Chapter 2137: Starlight Yarn

Although the Tongyou Institution did not officially operate under a master-disciple inheritance system, in reality there were always a few exceptions. At the very least, there were inevitably differences in closeness and rapport between instructors and students.

However, when it came to laying the foundation of martial cultivation and choosing one’s martial path, the institution was always open and fair to everyone alike.

After all, as the saying went, “A master leads you to the door, but cultivation depends on the individual.”

In a world where true power ultimately resided within oneself, everything still depended on one’s own effort.

“Has there been any movement from the Illusory Sea of Stars?” Shang Xia asked, “When I returned from the Flood Star Region, I went to check the seal at the Void Mirage. The grand formation there looked perfectly intact, it didn’t even seem to have been attacked even though there were traces of battle in the surroundings. Has the Illusory Sea of Stars really made no attempt to breach it during this time?”

When Shang Xia first returned, he had immediately run into the newly advanced Giant Ape Emperor and had been swept into a string of matters afterward, causing him to temporarily set aside his question until now.

Kou Chongxue replied, “That’s exactly what the Heavenly Fields of our Heaven Observation Star Region have been trying to figure out. Not only at the sealed site... Our Star Region has seen very few traces of experts from the Illusory Sea of Stars!”

“Indeed, the Illusory Sea of Stars’ cultivators are exceptionally skilled at concealing themselves, but for things to be this quiet lately is beyond expectation. By now, the speculation that the Illusory Sea of Stars has already opened a second void passage within the Heaven Observation Star Region has practically become a consensus among the Sages of the various Heavenly Fields.”

Shang Xia instinctively nodded, then asked, “Since they suspect it, I suppose everyone has been searching for that passage?”

Kou Chongxue shook his head. “No luck so far. The most obvious suspect would naturally be the Star Origin Lord and his Six Essence Heavenly Field, but according to the few pieces of intelligence our guy managed to send out recently, that possibility seems unlikely.”

Shang Xia frowned. “What’s the reason? Has it become harder to communicate with him? Is he in danger?”

Kou Chongxue sighed, “Danger is always possible, but that fool is extremely cautious. Unless he’s absolutely certain, he would never send messages carelessly. As for why a void passage to the Illusory Sea of Stars likely doesn’t exist inside the Six Essence Heavenly Field, that too comes from his reports. The Star Origin Lord’s control over his Heavenly Field has become increasingly strong and the space within it is growing more and more resilient. At this point, Martial Dipper Realm cultivators can no longer perform spatial traversal within the Heavenly Field. Even breaking through space has become difficult. And for True Immortals, the distance they can traverse through space has been drastically reduced.”

“In such conditions, opening a void passage linking two Star Fields wouldn’t be easy for the Illusory Sea of Stars. Moreover, based on previous cases, such rifts usually appear randomly. They’re not something that can be created deliberately.”

Shang Xia thought for a moment before asking, “What if the Star Origin Lord himself allows it, if he cooperates with the Illusory Sea of Stars experts from within?”

Kou Chongxue froze for an instant, his voice no longer as certain as before. “That can’t be, can it? Opening a passage to the Illusory Sea of Stars from within a Heavenly Field would mean that his world is no longer whole. It would also cause contamination of their origin qi!”

What he said made perfect sense, and Shang Xia, after some thought, also agreed it was unlikely.

But Kou Chongxue then added, “Even if the Star Origin Lord hasn’t opened a passage to summon them, it’s still highly probable that a group of Illusory Sea of Stars experts is hiding within his Heavenly Field.”

Shang Xia could already guess what he was implying and smiled. “You’ve already got a plan in mind, haven’t you?”

Kou Chongxue knew there was no point hiding it and grinned. “Right now, nearly every Illusory Sea of Stars expert capable of entering our realm is at least a Sage. In the past, tracking their movements was nearly impossible. Either we didn’t have the time, or we lacked the strength. But now... Things are different.”

Shang Xia immediately understood what he meant. “You want to use my External Avatar?”

Kou Chongxue chuckled, “Your External Avatar now wields a martial intent. His true strength is enough to rival high-level Sages. Though he still has limitations, in most situations, even if his presence is exposed, he should have no problem retreating safely.”

Shang Xia pondered for a moment, then finally nodded. “Alright.”

Kou Chongxue smiled. “Then it’s settled! However... There’s one more matter.”

Shang Xia raised his eyebrow looked at him with mild suspicion.

Kou Chongxue coughed lightly, “The Bestowal of Talisman Seed... This new martial path we discussed...”

Shang Xia quickly waved his hand. “Patriarch Kou, I don’t have that much time!”

Kou Chongxue laughed, “I know you have more pressing things to do. I’m not asking you to fully construct the entire cultivation system. All I need is for you to outline its general direction and create the simplest first level foundational talisman. The rest can be left to your students and disciples at the institution, as well as the many people studying your martial path, to refine.”

Shang Xia didn’t need to think hard to know that Kou Chongxue likely intended to have Hai Yuanyuan oversee it. Indeed, she was the only one in the entire institution who had both the qualification and ability to handle such a task.

However, considering Hai Yuanyuan’s playful and restless temperament, Shang Xia found it hard to imagine her settling down long enough to develop a completely new and complex cultivation system. Still, a project so fresh and intriguing would surely hold her attention for quite some time.

As long as he could lay down the general framework, she could follow that direction and refine it further. By the time her enthusiasm waned, the system would likely already have been developed enough to produce high-level cultivators.

Thinking it through, Shang Xia nodded in agreement. However, before leaving the matter, he asked, “Patriarch Kou, where do you plan to test this new cultivation system?”

Kou Chongxue replied without hesitation, “We’ll first find a few earth stars outside the Heavenly FIeld and test it by bestowing low-level Talisman Seeds.”

Then he looked up at Shang Xia and added, “If the preliminary results prove viable, I plan to hand this cultivation system over to Sun Haiwei and have her implement it first among the Invincible Pirates.”

Shang Xia nodded without objection. In the Chaotic Sea of Stars, Star Pirate Groups varied from the most savage to the most cunning. Even though the Invincible Pirates had been built mainly by high-level cultivators from the Essence Luxuriant Heavenly Field, it was still impossible to completely eliminate the mix of good and bad elements, especially since their base of operations at the 4th Starsea Market was a place of utter chaos.

In the past, the Invincible Pirates had relied on the unity of their high-level experts and their overwhelming combat strength to maintain control. Yet as their influence had continued to grow in recent years, and with numerous external factions from beyond the Chaotic Sea of Stars now infiltrating Star Pirate Groups, Sun Haiwei urgently needed a more powerful means to strengthen her control over the organization.