Beast Calamity Grotto-Heaven, a tributary of the River of Time.
Fang Yuan's clone Zhan Budu ventured into the golden light mist again and again, rescuing the Gu Immortals trapped within.
Each time, he endured brutal battles against swarms of fierce beasts, his body accumulating wounds from the exhausting fights. The young companions by his side had gradually come to accept his leadership, as every past battle had proven the wisdom of his decisions.
"Three beast herds are closing in on you from the southeast, due north, and southwest," Fang Yuan's true body transmitted.
"Got it. I'll lead them to break through the encirclement. Oh, and that white-robed youth near me — help me eliminate him," clone Zhan Budu replied.
"Understood." Fang Yuan's true body was situated in the densest part of the golden light mist, lounging leisurely with a relaxed expression.
With a flick of his will, the New Year Beast army set out in waves, charging toward his clone's small team.
But the bulk of his attention remained fixed on the Primordial True Inheritance.
In the battle for the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace, Fang Yuan had not only claimed the Dragon Palace itself but also swindled the Primordial True Inheritance from Dragon Lord!
However, this Primordial True Inheritance was clearly only the first small portion. Even so, Fang Yuan couldn't help but sigh with admiration.
From this fragment, he glimpsed the style of the ancient era — vast and mighty Qi, great skill appearing effortless. He also glimpsed the extraordinary talent of Primordial Immortal Venerable, truly worthy of the title Venerable, impossible to contain by ordinary standards.
"This content, applied in the present day, remains remarkably practical."
"Of course, over so many years, the Path of Qi has also evolved and innovated. The Boundless Qi Sea killer move in my possession is the best proof."
This small portion of the Primordial Qi Dao True Inheritance contained primarily the Qi Wall killer move.
Initially, Dragon Lord had been unwilling to give it up, but Fang Yuan had been forceful in his demands — after all, the Qi Wall killer move was Primordial Immortal Venerable's signature technique, famous throughout history, known by everyone.
Dragon Lord had wanted to reach peace with Ancestor Qi Hai, but since Fang Yuan was extremely resolute, he gritted his teeth and agreed.
"Through this Qi Wall killer move, I now understand the Qi Wall in Heavenly Court even better. I'll do my best to break it!" Sharp light blazed in Fang Yuan's eyes.
In his previous life, the Qi Wall that appeared in Heavenly Court had caused enormous trouble for the Eternal Life faction.
If Fang Yuan could break this move, it would undoubtedly deal a heavy blow to Heavenly Court.
But clearly, this task was extraordinarily difficult — after all, it was the work of an Immortal Venerable. The only consolation was that the Qi Wall killer move originally laid down by Primordial Immortal Venerable had been passed down to the present, imbued with the style of the ancient era, and was long outdated.
This might be the key for Fang Yuan to break the Qi Wall.
Of course, failing to break it would be entirely unsurprising.
As the saying goes — there are no invincible Gu, only invincible Gu Immortals. No killer move is perfectly invincible; all can be broken. But the same killer move, when activated by different people, produces vastly different levels of power.
Whether Fang Yuan could break the Qi Wall killer move personally activated by Primordial Immortal Venerable remained a huge question.
Perhaps Dragon Lord had considered exactly this point, which was why he freely handed over the contents of the Qi Wall killer move.
"At the same time, this fragment of True Inheritance also serves as a perfect bait, to lure me into joining Heavenly Court," Fang Yuan sneered inwardly.
If there truly were an Ancestor Qi Hai who had lived in seclusion in the Eastern Sea for years, such a temptation would be nearly impossible to resist.
As an Eighth Transformation recluse for so many years, it showed that Ancestor Qi Hai had no passion for power. At the same time, he specialized in the Path of Qi, which had been in decline for ages — only Heavenly Court possessed the most valuable True Inheritance of the Qi Dao.
But in truth, Ancestor Qi Hai was merely one of Fang Yuan's disguises. If Dragon Lord ever learned that he had personally aided his enemy, who knew how he would feel.
"The timing is about right." While studying the Qi Dao True Inheritance, Fang Yuan kept a portion of his attention on the Twelve Zodiac Grand Formation.
In this brief span, he had already coordinated with clone Zhan Budu to complete yet another performance.
Among the youths at Zhan Budu's side, several had sacrificed their lives in battle. Some of these people had been obstacles, and Fang Yuan was clearing them out ahead of his next plan.
Zhan Budu saved another Gu Immortal and returned victorious once more.
The battle beast warriors remaining in the golden light mist numbered only one or two, including the Cliff City Lord.
Once Zhan Budu rescued the Cliff City Lord, Fang Yuan would withdraw the Twelve Zodiac Battle Formation.
Everything in excess was as bad as falling short. Fang Yuan had cultivated his clone to the desired level for this stage.
Beyond the explosive growth in cultivation, Zhan Budu's greatest gain was the expansion of his network. After this campaign, nearly every Gu Immortal in the Beast Calamity Grotto-Heaven had received Zhan Budu's aid.
This was no trivial favor — it was the grace of saving lives!
In the outside world, Gu Immortals might turn their backs. But here, all who had become battle beast warriors were sustained by abundant positive intent. They were all grateful and loyal, with more than a few who would repay a drop of kindness with a gushing spring.
Zhan Budu would never lack resources, and his future was bright. Moreover, he would never trade on his favors — instead becoming even more humble and gracious, magnanimous about everything, demonstrating every virtue and quality of character.
Fang Yuan could have swept them all up, but he had let these battle beast warriors go.
In his previous life, he had conquered the Beast Calamity Grotto-Heaven with brutal simplicity, killing many battle beast warriors. In this rebirth, he had modified his plan, choosing a different method of absorption to preserve as much of the Beast Calamity Grotto-Heaven's value as possible.