91: Ancestral Building

Ancestral Building

The pocket realm was a wondrous and mysterious realm that existed in its own dimension. None of the involved powers knew of its origins, and none even had the faintest clue of the power required to make such a realm.2

The only thing they knew however, was that it opened every twenty years, and inside existed treasures and opportunities most could only dream of. The pocket realm was also one of the reasons why each of the five powers were able to stand at the peak of power in this part of the Yuan Continent. In fact, the opportunities were great enough to entice even those in the Yuan Continent Holy Lands, which was why the five powers kept it a secret.

The only reason the Five Powers were unable to soar to even higher heights was due to the thin levels of Qi that existed in this part of the continent.

After several days of traveling, the Fenix Clan group was close to approaching the grounds of the pocket realm. The pocket realm existed at the top of one of the mountains of the Skycleave mountain range, which was located in the center between all the powers. John looked out the window of his carriage as it continued up the winding road to the top of the mountain.

The vast Skycleave Mountain range was visible beneath him, and John could see many towns, villages, sects, and kingdoms in the far distance beyond the mountains. A thought appeared in John's head and he turned to his father to ask a question.

"Father, what's the inside of the pocket realm like? Do you have any tips for once I'm inside?"

"Good question, however it's a futile one. The inside of the pocket realm changes every time it's open, and so any map or tips I give you will be useless. The only thing I can say is that with every opportunity comes danger, and so you must be cautious at all times."

An understanding look appeared on John's face as he listened to his father. He had always been confused as to why the clan didn't give them any aids such as maps, but his fathers response explained everything.

"What type of power is capable of producing such a realm? That not only exists in an independent space, but changes every time it opens?" John was truly unable to fathom such power.

Barden shook his head and responded with a voice of reverence. "I don't know either, but whoever made the realm must exist at a level that we can only dream of."

John continued to converse with his father regarding the pocket realm, and before long, the Fenix Clan arrived at the summit of the mountain. The carriages came to a halt, and as John hopped out, his breath caught in his throat.

"This!"

The top of the mountain appeared to be sheared off at the top, revealing a smooth flat ground hundreds of yards wide. In the very center existed a massive building, so grand it dwarfed anything that existed in the Fenix Clan.

"Even now, I'm in awe everytime I see this building." Barden couldn't help but say.

The majestic looking building was hundreds of yards wide and tall, and took up most of the area at the top of the mountain. Its stone walls were dark red, and the building tapered off towards the top, making it look like a six sided pyramid.

Five massive, lifelike statues stood outside around the building, as if guarding the building. John never imagined such a building existed at the top of the mountain, and was caught off guard.

"Father, what exactly is this building? And who are these statues of?" John couldn't help but ask.

"The statues are of the five founders of each of the powers." Barden pointed to a particular statue, which depicted a man in a luxurious red and black robe, holding a sword at his side and peering into the distance, making him look quite heroic.

"That statue is of our founder, Holus Fenix."

Barden paused for a while before continuing. "As for this building, you'll see why it exists when we get inside. Us five powers call it the ancestral hall, and the official purpose we let others know of is it is a shrine in honor of our five ancestors."

John stared at the building and noticed many guards were patrolling outside, clearly protecting the hall from any unwanted intruders.

John followed the rest of the Fenix Clan group as they walked towards the massive building, and after passing by the guards, they soon walked through the massive front entrance which was dozens of yards high and wide.

Once inside, John looked around curiously and was shocked to find the entire structure was completely hollow. The ceiling of the building stood hundreds of yards tall above them, and the opposite side of the building was visible.

His gaze suddenly came to a halt as he looked towards the center of the massive room. Barden smiled as he looked at John's reaction, as it was the same as his own when he first saw it as well.

A massive arching gateway, over a hundred yards tall, stood in the very center of the room. The arch was shining in a lustrous color, and John could tell that it was made by incredibly valuable material. But the thing that shocked him the most was what existed in the center of the archway.

The center of the archway revealed a dazzling array of ever changing colors, and John could faintly see the images of a land beyond its entrance. The entrance radiated an incredibly powerful and profound aura, and made all those that felt it feel the urge to prostrate themselves before it.

After a few seconds of standing there in silence, John finally managed to maintain his composure and turned to his father.

"I can see now why we built this building, the gateway is far too eye catching."

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