With such a territory in hand, Qi Ping naturally would not go out to be restricted by others again. He no longer wanted to hold his life in someone else's hands. He saw more clearly than ever that so-called war and peace were decided by the whims of a tiny elite.
'View Natural Sanctuary data!'
With a thought, the luxurious stats of his sanctuary appeared.
Natural Sanctuary Owner: Qi Ping
Sanctuary Level: Lv2 (26/200) (Coverage: 500-meter radius)
Sanctuary Effects: All-attribute boost, recovery speed of Tree-Spirit Contract trees greatly increased, plant growth speed increased.
Tree-Spirit Contracts: Star-Dust Wood (Spirit-Gathering Art), Sun-Blaze Wood (Great Sun Refinement + Body Tempering), Moon-Glow Tree (Moon-Glow Refinement), Star-Dust Wood (Star-Dust Refinement), Ghost-Iron Tree (Ghost-Stone Forging).
Spirit Vein Essence: Rank 2 Low-grade.
Spirit Herb Quantity: Rank 1 Herbs (37 species).
Arrays: Demon-Illusion Array (Rank 2 Low-grade), Concealment Array (Rank 2 Low-grade), Flowing Gold Array (Rank 2 Low-grade), Profound Gold Killing Array (Rank 2 Mid-grade), Fire Crow Array (Rank 2 Mid-grade).
Looking at the powerful data, a strong sense of satisfaction rose in his heart. This was a truly qualified territory!
Over these five years, his five contracted spirit trees had all successfully broken through to Rank 2. Once the Sun-Blaze Wood reached the late stage of Rank 2, his sanctuary had leveled up to level two. A 500-meter radius was much larger than ten football fields; his territory was now massive.
The previous sense of being cramped was gone. With the completion of his Rank 2 illusion and concealment arrays, the area he could safely develop had expanded. The land near the spirit vein and the gathering tree had all upgraded to Rank 2 spirit soil, while the further reaches remained Rank 1. Even at the edges, the energy density was high.
With the expansion, Qi Ping planted many more flowers and spirit herbs. The little Spirit Fox, the Flower Spirit, and the Three-Colored Deer were the happiest. The previous area had been too small for them, but now they could tinker with many things—delicious fruits, soft lawns.
Looking at it now, Qi Ping's territory was superior to the private estates of many high-level cultivators. The spirit trees that breathed the sun and moon, the dense spiritual energy, and the rare spirit beasts all marked this place as a rare immortal sanctuary. Even the three great clans of Qingshi County at their peak couldn't have achieved this.
Currently, Qingshi County held nothing that could tempt him, except for that cave dwelling on Peak 007 in District A. However, until his bee swarm reached its limit and Yaya broke through to Rank 3, he would not even consider entering it.
Who knew if it was a giant trap? Just last year, when the rumored ultimate secret realm exploded, a taboo-tier demon insect had emerged, killing a Nascent Soul elder and more than five Golden Core masters. With such a warning, Qi Ping had no desire to touch those things.
The fundamental change, however, was the Spirit Vein Essence. It had taken Qi Ping seven or eight years to elevate it to Rank 2, providing a steady stream of spiritual energy. From this moment on, his territory could finally support his rapid growth!
The only regret was that he lacked suitable Rank 2 spirit seeds. Otherwise, he could have started cultivating them now to boost his own cultivation and the Apothecary Bee swarm. His most urgent task was to find various Rank 2 spirit seeds and hand them to the Apothecary Bees to research different honeys. He currently had thirty-six species of Rank 1 spirit herbs and over a thousand types of ordinary medicinal plants and flowers!
What truly pleased Qi Ping was his progress in the Dao of Arrays. Over five years, he had immersed himself in its study, becoming increasingly obsessed with its power. Drawing upon natural forces to form an array was truly mystical.
Aided by his powerful soul and the comprehension from Tri-Color Spirit, his progress was meteoric. He had successfully set up Rank 2 Low-grade illusion and concealment arrays, and just recently, he had finished the Rank 2 Mid-grade fire-attribute Fire Crow Array and the metal-attribute Profound Gold Killing Array.
The Fire Crow Array could release five fire crows with the strength of a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. As long as the array stood and its energy remained, the crows could recover and attack infinitely! Layered within this was the Profound Gold Killing Array, which could fire seven razor-sharp metal sword-qi every few moments, each attack more powerful than a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator's strike!
With his Rank 2 spirit vein, although its coverage wasn't massive, the energy was abundant. It wouldn't be drained by a Foundation Establishment cultivator anytime soon. Furthermore, these arrays were built upon his comprehension of Fire and Metal intents and bolstered by his various Druid talents. The array eyes were hard to find and the structures were incredibly stable.
The core foundation of the Fire Crow Array was the Rank 2 Sun-Blaze Wood. Its presence elevated the array's power by a whole level. With these two arrays, even a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator would find themselves in a deathtrap, and a mid-stage cultivator would likely be slain in a few breaths.
To put it simply, if all of Qingshi County attacked at once—so long as the Qingyuan Sect's Golden Core masters didn't intervene—Qi Ping could slaughter them all using his current arrays. Only now did he truly feel his territory was secure.
His only remaining worry was the top-tier cultivators at the late stage or Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment. Dealing with them would still be difficult; he was still lacking a bit of heat.
'It's been over ten years since I established this territory.'
'I spent so much time and effort, even risking my life to wipe out that organization, just to gather the resources to develop this place.'
'All that effort has finally yielded its greatest fruit today.'
This ironclad, energy-rich home was the best reward for a farming bee-tamer. The Natural Sanctuary interface clearly displayed his progress and milestones.
'Next, I need to find a way to get Rank 2 spirit herbs to mass-produce bees. I've delayed long enough; my own realm needs to rise.'
'And Yaya's bloodline transformation is imminent. The Solar Essence from the Sun-Blaze Wood alone won't be enough...'