Lin Xiao Tian suddenly awoke.
He hadn't expected the Azure Dragon to lure him out. Fortunately, the formation was powerful enough to slay it.
Still shaken, Lin Xiao Tian was about to leave when he heard a resentful voice.
"Damn old man, when your magic power is completely depleted, I will slaughter every last human you protected!"
The speaker was none other than the Azure Dragon.
Its body had been severed moments ago, but it had regenerated in an instant.
At its level of cultivation, as long as its primordial spirit remained intact, it could not be utterly destroyed.
With a parting threat, the Azure Dragon vanished.
Lin Xiao Tian remained rooted, lost in thought.
He knew that the Elder Shen Nong had already passed away, his body and magic power having transformed into the various forbidden grounds.
These forbidden grounds were constantly depleting their energy, and the growth of demonic beasts depended on them. Eventually, their energy would be exhausted.
At that point, the demonic beasts would break free from the forbidden grounds. And when that day came, what would become of humanity?
With current human technology alone, killing a Nascent Soul stage demonic beast was immensely difficult, let alone confronting beasts like the Azure Dragon.
On that day, humanity would vanish from Earth entirely!
Facing all this, Lin Xiao Tian could do nothing to stop it.
He was too insignificant, at the Nascent Soul stage, against these powerful demonic beasts.
All he could do was take with him a portion of the people connected to him.
And to achieve this, he would need to establish himself at the very least in the world where the teleportation array was located.
If Lin Xiao Tian developed sufficiently well, he might be able to take more people with him.
It wasn't out of universal love, but rather because he had inherited the legacy of Elder Shen Nong. The elder had sacrificed everything for humanity, and as his successor, Lin Xiao Tian felt he should contribute his own efforts.
Upon returning, Lin Xiao Tian stayed at home for a period.
During this time, he began to search for ancient texts left by his family. As a core member of the Lin family, he now had access to many secrets.
Within the Lin family's secret repository lay all their hidden truths. Previously, as an ordinary cultivator, Lin Xiao Tian couldn't comprehend certain matters, but now he could see much more clearly.
On a stone tablet in the repository, a passage was inscribed, visible only with the infusion of magic power. Lin Xiao Tian discovered that it detailed the world beyond.
It turned out that the Earth, where he lived, was merely a part of a greater world.
Compared to the Grand Thousand Worlds, Earth was incredibly small, just a planet within a small world.
There were also disparities between the Grand Thousand Worlds.
Worlds rich in spiritual energy were known as Upper Realms, those with sparse spiritual energy were Lower Realms, and those in between were Middle Realms.
The world Lin Xiao Tian inhabited was part of a Lower Realm.
Even among the Lower Realms, there were differences. Some Lower Realms, with abundant resources, could cultivate immortals, while others, after exhausting all their resources, could only cultivate nascent immortals.
In contrast, Middle Realms were certainly capable of cultivating immortals.
And the Upper Realms were the dwelling places of immortals, possessing incredibly vast spiritual energy resources.
The stone tablet also recorded the destination of the teleportation array, which led to a world in the Middle Realms. It was said that the ancient sages of Earth originated from there.
The stone tablet also contained a prophecy, outlining humanity's fate. It foretold a future day when the forbidden grounds would no longer contain the demonic beasts, and Earth would once again be overrun by them.
The word "again" was used because humans themselves were considered alien species. Originally, Earth was a place where demonic beasts roamed freely, but through the efforts of powerful human cultivators, a place for humans to survive had been forcefully carved out.
Earth itself was not of its current scale. In reality, the actual area of each forbidden ground far exceeded the size of Earth as perceived by humans today.
The deeper one went into the forbidden grounds, the larger their area became. In truth, humans were the creatures with the smallest habitable range in this world.
For thousands of years, human cultivators had merely confined the demonic beasts within the forbidden grounds; they had never truly defeated them!
Learning all this, Lin Xiao Tian's heart was filled with a mix of emotions.
This was consistent with his suspicions. Humanity could no longer produce cultivators as powerful as Shen Nong, and sooner or later, all humans would be killed by these demonic beasts.
Those who left through the teleportation array were not so much seeking opportunities as they were fleeing disaster.
Most of Earth's spiritual energy was located in the depths of the forbidden grounds, which humans could not enter. Outside the forbidden grounds, there was little spiritual energy. The surviving human cultivators could only choose to leave.
After leaving the repository, it was already evening.
Lin Xiao Tian went to the Lin family's courtyard and found Qin Yu Xiang there as well.
After several hundred years, Qin Yu Xiang was still as beautiful as before, though no longer the frail woman she once was.
"I might be leaving for a while," Lin Xiao Tian said to Qin Yu Xiang.
"Where to?" Qin Yu Xiang looked at him.
"Somewhere very far away."
"Oh."
Qin Yu Xiang nodded, not pressing further.
"I'll be counting on your help with the Lin family's affairs from now on," Lin Xiao Tian added.
"I will."
Lin Xiao Tian said no more.
A few days later, at Jin Sha Village, on the outskirts of Black Mountain.
Lin Xiao Tian found Xue Zi Yan, gave her a Youth Preserving Pill, and also passed down a cultivation technique to her.
There weren't many cultivation techniques suitable for those with a charming physique, but the Shen Nong Medical Classic contained countless techniques, and Lin Xiao Tian found one that suited her.
Lin Xiao Tian also introduced Xue Zi Yan to Xiao Bai and instructed her to seek Xiao Bai's help with future cultivation matters.
Upon learning of Xiao Bai's existence, Xue Zi Yan was astonished.
A snake demon?
She had only seen such beings in television dramas, never imagining they truly existed in reality.
Upon hearing that Lin Xiao Tian was leaving, Xiao Bai was extremely reluctant, whining to go with him.
They had known each other for several hundred years and often cultivated together. Their past relationship had long surpassed that of ordinary friends.
Lin Xiao Tian habitually stroked her head. Xiao Bai was no longer the little snake she once was, but she still responded with great docility to his touch.
After bidding farewell to the two, Lin Xiao Tian activated the Great Teleportation Token.
The Great Teleportation Token transported Lin Xiao Tian to the depths of Black Mountain. From there, Lin Xiao Tian only needed to inject spiritual energy into the formation, and it would automatically activate.
However, once the formation was triggered, the Great Teleportation Token would disappear. According to Lin Xiao Tian's knowledge, the token would randomly reappear somewhere in Jin Sha Village. This meant that Lin Xiao Tian might never be able to return after this departure.
Roars of wild beasts echoed through the forest. The demonic beasts harbored deep hatred for humans, and seeing someone leave at this moment, they became incredibly enraged.
Lin Xiao Tian ignored them, instead casting his gaze towards the distant location of his home.
Unfortunately, the distance was too great. The depths of Black Mountain were an entire equatorial distance away from the Lin family's residence. With Lin Xiao Tian's Nascent Soul stage strength, he couldn't even see that far.