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Even just looking at the mountain caused his eyes to sting, yet he looked closely and with great intent. Just what cultivation level had this god been in before dying that he would transform into a mountain? And how could a mere corpse contain such boundless majesty?

This was obviously the most powerful entity Xu Qing had ever been in the presence of. Not even Joine could compare, and from what he could tell, that sealizard patriarch wasn’t even on the same level as the South Tor Ghost Emperor. Only the god Meegah that Xu Qing saw on the mural in the Merfolk Isles could possibly compare. That was also where Xu Qing got his first life lamp. Xu Qing hadn’t forgotten that Meegah also had two worlds on his shoulders. He wasn’t sure if that was some special feature of a specific cultivation level, but the memory had never left him. [1]

And then... Master Seventh continued talking.

“Fourth Sib, the time has come for me to pull back the curtain regarding how cultivation works in the Revered Ancient mainland. You need to have a clear understanding.

“After the Gold Core level with its heavenly palaces, cultivators proceed to the Nascent Soul level. Nascent Soul is broken up into sub-levels, which you’ll become familiar with later on. What I want to focus on is what comes after Nascent Soul!

“Beyond Nascent Soul are levels that differ as greatly from each other as heaven differs from earth. Of course, the difficulty in progress is also just as dramatic. In fact, each level is like a completely different realm.

“After Nascent Soul is the Spirit Trove level!

“Spirit Trove is divided into the five secrets. After the fifth secret is the Void Returning realm!

“Void Returning is divided into four stages. After the fourth stage... is the Smoldering God realm!”

Xu Qing’s mind spun as Master Seventh made this explanation and then pointed at the South Tor Ghost Emperor mountain.

“The two worlds he carries signify that he’s a second stage Smoldering God expert!

“Our patriarch, Sir Bloodsmelter, is in the first stage of the Void Returning level, the Space-Shattering 1,000 Daos. The president is in the second stage of the Void Returning level, which is Transform 10,000 Veracities. After those first two stages are a third and a fourth stage. Given that, you can imagine the vast difference between those stages and the level of the South Tor Ghost Emperor.

"If our patriarch secures an amazing destined opportunity, then he’ll have a slim chance of stepping into the second stage of Void Returning. As for the third stage... it’s as difficult to reach as it is to ascend to heaven. In other words, it’s almost impossible. Given that, there’s no need to even mention the fourth stage.

“As for the Smoldering God level... let’s put it this way. Based on my personal research, I don’t think there’s a single living Smoldering God in all of Emperor-Receiving Prefecture. In fact, there isn’t a single one in all of Sea-Sealing County!

“The only one we have is the half-dead Ghost Emperor, who’s in the second stage of the Smoldering God level!

“What’s more, he’s not even originally from Emperor-Receiving Prefecture; he just perished here. Any being that reaches this monumental level of cultivation deserves to be called a god.”

After hearing all this, Xu Qing was completely and utterly stunned. At the same time, he now had a much more clear understanding of the cultivation levels in Revered Ancient.

“Before the Ghost Emperor perished here, Emperor-Receiving Prefecture was a barren and infertile place. Though there were cultivation sects, they existed in a state of utter chaos. Very few experts rose to prominence. But after the death of the Ghost Emperor, his life force became nutrients that caused all sorts of living beings to flourish. You could even say that almost all of the six major powers in Emperor-Receiving Prefecture are connected to him in some way.

“Forget what outsiders say about the Supreme Arbiter Immortal Society. The reality is that they exist because they have some of the Ghost Emperor’s legacy. That’s why they’re so strong.

“The three spirits from the Three-Spirits Dao-Suppressing Mountain are actually manifestations of the Ghost Emperor’s three spiritual souls. Nethersprite is his human soul, Sunslaughter is his earthly soul, and Sporelight is his heavenly soul!

“The two worlds that exist on the Ghost Emperor’s shoulders contain seven fiends, which are manifestations of his seven physical souls!

“The swordsages control the Supreme Beginning Netherflight Pillar in the far north. The reality is that the pillar… is the Ghost Emperor’s weapon, which he plunged into the ground just before he died!”

Master Seventh’s words struck Xu Qing’s mind like bolts of lightning, especially the final part. He was only now starting to realize how terrifying and powerful the Smoldering God realm was. The death of a Smoldering God completely transformed an entire prefecture, and paved the way for it to eventually become a place full of powerful experts. It really did seem appropriate to call such an individual a god.

It was also quite enlightening for Xu Qing to find out that the Merfolk’s fallen god Meegah was in that level.

“What’s above the Smoldering God realm?” Xu Qing asked hesitantly.

Master Seventh looked up into the dome of heaven, not at the broken face of the god there, but at the starry sky.

“There may be information about that in the holy lands created by the Ancient Emperors and Imperial Sovereigns, or in the histories written by the great species.” He flicked his sleeve, and the dharmaskiff vanished. Taking Xu Qing and Ding Xue with him, he floated to the ground.

Though Ding Xue had heard everything, her mind wasn’t capable of retaining all of the information. Her cultivation base wasn’t high enough, and even if she had been able to remember it all, it would do more harm than good.

As they landed on the vile ground below, Xu Qing still felt shaken.

Master Seventh could tell that he was still digesting all of the new information, and thus led him toward a small town. This was the place that Master Seventh had specially selected for the next part of the journey. It could be considered part of the South Tor Ghost Mountain, though it was quite a distance from the actual mountain itself. However, given how big the mountain was, this village had a perfect view of it.

“We’re going to stay in this village for a while,” Master Seventh said. “Xu Qing, I want you to observe the Ghost Emperor as closely as possible. Every day. You need to create an outline of the image in your mind.”

With his hands clasped behind his back, Master Seventh led Xu Qing into the village, as well as Ding Xue, who didn’t dare to utter a word.

The village wasn’t very big. The paths crisscrossing the place were dirty, and the cold autumn wind blew leaves into big piles in the corners of all the buildings. It seemed like a very bleak place. However, there was something about the village that was unusual. And that was... there were just as many old people as there were young people....

That stuck out to Xu Qing.

Ding Xue had no idea what it signified. But Xu Qing knew. At the moment though, he wasn’t inclined to look more into the situation. Observing the South Tor Ghost Emperor was far more important.

The arrival of three newcomers caught the attention of the villagers. It wasn’t common for outsiders to come to a place like this. That said, the fact that the group was made up of a young man and woman, plus an older man, made a great cover story. They seemed like a family of three. As a result, they didn’t stick out too much. That said, given the dog-eat-dog nature of the world, the villagers were inherently a bit hostile toward outsiders, and kept their guard up. Even after Master Seventh bought a house for the three of them to live in, that hostility remained.

Xu Qing wasn’t worried about all that. He spent his time seated cross-legged in the house, looking at the distant mountain. It was similar to when he had sought enlightenment of the Supreme Vastness Solitary Saber. He worked hard to force the image to remain in his mind.

Unfortunately, it was a difficult process. The level of difficulty involved far surpassed that of the Supreme Vastness Solitary Saber. Thankfully, Xu Qing had never been an impatient person. Day after day, he simply gazed at the mountain, gradually becoming calmer and calmer. Slowly but surely, his mind became blank.

Each morning, Master Seventh would take Ding Xue for a walk in the village. He smiled a lot, and made a habit of chatting with the villagers. Gradually, the neighbors started to get used to him. Whenever people asked where they were from, Master Seventh would smile bitterly, but not give any details. People would nod thoughtfully, and soon enough, the locals had come up with their own story about this old man’s bitter past.

When people asked about the girl who accompanied him, he always brightened up. He would tell them that she was his daughter, and that the young man who stayed indoors all the time was his son-in-law who had married into the family. [2]

When Ding Xue heard Master Seventh saying such things, she was very pleased, and often blushed wildly.

In that manner, the three of them settled down into the village.

Days passed in peace and quiet. Xu Qing sought enlightenment on a daily basis, and Master Seventh took Ding Xue out and about. As the villagers got used to the situation, they gradually let their guard down. As that happened, their curiosity about the newcomers grew more obvious.

Though the villagers lived hard lives, they were close to each other. As their hostility toward the newcomers faded, it came to be replaced with kindness and even warmth. It was something that didn’t happen a lot considering the state of the world.

There were a lot of old people and also a lot of young people. That indicated... that it had been many years since any true danger threatened this village. That was the only way so many defenseless elderly and young ones could survive.

There was a schoolhouse in one corner of the village, where the local teacher taught the children to read and write. Every day it was possible to hear the young voices joining together to read passages during class, and that brought smiles to the faces of the villagers. There was one child among the group that Master Seventh took a liking to. He appeared to be eight or nine, and was good-looking. He was different from the other children in that he was very clean, from his clothing to his face. He had a small leather bag that he carried his books in, and was always extremely polite.

When Master Seventh and Ding Xue occasionally ran into him after school was out, the boy would look bashfully at Ding Xue, and would cower a bit when he looked at Master Seventh. That said, he would always offer a respectful bow, after which he would run home. He lived right next to the house Master Seventh had purchased. His father was a carpenter and his mother made a living mending clothes. Every morning, they would watch as their son ran off to school, and in the evening, they would wait at the door for him to return. Every night, they would light a lamp and eat dinner by the window. The sight of their shadows cast on the window made a very homely scene.

Everything looked very normal. However, Master Seventh’s eyes glittered when he took it all in. In fact, at one point when he sat next to Xu Qing looking at the Ghost Emperor, he smiled and said, “Fourth Sib, what would you and your Elder Brothers and Sister say if I added a Fifth Sib to the mix?”

Xu Qing wasn’t paying very close attention to Master Seventh. He was focused on the mountain, his eyes somewhat blank. In fact, when he closed his eyes, the image of the Ghost Emperor started to take form in his mind. The process wasn’t complete, but when he visualized the mountain, bits of divine resonance would start to form.

“Hmm?” Master Seventh said, suddenly turning to look at Xu Qing, his eyes flickering with surprise.

That fast? It hasn’t even been a month yet. Not bad at all! It’s almost on the same level as me, back in the day. When I— Master Seventh suddenly stopped talking, and his eyes went wide. What’s the little punk doing? I told him to visualize the mountain. Just knowing its basic shape is enough. But he’s... actually trying to make an exact copy??

1. The sealizard ‘patriarch’ was revealed in chapter 93 and also mentioned in chapter 165. And of course Joine showed up in the chapter which bears her name, chapter 121. The Meegah mural arc started in chapter 123. ☜

2. In traditional Chinese culture, the wife usually marries into the husband’s family, and ‘leaves’ her family to live with them. But that isn’t a hard and fast rule. Historically and even in modern times, it’s possible for the husband to marry into the wife’s family, rare though it may be. It’s that sort of arrangement that’s mentioned here. Fun fact: back before Madam Deathblade and I got married, I suggested to her that I marry into her family. Her mom didn’t approve lol. It’s a complicated situation and I won’t go into the details. What’s more, now that I look back at the overall circumstances back then, I kind of facepalm when I think about how I pushed for that. Again… it’s complicated. ☜