Compared to Ke, Qi's path of the blade and his killing techniques lacked sufficient power. With no one to guide him, he forged his way through slaughter alone.
Yet, Qi harbored no true "killing" intent in his heart, only a blade's heart. Though his blade was peerlessly sharp, his heart remained soft.
Ke, on the other hand, was different. She cultivated only the great path of ice, her innate divine ability, the Ice Flame, with a clear direction. Da Feng Fiction Network.
Ke arrived at Duguan, ascended the towering Jianmu, and met Qingling, whom she hadn't seen in a long time. He felt both strange and familiar.
She knelt on one knee, respectfully saying, "Greetings, Ancestor."
Qingling shook his head and said, "Ke, you and I are old acquaintances, there's no need for such formalities."
A faint smile appeared on Ke's face, like that of an ice spirit fairy, but she still said respectfully, "Ke cannot break the clan rules."
Qingling sighed inwardly. Ke's disposition was exceptional. Only when she became a Da Luo would she be qualified to be his old acquaintance again.
"Ke, your Five Energies are already complete, and your Three Flowers are nearing completion. I am not particularly proficient in the Way of Ice and Snow, but I do have a few insights to share with you."
"Please, Ancestor, enlighten me."
"To break through to Da Luo, one must use the Five Energies to form a cloud of auspiciousness, which supports the Three Flowers, achieving the convergence of the Three Flowers and the return of the Five Energies to their source. This will then trigger the Heavenly Dao Stairs, allowing one to prove the Da Luo realm.
However, one must have moderation and act within one's capabilities. The Dao ladder is not about having more, but about having the right fit. I once saw a Taiyi breaking through his realm, a hundred thousand and eighty-one steps, paving clouds into the sky, so grand and magnificent. Alas, he only managed to traverse more than half before stopping, thus missing the Da Luo realm."
Ke nodded and said, "Rest assured, Ancestor. Ke will never be arrogant. I will proceed with caution."
Qingling added, "Since Granny sent you to Duguan, it means no one in the clan can help you anymore. If you had come a little earlier, there would have been nothing I could do for you either.
However, you've come at just the right time; I can still help you a little."
He smiled and pointed to the divine diagram above. "I will send you into the Diagram of the Four Seasons. You will be fixed in the Winter Sequence, where you will perceive the authority of heaven and earth amidst countless ice and snow. This is a rare opportunity, far more valuable than any external object."
Ke's heart fluttered with excitement, and a faint smile graced her face, like a clear spring flowing from a melting ice mountain.
"Thank you, Ancestor, for your great kindness."
Qingling chuckled, "Even if you weren't a clan member, I would still do my best for the sake of our old friendship.
Go now, meditate with peace of mind. I will handle everything."
A beam of white light descended, enveloping Ke and drawing her into the Diagram of the Four Seasons.
Strictly speaking, Ke was not a snake but a subordinate of the dragon race.
As a chaotic ice chi, her bloodline was closer to the dragon race's chi dragon lineage. However, having resided in Xishan for many years, even a heart of stone would have taken root. As long as there were no unforeseen events, she would become a powerful figure of Xishan after successfully breaking through.
Thinking of this, the figures of the elders from Xishan in those years appeared in his mind: Qi's naive charm, Du's ethereal grace like the wind, Chi's seductive and lively nature, Elder Chi Li, who was traditional but dedicated to the clan, and Elder Yu, who was magnanimous—
Yet, his old friends had gradually grown old, and seeing them now, everything was changed.
This "old" was different from the age of mortals.
Elder Chi Li and Elder Yu were already elders of the clan. Xishan had risen for nearly seventy Yuanhui, yet their cultivation had hardly progressed.
Their hearts had grown old and heavy, and their appearance had changed accordingly.
More importantly, their cultivation had stagnated, causing their fortune to gradually decline, leading to the rise of karmic and death energies, even triggering tribulations. The advent of the Five Decays of Heaven and Man was something even a Golden Immortal could scarcely alter.
Fortunately, Xishan's fortune was immeasurably stronger than before, sufficient to protect their destiny and prolong their lifespan.
In these tens of Yuanhui, Xishan had produced over sixty to seventy Taiyi Great Cultivators, but many had perished externally, failed their breakthroughs, or gone missing in the Primordial World and never returned.
The Primordial World was truly dangerous. In the past, Xishan was too weak and confined to one place, so the dangers were much smaller. But now, Xishan was one of the eight great royal clans subservient to the Dragon race. Its members were spread throughout the land, and its people were dispersed. Facing the vast and perilous wilderness, how could Golden Immortal and Taiyi cultivation be enough?
However, it was fortunate that Qi had a close relationship with him, and fortune was bestowed upon him. Even though the young fellow had ventured into many secret realms, he always returned alive.
As Qingling thought of this, he beckoned. A slender vine fell from the Jianmu. The 'Life' character Dao pattern on his brow twirled, and immense Dao power surged into it, sealing it and transforming it into a vine bracelet. Countless intricate divine patterns flowed, coalescing into a 'Life' character Dao pattern.
He then extended his index finger, and a drop of his great cultivator's blood fell onto the vine, blending into it, concealing all its extraordinary nature and returning it to plainness.
He then tossed it into the air. The bracelet flew up, transforming into a streak of light and descending towards Xishan, landing beside a large-headed child lying on the ground, propping his head with his hand and daydreaming.
The large-headed child was startled. He snatched the vine bracelet, looked at it, and suddenly sat up straight, exclaiming with surprise, "It's Brother's! It is!
It's the bracelet Brother gave me."
Saying this, he happily put the bracelet on his left hand and even tore off a piece of beast skin to make a protective cover for the vine bracelet.
From afar, Elder Yu, who was behind him, heard the surprised exclamation and reprimanded, "Silence! Qi, what nonsense are you spouting?
You must respectfully address the Ancestor. You're over seventy Yuanhui old, and if you continue to be impudent, you'll be punished according to clan rules."
Qi turned around, snorted proudly, and said, "He's my Brother, I'll call him whatever I want. It's none of your business."
Elder Yu said, full of regret, "That was in the past. Now the Ancestor is a great celestial being, the God of the Four Seasons, a supreme deity in heaven and earth, a being not to be blasphemed."
Qi remained unfazed, "I don't care about any of that. Whether it's the future or the past, my Brother will always be my Brother, and forever will be."
"You!" Elder Yu said indignantly, "You unfilial son! It seems I truly need to find a female snake to discipline you. They say snakes that have formed nests become sensible. I'll ask Chi to choose a female snake for you in a few days."
Upon hearing this, Qi's eyes widened like copper bells in terror. "Father! But I'm still a child! I'm still a young snake."
Seeing his panic, Elder Yu's expression became triumphant. "Young? Nonsense! If you weren't a Taiyi Great Cultivator, you'd be an old man already. Perhaps if you had snakelets, your body would have grown up!"
Qi's mind conjured an image: a child of eight or nine years old, entangled by a giant female snake, being pressured to mate.
He shivered and quickly banished the terrifying image from his mind. He already had a snake in his heart; how could he mate with other snakes?
That night, Qi, carrying his blade, fled under the cover of darkness. He left behind a transmission stone, stating he was going to explore the Eastern Sea secret realm to seek a breakthrough, which would take tens of thousands of years. He asked Elder Yu not to worry and not to look for him, as the female snake was meant for someone else who was waiting through the years.
Upon hearing the transmission stone, Elder Yu was so enraged that he clenched his hand, crushing the stone into powder.
In the Eastern Wasteland, the various tribes lived in peace, except for the Myriad Beast War that occurred every Yuanhui. Aside from minor squabbles and laughter among the younger generation, there were no major events.
Many living beings wished for such days to last forever, but eternal peace was destined to be unattainable.