Chapter 164: What is Creation?

Long Yun nodded, suddenly recalling that pair of profound, solemn eyes. The owner of those eyes was Qu Chong's father, the head of the Qu family, Qu Hai. If Qu Hai had not withstood all dissenting opinions and arranged for him to leave, he would have remained in the Profound Heaven Realm back then, never able to leave!

Therefore, upon hearing Qu Chong's words, he immediately spoke up, "I have also missed Uncle Qu deeply. If not for Uncle Qu's staunch protection back then, there would be no Long Yun today!"

"Everyone, disperse and return to your respective homes! As for today's events, Qu Chong will not say thank you, but I keep it in my heart. You are all my good brothers, and this, Qu Chong will never forget!" Qu Chong said to the crowd behind him.

Those people were sensible enough and dispersed, returning to their respective clans one by one.

Qu Chong led Long Yun all the way to the Qu estate. Compared to the Rong family's estate in the West City, the Qu family, being the premier clan of the East City, could only be described as desolate.

The main gate was made merely of red-lacquered wood, marred by numerous damages, with scorch marks from raging fires and piercing traces of weapons. The courtyard walls were also crude and severely damaged.

Qu Chong smiled faintly and said, "My father said that every battle experienced here is a memory the Qu family will never forget. If one day the Qu family ceases to exist, these scars will represent the Qu family, remaining in everyone's memories!"

Long Yun felt a slight ache in his heart, accompanied by a deep surge of guilt. If it were not for his past actions, the Qu family would never have been reduced to this state.

His gaze fell upon Qu Chong, and he said, "Qu Chong, I am sorry!"

"Big Brother!" A smile flashed across Qu Chong's face, and he immediately replied, "If Big Brother is so polite, it means you do not view me, Qu Chong, as a brother. Although the Qu family is fallen, its foundation remains, and the spirit of the Qu family will never wither!"

"As long as I live, the Qu family will endure forever!" Long Yun said solemnly, uttering his pledge. His voice was not loud, yet it was filled with unwavering determination.

Qu Chong nodded heavily, a glimmer of tears shimmering in his eyes. Without further speech, he gently pressed his hand against the red-lacquered wooden door. With a surge of hidden internal energy, the heavy gates swung open in response.

As the doors slowly parted, a figure stood about twenty paces directly opposite the entrance, gazing intently at this direction. The person appeared to be in his forties or fifties, his hair half-black and half-white.

His temples, in particular, were frosted white like powdered lead, and his face was etched with hesitation and the vicissitudes of life.

"Father!" Upon seeing the figure, Qu Chong was stunned for a moment before crying out in surprise.

Qu Hai swept his gaze over his son, a trace of visible relief appearing in his eyes. However, he remained silent, shifting his gaze directly to Long Yun.

Long Yun was also gazing back at him at that moment, offering a slight smile as he said, "Uncle Qu, trust you have been well since we last met!"

A trace of a smile finally surfaced on Qu Hai's weathered face. With his formidable cultivation, he had long since sensed their arrival and had come out ahead of time to welcome them.

At the same time, he had overheard the conversation between his son and Long Yun. That look of gratification was his affirmation of Qu Chong. Hearing Long Yun speak now, Qu Hai's expression softened further as he said, "Long Yun, you have finally returned!"

Long Yun smiled bitterly inwardly. Had it not been for the affair concerning Xiao Leng, he feared he would never have returned, nor would he have known that the Qu family had endured such immense suffering after his departure.

"Yes, I have returned—to repay my debts!" Long Yun slowly uttered, a sharp gleam flashing in his eyes.

He had never owed anyone anything, yet this single time, he owed the Qu family an unimaginably heavy favor. If he did not repay it in full, it would likely affect his cultivation state of mind.

A smile finally broke across Qu Hai's face. "You owe the Qu family nothing. Back then, it was my own choice, entirely unrelated to you. When do you plan to leave this time?"

Long Yun replied, "After the God-Slaying Assembly, once I win honor for the Qu family, I will leave this place."

Qu Hai nodded. "This place has never truly belonged to you. If you can genuinely help the Qu family suppress the major clans of Central City during this God-Slaying Assembly, the destiny of the Qu family will change because of it."

Long Yun asked dubiously, "Will they not care about what happened back then?"

Qu Hai smiled. "So many years have passed. After suffering that tribulation, the Liu family has long since declined. It is only because of their past contributions that they are permitted to reside in Central City. Those old fogies would never dare provoke the regulations of the God-Slaying Assembly on their account!"

Long Yun nodded. "Very well. As long as it changes the current plight of the Qu family, I will fight alongside you!"

Qu Hai's brows relaxed slightly, and then he asked with a puzzled expression, "I sense that your aura is much weaker than before. What on earth has happened?"

A helpless smile touched Long Yun's face as he shook his head and said, "Let bygones be bygones."

Knowing that Long Yun had his unspeakable difficulties, Qu Hai pressed no further. He turned to Long Yun and said, "The God-Slaying Assembly is in ten days. I can see that your aura is somewhat unstable; you must have broken through to a new realm not long ago. You should go and consolidate your foundation first."

With Qu Hai's strength, he could naturally discern Long Yun's cultivation level. Though he was extremely curious about the drop in Long Yun's power, since Long Yun chose not to say, he would not pry.

After all, the young Long Yun of the past had left a profound impression on him. Moreover, besides that, there was another crucial reason why he had gone to such lengths to assist Long Yun without reservation.

This reason was a secret known only to him; neither Qu Chong nor anyone else in the Qu family was aware of it.

With a wave of Qu Hai's sleeve, a gust of palm wind swept past, and the gates closed shut. He then led Long Yun and the others deeper into the estate.

The Qu family's courtyard was not small, and there were plenty of rooms, which spoke of how prosperous the clan had once been. Yet looking at it now, the remaining family disciples numbered less than a third of what they used to be.

Such numbers were enough to break one's heart. As the head of the family, Qu Hai was keenly aware of the Qu family's present predicament, yet he was completely powerless to change it.

After settling into the Qu estate, Long Yun immediately immersed himself in cultivation. Although the Qu family's population was sparse and its fortune waning, fortunately, it bordered the sea, and the concentration of spiritual energy was far superior to that of the West City.

Long Yun's current cultivation was at the one-hundredfold Heaven-reaching realm, still a considerable distance away from the perfection of the three-hundredfold Heaven-reaching realm. Continuing to cultivate at this pace, there was no telling how many years or months it would take to achieve.

Thus, after cultivating for just one night, Long Yun quietly resolved to venture out and seek an opportunity for a breakthrough. With his current cultivation, he could only contend with experts at the Tribulation-crossing realm.

Facing experts of the Zhou-tian realm, however, he would find it extremely difficult to fight them. Even if he exhausted all his trump cards, he might barely manage a desperate struggle, but he would inevitably pay the price of severe injury.

Therefore, before the arrival of the God-Slaying Assembly, he had to break through to the Marrow-cleansing realm. Only by reaching the Marrow-cleansing realm would he have some confidence in achieving remarkable results in this God-Slaying Assembly.

With this thought in mind, Long Yun did not delay. The best place to break through amidst battle was the sea; he was heading to the sea to seek his chance for a breakthrough.

Early the next morning, Long Yun left a letter and departed the Qu family on his own. The Profound Heaven Realm bordered the vast ocean. When Long Yun first came to the Profound Heaven Realm, it was because he had instigated a conflict between a race of the sea and the Liu family of the Profound Heaven Realm, taking advantage of the chaos to slay the Liu family's founding ancestor.

This caused the Liu family to lose its only spiritual pillar, plunging their strength drastically and ruining their status in Central City. Back then, Long Yun had already sneaked into the ocean depths once.

This time, he once again arrived at the ocean. Gazing at the boundless sea that met the horizon in the distance, Long Yun felt his mind expansively influenced by the sheer scale, instantly washing over him with a sense of liberation and ease.

The sea breeze continuously whipped against him, leaving Long Yun in a slight daze. Just as rivers converge into the vast sea, holding all things within its boundless capacity, if the human meridians are winding rivers, then the Dantian is the ocean before his eyes.

No matter how fiercely true qi surges through the meridians, it ultimately returns to serene tranquility just like long rivers flowing into the sea, and true qi is no exception.

"The Dragon God integrated his body with the Dao and created this Dragon Realm, but the scene I witnessed that day depicted the Dragon God creating living beings, while this world already possessed existence itself!" Long Yun murmured softly.

Just like the ocean before him, it had always existed, yet no one knew of its existence until one day, humans discovered the ocean and planted the seeds of life within it. Only then did the ocean truly become the cradle of life, but the one who planted the seeds of life was not the one who created the ocean!

This goes to show that world creation is not merely creation; on the contrary, creation encompasses world creation!