Chapter 693: Starry Tree and Fate Dipper Essence

Even Kou Chongxue had no idea if anyone had investigated the core of the Ruined Observatory where the starlight stream was produced.

However, they managed to follow a relatively safer route by following the stream of starlight, and it led straight to its source.

Of course, the stream of starlight was faint and following it wasn’t simple, but their overwhelming strength and special methods allowed them to avoid all of the dangers that came with exploring the area.

Kou Chongxue’s Clone could transform his sword qi into a stream that flowed along with the starlight directly into the inner workings of the restrictions.

Shang Xia’s Four Constellation Qi also had special abilities when it came to dissolving restrictions and when they worked hand in hand, their efficiency of exploring the Ruined Observatory was greatly increased.

During their journey, Shang Xia filled 4 entire spiritual cases with Star Essence. With the 2 he already had, he possessed a total of 6 cases of Star Essence.

He also managed to obtain a complete extermination origin, 3 pieces of Starlight Stone, a large number of essence jade, and many strands of extermination qi in the form of extermination mist in his Spirit Extermination Gourd. The cracks in the interior of his Crimson Soul Tablet had also recovered by quite a bit.

They ran into danger several times, but Kou Chongxue’s Clone bore the brunt of the damage. Even if the clone suffered heavy injuries, as long as the source of his fate dipper wasn’t affected, he would be able to recover after absorbing enough energy.

Of course, Shang Xia’s body was also riddled with injuries. Luckily for him, they were external injuries and wouldn’t affect him too much. He might have used up some inner qi, but it wasn’t much of a problem to a monster like Shang Xia.

Currently, they had already crossed a larger half of the journey to the core of the Ruined Observatory.

Shang Xia raised his head to look at the resplendent spots that were flickering in the endless darkness and asked, “Patriarch Kou, don’t you feel that we’re bathing in starlight from how close we are to the stars out there?”

Kou Chongxue’s Clone glanced at the region outside the spatial barrier before retracting his gaze. He chuckled, “I heard of bathing in sunlight and moonlight. This is the first time I heard someone say that they’re bathing in starlight…”

He paused for a second and seemed to fall deep in thought. “Actually, you’re not exactly mistaken. The reason you feel that way is because there’s something else mixed into the world origin that fills the space here.”

“Is it starlight?” Shang Xia asked.

“You can call it star energy, or star origin…” Kou Chongxue’s Clone explained.

Shang Xia quickly glanced at the Crimson Soul Tablet in his sea of consciousness and saw the Crimson Soul Tablet hungrily sucking in the dense world origin laden with star energy. He was slightly worried as he wondered out loud, “There shouldn’t be any problems, right?”

Kou Chongxue’s Clone was also absorbing world origin around him to restore his inner qi and he chuckled happily, “Looks like there won’t be much of a problem. star energy doesn’t clash with world origin and can also be used after we absorb it.”

Shang Xia nodded slightly as he realized that the cracks in the interior of the Crimson Soul Tablet seemed to be recovering slightly faster after he absorbed world origin infused with star energy.

All of a sudden, Kou Chongxue’s Clone froze and turned to stare in a certain direction.

Shang Xia felt his heart sinking and he asked quickly, “Did someone else enter?”

“I’m afraid it’s not that simple to come in here. Without borrowing any methods of crossing space, other people will find it hard to enter this region of space. It’s just that the other clone seems to have discovered traces of those who came in to the Celestial Remains after us…” Kou Chongxue’s Clone muttered.

Shang Xia’s curiosity was immediately stoked. “What else did you find out?”

Kou Chongxue’s Clone shook his head and sighed, “The communication between us clones isn’t easy. Moreover, I’m stuck in this strange region… All I know is that there are 2 of them who entered and they seem to be looking for something.”

“Looks like they’re not heading for the region your main body noticed the reflection of the Origin Holy Artifact!” Shang Xia gasped.

Shaking his head solemnly, Kou Chongxue’s Clone gave Shang Xia a deep stare. “We need to try our best to meet up with my main body.”

Slightly taken aback, Shang Xia looked all around him and asked, “About this…”

“We have to hurry up. Can you still keep up?” Kou Chongxue’s Clone asked.

“Of course!”

…

After Kou Chongxue was swept away in a powerful wave of world origin, he was brought all the way to the center of the Forbidden Region.

By the time everything calmed down around him, he opened his eyes and saw that he seemed to be trapped in some sort of strange water-like mass. The liquid around him seemed to be liquified world origin, but he didn’t dare to move.

A strange expression remained on Kou Chongxue’s face as he made some guesses about where he was. Reaching out slowly, he carefully tapped at a formless spatial wall around him.

Dong…

A deep buzz continued to echo around him and ripples started to form on the surface of the water he was trapped in. Kou Chongxue started to feel slightly dizzy from the sound waves and the inner qi in his dantian scattered for a second.

…

Kou Chongxue’s Eternal Spring Fate Dipper Clone blurred his facial features as he stared at 2 other figures who had similarly concealed their appearance. All of them were standing at the entrance of the Forbidden Region.

“Fellow cultivator, you must be the person who entered the Celestial Remains before us.” One of the blurry figures growled in a strange tone. “Is something the matter? Why have you been following us?”

“I was just slightly curious. After all, you guys have been planning to enter the Celestial Remains for some time already…” Kou Chongxue’s other clone snorted.

The other Martial Dipper Realm Ancestor took a step forward and snapped, “Who the hell are you?! What do you know about us?!”

Kou Chongxue’s Other Clone retreated several thousand feet in an instant as though he was afraid of those before him.

Whatever it was, he was just a clone. He might have combat strength at the Martial Dipper Realm, but the moment he made a move, the other side would probably learn of his identity.

Anyone who hadn’t heard of Kou Chongxue’s sword art in the Azure Origin World could be considered ignorant fools.

The other Martial Dipper Realm expert quickly reached out to stop his companion from doing anything stupid. After all, they would also reveal their identities if they made a move.

“Fellow cultivator, I don’t think this is your true body. You should just be a clone. Looks like you’re really underestimating us.” The Martial Dipper Realm expert who stopped his comrade earlier spoke up.

“Of course not. I believe I know who you are and I wouldn’t dare to act carelessly before you.” Kou Chongxue’s Eternal Spring Fate Dipper Clone muttered.

“Oh?” The other Martial Dipper Realm expert laughed, “So, who do you think we…”

Ring!

A loud buzz swept through the Celestial Remains. Along with it came a massive fluctuation of energy though the space and the expression on everyone’s face changed.

Kou Chongxue’s Eternal Spring Fate Dipper Clone didn’t say a second word as he turned around and flew away.

The Martial Dipper Realm experts who stood rooted to their spots stared at each other with solemn expressions.

“Senior Brother Kuai, this… Could it be…”

Senior Brother Kuai nodded heavily and explained, “For something to be able to affect the energy contained in the Celestial Remains… It has to be the Origin Holy Artifact! Its presence is nothing strange to us, but if someone else finds it before we do, things won’t be looking good.”

“Senior Brother, since that person was a clone, it’s very likely their true body came into contact with the Origin Holy Artifact and caused that disturbance. If we chase and catch up to him now…”

“Junior Brother Wen!” Senior Brother Kuai snapped. “Do not be blinded by greed. You best not forget our true goal in entering the Celestial Remains.”

“But… That’s the Origin Holy Artifact!” Junior Brother Wen cried. “That’s the Origin Holy Artifact produced by the Elysium when it was once here!”

Taking a deep breath, Senior Brother Kuai mumbled, “Junior Brother Wen, we can’t be distracted! I’ll say this again. Do not forget our main goal! Moreover, that person who came before us is definitely no nameless junior. We might not be able to do anything to him even if we catch him. Do you even know how many of them came in? What if it’s a trap they laid down for us?”

“But… If we manage to obtain the Origin Holy Artifact…” Junior Brother Wen continued to whine reluctantly.

Reaching out with a gesture, Senior Brother Kuai stopped him. He lectured, “Junior Brother Wen, we already have the Root Flask. Even if it’s far from the Origin Holy Artifact the Elysium here developed, so are the Origin Holy Artifacts of the 3 super powers! There’s no need for us to be greedy. We already gathered 2 of the 3 major treasures for our Xiangyang Holy Land to ascend into an Elysium. The only thing we lack is the Heaven Supporting Jade Pillar. The Origin Holy Artifact might be 5… Hell, even 10 times better than our own, but we have no use for it now! We need to prioritize the upgrade…”

“Moreover, the Celestial Remains have been here for so long… Even if someone manages to find the Origin Holy Artifact, it won’t be easy for them to bring it away.”

…

Along with the frightening buzz that filled the Celestial Remains, Kou Chongxue’s Clone and Shang Xia were affected by the horrifying space fluctuations and could only hide in a safe spot among the debris. They looked to be in an extremely sorry state and before they could celebrate, Kou Chongxue’s Clone froze where he stood.

Shang Xia greedily took in several breaths to absorb all the world origin he could in order to recover. By the time he looked in the direction the clone was looking at, he saw a tree barely 10 feet tall shrouded in starlight. The starlight around it seemed to pulsate with every breath and the tree seemed alive.

“Starry Tree! I never thought that this mythical plant was actually real!” Kou Chongxue’s Clone mumbled to himself. His gaze never left the tree.

Despite what he said and how special the tree looked, Shang Xia’s attention wasn’t on it at all. Instead, he was attracted to a tiny strand that snaked around the crown of the tree.

“Fate dipper essence… No! It’s not just a single fate dipper essence!” Shang Xia’s eyes lit up when he saw what they were.