Chapter 557 - 37: Terrifying Power

At this moment, Wang Ping felt as if his consciousness pierced through heaven and earth. A single thought could change some of the rules governing the Wood Spirit attributes of this world.

But his thoughts were currently in turmoil—an uncontrollable chaos that prevented him from using such an ability. At the same time, the consciousness of countless living beings between heaven and earth flooded into his mind.

And so, in the mountains of Qianmu Temple and the surrounding areas, the world, once desolate in the depths of winter, suddenly seemed to enter spring. All living things revived at a visible rate, and the chill in the earth vanished in an instant.

Fire Institute.

Ruan Chunzi and Yuan Zheng Taoist immediately sensed the change in the world. They simultaneously exited their respective Dao Fields, transforming into streaks of light that appeared on the flank of Qianmu Mountain. There, they joined Yu Cheng Taoist and Liu Shuang to observe the strange phenomenon.

"I can’t feel any Wood Spirit Qi flowing, yet the earth is reviving under its nourishment!"

Yu Cheng Taoist said.

Ruan Chunzi formed a spell with his hands, trying to locate Wang Ping with his Primordial Spirit, but found nothing. He then explained, "This is the effect of cultivating the ’Heaven-Reaching Talisman’ to perfection and driving it with one’s Primordial Spirit."

Yuan Zheng Taoist said with some trepidation, "I feel like I would die silently under such power."

Ruan Chunzi nodded. "This is the terrifying aspect of the *Taiyan Talisman*. Moreover, this power of theirs is nearly inexhaustible. If used for killing, and combined with their elusive Sword Arrays, Golden Armored Puppets, and poisons, an ordinary Third Realm Cultivator would perish without even knowing where their attacker was."

"Is Master still in Qianmu Temple?"

Liu Shuang asked curiously.

Ruan Chunzi looked toward the Mountain Peak Dojo and said, "With Fellow Daoist Changqing’s current cultivation, he can exist anywhere in all of Nanlin Road—or rather, the entire Southern Cultivation Realm—and he can also vanish in an instant."

Just as he finished speaking, the scene of revival took a sudden turn. The lush green mountains and lands withered in the blink of an eye. It seemed if this continued, all vegetation on the mountains and across the land would turn to nothingness.

Moreover, the vitality in the bodies of the disciples within Qianmu Temple and the common people in the nearby towns was vanishing!

Looking out, the dim night resembled an apocalyptic scene. The spiritual essence of heaven and earth was seemingly being extracted by some force, piercing through from the imperceptible Inspiration Realm into the real world. It formed a dark, energetic substance in the sky, only to be seized and refined before vanishing in the blink of an eye.

At the same time, the earth was weathering away at a visible rate. In a moment, the entire region would likely become a desert.

GULP!

Liu Shuang was horrified, so frightened she didn’t know what to do.

Fortunately, it was night, and most people were asleep. The mortal world remained quiet. But within Qianmu Temple, the Inner Sect Disciples had exploded into chaos, especially the Entry-level Disciples!

"What is there to panic about!"

Yu Cheng Taoist’s sharp rebuke echoed throughout Qianmu Temple, quelling the chaos in the various institutes.

Ruan Chunzi said with a grave tone, "I cannot sense where Fellow Daoist Changqing is, but he must be within Qianmu Temple. Quickly, open the sect’s barrier! If I go all out, I can prevent this power from leaking out!"

Yu Cheng Taoist nodded. Just as he was about to activate the barrier’s Token, the withered earth was restored to life once more.

「In the cavern beneath the Mountain Peak Dojo.」

With Yu Lian’s help, Wang Ping forcibly dispelled the crazed thoughts that had appeared in his consciousness. He sorted through his scrambled memories as quickly as possible, restoring the rules and order of Heaven and Earth.

"That was almost a disaster!"

He let out a sigh, feeling the majestic power of the Heaven-Reaching Talisman. Staring at Yu Lian, he said, "This kind of power truly requires a balance of humanity and rationality. Otherwise, you can get lost in an instant. Just now, I hesitated for only a moment, and my consciousness was influenced by the Spiritual Creatures of the world!"

Yu Lian floated up on a small cloud and landed on Wang Ping’s shoulder. She nuzzled his cheek with her head and said, "You scared me. Thankfully, you maintained your peak state of humanity before you started cultivating, or else I wouldn’t have been able to pull you back just now."

"This must be the will of heaven working in mysterious ways."

After saying this, Wang Ping’s consciousness returned to his Primordial Spirit. He then connected with the Heaven-Reaching Talisman and, using his last bit of mental energy, manifested a Blessing Talisman infused with the Cyan Wood Technique in the sky above Qianmu Temple.

The Talisman’s energy split into four parts. The largest portion was used to restore the life force the world had just lost. A small portion shot deep into Dongshui Mountain.

Deep within Dongshui Mountain.

In a sealed Dao Field, the scar-covered Zuo Xuan opened her eyes as the Blessing Talisman descended. She then discovered that her physical body seemed to have been fixed in place by some rule of Heaven and Earth. Next, the rampaging Spiritual Qi in her body was neutralized, and her injuries healed in an instant.

Another small portion of energy entered the space between Yu Cheng Taoist’s eyebrows, helping him rapidly fuse with the Luck-Borrowing Talisman. The final portion of energy entered Liu Shuang’s body, helping her digest the Wood Spirit Vein within her.

After doing all this, Wang Ping retracted the Heaven-Reaching Talisman and then furrowed his brow, a rare occurrence.

Yu Lian read Wang Ping’s thoughts and asked, "Is Master’s time almost up?"

Wang Ping nodded. "Master once suffered a grievous injury, and later his Heart Demon destabilized his divine soul. Barely managing to fuse with the Locust Tree Divine Soul was already his limit. Fusing with the Luck-Borrowing Talisman would have required at least a hundred years to succeed. I’ve now shortened that time by twenty years, but he still doesn’t have enough lifespan. If he forcibly consumes Elixirs, I’m afraid any future advancement will be hopeless."

"Is there no other way at all?"

"Not with my current abilities, but..."

Wang Ping trailed off and shook his head. He didn’t like to talk about things he couldn’t accomplish. When he had just deployed the Heaven-Reaching Talisman with his Primordial Spirit and felt the Majestic Power of Heaven and Earth, he had vaguely glimpsed a method to transcend the boundary of life and death. However, he knew that kind of power was not something he could touch right now.

If he wasn’t careful, it could lead to something even more terrifying than what had just happened!

Yu Lian looked at Wang Ping and asked, "But you still want to try, don’t you?"

Wang Ping nodded. "The Divine Soul Guide is now complete. As long as Master can finish fusing with the Luck-Borrowing Talisman within the next fifty years, he can attempt to advance to the Third Realm. For me, the materials needed for the advancement are easy to obtain. The puppet is already prepared, and there is a spot readily available."

Yu Lian’s vertical pupils stared at Wang Ping’s cheek. She seemed to have something more to say but hesitated for the first time. In the end, however, she still said it: "Have you asked Master for his opinion?"

She never held anything back from Wang Ping.

The question stumped Wang Ping. He could only respond with silence, and soon after, he entered a meditative state.

For the next six months, Wang Ping spent his time meditating and cultivating. He simultaneously tried to use his Primordial Spirit to absorb and release Spiritual Energy, building a Qi Sea within his Primordial Spirit Body.

With Yu Lian acting as his Guardian, this step of his cultivation went very smoothly.

Once the Qi Sea formed within his Primordial Spirit Body, the next direction for his cultivation was to try and use the Pocket World Mirror to hide himself. That way, he could use the Luck-Borrowing Talisman without any reservations.

Before that, however, he wanted to first place the communication device he had previously obtained from the Mozhou Road Daoist Scripture Hall into the cavern he had long prepared beneath Sanhe Prefecture. By doing so, he could truly know all that happens in the world without ever stepping outside.

He had a feeling that the second half of the *Taiyan Talisman*’s fourth volume would be like the latter half of the Third Realm’s cultivation: it wouldn’t take much time to practice, but the required materials would be troublesome. When that time came, he would need access to information from all over the world.