Chapter 434 : The Uprooting of the Worldly Root

Listening to the thoughts of Old Patriarch, Eldrin Chen pondered for a long while.

He picked up a piece and placed it on the board, then spoke calmly, "Transplanting the Enlightenment Tea Tree is no easy task. Once moved to the Hundred-Thousand-Mile Great Wasteland, I fear it would suffer grievous harm to its very foundation, requiring a century of rest to recover."

"However, after we transplant it, if we nourish it with three more breaths of Primordial Chaos Violet Aura [the supreme primordial energy of creation], it should not only help it break the shackles to its advancement but also heal the damage from the transplantation."

"That is precisely what I was thinking." Old Patriarch smiled as he placed his piece, then sighed and glanced towards Pingyang City. "It is a pity that the Spiritual Vein [a concentrated flow of spiritual energy within the earth] beneath Pingyang City was born from the nurturing of a Worldly Spiritual Root [a miraculous root that can generate spiritual energy from the earth's essence]."

"Once we transplant that Spiritual Root to the Hundred-Thousand-Mile Great Wasteland, the spiritual energy here will gradually diminish, eventually falling below the level of a Fourth-Rank Spiritual Vein."

Hearing this, Eldrin Chen merely offered a slight smile. "This was anticipated, and it is the natural consequence of our actions."

Old Patriarch also nodded. Within the small confines of Yu County, there were already the Pingyang City, Green Chariot Mountain, and Spirit Isle Lake Fourth-Rank Spiritual Vein.

Normally, the Worldly Spiritual Root could convert the earth's vital essence, transforming it into spiritual energy to form a Spiritual Vein. But without the presence of the Worldly Spiritual Root, cultivating a high-grade Spiritual Vein becomes exceedingly difficult.

This is because the Spirit Gathering Formation [a mystical array that concentrates ambient spiritual energy] of a single Fourth-Rank Spiritual Vein draws in the majority of the spiritual energy from a radius of one hundred thousand Li-length [one Li-length equals five hundred meters], funneling it into the Spiritual Vein.

There are many Spiritual Vein in this world. Within a single commandery, from low to high grade, there can be several hundred. Setting aside those formed by unique environments and geographical features, another type is the artificially cultivated Spiritual Vein. Read, share, and discuss at audio-novel-dot-com.

These artificially cultivated Spiritual Vein [a natural conduit of concentrated spiritual energy, often the foundation of cultivation sites] all have Spirit Gathering Formation [a magical array designed to draw in and concentrate ambient spiritual energy] laid upon them, siphoning the spiritual energy from the surrounding heavens and earth. This very process is what causes the spiritual energy within the Great Wasteland [a vast, desolate, and spiritually impoverished region] to be exceptionally thin and weak.

A single low-grade, first-rank Spiritual Vein [a natural conduit of concentrated spiritual energy, often the foundation of cultivation sites] possesses a spiritual energy concentration dozens of times greater than that of the ambient energy in the world.

This is precisely the reason why, outside the confines of the various major Spiritual Vein [natural conduits of concentrated spiritual energy], the spiritual energy of the outside world is so sparse it can scarcely sustain cultivation.

Even a cultivator with a Heavenly Spiritual Root [the highest grade of innate talent for absorbing and refining spiritual energy] would find it impossible to break through to the Foundation Establishment [the second major realm of cultivation, where one solidifies their spiritual foundation] realm in their entire lifetime if they lacked the concentrated spiritual energy provided by a Spiritual Vein [a natural conduit of concentrated spiritual energy] and had to rely solely on the world's meager ambient energy.

Of course, there are many places in the world where spiritual energy naturally converges, often appearing every few hundred Li-length [one Li-length equals five hundred meters].

These locations are either atop lofty mountains, hidden within subterranean undercurrents, or nestled deep inside secluded valleys.

Such terrain either gathers spiritual energy effectively or prevents its dissipation, and may even gradually form new Spiritual Vein [natural conduits of concentrated spiritual energy]. For rogue cultivators, these are rare and precious cultivation havens.

Returning to the main point, Old Patriarch understood clearly that once the Ancient Enlightenment Tea Tree [a legendary spiritual plant whose leaves can aid in meditation and comprehension] was transplanted, Pingyang City would no longer be suitable for promotion to a Fourth-Rank Spiritual Vein [a location with a spiritual vein of the fourth rank, a powerful source of energy].

It was located a mere three thousand Li-length [one Li-length equals five hundred meters] from Green Chariot Mountain, its spiritual energy coverage zone already brushing against that of the mountain.

If a fourth-rank Spirit Gathering Formation [a magical array designed to draw in and concentrate ambient spiritual energy] were deployed, it would likely siphon away a significant portion of the spiritual energy from both Green Chariot Mountain and Spirit Isle Lake the very moment it activated.

This was entirely a matter of shifting resources from one hand to the other, and it would inevitably lead to the dissipation of some of the Spiritual Energy [the vital energy that permeates the world and fuels cultivation], making it a futile endeavor with more loss than gain.

Having reached this understanding, Old Patriarch said with a gentle smile, "The Spiritual Vein [a subterranean channel of concentrated spiritual energy] at Pingyang City shall henceforth be maintained at the Third Rank Superior Grade level."

"After all, this place is one of the cradles from which our clan rose to prominence. We must leave a contingent of clansfolk here."

"Agreed," Eldrin Chen nodded, then inquired, "How many people are you planning to relocate this time?"

Regarding the clan's circumstances, the Old Patriarch possessed a grasp as clear as his own reflection.

Picking up a game piece, he said with a smile, "The mortal population in our clan's Pingyang City has now surpassed forty million."

"Furthermore, over the course of one Sixty-Year Cycle [a complete cycle of sixty years, a significant temporal unit], we have gradually relocated three million people to the Hundred-Thousand-Mile Great Wasteland. Their descendants have since multiplied, and their numbers now exceed ten million."

"This time, I intend to leave ten million in Pingyang City and move thirty million to the Hundred-Thousand-Mile Great Wasteland. Henceforth, the population of Pingyang City should not exceed thirty million."

Eldrin Chen took a sip of tea, pondered for a moment, then shook his head. "Relocating thirty million people is no small task. Will the clan's fleet of Treasure Ship [magical vessels used for long-distance travel and transport] suffice?"

A wry smile also touched the lips of the Old Patriarch. The logistics of moving tens of millions of mortals a distance of one hundred thousand Li-lengths [one Li-length equals five hundred meters] in one go—this workload was far beyond 'no small task'.

If they were to make the journey on foot, it is feared that before they could even reach the Hundred-Thousand-Mile Great Wasteland, most would likely perish along the way.

Fortunately, the Chen Clan possesses Treasure Ship [large enchanted vessels for transport and warfare], including even a War Treasure Ship [a powerful, heavily armed and armored variant] of the fourth rank. These Treasure Ship can transport a minimum of several hundred people, with the largest capable of carrying upwards of ten thousand.

With the transport capacity of these Treasure Ship, the clansmen can be swiftly relocated to the Hundred-Thousand-Mile Great Wasteland. "Currently, between our clan and the Heavenly Ruins Sect, we have four War Treasure Ship and thirty-seven third-rank Treasure Ship in total."

"If packed tightly, a single Fourth-Rank Treasure Ship can carry thirty thousand mortals. With all four ships operating together, they can transport one hundred twenty thousand."

"The third-rank Treasure Ship have far less capacity. Combined, the thirty-seven ships can only move a little over eighty thousand people per trip. In total, a single convoy can transport around two hundred thousand."

"Two hundred thousand per trip? That would require one hundred fifty round trips!" Immerse yourself in the complete world at audio-novel dot com.

Eldrin Chen furrowed his brow. Even if each round trip averaged one month, relocating all thirty million people would take over fourteen years.

Furthermore, operating the Treasure Ship requires vast amounts of spiritual energy. Measured in Spirit Stone [a mineral that stores and radiates spiritual energy, used as currency and for cultivation], a single round trip to the Hundred-Thousand-Mile Great Wasteland for these dozens of third and fourth-rank vessels would consume at least one hundred thousand Spirit Stone.

And that was the minimum consumption for flight alone, without activating any offensive or defensive Formation [a structured arrangement of energy or objects to create magical effects].

Calculated this way, the total spiritual energy cost for the entire migration, converted to Spirit Stone, would exceed ten million.

Fortunately, the Treasure Ship could be powered by drawing upon the spiritual energy [the vital force that permeates the world and fuels cultivation] from the Spiritual Vein. This method was several times cheaper than directly consuming Spirit Stone [a mineral that stores and radiates spiritual energy], significantly reducing the overall expenditure.

Seeing the expression on Eldrin Chen's face, the Old Patriarch offered a faint smile and said, "I have already considered this. The Spiritual Vein beneath Pingyang City will inevitably dissipate in time. It is better to make full use of it while we can, employing its energy to charge the treasure ship."

"In this way, we should be able to resolve the majority of the Treasure Ship's consumption issues."

"It seems this is the only viable course."

Eldrin Chen nodded in agreement. A grand undertaking of relocating an entire clan's mortal population was no simple feat.

Such a monumental project, even with the Chen Clan mobilizing every resource at its disposal, would demand a staggering price, consuming vast amounts of manpower and material wealth to complete.

Yet, there was no alternative. Although Yu County's terrain was relatively level compared to other regions, it was still a land dominated by mountains with few plains.

The mountains of this world were unlike those of his past life; they soared to heights of a thousand Zhang-lengths [one Zhang-length equals three point three three meters] with ease. To cultivators, they were but scenery, but to mortal men, they stood as insurmountable barriers.

Furthermore, under such topography, land suitable for cultivation was scarce. A plain like the Ancient Pingyang Plain, stretching over a thousand Li-lengths [one Li-length equals five hundred meters], was an exceedingly rare sight across the entire realm.

Without sufficient arable land, it was impossible to sustain a larger mortal population. This limitation would inevitably constrain the future potential of the Chen Immortal Clan.

For a Golden Core Immortal Clan [a clan whose patriarch has reached the Golden Core stage of cultivation], this might be manageable, but once a clan ascends to the level of an Infant Soul Immortal Clan [a clan whose patriarch has reached the Infant Soul stage], the lack of a sufficiently large population base makes it perilously easy to fall into a state where the old generation fades before the new one is ready to take its place. Find thousands of chapters at audio - novel . com.