Void God Realm

Of course, the person everyone praised the most was still Shi Lin. One uncle even roared, "Child, you aren't small anymore. In a few months, you'll be eight years old, and with such great skills, it's time for a marriage. How about my Hu Niu?"

Shi Lin was deeply embarrassed and said, "That... Uncle, I am still, still young."

Shi Linhu glared and said, "Young my foot! Your father here was married at twelve. I was nowhere near as capable as you back then; based on your current skills, you've been ready for a long time."

A group of children chuckled, winking and nudging at Shi Lin, with Little One laughing the loudest of all.

Shi Linhu glared at them and said, "What are you laughing at? You aren't small either; it's time to consider it. By the way, Da Zhuang, Er Meng, and Pi Hou have made rapid progress these past two years and possess great strength—it is time for them to marry as well."

"That's right, they are all ready," a clan elder nodded.

"Ah!?" The group of children exclaimed, all of them feeling shy as the bonfire illuminated their flushed faces.

These words might not have meant much to others, but they were a bit too much for Shi Lin to handle. This was because several little girls behind him were launching a direct offensive.

"Grandfather and Father both said I should be betrothed to you. When will you agree?" Shi Feijiao's daughter asked loudly.

"Ah?!" Shi Lin scratched his head, feeling a bit dizzy.

To think there's such a good thing! Shi Lin thought to himself.

On the other side, Hu Niu, who wore her hair in pigtails and was even younger than him, stood with her hands on her hips, eyes wide, and shouted, "Brother Shi Lin, when will you marry me?"

"When did I ever say I would marry you?" Shi Lin nearly fled in a panic; he truly couldn't handle this.

"Hahaha..." The group of adults all burst into laughter.

That night, the clansmen enjoyed themselves to the fullest, eating until late into the night. They spoke freely and discussed many mysterious stories of the Great Wilderness, leaving the group of children filled with longing.

The only regret was that the Pangolin had self-destructed at the final moment, shattering its original Treasure Bone and scales, leaving behind no precious techniques.

In the second half of the night, Stone Village knew no peace. The group of children wailed like ghosts, unable to stop. Because they had been greedy and eaten a few too many pieces of the Sacrificial Spirit's meat, their bodies were glowing and radiating an unbearable, scorching heat. They ran all over the village, eventually jumping into the lake to cool down.

The clan elders had clearly warned them that each person could eat at most two pieces and that it should not be treated as a full meal, but this was the result.

It wasn't until dawn that the group of children and some of the young people crawled out of the lake with panda-like dark circles under their eyes, slinking back to their homes in shame.

"Hahaha..." Some of the clansmen who had risen early saw this scene and burst into laughter.

Without a doubt, this Sacrificial Spirit was extraordinary. Its body contained a powerful essence that could be called a medicinal treasure for the flesh, effectively improving the constitution of the clansmen.

Years ago, when they accidentally obtained the remains of the Suanni, the entire village had eaten the whole thing. At that time, the villagers' constitutions had been greatly improved; otherwise, how could a group of children have been able to practice Bone Text?

One must know that even a tribe of ten thousand people would struggle to find a single expert in the Blood-Moving Realm, yet these children would all have the chance to break through in the future. Clearly, the treasure body of an ancient remnant had played a huge role; after all, such things were hard to come by and worth a fortune. If a top-tier large tribe tried to covet it, they risked being wiped out if things went wrong.

This was because the Suanni was no ordinary ancient remnant!

And while this Sacrificial Spirit could not compare to the Suanni, it was no ordinary object either. Its origins were vast, coming from the mysterious Little Western Heaven, and it was by no means comparable to the old Sacrificial Spirit of Bei Village.

In fact, the Pangolin should have possessed even greater combat power than it displayed, but it had severely wounded itself to nourish and resurrect its golden bone shears, leading to its defeat and death.

In the blink of an eye, half a year passed, and the massive Sacrificial Spirit was eaten up by the villagers.

The group of children saw their strength leap forward, and their mastery of Bone Text reached a profound level. This result shocked the group of elders, who eventually laughed so hard they couldn't close their mouths, nearly pulling out their snow-white beards.

During this period, Little One broke through to the Heavenly Cave Realm, and upon doing so, he opened three Heavenly Caves—only a tiny bit behind Shi Lin.

The people of Stone Village praised Little One one after another, and the scene of people offering their daughters was reenacted, eventually causing Little One to flee in a panic as well.

Besides the children, several adults also had a breakthrough, such as Shi Linhu and Shi Feijiao. In truth, they had been practicing Bone Text for longer than the children; the village chief had taught them after returning from the outside world, but they had long missed the golden age for cultivation, so their achievements were not ideal.

Over these past few years, first with the world-shaking physical treasure of the Suanni remains, and then with this extraordinary Sacrificial Spirit, their flesh and blood contained too much divine essence, which greatly improved their physiques.

Thus, their years of cultivation and accumulation gradually erupted. Shi Linhu and Shi Feijiao ascended into the Blood-Moving Realm, and their foundations were deep and their cultivation profound.

People couldn't help but sigh that the ancient remnants and the mysterious Sacrificial Spirit of Little Western Heaven were indeed extraordinary, worthy of being called rare medicinal treasures of flesh and blood; they wouldn't trade them for anything.

Another few months passed. It had been nearly a year since the Willow Deity fell into slumber, and Little One was now eight and a half years old.

Over such a long period, Little One boiled the Sacrificial Spirit's flesh and blood into a medicinal treasure, and with its aid, he opened a fourth "volcanic crater." It appeared behind him, with "magma" flowing and essence rolling—it was truly mysterious.

"So slow. It took nearly a year to add just one more," Little One muttered to himself, feeling that cultivation was becoming increasingly difficult.

When the old village chief heard these words, he was speechless for a long time. Finally, he wiped away a cold sweat and told him that this was already a miracle; many people struggled their entire lives without making an inch of progress, and even those with extremely high talent might not reach the next level in several years.

"Is that so? Then I can rest easy." Little One smiled happily and stopped frowning.

The Heavenly Cave Realm involves opening an immortal passage, a pure land, or even a world within or outside the human body. By doing so, one communicates with the boundless void, seizing the fortune of heaven and earth, causing the runic divine power within the body to surge and remain in a peak state.

According to the old village chief, Little Shi Hao was already a formidable expert in the Heavenly Cave Realm, having constructed four immortal passages.

"Some people only have one passage in their entire lives, using it to draw upon the power of the great heaven and earth. They can enter a higher realm, but it is very difficult to climb to the absolute peak, and their achievements reach their limit at that point," the old village chief explained.

Average experts, after opening four or five "Heavenly Caves," begin to consider accumulation, hoping for a day of eruption where endless runic divine power will spray forth from the caves, pushing them into a higher realm.

The old village chief further explained, "Those who can open six Heavenly Caves are already the elite of this realm. As for opening seven, that is surely a rare genius. As for those who can manifest eight, they are naturally rare, gifted individuals, as scarce as phoenix feathers and qilin horns. Those who possess nine Heavenly Caves are generally only legends recorded in ancient books; if they truly appeared in reality, they would surely possess heaven-defying talent!"

Little One blinked his large eyes, listening intently. It turned out he could already consider attempting a breakthrough to enter a higher realm. However, he could not make such a choice.

According to the village chief, every additional Heavenly Cave opened unlocks a portion of one's potential. If the potential base of one Heavenly Cave is one, then two caves would be two, and so on; by the time one reaches eight caves, it is eight—the gap is truly too large! As time passed, after the fierce bandits were wiped out, no other bandit groups appeared, and Little Western Heaven showed no reaction, perhaps assuming that the Pangolin and the others had been consumed by the ancient remnants in the Great Wilderness.

During this time, the people of Stone Village went out once to dig up the black gold hidden by the bandit group. Although it was only half a meter square, it weighed over ten thousand catties. This was a precious material for forging weapons and a rare metal that could suppress magic arrays. It was very rare; the fact that they could collect half a cubic meter showed how many massacres they had committed over the years—their hands must have been stained with countless lives.

Over this year, Shi Lin went out every day to fight the ancient remnants in the mountain ranges, repeatedly grinding monsters, familiarizing himself with precious techniques, and practicing heavenly arts.

In one year, Shi Lin grew taller again; at 11 and a half, he was 1.67 meters, which was quite tall among his peers.

After a year of tempering, Shi Lin had successfully entered the eight-cave stage, making him a peerless genius the likes of which the Great Wilderness had never seen.

The children of Stone Village all worshipped him, viewing him as a god among men.

Half a month later, a gentle breeze stirred, sending ripples across the clear lake. The willow tree at the village entrance, which had been silent for a year, suddenly began to glow. Green radiance surged into the heavens, shrouding the entire mountain range in a hazy halo.

"Ah, the Willow Deity has awakened!"

The villagers cried out in surprise, then erupted in joy. With their Sacrificial Spirit revived, they no longer needed to worry; even if powerful exotic beasts were to invade, they believed the Willow Deity could hold them back.

In that moment, everyone—men and women, old and young—ran over to offer sacrifices and pay homage to the willow tree.

Crack, crack.

The old bark peeled away. Where a protrusion had appeared earlier, brilliant green light now flared, and several new branches sprouted. They were emerald green and dripping with vitality, instantly filling the air with glowing mist and ten thousand auspicious rays.

The willow tree was reborn, sprouting four more branches that grew rapidly, soon reaching several meters in length, identical to the first one.

The five willow branches were emerald and luminous, radiating precious light like chains of divine order. They shrouded the entire land, mysterious and unfathomable, pulsing with an astonishing power.

The clansmen were overjoyed. The Willow Deity had grown even stronger; a small portion of its charred trunk had actually turned green, brimming with life. The emerald light spread, filling the world with a rich aura of vitality.

"Willow Deity... are you well?" a village elder asked, his voice trembling.

"I am well. My slumber has ended." The Willow Deity transmitted its voice, retracting its divine radiance. The green light retreated from the mountains like a receding tide, and the mountain range returned to its normal state.

That day, Stone Village celebrated with great fervor. With the Willow Deity present, they no longer had to fear the vengeance of vicious bandits.

"You did well to kill a Sacrificial Spirit. It was no simple creature; it had surpassed the Heavenly Cave realm, though its foundation was shattered. Otherwise, you would have been in grave danger." Through the few bones left behind by the Pangolin, the Willow Deity had discerned its condition at the time.

"I can now easily resolve a battle even when crossing a cultivation realm!" Shi Lin said confidently.

"Given your ability, that is only natural."

"Willow Deity, what do you mean by that?" Shi Lin was a bit confused.

The Willow Deity did not answer.

Little One moved closer.

"Willow Deity, I have already opened four Heavenly Caves. According to the 'potential theory' of our village chief grandfather, I hope to open more." A hopeful light shone in Little One's eyes.

After some exchange, the willow tree understood. Several willow branches swayed as if gently shaking their heads. "Is eight Heavenly Caves the limit? That is merely the standard for the human race. The nine Heavenly Caves are not just recorded in ancient texts; they truly exist."

"Ah?" Little One exclaimed, asking for guidance in earnest.

"According to the conditions of the Primordial Era..." As soon as the willow tree spoke, Little One immediately knew it would be measured against the standards of the supreme Primordial Vicious Beasts—a terrifying benchmark.

Sure enough, the willow tree continued, "In the Primordial years, the Taowu, Vermilion Bird, Taotie, and others believed that in the Heavenly Cave realm, nine caves could claim kingship, but ten Heavenly Caves were the limit—the true pinnacle of this realm."

Little One was shocked. This claim was terrifying, far exceeding the standards currently prevalent among humans.

"Being in this Great Wilderness is too restrictive. You rarely have the chance to see true prodigies, let alone engage in life-and-death battles with the likes of True Hou cubs that carry warning significance. Staying here is detrimental to your cultivation."

"Willow Deity, do you have a way?" Little One caught the implication in the words of Stone Village's Sacrificial Spirit.

"I once said that when I awakened, I could take you to see a mysterious world. Are you willing? Perhaps you might even encounter your 'older brother'—Shi Yi—ahead of time, though it will not be his true physical form."

"I am willing!" Little One nodded firmly.

"Very well. Go and tell your clansmen so they do not worry, then we shall depart!" The Willow Deity's voice was decisive; no sooner had it spoken than it prepared to set off.

"Understood!" Little One did not ask further. He immediately turned and rushed into the village chief's courtyard, quickly and simply explaining the situation.

Shi Yunfeng and the elders were stunned. Shi Feijiao and the others who had arrived upon hearing the news were also shocked, all breaking into a cold sweat for Little One. What kind of place was that?! To be able to fight the cubs of beasts like the Qiongqi, Bifang, and Jiaotu, and even encounter the Double Pupil Shi Yi—it sounded truly alarming.

"Child, you must be careful. What kind of place is that, to encounter the offspring of Primordial Vicious Beasts? You must look after your safety!"

"This kind of tempering is too terrifying. Is it a trial for young deities?!"

They were deeply shocked and filled with worry.

Little One was decisive. After informing his clansmen, he returned quickly without a moment's delay, sitting cross-legged before the charred trunk. His expression was solemn; he was ready to depart.

"Very well, let us begin this journey to the heavens." The Willow Deity's voice was soft and calm, yet carried a sense of majesty. Five willow branches surged, transforming into brilliant chains of divine order that struck upward toward the sky.

Shi Lin also went along with Little One.

With a loud "Boom," green radiance flared, turning the world emerald. The five magnificent willow branches pierced the firmament, as if opening a gate of laws!

In the sky, glowing mist swirled—hazy, mysterious, and profound.

With a light "Hum," they felt as if they had left their original spot. Passing through that portal of hazy light, the two traversed the void and entered a strange world.

"Where is this?" Little One discovered that the surroundings were filled with hazy mist, like surging chaos; everything appeared blurred.

"Come here!" A gentle green light radiated. The charred willow tree appeared ahead, rooted in the world, guiding Little One and Shi Lin forward.

The mist gradually dispersed, and the area ahead became more open, appearing desolate and ancient, like an abandoned world.

"It looks like a ruined ancient realm." Little One was astonished.

As the mist thinned, he stood beneath the willow tree and looked ahead, seeing vast ruins. One giant palace after another had collapsed, leaving only broken walls and crumbling pillars.

"Go and take a look." The Willow Deity transmitted.

Little One stepped forward. Before his eyes lay desolation; the ground was covered in rubble. Once-magnificent palaces and halls had all been destroyed, carrying an aura of vicissitude and antiquity.

"What is this place?" Little One asked again.

"The Void God Realm," the Willow Deity and Shi Lin said in unison.

"Void God Realm?" Little One felt a jolt in his heart. The moment he heard the name, he felt it couldn't be simple; otherwise, how could it dare to call itself such a thing?

"There is a saying that this is the world one enters after becoming a god," the Willow Deity said.

"Ah?!" Little One was greatly shocked. Had he actually entered the divine realm? This feeling was incredibly surreal, even somewhat frightening.

"Others say that the supreme beings worshipped by the ancient ancestors—the gods—joined forces to construct this strange world using their spiritual consciousness," the Willow Deity offered another explanation.

"A spiritual world jointly constructed by the gods worshipped by the ancient ancestors?" Little One widened his eyes, a look of disbelief crossing his face.

He looked down at the ruins beneath his feet, then gazed toward the broken Primordial Divine Mountains in the distance, finding it inconceivable. What a realistic world this was.

"My true body is clearly standing here. If this is a world constructed by spirit, can one truly stand upon it?" Little One asked.

"I must correct one point: you are not here in your true body, but only in your spiritual will," the Willow Deity reminded him. Little One didn't believe it; he pinched his arm hard and felt a sharp pain. This wasn't a dream, nor was it fake; it felt completely real.

"It really is real!" Shi Lin muttered to himself.

"For any living creature, the spirit is the most mysterious part, even more so than the physical body," the Willow Deity transmitted, explaining to them, "Your spirit has entered, and here it is as if you have experienced a rebirth; there is no difference from your true body being here."

"But this is only my will, not my flesh. Why is it so real? It's so hard to distinguish," Little One was confused.

"This is the mystery of the Void God Realm, and also its value. When the spirit is tempered here and returns to the real world, it will bring all its insights back to the physical body, allowing them to evolve together, just as if your true body had been cultivating here!" the Willow Deity pointed out the path.

"What a bizarre place!" Little One exclaimed.

He stepped on the rubble, the sound "crunch, crunch" echoing out. The ruins were vast and empty, and the distant mountains were majestic; even though they had been shattered, they still felt towering and sacred.

If all of this was constructed by spirit, what kind of immense divine power would that require?!

The Willow Deity sighed, "There is a legend that a great chaos occurred in ancient times, causing this spiritual world to fall into ruin, which is why there are so many ruins here."

Some of the gods worshipped by the ancestors may have been true gods, while others were pure-blooded ancient creatures like the Zhujian, Chiwen, and Yayu. That was an extremely complex and mysterious era.

"Do I need to temper myself in this spiritual world? But there is nothing here; it has long been considered a forsaken land," Little One was puzzled.

"Wrong. This world is vast and boundless; what you see is only a corner of it," the Willow Deity corrected him, telling him that there were vast regions where many living creatures resided.

"What kind of creatures are they?" Little One asked curiously.

"Like you, their spirits have entered from the outside world and manifested in this Void God Realm," the Willow Deity replied.

"They can enter too, and there are many of them?" Little One was surprised.

"Yes, it is like a real kingdom," the Willow Deity responded.

Then, it explained further how those people entered, saying, "Have you ever heard of a nation-wide sacrifice to the heavens?"

"Mm, I have heard of it," Little One nodded.

"From ancient times to the present, the ancient gods worshipped by some ancient kingdoms have long since died, yet they still perform sacrifices, the whole nation participating, solemn and devout. There are many reasons for this, but the main one is to inherit what the gods left behind..."

Being able to enter the Void God Realm is one of the "treasures" inherited from the ancient gods. As long as the faith remains unchanged and sacrifices are held annually within the territory of that ancient kingdom, the strong can perceive the Void God Realm.

"So mysterious?" Little One was deeply moved. His eyes were clear as he pondered for a long time, feeling that he had gained much knowledge.

The Willow Deity said, "When a whole nation sacrifices together and the entire ancient kingdom is recognized, it receives blessings. When an individual's cultivation reaches a certain level, they can gain insights and enter or exit the Void God Realm."

Stone Village was located in the Great Wilderness, far from any ancient kingdom, and had no such tradition of sacrificing to the heavens, so it was naturally impossible to enter the Void God Realm.

When the Willow Deity brought the two of them in, it was not according to the methods of the ancient kingdoms, which was why they didn't see anyone else and instead appeared in a desolate ruin.

"Walk outward from here, and you will soon enter the true place of tempering," the Willow Deity transmitted. It stopped moving forward and stayed behind.

And so, the two of them set off, stepping out of the vast ruins. Little One still had many questions, but the Willow Deity had become blurred and did not follow, telling him that he could find all the answers ahead.

The mist grew thinner, and they gradually approached a world of light. Finally, they walked out of the ruins and stepped onto a large bluestone flickering with runes, embedded with several gleaming white beast bones.