Family Cultivation: Evergreen of the Song Family

The advancement of a Law Treasure to a Great Dao Treasure is essentially the same as a Nascent Soul cultivator breaking through to the Deity Transformation stage; both require undergoing the Heavenly Gang Thunder Tribulation, also known as the Great Heavenly Thunder Tribulation.

The Heavenly Tribulation is different from the Lesser Heavenly Tribulation. It is not formed in a short period of time. It needs a certain amount of time to brew before it truly descends. From the initial gathering of tribulation energy to the actual descent of the tribulation, it can take anywhere from a few years to a hundred years.

From the moment the calamity aura appears, the heavenly tribulation follows like a shadow. Once the tribulation cloud takes shape, one's own aura will be locked by the tribulation cloud, and at that time, the person undergoing the tribulation will no longer be able to leave the range of the tribulation cloud.

There was once an extraordinary person in history who broke through to the Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul stage before the age of 350. He shone as brightly as a star in that era. However, his Heavenly Tribulation did not truly descend until 900 years after the tribulation clouds had successfully brewed. During this period, he did not step out of the spiritual peak where he was in seclusion.

Even for a Nascent Soul True Monarch, how many nine-hundred-year periods does one have in a lifetime? At that time, he was already close to 1,300 years old. This age is considered young among Nascent Soul cultivators. In fact, many Golden Core cultivators who have extended their lifespan with spiritual herbs are already this age when they break through to the Nascent Soul stage.

He was once one of the most brilliant geniuses, but he was trapped in a small space and wasted nine hundred years, watching as his peers, who were once as famous as him or even inferior to him, broke through to the Nascent Soul stage one after another. People said that he was a child abandoned by the Heavenly Dao and was punished by the heavens.

But before that, he had only one label: "the chosen one of heaven".

If it were an ordinary person, their Dao heart would probably have wavered long ago in the face of such a predicament and huge gap, but he did not. Not only did he survive the Heavenly Gang Tribulation, but he also achieved continuous breakthroughs in minor realms in a very short period of time. He reached the perfect state of Nascent Soul in less than 1,500 years old, and was only one step away from ascending to immortality.

In an environment where cultivators of the same realm often have a lifespan of two or three thousand years, he is still considered a young man.

This person, who was "tricked" by the Heavenly Dao and called the abandoned child of the Heavenly Dao, eventually became one of the few immortal beings in human history.

To be honest, this person was not unfamiliar to Song Changsheng; he was none other than the Sword Master Wushang, who was known as the greatest swordsman in human history.

He was the owner of the Heavenly Sword Stele and an old friend of his master, the Sky-Supporting Sword Immortal. However, they were not cultivators of the same era, and he did not know exactly how they met.

When he took Song Qingxing to the Heavenly Sword Sect to view the Heavenly Sword Stele, he met Feng Changqing and learned about the origin of the "Creation Classic". Song Qingxing then met the "Invincible Sword Master". Although he did not accept the other party's inheritance, he gained recognition and condensed the sword embryo that sword cultivators dream of.

His achievements today are inseparable from that fortuitous opportunity he had back then. (See Chapter 219 of Volume 3 for details)
It is evident that the formation time of the Heavenly Tribulation varies from person to person, and the same applies to magical artifacts. However, extreme cases that take hundreds of years are extremely rare, and usually it takes only a few years.

Currently, the aura of calamity is gathering above the Myriad Palaces. If nothing unexpected happens, the Heavenly Tribulation should descend within the next few years, and that will be the time when the war horn officially sounds.

In fact, they might not even have to wait until the Heavenly Tribulation officially arrives. By the time the tribulation clouds form, the sea tribes, even with their delayed intelligence, should have received the news.

When that time comes, Kong Sang Li Feng will not be able to sit still, because he will not dare to gamble.

Once the [Mysterious Thunder Soaring Spear] advances, the Myriad Manifestations Palace will essentially gain a sixth-tier combatant comparable to a Nascent Soul Supreme. This powerful combatant will be enough to sweep through all the Merfolk's fiefdoms located in the mid-to-near range.

Perhaps Lei Xiang Zhenjun doesn't have that much courage, but destroying Kong Sang Li Feng is still a piece of cake; it's just a matter of finding another enemy.

"You mean we're going to war with the sea creatures? Is there any connection between the two?"

"This matter is somewhat complicated. Since the Celestial Phenomenon True Lord did not tell you, there must be special considerations behind it. All you need to know is that the time for peace is running out."

Now that you have broken through to the Golden Core stage, all opposing forces within the [Brocade Banner] will crumble without a fight. This is the best opportunity for you to consolidate your family's power and strengthen your family's authority. I hope you can make good use of the remaining time and actively prepare for war.

Once the naval war begins, the six kingdoms of the demon race will surely be mobilized, and the pressure on our family will only increase. At that time, we will definitely be unable to provide you with support. The final outcome will depend on your own performance.

However, you don't need to feel too much pressure. Everything that's happening right now is within the calculations of me and the other True Lords. As long as we perform normally, the outcome of this battle is a foregone conclusion; it's just a matter of how many casualties we'll suffer.

By the way, there's something I need to remind you of. You should know the role the Han Hai Merchant Guild and Thousand Blade City played when the Tenglong Islands were besieged by the Black Scale Clan. Be wary of them during the war; better safe than sorry.

Upon hearing this, Song Yuqing frowned slightly and said, "Even the Myriad Elephant Palace needs to go all out in a battle of this level. They have never tolerated any injustice. Among the forces in the Great Qian Dynasty, Thousand Blade City and the Vast Ocean Chamber of Commerce are nothing but the lowest ranks. How dare they defy the world and trip up their allies at this time?"

"The world is full of wonders, and the behavior of everyone is uncontrollable. Even the calmest mind can make mistakes. Don't gamble."

"Yuqing will respectfully follow the clan elder's teachings."

"Go, but don't let anyone know that you saw me today."

"Yes, Yuqing takes her leave."

After Song Yuqing withdrew, Song Changsheng couldn't help but use his divination skills to predict the outcome of the battle. However, the heavens were too chaotic to see any results, and after trying, he had to give up.

There are too many variables.

He sighed softly.

If it were an ordinary battle, with his current abilities, he could still deduce a vague outcome.

But what they are about to face is a great war that will affect the fate and future of the entire border region and even the entire human race. Any variable that is beyond their calculations could change the course of the situation.

It is no exaggeration to say that they stand at a crucial juncture in the flow of history. Regardless of victory or defeat, this battle will be recorded in history. Even after thousands of years, as long as humanity survives, this battle will not be forgotten.

Compared to the legendary battles recorded in history, the number of powerful figures participating in this battle was very small. Even if all the forces were combined, there were only a handful of Nascent Soul True Monarchs participating. In the context of those legendary battles, this was at most a peripheral battlefield.

Although their strength and scale differed greatly, the significance of the battle's outcome was the same.

What's disheartening is that, apart from the cultivators in the border regions, very few people north of the Tianshan Mountains are paying attention to this battle.

"Now, it all comes down to who is better prepared and who has more cards to play..."

With a wave of his hand, Song Changsheng caused the Yin and Yang energies to intertwine in front of him, forming a chessboard. He then transformed the strengths of both sides into black and white chess pieces and began to use the chessboard to conduct simulations and deductions.

Unlike simple divination based on celestial omens, this is a strategist divination based on military tactics, which is more practical. It can help clarify thinking through divination and is helpful for troop deployment in actual combat.

As the saying goes, the world is like a chessboard, and the battlefield is no different from this chessboard. The cultivators on all sides are like black and white chess pieces, and where they will land depends entirely on the will of the player.

Previously, Song Changsheng was a piece on this small chessboard that could be discarded at any time. Now, he has grown into one of the players in the game, and it took him two hundred years to get to this point.

Although it was his first time playing chess, his mindset didn't change much. His gaze was calm and indifferent, but his brain was working frantically.

The chessboard layout changed three times a day, exploring countless possibilities. The black and white pieces seemed to come alive, fighting fiercely on the board, but almost every time, the white pieces he held won. The more this happened, the more Song Changsheng frowned.

It's a very simple truth: although they provoked this war using various means, apart from the sea race, the demon race could actually have stayed out of this game. They could have simply remained in their current state without suffering any losses.

Nobody's a fool. The fact that they're so actively provoking war means everyone can guess they have a winning hand. Even if victory isn't guaranteed, the scales of victory are always tipped in their favor.

If he were the commander of the demon race, he would never have fought such an unequal battle. This was no small skirmish like before. If they were defeated, it would take hundreds of years to recover.

Since the demon race chose to rush headlong into the encirclement he set up, it means that in their view, the scales of victory are tipped in their favor.

No conclusion was reached on a whim; it was the result of at least six demon lords working behind the scenes to deduce and analyze every detail, including both what had been shown and what might have been, and they would prepare corresponding countermeasures.

The principle of strategizing within a command tent and winning a victory a thousand miles away is exactly this, and what he is doing now is the same thing.

Seeing the black pieces completely suppressed by the white pieces once again, Song Changsheng stopped making any more moves and began to clear his mind, focusing on the demon race.

"If I were a demon..."

Song Changsheng picked up a black piece and slowly placed it in front of the white piece representing himself on the chessboard.

He himself is an open card, and the demon race will definitely take action to counter him. Based on the information they currently have, the demon race does not have the ability to do so, but this card must exist.

So he thought of the demon emperor behind the six great demon kingdoms.

The demon king is certainly surrounded by geniuses and treasures, and this variable most likely comes from him.

Even so, he didn't think these methods could do anything to him; at most, they could only restrain him. But would the demon race be satisfied with just restraint?
Reflecting on his actions over the years, Song Changsheng couldn't help but reveal a confident smile. Absolutely impossible.

Therefore, there must be another card behind the demon race card, and this card must be able to demonstrate the dominance of a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

"It shouldn't be the Thunder King Palace; he needs to cooperate with the Sea Clan to besiege the Myriad Elephant Palace."

Are they remnants of the old era, or has there been some change among the sea creatures?

Song Changsheng murmured softly, taking a black chess piece from the chess box and placing it aside.

Then he took out a white piece from his own chess box and placed it opposite the white piece.

His white piece is the [Chengyuan Sword].

Even if the other side really sends out a Nascent Soul True Monarch, he is confident that he can deal with them and wait for the support of the Myriad Manifestations Palace, which can be considered a way to break the deadlock.

"There's still a defensive line. Where's the breakthrough point?"
Fighting on two fronts offers opportunities to break the deadlock on either side. The southwest has a long defensive line, a large territory, and scattered forces, making it possible to achieve good results by either targeting specific areas or launching a multi-pronged attack.

However, I have mastered the art of spatial travel, and the teleportation network between various factions has been completed, so I can easily deal with whatever method they choose.

"If the demon race wants to break through from the southwest, they either need to break through head-on or first disrupt our spatial teleportation network, making it difficult for us to defend both ends..."

At this moment, he recalled his experience of being ambushed halfway through his journey using the space teleportation array in Luoxia City when he had just broken through to the Purple Mansion stage.

Once the starting point and the destination are clearly defined, sealing off space and blocking the teleportation tunnel is not a difficult task.

“Spatial blockade is not without traces. It can be detected by setting up spatial anchors in advance. In addition, it only takes one or two hours to check it before the battle using spatial traversal. This method can be broken.”

Song Changsheng calmly placed a piece on the chessboard, capturing a black piece.

"And there are also internal traitors, heretics, and alien races..."

He listed out all the possible variables and then solved them one by one.

With the addition of these strategic maneuvers, the situation on the chessboard suddenly became less clear than before, with black and white pieces crisscrossing and locked in a fierce and evenly matched battle.

He never expected that this simulation would last for a whole year.

Although he was playing the game alone, he vaguely saw another chess player sitting on the opposite side of the chessboard, intently playing against him.

After a year, the game of chess still ended without a winner, but this result brought him an unprecedented sense of peace.

"The biggest variable lies in the remnants of the old era and the alien races. There may be one or even more True Monarch powerhouses whose intelligence we have not yet obtained."

They are not bound by the ancient oath. If I break through to the Nascent Soul stage and have the [Chengyuan Sword] in hand, I should be able to compete with a mid-Nascent Soul cultivator.

However, before that, we need to take care of the high-threat targets from the demon race first.

Perhaps... we can find a way to bring back some more outside help." Song Changsheng thought to himself.

Although the chessboard in front of him was chaotic and difficult to understand, the future situation became clearer to him.

He wasn't a fortune teller and couldn't possibly predict every move the enemy would make, but he could prepare for any eventuality!

……

In the fifth year after Song Yuqing broke through to the Golden Core stage, the tribulation aura above the Myriad Manifestations Palace, accompanied by a thunderclap that resounded throughout the entire Great Qian cultivation world, finally formed a celestial tribulation cloud covering tens of thousands of miles. The [Mysterious Thunder Soaring Spear] was also locked by the tribulation and began a silent confrontation.

Having already received the news, Kong Sang Li Feng could no longer contain herself and abruptly stood up, saying, "We can't wait any longer, issue the order to gather the generals!"

...(End of this chapter)