Chapter 00199: Nine Heavens
# Nine Heavens
Chapter 199
Novel: Abandon The Universe
Chapter 199: Nine Heavens
Lan Xiaobu once again threw out more than ten arrays of flags, binding the spirit of his opponent.
With a frown, he asked, "Where did you come from? How did you get here?"
Seeing Lan Xiaobu casually arrange a five-level binding formation to imprison him, the spirit fell into despair.
Remembering Lan Xiaobu's terrifying ability to tear souls apart, he dared not evade the question.
"My name is Luan Jia, and I come from the Baizhuan Mountain in the Fourth Heaven. Each time the primal aura strikes the Great Desolate Universe, it creates numerous cracks in the Nine Heavens. I was trying to seize something when I accidentally got swept away by one of those cracks and ended up here."
Lan Xiaobu was taken aback, not understanding any of it.
What was this Nine Heavens? What was primal aura? The only part he grasped was the mention of the Great Desolate Universe, of which Earth and many technological planets in this starfield had once been a part.
"Explain it to me in detail. What is Nine Heavens? What exactly is primal aura?" Lan Xiaobu asked, frowning.
Luan Jia had not expected Lan Xiaobu to possess such power and not know about the Nine Heavens.
While it was understandable not to know about primal aura, it was strange not to know about Nine Heavens.
Could it be that the other party was not from the Great Desolate Universe but from another universe of primal origins?
"Speak quickly."
Seeing Luan Jia hesitate, Lan Xiaobu was becoming increasingly impatient.
Luan Jia hurriedly replied, "Friend, I’ll speak, but could you spare my life?"
“Looks like your spirit still hasn’t learned its lesson. If that’s the case, I’ll have to teach you a few more times," Lan Xiaobu threatened, but he did not move further.
He feared that if he attacked again, he might accidentally destroy this spirit.
Luan Jia then bravely said, "If you promise to let me reincarnate, I won’t say a word more."
"Fine, I’ll allow you to reincarnate."
Lan Xiaobu said without hesitation.
After saying that, when he saw Luan Jia wanting to make further demands, he snorted coldly, "If you don’t wish to reincarnate, then forget it."
His killing intent surged, and another spirit thorn formed in his hand.
Although the spirit thorn hadn’t struck Luan Jia yet, he seemed to sense the terrifying pain it would bring.
He quickly said, "Alright, I’ll tell you. Just remember your promise to let me reincarnate. Nine Heavens refers to the first Heaven of Zhongtian, the second Heaven of Xiantian, the third Heaven of Congtian, the fourth Heaven of Gengtian, the fifth Heaven of Yuitian, the sixth Heaven of Kuotian, the seventh Heaven of Xiantian, the eighth Heaven of Shentian, and the ninth Heaven of Chengtian. These Nine Heavens are parts of the Great Desolate Universe. Originally, a portion of Zhongtian and Xiantian was separated from the Great Desolate Universe..."
Lan Xiaobu interrupted Luan Jia, "Are you saying that Xiantian refers to the Yuan Continent? According to what you said, does each Heaven correspond to a continent?"
Luan Jia was taken aback; he had never thought of it that way.
But now that Lan Xiaobu had pointed it out, he realized, "It seems that way, but not entirely. For instance, the Zu Continent is part of Zhongtian, which was separated, but it's still present in the Great Desolate Universe. Whereas Yuan Continent was completely separated. If I'm not mistaken, the place where I am should be the Zhongtian that was separated from the Great Desolate Universe long ago."
"So, are the Nine Heavens ordered from lowest to highest? For example, to ascend from the third Heaven to the fourth, do you need to reach a certain level of cultivation and perhaps undergo a tribulation to ascend?"
Lan Xiaobu believed that if ascension existed, then Nine Heavens must mean this.
The Nine Heavens had many records throughout Huaxia history.
In the "Investiture of the Gods," there was a line stating, "The sorrowful clouds rise to the Nine Heavens, a sea of defeated soldiers clamoring on the ground."
As for poetry about the Nine Heavens, there were many more, such as "The moon sets among three trees, the sun shines on the Nine Heavens."
Even the idiom "out of reach" refers to the Nine Heavens.
However, Lan Xiaobu suspected that the Nine Heavens he understood might not be the same as what Luan Jia referred to.
Luan Jia continued, "In the beginning, the sages had a plan. Once the Great Desolate Universe separated the Zu Continent and Yuan Continent, the Nine Heavens underwent changes. Originally, only those who reached a certain level of cultivation could ascend to higher heavens through tribulation. But now, Nine Heavens are mostly interconnected. Except for the eighth and ninth Heaven, the previous seven heavens can be freely entered and exited."
"Why did this happen?"
Lan Xiaobu was somewhat hopeful; this information was essential for him since he was about to venture into the Great Desolate Universe.
Luan Jia replied, "It’s rumored that the Great Desolate Universe should not have separated the Zu Continent and Yuan Continent, nor should it have split the first and second heavens. Now, the Nine Heavens are incomplete. The reincarnation layer is unstable, and so is the Dao level. The Great Desolate Universe's aura is leaking out, leading to the pressure and infiltration of primal aura, causing the Great Desolate Universe to slowly crack apart."
"So, isn’t the Great Desolate Universe facing obliteration? Who came up with the idea of separating the Zu and Yuan continents?" Eddie, who had been listening quietly, couldn’t help but ask.
This information was also critical to him.
In the future, he wanted to leave Earth; who knew where that teleportation array on Kunlun Mountain might take him?
Luan Jia said, "Separating the Zu Continent and Yuan Continent isn’t entirely bad. Although the distinction of the Nine Heavens has faded, allowing primal energies to enter will bring more cultivation resources. The stronger cultivators worry that one day the Great Desolate Universe may not be able to contain the continuous influx of primal aura, leading to the entire Great Desolate Universe fracturing into countless planets."
Lan Xiaobu chose not to pursue further; the Dao of reincarnation and the Great Desolate Universe—didn’t this mean they were about to split up the lower continents and waste resources on mere mortals? If so, then the Great Desolate Universe was heading for annihilation as primal forces intervened, potentially breaking it into countless planets.
If one split others, they would ultimately face the same fate in the cosmic cycles of reincarnation.
Who could be exempt from it?
"Isn’t the third level of Congtian currently the lowest in the Great Desolate Universe?" Lan Xiaobu now had an overview of the Great Desolate Universe.
After the separation of the Zu and Yuan continents, they hadn’t enjoyed their freedom for long before being caught in enormous problems.
"It’s indeed from Tian," Luan Jia replied hastily.
"Congtian is the third heaven in the Great Desolate Universe, where the aura is the weakest. Previously, to cultivate at higher levels, one had to enter the fourth heaven or above, which was very difficult. Since primal aura started to seep into the Great Desolate Universe, the disparity in aura within the Nine Heavens has shrunk. Now, even in the third heaven, some can step into the gold immortal level. It's not as strict as before; being in the third heaven no longer means you can only advance in specific places."
"What do you mean by that last sentence? Are you saying that there are places in the third heaven where the aura is strong enough to allow ascension?" Lan Xiaobu inquired.
Luan Jia confirmed, "Yes, in each heaven, there are top-tier celestial treasure lands. These places are often the realms of major sects or high-level immortals. For example, although Congtian is the third heaven, some individual immortal mountains might have a concentration of celestial energy that even surpasses the top caves in the sixth heaven."
Lan Xiaobu understood: what was the Nine Heavens where celestial energy ranges from low to high? It must be those powerful cultivators who established top-tier gathering formations, concentrating the celestial energy of entire heavens.
Over time, this created treasure lands rich in spiritual essence.
If they depleted the energy elsewhere, then naturally, those places would grow weaker.
It was similar to the barren lands in the Western Domain of Yuan Continent, where the Seven Sounds Goad resided.
Such selfishness! Even in Yuan Continent, though there were ways to arrange gathering formations, one wouldn’t absorb the entire continent’s energy but would rather utilize spirit veins.
But that said, could anyone in Yuan Continent arrange a formation to extract energy from the whole continent? Certainly, there were no masters of such high-tier formations.
If there were, they probably would’ve set up those gathering arrays long ago.
"Are you saying that since primal energy has seeped into the Great Desolate Universe, the Nine Heavens will gradually lose their differences?"
Luan Jia replied, "From the perspective of celestial energy, yes. However, it's impossible for there to be no differences at all. People emerging from higher-tier heavens still have a status and advantages that surpass others; it serves as a symbol of identity."
Lan Xiaobu exhaled in relief.
As long as there was no difference in celestial energy for the heavens, he was satisfied.
As for status, in his view, it did not matter which heaven one originated from; it hinged entirely on the strength of one’s fists.
Take himself, for instance.
His background was that of the first heaven, while this Luan Jia came from the fourth, yet he would still need to answer to him if he found himself under Lan Xiaobu's fists.
"One last question, how does one get to the Great Desolate Universe?"
"I have no way to return. I arrived here because of the primal aura's penetration and the resulting cracks. As for how to go back, I don't know," Luan Jia said bluntly.
He realized he would not survive; he spoke plainly.
Now, he could only hope that Lan Xiaobu would honor his promise and let him reincarnate.
Suddenly, Lan Xiaobu slapped Luan Jia's spirit hard, and instantly, Luan Jia felt his consciousness blur.
He mentally cursed.
This rascal was sending him to reincarnate but erased his memories! How was this any different from not reincarnating at all?
Eddie watched Lan Xiaobu’s actions with immense envy; he felt he was far from being as capable as him.
"Eddie, you've always lived in the sea. Have you ever seen a woman walk into the ocean?" Lan Xiaobu felt he needed to search for Luo Caisi quickly, then head to the Great Desolate Universe.
He couldn’t wait until the universe was bursting with primal energy before he arrived.
Eddie nodded, "Five or six years ago, I did see a woman venturing out to sea alone. At that time, her cultivation seemed to be somewhat higher than mine, but I didn't know which direction she went."
Lan Xiaobu's consciousness quickly swept outward, tearing through any arrays shielding the areas.
It wasn’t long before he spotted a solitary island in the Atlantic.
This island was also under some restriction.
After tearing down the barrier, he discovered it was merely a fruit production base, likely a private island.
Just as Lan Xiaobu was about to withdraw his consciousness, he sensed something amiss, and soon his awareness detected a large aviation hall beneath this fruit base.
(End of Chapter)