Chapter 10: The Return of the True Master

New rules were introduced by the Three Tripod Gate, requiring cultivators at different levels to go to corresponding planets.
Cultivators in the Qi Attraction stage, Foundation Building stage, and Golden Core stage should practice on small planets.
Those in the Nascent Soul stage, Soul Departure stage, and Divided Mind stage should practice on medium-sized planets.
Cultivators in the Fusion stage, Calamity Crossing stage, and Great Vehicle stage should practice on large planets.
As soon as these new rules were announced, they spread throughout the entire cultivation world, and all cultivators quickly learned of them.
“Doesn’t this rule from the Three Tripod Gate mean confining us cultivators? Will we be forced to stay on just one planet from now on?”
“Won’t this rule completely dismantle all the existing sect forces? The sect leader goes to large planets, the elders go to medium-sized planets, and the lower-level disciples stay behind.”
“It restricts our mobility as cultivators. How will we find other materials for cultivation going forward?”
“People from various cultivation families will now have to be distributed across different planets.” …
Once again, the entire cultivation world saw a surge of activity due to these new rules from the Three Tripod Gate.
Naturally, many existing powerful factions, major sects, and large families were furious at such rules—clear attempts to disperse their strength and weaken them.
Yet, no amount of resistance would help. The sects, families, and organizations on various planets had already declared allegiance to the Three Tripod Gate, so they could no longer resist; otherwise, they would face brutal suppression.
While there were objections, some cultivators agreed with the rules. After all, in the past, weaker cultivators often died before they could grow strong, killed by more powerful ones. By restricting the mobility of cultivators at different levels, it would be much easier for those at lower levels to cultivate.
In the cultivation world, cultivators at lower levels made up the vast majority. Thus, although these rules restricted the mobility of some powerful cultivators, they were highly beneficial for those with lower cultivation levels. As a result, the rules were implemented smoothly.
The Three Tripod Gate sent Calamity Crossing stage elders, Fusion stage masters, and Divided Mind stage enforcers to various planets to oversee the selection of cultivators there.
On small planets, all cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage and above were invited to leave, allowing them to choose which medium-sized planet to go to.

On the medium-sized planets, those cultivators at the Convergence Phase or above all left on their own to head to the larger planets that interested them. Of course, these medium-sized planets also tried their best to attract cultivators at the Nascent Soul Phase or above from smaller planets.

The larger planets were much quieter; they only needed to accommodate those cultivators at the Convergence Phase or above who came from various planets.

These migration activities were strictly supervised by the representatives of the Three Tripod Sect on each planet. Those cultivators who refused to leave were simply killed on the spot. The Three Tripod Sect now controlled the entire cultivation realm and showed no mercy to those who dared to offend its authority.

The power dynamics among the various planets in the cultivation realm were entering a new phase once again.

……

Two years were almost up.

In a forest of breathtaking beauty on the Qianhua Continent of Liupan Planet,

Qu Yi’s five avatars had been cultivating under a giant tree. The Four Venerables—Gold, Wood, Water, and Earth—were comprehending primordial energy and grasping the power of the origin. As for the Fire Venerable, he was using the Star Luo Ding to get familiar with various crafting materials.

The Star Luo Ding contained countless parallel spaces. With the Fire Venerable’s current cultivation level at the Great Vehicle Phase, he could open ten thousand parallel spaces, control different fire intensities within them, and insert various materials to determine their properties.

Most of the materials obtained by Qu Yi’s five avatars from the ten major sects had already been given to the Fire Venerable. As a result, he had spent nearly seven years familiarizing himself with most of the crafting materials in the cultivation realm.

At the same time, he had completed the basic part of the “Fire Control Art” he was practicing, reaching a level where he could summon fire at will.

It could be said that among those in the cultivation realm, the Fire Venerable was the absolute best at controlling true fire.

Finally, the Fire Venerable placed the last crafting material, the Luo Bing Jade, into the Star Luo Ding and burned it with the Xuan Ji True Fire. He thus mastered the properties of the Luo Bing Jade and learned what types of arrays it could withstand.

“Four Venerables, I have completed burning the crafting materials and mastered the array properties of all of them,” the Fire Venerable said joyfully after stopping the Star Luo Ding.

The Four Venerables—Gold, Wood, Water, and Earth—who were sitting on the ground nearby immediately opened their eyes upon hearing his words.

“Fire Venerable, well done.”

“Fire Venerable, don’t be arrogant. Next, it’s your turn to craft ten thousand Soul Compasses.”

“Fire Venerable, this venerable one also wants you to craft one million Three Tripod Towers. You’ll need to work hard.”

“Fire Venerable, the four of us are about to comprehend the primal forces. I hope that during your process of crafting artifacts, you can also grasp the primal force of fire.” Instantly, the Gold Venerable, Wood Venerable, Water Venerable, and Earth Venerable all laughed and spoke, offering both encouragement and urging.

Ten thousand Soul Compasses were something the Artifact God required Qu Yi to complete, saying it was a very meaningful task that must be finished. As for the Three Cauldron Towers, they were related to Qu Yi’s third step in unifying the cultivation world—placing one such tower on each cultivation planet as a training center for the Three Cauldron Sect.

Now, Qu Yi’s five avatars had already transformed into bodies of primal energy. They only needed to unleash their respective primal forces to advance their soul realms to the perfect stage of Mahayana, after which they could ascend. There were six primal forces for each of the five elements, but for now, they only needed to comprehend one of them.

Over these seven years, the Gold Venerable, Wood Venerable, Water Venerable, and Earth Venerable had sat on the ground, constantly comprehending the primal forces of metal, wood, water, and earth. Meanwhile, Fire Venerable, while using the Star Luo Cauldron, practiced the “Fire Control Art,” which accelerated his progress in understanding the primal force of fire.

Upon hearing their responses, Fire Venerable smiled and replied, “Don’t worry, the four of you. Over these seven years, I’ve been constantly practicing the Fire Control Art. I believe I’ll be the first among us to comprehend the primal force.”

“Let’s see then,” the Gold Venerable, Wood Venerable, Water Venerable, and Earth Venerable replied, clearly unimpressed.

With that, they immediately closed their eyes and resumed comprehending their own primal forces. Seeing this, Fire Venerable shrugged, turned on the Star Luo Cauldron again, and placed the Dream Soul Stone, Five Constellations Stone, and Witch Spirit Crystal inside to begin crafting the Soul Compasses.

Between crafting the Soul Compasses and the Three Cauldron Towers, Fire Venerable decided to finish the Soul Compasses first. After all, it was something the Artifact God had specifically instructed him about, and it was crucial for Qu Yi’s future cultivation—there was no room for slackness. As for the Three Cauldron Towers, they were merely symbolic, representing the emblem of the Three Cauldron Sect. Even if they were left to the sect’s cultivators to craft later, it was fine. So Fire Venerable wasn’t in a hurry.

Qu Yi’s five avatars continued their cultivation beneath the giant tree.

…

Qu Yi’s true self was currently in the Five Elements Extreme Realm, holding his wife Bai Man’s hand as they sat on a starship, traveling between various planets.

At this moment, Qu Yi himself arrived on a planet. Qu Yi and Bai Man stepped down from the starship, still holding hands, smiling at each other with joy evident on their faces. “Senior sister, after sending away five clones, we’ve been in this Five Elements Extreme Realm for seven years now. Now, we’ve reached the last planet with chaotic energy. Once we collect all of it, we can return to the cultivation realm,” Qu Yi said with a smile. Bai Man looked at Qu Yi, her expression changing—she seemed reluctant. “Qu Yi, once you return to the cultivation realm, you’ll be busy with other things again. You won’t be able to stay with me like this. Besides, you’re about to ascend to the Immortal Realm, and I won’t be able to see you anymore…” Bai Man’s eyes moistened as she spoke. It turned out that these seven years spent with Qu Yi had been the happiest time for her, and she had developed an attachment to him. The thought of him leaving filled her with pain; she didn’t want to be separated from him. Qu Yi could only hug Bai Man and whisper in her ear, “Senior sister, don’t worry. I’ll return to the cultivation realm. How could I forget you?” Bai Man’s face turned red as she twisted her hands around Qu Yi’s waist. Qu Yi laughed gently until Bai Man’s mood improved, then said, “Senior sister, I’m going to collect the chaotic energy now.” After saying that, he sent Bai Man back into the Dimension Ball, then used his divine formula card to create a crack in the ground and rushed straight toward the planet’s core. Soon, he reached the core and discovered a chaotic energy space that formed its own realm. He immediately compressed the chaotic energy in that space into chunks of chaotic crystals using his hands. After a day, all the chaotic energy in the planet’s core had been compressed by Qu Yi, yielding 30,000 chaotic crystals. Naturally, these crystals were stored inside the Dimension Ball. Over those seven years, Qu Yi had searched throughout the Five Elements Extreme Realm and gathered no less than 50 million chaotic crystals. These crystals would serve as a supply for Qu Yi’s body whenever it needed chaotic energy. After finishing the collection, Qu Yi quickly returned to the planet’s surface. Bai Man emerged from the Dimension Ball again. “Senior sister, the chaotic energy has been collected. Let’s leave this Five Elements Extreme Realm and return to the cultivation realm now,” Qu Yi said gently, looking at Bai Man. “Mm, let’s go back,” Bai Man said softly, biting her lip. Qu Yi wrapped his arms around Bai Man’s waist and then activated the Boundless Stars, disappearing.