Ten thousand years have passed in the slow flow of time.
On the Jianmu tree, Qing Ling sat high in the thirty-first heaven, gazing down at the layered worlds shrouded in clouds and mist, a flicker of worry in his heart.
The Jianmu was too tall, too immense, and the weight of the thirty-one heavens it bore was even more colossal.
He sometimes wondered if the Jianmu might one day snap under the immense pressure of the heavens, should they become too heavy.
Even though the Jianmu had been transformed and grown by the immense power of heaven and earth over countless years, infused with the condensation of numerous wood dao laws, the flow of wood dao power, and the countless efforts of himself, an ancient great power, the Jianmu was, after all, a tree.
The heavens were too heavy, the earth too ponderous. With Buzhou Mountain still standing, the Jianmu only bore twenty percent of the world’s weight, and it could still manage.
But if, in the future, Buzhou Mountain were to fall, then the entirety of the world's weight would press down upon the Jianmu. In that instant, without a doubt, the Jianmu would break!
Qing Ling closed his eyes and meditated for a long time. When he opened them, he thought of the Ancestral Witches.
The body of the Jianmu was strong, resilient. Even if caught completely off guard, ordinary Great Luo Golden Immortals could not harm it.
But the Jianmu's foundation was insufficient, its innate endowment lacking!
The Jianmu was actually capable of bearing flowers and fruit!
The Shanhai Jing recorded, "Jianmu, a hundred ren high without branches, has nine struts at the top and nine curves at the bottom. Its seeds are like hemp, its leaves like awnings. Da Hao once passed by."
However, Qing Ling had never allowed the Jianmu to bloom, thus preventing it from conjugating with other wood-type beings or bearing fruit, thereby damaging its foundation. Consequently, its master, himself, had never experienced any form of "rutting."
As Qing Ling descended the Jianmu, the land god of Duguan instantly emerged from the earth. His short stature prostrated on the ground, respectfully saying, "This humble land god pays respects to the great lord!"
"Rise," Qing Ling said, then asked, "Has Ju Mang shown any unusual behavior?"
"Reporting to my lord, this humble god has guarded him for ten thousand years and has not observed any abnormal behavior from him."
Qing Ling nodded. "You may withdraw."
The land god quickly and respectfully took his leave, his short legs retracting as he returned to the earth.
Qing Ling walked unhurriedly across the Duguan land. Green grass carpeted the ground, bees and butterflies fluttered about, the sky was a canvas of faint light and shifting clouds, and a gentle breeze swept through the forests and grasslands, creating a scene of serene leisure.
This was a beautiful sight that he envied, yet he could not linger.
Beyond Duguan, perils abounded, countless schemes were in motion, and a single misstep could lead to eternal damnation!
Qing Ling arrived at the base of the Jianmu, where a stout man clad in green beast hide sat cross-legged, his limbs bound, his expression vacant.
He sensed the arrival of the newcomer and opened his eyes, looking at Qing Ling, "How much longer will you suppress me?"
Qing Ling smiled gently, "Suppress? If I were merely suppressing your injuries, how could they have fully healed? Ten thousand years, even Hou Tu and Di Jiang might have barely recovered by now. Without the rich wood energy of my Jianmu to nourish you, your body would likely not have healed even in another ten thousand years."
Hearing this, Ju Mang's expression dimmed, and he fell silent.
Towards Qing Ling, he felt neither the fear, anger, nor hatred that other Ancestral Witches displayed. He could only feel a sense of helplessness.
This was because he still remembered that Qing Ling had once saved his life. A life-saving debt, he felt, must be repaid.
However, the two were on opposing sides, belonging to the Wu and Yao tribes respectively, their destinies destined for confrontation.
Qing Ling walked slowly towards him. Here, Jianmu was merely a "mortal" whose witch power and physical strength had been suppressed.
"Have you ever considered the future of the Wu tribe?"
Ju Mang replied, "Naturally, it is to ascend to the Heavenly Court and destroy the Yao tribe!"
"But can you exterminate them all? All beings with spiritual awareness in the world are part of the Yao tribe. Even if the Wu tribe perishes, the Yao tribe will not be annihilated."
"Nonsense!" Ju Mang shouted, "My Wu tribe will never perish."
Qing Ling shook his head, "There is no tribe that can prosper eternally. Even the powerful Three Tribes of the past have declined to this day.
The Wu and Yao, though strong, are no different.
Unless, the Wu and Yao reconcile."
"Impossible," Ju Mang shook his head. "Let alone the agreement of my eleven brothers and sisters, with the death of Emperor Huang Fu Xi on the Yao side, Nu Wa would surely harbor deep hatred. And countless Yao tribesmen who died tragically would not agree.
Moreover, the countless members of the Wu tribe depend on the Yao tribe for sustenance! This is the root of the conflict between the two races!"
Qing Ling nodded. "The root of the conflict between the Wu and Yao tribes lies here.
But your Ancestral Witches only think of slaughtering the Yao tribe and feeding on them, without seeking a true method to resolve the Wu tribe's innate Sha energy."
Ju Mang shook his head, "If there were a way, we would have tried it long ago. However, the Wu tribe's innate Wu Sha can only be transformed into Hou Tu Wu Sha through consuming meat to temper the body. Otherwise, they can only be tormented and die by the innate Wu Sha!"
Qing Ling heard this and scoffed, "So, this is why your Wu tribe can only have twelve Ancestral Witches. While transforming innate Wu Sha into acquired Wu Sha allows survival, it forever loses the opportunity to break through the constraints of the earth!"
Ju Mang lowered his head and remained silent.
Qing Ling said, "If, one day, the Wu tribe no longer needs to feed on the Yao tribe, would you restrain your kin and cease indiscriminate slaughter?"
Ju Mang looked up at him, his eyes widening in surprise, "You have a solution?"
Qing Ling shook his head, "Naturally, I do not. Well then, you may recuperate here for some time. By then, the Wu tribe will come to exchange for you."
"Exchange?" Ju Mang did not believe it, "My brothers are not the sort to endure this. They will surely turn Duguan upside down. Even if your power is profound and your age ancient, the twelve Ancestral Witches of today are no longer the ones you could easily manipulate."
Qing Ling heard this and chuckled, "And yet, you are still in my grasp?"
With that, he flicked his finger, and nine drops of emerald green blood flowed from Ju Mang's body into Qing Ling's hand.
"These nine drops of heart's blood shall settle the karma from that year. Should we meet again in the future, do not hold back."
Ju Mang's expression froze, his eyes filled with doubt, "Will you truly let me go?"
Qing Ling chuckled and turned to leave.
It was not that he was unwilling to keep Ju Mang, but that the balance of the Heavenly Dao could not be disrupted.
The higher one stood, the more one could see, and thus, the more one had to fear.
Qing Ling looked at the Ancestral Witch's essence blood in his palm, his heart stirring.
In this world, if there was anything that could be of great use to the Jianmu, it would undoubtedly be the Creation Treasure, the Qiankun Ding!
However, the Jianmu already supported the heavens and could not be refined into the Qiankun Ding.
Besides that, there was the blood of Pangu!
Though Pangu was dead, his bloodline remained.
And Pangu's Heart must surely exist!
Qing Ling understood that the purest Pangu blood in the Primordial World was to be found within the Pangu Heart in the Pangu Temple!
By drawing upon the Pangu Heart's blood, the Jianmu could ascend to a higher level, break through its limitations, and avoid being crushed under the immense weight when the heavens collapsed.
He was waiting, waiting for the Wu tribe to bring him Pangu's blood.
Qing Ling was not afraid that the Wu tribe would refuse. With the skull of Shebi Shi and Ju Mang in his possession, neither of these two items alone could form the Dutian Shen Sha Array!
He would simply sit in the thirty-first heaven, awaiting the arrival of his guests.
As for the eleven Ancestral Witches forcefully demanding his release, within Duguan, no one could compel Qing Ling!
Now that his injuries were healed, the Jianmu was stable, and his cultivation realm steady, Qing Ling could exert twelve percent of his combat power. Moreover, the reputation of Jianmu was enough to awe them.
Since ancient times, Jianmu had suppressed countless Golden Immortals and Taiyi Golden Immortals at its roots. Even Great Luo Golden Immortals and great powers of heaven and earth had been imprisoned here. They could not die, nor could they escape, forever confined in an endless captivity.
Such suppression and imprisonment were more terrifying than death!