Prologue

"Hmm?!"

The moment that immortal wood phantom [Unquenchable Wood] appeared, in some corner of the Lingnan Great Land, a middle-aged cultivator dressed in a blue-and-red robe, with regular features and an otherworldly air, slowly opened his eyes.

His eyes were deep and weathered, and within their pitch-black pupils danced a pinpoint of light, like a burning flame.

A vast spirit pressure spread around him, faintly drawing resonance from heaven and earth. This was the hallmark possessed only by a Golden Core Stage Cultivator.

This person was none other than the foremost figure of the Lingnan Cultivation Land, the supreme leader of the Azure Cloud Sect—True Person Qingyang!

"The measure I left on the true disciples of the sect has been triggered? It isn't wartime, and this is within sect territory. What kind of situation could have caused this?" True Person Qingyang frowned slightly, but before he had time to think further, he suddenly raised his head and looked into the distance.

Not far away lay a canyon. This canyon was exceptionally peculiar: one half was lush and verdant, radiating vigorous life, with all manner of spirit plants that could only grow in different environments flourishing along its slopes.

The other half, however, was barren, filled with deathly stillness, chill, and a bleak coldness. Remains, dry bones, and numb wandering souls drifting endlessly about could be seen everywhere.

Life and death were displayed in all their fullness on opposite sides of this canyon.

BOOM!

At this moment, a thunderous roar came from within the canyon. Before long, immense spiritual energy surged out from the valley, forming wave after wave of spiritual energy tides in the sky above it, like ocean swells piled atop one another!

Throughout the surrounding space between heaven and earth, a sudden torrential downpour of spiritual energy began to fall!

A glint flashed through True Person Qingyang's eyes. With a wave of his hand, a large number of Five Elements spirit stones flew from his sleeve and, under his control, surged directly against the current into the spiritual energy tide.

CRACK! CRACK!

The Five Elements spirit stones shattered directly within the tide. The Five Elements Spiritual Energy they released reacted with the spiritual energy tide, forming one unique spiritual item after another.

There was [Green Wood Profound Jade] for recovering from injuries, [Blazing Sun Gemstone] suited to cultivation by fire spiritual root cultivators, [Gui Yuan Spirit Water] that aided breakthroughs to Foundation Establishment, and more.

These Heaven and Earth Spiritual Items, which required at least ten years or even a hundred years to gestate, had actually taken shape in this tide in mere moments!

A trace of a smile appeared on True Person Qingyang's face. Raising his hand, he collected this great quantity of spiritual items into his Storage Bag.

Hmm?

As though he had sensed something, True Person Qingyang's gaze abruptly sharpened as he looked westward.

Ooooh~

At some unknown moment, an eerie cry suddenly rang out between heaven and earth.

Looking up, he saw a mass of Yin Cloud racing toward the spiritual energy tide.

Yet in True Person Qingyang's eyes, how could that be any Yin Cloud? It was wave after wave of strange, sinister Ghost Tides!

Decapitated Ghosts, Hanged Ghosts, Vomit-Eating Ghosts, Swift Ghosts, Cat Ghosts, Fox Ghosts, Pipa Ghosts, Blood-Eating Ghosts, Disheveled Ghosts, Great Strength Ghosts, Unicorn Ghosts, Drowned Ghosts, Starved Ghosts... The gathered ghosts even formed Yin Clouds that filled the sky, before slamming fiercely into the spiritual energy tide!

BANG!

Countless vicious ghosts burst apart amid wails, and the spreading yin energy and soul power fused with the spiritual energy within the tide, forming one unorthodox treasure after another, such as [Mysterious Yin Spirit Pearl] and [Taiyin Spirit Radiance].

"Heh. Old Demon Taiyin, you usually hide yourself so well. Why can't you resist jumping out to snatch treasures whenever you encounter one?" True Person Qingyang's powerful voice echoed through the raging wind.

"Kehehehe! This is the Land of Fallen of two Celestial Venerables. We have inherited their lineages, so we naturally possess the right to inherit their treasures. How can this be called snatching?"

Within the Yin Cloud, countless lost souls gathered. Amid layer upon layer of Ghost Shadows, an incomparably dark shadow, seeming like the source itself, let out an eerie, bone-chilling voice.

True Person Qingyang merely glanced at him without responding. Instead, he looked toward the canyon amid the spiritual energy tide and storm, a trace of gravity showing in his eyes.

It seems the powers left behind by the two Celestial Venerables inside the canyon have already fought their way to the crucial moment... True Person Qingyang thought.

According to inheritance records, the spiritual energy controlled by Spirit Transmutation Celestial Venerables already possessed the characteristic of [Dharma Has Spirit].

[Dharma Has Spirit] meant that a cultivator's own dharma power had already fused with the cultivator's will, possessing a measure of wisdom and spirituality.

Even after death for thousands of years, without the influence of external force, it could still automatically draw in Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy to sustain itself.

It could be said that, to a certain extent, it possessed the qualities of being Immortal Undying.

The canyon before them was precisely the place where the physical bodies of two Spirit Transmutation cultivators had fallen that year.

Though they had died, the powers they left behind had inherited the wills of the two great cultivators and continued to struggle against one another.

Normally, while the powers of the two Spirit Transmutations remained locked in constant battle, the canyon would appear utterly calm.

But if the struggle reached its crucial moment and the wills left within the dharma power by the two cultivators canceled each other out, then the dharma power controlled by the Spirit Transmutation cultivators' wills would revert to high-energy spiritual energy, forming a spiritual energy tide and giving birth to countless precious treasures.

These treasures ranged from those useful to Qi Refining Stage cultivators to those useful to Golden Core Stage cultivators. They could be said to be an exceedingly important source of resources for the two great sects.

However, to True Person Qingyang and Old Demon Taiyin, both at the Golden Core Peak, these were merely incidental branches. What they cared about more was the supreme treasure born at the center of the spiritual energy tide within the canyon.

The two streams of dharma power left behind in this canyon not only contained the residual wills of the two great cultivators, but also the Great Dao Laws they had comprehended.

When the wills of the two Spirit Transmutation cultivators canceled each other out, the remaining Great Dao Laws would, under the influence of heaven and earth, form an Extremely Precious treasure—[Enlightenment Stone].

The function of the [Enlightenment Stone] was also quite simple: it increased a cultivator's chance of breaking through to the Nascent Soul Realm!

Qingyang and Taiyin had both inherited the teachings of Spirit Transmutation Celestial Venerables and already had a thirty percent chance of breaking through to the Nascent Soul Realm. If they could obtain an [Enlightenment Stone] as well, that chance would rise to eighty percent.

Once either of them obtained the Enlightenment Stone, they would have an excellent chance of breaking through to the Nascent Soul Realm.

Whoever broke through first would not only gain a long lifespan of three thousand years, but also seize control of the entire Lingnan Great Land—and have a chance to look toward the Dao Path of Spirit Transmutation.

Thus, for Qingyang and Taiyin, this was not merely a struggle between the two great sects they led, but a battle of the Great Dao between the two of them!

Therefore, neither side could yield no matter what. And based on this alone, the consequences it brought and the conflicts it sparked were Highly Likely to ignite, in the not-too-distant future, a war that would sweep across the entire Lingnan Great Land!

"This battle is not only a struggle over the Great Dao—it also concerns the life and death of our Azure Cloud Sect." True Person Qingyang's expression was solemn as countless thoughts flashed through his heart.

"But the Enlightenment Stone lies deep within the valley, and under the shroud of two Spirit Transmutation powers, the valley is normally impossible to enter..."

"Yet there is not no chance. According to the sect's records, after the two forces within the valley engage in a fierce struggle, there will be a period of ebb. If we join the strength of several Golden Cores, perhaps we can send some Qi Refining Stage Cultivators into the valley..."

True Person Qingyang's thoughts churned endlessly, but his hands did not slow in the slightest. Under his control, vast quantities of precious spiritual materials condensed within the Spiritual Energy Tide.

Whoosh—

Who knew how long had passed when a breeze drifted over, carrying with it a tiny butterfly.

Its brilliant wings swayed gently in the air, stirring gust after gust of wind, while all around it, the surface was calm.

Clearly, the Spiritual Energy Tide had already dispersed, and Qingyang and Taiyin had also slipped into the shadows, vanishing without a trace.

But though the tide had subsided, the repercussions brought about by the anomaly in the Land of Fallen Spirit Transmutation had only just begun.