The old man smiled and passed him a black medallion with both hands. “Here you go, Fellow Daoist.”

A moment later, he sharply changed the subject. “Fellow Daoist, should you wish to participate in the auction, I suggest you prepare additional treasure. To the best of this old man’s knowledge, the relics of the Dragon Palace won’t be the only things on sale. There will be other rare and precious goods available too.”

Su Yi asked with great interest, “Will there be Self-Renewing Soil?”

The old man’s smile froze, and he laughed dryly, “Self-Renewing Soil is a divine treasure. None has been discovered in a long, long time. How could it be found so easily?”

“What about Five-Colored Earth?”

“Uh...no.”

“Nine Abyss Divine Spring Water?”

“They don’t... have that either...”

Su Yi went on to ask about several other heavenly materials and earthly treasures. The old man was at a loss each and every time. He almost couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

How long has it been since such treasures have appeared in this world? Had they really been discovered, who would possibly auction them off?

Suddenly, a voice as pleasing as the music of the heavens rang out.

“I have a bottle of Nine Abyss Divine Spring Water, about three catties in total. If you can afford it, I’ll happily sell it to you.”

A man and a woman walked into the pawn shop.

The man was majestic and extraordinary looking, with a saber at his waist. His face looked as if it had been hewn out of his stone, and his eyes flashed with cold lightning. He was an imposing sight.

But it was the woman who truly stood out of the crowd.

She was dressed in plain hemp robes, and a red string tied her long black hair into a casual bun. She had wide, roomy sleeves, and she had no jewelry whatsoever, but she was nonetheless startlingly beautiful.

Especially her eyes. They were like dreams or illusions, distant and ethereal. Every movement they made seemed to touch the souls of those around her.

She really was an extraordinary beauty. There was nothing to criticize about her appearance. Anyone who laid eyes on her would feel unsightly by comparison.

But Su Yi could tell that beneath her tranquil, cold exterior, she was extremely proud and confident.

Most importantly, she had a unique aura about her, one starkly different from cultivators of the Immortal Realm. It was extremely similar to Divine Son Qing Xiao’s!

I suspect this woman is from the God Domain too! Su Yi’s gaze focused.

When he reached this conclusion, he took another look at the majestic man beside her. He quickly noticed that he was hiding his cultivation base, and his aura was obscure and unfathomable!

“What’s your asking price?” Su Yi asked calmly.

The woman didn’t even pause to think. “One hundred thousand absolute-grade immortal jades.”

Su Yi mulled it over, then slipped a divine material from his sleeves. “This is a chunk of Profound Ink True Phoenix Iron. It ought to be enough.”

Of late, he’d slaughtered countless Immortal Kings, and he’d acquired numerous Immortal King weapons, all of which he’d tossed into the Divine Replenishment Furnace and refined into divine materials.

Some went to reforging the Sword of the Human Realm, but Su Yi still had numerous rare and precious materials, like the Profound Ink True Phoenix Iron.

The majestic man looked at Su Yi in obvious surprise, as if he hadn’t anticipated that this young man would have something so precious on him.

The woman, however, didn’t miss a beat. She just handed the bottle to Su Yi. “This contains three catties of Nine Abyss Divine Spring Water. You’re welcome to double-check.”

Su Yi accepted the bottle, examined its contents, and nodded. “You’re right.”

He then handed her the Profound Ink True Phoenix Iron.

After completing this exchange, Su Yi turned and left the pawn shop. Nothing unexpected happened.

Only now did Su Yi dare say with certainty that this suspected “divine daughter” didn’t know who he was; she hadn’t come looking for him on purpose.

In other words, their meeting really was just a coincidence.

They actually dare walk around openly. Why aren’t they stuck in seclusion like those Great Realm old-timers? They must have treasures that can hide their presences and avoid the effects of divine misfortune, thought Su Yi.

Regardless, acquiring that close to three catties of Nine Abyss Divine Spring Water was an unexpected delight.

More importantly, he’d taken on the appearance of Su Xuanjun and withdrawn his aura, so she didn’t realize his identity.

......

Not long after Su Yi left, the majestic man couldn’t help but ask, “Young Leader, why trade with that kid?”

The woman acquired an admission token from the old man with the long beard and left the pawn shop before answering him. “Ever since I was a little girl, Grandpa told me ‘do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’ He always said I should be kind to others as a way of accumulating karmic merit, and that it doesn’t matter whether or not they reciprocate.”

She paused, then whispered, “Oftentimes, the ‘why’ doesn’t matter. We crossed paths, so why not take a moment to help another?”

The majestic man sighed. “Young Leader, you’re as kind and magnanimous as ever.”

The woman shook her head. “No need to compliment me. I’m just doing what I ought to, and doing what I think is right. It’s as the Buddhists say: when you cultivate the heart, you must hold compassion for all living things, but you must also be capable of smiting devils and fiends.”

She paused, then said, “When we participate in the auction, we have to figure out where the Giant Whale Spirit Race acquired the treasures of the Dragon Palace. If we can find the ruins, we might really be able to find one of the Nine Mysteries of Chaos, the Book of Karma.”

The Book of Karma!

The man’s heart shook. Rumor had it that the chaos source of the Immortal Realm had condensed this Epoch Treasure. It contained the Laws of Karma, and it was legendary even in the God Domain!

“Understood!” The majestic man nodded.

A moment later, he couldn’t help but ask, “Young Leader, do the Nine Mysteries of Chaos really exist?”

“Grandpa said that the Nine Mysteries of Chaos born of the Immortal Realm’s chaos source really do exist. Long ago, during the Primeval Era, someone discovered the Umbrella of Tribulations and the Sky-Stealing Hook,” whispered the woman in hemp. “The Book of Karma was not under the control of the Dragon Palace of the Eastern Seas. Rather, fate and coincidence placed the book under their care. They watched over it, but not even they could use it.

“The Umbrella of Tribulations, the Sky-Stealing Hook, and the Book of Karma....” The majestic man couldn’t help but be intrigued. “Miss, might I ask about the other six Mysteries of Chaos?”

The woman thought for a moment, then said, “I also know about the Sword of Proximity. They say it has the strange and unfathomable power to completely ignore space. No matter how far away your enemies, it can cut them down. With it, even the ends of the earth are always within reach.”

The man gasped. He didn’t understand the details of the Nine Mysteries of Chaos, but he knew that they represented nine Epoch Treasures born of the Immortal Realm’s chaos source!

And Epoch Treasures contained Epoch Laws. They were unparalleled divine objects. Even gods drooled over them!

It was immediately obvious to him that all of these treasures—the Sword of Proximity, the Book of Karma, the Sky-Stealing Hook, and the Umbrella of Tribulations—were condensed out of the strongest chaos source power of an epoch!

“Grandfather also said that the Sword of Proximity is only six inches long, and that it belonged to a mysterious sword cultivator of the Primeval Era, Li Fuyou,” said the woman in hemp. A moment later, she shook her head. “Those are the only four I know of. Not even I know the names of the other five Mysteries of Chaos.

“I came to the Immortal Realm, in part to vie for an opportunity to become a goddess, and in part to investigate the whereabouts of the Nine Mysteries of Chaos.

“Now, treasures of the Dragon Palace are due to appear at auction. We might well be able to use this lead to find the Dragon Palace itself!”

The woman’s starry, dreamlike gaze lit up with anticipation.