172: Chapter 172 Secluded Cultivation to Merge Dao Fruit, Grotto-Heaven Evolves into Living Spirit

After sweeping through Wanyao Ridge, slaying three Soul Transformation demon kings, and devouring the Spiritual Veins and Ore of the entire mountain range, Ye Qing did not rush to continue deep into the heart of the Heavenly Demon Imperial Court.

He knew clearly that although he had won battle after battle, the continuous fighting and devouring had made his accumulation somewhat impure. He needed time to settle and digest, to truly transform the massive amount of plundered resources into the foundation of himself and his Cave Heaven World.

He left Wanyao Ridge, which had already turned into a dead zone, and found a hidden cave in the depths of a desolate Gobi desert, rarely visited by humans, further to the west. He set up layers of concealment and defensive Formation, then began another period of Cultivate in seclusion.

He sat cross-legged in the dark cave, sinking his consciousness completely into the Cave Heaven World.

The 1.2 million zhang Cave Heaven World was currently bathed in the silvery radiance shed by the moonlight jade tree and the brilliant starlight falling from the sea of stars, appearing exceptionally magnificent.

The land was vast and boundless, with undulating mountains and winding rivers; even in some low-lying areas, small lakes had begun to form.

The Spiritual Qi permeating the air was so dense it had almost turned into substance; taking a deep breath made one feel refreshed, and the circulation of magic power became much smoother.

The Floating Landmass hovered above the Nine Heavens, its area now comparable to a small continent.

On the landmass, those few dragon transformation grass plants, after devouring massive amounts of Dragon Qi and Spiritual Qi, had not only fully matured but also condensed three crystal-clear dragon saliva fruit at their tips, emitting an alluring fragrance.

The Poison Source Land, after devouring the poison essence of the Blood Wing Demon King and the Ghost Face Spider King, had expanded several times in area. The ten thousand poison soul-eating wood had grown to a height of a hundred zhang, with lush branches and leaves. Its trunk presented a deep purple-black color, emitting a terrifying aura that was heart-palpitating and seemed capable of poisoning an entire world.

What surprised Ye Qing even more was that in the areas of the Cave Heaven World where the Spiritual Qi was most dense and the Law most perfect, those tiny light spots that were originally like fireflies had evolved into more Advanced life forms.

They were energy life forms resembling jellyfish, completely transparent, and emitting a soft, seven-colored light.

They had no fixed form, like clouds, drifting slowly in areas rich in Spiritual Qi, inhaling and exhaling Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, radiating a primitive and pure aura of life.

"The Cave Heaven World... has begun to conceive true life. Although it is only the most basic elemental life, this means that my Cave Heaven World is taking the most critical step toward becoming a truly complete world."

Ye Qing's heart was filled with satisfaction and anticipation.

He began to work on classifying, purifying, and refining the massive amount of resources he had plundered this time.

The corpses of the three Soul Transformation demon kings were cast directly into the ancestral earth vein, allowing it to devour and decompose them, turning them into the purest Earth Qi and life essence to nourish the entire Cave Heaven World.

The hundreds of thousands of Top-Grade Spirit Stone, as well as the mountains of High Grade and Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, were cast into the sea of stars, allowing the stars to devour them and accelerate their evolution, making the sea of stars even more brilliant and the falling starlight even denser.

Those rare Spirit Medicine, Ore, and Materials were transplanted or stored in the corresponding areas of the Cave Heaven World according to their attributes.

As for the captured Magic Treasure and Magical Artifact, apart from a few pieces of extremely High Grade or with special functions that he kept for future research or re-refining, the rest were all devoured by the Cave Heaven World, decomposed into the most primitive energy to reinforce the world's Origin.

Like a diligent gardener, he meticulously tended to this world that belonged to him.

He guided the ancestral earth vein, organizing the underground Spiritual Vein network to make its distribution more reasonable and the energy flow smoother.

He adjusted the trajectory of the sea of stars, causing it to form a more harmonious resonance with the land and the Floating Landmass.

He even began to attempt to integrate his understanding of the Law of Chaos, Law of Void, and Law of Dragon Race into the rules of the Cave Heaven World, guiding it to evolve in a more perfect and higher direction.

Time passed quietly amidst focused Cultivate and evolution.

One month... two months... three months...

When Ye Qing opened his eyes again, it was already half a year later.

His eyes were calm, as if an ancient well without ripples, yet also as if they contained a Chaos Universe that was slowly evolving.

The Chaos Infant Essence within his body had become purer and more vast, surging ceaselessly in his Meridians like a great river, emitting a heavy and profound aura.

His cultivation had steadily entered the Middle Stage of Soul Transformation, and he was only one step away from the Late Stage of Soul Transformation.

And his Cave Heaven World, after devouring massive resources and undergoing his meticulous organization and evolution over the past half year, had undergone earth-shaking changes.

Its area had expanded again, reaching an astonishing two million zhang!

The land was heavier, the mountains more majestic, the rivers wider, and the lakes deeper.

In the sea of stars, countless stars flickered, and some celestial bodies even began to appear, like meteors trailing long tails of flame, shuttling through the sea of stars.

On the Floating Landmass, those three dragon saliva fruit had fully matured, emitting an alluring fragrance, as if summoning him to pick them.

The number of those jellyfish-like elemental life forms had increased, and they were more widely distributed, even beginning to exhibit some simple, instinctual behaviors of seeking advantages and avoiding harm.

"Middle Stage of Soul Transformation, two million zhang Cave Heaven... It is time to go to the core area of the Heavenly Demon Imperial Court for a trip."

Ye Qing stood up and stretched his limbs; his entire skeleton emitted a low rumbling sound like the roar of a dragon.

He took a step, and his figure disappeared from the cave. In the next moment, he had already appeared in the high sky ten thousand miles away, speeding towards the true center of power of the Heavenly Demon Imperial Court—the legendary "Heavenly Demon Holy City" that hovered above the Nine Heavens.