In the Southern Ghost Realm, within the Yunhui Great Domain.
Oases maintained a surface of stability and tranquility, yet beneath the calm, currents were subtly shifting. A few powerful figures with close ties to mythical beings caught faint whispers of the approaching storm. They began to consolidate their assets, seeking escape routes.
However, those truly at the apex, the mythical beings who knew the secrets, understood there was no escape. Was merely relocating their families from ordinary cities to the royal capital enough to guarantee safety?
Not necessarily.
Regardless, remaining within a Level Nine oasis was safer than being in a Level Seven. For this, they were willing to sacrifice a significant portion of their family fortunes.
Safety first.
Moreover, once the disaster fully erupted, Level Seven oases would likely collapse. Their so-called family fortunes would be nothing more than bubbles, easily burst.
"What exactly did Old King Chusa and the others encounter in the Middle Ghost Realm?"
...
In reality, they encountered nothing.
This was because the demigod Chusa Old King and other peak mythical beings barely stepped foot into the Middle Ghost Realm. They only realized the situation was dire.
Would retreating to a Level Nine oasis ensure its defense?
Chusa Old King stated, "Judging by our experiences that day, a Level Nine oasis cannot be held."
Even without high-level ghastly assaults, the continuous onslaught of dozens of Eight-Star Ghastly beings and hundreds of Seven-Star Ghastly beings would be enough to overwhelm their royal capital.
The strength of a Level Nine oasis was not inexhaustible.
Overuse would cause the oasis itself to shrink.
If the entire Yunhui Great Domain united its power to defend, it might be possible. But Chusa Old King knew that when the calamity fully broke out, the seven kingdoms would be too preoccupied to spare forces to aid each other.
As for the ancient beings worshipped by each nation? They were even less reliable.
He gazed north.
"Whether the calamity will spread and engulf the entire Ghost Realm, we do not know, but... the probability of it reaching our Yunhui Great Domain is very high."
"Our Yunhui Great Domain is too close to the Middle Ghost Realm!"
The Shattered Sea, for instance, was actually in the mid-section of the Eastern Ghost Realm, not particularly close to its depths.
The three ancient overlords of the Shattered Sea also experienced ups and downs, relocating from other great domains to the Shattered Sea before stabilizing their current positions.
While the Seven-Star Alliance and other overlords could observe, for forces like their Chusa Kingdom, waiting might mean it would be too late.
But if they didn't wait, what could they do?
These past few months, they had been taking certain actions.
They sent some of their younger generations and talented mythical beings to distant great domains, where they settled and began cultivating oases.
This was their way of securing an escape route.
However, their millennia-old foundation lay within the Yunhui Great Domain. Abandoning it would result in immeasurable losses. If they had a choice, they would never give up their ancestral heritage.
"Does the Hearth Organization have any strategies against this calamity?"
Chusa Old King asked.
Seated with him were Yunzhong Old Man, Juyue Demigod, and other top-tier existences of the Yunhui Great Domain.
"The strong individuals of the Hearth Organization seem to be in seclusion recently, rarely appearing. However, the Hearth Organization has released news that they are willing to assist any overlord force in upgrading to a Level Nine oasis... and they only demand a modest fee."
"The Hearth Organization's credibility is worth acknowledging. Ladies and gentlemen, do any of you intend to upgrade to a Level Nine oasis again?"
A demigod inquired.
They had been feeling exhausted lately. If they had to rely solely on their own strength, they might not choose to continue nurturing oases. They would rather seek an escape.
But since they could hire the high-level experts of the Hearth Organization to assist, then...
"It's worth a try."
"After all, even if we withdraw from the Yunhui Great Domain, we can't take most of our resources. It might be better to spend these resources and fight hard. Perhaps we can still defend the Yunhui Great Domain?"
"If seven Level Nine oases aren't enough, then fourteen, twenty-one! Regardless, increasing our strength is never wrong."
"However, it seems the Hearth Organization has chosen a strategy of consolidation."
"Indeed, it is rumored that the Hearth Organization itself is preparing to cultivate more Level Nine oases... and perhaps even higher levels. We must admit, the Hearth Organization's ability to scout and nurture geniuses is far beyond our reach."
As they spoke, the demigods fell silent for a while.
During the exploration mission in the Middle Ghost Realm some time ago, they heard that the Hearth Organization had produced six or seven high-level individuals. It was as if nurturing a high-level existence for Hearth was easier than for their Yunhui Seven Kingdoms to nurture a mythical being.
The title of humanity's foremost power was well-deserved.
Perhaps that Hearth mentor had already ascended to the ethereal Tenth Realm.
And they hadn't even found the path to the Ninth Realm.
They envied.
They sighed.
"No matter how strong the Hearth Organization is, it remains incredibly insignificant against top-tier ancient gods and the evil god faction. And the fact is, the path of direct confrontation with the evil god faction has proven futile. Perhaps..."
"Perhaps the path chosen by the Central Sacred Court is the correct one."
Years, even over a decade ago, the Central Sacred Court began a policy of 'closed doors' and disregarded all of the Human Alliance's attempts to probe or confront the evil god faction.
The Central Sacred Court had its own plans.
Plans to deal with the world-ending calamity.
In the past, they had privately denounced the Central Sacred Court, but now, looking back, perhaps the Central Sacred Court was humanity's only hope.
"But what exactly is the Central Sacred Court's plan?"
A demigod asked.
The Central Sacred Court's secrecy regarding its core plan was evidently extremely high. However, the fact that they, as top demigods, were entirely unaware also stemmed from their past lack of interest.
Chusa Old King, Pure Water Demigod, and Flying Flower Old Woman exchanged glances and shook their heads.
Yunzhong Old Man suddenly spoke, "I once inquired, and I have a sliver of information."
Seeing their gazes, he leisurely took a sip of tea before continuing slowly, "We have all heard that the reason the Central Sacred Court has maintained such vast territories under the erosion of the gray mist, and without needing to cultivate oases at all, is due to a supreme treasure."
"And their Lord, who has not appeared for a thousand years, seems to intend to use this treasure as a foundation to forge an ark capable of escaping the disaster."
"Of course, this information is hearsay, and its authenticity requires investigation."
"Furthermore, even if the Salvation Ark can be constructed, it cannot accommodate too many passengers... and whether it can truly evade the disaster is uncertain."
Even so, the demigods saw a glimmer of hope.
This was the only good news they had received in months.
Even if the authenticity of this news was questionable.
After a period of silence, Pure Water Demigod spoke, "Everyone, perhaps we should journey to the Sacred Court together to inquire. If the Ark truly exists, we too must prepare in advance."
"Agreed."
"Let's go together."
The Sacred Court had been closed off for many years, but these elder demigods, standing at the pinnacle of the Human Alliance, naturally had channels of access.
They first returned to their respective countries to prepare gifts, then met in Yanlei Kingdom and flew towards the edge of the sky.
There was anticipation.
There was nervousness.
RUMBLE—
The sky split open.
The earth cracked.
Time and space seemed to tear apart.
A vast continent, teeming with life and adorned with magnificent cities, abruptly appeared at the edge of the sky, and then...
It shattered!
Heavenly fire rained down upon the land, cities sank into the sea. Mythical beings and demigods plummeted from the sky like birds with broken wings.
Chusa Old King's eyes widened.
Disbelief and shock rendered him speechless.
He murmured, "The Central Sacred Court... is gone?"
...
Hearth, the Mystic Realm.
Mentor Fang had just finished his daily cultivation and began his daily draw.
He clicked, not skipping the draw CG, but his thoughts split into several strands, drifting to different places.
Some of his minds processed accumulated official duties.
Some were still contemplating cultivation puzzles.
Some were pondering the organization's development plans.
"Two overlord forces are already preparing to hire my Hearth's experts and upgrade to Level Nine oases."
"Meanwhile, the other oases under my Hearth haven't yet been cultivated to the perfection of Level Eight."
Time was too short.
The cultivation and expansion of oases primarily relied on the ethereal energy of 'popularity'. With the special rituals for storing popularity, it was very easy for him to create a Level Seven oasis.
Two to three months at most.
Most of the time was spent on basic infrastructure.
But if he wanted to cultivate Level Nine oases, or multiple Level Nine oases, then... the hundreds of billions of people on Blue Star would not be enough.
Too few people, and not enough time.
However, the overlords had cultivated for many years, possessing far more than one Level Eight oasis at its limit.
But naturally, his own oases were more important. Each advancement tribulation could bring him a massive amount of Destiny Points.
"During this period, the subordinate oases did not manage to achieve Level Nine promotions, but they underwent three Level Eight oasis promotions, accumulating quite a few Destiny Points."
He drew.
"Notification: Acquired World Odd Stone (Crimson)."
Fang You remained expressionless.
"Notification: Acquired Sky Law Stele (Crimson)."
Fang You's expression brightened slightly.
"Notification: Acquired Divine Origin (Crimson)."
Fang You's face showed no emotion.
"Notification: Acquired Seed of Skills (Crimson)."
Fang You: "Huh!"
He paused, dragging the information back to review the draw records.
He confirmed that the Seed of Skills he had just drawn was not Legendary grade, but God-Demon grade!
This was the first time he had drawn a God-Demon grade Seed of Skills.
No, should he say that the highest grade of Seed of Skills was not Legendary?
But he had previously drawn many red-colored treasures, yet he had never seen seeds of this grade.
"Perhaps it is related to my mastery of Crimson grade skills."
"Only by possessing one or three Crimson skills can one draw Crimson seeds?"
He mused.
Suppressing his excitement, he continued drawing.
As expected, the drop rate for Crimson seeds was extremely high, similar to Golden seeds.
He consecutively drew ten red-colored items.
Among them were three Crimson seeds and four Crimson Skill Cards.
That's right, he had also drawn Crimson Skill Cards.
When breaking through to Golden or Crimson grade skills, using skill cards of this tier was more cost-effective, easier, and had a higher success rate.
However, since Golden Skill Cards could ultimately substitute, Fang You glanced at them and moved on.
But the three Crimson grade Seeds of Skills, he stared at them for a long time before satisfiedly looking away.
Their importance was self-evident.
"Such treasures have come at the perfect time!"
"I was just agonizing over how to pass down the skills of God-Demon Body Refining and Myriad World Book to others."
He could only engrave Legendary skills in the Inheritance Ground, and after imparting them to a certain Fate Apostle, use these skills as material to fuse into God-Demon Body Refining or Myriad World Book.
The entire process could not be described as difficult, only that it was indeed challenging.
The last time he fused the Crimson grade 'Infinite Gate', he only needed to let Yin Luoxi learn one more Legendary skill. But this time, he needed to learn many.
For him, Mentor Fang, to engrave Legendary skills required considerable time and effort.
The number of his own Inheritance Ground structures was limited, and if used as consumables, he wouldn't be able to sustain it.
Now, with the Crimson grade Seeds of Skills, the difficulty was resolved.
"Of course, three are not enough, they can at most be used by one or two people, but if it's not enough, I can continue drawing."
"Hmm, there is another difficulty: incomplete Legendary skills can only be cultivated to the Proficient level. However, with my current attainments, with careful effort, inscribing incomplete skills into the Seeds of Skills should not be a problem."
"As long as the core strong individuals of the organization learn these two cultivation methods, their time to break through to the Tenth Realm will be greatly shortened."
As for bottlenecks? Non-existent.
Everyone's comprehension of laws was already high, and condensing fragments of authority was only a matter of time.
The path to the Tenth Realm was paved.
"Especially Chi Yan. She has over a hundred years of accumulation before her, and she wields the complete authority of slaughter. Once she learns these two cultivation methods, she will be able to enter the Tenth Realm in a very short time."
Hearth's power was still insufficient.
But thinking of the not-too-distant future when his organization would produce seven or eight, or even ten or more Tenth Realm root existences, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl upward slightly.
In addition to the two Crimson grade cultivation methods, he also used the remaining incomplete Legendary materials to promote two Crimson grade skills.
Liu Shang's Tree of Life;
Xing Jinglei's Indestructible Furnace Body;
Thus, the Hearth Organization now possessed five Crimson grade skills.
Although three of them could not be widely disseminated, he, Mentor Fang, could learn and master them himself.
Everyone has a bright future.
Fang You thought.
The panel suddenly opened, and Little Huan emerged, propped on her hands, and landed with a thud.
"Master, something terrible has happened!"
"The entire country of the Central Sacred Court has shattered!"
...
At the same time, in the core area of the Central Sacred Court, within the Lord's Mansion.
A sinister cackle echoed through heaven and earth.
Noble figures shrouded in divine radiance, their faces filled with despair, gazed at the three figures in the sky.
The Three Grand Elders.
"Wh-why..."
The betrayed White-robed Lord also widened his eyes.
The divine radiance and aura emanating from the three Grand Elders before him gradually changed, becoming utterly alien to humanity, alien to normal beings.
He understood.
The gazes of the three Grand Elders met, and they too understood.
Old Six was not alone.
The White-robed Lord laughed mockingly, "This Lord has failed the world, but..."
Boundless light erupted from him, enveloping the surrounding space.
Moments later,
The White-robed Lord vanished, along with the three Grand Elders who had been corrupted by different factions.