Chapter 114: The Five-Element Foundation of the New World

Seeing Lu Chen faint, Nantian Wan'er hurriedly asked, "Grandpa Feng, what's wrong with Lu-gege? His spirit qi is surging wildly."

The Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree at the center of the core region sent a stream of spirit qi into Lu Chen, then extended a vine that gently brushed against Feng Tiancheng.

Feng Tiancheng glanced at the tree's movement and released a surge of pure spirit qi. "His heart was overwhelmed by violent spirit qi from earlier. A little rest will be enough."

"

Ah...

I see." Nantian Wan'er helped lay Lu Chen down. "Then what should we do now?"

"For now..." Feng Tiancheng stroked the vine before him, scanning the small world with a thoughtful gaze, then clasped his hands behind his back. "Everyone, return and cultivate. Little Lu is growing too fast. You must all become stronger as well."

The twenty-three beast leaders beneath the Green Sovereign Divine Tree bowed deeply. "Yes, my lord."

"As for you, Wan'er, return to the outside world with Little Lu and rest."

Feng Tiancheng shot a glance at Lu Chen, then formed hand seals and released a stream of spirit qi toward the eastern side of the core region.

The mist that had enveloped a region thirty li away gradually dispersed, revealing a towering mountain ten thousand zhang high, with several more peaks faintly visible beyond the veil of fog.

The mountain brimmed with rare woods and spirit herbs, yet near its summit, just beneath the shade of an immense tree, a faint trace of death energy seeped out.

Halfway up the mountain stood a massive stone stele, thrust into the slope like a giant sword, engraved with the words

"

Thirty-Three Mountains."

"It's time I take my leave as well," Feng Tiancheng said, waving his hand as he strode toward the first peak of the Thirty-Three Mountains. "If you need me, call for me at the Myriad Spirits Tomb."

The beast leaders bowed deeply toward the Thirty-Three Mountains as they watched him depart. "Lord Seventh, we respectfully bid you farewell!"

Once Feng Tiancheng left, Nantian Wan'er slowly stood, placing the weakened Fire Phoenix and Eggy back onto the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree. After tidying everything, she returned to Lu Chen and looked at Flame Demon and Bai Ze. "My lords, Lu-gege is still unconscious. What should we do now?"

"Just take him back to rest," Flame Demon waved his hand, dispersing the hundred thousand beasts in the core region. "Lord Seventh is right. Our king is advancing too rapidly. He has just stepped into cultivation, yet he's already facing the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth. For us elemental beasts, it's manageable. We draw directly on the elements of heaven and earth, so our cultivation advances quickly."

He looked at Bai Ze. "But for you bloodline beasts, most of you remain at the Earth Core Realm, even with inherited bloodline powers. At this realm—"

"I understand," Bai Ze said softly, eyes fixed on Flame Demon. "Right now, only Golden Dragon and I have broken into the Human Core Realm. The rest remain at the high-level Earth Core Realm. At this stage, we're not yet capable of dealing with unforeseen crises."

Golden Dragon turned around, his expression grim. "The others must break through to the Human Core Realm as soon as possible. Otherwise, if another disaster strikes, we'll be powerless against it."

Nine-Tailed Red Fox's eyes glimmered with red light as she quietly approached the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree. "The Dao Fruit of the new world has begun to grow. With this world's fortune, our cultivation will accelerate."

Kui Bull clenched his fists. "Then let's begin. The Kui Bull clan missed the chance for creation in the mortal world, but I won't miss it in this small world."

With a formal bow to the beast leaders, Kui Bull transformed into his true form and plunged into the Frozen Hill and Deep Sea.

"I'll be taking my leave as well. I'm the only one left of the Nine-Tailed Red Fox clan," Nine-Tailed Red Fox placed her hands on her waist, bowed with bent knees, and declared, "In this life, I will restore the glory of our clan."

Nine-Tailed Red Fox and Kui Bull departed the core region, followed soon by the remaining bloodline beasts, each harboring their own motives.

Flame Demon and Bai Ze stood beneath the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree, gazing through the transparent barrier above the Eternal Twilight Imperial City at Lu Chen's Heavenly Pool. Their brows were furrowed, deep in thought.

Wind Dragon had already taken human form. He emerged from the Hunyuan Greatsword, leaving behind a dragon clone to guard Lu Chen.

Watching the others depart, Nantian Wan'er bowed respectfully to Bai Ze and Flame Demon. "My lords, I'll be taking Lu-gege away now. We've been gone for quite a while already. I fear it may arouse suspicion."

"Go ahead. You needn't concern yourself with the matters of the small world," Flame Demon said gently. "But once our king awakens, you must head to the Heavenly Mandate Hall and search for the fourth fragment. If not, when the rift breaks through in two months, the consequences could be catastrophic."

Nantian Wan'er bowed again to both Flame Demon and Bai Ze. "I understand, Lord Flame Demon."

"Lord Flame Demon, I should be going as well. There's still much work to do," Bai Ze said, cupping his hands toward Flame Demon before turning toward the herb fields.

The fields had been ravaged by flames and falling rocks and required restoration.

Flame Demon kept his gaze on Bai Ze's back and said softly, "I know you had your own agenda for following Lord Beast King back then, and Lu Chen now. But we elemental beasts will never allow you to harm Lu Chen."

Bai Ze paused at the warning, then replied without turning back, "The hope of the bloodline beasts rests on Lu Chen. We would never harm him. As for you elemental beasts... can you truly claim your presence here is out of pure loyalty? Others may not know your past, but I do."

A flash of white light flickered across Bai Ze's eyes as the phantom of his true body appeared behind him. Thousands of Bai Ze fixed their gaze on Flame Demon, projecting a vivid scene before his eyes.[1]

Flame Demon raised a hand and swept the phantom image away. "

Hmph...

as long as you understand the gravity of this matter. What I wanted to tell you is that the Imperial Lord of Rituals has returned from the Outside. He has been observing Lu Chen all this time and suggests you find an opportunity to meet him."

Bai Ze visibly trembled. "The Imperial Lord of Rituals?!"

He quickly regained his composure. "I understand. I'll seek him out in a few days."

"As for the affairs of us bloodline beasts, Lord Flame Demon, you need not trouble yourself with them."

With that, Bai Ze departed for the herb fields.

Metal General muttered angrily from behind Flame Demon, "What an ingrate. We warned him out of kindness, yet he still told us to stay out of it. Boss, what did he mean by the past of the elemental beasts? I don't remember any of it."

"You'll understand once you reach the higher levels of the Human Core Realm and fully grasp the laws of heaven and earth."

Flame Demon's gaze lingered on the herb field. "We have delivered the words of the Imperial Lord of Rituals. What the bloodline beasts choose to do is none of our concern. Every race has its own desire for change."

He turned toward the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree, his voice soft. "For now, we must return to cultivation. Since the tree strengthened this small world, the Five-Elements Law have grown far more abundant."

Stepping closer, he placed his right hand on the tree's trunk. "This place is now even better suited for our training. We must grasp the laws quickly to feel the echoes of our past."

Water Lotus pointed toward the outer perimeter, where five great craters had appeared. "Let's move, boss! I just saw five elemental craters at the edge of the core region. They formed during the explosions."

The craters were arranged in a pentagram. At their base, the roots of the two Green Sovereign Divine Trees weaved together, and pure five-element energy slowly seeped through them.

Each crater held one of the five elements. In the pits of fire, water, and wood, the energy had grown so dense it was beginning to condense into liquid form.

Flame Demon charged toward the northern fire crater. "Let's go. Cultivating here will accelerate the condensation of five-element energy."

Metal General laughed and darted into the southeastern metal crater. "The metal crater's mine!"

Water Lotus followed. "Then I'll take the southwestern water crater."

"I'll take the eastern earth crater. But the earth element seems sparse. There are just thin streams of gas."

Mountain God peered into the empty crater, scratching his massive stone head. "I'll add some before I head in."

Wind Dragon chuckled at Mountain God. "Fortunately, there is plenty of wood-element energy."

He poured his core energy into the crater before stepping into the western wood crater.

All five chieftains entered their respective craters, linking their core power to condense the elements within. Through the roots beneath, the energies of the five craters interwove, cycling to generate and restrain one another, forming a complete loop that rapidly amplified their power.

Just as the leaders prepared for deep cultivation, a sudden burst of energy erupted from the craters, splitting the surrounding ground.

A vast, circular rift appeared around the core region. Supported by the tree roots, the craters began revolving around the core. Five-element energy from within the craters flowed back into the small world and the Heavenly Pool, while fresh energy streamed in from outside.

The two Green Sovereign Divine Trees grew stronger, radiating even more elemental power, enriching the spirit qi of both worlds.

On the Wild Plains, countless beasts sensed the surge of dense spirit qi. They raised their heads and absorbed it greedily. For the beasts at the Earth Core Realm, the sudden increase in spirit qi was a tremendous boon.

Meanwhile, Bai Ze tended the herb field, carving a Spirit Gathering Formation into the ground to draw in the surrounding spirit qi and accelerate the regrowth of spirit plants. "The embryonic form of a new world's five elements... I didn't expect that to appear so quickly."

He glanced at the revolving craters in the core region. A faint smile touched his lips. "It seems I'll need to uncover a secret art to stabilize the five elements. Only then can this small world advance to the next stage of growth."

1. In Daoist lore, 白泽 (Bai Ze) is a divine beast gifted with omniscient vision, capable of perceiving all spirits, monsters, and supernatural phenomena. Its ability to project thousands of images is a literary extension of this wisdom, representing its power to see, know, and convey knowledge of countless beings simultaneously. ☜