Entering the Mountain Moving Realm meant that one had stepped onto the Great Dao.
The broad path opening before you leads directly to the Sea of Consciousness, taking you to the next level - the Sea Inversing Realm.
Cultivators of the Sea Inversing Realm would upturn the Sea of Consciousness, dividing it into nine parts. After inverting nine parts, they would complete the great achievement of the Sea Inversing Realm, and could become king in the starry sky.
The Heaven Mending Realm had the suffix “Sovereign”. For example, when Chen Xia reached the Heaven Mending Realm, he would become the Human Sovereign or Xia Sovereign.
Upon reaching the Heaven Mending Realm, one could already attain an unordinary status in a region of the starry sky, occupying a planet and establishing their own sect.
But Chen Xia was only at the Mountain Moving Realm for now, so he was nothing much.
Yet the Mountain Moving Realm had a unique supernatural ability—the external incarnation.
The incarnation would possess 40% of the main body’s strength, carrying 30% of the primordial spirit.
However, some cultivators who specialized in incarnations could push an extra 10% of strength, adding up to a round 40%, which was like having two main bodies attacking at once.
Of course Chen Xia couldn't do that yet. His external incarnation was still condensing, and would need more time before he could use it.
The heavy snow that had fallen for three years vanished without a trace.
Chen Xia tidied his sleeves and stood alone next to the pavilion, his expression calm.
Even in an ordinary human’s lifetime of a hundred fleeting years, there would be many “scenes” along the way.
People or events.
There would always be things worth reminiscing, and the older one got, the more there were to reminisce about.
Perhaps there would even be another person to grow old together with, to see who would send the other off first.
To raise children, live out one's years in peace, and die of old age in bed.
This was an ordinary human's life, and even most cultivators' lives.
But it had nothing to do with Chen Xia.
In his life there were no descendants. The people in his life...
Were all just passersby.
The three years of heavy snow were a fitting metaphor.
After all, the four seasons in the Blue Sky Sword Sea were too similar, with even a slight warmth considered summer.
The Old Fisherman was also watching the snow, or rather, watching the person in the snow.
Until the flurries stopped abruptly when Chen Xia took that step.
The Old Fisherman's eyes lit up. He knew this signified enlightenment and breaking through the bottleneck.
Then the aura of the Mountain Moving Realm suddenly surged out, melting away the three years of heavy snow.
One step from the Yuan Ying stage to the Mountain Moving Realm.
The Old Fisherman was slightly surprised. Though he didn't know whether Chen Xia had broken through to the early or mid stage of the Mountain Moving Realm, advancing in one step showed the outstanding potential of this descendant of Great Emperors.
He was even slightly stronger than the other two Great Emperor descendants.
Though only slightly.
The Old Fisherman pinched techniques with his hands, continuously calculating. There were only 20,000 years left until the arrival of the next great era.
In the 5,000 years before that, at the end of this great era, the entire starry sky would usher in a forbidden reckoning.
Great Emperors must preside!
The Old Fisherman suddenly sighed, his entire spirit deflated. He truly looked like a worn out old man, purse-lipped, hands behind his back, murmuring:
"All things under heaven, if not transcended, are fate. With my one life, I exchange your one life. Do not blame me."
Of course Chen Xia would not blame him, because he was already exchanging lives.
One hundred years of his, for twenty of the Old Fisherman's.
None of that wishy-washy nonsense - they would just see who died first.
After reaching the Mountain Moving Realm, he was even less willing to go out. He just lay flat in his room all day, mumbling nonsensically.
If he were still in the Qi Condensation Realm, he might still take walks and go fishing, exercising his mind a bit.
Too bad he was at the Mountain Moving Realm now. He just wanted to lay down; even taking a step felt tiring.
Since Chen Xia didn't go out, the dogs would naturally come knocking.
Big Yellow Dog came twice every month, on the 7th and 21st, as punctual as a woman's menstruation.
What's more, Big Yellow Dog was very polite. It would only softly knock three times, then quietly wait without knocking again.
Chen Xia was also a polite person, so he would go open the door for Big Yellow Dog.
Big Yellow Dog's outfit today was much better than before. For example, it was wearing monk robes.
A dog in monk robes.
Chen Xia really didn't know what to say. After a long stunned moment, he managed to give a tactful response:
"Have you considered becoming a fashion guru?"
The corners of Big Yellow Dog's mouth curled up ingratiatingly, completely at odds with its attire. It asked Chen Xia:
"Bro, can I come in and meditate?"
It was truly very polite before Chen Xia.
Chen Xia didn't refuse either, just curiously asked: "Where did you get those monk robes?"
Big Yellow Dog swished its robes and replied with a smile: "Borrowed them from an ancient Black Bear Demon. It had a lot more of these monk robes. I figured since I was going to meditate, I should wear work clothes."
"I see, I see." Chen Xia nodded. When faced with things he didn't want to judge, this was his go-to response.
Big Yellow Dog straightened its posture, puffed out its chest, and solemnly stepped into Chen Xia's abode. Then it swished its robes and lifted its butt, sitting down to meditate.
A perfect imitation of humans.
This was the most apt description of Big Yellow Dog.
Big Yellow Dog sat meditating on the white jade cushion while Chen Xia sprawled lazily nearby.
Neither spoke a word, the scene quiet yet somehow intimate.
After all, watching a dog meditate was not an everyday occurrence.
Their back-and-forth exchanges over the years had built up some rapport between man and beast, and they both had long lives ahead. It was rather nice.
Big Yellow Dog's outfits changed frequently. Maybe because of Chen Xia's comments, it paid close attention to how it dressed itself up.
Though the results were somewhat eccentric.
For example, one day Big Yellow Dog came wearing a red shirt, shorts, and a straw hat.
Chen Xia felt it was familiar and asked where it had found the outfit.
Big Yellow Dog crossed its paws over its chest and snorted disdainfully through its long snout:
"Some brat was spouting nonsense about becoming the king of the starry sky. I stripped him directly. His techniques are laughable, able to stretch out his body. Hilarious."
Chen Xia patted Big Yellow Dog's shoulder and kindly advised:
"If someone comes looking for you for that hat in the future, you should return it."
"Oh." Big Yellow Dog nodded.
These were just interludes between man and dog, adding spice to their long dull days, otherwise life would be too boring.
Big Yellow Dog's limbs were not very clean.
It would often do sneaky things, like stealing other people's clothes to wear.
But there really weren't many valuable things in the Blue Sky Sword Sea for Big Yellow Dog to steal.
Anything precious was guarded tightly.
What Big Yellow Dog managed to steal were little trinkets that other cultivators didn't care for.
Yet Big Yellow Dog was still very happy about it, sometimes even letting out howls of excitement.
What to say...
Chen Xia felt that when stealing things, it was best to not howl.
Because then it wouldn't count as stealing anymore.
It could be called by another term.
Robbing.
Big Yellow Dog got beaten up a lot for these things, but showed no remorse at all. In its own words, it only borrowed things and never stole anything.
After all, it let out howls during the process - that counted as an application to borrow things.
The junior disciples all said Big Yellow Dog's limbs were not very clean.
But in all these decades, Big Yellow Dog had never stolen a single thing from Chen Xia.
Not one bit.