After saying that only Nascent Soul cultivators could use the cross-realm teleportation formation, Xing Ming deliberately paused and looked at Li Yan.
Li Yan nodded slightly and said calmly.
"That would be that the fee for each use is very high, so high that only Nascent Soul cultivators could possibly afford it."
Li Yan had long guessed this point. However, with the wealth he had accumulated after plundering a large number of storage pouches on Windy Cool Mountain, Li Yan felt he was no ordinary cultivator.
The low-grade spirit stones he had obtained from the great battle alone were too numerous for him to bother counting. He had over three hundred and forty mid-grade spirit stones; even a Golden Core cultivator might not be able to compare to him.
When he had teleported home from the Malevolent Spirit Sect, a journey of hundreds of thousands of li, it had only cost him six mid-grade spirit stones. Of course, for him at that time, it was almost his entire fortune.
Therefore, Li Yan felt that although the teleportation fee Xing Ming was about to mention would be astonishing, it wouldn't be too far off for him. At worst, he could just go rob some foreign sects again.
With his current cultivation, it should be no problem to sneak into some second or third-rate sects without a sound. What's more, he still had the Heaven-Stealing Kerchief, which was possibly an ancient treasure, to break through restrictions.
But what Xing Ming said next made Li Yan's expression freeze instantly, leaving him standing there dumbfounded.
"Junior Brother is correct. To activate the cross-realm grand formation once requires two thousand high-grade spirit stones, or one supreme-grade spirit stone. And I'm not just talking about the spirit stone fee. The power required for cross-realm teleportation is not only extremely immense, but also needs to be exceptionally pure. Therefore, to activate the teleportation formation, one can only use heavenly materials and earthly treasures like supreme-grade spirit stones. Even as a substitute, it must be at least of the high-grade spirit stone level. This is a huge burden even for Nascent Soul cultivators."
"Two thousand high-grade spirit stones? One supreme-grade spirit stone? And they can't be substituted?"
For the first time, Li Yan's face showed shock. This did not surprise Xing Ming in the slightest.
"Is it very expensive? This is a cross-realm grand formation. Just think about how much power is needed to traverse the chaotic flow of space. The cultivators who travel between the two continents are either desperate powerhouses seeking to escape some disaster, who will spend everything they have to cross over, or they are wealthy merchant alliances who may have branches on every continent. They take raw materials from one continent and sell them on another for ten or a hundred times the price. They certainly don't lack for money."
"Normally, it's best to use one supreme-grade spirit stone to activate the teleportation formation. But if one is truly unavailable, a thousand high-grade spirit stones can be used as a substitute, but there will be some safety issues. This is also why an additional thousand high-grade spirit stones are needed. About five hundred are needed to activate the auxiliary formations, and the other five hundred are the teleportation fee. But if someone uses one supreme-grade spirit stone to teleport, they do not need to pay an additional teleportation fee, because a single teleportation will not consume all the energy in a supreme-grade spirit stone. The used supreme-grade spirit stone is left behind as payment for the teleportation."
Li Yan was beyond shocked. This teleportation grand formation required high-grade, or even supreme-grade, spirit stones.
If all the spirit stones he had, plus the magical treasures, spirit artifacts, and talismans left over after his tribulation, were converted into high-grade spirit stones, he would be lucky to get twenty.
And that was assuming he could even make the exchange. High-grade spirit stones were extremely rare in the market; that kind of spirit stone generally only appeared in the hands of high-level cultivators.
As for supreme-grade spirit stones, Li Yan had only ever seen them in records and heard of them in legends.
The spirit qi contained in one supreme-grade spirit stone was roughly equivalent to one thousand high-grade spirit stones, but that didn't mean one thousand high-grade spirit stones could be exchanged for one supreme-grade one.
Few people in the world ever truly saw a supreme-grade spirit stone. If one really possessed one, and took it out for exchange, it could possibly fetch three to five thousand high-grade spirit stones. Rarity determines value. Even among high-grade spirit stones, there were differences.
Not every one was flawless. Moreover, with so many high-grade spirit stones, it was difficult for them all to be of the same five-element attribute. How could that compare to the pure spirit qi provided by a single supreme-grade spirit stone?
"So I say, your master should not be using the cross-realm teleportation grand formation. Of course, I'm talking about normal circumstances. If your martial grandfather left behind some inheritance, it should be possible to use this teleportation grand formation conditionally."
Xing Ming continued. Li Yan slowly recovered from his shock. He understood Xing Ming's meaning.
He was saying, "If your martial grandfather left behind a large number of high-grade spirit stones, or even supreme-grade ones, then of course you can still use the cross-realm teleportation grand formation."
However, he still detected a negative undertone in Xing Ming's voice. He keenly caught a word.
"Senior Brother said 'use conditionally'? What does that mean?"
"Hehehe, this is the other condition I was talking about. Cross-realm teleportation is super-long-range teleportation; not just any cultivator can use it. One needs a body as tough as a Nascent Soul cultivator's to withstand the pressure and tearing forces during teleportation. Otherwise, the cultivator would be dismembered by the teleportation forces and turned into countless specks of dust. However, if a Nascent Soul cultivator is present to protect them, a lower-level cultivator can barely teleport. This depends on the strength of that Nascent Soul cultivator. A strong one can make a lower-level cultivator feel only a little dizzy, and can even protect multiple people at the same time. A weak one, well, it's hard to say. If I'm not mistaken, when your esteemed master teleported to the Forsaken Continent, he should have been protected by your martial grandfather's magic power."
"The last situation is similar to the second. If a low-level cultivator has a heaven-defying defensive magical treasure, they can also withstand the destructive tearing force of the teleportation. With this said, Junior Brother should know that the hope of your esteemed master remaining on the Forsaken Continent is much greater."
Li Yan's expression changed for a while before he bowed to Xing Ming.
"I have been taught. Thank you, Senior Brother, for clearing my doubts! By the way, I still have one more question. I'll have to trouble you again."
"Oh? Let's hear it, Junior Brother. See if I have an answer for you." Xing Ming didn't mind. As long as the question wasn't some great secret that would bring disaster upon the sect, he could of course answer it.
"Senior Brother also knows that I come from a remote and desolate place. Before my cultivation reached a certain level, my master wouldn't tell me some things. When I left the mountain decades ago, my master's arrangements were rushed, and he left without going into detail. What I want to know is, why are the attitudes of the White Demon Clan and the Black Demon Clan towards our human race completely opposite? And why is the White Demon Clan now also showing signs of distancing themselves from our human race?"
This question had also been hidden in Li Yan's heart for a long time, with no one to answer it.
After hearing this, a sharp glint flashed in Xing Ming's gray eyes. For a moment, he fell silent. After asking, Li Yan waited quietly. If the other party could speak, they naturally would. If not, they would find an excuse to brush it off.
He just needed to wait for an answer. Whatever answer the other party gave, Li Yan would naturally have his own judgment.
After five breaths, Xing Ming finally spoke.
"To be honest with Junior Brother, let alone me, even my Martial Uncle is not very clear about this matter."
He paused after saying this. Li Yan thought to himself.
'So you don't want to say it. It seems the reason for this is a great secret. Even a Golden Core cultivator has to be so tight-lipped.'
And just as he was thinking, Xing Ming spoke again.
"But since Junior Brother Zhang is already an elder of Falling Star Valley, I will of course tell you everything I know. Much of this is just my own speculation, so whether it's correct or not is debatable. You can just take it as a reference. But once you know, don't speak of it to others, to avoid unnecessary trouble. Junior Brother Zhang should be aware of the great war between the Black and White Demon Clans, right?"
To this, Li Yan immediately nodded.
"The cultivation method of the Xiahou Family went against traditional demon clan cultivation methods, and they were regarded as heretics by the Primitive Demon Clan, which caused it."
"Mm, since Junior Brother knows the whole story, it saves me some words. The great war between the Xiahou Family and the Primitive Demon Clan lasted for a very long time. Later, because the Xiahou Family's cultivation method was more domineering and had stronger attack power—to be precise, it could better unleash the physical strength of the demon clan—the Primitive Demon Clan was pushed back all the way to the present-day Sacred Demon City. And just before the Xiahou Family was about to launch their final attack, they quietly withdrew their troops and divided the territory with the later White Demon Clan. Junior Brother should have heard of such records."
Xing Ming took a light sip of tea, giving a brief preamble.
Li Yan also chimed in, "It is just as Senior Brother says!"
"Then why did the Xiahou Family, oh, that is, the Black Demon Clan, suddenly withdraw their troops? Does Junior Brother know?"
Li Yan's heart stirred, but he still answered quickly.
"I have read many records, and there are two reasons. First, the Primitive Demon Clan also had several Spirit Transformation experts. They planned that when the Xiahou Family launched their final assault, even if it meant violating the laws of heaven and earth, they would strike with all their might. Then, before being expelled from the Forsaken Continent, they would all choose to self-destruct. Just imagine, if so many Spirit Transformation cultivators self-destructed, the entire Forsaken Continent would probably be buried along with them. It wouldn't exist. So the Xiahou Family chose to withdraw their troops and cease hostilities. The second reason is that the Sacred Demon Palace is the birthplace of the Primitive Demon Clan, and within it is a supreme-grade magical treasure capable of destroying most of the Forsaken Continent. If the Xiahou Family wanted to take down the Primitive Demon Clan, they might have had to sacrifice seventy to eighty percent of their own disciples, reducing their strength to its lowest point. Especially since the entire western part of the Forsaken Continent, with the Sacred Demon Palace at its core, would also disappear, and their lineage would be completely wiped out. So in the end, it was better to divide the territory. Is it that the reasons you speak of, Senior Brother, are not these?"
Xing Ming nodded. He had pushed the question this far; it was only natural that the other party would have some suspicions.
"That's what is generally said. But since the Primitive Demon Clan had these two conditions, why did they wait until they were beaten back to their old nest by the Xiahou Family before resorting to a desperate move? Of course, this doubt has always existed. Their rebuttals are also sufficient. Things like, if that's the case, why not just have the Spirit Transformation cultivators rush up and fight to the death in every major battle? Spirit Transformation cultivators are restricted by the laws of heaven and earth, and so on. These reasons can of course withstand scrutiny, which is why they are widely circulated. Putting those aside for now, I have another version here. That is, when the Xiahou Family attacked the Sacred Demon City, there happened to be a powerful human who was traveling there. His origin was unknown, his cultivation unknown. He originally didn't want to interfere in the internal strife of the demon clan and planned to leave. But later, an elder of the Primitive Demon Clan in the city made some kind of deal with him. The content of the deal is also unknown. It actually made this powerful human agree to resolve the matter. So, on the eve of the Xiahou Family's final assault, that powerful human quietly left the city and came to the Xiahou camp. Without the Black Demon Ancestor, Xiahou Shangxie, knowing at all, he left a jade slip by his pillow."
"On it was only one sentence: 'The general's achievements cover the world, why bring ruin to living beings? Divide the land and rule, and have nothing to do with each other!' When Xiahou Shangxie woke up the next day and found this jade slip, he was scared out of his wits. His military camp also had other Spirit Transformation cultivators stationed there, but no one knew that someone else had infiltrated."
At this point, Xing Ming's words paused as he looked at Li Yan, whose face now showed a look of astonishment.