Feng Wukang’s expression shifted slightly, as if he had grasped something profound from the words of the Tortoise Emperor.

“Brother Tortoise,” he said, “does this mean that in the ancient times, the path to immortality required the devotion of an entire realm to a single person?”

Though the Profound Realm was established, teeming with countless living beings, those who achieved immortality were merely the masters of that single realm.

The Tortoise Attendant paused for a moment. “Is it not still the case now?”

That counter-question confirmed the suspicion blossoming in Feng Zikang’s heart. His heart hammered wildly; he had finally understood the fundamental error in the cultivation practices of the myriad schools and sects!

After the shattering of the Primordial Chaos, in the ancient times, both the Lu (Sages/Immortals) and the Immortals coexisted.

But those Immortals back then did not cultivate their way to immortality within this single realm. While this was the main Profound Realm, it could not possibly provide the endless resources required for true immortal cultivation, unlike the boundless Primordial Lands.

Thus, the Immortals each established their own Profound Realms, drawing resources from them to complete their ascension. After all, the resources needed for a mere mortal to become an immortal were far from negligible. Even if the Heavens had not yet separated back then, this single Main Profound Realm could never have sustained so many Immortals.

Following the War of the Investiture of the Gods, Heaven and Earth were severed, and the Immortals departed. After that, the myriad schools and sects arose, a hundred schools contended—though their Daoist methods were exquisite, very few managed to truly become Immortals and ascend to the Upper Realms.

The fundamental reason was that the path itself was utterly flawed!

Relying solely on the resources of this single realm to achieve the Immortal Dao was inherently insufficient. This is why, over the last few centuries, the Heavenly Tribulations had grown increasingly difficult, failing even geniuses like General Lu!

It was because the power of the Profound Realm no longer permitted further ascensions!

If even a few more ascended, this Profound Realm would be pushed to the brink of collapse!

It was precisely for this reason that the great calamity descended—to eliminate another batch of cultivators and send them to the Heavenly Court for Investiture!

At this moment, enlightenment struck Feng Wukang, and he suddenly understood the entire sequence of events!

In truth, those within the myriad schools had not been entirely unaware of this issue. However, by that time, it was nearly impossible for an individual to establish a vast Profound Realm. Their efforts to synthesize their own Profound Realms for their respective sects were merely stopgap measures. Unfortunately, the realms constructed by multiple factions were still insufficient to sustain even a handful of people achieving immortality!

In the ancient era, immediately following the shattering of the Primordial Chaos, any cultivator with intent could seek out fragments of the Primordial Chaos, refine and enlarge them to form a Profound Realm. Nowadays, these fragments were becoming scarcer, making the path to immortality through this route increasingly arduous!

“So, they seek to control the entire Main Profound Realm with the goal of elevating the realm alongside themselves—that is the principle!”

A realm serving one person, and one person leading a realm!

Topsy-turvy as it seemed, ultimately, this was the only true path!

Now, Feng Wukang possessed a magnificent opportunity that everyone else lacked.

The colossal Profound Realm in his hand, once it regained its vitality and the Primal Chaos Qi was reformed into substance, would certainly be enough to support his ascension!

He forcibly suppressed the excitement surging within him and asked the Tortoise Attendant, “Brother Tortoise, then how exactly should this Profound Realm be constructed?”

Possessing a Profound Realm did not guarantee success; one still needed to find the proper method of construction.

For instance, the Celestial Emperor Sheath Fish spirit, who lived for forty-eight thousand years, also possessed a Profound Realm. Yet, he failed to establish the path of a realm dedicated to one person. Instead, he relied on his own cultivation to sustain the realm’s development. When his lifespan neared its end, and he tried to enact his grand plan, the foundation of his Profound Realm had already crumbled, leading to his demise by the Samsara Disk’s decree.

Hearing the tale of the Sheath Fish spirit, the Tortoise Attendant nodded. “If he had established this parasitic strategy and made it the rule tens of thousands of years ago, this world could have long become a demonic realm, and he could have attained immortality, living eternally. But he insisted on deeming himself omniscient and omnipotent, trying to alter the laws of heaven and earth with his own might—how could that succeed?”

Initially, the Sheath Fish spirit pretended to be the embodiment of heaven and earth, advocating for fairness and justice, which was not wrong in itself. But he relied on his profound abilities, not gentle guidance, forcing his will through sheer magical power and divine abilities.

As a result, the laws of heaven and earth did not supply him with continuous power; instead, they constantly depleted his magical energy. This is why he made no progress for nearly fifty millennia, ultimately resulting in his downfall.

“I see!”

Feng Wukang understood the meaning conveyed by the Tortoise Attendant.

The so-called Profound Realm was actually the materialization of the cultivation path. For example, a Demonic Realm embodied the laws of the Demonic Path: the strong prey on the weak, marked by slaughter and decisiveness. The ruler of such a realm draws strength from these inherent principles, using the realm’s power to propel himself to the realm of the Supreme Demon Venerable, thereby achieving longevity with Heaven and Earth, immortal through all ages.

In reality, the Profound Realms of the various schools and sects should have served the same purpose.

Take the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, for instance. It should have drawn upon the state of Nirvana achieved by thousands of people to grant the Buddha his realm of supreme bliss, allowing him access to unparalleled divine powers. However, since the Pure Land was established by many, their powers could not be unified. Thus, the energy had to be channeled back. This is why, through the ages, sect elders must continually use their own cultivation to maintain it.

Such a Profound Realm is inherently unstable. They would not maintain it this way unless it was to nurture the seeds of the next generation for their sect.

“Exactly.”

The Tortoise Attendant nodded. “What is the use of constructing a Profound Realm this way? The more people there are, the greater the pressure on the realm, and eventually, it will collapse under the burden. Not only will all previous efforts be lost, but even those few who managed to ascend will be implicated!”

Feng Wukang let out a long breath, realizing just how fortunate he was to have obtained this Profound Realm!

The Tortoise Attendant smiled faintly. “Brother Feng, don’t get complacent. At your current level, your Profound Realm offers little. You must build it slowly, increasing the population and allowing it to develop for several centuries before it might become useful. Don’t be too hasty!”

Feng Wukang laughed. “Brother Tortoise, then I must trouble you to help me plan the development of this Profound Realm!”

In this age, the one who understood Profound Realms best was this youthful attendant who had lived for two thousand years. Judging by his demeanor, he was willing to remain within Feng Wukang’s realm to assist in its construction, surely benefiting from it later.

The Tortoise Attendant indeed held this thought. Even two thousand years ago, with his current cultivation level, he could not have opened a Profound Realm on his own. He required guidance from his master, drawing on the resources shared by the master’s realm to cultivate. Only after successfully reaching the Soul Transformation stage would he begin searching for fragments of the Primordial Chaos and Primal Chaos Qi to forge his own Profound Realm and embark on his journey to immortality.

In the current age, this is naturally much harder. Therefore, his only option was to cling tightly to Feng Wukang’s strong leg, hoping to see the Profound Realm grow powerful enough to grant him some fortune, and then find another way later.

In fact, if a Profound Realm at the level of a Sect Master could accommodate a few Immortal positions beneath it, perhaps given the vastness of this realm, such an opportunity might exist. However, the Tortoise Attendant did not voice this possibility.

Yet, Feng Wukang vaguely guessed at this. After all, the people of the myriad schools were not fools. What they likely intended was to expand their Profound Realms further to support more Immortals. But given their current scale, it seemed they were still far from sufficient.

Feng Wukang’s advantage lay in the sheer thickness of his Profound Realm’s foundation.

A desolate Profound Realm possessing such boundless scope was astonishing.

The Tortoise Attendant and Feng Wukang conversed late into the night, finalizing the broad strokes of their construction plan.

Currently, the greatest lack within the Profound Realm was land.

Though the universe was vast, without ground to stand upon, the realm could not develop. Despite the introduction of the Innate Yi Wood brought back by Fairy Tianfu and Feng Wukang, the expansion rate of the earth was still too slow.

Once they began construction, the scarcity of land would become the most significant bottleneck.

“So, the first thing to build is the Earth Altar!”

The Tortoise Attendant pointed to a clearing near the core of the Profound Realm. “Once this Earth Altar is built, the growth rate of the land will double. If Brother Feng can find more divine materials, such as the Nine Heavens Breathing Soil, to stimulate the regeneration of Primal Chaos Qi, this speed can increase even further. With vast tracts of land, we can then do what we need to do!”

“Nine Heavens Breathing Soil.”

Feng Wukang recalled hearing the Ghost King Tu mention this item. When he was establishing his foundation, he had considered searching for it, but Luo Lianxin had gifted him five excellent items representing the Five Elements, which were more than enough to solidify the Five Towers and Twelve Cities within his foundation. He hadn't wasted time looking for the soil then.

If the Profound Realm needed it, he could always take the Ghost King Tu and search for it later.

Feng Wukang nodded. “I can search for that.”

The Tortoise Attendant laughed. “If we can find that, our construction speed will increase significantly. The next biggest factor is the residents of this Profound Realm. Brother Feng, what kind of people do you want living here? You must find ways to attract them, provided, of course, they are useful to your cultivation!”

If he intended to cultivate the Way of War, he should seek battle-hardened armies. If he pursued the Demonic Path, he should look for practitioners of the Demonic Path.

If he brought in Confucian gentlemen or Daoist true masters, they would be useless. One or two might not matter, but too many would actually impede his cultivation.

The dominant path he cultivated must be the mainstream of this Profound Realm!

“That is a bit troublesome…”

Finding battle-hardened armies might be manageable, but finding demonic practitioners was much harder, and the key question was how to balance the two groups?

He pondered for a long time before finally deciding to reveal the full truth to the Tortoise Attendant.

After all, most people within the Profound Realm were aware of his dual cultivation of War and Demon arts. This matter was significant, so telling the Tortoise Attendant posed no risk. Furthermore, this man was from two thousand years ago; he only knew the Great Dao and not the separation between schools, so he held no prejudice!

Who knew that upon hearing his confession, the Tortoise Attendant burst into loud laughter?

“Brother Feng, you are truly obsessed.”

“Oh?” Feng Wukang looked puzzled.

The Tortoise Attendant shook his head. “Brother Feng, have you forgotten? I told you long ago, in our ancient times, there was only the Great Dao; there was no division into sects. All Daoist methods were merely means; the ultimate Dao was the same for all.”

“The Way of War is the same as the Demonic Way—what difference is there?”

“The most important thing is how you handle affairs!”

A thunderous boom echoed in Feng Wukang’s mind; enlightenment suddenly struck!