After carving a hundred strokes, etching out a feather of a Golden Winged Bird, Qian Duduo trembled all over, breaking out in a cold sweat from the pain.
He could no longer gather Qi and had to stop to rest.
Thinking about needing to go out for a mission, he sent messages to Cao Yueying, Xu Fa, and He Shi'an, inviting them to the Purple Gold Manor.
Walking into the Purple Gold Manor, a lively scene greeted him.
Huang Guiren was leading a dozen Disciples in expanding the Golden Ox Garden and the Golden Tiger Garden.
The scale of the Golden Ox Garden was already close to that of the Spirit Chicken Garden, probably capable of accommodating thousands of Golden Oxen.
The Golden Ox Garden was also divided into sections; the Seven-Colored Golden Bull and its family were, of course, in the core area.
Ordinary Golden Oxen were housed in the common area.
Since most of the ten-thousand-acre Purple Gold Manor was planted with Violet Clover, there was no need to worry about feed for these Golden Oxen.
In the Golden Tiger Garden, Zi'e Golden Tiger's belly was so big that she no longer returned to Wen'an Peak; there was chicken and beef here, and the food was good.
In a little over a month, she would give birth to tiger cubs.
It was unknown whether it was the effect of the Jin Beast Medicinal Pill or the reason for becoming a companion with Zi'e Golden Tiger, but Tiger Bro's aura was becoming increasingly powerful.
He was now a Senior Combat Beast, on the verge of Breakthrough to Jin Beast.
What kind of beast their offspring with Zi'e Golden Tiger would be was also something to look forward to.
Wang Dahei brought two Disciples from Xiongjin Mountain to set up a Formation for the Turtle Garden.
Turtles preferred quiet, so a noise-shielding Formation was essential.
Now that Vajra Turtle eggs had just been added, some areas still needed higher temperatures and denser Spiritual Qi to help the turtles hatch earlier.
For the Ironclad Black Tortoise, Wang Dahei also wanted to urge them to develop quickly and planned to build warm houses for them.
Qian Duduo walked to the pond in the center of the Purple Gold Manor.
The ice on the pond's surface had not yet melted, and the fish at the bottom were hibernating.
Compared to the fish in the Burial Instrument, the fish Qian Duduo raised were too ordinary and did not live up to the name Purple Gold.
When he had the chance, he would have to find some fiercer fish.
If he could get two Yellow Stingrays, a pair of Spirit Manta Rays, and raise a Marlin, and if possible, even a Spirit Whale Shark, then his Purple Gold Manor would truly be extraordinary.
However, this pond certainly wouldn't be able to hold them all; perhaps they would have to be raised in Mengyuan River...
While he was dreaming, Cao Yueying and others arrived.
Qian Duduo handed them the Hundred Burning Fang Mace, the White Frost Yin Fan, and the Hundred Refinement Golden Sword, and they all smiled.
"How can I accept this?" Cao Yueying quickly put away the Hundred Burning Fang Mace and said with a smile, "I thought I would never see it again."
Senior Dan Artifacts were not common in the Sect; if sold in Kongfang City, they would fetch at least 100,000 gold coins.
Xu Fa and He Shi'an took the Magic Treasures and bowed deeply to Qian Duduo.
He Shi'an stepped forward half a step, "From now on, as long as Senior Brother Bu Huan commands, no matter what it is, I will do my utmost."
Xu Fa whispered, "Senior Brother, I heard that after Caizhu and the others returned, they all went into secluded Cultivation.
Lu Xi has declared that when the Ghost Head Secret Realm opens, they will completely surpass us, Lu Dong."
Ghost Head Secret Realm?
Qian Duduo remembered it being mentioned in Jin Buhuan's memories.
He said, "Prepare to purchase a Senior Mortal Weapon and a first-grade Medicinal Pill to prepare for the Ghost Head Secret Realm, striving for The Righteous Foundation Establishment."
It's just, what is this The Righteous Foundation Establishment?
"Exactly.
Lu Xi lost too badly this time.
I heard Palace Lord say that Caizhu and the others were all punished."
Cao Yueying took over, "Master told me to Cultivate with all my might.
If you hadn't called me, he wouldn't have let me out."
Seeing Qian Duduo a bit confused, He Shi'an explained, "The Ghost Head Secret Realm is a treasure land where Qi Condensation Cultivators can reach the Foundation Establishment Realm.
It is jointly owned by our Refining Spirit Sect, Ba Ling Sect, and Shengling Sect, opening once every sixty years, with each of the Three Sects sending Qi Condensation Great Perfection Disciples to participate.
There are two other such Foundation Establishment treasure lands, but the Ghost Head Secret Realm is the best."
Xu Fa nodded, "The other two are Gao Qing Secret Realm and Xiong Bing Secret Realm.
But in these two, one can at most achieve The Righteous Foundation Establishment upon entering.
Whereas, it is rumored that in the Ghost Head Secret Realm, one can achieve Foundation Establishment (Heavenly Way)."
"Why are they called The Righteous Foundation Establishment and Foundation Establishment (Heavenly Way)?" Qian Duduo couldn't help but ask.
"It is said that people in our Immortal Cultivation World were cursed; upon birth, an invisible ankle chain is attached to their foot, and only when their Cultivation reaches Foundation Establishment can they truly begin Immortal Cultivation.
And when the ankle chain is severed, the power of severance is divided into three grades: Heavenly Dao, Righteous Dao, and Human Dao.
These three Secret Realms possess the power of Heavenly Dao, Righteous Dao, and Human Dao.
A Cultivator who achieves The Righteous Foundation Establishment can crush a Cultivator who achieves Human Dao Foundation Establishment with a single hand."
Cao Yueying was Hall Master Ping's favorite Disciple, so she knew the most information from him.
Qian Duduo nodded, finally understanding why Jin Buhuan was thinking about The Righteous Foundation Establishment.
Without going to these three Secret Realms, one could only achieve ordinary Human Dao Foundation Establishment.
"What about Heavenly Dao against Righteous Dao?"
"The same.
The Righteous Dao has no power to resist."
Cao Yueying answered decisively.
"When do these three Secret Realms open?" Qian Duduo asked Cao Yueying.
"This year.
At the earliest, in half a year; at the latest, by year-end.
I heard Master say that Palace Lord Zhu told Caizhu that if they couldn't achieve The Righteous Foundation Establishment, they would be directly expelled from the Sect."
For the elegant Palace Lord Zhu to say such words, it showed he was truly serious.
"If Caizhu and the others achieve The Righteous Foundation Establishment, then we won't be able to compete with them," Xu Fa said with some worry.
"What's there to fear?
Didn't Palace Lord Tang say, 'In the Great Dao, the brave prevail, and success is for the outstanding.'
Are we afraid of striving for first place?" Qian Duduo laughed heartily, but inwardly, he also felt worried.
He had intended to leisurely slack off for a while and be a good Purple Gold Manor Lord, but seeing the situation, he had to rush again.
"Yes.
Strive!" Cao Yueying, Xu Fa, and He Shi'an nodded simultaneously.
After chatting for a while, the three of them returned and went into secluded Cultivation.
Once they left, Qian Duduo's beautiful dream of raising big fish could no longer be pursued.
He sighed, walked to the mountain gate, and handed the Hundred Refinement Golden Sword to Wu Binghuo, asking him to deliver it to Zhangzuo Dajiu.
Returning to his Immortal Cave, Qian Duduo stared blankly for a moment, then picked up his Spirit Blade again and began carving a Spiritual Vein.
After carving about a hundred strokes, he could no longer endure the pain, so he got off the Spiritual Platform and went to the open ground in the backyard, letting out a few low roars into the air, then drilled into the Artifact Refining Room and refined a few Magic Treasures.
Feeling the pain subside, he returned to the Spiritual Platform and continued carving the Golden Winged Bird.
As more and more feathers of the Golden Winged Bird were carved, the Spiritual Qi in the main Spiritual Vein noticeably sped up.
When Spiritual Qi passed through the carved main Spiritual Vein, it was like entering a narrow passage, subjected to invisible compression, naturally accelerating its speed.
Carving the main Spiritual Vein originally had another difficulty, which was the fear that the main Spiritual Vein would be fragile and unable to withstand the carving of the Spirit Blade.
However, Qian Duduo had Cultivated the Yongfu Henggui Art, compressing his Spiritual Vein, which was already close to profound green, so there was no problem of it being unable to withstand the carving.
The next day, as the window outside brightened, Qian Duduo jumped off the Spiritual Platform, quickly bathed in the hot spring, combed his hair in front of the bronze mirror, then rushed down the mountain path to the mountain gate.
Yu Yixiang had not arrived yet.
Qian Duduo released his Spiritual Awareness and looked in the direction of her residence.
At this moment, Qian Duduo's heart inexplicably began to pound.
What was going on?
Going out for a mission from the Sect, why was his heart pounding?