Deities: Rulers of Nature

The day after the ceremony ended, as soon as the sun rose, Qinglu, Qingdao, and Chihong stood at the starting point of the pilgrimage route.

The three of them set off on the Jade Road without any temple guards or weapons, only with their clean bodies after a bath and with a devout attitude.

Along the way, they were constantly watched by eyes from the woods; these were unknown wild beasts, but they did not approach the White Jade Road until the three of them had gone far away.

It took the three of them a full three hours to reach the summit of Xishan Mountain.

Even at the foot of the mountain, they could vaguely see the natural oak trees, but they were always indistinct, as if through a veil, even when they reached the halfway point of the mountain.

The hazy feeling suddenly dissipated as soon as I reached the summit.

The summit of Xishan Mountain is a huge, flat circle, with a tall natural oak tree growing in the very center.

The trunk is as thick as dozens of people could hug, and its dark brown bark is covered with mysterious patterns. Its massive canopy covers most of the mountaintop, and every leaf glows with a luminous green light.

A gentle breeze blows, and tiny specks of green light fall, nourishing the vegetation on the mountaintop.

The three of them, Qinglu, had already noticed that the air at the mountain peak was filled with a rich natural fragrance, and just one breath made them feel refreshed.

The natural oak tree and the three people are separated by a lake, which is not as large as the Mirror Lake near the tribe, but is much clearer.

A continuous stream of water gushes from the bottom of the lake, forming streams that flow through Xishan Mountain, nourishing all the creatures in the mountains and forests.

The scene was so sacred and serene that Aoto and Akane held their breath.

Qinglu sensed Ji Xuan's unique aura from the natural oak tree, which was both intimate and imposing.

"Praise be to you, great God of Nature!"

The three of them bowed deeply to the natural oak tree, giving it a very solemn salute, and only straightened up after a long while.

After the ceremony, the three of them walked toward the nearby Crystal Dew Fruit Grove.

Rows of three-meter-tall fruit trees grow neatly, each branch laden with glistening fruits the size of a thumb.

A stream meanders through the lake, flowing through the roots of every fruit tree.

The three of them did not go deeper, but only picked some fruit from the outermost fruit tree.

After picking the fruit, I bowed in the direction of the natural oak tree before heading down the white jade path.

Ji Xuan saw all of this, but he did not show himself.

A month after the sacrificial ceremony, the temple guards finally retrieved the blooming Blood Orchid from the center of the swamp.

The specific process wasn't difficult, but this time only 60 flowers were collected.

The Black Scaled Pythons, after all, do not possess true intelligence; they merely follow their instincts to care for the Blood Orchids, which is why only six Blood Orchids have ever grown in the swamp.

This time, Ji Xuan replenished the nutrients that the six Blood Orchids lacked, causing them to bloom with sixty flowers.

However, with Ji Xuan's care, more Blood Orchids will grow next year, and the snake people who go to the swamp for trials will also irrigate the swamp with snake blood to nourish the Blood Orchids.

Having retrieved all three spiritual plants, the Xishan Serpent Clan officially embarked on the path of bloodline purification.

Qingdao quickly devised a method: first, put the Jade Tong Rice and the water from the Reflecting Moon Pool into a stone pot and simmer them, adding Crystal Dew Fruit pulp during the process, then adding the meat of a Bronze-rank wild beast. After simmering for two hours, add a Blood Orchid.

A whole stone pot of porridge, enough for everyone to have a bowl.

The spiritual energy has been neutralized and is already quite mild, but if it is not consumed through training, it is enough to excite a level 10 snake-man for three days and three nights.

During this time, Qinglu naturally drank the porridge as well.

It felt really amazing. Just a short while after eating it, I could feel a gentle energy spreading from my stomach and merging into my whole body. Even my scales started to heat up. I could clearly feel something deep within my blood being stimulated and changing.

Without delay, he picked up the giant stone lock and began training in the central square.

Over the years, Qinglu has been researching methods for cultivating Qi and blood suitable for the people of Xishan Snake Village, and has achieved considerable results, but they are still not fully integrated.

But this training session was different; Qinglu felt that the sunlight shining on her body had changed.

In a daze, a faint trace of energy appeared in the sunlight.

This feeling is very vague, and you can lose the sensation if you're not careful.

Qinglu put down the stone lock and came to the edge of the altar. She calmed herself down and tried to sense the energy again and again. After trying repeatedly for a long time, she finally succeeded in guiding a wisp into her body.

But the next moment, Qinglu's expression changed.

That energy was extremely violent and incredibly hot; wherever it went, the flesh and blood nearby felt as if they were being roasted by fire.

Qinglu's entire body turned red, even his scales changed color, and beads of sweat the size of beans appeared on his forehead, but he gritted his teeth and didn't utter a sound, enduring the pain to guide that wisp of energy forward.

Every inch the energy travels through, that inch of flesh and blood experiences excruciating pain.

"What's wrong?"

Qingdao had been watching Qinglu ever since he arrived at the altar. He immediately sensed something was wrong but dared not disturb Qinglu. He immediately grasped the Staff of Nature and cast a mild healing spell. The amplified healing energy was condensed and directed towards Qinglu's body.

This was like a timely rain for Qinglu at this moment, and the pain from the burning sensation was instantly relieved by more than half.

With Qingdao's support, Qinglu focused all her attention on that wisp of solar energy.

The pain he endured guiding the energy through that small area wasn't in vain. He discovered that a small part of it didn't hurt as much, and this energy would merge with the gentle spirituality in his blood, nourishing his flesh and blood.

Without a doubt, that's the right direction. Given time, he'll definitely be able to figure out the complete operating method.

As time passed, Seido's face gradually turned pale. Seeing this, Akane immediately stepped forward and released a mild healing spell to replace Seido.

Seido stepped aside to recover his mental strength, and then stepped forward to replace Akane once he had recovered.

The two took turns until they could no longer squeeze out any more spiritual energy, and Qinglu finally succeeded.

The energy followed the correct route that Qinglu had found and circulated throughout the body. Wherever it passed, the energy gradually merged into the flesh and blood. Although it still hurt, it was much more bearable than the previous pain that felt like being roasted by fire.

Once the energy was completely absorbed, Qinglu stood up and clenched his fist. He could clearly feel that the muscles in his body seemed to have condensed.

"How was it?" Crimson asked, his consciousness already somewhat hazy, as the green finally ended.

"It's done."

Qinglu didn't go into details because it was just a framework at the moment, and there were still details he needed to study slowly. Right now, the most important thing was Qingdao and Chihong, whose mental energy was exhausted.

Fortunately, there was Moon Dew; otherwise, Qinglu would have had to pray to the God of Nature for a blessing.

Over the next few days, Qinglv tried to absorb the energy of the sun under different circumstances.

He discovered that the energy of the sun at noon is the most violent and intense. Without the spiritual help of the porridge made from the three kinds of spiritual plants, guiding the energy flow is the most difficult, but the tempering effect on the body is also the most obvious.

Even the greenest plants struggle to maintain a complete cycle.

In comparison, the energy in the early morning and evening is more moderate, and although the training efficiency is not as high as at noon, it is easier to accept.

He named this Qi and Blood Training Method "Sunlight Body Forging".

Qinglu first taught Qingdao and Chihong how to train their bodies with the Sun. With his guidance and assistance, the two learned it without any major problems.

Next came the training of the temple guards. As elites among the snake people, they encountered a few minor setbacks during their studies, but with the timely intervention of the three, Qinglu and his companions, they eventually mastered the skills.

During this process, Qinglv further improved the Sun-Brightening Body Technique.

Finally, the entire population was trained, except for elderly snake people and very young children. All snake people were taught to train their bodies using the Sun.

Thus, in the 528th year of the Divine Calendar, the Snake-People of Xishan finally had a method for refining their Qi and Blood that suited them.

[Information: The Snake-People of Xishan have developed a suitable method for body tempering, taking a step forward on the path to transcendence.]

Ji Xuan watched this scene from the air.

The fact that Qinglv was able to sense and absorb the Sun's energy so quickly is naturally the result of His guidance in secret; otherwise, this process might not have taken much longer.

However, everything that followed was due to Qinglu's own hard work, which made Ji Xuan extremely satisfied.

Sunlight Body Tempering not only allows mortal snake-people to train their bodies and refine their qi and blood more efficiently, but it is also effective for snake-people who have entered the extraordinary realm.

According to Ji Xuan's deduction, the Sun-Brightening Body Tempering will be effective up to the Gold Rank, but the closer to the Gold Rank, the weaker the effect.

This is not the limit of the Sun's Body Forging, but the limit of the Mountain and Sea Divine Realm and the Sun itself.

Solving this problem is both simple and difficult; it requires Ji Xuan to acquire or condense a divine authority such as light.

Currently, there are two types of divine positions that Ji Xuan can most easily condense.

One is the divine office of plants, which requires Ji Xuan to delve deeper into his plant domain; the other is the racial divine office of the snake people, which requires Ji Xuan to work hard to cultivate the snake people.

In comparison, Ji Xuan hoped to condense plant deities.

Not only because the plant godhood is the lowest level of the nature godhood and has great potential for development, but also because once it is condensed, it will allow Ji Xuan to enter the path of weak godhood without any obstacles.

The divine authority of the snake people is different. Unless Ji Xuan cultivates the snake people of Xishan into an extraordinary race and allows their numbers to surge to become one of the mainstream races in the Void Realm, it is possible to advance their divine authority to the level of intermediate divine power. However, if the snake people encounter a great calamity, their divine authority will also be downgraded.

Getting back to the main point, while a divine position of the highest rank is far beyond Ji Xuan's reach, the Snake-Human Race of Xishan cannot achieve the Gold rank in a short time either, so Ji Xuan is not in a hurry.