Yang Kai had once tried to investigate the cause, but he could never figure out the full picture, so he had to let it go.
What surprised him was that aside from Nalan Lüshui, the eldest senior sister, and a handful of aging Open Heaven Realm masters, even someone like Cen Cen had no idea that they were descendants of the Great Abundance Blessed Land.
They had been born and raised in this enclosed space, never once leaving it, and no one had ever told them about the history of the Great Abundance Blessed Land.
This once-prestigious force, which had ranked among the Seventy-two Blessed Land, had seen all its former glory and honor completely forgotten by its descendants. It was truly a sorrow beyond measure.
Three months was more than enough time for Yang Kai to piece together many things.
Three months later, Yang Kai returned to Master Mafan's place of seclusion. The great doors of the hall were still shut tight, with no sign of opening.
Standing outside the hall, Yang Kai wore a faint smile on his face and spoke in a measured tone: "Back when this junior held the title of Qiankun Great Emperor and broke free from the bonds of Qiankun to first enter this Three Thousand World, I encountered an accident. Through chance and circumstance, I ended up in a secret realm called the Taixu Realm."
"That secret realm was wondrous beyond measure, yet also exceedingly dangerous. Numerous Saint Spirits dwelled there together, each vying for dominance. Within the Taixu Realm, there existed a hidden place known to the Saint Spirits as the Land of the Ageless. Only martial artists could enter it — no Saint Spirits were permitted to set foot inside. This junior was fortunate enough to enter the Land of the Ageless and compete against many gifted young prodigies."
"Within the Land of the Ageless stood a divine tree called the World Tree, bearing World Fruits. This junior was fortunate and, after passing a series of trials, obtained several World Fruits. Even more luckily, I managed to acquire a single root tendril of the World Tree."
From inside the hall, there was no response whatsoever, as though he were merely talking to himself. But Yang Kai knew that Master Mafan could certainly hear him — he was simply too indifferent to bother replying.
Yang Kai didn't mind in the slightest and continued: "The Qiankun World, the Star World from which this junior hails, once suffered a great catastrophe. Powerhouses fought within it, the Heavenly Dao collapsed, all spiritual fortune was lost, and a member of the Giant Spirit race told me that the World Tree could save that Qiankun World. So after I obtained that World Tree root tendril in the Taixu Realm, I found an opportunity to return to my homeland, located a suitable place, and planted that root tendril."
"Indeed, that Giant Spirit clansman did not deceive me. Over the years, the root tendril gradually grew, becoming a child tree of the World Tree, and the Star World on the verge of collapse gradually stabilized, no longer in danger of destruction."
"This junior originally thought that was the end of it. To have obtained a World Tree root tendril by sheer luck was already a blessing beyond compare. To have saved the Qiankun World of my birth fulfilled my deepest wish — how could I dare ask for more? Yet I never expected that the mysteries of the World Tree had only just begun to reveal themselves, merely the tip of the iceberg."
"A few years ago, someone from my homeland traveled to the Void Lands and brought me a piece of news that was both astonishing and joyous. Under the World Tree's continuous nourishment over the years, the foundation of that Qiankun World had been steadily strengthened. The martial artists living within it found it easier and more effortless to comprehend the Heavenly Dao and the martial path. Their cultivation became more efficient, and the Dao Seals they condensed were far more stable. To say nothing of others — my own parents, for instance. Their aptitude was never particularly remarkable. Without extraordinary fortune, achieving Third-rank Open Heaven in their lifetimes would have been their limit. But because they resided in the homeland and went through its process of revival alongside it, after condensing their Dao Seals, they actually gained the potential to reach Fourth-rank and even strive toward Fifth-rank!"
The ancient, unruffled aura within the hall rippled ever so slightly!
Yang Kai smiled knowingly: "Senior has secluded yourself here in these Great Abundance ruins, deaf to all news from the outside world, so naturally you wouldn't know that this junior previously fought a life-and-death battle against Zuo Quanhui, an Inner Elder of Thousand Crane Blessed Land. In that battle, hundreds of Open Heaven Realm cultivators perished, and among them were several Sixth-rank masters. When these Open Heaven cultivators died, their Small Universes collapsed, and the power of those worlds scattered — all of it devoured by the World Tree's child tree. Because of that, the child tree was able to grow rapidly. It now stands ten thousand zhang tall, shrouding the lands of my homeland. The energy it feeds back is nothing short of astonishing."
"Now, all one hundred and eight Grotto-heavens and Blessed Lands have gathered at my homeland's Star World. I have reached agreements with them, granting each the right to recruit five disciples every hundred years, and I have allocated five hundred thousand li of territory to each for the construction of their own dao halls and branch factions. Across the entire Three Thousand World, there is no other Qiankun World like the Star World. With the World Tree's nourishment, the Star World is certain to produce an abundance of talent in the future. Even those not born within it, if raised there from a young age, will surely achieve no less than extraordinary heights. In a few hundred or a thousand years, those who soar directly to the Fifth and Sixth ranks will be as numerous as crossing fishers — an endless stream!"
With a creak, the long-sealed doors swung wide open. Yang Kai smiled faintly, adjusted his sleeves, and strode inside.
Within the hall, Master Mafan sat cross-legged, his brow deeply furrowed, wearing an air of deep suspicion. When he saw Yang Kai walking in, he shot him a look brimming with distrust.
Yang Kai came straight to him and sat down cross-legged, a bitter smile on his face: "It truly isn't easy to see you, Master."
Master Mafan's snow-white long eyebrows quivered: "Just as you said, what you planted in your homeland and watched grow is merely a child tree of the World Tree. Can it really possess such extraordinary mysteries?"
Yang Kai smiled: "The Star World is right there, and the World Tree stands within it. If Senior doesn't believe me, you are more than welcome to go and see for yourself whether this junior is merely blowing hot air."
Master Mafan shook his head: "The World Tree is a divine object of which this old man has naturally heard. But I have never heard that the World Tree possesses any nourishing power."
Yang Kai said: "I only learned of it recently myself. Before now, I'm afraid no one knew the World Tree had such an ability. After all, the mother tree exists within the Taixu Realm and has never been carried out and placed in a Qiankun World. Naturally, no one could have witnessed any of its subsequent effects."
"This Star World of yours — this old man will go see it with his own eyes. But if you, boy, dare to deceive me..."
"I wouldn't dare."