Chapter 181: Little Spirit Mountain
A few days later.
In the northern part of the Tianxuan Empire, amidst a vast wilderness of mountains.
The Thunder Lion was racing at high speed.
With the aura of a Half-Saint level beast emanating from it, no other beasts dared to have any thoughts about Su Zhan's group along the way.
"Friend Su, we've already entered the vicinity of the Holy Land's border. It's only a few hundred miles more, and we should be able to see the Heavenly Profound Holy Land soon!" Chu Xuanyi's gaze swept over the surrounding wilderness, estimated their location, and he smiled as he spoke.
Su Zhan was somewhat surprised. "We're at the border already, and we still need a few hundred miles to see it?"
"Friend Su, the Tianxuan Empire is different from other empires. It only has this one Holy Land. Of course, the Heavenly Profound Holy Land is also a very powerful one among the many Holy Lands in the Southern region. The area occupied by the Holy Land alone spans about three thousand miles!"
"If you add various miscellaneous areas like peaks specially used to raise beasts, regions for disciple trials, and so on, the Heavenly Profound Holy Land probably covers an area of about thirty thousand miles! Considering we only have a few hundred miles left to travel, we've indeed arrived at the border." Chu Xuanyi explained.
After traveling for a few hundred miles more, they could indeed see the high towers and buildings of the Holy Land.
"Due to its immense size, the Holy Land has a total of twelve mountain gates. Among them, eight are outer gates, and four are inner gates. We're now less than fifty miles away from one of the outer gates." Chu Xuanyi pointed ahead.
Not long after, the Thunder Lion arrived at the mountain gate.
Even though it was a Holy Land, there were still low-level disciples. The disciples guarding the outer gate were only at the Martial Realm level. When they saw the Thunder Lion, they were immediately astonished.
However, they didn't show too much fear. As disciples of the Holy Land, even if they were gatekeepers, others would hesitate to harm them.
"Halt, senior!"
The outer gate disciple respectfully saluted with a cupped fist and stopped the Thunder Lion.
"May I ask, senior, for what reason have you come to the Holy Land?"
"We've come to participate in the disciple recruitment assessment of the Holy Land."
"I see, however, the sect has rules. Regardless of who it is, they must first have their information recorded and leave behind a trace of true qi aura as proof of identity, to prevent individuals with ill intentions from infiltrating the Holy Land. Senior, please understand!"
"Understood."
Su Zhan wasn't displeased either. He dismounted from the Thunder Lion, followed the procedure to record his identity information, and after completing the registration, he continued towards the inner gate with Chu Xuanyi and Zhang Ling.
The outer gate encompasses an area of thirty thousand miles, within which many wild mountains and forests are included. It's only the five thousand-mile region within the inner gate that can truly be considered the Holy Land!
"This senior Su doesn't seem to be putting on airs at all!"
"Yes, indeed, that senior Chu too. Even that Thunder Lion is much better in quality compared to the other participants in the assessment who've come in the past few days!"
"Speaking of that Thunder Lion, the recorded grade for its information was Half-Saint level. Yet its owner, senior Su, is only at the Fish-Dragon Fourth Transformation. It's truly baffling!"
"Looking at this senior Su's youth, he's most likely a core genius from some major power. Having a Half-Saint as his mount isn't a big deal! After all, our Holy Son can even choose a Saint to guard him!"
"That makes sense."
Several outer gate disciples chatted for a while and continued guarding the gate.
…
Over an hour later, Su Zhan arrived at the inner gate.
After seeing the Thunder Lion, the mountain gate disciples treated him with great respect, considering him a powerful senior.
In fact, upon hearing that he was here for the assessment, a Half-Saint-level guide arrived in less than ten minutes.
"Brother Su, Brother Chu, I am Jin Lou. I'm a senior deacon of the Holy Land and responsible for guiding the two of you to participate in the core disciple assessment of our Heavenly Profound Holy Land!"
Wearing a pale white robe and appearing to be in his early thirties, Jin Lou saluted with a cupped fist. He glanced at the Half-Saint-level Thunder Lion, which had been beaten to look like a pig's head, and his demeanor became even more modest.
"Deacon Jin, I also have a little girl here who intends to participate in the sapling assessment of your Holy Land. Are there any procedures needed?" Seeing that Jin Lou displayed no trace of the Holy Land's usual arrogance and was instead very humble, Su Zhan also saluted with a cupped fist and inquired.
"Brother Su, if you can subdue a Half-Saint-level Thunder Lion, the one you've brought must surely be among the most exceptional geniuses. I'll have someone take her to participate in the sapling assessment, and you needn't worry about a thing." Jin Lou chuckled, produced a white jade token, pressed it against his forehead, and after a few seconds, took it down.
"Brother Su, I've used the holy token to summon a deacon who is nearby. He will be in charge of everything. We can proceed."
"Let's wait a moment." Su Zhan shook his head.
He wasn't at ease unless he saw who would be guiding Zhang Ling.
"Then let's wait, as Brother Su wishes." Jin Lou remained patient.
To have a Half-Saint Thunder Lion as a mount at only the Fish-Dragon Fourth Transformation stage meant there were two possibilities.
First, Su Zhan was a core genius nurtured by a major power.
Second, Su Zhan's strength was extremely formidable, surpassing the average Half-Saint.
Regardless of which possibility it was, it indicated that Su Zhan wasn't an ordinary person and would be best to be on good terms with.
As Jin Lou thought about these things, he took the initiative to explain the division of their Holy Land's regions and their rules and systems.
A few minutes later, an Origin Elixir realm deacon arrived.
"Senior deacon, two esteemed seniors, I am Qi Shan. I have come to take the sapling named Zhang Ling, who is going to participate in the assessment." Qi Shan respectfully saluted Jin Lou, Su Zhan, and the others.
Even within the Holy Land, the Fish-Dragon realm was considered high-ranking and deserving of respect.
Su Zhan's gaze fell upon Qi Shan, remembering his appearance. He gave some instructions to Zhang Ling and watched as she left with Qi Shan.
Afterward, he stored the Thunder Lion within the Beast Ring and followed Jin Lou to a peak within the Holy Land, adorned with pavilions and buildings.
"Brother Su, Brother Chu, this is Little Spirit Mountain. Once every ten years, the core disciples are recruited here. Martial artists from various places who come to participate in the assessment stay on this mountain. The spiritual energy of heaven and earth on Little Spirit Mountain is quite abundant, probably several times that of the outside world!"
"Moreover, each house, pavilion, and building on Little Spirit Mountain contains spirit wine and spirit fruits that can enhance your cultivation. If needed, you can also ring the bell that is set up within to call for a few female attendants to serve you. Of course, given the multitude of martial artists in the world, some practice dual cultivation methods. However, with such convenient and luxurious conditions, it is not free to use."
"Starting from the day of check-in until the end of the assessment, regardless of the number of days stayed, a fee of ten million spirit stones is required. For those buildings with additional features, an extra five million spirit stones will be charged. Among them, the Spirit Rain Pavilions, which spans from the mountainside to the mountaintop, starts at a minimum of twenty million spirit stones. According to the elevation of each Spirit Rain Pavilion on Little Spirit Mountain, an additional one million spirit stones will be charged for each higher tier!"
Jin Lou pointed to the twenty-odd delicately arranged small buildings on Little Spirit Mountain, resembling steps.
"So expensive??" Su Zhan was dumbfounded.
Just accommodation alone costs a starting price of ten million spirit stones. This was still a Holy Land, after all! This is more brutal than straight up robbery!
"Ten million spirit stones is only ten thousand saint stones! The Holy Land is the pinnacle of martial arts within the Tianxuan Empire! You think this amount of spirit stones is expensive?"
"You're really like a frog at the bottom of a well, perhaps it's your first time coming out from some mountain valley?"
Just then, a luxurious carriage arrived. In the carriage, a youth dressed in golden robes held a jade fan in his hand. He glanced at Su Zhan, turned his head somewhat disdainfully, and addressed a respectful Origin Elixir deacon standing nearby, "Deacon Li, I want the best accommodation on Spirit Mountain. The cost of spirit stones is not an issue!"