At that time, the first group to enter the Cloud Water Heavenly Palace ruins consisted of over a hundred cultivators. Most were at the Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment stages. Initially, it was thought to be an ordinary ruin, but unexpectedly, the Cloud Water Heavenly Palace was filled with strange occurrences. Caught off guard, these cultivators suffered heavy casualties. In the end, less than one-tenth managed to escape alive.
Among the survivors was a person named Sikong Yi. He only had a late-stage Qi Refining cultivation and appeared quite ordinary. Everyone assumed he survived by sheer luck. No one expected that this unremarkable Sikong Yi, upon returning to Ten Thousand Immortals Island, submitted the Cloud Water Scroll, completing a bounty task worth a staggering one hundred thousand contribution points. After receiving his reward, Sikong Yi used a long-distance teleportation array to leave the Congyun Sea, disappearing from everyone's sight. Since then, Sikong Yi has never been seen again.
"Search for information related to strange occurrences and sect ruins," Li Fan slowly recalled memories from his previous life while speaking to the Profound Mirror. Instantly, hundreds of pieces of information appeared. However, most only displayed the first few sentences, and obtaining the full details required spending contribution points. Li Fan was not stingy and immediately spent 100 contribution points to purchase the most popular "Sect Ruins Survival Guide."
The author of this guide was named Qi Yuanzhou, also of rogue cultivator origin. He had spent years exploring various ruins and only joined the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals after reaching the Golden Core stage. Being able to retreat safely from the perilous sect ruins time and again, Qi Yuanzhou naturally possessed extraordinary skills. His "Sect Ruins Survival Guide" was highly praised by many cultivators and regarded as a treasure.
The Cloud Water Heavenly Palace ruins were treacherous and dangerous. Although Li Fan had foresight, he dared not be careless. He carefully studied the guide. When the ancient catastrophe descended, countless sects were destroyed, leaving only ruins scattered across the world. Some of these ruins had been explored countless times by cultivators over the years, leaving nothing of value. Others, due to their immense danger and size, remain unexplored. Every year, many cultivators venture into these ruins, either for techniques or to seek breakthroughs.
Then there are those sects that have been hidden from the world by formations and arrays. These sects are untouched lands, full of opportunities. Once they appear, they inevitably attract a swarm of surrounding cultivators. The experiences summarized in the "Sect Ruins Survival Guide" are aimed at these latter two types.
The guide mentions that in the current Immortal Cultivation World, all valuable and worth-exploring sects can be divided into two categories. One is without strange occurrences. The other is with strange occurrences. If there are no strange occurrences, one only needs to be cautious of formations and traps, and there generally isn't any significant danger. But if strange occurrences exist, extreme caution is necessary.
Strange occurrences refer to various phenomena within the ruins that cannot be judged by common sense. These occurrences seem not to belong to this world and often have their own unique rules. The strength of these strange rules varies. In the Immortal Cultivation World, it is customary to grade the strength of strange rules. Based on the highest realm they can affect, they are divided into Qi Refining level, Foundation Establishment level, Golden Core level, and so on.
Cultivators within the range of a strange occurrence must follow its rules if their cultivation is below the rule's strength. Violating them will inevitably lead to death. If one's cultivation is above the rule's strength, they might not be affected and could escape death. However, no matter how high one's cultivation, they cannot change the strange occurrence. Even a cultivator at the Integration stage cannot alter a Qi Refining level strange rule, nor can they save a cultivator who violates the strange rule.
Once a living being enters the range of a strange occurrence, it is triggered. Only when a certain number of deaths occur, or the strange rule is deciphered, can the cultivators within leave. The guide provides an example.
One hundred and fifty years ago, a nameless island near the western part of the Congyun Sea suddenly revealed a cave mansion. From the moment it appeared, it emitted a glow that illuminated the sky for hundreds of miles. Many cultivators, attracted by the treasure light, entered to explore. Upon investigation, they discovered that the cave mansion was built by an ancient rogue cultivator, Master Hongzhi, before his death. The mansion contained over ten techniques and countless magical treasures. Overjoyed, the cultivators began to seize them.
Then, something terrifying happened. All the cultivators who smiled after obtaining techniques or treasures mysteriously had their heads fly off, their smiles frozen on their faces. In an instant, more than half of the cultivators present were dead. The remaining cultivators, terrified, thought there were restrictions on the techniques and treasures. They left the treasures untouched and fled the cave mansion. The news spread, and naturally, skeptical cultivators came to test it. When they took treasures and nothing happened for a while, they too showed disdainful or joyful smiles. Immediately, their heads separated from their bodies, littering the ground.
Only one naturally expressionless cultivator survived. But even he was so frightened by the scene that he grabbed a treasure and fled. The demise of another group deterred all the envious cultivators nearby. The fortunate, expressionless cultivator who escaped with the treasure naturally drew attention. But no matter how he was questioned, he claimed not to know how he survived. Later, a clever man pondered for a long time and revealed the mystery. The cave mansion prohibited smiling. For any reason, once a smile appeared, heads would roll.
Though this sounded absurd, when the clever man calmly entered the cave mansion and retrieved a technique with a composed expression, all the cultivators believed it. They then followed suit, taking all the treasures from the cave mansion.
What happened in Master Hongzhi's cave mansion was the most typical and simplest strange occurrence, containing only one rule. In reality, the strange occurrences in sect ruins often involve multiple rules. Strange occurrences are inherently dangerous. Without understanding their rules, a slight mistake can lead to death. But once the rules are mastered, the risk of strange occurrences is nearly zero.
Based on his numerous personal experiences of surviving strange occurrences, Qi Yuanzhou summarized several dozen pieces of advice. First: Always remain calm. Under the shroud of strange occurrences, anything unimaginable can happen. Second: Do not act rashly. Without understanding the strange rules, the faster you move, the quicker you die.
(End of Chapter)