Jing Qian's planned Spirit-Subduing Path began in the Hun Continent, cut straight across the heart of the Vast Sea, turned sharply through the sea-monster territories, and then looped back toward the core of the Divine Dynasty.
Afterward, he would swing north past Beishang Pass, mount the White Ox, and venture onward to Ju Continent, home of the mountain-ghost clans.
The route twisted and wound like a gluttonous serpent, stringing together every light-point on the map, each one representing a cultivator of the fourth rank or higher.
Not a single target was left unmarked.
He even noted the locations of the Ghost Emperor of Wuchang and the Dragon Angler, both second-rank powerhouses.
However, he deliberately placed them at the end of his journey.
By then, he intended to have already advanced to the Spirit-Subduing Realm, so that he could meet these two great beings as an equal and witness for himself the true gulf between his power and that of the second rank.
"Old Bull," Jing Qian said,
"Go find somewhere to rest for now.
I'll take a little trip through the Vast Sea first.
I'll bring you back a few dragon tendons to taste."
The old ox nodded, hoisted the Sword-Grinding Cliff onto his back, and, swaying lazily, flew off into the distance.
Jing Qian didn't hesitate; he stepped through the void.
When he reappeared, he was once again standing atop Hun Continent Island, within the administrative palace.
The instant he arrived, he felt that the vital energy of the entire island had become three times denser than before.
The Ying Emperor had kept his word:
The earth veins that once nourished the You Continent were now being redirected into the Hun Continent.
And this was only the beginning; before long, the island's vitality would rise to more than ten times its former level.
All the Life Islands of the Hun Continent would benefit greatly.
For Jing Qian, this was especially advantageous, as five of his Shadow Hearths were planted across the continent's Life Islands.
As Hun Continent's spiritual density soared,
he would naturally receive the lion's share of its bounty.
With a wave of his hand, he summoned Xi Li.
"Xi Li," he asked,
"How much Fate Fire can the Sumeru Furnace produce each day now?"
The spirit bowed deeply.
"My lord, we currently have three main sources of vitality."
"First, the share of energy granted by Lord Snake from the Ghost-Origin Hall accounts for half of our total, and it's the largest contribution."
"Second, the vitality cores within the Void Realm Lord Corn devoured the bulk of them, but what remains fuels the Sumeru Furnace, providing about thirty percent."
"Lastly, the earth-vein energy from the islands of Hun Continent contributes the remaining twenty percent."
"Combined, these sources let the furnace refine ten strands of Blue-Blood Fate Fire per day."
"But if we try to refine Golden Root Fate Fire, it takes nearly half a month for a single strand."
"At present, the furnace holds eight hundred and twenty strands of Blue-Blood Fate Fire.
What are your orders, my lord?"
Jing Qian considered briefly before replying:
"That's far too little. Leave them stored for now."
"Soon the continent's vitality will rise again.
I'll teach you a technique to help gather and concentrate the flow."
He then transmitted to Xi Li the Supreme Method of the One-Origin Sect, the Dao Scroll of Supreme Void's Internal Observation of the Cosmic Cycle.
Though the One-Origin Sect had long since perished, its legacy remained exquisite, especially its techniques for gathering and harmonizing spiritual energy.
Among its arts was the secret One-Origin Canopy, a formation that, when established upon a Life Island, could draw in seventy percent of all the continent's ambient vitality into a single dome.
Following Jing Qian's command, Xi Li was to construct such a canopy over the Hun Continent's main island, channeling most of the upper-continent's vitality into it to fuel the Sumeru Furnace's refinement of Fate Fire.
Once the formation was complete, the regions outside its bounds would have their vitality reduced back to the same level as before the continent's ascension, keeping the ecosystem stable.
For Jing Qian, whose mana reserves were vast, his consumption of Fate Fire was tens of thousands of times greater than others'.
He needed an immense and steady supply of resources, sustained only by the continent's ascended energy veins.
Xi Li, thrilled by the gift of such a profound Dao scripture, prostrated himself and began studying it immediately.
Jing Qian left him to it.
He descended from the third floor of the palace's pagoda to the first, where Li Yuan and Xu Xi were already waiting.
When they saw him appear, both hurriedly rose and bowed.
Jing Qian waved his hand casually.
"You've likely already received word from the Divine Dynasty," he said,
"and understand the full story of what happened on the Hun Continent."
"By fortune, I have obtained the inheritance of Yanfu Dao, and my cultivation has borne fruit.
I intend to re-establish the Yanfu Dao Temple here in the Hun Continent."
"This plan has already received the Human Emperor's sanction and will be carried out with the full support of the Divine Court."
"From this day forth, with Hun Continent elevated to an upper continent, it will enjoy immeasurable vitality."
"Within its borders, governance shall fall under Yanfu Dao's authority.
Whether appointments of spirit officials, civil affairs, or cultivation management, all decisions will rest with us."
"Yanfu Dao bears heavy karmic weight, so I will not invite you two to formally join the sect."
"However, in the administration of Hun Continent, I will still rely greatly on your counsel and aid."
Jing Qian raised his hand, and two streaks of radiant spiritual light shot forth, one into Li Yuan, the other into Xu Xi.
In that instant, he officially appointed Li Yuan as the Governor of Hun Continent and Xu Xi as the Head of Maritime Affairs.
Now that the Hun Continent had ascended to the status of an Upper Continent, their spiritual official ranks rose sharply along with it.
Li Yuan was directly elevated to a Sixth-Rank Spirit Official,
And Xu Xi, who hadn't even been a Ninth-Rank spirit official before, was instantly promoted to Seventh Rank, an astronomical leap.
Then Jing Qian summoned Sheng Ji, who materialized beside him like a pale wisp of light.
"Sheng Ji," he said,
"is a senior elder of my Yanfu Dao sect. She will oversee all daily affairs.
The two of you may consult with her as needed."
"The top priority now is to rebuild the Yanfu Dao Sect's mountain gate here on Hun Continent Island.
I'll need the three of you to work together and coordinate fully."
The two cultivators and the ghost-woman bowed deeply and replied in unison:
"We will not fail in your trust."
Jing Qian himself had no intention of personally managing a sect or administering an entire continent.
He only needed to build the framework and set up the governing system after that; even a modest team could gradually accumulate strength and stability.
Fortunately, both Sheng Ji and Li Yuan were remarkably capable subordinates.
Sheng Ji, formerly a pillar of the Mirrorcloud Shrine,
was well-versed in running large scholastic and spiritual institutions.
She could handle Yanfu Dao's organizational structure with ease.
Li Yuan, on the other hand, was a model administrator, upright, competent, and humble.
Though his cultivation was weak, he was the kind of worker who ate little and did much, a top-tier "ox and horse" of the bureaucratic world.
Xu Xi, too, was of solid character and had grown adept at managing the Hun Continent's maritime trade in recent years.
With these three holding the front line, Jing Qian was confident that the Hun Continent would remain stable and thriving.
He placed great hopes upon this continent's development, for it would become the foundation of his legacy.
As its wealth and resources accumulated over time, the productivity of the entire Upper Continent would eventually become his personal sustenance fuel for his future cultivation.
Once all the administrative affairs of the Hun Continent were properly arranged, Jing Qian teleported outside the island.
With a casual wave, he retrieved the Dingyuan, his personal warship,
from within the Void Realm, setting it afloat upon the sea.
Then, he summoned Mo Pin'er, the little ship spirit,
and lent her the Wave Tide Life Pattern so that she could pilot the vessel.
Pointing forward, Jing Qian instructed:
"Our first stop, let's pay a visit to the Mud Tuo Dragon."
The Mud Tuo Dragon lived nearly three hundred thousand li deep within the Vast Sea, the nearest Star-Seizer–rank sea monster to the Hun Continent, and the first true stop on Jing Qian's Spirit-Subduing journey.
He seated himself calmly at the prow of the Dingyuan
as Mo Pin'er steered the ship across the roaring waves.
Jing Qian soon entered a deep meditative state.
He did not use the Three-Lives Eye to teleport or project his consciousness for instant travel.
For this journey, he intended to temper himself through both combat and cultivation. Daily refining of mana and essence was as vital as battle and conquest.
By now, Jing Qian's cultivation had reached the Great Perfection of Longevity Realm.
He needed only to refine his Blue-Blood Life Essence into Violet-Pupil Life Essence
to ascend into the Spirit-Subduing Realm.
This was not a major hurdle, merely a matter of patient grinding and internal refinement.
He summoned forth his Saintly Manifestation, which hovered before him,
and began channeling streams of his Blue-Blood Life Essence into it.
Then, from within the Sumeru Furnace, he drew out the stored Blue-Blood Fate Fires,
inhaling and absorbing them one by one to temper his Life Essence and expand his mana base.
This was painstaking, foundational work, the kind that could not be rushed.
Although the furnace contained a fair number of Fate Fires, compared to Jing Qian's boundless mana capacity, it was a mere drop in the ocean.
After just three days, the entire store of Blue-Blood Fate Fires had been consumed.
Then Jing Qian brandished the Immortal Sword Embryo, swinging it down toward his hovering Saintly Manifestation.
A terrifying surge of power rippled across the Vast Sea, the collision between a First-Rank Divine Sword and a Saintly Manifestation.
Within this fierce resonance, the energy from the consumed Fate Fires was compressed under immense force, refining into the purest Life Essence Mana.
Nine hundred strands of Blue-Blood Fate Fire raised his cultivation by nearly two hundred measures, an impressive conversion rate.
Yet, gazing into the vast, unfathomable depths of his own mana reserves,
Jing Qian could only sigh inwardly; he would need far more wealth and resources to keep up with his growth.
Having drained the furnace completely, Jing Qian withdrew his mana and shifted his divine sense back into the Fate Stele Space.
Within, the remnants of Thunder Child and Qiongqi had long since been erased, leaving only the three high elders of the Blood River Sect.
Without a word, Jing Qian drew his sword and advanced.
Blood Cang and Blood Ming, both fourth-rank Star-Seizer, retreated to the sidelines, yielding the field to Blood Robe.
The blood-clad figure transformed into a vast, surging river of blood, countless crimson phantoms writhed within it, each wearing a blood-drenched robe.
"You cannot defeat me, Dao Son."
The Blood Robe's echoing voice rolled like thunder.
"You cannot slay my incarnations nor disperse my Blood River.
Without your Guardian Deity's aid, you lack the means to destroy me."
Jing Qian ignored the words.
He streaked through the air as a flash of light, circling the blood river in dizzying patterns, darting in and out with impossible precision.
Each time he struck with the Immortal Sword Embryo, he shattered a strand of the Blood River's Immortal Qi, trying to completely suppress and annihilate it.
But there were twenty-four strands of Immortal Qi within that river.
Each time one was cut, the countless red phantoms devoured the fragments, recongealing the Qi anew, in a cycle of endless regeneration.
Without the aid of Good Corn and Ghost Phoenix,
Jing Qian found it difficult to gain the upper hand in a solo battle.
Yet his spatial Heavenly Mandates and Three-Lives Eye gave him unmatched agility; he flickered across the battlefield faster than Blood Robe could perceive.
He used the battle to refine his combat system, testing the synergy of his weapons, abilities, and techniques.
The Immortal Sword Embryo's killing power was overwhelming.
Though his mana was barely a third of Blood Robe's, its pure-grade swordlight made up the difference in essence.
His mobility was unparalleled with the Heavenly Mandates of Sumeru, Bridge of No Return, and Bian Yuan Weiyang; he could teleport freely across the battlefield.
His defenses were formidable as well:
The Sumeru Dimension and Hell Scroll cloaked him in ghostly armor, and with the Reincarnation Disk shielding him, he could withstand blows from even a third-rank powerhouse.
Together, these elements formed a powerful and adaptable system allowing Jing Qian to fight even great cultivators with ease.
However, compared to Blood Robe's perfectly integrated Blood River system,
Jing Qian's setup, while higher in potential and overall power, was still somewhat fragmented and complex, lacking refined unity.
That was precisely what the Spirit-Subduing Realm was meant to address.
In this stage, a cultivator must not only suppress their primary Spirit Construct, but also achieve complete harmony between their Manifestation and Spirit Constructs, activating what was known as the Manifestation Armament.
Only then could they withstand the infernal tempering of the next stage and forge true Immortal Qi.
The higher one's Manifestation grade, the more and the stronger Spirit Constructs one could subdue and integrate.
At the level of the Saintly Manifestation, there were virtually no limits; both the number and rank of Spirit Constructs could be endlessly expanded.
But at that point, the constraints shifted:
Lifespan, rare materials, and massive resources became the bottlenecks instead.
Jing Qian's Sumeru Saint, wielding the Sixfold Reincarnation Sword, was a manifestation of unmatched potential.
Yet he had only recently ascended;
Most of his subdued Spirit Constructs were not yet in perfect resonance with his Saintly Manifestation, and perfecting that synchronization would be his greatest challenge in the trials to come.
Right now, the only Spirit Constructs he could truly bring into perfect resonance were the three he'd forged first: [Yanfu Heaven], [Qingping Sword Casket], and the [Xili God-Seal].
Even the brand-new [Array Spike] still needed time in the fire.
As for the other five, higher-rank Spirit Constructs, the gap was vast.
Worse, [Yanfu Heaven], [Qingping Sword Casket], [Xili God-Seal], and [Array Spike] were all stuck at Fifth Rank, unable to advance.
All four together still couldn't match the breakthrough he'd get from bringing any one of the five upper-Second-Rank-and-above Spirit Constructs [Sumeru Sword Embryo], [Pure Yang Sword Embryo], [Sixfold Reincarnation Three-Lives Eye], [Good Corn], or the [Reincarnation Disk] into perfect submission under his Saintly Manifestation.
For Jing Qian, each additional high-tier Spirit Construct perfectly subdued by the Saintly Manifestation would trigger a decisive jump in battle power.
That set a very high bar for his Spirit-Subduing cultivation.
He was confident that subduing just one such Spirit Construct would let him defeat Blood Robe.
Among the third-rank greats in the [Ying Futuo World], Blood Robe was basically the gatekeeper at the bottom of the bracket.
He had only two Heavenly Mandates; his Immortal Qi numbered three strands, and they'd only pushed into the 80-something layers of the Sea of Primal Qi, not yet reaching Golden Immortal Qi.
However, he had mastered the Immortal-Qi Multiplication Secret, multiplying those three strands eightfold, effectively wielding the power of twenty-four strands of Immortal Qi.
That was why, when facing Jing Qian's Immortal Sword Embryo, his Blood River wasn't immediately severed beyond recovery.
His offense was middling, with only three core Spirit Constructs, the strongest being a Third-Rank [Blood Garment].
Paradoxically, that made him the perfect sparring partner.
For Jing Qian, Blood Robe's challenge level was just right for daily practice.
And every bout between them could be ground on the Sword Anvil as prime material, pushing [Pure Yang Calamity Lord] to evolve.
As Pure Yang Calamity Lord advanced, the Sumeru Grand Dao Stele would in turn enhance [Lord of Myriad-Phenomena Sumeru].
A perfect feedback loop.
"My lord, we've reached the spot you marked!"
Mo Pin'er's soft, lilting voice drew Jing Qian out of cultivation.
He opened the Three-Lives Eye at his brow, glanced down into the Vast Sea, then sprang up and slipped into a dimensional void, diving for the deep.
This stretch of ocean was the lair of a Fourth-Rank [Mud Tuo Dragon], an unusually rare draconic breed, the only one of its kind in the entire [Ying Futuo World].
For high-bloodline dragons, longevity and life-extension were innate.
Given enough time, they could grind their way up to Star-Seizer.
But those who only ground it out this way tended to have weak Immortal Qi foundations and unremarkable combat power.
This Mud Tuo Dragon had plucked the lowest-tier "Shattered Star," hadn't even formed a single Heavenly Mandate, and had virtually no chance of advancing to Third-Rank, Heaven-Mending.
It possessed only one strand of Lesser Immortal Qi, which had reached merely the 12th layer of the Sea of Primal Qi; its mana was feeble.
Its Immortal-Qi Multiplication was also pathetic, barely doubled, hardly worth mentioning.
So when Jing Qian swept it with the Three-Lives Eye, this old dragon, despite being three full realms above him, showed no win condition in the projections. It was destined to become a lifespan blood pack.
Blade in hand, his killing intent surged. He curved through the sub-dimension and struck for the dragon coiled in a trench, sprawled atop a vital-qi sea spring.
At the instant the Immortal Sword Embryo intersected the dragon's position, a Sumeru rift tore open into the present world. The black-jade blade fell like heavenly tribulation, cleaving down on the Mud Tuo Dragon's neck.
That mud-stone body, over a meter thick, met the Sword that Reaps Three Thousand Calamities, bolstered by Pure Yang Calamity Lord's killing boon, and was beheaded in a single stroke.
A second spatial rift flicked across the seabed, neatly bagging the body and head.
Inside the Void Realm, Xili efficiently hauled the carcass straight to the Kitchen-Realm.
To the stove-spirits, Mud Tuo dragon-marrow and dragon-blood were as irresistible as top-shelf caramel lattes; everyone wanted a cup.
Xili always priced fairly and served generously; her reputation in the Kitchen-Realm was sterling.
Jing Qian quietly absorbed the 147 years of lifespan the old dragon yielded, then tossed the severed head before Good Corn.
"Xiaomi, will this do for bait?"
"Perfect, my lord!"
"Give me a few days to mash it into a proper bait, then we'll go fishing."
Jing Qian nodded and slipped back out of the Void Realm.
Back in the present world, Mo Pin'er had already tidied the lair.
"My lord, this old dragon was hardly any real hoard.
Just some low-grade materials I've collected them all.
The most valuable thing here is the vital-qi sea spring. Shall we claim it?"
Jing Qian shook his head.
"Killing the hen for its eggs is too heartless. Leave it to the sea-folk."
"Next stop [Coral of the Tides]."
And so man and ghost steered their little ship deeper into the Vast Sea.
With his Spirit-Subduing road off to a blazing start, Jing Qian's mood was excellent.
Deep within the [Dragon Palace] in the heart of the ocean, the Mud Tuo Dragon's death triggered a change in a secret treasure.
On a [Dragon-Calling Stake], a post where countless threads of fate converged, one particularly thick strand snapped.
A mighty five-clawed golden dragon coiled around the stake and slowly opened its eyes.
It gave a low roar, summoning an old turtle, and said:
"The Mud Tuo Dragon is dead. Send someone to see what happened.
"Keep a close watch on changes around the Hun Continent. Yanfu Dao is not to be trifled with.
If any great cultivator enters the Vast Sea, report to me at once."
"Yes, my king!
Shall we inform King Ao Run? The Mud Tuo Dragon's lair was closest to his fief."
"Slip someone in to press Ao Run for this season's human tribute.
If he still refuses to pay, forget him."
"As you command, my king."
The old turtle swam off, and once again, the sea fell silent.
Jing Qian's casual slaying of a dragon-blooded sea demon was bound to draw the Dragon Palace's attention.
But to him, that was of no consequence. After all, he didn't intend to spare any of the major sea monsters under the Dragon Palace's rule.
High-grade dragon fat was priceless, always in demand, and could be traded for vast quantities of Fate Fire, exactly what he needed most.
Besides, by cutting down these ancient beast creatures that monopolized the richest spiritual veins of the Vast Sea while doing nothing to advance their cultivation, he was, in a sense, doing the Dragon Palace a favor.
He was helping them optimize their workforce, improving the overall "talent quality" of their organization.
Once the old monsters were gone, the freed-up land and vitality would become precious opportunities for younger sea spirits to rise.
Breaking rigid hierarchies, revitalizing the sea's ecosystem, and letting new talents emerge
Jing Qian told himself that he was performing a great public service.
Thus, with an utterly calm heart, he pressed forward into the depths of the Vast Sea.
Seated on the ship's deck, he sank once more into his consciousness and entered before the Sumeru Grand Dao Stele.
The abundant lifespan essence harvested from the Mud Tuo Dragon was enough for him to forge two new Heavenly Mandates.
He had already made his plans. Activating Heaven's Insight, he stimulated the twin Primordial Qi Life Patterns Diamond Qi and Violet Thunder Qi in succession.
The evolution path of Primordial Qi Life Patterns was straightforward.
Even with his influence over Heaven's Insight, the results remained true to form: two Origin Qi Cores emerged.
[Life Pattern: Origin Qi · Diamond]
Rank: Heavenly Mandate
Description: "In the Sea of Primordial Qi lies the source pivot of Origin, birthplace of Diamond Qi."
[Life Pattern: Origin Qi · Violet Extreme Thunder]
Rank: Heavenly Mandate
Description: "In the Sea of Primordial Qi lies the source pivot of Origin, birthplace of Violet Thunder Qi."
Jing Qian's mana surged once more, and within the Void Realm, two new Primordial Qi cores appeared.
Now, six cores in total, three yin and three yang, floated within his inner world, balancing and harmonizing its flow of energy in wondrous ways.
More importantly, with all his Primordial Qi Life Patterns now raised to the Heavenly Mandate tier, his connection to the Sea of Primordial Qi deepened dramatically.
The Three-Lives Eye at his brow opened; his divine sense plunged through the void, following the thread of the cores until it descended into the Sea of Primordial Qi itself.
There, the six adjoining layers, three yin, three yang, formed a stable domain where his avatar could manifest in full.
This was his first time perceiving and experiencing the Sea of Primordial Qi from a complete, firsthand perspective.
For cultivators of the Lower Three Realms, the Sea of Spirit and Fate was everything, the foundation of their entire path.
All Life Patterns were born from it.
For cultivators of the Middle Three Realms, however, the Sea of Primordial Qi held equally vital importance.
From Qi to Netherfire to Immortal Qi, every key stage of middle-tier cultivation was rooted in this sea.
Thus, Jing Qian, though still at the Longevity Realm, breaking his way into the Sea of Primordial Qi ahead of schedule, stood to gain immensely.
As his complete incarnation descended into that boundless ocean, he began to perform a secret art.
Forming seals with both hands, he stirred the surrounding Qi-sea into gentle tremors.
These ripples spread outward in a unique rhythm like a signal, or perhaps, a summoning.
Before long, a faintly resonant vibration came back in reply.
Following it with the Three-Lives Eye, Jing Qian saw something gliding over the waves, a small jade-green boat, skimming effortlessly across the sea.
It was none other than the Boat of Reincarnation, a secret treasure of the Yanfu Lineage, used to ferry true disciples across the vast Sea of Primordial Qi.
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