Chapter 228: Chapter 227: Collapse

After breaking through to the ninth level of the Spirit Pill Stage, Yi Tianyun continued to absorb frantically. The walls of the secret chamber around him were gradually turning transparent, but he paid no mind to this, focused only on his wild absorption.

He was absorbing and absorbing, utterly unable to stop.

He had only one thought in his mind right now: ’Level up!’

While he continued his absorption, chaos had erupted above. They frantically searched for the source of the problem, but no matter how hard they looked, they couldn’t find it. The concentration of Spiritual Power was steadily dropping with no end in sight. It was as if someone was absorbing it all, causing the Celestial Spirit Jade Pool’s potency to plummet. To the naked eye, it had become nothing but clear water, so transparent you could see the bottom.

"What in the world is going on? Could the Spiritual Power be leaking out?" Elder Yun’s brows were tightly furrowed. He had turned the place upside down, inside and out, but still couldn’t find the source of the problem.

All the guards had been mobilized. They searched everywhere, even scouring the inside of the Celestial Spirit Jade Pool, but found nothing. The situation left him frantic. ’If Pavilion Master Li comes, how am I going to explain this?’

Just as that thought crossed his mind, Li Tianlong arrived. He walked in from outside, and upon seeing the Celestial Spirit Jade Pool on the verge of becoming plain water, he frowned and said, "What is going on here? The Spiritual Power concentration has dropped this low."

"P-Pavilion Master Li... I don’t know either. We’ve kept a close watch on it, and no one has come in. We’ve searched everywhere but can’t find the cause. The Spiritual Power just keeps draining away, and we don’t know why." Elder Yun wiped away a bead of cold sweat, hoping Pavilion Master Li wouldn’t hold him responsible.

"I fear there’s a problem with the underground Spiritual Vein. When the Star Pavilion was first established on this Spiritual Vein, we took its eventual depletion into account. It was bound to run out one day. For it to happen so suddenly, however, most likely means the Spiritual Vein has collapsed and the Spiritual Power is exhausted." Li Tianlong shook his head. "Forget it. Don’t concern yourself with it any longer. Collect all the Spirit Medicine here. This place won’t need to be guarded anymore."

Li Tianlong had completely given up. Staring at the pool, which was now as clear as any spring, he thought that this was no longer the Celestial Spirit Jade Pool. It was just an ordinary pond now.

"Very well..." Elder Yun shook his head helplessly and turned to look at the Celestial Spirit Jade Pool. ’It seems Pavilion Master Li has accepted it. The pool is useless now, so why bother with it? We could just leave it be. If it recovers one day, we can use it again. If not, I guess it can just be a swimming pool.’

Unfortunately, the Spiritual Vein was unlikely to recover anytime soon. Down in the secret chamber, Yi Tianyun was absorbing like mad. His three great Divine Techniques were activated at full power, acting like a hurricane that sucked the surroundings dry. This was especially true for the chamber itself; you no longer needed to open the door to see inside—you could see straight through to the crystal coffin at the far end.

It was easy to imagine just how thoroughly Yi Tianyun was draining it. If he kept going, the place would be sucked completely dry, with not a single drop left. As for the underground Spiritual Vein, it could recover eventually, but it would take hundreds, perhaps even more than a thousand years, to regain even a fraction of its strength.

KRAAACK...

A crack appeared on the ceiling of the secret chamber. It spread rapidly in all directions like a dense spiderweb, forming a network of fissures. Then, with a loud BOOM, the entire chamber collapsed, turning into a pile of fine powder!

Just then, Yi Tianyun slowly opened his eyes, a divine light flaring within them. He looked at the collapsed chamber before him, then at the desolate surroundings, and said in astonishment, "Did I drain this entire place dry? No wonder the absorption speed felt so much slower. So it was all used up... Still, it really wasn’t much. I couldn’t even gain a single level."

’I can imagine this place had already been drained for a long time and was on the verge of being depleted,’ he thought. ’My absorption was just the final push that dried it out completely. I just need too much experience, far more than I estimated. I really thought I could gain two levels here, but who knew I’d only get one.’

’Still, I’m almost there on the next level. I have a little less than half the experience to go. If I’d been able to absorb for just a little longer, I definitely would have leveled up again.’

’Let’s check my current status first.’

He called up his attribute bar to see where he stood.

Player: Yi Tianyun

Level: 39 (Ninth Level Spirit Pill Stage)

Experience Value: 43,218,372 / 50,000,000

Madness Value: 1,873,689

Karma Value: 630

Sin Value: 2,956

Cultivation Technique: North Nether Divine Technique, Dragon God Technique, Profound Celestial Divine Technique, Heaven-Devouring Divine Technique

Skill: Star Absorption Technique, Blood Evil Ascending to Heaven, Qingyun Sword Technique, Qingyun Step Technique

Weapon: Frost Fist, Blood Evil Divine Spear, Sword of Endlessness, Chaotic Celestial Saint Axe, Blood Dragon Bone Blade

Armor: Celestial God Armor, Shadow Cloak, Chaotic Heaven Divine Armor, Chaotic Heaven Battle Boots, Bloodthirsty God Armor

Divine Skill: Madness Mode, Luck Aura, Instant Teleportation

Bloodline: Dragon God Bloodline

Accessory: Forging Divine Hammer, Power Bracelet, Power Ring, Power Belt, Blood Evil Bracelet

All Items: Recovery Elixirs (x8), Level 41 Gift Pack, Extra Life x1, Bad Luck Divine Pill, Gale Divine Pill...

Treasure: Purple Fire Divine Furnace, Blood Jade, Coiling Dragon Treasure Map, Jade Pearl, Commander’s Treasure Manual, Phoenix Wings...

Title: Guardian, Savior

Flame: Immortal Fire

His Madness Value was over 1.8 million, the most he had ever accumulated. It was enough to upgrade several things, but he was in no hurry. He didn’t need to spend it just yet; he would upgrade based on his needs. If he upgraded things indiscriminately, earning back the points would be difficult later on.

It was all thanks to him wiping out the Wang Family. He had gained a large amount of Madness Value and many items, all of which he had already sold. The drops included Earth Level Martial Arts, which certainly fetched a high price, leaving him quite satisfied.

’As expected, killing is the fastest way to earn Madness Value,’ he mused. ’Not only do I get a lot of Experience, I get even more Madness Value. If some idiot who doesn’t know their place comes looking for trouble, I’ll be more than happy to do a grand ’cleansing’.’

’There’s not much time left. It’s about time I went to Julong City to meet up with the Grand Elder and the others.’ Yi Tianyun stood up, swiftly departed, and flew toward Julong City.

Not long after he left, the sound of digging echoed from above. Soon, the earth was broken through, and a group of people dropped down. They were stunned by the sight before them. They hadn’t expected to find a secret chamber here, but it was in a truly wretched state.

"There’s a secret chamber here? What happened?" Elder Yun was flabbergasted. Just as they were preparing to leave, they had heard the sound of a collapse from deep underground and immediately started digging to investigate.

They had found the source, but it didn’t seem to explain anything. All that was left was a pile of rubble. With no one here, what could it possibly mean?

Yi Tianyun, of course, knew nothing of this. Fortunately for him, he had made a quick exit. If he had been seen, things would have become very troublesome indeed.