Chapter 657: Li Huo Shangren, the Guest from the Eastern Sea [Thank you to the friend 'Chun Nuan Shi Yi Zhou' for the 6666-coin tip]

Six months later.

The news of Qin Ming's attainment of the Nascent Soul True Person status spread farther and farther, reaching even the surrounding cultivation realms.

As time passed.

Not only was Wangyue Island bustling with activity, but the entire spiritual energy Archipelago long remained suffused with festive cheer.

Qin Ming's Nascent Soul Grand Ceremony was about to begin; cultivators from the Four Nations Alliance and the people of Wangyue Island were all busy preparing.

Invitations were sent to all parties, the venue was decorated, banquets were arranged—all proceeded with urgent haste.

On Wangyue Island.

A yellow cultivation light streaked across the sky and landed on Lingdao Island, revealing Wu Jiang with his silver-white hair.

He sternly instructed the cultivators below, busy decorating the square: "Be careful! Every blade of grass and tree on this island is precious—don't you dare damage anything!"

"Yes, yes, yes! Elder Wu!"

Wu Jiang nodded, then departed, satisfied.

The cultivators working on the periphery watched his retreating figure and could not help but express envy.

After all, serving under a Nascent Soul True Person—how many would kill to secure such a post?

Yet just as they were working furiously.

The surrounding space suddenly trembled, as if something terrifying was about to descend.

Even the spiritual energy nearby became chaotic.

Then, ripples suddenly appeared in the sky above, and the next instant, an immense spiritual pressure descended abruptly.

The cultivators of the Four Nations Alliance and the Wu family, including Wu Jiang, all showed expressions of alarm at this shocking spiritual pressure.

Some lower-level cultivators even lost their footing and collapsed onto the ground.

As a crimson cultivation light faded, a cultivator had already appeared above them, seemingly out of nowhere.

He was an elderly man with golden hair, clad in a python robe, his frame slightly slender, yet the magic power pressure he emitted left everyone below stunned and pale.

"Nascent Soul True Person!"

The next instant.

Zou! A green streak flashed from the main peak of Wangyue Island and landed steadily before the red-haired elder, revealing Qin Ming's form.

His powerful spiritual sense, comparable to that of a Nascent Soul late-stage cultivator, had already detected the red-haired elder's presence long ago—he had merely chosen not to greet him. The moment Qin Ming appeared, an even more terrifying spiritual pressure descended, instantly overwhelming the elder's own.

The red-haired elder's expression changed instantly, his face filled with shock.

He immediately retracted his spiritual pressure.

"Hehe! I suppose you must be the newly appointed 'Wangyue True Person' of the Southern Wastes?"

"Congratulations on your Nascent Soul attainment. I am Li Huo Shangren Ding Pu, here specifically to observe the ceremony and offer my congratulations."

"At only three hundred years old, you have achieved Nascent Soul—truly breaking the record for the youngest Nascent Soul cultivator in the past thousand years across Da Jin and the Southern Wastes."

"Your cultivation path is limitless! Truly worthy of celebration."

This was Li Huo Shangren's first time seeing the legendary new Nascent Soul True Person; he immediately forced a smile and bowed slightly, his courtesy hollow.

Qin Ming's first impression upon him was like a tall, evergreen ancient tree—calm, serene, and remarkably young.

But after that slight probe, he now had a rough estimate.

This youth's cultivation and power were likely just as his disciples had reported—he was no ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator.

Cultivators who had survived the Earthly Sha Heavenly Tribulation had not appeared in Da Jin Imperial Realm for a very long time.

His abilities must be extraordinary.

Thus, Li Huo Shangren dared not be arrogant; upon meeting Qin Ming, he did not rely on Li Huo Palace's power to act haughtily.

At their level of cultivation, the art of concealing brilliance had reached an extremely profound state.

"So you are Brother Ding of Li Huo Palace. Please come to the island for a chat," Qin Ming said calmly, gesturing politely.

Immediately, Qin Ming led Li Huo Shangren to the Qingmu Pavilion atop the main peak.

Moments later.

Li Huo Shangren saw the island's fourth-rank spiritual vein and the numerous high-grade spiritual plants—no less impressive than his sect's own plant garden.

Even some rare spiritual plants he had never seen before at Li Huo Palace filled him with silent admiration.

"I heard you were originally a spiritual plant cultivator. I didn't expect your skill in this field to be so high—surely you're not far from reaching the fourth-rank level?"

"Hehe! These are just minor hobbies I've grown in my spare time—nothing compared to your sect's treasures," Qin Ming replied casually.

"Hehe! Brother Qin is truly humble and reserved."

"Just like how you quietly broke through to Nascent Soul without a sound."

After entering the hall, Li Huo Shangren flipped his hand, and a long wooden box appeared in his grasp.

He stepped forward with a smile and offered it to Qin Ming: "Brother Qin, forgive my earlier rudeness. Had I known a great cultivator like you was stationed in the Southern Wastes, I would never have come here to conscript troops."

"My disciples were ignorant—if they offended or provoked you, please don't hold it against them."

"Now that you are stationed in the Southern Wastes, your relationship with Da Jin is no longer one of vassalage. Li Huo Palace will no longer interfere in the Southern Wastes' cultivation affairs—rest assured."

"Alas! The frontlines are dire, the demonic sects are rampant—I was forced into this."

"This fourth-rank lower-grade Tian Gang Chi Yang Array is my gift—just a token of my respect."

As a thousand-year-old elder, Li Huo Shangren's explanation was convincing, vivid, and emotionally compelling—anyone else might have believed him.

Qin Ming took the wooden box without expression, glanced at it not at all, and put it away.

"Then I accept your sect's goodwill."

When Li Huo Shangren arrived at Wangyue Island, he had already noticed it possessed only a third-rank middle-grade island-protection array.

Originally, he had planned to make a heavy sacrifice—prepared to offer a bottle of Nascent Soul elixir.

One, as an apology; two, as a congratulatory gift.

But after seeing the island's environment, he changed his mind on the spot—though this fourth-rank defensive array was not as valuable as an elixir, it was still a respectable offering.

More importantly, it saved him a fortune.

After all, fourth-rank elixirs for Nascent Soul cultivators were exceedingly rare.

"By the way, Brother Ding, with your sect, the Wei Dao Alliance, and the Zhou Dynasty's many factions—surely you can still quell this war?" Qin Ming asked, feigning casual interest.

After inviting him to sit, he poured him a cup of Xuepo Ling Tea. Li Huo Shangren sighed: "Brother Qin, you don't understand."

"At your current cultivation level and perspective, you must have heard of the 'Descent' incident?"

Qin Ming sipped his tea, then nodded slightly without concealment.

Li Huo Shangren continued: "If it were only Da Li's Yin Mo Sect and the Southern Frontier's Shen Dao Mountain, our Wei Dao Alliance would have repelled them long ago."

"But the critical issue is—we never expected this Blood Ring World descent to produce unexpected anomalies. The demonic tribulation, which should have ended in ten years, did not cease or retreat when its time came—it instead intensified further."

Hearing this, Qin Ming's expression turned surprised, and he asked: "Did the descent go wrong?"

After all, his own life was at stake—he had already attained Nascent Soul, yet still bore several Blood Refining demonic sect disciples' blood-ring curses.

He had to be cautious.

"Correct. This time, the dimensional convergence tide somehow malfunctioned. Only a few years ago did I finally send someone to uncover the cause."

"Several spatial rifts in Da Li, between the Blood Ring World and the human realm, have developed abnormal fluctuations, directly forming a void passage."

"An endless stream of Blood Ring World demonic cultivators is pouring into the human realm through this passage."

"It is precisely because of the covert support from the Blood Refining demonic sects that the Da Li demonic factions have held out against our Wei Dao Alliance this long."

Qin Ming had not expected such drastic changes to have occurred in just a few years since leaving Da Jin.

Yet at the same time, he sneered inwardly at Li Huo Shangren—the old fox was cunning.

Even now, he had not mentioned a word about the Qingyuan Sect's secret realm.

But since the other refused to speak, Qin Ming had no intention of pressing further—he had little interest in secret realms anyway.

He then asked the question he truly cared about.

"According to Brother Li Huo, if a void passage has opened between the two worlds, could high-rank Blood Refining sect cultivators directly descend into the human realm?"

Li Huo Shangren seemed to have anticipated the question: "Hmm. Given the current situation, although the dimensional convergence has greatly increased the number of demonic cultivators passing through, it remains limited to those below Nascent Soul."

"But should the void passage change and widen further, what will happen then is beyond our prediction."

"A Nascent Soul demonic lord—or even a Soul Transformation demonic Zun descending—cannot be ruled out. Should that happen, the human realm will suffer catastrophic losses, and even we Nascent Soul cultivators cannot guarantee our own safety."

"Fortunately, the overall strength of the Blood Ring World and the human realm are roughly equal, with only a slight edge to the former."

"If another great world were to collide and invade—say, the true demonic realm—the consequences would be unimaginable. The human realm would be wiped out in an instant."

"Therefore, Brother Qin, please understand our sect's predicament. Right now, it is Da Jin's Wei Dao Alliance holding the frontlines—only then has the Southern Wastes been spared demonic invasion pressure."

"Once Da Jin falls, demonic invasion of the Southern Wastes is merely a matter of time."

Hearing Qin Ming show interest, Li Huo Shangren seized the opportunity to play the emotional card, painting his Li Huo Palace's ruthless resource grabs as noble and selfless.

Qin Ming, holding his teacup, feigned indifference and said calmly: "If those demonic sects wish to invade the Southern Wastes, they'd better think twice. I'd be glad to test the methods of a demonic lord."

Sss~ He had said all that, yet Qin Ming still responded this way—clearly supremely confident in his own strength.

Li Huo Shangren's expression turned utterly astonished.

Are young people like this now? He had only just attained Nascent Soul!

"Hehe! Brother Qin's courage and abilities are extraordinary—I am truly impressed!" Li Huo Shangren could only force a laugh in reply.

Immediately after.

Qin Ming sent a mental message to Shi Tian Shu, instructing it to bring Jing Qing up.

The moment Li Huo Shangren saw Shi Tian Shu, he was startled—this third-rank peak semi-transformed beast king could rival half a Nascent Soul cultivator.

'No wonder this Wangyue True Person remained so calm at the news of demonic invasion—he doesn't just have peerless spiritual plant skills, but his beast-taming arts are also hidden beneath the surface.'

Shi Tian Shu led Jing Qing into the hall; now emboldened by Qin Ming's authority, it paid no heed to Li Huo Shangren, the Nascent Soul True Person.

He shoved Gu Qing aside with one hand and sneered, "Next time, keep a low profile—don't end up in my hands again. I've had to feed and water you for half a year; it's ruined my clam-hunting time, hmph!"

"You're lucky this time."

He raised his black trident, patted his backside, and walked out of the hall. Li Huoshangren, witnessing this, couldn't help but twitch his eyelid.

Gu Qing's aura was weak. Seeing his ancestral elder arrive to retrieve him, he recalled all he'd endured over the past half-year—endless torment at the hands of that rat demon—and emotions surged uncontrollably. He choked out, "Disciple Gu Qing pays homage to the Supreme Elder!"

Li Huoshangren, seeing his sect's Nascent Soul seed reduced to this state, immediately reached out to examine him. Fortunately, only some meridians were damaged; his foundation remained intact, and his future cultivation would not be affected.

With just ten or so years of rest and recuperation, he would recover fully.

His expression eased slightly. "Hehe! Sorry to trouble you, Qin Dao You."

"No problem," Qin Ming said coolly.

At that moment, Qin Ming's expression shifted slightly—he sensed another Nascent Soul True Person's aura approaching the spiritual energy Archipelago.

He turned to Li Huoshangren and asked:

"Dao You, did you invite any other cultivators to join you on this visit to Wangyue Island?"

Li Huoshangren froze. "No? Why do you ask that, Qin Dao You?"

"Then I must go out to greet them—another Nascent Soul Daoist has already arrived outside." Qin Ming spoke calmly.

Li Huoshangren, puzzled, secretly extended his spiritual sense to scan—but sensed nothing. Why would Qin Ming say that? Suddenly, Li Huoshangren's eyes widened in shock. Could it be…? Less than half a stick of incense later, a blue light streaked across the sky and landed swiftly on Wangyue Island, radiating a Nascent Soul-level magical energy. Li Huoshangren stood frozen. What did this mean? It meant Qin Ming's spiritual sense was far stronger than his own.

He had sensed nothing at that distance—yet Qin Ming had detected it effortlessly.

Shocked, he followed Qin Ming as they flew out to meet the arriving Nascent Soul Daoist.

When Qin Ming and Li Huoshangren reached the sky above Wangyue Island, they saw the newcomer—a stranger, an early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator.

She wore the plainest linen robes, an elderly woman with silver hair, her gaze restrained, her face flushed with vitality, holding a pitch-black dragonwood staff that exuded a subtle yet powerful aura.

Qin Ming, upon seeing her at a glance, immediately judged: though both were early-stage Nascent Soul cultivators, this old woman was clearly far stronger than Li Huoshangren.

As he expected, the moment Li Huoshangren saw the silver-haired woman, he immediately beamed and greeted her warmly:

"Dragonwood Daoist, long time no see! I never expected you'd come too."

"Qin Dao You, allow me to introduce you—this is Dragonwood True Person, famed throughout the Eastern Sea cultivation world, of the Penglai Immortal Sect."

The silver-haired woman known as "Dragonwood True Person" merely gave a slight nod in response to Li Huoshangren's greeting.

Then she turned to Qin Ming, a faint smile appearing on her face, and said:

"I've been handling affairs near the Black Sea, and upon hearing that a new Nascent Soul Daoist had emerged in the Southern Wastelands, I came uninvited—just to drink a cup of celebratory wine. You don't mind, do you?"

…

(End of Chapter)