Chapter 00163: Journey to the Dao Cultivation Realm
# Journey to the Dao Cultivation Realm
Chapter 163
Novel: After the Myth
Chapter 163: Journey to the Dao Cultivation Realm
"What is your name?"
Guan Wu did not expect that the last chef to enter would cook so well.
But thinking about it, it made sense, since the steward from her family had been abusing his power for personal gain, completely disregarding the needs of the family.
It was hard to say if the few people he selected were even chefs.
Such a person deserved death.
"My name is Ding Huan, and this is my pet, Lao Liu."
Ding Huan had brought Lao Liu with him this time, as it was essential for him to accompany him to the Dao Cultivation Realm.
"What is your strength?"
What surprised Ding Huan was that Guan Wu asked a question unrelated to cooking.
"My strength is decent. Over the years, I've traveled far and wide and faced many dangers, overcoming them one by one," Ding Huan answered honestly.
Guan Wu nodded.
"The dishes you made were very good. Tomorrow, you will wait here and follow me."
"Understood."
Ding Huan quickly replied.
...
After spending another night outside, Ding Huan arrived at the entrance of the Jin Manor early the next morning.
He did not wait long before he saw the doors of the Jin Manor open, and a large group of people surrounded Guan Wu as they came out.
Guan Wu said her goodbyes to her parents and family before waving at Ding Huan, "Ding Huan, let’s go."
Ding Huan quickly stepped forward, carrying his bag and Lao Liu.
He had originally thought that as the fiancée of the heir to the Yan Yue Sect, Guan Wu would leave the Jin Manor accompanied by a throng of maidservants and housekeepers.
To his surprise, there were only two people by her side—one was him, and the other was a maidservant.
“Qing Yu, if Ding Huan has any questions, you help him,” Guan Wu instructed the maidservant beside her.
"Yes, Miss Wu."
What puzzled Ding Huan was that the maidservant named Qing Yu did not call her 'Miss' but addressed her as 'Sister Wu.' It seemed their relationship was not ordinary.
Guan Wu, along with Qing Yu and Ding Huan, headed directly to the Yan Yue Sect at the Xian Yuan Square, where a flying ship was already docked.
“Fairy Guan, please board the ship.”
As soon as Guan Wu approached, a middle-aged man greeted her with a beaming smile.
“Thank you, Deacon Qiong,” Guan Wu graciously returned the greeting and boarded the ship.
Ding Huan hurriedly followed, bringing Lao Liu along behind Guan Wu and Qing Yu.
With his strong spiritual sense, Ding Huan had already overheard some discussions behind him: "With such limited spots, she's not only bringing two mortals but also a monkey."
"Silence! Do you want to get kicked out of the Yan Yue Sect?"
...
Perhaps that last comment had its effect, as no one dared to continue discussing how Guan Wu was taking up too many spots.
From the location of the voices, Ding Huan could tell that the two speakers were from the Yan Yue Sect.
They were probably part of the sect’s personnel sent to the mortal world to recruit disciples alongside Deacon Qiong.
There were enough seats on the flying ship, yet Ding Huan could not understand why it was so challenging for mortals to enter the Dao Cultivation Realm.
Even if one or two more were added, it seemed overly cautious.
The Yan Yue Sect was a major sect in the Dao Cultivation Realm, and they were very strict in recruiting disciples.
Despite the many who came to Xian Yuan Square to participate in the selection, the Yan Yue Sect had only accepted twenty-three new disciples.
It was through the chatter he overheard outdoors that Ding Huan learned that all twenty-three appeared to be outer disciples.
He realized that the sect’s recruitment did not solely rely on talent; he was aware that many highly talented individuals also participated in the selection at Xian Yuan Square.
Since all the recruits were outer disciples, it meant that the inner disciples were promoted through other means.
At this moment, not only the Yan Yue Sect’s ship, but other sects' ships were also leaving Xian Yuan Square one after another.
On the Yan Yue Sect's ship, there were thirty-two people in total, including twenty-five outer disciples plus Guan Wu and Ding Huan.
The remaining seven comprised one who controlled the ship, Deacon Qiong who welcomed Guan Wu, and four responsible for recruiting disciples.
The last one, the strongest among them, was an elder of the Yan Yue Sect.
Ding Huan did not dare to probe with his spiritual sense, but he could see that the elder’s strength was probably not less than level seven.
As the ship of the Yan Yue Sect broke through the Xian Yuan Square, Ding Huan still had some doubts in his heart.
With the ship's speed, was it really over a month until they reached the Yan Yue Sect?
Also, now that they were on the ship, what did Guan Wu need a chef for?
The ship did not fly for over a month as Ding Huan had imagined.
After just two days, the ship came to a halt.
When Ding Huan exited the ship alongside the elder of the Yan Yue Sect, he was still puzzling—it was already here?
However, the surrounding spiritual energy indicated that they were still in the mortal realm.
A giant ripple wall appeared before Ding Huan.
Having seen much in his travels, this ripple wall was something he had never encountered before.
At that moment, the elder stood before the ripple wall and spoke loudly, "Everyone, once I open the Dao Mortal Wall, you will enter in order and try to be as quick as possible."
With that, the elder took out a formation flag, and an entrance appeared in the ripple wall.
Deacon Qiong was the first to enter, with the rest following closely behind.
Ding Huan, carrying Lao Liu and trailing Qing Yu, also stepped into the ripple wall alongside Guan Wu.
It was at that moment that Ding Huan finally understood why mortals could not enter the Dao Cultivation Realm.
How could any mortal pass through such a ripple wall?
The elder of the Yan Yue Sect opened a door with the formation flag, the cost of which must be considerable.
What that cost was, Ding Huan did not know, but it certainly related to the resources of the Yan Yue Sect.
The disciple controlling the flying ship presumably resided in the mortal realm and did not come along.
Thus, the number of people who made it through had become thirty-one.
A wave of rich spiritual energy surged towards them, and Ding Huan could not help but let out a deep breath.
This was truly the Dao Cultivation Realm! If he had established his foundation here, cultivating in such an environment would be like paradise.
The only thing Ding Huan found confusing was that all he could see was a desolate landscape.
Under the sky hung a faint red glow, as if stained with blood.
There were powerful beings here, so he dared not casually extend his spiritual sense, but Ding Huan’s eyesight remained quite sharp.
From afar, he could see no sign of civilization at all.
Where were the Dao Cultivation sects?
In such a rich spiritual energy place, why wasn’t there a Dao Cultivation sect?
Just as Ding Huan was still in confusion, Deacon Qiong stepped forward: "Everyone, you are the newly recruited disciples of our Yan Yue Sect, but whether you can truly become disciples is still uncertain."
Ding Huan, being just a chef, did not mind this remark.
But the faces of the twenty-three outer disciples turned pale.
What did this mean?
Could they still be eliminated after arriving here? If they were eliminated in the Dao Cultivation Realm, wouldn’t they be doomed?
Deacon Qiong continued, "From here to the Yan Yue Sect, we will have at least another month’s journey. During this time, we must pass through several dangerous areas, which are home to powerful demon beasts and collapse zones. I cannot speak for other sects, but seventy years ago, when our Yan Yue Sect was recruiting disciples, all the members who returned were lost in these dangerous areas. Not to mention you, even the sect’s stewards and elders did not make it back..."
“Then why don’t we take the flying ship back?” someone in the crowd quietly asked.
Deacon Qiong snorted coldly, "From the beginning to now, not to mention our Dao Cultivation sect, even strong beings from the Ascended Realm do not dare to fly through this area on a ship. Do you know how powerful the strongest flying demon beasts in this area are? They can easily sweep through a small half of the Dao Cultivation sects."
Everyone gasped in shock.
To these newcomers, the sects in the Dao Cultivation Realm were like immortal beings.
There were countless such immortal sects in the Dao Cultivation Realm, but what had Deacon Qiong just said? One demon beast could easily sweep through half of them?
Deacon Qiong did not bother with the shock of the newcomers and continued with a serious tone, "Therefore, everyone must closely follow Elder Gu and me, and you are not allowed to leave the group or make loud noises. Do you understand?"
Everyone responded in unison.
What a joke! In a place filled with such dangers, even if told to separate, they wouldn’t dare!
Ding Huan finally understood why Guan Wu needed a chef of decent strength.
In a wilderness like this, if Guan Wu was particular about her meals, it would indeed be tough to endure.
This also revealed Guan Wu's character as a pampered young lady.
In a perilous place where everyone was seeking opportunities, she was still worried about her food, which was hard to describe.
Had it not been for her engagement to the young master, what right would she have to ask a chef to accompany her?
After a few simple words, Deacon Qiong and Elder Gu took the lead and began to walk ahead.
Ding Huan, along with twenty-five others and Lao Liu, followed closely behind, while the remaining four Yan Yue Sect cultivators took up the rear.
Perhaps due to Deacon Qiong's earlier warnings, the journey was silent, and nobody was chattering.
Everyone was extremely cautious, trying to remain in the middle of the path.
The disciples selected for the sect, despite being newcomers, were still quite capable.
So the pace was quite swift, and just as dusk was falling, they had already traveled several hundred miles.
Ding Huan noticed that a few of the new disciples struggled to keep up with the pace.
If they couldn’t manage to keep up after only this distance, it would definitely be difficult for them to continue on the longer road ahead.
He did not believe Deacon Qiong would slow the entire team down just because of these few sluggish disciples.
Of course, this was none of his concern.
He was just a passerby to the other disciples of the Yan Yue Sect.
When an endless canyon appeared before everyone, Deacon Qiong stopped.
"Today, we rest here. Tomorrow morning, we will enter the Great Ravine Canyon."
Even with so many newcomers, Deacon Qiong and Elder Gu did not dare to travel at night.
Ding Huan gazed at the canyon ahead; both sides were lined with uneven forests that extended beyond his sight.
Even from a distance, he could vaguely see mist swirling within those forests.
Before entering the Great Ravine Canyon, a sense of foreboding had already descended upon them.
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(End of chapter)