[That same year, the Ye Family disciples investigating in Jingzhou returned to report to you that the matter of the 'Minor Pure Spiritual Qi' obtained by Ganyang Palace was true. However, that strand of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi had already been taken by the Grand Elder of the Yin Yang Holy Land, a holy land in the neighboring Sui State. According to the information gathered, this Grand Elder was rather humane and had given Ganyang Palace several decent Heaven Grade Treasures. The two sides had made a transaction.
As for whether Ganyang Palace's high-level members had truly wished to trade with him, that was presumably not something Ganyang Palace could decide.]
[Although the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi had already been taken away, you remained very interested in the matter. In the end, you decided to send Ye Chen to Ganyang Palace for a friendly discussion with its Grand Elder, to determine the location of the special great Secret Realm containing that strand of Minor Pure Spiritual Qi, as well as its precise position within the Secret Realm.]
[Before long, Ye Chen lived up to expectations. He had a friendly exchange with Ganyang Palace's Grand Elder, recorded everything, and handed it to you. You also wrote the matter down in your own little notebook. This small booklet had already been densely filled with dozens of pages and was carried with you at all times. Every so often, you would take it out and read through it, lest you forget.]
[In the eight hundred twenty-third year, although your progress in painting had been exceedingly slow for hundreds of years, you never gave up. After several centuries of unremitting accumulation, you created your first Earth Grade Low-Rank painting. It was a Pseudo Beast Painting, capable of summoning a Sub-dragon Species Demonic Beast whose offensive power rivaled that of the Mid Void God Realm.]
[In the Eight Hundred Thirtieth Year, after Ye Chen consumed your Bloodline Essence this time, his cultivation broke through to the Spirit Condensation Realm, making him the second-strongest member of the entire Ye Family.]
[Ye Chen's cultivation speed was considered exceptionally fast throughout Jiang State. After all, Spirit Condensation Realm Martial Artists possessed a lifespan of eight thousand years. At only eight hundred years old, Ye Chen absolutely had the talent to break through to the Infant God Realm. Even the Half-Saint Realm was not beyond his reach.]
[Of your three children, Ye Chen was also the one most like you. He cultivated with the greatest diligence. Though his talent in Martial Skills could not be called exceptional, he had inherited your fondness for Martial Skills. He was already over eight hundred years old yet still unmarried, with his heart set wholly on cultivation. Unlike his elder brother and sister, he did not even have grandchildren.]
[Whenever you discussed marriage with Ye Chen, he would change the subject. But his legs were his own; you could not force such matters upon him. The child was already so grown, and you needed to give him some room to breathe.]
[Because you respected Ye Chen's wishes in this matter, your wife Jiang Wen spoke with you about it several times. Unlike you, she cared deeply about her children's marriages and often dragged Ye Chen to meet girls from other families. Yet after several centuries, she had not succeeded even once. By now, even Jiang Wen was somewhat helpless when it came to Ye Chen.]
[In the Eight Hundred Sixty-Fifth Year, your child Ye Chen risked his life in a large Secret Realm and obtained a Heaven and Earth Spirit Root. This spirit root was the 'Hundred Spirits Peach Tree' recorded in ancient books, a Low-grade Heaven Grade spirit plant. This peach tree bore fruit once every two thousand years, and its fruit could increase vital energy. After Martial Artists consumed the fruit and absorbed its essence, their cultivation could increase slightly. It was an exceedingly fine treasure.
However, this tree was difficult to transplant and rarely survived. Fortunately, your daughter Ye Pingjing was extremely fond of spirit plants and had read many books over the years. In the end, she actually managed to raise it successfully. From then on, the peach tree was entrusted to her care, and Ye Pingjing was very pleased with this.]
[In the Nine Hundred Seventy-Fifth Year, as your strength increased, your control over the Heavenly Mechanism Chessboard became ever more effortless. You could now wield fifty percent of the Heavenly Mechanism Chessboard's power.]
[That same year, using the Heavenly Mechanism Chessboard, you deduced that an event would occur today that would cause the Ye Family heavy losses. This event was a hidden danger to the Ye Family. Following the direction revealed by your deduction, you arrived outside a small town six hundred kilometers from Jiancheng and concealed your spiritual pressure.]
[On the night three days later, a group of people dressed in black robes appeared outside the town. They had no intention of entering it, merely circling the town as they investigated it. Once their investigation was complete, they soon began making arrangements around the town.]
[As you watched them, you sensed a faint aura of Demonic Cultivators from their bodies. Yet you did not act directly, because the true target had yet to appear. As the sky grew darker, midnight soon arrived.]
[The group quickly finished their arrangements. Once they were done, they seemed to notify someone to come. Before long, a Red-cloaked Masked Figure rapidly approached from afar. The group gathered together as though discussing something.]
[When you saw the Red-cloaked Masked Figure, you took out the Heavenly Mechanism Chessboard to make a prediction. You quickly deduced that this hidden danger had indeed been caused by the Red-cloaked Masked Figure. At once, you stopped waiting and unleashed the Dragon Clan Martial Skill Soul Shock upon them. After you attacked, the people swiftly collapsed one after another like a row of dominoes.]
[You then took out a Fire Attribute Earth Grade Treasure and burned them all to ashes before leaving the town.]
[Early the next morning, the townspeople discovered a great deal of black ash outside the town. They were greatly puzzled and assumed only that someone had set fire near the town. The matter eventually reached the town mayor, who promptly launched an investigation to find the arsonist. In the end, however, nothing was uncovered.]
[In the One Thousand One Hundred Fiftieth Year, your accumulation in the Infant God Realm had reached perfection. You did not intend to remain there any longer. After setting up the Half-Saint Grade Formation you had acquired earlier, you began preparing for your breakthrough. Because your Essence, Qi, and Spirit were extraordinarily vast, the difficulty of your breakthrough increased somewhat. You took out the River Qi Stone and guided the 'River Qi' from within it.]
[Before long, with the aid of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, you successfully drew forth that wisp of Heaven and Earth Qi belonging to you from the world. This was the trace of qi that had left your mother's womb with you at birth. Once that wisp of Heaven and Earth Qi fused into your spiritual platform, you could feel that the difficulty of merging your Essence, Qi, and Spirit had become much easier. With the assistance of Heaven and Earth Qi, you effortlessly united the three into one.]
[Three months later, your Essence, Qi, and Spirit had fused with extreme perfection. Your realm broke through to the Half-Saint Realm, and your strength rose enormously.]
[After breaking through to the Half-Saint Realm, you sensed that you could already control a portion of the world's vital energy and even create a space that belonged solely to you. Within this space, your strength would receive a tremendous boost, while enemies entering it would have their strength weakened. You knew this was the domain ability recorded in books, but the domain you created was still unstable and could not be maintained for long.
Perhaps only after your cultivation accumulated to a certain degree and you broke through to the true Saint Realm could you transcend the mortal world, become a genuine transcendent lifeform, and perfectly control this domain.]
Before you continue