Ning Qi sighed softly.

Obviously, the further one goes, the fewer opportunities there are, and it might even become impossible for those who come later to achieve Martial Saint.

This might seem somewhat unfair to future generations, as the pathway upwards grows increasingly narrow, but in the face of world crises, there are more pressing concerns.

Soon, he grasped a blind spot.

"Then what is the current Spiritual Awakening all about, and why has the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi changed into that former state?"

The Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint said:

"This involves another decision, namely the Saints' Pact."

"Eradicating the Martial Saint Technique to prevent an abundance of Tao Marks can only buy time. According to our calculations, as long as Life Poison exists, even if not a single new Martial Saint is born, over time, this world's channel will once again be constructed."

"We know that the great war is bound to return someday!"

"And the last time we managed to win, it was entirely due to the will of the world. But now, that will has fallen asleep, and we have no idea when it will awaken, so this becomes the focal point."

"After continuous discussion and deduction, we finally settled on a decision."

"Which is — to strip away the Spirit, hide it deep within the world, and ultimately let it erupt!"

At this point.

A trace of pride surfaced on the Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint's face. This earth-shattering plan consumed generations' efforts.

Ning Qi's gaze was fixed.

Previously, Taoist Baishan had mentioned that the Spirit being hidden was artificial, and it turned out it was a collective decision by the Martial Saints.

"How is this related to awakening the will of the world?" Ning Qi already had some guesses.

The Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint chuckled:

"Surely, you've used a bow and arrow? The greatest power of the bowstring erupts when it's drawn the tightest. By stripping away and concealing the Spirit, and then letting it erupt after a long period, the impact will be maximized, inevitably awakening the will of the world, perhaps even surpassing its peak!"

Ning Qi nodded.

He felt that using a spring as a metaphor might be more appropriate. He was somewhat in awe, realizing one shouldn't underestimate the wisdom of people worldwide, as these extraordinary ideas are truly remarkable.

"This is a grand project. Generations have hidden the Spirit until it was wholly achieved thousands of years ago. During this process, the manifestation was the decreasing concentration of Spiritual Qi, until it ultimately transformed into what you know as the Power of Heaven and Earth. During this era, it was also referred to as the End of Dharma Era."

"This plan achieves three benefits with one move."

"Firstly, the concealed Spirit can be used to restore the will of the world."

"Secondly, after the Spirit is concealed, it can suppress Life Poison to a certain extent."

"Thirdly, it complements our previous plan of eradicating the Martial Saint Technique. Once Spiritual Qi ceases to exist entirely, even with the Martial Saint Technique, one cannot set foot into Martial Sainthood."

"In response to this, we old-timers from the previous era survived by various means, during which some perished, while others gifted and talented joined."

"It wasn't until the present era that we collectively revived."

"This is the Saints' Pact!"

His words fell.

The Seeking Tao Institute was utterly silent.

Waves surged in Ning Qi's heart, and he had to admit that when all the truths were revealed, he was quite astonished.

He had previously guessed there might be external enemies, but he hadn't expected them to be so formidable.

"So, is the will of the world about to awaken too?" Ning Qi asked.

The Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint nodded:

"Correct, once the Spirit has awakened, and after some time, when the deep-rooted Spiritual Qi completely stabilizes, the will of the world will fully awaken. At that time, it will be a great opportunity for us."

Ning Qi was startled. If even the Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint called it an opportunity, it likely involved the mysterious and unfathomable Divine Power Realm.

"After a while, we will convene a Martial Saint assembly to explain the situation to the newly ascended Martial Saints. No matter what, we have a common enemy."

"Mountain and Sea Realm!"

The Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint gazed into the distance, as if wanting to pierce through the sky.

Ning Qi remained silent.

"Is the world channel of the Mountain and Sea Realm about to open again?"

The Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint said softly:

"Indeed, even though we've done our best to control the number of Martial Saint Tao Marks, with the prolonged erosion of Life Poison, the world channel will inevitably reconnect. So, controlling the number of Martial Saints is pointless. Hence, all Martial Artists in the Celestial Being Perfection state were granted the Martial Saint Technique during this Spiritual Awakening."

"Be prepared to fight."

Ning Qi said:

"How long do we have?"

The Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint shook his head:

"Maybe ten years, maybe five, maybe at the next moment, who knows?"

He seemed somewhat carefree.

Seeing Ning Qi's grave expression, he smiled and said:

"Don't worry, unless something unexpected happens, we should be fine until the will of the world awakens."

Ning Qi exhaled deeply.

He didn't know how he felt inside.

He longed for eternal life.

But he had never found hope in the Martial Realm, and even the rumors of ascension were vague. Now he finally knows that ascending is real, and there are upper realms with more powerful beings possessing even longer lifespans.

Yet, his emotions were mixed.

That upper realm... is the enemy indeed.

Considering eternal life now seemed premature. The most important thing was overcoming the looming obstacles, and he felt a sense of urgency.

Ning Qi said:

"Since I've understood the cause and effect, I will shoulder the responsibilities of Red Sun Martial Saint and Martial Saint Zi Yue."

He wasn't unreasonable.

Red Sun Martial Saint and Martial Saint Zi Yue were indeed the main forces against the invaders. Since he killed them, he wouldn't pretend nothing happened. Currently, everyone is in the same boat; if one prospers, all prosper; if one suffers, all suffer.

The Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint waved his hand with a sigh:

"I already know the fault isn't yours; it's just a pity. The previous act was merely to see your current strength, so please don't mind."

Ning Qi shook his head.

He had known from the start that the Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint bore him no ill will; otherwise, he wouldn't have shared so much with him.

The two sat in silence, quietly sipping tea.

After a moment.

The Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint stood up leisurely:

"Thank you for the Enlightenment Tea today, young friend. I have something to gift you."

With those words.

He pointed with his finger, and a mass emitting a heavy aura flew out from his chest pocket.

Ning Qi looked over and saw a palm-sized stone, dark yellow throughout with natural patterns, and his eyes lit up as he detected a rich Earth Qi aura from it.

"This is the Earth Vein Essence Stone; it might be of some help to you, young friend," the Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint said with a cheerful smile.

Indeed.

Ning Qi was very tempted.

He was just short of Earth Qi to step into the Fifth Realm Martial Saint. Although he needed to grind on his own for it, with the Earth Vein Essence Stone, he could save a lot of effort. He regretted a little, thinking that if he had this treasure on the day of Spiritual Awakening, he might have reached the Fifth Realm Martial Saint in one leap.

Yet for now, it was just the timely aid he needed.

Not being pretentious, he thanked him:

"With gratitude, I will shamelessly accept it. Thank you, Senior Zhan Tian."

The Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint waved his hand with a laugh:

"Consider it an apology for visiting with a blade today."

He recognized Ning Qi's world-defying potential, regrettably lamenting his late emergence in the world, for perhaps the Martial Realm could have produced an unprecedented powerhouse, but even now, Ning Qi's power surpassed most Ancient Saints, standing at the pinnacle of the Martial Realm.

He didn't mind giving Ning Qi a hand.

This was also helping himself.

After speaking.

The Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint glanced at the Enlightenment Tea Tree before leaving through the air.

Ning Qi looked at the Earth Vein Essence Stone in his hand, slightly dazed.

The arrival of the Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint took him somewhat by surprise.

"The Mountain and Sea Realm..."

He muttered to himself, gripping the Earth Vein Essence Stone tighter.

He felt that he needed to seize the time to step into the Fifth Realm Martial Saint or even stronger.

Ning Qi never relied on others for hope, not even the will of the world could ease his mind.

"Perhaps, I must quickly visit the True Martial Hall."

He wished to hear what the old Profound Turtle had to say, realizing that not all could be taken at face value from the Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint, for there might be information unknown even to him.

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