Change Was Coming!

However, changing lanes, though it sounds easy...

However, the Blood Sha power within him had already merged with his bloodline; trying to separate it would be tantamount to crippling his own martial arts.

His Foundation Establishment Middle Stage, was reduced to its original state.

If you're lucky, you might even be able to preserve your Foundation Establishment Realm foundation.

Bad luck struck, and he fell back to the Qi Refining.

A rat demon at the Qi Refining Realm wouldn't even qualify to guard the gate in this Northern Mountain Range.

"Lord Rat, what are you thinking about?"

The second Treasure-Seeking Spirit Rat scurried into the cave, carrying a pile of freshly picked spirit fruits. He was somewhat worried when he saw the Lord Rat's absent-minded appearance.

"It's nothing," the Lord Rat waved its paw.

"Boss, I just got back from the south. I heard that Kuang Dou has broken through another minor realm. His bunch of black dogs are bragging everywhere, their tails are practically wagging in the air."

The second brother, indignant, threw the spirit fruit on the ground.

"Why? Just because he has a Crimson Slurry Pool? Our Spirit Rat Line has followed our ancestor for so many years, and we've done just as much dirty and hard work as anyone else!"

The Lord Rat didn't reply.

"Boss, say something!"

"Second son."

The Lord Rat raised its head, a rare seriousness in its small eyes. "Tell me, if for the future of the Spirit Rat Line, I have to cripple my cultivation and start over, do you think it's worth it?"

The second son was stunned.

The cave remained quiet for a long time.

"Boss, are you crazy?"

The Lord Rat didn't answer, closed its eyes again, and fell silent once more...

Several months later.

The Lord Rat went to Purple Firmament Peak, not to ask Shi Jian for help, but because he didn't have the face to do so.

When the ancestor bestowed the Heaven and Earth Qi, he said, "You make the decision yourself." Since he was allowed to make the decision, you shouldn't keep running around demanding explanations.

This will only damage his own status and diminish his standing in the eyes of the patriarch.

He went to Thunder Firmament Peak to consult ancient records.

Many of these ancient books were handwritten and copied by our ancestors, but many of them are quite old.

I don't know how our ancestor knew this information.

Although the Lord Rat didn't know, whenever he thought of his ancestor, he automatically assumed that his ancestor's wisdom was unparalleled throughout history, and that it was only natural for him to know these things.

If Purple Firmament were to find out about this, she would probably be cursing Shi Jian out.

Inside a cave halfway up Purple Firmament Peak.

The Lord Rat crawled to the depths of the cave, where many bookshelves were set up, displaying cultivation Cultivation Method from various lineages, or ancient books.

"I remember our ancestor once wrote a book on bloodline enhancement..."

Where is it?

After searching for a long time, the Lord Rat finally found a complete set of methods for the transformation of the Demon Race race's bloodline, as well as a lot of information about bloodlines.

"Abandon the Blood Dao, and cultivate another path."

"The price is the loss of half of one's cultivation, but this path is still viable..."

"The path is viable, but the cost must be borne by oneself, and it depends on whether one can shoulder the burden..."

"It even records case studies! No wonder it's our ancestor; he knows these High Antiquity secrets in such detail."

Ten thousand years ago, there was a blood bat among the Demon Race...

"He cultivated to the Foundation Establishment Perfection using the Blood Dao as his foundation, but then mistakenly entered a Dao of Lightning secret realm, where he was tempered by a lightning tribulation, and his Blood Sha energy was burned away by the lightning."

"The blood bat not only didn't die, but actually benefited from the misfortune. Using its remaining Demon Core as a foundation, it absorbed the Spiritual Qi of the Dao of Lightning in the secret realm to rebuild its foundation."

"Although he eventually fell to the level of a first-class Demon Beast, he switched to cultivating the Dao of Lightning, and later even formed Golden Core, and then a nascent Nascent Soul, becoming Shapeshifting Demon King..."

Upon seeing this, the Lord Rat's ears immediately perked up.

"But..."

"The reason this blood bat was able to survive is because its bat bloodline has a certain natural affinity with the Dao of Lightning, although it is extremely weak..."

"Secondly, although the process of being refined by lightning is intense, it helps to burn away all the impurities in his body, which is equivalent to external force helping him complete the most painful stripping away."

"But I most likely won't have any external help; this process of peeling away the layers entirely on my own will only be longer and more agonizing..."

The Lord Rat swallowed hard; it was obvious that the process wouldn't be easy.

"Pull out the bones one by one, re-temper the Root Bone, and then put them back in..."

"..."

After a long silence, the Lord Rat finally cursed, "What kind of shitty method is this?!"

"It could take three years, or as long as ten years, depending on the depth of the Blood Sha power within one's body and one's pain tolerance..."

"Ancestor, is your record really reliable?"

Let's assume a time limit of three years.

Throughout the entire process of stripping away his cultivation, his cultivation level will continue to decline, dropping from the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage to the early stage, from the early stage to the Qi Refining Peak Stage, or even lower.

During this time, he couldn't do anything.

Unable to cultivate, unable to use spiritual power, even the daily affairs of the Spirit Rat Line may have to be handed over to the second son...

Just as he was pondering this, Shi Jian, who had been secretly watching, clicked his tongue lightly.

"Lord Rat."

Shi Jian's voice suddenly rang in the Lord Rat's ear, startling the Lord Rat so much that it immediately knelt down on the ground...

"Ancestor!"

"Think it through and then do it; if you're not sure, then don't."

"Stop dawdling here. With your meager abilities, you could waste a hundred years and still not amount to anything."

Lord Rat: "..."

The old man's insults were as straightforward as ever.

Seeing that the ancestor did not reprimand him again, the Lord Rat breathed a sigh of relief and quickly descended Purple Firmament Peak, returning to the cave of the Spirit Rat Line.

In my heart, I had already made up my mind.

He summoned his second brother, as well as several of the most senior rat demons in the clan. A dozen gray-haired rats sat around a stone platform, the atmosphere solemn.

"From today onwards, the Spirit Rat Line will fully switch to cultivating the Dao of Wind."

The Lord Rat scanned the area, giving no mouse a chance to object.

"Second brother, you and all the rat Qi Refining in the clan who have reached the Qi Refining stage will begin cultivating near the Dao of Wind Blessed Land in the valley starting tomorrow."

"I have already set up Lesser Wind-Gathering Formation on both sides of the valley entrance. Although the concentration of spiritual energy in the Dao of Wind is not high, it is enough for you."

"Those cubs that have not yet developed spiritual awareness will all be moved to the cave at the bottom of the valley to be raised."

"Let them be immersed in the Spiritual Qi of the Dao of Wind from birth, so that their bloodline will gradually shift..."

"Even if generations die and are injured, as long as we survive, it will be like seeing the light after the clouds have parted!"

The second brother bit his paw. "Big brother, what about you?"

The Lord Rat stroked its whiskers.

I'm going into seclusion.

He recounted his plan to cripple his Blood Dao foundation and switch to cultivating the Dao of Wind in detail. The cave was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

The dozen or so rat demons looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Boss!" The second brother was the first to jump up. "Are you crazy? You're throwing away your perfectly good Foundation Establishment Middle Stage? What if you fall back to Qi Refining? What will those bears and dogs outside think of us?"

What do you think?

The Lord Rat snorted coldly, "They already look down on us. What difference does it make to those bear-like creatures whether there's one more or one less Foundation Establishment rat demon?"

The second son opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a word.

The facts are clear.

Although the Spirit Rat Line is large, its high-end combat strength is too weak.

Within the broader context of the Northern Mountain Range, the position of the Spirit Rat Line is rather awkward; they can only serve as scouts, laborers, and menial servants.

None of them are capable of fighting.

The Lord Rat's own combat strength is not even among the top in the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage; he relies more on his brains and his smooth talk to get by.

"Gentlemen, we must learn to change!"

"Change is coming!"