He Yunfang, thousands of years ago, had already entered the early stage of the Immortal Realm, but after reaching the early stage, he had stagnated for too long, to the extent that even his daughter’s cultivation had surpassed his own.
The notion of the blue dye surpassing the blue is naturally a good thing, but many times he also hoped that he could break through that barrier, elevate his cultivation to greater heights, supporting his race, rather than always relying on his daughter to compete fiercely for those thirteen zhang of land.
Today, upon seeing that Dao Stone, he felt the barrier in his Dao embryo that had obstructed him for years loosen slightly. The mystical Dao embryos on the Dao Stone deepened his comprehension of the Dao significantly.
The sensation was akin to a divine enlightenment, bestowing him profound insight, remarkably exquisite.
Unfortunately, time was limited, and he could not comprehend more.
"The predecessor who inscribed this Dao character must have had an incredibly deep understanding of the Dao. Xiao Qing, I agree with your assessment — this senior surely was a person of great openness, for the Dao embryos he left behind would not be so well-rounded otherwise."
He Yunfang, like his daughter, was full of praise for the true master of the Dao Stone, his eyes filled with admiration.
"The Dao embryos left by this predecessor, not only free and at ease, but with an air of leisure and tranquility — I wonder if it’s just an illusion, but his Dao embryos seemed perfectly in tune with our Crane Dao! In other words, our Crane Dao seems to have extended from his own. It’s quite possible this predecessor is related to our crane race, but cultivates a Dao far superior to ours."
"Father, you mean... he is our crane race’s remote ancestor?" He Qing inquired.
"It’s possible! Our Crane Dao originated from the Bird Dao, but above the Bird Dao is the powerful Phoenix Dao! Yet, the capabilities of this Dao seem to encompass even the Phoenix Dao... I’m merely speculating, as I can’t ascertain the true nature of the Phoenix Dao, but it’s without a doubt related to our Crane Dao!"
He Yunfang remarked with a serious expression.
Although He Qing was more powerful than her father, in terms of experience and knowledge, her father certainly had more. Hearing this, she was even more amazed.
"If only we could meet this predecessor, even a tiny bit of guidance from him would be immensely beneficial!" He Qing couldn’t help but mutter to herself.
The father and daughter held heartfelt reverence for the master of the Dao Stone. In their eyes, this mysterious and powerful "ascension realm" predecessor most likely had intricate ties to their crane race, possibly even being their crane race’s remote ancestor.
This was immensely important to them.
Yet, little did the father and daughter know, the master of that Dao Stone stood right before them.
"Is it really that exaggerated?" Xiang Beifei rubbed his nose.
"Of course it is. Didn’t Young Master Xiang have any realization upon seeing this Dao Stone?" He Yunfang asked. Follow current novᴇls on N(o)vᴇl(F)ire.nᴇt
The character "Dao" itself was my realization.
"In any case, for the sake of all our crane race elders, we must acquire that Dao Stone!"
He Yunfang resolved determinedly.
Xiang Beifei chuckled silently.
He Yunfang believed the master of the Dao Stone was the remote ancestor of their Crane Dao. While not entirely accurate, it was quite close.
Strictly speaking, Xiang Beifei’s Dao embraced all things. He cultivated the Three Thousand Great Daos, so it wasn’t just the Crane Dao — other races’ Daos could also evolve from his.
To say that his cultivated Dao was the remote ancestor of the Crane Dao was not entirely off the mark.
He Qing looked at the surrounding Dao enforcers. These people all seemed determined to acquire the Dao Stone, even those who originally intended to sell their treasures had packed up early, drawn by this Dao Stone.
"Father, many people have set their sights on this Dao Stone today. Tomorrow’s competition will surely be fierce. How much soil can we present?" He Qing asked.
After pondering for a moment, He Yunfang replied, "Right now, I can only decide on around ninety zhang of soil."
As the clan leader of the crane race for five hundred years, he had some authority over dealing with breath soil, but in reality, it wasn’t much.
"I just received thirteen zhang of soil two days ago."
He Qing handed a cloth bag to He Yunfang; it contained the breath soil she had just received from the Dao Palace.
"Even so, it’s not enough. Judging by how much these people value the Dao Stone, although the starting price is only fifty zhang of soil, the final price will likely far exceed that." He Yunfang stated.
"Indeed." He Qing appeared quite discontent as well.
"Don’t be discouraged. I’ll go back and discuss with others, gather from all the elders, perhaps we can collect around two hundred zhang." He Yunfang said.
Xiang Beifei was surprised: "Huh? In such a small place as your Crane Dao Courtyard, you can actually come up with two hundred zhang of land?"
He recalled that the Crane Dao Courtyard was built using Formations, occupying just four or five hundred square meters, which would barely convert to two hundred zhang. Were they planning to dismantle their home, spending everything to buy the Dao Stone?
He Yunfang explained, "Not quite. What you see of the Crane Dao Courtyard is merely where our clan members reside before reaching the Immortal Realm. In fact, other elders at the Immortal Realm would find their own quiet places to reside and cultivate, not far from our Crane Dao Courtyard. They have their breath soil-built abodes, not to mention them, I have my own as well."
"Like private money — or private soil?" Xiang Beifei asked.
"Uh, roughly. Each person builds their own abode for secluded cultivation."
He Yunfang nodded slightly, then added:
"Moreover, breath soil cannot be entirely used for building houses; it also needs to be stored for unforeseen circumstances. In the event of overly powerful void tides crushing the territory, the whole clan would be displaced, right? Therefore, we use soil based on our numbers, but keep a reserve of it."