After a brief exchange between the two sisters, the servant returned with news.
"Young Miss, Lin Wei conveyed that he won't be able to drive you there. He's on his day off, approved by his supervisor," the servant informed Fang Xuetong tentatively, wary of her reaction.
"What?!" Fang Xuetong's cold tone turned glacial, her eyes piercing daggers as she fixed her gaze on the trembling servant.
"Young Miss, that's what he said. I even verified with his supervisor, and he denied approving Lin Wei's day off," the servant stammered, visibly shaken by her master's murderous glare.
"Hmph, that insolent fool dares to defy me? Use force if necessary, and bring him here immediately, I will show him what's the outcome of defying me" Fang Xuetong commanded, her voice dripping with venom.
"Yes," the servant replied, nodding nervously as she hurried off to carry out her mistress's orders.
....
After dismissing the servant and retreating to his room, Lin Wei settled onto his bed, crossing his legs into a position similar to that of the lotus posture. With a serene demeanor, he gazed at the system interface, its instructions clear and inviting. Closing his eyes briefly, he focused his thoughts, preparing himself for the momentous decision ahead.
Taking a deep breath, Lin Wei uttered softly, "System, I wish to establish a foundation unparalleled and unrestricted across the entire cosmos, utilizing the Major Wish."
"Host, do you confirm: Establishing the strongest foundation?" queried the system.
"Yes," affirmed Lin Wei with unwavering resolve.
As seconds passed, a swirling wind enveloped Lin Wei, a rustling sound echoing in the air. The energy within a meter radius of him began to be drawn into his body through every pore.
After five breaths, the range of his absorption expanded rapidly, akin to a tornado gaining momentum. With each passing second, the radius of absorption increased by ten meters.
Once the radius reached a hundred meters, Lin Wei's absorption rate intensified, and simultaneously, the radius of absorption surged by one kilometer every second.
....
At Fang Xuetong's courtyard, puzzled expressions adorned the faces of both Fang Jaili and Fang Xuetong as the wind intensified.
"Huh? Is there a storm approaching?" questioned Fang Jaili, her brows furrowing in confusion.
"No, this seems to be a wind accompanied by the surrounding energy, " replied Fang Xuetong solemnly, a rare seriousness coloring her aloof demeanor. "Someone is breaking through," she continued, her tone carrying a hint of gravity.
"Is it Father?" Jaili asked eagerly, the prospect of her father's breakthrough sparking excitement within her.
"No, breaking through to a minor realm wouldn't cause such a phenomenon. Can't you tell? The longer it goes on, the stronger the wind and energy being absorbed by that person," explained Fang Xuetong, her gaze fixed on the swirling gusts.
"Could it be someone from the previous Patriarch's lineage or one of those clan guardians?" speculated Jaili, turning to her sister for confirmation.
"I don't know, perhaps," replied Fang Xuetong, her uncertainty mirroring the ambiguity of the situation.
In the isolation of Fang Yulong's chamber, the patriarch himself sat in silent contemplation. His visage, weathered by time, retained an air of authority and wisdom, despite the fatigue etched upon his features. Suddenly, a fit of coughing seized him, causing him to spit up blood.
"What's happening? Why has the array stopped providing energy?" Fang Yulong demanded, his voice laced with urgency. "Servant, what's happening outside?" he called out to his attendant.
"Sir, someone seems to be breaking through a major realm," came the solemn reply from outside.
Exiting his chamber, Fang Yulong observed the source of the phenomenon with a furrowed brow. "The servants' quarters?" he muttered incredulously.
"Why would a senior choose to break through in the servants' quarters?" Fang Yulong pondered, his brow furrowing in confusion. Despite the anomaly, he didn't immediately associate it with a servants' breakthrough. There should no need for such an explanation, was there?After all, with the strongest servant merely at the Martial Master Realm, breaking through to the Grandmaster Realm wouldn't cause any significant phenomenon.
.....
Voices of varying degrees echoed throughout the city, originating from the Fang Clan located at the southern end of the County City, then throughout the whole county
"Someone from the Fang Clan is breaking through? Which senior could it be?" murmured some curious civilians.
"Judging by the phenomenon, it seems to be caused by a senior from the Fang Clan breaking through to the Emperor Realm," speculated another observer.
"Hmm, it's been almost half a decade since someone last broke through to the Emperor Realm."
"Indeed, that last time was a close call. He almost failed. Judging by the phenomenon, it should be nearing its end, and then the Lightning Tribulation will follow."
"Indeed, the radius should be almost at 10 kilometers now," remarked one individual, but before he could finish his sentence, an even more ferocious wind swept through the area, causing the radius of the phenomenon to expand further.
The phenomenon caused by Lin Wei's breakthrough rapidly escalated. Initially expanding at a rate of 1 kilometer per second, it then surged to 10 kilometers per second after surpassing the 10-kilometer mark. With each subsequent milestone, the radius increase by 10 times, until it finally reached a staggering hundred-thousand-mile radius, extending its influence to neighboring counties within the Dragon Empire, and even some part of the Feral Empire.
Just when the affected populace thought the phenomenon had subsided, a deep rumble reverberated through the earth. The tranquil atmosphere shattered as people throughout the city struggled to maintain their balance, some even falling to the ground due to the force of the tremor.
"What's happening? An earthquake?" Fang Xuetong's voice betrayed a rare hint of concern as her brows furrowed in solemnity. "This no longer seems like a phenomenon caused by breaking through to the Emperor Realm," she continued, her tone carrying a sense of worry.
"Earthquake!" echoed the panicked cries of the city's inhabitants, but before the warning could fully register, an unprecedented upheaval unfolded.
As the phenomenon unfolded, the very foundations of the earth continued to tremble with even more ferocity, as if protesting against the intrusion of otherworldly forces. The ground quivered beneath the feet of startled onlookers, sending shockwaves rippling outward from the heart of the Fang Clan's domain. Buildings shuddered and swayed, while most the infrastructure collapsed on the spot.
Then, the earthquake's ferocity intensified for the fourth time. Within a thousand-mile radius of the city, the earth undulated like the surface of a turbulent sea, its rhythm dictated by unseen hands. Each tremor was accompanied by a deafening roar, echoing through the streets and alleys with the power of a hundred thousand thunderclaps. People stumbled and fell, their cries of alarm drowned out by the cacophony of chaos. The earthquake was so potent that half of the city's buildings collapsed in an instant, rendering even an 11-magnitude earthquake pale in comparison.
Meanwhile, the air crackled with an otherworldly energy, charged with the potent energy of ancient powers. It swirled and coalesced into a swirling vortex, centered around a specific location within the city. The whirlpool of energy pulsed with an ethereal glow, casting eerie shadows that danced upon the trembling ground.
"This! Such powerful energy!" Fang Yulong exclaimed solemnly. "It's at least billions of times more potent than the surrounding energy. If I could absorb even a fraction of this energy, it could facilitate a breakthrough to the Emperor Realm on the spot," he mused greedily. However, as he gazed at the source of the phenomenon, he suppressed such thoughts.
Fang Yulong wasn't the only one entertaining such notions, but they all remembered someone had caused these phenomena. Taking even a single ounce of that energy could lead to offending that individual, potentially resulting in the destruction of them and their families.
RUMBLE!
As if in response to the tumult below, the Heavens themselves rumbled with even greater ferocity. The very fabric of the sky seemed to quake with the weight of unseen forces, causing stars to flicker and constellations to shift in a dance of cosmic upheaval.
Amidst the chaos, silhouettes of different creatures began to form against the backdrop of the swirling heavens. Peering up at the sky, the people of the city watched in awe as figures of saints, demons, buddhas, and even gods materialized before their eyes. Each entity knelt in reverent submission in the direction of the Fang Clan, their forms bathed in the ethereal glow of gold. After the last figure knelt, the Heavens behind them started cracking and shattered, giving way to an energy, silver and grey in color, that descended upon the city.
This energy emanated a sense of primordial power, as if it were the very essence of creation itself. When the powerhouses of the city beheld this energy, they felt like mere dust in its presence. They knew instinctively that this energy surpassed even the ancient energy that had caused the earlier phenomena. If absorbing a small amount of ancient energy could help them break through to a major Realm, then this energy could propel them directly to godhood.
The sight was beyond comprehension—a celestial spectacle that transcended their understanding. Even the city's most powerful figures, including the esteemed county governor himself, were left awestruck and bewildered by the unfolding phenomenon.
After the descent of the silver-grey energy, a powerful pressure enveloped the area, its intensity palpable to all who stood witness. The air itself seemed to thicken with the weight of divine authority, forcing even the strongest cultivators to their knees in humble submission. Not even the mightiest among them, the Martial Emperor Realm cultivators, could withstand or resist the overwhelming force that now held sway over the land. Those below the Emperor Realm directly fainted on the spot, unable to bear the immense pressure.