Elian walked out of the closed-door room.
He looked on calmly, his heart filled with emotions.
In cultivation, talent, comprehension, and resources determine the lower limit, but what truly determines the upper limit is often one's obsession, perseverance, willpower, and talent, among other factors.
Chen Nianchuan had forged extraordinary perseverance, along with courage and decisiveness, all of which had led him to this point.
Such a person, if not falling on the path of cultivation, will go very far.
"…"
The Ethereal Vessel took over ten days to cross several hundred thousand miles of the Great Wilderness, finally arriving at Qingyang Mountain.
Elian didn't leave immediately but instead used the underground fire veins of Qingyang Mountain to refine the Black Abyss Ancient Gold.
This Black Abyss Ancient Gold was a fourth-grade heavenly material, but it contained a large amount of demonic energy. To forge the Thousand Demons Slaying Sword, Elian would need to invest a significant amount of effort.
Indeed, even with the help of the underground fire veins, the process of refining this sword was very troublesome.
He first used the power of the underground fire, spending forty-nine days to completely purge the demonic energy from the sword.
Then, he used fourth-grade fire to melt it for a full one hundred and eight days, turning the Thousand Demons Slaying Sword into a molten substance.
At this point, the difficulty became much lower, and Elian began reshaping the sword's body, spending seven days carving the formation patterns into it. Eventually, he completed the sword embryo for the Thousand Demons Slaying Sword.
After the sword was forged, its grade reached the threshold of a near fourth-grade item. It only needed to kill a Gold Core-level demon beast and refine its soul into the sword to promote it to a full fourth-grade weapon.
"A good celestial sword."
Looking at the black sword embryo in front of him, Elian felt a moment of joy. This sword was a nemesis to demonic cultivators and monsters, and with it in hand, his future methods would be greatly enhanced.
With a sense of joy, he walked out of the closed-door room, intending to find Jiang Linglong.
Just as he exited the room, he saw a sword light flying towards Qingyang Mountain from the sky. The light landed on the mountaintop and transformed into a graceful, beautiful woman.
"Who is this visitor?"
Elian's eyes narrowed slightly. The woman's aura was restrained yet majestic, even more powerful than a full Gold Core cultivator.
Just then, Jiang Linglong emerged and greeted the woman before calling Elian over.
"…"
In the grand hall of Qingyang Mountain, the three of them sat facing each other.
Jiang Linglong smiled at Elian and introduced the woman, saying, "This is Ji Feixue, my close friend."
"She is here regarding the Demon Lair matter."
Elian's eyes flickered, recalling the origin of the name.
Ji Feixue was a renowned celestial beauty from Ji Continent. She was the legitimate daughter of the Ji clan's patriarch, and although she was of a similar age to Jiang Linglong, she had already cultivated to the peak of the Golden Core stage.
Though she had three spirit roots, she naturally possessed the "Yin Body," a Dao body, and had forged a superior Golden Core.
Relying on her powerful magic treasures and superior Golden Core's formidable magical power, Ji Feixue once fought against a demon emperor in the early Nascent Soul stage and didn't fall behind.
Ji Feixue glanced at Elian and nodded slightly.
After they got acquainted, Jiang Linglong directly got to the point, saying, "How shall we deal with the Demon Lair?"
"This matter was a joint scheme of the Flood Dragon Demon Sovereign and the Black Fiend Demon Lord. They've already prepared a backup plan."
Ji Feixue shook her head, speaking gravely. Upon hearing her words, the two of them felt a slight heaviness in their hearts.
As expected, Ji Feixue continued, "The Black Fiend Demon Ridge is unstable, tying up several of our True Monarchs."
"Several demon emperors under the Flood Dragon Demon Sovereign's command have also made moves to entangle our True Monarchs."
"So, this time, they only sent me here."
Elian furrowed his brows and asked, "Is it really impossible to eradicate the Demon Lair?"
"It's not that it's impossible."
Ji Feixue shook her head, still speaking, "But if a great battle breaks out here, no matter the outcome, the Kingdom of Chu will be left in ruins, and millions of commoners will be displaced. Are you willing to accept that?"
"Moreover, my father and the Flood Dragon Demon Sovereign have both almost reached the Soul Formation realm."
"Right now, my father is at a critical juncture in his seclusion. If we act rashly, it may all be in vain."
Elian's mind sank into deep thought, and his doubts were suddenly cleared.
The Ji clan's patriarch and the Green Flood Dragon Sovereign were both extraordinary beings. One had celestial blood running through his veins, while the other was a descendant of the Black Dragon Demon Ancestor, with bloodline evolution nearing the transformation into a dragon. (Remember Green Flood Dragon Sovereign is the Flood Dragon Demon Sovereign)
These two beings were extremely powerful, and whoever first reached the Soul Formation realm would likely change the entire pattern of the Eastern Wilderness.
Once the Ji clan patriarch breaks through to the Soul Formation realm, he would be able to unite the forces of hundreds of regions surrounding Ji Continent, turning the entire Ji Continent into a Dao Lord's holy land.
At that time, how could the Ji clan tolerate a being so close to transforming into a dragon lurking nearby?
The demon emperors were scheming against the Kingdom of Chu to force the Ji clan patriarch out of seclusion and delay his breakthrough to the Soul Formation Dao Lord.
"So, what you're saying is..." Elian's face became serious, and an ominous feeling rose in his heart.
"Isn't the Kingdom of Chu in great danger?"
"Yes."
Ji Feixue nodded and spoke calmly, "My father and the Green Flood Dragon Sovereign signed a three-thousand-year contract back then, and now, two thousand five hundred years have passed."
"In the next few centuries, as my father's breakthrough to Soul Formation draws near, they will become more and more impatient."
"Even if they dare not break the contract and strike directly, they will continue to intervene in indirect ways."
She sighed deeply, speaking with some compassion, "For the Kingdom of Chu, the coming demon beast turmoil will be even more dangerous."
Elian remained silent, his heart trembling slightly.
He understood very well that compared to a Soul Formation Dao Lord, a small country like Chu really didn't matter much.
Even if a small country falls into war, it wouldn't be a loss to destroy ten Kingdoms of Chu in exchange for a Soul Formation Dao Lord.
The Eastern Wilderness spans hundreds of millions of miles, with more than eight hundred large continents like Ji Continent, yet there are only three Dao Lord holy lands.
Combined, the human Dao Lords number only around eight or nine, and most of them are stationed along the Eastern Sea.
One more Soul Formation Dao Lord could protect the peace of a hundred regions and ensure the prosperity of millions of humans, which would be their greatest merit.
Currently, the Chen family, located on the edge of the Kingdom of Chu, was in the most dangerous position in this situation.
Even though the demons feared the Ji clan's Pure Yang treasure, the "Refining Immortal Furnace," and dared not directly fight them, small-scale operations like the Demon Lair were enough to severely harm the cultivation world of the Kingdom of Chu.
"You don't need to worry too much."
Ji Feixue shook her head and spoke calmly, "In the past, the Green Flood Dragon Sovereign swore an oath when he signed the contract. If he breaks it and acts against us, it will be difficult for him to break through to Soul Formation realm."
"Also, he is not far from transforming into a dragon, so he likely won't have much energy to handle these matters."
"So, he will only engage in small-scale actions, indirectly supporting the demon beasts under his command. He won't engage in a full-scale war with us."
"If they really go too far, we will call upon the immortal clans from other regions in Ji Continent to join the battle."
Hearing this, Elian felt a slight sense of relief.
However, he also knew that Nascent Soul immortal clans would not easily summon cultivators to fight.
Because once such forces engaged in battle, many Gold Core cultivators and even demon emperors and True Monarchs might fall, so both sides would exercise extreme restraint.
...
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