Chapter 100: The Gathering Beneath the Sovereign Peak
The Gathering Beneath the Sovereign Peak
She remembered the countless wailing souls she had once sensed upon the old man’s broken sword.
Powerful experts.
Ancient Saints.
Supreme figures.
All reduced to silent spirits.
She slowly looked away.
Her heart pounded violently.
"...That old man..."
"...is terrifying."
Then another thought surfaced.
If someone like Elder Black...
Was merely Victor’s Imperial Pawn...
Then Victor himself...
Just what kind of existence was he?
Even now...
She still could not find an answer.
One thing alone had become certain.
This mysterious Patriarch...
Was someone whose true depth could never be measured.
And perhaps...
Following him...
Would allow both master and disciple to witness heights they had never even dared dream of.
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Cultivation knew no concept of time.
A single year drifted by like a white stallion flashing past a narrow crevice—gone almost before anyone realized it had passed.
Yet within that single year...
The Salvatore Family underwent earth-shaking changes.
The once-fragmented clan had finally begun to reunite.
One after another, branch families scattered throughout the Celestial Dawn EMPIRE arrived at the Sovereign Blessed Land in an orderly procession. Every arrival brought more laughter, more familiar faces, and more hope for the future.
The once-lonely blessed land gradually transformed into a thriving home.
Children ran through mountain paths.
Cultivators sparred atop stone platforms.
Alchemists refined pills day and night.
Blacksmiths forged weapons as hammers echoed through the valleys.
Everywhere one looked...
Life flourished.
According to the latest records meticulously compiled by Max Salvatore, the Salvatore Family now numbered more than forty thousand clansmen.
Even so...
The Sovereign Blessed Land remained astonishingly spacious.
Towering peaks pierced the heavens.
Ancient forests stretched endlessly.
Clear rivers flowed between emerald valleys.
Even after housing tens of thousands of people, countless mountains still stood untouched, waiting for future generations.
Standing before the massive family records, Max couldn’t help smiling.
"Patriarch..."
"The final reports have all been completed."
"Aside from a handful of branch families that vanished generations ago and can no longer be traced..."
"The remaining twelve branches have all successfully returned."
"The Salvatore Family... is finally whole again."
The words filled everyone present with emotion.
Many elders quietly lowered their heads.
Some had waited their entire lives for this moment.
No one had imagined it would truly happen.
And yet...
Victor had accomplished what generations of Patriarchs never could.
With every branch reunited, the blessings granted by the Eternal Legacy System quietly rose once more.
No one besides Victor knew it.
Yet every clansman unknowingly benefited from it.
Their cultivation became smoother.
Their comprehension sharpened.
Even their bloodlines seemed slightly stronger than before.
Meanwhile...
The family itself had adopted an entirely new structure.
Gone were the old systems based solely on bloodline status.
Instead...
Everything revolved around contribution.
Every clansman—whether from the main family or a former branch—could earn Contribution Points.
Hunting powerful demonic beasts.
Gathering precious herbs.
Escorting family caravans.
Accepting dangerous missions.
Teaching younger disciples.
Inventing cultivation techniques.
Managing family affairs.
Every meaningful contribution earned rewards.
Contribution Points became the true currency of the Salvatore Family.
With them...
A clansman could exchange for cultivation techniques.
Spirit medicines.
Weapons.
Armor.
Elixirs.
Even opportunities to enter high-grade cultivation grounds.
The system was transparent.
Fair.
Open to everyone.
Inside one of the family plazas, two young disciples couldn’t help whispering excitedly.
"I finally earned enough points for a Rare-grade battle technique!"
"You too? I’m saving mine for a Divine Titan Tempering Pill."
"Hurry then! The exchange hall has been packed every day."
"Haha! I’ve never cultivated this hard before."
"Same here! Before joining the main family, I thought talent decided everything."
"Now?"
He grinned broadly.
"Work hard enough, and anyone has a chance."
Nearby, an elderly clansman stroked his beard with satisfaction.
"Our Patriarch truly sees farther than the rest of us."
"The entire family has become more united."
"No one wastes their days anymore."
"Everyone strives to become stronger."
The elder beside him slowly nodded.
"And that..."
"...is exactly why the family keeps growing."
Combined with the astonishing density of the Celestial Spirit Convergence Grand Formation...
The supreme Mana Vein...
And the endless supply of precious spiritual herbs cultivated throughout the blessed land...
The Salvatore Family entered an era of explosive growth.
Cultivators who had remained trapped for decades suddenly found themselves breaking through bottlenecks one after another.
Even many elders who had long accepted their limits began advancing once more.
Among the twelve branch patriarchs...
As well as the seven principal family stewards...
Their progress was especially astonishing.
Eleven advanced into the Astral Manifestation Realm.
The remaining five successfully stepped into the Heavenly Genesis Realm.
Each of them became genuine Heavenly Genesis experts.
Their presence alone was enough to intimidate countless surrounding sects.
Among them...
Max Salvatore stood above everyone else.
His cultivation had already reached the Sixth Level of the Heavenly Genesis Realm.
Aside from Victor himself...
He had become the strongest cultivator within the entire Salvatore Family.
Yet Max remained as humble as ever.
Whenever anyone praised him, he merely smiled.
"I’m still far behind Big Brother."
"I have much more to learn."
Those words weren’t modesty.
They were simply the truth.
Every time he saw Victor...
He felt the distance between them growing larger.
Instead of discouraging him...
It inspired him.
He cultivated even harder than before.
Meanwhile...
The family’s youngest generation also flourished.
Every newborn underwent tempering inside the Primordial Blood Refining Cauldron shortly after birth.
Their physiques became stronger.
Their foundations more stable.
Their futures brighter.
Every few weeks...
Another gifted child would emerge.
Even more exciting...
The Bloodline Forbidden Arts bestowed by the Eternal Legacy System had begun awakening throughout the reunited family.
Some children awakened astonishing abilities hidden deep within their bloodlines.
Others displayed frightening combat instincts.
A few even possessed talents rivaling the earliest prodigies personally nurtured by Victor.
The elders often laughed while discussing the phenomenon.
"Our descendants truly live in a blessed era."
"The younger generation will surpass us soon enough."
"And isn’t that exactly what we wished for?"
The entire family continued advancing...
Together.