Longevity, starting from being a chicken raising servant Chapter 2357 - 87: Soothing (2)

Under the steady gaze from Wang Ba, he paused briefly before continuing:

"If it were outside, it could require seven or eight thousand years, or perhaps even ten thousand years."

To his astonishment, Wang Ba didn't show the relief he anticipated after hearing the reply; instead, he furrowed his brow:

"It still demands that much time?"

"Is that even considered long?"

Taoist Man found himself speechless for a moment at those words.

He had persisted in the Immortal Forbidden Land for endless years, and in his mind, as long as ascension to The Heavens was possible, whether it took a thousand years or ten thousand, even a hundred thousand or a million, it would all be worthwhile to endure.

But he couldn't fathom why the other seemed so pressed for haste.

Wang Ba offered no further clarification, having just arrived back in the Sea of Chaos Realm with plenty of matters demanding his attention.

At that moment, Gan Xiong, who had observed from a distance, approached swiftly, offering a salute with his hand raised to Wang Ba, his voice carrying an unusual level of deference and caution:

"Gan Xiong pays respects to Taoist Master Taiyi."

"Taoist Friend Gan, you're being overly courteous. With me absent these past days, it must have been tough for you managing the Three Great Camps."

Wang Ba snapped out of his thoughts and replied the greeting with a warm smile.

Given Chong Hua’s formidable power, no one in the Three Great Camps dared to challenge him.

Chong Hua practiced the True Martial path, excelling in spell battles like none other, yet he fell short when it came to instructing cultivators in their cultivation. Taoist Man possessed sharp insight and mastery in various Dharma techniques, but assigning him to mentor these Outer World Cultivators was like squandering his gifts; regrettably, his early lack of prestige failed to win over the cultivators from the Three Great Camps.

Gan Xiong, as a practitioner of the Wonderful Feeling Realm and the Realm Master of the Holy Desecration Realm, carried the authority needed to command submission from these Outer World Cultivators.

Gan Xiong humbly insisted he didn't deserve such praise, and noticing Wang Ba held no disdain toward him even after his own cultivation had surged ahead, a rare grin appeared on his face as he murmured:

"I haven't expressed my gratitude to Taoist Friend Yu Yu yet; without her, our Holy Desecration Realm might still be tormented by the Immortal Eye..."

His emotions swirled in complexity at that thought.

The golden-red blood orb that had haunted the Holy Desecration Realm for so long unleashed terrifying might in this young woman's grasp, especially since it contained a top-grade Dao Treasure. How could he avoid a twinge of regret?

Little Cang World’s power expanded relentlessly, Taoist Master Taiyi’s incarnation, Taoist Master Chong Hua, wielded unfathomable strength, and then there was the near-ascendant Mahayana Cultivator Taoist Man residing in Little Cang World. Witnessing it all, Gan Xiong felt whatever resentment or reluctance bubbling up could only dissolve into a quiet sigh in solitude.

Who, if given the choice, would wish to linger in another's overshadowing presence?

Despite his solid bond with Wang Ba and the warm alliance with Little Cang World, he recognized that as Little Cang World advanced further, the Holy Desecration Realm would inevitably forfeit its parity and slowly turn into a subordinate realm. As Realm Master, how could he accept such a fate?

It might not stem from ill intent, just a refusal to lag behind.

This resistance persisted right up until now, when he beheld Wang Ba's return from beyond the Sea of Chaos Realm, witnessed the prowess shown by Taoist Master Chong Hua, and observed the interactions between Taoist Master Man and Wang Ba... in that quiet instant, it faded entirely away.

Wang Ba remained unaware of Gan Xiong’s inner turmoil, but he grasped the right path forward clearly, and responding to his words, he shook his head while saying:

"Taoist Friend, that's not accurate. Without your realm, Yu Yu couldn't have advanced this far."

With those words, he reached into his sleeve, retrieved two objects, and offered them directly to Gan Xiong.

Gan Xiong froze in surprise, his eyes locking onto the two items, unable to hide his shock:

"Top-grade Dao Treasures?! This... Taoist Friend Taiyi, what is the meaning of this?"

Wang Ba grinned and explained:

"The item Yu Yu refined is the Immortal Eye, immensely potent and worthy of being called a treasure; within the eye lies a real fire staff, another treasure. Yu Yu claimed these two treasures, and unsure how to repay her, I decided to match it with these two Dao Treasures. As for the Blood Pupils Skill she gained from you, think of it as extra; Taoist Friend, you can't demand it back now."

"This..."

Gan Xiong stood there dumbfounded, never imagining the other would prove so magnanimous.

While he hesitated in a stupor, the two Dao Treasures were already pressed into his palms.

He moved to decline them.

But Wang Ba’s earnest words echoed beside him:

"Truth be told, we did benefit from the Holy Desecration Realm, but I believe Little Cang World and Holy Desecration Realm have faced trials together, like brother realms, no reason to separate sharply... I've come back this time, but I won't stay long before departing the Sea of Chaos Realm once more; by then, Taoist Friend can dispatch people or come along yourself."

Gan Xiong’s thoughts jolted, pulling him from his daze:

"Leave the Sea of Chaos Realm?! Me, can I join as well?"

"Naturally, though I've only just returned, so details aren't set; I request Taoist Friend Gan keep this under wraps for the moment."

Wang Ba stated gravely.

Upon hearing that, Gan Xiong brimmed with both shock and joy, refusing no longer this time, stowing away the two Dao Treasures from Wang Ba and bowing deeply once again: "Taoist Friend’s generosity, I, Gan, will engrave it in my heart eternally!"

Wang Ba lightly steadied him with a hand, smiling as his voice overflowed with genuine warmth:

"In the past, when Taoist Friend Gan handed over all the gathered heritages of the Holy Desecration Realm to me, he sought nothing in return. Fellow Daoists, there's no need to cling to formal customs."

If others respect me a foot, I return a yard.

Back then, Gan Xiong alone among the Three Great Realms extended kindness to Wang Ba and Little Cang World, and now he surely wouldn't let that goodwill go unrewarded.

Sensing the genuine equality in Wang Ba’s words, Gan Xiong felt deeply touched, and in this instant, he yielded completely in both heart and mind.