This island at the heart of the lake was undoubtedly the core section of the ancient medicinal garden — of that,
However, the idea that this island lay so close at hand and could be reached so easily? Jiang Chen wasn't buying it. He had a persistent feeling that something was deeply off about this great lake's atmosphere.
The lake's surface appeared calm and waveless, but with his eyes from his previous life, Jiang Chen could sense that beneath that serene exterior lurked a terrifying reservoir of energy.
And as for the shimmering, dreamlike mist that drifted across the water, though it was slowly dissipating, Jiang Chen couldn't shake the feeling that the prismatic glow woven from the haze was beautiful to the point of seeming unreal.
While Jiang Chen was lost in thought, the piercing cry of Elder Xiang Qian of the Great Saint Hall suddenly rang in everyone's ears: "Everyone, our Great Saint Hall will be heading out first!"
With that, Elder Xiang Qian took the lead, treading through the air and streaking toward the island at the heart of the lake.
Right behind him came
Three more elders of the Great Saint Hall followed close behind.
The remaining two Great Saint Hall geniuses, at the peak of the Origin Realm and unable to fly, had their own methods. With a flash of runic light, flying talismans were activated on their bodies, and they too set off in pursuit.
At that moment, cultivators from every other sect swarmed forward in a rush.
Even the representatives from the fifth-tier sects scrambled over each other, unleashing their various divine abilities.
From the Dan Qian Palace, under Elder
The four young geniuses — none of them Saint-realm powerhouses and lacking the means to fly — were able to keep up without difficulty under the help of flying talismans.
Before long, everyone had arrived at the island.
Figure after figure alighted upon its surface, and each person immediately felt a profound sense of comfort. The rich spiritual energy washed over them, leaving every soul feeling refreshed and invigorated.
"Tsk, tsk — just the outer edge of the island already brims with spiritual energy rivaling the strongest spirit lands in our sect. If we were to reach the island's core, just how abundant would it be?" an elder from the Holy Sword Palace exclaimed.
The island wasn't large, but it radiated a distinctly sacred aura.
Elder Yun Nie gazed into the distance and sighed with emotion: "This level of spiritual energy — even the Six Great Sects cannot compare. There may very well be Heaven-grade spiritual medicine on this island!"
Having arrived at the island, everyone's thoughts were fixed squarely on Heaven-grade spiritual medicine.
As for Earth-grade spiritual medicine, the elders had each managed to collect a few stalks along the way.
Earth-grade spiritual medicine was commonly used by emperors-realm cultivators, and while it was rare on the open market in the Myriad Phenomenon Region, it still appeared from time to time.
But Heaven-grade spiritual medicine? In the Myriad Phenomenon Region, such things were virtually once-in-a-century occurrences. Whenever one appeared, it would invariably trigger a scramble among all factions and potentially spark a bloody conflict.
Heaven-grade spiritual medicine was, for all practical purposes, unobtainable in the Myriad Phenomenon Region.
Yet this time, almost everyone shared the same intuition: in the core area of this ancient medicinal garden, Heaven-grade spiritual medicine would certainly be present.
The question was no longer whether such medicine existed here, but how many stalks there might be.
"Everyone, be careful. There are invisible formations around the island's perimeter — don't wander in blindly." Though Elder Yun Nie was excited, he kept his composure.
With his keen eye, he had already noticed certain telltale signs.
In the very instant Jiang Chen's feet touched the ground, he had spotted not only invisible formations but also things that no one else could see.
His nostrils flared slightly as he conducted a brief scan with his spiritual sense, and a thread of suspicion began to form in his mind.
"Junior Brother, what are you looking for?"
Jiang Chen lowered his voice: "Senior Sister, don't you find this island... rather strange?"
"The whole island is strange, honestly. But I can't quite put my finger on what's off about it," Ling Bi'er admitted candidly.
Jiang Chen nodded. He had a rough guess forming in his mind but said nothing more.
Seeing the genuine concern on Ling Bi'er's face, something stirred in Jiang Chen's heart, and he said: "Senior Sister, of the four types of spiritual medicine, I've already found the Elixir Heart Fruit. Now the only one left is the Thousand-Layer Jade Ginseng."
"Really?" The icy-tempered Ling Bi'er's beautiful eyes blazed with boundless delight, and her face filled with excitement.
"Mm. I'm hoping this island has Thousand-Layer Jade Ginseng."
Jiang Chen nodded again: "There are plenty of spiritual medicines along the perimeter too, Senior Sister. Let's walk around and see."
Ling Bi'er nodded and replied in a soft, agreeable tone: "All right."
The two of them circled the area. While the outer ring did contain a number of Saint-grade spiritual medicines, truly authentic Saint-grade specimens were few. The Thousand-Layer Jade Ginseng — the highest-tier among authentic Saint-grade medicines — was nowhere to be found.
By that time, the major figures of the Six Great Sects had already located the formation's entrance.
"Everyone, this formation presumably opens only once every three thousand years, and this entrance hasn't fully opened yet. Why don't we combine our attacks and break it open in one go? Otherwise, if we wait for it to open on its own, we'll be stuck here for at least another day."
Elder Xiang Qian made the proposal.
The suggestion met with unanimous approval. Clearly, now that they had reached this core island, everyone was consumed with urgency.
Every minute, every second — at this moment, all of it felt critical.
Jiang Chen and Ling Bi'er had by then returned to the group. Hearing Elder Xiang Qian's proposal, Jiang Chen frowned.
This Huanbo Mountain, the ancient medicinal garden, and now the core island of the garden — layer upon layer of formations, layer upon layer of design. It was clearly the work of a grand mastermind, and it followed its own patterns of operation.