Chapter 503: Master’s Realm
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
No one was there, so it was utter peace and quiet. It was perfect for creative thinking.
Tan Mo had been coming there to write for a few days.
The entire fantasy world was completely structured.
As a little snow fairy in a previous life, both she and her master had nothing to do all day. It was rather boring.
Although she could not physically leave the mountain, she yearned for the outside world very much, so she had pestered her master to tell her all about it.
Her master was very patient and told her about the outside world in a systematic manner…
From the composition of the world, the mountains and rivers, the sacred lands, the dangerous places, to all the forces in every direction.
He also talked about the ways to survive in the outside world…
From the survival of ordinary people to the survival of the cultivators.
He even emphasized the various dangers.
He spoke of the magical and dangerous lands to the sinister hearts of humans.
He wanted the little snow fairy to know that the outside world was not only full of wonders and beauty but was also cruel and dangerous.
Because her master was very thorough with his explanation, he even drew a map of the entire world for her.
Only then did the little snow fairy know that they were in the realm of cultivators, and the world beneath that of the cultivators was the world that Tan Mo was now in.
The map of the realm of cultivators was completely different from that of the human world.
According to her master, there was a barrier between the human world and the realm of cultivators.
After one completed their cultivation, only then could one break the barrier to reach the realm of cultivators.
Once someone crossed over, they could never go back.
This was also a means to protect the human world.
The realm of cultivators was divided into three continents.
There was no communication between the three continents.
The three continents were not only separated by a vast ocean but also the many perils in the deep waters.
That world was far bigger than the current one she was in.
Therefore, it was a true challenge for a cultivator to cross this mighty ocean between the three continents. Even by riding a flying sword, it would take a long time to reach the other side.
However, the ocean was not the reason stopping the people from crossing over the three continents.
No matter how vast the ocean was, there would always come a day when a sailboat arrive or a flying sword landed.
Along with the many bloodthirsty beings in the ocean, there was also the overlord of the ocean.
Similarly, there were many feral predators in the sky, and there was also the ruler of the sky.
When ordinary humans sailed the ocean, not even one in 10 would survive.
They were all devoured by the monstrous savages.
When cultivators rode their flying swords in the ocean, the skies swarmed with preying eyes of feral predators. Bloodthirsty beings would leap out from the depths of the ocean.
A cultivator, all alone and helpless in mid-air, was undoubtedly vulnerable.
On the mainland, there were missions issued by various factions and forces for disciples to go out into the world to experience and hone their skills in exchange for sequestered resources.
Amongst these tasks was the elimination of the savage beasts on the continental land.
Because the savage beasts on the mainland were swept away from time to time, the mainland was relatively safer compared to the ocean.
Moreover, with the land covering the ground beneath their feet, the adventurers had the advantage of the complex terrain.
Whether they were faced with flying creatures in the sky or charging beasts on the ground, they could always find a place to hide at any time.
It was far more flexible than crossing the ocean.
Across the ocean, bloodthirsty beings flocked above ad swam beneath. There was nowhere to hide.
Needless to say, there were still dangerous places on the mainland where beasts hid. Even major factions could not enter to wipe them out.
Those were all cla.s.sified as forbidden places, where even cultivators tended to evade.
In addition to the difficulties and dangers of traveling between the three continents, which made communication almost impossible, the most crucial part of it all was that each continent was separated by an invisible barrier.
According to the master, penetrating the barrier was highly impossible with the current level of cultivators on the three continents.
A certain level of cultivation was likely required before they could get across.
The reason why the master had said that the three continents did not exist was that no one from the other two continents had ever stepped foot on the vast continental land where they lived.
Tan Mo once asked her master if he ever succeeded in crossing over.
The master did not answer her directly. Instead, he said that it was simply better not to have anyone pa.s.sing through.
If ever a day came when a person pa.s.sed through, the three continents would forever be in chaos.
The little snow fairy didn’t quite understand the meaning behind her master’s words back then.
But now, Tan Mo finally understood.
Regardless of which continent, once someone pa.s.sed the barrier…
People of the continent through which the person channeled would know that there was a way to get through.
Once they learned that the other continent was more fertile and suitable for cultivation, people would undoubtedly be tempted and try their very best to get to the other side.
If they found out that the cultivators of another continent were weaker than their own, they might even want to divide and conquer.
It would be like opening Pandora’s box.
This was very much like the history that Tan Mo had learned.
The northern tribe—the nomads—had continuously tried to attack the south because they envied the fertile soil of the Central Plains.
Due to the lack of resources, they needed to occupy other people’s lands to turn their lives around.
The wealth of China recorded in Marco Polo’s travels made people’s hearts yearn and grow with envy. Thus, they entered the era of the Age of Discovery.
It was all because of poverty and greed.
The discovery of the New World by Columbus and the start of European colonization of the Americas was due to the disparity in their strengths.
In fact, these were all connected.
Tan Mo looked at the map of the world of cultivators that she had finished drawing. She couldn’t help but wonder if the barrier between the three continents of the world of cultivators was like the barrier between the human world and the world of cultivators.
If one reached a certain level of cultivation, then one might slip through the barrier.
In the eyes of ordinary humans, entering the world of cultivators was the equivalent of ascending into a higher realm.
In fact, it was merely a journey from one world to another.
As for the three continents in the world of cultivators, going from one continent to another should have also meant the same thing.
No one knew whether the other two continents were more advanced or weaker in comparison to their own.
However, those barriers were definitely much more impenetrable than the barriers of the human world to the realm of the cultivators.
If her master could pa.s.s through the three barriers, he would most certainly have been able to penetrate the barriers of the human world.
Tan Mo instinctively looked at the dark night sky outside the window.
It was past midnight. Only a few houses on the opposite street had lights on.
Recalling from her memory, Tan Mo listed the factions, forces, and forbidden areas on the mainland that her master had said in the doc.u.ment. She marked them on the map one by one.
At this point, the framework to the conception of the fantasy world was finally completed.
Her master had told her many things…
From the 5,000 years of history in China to the realm of cultivators.
However, he rarely talked about himself.
When Tan Mo asked, her master would sometimes reveal the littlest details about himself.
But there was still a lot more that Tan Mo did not know about him.
Tan Mo decided that her master would be the prototype for her protagonist.
Back then, she was already a disciple of her master the moment she began to have spiritual wisdom.
At the time, her master was extremely strong and insanely powerful.
She had no idea how old her master was.
Tan Mo ruminated. She did not know her master’s story anyway.
In all of her memory, her master had always been invincible.
Even so, there must have been a time when her master was once weak. Like everyone else, he must have grown stronger step by step.
For the part of the story before she knew her master—before he became strong and powerful—she decided she would let her imagination run wild.
Although the story would be purely from her imagination…
The naming of the cultivation levels would all be real.. Besides, she knew a thing or two of the methods and techniques of cultivation too.