Southern Wilderness.

Cao Ya traversed the depths of the void, yet his gaze could pierce through nothingness and look directly at the southern wilderness.

Unlike the vast regions of the Central Plains, East China Sea, and Western Regions, where dynasties, sects, and aristocratic families held sway over the world, the Southern Wilderness presented a completely different picture.

Several years ago, on Cao Ya's advice, Qi Zhengyan came to the sparsely populated Southern Wilderness, where there were few powerful forces, and began to promote his ideas.

As heaven maintains vigor through movement, a gentleman should constantly strive for self-improvement!

Everyone is equal, and the world is one!

In other regions, powerful forces with high-ranking masters or Grandmasters at the peak of the Outer Realm are always high above, looking down on the world. They strictly control the learning of any martial arts, and as for peerless divine weapons, only one or two out of a thousand or ten thousand people can learn them.

If a powerful individual from a non-affiliated background were to rise to prominence, they would be targeted and suppressed by the authorities!

While it wouldn't be accurate to say that the martial arts world was stagnant, the monopolistic position of the major powers was very obvious and almost unshakeable!

Ordinary people, if they are unwilling to accept their fate and want to turn their lives around, can basically only pray that they possess a talent that is one in a million, a once-in-a-century occurrence!

But the Southern Wilderness is different.

To be precise, the Southern Wilderness was like this before, until Qi Zhengyan came south from the Central Plains and came to the Southern Wilderness to spread his ideas. Only then did the Southern Wilderness change dramatically and become worlds apart from other regions.

Under Qi Zhengyan's rule, there was no discrimination. Regardless of background, everyone was treated equally. Anyone who wanted to learn martial arts could receive the basic manual of an unparalleled divine skill, which was distributed free of charge.

As long as you work hard and persevere, no matter how long it takes, once you pass the tests of both mind and body, you can be passed on to the next level of peerless divine skills, the Outer Realm Chapter, and even... the Dharma Body Chapter!

With such behavior, Qi Zhengyan could not gain favor with either the righteous or the demonic factions in the world. He was branded the "Demon Emperor" and was besieged and hated by many powerful forces of both good and evil.

Qi Zhengyan's sect, the Huanhua Sword Sect, was originally one of the major martial arts sects in the world, belonging to the righteous path. After Qi Zhengyan went south to the Southern Wilderness and began to spread his ideas, the Huanhua Sword Sect, upon hearing the news, immediately expelled Qi Zhengyan, denouncing him as a heretic. They even summoned their sect's divine weapon, carried by a Grandmaster at the peak of the Outer Realm, to forcibly kill Qi Zhengyan and wash away the sect's shame.

As a result, Qi Zhengyan dodged several times, but didn't see a single Grandmaster of the Huanhua Sword Sect.

Moreover, they were from the same sect, and Qi Zhengyan had been his junior brother. The Grandmaster of the Huanhua Sword Sect was unwilling to be enemies with Qi Zhengyan, but the sect had requirements, so he had to put on a show.

Naturally, he wouldn't attack any of the martial artists under Qi Zhengyan's command in the Southern Wilderness.

Since then, the disciples of the Huanhua Sword Sect have been ashamed to mention Qi Zhengyan!

However, as Qi Zhengyan's ideas spread, their progressiveness, creativity, and excellent thought attracted countless rising stars in the underworld, countless poor students, countless ordinary people, and countless seasoned veterans who had been navigating the underworld for years without achieving anything...

These people, whether hiding their identities, changing their appearances, or acting openly, all headed to the Southern Wilderness.

Batch after batch, in countless numbers!

Of the five regions of the real world—East, South, West, North, and Central—only the Southern Wilderness is the most prosperous and flourishing!

If Cao Ya hadn't had so many concerns, he would have already moved the Shaolin Temple to the Southern Wilderness.

Shaolin disagreed? Then he left on his own.

He traversed the void and looked out over the southern wilderness, where some were felling trees and others were mining, all sweating profusely with resolute expressions.

They were originally deprived of martial arts, located at the very bottom of the world, and suffered endless oppression. Now that they finally have the opportunity to come into contact with peerless divine skills and receive unreserved instruction, they naturally want to make the most of this opportunity.

Moreover, this kind of work has mandatory and reasonable time requirements, and is not oppressive.

After discussing with Qi Zhengyan, Cao Ya proposed the "Martial Arts Hall," where practicing martial arts would be free of charge, and entering the Scripture Pavilion to browse other martial arts would also be free.

The Martial Arts Academy only provides basic support for paths that require various external resources, such as alchemy, weapon crafting, and talisman making. Other resources must be obtained through labor such as guarding the herb garden, collecting minerals, repairing bridges and roads, and teaching.

The Southern Wilderness is vast, and there is plenty of work to be done. As long as you work hard, everyone has a chance, and everyone is equal.

This southern wilderness, unlike any other region in the world, brought joy to most of the lower and middle classes, but terrified the upper classes, who feared it like a raging flood or a ferocious beast.

If it weren't for Qi Zhengyan's own strength, ranking second on the Earthly Ranking, possessing the Demon Emperor's Claw and being fearless against ordinary Dharma Bodies, plus Cao Ya's secret support and assistance...

Otherwise, Qi Zhengyan's path would have been destroyed and trampled into ruins by various dynasties, sects, and aristocratic families as soon as it began, and he would have been severely slandered in history books, with mudslinging poured on him and even trying to erase all traces of his existence.

Cao Ya discovered that an invisible red light was rising from the people who were full of vigor, hope, and hard work, and it formed a red current that submerged the southern wilderness.

Halfway up a precipitous peak, Qi Zhengyan, after writing extensive notes, suddenly felt something and came out of the house. The people he met on the road greeted him with genuine smiles and exceptional respect.

Qi Zhengyan walked past with a smile and came to the edge of the cliff. He saw that the invisible red stream that had submerged the Southern Wilderness had actually separated a part of itself. It was still as vast as a river and rushed towards Qi Zhengyan, wrapping around the terrifying black and evil demonic claw on his right hand.

The Demon Emperor's Claw, which had been agitated once again, suddenly weakened and became controllable by Qi Zhengyan.

"This peerless weapon is precious, but for you, it's a burden." Suddenly, a sigh rang out.

Qi Zhengyan gently stroked the Demon Emperor's Claw on his right hand with his left hand, smiled slightly, and said:

"The incorruptible Arhat, you have arrived."

Silently, the void cracked open, and Cao Ya stepped out from the depths, standing side by side with Qi Zhengyan, gazing at the southern wilderness, where a vibrant scene of life unfolded.

A smile couldn't help but appear on his face.

"Huh?"

Qi Zhengyan exclaimed in surprise, suddenly noticing that the Demon Emperor's Claw trembled. It wasn't aimed at him, nor at the crimson torrents, but at Cao Ya, who had suddenly appeared beside him... No! Upon closer inspection, Qi Zhengyan realized that the Demon Emperor's Claw wasn't targeting Cao Ya at all, but rather something Cao Ya was carrying!

He turned his head and happened to see the Samsara Seal that Cao Ya was holding in his hand, and was immediately stunned.

"The Reincarnation Seal?" Qi Zhengyan exclaimed in surprise. How could this peerless divine weapon have been obtained by the Undying Arhat so quietly?!

After a moment of surprise, Qi Zhengyan was genuinely happy for the Undying Arhat.

"It seems that Zhang Yuanshan and Fu Zhenzhen are about to be awakened to their past," Qi Zhengyan said. He guessed that the Reincarnation Seal was a treasure that the Undying Arhat obtained when he helped Meng Qi and Jiang Zhiwei.

Once the crisis is over, Meng Qi and his companions will naturally not miss this opportunity and will definitely ask the Undying Arhat to search for their old friend's reincarnation.

For him, this was also an old friend, and he felt happy.

The Demon Emperor's Claw does not have this function!