Before the words had even finished, a beam of Pure Light suddenly appeared at the front of the Qilin army. Qing Huan's figure materialized, landing precisely beside the leading Fire Qilin.
"Fellow Daoist Qing Huan?"
A hint of surprise flashed in the Fire Qilin's eyes, and the four Qilin Ancestor —Gold, Wood, Water, and Earth—also cast surprised glances at it.
"Fellow Daoist Fire Qilin, you are mistaken."
Qing Huan's gaze swept over the endless Qilin Clan behind him, their five elements radiating spiritual light. Even though he was prepared, he couldn't help but marvel at the terrifying foundation of the Three Innate Clans in the past—if it weren't for the abyss of karma binding them, the likes of the Witch and Demon and Immortal Court would probably never have a chance to rise to prominence.
"Since this plan was proposed by me, I shall come and see it. However... Fellow Daoist's move has truly surprised even this humble Daoist."
A look of determination and compassion flickered in the Fire Qilin's weathered eyes:
"Fellow Daoist, you may not know this, but after much deliberation, we have found that the Merit gained from repairing the earth veins with the incarnations of the Earth Element lineage is merely a drop in the ocean and cannot even resolve one-tenth of the boundless karma of the Qilin Clan."
The West is deficient in all five elements, while our Qilin Clan is born with all five elements intact!
Even if we exhaust our remaining bodies and souls, it would be enough to fill a quarter of this land!
"Both paths lead to annihilation, so I might as well use this crippled body to fight for a way of life for my descendants and to earn a sliver of mercy from Heavenly Dao!"
His voice lowered, carrying a barely perceptible hint of pleading.
"However... I have a request that I regret, but I don't know if I should say it..."
Upon hearing this, the gazes of all five Qilin Ancestor, including the Fire Qilin, immediately focused on Qing Huan.
That gaze contained a heavy entrustment and a last glimmer of hope.
Alarm bells rang loudly in Qing Huan's heart:
"This is bad... Could this old fellow be planning to entrust the heavy responsibility of the clan to me?"
The thought flashed through his mind, and he could almost see himself bound to the Qilin Clan's Karma war chariot, never to escape... He absolutely could not accept this free "clan protector" role!
Seeing the troubled look on Qing Huan's face, the Fire Qilin felt a pang of disappointment, yet still refused to give up its last glimmer of hope.
The Fire Qilin took a deep breath, lowered its posture, and spoke again:
"Qing Huan, I dare not presume to care for the Qilin Clan indefinitely. I only ask that when my clan faces the calamity of annihilation, you may lend a helping hand once. What do you say?"
He paused, then added:
"We, the five old fellows, are willing to offer our own Essence Blood. This blood contains the purest power of the five Qilin Clan, which we believe will be beneficial to your cultivation of the Great Dao."
As soon as he finished speaking, the hearts of the other four Qilin elders jumped into their throats, their eyes fixed on Qing Huan's face.
This is the greatest sincerity they can offer. If even this cannot move the other party, the future of the Qilin Clan will probably be left to fate.
Qing Huan pondered for a moment, then slowly nodded:
"Alright, but I will only intervene to protect you once, in a life-or-death situation for the Qilin Clan. I hope Fellow Daoist Fire Qilin understands."
In Qing Huan's view, this deal was quite worthwhile. He didn't have to bear the karmic Karma of long-term care; he only needed to intervene once at a crucial moment to obtain the Five Elements Origin, which was definitely not a loss.
It should be known that these five Qilin are all Heaven-Opening Innate Lifeform of creation, and their origins are in no way inferior to those of Innate Deities. Their Essence Blood contains the purest Five Elements Laws. After refining them, one will definitely be able to make further progress on the path of the Great Dao.
Seeing Qing Huan agree, the five Qilins finally felt a huge weight lifted from their hearts, their faces showing relief at surviving a calamity. Without further hesitation, they each extended a finger, forcing out a drop of dazzling essence blood— the Fire Qilin's essence blood was like a leaping crimson flame, the Earth Qilin's essence blood was like a thick, Xuan Huang, the Golden Qilin's essence blood gleamed with a chilling light, the Wood Qilin's essence blood was surrounded by vibrant green, Water Qilin's essence blood flowed with a warm, clear radiance.
Five drops of essence blood floated in the air, emitting a primal aura that made heaven and earth tremble, before being pushed together in front of Qing Huan.
"Fellow Daoist, this is our Essence Blood. After refining it, you will be able to comprehend the origin of the Five Elements, helping you advance your strength to a higher level."
The Fire Qilin spoke solemnly, with a hint of relief in its voice.
Qing Huan laughed loudly:
"Haha, as expected, the seniors of the Qilin Clan are very generous."
"If it weren't for your generosity, I'm afraid I wouldn't have been able to gather all five elements."
Having said that, he waved his hand and summoned a crystal-clear Jade Bottle —a Acquired Spiritual Treasure he had personally crafted, specifically for storing primordial substances.
The Jade Bottle floated in the air, its mouth slightly open. A suction force gathered all five drops of essence blood into it, and then it landed steadily Qing Huan's palm.
After collecting the essence blood, the group continued their journey and soon arrived at the central ley line in the west.
Along their journey, the Qilin Clan witnessed firsthand the devastation of the western lands: fractured earth veins resembled grotesque wounds, and exposed rock layers emanated an aura of death.
Countless creatures were corrupted by the dark demonic energy, their bodies twisted and their minds clouded, struggling in agony; some creatures that were lucky enough to escape the demonic energy lost their habitat due to the collapse of the earth's veins, and could only struggle to survive in the wilderness against the fierce Gale Wind of the heavens.
These tragic scenes moved even the usually composed Qilin Elders.
The Fire Qilin gazed at the cracked earth beneath its feet, sighed deeply, its eyes filled with desolation and regret.
"I only know that during the Dragon-Han Calamity, our Three Clans fought a great war that shattered the western ley lines, but I never imagined that they would be completely destroyed by the Demon Ancestor Luohu later..."
All of this is the result of our greed clouding our judgment back then; we deserve to bear this boundless karma."
The Fourth Elder stroked his beard, also filled with emotion:
"Yes, back then, we were taken advantage of by the Calamity Qi and demonic energy. We were only thinking about vying for the position of overlord of the Primordial Wilderness. We were blinded by victory. Looking back now, it is really laughable."
In the end, all our desperate struggles have only served to benefit the Demon Ancestor Luohu, helping him to wreak havoc on the Primordial Wilderness."
The other leaders all nodded in silence.
In its heyday, the Qilin Clan was incredibly powerful. At the first command of the Primeval Qilin, countless races of beasts submitted. Now, however, they have fallen into a state of hiding from the world and barely surviving, and their lineage is almost extinct. Such a fall from grace is truly regrettable.
Qing Huan observed all of this and nodded inwardly.
The Qilin Clan's self-reflection is far more profound than that of the Dragon and Phoenix clans.
The Dragon Clan still longs for the days of being the overlords of the Primordial Wilderness, while the Phoenix Tribe is trapped by its bloodline obsession. Only the Qilin Clan can clearly recognize its own mistakes. This clarity may be the opportunity for Heavenly Dao to reduce the Qilin Clan's karma.
At this moment, countless Primordial Great Powers began to deduce once again: what exactly is the Qilin Clan up to?
They went straight to the barren western lands, and why was Fellow Qing Huan Qinghuan involved with the Qilin? This puzzled many Primordial Great Powers...