Chapter 441 - 280: Foundation Establishment Great Perfection
"I will wait for you at Luoyue Cliff."
...
"Xing’er left?" Xia Yunxue asked as she pushed the door open and walked in. She sat down by Little Lingyun’s small bed and tucked the sleeping little one in.
Song Changsheng, focused on the task at hand, nodded upon hearing her. "He’s gone. I imagine he’s already at the foot of the mountain by now."
"You seem worried."
Xia Yunxue knew her husband all too well. He was nowhere near as calm as he appeared.
"Qingxing has a new item with him. My intuition tells me he’s about to do something dangerous—very dangerous," Song Changsheng said grimly, stopping the work in his hands.
"But you still let him go," Xia Yunxue said with a sigh.
"Jade must be carved to be perfected. A sword that has never tasted blood can never become a renowned weapon. He has his own path to walk, and I won’t interfere. The most I can do is give him a few extra safeguards."
Xia Yunxue shook her head and said no more. She wasn’t the kind of mother to interfere with her children’s choices either.
Her gaze shifted to Song Changsheng’s hands. "What’s that?" she asked curiously.
Hearing this, a smile spread across Song Changsheng’s face. "It’s called a rattle-drum. A little toy for a child to play with."
"A rattle-drum?" Xia Yunxue was puzzled; she had never heard of such a thing. She then looked toward the corner of the room, where there was a wooden carving shaped like a gnu. But instead of four limbs, it had a wooden board with upturned ends.
"That’s a Wooden Horse. When Lingyun is a little older, he’ll be able to ride it," Song Changsheng said. He tried shaking the rattle-drum in his hand, then placed it with satisfaction inside a foot-long wooden box beside him.
Inside the box already lay a chubby little wooden sword.
"Are all these for Qingyun?" Xia Yunxue suddenly understood Song Changsheng’s intention, yet at the same time, she didn’t fully grasp it.
Song Changsheng dusted the remaining wood shavings from his hands and sighed softly. "I’m about to go into seclusion. This time, it might be for a very long while. By the time I come out, Lingyun might already be old enough to get into all sorts of trouble."
"I hope these toys can make up for some of what he’s missed out on from me as his father."
Having been an orphan in his previous life, he knew better than anyone how much a child craves their parents’ company.
Since this little one had come into his life, the time he had spent with him was pitifully short. Song Changsheng had been wracked with guilt, and this was his only way to try and make amends.
"I’ll take good care of Qingyun, so you can set your mind at ease. I’m sure he’ll understand you when he’s older," Xia Yunxue said lovingly.
"I hope so." Song Changsheng shook his head with a wry smile.
「The next day」
Song Changsheng went to the Scripture Pavilion. He recorded his Body Technique, [Fleeting Shadows]; his Little Divine Technique, [Celestial Spirit Shield]; the Refining Method for the [Sword Pill]; and the [Insight Skill] and [Ten Thousand Miles Tracking] taught to him by Sunx Chuanming onto Jade Scrolls, which he then added to the clan’s Gold Storage Pavilion.
On the third floor, he saw the [Spiritual Qi Force] technique and "Array Carved on Body" that he had placed there years ago. He had heard that many Cultivators were now trying to practice them, but with little success.
’It couldn’t be helped.’ Song Changsheng’s techniques were extraordinary, but the barrier to entry for cultivating them was also high.
Following that, he recorded his own insights on cultivation onto a Jade Scroll and placed it on the first floor of the Gold Storage Pavilion.
His insights were comprehensive, covering multiple aspects such as Cultivation, Body Refining, Artifact Refining, Array Formation, Swordsmanship, and Little Divine Techniques. He priced it at one Clan Contribution Point.
After finishing all this, he entrusted his little turtle to Xia Yunxue and formally announced he was entering seclusion...
While Song Changsheng was in seclusion, Song Qingxing had nearly flown out of the Moon Viewing Mountain Range and was resting temporarily in a cave.
He gathered a pile of dry, yellowed branches and lit a fire. The orange-red glow filled the cramped cave, illuminating Song Qingxing’s emotionless face.
Having held it in for a long time, Wujie finally poked his head out of the Bronze Mirror. He circled around Song Qingxing and said, "That uncle of yours is quite generous. Saved us a lot of trouble."
"Where first?"
Song Qingxing asked calmly.
"The Sword Technique I taught you requires constant killing to advance. I’ve already planned your route. First, we go to the Hundred Thousand Mountains, then head north to the Lu Kingdom Cultivation Realm."
After submitting to Song Qingxing, Wujie had made a point to learn about the Daqi Cultivation World and its surrounding areas. This route was one he had carefully selected.
First, he would enter the Hundred Thousand Mountains to fight Demon Beasts and accumulate combat experience. Then, he would proceed to the Lu Kingdom Cultivation Realm, known as the most chaotic region in the Southern Continent.
Just how chaotic was the Lu Kingdom Cultivation Realm?
It was a place utterly devoid of order, a paradise for outlaws and Loose Cultivators. There, you had to be prepared to kill or be killed at any moment.
Things you couldn’t do anywhere else, you could do there as you pleased!
Song Qingxing nodded slightly, noncommittal. He had heard of the infamous Lu Kingdom Cultivation Realm—a gathering place for the wicked.
But he felt no fear, only a soaring fighting spirit!
"HISSS..."
Suddenly, a rustling sound echoed through the pitch-black night, sounding particularly eerie.
Expressionless, Song Qingxing picked up a half-burnt branch from the fire. Without looking, he threw it casually. The branch, infused with Sword Qi, pinned a Tier One Top Grade Cyan Heaven Python to the ground, killing it instantly.
This was but a minor episode on his journey, yet it officially raised the curtain on his path of blood and slaughter...
After Song Changsheng entered seclusion, time seemed to press fast-forward. A year passed in the blink of an eye.
In that year, the Allied Army formed by the Daqi Cultivation World advanced triumphantly through the Hundred Thousand Mountains. In a major battle, they slayed two Demon Kings in one fell swoop, securing a decisive victory. The defeat of the Demon Race was now only a matter of time.
More than one hundred thousand li of land had already been incorporated into the territory of the Daqi Cultivation World. Countless people were enjoying this Taotie feast, and even many Loose Cultivators were itching to join the Allied Army to win glory and fortune.
The Vast Alliance had gone completely dormant. They had underestimated the influence of the Hundred Herbs Hall, and the Blood Kill Order had caused them grievous losses, forcing them completely into the shadows to bide their time.
The Lieyang Sect was also unexpectedly quiet. The death of Hex Tang was like a grain of sand dropped into the ocean, failing to create even the slightest ripple. This greatly disappointed those who were secretly watching the situation.
This included the Xiang Province Rong Clan. They were hoping for a situation where the snipe and the clam grapple, so the fisherman can profit; they were the ones who most wanted to see the Lieyang Sect and the Song Clan fight to the death.
However, some smelled a rat and were secretly speculating about what big move the Lieyang Sect was preparing.
The Martial Spirit Sect and the Liuyun Sect were also strangely quiet. To be precise, the entire Ling Province was quiet.
Everyone was waiting—waiting for a result that could overturn the current balance of power in Ling Province!
During that year, the five Song Clan Cultivators who had been in long-term seclusion attempted to break through one after another. The result: three succeeded, one died, and one was gravely injured.
The Cultivators who successfully broke through were Song Changrong, Song Luyun, and Song Changxiu.
As for Song Changqi, in whom the clan had placed high hopes, he ultimately failed to live up to the Elder Council’s expectations. He failed to break through the final step, the Divine Soul Barrier, and then lost his life by staking everything on a second, desperate attempt.
Song Changqi’s failed breakthrough cast a shadow over the hearts of the Song Clan members. He had been chosen in the hopes that he would inherit Song Luhuai’s mantle and revitalize the clan’s way of the Talisman, but now he had failed, and the development of the Song Clan’s Talisman arts stagnated once more.
Song Changjing also failed his breakthrough. However, he lacked Song Changqi’s courage to gamble with his life, so he managed to survive and withdrew from the stage in disappointment.
Not long after this, Song Changsheng finished refining the [Celestial Spirit Pill], and his Cultivation rose to another level. His Mental Realm had already reached Foundation Establishment Great Perfection, so this breakthrough was merely a natural progression.
After consolidating his Cultivation, he did not choose to come out of seclusion. Instead, he continued his closed-door training to improve his proficiency with Array Artifacts.
Time has no meaning in cultivation; the years pass unnoticed in the mountains. In the third year of Song Changsheng’s seclusion, a magnificent aura suddenly enveloped the entirety of Vast Mist Peak.
Startled, Song Changsheng came out of seclusion to see that the Clan Protection Array had activated. Countless streams of Spiritual Qi were gathering at the mountain’s peak, where a vast Purple Qi formed a massive dragon that descended from the heavens!
...
(End of Volume)