Chapter 4036: Mid-stage Golden Immortal

Time flew by, and three thousand years had passed.

On Qinglian Island, as dawn broke, a loud bell rang, signaling the start of a new day. Members of the Wang family were already busy, each attending to their duties.

On Teaching Peak, a vast bluestone plaza sat atop the mountain. In the center of the plaza stood a colossal human-shaped statue, before which rested a large green censer filled with numerous lit incense sticks.

A magnificent palace, named 'Teaching Hall' (授业殿) as indicated by the grand characters on its plaque, dominated the plaza.

Numerous Wang family cultivators arrived from various locations, landing in the plaza. They first offered incense to the statue before entering the Teaching Hall to attend lectures given by the clan elders.

The statue represented the golden effigy of Wang Benwei. Many similar effigies were scattered across the islands where the Wang family members resided, and clan members offered incense to them daily, providing spiritual devotion.

Wang Benwei's true golden effigy was preserved within the Scroll of Heritage. Damage to the external effigies would not impede Wang Benwei's resurrection; the effigy within the Scroll of Heritage absorbed the power of the incense offerings through its external counterparts, making his revival merely a matter of time.

The higher one's cultivation level, the more difficult and time-consuming the resurrection process became.

Before new members of the Wang family embarked on their path to immortality, the clan elders would recount the heroic deeds of Wang Benwei and other revered martyrs, encouraging the new generation to emulate them. Descendants of these martyrs received special cultivation; those who were capable would become pillars in key family departments, while even those without particular talent would live comfortably.

On Qinglian Peak, the door to a secret chamber opened, and Wang Changsheng emerged. His aura was noticeably stronger, having successfully opened his sixtieth immortal orifice, thereby advancing to the mid-stage Golden Immortal realm.

He had consumed over fifty Golden Jade Immortal Fruits, significantly enhancing his immortal power. At a normal cultivation pace, it would have taken him at least hundreds of thousands of years to reach the mid-stage, and even longer if he encountered a bottleneck. Yu Weiwei posed a potential threat, but with Wang Changsheng's early advancement to the mid-stage Golden Immortal realm, he would have no fear even if she initiated an attack.

Wang Changsheng took out an immortal transmission mirror, which glowed with a faint blue light. He struck it with a spell, and Wang Yongqian's face appeared on its surface.

Wang Yongqian was all smiles, as if some joyous event had occurred, and faint sounds of thunder could be heard in the background.

"Yongqian, is a clan member attempting to break through to the Golden Immortal realm?" Wang Changsheng asked.

Wang Yongqian nodded and replied, "Old Ancestor Qingling and Old Ancestor Qingcheng both triggered unusual phenomena with only a thirty-minute interval, indicating their attempts to advance to the Golden Immortal realm. Old Ancestor Qingcheng has already passed his lightning tribulation and successfully entered the Golden Immortal realm, but Old Ancestor Qingling is still undergoing hers."

Wang Qingling, having achieved minor mastery of the laws, faced a more powerful and prolonged lightning tribulation in her attempt to reach the Golden Immortal realm. Wang Qingcheng, however, was different; he had only just comprehended the basics of the laws, and successfully advanced to the Golden Immortal realm after enduring only nine lightning tribulations, not even requiring a mid-grade Chaos Armor.

"Excellent! As long as Qingling opens thirty-six immortal orifices, passing the lightning tribulation won't be an issue. By the way, what about the materials I asked you to collect? Have they all been gathered?" Wang Changsheng asked, noting that cultivating the Daoist art still required many auxiliary materials.

"They have all been collected," she replied. "Old Ancestor Qingshan acquired a considerable amount from the Chaos Continent, some were purchased from the Scarlet Sun Sea and Flowing Cloud Sea regions, and the remainder were gathered in the Heavenly Morning Sea region. I can have Chang Ming deliver them to you."

As the family's influence grew significantly, the Wang family's ability to gather cultivation resources improved dramatically. With a considerable presence in the Heavenly Morning Sea, Flowing Cloud Sea, Scarlet Sun Sea, and the Chaos Continent, they employed diverse methods for resource acquisition.

"That's not urgent," Wang Changsheng said. "Where are you? I'd like to go see Qingling."

"Xuan Yang Island!"

"I'll head there now."

Wang Changsheng put away the immortal transmission mirror and teleported to Xuanyang Island.

No sooner had he arrived at Xuanyang Island than he witnessed a colossal six-colored thunder leopard diving from high above, plummeting straight towards a particular valley.

A massive palm, shrouded in the shadow of a beast, flew out from within the valley and struck the six-colored thunder leopard.

The six-colored thunder leopard's body trembled slightly before exploding. The entire valley became enveloped in a massive burst of six-colored lightning, with shockwaves rippling outwards.

Wang Changsheng frowned, then extended his divine sense. Upon sensing Wang Qingling's aura, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Before the six-colored lightning had fully dissipated, Wang Qingling emerged from it, landing directly in front of Wang Changsheng.

She wore a mid-grade Chaos Armor, her face slightly pale, yet her aura was powerful. "Ninth Uncle, what brings you here?" she asked.

Wang Qingling was filled with both surprise and delight upon seeing Wang Changsheng.

"I heard from Yongqian that you were attempting to break through to the Golden Immortal realm, so I came to check on you," Wang Changsheng said with a smile. "I didn't expect you to have completed your lightning tribulation just as I arrived."

With this, the Wang family now boasted seven Golden Immortal cultivators. Combined with the Qi family and the Zhang family, their influence and say in the Heavenly Morning Sea region would be significantly amplified.

"It's largely thanks to the second-grade immortal pills and the mid-grade Chaos Armor you provided, Ninth Uncle," Wang Qingling expressed gratefully. "Without them, I wouldn't have been able to advance to the Golden Immortal realm."

Leaving aside potent second-grade immortal pills like the Nine Marvelous Profound Essence Pill, the immense power of the six-colored immortal lightning meant that without the mid-grade Chaos Armor, she would not have been confident in surviving the tribulation with just a Nine Yang Thunder Transformation Talisman. "There's no need for formalities among family," Wang Changsheng said. "You've just advanced to the Golden Immortal realm; go back and consolidate your cultivation first. Qingshan is stationed in Xuanyu City, so you can train with peace of mind here on Qinglian Island."

"Yes, Ninth Uncle," Wang Qingling acknowledged.

Back on Qinglian Island, Wang Yongqian accompanied Wang Changsheng to Qinglian Peak to report on the family's recent affairs.

"By the way, Old Ancestor," she began, "the Dark Hall has discovered that the Qian family is searching for God Monarch Cangyue's cultivation cave, though their purpose remains unknown."

The territories of the Wang family and the Qian family shared borders, and conflicts had been frequent between them. Both sides were currently exercising restraint, though conflicts were inevitable in the regions bordering the Qian family following the Wang family's expansion.

"God Monarch Cangyue! Is he dead?" Wang Changsheng asked, intrigued.

"It's unclear," she replied. "The intelligence from the Dark Hall's informants only indicates that both the Qian family and the Murong family are searching for God Monarch Cangyue's cultivation cave. They've also been inquiring about the Li family, though the specific reasons for this are unknown."

"I understand," Wang Changsheng said. "Instruct the Dark Hall to pay close attention to any news concerning the Li family, and have the Treasure Hunting Hall intensify their efforts to locate God Monarch Cangyue's cultivation cave. Oh, and please bring me the items I requested."

Wang Yongqian acknowledged and turned to leave.

She returned shortly thereafter, handing Wang Changsheng a golden storage bracelet. He swept his divine sense over it, nodded in satisfaction, and then dismissed her. He then proceeded to Wang Qingcheng's residence and sent a sound transmission talisman.

Soon, Wang Qingcheng quickly emerged, exclaiming excitedly, "Father, what brings you here?"

"I heard you've advanced to the Golden Immortal realm, so I came to see you," Wang Changsheng replied.

Wang Qingcheng invited Wang Changsheng inside. After they chatted for a brief period—about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea—Wang Changsheng departed. Before leaving, he took Wang Qingcheng's natal immortal artifact, intending to help him upgrade it to a mid-grade immortal artifact.

Naturally, he also intended to help Wang Qingling upgrade her natal immortal artifact to a mid-grade immortal artifact, a task that posed no difficulty for him.

Returning to Qinglian Peak, Wang Changsheng entered a secret chamber where the Qinglian Creation Cauldron was prominently placed.

He retrieved the refining materials and began to temper Wang Qingcheng's natal immortal artifact, enhancing its grade.