Recruit black physique to start practice in wasteland

Chapter 2416 Dishonest
When Qu Jianlei went into seclusion, he released Bentley and Mu Guang to serve as his own people and assist the other protectors.

Both Min Ning and Wen Xian also released their subordinates—to prevent the news of the other world from leaking out, they carried their subordinates with them at all times.

So, in this gloomy, cold space, which resembled a graveyard, a strange sight appeared.

Surprisingly, there was a small, semi-enclosed space where a large number of living people were active.

Although this place is secluded and boring, there are several cave dwellings, each with its own unique world within.

Some cultivators would occasionally fly out of the semi-enclosed space in groups to seek opportunities in the surrounding area.

Looking for opportunities in a graveyard is quite boring, but...didn't several great masters also discover some opportunities before?
However, the space here is extremely corrosive, and cultivators who venture out to explore it have to return after a period of time.

Therefore, this semi-enclosed space also has the characteristics of a safe haven.

It's worth mentioning that the cultivators who went out to explore didn't come away empty-handed; they would occasionally bring back some strange things.

There's nothing of great value in it, otherwise the True Venerable would have picked it up long ago.

However, items that could stay inside the belly of a Star-Devouring Beast for countless millennia must have some unique characteristics.

Without going into too much detail, corrosion resistance is a given, and the digestive fluid of the Star Devourer... strictly speaking, is a rule, which is extremely powerful.

As time went on, everyone became increasingly certain that this space was formed from the remains of the dead Star Devourer.

Based on Han Li Zhenzun's dozens of divinations, the basic scene of that battle was roughly reconstructed.

Many details cannot be traced back, but one thing is certain: this Star Devouring Beast has completed the basic steps to break through to the Nascent Soul stage.

There is even a strong possibility that this beast has just completed its advancement.

Perhaps it was in dire need of replenishment at the time, or perhaps it had suffered a severe blow for some reason, so it rushed in to devour the battlefield.

Unfortunately, the Galactus was caught in the crossfire and ultimately perished.

Han Li made these calculations mainly to find out where those world cores that had not yet been fully digested came from.

According to the records of the cultivation world, when any world collapses, its core is very easy to dissipate and extremely difficult to preserve.

Many worlds' cores cannot be solidified into a solidified core; when the world collapses, they will dissipate into various forms of energy.

However, the core of a world swallowed by a Stardevourer may be preserved, and some Stardevourers have the ability to extract the essence of the core.

However, these are all legends. In fact, the probability of finding the world core inside the body of a Stardevourer is extremely low.

There are also rumors that the Galactus will eventually spit out the core of the world because it is too difficult for it to digest.

However, there is not much empirical evidence for this, because the core that is spat out will quickly dissipate, and not much will remain.

For the Star Devourer, digesting the core of the world in its own way takes at least a thousand years, and tens of thousands of years is not uncommon.

However, once it is completely digested, its cultivation level will be correspondingly improved.

However, that requires a complete world core. An incomplete core offers limited help to cultivation, but it can at least replenish energy.

What Han Li most wanted to know was: what happened to the original world behind these core fragments of the world?

This is not just out of curiosity, nor is it much related to chance; it's mainly to help him make better use of the core fragments he has.

The core of the world is a good thing, but if we can find fragments of the original world, we can develop more advanced absorption methods.

The Star Devourer dares to devour planets and worlds, showing no fear of cause and effect, and can even erase the causal lines to a certain extent.

At the very least, the causal relationships within the core worlds of its body have long been severed, and no one can deduce them.

Therefore, Han Li could only look back at the information from that battle and try to find relevant clues.

On this day, the old Dharma God found the True Venerable Wenxian and said that the outside world was wonderful and asked if he was interested in going to see it.
The Grandmaster of Array Formation refused outright, saying, "Don't mess with me. They haven't agreed to what you asked for, and this isn't a breakthrough point for me."

As they were talking, a figure flashed by, and True Venerable Qingkong returned.

In the beginning, he would come almost every year to check on the progress of Qu Jianlei's breakthrough.

In fact, it is almost impossible for anything to happen to the person in the initial stage of seclusion; the variables all appear in the later stages.

He mainly used this to get closer to people; relationships are like that—the more you interact, the more you maintain them, and the less you interact, the less you maintain them.

He also wanted to catch up on the recent situation here, and if there were any new opportunities, he wouldn't mind getting involved.

Not to mention anything else, just a single trip through the void takes more than three months. He can come every year, so the time cost he pays is not low.

But after coming for four consecutive years, he suddenly stopped coming, and it wasn't until this year, the ninth year, that he reappeared.

He used his divine sense to lightly knock twice on Han Li's door as a greeting, and then went to find Min Ning.

Of the five who had visited the Empire world, only Min Ning received the Great Protector with relative hospitality.

Qingkong chatted with him for a few minutes, and then explained that the reason he hadn't come for the past few years was because he was being watched.

This sounds a bit unbelievable. Who thinks that life is not worth living and dares to stare at the Grand Protector of Lingyun Sect?
That makes sense, but what if... the person keeping watch is from Lingyun?
It's not like the day or two that Qingkong Zhenzun has been targeted; some people even know that he can contact Quling Master.

As for where the information came from, it is now impossible to verify. Some say it came from the divination of other great masters.

In any case, if you take this kind of thing too seriously, you'll lose. The Great Protector can divine the opponent's fate, but what if the opponent has concealed the secrets of heaven?

Ultimately, it's just a small matter and not worth spending too much energy on. If you really care about it, it just shows that you have a guilty conscience.

Getting back to the topic, someone had been secretly watching Qingkong for a while, but because of his status and cultivation level, they didn't dare to show it.

However, Min Ning, Han Li, and others disappeared after that, and the Great Protector would disappear for about half a year every year, with no known whereabouts.

After a few years, the people within the Lingyun Sect couldn't help but ask what the Great Protector was doing with his frequent outings and what the sect could do to help him.
Qingkong insisted that he was in seclusion, thinking that no one would dare to question him.

However, later on, Baiqiao came to his door and said, "You should calm down for a while. If you have nothing to do, just stay in the clan."

If you insist on going out, something unexpected might happen, and the sect might not be able to intervene then.

In other words, a large part of this pressure likely comes from within the sect itself.

The Grand Protector was also at a loss. You must understand, he was the protector of the Lingyun Sect, not the other way around.

Baiqiao's suggestion was, in essence, a well-intentioned reminder.

Given the Grand Elder's strength and his inherent disbelief in evil, even if he falls into a trap, is surrounded and attacked, and fails... so what?
But at the crucial moment, he suddenly remembered that he had sworn an oath with his true self not to reveal any information about the other world.

He often doesn't like to reason, but he would never challenge the oath he made to Heaven.

Even if he gives up on himself and decides to ignore cause and effect, he still has to consider how to face the pursuit of Han Li's team after the information is leaked.

So he made a decisive decision to postpone his trip to the other world, and that postponement lasted for five years.

He was able to come out this time because the outside world's attention on him has indeed eased a bit.

Moreover, it's been nine years, and it's time to find out what's going on. A third of the time that Xiao Qu spent in seclusion to advance to the next level has already passed.

Qingkong briefly explained his predicament of not being able to come, and then pointed to a ball of light in the middle.

That was the place where Qu Jianlei was in seclusion. "Now, there are just too many people looking for Houde!"

Xiao Qu is in seclusion, and her name cannot be mentioned casually, otherwise she may be disturbed.

Even if they are both True Venerables, Xiao Qu was already at the half-step Nascent Soul stage before she went into seclusion. Their words might interfere with each other.

"No way?" Min Ning was more concerned about the content, and he looked astonished. "Baiqiao hasn't stopped causing trouble yet?"

He knew all too well how Xiao Qu became famous back then; it was purely because that guy had deliberately fueled her popularity.

"We pulled off a 'catch' three years ago," Qingkong Zhenzun said nonchalantly, "but the results... were just so-so."

"News within the sect cannot be kept secret at all; it leaks out like a sieve."

Min Ning nodded slightly; he was well aware of the sect's situation. "Then... how come he's still popular?"

“It’s just that the sect isn’t causing trouble anymore,” Qingkong shook his head casually, “but the fact is that someone suffered losses, and they’re still blaming him.”

"Ultimately, the reason why the other world has been delayed in development is that cultivators are very resentful."

"The resentment of cultivators..." Min Ning said with a half-smile, "is nothing more than the grudges of a few big shots. How much do small cultivators know about it?"

He was very familiar with the ways of the cultivation world; the more sensitive the information and resources, the more likely they were to be controlled by a select few big shots.

If ordinary cultivators were to learn these things and then carelessly spread them, the situation could easily spiral out of control.

"Tsk tsk," the Great Protector shook his head, neither confirming nor denying his statement, "Anyway, I've already told you the news."

"By the way, is Han Li's divination still inconclusive?"

“He gave up and is working with Wenxian to improve the magic crystal conversion array,” Minning replied casually. “It was Xiaoqu who came up with it.”

"What's the point of this?" Venerable Qingkong shook his head dismissively. "How many magic crystals are there in total!"

He wasn't surprised by the news, because when he first came here, Qu Jianlei had told him that they could work on energy conversion.

“Anyway, I’m just idling around,” Min Ning replied casually. Protecting the Dharma is a very tiring job, so you always have to find something to do.

However, in fact, after Han Li started researching this project, he gradually began to take it seriously, instead of initially dismissing it.

The more he thought about energy conversion, the more interesting it became. In the end, he discovered that it would lead to a change at the very source.

Even for a Grandmaster of Out-of-Body Realm, this is a phenomenon worth studying.

Min Ning understood Han Li's change, but there was no need to tell the Great Protector about it.

Qingkong Zhenzun didn't pay much attention, because he was focused on another question: "You mean... he often comes out of seclusion?"

(Updated to: Calling for monthly tickets, subscriptions, and recommendation votes.)