Chapter 814: Ancient Immortal Civilization

「Still, nothing beats home…」

After dinner, Jiang Ding lay comfortably on the sofa watching TV, legs crossed, watching the evening news.

The Taiqing Flying Sword busied itself in the kitchen, washing dishes and scrubbing pots, occasionally letting out cheerful sword-chimes.

The news was the same as always — today the Fire Spirit Realm had built some industrial park, tomorrow the Tian Hai Gao Jie had built some seven-star tourist attraction that aided enlightenment in Water-attribute Gong Fa, visitors welcome, that sort of thing.

Construction of every kind was in full swing; forty years on, there was still no sign of slowing down — it was still accelerating.

「This station reports, 」

「The Di Ci Gao Jie has built a Horned Demon Race Museum. Visitors are welcome. 」

「The Horned Demon Race was an indigenous species that existed tens of thousands of years ago, before the Jiudaxian Sect arrived in this realm. This race once gave birth to Void Refinement-level lifeforms, and was later exterminated by the Jiudaxian Sect. Its immortal civilization was unique and strange, cruel and blood-soaked…」

「…Sacrifice was the most important activity among the Horned Demon Race, used to communicate with their ancestors and obtain blessings. Legend has it that the more powerful the Super Super Jipin, and the more outstanding the talent, the more it would delight the distant ancestors of the Horned Demon Race…」

「Today, the Horned Demon Race is on the verge of extinction in the realm — a rare species. The only surviving branch exists within the Ten Thousand Beasts Immortal Sect…」

The news was showcasing the newly built Ancient Immortal Civilization Museum in the Di Ci Gao Jie.

Immortal-gate buildings of this sort were generally not mere scenery — they also carried functions such as aiding enlightenment and broadening one's knowledge.

Grades ranged from one-star scenic areas to nine-star scenic areas, with varying degrees of effect.

Many Immortal-gate citizens, while traveling and sightseeing across the various Minor Thousand Worlds, would find their bottlenecks break through on their own.

As for fees: mortals were free, since they couldn't achieve enlightenment; citizen cultivators got half price; indigenous cultivators paid five times the base price; Qingmuxian Sect cultivators paid twenty times.

And no, don't complain it's expensive.

This is a building that possesses the ability to aid enlightenment!

Even in peacetime, only cultivators from the Qingmuxian Sect, Wuxingtian Sect, and the like were qualified to tour it — the likes of Brother Brother Xuanwu's Heavenly Palace could forget about it.

「Ancient immortal civilization… the Horned Demon Race… it sounds really interesting. 」

Jiang Ding felt a touch of longing.

Right now, without the protection of the Starry Sky Corps, he didn't dare leave the mother planet at all.

Otherwise, the great powers of the Qingmuxian Sect would definitely find a way to kill him.

After introducing the building, the news also attached images of the Horned Demon Race.

This appeared to be a wax figure of a female Horned Demon, her entire body clad in pure black armor — this was something they were born with, just like the fur, scales, and hide of demon races. Between the armor plates, snow-white, delicate skin was occasionally revealed, looking both dangerous and alluring.

The most eye-catching feature was, naturally, the single horn on this female Horned Demon's head — sharp and pointed, covered entirely in mysterious pitch-black runes, with a vortex-shaped Brother Brother Xuanwu at the tip, carrying a certain magical quality that firmly drew one's gaze and made it impossible to look away.

「A bloodline species of Void Refinement-level beings… looks very powerful. 」

Jiang Ding judged.

For demon races, judging strength was simple — just look at the bloodline, and you could tell at a glance.

It wasn't like humans, where bloodline wasn't the main factor in judging strength — it was irrelevant. For humans, the height of their immortal civilization and inheritance was the standard for judging the strength or weakness of a group, which carried a certain deceptive quality.

「What a fine specimen that would be — if only the Immortal Gate could obtain one, it would be a great help for breaking through to Void Refinement. 」

Jiang Ding felt it was a pity.

He also had some understanding of the Immortal Gate's current R&D progress on Void Refinement.

The biggest problem,

was the lack of a concrete Void Refinement creature to use as reference!

Hundreds and thousands of directions, each one looking possible, each one capable of producing results that broke through to Void Refinement — but no one knew which one was correct. Lost in a fog, swinging a hammer here, a stick there.

If only there were a clear direction to work toward.

Some neighbors, worried and scared, wanted to call the police, but were still hesitating.

Jiang Ding watched TV until ten at night, only then feeling sleepy. He went into his room and began his first sleep in a hundred or two hundred years, snoring thunderously.

The Taiqing Flying Sword transformed into a blue-gold potted plant, quietly placed on the desk, accompanying him, just as it had many years ago.

The next day.

Jiang Ding rose very early, didn't even fold his quilt, didn't bother washing up. After sitting at the table and finishing the breakfast the Taiqing Flying Sword had prepared for him, he picked up Zhang Dingjun's urn and headed toward Rongcheng Cemetery.

「Morning, little brother! Heading to school? 」

When he stepped out, he happened to run into his neighbors — a family of three about to go to work and school, the father among them greeting him warmly.

They had moved in five or six years ago, so they counted as old neighbors by now.

In fact, last night they had secretly called the police. The police looked into it and said this was originally someone else's house — they just didn't live there often, and had just come back; it wasn't some thief who had suddenly appeared.

「Mm, mm, yes, that's right. 」

Jiang Ding smiled and nodded, politely saying, 「Are you heading to work? That's really hard on you. 」

「Sigh, that's life…」

A friendly exchange between neighbors.

Jiang Ding didn't fly. He swiped his transit card all the way, took the bus, rode for several dozen minutes, and slowly arrived at Rongcheng Cemetery.

The atmosphere here was solemn; most of those coming and going wore grief-stricken expressions.

In a city of several hundred thousand people, every day some died and some were born — this was the cycle between life and death.

As long as life existed, this cycle would continue.

Following somewhat hazy memories, Jiang Ding walked slowly and soon arrived at Teacher Guo Kui's grave.

Someone was already there, cleaning moss off the tombstone.

「Hey, Jiang Ding. 」

A tall, burly middle-aged man pulled up a handful of moss and casually greeted him.

It was Li Li Junhao — Jin Dan Chu Qi cultivator Li Li Junhao.

「Jiang Ding. 」

Nearby, high school class monitor Hua Bing was also there, Jin Dan Zhong Qi, as was cousin Lin Lin Yuanwang, Jin Dan Chu Qi — both busy, pulling weeds and tidying up Teacher Guo Kui's grave.

Lin Lin Yuanwang is one class above Jiang Ding, and his ideological and moral education teacher was also Guo Kui.

Nowadays, Jiang Ding no longer has any old acquaintances from the Foundation Establishment realm; they have all passed away.

"Haha, everyone, it's been a long time."

Jiang Ding laughed heartily.

Among them, because of the promise he had made to his maternal grandparents back then, he vigorously supported Lin Lin Yuanwang in forming a Core, expending a large amount of resources, and succeeded.

Hua Bing, on the other hand, earned the opportunity to form a Core through military merit; his foundation was deep, and he formed his Core steadily.

Li Li Junhao had always sought stability, staying at a scientific research institution the whole time, never going out on adventures; before reaching the limit of his lifespan, relying on a low-grade Core-formation opportunity, he made a desperate bid and succeeded in forming a Core in one stroke.

After that, they took part in the Realm Domain War, went through many dangers, and in the end were fortunate enough to survive.

In fact, it wasn't entirely luck; compared with the Star Sky Troops, the casualty rate of the In-Realm Troops had always been quite low, never having suffered an entire formation being annihilated by the enemy, and the survival rate was very high.

Their coming here was no coincidence either.

Regarding the matter of burying Teacher Zhang Dingjun, Jiang Ding, as usual, made some inquiries among those who had interacted with Teacher Zhang Dingjun during his lifetime and were still alive, asking whether they would attend this simple funeral so arrangements could be made.

Hua Bing and the other two had nothing important going on, so they all came here.

(End of this chapter)

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