The more they knew, the more these two dared not take corporeal form.
They were born too late into this era of formidable powers, having already missed the opportune moments and destinies of this age.
Furthermore, being born in Mount Sumeru was both misfortune and fortune. Once they took form, they would be inextricably entangled with this era.
Qing Ling harbored no schemes against them; he simply sought to sow seeds of good fortune through foresight and subtle action. Whether they chose to take form or not was entirely up to them.
On Mount Sumeru, Qing Ling had but two aims: to cultivate, and to leave.
The former was pursued openly, the latter with utmost caution.
Qing Ling sat in meditation, his Qingyun Dao-image unfurling above his head, expanding to fill the Eight Treasures Pond with a vast expanse of fifteen hundred mu.
The phantom of Jianmu, the Wood Dao’s principal manifestation, emerged, drawing in spiritual energy from the heavens and earth. This energy flowed into the Qingyun, circulated through his Dao body’s heavenly cycle, transformed into Dharma, ascended to Power, and replenished the Qingyun.
The Qingyu Umbrella, a supreme spiritual treasure, shimmered with blinding brilliance, nurtured within the Qingyun.
Beneath the Qingyun, Qing Ling’s nascent spirit, the Yuanshen, was engaged in two tasks simultaneously: cultivating his Qi and Dao, and executing subtle maneuvers.
The tiny Yuanshen figure’s brow pulsed with the Spring God’s Dao Seal, reaching out across countless miles to the land of the Spring God.
Though all spiritual treasures within Duguang were his, they were too distant, spanning the entire east-west expanse of the Primordial World, beyond his ability to directly perceive with his current cultivation.
Moreover, the numerous demonic restrictions outside the Eight Treasures Pond imprisoned the void, making it a futile endeavor for his divine sense to probe the spiritual treasures.
If he possessed the cultivation of a Qinglong, capable of pointing a sword at the heavens from countless miles away with world-ending power, these mere restrictions would be insignificant.
However, with such cultivation, he would never have been brought to Mount Sumeru by Rahu.
In the wilds of Duguang, the four Boundary Guardians each held their positions, refining the Great Dao.
For ordinary cultivators, the Great Luo realm was an unreachable peak, requiring either an exceptionally high origin or heaven-defying fortune.
In years past, across the Eastern Wilderness’s myriad tribes and billions of living beings, only the three great clans, through generations of inheritance, had attained the Great Luo realm.
Granny Hua Geng’s ascension to Great Luo was also achieved through Qing Ling’s selfless act of using Bai Fu to devour the fortunes of several Great Luo cultivators, drawing decay and bestowing prosperity. This, coupled with Qing Ling’s use of the origin of the Dao of Cycles to reverse Hua Geng’s celestial five decays, offered her a sliver of hope.
Although the four Boundary Guardians received Qing Ling’s fortune and gained some from guarding Jianmu, they were still a long way from the Great Luo realm.
In the north, Bei Xu’s eyes flickered with confusion as she gazed at the colossal tree behind her, which had already soared into the eighth heaven – the foremost giant tree in all creation.
The Jianmu, which had always been stable, had experienced frequent, anomalous spiritual energy fluctuations over the past thousand years, yet detailed investigations yielded no clear cause.
Hei Bao, guarding the east, also frequently looked up at the towering Hong Ye Chun. Over the past millennium, it had shed nine leaves. While the shedding of leaves from an innate spiritual root was a treasure, it also carried an unacknowledged symbolic meaning.
A sense of unease stirred within Hei Bao. After prolonged contemplation, the divine patterns on his brow, cracking the skin, emitted a phantom divine light.
Three figures materialized within the light.
Hei Bao clasped his fists and said, “I apologize for disturbing you three.”
Bai Fu smiled and asked, “What business do you have, fellow Daoist?”
Beside him, You also wore a perplexed expression. His intellect, nurtured by the Purple You Lotus for tens of epochs, had greatly awakened.
Hei Bao’s face was grave. “You three, the Hong Ye Chun is the Dao Master’s companion spiritual treasure, and an innate spiritual root. It normally does not shed a single leaf for thousands of years, yet in the past millennium, it has shed eight. And the Dao Master has been away traveling for several epochs without returning. This…”
Bei Xu frowned and said, “I too often sense anomalous spiritual energy from Jianmu, but I cannot perceive its source.”
You said somberly, “This means, the Dao Master, he might…”
The other three simultaneously looked at You, who immediately fell silent. He knew that every time this happened, it was because he had spoken out of turn.
Bai Fu spoke, “My fortune and misfortune are tied to the Dao Master. Although I cannot directly probe the Dao Master, observing that my own fortune and misfortune have not changed significantly, it seems the Dao Master should be out of harm’s way.”
Bei Xu pondered, “The anomaly of Jianmu and the shedding of leaves from the Hong Ye Chun must be related to the Dao Master. But if it is the Dao Master, why does he not manifest directly?”
Bai Fu’s heart stirred. “Could it be that the Dao Master cannot manifest directly due to some reason, or perhaps he does not wish to attract the attention of certain powerful beings?”
As he spoke, he suddenly realized something. “Brother Hei Bao, where are the shed leaves of the Hong Ye Chun?”
Hei Bao immediately waved his hand, and eight red leaves appeared.
He called out, “Eight Leopards, where are you?”
As his voice faded, eight Golden Immortal leopards rushed forward.
“Greetings, Ancestor.”
“You eight shall take these eight leaves to the Western Boundary Guardian. If there is any mishap, you will answer with your lives!”
The eight leopards trembled. Their Ancestor had never been so stern. They quickly agreed, each taking a leaf and rushing towards the west of Duguang.
After the eight leopards departed, Hei Bao said, “Brother Bai Fu, I have dispatched those younglings to deliver them. They should arrive shortly.”
Bai Fu nodded and said gravely, “This matter is top secret. Do not let the juniors know. After I consult with Senior Artifact Spirit of the Genesis Tower, I will inform you all.”
In less than half an hour, the eight leopards delivered the eight leaves to Bai Fu.
Bai Fu dismissed them, strictly ordering the ten thousand bats not to approach the divine tower.
He then held the eight leaves and entered the Genesis Tower, respectfully calling out, “Senior Artifact Spirit, Senior Artifact Spirit, please appear and meet me.”
…
After a long while, there was no reply.
Bai Fu was not in a hurry. He called out again, “Senior Artifact Spirit, the Dao Master has come to see you.”
Before his voice had completely faded, the Genesis Tower suddenly illuminated as if daytime, and an old man with white hair flashed out.
He glanced around and knew he had been tricked by this young brat. His face turned cold. “Brat, why did you trick me out here?”
Bai Fu chuckled apologetically, “Senior, please calm your anger, calm your anger. I should not have disturbed your slumber, but now, look at this.”
He waved his hand, and the eight leaves floated up. Each leaf was perfectly crimson, a rare spiritual material.
The white-haired old man narrowed his eyes and took one leaf, examining it closely for a moment.
Then, his brow furrowed deeply. He pointed at the eight leaves, and countless light chains materialized within the pagoda. Passing through the red leaves, they vanished instantly, leaving behind only minuscule specks of dust.
The eight specks of dust combined to form a spirit essence the size of a broad bean.
Upon seeing this, Bai Fu exclaimed joyfully, “Dao Master!”
The broad bean-sized spirit essence immediately transmitted a message: “Do not let this be known!”
Bai Fu nodded hurriedly in agreement.
The white-haired old man tutted in surprise, “They are being so cautious. What kind of trouble have they run into?”
The broad bean-sized spirit essence transmitted, “Trouble of immense proportions. This time, I request the Artifact Spirit’s assistance.”
“It is time for me to sleep; I cannot help.”
“Bring you to see the Three Lives Stone when you have time.”
“I said, no… wait,” the white-haired old man exclaimed in shock. “The Three Lives Stone! I will help! I will help! Dao Master, please instruct me.”
The broad bean-sized spirit essence chuckled and said, “Please use your origin to strengthen this wisp of my spirit essence.”
The white-haired old man’s mouth twitched, but he still said, “Alright, Dao Master, rest assured.”
Qing Ling smiled, “Thank you, Artifact Spirit. I will do my best to mobilize Jianmu’s power to assist you and accelerate this process.”
“Bai Fu, from now on, every leaf shed by the Hong Ye Chun must be sent into the Genesis Tower. Not a single one is to be lost. Furthermore, you four Boundary Guardians must absolutely not activate the spiritual objects of your respective territories. Be warned, do not let anyone else know!”
Bai Fu’s heart became solemn, and he respectfully agreed.
As his voice faded, the broad bean-sized spirit essence lost its voice, floating silently in the air.
Bai Fu asked, “Senior Artifact Spirit, what is happening?”
The white-haired old man gave him a sideways glance. “Do not ask what you should not ask. The terrifying power of those supreme beings in heaven and earth far exceeds your imagination. It is better not to know.”
…
On Mount Sumeru, in the Eight Treasures Pond, Qing Ling’s Yuanshen ceased its cultivation. The Qingyun dispersed, and the Yuanshen was utterly exhausted.
He had, in stages, divided wisps of his Yuanshen, using the Spring God Seal as a bridge and the Hong Ye Chun as a reception point, transmitting them via the authority of heaven and earth, hidden within the red leaves.
On Mount Sumeru, any teleportation array or void-traveling technique would not escape Rahu’s perception.
However, this minuscule thread of divine soul, concealed within the transition of spring and winter in the west, was beyond even Rahu’s ability to fully probe the cosmic transitions.
He would spend one epoch, dividing a wisp every hundred years, for a total of one-tenth of his Yuanshen power. His Yuanshen would then replenish itself over this epoch, leaving no trace of depletion.
This one-tenth of his Yuanshen power would then be secretly strengthened within the Genesis Tower, and merged with Jianmu. At the cost of a divine split, he would mobilize Jianmu to summon his true self, who shared the same origin as the spirit essence.
This plan was grand in scope and long in duration, but for beings of great power, laying a scheme for tens or hundreds of epochs was not uncommon.
However, the prerequisite for this plan was that he needed to cultivate to the eleventh heaven and become a supreme being of heaven and earth, at which point Jianmu would possess sufficient power.
He also needed to have enough strength to resist Rahu for a period, holding on until the arrival of the Ancestral Dragon Qinglong.
While supreme beings of heaven and earth would still be manipulated by existences like Rahu, they would not be easily annihilated.
In the Eight Treasures Pond, Qing Ling cultivated peacefully, subtly dividing his divine essence.
He was like a viper hidden in the shadows, waiting for an opportune moment, not to strike, but to escape.
The Western lands were a dangerous place. If the great calamity of the Dragon-Han Era were to descend upon the West, Qing Ling would surely perish if he did not leave.
Qing Ling was not like Puti or Bai Lian, who were blessed with the great fortune of the West and could remain there peacefully.
He could only linger in the West, but not reside there permanently. Otherwise, he would inevitably stray into the demonic path.
Even though he possessed one-tenth of Buzhou Pangu’s fortune, and Rahu would not force him to abandon everything in the West, his roots ultimately lay in the Eastern Wilderness, in the wilds of Duguang.
Qing Ling was never one to compromise easily.