Qingqiu Mountain's underground Peach Grove.
Peach trees stood silently, their blossoms radiating a warm glow that illuminated the Underground Cave.
As usual, Hundred Illusions Sect's Scripture Transmission Elder, Chuan Changzai, arrived at the Underground Cave.
He first circled the dull gray Stone Gourd once, then carefully examined a pattern on its surface.
"The fissure has shrunk again? That's a good thing!"
With a cheerful laugh, he flipped his hand and took out a palm-sized green jade carving shaped like a gourd leaf.
This leaf-shaped artifact had been bestowed by the Qianji Sect and could be used to probe the Deep Seal within the Heaven-Bearing Magic Restriction.
Chuan Changzai skillfully poured mana into it, and silver light immediately began flickering through the leaf's veins.
Only after a long while did he withdraw his consciousness, a pleased smile appearing on his face.
"The Demon deaths have ceased, and the Heaven-Bearing Magic Restriction has returned to stability. The crack should be fully repaired before long."
"Stability is good. Signing the Contract requires Heavenly Star Vital Qi to summon the Dao Ancestor's power."
"The Heaven-Bearing Magic Restriction was already connected to the Celestial Star. Now that it has stabilized, there's no need to fear disruption from the Heavenly Star Vital Qi."
At that thought, he immediately felt much more relaxed.
"By now, the Dao Soldier apprentices should have finished signing their Contracts."
"Over a hundred Dao Soldiers are heading to the Qianji Sect. Before long, they'll earn a great deal of Dao Merit for the Sect."
"As a Scripture Doctor, I'll certainly get a share of it."
"Together with the Dao Merit I've saved up, it'll be enough to exchange for a gourd of Primal Chaos Qi and greatly advance my Spirit Aperture Refinement."
Chuan Changzai felt a surge of excitement. Only after quite