I gain ten years' worth of cultivation every day, and even geniuses will only see my doorstep!

One of them is in the arid region, thousands of feet underground.

When Qin Yuan arrived, a large crater had already appeared in the ground. The edges of the crater were clean, as if it had been cut by some kind of sharp weapon. Vibrations emanated from the bottom of the crater, one after another, like a heartbeat.

Qin Yuan jumped into the pit. As he fell, he heard a digging sound. It wasn't a shovel or a pickaxe, but the sound of liquid hitting rock. Hissing, like a snake flicking its tongue.

He descended to the bottom. Thousands of feet deep, the air thin, the temperature extremely low. Yuan's back was to him, his greyish-white skin glowing faintly in the darkness. His hands transformed into black blades, cutting through the rock layers. The blades sliced ​​into the stone as silently as cutting tofu.

Qin Yuan slashed his sword at the ground. Sword energy surged from beneath his feet, splitting the earth into a deep trench, sending shards of rock flying, and exposing Yuan's back to him.

Yuan turned around. His hands transformed from blades back into palms, and then back into blades again, at a speed too fast to see. The two black blades crossed and slashed towards Qin Yuan, the blades carrying black mist.

Qin Yuan raised his sword to parry. The golden blade clashed with the black blade, sparks flying. The sparks landed on the ground, burning small holes. Yuan's strength was inferior to Qin Yuan's, but his regenerative ability was astonishing. Qin Yuan severed his left arm with a single strike; the severed arm fell to the ground and turned into a pool of black liquid. A few breaths later, the liquid reformed, and a new arm grew.

"You can't kill me," Yuan said. "As long as malice remains, I will remain."

Qin Yuan remained silent. He thrust his sword into Yuan's chest, spiritual energy erupting from the tip, golden light exploding within Yuan's body. A large hole was blasted in Yuan's chest, black liquid gushing out like a fountain. He staggered back dozens of feet, his feet carving two deep furrows in the rubble.

The hole in his chest was healing. Granulation, black and worm-like, was growing from the edges, intertwining and filling the void. After a few breaths, the hole disappeared, leaving only a light-colored scar.

The ancestral core emerged from the rock strata at the bottom of the pit. It was the size of a fist, a black crystal with a dark red light flowing within it. The crystal floated up on its own; it wasn't taken out by someone. It was calling to the Abyss.

Qin Yuan reached out and grasped the Ancestral Core before Yuan could react. The crystal was scorching hot, like iron just pulled from a fire. He gripped it tightly, and the crystal struggled in his palm like a living thing.

Yuan stood at a distance, his black-rimmed eyes fixed on the ancestral core, then on Qin Yuan.

"You can't hold on. I'll take it back piece by piece."

He liquefied once more and burrowed into the rock strata. This time, Qin Yuan didn't pursue him. He placed the ancestral core close to his body, keeping it close to his skin. The crystal was still hot, burning his skin even through his clothes.

The second ancestral core was in the Muddy Realm. When Qin Yuan arrived, a large pit had already been dug in the center of the swamp. The pit was a hundred feet in diameter, and its depth was still increasing. Mud Egg squatted by the pit, holding a hoe, trembling all over. He wasn't afraid; he was using his spiritual power to press the ancestral core down. His cultivation was too low, only at the first level of the Chaos Opening Realm, and he couldn't withstand the ancestral core's attraction. His spiritual power flowed out of his body like water, and his face turned pale and his lips turned purple.

Qin Yuan landed at the edge of the pit and glanced at the bottom. A corner of the ancestral core was exposed, and a dark red light shone through the cracks in the soil, like a closed eye.

Yuan was at the bottom of the pit. He was digging with a black blade, so fast that only afterimages could be seen.

Qin Yuan slashed at Yuan with his sword. Yuan didn't take the blow head-on; instead, he disintegrated into liquid and flowed away from Qin Yuan's sword. The liquid moved rapidly along the pit walls, like mercury, like snakes. Qin Yuan's sword couldn't catch up.

Yuan reformed and stood on the other side of the pit. He was faster than before. After absorbing the third ancestral core, his cultivation level had risen from the third to the fourth level of the Myriad Paths Returning to Origin realm. Qin Yuan could barely keep up with his movements, but his sword couldn't reach him.

Mud Egg's spiritual power was exhausted. He gripped the hoe with both hands, his knees trembling. The Ancestral Core sprang from the ground like a pebble bounced on a spring. Yuan grabbed the Ancestral Core and pressed it into his chest. The Ancestral Core merged into his body, his chest flashed, a dark red light emanating from his skin, then faded.

His aura surged again. Fifth level of the Myriad Paths Returning to the Origin.

Qin Yuan didn't chase after him. He walked to Nidan's side. Nidan was lying on the ground, his hand still outstretched, his fingers digging five deep grooves in the mud. Mud was embedded in his fingernails.

"I couldn't hold on," Mud Egg's voice muffled in the mud.

Qin Yuan squatted down and pulled Mud Egg out of the mud. Mud Egg's face was covered in mud, and there was mud in his eyes as well; it was hard to tell if it was muddy water or tears.

"It's not your fault."

Yuan's voice came from afar, laced with mockery. "You've brought a bunch of useless trash, how do you think you can fight me?"

Qin Yuan didn't turn around. He looked at Nidan, whose eyes were red, but he didn't cry. He spat out the mud from his mouth, wiped his face, but there was even more mud on the back of his hands, and his face became dirtier the more he wiped it.

Qin Yuan took Mud Egg back to the rescue team's camp and said to Li Qing, "Call everyone back. Stop the rescue. Fight first."

The entire rescue team rushed back from all directions. Those who had searched for water in the Thirsty Realm, those who had planted taro in the Muddy Realm, and those who had helped the miners in the Crimson Sand Realm—they all returned. Li Qingqing counted the number of people; including herself, there were thirty-seven in total. The one with the highest cultivation was herself, a ninth-level Void Sovereign. Mud Egg was at the first level of the Chaos Opening Realm. The others ranged from Void Supremes to Origin Saint Emperors, and some hadn't even reached the Chaos Opening Realm. They stood in the center of the camp, holding hoes, shovels, medicine picks, and rolling pins. Weapons that were normally tools were now being used as weapons.

Qin Yuan stood before them, offering no speech or mobilization. "Yuan's goal is the Ancestral Core. He needs to go to his next destination, which requires passing through the teleportation array at the Summit of Myriad Realms. We'll wait for him there."

Li Qing began setting up the defensive formation. Qin Yuan guarded the front, while the others split into flanks. The strongest attackers stood on the flanks, and the weakest on the rear. The goal wasn't to kill, but to prevent their deaths. They only had one chance. Yuan's speed and regenerative abilities were too great; they wouldn't get a second chance.

Yuan arrived. He had absorbed four ancestral cores, and his cultivation had reached the sixth level of the Myriad Paths Returning to One. He stood in the center of the teleportation array, his grayish-white skin appearing even whiter in the array's white light, and the black in his dark eye sockets appearing even deeper. He looked at the rescue team members surrounding him and smiled.

"You've come here to die?"

Without a word, Qin Yuan unleashed a sword strike. The sword energy condensed into a golden line, heading straight for Yuan's face. Yuan didn't dodge, blocking with his left arm. The blade embedded itself in his bone, unable to be pulled out. Golden light shone through the gaps in his bones; his left arm trembled, but it wasn't severed.

Yuan transformed his right hand into a sharp blade, aiming for Qin Yuan's throat. The speed was too fast; Qin Yuan didn't have time to draw his sword and could only sidestep. But the blade still arrived.

Li Qing charged in from the side, smashing a hammer into Yuan's elbow. The hammer was a rescue tool, not a weapon; it had a round head and a short handle. The hammerhead cracked upon impact, as did the wooden handle. Yuan's blade veered off course, grazing Qin Yuan's ear and shaving off several strands of his hair.