Although she was determined to return to the Tianji Region, this was ultimately a matter that required careful planning.
The current situation in Yunzhong was chaotic, making it a poor time to venture out. Moreover, crossing the South Sea with her current cultivation level was far too dangerous. Considering these two points, Mo Tiange could only force herself to be patient and proceed slowly. One hundred and twenty years should be enough.
The days that followed were monotonous. Nie Wushang never left her cave abode, and Mo Tiange also kept to herself, cultivating daily, studying Mo Yaoqing's cultivation insights, and reviewing ancient texts. Every so often, she would go out to purchase necessary supplies and gather information.
With Yunzhong's high-level cultivators gathered in the Guixu Sea, rumors circulated daily within Guifang City.
Not long after, word spread in Guifang City that those cultivators had discovered traces of the Heavenly Demon Tower. The first cultivator to obtain it had already perished in the Guixu Sea, and the object had fallen into the hands of a rogue cultivator.
Later, it was rumored that the rogue cultivator had fled for several days before being discovered by a Demon Lord, who killed him on the spot and seized the Heavenly Demon Tower. Unfortunately, several great cultivators from Dongtang Country also discovered it at the same time, leading to a fierce struggle.
In this struggle, Buddhist and Confucian sects from Nanzhou Country were also drawn in. Hundreds, even thousands, of Core Formation cultivators clashed fiercely in the Guixu Sea, while numerous Nascent Soul cultivators likewise shed all pretense of civility.
These rumors persisted for several years. Every time Mo Tiange went out, she heard news of some cultivator from some sect perishing.
Regarding this matter, Mo Tiange and Nie Wushang discussed privately that this incident would likely lead to a major reshuffling of power in Yunzhong. The loss of so many cultivators, all at the Core Formation level or above, would spell doom for many smaller sects.
Sure enough, the subsequent rumors in Guifang City were all about how many more cultivators had fallen.
This turmoil lasted for over twenty years before finally subsiding. In the initial years, cultivators from all sides fought fiercely over the Heavenly Demon Tower, a daily storm of blood and violence. During this period, many small sects were wiped out as a result. Later, the struggle was limited to the Nascent Soul cultivators of the major sects. At the same time, as cultivators from various factions returned to their respective sects, the battlefield was no longer confined to the Guixu Sea.
But before long, who exactly ended up with the Heavenly Demon Tower became a matter of endless debate, impossible to clarify.
It became common for feuding sects to accuse each other of possessing the Heavenly Demon Tower as a pretext for seeking revenge, plunging Yunzhong into chaos.
In the final ten years, the storm gradually calmed. Each sect, having suffered heavy losses, closed its doors to recuperate, and Yunzhong finally quieted down.
As for who ultimately obtained the Heavenly Demon Tower, no one knew.
From beginning to end, this upheaval benefited no faction except the one that acquired the Heavenly Demon Tower. Instead, they all lost many outstanding Core Formation cultivators, and even Nascent Soul cultivators.
Some even suspected it was all a conspiracy—a plot to pit Yunzhong's major powers against each other and deplete their strength.
Yet the emergence of the Heavenly Demon Tower was beyond doubt. Many cultivators had personally witnessed this sacred object. Unfortunately, before they could fully understand its usage, it had already been snatched away by others.
Hearing all this, Mo Tiange thought to herself, how could these Nascent Soul cultivators not have considered that this might be a conspiracy? But as long as the Heavenly Demon Tower was real, even if they suspected it, they would still willingly jump into the trap.
Advancing to the Deity Transformation stage—for these Nascent Soul cultivators who had nearly reached their limits and had little hope of further advancement—was worth risking their very lives.
Living in Guifang City, what Mo Tiange heard most about were the affairs of Demon Lord Guifang and his subordinates.
Over a decade ago, Demon Lord Guifang had already returned to Guifang City with his disciples. In this conflict, while Guifang City's foundations were not shaken, its losses were still considerable.
For instance, among Demon Lord Guifang's major disciples, the two most likely to advance to Nascent Soul had perished in the turmoil. This caused great concern among the demonic cultivators of Guifang City.
Although Demon Lord Guifang was powerful, ranking among the Three Great Demon Lords, his remaining lifespan was truly not long. Some had calculated he had at most five hundred years left. Within those five hundred years, if Guifang City did not produce a powerful successor with profound cultivation and great strength, it would become a target for other powers. This was absolutely not good news for Guifang City.
Yet some optimists pointed out that Demon Lord Guifang's exceptionally talented youngest disciple had already advanced to mid-stage Core Formation. In five hundred years, he might smoothly advance to Nascent Soul. By then, Guifang City could still maintain its current status as one of the Three Great Demon Domains. Besides, although Guifang City had suffered losses, the other two great demon domains had also lost large numbers of disciples. No one was better off than the others, so what did it matter?
This view found many supporters. After all, these low-level cultivators themselves wouldn't live five hundred years. Once they were dead, why care about the floods to come?
The youngest disciple of Demon Lord Guifang these cultivators spoke of was likely Yang Chengji. So it seemed that not only had Yang Chengji emerged unscathed from the over twenty years of turmoil, but he had also advanced to mid-stage Core Formation. Moreover, Heaven itself seemed to aid him, causing his rival senior brother to perish in the chaos. Thus, his current days could be considered a turn from bitterness to sweetness, riding the wind of success.
With no senior brothers or sisters above him, he became Demon Lord Guifang's disciple most likely to advance to Nascent Soul. Guifang City would surely support him with all its resources. From now on, no one would suppress him, and he would become the true young master of Guifang City.
Over these twenty-odd years, Nie Wushang's refinement of the Origin Demonic Qi proceeded relatively smoothly, though the pace was somewhat slow. To this day, she had only dissolved about one-third. Calculating thus, it would take another fifty years for her to fully subdue this Origin Demonic Qi for her own use.
However, Nie Wushang indicated that the subdued Origin Demonic Qi had greatly increased her cultivation. She estimated that in a few years, she could advance to late-stage Core Formation. If she could successfully subdue all this Origin Demonic Qi within fifty years, she could then advance to Nascent Soul.
Nie Wushang was now a demonic cultivator. Matters of mental cultivation were no longer so crucial to her. Directly entering closed-door cultivation here until advancing to Nascent Soul was also fine.
As for Mo Tiange, her cultivation over these twenty-odd years had also progressed smoothly. She did not excessively consume pills, but with her innate talent, Mo Yaoqing's cultivation insights, and the dense spiritual energy of the Void Heaven Realm, her focused dedication resulted in a terrifyingly fast cultivation speed. She had now reached the peak of mid-stage Core Formation and could enter closed-door cultivation to attempt a breakthrough to the late stage.
Although she felt her cultivation progress this time had been too rapid, Mo Tiange still decided to advance to the late stage first.
Matters had their priorities. Her biggest problem now was not overly fast cultivation, but insufficient cultivation level. Therefore, even with concerns about an unstable foundation, she still decided to advance first. As for issues of mental state, she could consider them when advancing to Nascent Soul; it wasn't too late.
Having made this decision, Mo Tiange spent some time purchasing items needed for closed-door cultivation, informed Nie Wushang, and entered the Void Heaven Realm to begin her seclusion.
Sitting in the small hut within the Void Heaven Realm, Mo Tiange did not immediately begin cultivating.
Over these twenty-odd years, she hadn't spent all her time on cultivation. She had also gone through all the books within the Void Heaven Realm.
The Fusheng Sword in her hand—she had used artifact refining techniques to grind away the rust. Although it hadn't regained its former glory, it now faintly emitted a subtle radiance.
She took the Fusheng Sword from her Qiankun Bag. The blade resembled a pool of autumn water, cold and gleaming. The hilt had an ancient, simple design. Looking closely, two archaic characters were engraved upon it: Fusheng.
Although it was no longer covered in rust, the entire sword was enveloped by a faint, almost imperceptible layer of demonic energy. This demonic energy appeared very thin, but Mo Tiange had tried and found she could not remove it.
She guessed that after remaining in the demonic domain for tens of thousands of years, the demonic energy, originally not powerful, had accumulated into a formidable force, gradually corroding the masterless Fusheng Sword. Tens of thousands of years of accumulation—no matter how powerful the Fusheng Sword originally was, it could not withstand the erosion of time.
She had once asked Nie Wushang how to handle such a situation. Nie Wushang said there was no solution. Although she had been raised by Perfected One Songfeng, the Primordial Demon Method differed from standard demonic cultivation techniques. Moreover, this situation was too unique; she had no way of knowing.
Mo Tiange then searched the books left by the previous owner of the Void Heaven Realm for related information. In the end, it was Feifei who told her that in ancient times, there was a secret treasure called Spirit-Tempering Water. This substance was the bane of demonic energy, said to be able to cleanse anything related to demonic energy.
Feifei, bored in the Void Heaven Realm, aside from cultivating and playing with Xiaohuo, spent its time flipping through books. Being a divine beast, its intelligence was no less than a human's, and its memory was even better, almost photographic.
Mo Tiange found that book. Indeed, it contained a record of Spirit-Tempering Water. However, this water only occasionally appeared in the immortal paradises of ancient times, making it extremely rare and precious.
The places called immortal paradises in ancient times had long since vanished from the world, with nowhere to find them. Greatly disappointed, Mo Tiange could only temporarily give up. Occasionally, she would take out the Fusheng Sword to examine it, researching whether there were other methods to eliminate the demonic energy.
Actually, according to what Demon Lord Xuanyue had said, the current Fusheng Sword already possessed considerable power. Using it as a magical treasure wouldn't be a problem. But if the demonic energy on it could be cleansed, the sword could regain its former sharpness. Since this sword was the personal weapon of Fuyaozi, the greatest cultivator in Yunzhong's history, how powerful a magical treasure would it be if restored to its former might? Even though Mo Tiange wasn't overly greedy for magical treasures, the thought still stirred excitement within her.
Putting away the Fusheng Sword, she laid out the items she had purchased for this seclusion.
Although she didn't need many spirit herbs, over twenty years of secluded cultivation had still cost her a great deal of Spirit Stones. The Void Heaven Realm had most spirit herbs, but there were always some supplementary ingredients not available here that needed purchasing. Array tools, talismans, and such—while each purchase wasn't expensive, the cumulative cost was considerable. This was Guifang City; items for Daoist cultivators weren't cheap.
Over these twenty-odd years, Mo Tiange watched her purse flatten. In the past, her stipend from the sect was substantial. Bixuan Pavilion had also delivered tens of thousands of Spirit Stones to her at one point. Added to the many Qiankun Bags she picked up within the Heavenly Demon Mountain and the belongings of the cultivators she had slain, she once didn't give Spirit Stones a second thought.
But no matter how many Spirit Stones she had, they couldn't withstand so many years of spending without income. Moreover, expenses at the Core Formation stage were inherently high.
Realizing this, Mo Tiange began to budget carefully. As long as she controlled herself, spending only when necessary, the Spirit Stones on her should be enough to see her through to forming her Nascent Soul. Once she became a Nascent Soul Cultivator, she naturally wouldn't need to worry about Spirit Stones anymore.
At the end of these thoughts, she shook her head, casting aside these miscellaneous matters. After tidying up the clutter, she sat cross-legged on the meditation cushion, began to embrace the origin and guard the one, inhaling and exhaling in rhythm.
This time in closed-door cultivation, she must advance to late-stage Core Formation.