This Sword Cultivator is Somewhat Dependable-Chapter 1549 - 24: Whale Fall

The same Longevity Whale internal world, compared to the one Lu Qingshan visited before, the difference is simply too great.

This is already a Cave Heaven Blessed Land, vast, and endlessly large, even home to the powerful Wind Clan.

Lu Qingshan looked around and answered Feng Mo's question, "Yes."

He knew the Whale God Feng Mo spoke of was the giant Longevity Whale bearing Qingcang Island.

Feng Mo furrowed his eyebrows tightly, confused and filled with doubt.

For so many years, the Whale God had mostly been asleep, never interacting with outsiders apart from their Wind Clan. Why does it now treat a human cultivator differently?

With these doubts in mind, Feng Mo had already brought Lu Qingshan to the Wind Clan's main city, Wind Whale City.

"Worthy of being one of the seven Longevity Clans." Looking at the giant city before him, Lu Qingshan marveled at its grandeur. Although not comparable to Heavenly River City, it is a rare majesty in the world, he thought sincerely.

Contrary to expectations, inside Wind Whale City, instead of a dense spread of buildings, there were many Spirit Mountains, with numerous mansions built by the mountains.

Such a city, Lu Qingshan had never seen before, containing a certain aesthetic beauty.

"The Whale God does not appreciate destruction, so our Wind Clan's principle in constructing cities within its internal world is minimal disruption, mostly adapting to the terrain," Feng Mo explained, revealing the Wind Clan's reverence for the Longevity Whale.

Entering the city, Feng Mo took Lu Qingshan to a deep blue lake. The scenery here was magnificent, with a pavilion that stood out as one of the few non-mansion structures in Wind Whale City.

"May I ask, young friend, what method did you use to suppress the power of the Heavenly River Sea earlier?" Upon entering the pavilion, offering divine wine and delicacies, Feng Mo asked.

Feng Sheng and Feng Bai, who followed him in, immediately showed a hint of interest.

"Do not misunderstand," Feng Mo added, "It is not our intent to covet your methods.

The scene earlier was seen by you; the Heavenly River Sea harbors malice against our Qingcang Island. To tell you the truth, this is not the first time such an incident occurred."

"With your help this time, we narrowly avoided this disaster, but ultimately, this doesn't solve the root issue. Next time, the Heavenly River Sea might employ different tactics..."

"Rest assured, young friend, our Wind Clan will not take advantage of you freely. The Wind Clan treasury is open to you, allowing you to choose," Feng Mo promised sincerely.

"I'm sorry," Lu Qingshan hesitated slightly, finally shaking his head, "It is the marvel of my Life-bound Sword."

He didn't disclose everything, but the implication was clear.

The Life-bound Sword of a sword cultivator, only a sword cultivator can use.

Upon hearing this, the three showed faint disappointment.

"Well," Feng Mo sighed, bowing with folded hands, "Regardless, the favor you extended is deeply appreciated by our clan. If you have any requests, just speak up, and our clan will try to fulfill them."

"I come from Heavenly River City," Lu Qingshan said honestly, feeling no need to be overly tactful, "My purpose in coming to Qingcang Island is to persuade your Wind Clan to join the ranks of our Human Race, only to encounter this situation by chance."

"Heavenly River City..." Feng Mo's gaze flickered, having anticipated this, though he did not expect Lu Qingshan to be so straightforward.

"To be honest, over the years, both your Human Race and Demon Race have visited the island several times with aims similar to yours, but each time we turned them away," he said sincerely, "It's not that we don't appreciate young friend's benevolence, but this matter....is indeed difficult to promise."

"Can you change your condition, young friend? Treasures or rare materials? Our Wind Clan treasury can open to you, allowing you to select three items, regardless of value."

As expected, he was rejected.

Lu Qingshan was not surprised, as this concerned the future of a clan, Feng Mo, as the leader of the Wind Clan, had to be extremely cautious.

But given his current cultivation, most treasures had lost their significance for him—few were not possessed by the Sword Sect, and sword cultivators typically did not need anything besides swords.

"Why does the Heavenly River Sea harbor such malice towards your noble clan?" Lu Qingshan changed his topic, curiously asking.

"Didn't the Whale God tell you?" Feng Mo asked.

Lu Qingshan shook his head.

Because the message conveyed by the Longevity Whale was actually quite simple, simple enough not to form a complete sentence, more like a secret code used among the same species to confirm identity.

Upon receiving the signal, Lu Qingshan knew the identity of the issuer, the Longevity Whale.

At the same time, a certain aura deep within his body was also triggered.

That was the gift from the Longevity Whale years ago, the source attracting the Whale God to emit the signal.

"Actually, the Heavenly River Sea does not harbor so-called malice towards our clan; its animosity is aimed at...." Feng Mo thought for a moment before speaking, "Lord Whale God."

Hearing this, Lu Qingshan immediately frowned.

"Why?"

He couldn't comprehend, how could the Heavenly River Sea, as the spirit of mountains, rivers, and lakes, have emotions of hatred toward living beings?

Especially not towards the gentle, long-slumbering "reclusive" beast that is the Longevity Whale.

"How do you feel about this place?" Feng Mo asked in return.

"Rich in spiritual energy, a Cave Heaven Blessed Land, truly a pure land," Lu Qingshan replied.

As he traveled here, he could see it was indeed a small world without borders, filled with many mansions and countless beautiful peaks, with especially abundant spiritual energy.

"Additionally, this place also gave birth to our clan," Feng Mo revealed another great secret.

"Wind Clan was born from the small world?!" Lu Qingshan was shocked.

He always thought the Wind Clan merely discovered the secret of the Longevity Whale by chance, never imagining they were akin to Blaze Spirits and Wood Spirits, beings born from the small world.

Feng Mo nodded, "So we have always revered it as a deity, deeply respecting the Whale God, regarding this place as our ancestral land."

"A race as powerful as your Wind Clan could only be nurtured by something truly formidable." Lu Qingshan sincerely praised.

It was unquestionably far superior to the Longevity Whale he encountered in the South Sea.

"It's said that the Heavenly River Sea harbors malice against the Whale God, but that's not the case," Feng Mo finally provided an answer. "The real malice towards the Whale God comes from above the heavens."

Feng Mo spoke cryptically, yet Lu Qingshan understood immediately.

"Is it the Heavenly Dao?"

Feng Mo nodded, "The Whale God created and nurtured a world on its own, which in the eyes of the Heavenly Dao is an act of utmost rebellion."

"But that's not the entire reason. The fundamental reason is that the Whale God's process of nurturing a world continuously drains the spiritual energy of Heaven and Earth."

"Though Cultivators absorb vast amounts of spiritual energy during cultivation, compared to the power required to nurture a world, it's hardly a drop in the ocean."

"So, you can imagine how much spiritual energy of Heaven and Earth the Whale God absorbed to nurture such a massive world."

"According to the rules of the world's operation, after we High Level Cultivators fall, we undergo a celestial phenomenon, returning the spiritual energy to the Heavenly Dao to maintain the world's balance."

"Spirit Beasts are the same, but the Longevity Whales are especially unique, using ninety-nine percent of the spiritual energy they absorb to nurture the world, with only a minuscule portion used to enhance their cultivation.

Hence, after they fall, only the small portion used for cultivation is returned to the Heavenly Dao."

"In the eyes of the Heavenly Dao, the Whale God is an unscrupulous thief stealing its wealth, so it naturally seeks to reclaim it."

"The Heavenly River Sea merely acts in accordance with the will of the Heavenly Dao," Feng Mo said.

"How can it reclaim it? Can killing it suffice?" Lu Qingshan didn't understand, "And why didn't the Heavenly Dao act before, why drag it out until now?"

"Also, why does the Whale God not resist? Since it's capable of nurturing such a large world, it should be extremely powerful in its own right."

Lu Qingshan had many questions.

"The Whale God... Its lifespan is running out." Feng Mo said heavily.

Lu Qingshan's pupils contracted slightly.

The Longevity Whale, bearing the name of longevity, and especially such a powerful one, seemed unrelated to the phrase 'lifespan running out.'

Seeing Lu Qingshan's shock, Feng Mo explained, "The Whale God has indeed endured far troppo long years."

"So long that no matter how you trace history, you cannot find its beginning."

"So, even though it possesses nearly infinite life, it is now approaching death."

"In this world, there truly is no such thing as being immortal and undying," he sighed.

Lu Qingshan remained silent.

Just like cultivators, once they advance to the Tribulation Crossing Realm, in theory, their lifespan becomes infinite.

But this infinity actually comes with conditions and many constraints.

If a cultivator chooses to seal themselves away, refraining from all life activities, then indeed they can achieve immortality.

But as long as life activities are engaged in, at a certain point in time, say ten thousand years, say a hundred thousand years, the Five Decay of Heaven and Man will occur.

Even if they endure this Five Decay of Heaven and Man, upon experiencing another period, the Five Decay of Heaven and Man will return, stronger than before, continuing in this cycle until their death and Dao dissolution.

A cultivator's only option is to continually grow stronger, continually break through.

Because the timing of the Five Decay of Heaven and Man coming depends on the cultivator's cultivation; the stronger the cultivation, the longer the interval, and the higher the cultivation, the more you can resist the Five Decay of Heaven and Man.

So, in this regard, at least the data Deep Blue provided remains very precise.

[Feather Transformation Body]—"No longer restricted by lifespan."

It is having no lifespan limits, not limitless.

— Indeed, there are no limits, as long as you can endure the Five Decay of Heaven and Man, you can live as long as you wish, truly depending on yourself.

Just not knowing whether the Ancestral Realm beyond the Ninth Realm can break free from the restrictions of the Five Decay of Heaven and Man?

Lu Qingshan couldn't help but think.

Meanwhile, Feng Mo continued, "If the Whale God were to die naturally, the Heavenly Dao could not reclaim the 'stolen' spiritual energy, so it must complete everything before the Whale God departs."

This addresses the question of why the Heavenly Dao only acts now.

"The Whale God's aging to this point means it can no longer act, as the immense world it nurtures places an enormous burden on it; acting now could lead to this world's collapse."

This is why the Longevity Whale does not resist.

"If the Whale God passes of old age, this micro-world will separate from its dependency on the Whale God and evolve into a stable and independent world, not collapsing with its demise, and Qingcang Island will not submerge."

"But if the Whale God dies unnaturally, this world cannot complete its evolution.

And given the world's weight at that time, it will press the Whale God's holy body into the deep sea."

"The drowning power of the Heavenly River Sea can obliterate everything.

Including the holy body of the Whale God and the world nurtured within it, everything will be erased by the Heavenly River Sea.

Naturally, the spiritual energy of this world will also be released and return to Heaven and Earth."

"When one whale falls, all creatures thrive."