The Extreme Realm

Ancient Relics were fearsome beings who inherited some of the true blood of primeval ferocious beasts.

The cream of the crop could rival the mightiest human lords and kings once they reached adulthood. In a single night, they could flatten a mighty city or wipe out a tribe of hundreds of thousands.

If Stone Village could claim three powerful Ancient Relics, then in a few decades, it might well carve out a territory of its own, rule over a million people, and establish a kingdom.

"W-we have three Ancient Relics guarding our village now?"

Shi Yunfeng had clearly thought of the same thing. He murmured in wild delight.

"No. Four."

The mysterious being chuckled, revealing a glimpse of peerless grace.

Beneath the charred willow tree, the Green-Scaled Eagle that had been captured by a Tender Green Willow Branch quietly completed its own transformation. Its blue light slowly faded.

It was now a majestic blue roc, towering more than twenty zhang tall, its entire body covered in deep blue feathers. It looked as if it had been cast from bronze, and its presence was imposing.

An Ancient Relic, the Azure Heaven Roc!

"Caw! Caw! Caw!"

The Azure Heaven Roc had clearly realized that its bloodline had evolved, and it let out a happy series of low cries. When it noticed the three equally extraordinary young birds, its excitement reached its peak.

With a muffled thud, the adult Azure Heaven Roc prostrated itself at the foot of the willow tree, wholly submissive. Its bearing was respectful and solemn. Its inherited bloodline told it that this Sacrificial Spirit was an inscrutable and mighty divine being.

"Not bad. You've reached the peak of Spirit Transformation. Given some time, you should be able to enter the Inscription Realm. From now on, you four little ones will stay in the village and help me keep them safe."

The mysterious being, newly awakened, seemed to be in a fairly good mood.

It could not guard Stone Village forever; sooner or later, it would have to depart. It might as well enlighten a few Ancient Relics and ensure the village's peace for hundreds, perhaps even a thousand years.

"Caw!"

The adult Azure Heaven Roc was highly intelligent. It first nodded respectfully, then carefully flew into Stone Village, wary of hurting anyone there. After that, it picked up its three newborn offspring and flew to the depths of the village, intending to settle down for good.

Led by the old village chief, Shi Yunfeng, the people of Stone Village who had witnessed Willow Deity's manifestation left in contentment, bowing as they went and chatting among themselves.

Only Shi Hao remained where he was.

Seeing this, Shi Yunfeng merely smiled and strolled into the village without hurry.

"Little one, why aren't you leaving with your people?"

The willow tree swayed gently, its voice soft, without the slightest airs of a Sacrificial Spirit.

"Willow Deity, I want to cultivate under your guidance."

Little Shi respectfully bowed to the peerless Immortal King.

"Cultivate? Aren't you already cultivating?"

"No. I want to take you as my master, Willow Deity, and cultivate under your guidance."

"Heh. I have never taken a disciple in my life, and I likely never will. Besides, although you were born with the Supreme Bone, it makes little difference to me."

As it spoke, Willow Deity laughed nonchalantly.

There was not the slightest trace of contempt in its words. It seemed that, to it, this was simply a matter of fact—only natural.

"I was born with the Supreme Bone, but I don't have it anymore. Someone dug it out. I'm probably half a cripple now," Shi Hao replied.

Willow Deity fell silent. After a long while, it finally spoke. "So you already knew."

"Mm. Since I began cultivating these past two years, I've also remembered some people and some things."

Shi Hao spoke casually. He didn't care about any of it.

"The Supreme Bone was heaven's gift, its imprint rooted deep in your bloodline. If you can be reborn through nirvana, it may yet grow back."

"It's the person who is powerful, not the technique. It's just a bone; it can't decide anything."

Shi Hao shook his head and replied calmly.

"Oh? For someone so young, you've already reached such an understanding. That's rare. I've found myself somewhat interested in you."

For the first time, it set aside its nonchalance and gave him a serious reply. "If you can enter the Venerable Realm before you turn twenty, I'll take you as my formal disciple. How does that sound?"

"Fifteen. If I can't enter the Venerable Realm before I turn fifteen, then Shi Hao will never bring this up again."

Little Shi answered with unwavering resolve.

"Heh. It's been a long time since I've met such an interesting little fellow. Very well, we'll do as you say. Fifteen it is. But in the meantime, I can give you a technique."

Willow Deity chuckled, showing a rare flicker of emotion, then asked, "How strong is your body right now?"

Here it comes—the Original True Interpretation.

Shi Hao's heart stirred. "Thirty thousand jin in each arm."

"Too little. To cultivate that technique, you must be like a pureblood Pixiu or Golden Winged Roc, whose young are tempered until they can easily lift a hundred thousand jin of divine iron with their bodies alone. Though you're already in the late stage of the Blood Moving Realm, you still haven't reached the extreme."

"Yes, Willow Deity. I'll reach Ultimate Sublimation in the Blood Moving Realm as soon as I can, and meet the minimum requirements for cultivating that technique."

"Good. Go."

As soon as the words fell, the divine Willow Deity sank back into silence.

Shi Hao bowed deeply, then turned and left.

Little Shi's journey to reach the extreme of the Blood Moving Realm had begun!

After the Azure Heaven Roc Family settled in Stone Village, the Azure Heaven Roc not only took the initiative to teach the Green Peng Precious Technique to the villagers, but also went out hunting and brought back its catches. There were Earth-Traveling Dragons, shaped like pangolins, and two-legged Thunder Kui whose cries sounded like dragons, as well as all manner of treasures...

One powerful, ferocious beast after another was easily killed by the Azure Heaven Roc. The old villagers stared at the primeval beasts before them—the kind that usually cost many lives to bring back—and trembled with excitement, calling out Willow Deity's name.

As the village's leader, old chief Shi Yunfeng suppressed his excitement and organized the women and children to butcher the beasts, storing the meat as provisions and saving the true blood for tempering. Yet he did not let the village's prosperity cloud his judgment.

Even with a powerful Ancient Relic willingly providing food for the village, the far-sighted old man remained steady. While working to teach the Green Peng Precious Technique to the villagers, he continued to organize hunting parties to enter the mountains.

The ambitious old man was determined to help the village gain several more Blood Moving Realm cultivators.

After all, one's own strength was what truly mattered.

Amid this steady growth, more than two months passed in a flash.

One day, as the sun set in the west,

the village's hunting parties returned once again with a full haul.

The villagers had been tempered with all kinds of true blood, and the level of beasts they hunted had steadily increased. It looked like another successful hunt.

But a few sharp-eyed clan elders still noticed something was amiss.

"Lin Hu, what happened? This trip into the mountains doesn't seem to have gone smoothly."

Shi Yunfeng quietly drew Shi Linhu aside and stared at the bloodstained Black Heavy Sword on his back. That wasn't the smell of beast blood.

"I knew I couldn't hide it from you, Chief. This time, people from Bei Village, dozens of miles away, suddenly entered our hunting grounds without reason. They even tried to steal the prey we'd already caught, so I led our people in giving them a good beating."

"Heh, they didn't expect that I'd become a true Blood Moving Realm cultivator."

Shi Linhu swung the three- or four-hundred-jin heavy sword, his face full of killing intent.

He had been the strongest of the village's second generation, just one step away from the Blood Moving Realm. He'd only needed to break through one thin barrier.

Last month, the Azure Heaven Roc brought an adult Pixiu back to the village. Though it wasn't a member of the pureblood Royal Clan, the true blood extracted from it had still helped Shi Linhu break through.