Chapter 855 - Repairing the Profound Talisman

The most straightforward analogy would be to think of the True Martial Continent as an egg, with the eggshell acting as the crystalline wall. Now that there was a crack in the shell, there would only be two consequences if it couldn't be repaired.

The True Martial Continent would either be swallowed by boundless darkness or it would have to withstand the corrosion from outside.

No one knew if what lay beyond the True Martial Continent was gentle or brutal. Judging by the boundless wind, it was likely dark and dangerous.

The True Martial Continent had been separated from the Astral Domain for too long and couldn't sustain its laws. It would slowly perish if it couldn't merge back into the Astral Domain.

There wasn't much time left for the True Martial Continent. Not only would they have to seal off the rift, but they would also need to build a bridge to the Astral Domain, also known as the Astral Domain Path.

This was a task more difficult than ascending to the heavens. Whether it was for his family or himself, Liu Wuxie wouldn't allow the True Martial Continent to shatter.

After restoring his true essence, Liu Wuxie's gaze sharpened as he approached the mountain's edge. The wind assaulted him whenever he took a step forward, threatening to sweep him away at any moment. However, it was fortunate that Liu Wuxie had come prepared.

He had tied the Earth-Binding Chains around his waist with the other end bound around a large boulder. The boulder he had chosen was large enough to ensure he wouldn't be swept away.

The Earth-Binding Chains were flexible in length, allowing Liu Wuxie to control them at will. He began to sway left and right, struggling to keep himself steady.

This wasn't a viable approach, as he would have no way to begin his task even if he approached the rift. He began to adjust his breathing to align his body.

At first, he struggled to adapt before he began to discern the patterns in the wind. It seemed as though every blast of wind had a rhythm. He even experimented with himself to test his theory, and he was right.

The wind followed a traceable pattern, and he finally grasped the pattern after testing for two hours.

"The astral wind accelerates every five breaths, with a stream of air surging from the southwest. If I can avoid it, I should be able to reach the rift safely," Liu Wuxie concluded after analyzing the pattern.

Five breaths later, Liu Wuxie sped up toward the rift. He finally understood why flight was impossible on Heavenly Peak with powerful laws pressing down like a mountain.

He wasn't flying but rather moved his body along with the air current.

Standing at the cliff's edge, Liu Wuxie knew that once he stepped forward, his fate would no longer be in his hands, placing his entire life in the grip of the Earth-Binding Chains.

He steadied his mind briefly before unleashing a powerful outburst of aura to blast the surrounding astral wind away before stepping off the Heavenly Peak into the boundless Astral Domain.

The endless astral wind assaulted him from all directions, but he could do nothing as he was tossed around in the air like a leaf. If not for the Earth-Binding Chains, he would've been swept into the abyss long ago as an ordinary rope would've snapped instantly.

Many disciples had come over the years, bringing sturdy ropes with them. But without exception, they were all swept away by the astral wind.

He moved, probing the astral winds' trajectory. He used the returning air current to move an inch forward.

The rift was several kilometers away. He didn't need to get too close; just a thousand meters away would be sufficient. Aside from those at the Heaven Profound Realm, no one would dare to get too close to the rift, not even those at the Earth Profound Realm.

He had to endure the astral winds from a distance, as getting too close would expose him to a powerful suction force.

Tossed around in midair, Liu Wuxie struggled to adjust himself, unable to sense any power within his body. Flight was impossible under the Astral Domain’s suppression, forcing him to inch forward little by little.

"Spatial shards!" His eyes widened as fragments of space hurtled toward him.

Cracks had begun to form in the surrounding space. If the rift remained unsealed, the damage would spread, eventually collapsing the space entirely and forming a black hole that would consume everything in its path.

Reaching out, he caught a palm-sized spatial shard and swiftly tossed it into the Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron, treating it as a priceless treasure. The cauldron could refine it, converting the spatial essence into laws that would nourish the desolate world. This would aid him in mastering spatial techniques in the future.

Half a day's journey later, Liu Wuxie finally arrived a thousand meters away from the rift, with the massive talisman giving off a tremendous aura.

Liu Wuxie executed Ghost Eye and could discern each rune on the spiritual talisman.

"What a powerful talisman! This is not something crafted by someone at the Heaven Profound Realm!" Liu Wuxie muttered with a grave expression.

The talisman was severely damaged, its surface marred by countless years of astral wind erosion. Smaller talismans surrounded it, neatly arranged in chains that held the rift firmly shut.

"This is strange. These talismans weren’t crafted by the same person, as they were made using different methods," Liu Wuxie observed, noting their distinct craftsmanship.

"Someone from the Dragon Emperor Academy must've come here to reinforce the seal, preventing the rift from expanding further." Aside from the two academies, not many people would dare to go there.

An ominous wind gushed out from the rift, catching Liu Wuxie off guard. He was thrown around, caught in a reverse current, and unable to break free.

"Damn it!" he cursed. The astral winds' trajectory kept shifting, and while they had been slower two hours ago, their speed had now doubled.

He controlled the Earth-Binding Chains, forcing himself free from the reverse current.

"This won't do! I must repair the rift quickly and leave this place!" Liu Wuxie murmured.

He took out a Memory Talisman and began recording everything, as he needed solid evidence to prove his work. After steadying himself, he began to form seals with his hands.

The Heavenly Spirit Celestial Academy's upper echelons weren't expecting him to succeed by sending him there. They had sent hundreds of people over the years, but they had all failed. The death toll had reached over ninety percent, and even those who managed to return were never the same.

Liu Wuxie's talisman skills were far beyond ordinary people's reach. Even the talismans in the market could no longer interest him.

Tenth-grade talismans were comparable to the True Profound Realm, but what Liu Wuxie was inscribing this time had exceeded that, reaching the level of the Spirit Profound Realm. It could no longer be called a talisman but a profound talisman.

Profound talismans were divided into strict classifications, and most were first-grade profound talismans, which corresponded to the Spirit Profound Realm. As for second-grade profound talismans, they were comparable to the Earth Profound Realm. Naturally, third-grade profound talismans corresponded with the Heaven Profound Realm.

As for fourth-grade profound talismans, he had never heard of them before. It was a mystery if they existed on the True Martial Continent. Each grade was further divided into nine levels.

If Liu Wuxie's speculation was correct, the largest talisman wasn't a spiritual talisman but a ninth-level, third-grade profound talisman. It required the combined effort of many to craft.

The smaller talismans around it had barely reached the third grade but were merely at the second or third level at best.

With Liu Wuxie's current abilities, it would be an achievement if he could craft a first-grade profound talisman. Crafting a third-grade profound talisman was beyond his reach.

Right from the start, Liu Wuxie had never planned to create new profound talismans but to repair them. If he could repair the largest profound talisman in the center, its power would resurface to seal the rift.

As he began infusing runes into the largest profound talisman, it gave off a faint radiance, absorbing all the runes he had inscribed. If anyone had witnessed this scene, they would have been utterly shocked.

Liu Wuxie was only at the True Profound Realm, yet it was unbelievable that the runes he inscribed could fuse into a third-grade profound talisman. Over the years, those sent to attempt this feat were all at the Spirit Profound Realm, making him the sole exception.

After absorbing the runes Liu Wuxie had inscribed, the profound talisman began to flicker rhythmically as if it were breathing.

......

An old man's eyes snapped open in the depths of Heavenly Spirit Celestial Academy. He was the academy's grandmaster, and he was also the one who had assigned this extraordinarily difficult mission to Liu Wuxie.

"He actually made it to the Heavenly Peak's summit and has started to inscribe runes..." the grandmaster muttered with shock reflected in his eyes. So much time had passed without any news that he had assumed Liu Wuxie had died along the way.

"Very well! If you can repair the rift, the academy will spare no effort in nurturing you," the grandmaster declared before shutting his eyes again, as if making a final decision.

......

Liu Wuxie was still inscribing runes and integrating them into the profound talisman, but it was like a single drop of water in an ocean—barely creating a ripple.

"This won't do! It's too slow at this rate, and the astral winds keep erasing most of the runes I inscribe. Even if I worked on this for ten years, I wouldn't be able to fill them all," Liu Wuxie muttered, withdrawing his hands with a grim expression.

The situation was far more troublesome than he had anticipated, and the only option left was to move closer to the profound talisman, but it would also increase the risk.

The closer he got, the stronger the astral winds became, riddling his body with cuts. The astral winds were like sharp blades, easily piercing through his defenses.

"If nothing else works, I can only inscribe an immortal rune," Liu Wuxie muttered.

An immortal rune was comparable to countless profound runes, but inscribing an immortal rune also came at a high cost. It would weaken his body and spirit, akin to using the Annihilation Fist.

Although inscribing an immortal rune wouldn't render him unconscious, it would drain his energy, leaving him vulnerable to the relentless assault of the astral winds.

The massive profound talisman had stabilized after being reinforced with countless profound runes, and the surrounding astral winds had significantly weakened.

"Looks like I can only resort to an immortal rune!" Liu Wuxie muttered after careful consideration. It was the safest option.

Approaching the talisman directly was too dangerous, as the powerful suction force threatened to pull him into oblivion.

Bracing himself against the astral winds, Liu Wuxie fixed his sharp gaze on the profound talisman. He was confident that with the True Dragon Physique and the ancient deity’s power, he could endure the injuries and recover quickly.

If he could anchor the immortal rune at the heart of the profound talisman, it would ensure at least a century of peace for the True Martial Continent.