Translator: AnubisTL
In the blink of an eye, two years had swiftly passed. The residents of Giant Mushroom City in the World of Eternal Night noticed no significant changes in their daily lives.
Li Qing's arrival had no impact on them; life continued as usual.
During these two years, Li Qing remained secluded in the ancient castle deep within Giant Mushroom City, rarely venturing out.
He dedicated himself to refining the daoist arts he had created, constantly perfecting them.
Gradually, the Dao Tribulation Limitless Sutra, a Mortal Transformation Secret Art, underwent significant refinement through Li Qing's focused contemplation.
"The lifespan reduction is no longer as severe," he mused. "For future metamorphoses, I simply need to replenish my life essence as much as possible."
This divine secret art was finally nearing completion!
The process had taken two full years—a relatively short time, considering it was merely refinement.
However, Li Qing's future path was destined to involve independently developing his own Dao and Dharma. He sought to create not only divine secret arts but also his own cultivation manual.
While he could draw inspiration from the strengths and intricacies of other superior cultivation manuals, the true Dao and Dharma had to be his own!
Over the past two years, Li Qing had gradually refined his vision for the Immortal Dao cultivation technique he intended to create.
"The Qi Refining Chapter of the Dao Tribulation Limitless Sutra doesn't need to be overly complex," he mused. "After all, it's just a cultivation manual for the qi refining realm."
"At this stage, the most crucial thing is mastering qi refinement through breathing exercises, laying a solid foundation for the next stage: foundation establishment."
"The Great Dao is simple, the Great Dao is simple..."
Within the ancient castle, Li Qing murmured these words repeatedly, his expression growing increasingly trance-like. Deep within his Sea of Consciousness, a scripture that had undergone countless revisions finally emerged.
"Heaven and earth possess spirit; refine qi to return to its origin. Consume the twilight, nourish your breath, draw forth longevity, and transcend the true self."
In this World of Eternal Night, an era of the End of Dao, Li Qing had thus created the foundational scripture for his Immortal Dao cultivation technique.
Li Qing wasn't rushing the Law Creation process. He had no intention of hastily completing the entire Qi Refining Chapter in one go.
Currently, the Qi Refining Chapter of the Dao Tribulation Limitless Sutra remained incomplete, only supporting cultivation up to the Fourth Layer of the Qi Refining Stage—barely enough to reach the mid qi refining realm.
With this, Li Qing gradually withdrew from the mysterious dao resonance, the profound light in his eyes slowly fading.
"This is the perfect stopping point," Li Qing murmured to himself. "Lacking sufficient comprehension and accumulated insights, forcing the derivation of subsequent scriptures would only render the manual incomplete."
He was immensely satisfied with the cultivation manual he had just created. This was undoubtedly the opening chapter of a superior Immortal Dao cultivation technique, so it was best not to force things. He needed to let things develop naturally, like water finding its own course; otherwise, the result would be flawed.
Of course, given his current cultivation level and profound understanding, creating a complete qi refining realm cultivation manual wouldn't be difficult at all.
He had personally experienced this realm and had studied countless cultivation manuals. Crafting one would be effortless.
However, such a manual would be utterly ordinary—a truly inferior technique that fell far short of Li Qing's standards.
Even if he created such a manual, it would be of little use and would only make future progress increasingly difficult.
This explains why so many inferior cultivation manuals exist in the world. Those who practice them often find their dao paths severely restricted, becoming narrow and limited.
Even if they manage to break through to higher realms, they would eventually need to switch to a different cultivation manual!
"How intriguing," Li Qing mused. "This world is clearly in the End of Dao Era, with the Great Dao completely severed. Yet, for some reason, Law Creation seems easier than ever."
"With the Great Dao severed, all beings in the heavens compete fiercely. Perhaps this is the ideal time to forge one's own path."
As Li Qing pondered these words, Yang Gong entered the ancient castle, bowing low. He held a pale cyan silk storage pouch in both hands.
This pouch, originally seized from the Free and Unfettered Sect, was extraordinary. Its capacity was immense, capable of holding even an entire lake's worth of water.
While such a large-capacity storage pouch couldn't compare to the legendary Cave Heaven Treasures—artifacts that could create their own miniature worlds—it was exceedingly rare, crafted using a unique refining method exclusive to the Free and Unfettered Sect.
After acquiring it, Li Qing named it the Carefree Cosmos Pouch.
"Lord Limitless, the strange beast blood has been completely stored within the Carefree Cosmos Pouch!" Yang Gong declared reverently, slowly presenting the pouch to Li Qing as if offering a sacred artifact.
Another remarkable feature of the Carefree Cosmos Pouch was its accessibility. By imbuing it with a cultivator's spiritual energy beforehand, even a mortal without cultivation could use it freely, without any barriers.
Li Qing nodded expressionlessly and accepted the Carefree Cosmos Pouch into his hand.
Li Qing swept his divine sense across the Carefree Cosmos Pouch, noting the vast quantity of strange beast blood it contained. Finally, he nodded in satisfaction.
"Well done. Continue stockpiling fresh blood from third-tier exotic beasts. I may return periodically to collect it."
Yang Gong paused, startled by Li Qing's words. "Lord Limitless, are you planning to leave?"
Li Qing replied casually, "I'm going to take a look around the Blood Martial Dynasty to the east. While I'm gone, you and Ji Ling should carry on as usual."
With that, Li Qing stepped forward, his figure vanishing instantly from the ancient castle, leaving Yang Gong standing in stunned silence.
Having just completed his Law Creation, Li Qing was in a relatively good mood, though the process had drained considerable mental energy. He naturally wanted to stretch his legs and clear his head.
As for the third-tier exotic beast blood stored in the Carefree Cosmos Pouch, he planned to keep it for now, intending to deal with it later upon returning to his cave abode at the Lingyun Sect.
With a few silent flashes, Li Qing flew noiselessly beyond the walls of Giant Mushroom City.
Only then did he release Fan Tong from his spirit beast pouch. Mounting the creature's back, he set off eastward.
Having been confined to the spirit beast pouch for quite some time, Fan Tong's gait seemed noticeably lighter and more relaxed upon being freed.
Perched on Fan Tong's back, Li Qing chuckled. "You big oaf, take a look at this."
As he spoke, a crescent-shaped spore materialized between Li Qing's fingers. Its crimson hue mirrored the Red Moon hanging in the sky.
Crimson Moon Spore!
Sensing the pure Red Moon Secret Power contained within the spore, Fan Tong immediately halted, telepathically asking Li Qing:
"Brother, what is this?"
"I feel an irresistible pull from this spore, just like the high-grade crimson crystals I sensed before!"
Li Qing smiled and explained, "This is called a crimson moon spore. It works similarly to crimson crystals, but the Red Moon Secret Power inside is even purer!"
Fan Tong asked eagerly, "Brother, is this for me?"
"Heh, who else would it be for? Me?"
With a flick of his finger, Li Qing used spiritual energy to guide the spore directly into Fan Tong's mouth.
The pure Red Moon Secret Power instantly transformed into a torrent, surging through Fan Tong's body.
Fan Tong quickly returned to its normal state, showing no signs of ferocity or madness. It swiftly suppressed the malevolent energy contained within the Red Moon Secret Power.
In that instant, its strength increased noticeably.
Clearly, crimson moon spores were far superior to directly consuming crimson crystals. For demon beasts, the negative side effects were significantly reduced, and the spores didn't rapidly transform them into mindless, bloodthirsty beasts.
"This is just a third-tier crimson moon spore," Li Qing said slowly. "Once the Great Mushroom fully recovers from its injuries, we'll have it cultivate fourth-tier spores for you."
Upon hearing this, Fan Tong's spirits visibly soared.
With this, its strength could finally advance again.
In truth, with the aid of the Myriad Beasts Spirit Fruit and the implanted bone of a heavenly demon tiger, Fan Tong was already very close to the mid-third-tier. With another decade or two of patient cultivation, it would naturally reach that stage.
But since external assistance was available to accelerate its breakthrough, Fan Tong would certainly not refuse.
Thus, man and tiger traversed vast distances, finally crossing the boundless wilderness and reaching the border of the Rolling Stone Domain.
Beyond this point lay the Blood Martial Dynasty, the location Yang Gong had mentioned.
"Though they also cultivate the vital energy martial dao, it's hard to say if they're truly the same group from the martial alliance in Giant Rock City. Best to investigate personally," Li Qing murmured to himself, gazing into the endless darkness ahead.
After so many years apart, and with the World of Eternal Night's threefold time dilation, it was uncertain whether any of the original martial alliance members were still alive.
Crossing the border of the Rolling Stone Domain, Li Qing entered another unfamiliar great domain.
As they traveled deeper, the wind gradually intensified until it became a fierce gale.
Small stones were even being swept into the air by the violent gusts.
However, Fan Tong was a third-tier demonic beast, and Li Qing was a cultivator in the nascent soul realm, so the mere gale posed no obstacle to their progress.
The storm raged for a long time before finally subsiding.
Then, through his divine sense, Li Qing finally detected a long column of people marching across the wilderness.
To Li Qing's surprise, the mutations on these people were barely noticeable, with some showing almost no signs of change at all.
The group was transporting heavy cargo, and the beasts pulling the carts were surprisingly low-tier exotic beasts.
This puzzled Li Qing even more. These low-level beasts weren't attacking the humans. Though a hint of madness and ferocity flickered in their eyes, they were clearly suppressing their instincts.
"It's been too long since I last came here," Li Qing mused. "Centuries have passed, and now even exotic beasts can coexist peacefully with humans!"
He soon noticed that each cart pulled by these beasts had a hat-wearing man seated atop it.
These hat-wearing men radiated extraordinary vital energy, and faint traces of true qi swirled within their bodies.
Indeed, these hat-wearing men were genuine vital energy martial artists who had completed the qi blood nine revolutions and successfully entered the Martial Dao Innate Realm, manifesting a wisp of true qi within their bodies.
Having discerned the true nature of these hat-wearing men, Li Qing finally confirmed his suspicions: the Blood Martial Dynasty likely originated from the martial alliance that had once thrived in Giant Rock City.
Having confirmed his suspicions, Li Qing immediately ordered Fan Tong to follow the merchant caravan and approach their location.
Rumble!
Fan Tong made no attempt to conceal its approach. The great earth trembled as it charged forward, kicking up a towering cloud of dust.
"Alert! A strange beast is attacking!"
A warning cry rang out from within the merchant caravan.
Before the words had even faded, the merchants scattered in panic, while the vital energy martial artists among them quickly gathered together.
Soon, the hat-wearing men who had reached the Martial Dao Innate Realm felt a sudden tremor through their bodies.
They exchanged glances, their shock palpable even through the veils of their hats.
"The strange beasts are terrified! The approaching creature must be incredibly powerful!"
"Even the blood bull is trembling! How is this possible? It wouldn't react like this even against a third-tier exotic beast!"
"What level of beast is this? Its aura is terrifying!"
"Where did it come from? Alliance Leader Yan has already scoured this area for powerful beasts multiple times!"
For a moment, they all realized that this colossal beast charging toward them was beyond their ability to withstand.
But in an instant, someone exclaimed, "There's a figure on that strange beast!"
Sharp-eyed observers immediately spotted a tall, upright figure sitting cross-legged atop the charging behemoth. The person wore azure robes, radiating an air of effortless grace and otherworldly detachment.
Soon, Fan Tong finally restrained the overwhelming aura emanating from its very bones. It slowed its pace, eventually halting a hundred meters from the merchant caravan.
"Brothers, are you members of the Blood Martial Dynasty?"
Li Qing, seated atop Fan Tong, clasped his hands in a Jianghu greeting and smiled.
Only then did the crowd get a clear look at the massive beast before them. It was a colossal tiger with dark purple stripes, its body massive and muscular, its eyes as large as lanterns. The oppressive aura radiating from its form left them breathless.
Yet atop this extraordinary strange beast sat a figure whose strength seemed to defy imagination.
Finally, a vital energy martial artist wearing a veiled conical hat stepped forward, clasped his fists, and declared, "Indeed, we are Martial Artists of the Blood Martial Dynasty's martial alliance, tasked with escorting these merchants to the royal capital."
Martial alliance Martial Artist... Li Qing mused, I haven't heard that name in ages.
A faint smile curled at the corner of Li Qing's lips as he inquired, "Oh? The martial alliance still exists? I wonder if Miao Xi is still the alliance leader?"
At this question, the crowd exchanged uneasy glances, their faces betraying clear unease.
"Miao Xi... isn't that the name of our dynasty's founding Great Emperor?"
(End of the Chapter)
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