T/N: Thank you to Jackile and K for your Kofi donations! Here’s an extra chapter for each of you!
Chapter 39 – Ocean Abyss
It was less than a quarter to noon.
Less than a quarter left until the Floating Island Secret Realm opened.
The initially noisy skies over the North Sea gradually quieted.
Those visiting other sects returned to their respective sects one after another. After all, this was a competition. In the end, the elixirs obtained by the disciples from each sect would be used to score them and determine the new top ten sect rankings.
Thus, other than where the independent cultivators were gathered, there was no more mingling of cultivators in different robes. The styles of their robes served as a clear distinction between them.
Wu Wenbo, who had been reminiscing with Ji Chengyue in the cabin of Lingxiao Sword Sect’s ship, had also left not long before. As sect leader, he needed to boost morale before the Floating Island Secret Realm opened.
Similarly, as a nominal disciple of Tiangong Pavilion, Hao Chen reluctantly followed Wu Wenbo.
He looked back every few steps as he left, thoroughly displaying his unwillingness to leave. This drew the attention of all of the Lingxiao Sword Sect disciples.
Feng Ye, whom Hao Chen had looked back at three times and was now being watched by others: “……”
There was nothing he could do but cover his face and pretend he didn’t know the man.
Fang Yang consoled him: “Shixiong, don’t be sad. We’ll meet Hao-dage soon inside the Floating Island Secret Realm.”
Feng Ye: “……”
No, where was he showing any sadness?
Feng Ye was rendered speechless by Fang Yang’s discernment, and remained silent for some time.
And Fang Yang took his silence as tacit agreement. Feeling that his words of comfort weren’t enough, Fang Yang stood on tiptoe and patted Feng Ye’s shoulder.
Feng Ye: “……”
“Cough, cough.” The sound of someone clearing their throat sounded clearly from behind them. It was Sect Leader Ji’s voice.
The Lingxiao Sword Sect disciples who had been whispering together immediately fell silent. Sect Leader Ji wasn’t as approachable as Elder Zhou. He hated those who broke the rules or whispered when he was speaking.
Thus, everyone behaved extremely well and pretended they were mute.
And Feng Ye completely lost his chance to tell Fang Yang that he wasn’t sad, and was even very happy.
Seeing that the scene had completely quieted down, Sect Leader Ji nodded in satisfaction. He stood on the second deck of the ship, higher than everyone standing on the lower deck. And behind him on the left and right stood two people, namely his eldest disciple Xue Ren and his younger disciple Cao Zirui.
Xue Ren stood respectfully behind him with his head lowered slightly, displaying a humble attitude. And Cao Zirui held his sword, still with his usual expressionless face. But compared to Xue Ren, the way he stared straight ahead seemed haughty, making it difficult for people to harbor good feelings toward him.
In the end, he’s a high and mighty favored child of heaven, and can’t be compared with us, a group of junior disciples, many people from Lingxiao Sword Sect thought a bit sarcastically.
“Everyone.” Ji Chengyue organized his words and spoke up at last: “The Floating Island Secret realm is about to open. I believe you all know very well what this one-day trip to the secret realm is for.”
Ji Chengyue gazed down at the people on the first deck, who were looking at him with excitement and expectation, and said in a very serious tone: “This is not only about your personal opportunities, but also about the status of my Lingxiao Sword Sect.”
“Everything you obtain within the Floating Island Secret Realm belongs to you personally. You’ll only need to hand it over briefly during the final examination as proof of scoring. I certainly hope you all obtain a lot and restore the reputation of my Lingxiao Sword Sect, but…..” Ji Chengyue shifted the topic of discussion, and there was a rare hint of softness on his usually stern face.
He looked at the youthful faces of these youngsters. Although they were not familiar to him, and he had never taught this group of disciples personally, he still said softly with a tinge of reluctance: “I also hope that you can come back alive.”
Although he spoke this sentence in a relatively soft voice, it fell like a heavy hammer in everyone’s ears.
Opportunity was always accompanied by danger. In previous years, only half of those who entered the Floating Island Secret Realm were able to come out alive. But everyone who’d chosen to come here was well aware of this, and had already made their preparations.
So after a brief moment of surprise, only determination remained in the eyes of this group of young disciples.
“Good!” Ji Chengyue shouted with a laugh, then continued: “After the entrance to the Floating Island Secret Realm opens, everyone who enters will be sent to a random corner of the secret realm. You will be separated from your companions, and will run into disciples from other sects.”
He abruptly raised his voice, saying in a stern tone that held absolute authority: “You must remember that no matter how things usually are, inside the Floating Island Secret Realm, you are all disciples of Lingxiao Sword Sect. You are sect siblings, and must unite together against outsiders.”
“If anyone dares to harm a fellow disciple within the secret realm, no matter what the reason, I won’t let them off easily!” Having said this, Ji Chengyue abruptly flicked his sleeves.
The pressure of his Nascent Soul stage cultivation stunned everyone, and after a brief moment of shock, they responded loudly and in unison: “Yes!”
Ji Chengyue had said everything that should be said, and had nothing left to say. He waved his hand, signaling for everyone to ready themselves and wait for the Floating Island Secret Realm to open.
However, although he was finished giving instructions to the ordinary disciples, Ji Chengyue still had something to say about his precious young disciple’s treatment.
He returned to the ship cabin with Cao Zirui and Xue Ren in tow.
Ji Chengyue’s gaze swept across Xue Ren and focused on his young disciple, whom he had taught with all of his ability.
Cao Zirui was presently going to enter the Floating Island Secret Realm, and although Ji Chengyue felt the satisfaction of an elder watching his child grow up, he was also feeling the worry of an elder sending his child off on a long journey.
He had never been one to nag, but at this moment, he couldn’t help but say a few nagging words: “Zirui, with your level of cultivation, the monsters in the secret realm should pose no threat to you. Just remember not to go near the coast, and you shouldn’t experience any problems.”
He had said this before, and was saying it again now.
Cao Zirui didn’t look bothered. He just bowed and saluted, replying in a tranquil voice: “This disciple understands.”
Ji Chengyue thought for a moment before asking: “Have you brought the protective magic weapons I gave you before?”
“I brought them,” Cao Zirui replied.
“What about the medicine?”
“I brought it too.”
Seeing that Ji Chengyue was about to list out everything Cao Zirui had brought with him, Xue Ren suddenly cut in with a smile: “Shifu, don’t worry so much. With my shidi’s abilities, nothing serious will happen to him.”
Xue Ren had been standing quietly aside, and Ji Chengyue had nearly forgotten about him.
However, Xue Ren’s words of comfort touched Ji Chengyue’s heart. When it came down to it, his nagging was simply a product of worry.
Xue Ren was particularly considerate today. After comforting his master, he turned to look at his young shidi. Then he took a bell out of his sleeve and handed it to Cao Zirui.
Cao Zirui accepted the bell with some surprise. This was the first time his shixiong had given him something.
Xue Ren watched as Cao Zirui picked up the bell, and his smile deepened. He explained: “I fortuitously obtained this bell that can be used as an early warning system. It won’t ring unless there is a Foundation Building stage monster nearby. Shidi, take this so that Shifu can rest assured while you’re in the Floating Island Secret Realm.”
Cao Zirui stared at the bell in his palm. Then he tied it to his belt and turned to thank Xue Ren: “Thank you, Shixiong.”
Ji Chengyue watched this scene of friendliness and respect between disciples and nodded with satisfaction.
Time passed slowly until at noon, when the sun was at its hottest, a breeze picked up over the calm sea.
There was only a slight breeze at first, and the sea surged with rolling waves. But all of the cultivators who had come to the Floating Island Secret Realm for the first time realized something when they felt the wind.
When Ji Chengyue felt that breeze mixed with the salty smell of sea water, he exited the cabin and came to the deck again.
Standing on deck, the gazed down at the relatively calm sea below his feet. Including the large ship of Lingxiao Sword Sect, all of the flying magic tools that were originally parked on the sea’s surface had flown tens of meters above the water prior to the opening of the secret realm.
The wind was growing stronger and stronger, and the cool sea breeze actually caused a slight pain when it blew into people’s faces. More and more people came to a realization, and even the disciples who had come here for the first time understood that these strange phenomena were precursors to the opening of the Floating Island Secret Realm.
The waves became increasingly larger, rising higher and higher. And once the waves crested high into the sky, they crashed back down again. Along with the whistling of the wind, the sound of waves crashing into the sea echoed in everyone’s ears.
Many of those eager to show off their skills in the secret realm were so alarmed by the raging wind and turbulent waves that they took a step back.
Some ships that hadn’t flown high enough were hit by the tail end of the waves, causing them to nearly capsize and fall into the sea with everyone onboard.
Against the power of heaven and earth, human power was insignificant.
The scorching sun had been hidden behind the clouds at some point, and the sky was once more shrouded in shadow. This time, it wasn’t the doing of the Cloud-Summoning Banner – it was a sign of an impending storm.
The waves stirred up by the wind gradually formed a rapidly spinning whirlpool. And at the center of that whirlpool was a bottomless abyss.
The thin sunlight was unable to illuminate the abyss, and the dark sea rolled and roared at the bottom like a man-eating monster.
A sudden gale rose from the depths of the sea, coming from the center of the vortex along with a scent other than the salty sea breeze – the faint, fresh scent of grass and trees.
This was the entrance to the Floating Island Secret Realm.
Everyone came to the realization that the entrance to the secret realm was precisely the center of the vortex, inside the bottomless abyss.
The entrance to the Floating Island Secret Realm was now open, but no one aboard the ships floating in the air dared to enter it.
Was this a joke? The opening to the bottom of the vortex was about ten meters below sea level. If they jumped in, who knew what might happen?
The height wasn’t a big deal. The physiques of cultivators were superior to those of normal people, and a height of over ten or twenty meters wouldn’t pose a problem to them.
It was just that they were afraid of being sucked into the whirlpool. They had all witnessed the power of these waves. The usual soft, gentle flow of water had transformed into a violent beast under the power of the storm, and ships had nearly been overturned by just the tail of a wave.
If a human’s miniscule form was hit by one of them, it was likely that their flesh and bones would be broken, and even more likely that they would be thrown to the bottom of the sea as a corpse before having the chance to enter the Floating Island Secret Realm.
Therefore, no one took the initiative to go first. Everyone waited for someone else to take the lead.
Fang Yang stood at the edge of the boat, holding onto the railing. He craned his head to look down, and then immediately retracted it, fearing an accidental fall.
Feng Ye couldn’t help but chuckle at his nervous appearance.
“Are you afraid?” he suddenly asked.
Fang Yang stared blankly when he was asked this. Afraid…..of course he was afraid. Faced with such a terrifying whirlpool, who wouldn’t be afraid of jumping down?
Feng Ye, however, was a ready-made counterexample. There was no fear on his face. On the contrary, there was a slight, joyful smile at the corners of his eyes.
What’s so funny about this, ah? Fang Yang thought wildly.
This Useless Shixiong who usually embodied the term “good-for-nothing” to the end, was looking at this storm and terrifying abyss unwaveringly.
The ship shook in the storm blowing upward from the deep sea, and many people had to hold onto the hull to keep their balance. Feng Ye’s figure stood firmly in place, like an unshakable mountain.
Suddenly, he took a step forward to stand at the edge of the ship.
Fang Yang didn’t have time to warn him that he was in a dangerous position, and could fall down if he wasn’t careful.
“Fang Yang!” Feng Ye called out abruptly.
Fang Yang was stupefied.
Feng Ye sent him a sideways glance from the edge of the ship: “Don’t you want to stand at the top of the world?”
Without waiting for him to answer, Feng Ye turned his head back to look up at the sky, where thunder and lightning crashed through the roiling clouds.
The lightning illuminated his face. His facial features, so ordinary that one would forget them at a glance, contained a proudness that Fang Yang would never forget in his lifetime.
Feng Ye suddenly spread his arms open, and asked Fang Yang amidst the thunder: “If you don’t have the courage to jump into the abyss, how will you be able to soar into the sky?”
Thunder exploded in his ears, and Feng Ye’s words simultaneously exploded in his heart.
Before he could react, Feng Ye tilted forward and jumped from the edge of the ship into the surging sea.
Fang Yang rushed to the edge and watched Feng Ye’s form plummet straight down.
In contrast to the abyss with a diameter of hundreds of meters, this figure in black and white robes was so tiny that it was almost negligible, and seemed like it would be swallowed up by the waves in an instant.
But he had jumped into the abyss without hesitation.
The wind tossed his hair and sleeves, making them rustle.
The smile on his lips didn’t fade as he courageously went where others dared not go.
This solitary falling figure drew the attention of everyone, and suddenly, another white figure joined it, unwilling to be left out.
“Fellow Daoist Feng Ye jumped right in. Why didn’t you wait for me?” Hao Chen’s smiling voice sounded above his head.
Feng Ye was currently in a good mood, and didn’t find Hao Chen annoying for once.
As he fell, he looked up at Hao Chen following close behind him. Their eyes met, and even though they had made no agreement beforehand, they both suddenly laughed at the same time.
The same joy and arrogance was contained in their laughter.
Be it the storm or the abyss, they were unafraid.
As he gazed after the figures that were becoming smaller and smaller, the words Feng Ye had said as he jumped reverberated in Fang Yang’s head. In an instant, he gritted his teeth, swung off the edge, and jumped.
His action brought everyone to their senses. Now that someone had gone first, everyone stopped hesitating and leaped off their flying vehicles.
The solitary stormy sea became lively as people dropped into it like dumplings.
“Shifu, I’m going!” As he saw more and more people jumping down, Cao Zirui said farewell to his master.
Ji Chengyue finally woke up. He had just been staring at Feng Ye’s back. He hadn’t heard the conversation between Feng Ye and Fang Yang, but Feng Ye’s fearless figure made it difficult for him to look away.
Ji Chengyue gave Cao Zirui a slight nod, and Cao Zirui immediately leaped from the cabin, sword in hand.
And Xue Ren, who was standing out of sight behind Ji Chengyue, sent a meaningful look toward Lu Chengye on the deck. Lu Chengye nodded and, following closely behind Cao Zirui, climbed over the side of the ship.
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Neon Dragonfly Translations 
Thank You for the new chapter❤(:3 」∠)
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