White herons flew long distances, the sky was high and the air crisp — it was wonderful weather.
Three Rank Seven Gu Immortals from the War Immortal Sect had gathered here in this high altitude.
"According to the Monkey King's distress signal, this should be the place." Qian Zhu Immortal looked around and spoke.
He wore a green robe, stood tall and lanky, his eyes deep like ancient pools, completely calm.
"It doesn't look suspicious here. It seems the crack in the grotto-heaven mentioned in the letter has already closed. But to truly confirm this place, we still need to rely on the Godly Mother's methods." Fate River Valley Master said, looking at the person beside him.
Standing beside him was a female Gu Immortal.
She had a dignified and beautiful face, wore a golden robe, and exuded a sense of authority from head to toe. She was a Space Path Gu Immortal, known as the Absolute Emptiness Godly Mother. She had the most seniority among the three immortals, being over nine hundred years old.
Absolute Emptiness Godly Mother closed her eyes and quietly employed some mysterious method. Her aura remained completely calm, without the slightest fluctuation leaking out.
After a short while, she opened her eyes and exhaled a turbid breath: "It is indeed here. The Star Cluster Grotto-Heaven has fallen in this place."
Hearing this, the spirits of the other two immortals lifted.
"In his early years, Seven Star Son was not very famous. He silently cultivated to such a level without a sound. He even had his immortal aperture grotto-heaven devour a fragment of the Blue Heaven. It is precisely because of this that the Star Cluster Grotto-Heaven still exists today. Remarkable." Qian Zhu Immortal said with emotion.
Since ancient times, the sky of the Gu World had nine heavens.
Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Cyan, Blue, Violet, Black, and White — collectively known as the Ancient Nine Heavens.
But seven of the nine heavens were successively destroyed by the children of Ren Zu. Today, only the Black and White Heavens remain, rotating and alternating.
Seven Star Son had an opportunity in his early years, secretly annexing a fragment of the Blue Heaven. This was why his grotto-heaven still existed, and hadn't become a dead aperture due to his own death.
The Ancient Nine Heavens were nine different worlds.
Gu Immortal apertures were also worlds, and naturally, worlds could annex each other. The most famous example was Treasure Yellow Heaven.
Back then, the master of Treasure Yellow Heaven, Rank Eight Gu Immortal Duo Bao Zhen Ren. He accidentally obtained a fragment of the Yellow Heaven world. After integrating it into his own grotto-heaven, Treasure Yellow Heaven was formed.
Once Treasure Yellow Heaven was formed, it immediately became unique and has stood ever since.
"There are truly many benefits to annexing a fragment of the nine heavens. Not only can it produce some unpredictable and mysterious effects. The power of the immortal aperture's heaven and earth is inexhaustible. Moreover, the calamities and tribulations are greatly weakened, or even completely dissipated. If I could get a fragment like this, I might even laugh in my sleep." Fate River Valley Master said enviously.
"Come on, Fate River. Increase your cultivation to Rank Eight first. Only the grotto-heaven of a Rank Eight Gu Immortal has the possibility of annexing a fragment of the nine heavens." Qian Zhu Immortal laughed.
Hearing this, Fate River Valley Master smiled bitterly. "I also want to advance to Rank Eight, but I really don't have the confidence to survive the second Grand Calamity. Just thinking about how Rank Eight Gu Immortals have to face a Grand Calamity every fifty years sends chills down my spine. As for the Myriad Calamity, which is even more terrifying than the Grand Calamity, I can hardly imagine it! Perhaps only someone like Shi Lei wouldn't be afraid..."
Blessed lands have blessings, but the world needs balance. Thus, from time to time, calamities and tribulations descend.
Rank Six Gu Immortals face an Earth Calamity every ten years, and a Heavenly Tribulation every hundred years. Therefore, the Heavenly Tribulation is often used to measure a Gu Immortal's cultivation. In his previous life, Fang Yuan was a peak Second Heavenly Tribulation expert.
After a Rank Six Gu Immortal passes three Heavenly Tribulations, their blessed land expands to another level, and they become a Rank Seven Gu Immortal.
Rank Seven Gu Immortals face an Earth Calamity every ten years, a Heavenly Tribulation every fifty years, and a Grand Calamity every hundred years. Qian Zhu Immortal and Fate River Valley Master were First Grand Calamity experts, while Absolute Emptiness Godly Mother was one level higher, a Second Grand Calamity expert.
As for Rank Eight Gu Immortals, Earth Calamities are gone. But they face a Heavenly Tribulation every ten years, a Grand Calamity every fifty years, and a Myriad Calamity every hundred years.
The Myriad Calamity is many times more terrifying than the Heavenly Tribulation. It is known in the Gu Immortal world as "irretrievable doom," and the difficulty of overcoming it is extremely high.
This makes fragments of the nine heavens seem even more precious.
This is because the Ancient Nine Heavens were originally a part of the greater Gu World. Calamities and tribulations descend only on the immortal apertures like blessed lands and grotto-heavens, but never on the Five Regions or the Nine Heavens.
After an immortal aperture annexes a fragment of the nine heavens, to some extent, it becomes a part of the greater Gu World. Therefore, it can greatly reduce the scale and power of calamities and tribulations, allowing the Gu Immortal to die without the immortal aperture becoming a dead aperture. For example, in the Star Cluster Grotto-Heaven, Seven Star Son has already become a Gu Immortal Zombie, but his grotto-heaven still exists.
If the annexed fragment of the nine heavens is large enough, the calamities and tribulations can even be eliminated. For example, Treasure Yellow Heaven has never had any calamities or tribulations and has become the largest trading market in the Gu Immortal world.
"Annexing fragments of the nine heavens indeed has many benefits. But don't forget, there is a downside. Even if you only absorb a tiny bit of a fragment of the nine heavens, you are stained with the aura of the greater world. Once the grotto-heaven descends, it can never be taken back into the body." Absolute Emptiness Godly Mother reminded.
Qian Zhu Immortal nodded in agreement. "In a word, annexing a fragment of the nine heavens means the Gu Immortal loses their freedom. They can only spend their lives holed up in their immortal aperture world, unable to move outside. This is a heavy loss. But if a fragment of the nine heavens was placed before me, I would still choose the fragment!"
"Yes." Fate River Valley Master agreed deeply. "Calamities and tribulations are too hard to survive. Sometimes I think it would be better to become a Gu Immortal Zombie. At least their dead apertures have no tribulations."
"Alright, let's focus on business. We deliberately stalled for this much time, so that Monkey King should have learned his lesson." Absolute Emptiness Godly Mother slowly closed her eyes again.
Fate River Valley Master fell silent.