"Your heart is troubled."
An aged voice rang out from the darkness, its source impossible to discern. The voice carried a heavy air of twilight.
"Zhixing has disappointed the Old Ancestor."
Song Zhixing bowed his head even lower.
From childhood, he had been regarded as a child of great promise. He had been nourished with all kinds of Spirit Medicines and had begun learning the Song Family's secret arts at an early age. By the time ordinary people began cultivating at fourteen, he had already reached Perfection of Fetal Movement.
He had spent another two full years tempering himself at the Perfection of Fetal Movement stage. Only at sixteen, by virtue of an Innate Immortal Destiny, had he broken through to the Qi Refining Realm.
Because he had built such a solid foundation from childhood, even after entering the Qi Refining Realm, his progress far outstripped that of ordinary people.
He had reached the middle stage of Qi Refining at twenty, the late stage at twenty-six, and Perfection at thirty-two.
Then, to temper himself, he had taken over as head of the Song Family. Eight years had passed since then.
In other words, Song Zhixing was already forty years old, yet still at Perfection of Qi Refining.
This meant he had been trapped at the bottleneck between Perfection of Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment for a full eight years.
And it was not just the Old Ancestor who had waited for him all this time—the entire Song Family had waited eight years.
Though outsiders all speculated that the Song Family's Old Ancestor was nearing the end of his lifespan, the truth was far grimmer than they imagined.
He was out of time.
More importantly, Perfection of Qi Refining was still not enough to form a contract with the Moon Gazing Vine, whose strength was equivalent to the middle stage of Foundation Establishment.
So if he failed to break through when the time came, the New Moon Blessed Land would likely change hands for good.
And the Song Family would have nothing to look forward to but exile. At best, they would be allowed to leave in comfort.
At this very moment, the other three Foundation Establishment Families in the Blessed Land were already watching like hungry tigers, ready to pluck the ripe fruit that was the New Moon Blessed Land.
As for wiping out those three Foundation Establishment Families in one fell swoop ahead of time, that was even less possible.
It would only end with both sides destroyed.
On top of that, there were a series of complicated secrets involved, even a Blessed Land decree.
The only way out was for him to break through to Foundation Establishment.
But if reaching Foundation Establishment were truly so easy, the Song Family would not have gone all these years without a single person breaking through besides the Old Ancestor.
Before him, the Song Family had produced geniuses who had reached Perfection of Qi Refining at a young age. Some had died trying to break through; others had held out to the very end, only to fail.
Now, he was the one closest to Foundation Establishment.
That was the main reason his heart had been troubled earlier, at the entrance to the great hall.
Pressure could sometimes become motivation, but sometimes it could crush a person.
"How are the preparations I asked you to make?"
The aged voice sounded once more.
"Reporting to the Old Ancestor, everything is ready."
Song Zhixing replied respectfully.
"According to the information I received from the Holy Land, the reason this year's Black Annihilation Wind Disaster will arrive early is supposedly connected to a Quasi True Monarch who is about to raise his Blessed Land. The Insect Race will also be larger in number this year.
"Though that Quasi True Monarch will hold back the main force of the Insect Race, the upheaval caused by an existence of that caliber—even the slightest ripple—could destroy small Blessed Lands like ours.
"So no matter what, we cannot afford to fail this time.
"At the same time, this will be your last chance. If you cannot break through, the Song Family will have no choice but to take that step.
"You should know what that step means.
"I hope you won't disappoint me—or the entire Song Family."
The secrets revealed by the aged voice would have caused a great stir if word got out.
After all, no one would have imagined that the root cause of this year's early Black Annihilation Wind Disaster, which threatened the lives of countless ordinary people, was connected to a Quasi True Monarch.
What was a Quasi True Monarch?
After Foundation Establishment came Golden Core, and after Golden Core came Nascent Soul.
Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, and Nascent Soul corresponded to small, medium, and large Blessed Lands.
A Quasi True Monarch was an existence whose inner and outer cultivation had both reached perfection, whose Blessed Land had grown to its limit, and whose Heaven and Earth Spiritual Root was on the verge of transformation. Only one whose three aspects were united could earn the title of Quasi True Monarch.
Once he took that final step, raised his Blessed Land, and transformed it into a Grotto-Heaven, he would become a true True Lord—a Spirit Transformation True Lord.
"Blessed Lands nurture True Persons; Grotto-Heavens make True Lords."
That was a proverb commonly heard among the upper echelons.
"Old Ancestor, Zhixing will not disappoint you or the Song Family."
Song Zhixing seemed to have been roused by those words. He spoke with force.
"I give you this. At a critical moment, it can unleash a strike equal to my full strength. I believe even those three fellows will suffer a heavy loss if caught off guard."
As the voice rang out, Song Zhixing instinctively raised his hand. A weight settled into his palm, as though something had dropped into it.
Linking the gift to the Old Ancestor's words, he immediately understood what it was and bowed once more.
"Zhixing thanks the Old Ancestor."
"Mm. Go."
The great doors behind him silently opened once more, and a sliver of light spilled in. But it only spread into a path of light beneath Song Zhixing's feet; everywhere else remained pitch-black.
Cradling the object in his hands, Song Zhixing turned and left.
Only once he was outside did he get a clear look at the object in his hands. It was a bronze-colored moon wheel, its surface mottled with rust and not a trace of power escaping it.
Even with Song Zhixing's cultivation at Perfection of Qi Refining, he could only faintly sense that it concealed a power so terrifying it made his hair stand on end.
But that was hardly surprising.
After all, once activated, it could inflict a grievous wound on someone at Foundation Establishment. Naturally, he could not withstand it.
With this secret treasure in hand, he felt more confident about what lay ahead.
Song Zhixing glanced back. The great doors had silently closed. He bowed respectfully to them, then turned and left.
Perhaps because of the Bronze Moon Wheel in his hands, the leaves of the Moon Gazing Vine did not attack him this time. He left Moon Gazing Peak safe and sound.
Night in the Blessed Land was different from night in the settlement.
The cold wind blowing across the world seemed to be dispelled by an invisible force as soon as it entered the Blessed Land. Another force constantly soothed everyone's anxious, unsettled hearts, allowing the ordinary people who had spent the journey in fear to sleep soundly.
A Blessed Land was not a Blessed Land merely because it could withstand the Black Annihilation Wind Disaster.
That was also why permanent residency in a Blessed Land was so expensive.
Living in a Blessed Land meant that its power would subtly strengthen one's life force over time.
It could be said that people born and raised in a Blessed Land surpassed those from a settlement by a wide margin, both in physical fitness and in the strength of their life force.
Though people from the settlement also had a chance to enter the Blessed Land each year, most of its power was devoted to resisting the Black Annihilation Wind Disaster at that time, so they gained little from it.
Yu Dashan knew all too well about the benefits of the Blessed Land. So even though this was only his first night there, he took advantage of the fact that the Black Annihilation Wind Disaster had yet to arrive and redoubled his cultivation.
In the blink of an eye, the sky began to brighten. Hearing the commotion outside, Yu Ershan got up early as well.
Today, he planned to explore the surrounding area, buy some firewood, and see if he could get Yu Dashan some pills to boost his vital energy and blood.
First, thanks to all the big shots who previously sent monthly tickets, gave rewards, and voted for me. Every ticket you send gives me the motivation to keep writing. Thank you all.
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