Family Cultivation: Evergreen of the Song Family

"Where is the True Lord now?" Song Changsheng asked hurriedly.

In such barren lands as the four border regions, it is extremely difficult for a True Monarch-level powerhouse to be born.

However, as long as one can successfully overcome that hurdle, they will all become outstanding figures in the cultivation world. Just like the Jade Dew True Monarch back then, if her inner demons had not been so deeply rooted and not completely eradicated, she would have already broken through to the Nascent Soul realm and reached the top of the pyramid of the human cultivation world.

If I have the chance, I should definitely visit him; it would be good to establish a good relationship.

Moreover, according to Shu Qi, although this Carefree True Lord has been away from the Four Realms for many years, he still pays attention to relevant news. Obviously, he still has some feelings for the Four Realms, so the probability of success is still very high.

Shu Qi smiled slightly and said, "My master pursues freedom and ease. Many years ago, he left the Great Zhen Immortal Dynasty and went to travel to the Central Plains Divine Continent. I don't know when he will return."

However, if Master knew that such a talented fellow Daoist had emerged in the Great Qi, he would surely be very pleased.

As he often said, "Fallen leaves return to their roots; even the most carefree wind eventually returns to its homeland. At that time, you, my fellow Daoist, will naturally have the opportunity to meet my master."

"Thank you for your explanation, fellow Daoist. The Four Realms have changed a lot in recent years. If the True Lord returns, I am sure he will not be disappointed."

Song Changsheng knew in his heart that these words were not actually meant for him, but were directed at Ji Shinian and the others.

In the southwest of Tianshan, Wanxiang Palace stands alone, the absolute ruler.

The appearance of another Nascent Soul True Monarch will undoubtedly affect their absolute dominance.

What he wanted to express was that the Carefree True Lord had no intention of opposing the Myriad Manifestations Palace. Even if he returned to the borderlands of the Four Realms in the future, it would be when fallen leaves should return to their roots. The rest of the time, he was a free wind and would never set foot in the southwest of the Tianshan Mountains.

"Fellow Daoists, let's postpone the pleasantries for later. We can't keep the academy leaders waiting," Ji Shinian said softly.

The group followed Shu Qi along the wide avenue paved with white jade, heading towards the very center of the floating island.

Along the way, they would occasionally encounter academy students dressed in uniform Confucian robes who would respectfully bow to Shu Qi, addressing him as "Elder," and casting scrutinizing, curious, or indifferent glances at them.

These students were all at the Foundation Establishment and Purple Mansion stages, and without exception, they were all very young.

Their aptitudes are also unquestionable; they are all top-notch. Any one of them would be an exceptional genius in the four border regions, worthy of being groomed as an heir.

I saw enough geniuses at the Palace of Myriad Phenomena, but there are even more here. That’s what makes the Zhulu Academy so prestigious.

Over hundreds of thousands of years, countless powerful figures have emerged from this place, including even Nascent Soul Supremes. Even if only a very small fraction of them still remember their past friendships, once they gather together, they become a terrifying force.

The group arrived at the center of the floating island and found it to be unusually open. What they saw was a flat, green meadow with no signs of development, and an invisible barrier surrounding it.

Shu Qi took out his elder's token from his pocket and opened up a passageway. Once everyone entered, they were instantly stunned by the scene inside.

In the center of the grassland stood a towering willow tree, thousands of feet tall and thicker than dozens of people could encircle. Its branches were a brilliant gold, spreading wildly in all directions and piercing deep into the clouds. Most of the floating island was actually within the willow's canopy, but it could not be seen from the outside due to the restrictions.

It radiates a hazy glow, giving people a sense of solemnity, holiness, and vitality.

Song Changsheng had traveled all over the country and visited quite a few places, but this was the first time he had ever seen such a huge willow tree.

What's most remarkable is that this isn't some special spiritual wood; it's just an ordinary willow tree that can be found everywhere in the mortal world, which only adds to the visual impact.

If he was like this, then the younger generation in the clan must be even more so. Xu Miaoyin looked up at the willow tree and said in surprise, "Such a huge willow tree must have become a spirit by now."

"Becoming a spirit" means that one has developed intelligence, just like an ordinary wild animal becomes a demon beast; in common parlance, it is called "becoming a spirit."

Compared to birds and beasts, it is ten or even a hundred times more difficult for plants and rocks to develop intelligence, and even more difficult for them to truly grow up. It takes at least several thousand or tens of thousands of years, and each breakthrough in a major realm requires facing a tribulation of lightning. Therefore, they are extremely rare in the world.

The willow tree before him was bound to become a spirit, and it was an absolute powerhouse. At least Song Changsheng couldn't sense its cultivation level, which meant it was at least at the fifth level, comparable to a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

Arriving under the tree, Shu Qi respectfully bowed and said, "These are all contestants who have come to participate in the Five Academies Tournament. Please, Ancestor Liu, open the spatial gate."

As soon as he finished speaking, two golden willow branches drooped down, forming an archway shape on the left and right.

The space in the middle twisted violently, quickly forming a spatial vortex.

"Only one person can enter at a time. Please enter in an orderly manner."

Through the portal, the group entered a completely unfamiliar world.

Beneath their feet was a huge square platform made of special metallic spiritual material. The entire platform was suspended in the air, surrounded by leisurely drifting white clouds. In addition to the platform they were on, there were several other identical platforms in the air, each with many figures standing on it.

The Tianhe Ji Clan, the Beast Taming Sect, the Hundred Cauldrons Pavilion, the Great Zhen Immortal Dynasty, and other forces were all present, along with some officials and guests from other forces who were likely there to watch the battle.

To be invited to such a grand event, one must be a powerful force at least at the Nascent Soul level.

Shu Qi explained to everyone, "This is the Cloud Arena of the Academy, located above the North Wind Layer. The surrounding space has been specially reinforced with supernatural powers and formations, so even if a Nascent Soul True Monarch were to fight here, it would not cause too much damage."

In the past, the Five Academies Grand Competition was always held here in the form of a ring tournament. However, this year the Purple Mansion arena and the competition format have changed, so please be mentally prepared.

As soon as he finished speaking, the old Grand Preceptor, who had appeared at the royal banquet earlier, rode a sika deer transformed from a spirit of the artifact, arriving at the center on a cloud of white clouds. He raised his whisk and said loudly, "Welcome all of you to Dazhen from afar to participate in this Five Academies Conference."

This conference is unprecedented in scale, and the rewards are equally generous.

However, all cultivators are urged to note that during the competition, no one is permitted to intentionally harm another's life or destroy their cultivation. Furthermore, the use of magical artifacts, secret treasures, or elixirs exceeding permitted limits is strictly prohibited. Any violation will be severely punished without exception!

The old national advisor's words echoed in the air, making everyone's eardrums throb. His calm, deep eyes seemed to see right through everyone's hearts, causing all those present to look on with awe.

"This Five Academies Tournament is divided into two sessions, A and B. There are 25 participants in Session A, whose cultivation level is limited to the Golden Core stage and whose bone age cannot exceed 250 years. They will compete fairly for the top three spots through a round-robin tournament."

The second round of competition will feature fifty cultivators, all of whom must be at the Purple Mansion stage and have a bone age not exceeding 150 years. The top three will compete for points through a free-for-all battle.

Next, the rules and competition schedule for the second round will be read out. All participating monks are requested to listen carefully.

The competition will take place in a small world. Fifty participating cultivators will be randomly placed into this world, each wearing a waist tag representing their identity. Each waist tag represents one point. Participants need to accumulate as many points as possible. After the competition, rankings will be based on points. It is worth noting that points will only be calculated and rankings recorded if the waist tags are returned to the finish line flag located in the center of the small world within seventy-two hours.

Before this, as long as you defeat your opponent, you can obtain the opponent and all the waist tokens they carry.

Besides defeating opponents, there are other trial grounds in the small world. As long as you pass the test, you can also obtain one or two waist tokens.

Halfway through the competition, at the thirty-sixth hour, the positions of the three cultivators with the most waist tokens will be revealed to all the surviving contestants for twenty-four hours.

In the final twelve hours, everyone's location will be revealed.

During the competition, all you need to do is shout "I give up" to forfeit your eligibility and all your badges will fall off.

Finally, between players from the same academy, no badges can be counted as points, and the final ranking is divided into individual ranking and academy ranking.

Individual rankings only calculate individual points, while college rankings calculate total college points. Only those who rank in the top three in their college ranking can obtain the [Earth Infant Fruit].

The rules and competition format are as follows. A more detailed version will be distributed to you along with your competition badges. Do you have any objections?

Even though everyone was mentally prepared, they still felt a heavy pressure when they actually heard the rules.

If the number of waist tokens were fixed, it would be easy to calculate, thus avoiding some unnecessary risks. However, after joining the trial, the total number of waist tokens becomes a mystery. They must constantly find opponents and continuously obtain waist tokens in order to ensure that they can enter the top three.

However, if you acquire too many waist tokens, you will become a target for assassination, directly exposing yourself to everyone.

As the saying goes, two fists can't beat four hands. The people present are all geniuses selected from hundreds or even thousands of students from various colleges. Faced with multiple pursuers, none of them have the confidence to break through the encirclement.

After all, the rules of the competition do not prohibit alliances.

Even if you manage to break through, they can still ambush you at the finish line.

Furthermore, teammates must submit their waist tags to the finish line to earn points, and the total score is calculated and ranked after the competition ends.

This means that even if they reunite with their teammates, they cannot concentrate the waist tokens on one person. This means that no teammate can be easily abandoned, and the cost of sacrificing a pawn to save the king is greatly increased.

The proportion of individual effort has been reduced, with a greater emphasis on teamwork, which has unnecessarily increased uncertainty.

It is foreseeable that the next seventy-two hours will be the most difficult six days and nights for them so far.

Seeing that everyone was a little tense, Ji Shinian comforted them, "Don't put too much pressure on yourself. Just follow the previous arrangements. If necessary, do everything you can to protect Huayan."

Upon hearing this, everyone's gaze invariably turned to a woman in green who was completely covered up.

After several days, this was the first time Song Changsheng had ever heard her name.

He could understand Ji Shinian's intention in making such an arrangement. Hua Yan came from Ghost King Valley, had the help of corpse puppets, and was also a [Nine Yin Body]. Whether facing one-on-one or group attacks, she had a unique advantage. As long as Hua Yan was still there, Wanxiang Palace still had a chance to turn the tide.

This is their insurance policy, a safety net they can use to cover their losses.

Seeing that no one objected, the old Grand Preceptor waved his whisk and solemnly proclaimed, "Your Majesty, please open the [Scroll of Mountains and Rivers]!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a figure dressed in a heavy crown and draped in golden light appeared out of thin air. He was shrouded in brilliant golden light, radiating boundless brilliance, and exuded a powerful aura that pressed down on everyone's hearts like a mountain.

The moment he saw him, that strange feeling resurfaced in Song Changsheng's heart once again.

This feeling is fleeting and elusive.

"We pay our respects to His Majesty the Human King!"

Everyone present bowed in unison, their powerful voices echoing through the heavens.

The King waved his sleeve, summoning a scroll enveloped in golden light.

The scroll hangs in the air, suspended in the sky.

The King pointed his fingers like a sword, pouring powerful law energy into the scroll.

On the other side, the old national advisor also waved his whisk, made a sword incantation with his hands, and infused it with his own power of law.

The four branch deans, Dragon Elephant True Lord, Thousand Refinement True Lord, Mysterious Secret True Lord, and Heavenly Roc True Lord, also appeared together, standing in the four directions of east, south, west, and north, each channeling their power of law into the scroll in the air.

With the combined power of the King, the National Preceptor, the four Deans, and the six Nascent Soul True Monarchs, the scroll in the air slowly began to unfurl, revealing a wondrous scroll thousands of feet long, depicting mountains and rivers, and radiating dazzling seven-colored light.

Song Changsheng was shocked. It took the combined power of six True Monarchs to unfold it. This was definitely a Dao artifact, far surpassing the Jade Cleansing Sword at its peak, and comparable to a Supreme Being.

The creation of each Dao artifact requires the combined power of heaven and earth. Many Nascent Soul Supremes do not possess Dao artifacts, which clearly demonstrates the profound foundation of the Great Zhen Immortal Dynasty.

"This is the [Scroll of Mountains and Rivers], a powerful Dao artifact left behind by the first Human King. It contains fragments of the Great Dao of Space, which is large enough to accommodate the activities of cultivators below the Golden Core stage."

Aside from not being able to stay in it for extended periods, this space is no different from a small world. "In the group, Shu Qi explained softly to everyone.

"Dao artifacts" are only existing in legends for the vast majority of cultivators in the world. I never thought that I would be able to see them with my own eyes today.

Just one glance, and this trip is already complete.

Xu Miaoyin felt slightly dizzy, as if something was about to burst out of her mind. She staggered and almost fell, but fortunately Song Jingxiao gently supported her shoulder from behind, preventing her from embarrassing herself in public.

At this moment, the True Lords shouted in unison, "If we don't act now, when will we?"

...(End of chapter)