199: The dust has settled, time to take stock of the gains.

In the Shen Family Main Residence, in the deepest part, was the secluded cultivation chamber that forbade all prying eyes.

Shen Yuanmo was placed on the Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Jade Bed in the center, the cool jade Qi slowly nourishing his bloodless Physical Body.

Inside the chamber, the air was so heavy it seemed to have solidified into blocks of lead.

Shen Qiming, Shen Zongdao, the Shen Qifa, and several core Family Elders stood around the bed like stone statues.

"Shen Qifa... Yuan Mo... what exactly is his condition?"

Shen Qiming's voice was hoarse and dry. He gripped the Shen Qifa's wrist tightly, his knuckles white with effort, yet his gaze dared not leave his son—who lay on the jade bed with a face like gold leaf and a breath as faint as silk thread—for even a moment.

He was afraid.

He was afraid that if he blinked, that faint breath would cease completely.

The Shen Qifa, the Shen Family's only Tier 3 Alchemist, had veins bulging on his forehead. He cautiously separated a wisp of extremely pure Magical Power and sent it into Shen Yuanmo's body, exploring his withered Meridians inch by inch.

Time was stretched infinitely in that moment; every breath felt like an agonizing century.

Suddenly!

The Magical Power the Shen Qifa was using to investigate seemed to touch something unbelievable, and his tense body suddenly trembled!

On his face, first flashed an expression of extreme shock and disbelief.

Immediately afterward, this shock turned into ecstasy!

He looked as if all the bones had been drawn out of him, and with a thud, he collapsed onto the cold ground.

"Patriarch... Old Ancestor..."

The Shen Qifa raised his head. On his old face, crisscrossing wrinkles were squeezed together, and two streams of hot tears burst from his eyes without warning. His expression, a mixture of ecstasy and exhaustion, looked strange yet incredibly sincere.

"He's fine!"

"The Grand Elder... is fine!"

What?!

These two words exploded like thunder from the Nine Heavens in the ears of Shen Qiming and Shen Zongdao!

The two figures flashed, moving so fast they left afterimages, and instantly appeared before the Shen Qifa. One on each side, they lifted him directly from the ground!

"Are you telling the truth?! Is Yuan Mo really unharmed?!" Shen Qiming's eyes were bloodshot as he stared intently at him.

"Absolutely true!" The Shen Qifa was so excited he was incoherent. He frantically wiped the tears and sweat from his face, pointing at Shen Yuanmo on the bed, his voice trembling violently.

"I investigated... the Grand Elder's Meridians, Internal Organs, and Bones are indeed shockingly damaged. Injuries of that magnitude would certainly kill any Golden Core Cultivator!"

"But! However!"

He changed his tone, his voice suddenly rising!

"The Grand Elder's Physical Body Foundation... is simply an immortal Divine Treasury! Deep within that broken physique, a vast and magnificent Golden Vitality is circulating on its own, repairing all damage at a speed I cannot comprehend or even imagine!"

"His Divine Soul was not damaged at its Origin either; it was merely over-exhausted and entered the deepest state of self-protective hibernation!"

"He is not critically injured and dying!"

"He is merely... too tired!"

"As long as we give him time to get a good sleep, he will wake up on his own!"

He's fine!

The man who, relying solely on his own power, fought a Half-step Soul Transformation expert, cut down the stars with his sword, and held up the sky for the Shen Family and Qing Prefecture City—he did not fall!

"Good! Good! This is wonderful!!"

Shen Qiming laughed heartily toward the sky, yet his laughter carried a heart-wrenching sob. This man of iron will who had supported the Family for decades now had violently shaking shoulders, weeping like a lost child.

Shen Zongdao, this Newly Advanced Golden Core Old Ancestor, was also shedding tears of joy.

He gazed at the quietly sleeping junior on the bed, his eyes filled with relief, admiration, and a deep sense of pride and reverence stemming from his very Soul.

After venting his momentary ecstasy, Shen Qiming instantly calmed down, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.

"Seal the chamber! Raise the alert to maximum! No one is allowed to approach!"

He turned to the Elders, his voice resolute as iron, issuing a series of commands.

"Issue an order to the entire city: all Cultivators from the Shen Family, Chen Family, and Zhang Family are to immediately ascend the City Walls, take over defenses, maintain order, and reassure the populace!"

"Publicly announce that the Grand Elder has achieved a great victory and is now in secluded cultivation to stabilize his Realm! No one is allowed to make noise or disturb him!"

"Yes, Patriarch!"

The Elders, filled with the excitement of Surviving the Catastrophe and supreme reverence, bowed in acceptance of the order and quickly withdrew.

The heavy Stone Door slammed down, isolating the inside from the outside.

Outside the chamber, Shen Qiming and Shen Zongdao stood guard personally, one on the left and one on the right, like two silent and resolute Door Gods... At the same time.

Qing Prefecture City, having endured a long period of deathly silence, finally began to slowly awaken from the apocalyptic Catastrophe.

South of the City, a Loose Cultivator with a severed arm struggled to climb out of the Ruins, staring blankly in the direction of the City Lord's Residence.

A moment later, he used his remaining left arm to support his body and knelt down straight.

He heavily knocked his forehead onto the blood-stained Bluestone Slab.

A Loud Kowtow.

This action seemed like a silent signal.

The next instant, a woman beside him, holding a child and with tear stains covering her face, also knelt down and gently pressed the child's head toward the ground.

On the City Walls, a surviving City Guard dropped his Broken Spear, knelt on one knee facing the City Lord's Residence, and placed his right hand over his chest.

On the Long Street, inside shops, under eaves... Thud!

Thud! Thud!

The sound spread rapidly, from isolated points to a widespread area!

Tens of thousands of Cultivators and Mortals, regardless of gender, age, or location, all knelt down in unison, facing the same direction!

The tear stains on their faces had not dried, yet the same type of flame ignited in their eyes.

It was the fervent fire called "Faith"!

Immediately following this.

A long-suppressed roar, tinged with a sob, tore through the post-catastrophe silence.

"We won—!!"

This shout was a spark thrown into ten thousand tons of Highly Flammable Oil.

Boom!!!

The next second, cheers loud enough to overturn the Firmament erupted violently from every corner of Qing Prefecture City, like a volcano that had accumulated energy for ten thousand years!

"Grand Elder is mighty! Shen Family is mighty!"

"We survived! We survived! Hahahaha!"

"It was a Miracle! Absolutely a Miracle! I saw it with my own eyes! The Grand Elder, with a single sword strike... cut down the stars from the sky!"

"Starting today, my life, Wang Er's life, belongs to the Shen Family! If anyone dares to insult the Shen Family in the slightest, I'll be the first to tear them apart!"

Countless Cultivators had tears streaming down their faces. They roared and howled, using all their strength to vent the ecstasy of having crawled out of the abyss of despair.

Although countless Mortals did not understand the Battle of Immortals, they knew that the "Immortal Master Shen" in the City Lord's Residence had saved all their lives.

They kowtowed again and again with immense piety, repeatedly chanting the same name.

This jubilant celebration lasted for one day and one night.

It wasn't until the following morning, when Shen Qiming personally appeared and announced that the Grand Elder required recuperation, that this fervor—enough to be recorded in the Annals of Qing Prefecture—gradually subsided.

But a new, genuine inner radiance shone on everyone's face.

The situation within the city was completely stabilized.

Shen Zongdao, the Shen Family Old Ancestor, personally led the Shen Qifa and one hundred of the Family's most elite Guards. With solemn expressions, they transformed into streaks of light and sped toward the crash site of the Wreckage of the Giant Ship outside the city.

When they arrived at the scene.

Everyone was so shocked by the sight before them that they froze mid-air, their breathing instantly stopping.

On the ground, a terrifying Crater appeared, over ten Li in diameter and seemingly bottomless.

The soil around the edge of the Crater showed a Glazed Color, as if it had been melted by extreme heat.

And in the very center of the Crater, a massive Hull segment, thousands of Zhang long and entirely forged from Dark Purple Divine Metal, was emitting wisps of black smoke, embedded diagonally into the ground.

That was precisely the wreckage of the heaven burning tower ship!

Even though it was shattered and had lost all Spiritual Charm, the cold, iron-blooded Qi belonging to a Tier 5 War Magic Treasure, combined with the Dao Rhythm Pressure that had not yet dissipated after the death of the Half-step Soul Transformation expert, still formed a terrifying aura that shook the minds of everyone present and made the circulation of their Spiritual Power sluggish.

"This... is this a Tier 5 War Magic Treasure?"

A young Foundation Establishment Guard's Adam's apple bobbed. His voice was dry, and his eyes held an indelible mix of shock and reverence.

Shen Zongdao did not speak.

He merely stared intently at the wreckage, feeling the heart-palpitating aura.

"Go! Let's descend!"

Shen Zongdao suppressed the great turmoil in his heart, waved his hand, and was the first to swoop down toward the wreckage, which resembled the carcass of a giant beast.