The Cloud-Mist Mountain Range was a massive range within the Qingtian Domain, stretching from the cultivation world all the way to the mortal realms and primordial, uninhabited forests.
Like many great mountain ranges, it lacked a powerful spiritual pulse to support it. Only certain areas had dense spiritual energy, resulting in valuable spirit lands. The Qingyuan Sect occupied exactly those areas.
Previously, these spirit lands brought in massive rental income for the sect and sustained many rogue cultivators. Aside from those small pockets, over ninety-five percent of the terrain was extremely thin in spiritual energy.
These areas were home to many venomous insects and wild beasts strengthened by spiritual energy. Some could even kill an early-stage Qi Refinement cultivator by surprise. Because such cultivators had relatively weak bodies and couldn't maintain spiritual shields indefinitely, they were vulnerable to poisons or beast swarms.
Since these creatures were only partially spiritualized, they held little value for cultivators, which was why few people ventured deep into the range. Without enough spiritual energy, valuable items couldn't be produced. The risks simply outweighed the rewards.
For mortals, there were some good things to be found, but it was also extremely lethal; for a mortal, stepping inside was essentially seeking death. This led to the deepest parts of the Cloud-Mist Mountain Range being completely deserted.
This situation was common in the cultivation world. The world was vast—so vast that even Nascent Soul or Soul Transformation cultivators could never hope to traverse its entirety. But while the world was large, truly valuable places were few. Only areas with dense spiritual energy produced rare treasures and herbs.
In the cultivation world, most such areas were already claimed by powerful sects or Demon Kings. Anything worth exploring had usually been explored. Therefore, in a world where personal power suppressed everything, the social hierarchy was truly desperate and insurmountable. The only way an individual could rise was through exceptional talent and will, slowly climbing the ranks to join the upper class.
The only comfort for ordinary people was that the world was vast and full of diverse powers. Under heavy competition, major powers had to make concessions and policies beneficial to the common folk; otherwise, talent would be sucked away, and the power would inevitably weaken and fall. Many powers that isolated themselves or oppressed the commoners had been swallowed and destroyed.
Ultimately, the cultivation world became what it was today: core resources were completely monopolized, yet there was still room for ordinary people to survive—some even lived quite well. If one had talent, they might even join a great power and eventually grow into a decent position.
At least, this was how Qi Ping understood the world for now. If he were just an ordinary rogue cultivator or a minor genius, he could slowly climb to a good position as long as he stayed smart and avoided war.
But as his cultivation rose, he would have to compete for the core resources of the region—Foundation Establishment-level herbs, arrays, techniques, and spells would become increasingly rare. By the time he reached the Gold Core level, resources would be the lifeblood of a region and incredibly difficult to obtain.
Qi Ping didn't have a perfect solution yet, so he decided to take it one step at a time. He was certain he couldn't join a sect; the probability of being targeted by an old monster was over seventy or eighty percent. This wasn't a guess, but a fact supported by many bloody examples. He would never gamble with his life.
He had a plan for earning spirit stones, but what he truly lacked were channels to trade for high-level techniques and resources.
Deep in the Cloud-Mist Mountain Range, inside a desolate gorge.
The location was hidden. If not for the massive number of bees in his swarm, Qi Ping would never have found it. Furthermore, this gorge was very far from Qingshi County, ensuring basic safety.
The gorge was large, filled with jagged rocks. There was no soil, no animals, no plants, no water... only hard stones! It was a true godforsaken place.
Yet, as Qi Ping stood at the bottom looking up, a satisfied smile appeared on his face.
"What a wonderful place!" he praised.
If anyone knew his thoughts, they would probably think he had lost his mind. How could a place like this be "wonderful"?
They didn't know that what Qi Ping needed was exactly a place where no living creature ventured.
'The space is large enough to support my future planting and the creation of numerous spirit lands.'
'There are many similar gorges nearby, so this place isn't conspicuous. It's practically hidden, and almost no animals pass through. It's perfect for hiding with an illusion array.'
One man's poison was another's meat. Qi Ping needed a place everyone else despised! This way, the probability of his territory being discovered was close to zero.
"This is it!"
Qi Ping had the bees conduct a large-scale search of the surrounding area. Once he was sure there were no issues, he made his decision. This would be his exclusive territory! Or, as he called it, his Druid Sanctuary!
'Now, how should I build this place?'
Looking at the barren land, he felt a bit overwhelmed. It was safe, yes, but its safety was matched by the difficulty of construction. Everything had to be built from scratch.
'One step at a time!'
He realized that trying to plan everything at once was too much. It was better to do one thing well, and the territory would eventually take shape.
'First, I'll set up the illusion and breath-concealing arrays!'
Hiding his presence and appearance was the most urgent task. He set to work; with his experience in low-grade arrays and his powerful Spirit-Soul, setting them up was simple. It didn't take long for an illusion and concealment array covering about a hundred square meters to rise.
When Qi Ping stepped into the array, his figure vanished from the gorge. The entire area looked exactly as it always had. In reality, Qi Ping was still standing there, merely hidden by the illusion.
"Not bad. It's a bit rough, but it'll do for now. I can upgrade it later!"
At this moment, Qi Ping was incredibly happy. He finally had a territory that truly belonged to him!
"The most important arrays are set. Next is building everything else..."