Once the Little Stone Essence was familiar with its Rank 3 power, Qi Ping controlled his Treant Clone to lead the stone essence in a search for a suitable location for his second base.
His true body remained in the territory, using the Fire Spirit Pearl to comprehend the Intent of Fire. It contained the fire Daoist rhymes left by Ye Yanwu, which could accelerate Qi Ping's comprehension.
Aside from that, the scene of Wang He's enlightenment and breakthrough in Starfall City had also given Qi Ping considerable insight. He had been reflecting on that moment recently.
'It's just a pity I can't fully understand Senior Brother Wang He's state of mind and insights. Once he handles the sect's affairs and I return to study the archives and use the treasury, I'll ask to discuss the Dao with him!'
Gaining insight into the Dao-Heart was the most difficult task. Qi Ping felt that if he could discuss it with Wang He, he might find the opportunity to break through to the Third Stage of the Dao-Heart sooner. This concerned his path to immortality, so Qi Ping wouldn't let pride stop him from asking for help.
Moreover, he truly admired someone who could comprehend the Heavenly Heart Sword Intent and achieve perfect fusion with Universal Justice. Such a person was destined to be a pillar of the Qingyuan Sect and the Qingtian Domain.
And if not for Wang He, Qi Ping would not only have missed the Miraculous Tree of Heaven and Earth—the Yellow Spring Tree—but he would have even lost the Sky-Flame Seal, to say nothing of the knowledge and opportunities within the sect.
For both personal and professional reasons, he would keep this debt of gratitude in his heart.
'I'll repay this favor when the chance arises. For now, I must continue comprehending the laws. Yin and Yang, the five elements generating and merging... if I can comprehend the Second Stage of the Fire Law, it will help me grasp the other law intents faster...'
The path of cultivation was not easy; one needed persistence, a clear heart, and profound insight.
...
On the other side, Qi Ping and the Little Stone Essence quickly began their search through the depths of the Qingtian Domain.
In truth, the underground world held more opportunities and hidden treasures than the surface.
While the frequency of spiritual items appearing underground was far lower than on the surface, they were preserved better because searching for them was so difficult.
Due to the presence of various hard ores and numerous dangers, even Foundation Establishment cultivators found it difficult to search underground and risked their lives in doing so!
Overall, the difficulty was too high, and the potential profit wasn't enough to drive Golden Core cultivators to spend massive amounts of energy searching.
Many ancient records mentioned that the underground world produced extraordinary spirit items, such as the Soul of the Yin God, the Core of the Earth Vein...
But they also recorded the emergence of terrifying demonic insects from the depths...
During this exploration, an idea began to take root in Qi Ping's mind:
'Can I build a supreme subterranean fortress that belongs only to me?'
A place that human cultivators hadn't fully developed would be the perfect place for him to expand and grow.
'With Little Stone's help, it won't be hard to carve out space in the underground world...'
'And the Little Immortal Tiger—as a beast of fortune, it can help me find opportunities and sense danger ahead of time...'
Thinking of this, Qi Ping immediately returned to fetch the little tiger.
Since the Cloud-Dream Immortal Tiger was a beast of fortune, seeking out fortuitous encounters would accelerate its bloodline's growth. And wouldn't the combination of the tiger and the stone essence be the ultimate underground exploration team?
Otherwise, it would be a waste not to use their abilities...
'But if I truly want to build a subterranean fortress, it would be best to contract another group-based, soil-attribute subterranean creature. Like the bees, I need an army of explorers to truly build this fortress...'
With this in mind, Qi Ping had a candidate for his next soil or wood-attribute animal companion contract:
A soil-attribute, colony-dwelling subterranean demonic insect!
'Maybe I can create a subterranean fortress that covers the entire Qingtian Domain, or even larger...'
'And given the complexity of the underground world, it will be much easier to escape or hide in the future...'
For some reason, Qi Ping felt a surge of excitement and anticipation for the underground world.
Perhaps it was because the underground held infinite possibilities and wasn't restricted by powerful cultivators...
...
With the little tiger in tow, Qi Ping followed the stone essence in a rapid exploration of the subterranean world.
To Qi Ping's surprise, while digging tunnels, the Little Stone Essence actually comprehended the "Stone Warp" ability!
With Stone Warp, its speed was even faster than when it ran on the surface—and this was while it was carrying both the tiger and Qi Ping.
"As expected, for a stone essence, the rocky depths are its natural environment..."
Trying to fight the Little Stone Essence underground would be nearly impossible without overwhelming strength. The mere hardness of the subterranean rocks would be enough to give any Golden Core cultivator a headache...
However, the stone essence also encountered trouble when it hit areas made purely of soil, where its movement became restricted.
This reinforced Qi Ping's belief that to build a fortress, he needed a soil-attribute, colony-based companion.
As the stone essence led them in their rapid search, they soon discovered all sorts of things in the underground world...
There were Foundation Establishment subterranean worms, Black Crystal Spiders, Lava Snakes... and even the so-called subterranean disaster, the Demonic Ants...
"So many diverse subterranean creatures... some aren't even mentioned in the records..."
Qi Ping was stunned.
The number of species he saw just now exceeded a hundred thousand!
"The underground world has such a rich ecosystem!"
Although most were weak, the presence of spiritual energy meant that the subterranean world held infinite potential...
"I wonder if I can find a suitable soil-attribute companion here?"
Qi Ping felt it was possible. Given the size of the Qingtian Domain's underground, finding a good companion was highly likely.
'And...'
He looked at the little tiger.
'With the tiger's luck and my own favor from heaven and earth, as long as we search the entire domain, finding one companion shouldn't be too much to ask, right?'
With that hope, he began to search even harder.
His Druid level was also nearing a breakthrough, and he precisely needed a new animal companion.
Thus, his goal shifted from simply finding a base to also finding a suitable new companion...