The forest was shrouded in night, with the rustling of insects echoing long and winding.
"Master, could you have mistaken him?"
Under her black robe, a young girl slightly pouted, her voice tinged with suspicion, "That guy clearly doesn't know about the agreement you mentioned."
"That's right, Master... an adult Phantom Beast is a Tier 9 demonic creature comparable to a Soul Transformation expert, and its essence is an even rarer ingredient for medicine."
Another person in black also chimed in, with a hint of displeasure in his voice, "1000 purple crystal coins, how is that any different from giving it away for free?"
The others also looked at Yun Wuji, all with the same doubts in their hearts.
"Hehe."
Yun Wuji gently waved his sleeve and smiled, "Of course I know."
"Then you..." The disciples were even more puzzled.
"The one who made the agreement with me must be someone else using his body," Yun Wuji's eyes deepened slightly, "Otherwise, how could Shen He, a mere mortal, know the cultivation method for the Immortal Slaying Sword Art?"
"So that's it."
The female disciple suddenly understood, then asked again, "Just now, I felt that those people had the aura of the origin of light... it seems to match the holy feather that protects our sect.
Didn't you once say that feather was left by the legendary God-King Yeller?"
"Silence!"
Yun Wuji's gaze sharpened, his voice like a cold blade, "I told you, do not speak of Him in the outside world!"
The female disciple's face turned pale, realizing she had said the wrong thing, and quickly covered her mouth with both hands to silence herself.
Yun Wuji snorted lightly, a terrifying glint flashing in his deep eyes, "The restrictions of this Grotto-Heaven are about to be lifted prematurely.
Every word and action must be carefully considered!
It would be a great trouble if those demoness's followers found out."
"Master, other outer gods cannot set foot in this Grotto-Heaven... and it can restrict cultivation, why not lure her over..."
A disciple drew his hand across his neck, his eyes ruthless.
"No!"
Yun Wuji shook his head, "I cannot exert my full power in this Grotto-Heaven either.
If that demoness merely projects herself through a follower, it will expose our whereabouts."
"Before I undergo tribulation, do not act rashly."
At this point, he also pondered silently in his heart.
Earlier, his divine sense had indeed detected an aura that was somewhat similar to the Holy Feather when searching that territory...
Suddenly, he recalled the rumors he had recently received.
"Authority escaping..."
Yun Wuji murmured in a low voice.
Could it be that the little lord had obtained the ultimate characteristic of the authority of light?
"So that's it... Did that mysterious senior already foresee this and plan ahead?"
After understanding, Yun Wuji's robes billowed, and a vast cloud of mist instantly swallowed the convoy.
"Concentrate your spiritual power, we're returning to the Realm of All Beings."
The smoke dissipated.
There was no one in the dark forest.
......
Congratulations! This year's Human Lord—Lin Yi, your territory has been upgraded to Level 4! Breaking the curse that there have been no Level 4 territories in the Trial Land throughout Blue Star human history! Therefore, to express congratulations, the following rewards are given...
Immortal-grade Tavern Blueprint x1, Saint-grade Military Base Blueprint x1, Mythical-grade Blacksmith Shop Blueprint x1, Reputation Value x20000, Mist Mountain Range Secret Realm Rune x1!
Special Notice: Due to a Lord successfully upgrading their territory to Level 4 in this trial, the number of Lords with Mythical-grade territory characteristics ≥ 10, and the number of Lords with Mythical buildings ≥ 100, the conditions for civilization level leap have been met! Thus, after this trial ends, Blue Star Humans will be promoted to a Second-level Civilization, and the upper limits of territory characteristics and creature aptitude will be broken through!
Congratulations! You have successfully shed the title of ants! You now possess the slim hope of igniting divine fire and raising a divine kingdom!
The announcement was like a bolt from the blue, flashing through the minds of all Blue Star Lords in the Trial Land!
Silence—
Dead silence!
The scrolling bullet comments in the chat channel seemed to have been paused, and all Lords stopped what they were doing in unison.
After an unknown amount of time.
Overwhelming discussions erupted like a tsunami building up and then bursting forth.
"Holy crap! Level 4???? That needs 100 Tier 3 demon cores, doesn't it? Even returning to Blue Star's home planet would take a lot of time, yet Lin Yi actually accomplished such a feat in half a month???"
"Lin Yi can conquer a Tier 4 pinnacle World BOSS, so hunting Tier 3 demonic beasts is like child's play for him, isn't it?"
"Is that the same thing?! Forget Tier 3 demonic beasts, I haven't even seen the shadow of a Tier 1 demonic beast cub, and Tier 2 demonic beasts are even rarer and harder to find. Where would you find 100 Tier 3 demonic beasts in half a month??"
"The point! Say the point!!! We've been promoted to a Second-level Civilization!!! A Second-level Civilization! Holy crap!! So there are indeed many levels above Legendary, Mythical, Saint, Immortal... I thought my Excellent territory characteristic was already amazing, but now it seems like a roadside..."
"No... you guys who upgraded your territory characteristics, and those who built Mythical buildings, your mouths are really tight!!! So many days, and not a single piece of news came out! If it weren't for the Will's announcement, I would never have thought that there were already a hundred Lords with high-tier buildings!"
"Secretly getting rich, no shooting... Hehe, Mythical territory characteristic, truly amazing!"
"I... I also got a Mythical-grade building blueprint, damn it! Where are the materials in the exchange?! I clearly remember there were still some when I was reselling a few days ago!"
"Holy crap, brothers, something's wrong! Look at the Hero Leaderboard!"
"Hiss... Damn, why is Lin Yi's hero aptitude still a question mark??? Haven't we already been promoted to a Second-level Civilization? Hasn't it updated yet?"
"Why are you guys only looking at the first two? Look carefully at the third one, Lü Xiaoyou - Human (Immortal) Affiliation: Lin Yi!!! What is this? Immortal only ranks third!!!"
"Third? That's Immortal! Originally, I thought Lin Yi's hero was only Mythical-grade, but I didn't expect him to be even stronger than Immortal!"
"What's the point of playing, there are even higher ranks above Immortal! Above a Second-level Civilization, there are even more powerful existences... So are we just turning from ants into bigger bugs?"
"Gotta say... this time we all benefited from Lin Yi's efforts. If his territory hadn't upgraded, how could we have been promoted to a Second-level Civilization?"
"With Lin Yi on Blue Star, we have hope of counterattacking the alien races! Not only can we reclaim lost territory, but we can also expand outwards and counterattack the alien races' homeland!"
"Lin Yi is awesome!"
"Lin Yi is awesome! +1"
"........"
"Lin Yi is awesome! +10086"
"......."
......
"Holy crap, Lin Yi, don't mess with me at a critical moment!"
Hao Xingren's back was pressed tightly against the damp rock wall of the mountain, clutching the compass in his hand.
He only glanced at the messages that popped up on the light screen before immediately closing all notification alerts.
Inside the silent cave, he could faintly hear the pounding of his own heart, dull and urgent.
"They should have gone far, right?"
He looked down at the ground—the corpse that had been torn in half by brute force, blood and internal organs splattered everywhere, almost unrecognizable as human.
Cold sweat trickled down his face.
Fortunately, with Lin Yi's help some time ago, his territory characteristic had been upgraded and his exclusive equipment strengthened.
Plus, the monster wasn't very intelligent and had chased a fleeing villager out of the cave.
Otherwise, he and the remaining few followers would have become part of the minced meat by now.
Hao Xingren took a deep breath, emboldened, and cautiously ventured deeper into the cave.
A faint blue lantern glowed dimly, barely illuminating the scene ahead.
Inside the mountain, a dilapidated stone door was embedded, its surface covered with cracks from the erosion of time.
Two monster sculptures he didn't recognize stood at the entrance.
Next to the door was a large stone, with faintly visible carved writing on it.
"Damn it, if I go out now, I might run into that monster again."
Hao Xingren gritted his teeth and quickly walked towards the stone door with the remaining four villagers.
Only when he stood before the large stone did he finally make out the carvings on it.
"The immortal path is difficult!"
"The immortal path is difficult!"
"To future generations who see this rock, it proves that Han failed in his attempt to reach the Golden Core stage and perished."
"Within this mansion are my lifelong cultivation insights, techniques, and some elixirs, which I hope can help future generations embark on the path to immortality."