Home Upgrade

Over the days that followed, Lin Yan devoted nearly all his energy to studying the Nine Palaces Earth Vein Array.

This grand array was profound and complex, involving the paths of Earth Veins, the circulation of Spirit Qi, spatial transformations, and many other mysteries. If not for the Mini Ecology Simulator, that miraculous tool for "sand table simulations," he would likely have spent a thousand years fumbling on his own without even finding the way in.

"This is the Kan position. A Water Vein needs to be drawn out here to form a misty water barrier..."

"That side is the Li position, where earthfire is at its strongest, but it still needs Earth Element Spiritual Qi to balance it..."

"The Kun position is the main Array Eye, connected to the Earth Veins at the canyon's core. Hmm... perhaps the remaining Nine Heavens Breathing Soil can be used to reinforce it..."

After countless simulated deductions, Lin Yan finally determined the array layout best suited to the canyon's terrain. Following the contours of the surrounding mountains and rivers, he established eight core Array Bases corresponding to the eight gates of Rest, Life, Wound, Du, View, Death, Shock, and Open. Together with the Array Eye at the center of the canyon, there were nine Array Bases in total.

All nine Array Bases connected to Earth Veins deep underground. Once Earth Vein Spiritual Qi circulated among the nine bases, the Nine Palaces Earth Vein Great Array would essentially take shape. As the array continued to be nourished by Earth Vein Spiritual Qi in the future, its power would steadily grow.

After a hundred years, and at the cost of immense effort and countless Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures from within the canyon, Lin Yan finally completed the Nine Palaces Earth Vein Great Array.

On the day the array was first completed, a pale yellow barrier enveloped the entire canyon. When Lin Yan formed the array-control hand seals, the barrier flashed once and vanished into the void.

However, Lin Yan and the little brothers could all clearly sense that a barrier seemed to separate the canyon from the outside world. The external Malevolent Qi was blocked outside, while the Spirit Qi within was sealed inside. Before long, the canyon's Spirit Qi would become incredibly dense under these conditions.

Standing within the grand array, Lin Yan stirred his thoughts and mobilized a trace of its power. Pale earthy yellow mist suddenly rose from the ground, while a heavy pressure spread through the air, making it impossible to take even a single step.

He then separated another thread of magical power and activated the force of the Wound Gate. A concentrated earthy yellow beam suddenly shot out from the cliff wall and struck a massive boulder. With a thunderous boom, the huge rock was instantly reduced to powder.

"Not bad!" Lin Yan nodded in satisfaction. He believed that if he had possessed this array earlier, that Scorpion-tailed Demon Lion would never have entered the canyon. Even if he had allowed it inside, it would have been killed in minutes.

With the Nine Palaces Earth Vein Great Array serving as the canyon's protective barrier, Lin Yan felt much more at ease. At the very least, he no longer had to worry constantly about someone barging into his home.

After setting up the mountain-protecting array, Lin Yan turned his attention to the canyon itself.

At the central Array Eye, all the underground Spirit Veins converged, making the Spirit Qi there the densest. Lin Yan made it the daily cultivation ground for himself and his little brothers.

Most of the various Spirit Plants growing in the canyon were transplanted around the Spirit Spring pool and along both sides of the spiritual stream.

The vast majority of the canyon's Spirit Plants were low-tier varieties such as Condensing Dew Grass, Purple Ganoderma Bud, Dragon Beard Grass, and Seven Heart Lotus. They might have counted as rare treasures in later eras, but in the Primordial World of this time, they were merely the most ordinary spiritual herbs.

Besides the ordinary Spirit Plants already in the canyon, Lin Yan also planted the various Spirit Seeds Old Daoist Hongjun had given him.

According to the System Atlas's appraisal, these Spirit Seeds included seeds of spiritual roots such as Star Fruit, Moonlight Grass, and Vajra Bamboo. All of them were immortal seeds with considerable potential.

However, there were also three seeds that even the System Atlas failed to identify. The atlas displayed only a blurred image, making it impossible to determine their origins or functions.

"Even the atlas can't identify them? They must be top-grade treasures, then. Hongjun really does have exceptional judgment." Lin Yan was both shocked and delighted, and he decided to handle them with great care.

He carefully sowed the identifiable seeds in the core area, where Spirit Qi was most abundant, according to their characteristics. As for the three unknown seeds, he opened a separate small piece of Spirit Fields and used the purest Innate Earth Essence mixed with a small piece of Nine Heavens Breathing Soil as fertilizer before planting them with great anticipation.

"Whether you can sprout or not depends on your own fortune." Lin Yan spoke hopefully to the crystalline seeds. He was not worried that the Spirit Seeds would fail to grow and go to waste. Innate Spirit Seeds possessed extremely strong life force; even if they did not sprout, they would not die.

Besides Spirit Plants, the canyon also gained several small rare birds and exotic beasts, such as Moonlight Rabbits with snow-white fur and ruby-red eyes, Emerald Sound Birds with crisp and pleasant songs, and colorful Brocade Scale Fish.

Over the years, quite a few small animals had been drawn by the canyon's environment and entered it of their own accord to live there. Seeing that these Spirit Birds and Exotic Beasts had gentle temperaments, Lin Yan let them roam freely among the canyon's streams and forests. Their arrival made the canyon much livelier and added considerable life force and vitality to it.

Since there had not even been a stone table for guests when Old Daoist Hongjun visited last time, Lin Yan used his Law of Earth to gather a great deal of stone from the mineral veins and prepared to build several houses.

These houses were all constructed from whole pieces of innate stone, such as obsidian and Yellow Amber Stone. The stone tables, chairs, and other furnishings inside were all carved from natural warm jade. The style was extravagantly lavish.

Considering that the little brothers had yet to take human form and still preferred living in caves, he also carved out several deep and spacious Cave Dwellings near the mountain walls. Although they could not use them yet, he still placed some simple "furniture" inside.

The Earth Dragon subordinates curiously examined the jade bowls, wooden cups, meditation cushions, and other objects before them, finding them incredibly novel. Their boss truly was their boss. He could actually use useless things like stones, wood, and vines to refine so many bizarrely shaped objects.

During the canyon camp's renovation, the Earth Dragon subordinates had also provided a great deal of help.

Although their intelligence was still only at the level of four- or five-year-old children, the liveliness in their eyes had grown increasingly pronounced. They understood Lin Yan's commands more and more clearly. Moreover, at some point, these little brothers had gradually begun displaying distinctly different personalities.

Lin Er had the largest body and the greatest strength, but he was kindhearted—or perhaps simply a little simple-minded. Still, he was the most fiercely loyal to Lin Yan, his boss, and never cut corners when working.

Lin San was meticulous and possessed strong management skills. Lin Yan often had him direct the other little brothers.

Lin Si might have been the smartest among the little brothers. While the others were still bewildered by something Lin Yan had assigned, he had already grasped the essentials. However, perhaps intelligent people were all rather lazy. He was also the laziest among them, and getting him to do anything was harder than ascending to heaven.

Lin Wu seemed to have a touch of obsessive-compulsive disorder. When digging ditches, he had to make them perfectly straight; when digging holes, he had to make all four walls smooth. Even eating dirt and relieving himself had to be done in designated places.

Lin Liu was Little Transparent within the group, with an extremely low sense of presence. He neither fought over food nor got into fights. Though he ate and worked alongside everyone else, sometimes even Lin Yan unconsciously overlooked his existence.

Lin Qi was the exact opposite of Lin Liu. He was the most combative Earth Dragon in the group and would pick fights with the other Earth Dragon subordinates at every opportunity. Yet even when he lost, he never got upset, and he would challenge them again whenever he found another chance. Fortunately, he never bullied his younger brothers and Younger Sister on his own initiative. He even often stood up for them, only to be besieged by his older brothers.

Lin Ba had the most unusual physique and tastes. He seemed to have been born with extremely strong resistance to poison and loved eating soil filled with Malevolent Qi. When idle, he would even chew on poisonous grass. While the other little brothers would get diarrhea after eating poisonous grass, he often treated it as a snack.

As for Lin Jiu and Lin Shi, they were the youngest and smallest among the little brothers. Other than eating dirt, they spent their days circling around Lin Yan and were closest to him. Lin Yan felt less like their boss and more like their parent.

Through the dedicated efforts of Lin Yan and all his little brothers, the renovated and upgraded canyon looked completely different from before.

In the outer area of the canyon, the Nine Palaces Earth Vein Array concealed and protected the area, making it difficult for outside living beings to discover or enter.

Inside the canyon, Spirit Qi swirled like mist, and every breath left one feeling refreshed and at ease. The Spirit Spring bubbled continuously, gathering into a clear stream that wound through the entire canyon. Exotic flowers and herbs competed in splendor along both sides of the stream. Ancient trees towered over the slopes, their green shade spreading like canopies, while Spirit Birds and Exotic Beasts occasionally appeared among them.

Several simple, ancient stone houses and Cave Dwellings were scattered throughout the canyon, perfectly blending into the natural surroundings.

The once barren and perilous canyon had now become a peaceful Immortal Blessed Land, brimming with life force and abundant Spirit Qi.