"Dismantled?" He Yiming's face held an unreadable strangeness. The answer left him utterly bewildered.

When the city wall outside the He Family Village was first erected, the amount of effort and wealth expended by the clan was immeasurable.

And this was merely the small He Family Village. In the Northwestern Principalities, which capital city or renowned metropolis did not require the accumulated devotion of several generations to achieve its current scale?

Yet, Jin Zhanyi had so casually dismissed it with a single word: dismantled. This gave him a profoundly unsettling feeling.

As if sensing He Yiming's thoughts, Jin Zhanyi smiled faintly. "Brother He, the function of a city wall is to repel external threats. For ordinary cities and ordinary armies, they are undoubtedly crucial. But for us, do you truly believe a mere wall can stop a genuine master?"

He Yiming started slightly, a flicker of sudden understanding crossing his features.

Jin Zhanyi was right. The Lingxiao Palace surely housed experts at the Venerable level. As long as they were there to hold the fort, any number of troops would be useless. Similarly, the only force capable of truly threatening the Lingxiao Palace would be experts of the Venerable level themselves.

If they dared to invade the Lingxiao Palace, how could a mere wall possibly hold them back?

Jin Zhanyi’s gaze drifted toward the distant city, and he sighed softly. "If, one day, a vast army truly marches upon us, that will be the moment the Lingxiao Palace meets its end. With walls, escape becomes difficult; without them, perhaps a few more of us might flee."

He Yiming nodded, deeply agreeing with his perspective.

With the current might of the Lingxiao Palace, no faction could realistically march an army to its gates. But times change like oceans shifting sands; no one could guarantee perpetual prosperity.

Even the Five Elements Sect, which once dominated the East and claimed to be the foremost sect under heaven, had vanished into dust. The Lingxiao Palace was not immune to such a fate...

As the caravan drew closer, the city before them grew in sheer immensity. Especially gazing upon the central towering spire, it evoked a feeling of being infinitesimally small, like an ant.

"Brother Jin, is the Lingxiao Palace located within this city?" He Yiming asked solemnly.

Jin Zhanyi let out a soft laugh. "Brother He, this is the Lingxiao Palace."

He Yiming paused, his expression immediately turning peculiar. He couldn't help sweeping his hand in a grand arc. "The entire city is the Lingxiao Palace?"

"Precisely." Jin Zhanyi declared proudly. "Brother He, you may not know that millennia ago, this was nothing but barren land. Later, our founding ancestor took a liking to the spot and constructed the Heaven-Reaching Pagoda here. Since then, the sect began to develop gradually. Over thousands of years, centered around the Heaven-Reaching Pagoda, a massive city capable of housing a million people has formed."

He Yiming drew a sharp, cold breath. The Hengshan lineage also boasted three thousand years of history.

But in comparison, the Hengshan lineage rarely communicated with the outside world. Therefore, over these thousands of years, while the population had slightly increased, it numbered barely over two thousand.

Compared to the Lingxiao Palace, the two were like a louse and an elephant—vastly different.

Silently observing the colossal sect with its million inhabitants, He Yiming felt an overwhelming surge in his heart.

If, one day, the He Family Village could attain such a scale, that would truly be a life without regret.

※※※※

With the obstacle of the outer walls gone, countless avenues led into and out of the city.

The caravan carrying Zhang Zhongjin and the others was remarkably conspicuous. Had they arrived at any other city, they would have surely drawn considerable attention. But entering this colossal metropolis, they were like a stone tossed into the ocean, creating barely a ripple.

Only upon entering did He Yiming truly grasp the city's profound strength.

Among the crowds traversing the streets, the majority were cultivators. Although most possessed cultivation levels barely scraping the third or fourth layer of Inner Strength, a quick glance revealed cultivators at or above the seventh layer of Inner Strength almost everywhere.

This ratio was terrifyingly high. While the main peak of Tianchi possessed a similar concentration, the sheer population disparity between the Lingxiao Palace and Tianchi's main peak was immediately apparent. Consequently, the overall difference in strength was equally obvious to all.

The Great Shen’s premier sect truly lived up to its reputation.

Slowly moving from the city's periphery toward the center, about a hundred zhang away from the central spire, He Yiming finally spotted another barrier—a low wall.

This enclosure was not tall, reaching only about two feet high. Yet, the areas inside and outside this low boundary felt distinctly like two separate worlds.

When the caravan reached the opening in the wall, again there was no obstruction or questioning. Instead, figures standing respectfully on either side of the wide thoroughfare bowed to the convoy.

He Yiming’s eyes swept around, immediately taking in the surroundings.

This low wall clearly delineated the outer and inner wards of the city. Only elite members of the sect could access the Inner Ward.

The Inner Ward was far less bustling than the outer city, but within the few hundred zhang separating the barrier from the central spire, He Yiming sensed two powerful auras belonging to Innate Realm experts. The closer he drew to the spire, the heavier his heart became.

Because he could sense that even more formidable experts resided within.

Finally, the carriage halted. When He Yiming stepped down, he stood directly beneath the immense spire.

Looking up from here, the spire's apex seemed to merge with the heavens; the top was utterly beyond sight.

Here, there was a colossal pressure—the sedimentation of millennia of history seemed to rush forward, enveloping He Yiming in a heavy weight, like an invisible shackle binding him firmly in place.

Although this spire was nowhere near as tall as the Tianchi main peak in the Northwest, the sense of awe it inspired surpassed it.

The Tianchi main peak soared into the clouds, yes, but it was a creation of nature, one of the highest peaks in the entire Northwestern mountain range.

The founding ancestor of Tianchi Mountain had merely discovered that peak and established the Tianchi lineage there.

But this place was different. This spire was not a natural formation; it was built by human hands.

This structure was something humans had erected from the flat plains using nothing but their own labor.

Upon witnessing this edifice, the shock He Yiming felt was no less intense than the first time he beheld the Tianchi main peak.

After a long pause, he let out a slow breath. "Brother Jin, how much labor was required to complete this spire, and how was it constructed?"

Jin Zhanyi shook his head slightly. "According to the ancient records within the sect, this spire was entirely the work of the founding ancestor alone."

He Yiming blinked, then retorted with mild incredulity, "Brother Jin, do you actually believe that?"

Jin Zhanyi gave a wry smile. "Brother He, do you believe in the legends of the Divine Way?"

He Yiming hesitated, several thoughts flashing through his mind.

The legends of the Divine Way had faded millennia ago; at least, for the last several thousand years, no one had personally witnessed a master of the Divine Way appear. Yet, within the heart of every martial artist lay an ineffable yearning for it.

He Yiming was no exception to this sentiment.

Jin Zhanyi's voice drifted softly. "Brother He, although the people of the Divine Way have vanished, the miracles they left behind are standing right before your eyes."

He Yiming's body trembled slightly, his gaze locked onto the spire, unable to look away.

A miracle. The kind of remnant legends claimed only masters of the Divine Way could leave upon the world.

These remnants were invariably beyond the scope of mere human capability.

He Yiming had previously been half-believing, half-doubting. But now, having seen the spire with his own eyes, he truly believed.

There was no other explanation for it save to describe it as a divine manifestation.

Though He Yiming did not possess extensive knowledge of architecture, he knew that the taller a structure, the more difficult it was to erect. A colossal spire of this height absolutely could not have been built by the craftsmen of the current age.

For a moment, He Yiming was swept by a tempest of emotion.

He took two steps forward, and with a gesture of reverence, slowly extended his hand to gently trace the surface of the great spire.

The spire’s exterior was smooth and cool, yet permeated with an unusual kind of power. As He Yiming’s hand brushed against it, he could actually sense the vast energy contained within.

It was an unwavering power, surprisingly similar to the feeling he experienced when confronting the Northwest’s Tianchi main peak.

He Yiming’s face showed an expression of sheer disbelief. After a moment of hesitation, he slowly infused his own True Qi into the surface.

Simultaneously, the image of the Tianchi giant peak surfaced in his mind.

The scenery before his eyes seemed to shift abruptly. He felt as if he were watching a colossal tower slowly ascending from the ground. This spire, it turned out, had not been assembled; it had risen from the earth as if by magic.

Although this was merely an illusion, He Yiming had a powerful conviction that everything unfolding in his mind was a fact that had transpired on this very land in ages past...

It seemed secrets unknown to man were hidden within this tower, and these secrets had somehow been conveyed to his mind through a mysterious power, allowing him to witness the process of the spire’s birth and growth.

In this daze, He Yiming gained a clearer understanding of the Heaven-Upholding Seal. If the environment had been different, he might have felt an irresistible urge to engage Jin Zhanyi in a full-blown battle once more.

Although He Yiming did not explicitly assume the stance of the Heaven-Supporting Pillar, behind him, both Zhang Zhongjin and Jin Zhanyi simultaneously sensed the distinctive, mountain-like aura radiating from He Yiming.

They exchanged a look, utterly uncertain what was happening to him.

After a long while, He Yiming finally withdrew his hand, his expression growing even more complex.

Jin Zhanyi asked suspiciously, "Brother He, what is wrong?"

He Yiming pointed at the spire, stating with uncertainty, "Brother Jin, this great tower... it doesn't feel like it was built."

Jin Zhanyi was perplexed, frowning slightly. What kind of statement was that?

He Yiming’s eyes flickered as he gazed at the spire, speaking deliberately, word by measured word: "It grew out of the ground."