Protect Our Chief

His prestige had also gradually risen to the point of being at its zenith.

As for the once uproarious plan to pacify the Southern Border, from the initial clamor and clatter to now, it had already fallen into "silence," with no one mentioning it anymore.

And the once glorious Wu Chengsi had long since been demoted to a cannon fodder camp on the Outer Domain Battlefield, living a life worse than death.

Gradually, even in private, fewer and fewer people brought up Wu Chengsi.

The entire Prince Dexin lineage also completely went into hibernation, their actions becoming exceedingly low-key. Every year they paid taxes honestly according to the regulations, never breaking the law or committing misdeeds, and their discipline over clan members became much stricter than before. The previous arrogance of the "direct lineage of the eldest son" was nowhere to be seen.

As for that "Dawn" organization which had been hunted down and suppressed, it had already been completely crushed and had vanished without a trace.

The Second-Grade Zhao Family, which had once been flourishing and revered by all, had also kept a much lower profile in recent years. Not only did they rarely show up in court, but their conduct had also shed a few degrees of arrogance. The Duke Protector of the Nation had, on multiple public occasions, expressed his deep regret over Zhao Zhikun’s "carelessly straying onto the wrong path," gradually salvaging a bit of his reputation.

However, they were ultimately still far from their former glory.

In contrast, the Daqian Wang Family’s prestige had grown higher and its reputation better with each passing year, gradually showing signs of prosperity.

A mere thirty years.

For the entirety of human history, this was nothing more than a fleeting instant.

For the Daqian Kingdom, this was just one small step forward.

But for the Changning Wang Family, whose history was still brief, these thirty short years were already enough to bring about earth-shaking changes within.

After relocating the commoners, the entire territory of Ping’an Town had now become the Wang Family’s private residential domain.

During the relocation process, not a single commoner suffered a loss. Through monetary compensation, land swaps, and other measures, the Wang Family ensured that every household slated for demolition gained substantial benefits, with many even making a windfall.

After the earth-shaking transformation of Ping’an Town, a dense forest had somehow grown in the middle area.

Every tree in this forest was a Spirit Plant. Some had been planted by purchasing Spirit Seeds and cultivating them, while others were simply wild Spirit Plants transplanted back from the Outer Domain.

This single stretch of Spirit Plants alone was already of immense value.

At the very center of this ten-li-wide Spirit Plant forest, a Tree of Life brimming with Immortal Mechanism Abounds had taken root. Its gnarled and intertwined roots delved deep into the earth, drawing in the pure energy of the Upper Grade Spirit Vein.

Indeed, beneath this tract of land, a Wood Element Upper Grade Spirit Vein was gradually being nurtured.

Over the past thirty years, Liyao’s Master, Celestial River Zhenren, had been employed by the Changning Wang Family, roaming the Outer Domain in search of various small Spirit Veins and using Divine Power to extract them, thereby laying the foundation for a Spirit Gathering Array for the Wang Family.

As the core foundation of the Array, this central location was naturally prioritized for construction. With layers upon layers of effort, it eventually formed this Upper Grade Spirit Vein. The other four foundational nodes had also begun to show initial results.

However, such a large-scale internal family Spirit Gathering Array could not be completed overnight. In these mere thirty years, they had barely managed to shape a rough prototype. To fully finish it would take at least sixty to seventy years, or as many as eighty to ninety years.

Even so, within the territory of the Ping’an Wang Family, the Spiritual Qi had already multiplied many times over.

Right beside the Tree of Life, Wang Lixian, stood a simple house built from Spirit Wood, situated precisely at the Spiritual Acupoints where the Spiritual Qi was most concentrated.

Inside the house, on a wooden bed, Wang Shouzhe sat cross-legged, fully immersed in cultivation mode.

Due to the lack of a True Skill, Wang Shouzhe was still cultivating the Upper Grade Technique—"Eternal Spring True Technique."

Strands of vibrant, life-filled aura lingered around him, making him look like an Immortal descended to the mortal world.

One of Wang Lixian’s branches was wrapped around Wang Shouzhe’s body, cheerfully absorbing the dense Life Origin Energy that spilled out as he cultivated.

At the same time, drops of rich emerald liquid would occasionally seep from the branches of the Tree of Life, permeating Wang Shouzhe’s skin, as if offering a kind of nourishment in return.

This was the benefit of cultivating together with a Lifebound Spirit Plant: it could greatly accelerate the growth of the Lifebound Spirit Plant, while also allowing the owner to enjoy various advantages from the plant’s feedback.

For example, with the renowned Spirit Plant, the Longevity Tree, its greatest feedback lay in delaying aging, extending lifespan, and providing a slight enhancement to bloodline talent.

But the Tree of Life was different. As an Immortal Plant, during companion cultivation it could slowly and steadily enhance its master’s physique, bloodline, and lifespan, its effects far surpassing those of the Longevity Tree by an unknown margin.

In particular, two years earlier, when Wang Lixian successfully broke through and stepped into the Tier Seven ranks, she had, in that instant, given Wang Shouzhe an immense feedback.

This feedback not only made the already handsome Wang Shouzhe even more impossibly handsome, but also noticeably increased his lifespan and bloodline.

The exact increase in lifespan was difficult to estimate for the time being, but the improvement in bloodline talent was evidently substantial.

Wang Shouzhe had originally possessed Great Celestial Pride Grade A talent; now he soared directly to the Peak of Great Celestial Pride A-level, just a hair’s breadth away from an Innate Spiritual Body.

Over the past two years, Wang Shouzhe and Wang Lixian had diligently cultivated together, slowly and meticulously raising his bloodline talent and cultivation level.

On this day.

The effect of accumulated effort finally manifested. Wang Shouzhe once again crossed that sliver of a gap; his bloodline awakened another layer, stepping into the Sixth-Layer Sacred Body level.

When his body finished the bloodline awakening and transformation, Wang Shouzhe felt as if he had been reborn. The Heavenly Dao Laws seemed almost visible before his eyes, and many of the obscure and difficult parts he had encountered while comprehending Minor Divine Techniques suddenly became naturally clear and transparent.

He believed that with some time, he would be able to gradually revise and perfect his Minor Divine Techniques, and then ascend into the Divine Passage.

As he emerged from seclusion and regained clarity, a hint of joy appeared on Wang Shouzhe’s face.

During this long seclusion, not only had his bloodline stepped into the Saint Body level, but his cultivation had also advanced into the Ninth Layer of the Celestial Human Realm.

Next, as long as he cultivated steadily and refined his cultivation, the Purple Mansion Realm would no longer be far away.

This bloodline awakening could be considered a historic breakthrough: entering the Sixth Layer Sacred Body ranks before reaching the Purple Mansion Realm. Once he advanced to the Purple Mansion Realm, he would be able to awaken another layer of bloodline, reaching the Seventh Layer "Great Success Saint Body" level.

One should know that the bloodlines of the vast majority of Divine Power Realm True Men were no more than at the Great Success Saint Body level.

For a moment, Wang Shouzhe was filled with emotion.

From a once "ordinary and unremarkable" small figure, to step by step reaching where he stood today, it had truly not been easy.

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