99: Current status of Qilin Cliff
Returning to Phoenix Perch Valley, the Dao Discussion between Yuan Feng and Nuwa had already concluded.
At this moment, Nuwa had gained some insights and was currently in seclusion.
Seeing this, Fuxi also hurriedly expressed his gratitude to Qing Wu and his companion.
"Many thanks to you two Fellow Daoists for the Opportunity you have bestowed upon my sister and me this time."
Qing Wu had used the sound of his flute to help her understand her own heart, and Yuan Feng had given Nuwa many insights through their Dao Discussion.
No matter how one looked at it, they had gained a massive advantage.
However, he seemed to have nothing presentable to offer as a thank-you gift.
After all, Qing Wu had shown no interest in the many Opportunities and treasures they had found on Mount Buzhou earlier.
Regarding this, Qing Wu and Yuan Feng did not care much; it was just something done casually.
After bidding them farewell, the two departed together.
Just after leaving the vicinity of Mount Buzhou, Qing Wu suddenly asked, "Look, what do you think of this Mount Buzhou?"
Yuan Feng was taken aback upon hearing this. Although she did not quite understand his meaning, she still turned back to look.
The divine Mount Buzhou stood tall, supporting the heavens and standing upon the earth.
Yuan Feng gazed at this ancient divine mountain and suddenly felt a sense of trance.
Once upon a time, when she first ascended Mount Buzhou, she only felt that although this mountain was magnificent, it was not unattainable.
Now, with the improvement of her cultivation, viewing this mountain again, she felt her own insignificance all the more.
Qing Wu also summoned the measuring heaven ruler to measure it by sight.
The result obtained was still far out of reach.
Viewed in this light, he feared that with his current cultivation, even if he fully activated the measuring heaven ruler, it would be useless.
To be honest, even now, he still found it hard to imagine how Gonggong had managed to crash into and break this pillar supporting the heavens with his Ancestral Witch body.
Although the pressure of Pangu's will within Mount Buzhou had been gradually fading with the passage of time, the act of supporting the heavens was real and had not wavered in the slightest.
Even if the Ancestral Witch body was majestic, it was still too small compared to this Mount Buzhou.
However, he then smiled lightly.
If this was the beginning of that predetermined destruction, then this was also the best Opportunity to prove himself.
"Still far from it!" Returning to his senses, he discovered that Yuan Feng was holding the measuring heaven ruler and measuring him, even comparing him to Mount Buzhou.
Isn't that just nonsense? He was merely a Supreme-Grade Acquired Spiritual Root.
If he could grow to be as tall as Mount Buzhou, let alone supporting the heavens, by then, he would be the Heaven of this Primordial Land; he could do whatever he wanted!
Qing Wu immediately took out another small ruler and tapped her with it.
This thing was still easy to use; one tap was always accurate, and Yuan Feng could not dodge it.
Not long after leaving Mount Buzhou, they discovered a place where a Spiritual Vein had been shattered.
Where auspicious clouds once swirled, now only broken walls and ruins remained.
This should have been a place where the Spiritual Qi of the earth veins gathered, but the various earth veins were already incomplete, eroded by wind and sand until they were blurred.
"Is this that Qilin Cliff? It looks a bit unsightly."
"It is far worse than my Immortal Volcano." Yuan Feng stood atop a decaying boulder, moved to speak.
It seemed she had not forgotten the attitude the First Qilin had when he tried to win them over, back when he had looked down on the Immortal Volcano.
But now, things had changed, and Qilin Cliff was far from its former glory.
Qing Wu also looked at the decaying and ruined Luck of the Qilin Clan, deeply moved.
They were still some distance from Qilin Cliff, but a sense of heaviness and vastness still rushed towards them.
However, much of the majesty and aloofness had diminished.
Instead, it was actively radiating auspiciousness and affinity towards the outside world.
This was the effort the Qilin Clan had made to continue their clan's Luck.
Among the three clans, aside from the Feather Clan Chief Ling Ming, whom he had not seen with his own eyes, and the arrogant and unbridled Ancestral Dragon, he actually admired the First Qilin's style of conduct the most.
Although the First Qilin was the Clan Chief of a great clan, he did not rely on his power to oppress others at all; he was generous and virtuous, possessing much of the demeanor of an Elder.
The Qilin Clan also followed his code of conduct, prioritizing the subjugation of beasts between heaven and earth, rather than the suppression practiced by the Dragon Clan.
However, under the momentum of the great trend, the First Qilin and the Qilin Clan could not be spared either; they entered the calamity and were ultimately liquidated.
Detecting the arrival of the two, a familiar aura descended, but it only hovered before their eyes for a moment before finally dissipating.
The First Qilin's situation had reached such a point that he could not leave Qilin Cliff himself, and it was difficult for him to even descend with an Incarnation.
However, this could be considered an invitation to them.
"Let's go, let's go meet this Fellow Daoist," Qing Wu said.
Stepping into the area of Qilin Cliff was like entering another world.
The shattered mountains outside were intact here, and the thick Spiritual Qi of the earth veins was several times denser.
Everywhere, various Spiritual Plants could be seen emitting a soft glow.
The difference between the conditions inside and outside was truly quite large.
Walking further ahead, deeper inside, a half-collapsed palace was shrouded by a golden barrier.
The Qilin Clan's clan-protecting treasure—the mountain and river qilin seal—was still emitting a majestic dao rhyme.
Although the mountain and river aura of the Primordial Land that had gathered upon it was no longer there, it still firmly suppressed the little remaining Luck of the Qilin Clan.
Seeing this scene, Yuan Feng frowned, only then realizing that she had been deceived.
"This old Qilin is truly a master of playing dumb."
Qing Wu also had not expected the First Qilin to pull such a trick on them and could not help but shake his head and laugh.
It was true; as protagonists in the Great Tribulation, apart from the Feather Clan whose Luck had already collapsed, they had completely dissipated between heaven and earth.
The Dragon Clan, relying on its powerful strength, still firmly maintained its status in the Four Seas.
And the Qilin Clan naturally had a deep foundation, so it would not completely fall into decline.
Viewed in this way, the horrific scene of Qilin Cliff seen from the outside was a disguise.
To call it a disguise was also a form of protection.
The Qilin Clan was, after all, not what it used to be, with a strength not even ten thousand, inevitably inviting covetousness from many sides.
By using this method of showing weakness to the enemy to hide the few remaining foundations they had, allowing themselves to avoid more harassment, it could be considered a kind of wisdom.
However, for Qing Wu and Yuan Feng, the First Qilin had let go of this disguise and revealed his truest face to them.
As they got closer and closer to the core area, they could see many traces of the Qilin Clan's activities.
Among them were not a few young Qilins.
Seeing the two approach, they opened their clear eyes to take a good look, and even gradually came up to meet them, lining up in two rows in front, seemingly welcoming their arrival.
Qing Wu had already guessed what the old Qilin was planning.
Using his own descendants as bait? He really had a way.
At the very front, in front of that half-abandoned palace, stood a kind, elderly Daoist, but it was only an Incarnation.
Behind him followed a Qilin Clan Elder, looking worried, wanting to advise the First Qilin to withdraw his Incarnation, but he was ignored.
It seemed the real First Qilin truly could not easily come out.
Seeing the two arrive, the First Qilin's Incarnation revealed his trademark kind smile.
"Fellow Daoists, long time no see."