Chapter 211

Aside from improving its quality, the mysterious power Chen Yang spread also caused strange changes in the four-leafed spirit-receiving grass.

After evolving, a pale gray stripe appeared on its turquoise green body.

When a breeze passed, the grass swayed and bent its stems toward Chen Yang’s location as if bowing in worship.

Chen Yang silently acknowledged this before floating deeper into Song Mountain, leaving the other three spiritual plants untouched.

He had no ties to the remaining three, and his current stock of mysterious power was too limited.

Though he’d gathered the power of wishes for years, the jade tower of the Star Palace had only given back a portion the size of a watermelon.

He’d already given a third to Yang Yuanhong and a small fragment to the four-leafed spirit-receiving grass.

The rest had to be saved for other cultivators of the Yang Family, so he couldn’t afford to waste it.

This trip into the mountains had one purpose: digging.

Over the next few days, low-level monsters fled from Song Mountain into deeper ranges.

They ignored the danger of invading stronger monsters’ territories because something far scarier haunted their home.

A gray phantom roamed Song Mountain, devouring soil, trees, rocks, and rivers.

Wherever it went, vast stretches of land vanished—even entire monster nests were swallowed whole.

This phantom also had a strange habit: after eating, it would clean up the mess, erasing all traces of its feast.

Terrified of becoming its next meal, the monsters hid deeper in the mountains.

Only after ten days, when the phantom stopped appearing, did the surviving creatures cautiously return.

Inside the stone cave:

After channeling over forty streams of true essence, Chen Yang stabilized the cave’s spiritual energy and ecosystem.

Such an amount was unimaginable for a typical Condensing Essence cultivator.

A newly ascended first-level practitioner at the Condensing Essence stage usually held around thirty streams of true essence.

Prodigies like Hong Yao and Wenzi Shu could store nearly eighty streams at the same stage.

True essence quantity reflects both talent and combat strength for Condensing Essence cultivators.

Each stream is painstakingly cultivated, so most conserve their true essence unless in life-or-death struggles.

Repairing a depleted stream is far easier than rebuilding it from nothing.

To others, Chen Yang’s act of dumping forty streams into the cave was madness.

Forty streams!

How many years would it take to restore that?

True essence separates Condensing Essence cultivators from Gathering Qi ones. Without it, even Shen Yue’s green mountain technique could kill them—let alone Qiu Ran’s Calamity Lightning or Xiao Yize’s wood dragon.

However, as a natural-born treasure, Chen Yang didn’t share these worries. When needing true essence, he could simply draw from the boundless world around him. The vast Canglan State could spare hundreds of true essence paths without noticeable loss.

Yet maintaining the grotto-heaven this way wasn’t sustainable. Even abundant true essence would eventually deplete if used carelessly. To achieve true self-sufficiency, he needed to follow imperial methods – embedding Earth Treasures as stabilizers while employing forging, formations, and cultivation arts to create an independent ecosystem. This would minimize future true essence consumption during activations.

While ideal, current limitations made this challenging. The Yang Family only had basic knowledge of formations and nurturing arts. Other necessary skills wouldn’t come by waiting passively on Song Mountain. This need for resources, combined with Chen Yang’s restlessness after reaching Condensing Essence, kindled his desire to travel.

The timing proved favorable. With the Tiger-Chasing Dynasty’s Eastern Expedition, most mid-tier experts like Hong Yao and Wenzi Shu had deployed eastward. Few Condensing Essence cultivators remained in the homeland, reducing major threats during travels.

Two prerequisites remained: ensuring the Songshan Yang Family’s main branch stayed guarded, and avoiding detection by Spirit Communication Realm experts while journeying in his true form.

After nighttime contemplation, Chen Yang recalled The Mayfly Illusion Technique obtained from Yang Lingrui. This Condensing Essence-level body technique’s illusionary body concept intrigued him. While ordinary cultivators struggled with clone techniques due to true essence limits, Chen Yang simply harvested more from the world.

Sharing Yang Lingrui’s cultivation insights accelerated Chen Yang’s progress. Half a month later, Yang Yuanliu gaped at two identical Immortal Masters while cleaning the ancestral hall. Yang Lingqing and Yang Yuanhong arrived to share his amazement. Their senses failed to distinguish the real Chen Yang until Yang Lingqing activated her spirit pearl connection, revealing the left stone as the clone.

"Congratulations on your breakthrough, Immortal Master!" They bowed in unison.

Through Thought Transmission, Chen Yang bade them rise before testing his clone. This replica – crafted from 489 strands of heaven-earth true essence over fifteen days – perfectly mimicked his appearance, weight, and cultivation level. Only their ability effects differed noticeably.