Atop Fire Persimmon Mountain, amidst the swirling mists and deep clouds, the current City Lord of Fire Persimmon Immortal City, Meng Kui, sat cross-legged in the air. Around him, the twilight haze was thick, and the clouds surged and ebbed.

His fingers danced, forming intricate hand seals, and his mouth chanted silent incantations. The mana within him surged like a tide, harmonizing with the surrounding heavens and earth, resonating in unison.

Meng Kui’s entire body emitted a faint, azure glow.

He had been cultivating in this manner for eight or nine days.

Slowly, Meng Kui opened his eyes. With a thought, he retrieved a scroll painting from his storage belt.

The scroll floated in the air, unfurling in the breeze, revealing its full extent.

It depicted a portrait of a man with a square face, radiating an aura of fierce authority.

Behind him, on the painted mountain, stood a robust, striped yellow tiger, roaring towards the heavens from atop the peak.

This man was Meng Kui’s clansman, a Nascent Soul stage body cultivator named Meng Hu, one of the Meng family’s renowned Four Generals.

The painter was no ordinary being either. Named Han Xiongfeng, he was skilled in the arts of cultivation, particularly the art of painting, and most adept at depicting valiant generals of the battlefield.

This scroll painting by Han Xiongfeng, featuring Meng Hu, was naturally extraordinary.

It contained a portion of Meng Hu’s spiritual essence, representing a fraction of his innate talent and destiny.

Meng Kui had specifically sought this painting, as it was the key item, indispensable for his spellcasting.

Divine Art—Seated Mountain Observation!

In that instant, Meng Kui unleashed the divine art he had been brewing for days upon the scroll painting.

The painting abruptly disintegrated. The figures of Meng Hu and the tiger intertwined and clashed, breaking free from the confines of the scroll.

Man and beast, fiercely competing, traded blows in a relentless struggle.

The clouds churned, and man and tiger merged and separated, sometimes man turning into tiger, sometimes tiger becoming man, blurring the lines between them.

The two phantoms of man and beast clashed and roared amidst the clouds.

The Seated Mountain Observation spell was complete!

In a flash, an invisible gale swept across the mountaintop, clearing away the layers of clouds and twilight haze.

The phantoms of man and tiger dispersed with the clouds, spreading to Lava Immortal Palace, Fire Persimmon Immortal City, and even the entirety of Fire Persimmon Mountain.

Meng Kui’s face was pale, tinged with green. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he spat out a mouthful of blood.

A strand of azure hair at his forehead visibly turned snow-white.

Meng Kui possessed the innate talent of lofty foresight, allowing him to suppress his own destiny, observe the surrounding situation, and understand it thoroughly.

With this talent, he had cultivated the Divine Art of Seated Mountain Observation.

From his seated position, he could observe the winds and clouds, the world, all living things, even the clash of dragons and tigers, and the struggle for dominion.

By using the painting of man and tiger, Meng Kui had successfully cast his spell, creating a field of destiny for Seated Mountain Observation.

This destiny field covered the entire Fire Persimmon Mountain, influencing the fate of every living being within it.

In the coming days, they would engage in mutual strife for various reasons.

This so-called “tiger fight” would not be mere squabbling, but a fight to the death.

As a result, those within the field would experience a significant decline in their individual destinies due to their conflicts.

Meng Kui’s own destiny would remain unaffected, allowing him to stand out, gaining a massive advantage in momentum.

He had cast this spell not for himself, but for his grandson, Meng Chong.

Meng Chong would be protected, his destiny shielded from the influence of the destiny field.

“Chong’er has been diligently practicing these past few days, mastering several spells.”

“Furthermore, his business endeavors have allowed his destiny to truly recover.”

“Combined with my spellcasting this time, Lava Immortal Palace will also be affected. With his advantage in destiny, Chong’er will surely have a smooth and unobstructed path.”

City Lord Meng Kui surveyed the situation, keenly aware of the changes in destiny.

The situation had become increasingly unfavorable for the City Lord’s faction.

On one hand, the Zhou, Zheng, and Ning families had joined forces, pressing them at every turn.

On the other hand, the repeated unrest within the Lava Immortal Palace baffled Meng Kui.

Thirdly, Zhu Xuanji’s premature arrival and the mysterious disappearance of the Shadow Demon cultivator were unsettling.

All of this made Meng Kui realize that he had to take measures to change the situation.

Seated Mountain Observation was a spell he cast using a divine art in conjunction with a crucial painting.

It had significant drawbacks, shortening his lifespan, and could never be used frequently.

But for this battle for Lava Immortal Palace, for the sake of his beloved grandson, for the Meng family’s future, Meng Kui was willing to gamble.

Meng Chong was unaware of his grandfather’s hidden sacrifice.

Since being defeated by the Golden-Blooded Battle Ape—Great Victory, he had been diligently practicing his spells since awakening.

Superb Talent—Raging Thunder Dash.

Spell—One Breath!

His breath was accelerated, its firing speed increased significantly.

In an instant, it had become a formidable offensive spell.

Superb Talent—Raging Thunder Dash.

Spell—Ice Embrace.

Icy air burst forth from Meng Chong’s embrace, covering his face with frost.

He shivered from the cold.

Although the Ice Embrace spell had been cast, it did not harmonize well with his immortal talent.

If used in actual combat, it would be laughable if he ended up harming himself instead of the enemy.

The attendant beside him advised, “Young Master Meng Chong, it’s time for a break.”

Meng Chong nodded, “Alright, I understand.”

He temporarily stopped his special training and stepped out to rest.

In the past, he would never have done this, focusing single-mindedly on pushing forward, eager for immediate results.

But now, he understood the importance of balance.

Resting now was for a better push forward later.

The trials and tribulations he had faced had not only forged him into a more capable cultivator but had also tempered his temperament, making him more mature and resilient.

The attendant healed Meng Chong while comforting him, “Young Master, you’ve already achieved great success!”

“You must know, separating the water element mana from your five-element mana to cast the Ice Embrace spell is already quite troublesome.”

“You also have to infuse your immortal talent, which greatly shortens the casting time. This requires extreme proficiency to separate the water element mana and then cast the Ice Embrace spell.”

“This difficulty is at least a hundred times greater than simply casting the Ice Embrace spell.”

Meng Chong grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth, “Even if it’s a thousand times harder, I can overcome it, conquer it!”

“In this world, there is no obstacle I cannot overcome.”

Meng Chong was full of high spirits and confidence.

At the Ning Family Residence,

Ning Zhuo put down the jade scroll, lost in thought.

Ning Xiaoren had sent him several jade scrolls, all related to spiritual essence.

However, most of them contained common knowledge. There were no grand theories like “On Spiritual Essence” or secret manuals.

Ning Xiaoren’s actions could not be considered a breach of his word.
Since he personally came to offer his regards to Ning Zhuo once, he had not appeared again, as if afraid Ning Zhuo would make further requests.

Two examples within the jade scroll’s contents left the deepest impression on Ning Zhuo.

One was the Seasonal Natural Zither. This was the Heavenly Sound Sect’s treasure of the sect.

The Heavenly Sound Sect was a transcendent sect, its power and influence spanning several cultivation kingdoms.

The selection of the Zither Master for the Seasonal Natural Zither was one of the most important affairs of the Heavenly Sound Sect.

Because this level of spiritual treasure was often the most important component of a cultivation power’s foundation and strength.

Once a mistake was made in the selection, it would cause a reduction in the sect’s strength and a period of turmoil.

To become the new master of the Natural Zither, competitors were required to personally compose and, with the aid of the Natural Zither, perform four different melodies.

These four melodies needed to correspond to the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn, and winter.

Competitors needed profound cultivation to pluck the strings of the Natural Zither, and the music they played needed to be imbued with genuine emotion and consistent with the essence of the seasons, only then could they gain the Zither’s recognition and ultimately become the new Zither Master.

And because of the immensity of the spiritual treasure, sect cultivators who became Zither Masters often ascended to great heights in a single bound.

The second story was very ancient.

It was one of the anecdotes about the Grandmaster Refiner, Lu Duan.

Legend has it that Lu Duan traveled the world and, in one place, discovered a kingdom struggling to resist the ravages of an evil deity.

The cultivator power of the kingdom was small, and the evil deity was incomparably powerful, but the ruler was benevolent and courageous, deeply supported by the people.

With everyone united, they barely maintained a balance.

Lu Duan pitied the innocent creatures and took action to design a scheme and, together with the ruler and others, successfully entrapped the evil deity.

Lu Duan used this opportunity to forge the Shepherd’s Whip, temporarily sealing the deity.

Lu Duan gave the Shepherd’s Whip to the ruler and told him that the Shepherd’s Whip had not yet been truly refined; only a truly refined Shepherd’s Whip could completely seal the deity and, over the long course of its use, gradually transform the deity into the whip’s spirituality.

The ruler then asked Lu Duan how to truly refine the Shepherd’s Whip.

Lu Duan said, “Now is a critical period, and you need to do things that align with its spirituality so that the magical treasure can gradually control that spirituality.”

“For example, create hurricanes and tornadoes.”

The ruler tried using the Shepherd’s Whip to create various types of great winds and gales.

At first, the effects were excellent, but later, the effectiveness declined sharply; there was no time to refine the Shepherd’s Whip before the deity would break the seal and escape.

Lu Duan had already left, and the ruler privately discovered that creating wind disasters and destroying the homes of his people would maximize the alignment with its spirituality.

The ruler hesitated greatly, but time was running out.

He made a heartbreaking decision: to sacrifice the current people in exchange for the future happiness and prosperity of the kingdom.

So, he secretly wielded the whip, creating wind disasters that killed many of his people and caused countless others to be displaced.

In the end, although the ruler successfully refined the Shepherd’s Whip, his actions were discovered.

He was imprisoned by the angry people, and the Shepherd’s Whip disappeared.

In the end, the small kingdom also perished.

“Although these jade scrolls do not say it, the principle should be the same.”

“To summarize, one must act in accordance with its spirituality in order to make the spirituality recognize its master, or to be refined!”

“Reflecting on mechanical creations, if I want to deepen my control over Yuan Dasheng, I have to do something it wants to do!”

“Then what could that be?”

Ning Zhuo felt a slight anxiety in his heart.

According to the contents of “Animism,” spirituality will grow and have a long-term spirit, a spirit-moving period, and a spirit-sensitive period.

“If I miss this spirit-moving period, will I lose the only opportunity, and will I never be able to completely control Yuan Dasheng?”

Ning Zhuo mainly referred to the Shepherd’s Whip.

The refinement of the Shepherd’s Whip required aligning with the evil deity’s spirituality.

This matter had a time limit.

Yuan Dasheng was likely the same.

End of Chapter.