Chapter 00237: The Disappearance of the Ascension Ring
# The Disappearance of the Ascension Ring
Chapter 237
Novel: After the Myth
Chapter 237: The Disappearance of the Ascension Ring
Qing Yu's eyes reddened once again as she spoke, "Elder Gu, why are you lying? When did Ding Huan ever..."
Gu Youchang cut her off with a cold tone, "Even if Ding Huan saved my life, I wouldn't stoop to lying for him. Ding Huan is indeed a mortal, but his character is far superior to mine. Do you really think he would take an interest in you? Hah, I find that hard to believe. Ever since I gave him a jade slip on the basics of array formations, he hasn't had time to fool around with you. Otherwise, do you think he could have achieved what he has today?"
"Elder Gu, would I tarnish my own reputation to slander Ding Huan?" Qing Yu's face turned pale, and her body trembled with anger.
Gu Youchang replied indifferently, "I didn't want to bring this up, but since you insist, let me ask you this: when was the first time you gave yourself to Ding Huan?"
"It was in the Great Ravine Valley. That night, we separated from the others and somehow ended up on the main road. I had just narrowly escaped death, and in my emotional state, Ding Huan's words confused me, and I... I lost my composure..."
Qing Yu's face grew even paler as she spoke.
For a woman, such a private matter should never be spoken of.
Gu Youchang clasped his hands together and said, "I believe there are people here who can discern the truth of her words. There's no point in me explaining further, as I can't argue with her."
After saying this, Gu Youchang sat down.
"You..."
Qing Yu's tears threatened to fall once more.
A mocking voice suddenly interjected, "You are indeed lying."
The speaker was a beautiful woman with peach-blossom eyes and an alluring demeanor, giving off the impression that she was everyone's lover.
However, in the Ascension Realm, few did not know her.
She was Lou Fenyan, the mistress of the Twin Cultivation Pavilion.
Despite her stunning appearance, Lou Fenyan was known for her ruthlessness in the Ascension Realm.
The number of men who had died by her hand was likely in the thousands.
"Madam Lou, please enlighten us," Liu Yinyu, the palace master of the Luo Shen Palace, clasped her hands and asked.
Although Lou Fenyan was known for her carefree attitude, she dared not be disrespectful to Liu Yinyu.
She quickly responded, "This maid lost her virginity within the past year, and the man who took it was an older man whose vitality had already begun to decline. His cultivation level was at the peak of the Refining Essence into Qi stage, but he had just passed that peak and was beginning to decline. In other words, this man's cultivation would never progress beyond the Foundation Establishment stage."
At this point, Lou Fenyan paused to glance at Qing Yu, whose eyes were filled with fear, before continuing disdainfully, "As for Ding Huan, I heard he entered the Dao cultivation world several years ago. By the time of the Great Ravine Valley incident, it had already been at least three years. Moreover, Ding Huan established a new sect and killed two Soul Formation sect masters. His strength couldn't possibly be at the Refining Essence into Qi stage—it had to be far beyond that. Most importantly, Ding Huan would never be in a state of declining vitality. Therefore, I believe Elder Gu's words, and yours are undoubtedly false."
Qing Yu's face was now deathly pale.
She had never imagined that someone could understand the intricacies of such matters so thoroughly.
If she had known that at least a dozen people here could see through her lies, with only Lou Fenyan speaking up, she wouldn't have been so confident.
"Get out," Liu Yinyu said with utter disgust.
Qing Yu didn't dare to stay a moment longer and hurriedly fled the ceremonial hall of the Desolate God Sect.
Her plan had only been half-successful.
According to her original scheme, someone would hear about Ding Huan's secrets, rescue her, and then take her away from the Desolate God Sect.
While someone had indeed rescued her, before anyone could take her away, her lies were exposed, and she was forced to leave in disgrace.
Now, all she could do was flee for her life.
Whether she would survive depended on her luck.
Qiao Sha's expression was grim.
Although the engagement ceremony of the Desolate God Sect was merely a pretext to gather the leaders of various sects, the way things had turned out had left the new sect master with no face at all.
A middle-aged man with long hair stepped onto the stage and clasped his hands to the gathered guests, "Esteemed guests, today we gather here under the auspices of the Desolate God Sect's disciples..."
At this point, he seemed to realize something was amiss.
The engagement ceremony of the Desolate God Sect's disciples had fallen apart, and mentioning it now would only serve to embarrass the sect further.
Although the previous sect master of the Desolate God Sect, Ji Xinting, the strongest cultivator in the realm, had gone missing, the sect's foundation remained intact.
Even if it was no longer the top sect in terms of strength, it was still one of the premier sects in the Ascension Realm.
"Brother Yi, we're all friends here. Just speak your mind," Shi Qiqiu, the headmaster of the Longyan Academy, offered a way out.
No one would laugh at the long-haired man, not because of his high status, but because he was Yi Qianxing, the Tower Immortal of the Ascension Tower.
It was rare for ordinary sects to even receive a verbal blessing from Yi Qianxing, let alone have him attend their engagement ceremonies.
This wasn't because of his high status, but because he controlled the Ascension Tower.
In the Ascension Realm, there was a tower known to all—the Ascension Tower.
Cultivators in the Ascension Realm couldn't ascend to the immortal realm simply by reaching the peak of their cultivation.
They had to go to the Ascension Tower to ascend.
However, even if you reached the point where you needed to ascend, you couldn't just go to the Ascension Tower and ascend.
You had to wait.
How long you had to wait depended on when the Ascension Ring appeared.
At the top of the Ascension Tower was an Ascension Altar, where the Ascension Ring would appear at irregular intervals.
Cultivators who needed to ascend could stand within the ring and be swept away by its light.
Each Ascension Ring could only take one cultivator at a time.
If two chose to ascend, they would have to wait in line.
From this, one could see how lucrative Yi Qianxing's position was and how high his status was.
In reality, however, Yi Qianxing had no such benefits, and his status was only slightly elevated.
The reason was that there were too few cultivators in the Three Heavens Star Continent who could ascend.
Sometimes, many years would pass before one appeared.
As a result, most of the time, even after the Ascension Ring disappeared, no one would ascend.
Yi Qianxing nodded, his tone becoming grave, "The last time the Ascension Ring appeared in the Three Heavens Star Continent was 127 years ago. 103 years ago, Qin Huan of the Changyuan Sword Path, having reached the peak of Earth Immortal cultivation, came to the Ascension Tower seeking to ascend. Upon learning that the Ascension Tower had not seen an Ascension Ring for over twenty years, he left in disappointment. 70 years ago, Cang Yongqian of the Datong Blade Sect came to the Ascension Tower seeking to ascend, only to learn that the tower had not seen an Ascension Ring for over fifty years. He, too, left in disappointment. 60 years ago, Qin Huan returned to the Ascension Tower, only to find that the Ascension Ring still had not appeared. He left in disappointment once more and never returned. 15 years ago, the rogue cultivator Shan Beishu came to the Ascension Tower, only to find that the Ascension Ring had not appeared for 112 years. After Shan Beishu left, the Ascension Ring has yet to appear to this day."
Aside from a few who were already aware, the majority of the cultivators were stunned.
They had always believed that once they reached the peak of Earth Immortal cultivation, they could simply go to the Ascension Tower and ascend to the immortal realm.
The Ascension Realm was called the Ascension Realm precisely because of the Ascension Tower that allowed one to ascend to the immortal realm.
Now, they suddenly learned that even if they reached the peak of Earth Immortal cultivation, they couldn't ascend through the Ascension Tower.
This was a shock.
Although nine out of ten people here might never reach the Earth Immortal stage, let alone its peak, the possibility of ascending to the immortal realm was a matter of principle.
As long as there was a path, it didn't matter when one chose to take it.
Even if one never took that path in their lifetime, the path's existence was enough.
But if there was no path, how could one not panic?
Even the Void God cultivators who had come from the Dao cultivation realm, such as Hu Wuxin, were at a loss.
While it was difficult for ordinary cultivators to travel from the Dao cultivation realm to the Ascension Realm, it wasn't difficult for them.
Most of the people present believed that reaching the Earth Immortal stage in the future was a given.
Liu Yinyu suddenly asked, "Brother Yi, do you know where Shan Beishu, Qin Huan, and Cang Yongqian have gone?"
There were many powerful cultivators in the Ascension Realm, but Earth Immortal-level experts were few and far between.
The few individuals Yi Qianxing had mentioned were also known to Liu Yinyu.
She had never imagined that they had all reached the Earth Immortal stage.
It seemed that the vast star continent hid many powerful figures.
They simply didn't flaunt their strength as much as Ji Xinting, which was why Ji Xinting had earned the title of the strongest in the Three Heavens Star Continent.
Yi Qianxing's voice grew somber, "This is one of the main reasons I came here today. The disappearance of the Ascension Ring in the Ascension Tower means we can't ascend for now, but perhaps we can find a way eventually. However, if the Earth Immortal experts of our star continent continue to disappear one by one, I fear that the Three Heavens Star Continent will face a crisis one day."
"Please elaborate, Brother Yi," Liu Yinyu's tone grew even more serious.
She was still some distance from reaching the Earth Immortal stage, but like all cultivators, she believed she would reach it within a hundred years.
"If I'm not mistaken, these three experts have all gone to the Ancient Primordial Battlefield..."
Yi Qianxing said only this before falling silent.
Not only did Yi Qianxing fall silent, but everyone present did as well.
In the Three Heavens Star Continent's Ascension Realm, no one was unaware of the Ancient Primordial Battlefield.
Many cultivators had found treasures just on the outskirts of the battlefield.
The Desolate God Sect's foundational cultivation technique, the Great Desolate God Jade Art, was said to have been found on the outskirts of the Ancient Primordial Battlefield.
And that was just the outskirts.
As for the interior of the Ancient Primordial Battlefield, no one who had entered had ever returned.
Of course, many had entered, but none had come back.
Finally, Yi Qianxing broke the silence, "Everyone, I believe we must take action. Otherwise, if the Ancient Primordial Battlefield continues to consume the strong cultivators of the Three Heavens Star Continent, our continent will face a great crisis."
(End of Chapter)