118: Chapter 117 Extracting the Spiritual Vein, Meeting Again

Jigong immediately slapped his thigh, laughing with a mischievous and delighted expression, and shouted at the top of his lungs: "The monk has won! Quick, quick, quick, since we bet, we must accept the loss. Take it all out!"

The scene shifted, and a dozen or so Ascended Ancestral Masters from various major Schools sat around in a circle.

Suspended right in the center of the crowd was a water mirror, its surface clearly playing the scene from the Lower Realm—specifically, the sparring battlefield between Lin Lei and Duyuan that had just concluded.

From the moment Duyuan stepped into the National Destiny Space, all the way through his Breakthrough and growth, and finally to his clash with Ye Qingxuan, led by Jigong, this group of Ancestral Masters from the Upper Realm watched the entire process from beginning to end.

But earlier, no one dared to open a bet on Ye Qingxuan's battles.

Everyone was well aware of how outrageous Ye Qingxuan was.

He possessed a supreme Dao Foundation to begin with—even when they were in the same Realm, they couldn't beat him. Moreover, having received a bestowal from the Holy Mother, he transformed into the Innate Human Race. With his cultivation at the Body Integration Late Stage right there, his Foundation was terrifyingly profound.

Let alone Duyuan, even a Heavenly Immortal descending to the mortal world might not be able to defeat the current Ye Qingxuan. No matter how strong Duyuan was, he didn't have the slightest chance of winning in front of Ye Qingxuan.

Therefore, everyone specifically opened a gambling pool this time to bet on the outcome of the spar between Lin Lei and Duyuan.

Most of the Ancestral Masters all bet on Lin Lei to win.

Because Lin Lei had created his own martial Dao with a flawless Dao Foundation, he was completely like a miniature version of Lu Chunyang, and fighting across Realms was the norm for him.

However, only three people in the entire venue bet the other way around: Jigong, Patriarch Lü, and Gu Changsheng.

Their judgement was the most accurate. Duyuan was not an ordinary Return to Void Late Stage Cultivator. Having been tempered by the World Origin and the rewards of the National Destiny Space, his Dao Foundation and Aptitude had long been maxed out, and the gap between his Dao Foundation and Lin Lei's was no longer that large.

Coupled with the solid suppression of his cultivation by two minor Realms, it was not surprising at all that Duyuan won.

"How did this little brat lose? Didn't they say he was equivalent to a miniature Lu Chunyang?"

"Crazy Ji, did you give that little monk special treatment behind the scenes?!"

"Lu Chunyang, did you see something? Why didn't you tell me!!"

The expressions of all the Ancestral Masters and Immortals collapsed, yet not a single one of them reneged on their debt. They could only heartbrokenly take out Immortal Pills, Immortal Artifacts, and various rare spiritual materials, handing them one by one to a beaming Jigong.

This small gambling pool among the Upper Realm Ancestral Masters was now settled.

Jigong happily accepted all the Immortal Pills and Immortal Artifacts. Casually weighing the pile of treasures in his hand without even looking at them, he directly raised his hand and tossed them toward the Lower Realm, and all the treasures instantly tore through the void and disappeared.

All the Ancestral Masters present were stunned on the spot, their gazes fixed squarely on Jigong.

Everyone inwardly complained to themselves that this Crazy Ji was truly shameless; sending all the treasures down to the Lower Realm when it was obvious that the smart people down there had already guessed it—his skin was truly thick.

Just as everyone was secretly sighing with emotion, Ye Qingxuan within the water mirror suddenly raised his head and looked toward the firmament.

That gaze was meaningful, as if it had pierced through the barriers of heaven and earth. The expressions of the Ancestral Masters turned slightly awkward, and a sense of shame inexplicably arose in the depths of their hearts.

Knowing full well that a Cultivator from the Lower Realm could not possibly peer into the Upper Realm, being stared at across space like this still gave them the embarrassing sensation of being caught red-handed while peeking.

Lu Chunyang and Gu Changsheng exchanged glances, and Gu Changsheng took the lead to speak: "Fellow Daoists, this time we privately opened a gambling pool and frequently peered into the Lower Realm. Once Little Qingxuan ascends to the Upper Realm, I'm afraid he will come looking for us to settle scores."

"Given Little Qingxuan's Aptitude, attaining the Realm of a Grand Unity Golden Immortal is an absolute certainty. A Grand Unity expert can pierce through past and present time and space with a single glance, so what we did today simply cannot be hidden."

Patriarch Lü nodded in agreement, his tone carrying a sense of gloating:

"That's right. With Qingxuan's Aptitude, he will definitely become a Grand Unity expert in the future. When he finds out that we frequently peered at him and even used him to set up a gambling pool, he will probably beat us up."

Patriarch Lü wasn't afraid at all, because he was also close to a Breakthrough. If worse came to worst, he could just run away—if he couldn't afford to provoke them, couldn't he at least hide from them? It was just that the group of people in front of him were infinitely far from the Grand Unity Realm, and when the time came, they would only be able to obediently take a beating.

Hearing this, the group of Ancestral Masters felt their hearts beating nervously, and just as they were secretly worrying, a figure suddenly drifted in from outside the hall—it was none other than Taibai Jinxing.

Holding an imperial decree, Taibai Jinxing said in a ringing voice: "By the decree of the Grand Heavenly Honored One, all of you present are ordered to set off with me immediately, head to the extraterrestrial battlefield, and await orders under the command of True Lord Erlang."

Hearing this, everyone looked at each other in dismay, secretly thinking to themselves that it was terrible—their gathering to slack off and gamble had been discovered by the Grand Heavenly Honored One.

An imperial decree was difficult to disobey, and no one shirked it. They could only suppress the distracting thoughts in their hearts, pack up properly, and set off together with Taibai Jinxing to rush to the extraterrestrial battlefield.

The scene cut back to inside the wasteland barrier in the Lower Realm. Looking at Lin Lei and Duyuan, who were injured and had chaotic auras, Ye Qingxuan raised his hand and cast the Butian Technique, and a gentle white light instantly enveloped the two of them.

In just a few short breaths, both of their injuries were completely healed, and their vital energy and physical bodies were restored to their Peak states.

Ye Qingxuan spoke: "The sparring is over, and you should also be clear about your own strength. If there's nothing else, you can all head back."

Duyuan brought his palms together and bowed: "Amitabha, this poor monk will now return to Lingyin Temple to prepare for the Water and Land Dharma Assembly."

Lin Lei stepped forward and said: "I also need to return to the capital to find my grandfather and pass down the subsequent Realms that I have comprehended. Right, there is something I need to mention.

Brother Ye, the scientific and technological data you brought back from the National Destiny Space has been fully comprehended by the scientists. The new-style weapons have completed equipment outfitting, and strengthening potions can also be mass-produced.

However, the potion only takes effect on Cultivators below the Golden Core Realm, and it can substantially strengthen the Physical Body without any side effects. You can go to the hospital for an injection using your Huaxia ID card, and Disciples from your School can all go."

Hearing this, Ye Qingxuan nodded gently.

Duyuan also nodded to indicate that he understood.

As his voice fell, a loud explosion burst from around Lin Lei as he stepped into the air and dashed straight toward the capital;

Duyuan whipped up a golden escaping light and sped away toward Lingyin Temple.

After Duyuan and Lin Lei left, Ye Qingxuan and Qingling exchanged glances. He turned his hand over to hold Qingling's hand, and they leisurely strolled across the wasteland, taking a walk aimlessly to relax their minds.

As they walked, Ye Qingxuan suddenly thought of something and said: "The Old Ancestors of various Schools are all comprehending Reincarnation in Shangqing. With so many people gathering together to break through, if they all charge into a new Realm collectively, Shangqing's Spiritual Qi probably won't be enough."

Qingling was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said:

"Indeed it's not enough. A dozen or so Return to Void Cultivators would be fine, but right now Shangqing has a full thirty-six Soul Transformation Perfection experts comprehending the Dao. Once they all break through to Return to Void, it will definitely drain Shangqing's Spiritual Veins dry."

Ye Qingxuan casually said:

"Is that so? Then I'll move a few Spiritual Veins over. With these past few rounds of National Destiny Space rewards, there should be over thirty supreme-grade Spiritual Veins. Most of them are unmined, ownerless Spiritual Veins, so I'll extract three of them over to serve as a safety net."

Qingling instantly stared at him with the look one would give a monster: "You're going to directly extract supreme-grade Spiritual Veins? Are you crazy? Aren't you afraid the Heavenly Dao will strike you down?"

Ye Qingxuan didn't care in the least: "The Spiritual Veins were all earned by me through venturing into the National Destiny Space. I'm taking my own things, what right does it have to strike me down?"

As his voice fell, his Divine Sense instantly covered the entire land. Now, having undergone several rounds of National Destiny rewards and blessings, Huaxia's territory had long expanded to over a hundred million square kilometers. Half of the national territory consisted of rolling mountain ranges, dotted with spiritual mines, spiritual materials, and primeval ancient forests, presenting a scene of supreme prosperity.

He instantly locked onto three hidden supreme-grade Spiritual Veins, pulled Qingling along as he teleported there, grabbed empty air with his five fingers, and gently lifted upwards.

The earth did not shake at all, and there were no heaven-shattering anomalies. Three dazzling spiritual lights coiled like dragons rose from beneath the ground—they were precisely the Origins of the supreme-grade Spiritual Veins.

The Body Integration Stage merges truly with the Dao, which was equivalent to the Dao itself extracting the Spiritual Veins, so it was naturally exceptionally effortless.

At the very instant the Spiritual Veins left the ground, the firmament of the Nine Heavens suddenly changed color. Feeling the unusual movement, the Heavenly Dao caused a cold and majestic purple Eye of the Heavenly Dao to abruptly materialize, coldly looking down upon the Lower Realm with inner fury: Which Cultivator dares to presumptuously steal the Spiritual Veins of heaven and earth?

But when it saw clearly that the person making a move was Ye Qingxuan, the Eye of the Heavenly Dao instantly froze, falling into extreme hesitation.

Strike him down? The Spiritual Veins were originally exchanged by Ye Qingxuan through his own ability; him taking his own things was completely justified and proper.

Not strike him down? The rules of heaven and earth were right there, and failing to punish him would ruin the rules of the Heavenly Dao.

Qingling sharply raised her head and caught sight of the suspended Eye of the Heavenly Dao, instantly wearing a bewildered expression.

Since ancient times, the Heavenly Dao was merciless and utterly impartial, but at this moment, where was there even a shred of coldness in that gaze? It was clearly the helpless and conflicted look of someone watching their own mischievous husky destroying the house!

She hurriedly tugged at Ye Qingxuan's hand. Ye Qingxuan had long since perceived the movement of the Heavenly Dao and knew very well in his heart that the other party would never actually make a move.

He acted neatly and decisively, extracting the remaining three supreme-grade Spiritual Veins using the same method.

Just as he was preparing to return, the firmament finally moved.

The Heavenly Dao had to uphold the rules after all, so it braced its scalp to go through the motions.

"Crack!"

An outrageously thin bolt of purple lightning struck down, only slightly thicker than a strand of hair. Its power was extremely weak—let alone killing someone, it couldn't even injure an ordinary person.

This miniature purple lightning bolt fluttered down onto Ye Qingxuan's shoulder, not even causing the slightest tickling sensation.

Qingling was dumbfounded on the spot, and couldn't help covering her mouth with a chuckle: "This Heavenly Dao is far too perfunctory; even going through the motions is so sloppy."

Ye Qingxuan raised his head to look at the purple Eye of the Heavenly Dao suspended in the sky, shaking his head helplessly.

Everyone in the entire world feared the Heavenly Tribulation of the Heavenly Dao, yet right here with him, the Heavenly Dao showed leniency and struggled internally the entire way, unable to bring itself to genuinely punish him.

Too lazy to pay attention to the awkward Heavenly Dao, he flicked one hand, steadily gathering the spiritual light of the three supreme-grade Spiritual Veins coiled like dragons, and sealed and stabilized them with his Dao charm.

After finishing all this, he turned his hand over to hold Qingling tightly again, and said with a smile: "Done. With three supreme-grade Spiritual Veins acting as a safety net, it's enough for that group of Ancestral Masters and geniuses to boldly break through without ever having to worry about Spiritual Qi exhaustion again."

As his voice fell, Ye Qingxuan took Qingling with him in a single step of teleportation, directly flashing toward the direction of the Shangqing mountain gate.

The Eye of the Heavenly Dao high above the Nine Heavens quietly stared at the departing backs of the two. Hesitating for a long while, it finally silently dissipated into the clouds, truly having zero ways to deal with this "biological son" of its own.

Ye Qingxuan took Qingling by the hand and teleported, instantly standing high above Maoshan.

The two looked down and saw that Maoshan's Spirit-Gathering Grand Array was operating steadily. Inside the array, thirty-six Soul Transformation Perfection Cultivators from various Schools sat cross-legged with their eyes closed, their expressions constantly shifting between joy and sorrow.

Above everyone's head hovered a translucent, bell-shaped phantom that slowly rotated.

Qingling looked on with curiosity, blinked, and asked, "Is this the samsara bell? How does it help people comprehend Reincarnation?"

Ye Qingxuan softly explained, "Every rotation of the samsara bell phantom represents the Cultivator experiencing a lifetime of Reincarnation firsthand. Its power of Reincarnation is extremely gentle and won't be as perilous as the native Reincarnation Dao rhyme."

"Once someone's mind sinks and they lose themselves, the bell phantom above their head will instantly shatter, forcibly pulling them out of the illusion and eliminating the risk of sinking deeper."

Qingling nodded in realization, "So there is such a protection mechanism after all. It truly deserves to be a rare treasure of Heavenly Dao."

After saying that, Ye Qingxuan waved his hand lightly, and three refined Origins of top-grade Spiritual Veins completely merged into the depths of Maoshan's earth.

In an instant, the spiritual light of the entire Maoshan surged drastically, and a massive amount of Spiritual Qi soared into the sky before pouring back down.

The Spiritual Qi first turned into white mist filling the sky, which instantly condensed into liquid, transforming into continuous spiritual rain that enshrouded the entire mountain gate.

All Cultivators below the Golden Core Stage within Maoshan territory only needed to breathe in a few breaths of spiritual rain for their cultivation bases to loosen up, successively triggering Breakthrough phenomena. Spiritual lights rose and fell everywhere in the Sect, presenting a thriving scene.

The Spirit Medicine in the herb garden grew wildly, and various birds and beasts in the mountains successfully transformed into demons after being baptized by Ye Qingxuan's Dao rhyme. Now, with another baptism of Spiritual Qi, they began to continuously make Breakthroughs.

Qingling looked at the grand spectacle below and exclaimed in amazement, "Three top-grade Spiritual Veins! This Spiritual Qi concentration is simply too exaggerated! Now they won't have to worry about insufficient Spiritual Qi for their Breakthroughs."

Ye Qingxuan nodded slightly, his gaze falling back onto the Spirit-Gathering Grand Array. He pinched his fingers to calculate, and a trace of surprise flashed across the depths of his eyes.

The thirty-six people in the array had experienced at least thirty-six lifetimes of Reincarnation comprehension.

He sighed inwardly that these people intended to use the samsara bell to protect their Dao and provide a safety net, thoroughly grasping all insights in one go, directly breaking through all shackles, and smashing through all Bottlenecks before the Body Integration Stage!

Maoshan's Spiritual Qi poured down like rain, and the spiritual mist across the sky condensed into spiritual liquid, shrouding every inch of mountains and rivers. The scene was extremely spectacular.

All the Disciples and Elders left behind in Maoshan were full of shock, raising their heads to look at the sky, dazed as they watched the Spiritual Qi phenomenon.

Master Yuanxin, Qingming, and several Senior Brothers who were not in seclusion sensed this terrifying torrent of Spiritual Qi at the very first moment.

Everyone instinctively raised their heads to look high up into the air, immediately seeing Ye Qingxuan standing in mid-air, as well as Qingling whose hand he was holding.

Everyone instantly understood without much thought—it was definitely Ye Qingxuan making a move again, moving several top-grade Spiritual Veins over to forcefully elevate Maoshan's Spiritual Qi.

Everyone was already used to Ye Qingxuan's Heaven-Defying methods, leaving only full amazement in their hearts. As expected of a Body Integration Stage expert; if they dared to extract Spiritual Veins, Heavenly Dao would definitely dare to strike them dead with lightning.

As the spiritual rain continued to scour the mountain gate, all Cultivators below the Golden Core Stage within the Sect saw their cultivation bases successively loosen and smoothly break through. Maoshan's cultivation Foundation and Luck were crazily rising at a speed visible to the naked eye.

While everyone was still marveling at the grand spectacle of the Spiritual Vein's blessing, Ye Qingxuan, high up in the air, suddenly felt his heart stir.

He raised his hand and took out the Yin-Yang Token bestowed by Black and White Impermanence; this token was his identity credential as a mortal world nether emissary.

The next second, a message suddenly came from within the token. Just a single sentence directly left Ye Qingxuan standing frozen on the spot.

The message had only one sentence: "Come to the netherworld quickly; we have found Ye Lin's Soul."

Seeing him suddenly freeze, Qingling asked with a face full of confusion, "Qingxuan, what's wrong with you?"

Ye Qingxuan suddenly snapped back to his senses, and in his excitement, he unconsciously gripped Qingling's hand tighter. Qingling felt a pang of pain, her face twitching abruptly.

Ye Qingxuan immediately let go and said at a very fast speed, "The two nether commanders, Black and White Impermanence, have found my grandfather's Soul. He is in the netherworld right now, and I will take you to see him!"

As soon as these words came out, Qingling instantly froze completely in place, almost turning to stone. Before she could react, Ye Qingxuan took her hand and instantly teleported to the foot of Mount Tai.

The void trembled, and the towering Ghost Gate slowly manifested. Ye Qingxuan raised his hand to deploy the Yin-Yang Token. With a sweep of spiritual light, the heavy Ghost Gate burst open, and he led the rigid Qingling inside step by step.

Qingling's entire face was burning red, puffing out red smoke like a steam engine, her heart in complete chaos: "It's over, it's over! Why are we meeting the Elders so suddenly?! What should I do now?!"

Holding the flush-faced Qingling by the hand, Ye Qingxuan stepped through the towering, cold Ghost Gate, officially entering the territory of the netherworld.

Ghostly winds howled all around, and the ancient Yellow Springs Road stretched endlessly, both banks filled with the gloomy and solemn sights of the netherworld. If it were ordinary Cultivators, their minds would have already been tightly strained and trembling with fear by the Evil Qi of the netherworld.

But Qingling didn't care about the surrounding scenery at all at this moment. Her entire Soul was almost panicked out of her wits, her small face flushed, her earlobes burning hot, and wild thoughts looping repeatedly in her head.

"It's over, I'm really going to meet the Elders!"

"I didn't prepare at all!"

"How should I greet him later?"

"Should I stand obediently and act gentle and sensible?"

"It's my first time seeing Qingxuan's grandfather, I mustn't leave a bad impression!"

Her small hand was gripped by Ye Qingxuan, her whole body stiff, keeping her head down and lips pursed the entire way. She looked precisely like an awkward daughter-in-Law meeting her parents-in-Law for the first time, nervous to the point of being at a loss, her face burning with shyness.

Not long after the two walked forward along the Yellow Springs Road, a respectful nether emissary hurried over and bowed in salute, "Daoist Ye, Lords Qiye and Baye invite you. Please follow me, you two."

Ye Qingxuan nodded and, bringing along the flustered Qingling, followed the nether emissary straight to the nether commander's mansion.

The moment they stepped into the courtyard, Ye Qingxuan's gaze fell upon Black and White Impermanence by the stone table.

With just a single glance, he was instantly certain in his heart.

Although what was before them was the aura of ordinary Incarnations, their gazes were deep and profound, and their qi and charm were as steady as heaven and earth. It was their true body consciousness personally descending to control the Incarnations.

For two Golden Immortal-rank nether commanders to personally appear was enough to show their solemn attitude toward this matter.

Seeing Ye Qingxuan arrive, White Impermanence took out a black jade bottle, opened it, and a Soul flew out from within, floating in the air. It was precisely Ye Lin, who had been dead for many years.

However, at this moment, Ye Lin's Soul Origin was damaged, his consciousness was muddled, his gaze dull, and he completely lacked spiritual intelligence, looking exceptionally desolate.

Ye Qingxuan's heart tightened as he stepped forward and spoke, "Two nether commanders, why has my grandfather's Soul become in such a state?"

White Impermanence raised his hand gently, signaling him to take a seat, and slowly explained, "Daoist Ye need not be anxious. In the past, when the Reincarnation of heaven and earth collapsed, the deceased Souls of the world had nowhere to go, and some were trapped in the Ruins of Return."

"Your grandfather's Soul was searched for and brought back from the depths of the Ruins of Return by the two of us. The Laws of the Ruins of Return eroded the Soul body year-round, causing damage to his Origin, which is why he is this sluggish."

"We invited you here so that you could see him in person. Afterwards, our netherworld will, in accordance with the rules, send him to re-enter Reincarnation and be peacefully reborn."

As soon as those words fell, Ye Qingxuan hesitated no longer.

With a hum!

A brilliant and dazzling golden wheel of Karma burst open from behind him, and a boundless torrent of golden Karma surged and churned.

Qingling snapped back to her senses. Looking at Ye Qingxuan's actions, she understood what he was going to do—extracting Karma; this guy wasn't doing it for the first time.

But Qingling didn't stop him. Instead, she directly revealed her own Karma and raised her hand to transfer it to Ye Lin's Soul, only to be directly stopped by Ye Qingxuan.

"Qingxuan, you—" With the words at the tip of her tongue, Qingling also understood Ye Qingxuan's intention. She said no more and just watched quietly.

He raised his hand to guide it, channeling the vast Karma he had accumulated continuously into Ye Lin's broken Soul body.

Seeing this, the two Golden Immortal experts sitting quietly to the side, Black and White Impermanence, simultaneously showed slight ripples in their expressions and both stood up.

Black Impermanence's voice was deep and heavy, carrying a hint of surprise and solemnity: "Daoist Ye, you must think twice. Origin Karma is a Cultivator's Dao Foundation, bearing one's Dao path blessings and fortune. It is extremely precious and will leave a huge impact on your future Realm Breakthroughs, Undergoing Tribulation, and Dao certification."

White Impermanence nodded slightly, his tone calm yet full of solemnity, fully displaying the vision of a nether commander:

"In our generation's cultivation, having Karma protect the body and auspicious fortune anchor the Dao has always been cherished and valued deeply. Even the Dao certifiers of antiquity would not easily squander Karma. For you to be willing to damage half of your own Karma just to repair a broken deceased Soul is simply too impulsive."

The two of them had lived through endless years, having witnessed countless Cultivators of the Three Realms fighting for Karma, accumulating fortune, and protecting their Dao Foundations, yet they rarely saw anyone willing to sacrifice their own Dao root just to save the Soul of a relative.

Although shocked in their hearts, the two were, after all, nether commanders of the netherworld and Golden Immortal experts. Their expressions remained calm; they merely felt it was a pure pity.

Yet Ye Qingxuan's expression did not change in the slightest, solely focused on continuously pouring in Karma.

Rolling golden light continuously repaired and reshaped Ye Lin's damaged Soul body. The originally dim and shattered Soul, nourished by the massive amount of Karma, gradually solidified and grew brilliant little by little.

When half of the Karma was used up, Ye Lin's broken Soul completed a Heaven-Defying transformation, directly transforming from an ordinary deceased Soul into a gilded Primordial Spirit with a solid Dao rhyme throughout its body.

His originally sluggish and hollow eyes slowly opened, his spiritual intelligence completely revived, radiating a brand-new vigor.