Qing Ling left West Kunlun, carrying a hundred Primordial Peaches gifted by the host. Of the three thousand Peaches of Immortality, each was a supreme treasure of heaven and earth. They had no precedent and would never appear again.
Primordial Peaches contained the most primal Hong Meng Dao essence, and subsequent Peaches of Immortality would only gradually weaken in efficacy.
These hundred Peaches of Immortality held some effect even for beings of great cosmic power, attesting to their rarity.
For Qing Ling, they were even more beneficial, far surpassing the Huang Zhong Li. After all, the Huang Zhong Li from the Dragon Palace were of an unknown generation.
The Queen Mother of the West sealed her mountain, and West Kunlun closed its doors to guests. This closure might last for tens or hundreds of Yuan Hui. By the time West Kunlun reopened, the world might have already undergone significant changes.
The Great Luo of the Qilin clan guarding West Kunlun had long been scared away by the Zi Xiao Divine Thunder, one of the strongest lightning forces in existence, whose power was not to be trifled with.
Qing Ling turned north and, looking back from the western regions, saw that the western land was filled with abundant spiritual energy, teeming with life, showing no signs of depleted spiritual essence or scarcity of people.
However, he did not venture deep into the Great West, only skirting its edges, as it was the domain of the Qilin clan and Rahu.
He continued northward, following the Northwest Sea, and entered a region of profound darkness. The heavens were dim, the sea was like blood, and malevolent energies surged directly towards his spirit.
Boundless crimson spread before his eyes. Countless scattered souls plunged into the bloody waves, struggling in agony, their terrifying roars echoing through the desolate, bloody sea.
This was the impure place of heaven and earth, formed from Pangu’s navel.
Within the Sea of Blood, countless beings teemed and multiplied. Among them was a race subservient to the Dragon race, the Bloodworm clan, ranked fourth among the great clans.
The Sea of Blood was not currently dominated by Ancestor Ming He; perhaps he had not yet taken form, or perhaps his strength forced him into hiding.
The same applied to the Three Pure Ones, Nuwa, and the Two Sages of the West. It seemed he was half an era ahead of most of the Ancestors renowned in later generations.
He harbored no thought of plundering the life-bound treasures of these great divine beings, not out of unwillingness or fear, but simply because he could not find them.
From the moment of his birth, he possessed an innate grand formation that concealed him from the world. These great divine beings were no different.
Qing Ling traversed the Sea of Blood, continuing his northward journey. To proceed further meant crossing it. Although his primordial spirit had been injured by the gestation of the Peaches of Immortality, and it would take several Yuan Hui to recover, his strength had still improved considerably.
Even great cosmic beings might not be able to keep him.
The hundred Peaches of Immortality were for advancing his cultivation, not for healing.
Thus, Qing Ling traveled ten thousand miles, cultivating his body for ten thousand years, simultaneously refining his qi and immersing himself in the Dao of Heaven and Earth.
He refined the spiritual energy of the Eastern Domain, the Southern Domain, and the Western Domain. The spiritual energy of the Sea of Blood could also be refined.
The lands and rivers he traversed were imprinted upon his Nascent Soul. His Da Luo Dao Treasury realm gradually transformed with each place he visited, aspiring to simulate a pseudo-Primordial World.
Qing Ling journeyed through the Sea of Blood, where the waves surged and the wind blew. This place was filled with the Dao of Death, and the evolution of the Dao of Water and Wind. However, the fundamental Dao was the Dao of Blood, followed by the Dao of Slaughter.
Qing Ling’s Jian Mu had ascended to the fifth heavenly realm. He had not comprehended the Dao of Ice or the Dao of Metal.
He did not intend to cultivate each one incrementally. It would suffice to focus on the Daos of Wind, Wood, Life, Death, Time, and Tai Chi.
However, Qing Ling still intended to cultivate the Daos of Water, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Blood.
Cultivating the Daos of Water, Fire, and Earth was for the Four Symbols of Earth, Wind, Water, and Fire. Adding the Dao of Metal would form the Five Elements of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. As for the Dao of Blood, it was for the cultivation of Luo Sheng Hua.
Furthermore, he would not proactively cultivate any other Daos.
Having too many Daos would impede his progress.
Qing Ling wandered through the Sea of Blood, traveling for ten thousand years. Many monsters attempted to devour him, but he transformed them into flowers, which bloomed in the Sea of Blood.
The Sea of Blood was vast. Even having only experienced the Fierce Beast Era, the blood of the creatures of heaven and earth made it appear boundless.
The stench of blood filled the air. Every drop of blood carried impurities, resentment, or the essence of slaughter. However, when Qing Ling’s Luo Sheng Hua fell into the seabed, the Dao of Blood integrated and strengthened it.
Initially, the Luo Sheng Hua, nurtured by a Golden Immortal’s body, could absorb the blood and water of the Sea of Blood and grow to a level comparable to that nurtured by a Grand Unity’s body.
Moreover, Luo Sheng Hua could absorb impurities and purify the Sea of Blood!
Qing Ling walked slower and slower, as he planted more and more flowers.
Countless creatures of the Sea of Blood surged towards him, forming many rings around him.
But they all transformed into blooming flowers, the sole purity in this foul world of the Sea of Blood.
Qing Ling no longer knew how many flowers he had planted. It seemed he had become infatuated, influenced by the slaughter within the Sea of Blood.
Until, one day, warriors of the Bloodworm clan emerged from the Sea of Blood.
A strikingly handsome man wearing a crown broke through the waves, followed by a thousand warriors.
Qing Ling’s murderous intent ceased. He detached himself from the bloodshed and looked towards the approaching figures.
“Are you fellow Daoists of the Bloodworm clan?”
The crowned man raised an eyebrow and smiled, “I am Luo Gong, the Ancestor of the Worms.
I observe you cultivating flowers with your body, flowers that bloom eternally, their color like blood. Could you be fellow Daoist Qing Ling, the Auxiliary God under the Proto-Dragon Ancestor?”
Qing Ling was taken aback. “Fellow Daoist is truly knowledgeable to recognize even this humble one.”
“Heh, fellow Daoist is too modest.” Luo Gong shook his head and smiled. “Jian Mu supporting the heavens, the great disruption of the Qilin clan, the planter of flowers – the Auxiliary God of the Proto-Dragon Ancestor. Your name is far more renowned than mine.”
Qing Ling was stunned. He had somehow become a minor celebrity. In this era teeming with ancient giants, he felt he was drawing too much attention.
“These are mere rumors.” Qing Ling waved his hand. “Please forgive my intrusion into fellow Daoist Luo Gong’s territory.”
Luo Gong raised his hand and smiled. “Fellow Daoist worries unnecessarily. The Sea of Blood is vast, and it is not solely inhabited by my Bloodworm clan. The seventeen clans of the Blood Heaven are not all my kin.”
“Fellow Daoist jokes. Even if the seventeen clans of the Blood Heaven joined forces, they would only gain an advantage in territory. Your Bloodworm clan can contend with the three great upper clans and fourteen lesser clans, not something my Xi Shan Snake clan can compare to.
In the past, I had dealings with your clan’s Saintess, Luo Hua, as an old acquaintance. I wonder if she is well?”
Luo Gong was surprised. “I had no idea fellow Daoist was the one who relieved my daughter of her calamity.
Luo Hua is indeed my daughter. Upon her return to the clan, her mortal body was almost destroyed. She has since recovered and is merely in slumber.”
“It is good that she has returned.” Qing Ling nodded. “That past danger was perilous, and we owe much to your daughter’s assistance.”
“Hahaha, it is my daughter’s good fortune to have been able to help fellow Daoist,” Luo Gong laughed. “Now, fellow Daoist is also greatly helping me.”
“Oh? And why is that?”
“The sea regions fellow Daoist has traversed all belong to the territories of the seventeen clans of the Blood Heaven. The beings you have planted are all dependents of the Qilin clan, which inadvertently helps me.”
Qing Ling waved his hand and smiled, “It was merely a small effort. As fellow dependents of the Dragon race, it is only right.”
“Then, does fellow Daoist wish to lend my clan a hand and suppress the seventeen clans of the Sky Cloud?”
“This…” Qing Ling pondered for a moment and said, “It is not that I am shirking responsibility, but rather that I was severely injured at West Kunlun and have not yet fully recovered. While I can handle younger generations, I am no match for those of the same level.
Moreover, my purpose in heading north is to meet a senior recognized by an ancestor, who resides in the Northern Abyss. The journey is long, and a war involving your clans, once started, could take several Yuan Hui to conclude. I fear it would delay my plans.”
Luo Gong’s expression changed slightly. “Could it be that esteemed Supreme One?”
“Precisely!”
Upon hearing this, Luo Gong dared not press further and took his leave.
Qing Ling also smiled and departed. Participating in the war of the Sea of Blood, a conflict involving billions of lives, was something he absolutely wished to avoid. Both the Bloodworm clan and the seventeen clans of the Blood Heaven possessed strength comparable to the ten great royal clans of the Dragon race. All they lacked was a being of great cosmic power to preside over them.
However, this did not mean their clan’s foundation lacked the strength of a being of great cosmic power.
Such wars involved immense karmic entanglement. A single misstep could lead to the influx of death qi and tribulation qi, the decline of fortune, and rolling waves of calamity, which was extremely terrifying.