Before long, word of the three great Green Spirit Race powerhouses being slain by a single Human Race Mahayana cultivator spread far and wide.
The neighboring alien races who learned of this news were all shocked, and scrambled to dispatch scouts in every direction to verify its truth.
After some more time, the entire Small Spirit Sky was thrown into turmoil over this matter.
By then, the Black Spirit Giant Ship had already flown out of the territory controlled by the Green Spirit Race and was heading straight for the Human Race settlements on the other end of the Small Spirit Sky.
Several days later, in Human Race territory, atop a colossal peak nearly ten thousand zhang tall, inside an ancient-looking stone hall, several Human Race powerhouses were gathered around a stone table discussing something.
There were three men and one woman among the Human Race cultivators, all at the Body Integration stage or above. As they conversed, their expressions were extremely grave.
"Has the news been confirmed beyond doubt? Was it truly our Human Race Mahayana who annihilated those three old Green Spirit Race fossils along with their Ancient Tree Ancestral Spirit?" a dark-skinned, middle-aged man bellowed.
"Although our scouts cannot enter the Green Sea, judging from the reactions of every race, the news is almost certainly true. Otherwise, the Green Spirit Race wouldn't have pulled all their forces back into the Green Sea within just a few days, looking as though they're preparing to seal off the forest entirely," replied a white-haired, elderly man stroking his beard.
"But you and I both know that in the Small Spirit Sky, our Human Race has never produced a Mahayana cultivator. Not in the past, and most likely not in the future either," said a beautiful woman in blue robes across the table, her delicate brows furrowing.
"That may have been true before, but what about now? Have you all forgotten Fairy Yue? With her astonishing talent, having advanced from Void Refining to the great completion of Body Integration in such a short time, she might actually have a real chance of breaking the legend that the Small Spirit Sky can never produce a Mahayana," said a man with an exceptionally cold and stern face.
"Fellow Daoist Yue's talent goes without question. In just two thousand years she has become the strongest among our Human Race, and she can even hold her own against the Green Spirit Race's Ancient Tree Ancestral Spirit. However, saying that Fairy Yue could advance to the Mahayana stage given the insufficient spiritual energy of the Small Spirit Sky—that still seems unlikely," the blue-robed beauty replied, her expression shifting slightly at the name "Fairy Yue," though she still shook her head.
"Only unlikely—with Fairy Yue's monstrous talent, there's still a sliver of a chance," the cold-faced man retorted bluntly.
"If Fairy Yue could advance to Mahayana, it would certainly be cause for celebration among us Humans of the Small Spirit Sky. But given Fellow Daoist Yue's current state, she would need at least several more centuries of accumulation before she could attempt to break through that bottleneck. By the way, Fairy Yue is currently cultivating an extremely important secret art. I wonder if she can attend this gathering," the white-haired elder said calmly.
"Elder Tie, rest assured. Although Fairy Yue cannot leave seclusion at the moment, I have already delivered the relevant intelligence directly to her place of isolation. I believe she should be sending word to us soon," said a gaunt man who had not spoken until now, his voice indifferent.
"Good. Without Fairy Yue's input on a matter of this magnitude, this old man would feel somewhat uneasy. Now, let's discuss—where did this Human Race Mahayana come from?" the white-haired elder nodded with satisfaction and posed another question.
"Where else could he have come from? Nine times out of ten, he's a Mahayana cultivator from the outside world who forced his way in," the blue-robed woman said, arching a delicate brow.
"That's certainly the most likely explanation. But since he's a Human Race Mahayana, he must have come from the Spirit Realm. And if he managed to break into the Small Spirit Sky, he should also have the ability to leave through the same passage he came in by. For us, that would be a once-in-a-millennium opportunity to reach the Spirit Realm," the dark-skinned man said, nodding in agreement.
"Only in the Spirit Realm would we have even a sliver of a chance at advancing to Mahayana. In the past, various races have discovered exits from this world before, but unfortunately, no one could withstand the terrifying interfacial forces of the passage—they could only sigh and look on. If this Human Race Mahayana truly broke in from the outside on his own, then this is indeed a great fortune for us Humans of the Small Spirit Sky," the cold-faced man said, a glint of fervor flickering in his eyes after a moment's thought.
"However, we don't know all that much about the Spirit Realm. Whether this Mahayana truly comes from the Spirit Realm, or whether he's even a Human Race cultivator, remains uncertain. But one thing is certain: he will likely come to the Human Race settlements in this world to have a look. So we must make some precautionary preparations. In the event that this person harbors no goodwill toward his own kind and instead harbors some malicious intent, we cannot afford to be entirely unprepared," the white-haired elder said again, with the wisdom of great experience.
"Elder Bai makes a valid point. However, this man was able to destroy all three Ancient Tree Ancestral Spirits that the Green Spirit Race was parasitically bonded to in a single stroke—his power defies imagination. When the time comes, only Fairy Yue would need to step forward for there to be any chance of standing against him. After all, Fellow Daoist Yue is the only one among us whose strength truly approaches that of a genuine Mahayana," the cold-faced man said, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.
"It won't be easy for Fairy Yue to emerge from seclusion immediately. After all, Fellow Daoist Yue is currently in the middle of—" the gaunt man frowned, about to say something more.
Just then, a clear ringing sound suddenly echoed from outside the hall. A streak of silver light shot inward with blinding speed, and after several flickers, it arrived above the group. It circled once, then transformed into a small silver sword that descended toward the stone table before them.
Impaled horizontally across the silver sword was a pale white jade slip.
Seeing this, the expressions of everyone in the room shifted in various ways.
The white-haired elder pondered briefly, then raised his hand and plucked the jade slip from the silver sword.
The sword trembled once, then transformed back into a streak of silver light that shot out through the hall. With a single flicker, it vanished without a trace at the hall's entrance.
The gazes of everyone else fell "whoosh" onto the object in the white-haired elder's hand.
The elder pressed the jade slip to his forehead, closed his eyes, and sent his spiritual sense probing into its contents.