Ever since the Great Yin's Mortal Emperor created the Great Schism ten thousand years ago, the Spirit Energy in the Primal Chaos Realm gradually became scarce over the next few thousand years, and it was predicted by a powerful being that the realm's spirituality would inevitably run dry one day.
To prevent this future occurrence, the True Immortals and divine beings who remained in the mortal world took action to seal the Spirit Veins in this realm, establishing a Spirit Energy tidal surge every three thousand years to sustain the development of Spirit Energy resources.
In the last three thousand years, Spirit Energy was depleted and cultivators fell from their high ritual altars. Power transitions resulted in various kinds of turmoil that lasted for hundreds of years.
In times of chaos, the First Emperor of Great Xia established the Xia Dynasty and pacified the four regions, marking the birth of the present Great Xia.
By now, the period of Spirit Energy depletion of three thousand years has finished. With the arrival of several Spirit Energy tidal surges, numerous mythological creatures and transcendent cultivators have returned to the world.
Many Hidden Sects within the Great Xia will inevitably rise by harnessing this momentum, with cultivators once again reaching the peak of power, posing a grave challenge to the existing order of the Great Xia.
Without an overwhelming power from its cultivators, the existing imperial power system will inevitably find it challenging to maintain its status quo.
The Royal Family of the Great Xia was not established by cultivators, and their cultivation foundations are lacking, making it hard for them to compete with those Hidden Sects. Fortunately, we are only in the early stage of the Spirit Energy tidal surge, and the Royal power of the Great Xia and its military forces still maintain an overwhelming advantage.
As long as we use the advantage of overwhelming power to hold onto the critical cultivation resources during the early stage of the Spirit Energy tidal surge, the Great Xia Royal Family will still be able to maintain their transcendent position. This is a viewpoint that everyone in the Great Xia court shares.
The grotto heavens sacred ground that were opened during the Spirit Energy tidal surge, are of utmost importance!
Places referred to as grotto heavens sacred ground are either places where the sects of ancient times were founded, or blessed lands of Spirit Vein birthed by the universe's supreme treasures. Either type represents undeniable value.
Especially during the times of Spirit Energy tidal surge depletion, grotto heavens sacred ground can generate some Spirit Energy to sustain the cultivators' needs, sparing them from perishing due to Spirit Energy depletion.
Unknown ancient beings are sleeping in the grotto heavens sacred ground throughout the entire Great Xia, waiting for the concentration of Spirit Energy to recover to a level that can support their emergence into the world.
In essence, grotto heavens sacred ground is a strategic treasure within the Cultivation World.
Since the Great Schism, no new grotto heavens sacred ground have been born, and every grotto heavens sacred ground will face contests from many competing forces.
The Cloud Mist Mountain Range covers a vast area. The Great Xia Royal Family might not be able to dominate all the grotto heavens sacred ground. By willingly relinquishing some of the benefits, they could gain many advantages from the Hidden Sects.
As the person in charge of the grotto heavens sacred ground this time, Marquis Zhennan is bound to gain massive benefits from it, and it may not be impossible for him to compete for a higher position in the future.
With these thoughts, a sense of burning ambition rose in the heart of Marquis Zhennan.
Marquis Zhennan gave a slight nod to the Star Plucking Taoist next to him and said, "Master Star Plucker, I hope you can undertake the task of locating the grotto heavens sacred ground."
The Star Plucking Taoist maintained his complacent smile and did not immediately agree.
"Marquis, you should know that if a grotto heavens is concealed, even the Imperial Astronomical Bureau's Superintendent would have trouble locating it precisely. I am far from being his equal and would not dare to make false statements about this matter."
Marquis Zhennan remained calm and replied, "Master Star Plucker, rest assured. All we need is to get a general location of the grotto heavens sacred ground. The descendants of the Geomancy lineage are already on their way. They will use the power of Feng Shui to pinpoint the exact location of the grotto heavens sacred ground."
Upon hearing this, the smile on the face of the Star Plucking Taoist grew even brighter.
He gave a swing of his horsetail whisk. A giant ritual altar descended, causing the entire command center to tremble slightly.
The eyes of Marquis Zhennan brightened as he asked the Star Plucking Taoist, "You carry a ritual altar with you. Could it be that you also have a storage magical treasure?"
The Star Plucking Taoist shook his head and sighed, saying, "The Spirit Energy has been depleted for three thousand years. Such a long time even makes it hard for magical treasures to maintain their spirituality. There are very few storage magical treasures left in the Cultivation World, and it would be difficult for me to possess one."
"That's merely a mustard seed symbol from our Daoist door. Even though its cost is high, it can only be used once, not nearly as useful as storage magical treasure."
Speaking thus, the Star Plucking Taoist ascended the steps of the ritual altar.
In an instant, wind and clouds converged, and within a hundred meters radius of the ritual altar, the Spirit Energy began to gather at a remarkable speed.
With the Star Plucking Taoist stepping on the symbolic steps and making the Big Dipper Seal with his hands, arrays of flags and commands rose into the sky from the ritual altar. As the bright daylight shimmered, many brilliant constellations converged, faintly sparkling.
The Star Plucking Taoist waved his wide sleeve, and dozens of spirit stones shattered in mid-air, intensifying the concentration of Spirit Energy to its peak.
"May the Heaven-worthy Star God guide the way!"
With a solemn expression, Star Plucking Taoist bowed towards the Big Dipper star map.
As the words of Star Plucking Taoist fell, in the place where the stars converged, the Big Dipper transformed into a colossal compass pointing deep into the Cloud Mist Mountain Range, resembling a guide indicating the way for mortals.
The force of space set up by Shen Yuan shattered instantly under the guidance of the stellar light, revealing the Falling Clouds Grotto Heavens to the world once again.
A look of surprise flashed across Star Plucking Taoist's face. He never imagined that the deductive process to locate the grotto heavens would go so smoothly, and he was just about to talk to Marquis Zhennan.
But at the moment when the Falling Clouds Grotto Heavens, hundreds of miles away, was interfered with by the starlight, the balance, maintained for tens of thousands of years, was completely broken.
Accompanied by a huge roar echoing in the mysterious void, the already dilapidated Falling Clouds Grotto Heavens began to collapse at a speed visible to the naked eye, and the entrance to the current world closed swiftly.
Just in a slightly perceived instance, the entire Falling Clouds Grotto Heavens completely vanished within the Cloud Mist Mountain Range.
The sudden change left Star Plucking Taoist unable to maintain his composed demeanor, and fresh blood spurted violently from his mouth.
The Big Dipper Star Map hovering in the air above the ritual altar exploded thunderously, and a noticeable crack, emanating from under the Star Plucking Taoist's feet, almost divided the ritual altar into halves.
The matter of the Falling Clouds Sect's Earth Immortal attempting ascension was thwarted by a calamity, wiping out the entire Falling Clouds Sect. How could such a secretive matter be divined by Star Plucking Taoist's method of deduction from the stars?
This surprising turn of events was a big shock for Marquis Zhennan, who saw everything.
Although the Star Plucking Taoist was not from a hidden sect, he was not mediocre in his Qi Transformation Stage of cultivation during the current time when the Spirit Energy Tidal Surge had just regained revival, otherwise, he was not qualified to serve at the Marquis's Mansion.
But even such an outstanding cultivator suffered such a backlash just by predicting the location of the grotto heavens, it was something they had never seen before.
"Has something unexpected happened with the grotto heavens?" Marquis Zhennan asked with an anxious expression.
Star Plucking Taoist, who suffered a backlash from the Spell, was completely shocked. He did not even get a moment to lament the destruction of the altar and magic artifacts.
The moment the Spell backlash happened, Star Plucking Taoist felt an awe-inspiring, just, and ruthless power from the depths of the Cloud Mist Mountain Range that seemed to want to erase him completely from the world.
Fortunately, that power didn't target him. After destroying the Spell, it disappeared completely. Otherwise, if some remnant force fell on him, it would have been enough to erase his existence.
Closing his eyes to recollect the overwhelming power, Star Plucking Taoist showed a deep fear on his face, hurriedly saying to Marquis Zhennan:
"The Marquis' Mansion must not get involved in the matter of the grotto heavens in the Cloud Mist Mountain Range. Do not have any covetous intents for the grotto heavens!"
"The grotto heavens there, are claimed!"