The succession of the current generation of Holy Sons and the passing of the mantle to the next marked Xi Shan's transition from a declining era to one of ascendance.
It signified that the era of the older generation had become the past.
Granny Hua Geng, Venerable Shu, Venerable Chi Li, and other elders of the clan, with their snow-white hair and hunched figures, like trees nearing decay, were all watching, their remaining bodies bearing witness to Xi Shan's gradual revival.
Just as Xi Shan's name had once resounded throughout the Primordial World, their descendants would now carry on the glory of their ancestors!
Across Xi Shan's numerous spiritual lands, the blood-red Five Peaks flag of Xi Shan was raised today, its crimson hue staining the banner depicting the majestic peaks of the Five Mountains.
Xuan Geng ascended step by step, walking ten thousand paces to finally reach the summit.
Golden Immortal Venerables stood on the plaza, retreating to the sides, bowing their heads in greeting and congratulating the new Holy Son.
Upon the high platform, Granny Hua Geng transmitted her voice, "In this epoch of myriad eras, our Xi Shan Holy Son, Qing Ling, has stepped into the first rank of Taiyi, with his Three Flowers and Five Energies now nearing completion. Therefore, he shall abdicate the position of Holy Son and pass it to Xuan Geng, who will become the new Holy Son!"
Qing Ling stepped forward, clad in imperial robes, holding his left arm to the sky. The Myriad Serpent Ancient Seal, which had lain dormant for an immeasurable age, suddenly flashed.
Amidst Xi Shan's peaks, a vast, azure tide of spiritual energy surged forth. Countless ancestral spirits of the Serpent race soared into the heavens, the Great Ruin opened wide, and billions of serpents raised their heads in roars, turning towards Xi Shan.
Innumerable souls encircled Qing Ling, the spirits of ancestors transforming into the Heavenly Dao, the clan's lands embodying the Earthly Dao, and the myriad serpents representing the Human Dao of all living beings.
The Three Daos of Heaven, Earth, and Man converged into Qing Ling's body across a hundred million li of Xi Shan.
Qing Ling's long hair flew, his eyes holding a divine majesty that looked down upon all beings. He extended a finger, as if spanning the distance between heaven and earth, and a mark of the Myriad Serpent imprinted itself into Xuan Geng's body below.
Instantly, Xuan Geng sensed a faint, ethereal connection forming within him, linking him to all serpents under heaven.
Qing Ling descended from the high platform step by step, and under the gaze of billions of serpent people, he approached Xuan Geng.
Xuan Geng bowed deeply, kneeling on one knee before Qing Ling.
Qing Ling removed the Holy Son's coronet from his head and solemnly declared, "The authority passes from my hands to you, Xuan Geng, the Holy Son. From this moment forth, you are the symbol of dignity for our clan's billions of serpent people. Every word and deed shall represent the dignity of Xi Shan. You shall oversee reverence for heaven and earth, worship of immortals, and the sending off of the departed. He who wishes to wear the holy crown must bear its weight. Xuan Geng, do you accept?"
Xuan Geng replied with solemnity, "Xuan Geng shall not fail the Holy Son's trust, nor the expectations of the clan!"
Qing Ling responded, "Good! I hope you will achieve great things!"
The Holy Son's divine crown, passed through Qing Ling's hands, was personally placed upon Xuan Geng's head.
Simultaneously, Qing Ling's imperial robes completely shed, transforming into a simple green robe. His hair, no longer bound by the coronet, unfurled, and the sacred aura around him faded, replaced by an ethereal, unrestrained elegance.
"Greetings, Holy Son!"
Qing Ling bowed with a respectful clasp of his hands, for the first time addressing the new Holy Son.
Xuan Geng suppressed the surge of emotion within him and slowly rose, returning the bow, "Many thanks, Elder."
Qing Ling stepped back with a smile, moving from the Holy Son's position to an elder's seat on a higher platform, standing alongside Ke.
Xuan Geng then turned to face the countless clan members and declared solemnly, "From this moment onward, I am the fourth generation Holy Son of Xi Shan, Xuan Geng."
"Greetings, Holy Son!"
"Greetings, Holy Son!"
"Greetings, Holy Son!"
Clan members from all directions prostrated themselves before the new Holy Son. The Four Divine Bells on Xi Shan's side peaks chimed forty-nine times, their resonance spreading far and wide.
Qing Ling smiled. After shedding the position of Holy Son, he felt a great sense of relief. Perhaps it was the transfer of fortune, or perhaps it was the unburdening of his heart.
In his primordial spirit, the Myriad Serpent clan mark bestowed by the remnant soul of Ancestor Tai Geng had split in two. One part was sent into Xuan Geng's body, while the other remained within his primordial spirit.
The part sent into Xuan Geng was the serpent clan's mark belonging to the Holy Son, while the one he retained was the Ancestor's mark.
From this day forward, he was no longer the Holy Son, but merely an elder of the serpent clan.
The serpent ancestor's mark within his body was dormant. He had already sensed the importance of this mark, but currently, Qing Ling lacked the strength to awaken it.
After the Holy Son succession ceremony concluded, Qing Ling, along with Ke and Granny Hua Geng, formed pacts with several dozen smaller tribes to the west, agreeing to a hundred Yuanhui of non-aggression.
When the Taiyi cultivator, Qing Ling, suddenly appeared before the smaller tribes, their Golden Immortal chieftains were all filled with trepidation and dared not resist.
Following this, Qing Ling returned to the clan and entered a period of quiet recuperation for three hundred years.
During this time, Xi Shan also began its campaign against the Spirit Toad clan.
The Salamander clan from the south also launched an invasion.
How could the Spirit Toad clan, with only two Taiyi Grand Cultivators, possibly contend with the combined forces of the Salamander clan and Xi Shan?
After a hundred years of war, Xi Shan had already seized tens of millions of li of vast territory from the Toad clan. Under the leadership of Ke, and with the advanced equipment and battle formations of the Xi Shan serpent army, their advance was like a bamboo breaking through.
During this period, Qing Ling also absorbed life-and-death Dao power three more times for Taiyi. The growth of the Luo Sheng Flower within him finally ceased and began to wither.
Qing Ling stood in Baichun Valley, bidding farewell to the valley's inhabitants.
Eighty-one crimson leaves fluttered down, and nine leaves from the purple Youlian also fell, seeing him off.
Thousands of flowers and grasses, spirit butterflies and bees, and over a hundred sprites all bid him farewell.
Qing Ling smiled warmly, bidding farewell to the spring spirits of the valley.
"Rest assured, wait for my return at home."
He departed, his green robe fluttering, Bai Fu following behind him. Qu, helpless, also followed. His life-and-death poison remained unhealed, so wherever Qing Ling went, he had to follow.
Qing Ling bade farewell to the elders of Xi Shan. His ageless face reflected the pursuit of life as he departed Xi Shan, watched by the eyes of Xi Shan's dying elders.
This time, he would be gone for a very, very long time, so long that he himself did not know how long it would be.
Until he achieved the Great Luo, he would not return to Xi Shan. His vow, made with great willpower, and the destiny it invoked, made Qing Ling's resolve unstoppable.
Qing Ling walked on foot. This time, he descended Xi Shan step by step.
Amidst the swirling dust, the three walked leisurely, one in green and one in red side-by-side, with the gray-clothed child trailing behind. They entered the changing winds and clouds of the Eastern Desolation and then emerged from them.
Measuring the ancient world with their footsteps, a single step forward, a thousand years of passing by.
In the vast expanse of Dugguang, where heaven and earth birthed anomalies, the eternal green remained forever.
Qing Ling stood in Dugguang, on this land, feeling the ceaseless flow of life within heaven and earth. This was the center of the entire southwestern Primordial World, Dugguang stretching for ten million li. Aside from the Toad clan, it was a place of chaos. Mountains towered, and powerhouses abounded.
Qing Ling surveyed heaven and earth, then looked in all directions, smiling, "Dugguang, I have finally arrived."
The moment he set foot on this land, destiny decreed that it would change. The fortune of Xi Shan from the Eastern Desolation flowed south, the Dragon clan's diverted fortune converged, and the myriad forces of the southwest intermingled. This land was destined to birth legends.
Qu asked with a touch of bewilderment, "You truly intend to begin here? With this method of breaking through, even if you met with misfortune, I could not intervene to save you!"
Qing Ling's lips curved into a playful smile, "What, are you concerned about me?"
Qu snorted, "If you die, how will my life-and-death poison be cured?"