"Thank you, Sect Master, for bestowing the Dharma!"
Upon waking, all disciples prostrated themselves before Yang Hong, offering a kowtow of profound gratitude and sincerity.
The disciples of Qingfeng Villa, kneeling on the ground, were filled with both overwhelming gratitude and deep reverence.
Though their Sect Master's cultivation seemed not particularly high, his realm was incredibly profound. After just one lecture, he showed everyone the path ahead for cultivation. Whether they were disciples in the Foundation Establishment realm or the Tribulation Crossing realm, human or demon, all saw the Way and the Dharma for their future cultivation.
"Very good. It seems you have all gained much. If you have any questions, you may ask them now, and I will do my best to resolve them for you."
Yang Hong waved his hand gently, and all the disciples present were levitated by his magical power.
The first to inquire was Ke Jimei, the Elder of Dharma Transmission, "Sect Master, what is the Golden Core, and what is the Great Dao of the Golden Core?"
"Gold refers to Qi. Core refers to pure yang, pure unity. The Great Dao means perfection without flaw."
"The Great Dao of the Golden Core signifies entering the Golden Core stage of cultivation, obtaining the Great Dao, and achieving immortality."
"The Golden Core cultivated in the Golden Core stage, also known as the Inner Core, treats the human body as a furnace and the essence and Qi within the body as medicine. It uses the spirit as the furnace fire to refine them, causing essence, Qi, and spirit to condense and form a sacred fetus, enabling one to shed their mortal form and become an immortal."
"The so-called Nascent Soul refers to this sacred fetus, the process of refining the primordial spirit in the Dao of Alchemy and manifesting the Nascent Soul. Therefore, the Nascent Soul is the Yang God, also called the Golden Core."
"The Primordial Spirit is also the Golden Core. Thus, the mid-stage cultivation realms of Golden Core, Nascent Soul, and Soul Division can be considered stages of Golden Core cultivation."
As Yang Hong explained, the disciples felt a sense of sudden enlightenment. Profound cultivation knowledge was expounded by Yang Hong in an easily understandable manner, bringing immense gains to everyone.
"Sect Master, what is an immortal?"
"An immortal is a powerful individual, one who harbors reverence, cares for the world, and cherishes the common people. Those with strong hearts can become immortals."
"Sect Master, what is..."
This lecture continued for eighty-one days. When the time was up, Yang Hong sensed it and gestured to stop the disciples from asking further questions.
"Nine is the extreme of numbers. Ninety-nine is the limit.
This lecture ends here. Return and diligently comprehend and digest what you have learned.
When the opportune moment arrives, I will lecture to you again."
"We thank the Sect Master for his great kindness in imparting the Dao and resolving our doubts!"
All disciples prostrated themselves once more, offering their sincere thanks.
"Disperse and cultivate. I, too, must go into seclusion to organize the insights gained from this lecture."
"Yes!"
After bowing their thanks again, the disciples slowly dispersed in order, according to their order.
Upon returning to the Sect's main hall, Yang Hong immediately activated the protective formation of the hall. He then used several earth-遁 techniques to descend beneath Purple Jade Mountain.
Looking at the coffins of Li Xuefeng and the others, he summoned the Red Lotus Karmic Fire from his sea of consciousness and refined their coffins along with the corpses within.
In just one hour, the five coffins turned to ash, leaving behind only five motes of spiritual light that were refined.
These five motes of spiritual light first circled Yang Hong seven times before slowly fading and disappearing.
"Indeed, Li Xuefeng and Mu Xiuhui have also reincarnated, but they did not reincarnate on the Taiyuan Continent."
During his lecture, this suspicion suddenly arose in his mind, and now, upon testing it, it proved true.
If any of them were still on the Taiyuan Continent, these light spots would have flown out, heading towards their reincarnated bodies. Their direct dissipation proved they were no longer in this world.
Although he did not know which world Li Xuefeng and Mu Xiuhui had reincarnated into, Yang Hong's greatest ties to the Taiyuan Continent were now severed.
"Yu Yan and the others have already ascended. I must also ascend quickly. Otherwise, if the war between immortals and demons begins and the demon race descends, I estimate I will be targeted to death."
After dismantling the arrangements within Purple Jade Mountain, Yang Hong returned to the Sect's main hall on Qingfeng Mountain, stroking his chin, contemplating how to rapidly increase his cultivation.
Using the [System] to grant spiritual plants was undoubtedly the fastest method. However, having experienced the previous [Old System], he dared not directly grant spiritual plants on the Taiyuan Continent. The best method was to find a secret realm for the granting.
"Heh heh~ Coincidentally, when I infiltrated the Heart Demon Sect's secret realm before, I obtained the locations of the secret realms of the other four great demon sects. Moreover, I have Boundary Breaking Stones. I can use them to enter and take a look."
"I might as well directly grant Hua Xinlei and Yu Kewei up to the Mahayana stage, and let the tree demons ascend to the Upper Realm first to establish territory. It will be much easier for me when I ascend."
...
Western Qu Province, ravaged by the war between Upper Realm Immortals and Demons, was now a vast expanse of desert.
Unlike the Lihuo Desert, where deserts stretched for hundreds of millions of miles, Western Qu Province featured deserts bordering forests, followed by vast lakes, then expansive grasslands, and the next moment, one might encounter snow-capped mountains.
Various terrains were bizarrely and chaotically arranged and pieced together. Upon entering the center of Western Qu Province, Yang Hong momentarily felt as if he had stepped into a heavily modified manga.
In addition to the chaotic terrain, the spiritual energy in the central region of Western Qu Province, spanning hundreds of millions of miles, was also in disarray.
Spiritual energy, immortal energy, Buddhist energy, and demonic energy mingled and clashed freely, with demonic energy clearly holding the upper hand.
"In such an environment, I fear those dead demons will soon revive, won't they?
Indeed, the Immortal-Demon War on the Taiyuan Continent is imminent."
Sighing inwardly, Yang Hong increased his flying speed.
The spiritual plant teleportation arrays previously planted by Qing Zhongying and other Qingkong Willow Tree Demons in Western Qu Province had been largely destroyed. Even after transporting the last leg, Yang Hong was still tens of millions of miles away from his first target, forcing him to rely on flight.
Even with his formidable strength, he dared not use遁术 in this region of chaotic spiritual energy, and could only advance by sword flight.
He also dared not fly too fast, for fear of colliding with a powerful demonic energy cluster and being corrupted by it.
After flying for a full five months, Yang Hong finally located the first demon sect's secret realm.
A mountain ten thousand zhang high, like a sharp sword pointing towards the heavens, possessed an extraordinary aura.
However, this sword was now half-severed by an even sharper blade, becoming a broken stub. Though still ten thousand zhang high, it was now a stark stone pillar jutting out from the mountains.
A green figure flew from the distant horizon and landed at the base of this stone pillar.
"The Bone Demon Sect's secret realm is located in the underground chamber of Black Rock Sword Peak. I wonder if this secret realm has been discovered."
Upon landing, Yang Hong meticulously searched based on the memories in his mind, and soon found the entrance to the underground chamber amidst a dug-up ruin.
However, the scene clearly indicated that this underground chamber had been discovered. The dilapidated underground chamber was completely excavated, exposed to the sun. The crucial question was whether the secret realm itself had been found.
"The Grand Elder of the Heart Demon Sect only knew that there was a secret realm here, but did not know the method of entry or exit. They could only send a Boundary Breaking Stone once, hoping to recoup the cost."
As he spoke, Yang Hong produced a silver crystal. Pure magical power was injected into it, and a faint silver radiance ignited, like a searchlight sweeping across the surrounding heaven and earth.
However, finding a secret realm was not easy. He searched the chamber from top to bottom but found no trace of the secret realm.
"Huh? The secret realm is still here. Break!"
Just as Yang Hong was about to give up and turn to leave, he suddenly noticed a trace of grayish-white spatial fluctuation on the dilapidated door of the chamber.
Without hesitation, he activated the energy of the Boundary Breaking Stone and transformed into a streak of light, shooting towards the grayish-white spatial fluctuation.
"Quick! Quick, report to the Elder! Someone has found the Bone Demon Sect's secret realm!"
The moment Yang Hong vanished, seven or eight figures appeared in the chamber. Several of them shouted to report to their superiors while frantically searching for a way to enter the secret realm.