Daoist Tian Yan hoped that whoever obtained his legacy would, out of consideration for the fortune he left behind and the explanation of this earth-shattering secret, pass on his Daoist lineage.
This final testament naturally fell into the hands of Ancestor Juelei.
This was, of course, of immense help to Ancestor Juelei, and not just because he learned of this world-shattering secret.
Because he learned the location of Mi Tian Valley, where the final decisive battle would take place, it meant he had a high chance of obtaining that Profound Heaven Spirit Treasure there.
This was an unimaginably great opportunity.
After all, if he could obtain and refine this treasure, the immense power of the Profound Heaven artifact might allow him to directly ascend to the Spirit Realm.
Therefore, to express his gratitude to Daoist Tian Yan, he found a nominal disciple and eventually helped him establish the Heavenly Evolution Sect, thus passing on Daoist Tian Yan's legacy.
Next, Ancestor Juelei began to plan his entry into Mi Tian Valley.
However, the entrance to that place was already filled with terrifying spatial turbulence and rifts, which even he, with his cultivation at the time, found extremely dangerous.
Ancestor Juelei prepared for this for several hundred years, finally leaving this handwritten letter for the future successor who also possessed the Five Elements Thunder Body and served as the Hall Master of Fu Ling Hall.
Ancestor Juelei's intention was that if he failed and perished in Mi Tian Valley, he hoped this successor would have another chance to try.
The handwritten letter ended here, and Ning Fa's heart was in turmoil. He finally understood that the reason for the drastic change in the Human Realm's spiritual energy was this.
In fact, before he reached Core Formation, he had gone to a Mo Yang Mountain Range to seek Mystic Yellow Qi. By chance, he met Ning Daozhen, and they dealt with an Ancient Demon together.
At that time, Ning Daozhen had briefly mentioned this secret, which largely aligned with what Ancestor Juelei had stated, but Ning Daozhen did not know the deeper secrets.
Now, Ning Fa understood everything, and he even knew what that Profound Heaven Spirit Treasure was.
It was the Profound Heaven Moon Derivation Mirror.
Back in Moon Reflection Valley, Ning Daozhen and others caused trouble, eventually breaking through the Realm Wall to the Tianli Cultivation World. In his madness, the Demonkin self-destructed a Heaven-Piercing Spirit Treasure.
In the crisis, Ning Fa was saved by Zhuo Qing, who sent him to a peculiar place within the Moon Radiance Heavenly Seal. There, he learned of the existence of the Profound Heaven Moon Derivation Mirror.
And this Profound Heaven Moon Derivation Mirror was the legendary Profound Heaven Spirit Treasure.
Of course, that place only contained a trace of the Profound Heaven Moon Derivation Mirror's projection, but it still greatly benefited Ning Fa's Source-Crossing Heavenly Book.
At the time, Ning Fa wondered how their small Human Realm could be connected to such a treasure.
Now, combining it with Ancestor Juelei's account, it was clear that the Profound Heaven Spirit Treasure brought to their Human Realm by people from a mysterious race in the Spirit Realm was this Profound Heaven Moon Derivation Mirror!
Ning Fa's eyes flickered. It seemed that Ancestor Juelei had disappeared after heading to Mi Tian Valley. He didn't know if he had ultimately obtained that Profound Heaven artifact and ascended to the upper realm.
Thus, Ning Fa couldn't help but become very curious about Mi Tian Valley. After all, who wouldn't covet such a top-tier treasure?
But for now, he could only think about it. After all, even with Ancestor Juelei's cultivation back then, he had found the place extremely dangerous.
It was not something he could consider now; he would at least have to wait until he reached Spirit Transformation before attempting it.
After a long time, Ning Fa suppressed the turbulent emotions in his heart and took out the Spirit Treasure left by Ancestor Juelei, the "Zhou Tian Lei Yan Mirror."
For an entire day, through Ning Fa's exploration and initial refinement, he finally became somewhat familiar with this treasure.
He also understood why Hermit Wuxin had said earlier that this Spirit Treasure could only be used by cultivators possessing the Five Elements Thunder Body.
This was because to activate this treasure, not only were all five types of Divine Thunder of the Five Elements required, but at least each must have been mastered to the Third-grade level.
Furthermore, one must have opened at least one Sea of Lightning Divine Treasury within their body and used the Innate Divine Thunder within the divine treasury to activate it. Therefore, it could basically only be used by cultivators with the Five Elements Thunder Body.
Ning Fa was overjoyed, because although he was not yet fully familiar with this Zhou Tian Lei Yan Mirror, the few Divine Abilities he had discovered had already made him very pleased.
It could be said to be both offensive and defensive, and its power was far superior to the Five Flames Lamp.
With this, he had another Spirit Treasure, and his strength had greatly increased.
Ning Fa let out a soft breath and murmured, "It's time to head to Yuheng Sea."
Three months later, Yuheng Sea, Huan Yu Islands.
"Fellow Daoist Ning, that Qiong Yu Island ahead should be the residence of those three fellow Daoists.
One of them cultivates both alchemy and Dao, while the other two are skilled in talisman crafting and artifact refining. They are quite well-known in our Huan Yu Islands. I didn't expect you to be acquainted with them, Fellow Daoist Ning."
Two streaks of escaping light were seen flying towards an island ahead in the sky.
Besides Ning Fa, there was also a man in his forties wearing a crane robe, exuding a dignified aura. He was at the Mid Nascent Soul stage.
"Thank you for your help, Fellow Daoist Pu. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to find these three fellow Daoists so smoothly," Ning Fa said gratefully with a smile.
This crane-robed cultivator was named Pu Cheng, an elder of the Illusion Butterfly Palace. He had also gone to the Sky Furnace Fire Marsh at the time and thus met Ning Fa.
When Ning Fa arrived at the Huan Yu Islands via teleportation array, he happened to encounter this person.
Upon learning that Ning Fa was looking for Chu Nianyao and the other two, he, being a local, easily found out that the three were currently residing on Qiong Yu Island and even personally brought Ning Fa there.
The reason for his enthusiasm was quite simple.
He was well aware of Ning Fa's strength, and even some Great Cultivators from the Heavenly Evolution Sect treated him as an equal. Therefore, having the opportunity to befriend Ning Fa, he naturally spared no effort.
Ning Fa was naturally happy about this, as it saved him a lot of trouble.
"Since Fellow Daoist Ning is reuniting with old friends, I shall not disturb you.
However, if Fellow Daoist Ning has time later, please visit my residence. I will certainly host a banquet for you."
Fellow Daoist Pu smiled broadly as he spoke to Ning Fa. Afterward, he cupped his fists in greeting toward Ning Fa and then transformed into a streak of light, flying away into the distance.
Ning Fa wore a smile; he had a very good impression of Fellow Daoist Pu.
Not long after, inside a pavilion on Qiong Yu Island.
"What! Nianyao has already left?" Ning Fa exclaimed in surprise.
Seated opposite Ning Fa were two other individuals: a round-faced youth and a burly man in black. They were Qi Ran and Liang Song, whom Ning Fa hadn't seen in a long time.
These two appeared to have changed little, and their cultivation realms remained at Early and Mid Core Formation.
Looking at Ning Fa, the shock in their eyes had yet to subside.
They found it hard to believe that after decades apart, Ning Fa had already succeeded in forming his Nascent Soul, which even gave them a sense of unreality.
At this moment, Qi Ran let out a wry smile and said, "Indeed, Fellow Daoist Ning... ah, no, Senior Ning, you've come at an inopportune time. About three years ago, a mysterious woman suddenly appeared, claiming to be sent by Fellow Daoist Chu's mother to pick her up. That mysterious woman also presented a token from her mother, so Fellow Daoist Chu ultimately left with this mysterious woman."
Upon hearing this, Ning Fa couldn't help but pause. He hadn't expected such a turn of events. It sounded as if Chu Nianyao's parents were still alive.
He first waved his hand, saying, "We are old acquaintances, so there's no need to be so formal and call me Senior. Just calling me Fellow Daoist is fine." After speaking, he quickly asked, "Where did Nianyao go?"
Qi Ran shook his head. "That woman was very secretive and unwilling to say more. She was also in a great hurry. Based on what Old Liang and I could tell, Chu Daoist's mother has very likely advanced to the Nascent Soul realm as well. Because that mysterious woman's cultivation was extremely high, reaching the False Nascent Soul stage, and she referred to Chu Daoist's mother as 'Master'."
At this point, Liang Song also said gravely, "Before Fellow Daoist Chu left, she was worried that Fellow Daoist Ning might come looking for her. She said that once she confirmed news of her parents, she would definitely return to Qiong Yu Island. So, Fellow Daoist Ning, perhaps you could leave us something to transmit messages with. Once Fellow Daoist Chu returns, we will notify you."
Ning Fa's brows furrowed slightly, then he nodded. With a flip of his right hand, he produced a thumb-sized white bead and handed it to Liang Song, saying, "Once Fellow Daoist Chu crushes this bead, I will know."
Liang Song nodded and accepted it. Then, he and Qi Ran exchanged a glance, their faces showing hesitation, as if they wanted to say something but found it difficult to speak.
Ning Fa raised an eyebrow. "Is there something else?"
Qi Ran coughed dryly. "To be frank, Fellow Daoist Ning, this Qiong Yu Island of ours has caught the eye of a Late Core Formation cultivator. Initially, he tried to forcibly rent it from us, but that didn't work. Recently, he seems to have found a connection with a direct disciple of a Nascent Soul elder from the Illusion Butterfly Palace. Not long ago, that direct disciple came and issued us an ultimatum, ordering us to move out within a short period. For us, it wouldn't matter much to move to another place, but we're worried that if Fellow Daoist Chu returns and can't find us, so..."
Ning Fa suddenly understood. He immediately said, "Tell me the information about that Nascent Soul elder."
Qi Ran's heart leaped with joy, and he immediately spoke a name.
Without another word, Ning Fa took out a sound transmission talisman and explained the general situation.
Not long after, a flash of fire appeared before him, and another sound transmission talisman returned. "Fellow Daoist Ning, this is a minor matter. Furthermore, if those two young friends need it, I, this old man, can make the decision. As long as they pay a million spirit stones, they can directly purchase Qiong Yu Island."
Ning Fa couldn't help but smile slightly. Fellow Daoist Pu was indeed giving him a lot of face. Although Qiong Yu Island wasn't large, it possessed a Third-Grade Spirit Vein and was located in the core area of the Yuheng Sea, the Huan Yu Islands. Under normal circumstances, it would be impossible to purchase it for a mere million spirit stones.
Qi Ran and Liang Song were both surprised and delighted. They had never imagined there would be an opportunity to outright purchase Qiong Yu Island. Although a million spirit stones was a considerable sum even for Core Formation cultivators, both of them were well-off, and they could naturally afford it.
At this moment, Liang Song looked at Ning Fa hesitantly. "Fellow Daoist Ning, actually, it would be enough if we could continue renting this place. There's no need to buy the island."
Ning Fa smiled and shook his head. "Since Fellow Daoist Pu said so, then prepare the spirit stones. Disciples from the Illusion Butterfly Palace will come to complete the procedures then. Don't worry about anything else, and after all, you still need to wait for Nianyao to return for me."
Upon hearing this, Qi Ran and Liang Song finally felt at ease, their expressions filled with joy.
Finally, Ning Fa chatted with Qi Ran and Liang Song for about an hour, learning about their experiences over the years, and then he got up to take his leave.
In the air, Ning Fa suppressed his worry for Chu Nianyao and looked to the south, thinking to himself, "It's time to head to the Jinchuan Archipelago."