Ke Jun's laughter echoed through my inner world, causing ripples across the spiritual landscape. "You think your Life Realm master would know? How amusing." He shook his head, blood-red eyes gleaming with dark humor. "No, a Life Realm cultivator like your Elder Chen Yong likely has no concept of world walking or its significance. That knowledge is carefully guarded, accessible only to those at the highest levels of cultivation sects."

My mind raced. "Then who—"

"Your Sect Master would know," Ke Jun cut in. "Those who reach the Civilization Realm and beyond gain access to knowledge forbidden to lower cultivators, just like knowledge of the Nexus is forbidden to those below the Life Realm.”

I nodded slowly, processing this information. It made perfect sense. The cultivation world operated on strictly guarded tiers of knowledge, each realm unlocking secrets hidden from those below.

“World walking is one of the most coveted abilities among high-realm cultivators, constantly seeking new resources, new insights, new worlds to explore,” Ke Jun continued. “A cultivator who can naturally traverse realities? When you breakthrough to the higher realms, you’ll be hunted like a spiritual beast with an invaluable core."

The revelation sent a chill down my spine. It now made complete sense why the Sect Master had personally asked Elder Chen Yong to keep an eye on me. At the time, I'd assumed it was standard procedure for promising disciples.

"So Elder Chen Yong is watching me without even knowing why," I murmured, pieces falling into place.

"Precisely," Ke Jun nodded. "He follows orders without understanding their true purpose. A perfect arrangement, it keeps you under observation while limiting how many know your true value."

I frowned, processing this unsettling information. The idea that I was being monitored as some kind of valuable asset rather than a disciple was troubling. Yet I couldn't dismiss Ke Jun's warning.

"Never mistake a sect's interest for benevolence," Ke Jun added, his voice softening slightly. "Even the most compassionate elder serves the sect's interests first, always."

The words struck closer to home than I wanted to admit. Elder Chen Yong had been a genuine mentor to me, but his primary loyalty would always be to the sect. I couldn't fault him for that, it was the nature of the cultivation world.

I gazed up at the dual suns of my inner world, contemplating the strange twists of fate that had brought me here. Of all the cultivation methods I might have encountered after awakening in this body, I'd somehow acquired one so valuable that it warranted special attention from the highest levels of the sect.

"And I just happened to luck into this cultivation method," I murmured, more to myself than to him.

Ke Jun's expression grew cunning. "Luck? I wonder. The World Tree Sutra doesn't choose its practitioners randomly, descendant. Something in you resonated with it, perhaps an affinity for traversing worlds that existed before you even encountered the method."

I tensed imperceptibly, a cold sensation washing through my spiritual form. The blood statue's words cut too close to the truth. This was dangerous territory, far more precarious than discussions of blood arts or the Masked One. If cultivators discovered I was truly from another world entirely, not just a world walker but an actual outsider...

"An interesting theory," I replied, forcing a thoughtful expression while carefully avoiding any reaction that might betray my unease. "Though cultivation paths often seem more about circumstance than predestination. The World Tree Sutra was simply available when I needed a method."

A half-truth, but better than revealing too much. I watched Ke Jun's reaction closely, ready to redirect the conversation if he pressed further.

"Circumstance?" Ke Jun's blood-red eyes gleamed with amusement. "Perhaps. Or perhaps circumstance itself follows deeper patterns we rarely perceive. The mysteries of cultivation selection run deeper than most imagine."

I chose not to respond to that dangerous line of inquiry. Fortunately, Azure materialized beside me just then, his timing impeccable as always.

"Master," he said, "I believe we should proceed with the ritual if you intend to visit the Nexus today. The privacy formations in the physical world will not last indefinitely."

"He's right," I said, shooting a glance at Ke Jun. "We can discuss philosophy another time."

Ke Jun inclined his head slightly. "Of course. Though I suggest you give some thought to what cultivation is. The process might have benefit you."

With that enigmatic remark hanging in the air, I withdrew my consciousness from my inner world, returning to the physical reality of my small room in the inn. The privacy formations still hummed with energy, undisturbed by my spiritual journey.

I reached into my storage ring and carefully withdrew the jade vial containing Zhao Xun's demonic blood. Even through the container, I could sense the malevolent energy it contained: thick, oppressive, and tainted with the essence of a cultivation method designed to drain others. Perfect for my purposes, if not for my conscience.

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Following Ke Jun's instructions, I arranged three spirit stones in a triangle on the floor, each about an arm's length from the center. At the center, I placed the vial of blood, unsealing it carefully to allow the energy within to begin circulating. The blood seemed to pulse in response, as if still containing some echo of life.

Next, I drew three simple formation lines connecting the spirit stones, creating a balanced triangular array that would contain and direct the energy. Nothing fancy, nothing that would attract attention from anyone scanning for spiritual fluctuations, just enough structure to stabilize the ritual.

Once the formation was complete, I took a deep breath and settled into a meditation position at one of the triangle's points. The array hummed with quiet energy, the spirit stones glowing softly as they activated. The demonic blood at the center began to stir, rising slightly from the vial to hover in the air, held there by the balanced forces of the formation.

Closing my eyes, I guided my consciousness back to my inner world.

Ke Jun was waiting, his blood-red eyes tracking my arrival. "The formation is active?"

I nodded. "Everything is arranged as you described."

"Good. Now, extend your spiritual sense toward me. We need a direct connection between your consciousness and my blood essence."

As my spiritual sense cautiously made contact with Ke Jun's form, I felt a strange resonance, like plucking a string and hearing an unexpected harmony. The blood statue's essence vibrated in response, and suddenly I could sense the demonic blood in the physical world as if it were an extension of myself.

"Yes," Ke Jun's voice echoed, somehow both in my inner world and reverberating through the spiritual connection. "Now we forge the bridge."

A surge of energy flowed from Ke Jun into my spiritual sense, not invasive but guiding, showing rather than controlling. I could perceive the demonic blood with unprecedented clarity, every droplet, every trace of tainted essence, every lingering fragment of Zhao Xun's cultivation technique.

"The blood recognizes my essence," Ke Jun explained. "Blood calls to blood, especially when infused with spiritual power. Now, direct your attention to the universal coordinates I showed you previously."

I focused my mind on the complex geometric pattern I'd memorized, the multidimensional address of the Celestial Trade Nexus. It wasn't a physical location that could be described in terms of distance or direction, but rather a fixed point in the abstract space between realms.

"Perfect," Ke Jun murmured. "Now, execute the Ethereal Link technique. Remember, precision is everything."

The technique unfolded in my mind like a blooming flower, each petal representing a different component: energy circulation patterns, spiritual focus points, the exact sequence of consciousness projection. It was both simpler and more complex than I'd expected, a technique that required perfect execution despite having relatively few steps.

I began the process, carefully following each mental movement exactly as Ke Jun had shown me. My consciousness separated from my spiritual body, forming a distinct projection that remained tethered to my inner world by a gossamer thread of awareness. This projection then aligned itself with the universal coordinates, the geometric pattern serving as both destination and key.

"Now," Ke Jun instructed, "channel a portion of the demonic blood's essence through our connection. Not too much, just enough to mask your signature."

I hesitated briefly, then carefully drew a minimal amount of the tainted energy through the bridge we'd established. The demonic qi was hot and angry, seeming to resist my control even as it flowed along the path I created. When it reached my astral projection, it spread like ink in water, enveloping my spiritual form in a dark shroud.

"The final step," Ke Jun said, his voice growing distant as my consciousness pulled away from my inner world. "Activate the Ethereal Link with the coordinates as your anchor. Your astral form will do the rest."

With a final push of will, I completed the technique. The tethered projection shot forward along an invisible path, guided by the coordinates embedded in my spiritual sense. There was a moment of disorientation, a sensation of passing through something both thick and insubstantial, and then—

Emptiness.

I existed in a void, or what seemed like one at first glance. As my awareness adjusted, however, details began to emerge from the darkness. This wasn't true emptiness, it was a vast, open space, seemingly infinite in all directions. There was no sky, no ground, no clear source of the soft ambient light that permeated everything.

Looking down at myself, I saw only darkness, a vaguely humanoid shape composed of shadow and mist, with occasional flickers of blood-red energy pulsing through the form. Nothing of my true self was visible, just as Ke Jun had promised.

In the distance, though distance seemed a flexible concept here, I began to perceive structures. Buildings, perhaps, or something analogous to them, arranged in patterns that defied conventional geometry. Some appeared to hover at impossible angles, others seemed to phase in and out of existence as I focused on them.

And there were other figures moving among these structures. Most were shadowy like myself, though with variations in their auras that likely represented different cultivation methods or disguise techniques. Others appeared more substantial: beings of light or energy rather than physical form, some humanoid, others distinctly not.

I had arrived. The Celestial Trade Nexus, the greatest marketplace in all the cultivation realms, accessible only to those of Life Realm or above... or those willing to risk forbidden methods to bypass the restrictions.

As I oriented myself, a voice seemed to materialize directly in my consciousness, neither male nor female, neither young nor old:

"Welcome, Traveler. The Nexus acknowledges your presence. Trade freely, but adhere to our laws. Violence against other traders is forbidden. Attempts to trace others' coordinates will result in immediate expulsion. Respect the neutrality of the Nexus, and it shall respect your autonomy."

The message faded as quickly as it had come, leaving me alone with my shadowy form and the infinite marketplace spreading before me.

Unlike typical cultivators who came to the Nexus seeking specific treasures, I faced a more nebulous challenge. My inner world was unique: dual suns, a Genesis Seed, and a structure unlike anything described in sect texts.

What I needed wasn't something as straightforward as a particular herb or formation material, but something that would resonate with my world's specific nature.

And all I had to do to find it was navigate the most exclusive and dangerous marketplace in existence while disguised as a blood cultivator, trading in techniques I barely understood myself.

What could possibly go wrong?