Chapter Sixty-Seven: Ten Years Within the Ring

At this moment, Lin Yanghao resembled a meditating monk, sitting cross-legged in utter stillness within the Chaos Ring, occasionally releasing traces of spiritual energy from his body as he cultivated. The true essence within him circulated through cycle after cycle, each revolution subtly increasing the aura on the altar within his dantian.

After standing up to stretch slightly, Lin Yanghao resumed channeling the "Divine Spirit Sutra of Chaos," absorbing the surrounding spiritual energy. Though the path of cultivation was fraught with endless hardships and dangers, whenever he thought of Feng Shihan’s enchanting smile, his resolve to pursue this road grew even stronger. As long as there remained the slimmest chance or hope, Lin Yanghao was willing to make any sacrifice. He only wished he could advance his realm more swiftly and gather the five great innate spirit treasures as soon as possible.

Within the Chaos Ring, days passed one after another. Throughout this time, Lin Yanghao never ceased his cultivation. In the blink of an eye, a year had gone by. Lin Yanghao slowly opened his eyes, a trace of excitement on his face. Over the course of that year, through countless cycles, the true essence on the altar within him had rapidly reached the very peak of the mid-stage Foundation Establishment realm.

Though the dense aura of the Celestial Realm’s origin could not aid Lin Yanghao’s cultivation, it did invigorate his spirit. After a year of training, Lin Yanghao finally discovered another use for this celestial energy—it could enhance one’s state of mind. Unlike cultivation, which could be advanced through effort, the elevation of one’s state of mind required insight. Throughout history, many cultivators had fallen prey to inner demons and perished because their minds were unsteady.

After collecting his thoughts, Lin Yanghao plunged once more into cultivation, preparing to break through to the late Foundation Establishment stage. Now, only a thin veil separated him from that realm, yet this seemingly insubstantial barrier felt as insurmountable as a towering cliff—no matter how he tried, he could not cross it.

Another year slipped by in the blink of an eye. Lin Yanghao sat quietly within the Chaos Ring, yet he still failed to break through to the late Foundation Establishment stage.

"You fool! With your useless rootless spirit constitution, trying to reach late Foundation Establishment through sheer effort is nothing but a dream! Have you forgotten how you managed to break through Foundation Establishment in the first place?" Seeing Lin Yanghao’s stubbornness, the artifact spirit Ling’er grew exasperated. If Lin Yanghao wasted any more time, this opportunity would slip away yet again.

"Of course! How could I have forgotten the ‘Divine Spirit Sutra of Chaos’? Such a heaven-defying technique!" Reminded by Ling’er, Lin Yanghao finally recalled that cultivating the "Divine Spirit Sutra of Chaos" allowed for breakthroughs without bottlenecks. He set aside his attempts to advance his realm by ordinary means and began to focus on this supreme art.

"Lin Yanghao, do you realize the ‘Divine Spirit Sutra of Chaos’ is a sacred-level technique? Not only can it serve as your main cultivation method, but each of its nine layers bestows tremendous benefits with every breakthrough." Lin Yanghao nodded lightly, then sat back down, continuing to draw in the primordial chaos energy between heaven and earth.

...

"White Tiger, after a year of wandering, we’ve finally returned to the Beast Domain. That damned one-way teleportation array forced us to spend an entire year just to get back," grumbled Red Fox as he and White Tiger arrived. The Beast Domain was a land of endless snowy mountains, blanketed in white all year round. Stretching for tens of millions of miles, it was a realm where heavy snow and biting winds were common, the harsh geography and climate plain to see.

"Red Fox, let’s quickly deliver the bearer of the imperial bloodline to the Beast Sovereign!" With that, the two darted away.

Before long, White Tiger and Red Fox arrived at the gates of a majestic palace.

"Honored Demon Kings, the Beast Sovereign summons you," a guard announced. Exchanging glances, the two entered with long strides.

"Esteemed Demon Kings, I hear you’ve retrieved the imperial bloodline. Quickly, bring him forward for my inspection!" As White Tiger and Red Fox entered, the Beast Sovereign—whose true beast form none knew—could barely contain his impatience to see Tan Zhuo.

"Hahaha! So he truly is the one! Though the imperial bloodline has awakened in a human cultivator, after the baptism of our beast race’s legacy, he will surely return to our kind! In three days, the bearer of the imperial bloodline shall formally enter the Land of Inheritance. I will summon every spirit beast in the Beast Domain to witness this glorious moment together!" With these words, the Beast Sovereign turned and departed the hall.

Soon, countless spirit beasts received the Beast Sovereign’s summons and began converging from all directions upon the palace—a truly spectacular scene. Among them were not only upper-grade spirit beasts, but innumerable mid-grade ones, and even more of the lower grade. If such a host ever appeared in the cultivation world, they could crush it with ease.

Three days later, outside the Beast Race’s Land of Inheritance, all the spirit beasts—along with the Beast Sovereign and the five great demon kings—lay prostrate, gazing reverently at the sacred site. The so-called Land of Inheritance was merely a great stone gate within a vast plaza; what lay beyond, only the Beast Sovereign knew.

"Rise, all of you! By now, I trust you understand why I have summoned you here. Indeed, I have found our race’s supreme imperial bloodline. In days to come, he will surely restore us to the glory of ten thousand years past—lead us forth from the Beast Domain!"

Tan Zhuo slowly opened his eyes, astonished to find himself in an unfamiliar place, surrounded by a dense multitude of spirit beasts. He made no sound, continuing to feign unconsciousness.

"Surely, not even the combined might of the entire cultivation world could compare to what’s gathered here. Is this... the Beast Domain?" Tan Zhuo cracked his eyes open a sliver. At the very front, more than a dozen spirit beasts had already taken human form—a sight that made his heart pound with terror. These were all, without exception, true upper-mid grade spirit beasts, comparable to cultivators at the Tribulation Crossing stage.

Below, many spirit beasts had begun to converse.

"Brother Qingming, it’s been nearly a hundred years since we last met! This time, we must catch up properly!" said a delighted Floater Hound to his companion.