The reason Chang Qi and Hao An had been unable to break through to the Return to Void Realm for so long was that they were stuck at a bottleneck. The Heike Family lacked the resources to purchase Void Condensing Pills for them. Without some extraordinary opportunity, they would remain at the third level of the Holy King Realm for the rest of their lives, never so much as touching the wonders of the Return to Void Realm.
They had come to the Flowing Flame Sandy Ground for two reasons: to fulfill their agreement with Ian, and to find a breakthrough opportunity.
And now, this small tree before them could effortlessly shatter their bottleneck. How could Chang Qi not be excited?
The thought that he and old Hao could finally take that long-awaited step brought tears to the old man's eyes.
There was something Yang Kai hadn't told Chang Qi — the Nine-Bend Crystal Jade Tree's true marvel lay in its ability to help warriors break through any bottleneck whatsoever. Realm bottlenecks, martial technique bottlenecks, divine sense bottlenecks — whatever was holding a warrior back, the tree could sweep it clean. And the stronger the warrior, the greater the benefit.
Warriors pursued the Heavenly Dao and the Martial Dao. The further they progressed, the harder advancement became. It wasn't merely a matter of accumulating time, but also of comprehending the Heavenly Dao. Breaking through to the Return to Void Realm was already so difficult — one could imagine what breaking through to the Void King Realm must be like.
Yet the Nine-Bend Crystal Jade Tree could help warriors solve this very problem.
Calling it a priceless treasure was no exaggeration. In some respects, it was even more valuable than the Warm Spirit Lotus. The Warm Spirit Lotus could only benefit a single person, but the Nine-Bend Crystal Jade Tree could benefit countless people.
"No wonder the plain above only grows common grass — not a single spirit herb or medicine," Yang Kai said with a smile.
Chang Qi reflexively asked, "Why?"
"Because nothing else can grow wherever this thing exists. It's already drained all the Heavenly Fortune within a radius of several hundred li..." Mid-sentence, Yang Kai suddenly frowned.
Chang Qi had clearly remembered something too. "But isn't that Heavenly Earth Spirit Treasure right here?"
Yang Kai slowly glanced at him and ventured a guess. "That might not have been a Heavenly Earth Spirit Treasure at all."
Regardless, with the Nine-Bend Crystal Jade Tree in hand, both Yang Kai and Chang Qi had completely forgotten about the Heavenly Earth Spirit Treasure. Chang Qi didn't dare touch this supreme treasure, fearing he might trigger a breakthrough on the spot, but Yang Kai had no such reservations. He drew his golden sword, carved out a massive chunk of the sacred crystal ore surrounding the tree, and tossed it directly into his Black Book's space.
His spatial ring held only unimportant items. Everything of real value was hidden inside the Black Book.
"Contributor Chang, I'll keep this for now. When you return, I'll hand it over to you. It will certainly help you break through to the Return to Void Realm." The item had been found by Chang Qi, after all. Though Yang Kai coveted it, he wouldn't claim it as his own.
Chang Qi waved his hand quickly, a look of satisfaction crossing his face. "Don't be so formal. It's not as if I don't understand the value of this thing. It's just that... I know my own limits. A treasure like this is beyond my right to possess. Owning it would be a curse, not a blessing. At my age, my only wish in this life is to break through to the Return to Void Realm — I don't ask for anything more. When old Hao and I were at our lowest, you were the one who helped us. If you hadn't stepped forward, we would never have entered the Flowing Flame Sandy Ground. If you hadn't guided me, I never could have reached this place. Keep the Nine-Bend Crystal Jade Tree. Once we get out, just let old Hao and me cultivate beside it for a while."
Hearing this, Yang Kai dropped all pretense of courtesy. "Very well. In the future, when you and Contributor Hao come to Dragon Cave Mountain, you'll live far better than you ever did in the Heike Family. Breaking through to the Void King Realm won't be impossible either."
Chang Qi laughed heartily. "Let's call that a goal for the future."
He clearly harbored no real expectations. He hadn't even broken through to the Return to Void Realm yet — how could he dare aspire to the Void King Realm? Besides, the Dark Star hadn't produced a Void King Realm powerhouse in countless years. He didn't believe he could break that barrier.
Yang Kai said no more. He was determined to reach the Void King Realm regardless. If the Dark Star couldn't support it, he would go to the cultivation stars beyond. He would not be trapped here. When the time came, he would simply bring them all along.
Having obtained the Nine-Bend Crystal Jade Tree, Yang Kai returned to his own passage and buried himself in mining.
The entire underground cavern fell silent, with only the sounds of excavation echoing from within the various tunnels. Whether it was the five from the Qiantian Sect or Yang Kai and Chang Qi, all had reaped enormous rewards.
Four days passed in a flash.
Yang Kai had already deepened his passage by over thirty zhang. The sacred crystals he had extracted, converted to their equivalent value, totaled a full three million pieces — yet he still hadn't found any trace of that small snake-shaped Heavenly Earth Spirit Treasure.
The appearance of the Nine-Bend Crystal Jade Tree had only deepened his curiosity about the snake-like spirit treasure. He wanted to know how it had managed to grow in a place where the Nine-Bend Crystal Jade Tree existed — or whether it had stumbled deep into this area while trying to evade their pursuit.
So he kept digging inward.
Two more days later, Yang Kai's brow was tightly furrowed as he debated whether he should give up.
His primary purpose in entering the Flowing Flame Sandy Ground had been to refine the Mysterious Yin Sunflower Water. The first layer of the Hot Flame Zone hadn't met his requirements, so he hadn't lingered there, intending instead to check the Hot Flame Zone beyond the Treasure Zone. Wasting time here was beginning to feel counterproductive.
Sacred crystals were nice enough, but Yang Kai felt that obtaining them was actually quite simple — there was no need to waste time here.
After a moment of deliberation, Yang Kai made his decision. He would dig for two more days, and after that, regardless of the outcome, he would leave this place.