The Heavens: A Qing, the Yue Girl at the beginning

With a flick of her fingers, a wisp of extremely fine emerald light condensed in the air, as delicate as silk threads, accompanied by the gentle sound of strings.

Drawn by the imprint from an extremely distant place, Zhao Qing's sword intent suddenly traversed trillions of miles and landed in that cluster of comets.

An open comet cluster is essentially a group of hundreds of thousands of comets that orbit a roughly icy dwarf planet, ranging in size from tens of millions of miles away to billions of miles away.

It sounds like it's close to the scope of the solar system in a narrow sense.

However, their gravitational center is just a thing with a diameter of less than three thousand miles and a low density, which is truly incredible.

How is it possible to restrain it?

The answer is that, although still under the gravitational control of the Sun, due to the great distance, it has been initially affected by the tidal field of the Milky Way, achieving a certain saddle point balance. The Hill sphere radius of the dwarf planet has been enlarged, thus shaping a loose giant halo structure, and small comets at the edge of the group will be slowly stripped away.

If we compare the solar system to a miniature Milky Way, the open comet cluster is like the globular cluster within it, gradually disintegrating, trailing behind a thin stream of stars stretching trillions of miles.

"The 39th Regiment of the Mirage Stars comprises 472091 comets and has over three million registered members of the seventh rank and above. Its peak population could have reached trillions, but now only a fraction remain..."

Ice crystals, like dust, diffused in the void, never having condensed since time immemorial; the comet nucleus was mottled, its surface and interior covered with frost-like cracks, interspersed with a layer of dark blue nitrogen snow covering its surface, occasionally glancing at by the faint light of distant stars, refracting wisps of fluorescent light, faintly tinged with a sickly bluish-white.

The largest of them, no more than a hundred miles in diameter, are shaped like deformed eggs, their surfaces covered with pits and craters, all traces of millions of years of drifting and collisions.

A thin layer of methane mixed with nitrogen, like a tattered veil, could not conceal the rugged ice ridges below.

Zhao Qing focused a few strands of his divine sense on a randomly selected small comet. Its diameter was no more than three miles, yet it was more than seven billion miles away from the dwarf planet.

The star surface was covered with numerous holes, each about ten feet wide and varying in depth. The entrances to these holes were covered with a semi-transparent fungal membrane that opened and closed slightly to prevent the cold and the leakage of vital energy.

Inside the cave lies the city of Tai Sui.

For a Tai Sui born here, leaving this comet and going to the nearest one is almost impossible.

Distances often exceeding a million miles are insurmountable in a lifetime. It is a distance that only a seventh-rank commander can glimpse a faint light from afar when working on the star map.

However, this small place is not desolate.

On this single star, there are over a million Tai Sui inhabiting.

The hyphae densely cover the inner walls of the pores, weaving into an intricate three-dimensional network. Tens of thousands of pheromones flow along these veins, combining to form almost infinite geometric patterns—their language, their poetry.

The epic novels and grand historical works, totaling millions of words, are engraved between the interlacing and separating of mycelia.

They have no sight or hearing. Before they cultivate divine sense and develop the "eye core" capable of observing the seven senses, they rely entirely on information left by their companions in the mycelium to find their way, identify mineral veins, and exchange ideas.

At the confluence of the caves, the largest cave is the temple.

In the very center, a jade-like burl rises from the ground, its entire body warm and smooth. It was a gift from the gods of the past, capable of filtering harmful star rays and transforming them into vital energy, much like an alternative Dyson tree.

However, in the last four or five hundred years, it has gradually withered away.

The cubs huddled at the base, munching on slimy clumps—a food mixed with mineral particles, available in hundreds of flavors.

Adult Tai Sui are busy with work. Some synthesize cold iron ingots and Xuanbing talisman cores under the ice layer, waiting for the flying raft to come and collect them regularly, in exchange for miscellaneous goods and newspaper subscriptions; others maintain the fungal membrane and repair the pores.

They have methane-powered public baths, nurseries, and museums; their lives outside of work are far richer than outsiders imagine.

The two generations of leaders of the seventh rank regularly patrol the comet to collect important resources such as water vapor and nitrogen that have dissipated.

Because these Mountain Moving Realm cultivators are much smaller than humans, their actual combat power and the resources required for growth are far less, demonstrating their frugality.

Speaking of which, Zhao Qing has also devoted a lot of energy to this kind of research project, specifically testing how to change the upper and lower limits of the same realm by altering body size and racial bloodline.

For example, cultivating a mosquito to the level of the seventh realm requires it to possess complete realm characteristics, but it does not need to accumulate the amount of true essence comparable to a human grandmaster. Ideally, one-tenth or one-hundredth of that amount would suffice, greatly reducing its resource consumption and allowing it to break through more quickly. That would be quite commendable.

Although this is completely contrary to the pursuit of the vast majority of people who are profound and invincible among their peers, there are ways to make up for the lack of size. For example, there are Tai Sui clans that are as large as mountains, but they account for a very small percentage of the total population.

This could be described as abnormal development, a second stage of body expansion.

There is also a wartime fusion method, where hundreds of tiny bodies can be gathered together, and combat power can surge in an instant. Why should we demand perfection from a single individual?
However, even with the efforts of the extraterrestrial races over hundreds of millions of years, the compression of the first to seventh orders has been perfected and widely implemented. But the eighth order can only achieve a very limited portion of it. As for the ninth order, it is still difficult to change even slightly. It must be a colossal object with a true essence amount that far exceeds that of the eighth order by more than a thousand times in order to break through the star and achieve the Dao.

But in her view, this is not actually an insurmountable boundary.

If one can comprehend the mysteries of the eighth and ninth realms in advance, and with the assistance of some magical formations, it is entirely possible to achieve this.

For example, Ding Ning under the blessing of the Nine Deaths Silkworm.

For example, the self after returning to the Lord's world.

With her far superior understanding of cultivation, she has already created a preliminary secret method that can advance the true body realm to the peak of the eighth realm in half a day without affecting the cultivation system of the sixth qi realm.

Although it was much weaker than his own slowly cultivated and accumulated eighth-realm peak state, and his size was almost a hundred times smaller, Zhao Qing's combat power at the same level was already overwhelming, so it was acceptable.

In addition, her particular interest in such systems of bestowed teachings from outside the realm also stems from another advantage: the potential for rapid learning.

That is the decentralization of realm characteristics.

After deeply comprehending and integrating the profound mysteries of the Nine Deaths Silkworm, Zhao Qing's Sword Realm can now be deployed without the need for array foundation support.

"Taiyi Hunming Shefa Fangqi" – each strand of Fangqi cultivated through this technique is equivalent to a miniature fragment of the sword realm; a larger quantity of these fragments allows one to unleash its full power.

Moreover, she is far more than just at the level of the Sword Realm at its inception, merely possessing the chaotic and unrestrained realm of reincarnation and the forced initiation of the Sword Scripture program. Instead, she has directly mastered advanced techniques such as the Probability Cloud Module, the Fate Diffraction Grating, and the Isolation of Obsession, making her abilities almost equal to her current ones.

Of course, the difficulty of her cultivation has also risen to the extreme. Apart from her, it is absolutely impossible for anyone to cultivate before reaching the ninth level of the half-step realm, let alone even enter the gate. She is a custom-made one.

With the development of these two routes, after returning, Zhao Qing will be able to seize most of the gains from this dream in a very short time, enough to sweep through the lower six Qi realm, and even contend with those weaker middle six Qi realm cultivators, his strength will increase by several levels.

"This kind of decentralized, integrated system of techniques that encompasses the entire sequence still needs further improvement and expansion."

She pondered to herself, "How can something like the Nine Swords of Tai Su be packaged, compressed, and implanted into the true essence that possesses a slight void characteristic? Or perhaps scattered within the background noise of the sword realm fragments, and then synthesized in batches to spontaneously condense sword stars for download?"

This is essentially like customizing a "cheat code" for yourself in the main world, realizing the characteristics of the Nine Realms and the profound truths of the Sword Realm in a form of "dimensional reduction compatibility" that is impossible to reach in the current realm.

Just as the gods from beyond the realm dismantle their own laws into a sequence of magical potions, bestowing them upon their kin in a progressive manner, she too must dismantle her own path into modules that can be carried and utilized by her "lower-realm self".

"...There are only two hundred parts to the Sword Manual program!"

"First, the data is transmitted to the Sword Realm's local area network operating at the comet, constructing the Sword Star. The Sword Sun is responsible for publishing and updating the comprehensive management and operating system. The distance is still too far. Although a small wisp of Qi was sent over to serve as a communication carrier, the 'network speed' is still too low. I need to specially illuminate it with radiance..."

Zhao Qing glanced at it indifferently. The local area network had been decompressed and deployed, allowing any Tai Sui to log in after calming their mind and transforming into clusters of tiny sword grasses. Bathed in the radiance of the sword star, they interacted with the heavens and automatically learned some new skills, allowing suitable programs to load and inject them into their bodies.

Sword Grass, including Tai Sui and its clones, reincarnations, and virtual offspring, will also provide feedback on their own spiritual insights, adding depth to this nascent Sword Realm Local Area Network, nourishing Sword Star and Sword Sun, making them increasingly clear and ever-flowing.

This is a case of mutual learning between teachers and students, where wisdom flows together.

At the same time, Zhao Qing can also remotely command and issue tasks.

It's similar to a smaller version of the God's Space.

However, it was not a selection test, nor was there any threat of death.

The main purpose is to establish some footholds for swordsmanship.

As their cultivation and sword intent deepened, the carrier of the Sword Realm Local Area Network, that wisp of Qi, was also continuously cultivating, becoming more and more active, differentiating and multiplying, spreading to other stars, silently promoting her cultivation, allowing her will to be projected to more distant star seas, weaving an invisible and formless giant net.

To some extent, this can be seen as an external distributed cultivation system similar to the clan system, except that it focuses on refining sword intent, taking its breadth and scope, and is more information-based, shared, open and win-win, with the intergenerational transmission of wisdom being much faster than that of magic potions.

Moreover, she was able to bypass the sequence restrictions through her cracking.

It can analyze higher-level potion abilities, simplify them, and then pass them on to lower-level users, allowing them to utilize them and demonstrate their unique advantages.

For example, the "Star Power Tentacle," which was originally only unlocked and quickly mastered at the seventh level, is one of the most widely used interstellar travel methods outside the realm. Its effect is to remotely sense and lock onto a constant star source, and then borrow strength from the trajectory of star energy to stretch the tentacles and drag the body forward.

No need for reverse propulsion; every bit of force is effectively utilized.

Now, even a fifth-level Tai Sui has a chance to learn this move!

This allowed them to break free from the comet that had inhabited their ancestors for generations, to travel hundreds of millions of miles, and to touch those alien landscapes that they had read about a thousand times in the poems of mycelium but had never seen in their entire lives.

Similarly, Zhao Qing also mastered the inherent characteristics of the various Tai Sui species and iterated and modified them into versions that humans could learn: resistance to cold and radiation, prevention of true qi leakage, broad-spectrum food sources, metal digestion, flesh and blood regeneration, and micro-crystallization on the body surface...

Here's a brief note: In space, having abundant internal energy is not a good thing. Before reaching a very high level of control, the more abundant the internal energy and the greater the pressure, the easier it is to leak and lose pressure, leading to qi deviation. Otherwise, you would have to use ultra-high density materials to make spacesuits, which would limit your range of motion and agility, and greatly increase costs.

However, after learning several basic abilities of Tai Sui, one only needs to reach the lower level of the second realm to survive in space without protection by using the effects of closed acupoints, self-pressurization of true qi, internal circulation, heat locking, etc., thus laying the groundwork for the future era of space exploration.

The problem of leakage between the third and sixth realms has also been solved.

The complete work of Star Power Tentacles had already been placed in the archives of various dynasties.

……

A temple deep within the comet's nucleus.

That is, the half-withered burl.

The decaying roots curled up and withered, occasionally twitching once or twice, squeezing out a few faint wisps of vitality, making the purplish-jade color even more dull.

The old commander, hunched over, prostrated himself before the wooden lump.

Its shell is no longer as lustrous as it once was, covered with dark brown cracks, a sign that its lifespan is nearing its end and its vitality is waning.

Although it has reached the seventh level and its metabolism is slow, it can only live for a thousand years at most, but it is indeed about to die of old age.

But it did not lament, nor did it plead.

He quietly and slowly channeled the remaining vital energy within his body, thread by thread, into the root of the wood tumor.

The wood tumor remained unresponsive.

Since the fall of the divine ruler, this sacred object has withered away day by day. It was once the lifeblood of the entire comet, the umbilical cord connecting the Tai Sui to the divine kingdom.

Now that the umbilical cord has been severed, all that remains is a slowly decaying remnant.

It has survived to this day entirely thanks to the efforts of successive leaders who have nourished it with their own vital energy.

It can last for a while, but not forever.

"Zumu... is dying."

The old commander retracted his tentacles, his flesh and blood filled with a withered look.

Behind me, over a hundred cubs huddled together. Their mycelium was still too young to understand despair, only knowing that the slimy clumps were thinner and tasted much blander today.

A few of the bolder ones stretched out their newly grown tentacles and gently touched the old leader's wrinkled skin, conveying their doubt and hunger.

It turned around and soothed them with the gentlest pheromones.

"It's alright, it's alright... Although the flying rafts outside haven't arrived for a hundred years, and all news has been cut off, we, the Frost Wine Tai Sui clan, were born from ice crevices. What hardships haven't we endured?" it said calmly.

But the divine master has fallen, and divine gifts have ceased.

Since that day, the burl has never sprouted a new bud.

Its bloodline told it that when the protection of the sacred object completely disappeared, not only would the entire comet quickly fall into a desperate situation, but the cold would freeze all the cubs to death, and the accompanying magic potion would go out of control, turning the entire race into mindless, mutated monsters that would tear each other apart in madness.

I can't remember how many times I've crossed it. I only remember that at first it could bring warmth to the entire cave, but now only this lingering warmth remains.

almost.

It thought.

Once the burl tree has completely withered and died, it will have reached the end of its life.

That's nothing.

It crouched even lower.

However, I'm somewhat unwilling to accept it.

"You did very well."

A very soft and slow voice suddenly rang out: "Now, let go."

Release them? The old commander trembled violently. Release what? Could it be a divine decree? Has a new god been willing to accept the abandoned race?

Unbeknownst to it, its mind wavered for a moment, and imperceptible rays of light seeped in. Its consciousness was lifted from its dying body, passing over the frost-cracked permafrost and over the barren surface covered with dark blue nitrogen snow, and soaring upwards.

It reached places it had never imagined.

And so the old commander met him.

Thousands of stars spread out from all directions, some with dazzling silver light, some with dark crimson glow, some with comet tails like fireflies trailing across the void, and some with meteorites as large as millstones rumbling across the dome.

The comet that it had lived on for most of its life was now hanging below, nothing more than an insignificant speck of dust.

"This……"

It wanted to say something, but couldn't say anything.

"Let's put this ashes away in a cold box and wait to borrow some time from the primordial chaos."

……

The so-called mutation of the entire clan after the fall of the god was essentially just a result of mental disorder and conflicting cultivation methods leading to demonic possession.

It should be understood that this divinely bestowed magic potion sequence is nothing more than an upgraded version of the initiation of magic techniques. However, if the recipient's mind is not pure enough or the compatibility is insufficient, various fragments will be mixed together, intermittent, unsystematic, and scattered everywhere.

Zhao Qing once solved this problem using the "Mind Guidance Array," which automatically retrieves fragmented external memories, splices them together, organizes them, and restores them to a state where they can "run" smoothly.

The seemingly eerie ramblings of ancient gods actually use the same principle to help to regulate the mind.

However, because they hadn't learned modern network protocols, they resorted to more sophisticated forms of mental pollution to forcefully control and quell potential threats.

Therefore, when the whispers deep in one's mind can no longer be sustained, the previously suppressed and bound modules of the practice will collapse into fragments again. Because most of them are constantly running, they cannot be stopped despite repeated errors and mutual impacts, resulting in severe backlash.

Simply connect to the Sword Realm, download the operating system, and pre-integrate the implanted skill fragments to avoid this disaster.

……

The stars resonate, and the world is alive with its waves.

Noticing that the new batch of millions of Tai Sui had all been connected to the remote sword realm, Zhao Qing withdrew his gaze and began to look at the situation on Earth again.

After not revealing its aura for several months, the Heavenly Tribulation of Transformation finally disappeared.

The new emperor of the Qin Dynasty ascended the throne and granted a general amnesty.

The achievements of the Bashan Sword Field were re-recognized, the past purges were completely reversed, all the sects and individuals who were wronged or implicated were restored to their honor, their confiscated property was returned, and the orphans of the victims were given compensation.

One by one, long-forgotten cases were re-examined, and many obscure names were crossed off the list of traitors, replaced by faint traces of ink in the eulogies of exoneration. The era of Yuanwu and Zhengxiu was finally put to rest.

Many elderly soldiers with white hair knelt before the collapsed sword monument, their foreheads pressed against the cold rubble, remaining silent for a long, long time.

The wind swept through the empty sword hall, stirring up dust that had accumulated over twenty years.

The swallows were wiped out.

On that day, Ding Ning finally let Xu Fu go.

As the commander of the UFO fleet, the latter did not retreat into despair after the deaths of the emperor and empress. He was grateful to the late emperor and loyal to the Qin Dynasty itself. Yuanwu had been a pillar of the Qin Dynasty, so he was willing to serve him; now that the pillar had collapsed, he took on the burden of this broken state.

As planned, the Qin army advanced by land and water, secretly communicating with the Qi emperor to encircle the Yan capital from two directions. The rebellion of the Marquis of Zhongshu, supported by Yu Qi, also proceeded smoothly, and the Yan capital fell faster than anticipated.

After enjoying his three-day reign as emperor, the newly appointed Yan emperor abdicated and fled with the remaining high-ranking members of the You Dynasty towards the Arctic.

He received very clear information: if he was willing to serve the Nether Emperor, he would have the opportunity to break through to the Eighth Realm of Enlightenment, and his lifespan would be far longer than that of his peers. Under these circumstances, he naturally had no other choice.

Within a month, all seventeen prefectures in the Yan territory changed hands.

The bronze vessels were taken to Qin, and the ancestral temples were destroyed.

Emperor Qi obtained what he desired: the heads of the twelve sorcerer gods and the Tomb Talisman Mountain. During the sacrificial ceremony, the ancestral hall reopened, the god heads returned to their places, and the twelve supreme techniques created by the ancient sorcerer Jiang Yan reappeared in the world.

As an invincible figure second only to the Nether Emperor in history, who failed to break through the Nine Realms simply because he lacked understanding of them, even with Zhao Qing's current perspective, he can still gain a lot of insights from him.

Therefore, no one dares to disrupt this process.

The Great Qi Dynasty began its long-awaited revival.

Having completed the unfinished work of previous emperors, Emperor Qi's prestige soared to its zenith, and everyone in the court and the country praised his wisdom.

Even Yan Ying, who was furious because the Qi Emperor had secretly colluded with the Qin court, could no longer criticize him after seeing this, but he privately gave him a good beating.

Then, Yan Ying went into seclusion in the ancestral hall for half a month to cultivate. When he emerged, he already exuded the aura of the eighth realm. He informed the Qi Emperor, who was waiting outside, that the Wuzu's cultivation method might not be suitable for the current Qi royal family.

The Tian family, which replaced the Qi dynasty, was no longer a descendant of the Jiang family.

Although there is no talk of any backlash, compared to the temple guardians and the young talents in the country, they have no advantage in terms of advancement.

If several individuals at the eighth realm or some extremely powerful peak seventh realm individuals emerge from among these people, things will become very delicate. The foundation of the Tian family's rule may not be as solid as it appears.

Emperor Qi remained silent for a long time before asking, "Does Master Yan have any interest in this?"
Yan Ying glanced at him and said, "The injuries I sustained from beating you earlier haven't healed yet. If you ask again, they'll never heal."

Emperor Qi then stopped asking.

The planting area of ​​Ling Shi rice in Chu has expanded to 20 million mu.

The Chu Emperor has almost completely abandoned the responsibility of governing the country. After Zhao Qing removed the natal radiation from the Eclipse Sphere, he is now focusing all his efforts on breaking through to the Eighth Realm.

Before Zhao Xiangfei had been regent for three months, she personally traveled with envoys to Changling to meet Ding Ning and her master, and also recognized a junior sister who had been hiding in the Qin palace and had now become an important attendant to Fusu.

The news spread like wildfire, sparking much discussion among onlookers who wondered if the Bashan Sword Sect was trying to achieve its unification goal through marriage alliances.

However, the true rulers of the Qin Dynasty—Xu Fu, Li Xiang, Yan Xiang, and several other kings and nobles who were not purged—all understood this very well:

The Chu people have a huge initial advantage. Now, they have tens of thousands of cultivators stationed in space alone, looking down on the mountains and rivers. This kind of pressure is something that no alliance or counter-alliance can withstand.

Although Mo Shoucheng finally broke through to the next realm, one Qitian was not enough to close the huge gap. Yuan Wu and Zheng Xiu had made too many enemies in recent years, and four of them had already become eighth-realm grandmasters.

The question of unification is no longer a matter of "whether," but rather "when" and "how." To a large extent, it depends on whether the Bashan Sword Field can shed the burden of its past as a Qin dynasty warrior, and on what choice Ding Ning will make.

Both Qin and Chu have significant problems.

The Chu Emperor had no suitable successor; his princes were either mentally challenged or disabled, making them ill-suited to the weight of the state. If he failed in his attempt to reach the Eighth Realm and died prematurely, the entire Chu court would be devoid of a candidate who could gain the trust of all parties and the support of the people to take over this unprecedentedly vast territory.

Fusu was known for his benevolence and virtue. Since ascending the throne, he had overturned wrongful convictions and granted amnesties, winning the hearts of the people. However, he was ultimately a descendant of Yuanwu and Zhengxiu, and harbored irreconcilable grudges against Ding Ning and Bashan.

Although on the surface he seems to have put aside this old grudge, showing no sign of ambition or hostility, who can guarantee that Fusu won't change once he reaches the peak of his life and enters the eighth realm?
Will there come a day when those old cases that have long been settled are brought up again and rehashed?

The human heart is as deep as an abyss, and the heart of an emperor is even deeper. Moreover, in his veins flow those two most proud and most ruthless souls.

This scenario of a young emperor secretly developing his power and eliminating powerful ministers is an age-old phenomenon. Even if he himself doesn't want to take action, countless people will be eager to do so, watching him, pushing him, and coercing him into action.

In fact, there were many people who wanted to advise Ding Ning to eliminate the threat completely.

But he rejected the idea at the time: "The Nine Deaths Silkworm gave me a second life, not to make me a prisoner of hatred again in a different way."

However, Zhao Xiangfei brought these sensitive issues to the table one by one during her trip, once again posing the question to Ding Ning: "If the world is unified, what should it be called? Qin? Chu? Or should a new dynasty be established?"

Outside the window, the evening bell of Changling tolled softly, startling a flock of roosting birds that flew over the layered eaves of the palace. Inside the warm pavilion, the air was filled with the delicate fragrance of aloeswood incense. The two sat facing each other, and the tea had already been brewed three times.

"The Abundant Harvest Cauldron, the embassy distributes grain." Ding Ning glanced calmly at Zhao Xiangfei, his gaze sweeping over her lower abdomen: "Your heart is in Chu, but my heart is no longer in Qin. It resides in sword manuals, in the passes leading to the Nine Realms, and among the stars beyond the heavens. I will not draw my sword for this."

The Chu embassy openly distributed grain for free in Changling to win over the hearts of the people; the intention behind this was self-evident.

"Six months ago, I became pregnant." Zhao Xiangfei frankly revealed her personal intentions: "Eighteen years from now, Qin and Chu will surely be unified."

Without mentioning Qi Chao, she was confident that she could lead her army to quickly defeat the enemy.

“Then let’s wait eighteen years,” Ding Ning said calmly. “I can wait. A hundred years, a thousand years, I will wait until the world is forever at peace.”

There's no need to ask about the baby's gender. A Grandmaster at the peak of the Seventh Realm certainly has the means to distinguish between male and female. However, Emperor Chu is old and has suffered from radiation exposure. Whether this newborn prince can grow up normally and become a qualified monarch remains to be seen over a long period of time.

"I understand." Zhao Xiangfei stood up and took her leave.

Although she has a chance to compete for first place among the seven existing realms in the Bashan Sword Arena and has already touched the threshold of Qitian, Ding Ning's calm and composed demeanor when he mentioned longevity during their conversation just now made her clearly feel a deeper and more unfathomable distance between them.

The person before him had indeed long since turned his gaze away from this old landscape and towards something higher and farther away. Therefore, he was able to wait.

A hundred years, a thousand years, until all the pieces on this chessboard are naturally settled, until hatred loses its color over a sufficiently long period of time.

As she reached the door, she suddenly stopped, turned her head, and asked, "You just said that your heart is elsewhere. Is it really that good there?"

Ding Ning looked out the window at the setting sun, its rays casting a glow on his profile, making his expression indistinct.

“It’s not good,” he said. “It’s vast.”

……

Another four or five months passed, and Zhao Qing finally refined his Void Qi. (End of Chapter)