Three days later, Meng Bai received a notice from the sect.
He was dispatched to garrison Qingya Town.
Qingya Town was an utterly ordinary town under the jurisdiction of the Taixu Sect—neither remote nor affluent, and inhabited by three immortal-cultivating families.
They were called immortal-cultivating families, but the highest cultivation among them was only at the Level 9 Qi Condensation, and there was not a single Foundation Establishment Cultivator.
For Meng Bai as he was now, garrisoning this place was a perfect fit, as it would give him plenty of time to practice the Great Dream True Scripture.
On the very day Meng Bai arrived, the heads of the three immortal-cultivating families came to pay their respects to him and expressed their submission, offering ten spiritual stones every month.
Spiritual stones were not necessities for Meng Bai. What mattered most to him right now was finding a place to advance to Foundation Establishment.
After dismissing the people from the three immortal-cultivating families, Meng Bai went to the immortal cave arranged by the sect.
He had already instructed his servants that he would be in seclusion for the next few days and not to disturb him unless something important came up.
Meng Bai slowly drifted into a dream.
The dream for advancing to Foundation Establishment was different from the previous ones; it was not created by Meng Bai himself, but formed naturally.
Upon entering the dream, it was as if Meng Bai had stepped into someone else's life.
White light flashed by, and in a daze, Meng Bai found himself in the body of a young man.
The youth was very weak, possessing only the cultivation of the Qi Refining 1st Layer, and all around him were many other youths just like him.
A cultivator with a black beard, looking like a general, stood on a platform and swept his gaze across the crowd.
"Welcome everyone to the Tianyu Secret Realm. You are all elites sent by your respective families, and you will spend ten years here. I hope that after ten years, you can advance and become Bitter Sea Masters."
Bitter Sea Masters? Meng Bai thought to himself, having never heard of such a realm.
It seemed this world differed slightly from real-world cultivation.
However, since he was here, he would make the best of it, and Meng Bai quickly integrated into this place.
Through a few days of understanding, he learned that in this world, the human and demon races were mortal enemies with a sea of deep hatred between them.
The Tianyu Secret Realm was a place specifically designed to train human cultivators in subduing demons.
The secret realm possessed extremely rich cultivation resources and guidance from renowned masters.
Here, the Qi Condensation realm was called Origin Solidification.
In the first year, Meng Bai broke through to Level 3 Origin Solidification.
In the second year, Level 5 Origin Solidification.
In the third year, Level 7 Origin Solidification.
In the fourth year, Level 8 Origin Solidification.
In the fifth year, Level 9 Origin Solidification.
Over the span of five years, going from Level 1 Origin Solidification to Level 9 Origin Solidification might not make him a heaven-defying prodigy, but he could certainly be considered a cultivation genius.
If he were in the outside cultivation world, he should be undergoing Foundation Establishment right now—that is, breaking through to become a Bitter Sea Master.
However, in the Tianyu Secret Realm, many people like him did not rush to break through even after reaching Level 9 Origin Solidification.
Because in the Tianyu Secret Realm, Origin Solidification did not have just nine layers, but twelve.
Although reaching Level 9 Origin Solidification could also allow one to advance to a Bitter Sea Master, a Bitter Sea Master advanced in this manner would only be the weakest kind.
As soon as he advanced to Origin Solidification, Li Kui sought him out.
Li Kui was the bearded general Meng Bai had seen on the first day he entered the dream.
"Meng Bai, since you have already advanced to Level 9 Origin Solidification, go to the western part of the secret realm."
"Demons of the Origin Solidification realm are kept there in captivity. Go and engage in slaughter; only by bathing in the blood of the demon race can one reach the ultimate limit of Origin Solidification."
The far west of the Tianyu Secret Realm.
Meng Bai came here alone.
Most demon-slaying masters acted alone.
As soon as he entered the far western region, Meng Bai felt a wave of bloodlust and stern killing intent.
Roar!
A loud crash rang out.
A pair of huge, lightning-fast claws suddenly appeared.
The Shadow Moon Step moved silently, evading the tiger demon that had suddenly appeared.
"A Level 9 Origin Solidification tiger demon. I run into a big catch right after arriving—my luck is truly good."
Meng Bai smiled faintly and drew the demon-slaying sword from his waist.
Over the past five years, alongside his cultivation, Meng Bai had also practiced a rather decent swordsmanship.
Sword intent surged forth like a sharp blade leaving its sheath.
The sword intent Meng Bai had comprehended was the Mountain and Sea Sword Intent, with every move and stance carrying immense power.
Seeing that Meng Bai was so formidable, the tiger demon developed the intent to retreat.
However, with the sword qi coming head-on, it ultimately missed its chance to escape.
The sword qi swept across the tiger demon's waist, and fresh blood gushed out like a spring.
The tiger demon died amidst a roar of reluctance.
Seeing the tiger demon's fresh blood, Meng Bai understood why Li Kui had said he needed to bathe in the blood of the demon race.
It turned out to be literally true—bathing in fresh blood.
Although the demons here were kept in captivity, the secret realm was rich in rare treasures and natural herbs. Having consumed these treasures year-round, the blood within the demons' bodies was already comparable to precious medicinal concoctions.
Wanting to advance to Level 10 Origin Solidification required not only cultivation, but also a powerful physical body; these demons were the fine medicine needed for advancement.
Meng Bai looked at the tiger demon on the ground and thought it shouldn't be wasted.
He immediately set up a campfire on the spot and prepared to roast tiger meat.
Four years later.
Meng Bai had already advanced to Level 12 Origin Solidification.
In the far western region, he had hunted countless demons.
At this moment, the dharma power within his body had reached the limit of what his physique could contain.
"Senior Brother Meng, so you were here. You certainly made me search for you."
Ye Yuxin emerged from the jungle.
"So it's Junior Sister Ye."
"Senior Brother Meng, I've joined forces with several Peak Origin Solidification senior brothers and sisters to hunt a Bitter Sea Realm fish demon at Hanging Lake. I wonder if Senior Brother might be interested in joining us?"
Meng Bai said, "I'll pass. I wish you all smooth success."
Ye Yuxin nodded.
"Then I will take Senior Brother's auspicious words."
Meng Bai chose not to accept.
To advance from Peak Origin Solidification to the Bitter Sea realm required bathing in the blood of a Bitter Sea Realm demon.
He knew about the fish demon at Hanging Lake; although it was in the Bitter Sea Realm, its bloodline was mediocre, and splitting it among many people was not his first choice.
However, he would go and take a look on the day of the hunt. Now that Origin Solidification realm demons no longer posed a threat to him, he wanted to see just how formidable a Bitter Sea Realm demon truly was.
Executing the Breath-Hiding Technique, he followed behind Ye Yuxin, and a quarter of an hour later, they arrived at their rendezvous point.
Besides Ye Yuxin, there were three men and one woman, all at Peak Origin Solidification.
Seeing Ye Yuxin return, Bai Chuzhen asked, "How did it go? Did Meng Bai agree?"
Ye Yuxin shook her head. "Senior Sister, Senior Brother Meng refused."
Bai Chuzhen said with a calm expression, "Since he refused, the five of us will do the hunting."
A man dressed in purple robes agreed, "Senior Sister Bai, rest assured, the five of us are more than enough. If Meng Bai were allowed to join, we'd have to split a portion of the demon blood away, which wouldn't be worth it."
Without replying, Bai Chuzhen led the group toward Hanging Lake.
At the edge of Hanging Lake,
Ye Yuxin took out a bottle of Level 12 Origin Solidification demon blood and poured it into the lake.
As soon as the demon blood entered the water, a gust of wind swept in, and the lake instantly surged with turbulent waves.
A nine-foot-long giant fish darted out from the lake.
"Attack!"
With Bai Chuzhen's shout, all five of them struck simultaneously.
Seeing this, the fish demon was not frightened; instead, it felt somewhat annoyed. How dare mere Origin Solidification realm humans make a move against it?
It waved its demonic power.
Nine columns of water whipped up from the lake, blasting toward the five of them with a might so great that each water column exceeded the full-strength strike of a Peak Origin Solidification expert.