The process of fusing their bodies didn’t take too long.

In less than ten days, Qin Zhou and the others were ready to return to Zhutian.

‌After bidding farewell to Shen Yun and the others, Qin Zhou’s party returned to Zhutian.

It’s worth noting that Shisi brought Duyan along—soul and wolf included.

After Shisi’s departure, the Dark Hall’s master perished, and with Duyan leaving the Spirit Mountain Realm, that world had lost its two major villains. It would likely enjoy stable development for years to come.

Lu San and Yan Qi were also forced to part ways. 

As Yan Qi’s team leader, Qin Zhou could not bear to leave him behind alone. Therefore, before departing the Spirit Mountain Realm, he had Lu regain control of the system and added Yan Qi’s name to the villager registry.

He would summon Yan Qi once he returned to Zhutian.

Xiao ‌Lu regained ‘control of the system,’ which also meant that Qin Zhou’s World-Creating God System had entered a dormant state.

However, some developments seemed to have caught Xiao Lu off guard.

No sooner had he returned to Zhutian than Qin Zhou was bombarded with a barrage of notifications from Xiao Lu.

【Village Chief, you seem to have had a good time in the Spirit Mountain Realm 🙁 】

Qin Zhou calmly pushed open the door and walked into his village, “It’s fine.”

Qin Zhou had expected something else—perhaps regarding his union with Wen Jue as Dao Companions, or something else in the Spirit Mountain Realm.

But Xiao Lu didn’t—

【Congratulations, Village Chief, you have obtained the World Core】

【Final Quest Activated—Become the Savior and cause the new World Tree to sprout.】

【Mission Reward: One wish will be granted】

A wish?

“Even if I… want to go back?”

【Yes】

Qin Zhou didn’t comment, didn’t ask any further, and went straight to the fields. He wondered if the villagers had failed to carefully plant the new fruit cores in the fields after their upgrade.

Just like when he teleported to the Spirit Mountain Realm, the drop locations for the others were also random.

Qin Zhou had arrived directly in the village, but the others were likely scattered across the Zhutian Realm. Including the revived villagers, most of the others were in a “summonable” state.

Qin Zhou had confirmed this through the roster.

As for Wen Jue…

With the Dao Companion Contract, Qin Zhou could sense his location whenever he focused his mind, so there was nothing to worry about.

The hills behind the village were already planted with new Spiritual Heart Fruits.

It seemed that Lu Wu and Xing, the master and apprentice, had taken excellent care of his fields.

Qin Zhou inspected the fields, then took out the half-piece of Jingning Wood he’d brought back from the Spirit Mountain Realm.

He dug a hole in the spirit field and planted the half-piece of Jingning Wood inside. 

He had given half of this thousand-year-old Jingning Wood to Zhanyu, and he was carrying the rest with him.

Jingning Wood isn’t a particularly high-grade alchemical ingredient, but it happens to be absent from Zhutian. This spirit wood, unique to the Spirit Mountain Realm, might not survive in Zhutian.

If it did survive, it would serve as a countermeasure against the violent nature of the Marrow Cleansing Pills in the future.

The mountain village had reached Level 5, and the crops grown in the Spirit Fields could now reach the fifth tier.

However, this time, the Level 5 mountain village did not unlock any new features.

It made sense; even Xiao Lu had informed him that this was the final ultimate quest. Once completed, he would be able to “return.”

Qin Zhou stared blankly at the hillside covered in spirit fields, now lost from view.

If only…

if he’d been told right from the start, upon arriving in this world, that planting a new World Tree would allow him to return… perhaps he would have done as Xiao Lu suggested.

After being saved… perhaps he would have chosen to return to that world.

After all, he wasn’t ready to accept it.

He wasn’t ready to accept dying in a car accident, nor was he ready to accept that the game he’d worked so hard on was about to be released.

He wasn’t even ready to accept that he hadn’t earned his father’s approval.

But now, it all seemed unimportant.

Compared to earning anyone’s approval, he preferred his current life of tending fields and cultivating.

Besides, he’d found people.

No blood ties, but a whole village of people who love and care for one another.

And still… there are things he can’t let go of…

No sooner had the thought crossed his mind than Wen Jue’s voice rang out from behind him—

“I knew you’d come straight here to check out this barren land first.”

Qin Zhou’s lips curled into a smile.

“How can it be a worthless plot? It can already grow fifth-tier alchemical ingredients.”

“Fifth-tier? That still isn’t enough to grow a World Tree, is it?” Wen Jue glanced around; seeing no one nearby, he took two steps closer to Qin Zhou, drawing even nearer.

“Not yet,” Qin Zhou replied matter-of-factly. “To let a World Tree take root and sprout, you need at least a seventh-tier spirit field.”

As he finished speaking, Qin Zhou noticed Wen Jue was already at his side.

His fingers were even restlessly reaching out to hook around him.

Qin Zhou calmly reached out and took his hand.

Wen Jue, having been caught, smiled.

“A seventh-tier spiritual field… that’ll take a long time, won’t it?”

“It shouldn’t be too long.” Qin Zhou said.

Wen Jue: “Why? It doesn’t seem like we have enough materials to cultivate the land.”

Third-tier land yields third-tier fruits; only after harvesting the fruits can the Spirit Field upgrade.

But where would they find enough fifth-tier fruit seeds to plant?

Fifth-tier alchemical ingredients are already rare materials in Zhutian.

Even if they could secure fifth-tier materials, what about upgrading the Spirit Field to sixth tier?

And after Level 6, how would they upgrade it further?

“We’ll just have to cultivate it slowly.”

In truth, whether it was him, Wen Jue, or the other villagers, most of them could wait for the Spirit Field to gradually level up—perhaps over ten years, a hundred years, or even a thousand years.

“That’s true. Do World Fruit seeds go bad?”

Qin Zhou: “Not if they’re wrapped in spiritual energy.”

Most can wait, but there will always be someone who can’t.

Looking at the World Fruit Core they’d brought back, the thought of waiting another thousand years was simply too grueling.

【Village Chief, I can help :)】

Qin Zhou thought to himself, “Just as I expected.”

“How can you help?”

【I am the Heavenly Dao, but I am also the Village Chief’s system】

【Everything is ready. Please go to the Barrier Stone’s space to retrieve it. Once you have that item, the mountain village’s level will rise very quickly :)】

These few lines appeared right before Qin Zhou and Wen Jue. They didn’t even hide them from Wen Jue.

The two exchanged a glance, both fully aware of the complexity of the situation.

The Heavenly Dao was, as always, impatient.

It wasn’t until Qin Zhou and Wen Jue reached the border between the upper and lower realms that they realized what the Heavenly Dao meant.

The Boundary Stone, which had once hung in the sky, constantly supplying spiritual energy to the barrier and the upper realm, was now shattered into pieces, covered in cracks.

“What’s going on?”

Wen Jue frowned deeply. “The spiritual energy within the Boundary Stone isn’t enough to maintain the barrier.”

Qin Zhou also sensed something amiss and frowned.

There was no way the spiritual energy within the barrier stone could be insufficient. 

It hadn’t been long since they left the ‘Boundary City Secret Realm.’ The cultivators who had perished within the secret realm had contributed vast amounts of spiritual energy. As Wen Jue had mentioned earlier, while that energy might not be enough to sustain the ecosystem of Zhutian for a thousand years, it would certainly suffice for several hundred years.

So…

“It’s the Heavenly Dao.” Wen Jue stared intently at the barrier stone. “It actually tapped into the spiritual energy within the barrier stone.”

Once the spiritual energy in the barrier stone is depleted, the barrier between the upper and lower realms will shatter. Without the barrier, not only would the mortals in the lower realm be left to fend for themselves, but even the upper realm could no longer guarantee its basic ecological balance.

【To plant the World Tree, Zhutian will be reborn; sacrificing a few hundred years of spiritual energy is no great loss :)】

Such is the Heavenly Dao.

“The situation isn’t that urgent, is it? Are you really in such a hurry?” Wen Jue said coldly.

The Heavenly Dao remained silent, which seemed to imply tacit approval of this plan.

“Let’s go take a look up there.” Qin Zhou pointed at the barrier stone.

The two entered the inner space of the barrier stone.

As the Heavenly Dao had said, the substance capable of upgrading the mountain village was, in fact, Spirit Marrow—a concentration of spiritual energy.

Spirit Marrow accelerates the growth of crops in the spiritual fields.

‌ With enough Spirit Marrow, even low-grade medicinal ingredients could win through sheer volume, rapidly boosting the mountain village’s level.

Once it reaches Level 7, the World Tree can be planted. Once the World Tree sprouts, it will provide new spiritual energy to Zhutian.

But no matter how you look at it, this approach is far too risky.

The Heavenly Dao is now staking everything, forcing them to plant the tree.

Wen Jue frowned. Qin Zhou was right—a sentient Heavenly Dao was a real headache.

“Qin Zhou, what should we do now?” Wen Jue asked as Qin Zhou was organizing the storage room.

Seeing Qin Zhou place an item inside and then close the storage room, Wen Jue raised an eyebrow.

“Well, let’s gather everyone and plant some trees,” Qin Zhou said, straightening up.

Just as the Heavenly Dao wished.

After all, these trees had to be planted anyway. 

At the same time, several sects in the upper realm were also welcoming back their ancestral founders.

Upper Realm, the Fanhua Sect.

The Fanhua was once a very famous cultivation sect in Zhutian. Named after the myriad flowers, the Fanhua recruited female cultivators. Whether in terms of strength or talent, the female cultivators of the Fanhua were a force to be reckoned with in Zhutian, proving that women could be just as capable as men.

Especially the Fanhua’s Sect Master, the Fairy of Ten Thousand Flowers, who was renowned throughout the cultivation world as a beautiful woman of extraordinary power.

However, that was all thousands of years ago.

Ever since the Fairy of Ten Thousand Flowers vanished, the entire sect has gradually fallen into decline.

Though it still holds a place in the cultivation world today, it is nowhere near what it once was.

Yet the Fanhua continues to carry on the Ancestor’s legacy and still recruits female cultivators.

“F-Fairy, our sect is recruiting female cultivators.” The female disciple guarding the mountain was so stunned by the visitor’s appearance that she was speechless. 

The one she called “Fairy”—Liu—touched his face and said gently, “Look at me—do I look like a male cultivator?”

“N-no.” The female disciple nearly bit her tongue. “I-I don’t know what I’m saying. S-sir, our sect’s founder looks…”

The person in the portrait at the sect’s ancestral hall—how did they suddenly appear right in front of her?!

‌Liu smiled. “Then you must not have mistaken me. Who is currently in charge of the Fanhua Sect?”

The female disciple hurriedly clasped her hands. “It is Sect Master Rudan.”

Rudan, then.

‌Liu: “Is Qinghua no longer here?”

“Elder Qinghua is here, but she no longer manages the sect’s affairs.”

“May I go see her?”

“Please, go ahead.” The female disciple dared not stop her; she thought, surely no one would dare impersonate the Flower Fairy to come to the Blooming Flowers Sect?

‌Liu’s features were gentle; she lightly smoothed her skirt and walked forward.

I wonder if Qinghua still recognizes her as her master.

There are many sects as desolate as the Fanhua Sect.

Take, for example, the once-mighty physical cultivation sect—the Wuji Sect.

How powerful was the Wuji Sect in its heyday? At its peak, it was a major sect capable of rivaling the Cangyun Sword Sect. It was once called the Wuji Sect (无极宗- using characters that meant greatness), but after its decline, it was renamed the Wuji Sect (无极门- using characters that meant small, or struggling). Thousands of years ago, the Cangyun Sword Sect accepted two disciples of extraordinary talent.

Not long after that same year, a youth named Lu Wuji burst onto the scene. He thrust a blade into the ground, and with boundless vigor, founded the Wuji Sect.

The sect flourished for a thousand years, eventually becoming a major school of physical cultivation.

‌It was only later, when the spirit tablet of the Wuji Patriarch shattered, that no one in this world was deemed worthy of the character “Wuji” anymore.

The Fourth Brother, shouldering his long halberd, looked at the Wuji Sect—which didn’t even have disciples guarding its gates—and couldn’t help but sigh—

“Now that I’m gone, have those little brats let the place fall into ruin?”

How could this once-great sect have declined so far?

“Never mind. I’m back!”

The Wuji Sect will once again make a name for itself in the cultivation world!

Lu Ba, Lu Jiu, and Lu Shi—the three of them were independent cultivators.

As for Lu Jiu’s wife.

His wife was at the Hehuan Sect, so Lu Jiu went to the Hehuan Sect.

A mountain-guarding disciple asked him, “Who are you, and who are you looking for?”

Lu Jiu was quite straightforward: “My name is Lu Jiu. I’m looking for Lu Jiujiu.”

The mountain guard’s face turned pale. “Are you making a joke of our Sect Master’s name?” 

Lu Jiu: ?

“Who are you, exactly? State your name!” 

Lu Jiu chuckled, “I am your Sect Master’s new cauldron.”

The disciple stared at his face and muttered to himself for a moment, “A cauldron, sure. But you look a bit too masculine. Does the Sect Master like that sort?”

Lu Jiu: “……”

Just then, a figure suddenly appeared and lunged toward Lu Jiu—

“Brother Jiu!!!”

Lu Jiu caught the person steadily. “Slow down.”

Lu Jiu hugged her tightly and rubbed against him. “I’m alive! I’m alive!”

The two were extremely close. 

A junior Mountain Guard disciple observed the scene with a raised eyebrow—

Ah, their Sect Master has formed a furnace-cauldron union. I wonder how many male cultivators are about to faint from grief……

Lu Ba and Lu Shi exchanged glances.

Lu Shi whispered, “Eighth Brother, I’m going to join Xiao Bai. Do you want to…”

Eighth Brother waved him off and watched him walk away.

What was he going there for?

Everyone in Lu Village knew that Lu Yibai liked her Tenth Brother.

Well, except for Lu Shi himself, who was unaware.

In short…

They’re a couple.

Lu Ba isn’t.

So, Lu Ba went to report to the Alliance of Independent Cultivators. The Alliance had gone through who knows how many generations; anyway, no one recognized him.

The man said, “Just register your name and cultivation level, and you can go.”

Lu Ba scratched his nose and picked up a brush to write—

“Lu Ba, Mid-Heavenly Body Realm.”

As he wrote, Lu Ba thought to himself, “Everyone else has joined a sect, but I haven’t. I guess that’s not so bad after all.”

“Hey, does your Alliance of Independent Cultivators have a leader?” Lu Ba asked.

“Nope,” the disciple replied, though he was puzzled inside, wondering when the Alliance of Independent Cultivators had ever needed a leader.

Lu Ba handed over the registration book. “What do you think of me?”

So he was going to snag the title of Alliance Leader?