Chapter 165: Seclusion for a Century, Officially Withdrawing from the World.

Chapter 165: Seclusion for a Century, Officially Withdrawing from the World.

Chen Qiu took a deep breath, and with a thought, a strand of Heavenly Fortune instantly merged into the damaged Heavenly Clue Umbrella.

Soon—

A seven-colored glow flashed across the surface of the umbrella.

Then, the entire umbrella began to slowly repair itself. After several hundred breaths, it was restored to its original state, indistinguishable from before, with both its effectiveness and grade fully recovered.

The Heavenly Clue Umbrella was, after all, his Lifebound Spirit Treasure.

If his Lifebound Spirit Treasure was damaged, he would also suffer.

But now, everything was as good as new.

For the remaining strand of Heavenly Fortune, he didn't plan to use it right away. He intended to keep it for a while, although he could also use it for the Skyfall Snow or the Golden Light Body Protection Spell, allowing these two spells to become even more powerful Heavenly Dao Spells.

However...

It wasn't necessary. Skyfall Snow was an auxiliary spell, and no matter how much it was strengthened, it wouldn't make much of a difference.

As for the Golden Light Body Protection Spell, it was already more than sufficient. If it couldn't block something, even turning it into a stronger Heavenly Dao Spell wouldn't help.

After that, he turned his gaze to the two remaining strands of Clan Fortune.

The Heavenly Fortune was invisible, but he could sense it, while these two strands of Clan Fortune transformed into black glows, swirling around the Golden Core.

The Golden Core in his Dantian was truly chaotic, completely different from that of a normal person.

Not to mention the numerous characters engraved on the Golden Core, but also the four strands of glow swirling around it, making it look very peculiar, like planets revolving around the sun.

Amidst the chaos, there was a strange sense of beauty.

When his Divine Sense fell upon these two strands of Clan Fortune, a panel enveloped in clouds once again appeared above his Dantian.

"Treasure Name": A Strand of Clan Fortune.

"Acquisition Source": Founding a Clan, Destroying a Clan.

"Usage Effect":

1. Essential material for founding a clan.

2. ...

6. ...

Chen Qiu's eyebrows furrowed slightly as he looked at the panel before him. The effect of this strand of Clan Fortune couldn't be said to be weak, given the difficulty of acquiring it.

But...

He couldn't quite make use of its effect.

The most significant effect was the essential material for founding a clan, somewhat similar to the Clan Founding Token.

He didn't have much use for this effect.

As for the remaining effects, he didn't need them either. After pondering for a while, he concluded that there was no immediate need for this item, so he temporarily ignored the two strands of Clan Fortune. After all, they wouldn't fly away if left untouched.

He could decide later when the need arose.

After completing all this, he sat cross-legged on the elliptical stone, took out two Medium-grade Heavenly Wheels from his embrace, and waited for the right moment. After a few breaths, he found an auspicious moment and crushed the Medium-grade Heavenly Wheel in his hand.

This was a reward from his private Heavenly Edict.

The next moment!

The panel, shrouded in clouds, appeared before him.

"Please make a selection within a hundred breaths, choose two out of five."

1. One First Rank Spirit Transformation Body.

2. Twenty Third Stage Primordial Spirit Bodies.

3. A random Blue Entry.

4. One hundred Golden Core Celestial Cultivation Pills.

5. An opportunity to issue a Mystic Heavenly Edict.

"Huh?"

A hint of surprise flashed in Chen Qiu's eyes. He had been worrying about where to find another Spirit Transformation Body, as the Heavenly Punishment Thunder Tribulation had reduced Demon State to ruins. In that state, not even a single piece of intact soil could be found, let alone a Spirit Transformation Body.

Yet, a Spirit Transformation Body appeared in the Heavenly Wheel?

Could it be that simple to complete the set?

He only needed four more Second Stage Primordial Spirit Bodies for the Twelfth Rank Inner Soul to take its place!

Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately chose the first and second options.

The first option would allow him to form the Twelfth Rank Inner Soul faster, and the second option would grant the Mock Heaven Sect twenty more Nascent Soul disciples.

The third option was completely useless, just there to make up the numbers.

He didn't need another Blue Entry.

The fourth option was also of little use. He could receive ten Golden Core Celestial Cultivation Pills every day. During his ten-day slumber, he had already accumulated one hundred of them. This item might be rare for others, but to him, it held little attraction.

If it were one hundred Nascent Soul Celestial Cultivation Pills, that would be more appealing.

As for the fifth option, it could be quite useful at certain times, allowing him to issue a personal edict. However, it wasn't as attractive as the first two options.

Chen Qiu sat on the elliptical stone, took a deep breath, and murmured, "I bet you won't directly give me four more Second Stage Primordial Spirit Bodies, right?"

After a moment of hesitation, he crushed the second Heavenly Wheel.

Instantly—

"Please make a selection within a hundred breaths, choose two out of five."

1. One hundred Second Level Golden Cores.

2. A Heavenly Phenomenon will send you off at your funeral.

3. A set of Celestial Dao Artifact tea utensils.

4. Five Second Stage Primordial Spirit Bodies.

5. A Gold Entry, one-day limited edition.

Chen Qiu was momentarily frozen in place as he looked at the five options before him. After a moment, he pinched his cheeks, and a glimmer of joy flashed in his eyes. Could it be true that he got Second Stage Primordial Spirit Bodies?

Not four, but five!

They had given him an extra one!

With this, the stringent requirements for a Twelfth Rank Inner Soul were completely fulfilled! He even began to suspect if his lifespan was nearing its end, for he seemed to be getting everything he wished for, as if his words were law.

Without hesitation, he immediately selected the third and fourth options.

A hundred Second Stage Golden Core Pills were of no use to him. Though the heavenly phenomenon for a grand burial after death sounded prestigious, it was pointless since he would be dead. Who would be there to witness it?

The golden entry, second only to the rainbow entry, was a limited-time offer and thus not very useful.

However, aside from the five Second Stage Primordial Souls, the tea set, a Heavenly Dao Artifact, caught his interest.

Not only would it complete his Heavenly Dao set, reactivating its set effect, but it would also provide a perfect home for his "Ten Thousand Year Cold Ice" and "Ten Thousand Year Cold Tea."

Perfect!

"Excellent," Chen Qiu nodded with satisfaction, mentally checking the treasures stored in his Heavenly Dao Ring. He confirmed that the materials for his Nascent Soul formation were sufficient before taking a deep breath and gazing at the four demonic lotuses floating above the pocket world.

He then instructed Fat Dragon and the others to move all the Medium-grade and Low-grade Spirit Stones from the warehouse to set up the Spirit Gathering Array. The last time, with just one demonic lotus, it had drained all his Spirit Stones, almost sucking him dry.

This time, there were four lotuses.

Moreover, he was breaking through from the Golden Core to the Nascent Soul stage, and a normal person would require 108 Medium-grade Spirit Stones to set up the array. Considering himself not entirely normal, he decided to prepare more Spirit Stones, and if there were any leftovers, he could always retrieve them later.

He was no longer in the impoverished state he had been in when breaking through to the Golden Core stage.

Currently, he had over 400,000 Low-grade and more than 10,000 Medium-grade Spirit Stones, more than enough for the Spirit Gathering Array to support his breakthrough.

As Fat Dragon and the others set up the array, Chen Qiu left the pocket world, hovering alone above the sea. He looked up at the Nine Heavens, and with a thought, his body suddenly disappeared from its original spot.

"Where am I?"

Chen Qiu, with his left sleeve casually draped over his arm and holding the Heavenly Clue Umbrella, suddenly appeared in a grand hall. The hall was uniquely colored in black and white, giving it a dreamlike appearance, and it was pillar-less.

This was the Celestial Palace!

In the private edict, besides the reward of the Heavenly Wheel, there was this line:

"For completing one of the Mystic Heavenly Continent's milestone tasks, a statue has been erected in the Celestial Palace."

With a thought, Chen Qiu had appeared in the Celestial Palace. The hall wasn't too spacious, and the lighting was dim. He didn't see any pillars.

Soon, he found himself standing at the entrance in the center of the hall, with a red carpet leading the way.

On both sides of the carpet were twelve circular platforms.

On the platform closest to the entrance stood a statue, towering at several dozen zhang tall. Standing before it, one couldn't help but feel insignificant, and the awe-inspiring might of heaven and earth made one's soul tremble.

However, the statue's appearance wasn't very flattering.

Its clothes were severely tattered, its body covered in wounds, and it leaned on a battle-scarred Heavenly Clue Umbrella. Its left arm had been severed at the root, and the figure stood unsteadily on the circular platform.

From its resolute face and cold eyes, one could clearly sense the statue's determination and intense killing intent.

"Damn," Chen Qiu muttered, looking up at the massive statue on the circular platform beside him. "Isn't that me?"

This must be the statue mentioned in the edict, visible only to him.

". . ."

Chen Qiu's mouth twitched as he stood there, gazing up at the enormous statue. He wished he had been given a heads-up so he could have posed more impressively, at least changing into cleaner clothes.

And his eyes could have been sharper.

Although he didn't know how many people would visit this place, since the statue was here, others would definitely see it. He didn't want them to witness such a pathetic scene of himself.

But—

He suddenly scrutinized the statue thoughtfully.

It didn't look that bad.

It conveyed a sense of survival against all odds, and the sculptor had captured his likeness almost perfectly, including the details of his blood-soaked robe and the fluttering sound of his clothes in the typhoon storm.

Then he lowered his gaze to read the small characters on the circular platform beneath the statue:

"One of the Twelve Milestone Tasks"

"Annihilated an entire clan."

"Completed by: Mock Heaven Sect Leader, Chen Qiu!"

"Not bad," Chen Qiu squatted down, studying the small characters for a while before nodding. Although he couldn't discern the statue's purpose, it still looked pretty cool standing there.

If he turned his head and looked at the other eleven empty circular platforms.

If only those eleven platforms could also display his statue, it would be even better if each one faced different powerful enemies, on different battlefields, holding different weapons and wearing different clothes.

Twelve statues of him stood in this hidden map called the "Celestial Palace."

It seemed quite a sight.

He wondered what the remaining eleven milestone tasks were.

Currently, the entire Celestial Palace only had his statue, which meant that in all these years on the Xuantian Continent, only he had entered the Celestial Palace, and although it was somewhat challenging for one person to exterminate a clan, he believed it wasn't too difficult for the strongest cultivators with supreme cultivation.

So he was more inclined to believe that this Celestial Palace might have appeared during the last Heavenly Dao version update and that, until now, no one had completed the milestone tasks.

A glint of curiosity flashed in Chen Qiu's eyes as he walked deeper into the Celestial Palace and looked towards the next circular platform.

"One of the Twelve Milestone Tasks"

"Simultaneously possess a Twelfth Stage Golden Core and a Twelfth Rank Inner Soul."

"Completer: None."

"Hey!"

Chen Qiu laughed, realizing that he would soon have a statue of his own. He had prepared all the materials needed to form a Twelfth Rank Inner Soul and would become one upon returning.

This time, he had learned his lesson.

He knew that when completing a milestone task, the Heavenly Dao would freeze the scene, capturing it, and then build a statue in the Celestial Palace based on that captured scene. He needed to carefully consider what clothes to wear later.

Then he looked at the other circular platforms.

The remaining milestone tasks all had very high difficulty levels.

Suddenly, he felt that these milestone tasks might not have appeared in the previous Heavenly Dao version but had been around for a long time, and no one had completed them. Not to mention the difficulty of simultaneously possessing a Twelfth Stage Golden Core and a Twelfth Rank Inner Soul, which was incredibly exaggerated.

After silently memorizing all the milestone tasks.

He continued his search within the "Celestial Palace," but found no other special features and was unable to leave. The Celestial Palace's entrance didn't seem secure, but the Heavenly Power covering it made him realize that even a Divine Transformation cultivator couldn't break through.

This place was like a hidden map.

So far, he was probably the only one who had come here because only by completing a certain milestone task could one enter. He hadn't seen any other statues here.

Looking through the door crack, he felt that there was nothing outside, a bit like an empty void, and so he didn't linger.

With a thought, he turned back to his original position.

Chen Qiu, now floating above the sea, looked up at the high sky above him. His divine sense could faintly perceive the "Celestial Palace" located in the Nine Heavens, and with a thought, he could enter it at any time.

But he could only enter once a day.

Moreover, he couldn't communicate with the small world while inside the Celestial Palace.

Soon, he chuckled and entered the small world, looking at Fei Long and the others who were still setting up the Spirit Gathering Array. He found a quiet spot in the back mountain and began to calmly cultivate his Heart Method, preparing for his Nascent Soul breakthrough.

During the Nascent Soul breakthrough, one must maintain an extremely peaceful state of mind, without the slightest disturbance.

If one's mind wavers even a little.

It might lead to a failed breakthrough, so maintaining calmness before the breakthrough was of utmost importance.

At this moment—

Su Tianshan, the Clan Head of the Su Clan, looked at the Quzhou Virtue Ranking with a complicated expression. Chen Qiu's name was no longer on the list, and during this time, he had also learned about the method Chen Qiu used to destroy the Demon State.

Previously, Chen Qiu had 9.8 billion virtue points, but now, on the "Xuantian Continent Virtue Ranking," he only had 100 million virtue points.

He had lost 9.7 billion virtue points.

In other words, Chen Qiu had exhausted all the virtue points he had accumulated over the years to unleash the Heavenly Punishment that wiped out the Demon State, and he couldn't use this method again.

He didn't know where Chen Qiu's 9.8 billion virtue points came from.

Perhaps it was some kind of opportunity.

But he was certain.

That the opportunity to gain 9.8 billion virtue points was extremely rare on the entire Xuantian Continent, an opportunity that one would never encounter twice in a lifetime.

Moreover, not only had he lost virtue points, but he had also gained a large amount of sin points, which meant he would definitely not be able to pass the Thunder Tribulation.

But to break through to the Divine Transformation stage, one must pass the Thunder Tribulation! And every minor advancement in the Divine Transformation stage requires passing the Thunder Tribulation again.

In other words.

Chen Qiu's future cultivation would almost certainly be limited to the Nascent Soul stage, and attempting to break through to Divine Transformation would be suicidal!

"Sigh."

The Su Clan Head sighed deeply, feeling a bit regretful and silent as he didn't speak. Chen Qiu's name was no longer on the "Quzhou Virtue Ranking," indicating that Chen Qiu was no longer in Quzhou.

As for where he had gone, he wasn't sure.

Since Chen Qiu's destruction of the Demon State, there had been no further news. He was probably recovering, and it was unknown if his Golden Core had been damaged. If it had, even reaching the Nascent Soul stage would be a luxury.

Chen Qiu had been out of contact for ten days.

And during these ten days, Chen Qiu's name had spread across the entire Xuantian Continent. Countless forces flocked to Quzhou, a place that previously saw little traffic. In just one day, Quzhou became a hotbed of activity.

Numerous people came to investigate Chen Qiu in person.

They wanted to see this sudden peerless talent from Quzhou.

Even many who had started in Quzhou and later moved to Zhongzhou for their Divine Transformation reached out to him, inquiring about the situation. But Chen Qiu didn't know how to respond; it was clear that Chen Qiu wasn't a native talent of Quzhou.

It was as if he had appeared out of thin air.

Now, the entire Xuantian Continent was abuzz with the news that Chen Qiu was a peerless talent from the Lower Nine Provinces, but only he knew the truth.

After a moment of daze, he shook his head and issued an order to the Qi Family disciples to intensify their cultivation and purchase large quantities of pills, talismans, and strategic resources like array plates. The new Heavenly Dao version, "World in Turmoil," was only twenty days away.

No one knew what this new Heavenly Dao version would bring, so it was best to be prepared.

Just the name alone was enough to raise concerns.

Almost everyone on the Xuantian Continent was discussing two pieces of news.

One was the Heavenly Dao version "World in Turmoil."

The other was about Chen Qiu, the peerless talent from Quzhou in the Lower Nine Provinces.

Not yet at the Nascent Soul Stage, his strength far surpassed his peers, earning him the title of Heaven's Pride.

After reaching the Nascent Soul Stage,

the title of Heaven's Pride would no longer apply, as Nascent Soul Cultivators could already hold high positions, marking their formal entry into the cultivation world.

As the newest Heavenly Dao version, "World in Turmoil," was about to descend,

many forces sent people to the most famous Divination Cultivator sect in Zhongzhou to gather inside information. However, the response they received was that the sect had no external news to share and had only announced its seclusion from the world for a hundred years.

Although no inside information was obtained,

this news alone was significant.

It meant that the Zhongzhou Divination Cultivator sect must have foreseen something. Usually, when a sect wishes to ensure its longevity, it would occasionally seclude itself from the world, and the timing of such seclusion often coincides with moments of great chaos!

One after another, messages arrived, casting a shadow of gloom over countless forces across the world.

Zhongzhou's Mystic Heavenly Sect announced its seclusion from the world for a hundred years.

Zhongzhou's Qi Family announced its seclusion from the world for a hundred years.

Zhongzhou's Falling Flower Valley announced its seclusion from the world for a hundred years.

Upper Nine Provinces, Ji Prefecture's Crystal Palace, announced its seclusion from the world for a hundred years.

Lower Nine Provinces, Yi Prefecture—

one after another, top-tier forces chose to seclude themselves for a hundred years. The one who started this trend was the strongest Divination Cultivator sect in Zhongzhou, and even Zhongzhou's Mystic Heavenly Sect had decided to seclude itself for a hundred years.

The Mystic Heavenly Sect might sound unfamiliar.

A hundred years ago, the Virgin Saint who mended the heavens and gained a thousand merits originated from this sect.

The fact that even this sect chose to seclude itself made other forces even more fearful of the upcoming Heavenly Dao version. These top-tier forces must have received some news, and that's why they unanimously decided to seclude themselves; it couldn't be without reason!

Not every time a new Heavenly Dao version emerges, these top-tier forces choose to seclude themselves.

They only do so when they believe that not secluding themselves might result in heavy losses or even the risk of their sect's destruction.

The panic gradually spread across the Nineteen Provinces.

However,

not every force had the qualifications to seclude themselves. Only those with a small world capable of generating Spirit Qi on its own were eligible for seclusion, and not every force possessed such a small world.

Moreover, secluding for a hundred years required ample preparations, including storing enough pills, Spirit Stones, and various cultivation resources.

It was a significant test of a force's foundation.

The Qi Family Patriarch's face darkened as he stood silently, having just received the news that the other two forces in Quzhou with Divine Transformation powerhouses had also chosen to seclude themselves.

One was the Dao Sword Sect, where Li Shi'er resided.

The other was the Qi Sect, whose true disciple had died at the hands of the Demon Race a while ago.

Neither of these sects had a small world, and as far as he knew, they had paid a hefty price to seek the protection of a top-tier Zhongzhou sect, renting a portion of their small world to seclude themselves.

This meant that

currently, Quzhou only had one Divine Transformation powerhouse left, and that was him.

He could understand why these two sects chose to seclude themselves. After all, chaos was about to engulf the world, and their Divine Transformation powerhouses had been severely injured in a Heavenly Dao Mystic Realm a few months ago, and their injuries had yet to heal.

He let out a long sigh, his eyes flashing with hesitation. He, too, felt like running away.

Although he didn't know what news the top-tier forces had received, with everyone else leaving, he felt insecure staying alone in Quzhou.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end