Shen Ni Emerges, Linking the Earth Veins

Zhou Jun inspected the Wuyi Mountain Grotto-Heaven Blessed Land from all sides. During the time since he had taken form and been born, quite a few changes had occurred. The Lotus Pond now held nine Nine-Ranked White Lotuses that were High-grade Innate Spiritual Roots, eighteen Six-Ranked White Lotuses that were Middle-grade Innate Spiritual Roots, and Thirty-Six Low-grade Innate Spiritual Roots, the Three-Ranked White Lotuses.

At the center, the first batch of leaves from the Wuyi Great Red Robe, Wuyi Mountain's supreme-grade spiritual root, had ripened. It produced eighteen hundred tea leaves each year, capable of Soul Cleansing and Soul Nourishing. Though it could not help one comprehend the Dao like the legendary Enlightenment Tea Tree, it could still improve one's insight and even enhance the innate aptitude of those with poor foundations.

Various Innate Spiritual Roots also grew around the area. There was the low-grade innate spiritual root White Bamboo, whose body was like jade. It stopped growing after reaching eighteen joints, and its body was warm, lustrous, and translucent, capable of stabilizing the soul. There was also a middle-grade innate Mudan Flower. Two flowers bloomed from it, one red and one purple, both brilliantly beautiful. When it saw Zhou Jun looking over, it slightly lowered itself, having already developed spiritual intelligence.

Zhou Jun nodded. "The two of you should cultivate well. Once you can take form, you may serve as my attendants." The Mudan Flower trembled upon hearing this, then gradually calmed and began absorbing the surrounding spiritual qi to cultivate.

Blessed Lands bestowed upon Innate Sacred Beings by heaven and earth did not require the refinement of any Stone Tablet, because they had originally been assigned to them by heaven and earth. Only ownerless Blessed Lands, or those whose original masters had returned to heaven and earth, could be claimed. Otherwise, there was no such thing as fighting over a Blessed Land.

Zhou Jun waved a hand and summoned some White Bamboo, weaving it into a reclining chair before lying upon it. He half-closed his eyes and sorted through the gains he had made during this time. As one of the highest-tier Innate Gods and Demons, he had possessed the Grand Unity Dao Fruit realm upon taking form. Having comprehended the laws of water, earth, and land, his foundation was quite profound. Most importantly, however, was his cultivation art.

After all, that was the foundation of everything. Based on the spiritual treasures he had acquired, the laws and methods he had comprehended from them, the World Creation Scene in his mind, and the World Creation Aura he had inadvertently absorbed, Zhou Jun had created his own cultivation art, the "Eight Directions Earth Kun."

It used one's Mana to link with Earth Veins and clear their pathways. Wherever the pathways were eventually cleared, he could go directly there, using Earth Vein nodes as coordinates. He would truly come without a trace and leave without a shadow. Furthermore, because he linked the Earth Veins with his Mana, every place he had connected bore his traces. Even if someone wanted to find him, they would be unable to. With the supreme-grade World-Purifying White Lotus and the Measuring Heaven Ruler protecting him, no one could divine his whereabouts. He had maximized his own safety.

It could be said that Zhou Jun had created this method entirely in accordance with his innermost thoughts—he was afraid of dying! He wanted to be a schemer lurking in the shadows!

After all, he had read far too many Primordial Wilderness novels in his previous life, every kind imaginable. Whether or not there were conspiracies at play, the most important thing was staying alive. He had merely been an ordinary mortal in his previous life. Just because he had come to a place with Saints did not mean he truly thought he was the protagonist who could recklessly do as he pleased.

So he should stay hidden, play solo for a while, and observe things from the shadows. It was fine to get involved without exposing himself, but otherwise, who knew whether some hidden schemer would target him once he was revealed?

Zhou Jun closed his eyes and communed with heaven and earth, quietly calculating the present era. The Fierce Beasts are running rampant, but Shen Ni has yet to emerge. Their attacks have also weakened recently. The powerful ones have probably returned to the abyssal region of the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains in the north to guard Shen Ni's birth. I wonder whether Shen Ni, this Fierce Beast Emperor, was spontaneously nurtured from God-Demon Resentment, or whether he is the reincarnation of some god or demon whose origin is similar to that of the Fierce Beasts.

Zhou Jun stroked his chin as he pondered. Now is the perfect time. The Kalpa of Calamity has not yet reached its final stage, and I still have the chance to fish in troubled waters when that time comes and kill some Fierce Beasts. Participating means I can earn Merit, so it is quite worthwhile.

For now, I can first clear and connect the Earth Vein nodes around Wuyi Mountain. It would be best to extend them westward. The Eastern Territory will not face a Kalpa of Calamity until the Investiture of the Gods Calamity, which is still far too distant. The next Kalpa of Calamity will occur in the west. If I prepare in advance, then even if Luohu detonates the Earth Veins, the damage may not be all that great.

At that thought, Zhou Jun abruptly sat up, his eyes lighting up. "That's right. Hongjun owed the west a debt of Causality because Luohu detonated the Western Land, so he used Saint Positions as compensation. If the west does not suffer such great damage because of me, then when the time comes, will Hongjun owe a greater debt of Causality to the west, or to me? I need to carefully plan this out." Zhou Jun narrowed his eyes and silently calculated the feasibility of this plan.

"Protecting the Western Land from destruction will earn me Merit and Fortune from heaven and earth. That is the first benefit. Second, I will have indirectly done Hongjun a great favor. That is a huge debt of Causality. I may not want a Saint Position, but I can exchange it for benefits! Whether I trade with Hongjun directly or act as a middleman and trade with others, I will not lose out!

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"Third, I want to see whether, if I do this, Mount Sumeru's two future Western Spokespersons will also owe me a debt of Causality. After all, they say they exist for the revival of the west. If I do this, it will be equivalent to sparing the west from a disaster. Perhaps they will owe me a debt of Causality as well!

"Tsk, tsk. Causality is a good thing. I need to fight hard for it. That settles it for now. Time to work, time to work—off to the west!!"

With that, Zhou Jun waved his hand and summoned the Twelve-Ranked Pure World White Lotus, which spun above his head. Holding the Green Lotus Hoe, he closed his eyes and sensed the direction of the Earth Veins, then entered them in the direction of the west, gradually connecting them bit by bit.

Although he did not delve deep underground, he was still clearing the pathways in the surface layer of the Primordial Land, allowing spiritual qi and earth qi to flow more smoothly. As Zhou Jun traveled westward, a thread of Merit descended for every Earth Vein node he cleared.

Though the Merit was not much, as long as those cleared Earth Vein nodes continued absorbing spiritual qi and circulating earth qi, Zhou Jun would receive an unending stream of Merit.

Whenever he encountered severely blocked Earth Vein nodes, where Baleful Energy and Resentful Energy clogged the flow of the Earth Veins, Zhou Jun would take out the Eighteen Earth Fiend Pearls to absorb the Baleful Energy. He would also use the World-Purifying White Lotus to absorb and purify the surrounding environment, preventing the area from being affected by Baleful Energy. Otherwise, even if it were cleared away, Baleful Energy would slowly accumulate again, eventually transforming into Earth Fiend Qi and damaging the depths of the Primordial Land.

During this process, Zhou Jun would occasionally encounter one or two Fierce Beasts that had slipped past the defenses of the Innate Races. He would casually dispose of them and store their corpses within the Earth Fiend Pearls.

After all, Fierce Beast corpses were top-tier materials that could be used for artifact refinement. They were simply troublesome to purify, which was why most people did not want them.

But for Zhou Jun, it was exceedingly simple. Moreover, his intuition told him these corpses might have other uses. In the Primordial World, intuition was the most important and most formidable thing. It was fine if it remained still, but once it stirred, it concerned one's Dao. None of them were simple.

Thus, Zhou Jun traveled and paused, not knowing how many days and months had passed. Time was chaotic now, so he could only roughly estimate that five or six epochs had gone by. Throughout this period, he cleared and connected Earth Veins while organizing their pathways and deepening his comprehension.

Occasionally, on a whim, he would obtain a spiritual treasure or some Innate Spiritual Roots. But Zhou Jun did not forget his goal. For the time being, he stored everything within the World-Purifying White Lotus's space without refining or comprehending them. After all, time was life, especially when his opportunity had to be completed before the final decisive battle.

While Zhou Jun was clearing the Earth Veins toward the west, alliances formed by various Innate Races at the northern borders were still resisting the Fierce Beast armies. Every alliance gradually grew stronger. Because there had been no high-level Fierce Beasts among the armies for countless years, the alliances' momentum steadily increased. Many races began to look down on the Fierce Beasts and wanted to counterattack, while some Innate Races wished to reclaim their old homelands. Their voices grew ever louder.

Just as some races could no longer restrain themselves and wished to charge back, an overwhelming aura poured forth from the depths of the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains, instantly silencing all the Innate Races. The powerful figures among them stared solemnly toward the mountains. At that moment, every Fierce Beast ceased its attack, turned toward the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains, and howled at the sky before slowly lowering its head.

In an instant, heaven and earth seemed to tremble as a voice rang out and spread across the entire Primordial Land. "I am Shen Ni. Today, I emerge into the world and shall become the Fierce Beast Emperor, ruling all Fierce Beasts!" Heaven and earth shook, acknowledging Shen Ni's declaration.

At that moment, all the powerful figures in the alliances understood that the true Fierce Beast Calamity had arrived. They emerged one after another, gathered everyone, and began making arrangements for what lay ahead.

Meanwhile, the protagonist had only just connected the Earth Veins to the Western Land and was still a long way from Mount Sumeru. Upon hearing Shen Ni's declaration, Zhou Jun began to ponder in silence.