Qi Xiu’s eyes flickered as he noticed the ancient dragon scale, a gift from Elder Shui, begin to react in this strange new domain. The earlier pulsation of the ancient dragon scale, coupled with the appearance of this white-haired old man, seed like a signal. A signal intended to lead him to this place outside his ho realm. And the source of it all was the True Dragon slumbering within the massive peach tree, its claws tightly gripping a mysterious stone book.
After a mont of deliberation, Qi Xiu’s gaze swept over the white-haired old man several tis. This white-haired old man’s tone doesn’t sound like he’s lying, Qi Xiu mused. Since this place has such a profound connection to the ancient dragon scale, I might as well stay and see what happens.
It’s just that with my sudden disappearance, I wonder if any trouble will arise back at Spirit Rice Valley.
Although a little uneasy, Qi Xiu decided he had no choice but to settle down for the ti being in this place called the Longevity Star Realm.
When the white-haired old man heard Qi Xiu was willing to stay, he bead with delight, his high, protruding forehead even shining with a faint luster.
"We’ll set aside the matter of you forcibly bringing here for now," Qi Xiu stated. "After the affairs here are concluded, we will settle that score. For now, tell : how exactly do you need to save your people?"
"Great Immortal, by your grace! As long as you can save our clan, this humble old man is willing to die ten thousand deaths to repay you."
Having received Qi Xiu’s consent, the white-haired old man eagerly expressed his sincerity and began to recount everything about the Longevity Star Realm.
He explained that this was the Longevity Star Realm, an Outer Hengsha Microcosm. The entire world was only about half the size of Dianchuan Province. Due to its small size and an incomplete Heavenly Dao, the living beings here could only cultivate up to a realm equivalent to the Blood-Stained Realm; that was their limit.
The inhabitants of the Longevity Star Realm were known as the Taogong Clan. This clan’s appearance and physique were about eighty to ninety percent similar to the Human Race, but they possessed extre longevity. Even ordinary clan mbers without cultivation could live for nearly five hundred years.
The Taogong Clan possessed innate Divine Marvels, allowing them to cultivate various peach trees. The spirit peaches produced by different trees also had distinct effects. For instance, the white-haired old man, nad Tao Guyun, cultivated peach trees whose spirit peaches could heal a hundred illnesses and neutralize ten thousand poisons. Moreover, as a cultivator at the Blood-Stained Realm, his lifespan had reached a terrifying three thousand years. This was a lifespan typically only possessed by Heavenly Origin Realm Dao Body Powerhouses.
Originally, this clan lived peacefully in the Longevity Star Realm, isolated from worldly affairs and enjoying tranquility. However, two thousand years ago, an extraterrestrial object wreathed in billowing black smoke suddenly crashed into the Longevity Star Realm. The object’s arrival inflicted severe damage upon the Longevity Star Realm. The once favorable Sky Do was permanently plunged into darkness, and from ti to ti, toxic black rain would fall.
More critically, this event caused the Taizu Holy Tree, which nurtured the Taogong Clan, to suddenly enter a state of suspended animation and begin to wither. Unlike the Human Race, which reproduces through the union of yin and yang, resulting in childbirth after ten months of gestation, the entire Taogong Clan was nurtured and brought forth by the Taizu Holy Tree. With the Holy Tree in suspended animation and withering, the Taogong Clan was effectively cut off from its roots.
Over the past two thousand years, the clan leaders and Elders of the Taogong Clan tried every conceivable thod to awaken and revive the Taizu Holy Tree, but all their efforts were in vain. Without the Holy Tree to nurture new clan mbers, the population of the Taogong Clan plumted over these two millennia, from nearly ten thousand at its peak to just over two thousand individuals today. Furthermore, among these remaining two-thousand-plus mbers, the majority had already reached the end of their lifespans; they were frail, elderly, and could perish at any mont.
With the Taogong Clan facing extinction, Tao Guangming, who was the clan leader more than eight hundred years ago, adhered to the ancestral edicts. He mobilized the full strength of the clan to send Tao Guyun—the mber with the highest cultivation at the ti—into the Tianyuan Main Realm to find reinforcents.
After drifting through the Tianyuan Main Realm for over eight hundred years, Tao Guyun found Qi Xiu. Convinced that Qi Xiu was the prophesied savior of the Taogong Clan, he brought him to the Longevity Star Realm.
"So, you’re saying the root of your clan’s so-called extinction crisis lies in that extraterrestrial object that suddenly fell? Why didn’t you simply uproot and remove it?"
After listening to Tao Guyun recount the full story, Qi Xiu voiced his confusion. The predicant the Taogong Clan faced sounded simple enough. Yet, this seemingly straightforward problem appeared to have its root cause deliberately sidestepped, leaving one befuddled.
"Immortal, you may not be aware, but that extraterrestrial object possesses an exceedingly bizarre power," Tao Guyun explained. "Any mber of our Taogong Clan who approaches it becos contaminated and undergoes a mutation, their temperant turning violent, crazed, and savage. Over the years, this extraterrestrial object has beco entrenched in our Longevity Star Realm, subtly influencing every mber of the Taogong Clan. Many of the spirit peaches cultivated by our kinsfolk have transford into poisonous fruits. If this isn’t dealt with soon, the Taogong Clan will truly face extinction."
ntioning the extraterrestrial object, Tao Guyun’s face filled with bitterness and helplessness. How could they not have considered the solution Qi Xiu proposed? But that extraterrestrial object was truly malevolent. Not only did it contaminate and mutate any Taogong Clan mber who drew near, but it also spawned nurous grotesque monsters—two-headed, four-ard, utterly ferocious, and terrifyingly hideous. If these monsters hadn’t been confined to the vicinity of that object, the Taogong Clan would likely have been annihilated long ago.
"First, take to see this Taizu Holy Tree," Qi Xiu said.
After a mont’s thought, Qi Xiu suspected that the Taizu Holy Tree Tao Guyun spoke of might be the colossal peach tree he had glimpsed through the ancient dragon scale—the one in which a True Dragon slumbered.
"Of course! This humble old man will take you there imdiately."
Now regarding Qi Xiu as the entire clan’s savior, Tao Guyun was completely deferential to his requests, obeying without the slightest hesitation.
Activating his Escape Light, Qi Xiu followed Tao Guyun as they proceeded.
It’s fortunate that I’ve already cultivated the Hunyuan Myriad Laws Immortal Body, Qi Xiu reflected. Otherwise, this land outside the domain, so much less abundant in vital energy than the Tianyuan Main Realm, would hardly be able to sustain , even with my Hunyuan Apertures capable of channeling myriad energies.
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