Chongxiao Sacred Land, Saint Lord's Dao Palace.
Returning to the vast and boundless interior of the Dao Palace, Fang Mingjing immediately saw Jiang Jiu Ge sitting there, leisurely pouring tea for himself.
"Master."
"Reached the mid-stage of the Condensation Truth Realm?"
Jiang Jiu Ge raised an eyebrow.
While his master wasn't the most reliable, he was aware of Fang Mingjing's aversion to cultivation, which made him surprised by this sudden increase in Fang Mingjing's cultivation.
"Yeah, I trained yesterday."
"You did well in the secret realm, but losing the Dragon Elephant Essence Blood was a bit of a shame."
"...That stuff's useless to me anyway."
Fang Mingjing sat down with a nonchalant expression.
A delicate celadon teacup appeared on the table, and Jiang Jiu Ge filled it with tea from his teapot.
"It's indeed useless to your Great Sun Divine Body, but it might be different for Evil God," Jiang Jiu Ge chuckled, his expression a little mysterious. "If you had given her the Dragon Elephant Essence Blood, she might already have transformed by now."
"Transformed?"
"Right. Once a demon beast reaches the peak of the Life玄 Realm, it can attempt to transform. However, the tribulation they need to cross for transformation is far more terrifying than the Heavenly Tribulation for breaking through to the Heavenly Life Realm. Therefore, not many demon beasts want to take that step."
Whether cultivators or demon beasts, once they reach the peak of the Life玄 Realm, they must endure a tribulation to advance further.
In the Middle Realm Continent, how terrifying is the tribulation?
Let's put it this way, unless they are incredibly talented with profound foundations, the majority of cultivators meet their demise facing the first few Heavenly Tribulations...
Heavenly Life Realm, Heavenly Life Realm...
It is precisely because of the fearsome nature of the Heavenly Tribulation and the rarity of surviving it that this realm is called the Heavenly Life Realm.
"..."
Fang Mingjing remained silent for a while.
Evil God is already in the mid-stage of the Heavenly Life Realm, yet she hasn't chosen to transform. This alone suggests that the tribulation required for transformation might be far more terrifying than he imagined...
"Would a Tribulation Pill be useful to her?"
"Yes."
A peaceful smile appeared on Jiang Jiu Ge's face. "But a Tribulation Pill can only guarantee a sliver of hope for the person undergoing the tribulation. And demon beasts have only one chance to transform."
"So strict?"
"It has to be strict, because demon beast transformation is a violation of the Heavenly Dao. If it weren't, everything would be chaotic."
"..."
This time, Fang Mingjing didn't respond.
He stared at Jiang Jiu Ge with a mischievous glint in his eyes, thinking, - If I weren't weaker now, I'd definitely give him a beating. Why didn't he mention this so important thing earlier?
It was obvious that Jiang Jiu Ge knew Fang Mingjing wouldn't care for the Dragon Elephant Essence Blood, which was why he only explained its usefulness to Evil God now.
This guy is too bad, he's a total scoundrel!
Fang Mingjing silently picked up his teacup, watching the swirling steam and contemplating whether to splash it on Jiang Jiu Ge's face when he wasn't looking...
"Alright, after tea, I'll show you something."
Jiang Jiu Ge's smile faded, and he stood up.
Fang Mingjing rarely saw him being so serious, so he set down his teacup.
Jiang Jiu Ge patted his young shoulder, and with just that one gesture,
"..."
Everything in his vision changed.
The vast interior of the Dao Palace suddenly transformed into a space devoid of everything.
It was truly devoid of everything...
Only an expanse of pure white, with no path discernible, no sun or moon, just an ancient and heavy door standing silently before them.
"What is this?"
"The door leads to the Upper Realm."
"The Upper Realm?"
"Yes, above the Middle Realm Continent lies a world even more magnificent...but that's all in the past now."
A hint of melancholy laced Jiang Jiu Ge's voice.
Before Fang Mingjing could voice his confusion, Jiang Jiu Ge continued speaking, "According to the information left by the previous Saint Lord, the Upper Realm seems to have been polluted one day."
"No one knows the source of that pollution. All we know is that the Upper Realm couldn't resist it with its own power."
"And the pollution spread incredibly fast."
"Within a year, the Upper Realm was essentially lost...In those final moments, to prevent the pollution from spreading, the Upper Realm combined with the Lower Realm to seal off the passage."
"And guarding this passage has been the sacred land's duty for the past 100,000 years."
Jiang Jiu Ge's voice carried a note of solemnity as he finished.
"...I understand."
A flippant response.
While what Jiang Jiu Ge had told him was unexpected, it only felt unexpected.
As long as the passage remained secure, wouldn't that be enough?
Fang Mingjing had no interest in the supposedly polluted Upper Realm, and as long as he simply watched over this passage, he didn't see any reason for concern.
After all, his talent was extraordinary, and he also had the chat group, a golden finger at his disposal. The limitations of this world wouldn't hold him back.