Qi Gathering Realm

About a dozen households, now only a little over ten people remain, their homes destroyed and families lost.

But born here, they had long since become numb, accustomed to such encounters. They were originally from other villages, and after experiencing similar events, they gathered here again.

They had endured the pain of losing loved ones multiple times.

Some of the pirates' new recruits were the strong young men from among them.

In despair, they fell into the embrace of darkness and evil.

This also led to the increasing rampant activity of pirates along the coast, which the Immortal Dynasty could not govern.

The appearance of a large number of low-level Demon Beast Spirits also indicated that the northern Barbarians and the Demon Locking Pagoda were supporting them in secret.

They caused immense destruction to areas like Donghai Prefecture, Beihai Prefecture, and Donglai Prefecture, leading to depleted livelihoods and severely impacting the nation's development.

The Barbarians and the Daoist Sect had been planning similar operations for many years, and they were now largely coming to fruition.

With the Great Jin Immortal Dynasty declining and internal strife rampant, the day the Barbarians would march south was fast approaching.

Ming Shu, with a heavy heart, led the group onward to Bai Family Village.

The more than ten people rescued, men, women, old, and young, would become Ming Shu's first batch of farmers, or tenant farmers.

Ming Shu would provide the land, tools, even daily expenses and production resources, and they would then cultivate and manage the fields for Ming Shu, the landlord.

There was also some grain in the carriage, enough for their needs for some time. For now, the priority was to repair the dilapidated Bai Family Village and establish a foothold.

As soon as dawn broke, everyone set off. The original village had become ruins, and the corpses left behind, in the middle of winter, were not an immediate concern; they could return to bury them in a couple of days.

They were hastily covered, and everyone set off on foot.

The old site of Bai Family Village was not far from here.

They arrived before noon. The two constables completed a simple handover, and Bai Family Village was renamed [Baishi Village].

They then had to rush back to the county town without delay.

Before leaving, Old Zhao slipped some silver to the two constables, telling them not to report the encounter with the pirates.

It was best if they didn't mention it privately either, to avoid attracting the attention of Barbarian spies. There were definitely spies from the north within the county town.

Ming Shu instructed Old Zhao to lead everyone in cleaning out some habitable rooms first. They would worry about getting through the night.

He himself, along with Chong Li and Ren Yuan, toured Baishi Village, inside and out. They looked for any signs of other people hiding there.

They also confirmed which areas could be used for defense if enemies attacked that night.

Bai Family Village had actually been built over many years and was quite substantial. Although it appeared dilapidated on the surface now, it actually had many useful arrangements within.

Chong Li also told Ming Shu that when various families chose a location, regardless of their size, their first priority was always to find a place with spiritual veins and spiritual eyes to have spiritual energy for cultivation.

Secondly, it allowed for the cultivation of spiritual herbs and spiritual plants.

Bai Family Village was definitely not built here at the random arrangement of the Imperial Clan Court.

As for why no one had occupied it in the past ten years, it was because the Sky-Toppling Observatory had sealed the underground spiritual veins and spiritual eyes in advance.

Ordinary small forces couldn't find it, and couldn't break through it. Larger families that could break the seal found it not worthwhile, so the place remained abandoned.

This showed the foresight and methods of the Sky-Toppling Observatory, which had made arrangements ten years in advance.

Chong Li said that after Ming Shu stabilized things, she could help lift the seal, and they could cultivate spiritual plants.

This was the way various families accumulated their foundations.

Families with a strong foundation could use these spiritual medicines and spiritual plants to continuously cultivate experts and cultivators. This was the key to the prosperity of the millennium-old aristocratic families.

And the imperial family was the most powerful existence among all families. They occupied the best spiritual veins in the world and also extracted blood from various families every year.

These were the truths of this world!

And this was also one of the Sky-Toppling Observatory's investments in Ming Shu.

Ming Shu directly asked Chong Li and Ren Yuan, "Thank you for taking care of me along the way. We've arrived at our destination. What are your plans now?"

Were they going to leave?

"A message should arrive in the next two days. I will wait for my teacher's arrangements." Although Chong Li had been expelled from the Sky-Toppling Observatory, her teacher, the Director, had always secretly guided and supported her.

Her resources were no less than those of her fellow disciples within the Sky-Toppling Observatory.

Ren Yuan, on the other hand, stated that he would stay. He would remain until Qingtian Gate had new arrangements for him.

The two had completely different personalities.

However, their decisions were the same.

They would stay for now, which made Ming Shu heave a sigh of relief.

The Zhang Family? They didn't exist yet.

Chong Li and Ming Shu took a look around, noting down the areas within and outside Baishi Village that would need repairs in the coming period.

They would discuss with Old Zhao upon their return about how to proceed specifically.

These matters would be handed over to the head steward to arrange.

At the same time, we also need to check the surrounding villages on the outskirts to see if there's a possibility of incorporating them.

The task of exploration will be handed over to Little Zhao and Ren Yuan.

As for Ming Shu, he will begin his cultivation with Chong Li.

Because that very evening, a mysterious message from the Sky-Toppling Observatory arrived.

[Starfall].

The method was as its name suggested, like a meteor streaking across the sky, landing directly in Chong Li's hand.

Chong Li used the agreed-upon secret technique to verify it and then opened its contents.

The most important part was the resources the Sky-Toppling Observatory would provide for Ming Shu's next stage of cultivation.

The first item was a path for cultivation.

The second item was that they had arranged a marriage for him.

The bride would arrive within the next few days, and they were told to prepare accordingly.

There would be no financial support.

Because the bride's side would be responsible for the support.

This meant that the Sky-Toppling Observatory had not only personally invested in this risky venture but had also helped bring in other major powers to co-invest.

Ming Shu had also just turned thirteen, the legal age for marriage in the Great Jin Immortal Dynasty.

However, the Director had arranged everything so meticulously that Ming Shu felt like a mere tool.

Just a pawn.

He didn't even know where his journey would end.

But survival was his primary goal, so he would focus on completing this step first.

Currently, there were internal and external threats. Internally, development was needed, and externally, many pirates were lurking, watching covetously.

If his side wasn't strong enough, the pirates could raid them at any time.

The first stage of a sorcerer's cultivation is called the [Qi Gathering Realm]. The Sky-Toppling Observatory's method was simple and brutal: if they deemed you fated, they could directly channel energy into you, forcibly initiating your cultivation.

However, for those with poorer aptitude, the cultivation progress would be extremely slow.

Chong Li was a sorcerer who had mastered this skill.

Even though she was only a third-tier sorcerer, in the [Star Condensation Realm].

The Star Condensation Realm allowed one to condense a star within their body, and this star could then house a Demonic Spirit.

This was the core of cultivation, similar to how Daoist Sect cultivators forged their Dao Foundation and condensed their Golden Core.

As for Ming Shu, he had actually been passively absorbing spiritual energy from heaven and earth ever since he swallowed the immortal pill and fully activated his [Fate Book]. This ability had automatically awakened.

This was also the fundamental reason why the small stone pagoda in his hand could continuously recover its power.

Under normal circumstances, an external object that housed a Demonic Spirit would fall dormant after its stored power was used up and would recover extremely slowly on its own.

It would take a very long time.

However, the small stone pagoda in Ming Shu's hand, when held daily, had its power replenished through his body, gathering and restoring its strength.

Therefore, he already possessed the essence of the Qi Gathering Realm, he just didn't know how to control the switch yet.

The so-called Qi Gathering Realm meant initiating cultivation, gathering spiritual energy from heaven and earth through practice, and converting it into power that he and his Demonic Spirit could use.

The attributes of the converted power varied depending on the cultivation sect and the cultivation technique used.