Initial Stage
The Initial Stage was the true starting point of cultivation.
At this realm, cultivators had already gathered enough Yuan Qi inside their bodies. They could use it to activate martial skills and strengthen themselves. Yuan Qi could affect muscles, bones, and even the surrounding environment slightly.
But there was a clear limit.
Yuan Qi still could not leave the body.
Luo Zheng understood this very well.
He stood on the mountain path and sighed softly.
"I don't have any martial skills at all…"
He frowned and searched his memory again.
"In that inheritance, there are many extremely high-level martial arts. But there isn't a single low-level martial skill."
"I've never seen such a strange inheritance before."
Usually, inheritances were built step by step, from weak to strong. But this one directly showed the peak and ignored the foundation.
Luo Zheng shook his head.
"Whatever. It's useless to think about it now."
"For the time being, I have to focus on another path."
He knew clearly that cultivation needed resources. Without resources, even the greatest talent would be wasted.
"Most cultivators try their luck in alchemy or formation."
"If they don't have talent, some give up. Some continue but struggle their whole lives."
"And those without background or backing…"
"They find ways to earn resources."
"Some take dangerous missions. Some become mercenaries. And most of them join sects."
Luo Zheng's eyes became firm.
"I have natural talent in formation."
"And now I've already reached the Initial Stage."
"It's time to join the Mystic Formation Sect."
As he made his decision, he started walking along the mountain road. The path was narrow and winding, covered with stones and grass.
While walking, he thought again,
"If I can become a First-Level Formation Master, I can start working."
"Setting formations, repairing arrays, carving formation plates…"
"All of these can earn cultivation resources."
His thoughts shifted again.
"If this were the small world where Yang Kai was born, my only cultivation resource would be cloud energy."
"But this is Tong Xuan Realm."
"Here, there are natural spirit stones and even spirit crystals."
Spirit crystals were precious. Only Transcended Realm cultivators could afford to use them regularly.
Spirit stones, on the other hand, were common.
Almost every cultivator needed them.
"But I still don't understand something," Luo Zheng thought.
"The small world doesn't have spirit stone veins at all."
"Spirit crystals need extremely dense spiritual energy to form, so it makes sense."
"But spirit stones don't need that much…"
"Then why don't they exist in the small world either?"
He couldn't understand this logic.
"Is it because of world laws? Or something sealing the land?"
As he walked and thought deeply, his steps suddenly stopped.
The ground beneath his feet shook.
At first, it was weak.
Then—
Boom.
The surrounding area trembled violently.
Rocks rolled down the mountain path. Trees swayed wildly. Birds flew up in panic.
Luo Zheng's pupils shrank.
"An earthquake?"
He instantly stabilized his body and looked around carefully.
But deep inside his heart, he felt something was wrong.
"This doesn't feel like a normal earthquake…"
The spiritual energy in the air became chaotic.
Something was coming.
Holy Sect – Calamity Day
Inside the grand arena of the Holy Sect, everything had already changed.
The one hundred alchemists who were refining pills were no longer moving. Their bodies sat frozen before their cauldrons, dry and shriveled, like dead crops after a long drought. All vitality had been drained from them. Their eyes were empty. Not a single one was alive.
The light pillars that once surrounded the arena slowly dimmed. One by one, they stopped glowing and returned to silence.
Above the arena, a figure floated in the air.
His eyes were closed. His face was pale, and veins appeared on his forehead. It was clear he was struggling internally.
Inside his dantian, five different colors of energy spun rapidly—red, blue, green, yellow, and white. They collided again and again, refusing to merge. He forced them to rotate like Yin and Yang, trying to fuse them into one.
He was none other than the Holy Master.
Suddenly—
Massive black clouds gathered in the sky.
The surrounding spiritual energy became chaotic. The air itself felt heavy and oppressive.
The ground shook violently.
An earthquake erupted from the depths of the earth, as if heaven and earth were trying to stop what he was doing.
Cracks spread across the arena floor.
In the next moment, the Holy Master let out a deep growl.
All the surrounding energy was forcefully pulled into his dantian.
The five-colored energy that refused to fuse suddenly changed.
It turned black.
A deep, terrifying black—like an endless abyss.
The black clouds in the sky were no longer forming a natural heavenly calamity. Instead, they were forcibly absorbed. What should have been punishment from heaven became nourishment for his forbidden method.
The Holy Master suddenly laughed.
His laughter echoed across the sky like a demonic overlord standing above all beings.
"Ha… Ha… Ha!"
"From today onward, I will become the god of Tong Xuan Realm!"
"I am stepping into the same realm achieved by the Great Demon Lord ten thousand years ago!"
"A realm beyond Saint Stage!"
"Saint King!"
Everyone who was watching from the ground felt deep fear pierce their hearts.
Their bodies trembled.
They had already seen the dead alchemists in the arena.
Only one question filled their minds—
Are we next?
But no one could move.
No one could speak.
The Holy Master had already trapped everyone—elders, guests, spectators—inside a massive formation. Even the ten thousand spectators outside the arena were frozen in place.
The earthquake grew stronger.
Black clouds gathered from every corner of Tong Xuan Realm.
Mountains shook. Rivers surged. Cities trembled.
Some sect masters noticed the sudden change in the heavens and followed the black clouds, trying to find the source.
Across the realm, earthquakes struck at the same time.
Many cultivators fell to their knees.
Some screamed in fear.
Some believed the end of the world had arrived.
In the Demon Race Domain, the Demon King stood up from his throne. His expression turned grim.
Demon generals followed the black clouds without hesitation.
The Monster Race was no different. The Monster King sensed the calamity and rushed toward its source.
Back in the Holy Sect, the sect activated its strongest protective array. Massive barriers rose, sealing the sect completely and preventing anyone from entering.
Inside the Holy Sect—
The Holy Master continued his cultivation, absorbing spiritual energy without stopping.
Hours passed.
Then suddenly—
Thunder roared in the sky.
A terrifying Thunder Calamity formed above the Holy Sect.
The Holy Master opened his eyes.
"I only need to pass this calamity," he said calmly.
"Then the next stage will be mine."
Thunder descended nonstop.
Lightning struck like rain.
The Holy Master waved his hand and blocked them easily. Thunder exploded around him but failed to harm his body.
Five minutes passed.
The thunderstorm stopped.
But the calamity was not over.
All the thunder gathered together, forming a massive Thunder Dragon in the sky.
Before it could strike—
The black energy inside his dantian surged out and swallowed it.
The thunder dragon vanished.
The Holy Master was shocked.
"What terrifying power… it can even consume thunder energy."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
But the smile quickly disappeared.
His eyes widened.
Because—
Sect masters, Demon King, Monster King, and countless powerful figures had already arrived.
They destroyed the Holy Sect's strongest protective array.
His face turned pale.
Then it became worse.
The sky darkened completely.
Black clouds gathered from every direction.
This time—
Ninety-nine Thunder Dragons appeared at once.
They roared and charged toward him from all directions.
The Holy Master roared and destroyed several of them.
But one thunder dragon broke through.
BOOM!
It slammed directly into his body.
Blood sprayed into the air.
His body was sent flying downward.
He was heavily injured.
He began to fall.
Below, the Great Elder of the Holy Sect felt his heart beat wildly.
Fear filled his eyes.
Everything… was no longer under control.