Chapter 7

In the bustling Hoof Street, the surging crowds and the thriving atmosphere made it seem worlds apart from the quiet alley a few streets away. Countless cultivators, either leisurely or hurriedly, walked along this street, occasionally glancing up at the sky. Due to the existence of the Heavenly Yin Mountains, the sky over Xilu City was always overcast, but for these wandering cultivators, this was not something worth their attention. On the street, perhaps each person's silhouette carried its own unique story, but these stories were never known to others.

Inside the Tianyi Building, business was still booming. At dozens of counters, a large amount of cultivation materials were being continuously purchased, in exchange for bag after bag of spirit crystals. After thousands of years of development, the human cultivation path had long since formed a nearly complete system. One of the most important common knowledge points in this system was that, besides the recognized innate talent and physical constitution, cultivators needed to support their cultivation of the immortal path with the consumption of these external cultivation materials. In a certain sense, the importance of these cultivation materials was almost on par with the cultivator's own talent.

A cultivator who frequently took spirit pills and had an ample supply of spirit crystals, even if their talent was slightly inferior, would ultimately achieve more than someone with good talent but in dire poverty.

This was also the fundamental reason why the vast number of wandering cultivators were at the bottom of the cultivation world. Wandering cultivators were all unaffiliated, without any sect or background, and had entered the path of cultivation through various opportunities, intentional or unintentional. Regardless of their innate talent and physical constitution, in terms of financial resources, they were naturally far inferior to the existing cultivation sects. Even if one had excellent innate talent and physical constitution, without the basic spirit crystals, how could one expect to achieve good results in cultivation?

After all, in the Hongmeng world, humans were different from the demon races, who were once called the pride of heaven.

The demon races were the true chosen divine races, with bodies naturally a hundred times stronger than humans. Most importantly, the demon races could directly absorb the heavenly essence and qi with their physical bodies to cultivate various unique innate abilities, such as summoning wind and rain, moving mountains, and filling seas, which were terrifying and formidable. In contrast, during the long dark age when the demon races ruled the Hongmeng realms, the demon races were the undisputed leaders among the hundred races, while humans were naturally fragile. Moreover, for some unknown reason, the human body could not absorb even the slightest bit of heavenly essence and qi, and thus had no supernatural abilities.

The only unique aspect of humans was their ability to reproduce...

In the vast and boundless Hongmeng world, during the long dark age of the Heavenly Demon Court, the fragile humans were always at the bottom of all races. Despite the enormous population of humans, which was many times greater than the total of all other races, they were arbitrarily oppressed by the powerful races led by the demon races, like a large group of domesticated livestock.

How could a group of domesticated sheep and pigs be expected to fight against fierce and ferocious tigers and wolves?

The long dark age, which later generations of humans called the Dark Age, was not a random term. At that time, humans indeed saw no bright future. Any upper race could arbitrarily oppress humans, who were forced to do the lowest and most degrading work, serving as slaves and servants, working hard to support the high and mighty chosen races. In many cases, the powerful races led by the demon races would directly slaughter large numbers of humans for sacrificial or burial rituals, not considering humans as part of the hundred races of Hongmeng, but merely as livestock.

In such a terrifying era, the fate of humans was predictable. If it weren't for the strong reproductive ability of humans, maintaining a large population and the continuation of the race, they would have been exterminated long ago by the chosen divine races.

Such a dark and hopeless fate, like a dark cloud, always hung over the heads of humans, until the end of the Heavenly Demon Court, when a small thing that changed the fate of the entire Hongmeng realms was discovered.

That was the spirit crystal, a small stone that only grew in the most concentrated areas of the spirit mountains, where the dragon veins gathered the most heavenly essence and qi. It was crystal clear, about the size of a finger, and had a faceted shape, a beautiful and lovely little thing. Originally, it was just considered a low-grade ornament with no practical use, but at some point, by some coincidence or turn of fate, someone discovered that humans could actually absorb the heavenly essence and qi from these spirit crystals through some special methods...

The heavenly essence and qi, which filled the Hongmeng realms, invisible, intangible, and imperceptible, yet omnipresent, were well-known to be the foundation of all the powers and abilities of the races in Hongmeng. The demon races were so powerful and terrifying because they were the only ones who could directly absorb the heavenly essence and qi with their physical bodies. Other races in Hongmeng could also absorb the heavenly essence and qi through various methods, but the only ones who could not were humans, which was the root cause of their weakness and tragic fate.

But from then on, everything changed.

All the tragic stories of the past, the magnificent legends, and the heroic battles, have now become distant memories from ten thousand years ago. The once powerful and arrogant demon races, along with other proud races, have either fled, died, or disappeared to the fringes of the Hongmeng world, or have been erased by the relentless passage of time. Today, in this vast and boundless Hongmeng world, humans are the rulers, the masters, and this alone speaks volumes.

And the root of all this was just a small, beautiful, crystal-clear, and lovely little stone.

The spirit crystal is the essential item for all human cultivators. Only through these small stones can cultivators absorb the heavenly essence and qi, and as their cultivation realm improves, the amount of spirit crystals they need also increases.

Without spirit crystals, there is no cultivation.

This statement holds true everywhere.

※※※

The spirit crystal is so important that cultivators cannot be without it for a moment. Therefore, in today's cultivation world, the spirit crystal has become the equivalent of currency, replacing the gold and silver of the mortal world. In the current Tianyi Building, the wandering cultivators who come and go to purchase various cultivation materials pay with spirit crystals.

The gentle luster and the pleasant sound of the spirit crystals clashing together create a scene that captivates the cultivators, reflecting the faces of those who dream of immortality and great power. Despite the long and arduous path, with most people falling along the way, countless others continue to throw themselves into it without hesitation.

Perhaps, the allure of immortality and eternal life is irresistible to mortals, and even if one cannot achieve immortality, the ability to extend one's lifespan several times over and possess immense power is enough to make anyone captivated.

After surveying the bustling scene in the front hall and confirming that everything was as usual with no abnormalities, Shen Tai slowly walked to the entrance of the Tianyi Building and looked around.

Everything was as it always was, another peaceful day. The several Xuan Yin Sect disciples who were lounging or standing at the entrance, seeing Shen Tai approach, all smiled and greeted him. In terms of cultivation realm, the lowest among them had reached the Condensation Realm, truly stepping onto the path of immortality, which was a world apart from the outer sect disciples who were still stuck in the Qi Refinement Realm. In the Xuan Yin Sect, ordinary outer sect disciples would respectfully greet these inner sect disciples, and the inner sect disciples would usually ignore these weaker ones.

However, Shen Tai, the great boss, with the Tianyi Building as his capital, had a daily flow of spirit crystals that dazzled the eyes. This alone made him stand out.

Shen Tai's expression was gentle, and he smiled and nodded to the group, his gaze lingering for a moment on the bearded man who had spoken to Shen Shi earlier, before he leisurely walked back.

Passing through the noisy and bustling shop, Shen Tai returned to the courtyard at the back and sat down in a secluded pavilion in a small garden, surrounded by green trees and fragrant grass, silent and deep in thought, as if pondering something.

After a while, a figure walked over from the other side of the small garden, which was the bearded Xuan Yin Sect disciple who had been secretly guarding the Tianyi Building. He had a calm expression, walked briskly, and his gaze seemed to casually sweep through the small garden. Then, as if by chance, he saw Shen Tai in the pavilion, paused for a moment, and walked over.

"Mr. Shen, you're quite at ease," the bearded man laughed as he entered the pavilion.

Shen Tai glanced at him, a smile appearing on his lips, but his eyes seemed to have a hint of coldness. However, his tone remained gentle, "Brother Chen, you've worked hard. Please sit."

In the pavilion, there was a round stone table with four stone stools. After they both sat down, Brother Chen did not speak, but his gaze fell on Shen Tai, his eyes filled with deep meaning.

Shen Tai did not hesitate, casually pulling out a simple small wooden box from his chest and placing it in front of him, saying calmly, "I received a small trinket a few days ago. Perhaps it will suit Brother Chen's taste. Please accept it."

Brother Chen looked at him, picked up the wooden box, and with a slight force, opened the lid just a bit, and a gentle blue light immediately flickered.

His hand suddenly paused in mid-air.

"Clack!"

A crisp sound, and the wooden box lid was forcefully closed.

Brother Chen's breathing seemed to become heavy, whether from excitement, tension, or a hint of fear and alarm. After a moment, he regained his composure, but his gaze on Shen Tai was completely different from before.

"Mr. Shen, you have great skills," he stared at Shen Tai for a while, speaking in a low voice.

Shen Tai narrowed his eyes slightly, seeming to have a touch of self-mockery, and smiled, "It's nothing much. I've been here for over ten years, building the current situation of the Tianyi Building. Doing these small things is not a big deal."

Brother Chen took a deep breath, put the wooden box in his chest, stood up, and said, "Since Mr. Shen has reached this point, we will proceed as we agreed."

Shen Tai nodded, silent for a moment, and then said in a low voice, "I hope you will keep your word."

Brother Chen raised an eyebrow, "Mr. Shen, rest assured. Our sect may not be the best in other aspects, but in terms of keeping our word, we can boast to the world."

Shen Tai nodded slowly, seemingly believing the man's promise. However, Brother Chen, who was clearly an inner sect disciple of the Xuan Yin Sect, referred to himself as "our sect" in a way that seemed a bit strange.

Seeing Brother Chen turn to leave, Shen Tai suddenly spoke, "Brother Chen."

The bearded man paused, turned around, and said, "What is it?"

Shen Tai looked at him and said, "Shen Tai has a question. I would like to ask Brother, which senior gave the order to deal with Old Li?"

Brother Chen smiled slightly, "Mr. Shen, you're asking too much."

Shen Tai pursed his lips, smiled, and let it go. Brother Chen bowed and turned to leave. In the pavilion, Shen Tai was left alone. The short, plump figure slowly turned, gazing into the distance, where the towering Heavenly Yin Mountains were shrouded in endless dark clouds.

After a long while, he whispered to himself, "To dare to directly plot against a Great True Person of the Core Formation Realm, who could this person be..."

(Suddenly, I'm updating twice a day. I feel the pressure in the morning... but I can still hold on. There will be another chapter at 7 PM tonight. ^_^)

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