The meeting with the old master was much more straightforward than with Liu Qingtian and the others.
After hearing his eldest grandson's proposal, Liu Jingshan agreed immediately without the slightest hesitation.
In the old man's words, "This is an opportunity that can elevate our entire family to a higher level. There is nothing to hesitate about."
Of course, relocating the entire clan was not something that could be accomplished overnight. Therefore, Liu Jingshan chose to continue his seclusion. Especially after receiving the Spirit Soul Pill from Liu Bai, he was even more eager to break through to the Heaven Fusion Realm.
Liu Jingshan knew very well that once they moved to Northern Heaven City, the Liu Family needed at least one powerhouse besides Liu Bai to hold the fort.
Although the Heaven Fusion Realm could not truly be considered strong, it still meant touching the threshold of the Three Heaven Realms, which was enough to earn some standing.
Naturally, if Liu Qingtian could break through as well, that would be even better. Thus, the follow-up affairs were directly handed over to the second elder, Liu Zong, while the others, including Liu Ming, went into seclusion to cultivate and attempt breakthroughs.
Liu Zong himself had no objections. His cultivation was in a relatively stable phase, and even with the aid of spiritual pills, he was unable to touch the barrier of the Heaven Fusion Realm. Therefore, handling such trivial matters suited him best.
As for Liu Bai, he would never stay idle. After distributing everything, he left Liu City the next day and headed toward the Northern Nether Abyss.
The Black Nether Abyss was a forbidden land that everyone in the Northern Spiritual Realm feared to even mention. However, in Liu Bai's eyes now, it was no different from any ordinary place. With his current strength far surpassing that of the Spiritual beasts residing within, they could no longer provide him with any experience or beast soul points. Otherwise, he would not have minded slaughtering his way through.
Spreading out his spiritual sense as he advanced, Liu Bai soon discovered something intriguing.
Before him stood a massive, pitch-black tree that appeared to have been scorched by some kind of flame. At its top was a skeleton, charred and lifeless.
The reason he concluded that it had died by fire was that half of its body was completely blackened, and even the bones were shrunken—a sign that only occurred when one was burned by an exceptionally powerful spiritual flame.
"Spirit Insect Clan… Heavenly Insect…"
"A poor fool who was burned to death by the Nine Nether Sparrow because of his greed."
Liu Bai shook his head as he looked at the corpse. He could not help but wonder if, in some parallel world, someone might reincarnate into this unfortunate fellow and live all over again.
Soon, he dismissed such a stray thought. Since he was already here, the Nine Nether Sparrow's location could not be far.
He did not disturb anything nearby, not even the swarms of Devouring Spiritual Bees that buzzed around, entirely unaware that someone had passed through. With a streak of light, Liu Bai's figure vanished into the endless mountains.
He soon arrived at the massive basin mentioned in the original records. The ground there was indeed charred black, as if burned by fire. The vast basin was covered in countless white bones, all lying in eerie positions, pointing toward the center.
Following the direction of the skeletal remains, his gaze fell upon a massive black volcano at the basin's heart. Its summit dipped inward, forming a dark pit that resembled a demonic maw devouring all light.
Liu Bai knew that the egg formed after the Nine Nether Sparrow's failed tribulation lay within that crater. It was encased in black volcanic rock, invisible to the naked eye.
Unlike the original Mu Chen, Liu Bai possessed no copper tablet recording the Nine Nether Sparrow's existence, nor did he intend to stumble upon it by chance. A wisp of Golden Crow True Flame burst forth from his hand, spreading across the mouth of the volcano.
The next instant, as if provoked, a massive piece of black volcanic rock split apart. A wave of black fire erupted, surging fiercely toward the Golden Crow True Flame, as though intent on driving it away from its territory.
The Nine Nether Sparrow and the Nine Netherworld Sparrow were both Yin-attributed spiritual beasts, and their Nether Flames and Dark Flames naturally shared that same Yin essence.
The Golden Crow True Flame, however, was its natural nemesis—a supreme Yang flame. The two were destined to clash the moment they met.
As the black flame surged forth, Liu Bai finally saw it—the massive black egg suspended within the flames, about a zhang in size.
Its surface was smooth and jet-black, inscribed with faint, mysterious lines that, upon closer inspection, seemed to form the image of a shadowy bird spreading its wings protectively around the egg.
"Awake already…"
Feeling the intensifying life force emanating from within, Liu Bai realized that the Nine Nether Sparrow, long dormant in its egg, had begun to awaken.
Buzz!
With its awakening, the entire egg began to tremble, emitting a low hum. Waves of spiritual energy spread outward, and Liu Bai noticed the sky above darkening once again.
"Damn, this little sparrow isn't planning to undergo the tribulation again, is it? That's suicide!"
Liu Bai was astonished. Though the Nine Nether Sparrow had acted just as recklessly in the original story, he could not allow it to proceed like this.
Unlike Mu Chen, Liu Bai did not need the Nine Nether Sparrow's spirit essence—he needed a complete Nine Nether Sparrow, one that possessed its physical body and successfully advanced to a Divine Beast after transcending the Heavenly Tribulation.
With a thought, the Five Elements Disk appeared before him, enveloping the black egg entirely and isolating it from the outside world. Deprived of its target, the forming tribulation clouds soon dissipated.
In the next moment, Liu Bai's spiritual sense entered the black egg. He immediately felt himself pulled into a dark world filled with fire.
Amidst the flames, a figure slowly emerged, followed by a towering wave of black fire that rushed toward his manifested consciousness.
A five-colored radiance surrounded Liu Bai's spiritual projection. No matter how fiercely the fire burned or exploded, it could not shake that light in the slightest. Soon, Liu Bai's manifested form became clear, standing opposite the Nine Nether Sparrow hidden within the black flames.
"Human, get out!"
A crisp and melodious voice echoed in his mind, though its tone was filled with fury.
"Hehe, Nine Nether Sparrow, how about we make a deal? You submit to me, and I'll help you survive your tribulation. I think you know very well that with your current strength, it's impossible for you to overcome the Spiritual-to-Divine Tribulation on your own. No matter how many times you try, the result will be the same."
"Moreover, in your current state, if you fail this time, you won't get another chance."
Silence filled the surroundings. The Nine Nether Sparrow clearly understood that everything Liu Bai said was true. Yet as the young mistress of the Nine Nether Clan, the most gifted of her race, her pride would never allow her to bow before a mere human.
"Give up that thought. The Nine Nether Clan will never submit to you weak humans!"
With those words, a sharp cry pierced the air. The cry turned into a sonic wave that struck Liu Bai's protective five-colored light, only to be instantly absorbed and dispersed.
The great bird hidden within the flames narrowed its eyes. The aura radiating from this human made her feel an unprecedented sense of danger.
Perhaps this time… she truly would not escape death.
Liu Bai scratched his head in mild frustration. It seemed that talking this little wild sparrow into obedience would not be easy. Words were never really his strong suit. He preferred a simpler, more direct approach.
"With your current condition, you're in no position to call me weak, are you?"
"Besides, even ants struggle to survive. Are you really willing to die here so miserably, without a sound, without even the chance to see your kin again?"
The Nine Nether Sparrow froze, her throat tightening as if something had lodged there. The defiant words she wanted to say could no longer come out.
After a long silence, a voice came from within the black flames.
"I will never acknowledge a human as my master!"
Her tone was still firm, but it no longer carried the same resolve to die as before.
"I don't like enslaving others either. I believe true friendship can only exist between equals. We can treat each other as equals, helping and supporting one another like friends," Liu Bai said sincerely.
"Hmph, humans are cunning by nature. Unless you help me transcend my tribulation right now, I will never believe a single word you say!"
Liu Bai smiled slightly and said, "That's fine. I heard that Spiritual beasts of your level can form a Bloodline Link with humans. It's the fairest form of contract. As long as you and I form this link, I will help you transcend your tribulation immediately."
"Impossible!"
The words had barely left his mouth before the Nine Nether Sparrow cried out sharply.
Then, with a flustered and angry tone, she continued, "And you say you didn't come here with ulterior motives! You cunning creature, even knowing about the Bloodline Link means you had planned this from the beginning. You must have targeted me long ago and came here just to deceive me!"
Uh… that was not entirely wrong. Ever since Liu Bai had transmigrated into this world, he had been thinking about how to subdue this little Nine Nether Sparrow. So he really could not deny it.
The so-called Bloodline Link was a method that only races possessing the bloodline of ancient divine beasts could perform.
Simply put, it was a technique that allowed a Spiritual beast and a human to connect their bloodlines. The benefit was that the human would gain a portion of the beast's abilities, which was far more advanced than simple refining or absorption.
The only drawback was that such a bond was absolute — if one side perished, the other would die as well.
At first, Liu Bai had hesitated to do this. After all, if something were to happen to the Nine Nether Sparrow, wouldn't he also suffer the same fate?
But after thinking it through, he realized his worries were unnecessary.
Putting aside the Nine Nether Sparrow's potential and power after evolution, as long as he didn't seek his own death, she would surely be safer than him after transcending her tribulation and awakening her bloodline.
That meant that, at least for now, she would be his strongest ally. And if they ever faced something even she could not handle, then chances were he would not escape either.
But Liu Bai was not stupid — he would never put himself in a truly hopeless situation.
As for the future, once his own strength grew, he would have even less reason to worry about such things.
Seeing how emotional the Nine Nether Sparrow was becoming, Liu Bai stopped wasting words and brought out his ultimate trump card.
With a wave of his hand, a crystal orb wrapped in five-colored radiance appeared in his palm.
Inside the orb, a golden liquid seemed to writhe with life, emitting waves of astonishing and mysterious energy.
"This is… Divine Beast Blood Essence?!" the Nine Nether Sparrow exclaimed excitedly.
Her reaction was understandable. In her current state, if she could absorb Divine Beast Blood Essence, she would have a ninety percent chance of breaking through her shackles, transforming her spirit, awakening her ancient bloodline, and ascending to divinity.
Back when Liu Bai read the original story in his previous life, he had always wondered why someone like the Nine Nether Sparrow was in a small place like the Northern Spiritual Realm and even failed her tribulation there.
Given the strength of the Nine Nether Clan, how could they possibly allow the clan leader's daughter, their most gifted prodigy, born with the ancient Undying Bird bloodline to attempt her divine transformation alone outside?
No matter how one looked at it, it made no sense.
But whether it made sense or not no longer mattered. Reality was reality, and as the old saying went, "If it exists, it is reasonable."
So Liu Bai did not dwell on it. Instead, his gaze shifted to the little black sparrow before him, who had already fluttered excitedly toward him.
At this moment, the Nine Nether Sparrow was only palm-sized. She had none of the might or grandeur of the ranked eleventh beast on the Divine Beast Chart. In fact, she looked adorable — like a tiny little bird hopping before him.
"Divine Beast Blood Essence… and from a top-tier flying-type divine beast, no less. I can sense the aura of an ancient Sovereign divine bloodline from it…"
She was completely different from her description in the original story. Back then, when she first met Mu Chen, the little sparrow had been proud and untamable, even when subdued by the Immortal Page.
Yet later, at the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy, when she heard about the Northern Sea Dragon's blood essence, she had lost her composure, begging Mu Chen like an excited child to get it for her.
Now, faced with an even greater temptation a drop of the Northern Sea Dragon's blood essence, her reaction was naturally far stronger.
"Well, looks like your sense of smell is sharp," Liu Bai chuckled. "This is indeed the blood essence of the Northern Sea Dragon a top-tier flying divine beast that possesses the dual super bloodlines of the dragon and the kunpeng."
...
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