Making Use of Waste

Deer King White Horn let out a long cry, and the jade antler atop his head bloomed with a gentle white glow. More than a dozen Jade Spirit Deer of varying sizes began running across the soil that the Earth Dragon subordinates had loosened.

Wherever the white light passed, the earth seemed to be infused with life force. Hardy mosses and lichens began spreading at a visible rate, and specks of green gradually filled the field of view.

The Colorful Cloud Sparrow Queen also gave a clear cry. Flocks of Colorful Cloud Sparrows danced gracefully through the air, spiritual light flickering between their wings. The clouds in the surrounding sky seemed drawn by something and converged toward them.

Before long, a fine Spirit Rain fell from the clouds. The faint Spirit Qi contained in the rain not only washed away the lingering stench in the air, but also nourished the parched land below.

The Hundred Flower Bee Queen vibrated her transparent wings, directing her Worker Bees back and forth across the swamp. They relayed Lin Yan's orders to the Community Members scattered in every direction while promptly reporting local developments back to Lin Yan, who was Stationed in command. From time to time, they also delivered Spirit Honey rich in Spirit Qi to Spirit Beasts that had exhausted their energy, helping them recover their strength.

Several Crimson Water Black Tortoises that had once served as Lin Si's mounts possessed a natural affinity with Water Veins. At that moment, they too dove underground and began dredging the Water Veins.

The entire Corpse Rot Swamp resembled an enormous farm. Everyone performed their own duties and worked without pause, as though they were carrying out a precise surgical operation on the swamp.

In the blink of an eye, ten years passed. By then, the Corpse Rot Swamp had changed beyond recognition.

Sunlight fell unobstructed upon the ground. The Gray-black Sha Qi that had once blanketed the swamp year-round had long since vanished without a trace.

The pitch-black Mud Pools had become deep-brown fertile soil, and the pungent stench of rot had been replaced by the fresh fragrance of grass and trees. Clumps of tender green spirit grass emerged from the earth, their blades still beaded with crystalline dew.

Several low-lying areas had turned into clear pools, where tiny fish could even be seen swimming beneath the surface—the Spirit Spring Fish Fry Lin Yan had brought from the canyon's Spirit Spring, capable of purifying the water.

After continuously absorbing Malevolent Qi for ten years in the air, the Primal Chaos Plate had nearly absorbed all the Malevolent Qi above the swamp. Now, fully satisfied, it flew back into Lin Yan's body.

"Lin Yan, the Malevolent Qi in those places hasn't been fully cleared away. How about I go take care of it?" Over the past ten years, Mo Xuan had been bored out of his mind. Every day, he merely wandered around the swamp restoration site, guarding against sneak attacks from fierce beasts. Yet during those ten years, only one or two foolish fierce beasts had come to provoke them. Before he could even act, Lin Er, Lin Qi, and the others had beaten them black and blue. As the Community's strongest fighter, he had never found a chance to show what he could do.

Lin Yan smiled and explained, "Xiao Mo, I deliberately left those behind. They still have an important use, so don't clear them away."

"Huh? An important use? What use could you possibly have for that filthy Malevolent Qi?" Mo Xuan asked curiously.

"Heaven and Earth are divided into Yin and Yang. Where there is purity, there is filth. Spirit Qi can nourish All Things, while Malevolent Qi can destroy all living things. But have you ever considered why Heaven and Earth would produce this kind of energy capable of destroying all living things?"

"Why?" Mo Xuan asked with wide, bewildered eyes. Lin Yan always came up with strange ideas, and he had grown used to it.

"Heaven and Earth give birth to All Things, but all things eventually wither. Once they wither, they become decayed matter. Have you ever considered who breaks down that decayed matter?"

"Malevolent Qi?"

"That's right. Malevolent Qi can destroy All Things, so naturally, it can also be used to break down All Things. Xiao Mo, think about it. With so many living beings in Primordial Heaven and Earth, how much decayed matter would accumulate over countless years? Aside from Malevolent Qi, no other kind of energy could break down and destroy so much decayed matter. Therefore, the proper use of Malevolent Qi is to break down this decayed matter. The Malevolent Qi I deliberately preserved is meant for exactly that."

"However, we cannot simply leave this preserved Malevolent Qi unchecked. It must still be restrained. Look at the clusters of Malevolent Qi I left behind—they were all weakened by the Primal Chaos Plate. I also set up Purification Arrays around them. This way, Malevolent Qi clusters of this concentration can neither give rise to powerful fierce beasts nor spread everywhere and cause harm."

Mo Xuan only half understood, but he felt that it made a great deal of sense.

There was another important reason for preserving some of the Malevolent Qi, but Lin Yan did not tell Mo Xuan about it.

An utterly pure and flawless environment might seem perfect, but it was actually fragile. As the saying went, water too clear harbored no fish. An environment containing only Spirit Beasts and Spirit Plants would not be a good thing in the long run; it would only encourage them to plunder limited resources without restraint.

Preserving an appropriate amount of Malevolent Qi was equivalent to leaving room for some fierce beasts and Fierce Plants to survive. With those fierce beasts and Fierce Plants around, living beings would face a little more pressure to survive, and their numbers would not grow without limit.

The primary cause of the Witch-Demon Tribulation had been the unchecked reproduction and growth of the Demon Clan and Witch Clan. Primordial Heaven and Earth could no longer support their ever-increasing populations, forcing the two clans to fight bitterly over survival resources. In the end, they had torn Primordial Heaven and Earth apart.

Living beings recklessly drawing upon Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy would only disrupt the Ecological Balance of this world. Therefore, it was necessary to place Shackles upon them. The Shackles Lin Yan had chosen were Malevolent Qi.

Pointing at the places where Malevolent Qi remained, Lin Yan said to Mo Xuan and the others, "I plan to turn these places into Sha Qi Training Grounds."

"Training Grounds?" Not only Mo Xuan, but everyone else was also confused.

"Use arrays to control the concentration and range of the Malevolent Qi, and keep some small fierce beasts and Fierce Plants inside. Then everyone can enter and use the Malevolent Qi to temper their Physical Bodies and polish their divine abilities. Lin Qi, don't you like fighting? From now on, whenever you want to fight, go inside and find fierce beasts to fight."

Lin Qi's eyes immediately lit up. "Great, great! Boss, if I train in there, does that mean I won't have to worry about damaging all those flowers and plants? Last time I crushed a few Spirit Flowers, the Bee Queen chased me with her subordinates for ages."

Lin Yan smiled faintly but did not expose him. When Lin Qi had sparred with Lin Er back then, they had crushed all the Spirit Flowers across an entire hillside, leaving Bee Queen Jin Ji heartbroken.

Lin Yan mobilized Earth Vein Power and inscribed a great number of Imprisonment Runes around the spots where Malevolent Qi remained. He firmly sealed the Malevolent Qi within those areas, preventing it from easily leaking out.

After finishing all this, Lin Yan said to the leaders of the various clans, "From now on, this area will serve as one of the Community's Trial Grounds. You may arrange for Clan Members to enter and temper their Physical Bodies according to their circumstances and needs, but remember to act within your limits, lest you suffer a backlash from the Malevolent Qi."

White Horn and the others nodded one after another. When they looked again at those "Fierce Sha Mystic Realms," the fierce beasts within suddenly did not seem quite so terrifying. It seemed that as long as power was restrained, it was no longer so frightening.

Over the following hundred years, Lin Yan led the Community Members according to plan, constantly moving on to other regions thick with Malevolent Qi.

After the Primal Chaos Plate devoured the Yin Sha Gang Wind of Black Wind Rift Valley, Lin Yan forcibly reconnected the severed Earth Veins using his Earth Vein Resonance divine ability. The rift valley stopped expanding, and new Spirit Springs even gushed forth from the Valley Floor. That once-barren land was filled with life force again.

After the violent Fire Sha Qi of Lava Lake was channeled away, Earthfire no longer erupted chaotically. Instead, it formed an enormous lava lake underground, and some Fire Spirit Essence was even Nurtured along its shores. After Lin Yan deliberately preserved part of the Fire Sha Qi, it formed a Fire Attribute trial area.

Whenever a dangerous land was conquered, the Community Members displayed their abilities. Earth Dragons turned the soil, colorful clouds brought rain, Spirit Deer encouraged growth... After the whole process, the terrain of the dangerous land underwent immense changes. Then, vast areas would begin to recover their Spirit Qi, and Spirit Plants of various attributes would Emerge from Soil.

During this process, some Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures hidden deep underground or in secret corners also began maturing faster or revealing themselves as the environment improved.

The Seven Orifice Poison Lotus contained the Law of Poison, and its lotus seeds could neutralize all poisons in the world. Lin Yan gave it to Lin Ba, lest he accidentally eat poisonous grass someday and die from poisoning.

Void Stone, a top-grade Space-element spirit stone, was refined by Lin Yan and Mo Xuan into several Storage Magic Treasures and distributed among the Community Members.

A rich top-grade vein of Innate Earth Spirit Jade was moved into Lin Yan's own canyon using the Earth Vein Relocation Technique. The Earth Element Origin contained within this Spirit Vein was exceptionally pure. To the Earth Dragon Clan and living beings who cultivated the Earth Element Law, it was an unrivaled treasure.

Beyond that, Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures such as Cold Jade Marrow, Blazing Flame Iron, and Yin Wind Grass were simply too numerous to count.

What delighted Lin Yan even more was that he discovered many new Spirit Beast races. Upon seeing how "enormous" the Earth Dragon Community was, these Spirit Beast races all voluntarily requested to join.

These days, banding together for warmth was simply too important. Finding a powerful organization to seek protection from was the best choice for all weak races.