Shrouded Sky

Chapter 236 - The Former Site of Jade Pool

In the Northern Region, the temperature difference between day and night was vast. Under the cold moonlight, a bone-piercing chill filled the air. On the horizon, several white figures floated ethereally, flickering in and out of sight, like immortals, ascending into the sky.

Ye Fan vanished step by step, leaving behind dozens of afterimages across the barren land as he gave chase. He went far, but caught nothing. Standing in the night, he looked up at the boundless starry sky.

“What were those things?” he wondered aloud. The white shadows had disappeared into the night and were gone without a trace.

“Jade Pool's Soaring Immortals,” the big black dog replied.

“Soaring Immortals?”

Ye Fan was confused.

Immortals, to cultivators, were just illusions, unreal. Though legends often spoke of them, there had never been solid evidence. Even those recorded in ancient texts were unreliable under scrutiny.

“It’s hard to explain,” the black dog shook its head.

The Jade Pool was an ancient site. On moonlit nights, there would sometimes be mysterious ‘Soaring Immortal’ phenomena. No one could explain it. From afar, it looked hazy; up close, it would vanish.

Legend said it was an ancient remnant from the desolate ages, an echo of the past replaying across time.

“They can’t be immortals...” Ye Fan didn’t buy it.

“I never said they were,” the Black Emperor’s eyes glowed green, as wolfish as the night.

The empty land was silent in the second half of the night. Aside from sand and stone, there was nothing. After searching for half the night, Ye Fan and the dog had found nothing.

Jade Pool once founded its sect here because the land was rich in spiritforce, rare and sacred. But now, it was nothing but a barren wasteland, full of red sand and devoid of life.

Although the Soaring Immortals had appeared, confirming this was indeed the Jade Pool’s old location, no trace of a ruin could be found.

As dawn broke, the red earth shone brightly under crimson and golden rays. Ye Fan and the dog had worked all night, yet found not even a shard of pottery.

“You’re so unreliable. You said there’s a scripture here, yet we haven’t even touched the gate.”

“Ever heard the saying, ‘good things are hard to get’? This is the legendary scripture of the Western Emperor. You think it's just lying around?” The dog made excuses.

“Before we came, you made it sound easy, just engraved on a cliff. ‘Just get here and we’ll find it,’ you said. So what now?”

The dog frowned, sulking to the side. After a long while, it muttered, “This place is sealed. My body’s in a bit of a state right now, I can’t break it open. We’ll have to try something else.” Then it sprang up. “Let’s go to the edge of Jade Pool. The seal is weakest there, we might sneak in.”

They traveled for half a day, digging several large pits along the way, before the black dog finally confirmed, “Search here.”

Under the blazing noon sun, people and shadows nearly overlapped. The black dog paced, then suddenly leaped. “Found it!”

Ye Fan rushed over.

In front of them, the red sand glistened under the scorching sun, like a giant furnace.

“Is there something strange underground? Can this lead to Jade Pool?”

“I remember there was an ancient well on the outskirts of the Jade Pool. This should be it. It’s likely an entrance,” the dog answered.

“Are you sure, Old Black? Or are you bluffing again?” Ye Fan was skeptical.

“Call me Black Emperor!” the dog snapped.

Ye Fan slapped the ground, stirring red sand. A pit opened, revealing some large stones.

“Yep, this is it. Time spares nothing. Even the well’s been buried by sand,” said the dog, squatting to inspect.

Once they cleared the ground, an ancient well surfaced. It was built with jade stones and sealed with a massive boulder.

Sunlight was being absorbed by the well, making the area feel like a blazing furnace.

“This place is extraordinary. Even sealed, it can still absorb solar and lunar essence. The well is drawing in sunlight,” Ye Fan observed.

He removed the stone, revealing a dark, deep hole that seemed bottomless.

“You’re sure this well leads to Jade Pool?” he asked.

“Should be,” the dog said unconvincingly.

“What do you mean ‘should be’? Have you ever gone down this well before? Who knows where it leads.”

“We’ve got no other way, we have to explore,” the dog said, tossing a stone into the well. After a long time, there was no sound of it hitting bottom.

“A bottomless pit...” Ye Fan was shocked.

“I remember now. Someone did use this to enter Jade Pool before. Kid, you go down first.”

“Why don’t you go?”

“My cultivation’s unstable right now, I can’t fly. You’ll have to go.”

“You’re the guide, but you want me to test the way?” Ye Fan glared at him.

“Hey, there’s light below!” the dog suddenly leaned over the well.

Ye Fan looked but saw nothing. Then he felt the dog's massive head bump into him, he was shoved down the well.

“You treacherous mutt!” Fortunately, Ye Fan had been cautious. He grabbed its fur and pulled the dog down with him.

“Only one of us needed to go!” the dog complained.

“Yeah? I think you should go alone.” Ye Fan threatened to let go and fly back up.

“I can’t fly! You let go and I’ll bite you!” the dog barked, latching on to him again.

“Fuck, bitten by a dog again!” Ye Fan gave up flying and dragged the black dog down with him.

The well was very deep, they descended over two thousand meters before reaching the bottom. No water, just mud. The stones thrown earlier had sunk deep.

A foul smell rose. There were even dead leaves in the mud.

The well connected to an underground riverbed, now dry. Sometimes, small trickles of water remained, with blind fish swimming inside.

“This dry riverbed must lead into Jade Pool. Even if there’s a seal, it’s the weakest here,” the dog’s eyes glowed.

The tunnel was pitch black. They could only rely on spirit sense to navigate. Ye Fan stepped cautiously, the dog close by.

“You sure you didn’t dig this tunnel before?” Ye Fan almost said “dog tunnel” but held back.

“You calling me a mutt?” the black dog caught on immediately, sharp as a person.

Ye Fan quickly changed the topic. “No, just asking. How’d you find this path?”

“The well used to be full, it was impossible to find. But someone did go through here before. Not me, I just heard about it.”

They walked 30-40 miles through the dark, sloping upward until faint light appeared. The barrier here was very weak and barely impeded them.

After a few more miles, daylight shone through. They were near the exit.

“This really leads to Jade Pool,” the dog muttered.

“So you weren’t sure!” Ye Fan resisted the urge to hit him, afraid of getting bitten.

They emerged into a massive dried-up lake. The lakebed was cracked. The river connected to one of its fissures.

As they stepped out, rich spiritforce hit them, it was refreshing and invigorating.

The lakebed was barren. Its shape was like a shallow pan. Huge fish bones lay scattered, many over ten meters long, some nearly twenty.

“These fish were probably close to gaining sentience.”

Ancient trees surrounded the lake. Most were dried and withered. Only a couple had yellowing leaves.

“These trees are enormous, thousands, maybe tens of thousands of years old!” Ye Fan exclaimed.

Such old trees should’ve developed consciousness, yet they’d all dried up. Strange.

“Something’s wrong here!” the dog’s glowing eyes swept the area. “Neither the giant fish nor the massive trees could become spirits. Something suppressed them.”

“What do you sense?” Ye Fan asked.

“Nothing concrete, just a feeling. Maybe this is why Jade Pool abandoned the place.”

The land was quiet, almost lifeless.

Ye Fan climbed out of the lakebed, scanning the horizon. Far off, the land was bleak. Most trees were dead, bare and lifeless.

“You said this was a land of birds and flowers, why’s it all dead?” he asked.

“Something must’ve happened,” the dog replied, walking ahead.

Though desolate, the spiritforce here was stronger than outside, undeniably a holy place for cultivation.

A few miles further, they heard water flowing. Past a dead forest, lush greenery appeared.

Ahead, the land was vibrant. Plants flourished. A lake sparkled like sapphire. Exotic flora bloomed around its shores.

Ancient trees loomed like mountains. Thick vines twisted like dragons across the land. The air was rich with floral fragrance.

Ye Fan was stunned by the contrast. Just a short distance away was death; here, life thrived.

The black dog sprinted through the greenery. After a short distance, they entered another withered area.

“That’s strange. Can’t just be a water issue.”

They continued onward. Ninety percent of the land was dead, only scattered places were alive.

Mountains were similar, most were barren; only a few glowed with spiritforce.

After dozens of miles, they saw broken pavilions. Though inscribed with Dao runes, time had corroded them.

“We’re near Jade Pool’s core,” the black dog said, tail raised high.

They passed mountain after mountain and entered a mist-shrouded region. All the vegetation was dead.

Huge palaces stood like heavenly halls, on mountaintops, before dried waterfalls…

If restored, this place would be a true paradise.

“The floating palaces of Jade Pool have all been taken. Not a single one remains,” the dog said.

“Did Jade Pool have a floating city?” Ye Fan asked.

“Yes, there’s one,” the dog replied, scanning the landscape. “The heart of this place lies beyond those ridges.”

They pressed forward, into thicker mist. Past several ranges, greenery returned, waterfalls, rivers, mist, palaces, it was like stepping into heaven.

“The core is still alive. Wonderful!” the dog dashed forward.

“Which cliff has the Western Emperor’s scripture?” Ye Fan asked, growing anxious.

“What’s the rush? Let’s check out something first.”

On a beautiful cliff, massive waterfalls fell like silver veils, each over a thousand feet tall.

Palaces filled the view, like a painted scene.

“Where are we going?” Ye Fan asked.

“To the holy lake of Jade Pool. That’s how it got its name!” The dog ran toward an open plain, filled with exotic flowers and palaces. At the center, mist and spiritforce gathered around a hazy lake.

“This must be it,” the black dog said, running ahead.

The energy here was intense, no need for cultivation techniques. The body absorbed spiritforce automatically.

Splash!

The black dog dove into the immortal lake.

“Black Emperor, is there treasure in there? Why so eager?”

The dog didn’t respond, just swam like a black flash to the center and dove deep.

Howl! Minutes later, the dog surfaced, howling like a wolf, clearly spooked.

“What did you see?” Ye Fan asked, alarmed.

“Nothing... just too refreshing! Bathing here has amazing effects. Come on down!”

“Nonsense. You looked terrified just now. Something’s in there, and you want me to join you in suffering!” Ye Fan crossed his arms, staying put.

“You’re too paranoid. You think I’m that bad?” the dog said.

“You’ve never been good! Get out and find the scripture!” Ye Fan ordered.

“This lake was reserved for Jade Pool’s fairies, peerless beauties bathed here. Outsiders couldn’t even look, let alone enter. Don’t you want to experience it?”

Suddenly, Ye Fan was startled. He saw human-shaped shadows beneath the surface, pale and ghostly.

“You damn dog, you are rotten to the core!”

The dog sensed it too, leaping out of the water. “Why are they following me?! Why are they still moving?!”

Ye Fan cursed inwardly. This dog really did want him to suffer too.

The black dog bolted across the water, tail high, charging toward shore.

Under the lake, several blurry white-robed figures drifted through the water, black hair flowing, making Ye Fan’s scalp go numb.

“What are those things?”