Chapter 62: What is the Other Shore?

Yet this tiny object was priceless, beyond the worth of a city.

It could be utilized indefinitely; not even ten trillion spiritual soul coins could buy such a thing.

The corner of Qin Shu’s mouth twitched. This item was precious, very precious, but for him right now, it wasn’t particularly useful.

Trade it for money?

That wasn’t possible. He’d rather sell the Thunder Flame Tiger Roar Blade before parting with this crystal.

He placed the Time Crystal at the peak of the Microscopic Heavenly Cave.

Even without activation, the Time Crystal would automatically double the flow of time within a one-kilometer radius.

This acceleration would allow spiritual energy to gather more quickly inside the Microscopic Heavenly Cave.

Currently, the spirit river within the cave had saturated 300,000 square kilometers of land.

Twenty-nine fifth-ranked spirit seeds had already grown into small plants.

The seeds for small peach trees and ice-hearted pears had only recently taken root and sprouted, still tender and young.

As for the xenogenics seed, it was still absorbing spiritual energy, unable to break through the soil. However, the life force within had become stronger, indicating it would soon sprout.

For now, Qin Shu didn’t have time to tend to the spirit seeds in the cave.

Another item appeared in his hand: the World Will’s feedback.

A year ago, when he first returned to the God Soul Continent, he had immediately stored this item in his bag of holding.

It was an unassuming cloak, plain grey from top to bottom, with a name that matched its appearance: the Unassuming Cloak.

Don this modest mantle, and no matter where you are, people will pass you by as if you’re invisible—an extraordinary secret treasure, effective even in the Abyss below.

This was an extremely useful secret treasure. Qin Shu hesitated not a moment, refining it without delay. He channeled his divine sense into the core, devoting an entire day to the task.

He looked down at his sea of consciousness.

The Nine Lives Doll had gained two additional lives.

First, the transformation of the cyan lotus Dao seed had also led to the Nine Lives Doll’s evolution. Now tied to the lotus root, it too had completed a metamorphosis, earning an extra life.

Second, having achieved Golden Core Stage, the Nine Lives Doll evolved once more. It now boasted five lives in total.

Including his own life, this brought the grand total to six lives—an immense boost to his safety in the God Soul Continent.

Both the Five Directional Flags and the Qingping Sword Pill had become more formidable. In his hands, they could now rival top-grade spirit artifacts wielded by Golden Core cultivators.

As for the Karma Cauldron, it had gained the ability to Reverse and Return to Origin.

Now, given a pill formula, it could autonomously refine any pill of sixth rank or below. Each and every one would emerge perfect to the core.

Additionally, I could now craft equipment, capable of refining low- and mid-grade spiritual devices.

The three days passed in the blink of an eye.

Qin Shu, having finished organizing himself, slipped on an unassuming cloak and was once again teleported into the Abyss World.

A thread of the God Soul Continent’s world will descended, delivering the mission:

Before his eyes stretched an infinitely long, suspended path, five hundred meters wide, with an endless abyss below, its aura profoundly terrifying.

Two golden lights flashed once more, and beside Qin Shu appeared a snow-white humanoid figure and a ten-meter-tall, one-horned giant ape.

“Ho, a human, and a Snow Spirit as well,” the one-horned giant ape’s voice was deep and rough.

Despite wearing an unassuming cloak, Qin Shu caught the giant ape’s attention. After all, the cloak merely made him blend into the background, not rendered him invisible.

“You are the Wild, and the other is a Spirit,” Qin Shu recognized their identities.

The Infinite Abyss, connected to boundless worlds.

The one-horned giant ape represented the Wild, hailing from the wild realm.

The other was a Snow Maiden, from the spirit realm.

The wild realm, a world dominated by wild beasts, where they didn’t transform into human form. The larger their body, the greater their power.

The world of the spirit realm, governed by a myriad of vital essences, where qi coalesced into form, manifesting as spirits. This realm was extraordinary, valuing human form over beastly visage.

The Yuki-Onna, embodiments of the snow’s essence, existed without mortal parents, their mother being the very cosmos itself. When countless Yuki-Onna gathered, they formed a distinct race, capable of forging pacts with the mystical beasts of snow.

“Shall we join forces?” the one-horned mountain ape suggested, addressing Qin Shu and the Yuki-Onna.

“You’re truly foolish,” the Yuki-Onna retorted, casting a frigid gaze at the one-horned mountain ape. Without further response, she transformed into a streak of cold light, hurtling towards the opposite shore.

Qin Shu reacted even more swiftly. Rising on a beam of light, he morphed into a sword, his razor-sharp edge slicing through all obstacles with ease.

The path ahead, though vast, was dominated by creatures no greater in strength than Qin Shu himself.

Among beings of equal stature, Qin Shu reigned supreme; why would he seek cooperation with others? Especially with those from other realms!

One by one, abyssal monsters, unable to evade or hide, were pierced by Qin Shu. His sword-like form cleaved their bodies, leaving behind only chunks of shredded flesh.

“What incredible speed,” the Yuki-Onna observed, watching Qin Shu draw ever farther ahead. “He must be the unparalleled Chosen from the God Soul Continent.”

She felt that she wasn’t inferior to him and unleashed an extreme burst of cold energy from her body. Everything it passed touched, including abyssal monsters and the road itself, turned into icicles.

Seeing their rapid departure, the unicorn giant ape roared angrily and leaped onto the hanging road, pounding fiercely at the surrounding abyssal monsters with his fists.

With a series of booms, each punch struck flesh, sending monsters flying hundreds of meters away into the abyss below.

The other shore was far away.

Qin Shu didn’t know how many monsters he had passed through, nor did he know how time was passing; he just continued flying as sword light.

Behind him, there was nothing - neither the snow woman nor the unicorn giant ape.

In front of him, there was only the other shore.

What he didn’t know was that behind him, the snow woman and the unicorn giant ape had already entered different paths, leading to different endpoints for the other shore.

Qin Shu was the fastest, so his path was straight.

As time passed, the true essence in his dantian sea of qi was about to run out.

It was at this moment that he saw the endpoint - a huge plaza where a black-clothed person holding a long sword stood.

“You’ve come!”

“I’ve come.” Qin Shu nodded towards him and swallowed three Yin-Yang Pills to restore his inner true essence.

At this point, absorbing the abyss’s energy to replenish his qi was no longer possible.

The black-clothed swordman was very strong; compared to him, Qin Shu felt weaker.

“Three hundred seventy-three Spiritual Soul World awakened beings have died at my hands,” the man said coolly to Qin Shu. “You will be number three hundred seventy-four.”

Qin Shu was bewildered by this Abyss world; it felt fundamentally different from the others he’d encountered before. Though complete and self-contained, it seemed unnaturally artificial, as if crafted by some unknown force.

“Who are you?” Qin Shu asked, his voice steady.

“Don’t remember,” the man shook his head. “I’ve been here since I first became conscious. Perhaps, like you, I was once a different person. Attack me with your sword—only if you can kill me will you be able to leave.”

“Very well!” Qin Shu nodded, and a burst of milky-white light blossomed from his hand, striking the black-clothed swordsman squarely.

The attack was lightning-quick, leaving the black-clothed swordsman no time to dodge—it hit its mark with precision.

“What have you done?” the black-clothed swordsman asked, his voice dripping with icy cold. He already sensed that something was profoundly amiss.

Qin Shu replied evenly, “Nothing much, merely testing the function of a secret artifact. Seems like it hasn’t had any effect yet.”

No, it had an effect all right. The black-clothed swordsman could feel the stirrings of a tiny life growing within his abdomen.

Cultivators were exquisitely attuned to their bodies. This sensation was unmistakably akin to pregnancy.

Indeed, Qin Shu had used the Earthbirth Pearl, and the strike had proven instantly effective.