Whether it was asking the Casual Sage Yuan Jing for assistance or concerning the treasure in his hand capable of reviving the dead, both paths required a return to the Azure Heaven Realm.

Having settled on his destination in mind, Zong Shou began to take stock of his gains within the Spirit Realm of Azure.

When employing the Boundless Beginning and End Manifestation to slay those three Divine Realm experts, His 'Black Hole' had already, without anyone knowing, spirited away all the personal belongings the three carried. While the boundless darkness and immeasurable light enveloped the heavens, he concurrently emptied the entire treasury of the Skyflame Manor. In this manner, he preserved the majestic dignity befitting a Buddha or Tathagata, while ensuring all the spoils ended up in his grasp. Even an infinitely mighty 'Buddha' still had needs for sustenance and daily expenditure—

Stepping into the Immortal rank, his spiritual perception surged more than tenfold. With just a cursory scan now, he grasped the full extent of his acquisitions. Ignoring the spirit stones, there were no less than a thousand low-grade Immortal Crystals alone. Then there were all manner of miscellaneous items, both useful and useless to him, a dazzling array. There were four Immortal Artifacts alone. And thirty-four Earth-rank spiritual items. In total, there were over sixty bottles of elixirs. Zong Shou did not inspect them closely, nor did he know their specific uses. However, merely by observing their appearance and spiritual energy, Zong Shou could tell that at least four bottles were of the Immortal Elixir grade. “The wealth of the Lu family of Brahma Land is indeed not just talk. Merely three Divine Ranks—” It was no wonder the Lu Family of Brahma Land had never been interested in the Cloud Realm. There was the mismatch of the Great Dao, negating the need for that Heaven-Opening Supreme Treasure. And there was also the reality of their abundant internal resources, making it truly unnecessary to wade into such murky waters. “Some of these are useless to me. Coincidentally, apart from these seven drops of Heaven-Seizing Restoration Fluid, I still need a few more spiritual items that I can exchange for at various ruined markets along the way. To gain other benefits from within the Azure Life Dao—”

With the Golden Scroll of Profound Destiny and the Heaven-Seizing Restoration Fluid, he essentially had what was essential; the rest were merely supplementary materials. In truth, the Azure Life Dao's accumulation over ten millennia would contain every kind of spiritual material imaginable. But if he gathered the materials himself, how could Senior Brother Wei Xu and Martial Uncle Yuan Jing refuse to accept them? Once accepted, they would naturally owe him favors in return. It just so happened that he deeply coveted the dozen or so Sect-Guarding Artifacts housed in the ancestral shrine of his sect. Coupled with the prior batch of Heaven Origin Creation Pills, Zong Shou had already rendered monumental service to the Azure Life Dao. He reasoned that Senior Brother Wei Xu should have no grounds to refuse him now.

Judging solely by his harvest within the Spirit Realm of Azure, this venture had indeed been exceptionally fruitful. Just the seven drops of Heaven-Seizing Restoration Fluid—each drop comparable to a mid-grade Immortal Artifact, and priceless beyond market measure.

Yet, Zong Shou could not manage a smile at this moment. This was especially true when he settled his mind into meditation. The Golden Core within his body was acceptable; apart from being even more perfectly round and pure, containing more Dao Talismans and Martial Dao True Intent condensed within, it held little difference from that of an ordinary martial cultivator. However, the Manifestation within his Primordial Soul was vastly different from his initial imagination. Within his Sea of Consciousness, a humanoid phantom stood, hands supporting the Beginning and End. Between its brows was an incomplete 'Dao' character pattern, profound and mysterious, yet not lacking in aesthetic beauty. All of this was normal. But beneath its feet, the seven-colored lotus platform condensed by accumulated wish-power had not dissipated. Instead, it shone with even more brilliant splendor, appearing extraordinarily noble. Within the lotus platform, pure and flawless Sarira condensed, resembling individual lotus seeds. This was the consequence of forcibly integrating the power of wish-vows when undergoing the Crimson Flame Divine Tribulation and condensing his Manifestation. Currently, this lotus platform was intimately connected with his Primordial Soul, impossible to dispel. He did not know if it was a blessing or a curse, nor what future sequelae it might bring. In retrospect, the culprit responsible was the very person at his side, Lu Wubing—

Zong Shou sighed, casually taking out two spiritual items. One was a round bead, about half the size of a palm. It was entirely transparent, resembling a bubble. One could clearly see within it a splendid and magnificent palace. One could even discern tiny figures moving inside—some practicing cultivation, some conversing, and others busy with various miscellaneous chores. If magnified a hundred times, it would surely be indistinguishable from a real scene. Zong Shou knew this was reality. This was one of the four Immortal Artifacts, and furthermore, a rare Spatial Treasure. He recalled recently envying Hong Jiuchen’s Martial Suburb Immortal Palace. He hadn't expected that only a few months later, he would possess one himself. The people inside should be servants of one of the three Divine Realm experts, still unaware that Zong Shou had perished. Pouring his divine sense into it, he leveraged the dense power of accumulated vows within the artifact. Effortlessly, Zong Shou wiped away the sealing intent of the former master from this Immortal Artifact. Then, just as he was about to inscribe his own divine soul mark upon it, He saw the paifang (memorial archway) before the palace within the water bubble ignite in flames. Moments later, when the flames subsided, the inscription on the paifang had vanished, replaced by blankness. Zong Shou started, then smiled: “Let it be named the Vast Heaven Immortal Mansion!” Indeed, spiritual light flashed across the paifang again, and the characters ‘Vast Heaven’ appeared.

Zong Shou then examined the second item: a wooden boat. In his hand, it felt like a miniature carved model. This too was an Immortal Artifact, a treasure of swift transit similar to the Demon-Repelling Divine Shuttle. With the Demon-Repelling Divine Shuttle damaged, Zong Shou was indeed lacking an object capable of carrying him across various realms and traversing the void. Initially, he had set his sights on the flying shuttle used by the one who died last. But unexpectedly, among the personal belongings of these individuals, there was something even better. After wiping away the residual prohibitions and divine sense, this Immortal Treasure required a blood sacrifice. Zong Shou forced out three drops of his vital blood and infused them into it. Then he used his own Void-Burning Fire to scorch it for half a day before the artifact could glow with spiritual light again, signifying the sacrifice and refinement were complete. This treasure was already known within the artifact formations as the Aurora Tribulation-Crossing Boat. Zong Shou tested it and his face lit up with joy. With his current magical power, he could actually barely command it. He immediately chuckled: “The two of you can enter now! We shouldn't linger here; the sooner we leave, the better. With this boat, reaching the Cloud Realm from here should take only ten days—” Lu Wubing nodded, transforming into a streak of escaping light and entering the boat. Jing Yin, however, started, pointing her tender, slender finger at her own nose: “Do I have to go too?” Her heart already dimly anticipated the answer, weeping internally. She had never imagined leaving the Spirit Realm of Azure; she had intended to spend her entire life in seclusion at the Water Moon Nunnery. Zong Shou, hearing this, let out a strange, muffled laugh: “You nun, how can you be so obtuse? Didn't I say before that if this Buddha descended upon the Spirit Realm of Azure to relieve suffering, you would serve this Buddha for a lifetime? Are you trying to renege on your promise?” Without waiting for Jing Yin to reply, Zong Shou swept her up with his magic power and tossed her into the boat as well. Then, guiding it with his intention, the flying boat flickered and vanished from its original location.