After the spirit veins recovered, the human territories truly surged with renewed vitality. Cultivation within every sect and lineage entered an explosive phase of growth.
Moreover, everyone was acutely aware this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. In this first wave of recovery, whoever advanced furthest and fastest would likely secure a far more advantageous position in the new order of the human territories.
This sentiment spread rapidly, and Jiang Chen naturally perceived it. He could even sense that the human territories, which had been relatively peaceful, were now tinged with the faint smell of gunpowder.
Of course, this tension was not directed at him, Jiang Chen, much less at the Glazed Palace. But between the various sects and major factions, friction was inevitable.
The disputes that had faded from the human territories for so long were sprouting once more. Humanity's innate tendency toward internal strife was reasserting itself.
Jiang Chen saw all of this.
However, judging by his attitude, he clearly had no intention of intervening. In fact, he deliberately diminished his presence during this period, hiding himself within the Glazed Palace, entering seclusion to cultivate, and completely ignoring the changes unfolding across the human territories.
In reality, many forces within the human territories were shrewd. They all wanted to gauge Jiang Chen's stance in order to formulate their strategies.
But Jiang Chen not only offered no indication of his position, he had effectively vanished from the world. This left those forces trying to divine his thoughts utterly disoriented.
Still, everyone quickly interpreted Jiang Chen's silence as tacit approval, even encouragement. Some forces even privately proclaimed this was Young Lord Jiang Chen's "raising wolves" strategy.
Let the major powers of the human territories intensify their competition. This would greatly boost their mutual strengthening, laying a more solid foundation for the future war against the demon tribes.
It had to be said, this interpretation was clever.
It secured the moral high ground while providing cover for their own less-than-honorable actions.
As a result, competition in the human territories gradually began to expose its uglier aspects. Many unsightly and shameful practices began to surface.
Throughout it all, Jiang Chen remained unmoved, continuing his seclusion and cultivation.
In the third year of his seclusion, Jiang Chen successfully broke through to the second level of the Divine Dao. This breakthrough once again activated one of the seals on the divine consciousness within his sea of consciousness.
A beam of light flew out from his sea of consciousness and transformed into another token. This time, the token was a pale golden rope. Upon closer inspection, Jiang Chen recognized it—it was a belt his father had personally forged for him in his previous life.
He had worn this belt at all times in his past existence, but his father had never told him it possessed any extraordinary or special qualities.
Now, appearing before him once more, Jiang Chen naturally would not dismiss it as ordinary. He speculated that, much like the Measure Heaven Ruler, this belt must hold a special significance.
But like the Measure Heaven Ruler, it would require time for Jiang Chen to comprehend and uncover the functions of these two items. Jiang Chen was utterly certain that since his father had arranged things this way, there must be a reason—he would never have bestowed several seemingly useless items without purpose!
In the seventh year of his seclusion, Jiang Chen achieved another breakthrough.
This time, he broke through to the third level of the Divine Dao, bringing his cultivation in the early stages of the Divine Dao to its peak state.
Under normal circumstances, even with the experience of his previous life and the exceptionally solid foundation he had laid in this one, it would have been extremely difficult for Jiang Chen to break through the Divine Dao so smoothly.
However, the appearance of the Daluo Cloud Essence Fruit had once again brought about a transformation as profound as being reborn. The Daluo Cloud Essence Fruit ranked among the forefront of the Heavenly Creation Rankings, its power truly miraculous.
And Jiang Chen knew precisely how to utilize the Daluo Cloud Essence Fruit to its maximum effect.
It was precisely for this reason that his path of cultivation had been so remarkably smooth.