Chapter 767

Time flowed like water—silent, endless, and imperceptible. Lu Qing’s seclusion did not stir much attention.

In the village, everyone was long accustomed to him and Xiao Yan vanishing for months—or even years—whenever they went into closed-door cultivation.

After all, everyone knew that Lu Qing and his companions were now immortals.

And for immortals, time was counted not in days or months, but in years.

Some of the younger villagers had also embarked upon the path of cultivation. They, too, understood that for someone as powerful as Lu Qing, a single seclusion could easily span years.

And just like that, five years passed in a blink.

Inside the tranquil chamber of the Yuhua Cave, Lu Qing slowly opened his eyes.

Within them swirled a reflection of the stars—wisdom vast and profound flickering like a galaxy.

“At last, I’ve finished deducing the fifth tribulation of the technique.”

A hint of emotion flickered in his gaze.

For the past five years, aside from occasionally stepping out to spend time with Xiao Yan and the others, most of his days had been devoted entirely to deducing the .

Now, half a decade later, he had successfully extrapolated the subsequent tribulations—up to the fifth one.

However, at that fifth tribulation, Lu Qing had begun to feel a bottleneck.

Beyond it lay the mysterious and unfathomable Laws of Space.

The difficulty of deduction had multiplied a thousandfold.

Even with the aid of his , the process had become painfully obscure and slow.

He understood then that the issue was not his —but his cultivation realm.

The realms beyond the Divine Soul were like mountains hidden in the clouds: from the base, one could only see mist and shadow, never the true peak.

“Well, that’s fine. The Five-Tribulation Technique will suffice for quite some time. Once I reach the Five-Tribulation Divine Soul, I’ll naturally gain the insight needed to continue the deductions.”

Having made up his mind, Lu Qing felt no frustration.

He examined his current cultivation.

Though he hadn’t actively cultivated in these five years—relying solely on the and the automatic circulation of his technique—his strength had grown steadily.

He had already made significant progress within the First Tribulation of the Divine Soul, now approaching the small accomplishment stage.

However…

Lu Qing frowned slightly after a brief calculation.

The had refined an enormous number of Spirit Stones during these years.

Although he still possessed a great reserve, at his current rate of consumption, those stones would barely last until the Third or Fourth Tribulation.

“Indeed, the saying holds true—”

He sighed quietly.

He had once believed the massive hoard of Spirit Stones he brought back would last for ages.

But given his current cultivation speed, that optimism had proven misplaced.

Worse still, as his realm rose, he could sense that the were losing effectiveness.

His Divine Soul energy was simply too refined. Each increment of progress consumed vast amounts of spiritual essence.

It would not be long before even mid-grade Spirit Stones failed to sustain his progress.

He now understood why, back at the Tianyuan Great World’s Tianshu City auction, that mysterious expert had demanded —even for trading top-grade artifacts.

At such heights of cultivation, lesser stones became as meaningless as dust.

After a moment of reflection, Lu Qing flicked his sleeve, scattering thousands of Spirit Stones across the chamber.

A bloomed into life, its spiritual essence flowing like mist.

Since the had been deduced to its current limit, it was time for him to focus wholly on cultivation.

In the end, strength remained the foundation of all things.

With his current foundation, after crossing another one or two Divine Soul Tribulations, he would be powerful enough to roam freely—even across the Tianyuan Great World.

By then, earning Spirit Stones would be a trivial matter.

As his technique began circulating at full force, the spiritual essence surged around him, drawn into his body like a vast river.

Under the dual refinement of the and the , that essence transformed swiftly into Divine Soul power—nourishing both his spirit and flesh.

His cultivation rose at a speed that would have left ordinary cultivators speechless.

Meanwhile, far beyond the skies, within the Sea of Annihilation, something changed.

That silent starry sea began to stir.

The long-dead stars started to turn slowly, rippling like the awakening of a cosmic beast.

A terrifying fluctuation burst forth from its heart—drawing the gaze of countless powers across the heavens.

“The Sea of Annihilation is shifting?”

“Could it be that the is about to emerge?”

“But wasn’t it supposed to be two or three years away?”

“It may not appear immediately—but it’s definitely close.”

Dozens of colossal flying vessels hovered outside the Sea of Annihilation, each carrying cultivators of immense power.

The moment the change appeared, they began to converse through Divine Soul transmissions.

According to ancient records, such celestial ripples heralded the birth of the .

“Earlier than predicted…”

On the Heaven-Shattering Sword Sect’s flying vessel, Yu Jian, dressed in white, gazed solemnly into the vast sea of stars.

The jade slip from his sect master had warned him—

once the Sea of Annihilation began to move, the secret realm would manifest within a year.

“Senior Brother Yu Jian, it seems we must prepare sooner than expected,”

came a transmission from another vessel—Qing Xi’s voice.

“Indeed. When the secret realm appears, chaos will follow. Our two sects should act together—to secure entry at the first opportunity.”

“That’s exactly what I was thinking,” Qing Xi replied.

Elsewhere, aboard a dark flying vessel, Hei Ming also sensed the disturbance.

“Brother Hei Ming,” a sultry voice teased within his mind, “don’t forget our little agreement.”

“Rest assured,” Hei Ming replied coolly, “I won’t break a .”

“Then I’ll be relying on you, dear brother,” came Tao Fairy’s charming whisper.

Meanwhile, atop a dragon-shaped vessel, an elderly cultivator bowed toward a middle-aged man in purple dragon robes.

“Patriarch, the Gui Xu Secret Realm is awakening!”

The man’s hands trembled faintly, eyes burning with emotion.

“After all these years of patience… our clan shall finally rise again!”

All across the starry void, countless powers stirred.

Some were excited, others calculating, and many harbored dark intentions.

The tranquil heavens became shrouded in a tense, expectant aura.

The waves from the Sea of Annihilation spread outward at incredible speed—

reaching across multiple Immortal Domains, felt by innumerable experts.

“So, it begins…”

Atop a sword-shaped mountain within the Heaven-Shattering Sword Sect’s domain, an old man in gray gazed skyward.

Elsewhere, within a dark palace, an ancient voice murmured:

“Gui Xu—the legacy of the Daoist of Transcendence—at last emerges. The world shall soon descend into turmoil once more.”

In a quiet valley, a white-haired woman carrying a bamboo basket looked up silently at the heavens.

Far away, within a black-and-white temple adrift in the void, a Daoist laughed wildly.

“Hahaha! Once Tu Shan seizes the secret of Transcendence, my Black-and-White Temple shall rise above all!”

…

At that very moment, in his home world, Lu Qing suddenly awoke from meditation.

A wave of power—dozens of times stronger than before—had cascaded down from the heavens.

“What… is this fluctuation?”

He frowned, sensing the vast energy trembling through the skies.

“Could it be that the so-called is finally emerging?”

He quickly realized the truth.

The strange heavenly ripple that had lingered for years had abruptly intensified.

Combined with the information he once gleaned from the , he was certain—the long-anticipated secret realm was being born.

Of course, that had nothing to do with him.

He didn’t even know where it was located—and even if he did, he had no intention of going.

An event capable of shaking the heavens would inevitably attract countless powerful cultivators.

With his current strength, venturing there would be nothing short of suicide.

Still, the surge of energy caused the inside his to tremble.

Extending his Divine Sense, he saw it quivering lightly within—but that was all.

The reaction soon faded.

It was merely resonance with the cosmic fluctuation.

Seeing no danger, Lu Qing turned his focus back inward, resuming his cultivation.

The ripples of the Gui Xu Secret Realm could not be blocked, but he simply treated them as background noise.

Time passed once again.

After half a year of intense cultivation—refining massive quantities of —Lu Qing broke through, reaching First Tribulation Small Accomplishment.

At this pace, given sufficient resources, he estimated it would take no more than ten years to face his Second Divine Soul Tribulation.

An astonishing rate of progress.

Normally, with a foundation as deep as his, even a small advance required unimaginable effort.

Yet, he had advanced faster than ever before.

This, of course, was thanks to his self-created and his , the .

The technique itself was a fusion of countless Divine Soul arts—some of them of supreme rank—refined and harmonized to suit him perfectly.

Its efficiency in absorbing spiritual essence was unparalleled.

The , too, was extraordinary.

After absorbing the Yin-Yang energies of his Tribulation, it had been reborn—its power greatly enhanced.

Though it remained a low-grade spiritual artifact in name, its refining and purifying capabilities had ascended to a whole new level.

Together, these two forces allowed Lu Qing to absorb and refine essence at a pace that defied common sense.

Having reached small accomplishment in his first tribulation, Lu Qing finally ended his seclusion and stepped outside.

After so long, it was time to rest.

Outside the cave, he spotted Xiao Li cultivating diligently.

He didn’t disturb the little creature—just smiled faintly and walked out into the open valley.

The air was rich with life, the greenery vibrant.

Breathing in deeply, Lu Qing felt a refreshing clarity wash over him.

At his level, such ambient vitality did nothing for his cultivation—but after years of isolation, it was rejuvenating nonetheless.

Just standing there, he felt his spirit lighten.

“Ah Qing, you came out and didn’t even call me!”

A small black shadow fluttered onto his shoulder—Xiao Li, pouting in mock complaint.

“I saw you were deep in cultivation, so I didn’t disturb you,” Lu Qing said with a smile.

“By the way, did you have a breakthrough recently?”

“Yup! I broke through last month! I’m now at the Seventh Transformation of the Golden Core! Am I amazing or what?”

Xiao Li’s tail wagged proudly.

“Very impressive,” Lu Qing chuckled.

He had already sensed her progress earlier, which was why he hadn’t disturbed her seclusion.

Apparently, the little one couldn’t wait to show off.

Hearing his praise, Xiao Li’s ears twitched happily, and she grinned from ear to ear.

“Well then,” Lu Qing said warmly, “since we’re both out, why don’t we go home for a bit?”

“Yay! Let’s see if Xiao Yan’s finished her cultivation too!” Xiao Li cheered.

As the two started walking back toward the village—

Far away, at the heart of the Sea of Annihilation,

a terrifying surge erupted once more.

At the same instant, the inside Lu Qing’s began to tremble violently.

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