172: The Empress's Temporary Palace (Part 1)

On the other side, Xuan Wei was intoxicated, immersed in his own world of cultivation.

After three days and three nights of hard work～(ﾟ⊿ﾟ)ﾂ

He finally achieved his wish, steadily fixing his cultivation at the Fourth Stage Middle Realm.

However, what was truly astonishing was that in such a short time, he could achieve such a leap-forward breakthrough from the Third Stage Peak to the Fourth Stage Middle Realm, and the trend of this progress showed no signs of slowing down.

He could touch the threshold of the Fourth Stage Late Realm at any moment!

For Xuan Wei, such a rapid pace of progress was like riding a rocket and soaring into the sky.

He naturally understood that if he could maintain this excellent state of spiritual energy,

then breaking through the bottleneck that no one had been able to surpass for a thousand years would be just around the corner.

Thinking of this, his heart was instantly filled with an uncontrollable surge of pride: "The Fifth Stage!!!"

[In a whole thousand years, no cultivator has ever been able to reach such a profound and mysterious realm. But now, this poor Taoist is just a step away from that realm!]

"Hahaha! Grand-Master above, please accept a bow from your grand-disciple! I believe that before long, I will surely be able to restore the prestige of Qingyun Temple and carry it forward, making it a sacred place in the hearts of all profound cultivators in the world!"

At this moment, Xuan Wei's eyes flickered with the light of confidence and vision, as if he could already see the future glory of Qingyun Temple.

"Hahahaha... Hahahaha..."

Yun Song looked at his master's chuunibyou appearance in dumbfounded silence, not knowing how to react for a moment.

He only saw his master dancing and chanting, as if he were in another fantasy world.

Yun Song shook his head helplessly, reached out to gently touch the tip of his nose, and then carefully moved his buttocks back by a full half-meter.

"Master, you're not the only one who can benefit from the Spiritual Energy Storm! Can we be a bit more low-key?"

"Now, every time I go out to catch ghosts, I'm terrified that those Buddhist Nuns from Yunlan Nunnery will suddenly rush out, throw a large sack over me, hang me high in a tree, and beat me up!" Yun Song said to his master with a bitter face and a pitiful look.

Hearing Yun Song's words, Xuan Wei turned around with his hands behind his back, his face full of pride and self-satisfaction.

He stood tall and spoke with a voice as loud as a bell.

"Hahahaha, my disciple, do not worry! I will go find your Martial Uncle and have him quickly recruit more disciples for our Qingyun Temple! In this way, our Qingyun Temple will surely flourish!" With that, Xuan Wei waved his sleeves and prepared to leave.

Seeing this, the corners of Yun Song's mouth couldn't help but twitch. He secretly lamented in his heart: Oh my god, it's all over! Now, I'm afraid the whole Xia Country will know that Master has broken through to the Fourth Stage Middle Realm!

Thinking of what might happen next, Yun Song felt a massive headache.

"Ugh... this is really a total disaster!"

"Those guys from Yunlan Nunnery and Changchun Temple will definitely come to the temple one after another to 'give some advice'."

"Sigh!"

"Thinking back to when I was slammed hard onto the ground by 'Martial Uncle Tang Tang', my little heart can't help but throb!" The more Yun Song thought about it, the more afraid he became, and his body couldn't help but shiver.

"Oh, my Ancestor Master!"

"Man, I really miss those good times when I cosplayed as Mei! At least then I didn't have to live in fear every day, worrying about being beaten black and blue!"

Yun Song muttered to himself while looking into the distance with a face full of sorrow. "AYi, I miss you so much. I wonder when I can see you—and the special edition resources."

...Netherworld, the Empress's Temporary Palace.

Inside the palace, a thousand Soul-guiding Lamps were lit, illuminating the entire hall as bright as day.

Shang Wan Ning sat elegantly on her seat. One hand rested casually on the armrest carved with dark-gold phoenix patterns, while the other picked up a cup of fragrant hot tea from the table.

She narrowed her eyes slightly, carefully savoring the taste of the fragrant tea.

You Yu bowed respectfully and reported to Shang Wan Ning: "Your Majesty, since the Spiritual Energy Storm, the current situation in various countries is still considered stable. However, the phenomenon of animal demonization is becoming increasingly serious."

"Many wild animals failed in the demonization process and turned into Demon Beasts that only know slaughter. They have rushed out of the primeval forests and launched round after round of attacks on living people... In my opinion, perhaps the Underworld should consider making some basic cultivation methods public, so that living people can also have some ability to protect themselves."

Shang Wan Ning took a small sip of tea and glanced calmly at You Yu, who was standing still with his head bowed, and then slowly said: "The time is not yet ripe. Everything needs to be done step by step; we must not act with undue haste. You must know that human nature is the hardest thing in the world to test. Once the Underworld rashly makes basic cultivation methods public, how do we know how many people with ill intentions will use them to embark on the path of evil cultivation?"

She paused for a moment, her gaze becoming deep and solemn: "Moreover, this Spiritual Energy Revival is undoubtedly an excellent opportunity for everyone to change their own destiny."

"Forget it, convey the Underworld's decision to all countries: start with the military first and take the lead in implementing basic cultivation methods. When the time is ripe and we have the strength to effectively suppress the chaotic situation, we will then consider whether to promote this measure globally."

You Yu straightened his body and knelt respectfully on the ground.

His hands were naturally folded in front of him, and he nodded slightly, responding softly: "As you command."

After receiving the order, You Yu got up nimbly, backed away a few steps, turned around, and left the palace.

Shang Wan Ning leaned back in her chair, looking slightly tired. She raised her hand and pinched the space between her eyebrows with her index and middle fingers.

"Think about those so-called Dark Night Demon Lord, Blood Tyrant Daoist, Nether Sorrow Rogue Cultivator, and so on."

"If we rashly promote it now, it would be truly unimaginable! Those guys would probably turn the world upside down, and all sorts of 'ways to play' (seeking death) would follow one after another."

"Murder and arson would probably be common, and even absurdities like belt-related matters might happen. There would also be hair-raising punishments like skinning and de-boning, not to mention all sorts of disputes triggered by a single meal..."

Shang Wan Ning couldn't help but recall a post she had browsed on a popular forum in her past life.

Its theme was the assumption that an era of Spiritual Energy Revival had truly arrived—if a person had the talent for cultivation but lacked the corresponding resource support.

Then, in order to become strong quickly, how many people would choose that so-called 'Righteous Path'?

[Fortunately, the Underworld can hold down the fort now. If it were truly completely opened up, too many people would die. My incense offerings would be gone, and how would I get my Yinjing Heavenly Palace?]

[How would I raise Qi Qi, Sister Meng, Lin Ran, the Trashy Loli...]