I Studied Abroad in the Modern Times-Chapter 160Book 2: : Minor Divine Ranking, Remote Teaching

Vol 2 Chapter 160: Minor Divine Ranking, Remote Teaching

Martial Aunt Huang continued, “The message talismans from Jiushan Sect are getting fewer and fewer by the day. They’re all just saying they're safe, nothing else.”

“Maybe Senior Sister and the others are afraid they’ll be intercepted.”

Zheng Fa felt a bit frustrated as he said this.

He had memorized a bellyful of books, but now didn’t know how to teach them to Senior Sister Zhang—

Those things, Martial Aunt Huang probably wouldn’t understand;after all, she’s just a Nascent Soul cultivator.

But the enemies Jiushan Sect is facing now are at the Soul Formation stage.

It’s possible some of that knowledge could be understood by the enemy, and using message talismans to pass it along was too risky.

“Some of the message talismans even say weird things, like asking us to return—I suspect someone’s impersonating Senior Brother Yuan to contact us.”

Martial Aunt Huang added with a frown.

Zheng Fa was shocked again—although message talismans are basic, they carry a cultivator’s divine sense and spiritual signature, making them hard to fake.

Especially impersonating his own Master, a Nascent Soul real person.

“You couldn’t tell if the talisman was fake, Martial Aunt?”

Martial Aunt Huang shook her head.

Zheng Fa’s expression darkened. That made things even worse.

“Then… is Senior Sister Zhang really still safe?”

Senior Sister Yuan finally had a moment of clarity and voiced the concern Zheng Fa had been suppressing.

If someone from the Demonic Sect or Demon Race could impersonate the Sect Master, then were the recent ‘all safe’ messages real or fake?

Martial Aunt Huang sighed, “I’ve tried seeking help from all over recently, but no one’s willing to help us…”

That didn’t surprise Zheng Fa.

Martial Aunt Huang didn’t have many friends to begin with, and even if she had close allies, stepping in for Jiushan Sect meant going up against two Soul Formation cultivators—you’d have to know your own weight before sticking your neck out.

“No one knows how Senior Sister Zhang is doing now…”

Senior Sister Yuan said with some worry.

…

Jiushan Sect.

“Senior Brother, what are you doing?”

Seeing the busy Sect Master, Martial Uncle Pang asked.

“Can’t you see? It’s the ‘Grand Illusory Formation’! The next stage play!”

Sect Master Yuan looked up at him, then went back to adjusting the talisman in his hand.

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“Is this the time for stage plays?!”

Martial Uncle Pang muttered.

“If not now, then when I’m dead?”

“……”

“I’ve already decided. I’m going to be the lead this time!” Sect Master Yuan said. “When I’m gone, the play will live on, and people will remember me!”

“……”

“Good for you. The name Pang Qian is already etched into stage play history!”

“...Senior Brother, I’d rather live in real life,” Martial Uncle Pang finally squeezed out.

“Then you’ll have to ask Junior Niece Zhang.”

When the Sect Master heard that, he looked up at him and shook his head.

“Junior Niece Zhang…” Martial Uncle Pang sighed, “She’s looked more and more serious with each passing day…”

The Jiushan Ancestor nearby was also gazing up toward the peak of the Ninth Summit,

as if trying to see how his true body was doing.

After a while, Senior Sister Zhang slowly descended from the peak. She looked utterly exhausted, didn’t even have the spiritual power to fly, and had to walk down with her own two feet.

The Sect Master and Martial Uncle Pang exchanged a glance, shook their heads, and then asked:

“Still not working?”

“No…” Senior Sister Zhang frowned. “Actually, I’ve only just started to grasp what Junior Brother Zheng has been teaching me…”

“Then why did you come back?”

Senior Sister Zhang shook her head, “Before I came down, I was actually fifty percent sure… I wasn’t trying to perfect the True Form Talisman of Mountains and Rivers—I wanted to awaken the Ancestor. In other words, I just wanted to find a way to communicate with the Ancestor, to find an interface.”

“……”

The Sect Master and Martial Uncle Pang looked totally lost, like they had no idea what she was talking about.

“But no matter how I tried to pass on information, the Ancestor never responded…”

As she spoke, Senior Sister Zhang’s brows knitted tighter.

She talked for a while, then looked at the two clueless elders and let out a disappointed sigh, “If only Junior Brother Zheng were here…”

The Sect Master and Martial Uncle Pang exchanged a look—and oddly enough, both their eyes held… a bit of guilt.

…

Zheng Fa had just picked out the spiritual materials he needed from the Hundred Treasures Hall.

As soon as his finger left the jade tablet, the Golden Seal suddenly floated up before him.

Right after that, a gentle breeze carried all three of them through the now-opened main hall gate.

“What is this…”

It was Martial Aunt Huang’s first time entering the main hall, and she looked tense, staring at the tombstone on the high platform.

“Don’t worry, Martial Aunt, I think it’s because my Golden Seal has upgraded.”

The three of them stared at the Golden Seal.

There was originally a statue of a god on the seal’s body, but the god had no face.

Now, that blank face suddenly took on Zheng Fa’s features.

At the same time, the tombstone on the high platform suddenly shone brightly.

The text on the stele glowed with golden light, slowly forming into a scroll in the air.

Then the stele itself crumbled into glowing points of light, like fireflies, which rose into the sky before gently landing in front of the three.

The starlight wrapped around the Golden Seal, gradually fusing into it and turning it into a fully jade-like appearance.

As soon as the Jade Seal appeared, a beam of golden light suddenly shot out from the god’s eyes and pierced into Zheng Fa’s forehead.

Zheng Fa didn’t have time to dodge—he just felt a buzzing in his head, and his vision suddenly changed.

It felt like he had become another person, walking dazedly across land, as if searching for something.

Later, he came across a golden bell that looked very familiar.

After that, he used the golden bell to take control of a faction, even gaining the presence of ten thousand immortals paying homage. He became ambitious and satisfied.

Until a great catastrophe struck the world.

He seemed no longer like himself, as if controlled by something else—until he was killed.

The scenes were fragmented, with no sound.

It left Zheng Fa a little confused.

But at the very end, there was suddenly a segment of text, like a message, that left Zheng Fa silent for a long time before he finally sighed and said:

“So that’s how it is…”

“What do you mean, that’s how it is?”

“It’s complicated. No time to explain.”

Zheng Fa replied, then reached out and beckoned to the scroll in midair. It flew into his hand.

The scroll was blank, leaving Senior Sister Yuan and Martial Aunt Huang even more baffled.

"Zheng Fa? Can you control the Heavenly Monument Realm now?"

Zheng Fa lightly shook his head. "I wouldn't say control… at most, I guess you could say I'm the successor of this realm's previous master."

Martial Aunt Huang frowned. "Then can disciples of Jiushan Sect take refuge in this Heavenly Monument Realm?"

"They can." Zheng Fa nodded. "Right now, I can control the gate of the Heavenly Monument and the Thunder Pool outside."

"Then that's good enough, isn't it?"

"It's just… I still can't move the Heavenly Monument."

Zheng Fa let out a sigh.

Martial Aunt Huang was stunned, finally understanding why Zheng Fa didn’t look pleased.

What they had hoped for was the best-case scenario—Zheng Fa being able to move the Thunder Pool via the Heavenly Monument, and smashing that Ancestor of the Blood River and Great Sage Qingyun to death with it.

But if he couldn’t move the monument, they had no way of rescuing Senior Sister Zhang and the others...

"This Heavenly Monument Realm—can actually be considered the artifact space of the Sun and Moon Bell…"

"Sun and Moon Bell?"

"Yes, Sun and Moon Bell…" Zheng Fa explained, "That's the name left by the previous master of this realm. For me to control the Heavenly Monument Realm, I essentially have to refine the Sun and Moon Bell..."

"Is it hard?"

Zheng Fa nodded. "It is. At least, it’s impossible in a short time."

"Then… what about Jiushan Sect?"

Zheng Fa pulled out the scroll and spread it open in front of them.

"This item was called the Minor Divine Ranking by its previous owner..."

"Divine Ranking is Divine Ranking, why is there a 'Minor' in front of it?"

Zheng Fa twitched his lips. This... was probably because the previous owner had heard the same mythology he had.

"What’s it for?"

"Apart from letting disciples enter the Heavenly Monument Realm for refuge, this Divine Ranking can store the blood and soul essence of twenty-four people. They will become immortals or gods within the Heavenly Monument Realm..."

Martial Aunt Huang looked confused. "What does that mean?"

"It means those twenty-four people, even if they die in the outside world, can still exist in god form inside the Heavenly Monument Realm..."

Zheng Fa explained.

As soon as she heard that, Martial Aunt Huang's gaze toward the Minor Divine Ranking changed. "Undying and unkillable?"

"No, far from it. If someone invades the Heavenly Monument Realm, they’ll actually be extremely fragile."

"……"

"On the other hand, if someone’s blood and soul essence are inscribed into the Minor Divine Ranking, their life and death—can essentially be controlled by me."

Martial Aunt Huang paused for a moment, then still nodded. "Even so, this artifact is incredibly miraculous."

Zheng Fa wasn’t explaining the Minor Divine Ranking to show off. He said, "Martial Aunt, back when Senior Sister Zhang entered the Heavenly Monument Realm, she gave me a portion of her blood and soul essence…"

"You mean? Write Wuyi’s name on it?"

Zheng Fa nodded.

"That’s… one way to save her."

"I just fear that Senior Sister Zhang wouldn't want to be subject to anyone’s control… once her name is on here, it can never be taken off…"

This thing being called the Minor Divine Ranking really did carry some of the original Divine Ranking's traits—

First, anyone listed was nearly undying and unkillable.

On the other hand, it was like a prison.

"With Wuyi’s kind of temperament, of course she’d rather die than be controlled by someone else. If it were anyone else, I’d definitely say no—but you…" Martial Aunt Huang looked deeply at Zheng Fa. "Do you think you're not worthy of being entrusted with her life? Or that you’d use this to threaten her?"

"Is it that you don’t trust yourself, or that you don’t trust her trust in you?"

Zheng Fa froze, then suddenly smiled. The blood and soul essence of Senior Sister Zhang flew out from his hand, and the name ‘Zhang Wuyi’ slowly appeared on the blank scroll.

“Huh?”

A phantom rose from the scroll and appeared in front of the three of them.

It was the image of Senior Sister Zhang.

"Junior Brother Zheng?"

She looked over at Martial Aunt Huang and Senior Sister Yuan beside him.

"Master? Junior Sister Yuan? What is this..."

Zheng Fa explained the function and limitations of the Minor Divine Ranking to Senior Sister Zhang.

After hearing it, she seemed completely unfazed, and simply said, "Junior Brother Zheng, I actually have some questions I wanted to discuss with you."

Zheng Fa blinked—then suddenly realized this Divine Ranking could totally be used for remote learning!

"Senior Sister Zhang, I’ve got a bellyful of books I want to share with you too!"

"But first, Senior Sister, there’s some information inside the Jade Seal I want to talk to you about…"

Martial Aunt Huang blinked, muttering, "Didn’t you say it was too complicated to explain right now?"

Senior Sister Yuan, however, was more experienced: "Martial Aunt, sometimes—whether something’s complicated or not depends on who you’re talking to."

Martial Aunt Huang: "……"