Chapter 531 Nothing is Eternal

Ning Beichen took the lead this time, not letting Ling Jue scout ahead. He walked in front, with some small magpies occasionally attacking him. Eventually, Ning Beichen grew annoyed and unleashed a sword rain.

A shower of sword light swept through the air, like a meteor shower.

The small magpies that had been attacking and harassing Ning Beichen instantly rained down in a flurry.

In front of Ning Beichen, who possessed area-of-effect attacks, these small magpies were no different from mosquitoes – one required an electric mosquito swatter, the other a sword rain.

Without the disturbance of these small magpies, Ning Beichen felt much more relaxed. After crossing the bridge with Ling Jue and Zhao Yingdie, they walked towards the building shrouded in mist, resembling a celestial palace.

A long, jade-like staircase stretched into the mist, leading to the palace on the heights.

However, the moment Ning Beichen stepped onto the first jade step, he immediately felt a colossal gravitational pull dragging at his legs. Above him, it was as if a mountain rested on his head, making it difficult for him to even take a single step.

Ling Jue and Zhao Yingdie, following behind him, felt this gravity as soon as they stepped onto the jade staircase, and were immediately shocked.

They had never experienced anything like this, even in the Mortal Realm.

Though their strengths varied, all three were Mortal Transcenders. Mere gravity could not stop them.

The fact that the jade staircase exerted gravity meant they could not use their lightness skills to ascend, and could only walk up obediently. There was no other way.

Initially, they struggled to adapt, but as they walked and grew accustomed to it, they began to feel much more at ease, even having the energy to chat.

"Do you think they created this jade staircase, perhaps by the ancient blessed lands, with the intention of making visitors walk up as a sign of respect, or as a test and training for their disciples?" Zhao Yingdie asked curiously.

"That's possible. Some ancient sects possessed their own mountain-protecting formations. Perhaps this was a specially arranged staircase to prevent enemy sneak attacks," Ning Beichen agreed with her.

"You mentioned how powerful and perfect those ancient blessed lands were. Why did they end up like this?" Ling Jue asked, puzzled.

"Nothing is eternal, not even the gods and immortals in myths," Ning Beichen blurted out without thinking, as this was a question he had discussed with Liu Yilin.

If these blessed lands had become like this, it was likely not due to human intervention, but rather the instability of dimensional spaces.

It was as if the world had ended, and these blessed lands had suddenly undergone a catastrophic change, instantly destroying the lives of those within them.

Otherwise, it would be difficult to explain the presence of ominous entities within the blessed lands.

However, the blessed land before them seemed to be relatively well-preserved, showing no signs of decay, but...

Ning Beichen and the others had not encountered a single human so far.

If there were still humans in the blessed lands, they would have found them. It meant that the people within had likely left a very, very long time ago.

"Let's stop and rest for a bit," Ning Beichen said to Zhao Yingdie and Ling Jue, noticing their exhaustion.

As they walked up the jade steps, the gravity increased with each ascent, as if being layered on. By this point, even Ning Beichen felt tired, let alone them.

Upon hearing that they could rest, Zhao Yingdie and Ling Jue immediately stopped and slumped onto the jade steps, gasping for breath.

Ning Beichen, however, did not sit down. He drank some water while observing their surroundings.

Because the jade staircase was shrouded in mist, Ning Beichen didn't know how long they had walked. It felt as though it had no end.

Leaning against the railing, Ning Beichen looked out at the white mist, his breathing gradually stabilizing.

If they remained stationary and did not walk, the effect of the gravity was not as significant.

Therefore, Ning Beichen speculated that the person who designed this jade staircase likely did not intend to take lives but rather to prevent those with insufficient strength from ascending.

Ning Beichen didn't have many regrets, only a sense of pity. He imagined how glorious the era of cultivators must have been.

But looking at the present, the total number of cultivators that could be found in the entire world probably did not even reach ten thousand, and that included cultivators from outside the ancient Eastern lands.

Seeing the current state of affairs made Ning Beichen feel like a lone warrior.

However, soon, smiling faces appeared in his mind: his master, Liu Yilin, his senior sister, Haitang, and others. Perhaps he was not alone.

Everyone had their own pursuits. It was not wrong to seek a peaceful life, nor was it wrong to seek the mysteries of life. Ning Beichen simply did not want to live a mediocre life.

As he was lost in thought...

Suddenly, the scene before Ning Beichen changed. The white mist vanished, and Ling Jue and Zhao Yingdie were gone.

Instead, many people appeared around him. They were all dressed in white ancient robes. Some walked on the jade staircase, while others flew through the air on their swords.

Ning Beichen heard the sound of someone preaching from the great hall above. He was immediately captivated, as if transported to a distant era, forgetting his original purpose for being there.

As he listened, some of his doubts regarding cultivation suddenly became clear.

He had previously struggled to understand certain aspects of the technique for crossing the sea of suffering, but now it dawned on him, and he understood things he had struggled to grasp.

In a short period, Ning Beichen's cultivation improved significantly. The essence of the technique for crossing the sea of suffering lay in the word "cross."

Crossing people, crossing oneself, crossing tribulations, crossing the body, crossing the soul, crossing the past, crossing the future...

All encapsulated in the single word "cross."

The "sea of suffering" did not refer to the physical sea, but to one's own inner sea of suffering, the spiritual sea of suffering, and the sea of suffering within the Great Heavenly Cycle. To reach the other shore, one had to cross this sea of suffering; failing to do so would result in the destruction of one's body and spirit.

This bore some resemblance to Buddhist thought, but it had little to do with Buddhism.

He didn't know how much time had passed when the preaching voice faded, and silence suddenly returned. The vision he had just seen also disappeared.

The jade staircase reverted to its original appearance, still shrouded in mist. Ling Jue and Zhao Yingdie, who had vanished, were back in their original places, as if nothing had changed.