Proactive Attack

A hundred years passed in the blink of an eye.

Over the past century, Lin Yan had not only completely consolidated his Late Earth Immortal cultivation, but was also steadily advancing toward the Heavenly Immortal Realm.

Mo Xuan was immensely surprised by Lin Yan's cultivation progress. After all, Lin Yan was merely an ordinary living being of Primordial Heaven and Earth. Though his innate foundation was impressive, he still fell far short of top-tier living beings like them in every respect.

Yet over these past few centuries, Lin Yan's cultivation had risen like a rocket, soaring higher and higher. Even a divine beast like Mo Xuan, who considered himself a favored child of heaven and earth, felt inferior.

To Primordial Creatures, a hundred years might be no more than the time it took to sleep. Yet in the few centuries that Lin Yan had spent cultivating—barely the time it took them to sleep a few times—he had advanced from the Early Earth Immortal stage to the Late Earth Immortal stage, and now even showed faint signs of breaking through to the Heavenly Immortal Realm. It was simply unbelievable.

Who was truly the favored child of the Primordial World? Mo Xuan suddenly felt a sense of crisis.

In truth, Lin Yan's rapid growth in cultivation was partly due to his diligent efforts, but the Primal Chaos Plate and the system also deserved much of the credit.

Ever since obtaining the Primal Chaos Plate, Spirit Power had ceased to be a problem for Lin Yan. Compared to his former days of eating dirt to absorb Spirit Power, the Clear Spirit Space within the Primal Chaos Plate contained an almost inexhaustible supply of Pure Spiritual Qi. Moreover, he barely needed to refine it before absorbing and converting it into magical power.

Furthermore, the Fierce Sha Qi filled with the Power of Destruction in the Primal Chaos Plate's Turbid Fiend Space could be used to temper his physical body. Combined with the fierce beasts he kept inside, which he could release from time to time to help him hone his various divine abilities and spells, his cultivation advanced even faster.

As for the system he often complained about, although it set task completion requirements that restricted his breakthroughs, every time he advanced to a new realm, it would help him stabilize it at remarkable speed. The rewards for completing tasks also helped him cultivate faster.

Thus, with the support of the Primal Chaos Plate and the system, it was difficult for Lin Yan's cultivation progress not to be swift.

During this period, aside from cultivating, Lin Yan would occasionally stroll through the canyon to clear his mind. He checked on the growth of the vegetation and spiritual roots, investigated whether the Earth Vein Spiritual Qi was flowing smoothly, occasionally guided a few Younger Brothers in cultivation, or sparred with Mo Xuan to test the latest spells and divine abilities he had comprehended...

Of course, he had not spent all these years cooped up in the canyon. Sometimes, he would venture outside the canyon to take a look. With his current Late Earth Immortal cultivation, a single Earth Evasion Technique could carry him a hundred li away. The small canyon simply could not give him room to stretch his limbs.

Outside the canyon lay a vast expanse, thousands upon thousands of times larger than the canyon itself. Although the environment outside was far less tranquil and peaceful, ever since he and Mo Xuan had joined forces to clear out the surrounding Malevolent Qi and fierce beasts, the overall situation had improved greatly. Everything was developing in a better direction.

However, in such a vast region, their cleanup efforts could not possibly be flawless. In certain places, many harsh lands saturated with Malevolent Qi still remained. The surviving fierce beasts continued to ravage the surrounding environment without restraint, hoping to expand their living space.

Some fierce beasts had even stumbled into the vicinity of the canyon and instinctively sensed something there that they deeply despised. However, the canyon was entirely enveloped by the Nine Palaces Earth Vein Great Array. Those mindless fierce beasts naturally could not find the entrance. Even if some of them happened to strike the array's protective barrier, they lacked the power to break through it.

And often, before the fierce beasts could even approach the array, the bored Mo Xuan would lead the nine earth dragon subordinates charging out in excitement. After a flurry of blows, the fierce beasts would be beaten until they were completely mangled.

The Earth Dragon Community was no longer a place where fierce beasts could run rampant as they pleased.

Lin Yan did not leave the canyon merely to relax. He was using the Ecological Simulator function of the system to continuously deduce the most reasonable transformation plan. He needed to make preparations in advance for the Earth Dragon Community's expansion.

One day, Lin Yan gathered the community's main members—Deer King White Horn, Sparrow Queen Zhi Pu, Bee Queen Jin Ji, Bamboo King Qingxin, Lin Er, Lin San, and Lin Si among the earth dragon subordinates, as well as Mo Xuan, the Seven-Colored Qilin who held the nominal title of "Chief Guest Elder"—beside the Spirit Spring Pool at the center of the community.

Ever since Lin Yan had placed a Kuishui Spiritual Crystal at the Eye of the Water Vein beneath the Spirit Spring, the water gushing from the spring had constantly emitted hazy Spiritual Mist.

Once everyone had arrived, Lin Yan got straight to the point.

"Everyone, our Earth Dragon Community may seem stable now, but in truth, it is in grave danger. You all know that many fierce beasts and Fierce Plants still exist outside our canyon. And in lands farther away, there are even more powerful fierce beasts.

"Our Earth Dragon Community is precisely a thorn in the flesh to those fierce beasts. If we leave them unchecked, Malevolent Qi will surely return within a thousand years, and the fierce beasts will come back in force. When that happens, our canyon will become an isolated island amid raging waves, destined to be swallowed sooner or later."

Mo Xuan said dismissively, "What's there to fear? If one comes, I'll beat one. If two come, I'll beat both! With this Young Master here, I guarantee you'll all remain safe and sound."

Lin Yan smiled and looked at Mo Xuan. "Xiao Mo, we naturally trust your strength. But one day, you will have to leave this place and return to Qilin Cliff. So relying solely on you to protect our home is not a long-term solution."

"Uh... who said I was going back? I never planned to go back..." Mo Xuan froze, his voice growing quieter and quieter. He knew perfectly well that leaving was only a matter of time. As the young master of the Qilin Clan, traveling outside for several hundred or even a thousand years was no issue. But if he stayed away too long, even if he did not want to return, his clan would send someone to drag him back.

"Leader, then what should we do?" the Jade Spirit Deer King White Horn asked with worry on his face. He absolutely did not want to return to the days of hiding everywhere and never knowing whether he would survive another day.

"Boss, I'll cultivate diligently, raise my cultivation, and beat back every fierce beast that dares to attack us." Before Lin Yan could answer, Lin Er was the first to offer a solution.

"Boss, we can find a way to further increase the power of the Nine Palaces Earth Vein Great Array. Then we won't need to fear attacks from fierce beasts." Lin San also proposed an idea.

"We... we could dig tunnels underground and make them into a maze. Then even if fierce beasts get in, they won't be able to find us." Lin Si spoke up as well.

Lin Yan looked at the worried Deer King and the several Younger Brothers who were eagerly offering suggestions, then smiled and shook his head.

"There will always be a solution. But while your ideas are feasible, they are all passive defensive measures. They treat the symptoms, not the root cause, and are not long-term solutions."

"You mean we should launch a Proactive Attack and wipe out the fierce beasts before they attack us? That's a good idea. I like it." Mo Xuan was the first to voice his approval. He had been bored recently and had long wanted a proper fight with the fierce beasts.

"Exactly. We cannot sit and wait for death. We must launch a Proactive Attack." Lin Yan first praised Mo Xuan, then changed the subject. "But that alone is not enough. Not only must we eliminate these fierce beasts in advance, we must also completely clear away the Malevolent Qi they depend on for survival. Then we must transform the environment polluted by that Malevolent Qi into one like our canyon. That will completely cut off the fierce beasts at their source. Without the foundation of their survival, the fierce beasts will either suffer a drastic loss in strength or obediently leave this place."

"That's a good plan. If the environment outside becomes like the canyon too, there will be more places to have fun. Though I have to say, your canyon really is too small. It's hard to even turn around." Although Mo Xuan had enjoyed himself greatly over the years, the canyon's limited space had still left him somewhat unsatisfied.

Seeing that no one objected to leaving the canyon, Lin Yan laid out the Earth Dragon Community expansion plan he had been plotting for a long time.