Cultivation Begins From The Desert-Chapter 800 - 783: Difficult Choices [6000-word Mega - ]
In the world, there always seems to be some kind of coincidence.
When Zhouyang, along with his Dao Companion Xiao Ying and the other three women, left the secret realm space through the Teleportation Array established by Lan Daoist and returned to the Zhou Family.
The Heaven-Reaching Demon King, who had infiltrated the Boundless Desert Sea a few years earlier to investigate the truth behind the desert's revival, coincidentally found the Celestial Pit on this side.
The enormous Celestial Pit and the special hardened land environment around it easily caught the attention of this Demon King.
Upon descending to the bottom of the pit, the bronze altar Zhouyang casually hid with a Tier Five Illusion Array immediately lay bare before his eyes.
"An ancient cultivator's teleportation altar used to open certain secret realm spaces. It seems to have been used by Master Zhou."
"However, as far as this king knows, these kinds of teleportation altars are set with special initiation spells and incantations upon construction. I wonder where that Master Zhou acquired the corresponding spell and incantation inheritance."
Deep underground in the Celestial Pit, the Heaven-Reaching Demon King's figure appeared above the bronze altar, gazing intently at it, quickly identifying the altar's origin and purpose.
Many human race cultivators knew what kind of exotic beast the Heaven-Reaching Demon King of the Broken Cloud Mountain Range was.
Yet, few human race cultivators knew that the Heaven-Reaching Demon King, aside from being incredibly powerful and skilled, was also an extremely rare Array Grandmaster among the demon race, particularly proficient in space transmission arrays.
He only needed a glance to understand the function and origin of this bronze altar.
However, even as an Array Grandmaster, without knowing the correct spells and incantations, it is impossible to use the bronze altar.
In ancient times, cultivators used such bronze altars to open various secret realm spaces rather than the teleportation arrays commonly used in the current cultivation realm due to their high secrecy.
"What a pity, what a pity. Although I can't use this altar, it doesn't mean that this king can't enter the secret realm space it leads to."
"Let's see now, Zhouyang, what secrets are you hiding in here!"
A hint of arrogance flitted across the Heaven-Reaching Demon King's eyes. He suddenly opened his mouth and spat out a spindle-shaped magical artifact in silver-gray.
"Swift!"
With a low shout from his mouth, the silver-gray spindle began to fly in the void like a spindle in the hand of a weaving maid, weaving a series of silver-white threads.
Upon closer inspection, it becomes apparent that these silver-white threads are not real threads but tiny spatial rifts formed by the void being torn open.
These tiny spatial rifts only exist for a short while before being repaired by the world's space laws, appearing and disappearing alternately.
But even so, this scene was enough to be terrifying.
After all, spatial rifts are overwhelmingly powerful, so much so that even a Tribulation Crossing True Immortal could be completely destroyed by them if hit unintentionally.
The Heaven-Reaching Demon King's mastery of a spindle-shaped magical artifact capable of tearing the void at will is something no one would believe if told.
After wielding the magical artifact through the void for a while, the Heaven-Reaching Demon King's expression suddenly brightened as if he had discovered something. He hurriedly injected a large amount of magical power into the magical artifact, and with a low shout, he stabbed fiercely towards a certain point in the void.
"Tear open for me!"
Rip—
The void twisted and shook as if a piece of paper were directly torn open by that spindle-shaped magical artifact, creating a fissure half a zhang long and a foot wide.
Then, with a shift of his body, the Heaven-Reaching Demon King, enveloped in a silver glow, shrunk his form and leaped into the spatial rift.
In the uninhabited secret realm space, a pitch-black spatial fissure suddenly appeared in the sky. A small beast, azure-green like a tiger but with a silver-gray horn on its head, surrounded by silver radiance, burst out from the fissure and officially descended into the secret realm space.
The azure-green small beast appeared within the secret realm space, rapidly expanding in size, transforming into a giant beast several tens of zhang long.
"Such rich Spiritual Qi, is this a Grotto Heaven Secret Realm opened by a human race True Immortal? Why then is there no trace of Zhouyang and the others?"
The azure-green giant beast scanned the empty secret realm space with curious eyes, a flicker of confusion across its gaze, almost doubting if it had come to the wrong place.
However, in the next moment, as if discovering something extraordinary, it trembled all over with excitement, shouting loudly, "Ah! It's the Power of Spatial Origin, there's actually the Power of Spatial Origin here!"
At the sight of the Power of Spatial Origin he had been seeking for thousands of years, no words could express the Heaven-Reaching Demon King's excitement and ecstasy at that moment.
His opportunity for enlightenment, his chance to advance to the Tier Seven True Spirit, had finally been found!
At this moment, he even forgot the real reason he came here, focusing all his mind on comprehending and absorbing the Power of Spatial Origin.
The biggest flaw of the [Azure Heaven Beast], this powerful exotic beast, is that it has no True Spirit Bloodline.
An exotic beast without a True Spirit Bloodline, wanting to advance to Tier Seven True Spirit, faces a difficulty no less than a lower-grade spiritual root cultivator cultivating to the Tribulation Crossing Stage True Immortal.
Even a talent like the [Heaven-Reaching Demon King], with boundless abilities, was stuck for thousands of years without any progress, unable to see even a glimmer of hope for advancement.
Later, after visiting an old senior of the demon race, and under his guidance, he learned.
If he wished to advance to a Tier Seven True Spirit, he either needed to consume a large amount of Tier Seven True Spirit True Blood containing Space Laws, risking a bloodline clash and forcibly merging.
Or he needed to find the Power of Spatial Origin, allowing his bloodline to be nourished by this Origin Law Power, thereby naturally breaking the bloodline shackle to advance.
The former path was impossible for the [Heaven-Reaching Demon King], because that demon race senior clearly told him that such a bloodline containing spatial attributes has never appeared before in the "Spirit Realm".
And for the latter path, the [Heaven-Reaching Demon King] had been painstakingly seeking for thousands of years until today when he finally saw the dawn of hope.
However, in his extreme excitement and thrill, the [Heaven-Reaching Demon King] clearly did not realize that this Secret Realm Space had an owner.
And the owner of the Secret Realm Space was currently within this Secret Realm Space.
When he was fully concentrating on comprehending and absorbing the Power of Spatial Origin, the master of the Secret Realm also quickly woke from slumber due to the forced intrusion of the outsider.
Lan Daoist, who had previously accompanied Zhoyang to visit the [Heaven-Reaching Demon King] at Heaven Pillar Peak, quickly recognized the intruder's identity upon awakening.
But this did not affect his determination and strength to make a move in the slightest.
Because if the [Heaven-Reaching Demon King] was allowed to continue absorbing the Power of Spatial Origin diffused within the Secret Realm Space, it would rapidly accelerate the collapse of the entire Secret Realm Space, leading to his failure to evolve.
In fact, because the [Heaven-Reaching Demon King] forcibly broke through the spatial barrier to appear here, it had already caused significant damage to this already unstable Secret Realm Space, which was also why Lan Daoist woke up so quickly.
At this moment, Lan Daoist, due to over eighty years of cultivation, had already integrated thirty percent of the essence from those five-colored giant stones into his body, dramatically increasing his strength.
Moreover, because he was currently serving as the Guardian of the Secret Realm Space, his magical power within this Secret Realm Space was virtually endless.
Coupled with his mindful calculations and a deliberate sneak attack, how could the [Heaven-Reaching Demon King] not be defeated!
After a fierce battle, the [Heaven-Reaching Demon King] was badly beaten by Lan Daoist and retreated in disgrace from this Secret Realm Space.
Yet, although Lan Daoist won, he showed no signs of joy.
Because even though both deliberately restrained their powers during the battle to avoid damaging the Secret Realm Space, it still suffered heavy damage due to their clash, with at least one-fifth of the land being directly swallowed by the chaos void.
"I must quickly inform Fellow Daoist Zhou of this matter; otherwise, once that [Heaven-Reaching Demon King] heals his wounds, he might target him!"
With this in mind, Lan Daoist immediately used emergency communication means to reach Zhoyang, who was on his way back to the Zhou family.
Upon receiving the urgent message from Lan Daoist midway, Zhoyang's complexion changed dramatically, and he promptly led people back to the Secret Realm Space.
After returning to the Secret Realm Space and hearing from Lan Daoist what had happened earlier, his face instantly turned grim.
"This is troublesome; that [Heaven-Reaching Demon King] has unparalleled space divine techniques. Since he managed to find this Secret Realm Space and forcibly break in once, he can do it a second time!"
"This time you were able to awaken in time to severely injure and drive him away, but next time, if he breaks in while you're asleep and launches a sneak attack first, you might not be able to win so easily again!"
Zhoyang's words were still considerate of Lan Daoist's face.
In reality, with the [Heaven-Reaching Demon King's] strength and methods, if he were to launch a sneak attack first, in Lan Daoist's current state, it was highly likely he would be severely injured or even killed on the spot.
After all, Lan Daoist was now sealed within the five-colored giant stones, making many techniques inconvenient to use.
"Lan somewhat guessed the reason the [Heaven-Reaching Demon King] could find this place, and if Lan is correct, as long as Fellow Daoist Zhou destroys the bronze altar outside, he won't be able to find this place out of thin air again."
"But with his wisdom, he will surely deduce that Fellow Daoist Zhou was the one who did it, and at that time, he will likely cause trouble for you."
"From what I observed of his behavior upon entering the Secret Realm Space, he clearly needs to absorb and fuse the Power of Spatial Origin within the Secret Realm Space to strengthen his bloodline, aiming to advance to the Tier Seven True Spirit Realm!"
"In the face of the opportunity to attain Tao, relying solely on your relationship with the Thunder Feather True Spirit may not be enough to deter this [Heaven-Reaching Demon King]!"
Hearing Lan Daoist's words, Zhoyang's face immediately changed dramatically.
Earlier, he only said it would be troublesome on Lan Daoist's side because he thought that with his own rapport with the Thunder Feather True Spirit, the [Heaven-Reaching Demon King] would not act against him and the Zhou family.
But after Lan Daoist's analysis, how could he still hold such a mindset?
"Fellow Daoist Lan, your reminder indeed saved me from a narrow escape. If it weren't for your timely warning, I might have made a grave mistake!"
He solemnly bowed towards Fellow Daoist Lan, who was seated inside the five-colored giant stone, to express his gratitude. Then, he murmured to himself thoughtfully, "It seems there is only one path left, which is to share the benefits of this Secret Realm space with them!"
Indeed, sharing the benefits of the Secret Realm space meant a considerable loss for Zhouyang, but it was far better than becoming mortal enemies with someone as powerful as the Heaven-Reaching Demon King.
In truth, he had no personal enmity with the Heaven-Reaching Demon King, so it wasn't worthwhile to make a deadly enemy over such a conflict of interest.
However, hearing these words, Fellow Daoist Lan inside the five-colored giant stone responded gravely, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, if you wish to share the benefits of the Secret Realm space with others, Lan cannot interfere. It's just that, as you know, Lan must utilize the unique environment here to perfectly absorb and integrate the essence within the Five Elements Stone Robe."
"But if the Heaven-Reaching Demon King is allowed to absorb the Power of Spatial Origin within the Secret Realm space, it will inevitably lead to the collapse of the Secret Realm, obstructing Lan's path!"
This left Zhouyang in a dilemma again.
If he didn't compromise with the Heaven-Reaching Demon King and let him into the Secret Realm space, he would be blocking the Heaven-Reaching Demon King's path, forcing them to become mortal enemies.
But if he allowed the Heaven-Reaching Demon King to enter the Secret Realm, it would obstruct Fellow Daoist Lan's path!
This was truly a conundrum without a solution.
"What should be done? Is there really no option that benefits both sides?"
Zhouyang, frustrated, patted his palm, unsure of what choice to make.
At this moment, Xiao Ying, who had been silently listening to the exchange between him and Fellow Daoist Lan, suddenly spoke up.
"Husband, since you don't know what to choose, why not directly share the dilemma with the Heaven-Reaching Demon King? After all, he has already lost once to Fellow Daoist Lan and should understand that there is absolutely no chance of victory against Lan in this Secret Realm space. So it should be his headache on how to persuade Lan to allow him to cultivate here!"
Could it really be done this way?
Zhouyang couldn't help but look towards the five-colored giant stone where Fellow Daoist Lan was sealed.
Doing so would mean shifting all the pressure onto Fellow Daoist Lan, excluding himself and the Zhou Family from the issue, which wasn't a very fair action for Fellow Daoist Lan.
Unexpectedly, Fellow Daoist Lan did not seem angry; instead, he calmly said, "Fellow Daoist Xiao's suggestion is not without merit. If it's just Lan alone here, even with an advantage, no matter how many times the Heaven-Reaching Demon King comes, it would only lead to mutual destruction, and neither of us would achieve our goals!"
What else could Zhouyang say now?
He deeply bowed once again towards the five-colored giant stone and gratefully said, "Thank you, Fellow Daoist Lan, for understanding. I know that speaking words of gratitude at this moment is empty. I can only promise that if the Heaven-Reaching Demon King truly obstructs your path this time, I will behead him in the future to appease you!"
"There's no need for such measures, Fellow Daoist Zhou. Since Lan placed a bet on you in the beginning, I will not let my issues cause your mid-path demise. Just ensure that you can ascend as an Immortal soon, fly to the Upper Realm, and fulfill the promise made to Lan, for which there is nothing I wouldn't sacrifice!"
Fellow Daoist Lan's voice remained as calm as ever, seemingly unaffected even by significant hindrances to his path.
"I understand, Fellow Daoist Lan. Please see my actions,"
Zhouyang responded solemnly, bowing one more time before leading his group out of the Secret Realm space.
A month later, Zhouyang and his group successfully returned to Lingxi Peak.
By now, Lingxi Peak had undergone significant changes compared to over eighty years ago.
After the Boundless Desert Sea's revival, the resulting geographical changes affected not only the Desert Sea itself but also had an impact on various oases.
In particular, the impact on Rhino Horn Continent was quite significant.
First was the lake where Cyan Flood Dragon Green Luo resided. Due to several underground water channels suddenly converging during the geographical shifts, the water flow significantly increased, enlarging the lake's area several times, exceeding the task Zhouyang had originally assigned to her.
The lake now stretched over three hundred miles long and one hundred and seventy to eighty miles wide, becoming the true "Lake of Life" in the oasis.
Then there was Lingxi Peak.
The tallest mountain on Rhino Horn Continent, Lingxi Peak, also experienced its share of trials during the geographical shifts, suffering multiple landslides and damages, which caused significant losses to the Zhou Family.
In the end, Zhou Liangyu decided to go all out, enlisting several Golden Core Stage cultivators from the clan, and inviting help from Cyan Flood Dragon Green Luo to directly rebuild the Spirit Mountain. Using their Divine Techniques and Magic on the original mountain's foundation, they raised the peak's height by five to six hundred feet and constructed several secondary peaks.
Even now, some of these artificial constructions on the Spirit Mountain are still ongoing.
"Child greets Father and Mother. Congratulations to Father on the great success of your divine techniques,"
On Lingxi Peak, Zhou Guangcheng rushed up to bow and pay respects as he saw his parents return, his face beaming with joy and happiness.
In recent years, he had been under immense pressure, handling inquiries from several powerful Nascent Soul Stage cultivators from various major forces alone, which was no easy task for someone like him, with no previous experience in facing such situations independently.
"Cheng'Er, you did quite well this time. Soon, you shall accompany your father to meet those Fellow Daoists waiting here."
Zhouyang nodded slightly at his son, not hesitating to praise him, acknowledging his performance.
This kind of affirmation from his father was undoubtedly the best gift for Zhou Guangcheng.
With a face full of smiles, he quickly replied, "Your son will comply."
Currently, there were three external Nascent Soul Stage cultivators waiting at Lingxi Peak, all from the Westernmost Cultivation Realm.
Among them, aside from the Wang-named cultivator from the Great Brightness Immortal Palace who had visited the Boundless Sea of Sand Cultivation Realm once, the other two were from the Anti-Light Alliance.
Upon Zhouyang's return, he soon had Zhou Guangcheng first summon the Wang-named cultivator from the Great Brightness Immortal Palace in for questioning.
After listening to the words of Yin Hanguang conveyed by the Wang-named cultivator, Zhouyang laughed heartily, "As expected, heroes see eye to eye. Palace Master Yin is indeed a kindred spirit of mine, knowing my thoughts well!"
After laughing, a gleam flashed in his eyes, and he looked at the Wang-named cultivator and said, "However, as for other conditions, they are negotiable, but for the matter of the Boundless Sea of Sand Cultivation Realm belonging to the Westernmost Cultivation Realm, I need Fellow Daoist Wang to relay this to Palace Master Yin and have him ponder it further!"
Saying this, he didn't wait for the Wang-named cultivator to respond and continued in a faint tone, "Actually, from the perspective of myself and the Zhou Family, as long as the Great Brightness Immortal Palace acknowledges the Zhou Family's control of the Boundless Sea of Sand, there's no need for such a title."
"But if the Boundless Sea of Sand Cultivation Realm is still considered part of the Westernmost Cultivation Realm in the future, can the Zhou Family also attempt to challenge the Immortal Palace's dominance over the Boundless Sea of Sand Cultivation Realm if our strength grows strong? After all, no one wants to remain subordinate forever and willingly become a vassal, right?"
The color on the Wang-named cultivator's face changed drastically, becoming extremely unsightly in an instant.
Zhouyang's words were quite blunt, and the implications filled him with trepidation.
He looked at Zhouyang with a mixture of shock and anger, wanting to scold Zhouyang for his rebellious and ambitious words, but dared not actually speak up.
When Zhouyang had just returned, the aura of his Eighth-Layer Nascent Soul Stage cultivation was not concealed at all.
Though the Wang-named cultivator was also a Nascent Soul Stage cultivator, he didn't have the courage to scold Zhouyang to his face.
"Let's do it this way; I see that Fellow Daoist Wang cannot make decisions on this matter. It'd be better for you to run a few more errands and first take my words back to Palace Master Yin and let him decide!"
Zhouyang looked at the Wang-named cultivator with an indifferent expression, waved his hand, and sent him away.
"I will definitely convey Fellow Daoist Zhou's words to the Palace Master truthfully!"
With a tone of resentment, the Wang-named cultivator left Lingxi Peak in a rather disgraced manner.
Zhouyang certainly did not take the words of the Wang-named cultivator to heart. He believed that Yin Hanguang, upon learning of his advancement to the Eighth-Layer Nascent Soul Stage, would make the right choice.
So after the Wang-named cultivator left, he proceeded to summon the two Nascent Soul Stage cultivators from the Anti-Light Alliance.
But towards the cultivators from the Anti-Light Alliance, his attitude wasn't as good as it was to the Wang-named cultivator. He directly asked as soon as they met, "Fellow Daoists surely understand the grudges between me and the Anti-Light Alliance when you came here. I wonder what terms you brought for me this time?"
His blunt words made the two Nascent Soul Stage cultivators from the Anti-Light Alliance quite awkward. One of them, a Nascent Soul Stage cultivator surnamed Lin, immediately coughed and said, "Ahem, Master Zhou overestimates things. The grudges between our alliance and Master Zhou were all due to the actions of figures like Guo Jinhong, who have all paid the price for their foolish actions. Most fellow daoists in our alliance don't actually harbor enmity towards you!"
Zhouyang, upon hearing this, looked at them with a half-smile and continued to ask, "Then what about Master Thunder Lei Wanpeng? He was your previous alliance leader and died at the hands of myself and Yin Hanguang. Can you ignore this as well?"
As if having anticipated that he would bring up this matter, the Lin-named cultivator immediately said with righteous conviction, "Alliance Leader Lei fell under the Tier Seven Immortal Artifact Skull of Light; we all witnessed this with our own eyes at the time!"
After speaking, fearing that Zhouyang might bring up other embarrassing topics, he quickly shifted the subject, "Besides, in terms of hatred, didn't Fellow Daoist Zhou represent our Anti-Light Alliance and kill three Golden Core Seeds from the Great Brightness Immortal Palace personally during your Purple Mansion Stage?"
Another Nascent Soul Stage cultivator surnamed Cheng quickly chimed in, "What Fellow Daoist Lin said is absolutely true. Since the Great Brightness Immortal Palace could overlook past grievances and accept Fellow Daoist Zhou, our Anti-Light Alliance naturally has even more sincerity and an open mind, sincerely willing to resolve past grudges with Fellow Daoist Zhou and form an alliance!"
Zhouyang found it amusing to hear their echoing words.
If Guo Jinhong and Lei Wanpeng had known that after their death, they'd be treated this way by the other cultivators of the Anti-Light Alliance for whom they fought desperately, one wonders what they would feel!
But this is the Cultivation Realm!
The weak are prey to the strong, and strength is reason!
Thus, he didn't bother to point out the mistakes or loopholes in their words, simply waving his hand and saying, "Alright, since you're willing to let bygones be bygones, I have no reason to make things difficult for you, right?"
"But as for forming an alliance, there's no need to mention it. I have a life-and-death friendship with Yin Hanguang, the current Palace Master of the Great Brightness Immortal Palace; how could I possibly ally with his enemies against him?"
The two Nascent Soul Stage cultivators from the Anti-Light Alliance, Lin and Cheng, initially were pleased, but then alarmed by his words, hurriedly said, "Why refuse in such haste, Fellow Daoist Zhou? Why not first hear our terms before deciding?"
"Indeed, Fellow Daoist Zhou, so what if you have a friendship with Yin Hanguang? He's a dying man; why tie yourself to the sinking ship of the Great Brightness Immortal Palace for the sake of a dying person?"
