Starting My Cultivation With Time Management-Chapter 945 - 85 Above the Clouds

"So, the sea water is rising?" Xu Yinglian asked gravely.

"Pretty much." Qiu Changtian gazed at the sea surface and said slowly, "In no time, the area of this island has dramatically shrunk further."

"What if we dig a hole and hide inside?"

"Once the sea water rises and submerges the island, it’ll still flood through the hole eventually."

"Looks like we’ll need to use a water-avoiding type of magical treasure," Xu Yinglian muttered thoughtfully.

Unfortunately, neither of them had carried any water-avoiding talismans—after all, such items were useless in the Kunlun Mountain Range.

"I’ll dive again and give it another shot," Xu Yinglian said defiantly.

"I’ll accompany you," Qiu Changtian said promptly.

The two came to the island’s edge and leapt into the ocean, diving downward.

Since cultivators practiced fasting and breath-holding techniques, the challenges of the deep-sea environment—such as lack of oxygen or water pressure—posed no harm to them.

But in these deep waters, chaotic currents churned incessantly below, making it extremely difficult for them to maintain even basic stability of their posture, which was quite troublesome.

In such conditions where balance couldn’t be maintained, even a moment of relaxation could mean being swept away to some unknown place.

At a depth of three hundred zhang, the previously dark water domain suddenly glimmered with a faint bright blue hue.

It was a stellar fragment embedded in the mountain body below after its descent. From this distance, the exact contours couldn’t yet be discerned—only the image of a massive blue fireball blazing fiercely in the depths of the sea.

As they drew closer, the surrounding seawater rapidly heated, transforming from bone-chilling cold into scorching heat.

If they drew closer still, even the bodies of cultivators would be unable to withstand the intense temperatures.

Qiu Changtian and Xu Yinglian exchanged glances, reading the helplessness in each other’s eyes.

This was the truest danger of the deep sea.

A single fallen star could heat the surrounding seawater to boiling temperatures on a massive scale.

If one were swept uncontrollably by the dark currents into the scalding water near the stellar fragment—or worse, collided directly with the blazing star—it would spell instantaneous death.

And yet, staying in the sea meant continually expending True Yuan to resist the chaotic currents. Once True Yuan was fully depleted, one’s fate of "drifting along the currents" would become unavoidable.

No wonder the elder had said that the test was about so-called "good fortune and destiny."

If luck was bad, you might be swept into the vicinity of the stellar fragment and die as ash; if luck was good, you could drift in the deep sea for days and remain unharmed.

Thinking of this, Qiu Changtian suddenly recalled Shi Liuli.

With Miss Shi’s luck and her near-divine skill in art calculation, wouldn’t she thrive here like a fish in water?

By contrast, Junior Sister Xu, whose mastery of fire-system Daoist magic was unrivaled, seemed completely restrained and rendered powerless in this deep-sea environment.

"What’s on your mind, Senior Brother?" Xu Yinglian transmitted her voice quietly.

"There’s nothing worth seeing down here," Qiu Changtian replied. "Let’s head back."

"Alright." Xu Yinglian nodded in agreement.

The two ascended to the ocean’s surface, enduring various chaotic currents sweeping through them along the way. Fortunately, both Qiu Changtian and Xu Yinglian had True Yuan far more ample than cultivators of their level, allowing them to resist the currents.

Leaving the water and returning to the island, they noticed that the island had been reduced to merely one-third of its original size; clearly, the sea level was still rising, evoking the sense of a terrifying global warming disaster film.

"If we dig a hole on the island and somehow seal the entrance tightly to prevent water from flooding in, what do you think?" Xu Yinglian proposed another idea.

"Not quite feasible," Qiu Changtian pondered aloud. "Judging by the pressure we endured at the seabed earlier, ordinary talismans or spells couldn’t sustain a sealed entrance for long."

"More importantly, if a star were to fall and strike our location, could such a burrow withstand the impact?"

Xu Yinglian fell silent.

Indeed, if a star crashed onto their position, then the only way to survive would be to flee as quickly as possible.

If they remained in an open environment, at least they could observe the situation in the sky. But if they hid in a burrow and lost the ability to monitor the outside world, a star crashing down on their heads would almost certainly lead to their deaths.

"So, are we left with nothing but staying outside and adapting randomly?" Xu Yinglian asked, frowning.

The two looked up toward the sky. Qiu Changtian’s thoughts stirred suddenly, and he said:

"Why don’t we go above the cloud layer to take a look?"

Since the heavy rain beneath the cloud layer interfered with Daoist magic and obstructed cultivators’ sword-flying techniques, the negative effects were too troublesome. If they could hide above the cloud layer, away from the rain, it would be better.

Xu Yinglian saw no reason to disagree. The two controlled their swords and ascended rapidly toward the heavenly dome.

As they approached the cloud layer, the surrounding lightning grew increasingly dense, like tribulation clouds with serpentine electric arcs striking toward them.

Qiu Changtian casually unleashed a Tai Yi Thunder, shattering the bolts entirely and keeping them at bay.

Finally breaching the heavy cloud layer, they reached the skies above it and saw that the once gleaming runic rivers of the heavenly dome were now riddled with cracks.

Numerous runic rivers were either severed or distorted into erratic curves, squirming chaotically like convulsing worms.

Encircled by these bizarre runic rivers were numerous large and small gaps in the heavens.

The boundless waters of the Chaotic Heavenly River cascaded through the gaps, forming countless majestic and grandiose waterfalls that surged into the sea of clouds below, stirring misty vapor that perpetually replenished the cloud sea, pushing layers of shadowy clouds to spread far and wide.

Suddenly, a streak of sword light flashed near one of the waterfalls.

Qiu Changtian focused his gaze forward and saw cultivators engaged in combat there.

Not only ahead but also to their left, right, rear, and even above them, sporadic battles were breaking out. freeweɓnovel.cѳm

Clearly, Qiu Changtian and Xu Yinglian were not the only ones who had thought of escaping above the cloud layer as a refuge.

Here, there were no turbulent waves crashing against them nor heavy rain obscuring their vision. Even the trajectory of falling stars could be traced more easily.

The only drawback was that the visibility was far too excellent—cultivators could spot each other from quite a distance.

Given the elder’s words about "the last twelve surviving cultivators earning the position of Seven Treasures Mysterious Garden’s master," it was obvious what discovering others here would lead to.

As Qiu Changtian was pondering, Xu Yinglian suddenly opened her mouth, releasing an extremely fine Golden Thread Fire Blade.

The golden blade abruptly sliced forward, cutting the heavenly river waterfall beside them in two—along with the Demon Cult cultivator hiding behind the waterfall, poised to ambush them. The Crimson Feather Nine Phoenix Fire obliterated him instantly, forcing his unwilling figure to dissipate into light.

Seeing that no corpse remained behind, Qiu Changtian understood it must be the secret realm’s protective mechanism transporting the defeated outside.

"Senior Brother, how about now?" Xu Yinglian asked eagerly.

Compared to being drenched below or battling ocean currents, she clearly preferred fighting other sect cultivators above the clouds.

"We can’t stay here," Qiu Changtian quickly concluded. "Let’s go down."